Subclass (2)

‘I’m going to die.’

Leaving the narrator’s nonsense echoing in his head behind, Solomon left the underground tomb with Violet, passing by Dr. O’Neill’s corpse.

‘Whether it lives or dies isn’t important.’

The Uptown mage of the Five Great Houses had said that. But that wasn’t Solomon’s concern. Solomon’s job was to kill him. The moment he finished what he was hired to do, his role was over.

“H-he’s here!”

“No way…!”

“…Ah.”

That was when it happened. As the two stepped out of the underground tomb, they saw an army of the dead encircling the cemetery.

Just as Violet had said, there were piles of zombies and skeletons armed with automatic crossbows, and several troll zombies. It was so vast it filled the horizon from end to end.

‘What a circus.’

Solomon clicked his tongue in silence. Even so, his mind was strangely calm.

Compared to that fight just now, no matter how many dead were in front of him, it wasn’t even worth calling a crisis. This wasn’t about character strength or measurable stats.

Through that crisis, Solomon could feel a ‘growth’ that couldn’t be described with numbers.

‘The job’s done, and grabbing my neck and running away…’

That was when.

“Let’s finish what we were talking about earlier.”

Violet said beside him.

“What?”

“My trade secret.”

“Ah, right…”

Honestly, it didn’t matter.

“Actually, me being a a First-Grade Swordsman is a lie.”

But what followed wasn’t something that ‘didn’t matter.’

“Unofficially, I’m one of only seven Special-Grade swordsmen in the Sword Watch.”

“What…?”

“After you ran, I was going to handle that bastard alone.”

Even that already threw him off, but the next words did even more.

“Then was all that earlier just pointless suffering? You son-of-a—”

“Understand. Regulations say I can’t leave witnesses alive.”

“!”

Can’t leave witnesses alive. She said it out loud, like she didn’t even realize what she’d just said.

“And yet you came back.”

“No, I didn’t see anything then. Why the hell would you even say that?”

“Right. That’s why I’m saying it.”

Solomon said, dumbfounded. Violet shook her head.

“Strictly speaking, you didn’t actually ‘witness’ anything. If there’s no witness, there’s no reason to kill you.”

“……”

“This is purely out of respect.”

“Respect?”

“It’s only proper to show this in response to the courage you displayed when you chose not to run.”

[Violet speaks calmly. Will you be able to notice that the tip of her earlobe turned just slightly red as she said it…?]

The narrator’s voice followed. Solomon stayed silent, thinking, The dog’s barking again.

“Yeah, thanks for not burying me along just because you hate me.”

“Hm. You can cry your eyes out and be more moved, you know.”

“…Why bring that up now, of all times?”

Violet answered as the necromancer’s army blocked their path. Skeletons and zombies armed with automatic crossbows. Even undead trolls

“Close your eyes.”

“Ah-ha!”

After saying that, she took off her sunglasses. Solomon immediately understood and shut his eyes in an instant. He didn’t want to become a witness by accident and get buried with them. Not even a second passed before he heard her voice again, along with a very faint wave of unease.

“Look.”

“……”

A short silence. In that silence, Solomon swallowed his breath, overwhelmed by the unbelievable sight unfolding before him.

“By the way, it’s the title of a novel I like.”

“……”

Violet said with a shrug. Hearing that, Solomon answered evenly, setting aside whether a novel with that title really existed in this world.

“And then there was none.”

“You didn’t just pour concrete over them and bury them somewhere, did you?”

“Think whatever you want.”

Literally, nothing remained there except the two of them. Only a bleak wind swept across the cemetery.

From there, Solomon returned to Hotel Snark. Just when he should’ve collapsed on the spot, a zombie hotelier blocked him.

“My apologies, Mr. Solomon. Congratulations on completing your contract.”

“…Ah.”

He could guess it after hearing that. His floor rank had gone up.

“From now on, Mr. Solomon, you may use Room 204 on the next floor after the one you currently use.”

“Room 204…”

“For reference, this is the fastest floor promotion in the hotel’s entire history since it opened.”

Clap. Clap.

After saying that, the zombie hotelier applauded in a soulless voice.

“…What?”

The fastest floor promotion in history. At those words, Solomon forced his eyes open again, pushing aside the fatigue that felt like it would drop him. Those weren’t words he could brush off.

Lord Bernier had said that quite a few people had taken interest in Solomon. Whatever Solomon thought, one thing was certain.

That there were ‘people watching Solomon,’ regardless of his will—

It wasn’t that he disliked being noticed. The problem was that the attention felt excessive, even by Solomon’s own standards. Like what just happened.

