As Luke set his will on the list, it changed before his eyes. Many classes remained, but at least now he knew they were all of the healer archetype.

  "Mhm. Healers," Guide said.

  "Shut up," Luke said with a grin. "How do I know what these do? There are still a hundred classes here."

  Guide ignored the dig and answered with the same placid expression. "Focus on the class to read a brief introduction to it. There are different types of healers. Some require a little more finesse, while others focus on active skills, while others yet might heal pets or focus on keeping larger groups healthy."

  Finesse.

  That dropped the list down to about twenty. Still quite a few.

  Vitalist: Draw vital energy from everything around you and infuse that energy into others to heal wounds or cause them.

  Bloodwright: Blood holds the essence of healing. Conjure it, steal it, or summon it from the depths below, and make it your own to wield.

  Pulsecaller: Thrum in rhythm with the universe itself and use that which pulses through you to heal the sick and injured.

  Wardplacer: Create and place wards to heal your allies and counter enemies.

  Lifeweaver: Use mana to shape the very essence of life into a weave of your making.

  Lightforger: Conjure light and bend it to your will to create shields and barriers.

  Curist: Discover the secret draughts of the Integrated systems and use them to the advantage of yourself and your allies.

  Lifeweaver.

  "Interesting choice," Guide said. "Are you sure?"

  "I am," Luke confirmed. The moment he'd read the description, he'd just known it was the class for him. He'd never been much good with crafts, but something about this class spoke to him. It sounded mysterious and difficult, which from Luke's experience meant it was great in the long run. Easy always shone in the short-term, but fell off once everyone around you grew stronger. He hadn't played much in the way of role-playing games, but he knew that much.

  "Can I ask why?"

  "Didn't you say you know everything about me?"

  Guide's face split into a smile then. It wasn't menacing or anything of the like, but it was still eerie, probably because it didn't reach the thing's eyes.

  "So far, few Integrated on Earth have selected a healer class. The last Integrated who picked that class, this was quite a while ago, in a different system, lived for less than twenty minutes after leaving the tutorial. Other than the two of you, no one has selected that class in over 100 integrations. It's not a popular choice."

  "Does that mean the class is bad?"

  "No."

  Since he wouldn't be getting any answers from the being in front of him, Luke just shook his head with a sigh. "So, are we done here?"

  "The class you have selected will be applied to you once you leave this room, but there is one step remaining before you can continue down this path."

  "And what's that?"

  "A boon."

  "A what?" Luke asked.

  "In some circumstances, such as yours, the Integrated system is deemed inferior, depending on a number of factors. This triggers some extra allowances and possible bonuses. In your case, I have opted for boons for you people of Earth."

  "Just a straight up bonus?"

  "That is correct."

  "Because we suck," Luke added.

  Guide nodded. "In a sense, yes."

  More text scrolled past Luke's vision, and his eyes widened. These were some serious buffs:

  Boon of The Skilled: +5 Skill Points.

  Boon of Giant’s Strength: +50 Strength.

  Boon of The Life-giver: +50 Vitality.

  This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

  Boon of Martial Prowess: +20% melee damage.

  Boon of Guardianship: +15% reduced damage taken.

  Boon of Weaponry: Receive a legendary weapon fitting your class.

  Boon of Wind: +10% speed.

  Boon of The Arcanist: Greatly enhance all skills requiring mana.

  Boon of The Miser: All costs in the shop are reduced by 30%.

  Boon of Glittering Prices: 30% more credits for items sold in the shop.

  Boon of The Guildmaster: Allows you to immediately start a guild.

  Boon of The Influencer: Gain experience when others follow your orders.

  Boon of Unerring Aim: +25% accuracy and +10% critical hit chance with ranged attacks.

  Boon of Potential: Slowly increase attributes by training them.

  Boon of The Iron Wall: +50% bonus to block effectiveness.

  Boon of Ferocity: +15% attack speed and critical hit chance.

  Boon of The Colossus: Grow 15% larger and gain +15% in all physical attributes.

  Boon of The Tactician: Unlocks the ability to mark enemies, +10% damage to marked enemies.

  Boon of Adaptability: Gain 10% of your highest attribute as a bonus to your lowest attribute.

  Boon of Second Wind: Grants skill 'Second Wind', which heals 30% HP, 30% SP, and 30% MP.

  Boon of The Tranquil Mind: You are immune to silence, fear, and confusion effects.

  Boon of Perfect Recall: Gain photographic memory.

  Boon of The Predator: Greatly enhances all stealth skills.

  The list kept going on and on, and Luke found he could filter it just like with the classes. Checking several of the healing-related ones, he found nothing that stood out to him. Some were excellent, of course, but without knowing more about what he was walking into, it was difficult to make an informed decision.

  "These boons tell me there will be skills and attributes," Luke said. "And a shop of some sort."

  "You have a keen eye," Guide replied, his voice without inflection.

  Luke eyed the being, watching for sarcasm. Finding none, he continued, "This means there will be levels."

  "Was that a question?"

  "Sure," Luke said.

