Ch10

I opened my class advancement menu to see what I had available, and sure enough, I found several things worthy of note.

[Celestial Harbinger]

The Celestial Harbinger is a sign of disaster to come. Woe be to those who fail to prepare for the coming storm, for it will strike all with impunity and without discrimination. With powerful gravity magic and universal magic aptitude, the harbinger will be fighting at the heart of the chaos.

[Celestial Destroyer]

Secret Class Requirements:

• Possess maximum affinity for Atypical – Force and Arcane attributes.

• Possess at least high affinity for all base attributes.

• Possess a racial trait for sorcery.

• Possess at least five divine shards.

• Destroyed an army.

The Celestial Herald was a sign of destruction to come – and that destruction is here. The Celestial Destroyer specializes in mass destruction, crushing armies of enemies at a time. There is no where to run and no where to hide when the destroys sends the heavens themselves crash to the earth.

[Vanquisher of Evil]

Secret Class Requirements:

• Fought to save others' lives.

• Recognized by at least 100,000 individuals as a hero.

• Recognized as a force for good by the gods.

• Killed over ten thousand creatures with a forbidden rarity rank.

• Killed a demon lord seed.

Evil never rests. Fortunately, neither does the Vanquisher of Evil. Villains are right to tremble in fear when this champion of justice steps forth; with powerful abilities against holders of the forbidden rarity, it is suicidal for the wicked to make any decision besides fleeing as far as they could.

[Locked Class]

Secret Class Requirements:

• Can speak, read, and write fluently in an Akashic language.

• Possesses a minimum of high affinity for all attributes.

• Possesses at least five divine shards.

• Cast a spell with all base attributes using an advanced-grade magic circle.

• Has not evolved to rank A or above.

• Possesses a limit breaking skill or title. "...Well, isn't this ominous." I chuckled nervously.

***

Mom began brooding after I read the class descriptions for her. Eventually, she sighed.

"It deeply troubles me that even the system itself is giving you this kind of warning. Still, the only thing we can do is prepare you as best we can. You said something about a spell with all base attributes?"

I nodded.

"Yeah. It needs to use an advanced-grade magic circle too. Still, I wonder why it has that rank restriction." I said, chin in hand.

"That's likely because the rank A and rank S evolutions are significantly different from those that came before them." She said, falling back into a lecturing tone.

"Why's that? What's so special about them?"

"Remember when you killed the Crowned Frost Eagle? What did you find that was special in its body compared with other monsters you fought?"

My eyes widened, and I dug through my pocket to take out the answer. "The mana core!" I said, holding the snow-white gem in my hand. Mom smiled.

"That's right; While all living creatures possess mana cores, it's only in rank A and above that they begin to grow exponentially. Rank B and below creatures usually don't have the mana to cast an advanced-grade spell, which is likely why it'd be enough of an achievement to pull it off."

"Then what do we do? How am I supposed to get the mana to cast something like that?" At that, mom laughed.

"You're already there, sweety. Your black hole skill – and its advanced form – use an advanced- grade magic circle. What we said applies to normal below rank A creatures – you're a mythic rarity rank C creature. It's not surprising you already have enough mana. The bigger challenge will be creating a spell with the unique requirements the class needs, especially since you'll need to be the one testing it, given I don't have your affinity for all the attributes. Anyway, why don't you give me your armor and the mana core? I'll redo the enchantments to incorporate the feathers and the mana core over the next few days."

"Huh? But I wanted you to make my staff stronger with it!" I protested.

"Now, now, darling. I know the temptation of a froststone staff with a frost rank A mana core is strong, but that's only going to make your staff stronger at ice magic and weaker at everything else. Moreover, it's not your offensive magic that kept you alive this long, was it?"

I grumbled but conceded her point.

"Yeah, you're right. I relied on [Abyssal Cockroach] a few too many times."

"That's right. You can always simply run away and try again later when you come across an enemy you can't kill, but you can't come back from the dead. Not to worry, I've got something nice in mind for you. Why don't you go and change into some comfortable clothes instead of that rugged adventurer gear? I am sure you're tired and need to get some sleep. It's getting pretty late after all!"

***

The next day, I woke up late in the morning. I was so exhausted from the events of the past two weeks that I simply crashed into my bed without even changing. That made it strange

considering I was neatly tucked in bed, and the window which was definitely closed before I slept was wide open, letting in fresh air and warm sunlight.

I got up feeling exhausted, despite sleeping for many hours. Rubbing my eyes and scratching my tummy, I went to the closet to change into one of the pajamas I bought with Nico.

I stepped out of the room and went downstairs when mom called out to me.

"Morning, sleeping beauty! Breakfast's ready!"

"Yeah, yeah, sorry I slept in!" I yelled back.

I went down the stairs and into the dining room when mom came back with a plate in each hand. "You slept like a log last night. Eat well to rest and replenish your energy!" she said.

I took a seat as she laid a plate down in front of me. She hugged me and kissed my head before taking her own seat and laying down her plate. I took a look at mine. It was a weird and kind of gross-looking white circle with a yellow orb in the middle, sprinkled with salt and pepper. Next to it were a cheese sandwich and a few vegetables. I pointed to the white and yellow thing.

"What's that?"

"It's a fried egg sprinkled with salt and pepper, dear. Why don't you try it?" Skeptical, I did as she asked and used a fork and a knife to cut a small part and eat it. "How is it?" she said anxiously.

"It's delicious! I love it!" I said, digging into the rest of the food with gusto.

Minutes passed, and I was in pure food heaven. Mom is really, really, really, good at cooking, and today's breakfast was even better than yesterday's dinner.

I finished my plate and put down my utensils.

Mom wasn't eating her food; instead, she laid her head on an arm against the table as she stared at me with a warm smile.

"Aren't you hungry?" I asked.

"I am, but don't worry about it." She answered.

"The food's going to get cold, you know."

"Mhm."

"...Well, is something wrong? You're staring."

Mom's smile widened just a little.

"I love you, Kiara."

"Eh? What's brought this now?"

I felt my cheeks heating up.

"Moments like this, spending time with you as your mother... That's all I need, sweety. You'll understand if you end up having a child of your own one day."

"Stupid, stupid, stupid!" I said, looking away. I was feeling warm and fuzzy inside.

"Do you need seconds?"

"...Yeah, please."

***

A short while after that, I spent time talking with mom about silly things. Like that time in class when Jezibel chased a guy who owed her money around the school three times. Or the time Nisos begged Ati to lend him his bow for ranged combat class because he forgot his javelins, only to end up slapping himself with the bowstring. Or the time Nico got in a fight with a girl who said that her goddess was better than Nico's, only for them to become close friends after the fact.

I told the stories with a lot of emotions and hand waving, and mom sat on the opposing couch laughing at my clumsy reenactments. Before I knew it, a few hours passed, and the doorbell rang.

"Ah, look how quickly time passed by. Let's continue your stories later, Kiara." "Do you know who's at the door?" I asked.

"Why don't you go and find out?"

I got up and went to answer the door.

As I opened it and stepped out into the garden, I found Durreg waiting for me in front of the steel fence gate.

"Back already, cousin? I thought you'd left to the Serpent's Throat! Did you fail and come back already?" he teased with an obnoxious grin.

"Yeah, yeah, shut up, Durreg. I passed and I am home. What're you here for?"

Mom followed after me and put her hands on my shoulders.

"Why, your cousin's here to attend your magic lesson with you. It's about time we got started!"