Phatagin, being the first to initiate his Class Evolution, finished the process before Bridget. The thick, scaly shell split at the seams before falling away completely, revealing the new form of the freshly empowered pangolin. To Charlemagne’s normal senses, not much had changed: Phatagin was a bit larger and stronger looking than before and his small, black, beady eyes now exhibited a slight blue sheen. But when the rooster used the magical sense provided by his Ember Core to take a better look, the improvements were obvious.

  Bawk? The rooster asked.

  The pangolin took a few shaky steps forward before faceplanting into the ground and lying still. He made a very feeble effort to push himself back into a standing position before abandoning the effort.

  Yes, I now have a Skill called ‘Momentum Core’. It’s similar to a Mana Core, of course, but its primary purpose is to allow me to store and manipulate inertial energy. For example, if I were moving at a high velocity, I could stop extremely quickly by absorbing the momentum into the Core. Then I could use that stored energy to accelerate again later. The limits are fairly strict, and the System warned me that I could harm myself if I discharge too much momentum at any time. But there is real synergy between the Momentum Core and…”

  Phatagin’s speech was interrupted by a sharp snapping sound. Charlemagne looked over to see that Bridget’s shell had cracked open. After a moment, the mosquito herself buzzed out from a small hole, having returned to her usual size. She greeted her party with enthusiasm that befitted a long absence rather than a half-hour siesta.

  Hiya boys! Boy, do I feel great! Thanks for watching over us while we finished our Class Evolutions, boss. Hey, what’s up with you, big green? Taking a nap already? Well, I guess you’ve earned it. That sure was something, wasn’t it, Phatagin?

  Please, make it stop, the pangolin complained.

  Bawk, Charlemagne agreed.

  You both are a bunch of party poopers, Bridget shot back. Let a girl stretch her wings a bit after she’s gotten a major power up, okay?

  Bawk? The rooster queried.

  Upgrades in spades. Upgrades for days! I’m…I’ve got a lot of upgrades. First up is my new class name? Are you ready? It’s Radical Phlebotomist. Everything that involves drinking blood is boosted, which is most of what I’ve been doing lately anyways. My ability to heal myself and others is increased, and I also am able to temporarily infuse either myself or another creature with extra Attributes. Finally, any creature I feed from has a chance to develop a withering disease. It’s really good!

  Bawk Bawwk? Charlemagne asked.

  What? No! Why would I even have the option to take a class called ‘Bawk Bumble’? I’m not a bee!

  Bawk?

  No, bees are totally different animals, boss! Like…we don’t look the same, we don’t fly the same, and we don’t feed on the same things. How did you think that bees and mosquitoes were the same thing?

  To be fair, I never really understood the distinction myself. Phatagin added. You’re small, you fly, and you stick things into humans that make them upset. You’re essentially a bee that drinks blood instead of whatever it is they take from flowers.

  Pollen and nectar! Bridget practically screamed. You know what, you guys are on my bad side. I don’t want to talk to you anymore. Wait, yes I do! You have to tell me about your class, pangy-pie. Oh! Is your class called ‘Delectable Pangy-Pie’ or something like that?

  The pangolin sighed, both mentally and physically.

  My class is ‘Momentum Master’, and I have a ‘Momentum Core’ to go along with it, similar to our fearless leader’s Ember Core. Everything I do related to manipulating, absorbing, and releasing momentum is better. I can even somewhat affect others with my abilities now, which undoubtedly will prove useful.

  Bawk? Charlemagne asked.

  Well, I could slow down an enemy or allow an ally to move a bit faster for a short period of time, depending on the amount of momentum stored in my Core. In fact, give me just a moment, please.

  Phatagin concentrated for a few moments. While nothing visible occurred, there was a slight disturbance in the local mana that Charlemagne couldn’t help but notice. Suddenly, Bridget took to the air, the beat of her wings sounding lower-pitched than usual.

  Hey stop that! It feels weird, the mosquito complained.

  I imagine it would. I just increased your weight by affecting how the Earth’s pull affects you. How much heavier did you feel?

  The mosquito landed next to Charlemagne as she considered the question.

  Not a whole lot heavier, but it did make flying a bit harder. If you continue to develop that ability, you could do a lot of fun things with it.

  That is the hope, indeed, Phatagin answered with a self-satisfied grin.

  Bawk! Charlemagne added.

  That’s a good point, Bridget said, sounding surprised and a little impressed by the rooster’s suggestion. I bet you could use it on yourself to go really fast. You could increase your weight, absorb some momentum from yourself, reduce your weight, and accelerate again. Repeat that enough times, and you could reach a speed that is essentially infinite! How cool would that be? Could you fly to the moon like that? If you do, I want to know what it looks like from up close!

  If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

  Phatagin started grooming his pristine scales as he waited for the mosquito to finish. When he had settled down again, he shook his head.

  Unfortunately, I cannot create an infinite loop of acceleration, for reasons that are hard to explain. But nonetheless I shall continue to experiment with my newfound abilities. Should I discover something, I will let you know.

