I stood at the stove staring at the eggs in the frying pan, as if a glare from me would get them to cook faster. For all I knew, there was some Skill out there that would actually do that. I was certain there was a spell out there that would do it. Everything had changed since I'd come back, far too fast for my liking. New Body, new Skills, new world or rather old world, new secrets. It was too much to deal with all at once, but I didn't have much choice in the matter.

  Thankfully, at least the family was still at the hospital watching over Sean rather than questioning me. There would be plenty of time for the Spanish inquisition, I'd be likely to receive soon enough. I'd woken up to several messages from Vicky, updating me on Sean's condition. He was awake and feeling much better. The doctors were still running more tests, but they were looking good. He'd been moved to a new wing of the hospital with state of the art equipment, and the nurses and doctor had been coming and going for hours. That wasn't at all surprising given that I knew Argyle was footing the bill, and the doctor knew who he was. The surprising part was that the doctors were saying that if he continued to improve, Sean could be home as early as tomorrow. I figured that was likely; the potion I'd shoved down his throat would have stripped everything out of him that was hurting him, so now it was just down to his body to heal itself. Thanks to the increased levels of mana he was experiencing, I imagined it wouldn't take long. I wasn't sure by any means, but I had a feeling that mana in a normal human body would act something like nitrous in an engine. Kicking everything into overdrive.

  In the meantime, I'd decided I'd get a head start on my own project.

  Training.

  I was going to scour the White Banner's archives for information on Skills. What they were, how they were obtained, what they did, and then try to acquire some that would help shore up my weaknesses. I figured that while I was there, I could also work on my ritual magic skills since they'd be needed soon. I had plans to have wards drawn up for every square inch of my father's home. If I could pull it off, I'd turn the damn place into a fortress. I didn't have the knowledge or skill to do that right now, but I was hoping access to the Banner's archive would change that.

  I wolfed down my breakfast while eyeing my phone. I was waiting for a ride from one of the Banner's people to take me to their facility. As if on cue, my phone buzzed with a message from Uncle Wolf. it read. I quickly rinsed my plate, and my [Mirage of the Root-Nexus] shifted to form a heavy coat over me. I elected to leave my cuirass and gloves in my [Inventory]. I didn't think it was likely I'd need them in the middle of a White Banner facility.

  A sleek black sedan was parked at the curb, its tinted windows concealing the driver. As I approached, the back door swung open silently. I slid inside, greeted by the scent of leather and a faint trace of something herbal - probably some kind of air freshener. For a moment, I contemplated the idea of magical air fresheners, and the thought made me smirk. If humanity at large gained access to the system and magic, it was likely we'd use it for the strangest of things. Of course, there was the flip side to that as well. What kind of atrocities could humanity commit when they weren't bound by the rules of reality as we knew them?

  "Mr. Kaesor," the driver nodded at me through the rearview mirror. His eyes were hidden behind dark sunglasses, but I could sense his scrutiny. "We'll be at the facility in about 30 minutes. Is there anything you need before we depart?"

  I shook my head, settling into the plush seat. As we pulled away from the curb, I couldn't help but feel a mix of anticipation and unease. The White Banner's archives held the knowledge I desperately needed, but I was all too aware of how little I truly understood about this new world I'd been thrust into. I needed to know, to understand. I couldn’t advance if I didn’t understand the rules of the game I was playing.

  The city blurred past the windows as we drove, the familiar sights of my neighbourhood giving way to areas I'd never explored. I found myself wondering how many seemingly ordinary buildings might house secret magical facilities or serve as fronts for organizations like the Banner. Or the Vish.

  "So," I ventured, breaking the silence, "have you been with the Banner long?"

  The driver's lips quirked in what might have been a smile. "Long enough, Mr. Kaesor. Most of my life, in fact." I nodded, unsure how to respond. The silence stretched on for a few more minutes before curiosity got the better of me.

  "What's it like?" I asked. "Working for the Banner, I mean."

