He scratched his chest when he felt the phantom pain of the gashes that were there a few minutes ago. The interface was beeping softly to get his attention, but he was more interested in searching for a hidden door that must’ve opened after he killed the last falcon.


    Not only did Kade want the reward behind it, but it would also confirm that he had cleared the challenges this chamber offered.


    He frowned when he saw no signs of a hidden door or heard it opening. Since the exit hadn’t been unblocked, he assumed he would need to fight something else before this would be considered complete.


    Kade looked over the interface messages.


    <b>You have destroyed 6 Ember Falcons (Arcana Level 32)!</b>


    <b>You have destroyed 4 Ember Falcons (Arcana Level 33)!</b>


    <b>Skill learned!</b>


    <b>Ground Pound (Level 1) - A powerful stomp, causing significant impact damage to enemies at the landing point. </b>


    <b>Footwork (Level 12)—>(Level 13)</b>


    <b>Rapid Strike (Level 3)—>(Level 8)</b>


    <b>Ground Pound (Level 1)—>(Level 6)</b>


    <b>Level-up! (x2)</b>


    <b>Constitution: 35—>37</b>


    <b>Endurance: 18.5—>19.5</b>


    <b>Strength: 35—>37</b>


    He dismissed the interface. Most of the information it showed was unimportant. However, he found the monsters he found so far in the Rift Zones curious.


    “System, why does it seem like all the monsters I’m fighting are just variations of what’s on Earth?”


    <b>The universe is vast. Our goal is to make humans comfortable at the start before introducing other elements in higher-class Rift Zones.</b>


    “You said this was supposed to be randomized.” Kade frowned.


    <b>Randomized within a specific filter.</b>


    That sounded like a long way of saying it’s not randomized. Of course, he didn’t mind so much. The System was right when it said he was more comfortable seeing familiar creatures.


    Kade kept searching the chamber, ready for any surprises that might jump out at him. However, several minutes passed with nothing happening. He wondered if a falcon still hid somewhere.


    “???? ???? ?????? ??? ????.”


    He heard the same sound when the hidden door opened in the previous chamber. He looked around again and finally found it.


    <i>Oh.</i>


    It was at the top of the wall, bordering the ceiling, and beside a pillar. He should’ve assumed it would be at that height since he hadn’t seen the falcons enter the chamber at the start.


    Kade hopped onto the first ridge on the pillar closest to the hidden door and made quick work to get to the top. He jumped off and landed on the recessed edge before freezing in confusion.


    “Oh, hell no.”


    He stared at three large eggs, each around a foot in height. Surprisingly, the eggs were all different colors. All three were mostly white, but each had a distinct tint: blue, red, and yellow.


    It didn’t take a genius to figure out that the thing that would come out of these eggs was probably a falcon. He wasn’t sure what the colors meant, but that wasn’t important.


    The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    Kade loved pets of all shapes and sizes, but he had never felt a desire to own one. His idea of a good pet was when it was someone else’s problem, while he enjoyed the privilege of petting them in passing.


    That way, he wouldn’t need to keep the pet alive and have it take over half his life.


    Kade already knew what he was going to do. Since he needed to pick up all these eggs to open the exit, that was precisely what he would do.


    Then, he would put them down and leave them exactly where they were.


    The interface aggressively interrupted his escape plans.


    <b>Upgrade ready.</b>


    <b>Congratulations! You have reached Arcana Level 35. Your Class is eligible for an upgrade. Once selected, you will gain 1.5 Free Points per level up.</b>


    <b>Make your choice carefully. Once you select a Class, all changes are permanent.</b>


    <i>I completely forgot about the [Class] upgrade. </i>Kade continued reading with a sharpened focus.


    <b>Bloodbound Sentinel: </b>


    <b>A warrior who sacrifices their vitality to empower their strikes. Bloodbound Sentinels feed off their own bloodlust and injuries, becoming nearly unstoppable in prolonged battles. Below are the listed evolutions that might be available for you.</b>


    <b>Example Evolutions – Crimson Guardian, Blood Reaver, Blood Mage Lancer, and Blood Titan.</b>


    <b>Level-up bonus – +2.5 Constitution, +2 Endurance, +0.5 Strength</b>


    <i>… I think the System misunderstood why I was willing to take so much damage.</i>


    Kade could see how [Bloodbound Sentinel] could help him, but he wasn’t keen on purposefully going into a battle, knowing he had to be a masochist. He moved on to the next option.


