I look at the picture of me, dressed in a shimmering robe that seems to glow with an iridescent haze. Within it, my form seems to shift and almost… vibrate, never staying in the same place for too long. More than that, though, my left arm is… my own again. All of the other class selections have shown me with my mechanical arm as it currently exists, but with this class, my arm looks like it was six months ago before the System ever arrived. Honestly, I'm not sure how to feel about this. My arm has become something akin to a part of my identity as a person, something I've accepted as a part of myself and worked to integrate into my circuitry. Losing it would feel like losing a part of myself, and it feels like a step away from who I want to be.

I'm also not sure if this is actually a mage class or something completely different, but it certainly looks cool.

[Class: [Seeker of Freedom]]

My eyebrows rise; my interest is fully piqued.

[Your life's journey has been one of seeking freedom. Freedom from authority, freedom to act on your own initiative, to do what you think is right. You have learned never to trust governments, institutions, or those who seek to rule over others. You act without regard for established rules or authority, especially that imposed by the law and its enforcers. That is not to say that you (always) act selfishly or antisocially, only that you have never let the dicta of the law or social influence override your own internal sense of justice.

This class extends your quest for anarchy further. Be not tied down by any attempts to bind you, but instead, embrace your inner light and deliver that freedom to all those who lie bonded in chains. (Warning: This class is incompatible with class: [Lesser Archon]. Choosing [Lesser Archon] will permanently preclude selection of [Seeker of Freedom] in this and all future ascensions, and vice versa.)]

[[Strength] -2, [Speed] +6, [Vitality] -1, [Mind] +6, Maximum [Health] -50, Maximum [Ether] +400 when choosing this class. [Speed] +1, [Mind] +1, 4 Free Stat Points per level.]

"So, I guess this is the class based on [Indomitable Will]?" Phina asks.

"That, and flipping off the elected officials at the capital, refusing the offer of becoming our hometown's Lady Protector, cussing out police officers and calling them self-righteous pigs, busting through and into restricted areas, and just generally being a troublemaker for anyone and everyone."

"That's us," Phina says. "Raging against both The System and every other system that gets created by the wealthy and powerful to cement their power and authority."

"And yet, here we are, in the very position of power and authority that we worked so hard to escape from. I guess life has a cruel sense of irony at times."

"Maybe that's a sign that we should take this class. We know our class selections influence our actions and thoughts, at least a little bit. And this is in keeping both with who we've been and who we want to be."

"Let's still take a few moments to look through everything we'd be getting out of the class and what it expects of us," I say.

Looks like, as Phina said a bit ago, the biggest thing this class does is play off our [Indomitable Will]. It becomes [Scion of Freedom], giving us immunity to being bound, grappled, chained, or otherwise imprisoned. We also get a smattering of System spells, namely those related to illusions or countering other magic. Not nearly as powerful or versatile as my past self's [Skill Crumple], but it would be a step toward gaining that Skill at some point.

What the class notably does not do is enhance our [Glyphcasting] in any way. I'll be able to move [Intermediate Ether Manipulation] and [Intermediate Glyph Manifestation] over to Class Skills, but [Glyphcasting] will stubbornly remain as a General Skill. Not the death knell when it comes to weighing the option, but a definite point against it. At least the new [Scion of Freedom] does instead, so it's more or less a wash.

"Pretty good option?" Phina half-asks, half-says?

"I admit, I like the motivation of the class. I like the ideals of the class. And in terms of what the class wants from me, it doesn't seem so bad. Right up there with [Ethertechnologist]. But at the same time–"

"It's a lot more stuff to have to learn how to do and incorporate into our fighting style?" Phina says, interjecting with my thoughts on the matter.

"Exactly. Not to mention how Chloe will feel about us effectively going into a rogue class."

"I think she'll be fine with it," Phina says.

And I do understand where she's coming from. Chloe has definitely changed. For good or ill, she's adjusted to the realities of the post-System world a lot better than most. She has realized that, like it or hate it, monsters are going to attack, that people are going to be forced into combat from time to time, and that it's far better to have the power to defend oneself and not need it, than need it and not have it. Because yeah, we'll do what we can to protect people to the extent possible. But we can't protect everyone from everything.

Not just because we can't be everywhere, all at once. And not because we simply aren't omnipotent— threats may one day arise that even we cannot face. But because it is a dangerous path to become too reliant on another. It restricts the freedom and autonomy of the dependent, and it invites the temptations of the benefactor, to exploit, to abuse, to act with moral and legal impunity, knowing that the other side can do nothing but sit there and take it.

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Phina puts her hand on my shoulder before scooping me into a hug. "They can't hurt us anymore," she says. "We're past that point now."

"I know intellectually, but–"

"It doesn't leave our mind so easily."

I hold Phina a little closer, even though it's still very strange to be hugging a copy of myself within my mind. It still helps.

"Even though it'd be way better to hug Chloe this way," Phina says in a slightly sarcastic tone.

"We should get back to her sooner rather than later."