  The driver's eyes flicked to mine in the rear view mirror. "It's like anything else but more... complex," he said carefully. "We do important work, keeping people safe from threats they don't even know exist. But it can be isolating. Hard to maintain relationships outside the organization when so much of your life is classified."

  I mulled that over. It sounded lonely, but also oddly appealing.

  "For most of us, it is a generational thing. Many who work for the Banner come from families who have been involved with the Banner since its founding. I am distantly related to one of those families, so I was given the opportunity to join as soon as I was an adult." I fell silent at that explanation. It explained quite a few things to me, and now the Banner's internal politics made much more sense. If what the driver had said was true, and I had no reason to think it wasn't, then most of the Banner was effectively comprised of old money families. Families who likely jockeyed for position and power within the organization.

  I suddenly felt much more ill at ease with the Banner as a whole. The majority of them were likely relatively normal people who just wanted to do their jobs, do some good, and go home to their families at the end of the day. It wasn’t them that worried me. It was the upper echelons, the people who lived and breathed politics. The ones who counted lives like profit and loss on a spreadsheet.

  ——-

  "We're here," the driver announced, pulling up to a familiar gated entrance. I was back at the very same facility where I’d met David for the first time. As we pulled through the gates, I couldn't help but feel a sense of déjà vu. The last time I'd been here, I was still reeling from the revelation of magic and monsters. From the revelation that magic was much more common and closer to my life than I’d ever believed possible.

  The car came to a stop in front of the main building, a stark concrete structure that seemed to blend seamlessly into its surroundings. As I stepped out, I noticed subtle details I'd missed before - runes etched into the corners of windows, barely perceptible shimmer in the air that I was certain hinted at magical wards.

  "Mr. Kaesor," a crisp voice called out. I turned to see a woman striding towards me, her lab coat billowing behind her. Underneath the lab coat, she was dressed sharply in a pair of slacks and a dark red blouse that made her pale skin look even more pale. Though more like porcelain than alabaster. "I'm Dr. Elara Voss, head archivist of this facility. Carl Wolfe informed me you'd be coming. Please, follow me." I nodded simply. Voss seemed like someone who would rather be at her work than deal with other people. It seemed as if she was taking the interruption to her work in stride; however, I imagined this wasn't the first time she'd been interrupted to assist someone in the archives, and it wouldn't be the last.

  Entering the facility turned out to be both more complicated and easier than I expected. We passed through several small checkpoints where I had different details confirmed, from pictures for facial recognition to fingerprints taken by a small scanning pad. She even had me do a retinal scan, which was unpleasant; bright lights in my eyes were always uncomfortable. Fortunately, I'd only have to deal with it the one time, now that I was registered in their system, Doctor Voss informed me that I was allowed in at any time by order of Uncle Wolf and David. Apparently, having friends in high places was more useful than I'd ever given it credit for.

  As we made our way deeper into the facility, Dr. Voss briefed me on the protocols for accessing the archives. "You'll need to sign some non-disclosure agreements, of course. And certain sections are off-limits without higher clearance. But you should find plenty to work with in the general archives."

  After several corridors and an elevator ride, we arrived at a heavy metal door, emblazoned with more runes. Honestly, it reminded me more of a bank vault than a simple secured door. Dr. Voss placed her hand on a panel, and I felt a surge of mana in the room as the wards recognized her clearance. The door swung open silently, revealing a vast room filled with row upon row of books. Interestingly, there was a row of terminals along the far wall as well.

  "Huh, magic gone digital, never would have thought of that," I said more to myself than the Doctor.

  Dr. Voss glanced at me, a hint of amusement in her eyes. "We've adapted with the times, Mr. Kaesor. While many of our older texts remain in physical form, we've digitized a significant portion of our acquisitions. It makes searching and cross-referencing much more efficient." I nodded, impressed despite myself. As we walked between the towering shelves, I couldn't help but feel a sense of awe. The sheer volume of knowledge contained here was staggering.

  "So, where should I start?" I asked, feeling somewhat overwhelmed by the options before me.

