During his travel to the base, Moon encountered a group of outcasts. The outcasts had surrounded him and Mirage with their weapons drawn, and their smirks wide.

"Stop right there!" the leader called out, a scarred man wielding dual daggers. "End of the road for you. Hand over everything you've got—weapons, potions, coin, and especially that storage ring—and maybe we let you walk away with your lives intact."

Moon sighed internally. It was the usual bandit script, predictable, tiresome, and most importantly…a waste of his time.

Moon could instantly tell they were weaklings, at least compared to him. They were all level nineteen to twenty, a few levels below his current strength.

Their group consisted of six people total: three warriors with basic equipment, an assassin trying to look menacing in the bunch, and two mages already channeling spells as intimidation displays.

The three warriors were nothing special. They had basic classes that most awakeners received during their standard ceremony—Fighter, Warrior, Swordsman.

Before executing these outcasts who'd had the audacity to attempt robbing him, Moon decided to take advantage of the opportunity. He'd copy the assassin's class while he had the chance.

The two mages wouldn't provide anything useful—their classes were likely basic mage variants he'd already explored extensively. But the assassin would most likely possess skills related to stealth or close-quarters combat that Moon could evolve into something valuable.

He wasn't certain he'd encounter awakeners actively using their skills inside Rocketer Base, except perhaps at dedicated training grounds. But visiting those facilities would waste valuable time, and the chance of finding someone with a truly unique class there was extremely low.

Awakeners with unique classes were too far and few to encounter. Moon was in luck to encounter Selene, and Kael.

An assassin could provide him with either stealth-related abilities or techniques that would improve his close-combat capabilities when enemies closed distance. Both would be useful additions to his arsenal.

Moon activated Class Slot silently while the outcasts continued their threatening posturing.

Thankfully, the assassin was foolish enough to be activating his class skill.

[Class Slot {1/1}]

[Class: Assassin]

[Skills: Dagger Art]

[Duration: 24 hours]

New information flooded his mind like waves crashing against the seabed. Knowledge of dagger techniques, stance work, grip variations, and strike patterns penetrated his consciousness. He could suddenly see the flaws in his previous amateur wielding of daggers—weapons he'd wanted to use for close-range defense when enemies breached his casting distance.

Now, he understood proper form. How to defend efficiently, and attack from unexpected angles.

[Dagger Art]

[Rank: Common]

[Proficiency: 0%]

[Details: You have basic understanding of daggers as weapons. You are able to use a dagger to attack, defend, and execute with foundational competence.]

Moon's attention returned to the outcasts before him, who were now shouting with increasing agitation at his apparent lack of response.

"Are you deaf?!" the leader snarled. "I said hand over—"

"Attack him!" one of the mages interrupted, clearly tired of waiting. "He's ignoring us!"

Both mages released their prepared spells simultaneously. Fireballs and wind blades launched toward Moon from different angles.

Moon summoned a dagger from his spatial storage. He wanted to test his new skill immediately in actual combat conditions. But just because he intended to practice close-combat techniques didn't mean he'd take unnecessary damage in the process. He had a realm to enter soon and needed to be in optimal condition.

Moon raised his free hand and channeled earth element. The ground beneath him responded instantly to his Epic-rank Five Element Affinity, erupting upward in a curved barrier of compressed stone that intercepted both magical attacks effortlessly.

The fireball splashed harmlessly against reinforced rock. The wind blades simply dissipated after striking the dense barrier, their cutting force insufficient to penetrate Moon's elemental control.

The three warriors charged while Moon was "distracted" with defense, clearly thinking they'd identified an opening in his guard.

Moon moved to meet them, the dagger held in proper grip according to the knowledge flooding his muscle memory. The Dagger Art skill made his movements flow instinctively, positioning his body for optimal defense and counterattack without conscious thought.

The first warrior swung a sword in an overhead strike, telegraphing his attack from a mile away. Moon sidestepped smoothly. his dagger flicked out, finding the gap between the warrior's arm guard and shoulder pauldron.

The blade sank deep into muscle and tendon, severing the connections that controlled the arm. The warrior screamed in agony and dropped his sword, clutching the wound uselessly.

Moon kicked him backward into the second warrior's path, disrupting their coordination and creating chaos in their formation. Then he pivoted toward the third attacker, a woman wielding a spear with slightly better technique than her companions.

Whoosh!

Her spear thrust was stronger and faster than her allies' attacks, but it was nothing Moon couldn't handle.

He deflected the spear point with his dagger using a circular parry he hadn't known existed five minutes ago, redirecting the weapon's momentum away from his body with minimal effort. In the same fluid motion, he stepped inside her guard and drove the dagger upward beneath her ribcage, finding the heart.

Her eyes widened, as pain flooded through her body. She coughed out blood that landed on Moon's cloak before he retrieved his dagger from her chest and stepped back.

[You have gained 5 Lives.]

The woman dissolved and respawned, her face pale with shock and the debuff from rapid death already affecting her.

Moon was waiting for her. Before she could fully orient herself or activate any defensive skills, his thrown dagger caught her in the throat.

[You have gained 5 Lives.]

The assassin made his move, trying to rescue his spawn-camped teammate from her predicament and capitalize on what he perceived as Moon's distraction.

He appeared directly behind Moon with dual daggers aimed at his kidney and spine simultaneously.

But Moon had copied this exact class. He understood precisely what the assassin was attempting and the mechanical tells that preceded the technique. He wasn't going to fall for basic patterns he now possessed himself.

"Die!"

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