The last class choice puzzled Orion for a while. It wasn’t that he couldn’t understand why he’d gotten it, since he had certainly spent enough time around witches of the Lunar Sanctum and the worship of the Moon Mother, but while for every other class, he could identify one moment that triggered it, for this, he could only assume it was a collective result. It was either that, or the place where he began the rank-up process, but that had many implications he wasn’t sure how to handle, the least of which was his mother wanting to give him this option.
If I couldn’t stay awake for any reason, would this be the class assigned to me? Is it the last one on the list, or the one that’s most suitable for the person?
He didn’t know. Worse, he doubted he’d ever find out, considering how intensely personal this kind of business was.
Approved for Class Selection [Lucent Thaumaturge] [B-rank]
[Lucent Thaumaturge]: One of the Moon-Mother’s top arcanists, operating at the edge between the seen and the hidden, using sacred light to defend, restrict, and silence hostile forces. Magecraft is expressed as a rite. Faith enhances technique; technique refines faith.
+10 Mind, +10 Attunement, +10 Body. +8 Mind per level, +8 Attunement per level, +1 Body per level.
Traits: Light Communion [B-rank]: Establish a sanctified perimeter that suppresses enemy spell components and boosts allied light-typed spells inside.
Silver Aegis [B-rank]: Transform photonic output into advanced barriers; grants the caster vastly increased control of defensive light magics.
Mana Manipulation [B-rank]: The ability to interact with Mana, to impose one’s will upon the World.
It wasn’t a bad class. If Orion hadn’t been who he was and had truly been a son of the Lunar Sanctum, untainted by a life lived in a different world, this could have been seen as a great blessing.
He wondered just how common it was for a man to even be offered this kind of class. He certainly couldn’t recall seeing anything like it, and even Bartholomew, who was a B-rank white mage, didn’t have anything as impressive as this.
This was clearly a class deeply rooted in the worship of the Moon Mother, and if he took it, Orion knew he would cause a lot of chaos in the Sanctum. Scriptures would have to be revisited, old beliefs dusted off, and brought into the light.
It would be a clear sign of the Moon’s blessing, marking him as an almost sacred figure.
He was tempted to take it, solely because of the pain it would cause Morliana.
But ultimately, this wasn’t the person he wanted to become. Orion suspected his mother’s meddling played a role in helping him get into this class, though she might not have foreseen the incredible opportunity it would bring. Even though turning it down felt like rejecting her, he refused to force himself into a shape he couldn’t accept.
Would she really want me to take this when there's a class that fits me much better? She probably did this to give me as many high-quality options as possible, not to impose her will on mine.
Waving [Lucent Thaumaturge] away with only a slight ache for what might have been, Orion brought [Causal Epistemologist] back to the forefront.
It was a major leap across the entire board, and he could hardly contain his excitement at the thought of using [Hypotheticism] to decipher all the monstrously powerful magic pieces that had surrounded him during his stay in Valderun, which had remained out of his reach simply because he lacked a sufficiently strong analysis skill.
Now, even beyond the significant boost from a B-rank trait, which was nearly impossible to compare to a C-rank one, he would still be able to learn from observing magics outside his tier.
I can already picture a dozen ways this would enhance my current repertoire and the synergy it would create with the new iteration of my SDGs once I get around to developing them.
That alone made choosing this class worth it, and it was only one part of what it would bring him.
And so, with more than a little trepidation in his heart, Orion let the System know his answer and braced himself.
Last time, the pain had been so severe that his mind had quickly become overwhelmed, but so far, his experience had only been mild discomfort, which made him think that the pain wouldn’t be that bad.
The pressure, which was just an annoyance before, suddenly spiked tenfold, crushing any hope he might have had.
His consciousness wavered as lines of fire started to spread beneath his skin. His mind cracked open as the infinite power of the System poured more of itself into him, transforming what was already there into a more perfect version of itself, giving him what he needed to go beyond his limits.
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Throughout the process, Orion stayed aware, caught in a constant limbo of pain and the understanding that everything happening to him was making him better.
It was like pulling a thorn from his foot, but multiplied many times over, yet at the same time not at all, because more and more was added to who he was. What he was.
Finally, he could take it no longer. He felt full, fuller than he had words to describe, and he knew that a iota more would mean irreparable damage, and he shook his head, or at least thought about doing it.
The system seemed to sense the same thing, so its grip loosened. But instead of releasing him, it wrapped him in a warm, comforting embrace, so soothing that Orion nearly let his consciousness drift off.
Stubbornness and an intense craving to know kept him awake through it all, and he tracked every change, every action the System took to embed the changes it had made to his soul.
As the process continued, Orion felt his ability to gather information grow, even before his new traits activated, and started seeing much more.
Mana in its purest form, untainted by elemental affinities, and guided by a perfect hand, filled the cracks in his soul, plugging gaps and reinforcing structures he couldn’t fully comprehend, but that he could nonetheless notice now.