  Dr. Voss led me to one of the terminals. "Given what Carle said you were interested in, I'd recommend beginning with our database on Skills and their acquisition. It's quite comprehensive and regularly updated. Not everything is available, but there should be more than enough to get you moving in the right direction." She tapped a few keys, bringing up a search interface. "You can use keywords to narrow your focus. I’ll also leave a connection to the ritual magic sections so you can swap back and forth as you please.” She finished her fingers blurring across the keyboard as new windows opened and were swiftly added to a top bar that reminded me of my internet browser at home. Though significantly more organized. I had a bad habit of leaving fifty tabs open at all times.

  Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.

  I settled into the chair, my fingers hovering over the keyboard. "Any articles you find will have a listing inside that references the document they came from and where to find it within the archive if you need to reference the physical copy." She gestured to a room off to the side. "I'll be in my office if you have any questions." I nodded my thanks and focused on the screen of the terminal in front of me. Questions swirled in my mind. What exactly did I want here? My priority was acquiring new combat Skills, but would it be more useful to look into how Skills were actually acquired first? Achieve a baseline understanding of Skills, what they were, and how they worked.

  I sat there for several minutes with my fingers hovering over the keyboard as I was racked with indecision. In the end, I simply typed 'Skill Acquisition' into the search bar and hit enter. I could look at the Skills themselves soon enough; for now, it was better to look into how Skills were actually acquired. Even with as much information as the Banner had probably amassed over what was likely centuries of history, there was no way of knowing if they had anything that would suit me specifically. After all, I wanted Skills that would work not just for me, but would also work well with my Bloodline Skills.

  ——-

  "What is he looking for?" Voss turned to face the screen of her personal terminal. On the Screen was the face of David Giffle, the regional director of the White Banner and ostensibly her boss. It was unusual for David to take an interest in the people who utilized the archive, as they had to have permission in the first place, but from what she knew of the young man in the next room, his situation was anything but the usual.

  "Currently, he's looking into our databases on Skill Acquisition. Hardly surprising given that's what Carl said he was here for." She responded; a few key strokes brought up the screen detailing the logs of Aiden's terminal use. "Skill formation, history, known types of Skills, both combat and non-combat related. He's also looking into ritual magic, flipping back and forth like a child with an attention disorder who can't stay focused on one thing." Voss explained, shaking her head as she read over the logs. Aiden had been sitting at that terminal for hours now without rest, food or water. She'd compared him to a child with an attention disorder, but that was reductive of the young man. He focused like few others she'd encountered, and she had a large degree of respect for that focus. It was simply that said focus shifted rapidly from topic to topic. If he had the Intelligence to retain most of what he was reading, then he was absorbing information at a terrifying rate of speed that would shame some of her coworkers.

  "Keep an eye on him, and send me a copy of his logs once he leaves. It's not that I don't trust him, but I'd rather be aware of his activities than not. Losing track of him has already bitten me once." David said with a sigh that spoke volumes.

  "Of course, Director. Would you be referring to last night's incident?" Voss questioned. She knew that a cleanup crew had been sent out and that Aiden had been involved, but she knew precious little else.

  "I am. He was involved with a pair of Vish enforcers and one of their dealers last night after a problem with his younger brother." David let out another sigh. There was no harm in informing Voss about who she was dealing with. She was just as bound up in security clearance and NDA's as he was. Things had become more complicated since Aiden's emergence and would likely only get more complicated. "That young man battered down the dealer, and his goons like they were nothing. When two Vish enforcers showed up, he buried them as well. Certainly not their top-flight people, but not weak either. Now here he is trying to gain even more power. You can see why I'm concerned."

  ——-

  I leaned back in my chair, rubbing my eyes as the information on the screen blurred together. I'd been at this for hours, jumping from topic to topic as new questions arose. The sheer volume of information was overwhelming, but I was starting to see patterns emerge.

  Skills, it seemed, could be acquired through various means. Some were innate, tied to a person's Bloodline or magical affinity. Others could be learned through dedicated practice or study. And then there were those that seemed to manifest spontaneously in moments of intense need or emotion, or even after a significant achievement seemingly awarded by the System for the accomplishment. That was just the General Skills as well.