  Bawk.

  Ah, yeah, boss! I almost forgot that it was your turn to undergo the Class Evolution. We’ll stand guard, don’t worry.

  Bawkk. Bawwak Bawk, Charlemagne explained.

  Ah, that sounds intriguing. Please, tell us more, Phatagin asked. Charlemagne thought for a few moments before explaining his four classes choices and asking for the other’s advice.

  You should pick ‘Atavistic Genestealer’! You’d be able to get so much good stuff! No, wait, ‘Immanior Ipse!’, is better because you’re already super strong and tough, and with that you could just be a giant all the time, Bridget opined.

  I am not so sure, Phatagin mused after considering the mosquito’s advice. I am personally leaning towards either ‘Transcendent Berserker’ or ‘Fledgling’. Both of these classes hint at allowing our fearless leader to take on beings that ordinary mortals would not be able to overcome. The Transcendent Berserker grants bonuses to fighting creatures ‘recognized by the System as a higher rank’. That seems to be important. Likewise, the Fledgling class being the ‘process of becoming something greater’. Whatever powers that the System grants, it seems to be dead set on creating a small class of beings that have incredible abilities far beyond those of ordinary creatures. Otherwise, why reward us for slaughtering each other? Maybe a future System ‘update’ will create some sort of formal hierarchy?

  Bawk, the rooster interjected.

  You got a penalty for eating too many humans? How did you even, nevermind, boss, I could totally see that, Bridget commented. What’s the penalty at now?

  Charlemagne queried the Squiggles and was surprised by their response.

  Bawk! He gleefully shared with the others.

  Well, that is…fortunate for you, Phatagin managed to get out. But we are getting a bit distracted. Like I said, I am partial to the two classes that might aid you better in the future. You already possess the ability to gain benefits from consuming your foes, which makes me question the usefulness of the Atavistic Genestealer class. Also, we just saw you turn into a giant, so even though the Immanior Ipse! class would make the process easier and more effective, I do not think that the benefits are sufficient to justify the class. Frankly, when it comes to combat, I doubt that I could kill you even at your most vulnerable. After what you just did, I don’t think even Bridget and I together would do more than annoy you. That’s why I believe that you should focus on a class that will assist your development in diverse ways. Hmmm, perhaps this means the Transcendent Berserker is not an ideal choice either. Perhaps Fledgling is the only real option for you. But still, there is one thing that I would like to try before committing to a suggestion, if you’re willing?

  Bawk? Charlemagne asked as he struggled to understand the pangolin’s logic.

  Yeah, what do you want the boss to try? Echoed the mosquito.

  Well, I have been wondering what determines which classes are offered by the System. It is obvious that we possess some measure of control over the development of our Skills, Achievements, Special Abilities, and to an extent, Attributes. But many class choices seem tied to our genetic heritage or other immutable characteristics. How then, does the System decide which individuals are exceptional enough to offer more powerful classes? Could our leader here simply refuse to select a class and continue to train his Skills and gain Achievements until he unlocked better choices? Or does the System not permit that? And what about things like the Boon Tokens that we were offered by the Dungeon. Could one be utilized to upgrade the class choices offered? It is unfortunate that I only thought of this just now…perhaps the increase in attributes through leveling and obtaining Achievements has granted me the clarity I needed to question this. Nonetheless, such experimentation could be useful to us all.

  Bawk, the rooster noted.

  Yes, do you still possess the option to choose rewards from your previous Dungeon clear? Phatagin asked.

  The rooster, having missed the previous notice from the System, took a moment to check.

  Bawk, he confirmed.

  Excellent! The pangolin exclaimed. This is also good information to learn. Not that I anticipate it would be an issue for most creatures capable of completing a Dungeon, but interesting at any rate, and it may provide a helpful data point to extrapolate from later. Now, I suggest that you select both the Intermediate Boon Token and the Intermediate Attribute Elixir as your remaining rewards. Pick the Special Attribute, as that seems to be tied directly to your Ember Core.

  Bawk! Charlemagne demanded as an aura composed of heat, mana, and annoyance flared out across the Dungeon.

  Well, I suppose I could do that, for the good of the party, the pangolin answered as he took a step away from Charlemagne.

  I’ll use one of my rewards for a Party Upgrade Token, boss! Bridget promised at the same time.

  Charlemagne, mollified now that he had bullied his Party members into giving him some of their rewards, clucked happily as his aura returned to normal.

  Charlemagne accepted the transaction. A few moments later, there came another notification.

  The rooster accepted this transfer as well. Then, he asked the Squiggles for his rewards.

  While the tokens did not manifest in the real world, the Attribute Elixir did. The rooster watched as a dense, complex sphere of mana appeared in front of him, completely blocking out any of his attempts to sense what was happening beneath the surface. Before Charlemagne could even begin to analyze the mana’s nature, it was gone. In its place lay an ampule of ruby liquid that crackled with potency.

  Bottoms, up, boss! Bridget cheered.