Eventually, even that process ended, and he was left drifting in the void as the System started to pull away.
“Thank you,” he found the strength to mutter.
Nothing answered. Of course, it wouldn’t. But he still felt it needed to be said.
The next time he opened his eyes, he was back in the cave. The moonlight had disappeared, leaving a shadowy glow, with the only sources of light being the crystalline structures, but even they seemed dimmer now, as if part of their power had been drained.
Perhaps that was what had occurred. After all, the power to generate a B-rank class choice had to originate from somewhere, and the crystals served as ideal repositories.
Taking a deep breath, Orion raised his gaze and met his mother’s.
He could see the realization in her eyes that he hadn’t followed the path she set for him, but a wave of pride quickly overshadowed that moment, and she was quick to lift him into her arms, gently cradling his head against her chest.
“Congratulations, moonbeam. I knew you could do it.”
Orion would have asked what she thought he had done beyond the absolute necessity, but a glance over her shoulder at a gaping Pauline told him the process wasn’t quite that simple.
“Did something strange happen?” He asked into Asteria’s shoulder.
She shook with mirth, chuckling softly, then pulled away while still holding his arms. “That’s an understatement, if there ever was one. Tier two rank-ups are usually only mildly impressive events, since the power brought to bear by the System isn’t all that much. Let’s just say yours was quite something, alright?”
Having seen his mother’s rank up, he knew it could be impressive, but he hadn’t realized that reaching B-rank would be so noticeable.
He sighed and shrugged. “Well, it worked out fine.”
“I’m sure it did,” she replied, finally letting him go. “You should take a moment to acclimate to the changes. I know it took me several days, and while getting to tier two isn’t quite as violent, people usually need a few hours to feel normal again.”
Orion opened his mouth to deny her and say he was fine, but that would have been a lie. He could tell several things had changed, and spending some time reacquainting himself sounded just right.
With a grateful nod in her direction and one last amused glance at Pauline, who had finally composed herself, Orion invoked his status.
ORION A. VOIDWALKER
Class: [Causal Epistemologist] [B-rank]
Level: 50
Mind: 202
Attunement: 192
Body: 27
Traits: Mana Manipulation [B-rank]; Hypotheticism [B-rank]; Falsifiability Criterion [B-rank]
Unlike last time, he didn’t have deferred experience to suddenly grant him new levels, but Orion still felt the changes were enough to justify some introspection.
Most immediately, his Body score had increased significantly. It was still small compared to his other stats, fitting for a purely magic and mind-based class, but he could feel the new strength flowing through his limbs, and he knew that if he pushed himself, he could easily match, if not surpass, what most professional athletes back on Earth had been capable of.
Compared to what even a squire of the Radiant Vigil could do, it wasn’t much, but to him, it felt like day and night.
In fact, I think I can now handle sleepless nights a lot better. Oh, this could be dangerous.
His two other main stats also improved from the one-time bonus he received for getting a B-rank class. It wouldn’t make a huge difference compared to what he could do before, but once he got a few levels under his belt, they would quickly allow him to surpass his previous capabilities.
And then, there were the real gains from the whole ordeal.
[Mana Manipulation] at C-rank had been enough for him to cast tier two spells while being tier one. At B-rank, it gave him confidence and control over the mystical energy, making him sure he could summon a [Gamma Ray] and keep it fully focused on the target.
That might not be a good idea since I’m in a cave, but a small test wouldn’t hurt.
Without bothering to reach for the CC, Orion activated the formula for [Infinite Laser] and felt the difference immediately.
First of all, the draw from the Mana Field was smoother. There was no need to fight resistance or overly complicate his life with crystal refraction. His will was executed cleanly, and the spell was cast without a hitch, despite it being the first time he cast after his change.
Taking aim at a crystal formation across the cave, Orion made a gun with his fingers and fired. “Pew!”
The stack vanished, obliterated with enough force to tunnel a dozen feet through the cave walls.
Orion stopped the spell before it could go that far. The execution was instant, but once he realized what would happen, he was able to dissipate it into the Field without any trouble.
The end result was still pretty remarkable. Silvery water frothed where there had once been a crystal, and the wall behind it only showed a faint scorch mark, untouched beyond that.
The other two traits would need more testing before he felt confident using them in the field, but he couldn’t help himself.
[Hypotheticism], even in its passive form, was already proving its worth, and he barely needed to direct it for it to cut through the unnatural shroud of darkness and reveal its origin as a natural spell formation born from the constant absorption of natural light by the crystals.
At his command, [Falsifiability Criterion] confronted that darkness with his new understanding and tore it apart.
All of a sudden, the crystals' light traveled much farther, and the endless gloom over the cave was gone, just like that.
This is... I need to test it out with [Null Light], but I might have a way to keep my edge even against the opponents I’ll face from now on.