‘With my own hands, I… brought down an Uptown mage.’

Not just any Uptown noble, either. He had killed a noble from one of the Five Great Houses with his own hands. Strictly speaking, the one who actually cut off his breath was the swordsman there, but in the end, nothing changed.

Solomon was there too, and he had contributed to the result.

It wasn’t hard to imagine the backlash that would bring. No, it was hard. It was frightening to even dare imagine it.

In other words, that kind of feat would paradoxically make Solomon more noticeable and drag him into pointless trouble.

‘Even getting involved with those Black Museum bastards and having my life put at risk…’

That was the kind of problem that happened because of feats like this. The act of struggling to survive was, paradoxically, a pointless rerun of a Greek tragedy.

Trying to dodge the oracle, only to end up charging straight into it, like someone honestly rushing in because they wanted to die faster than anyone.

‘…I’m fucked.’

Even in exhaustion that felt like he would collapse, his head spun.

‘Did I really kill a mage of the Five Great Houses…?’

Even while dizzy, he savored the act piece by piece, and his heart suddenly sank.

Solomon headed straight to the newly assigned Room 204, carrying the ‘honor’ of the fastest floor promotion in history.

He opened the door and lay on the bed. It didn’t even take him a second to fall asleep.

‘…The narrator was saying something about levels earlier.’

In that single second, he thought. Then the thought was swallowed by sleep.

[Welcome, Mr. Solomon.]

A voice spoke. A voice so familiar it was sickening. Solomon opened his eyes without surprise.

“…Game Master.”

Solomon spoke his name. The tabletop room. The man in a robe, the Game Master and narrator.

“Looks like my level went up?”

[Oh….]

At that, the Game Master smiled as the darkness inside his hood rippled. The darkness under the hood took shape like a crescent moon, and he twisted the corners of his mouth.

[It was a level you would have easily gained solo. However, regrettably, that’s not the case with party play.]

“……”

[Well, it’s true you still gained quite a lot.]

His level hadn’t gone up. Because he had shared experience with an ally.

“My level’s the same, so why the hell did you drag me here?”

[As you know, level isn’t everything. You’re well aware of that too, don’t you Mr. Solomon?]

The man answered.

[For starters, your subclass Reaper leveled up, and you gained 1 point that you can use to learn a new perk. More importantly….]

In a voice more meaningful than ever.

[The victory you achieved is not just a victory.]

“Then what?”

[By the rules of the game, we call it a Fated Victory.]

Fated Victory. Solomon frowned.

[This is different from an ordinary victory. As its name suggests, a Fated Victory is an achievement that significantly affects your fate.]

“What are you trying to say?”

[There is good news and bad news. Which would you like to hear first?]

The Game Master asked. Solomon answered without hesitation.

“Bad news. Start with the most awful.”

[You have lost 50 favor with the Uptown faction. Therefore, you will be in an exceptionless Hostile state toward Uptown factions. The Five Great Houses, cadet branches, and everyone else. No exceptions.]

“……”

A Fated Victory. Winning isn’t everything. The fact that he killed an Uptown mage would follow Solomon and torment him endlessly.

“What’s the next bad news?”

[One of the Five Great Houses, the Lancaster House, now has —100 favor toward you.]

“…Not the Arrowhead House?”

[Oh. Though it’s not quite something I’d call good news, but the Arrowhead House’s favor is the ‘only one that did not decrease.’]

“What…?”

[In effect, the Lancaster House bore that —50 instead, so the net total is zero.]

He had brought down a mage of the Arrowhead House, yet their favor hadn’t decreased.

‘…I can’t say nothing comes to mind.’

The Game Master continued calmly.

[From here on, there are three pieces of good news waiting for you. Wow. Isn’t that amazing?]

“Say it.”

[You have acquired the trait 「Potential Big Shot」. From now on, you will gain +30 favor from the Hotel Snark faction and any client you deal with.]

“…Is that it?”

Solomon was dumbfounded.

[Oh, please wait a bit longer. A holder of the Potential Big Shot trait gains one <Big Shot Die ⚅>.]

A Big Shot Die. Solomon blinked.

[If favor exceeds +30, you may roll the <Big Shot Die ⚅> and add its value to social interaction checks.]

───
<Big Shot Die ⚅>
Tag — Special Die, Non-Consumable Die
: When dealing with a faction whose affinity exceeds +30, you may add this die’s value to social interaction rolls.
───

Favor gained at the cost of being marked by Uptown nobles. In exchange, Solomon became a potential big shot to Hotel Snark and the people of this industry. The die was proof of that.

