Just at that moment, a woman's anxious cry rang out from the crowd. "Koya!"
Due to the appearance of the adventurer teams, the onlookers pressed in closely from both sides. A little boy, who looked only five or six years old, was pushed out of the crowd and stumbled directly into the path of the [Four Arms] adventurer team.
The boy lost his footing, fell to the ground, and scraped his arm on the rough stone, breaking the skin. Blood instantly welled up from the wound.
"Ugh... Wah!!"
The pain in his arm, combined with the shock of being separated from his mother and the intimidating scene, made the little boy burst into loud sobs.
This sudden change presented an opportunity. Sukama, the black-haired, cold-faced captain walking at the front, saw a chance to boost the team's reputation—a crucial endeavor for any adventurer team.
"Lilinette..." Captain Sukama turned her head, maintaining her composed demeanor, ready to instruct the pink-haired Lilinette to assist.
But before she could speak, Lilinette had already sprung into action. The long, split hems of her pure white priestess robe swayed with her large strides, revealing her fair thighs tightly encased in large fishnet stockings.
A chorus of audible gulps immediately arose from the surrounding crowd.
"Little brother, it's alright. Big sister will take a look," Lilinette said with a gentle smile as she knelt. She raised her palm and aimed it at the boy's injured arm. "Minor Healing!"
A soft white light emanated from her palm. Under its radiance, the boy's scraped arm healed instantly, the skin returning to its unblemished state.
Feeling the pain vanish, the boy stopped crying. With tears still glistening in the corners of his eyes, he looked up at the smiling Lilinette. "Thank you, big sister..." he whispered timidly, before suddenly shrinking back, a fearful expression crossing his face. Though she was smiling, the boy found her gaze strangely unsettling.
Clank! Clank!
The sound of armor plates rubbing together broke the moment. Captain Sukama walked over and bent down, ostensibly to check the boy's injury. In reality, she spoke to Lilinette in a low, fierce whisper: "You pervert, rein in that man-eating gaze. I won't have our newly gained reputation tarnished by rumors of you being a shotacon."
Hearing the captain's warning, Lilinette extended the tip of her rosy tongue to lick away a glistening drop of saliva that had escaped the corner of her mouth. "Unripe fruit is what makes one salivate the most," she replied in a tone of mild disappointment.
The little boy shrank back further. He didn't understand their conversation, but he found both of these beautiful older sisters increasingly frightening.
At the rear of the team, the two male members of [Four Arms] exchanged a weary glance and sighed in unison.
Suddenly, a middle-aged woman frantically pushed her way through the crowd, her face pale with worry. Upon seeing her son safe and healed, she let out a sigh of relief. "Thank you! Thank you so much!" she bowed repeatedly, her voice filled with nervous gratitude.
Adventurer teams might not have the best reputation among nobles, but they were generally respected and admired by commoners. Sukama and Lilinette stood up, their expressions returning to masks of righteous professionalism, and waved off the thanks as if it were nothing.
Irvine Wolf's attention, however, had long since moved on from this minor drama. The moment Lilinette cast her healing magic, his status panel had reacted.
'Discovered skill "Minor Healing (1st Tier)". Requires basic Cleric class. Level 1-7. Conditions not met...' '"Genius" class activated. Successfully converted. Conditions met. Consume 1 skill point to learn?'
Cleric?
Irvine looked at the prompt, surprised. An unusual glint appeared in his eyes. He had no intention of staying to watch the rest of the show. He turned and quickly left the area, intending to find a quiet place to process this new development and plan his next steps.
It was currently midday, and the sun was intense. Based on his earlier inquiries, it should be around May, but the temperature felt more like June or July from his previous life. The Great Tomb of Nazarick was destined to descend upon the New World around mid-July, four years from now. This meant Irvine had just over four years to prepare .
Time was undoubtedly tight, but Irvine knew better than to rush his class build. A poor build would be a death sentence against the power of Nazarick.
The arena was located near the base of the hill upon which the royal castle stood, surrounded by a green belt of trees and vegetation that separated it from the densely packed commoner districts. Irvine found a shaded spot beneath a large tree and sat down, pulling up his status panel.
[Status]
Player: Irvine Wolf
Karma: 0 [Neutral]
HP: 23 (1.7%) MP: 18 (1.3%)
Physical Attack: 23 (1.7%)
Physical Defense: 13 (1%)
Agility: 23 (1.7%)
Magic Attack: 18 (1.3%)
Magic Defense: 18 (1.3%)
Overall Resistance: 0 (0%)
Special: 0 (0%)
Total: 10.7%
...…
[Ability List]
Talent: [Player]
Overall Level: 2Lv
Experience: 0 / 100
Classes:
General Class: Genius 1Lv (Warrior, Cleric)
Intermediate Class: Sword Master 1Lv
Skill Points: 0
Passive Skills: Item Box, Slash Enhancement (1%)
Active Skills:
Warrior — Instant Reflexes, Slash of Light - Fourfold, Instant Slash
Magic — Minor Healing (1st Tier)
— — — —
Skill: Minor Healing
· Cost: 5 MP
· Description: Consumes magical energy to treat injuries, restoring approximately 10 HP.
...
Because Irvine had learned the spell "Minor Healing," the "Genius" general class now included "Cleric" as a convertible basic class.
What truly surprised and concerned him, however, was the nature of this class. While the prompt said "Cleric," a class accessible to both genders, the caster he observed was female, and the class conversion seemed fluid. This hinted at the incredible flexibility of the "Genius" class. Could it potentially allow him to acquire classes typically restricted by gender or even race?
This was significant because it related to the acquisition of Special Classes.
From his knowledge of the light novels and anime, the Special Classes Irvine knew of included:
· Ainz Ooal Gown's Eclipse class (focused on necromancy and death magic) .
· Cocytus's Asura class (a powerful warrior class) .
· Shalltear Bloodfallen's Valkyrie class (a divine warrior class, with Lesser Valkyrie being a New World variant) .
· Mare Bello Fiore's Disciple of Disaster class (a powerful magic class specializing in catastrophic spells) .
· Demiurge's Evil Lord class (likely a demonic ruler class).
· Victim's Martyr class (a unique class with sacrificial abilities).
Albedo also possessed an unnamed Special Class that allowed her to transfer fatal damage to her armor multiple times, effectively requiring her to be "killed" several times to be truly defeated .
Beyond these, there were other legendary Special Classes like World Champion (held by Touch Me) and World Disaster (an immensely powerful offensive mage class once held by Ulbert Alain Odle) .
Irvine immediately excluded Eclipse, Evil Lord, and Martyr from his considerations.
· Eclipse required an extreme build focused entirely on necromancer-type classes and reaching level 95, making him vulnerable and easily countered .
· Evil Lord was undoubtedly a demonic racial class, inaccessible to a human.
· Martyr seemed similarly tied to an angelic or holy racial background.
The remaining options—Asura, Valkyrie (or Lesser Valkyrie), and Disciple of Disaster—seemed more plausible, as they didn't appear to have absolute racial prerequisites, though Valkyrie was noted to be nearly impossible for New World natives to obtain .
The appearance of the Cleric class and the "Genius" class's adaptability opened a new avenue of thought. If it could bypass gender restrictions, could it also circumvent other prerequisites? His goal was clear: he needed a Special Class that could provide an overwhelming advantage or unique ability to level the playing field against the inhabitants of Nazarick.
The path forward was complex, but for the first time, Irvine felt a flicker of genuine hope amidst the overwhelming dread. He began to meticulously plan, considering the classes he needed to acquire and the skills he must learn to unlock the path to a power that could defy fate.