The Shortcut to Power

It's Thursday.

Thomas Filmore challenged Rex Cranz on Monday, saying they'd duel next week. In other words, I only have three more days left. Three more days to surpass Rex—is it possible? I think I've pretty much reached the same point as Rex in the Great Dungeon, but in terms of levels and stats he's still better.

Ms. Clara said it on the first day, didn't she? Unlike Thomas, Rex has trained all his life, putting in his full effort every day. To surpass that, I'll have to reach far further than him in the Great Dungeon.

That's the only shortcut available to me.

I go to sleep with these thoughts, and the next day starts off the same as every other day since I arrived here. I wake up, receive the quest to attend class in two hours, and go to that class when the time comes.

Today it's math.

I don't even remember this being a class in Rising Hero, that's how little the story focused on it. The teacher is the same one as the monster physiology class, the plain woman with the ponytail and freckles. I learn in this class, when someone asks a question, that her name is Mrs. Bella.

I don't remember any complicated math from school, but thankfully, I don't need to. The math being taught here is the most basic of basics. Addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. I could do this stuff in my sleep.

All in all, it's a boring class, and as I'm watching Mrs. Bella go over multiplying two-digit numbers with two-digit numbers, my attention wanders. It's been like that in every class to be honest, I might have forgotten some things, but most of what is taught is stuff I've already learned while playing the game.

I look a few rows down, where Rex Cranz is sitting beside Claire Weiss. It's been three days since I last saw his stats, I'm starting to forget them.

Analyse.

-

Rex Cranz (Hero)

LVL 16

Con – 17

Str – 19

Dex – 16

Sta – 20

Mag – 14

Fai – 16

Skills:

?

-

A panic grips my heart and suddenly I find it difficult to breathe. Right, of course… if the dungeon is a shortcut for me, then it's a shortcut for Rex as well. He's levelled up since last time, and if I'm not remembering incorrectly, then the amount of stat points he gained from that single level up is far higher than me.

At this rate…

If I couldn't focus on class before, then I definitely can't now. Once class ends, I race out of the room and open my map. I scan it through, it should be here somewhere, the place to get everything I need: the item shop.

I find an icon shaped like a coin, the symbol for the item shop in the game, and make my way there. Just like in the game, it's just a window with the storeroom behind it. No one but the shop owners are allowed to enter, and the customers can browse the products by looking at the list posted beside the shop.

The clerk manning the store is the same one as in the game, Clarence. He's of a stocky build and constantly chews gum. Most noticeably, his hair is pink. I don't even know if that's a natural thing in this world.

He's leaning lazily against the window which serves as the counter, waiting for customers. I walk up to the list and look through it. Some of them jog my vague memories of the early parts of the game, but for now I'm only here for the items I'll need on the third floor.

"A guidance stone and four heat stones please," I request.

Clarence nods wordlessly, leaving the counter for a bit. He returns with five stones in hand. The heat stones are red and jagged, while the guidance stone is grey and shaped like a perfect circle.

"Five gold," Clarence says in a bored tone.

I idly wonder how much that's worth in my world, in any currency. I doubt it's worth same as actual gold. In any case, it doesn't matter, Thomas has more than enough gold to spare, I found a drawer in his room full of money.

Perks of being a noble.

I pull out five gold coins from my pocket and put it on the table, and as I'm picking up the stones, I consider something. I might be acting a bit too thrifty, it's a habit from my old world, but with the amount of money Thomas has I can stand to experiment with more items.

"And a flash stone please," I add. I'll start small, I think my very cells would begin to protest if I spent too much in one go for no good reason.

"Okay," Clarence says as he leaves the counter again. He returns with a glass-like stone with a white light shining from within. I put down another gold coin before grabbing it and heading for the entrance to the Great Dungeon.

When I reach there, I see that Perri and Wyll are already waiting for me. They're waiting together, but they aren't speaking to each other. Wyll is standing there awkwardly, while Perri is surveying the crowd of students with a superior look on her face.

"Where's Leila?" I ask as I walk up to them.

Wyll and Perri both perk up at the same time, "Thomas!" They greet. Perri then says annoyedly, "Freiss still isn't here. She's running late again."

I feel annoyance bubble within me. I wouldn't normally care, but after seeing Rex's new stats, every second feels precious now. I can't afford to waste time and that's exactly what Leila is having me do.

I swallow my irritation and hand a heat stone each to Perri and Wyll, "Here, take these. They're not perfect, but keep them on you and they'll at least give you some warmth."

"Oh…" Wyll says as he examines his heat stone. He continues hesitantly, "You didn't need to get these…"

"Why not?" My words come out more sharply than intended. My bad mood is affecting my behaviour.

Wyll seems to notice and slightly curls up within himself, "Er—I learned that skill you were talking about yesterday. Warmth."

That comes as a surprise to me. There are many types of skills in the world of Rising Hero, but some are common enough to learn, and some are exclusive only to certain people. Abyssflame and Brightflame would be examples of the latter, and Warmth is an example of the former. So I'm not surprised he can learn it, I'm surprised he found someone to learn it from within a day.

Although, he is a prince, so perhaps he can call on tutors whenever he wants. Still, to learn it that quickly… it seems his talents veer more towards support than damage dealing.

I look at him and chant with intent in my mind, Analyse.

-

Wyll Cryasius (Warrior)

LVL 11

Con – 8

Str – 8

Dex – 7

Sta – 8

Mag – 14

Fai – 9

Skills:

?

-

It seems he's still considered a warrior, but I think his magic has gone up the most since I last saw his stats.

Wyll seems to shrink further at my lack of response, and I say finally, "I see. Warmth is more effective than heat stones, so it's fine."

Wyll doesn't look like he's very sure how to feel about that, but I have nothing more to say. We fall into silence and continue to wait for Leila.