[Lastly… you have acquired the 「Mage Hunter」 trait. Since you killed a mage of an Uptown great house, you’ve received an appropriate reward. In truth, this isn’t a trait you can get just by screwing up any random mage.]

“Oh my, Is that so?”

The positive and negative items he’d gained so far were all tied to ‘Solomon’s reputation’, which factions his favor rose with, which fell, and so on. The last one wasn’t.

“Mage Hunter….”

It was a trait he’d heard of and knew.

───
Trait 「Mage Hunter」
: When attacking a mage-class opponent, add 2 damage.
───

2 damage. But unlike sneak attacks, there’s no need to check circumstances or meet conditions. There isn’t even a ‘melee’ restriction. The moment the opponent is a mage, it adds guaranteed damage without question.

In fact, the Aptitude Points (AP) cost to learn that trait is a full 4 points.

It wasn’t worth investing 4 points just to get it. But that’s not because the trait is worthless, it’s just that there are simply many better traits.

If you get it for free, it’s a golden trait with nothing lacking.

“…At least that’s good news.”

[It will be useful going forward. Whether you like it or not.]

“I’m so fucking honored I’m crying blood.”

Even knowing it, he couldn’t be happy. Considering which ‘faction’ Solomon had just tanked his favor with, the outcome was obvious even to an idiot.

In the end, Solomon had made an enemy of the peak of this city, Guild City… the Five Great Houses of Uptown.

Through that very Fated Victory.

“…Let’s talk about subclass.”

[Very well.]

At the Game Master’s gesture, a sheet of paper with a medieval parchment texture slid before Solomon’s eyes.

On the paper, like a constellation, countless points and branches spread out from a single starting point.

Among them, a starlit path was glowing, starting from the starting perk 「Inescapable Fate」 he learned when he obtained the subclass, then branching into three paths.

Starlight of possibilities, clearly connected. The three benefits he could learn at the end.

───
Subclass: Reaper

Available Perks:
→ Finishing Blow
→ Blade of Attunement
→ Induce Excessive Bleeding
───

Put simply, it was the difference between dealing immediate, reliable, quantified damage, or accumulating higher damage little by little. Solomon didn’t hesitate.

“I’ll learn Induce Excessive Bleeding.”

His immediate offensive ability was already sufficient. At this point, “attunement” wasn’t about stubbornly clinging to the middle. It was about filling in the virtue he’d neglected the most.

[Understood.]

The Game Master replied.

Among the many constellation-like points, the words “Induce Excessive Bleeding” now shone brightly.

The branches of the stars lit up as if continuing from the perk he first learned, proof that starlight of possibilities was blooming like a flower.

Subclasses are useful.

Just as, in the fight with the Spectral Spear Mage, the <Fate Die ⚅> had become his “inescapable death.”

In any case, the more dice you roll, the better.

The next morning, Downtown District 8, the Street of Groceries.

Violet left an elderly couple’s bakery with a bag full of freshly baked croissants.

With sunlight pouring down behind her, she walked along and thought absentmindedly.

‘…What is it?’

It started as a faint ripple of unease. The unease that man had shown last night, when fighting that ‘arrowhead.’ At first, she had assumed it was just his ability to grasp information, so she had asked. Looking back now, it wasn’t. Even if she had guessed wrong, she had guessed disastrously wrong.

‘Wasn’t that bastard’s sneak attack back then… a failure?’

At that moment, strength slipped from her hand without thinking. The bag of bread she was holding and the freshly baked croissants spilled onto the street in a clatter.

She was seized by a shock as if she’d been struck in the head with a hammer. “Oops” didn’t even come close.

‘Failure, yes, that’s right. That crow-brain’s ambush clearly failed….’

But the ambush that should have failed ultimately succeeded. Because that was what happened.

True to the name Schrödinger’s Swordsmanship, she was skilled at sensing the superposition of possibilities and their branching points. And she was skilled at manipulating those possibilities directly, too.

After all, the bag and croissants that should have been rolling on the street were back in her hand.

That was the point.

How could a mere contract killer of Hotel Snark use an ability granted only to an extreme few like her?

‘That man, could it be…? No, how…?’

That man had clearly displayed a “manipulation ability” of the same nature as Violet’s. A talent granted only to an extreme few like her. And it was far more elegant and refined than hers.

It wasn’t even just manipulating possibilities. It was far deeper, practically touching the end of the realm Violet herself pursued.

‘Could it be… an unconscious fate manipulation ability…?’

At that point, Violet reached a conclusion so bold it was almost absurd.

It wasn’t the right answer.

And at the same time, it wasn’t 100% wrong either.