  That wasn't touching on Class Skills or Bloodline Skills. There was some information on Class Skills available in the archive, but not nearly as much, and the information on Bloodline Skills was practically non-existent.

  Class Skills were tied to the Class of the user, defined by it in a way that General Skills simply weren't. They were often an intensely personal thing, much the same way one's Class could be.

  As it turned out, many Rankers started with a bog standard Class like Warrior, Fighter, or Mage. What was interesting was that the archive detailed information on the few Rankers they knew of, who advanced far enough that they could apparently change their Class. There was, at some point in their progression, a point where their Class could change and evolve to better suit their needs and desires.

  As I scrolled through another article, a notification popped up on the screen. "Mr. Kaesor," Dr. Voss's voice came through a small speaker. "You've been at this for quite some time. Perhaps a break would be beneficial?"

  I blinked, suddenly aware of how stiff my body had become. "Yeah, you're probably right," I admitted, stretching several snaps echoed through the spacious room as the vertebrae in my spine popped.

  I stood up, my muscles protesting after hours of stillness. As I made my way out of the archives, I couldn't help but feel a mix of excitement and frustration. I'd learned so much, yet I felt like I'd barely scratched the surface.

  Dr. Voss was waiting for me in the hallway, a steaming cup of coffee in her hand. She offered it to me with a small smile. "I thought you might need this. There's a small break room down the hall if you'd like something to eat as well."

  I accepted the coffee gratefully, inhaling the rich aroma. "Thanks, Dr. Voss. I think I will grab something to eat."

  Dr. Voss guided us to the nearby break room, and as I retrieved something simple from a nearby vending machine, I found myself mulling over everything I'd read. "Dr. Voss," I began hesitantly, "in your experience, how do most people go about acquiring new Skills?" I asked as we seated ourselves at a nearby table.

  She considered the question for a moment before answering. "It varies greatly, Mr. Kaesor. Some focus on intense training in specific areas, hoping to trigger Skill acquisition. Others seek out dangerous situations, banking on the System's tendency to grant Skills in moments of need. In rare circumstances, one might be allowed the use of a Skill book from the Banner's repository, but those chances are vanishingly rare, as the Banner guards those resources jealously." She explained. "In your case, I believe I would suggest a mix of training and extreme situations. Have you had the chance to look at any of our records regarding survivors of Soul-Sheer?"

  "No, I didn't realize you had any, and I've been busy with the other topics," I responded before opening the sandwich and tearing into it. I was hungry, very hungry. Glancing at the clock on the wall, I realized I'd been in the archives for much longer than I'd thought, which explained the way my stomach was demanding attention. I'd arrived in the early morning, and it was already well past noon.

  "While the records are, admittedly, much more sparse than I or the other archivists would like, we have been able to draw a few conclusions." She said, sipping from her own steaming cup of dark coffee. "We know that those who survive Soul-Sheer tend to come out of it stronger than average, sometimes by an order of magnitude. Another thing we're certain of is that they gain Skills faster than others, though we aren't sure as to why."

  I paused mid-bite, considering Dr. Voss's words. The idea that I might have some innate advantage in acquiring Skills was both exciting and unsettling. I knew the Soul-Sheer had changed me on a fundamental level, but did those changes go even deeper than I suspected? "Any theories on why that might be?" I asked, swallowing my mouthful of sandwich.

  Dr. Voss's eyes lit up with academic interest. "Several, actually. One hypothesis suggests that surviving Soul-Sheer fundamentally alters one's connection to the System, making it more... responsive, for lack of a better term. Another posits that the trauma of the experience creates a sort of heightened state of awareness, allowing survivors to intuitively grasp magical concepts more quickly."

  I nodded, mulling over the implications. "And the strength increase? Is that just a side effect of faster Skill acquisition, or something else entirely?"