    <b>Arcane Lancer: </b>


    <b>A fusion of physical prowess and magical mastery. This class will help you power elemental magic through your spear. Below are the listed evolutions that might be available for you.</b>


    <b>Example Evolutions – Elemental Spear Sage, Void Lancer, Arcane Dragoon, and Storm Sovereign.</b>


    <b>Level-up bonus – +1 Constitution, +2 Endurance, +1.5 Strength, +0.5 Wisdom</b>


    Kade couldn’t help but gravitate towards [Arcane Lancer]. It had already been his way of fighting, and he liked it.


    <i>The addition of [Wisdom] in the bonus adds to my attraction to this.</i>


    <b>Berserker Spearmaster: </b>


    <b>A relentless fighter who thrives on the chaos of battle. The Berserker Spearmaster channels their frenzy into precise, overwhelming spear techniques. Below are the listed evolutions that might be available for you.</b>


    <b>Example Evolutions – Savage Spearlord, Revenant Spearmaster, Warpath Juggernaut, and Frenzied Dervish.</b>


    <b>Level-up bonus – +1 Constitution, +2 Endurance, +2 Strength</b>


    Kade reread the list and had to admit that all three options were attractive in their own ways. There was nothing he could call terrible and throw it out.


    However, [Bloodbound Sentinel] was the closest it would get. There was nothing about the Class that called to him. The bonus it gave him also implied how much he was expected to sacrifice his health to become stronger in a fight.


    Kade knew that logic was strange when he injured himself to become stronger during the fight with the falcons. However, that was a drastic, survival-type decision. It didn’t mean he would be happy doing that in every fight.


    He knew what to expect with [Arcane Lancer]. The evolutions listed were attractive, but the bonus it gave him was the largest draw. He currently received zero [Wisdom] points, and he needed to use his [Free Points] to access his spells.


    However, this involved the hocus-pocus he turned his nose up at the start. [Berserker Spearmaster] best fit his ideals when he chose [Warrior] just a few days ago.


    It was a straightforward Class: all physical power, no complex thinking, and evolutions that followed the same path.


    A few days ago, Kade would have chosen this, and even now, the choice tempted him.


    His bullheadedness influenced his thoughts, but it technically wasn’t wrong.


    Kade rolled his eyes. He knew what he was going to pick. There was zero chance he was going to reverse course after finding it so beneficial to use elements with the [Soulrend]. And his [Soulrend] was his primary weapon, and he suspected it always would be.


    Plus, some of those example evolutions caught his eye. Nothing promised they would be available, but the simple possibility was enough.


    <b>You have chosen [Arcane Lancer].</b>


    <b>Alert: [MP Recovery] limit raised due to [Arcane Lancer].</b>


    <b>MP Recovery: 10% per minute—>12.7% per minute.</b>


    Kade’s eyes widened when a surge of raw energy filled him. His heart pounded as power flooded his body, each beat sending pulses of light rippling across his skin.


    His [Soulrend] summoned itself into his hands as it became affected too. Arcs of magical energy crackled along its length as it vibrated intensely.


    Kade staggered slightly, not from weakness, but from the sheer change that accepting [Arcane Lancer] was causing in his body.


    He quickly placed a hand on the wall to hold himself up and waited. It felt like forever, but the surge of power died down only a few seconds later.


    “Holy shi—”Kade giggled in exhilaration, interrupting himself. He had never felt such a high before.


    He could immediately sense that his mediocre mana pathways had expanded. He had little idea what that meant, but that was something to figure out later. Plus, his [MP Recovery] was no longer limited to ten percent per minute.


    Kade gathered himself and stored his [Soulrend]. It was time to enact his escape plan.


    His legs were still a little wobbly from his recent experience with the power surge, but he made his way to the eggs. He picked up the red one first, since it was the closest to him.


    The intention was to pick up all three, but plans never really go as… planned.


    The eggs, tinted blue and yellow, quickly hardened into stone before crumbling under Kade’s eyes.


    He heard a crack. It came from the hand that held the red egg.


    <i>Fuck.</i>