Phina nods. "So, we're a solid maybe on this class too?"

I nod. "But I think there's one more class we need to consider. The one that the System sure as the nine hells isn't going to tell us about."

"I think we have to will that forward?" Phina says it in a tone that conveys the truth that we don't know for sure what to do. "Maybe we should try like we're activating our [Overlimit]?"

I shrug. Worth a shot. Closing my eyes, I focus on that mote of power deep within my core. As soon as I touch it with my mind, the entire world around me flickers. For a moment, I'm weightless, floating within the endless void. Then everything in the room around me reappears, seemingly nothing any different after the momentary glitch.

Before me is a hologram of static, never congealing to a single coherent image. It's still me— I can see the fuzz of golden locks near the top and the general shape of my figure if I squint hard enough. For a bit, I think this is as before— some class that my power as ｢The Anomaly｣ is fighting to create against the System's otherwise omnipotent impassivity. But as I look through the description, I think this might be by design.

[Class: [Defier of Fates]]

[From the moment the System first arrived on your world, you have known the inexorable truth. That your world and everything you knew was bound to a grim fate. Despite this inevitability, you still cling to a dim hope, that the finality that awaits your universe can somehow be overturned. You still fight on in vain, hoping to create a world that does not have an absolute future. Take this class, warrior who fights against the omnipotent. Do not go quietly into that good night. Rage, rage against the dying of the light!]

[Stats are unchanged when choosing this class. 7 Free Stat Points per level.]

"I think this is the one," Phina says. "The class for us."

"I think so too. But we still owe ourselves our due diligence."

First, the stat increases, or rather, the lack thereof. Not as big of a deal as it would otherwise be. Most of these classes are offering six stat points each level, with [Lesser Archon]— the one class I have definitively ruled out— being the notable exception, also at seven. Most of these classes are offering a net of between seven and ten stat points upon ascension, meaning I should be coming out way ahead by the time I reach Level 96. The lack of [Health] and [Ether] increase is notable and a significant knock against the class, but not one that I consider a hard-veto the way I do with [Lesser Archon] and its… growth path.

I absolutely love that all stat points are free. A bit more annoying to have to assign them every time, but the flexibility is in keeping with the nature of the class. Defying fate, overcoming limitations, being bound by nothing and no one. It's like a strictly better version of [Seeker of Freedom].

Well, not quite. I don't get those illusion spells like I otherwise would. I wouldn't be as strongly compelled to lash out against the bonds used to imprison and enslave others. And I wouldn't get that neat upgraded [Scion of Freedom] Skill. Instead, I'll get a new skill, [Morningstar's Triumph]. It gives, according to its description, a small increase in stats when fighting against opponents with a higher level than I am, one which scales with Skill Rank and the level difference.

"That's absolutely amazing," Phina shouts out through our mindscape.

And it is. Most of what I'm fighting is higher level than I am, and I don't have much to fear from fighting against lower leveled foes. The utility is overwhelming— almost too good to be true. I look around, expecting there to be some sort of catch, somewhere buried deep down in the fine print, or maybe the finer print literally buried within the fine print.

But I don't see one after several minutes of looking through it all. Nothing about getting weaker when fighting weaker enemies or it requiring a prohibitive [Ether] cost to use. It means the stat buff is probably not too large, and it's probably enormously tedious to rank it up. In other words, it's not as effective as it might appear— it did say a small increase. But a small increase for the cost of a Skill slot seems like a worthwhile trade.

"We're taking it, right?" Phina asks.

"One final look through all the other choices, just to make sure that we've not left anything important off the table?"

And we both do, splitting up to look over all the information we have about all our different classes, comparing and contrasting the Skills they offer, the stat increases, the things that the various classes want and expect and will push us toward doing, and what the potential upgrade paths might look like.

Despite our poring over every Skill description, despite our efforts to peer into every choice of word, every bit of phrasing that might hint at how the System might try to twist its offerings in a way that screws us at our most vulnerable moment, I can find none. Even with this last offering, despite it speaking of futility and trying to 'change the unchangeable'— as though these words would dissuade me from my fight against the System and the annihilation it foretells— I can find nothing.

The only real downside is that this choice doesn't do anything to directly enhance my [Glyphcasting], or even my magic more generally. The System is remaining mum about what the possible Skills I'll get are, other than [Morningstar's Triumph], but that's… This time around, I think, with another class to pick, the uncertainty of choosing this one is… acceptable in light of the potential benefits.

"Time to go," I say.

"Nope," Phina says. "Have you forgotten? I am you. We are one. But, we probably should get back to Chloe. She's waiting for us, after all."

The System window pops up as I mentally make our decision. I look down, just to make sure I've picked them correctly and to give myself one final chance to back out.

[Confirm Selection of Classes: [Valkyrion] and [Defier of Fate]. [Yes] / [No]]

"We're doing what we think is right," Phina says. "Now, let's get going! I'm hungry!"

I select [Yes]. My body fills with power as everything goes white.

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