  "That's harder to pin down," Dr. Voss admitted. "We've observed cases where survivors seemed to experience rapid physical changes, almost as if their bodies were... recalibrating to a new baseline. But the sample size is too small to draw definitive conclusions."

  I finished my sandwich, washing it down with the last of my coffee. The caffeine was starting to kick in, sharpening my focus.

  "One other thing we do know is that those who come out of it tend to come out with Classes that are outside the norm. As a whole, on average, Rankers tend to fall inside what we call the 'Quartad of Classes' or the 'Core Classes'. You might be familiar with the concept from video games or literature. We've borrowed much of their terminology to simplify things. Tanks, Damage dealers, Healers, and Supports. Most initial Classes seem to fall into one variation of these roles or another." She explained, growing more animated by the moment. It seemed the good doctor was one of those people who truly lit up when discussing their interests.

  "For instance, Warriors and Fighters are the most common Classes for Rankers that we know of, with Mages being second and Healers a distant third. They tend to be very similar, but what differentiates them is often their Class Skills. Warriors tend to lean towards more defensive Skills, giving them a predilection towards fulfilling the role of Tank. Meanwhile, Fighters go the opposite direction, and we find they often have many offensive abilities with less in the way of defence."

  The doctor was speaking rapidly now, and if it weren't for my Intelligence Stat, I would have had a hard time keeping up. Before the System, I would have been completely lost with all the information and the implications of it. "How does that relate to Soul-Sheer survivors? You said that their Classes tend to be outside the norm?" I interrupted before she could fly off on a tangent. I hadn't realized that my Class was so far outside what was considered normal. Another unforeseen consequence of the Soul-Sheer.

  Dr. Voss nodded, composing herself. "Yes, that's correct. Soul-Sheer survivors often manifest unique or hybrid Classes that don't fit neatly into our established categories. For instance, we've recorded Classes like 'Void Walker,' 'Ethereal Knight,' and 'Astral Weaver.' These Classes often come with abilities that blur the lines between our traditional roles."

  I leaned back in my chair, considering this new information. My own Class, [Auramancer], suddenly seemed even more significant. "So, my Class... it's not just unusual, it's potentially unique?"

  "Potentially, yes," Dr. Voss confirmed. "You would have to be willing to share your Class and Skills with us to know for certain, but it is likely, given what we know." She confirmed. I wasn't willing to share that information with the Banner currently. It was good to know, however, it would likely give me certain advantages in the future, making me harder to predict. I finished my meal, washing it down with coffee. Glancing at the clock on the wall, I found it was already progressing into the late evening. The day had gone by in a blur and was already spent. I imagined the sun would be down by the time I got home.

  I rose from the table, "Well, Doctor Voss, today has been enlightening for me, thank you for your time and assistance. I will certainly be back soon. I have much to learn." I said, offering my hand to the doctor.

  Dr. Voss shook my hand, her grip firm and professional. "Of course, Mr. Kaesor. The archives are at your disposal whenever you need them. Just remember the protocols we discussed earlier."

  As I made my way back through the facility's winding corridors, my mind raced with all the information I'd absorbed. The potential for rapid Skill acquisition, the uniqueness of my Class, the various methods of gaining new abilities - it was a lot to process. But it also filled me with a sense of purpose and determination. I had a direction now, a path forward to becoming stronger. One that went beyond simply clearing dungeon after dungeon, slaughtering the monsters within. Though that was certainly going to be a part of my growth, there was no avoiding that.

  The same driver from earlier was waiting for me outside, leaning against the black SUV. As I approached, he straightened up and opened the rear door for me.

  "Home, Mr. Kaesor?" he asked as I slid into the back seat.

  "Yes, please," I replied, settling in for the ride. As we pulled away from the facility, I found myself staring out the window, not really seeing the passing scenery. My mind was already formulating plans, considering strategies for how to best utilize what I'd learned. First, I would develop some new Skills, now that I had a better understanding of how to get them. Next was my ritual magic, it would give me some much-needed utility and help me keep my family safe even when I wasn't around.

  Before that, though, there was one thing that was looming nearer all the time.

  The big reveal.