  "Wouldn't be much of a system without levels."

  "Can you tell me how many attribute points you get when you level up?"

  "No."

  "Is there a max level?"

  "I'm not telling you that," Guide said.

  "You're stingy with information," Luke complained.

  Guide just sat there.

  "Fine, be like that," Luke said. "I've made my decision."

  "Then will it so."

  Boon of Potential: Slowly increase attributes by training them.

  No matter how many boons he looked at, none trumped this one in terms of possible growth. A flat increase in a stat or healing might be huge in the beginning but mean little further down the line, and the same thing would apply to a percentage increase as well, if to a smaller degree. Maximizing the effect of Boon of Potential meant a lot of training, judging by the brief description, but hard work tended to pay off in the long run. It depended on several factors, of course, such as what 'training' meant and how slow 'slowly' was, but he got a good feeling about it.

  "Another interesting choice," Guide said.

  Luke narrowed his eyes. "Interesting how?"

  "I can't tell you that."

  "Right."

  Guide stood and held out his hand for Luke to shake. "Along with a class and a boon, I have given you a small push of mental fortitude to withstand what is to come. Enjoy your time in the tutorial. Welcome to The Greater System."

  Luke rose, grabbed Guide's hand, and shook it.

  A sucking sensation in his stomach, as if dropping from the very top of a roller-coaster, made him gasp and blink. A rock wall appeared and a bunch of text once again scrolled before his eyes. In the lower corner of his vision, three bars appeared. Health, mana, and stamina. Interesting. Before reading any more text, he turned and saw that he'd arrived in a cave of sorts, with uneven rock walls to either side of a wide corridor, and a roof several meters up. The floor was a mixture of gravel and stone tiles and the place was well lit, despite Luke not seeing a single source of light anywhere.

  With his back to the wall, he was at a dead end, and he wasn't alone. Four other people lounged on the floor, their backs to the wall.

  "Finally, a healer," one of them, a guy in his early thirties wearing a stained sweatshirt and basketball shorts, said, getting to his feet and extending a hand to Luke. "Now maybe we can make some progress."

  Luke took it and shook. "Luke."

  "I know."

  "What?"

  "Focus on me for a moment."

  When Luke did so, a name appeared over his head, along with a health bar.

  "Nate," Luke said.

  Inspected Integrated: Nate. Knight. Level 2.

  "That's me," Nate said. "I'm a Knight."

  The buzz-cut, square jaw, intense eyes, and combat boots made Luke think of the military, but that was just a guess.

  "Can we go already?" a girl said. She was perhaps a few years younger than Luke. Skinny, with dirty blond hair so short, Luke mistook her for a younger guy at first.

  Inspected Integrated: Irene. Archer. Level 2.

  "Irene. Level 2," Luke said, pointing.

  She wore a tunic of leather armor, complete with leather padding for her arms, and carried a bow in one hand. "Very good," she said, her tone mocking. "Now, could I get a heal?"

  "Is this the tutorial?" Luke asked the group.

  "Yup," Sarah, a twenty-something girl with black hair up in a ponytail, said. She got up as well and opened an honest-to-god trench coat to pluck a gun out of a holster. She was level 3.

  Inspected Integrated: Sarah . Quickshot. Level 3.

  "You have guns."

  "Yup. Quickshot. You know, pew pew."

  A guy in a white T-shirt, dark gray chinos, and huge thin-framed glasses stood and grabbed a wand out of thin air before waving it in greeting.

  Inspected Integrated: Mingze. Wandslinger. Level 2.

  "Hey Mingze," Luke said. "Where did you get your gear?"

  "Check your inventory," Nate said.

  Irene sighed. "Can you heal us or not?"

  "I think so," Luke said. "Give me a second."

  From farther down, in the empty, cave-like hallway, he heard sounds of fighting and people screaming in pain, despite not seeing a thing.

  "What's that?" he asked, nodding toward the sounds.

  "It's a tutorial dungeon," Nate said. "It's people fighting. What else are you supposed to do in a dungeon?"

  "Why aren't you?"

  "We found something strong," Irene groaned. "Now we need heals!"

  "Told you to give me a moment. I just arrived. If you want healing, then you should try giving the healer a little respect. Let me get up to speed here."

  The bow disappeared from her hands and she raised them, palms facing forward. "Sorry, sorry. You don't need to get all mad about it."

  Nate gestured to Irene. "She's right, though. See the gate?"

  "Yep," Luke said. Just a few meters from where they were standing, bars ran from floor to ceiling, an open door leading through them.

  "Once you go through that, you start seeing the monsters on the other side. They aren't all that dangerous, but you get hit some, and it whittles down your health."

  "Has anyone died?" Luke asked.

  "We saw another group. One of them died and disappeared into thin air. After that, we got separated," Mingze said.

  Nate sat back down. "Why don't you read through your skills and check your inventory in peace, then we can get going."

  "Good idea," Luke said, sitting down to peruse the ever-present overlay of text and graphics.

  A moment later, he frowned and shook his head. "These are my skills?"