”I told my wife about the Potato Scramble. She couldn’t believe it.” ~Schooner

  It was still deep in the evening at the time Shallies woke up. It wasn’t because she felt uncomfortable in her new bed. On the contrary, the fluffy cushion and wide space had been welcome changes that she now looked forward to every night.

  Back in the day, she had had to get used to sleeping pretty much anywhere. On a tree branch, by its trunk, under its roots. Or on rocky soil, in a damp cave, atop a freezing mountain peak. Or half drenched by the river, or a swamp, or even under the high pressure of the sea. She had to sleep under a pile of divine waste at one point to infiltrate some temple of a maddened god.

  It wasn’t because her body was used to sleeping in stressful environments either. Okay, that might be part of it. Having to take turns to watch the night for ambushes had created a certain, nigh-unbreakable habit that her internal body clock had gotten used to. Not something she particularly expected to just disappear overnight now that she’d found a more relaxing calling to pursue.

  Experience, combined with an absurd set of Skills and Perks, allowed Shallies to get up on her feet with only an hour’s worth of sleep.

  The teacup fairy, who was slumbering peacefully in her personal, sleeping teacup atop a nightstand, needed a few more hours to fully recover. While she possessed the same amount of Skills, she had done most of the work yesterday.

  With the sunrise still far away, Shallies decided to look into her second active Class, the recently acquired Chef.

  “Stachie, give me a rundown please,” Shallies whispered, invoking the System Assistant inside her.

  [Not trying to sleep?] she—as Shallies had determined—asked.

  “I already slept.”

  Stachie made an audible sigh before acquiescing to her master’s request. While the System Assistant began showing her the data, Shallies prepared by exchanging her pajamas for some proper clothes.

  [With the Chef Class being a member of the Profession Classes, you do not acquire any additional Attributes to improve your physical or mental traits. Instead, you gain a Class Perk which improves as you level along with a base increase of your mana pool. As always, the average between your active Classes are taken into account for your new total.]

  [For the Chef’s Perk, Cooking Mastery, each level provides you with a 5% cooking time reduction at the cost of a tiny amount of mana. This is a passive Skill which is always active for as long as you are a Chef. Be it preparing ingredients, cooking something in the oven, cleaning, or any other processes that involve cooking. This has a maximum of up to 50% reduction at level 10 Chef, after which, you acquire a new Class Perk.]

  “What about Skills?” Shallies asked. She wrapped herself in a fur-jacket after putting on her jogging shoes. After leaving a quick note by the kettle for Apple, she went out of the front door.

  [You acquire Skill points every three levels. As usual, many Skills require a specific level to become available. Additionally, since the System recognizes you as a hybrid adventurer—one who acquired both a Combat and Profession Class for their two slots—you are granted one Special Skill for your first level.]

  “But I have more than two Classes already,” Shallies pointed out. She did some stretches in her vine-filled courtyard. Despite the mess, she was thankful for Schooner, who had retained some semblance of maintenance despite the years of abandonment. At the very least, the grass hadn’t grown as tall as her.

  [As far as the System is concerned, you’re eligible for it. Maybe if you take a second Profession Class in the future, it won’t be the case. We’ll see.]

  “I don’t want to think about that right now.”

  [For the future, then.]

  With warm up done, Shallies walked down the winding path of her newly acquired hill, noting how dark the countryside was compared to the city. Thankfully, the great gathering of stars above served as her light, guiding her way. They were more apparent here, as was usual of a countryside where there were less distractions to obscure the wondrous cosmos above.

  Facing east, she could see the distant mana-lamps of the main town. It was quite the distance away, but that was another evidence of how isolated of a place this province was. While there was a small patch of forest south of her, there was nothing to block her view of the vast horizon of farms and roads in other directions. She began heading west, towards the main road.

  “What’s the Special Skill?” she asked while she stretched some more in the middle of the road. It was an odd thing, standing in there freely, without risk of colliding with nonexistent vehicles. With a smile, Shallies started jogging southward.

  [Chef Special Skill, Favored Flavor. All dishes you cook now provide +1 to all stats and +10% MP in addition to their other effects. The duration is equal to the dish’s buff duration. This effect does not take a Food Buff Slot. For dishes that do not provide a buff, the default duration is 1 day and it will take a Food Buff slot instead. The effects of Favored Flavor do not stack.]

  [Cataclysm Archmage Special Skill, Magic Specialist. All magical damage from this Class is increased by 5%. This applies to both instant and delayed effects.]

  “Food Buff Slot?” Shallies asked, not caring about the Skill she had gained from her other Class. After making sure her body was fully warmed up from the jog, she broke into a full sprint. The speed at which she raced down the main road easily surpassed Schooner’s mana-engine vehicle from yesterday. Stachie was unbothered by the sudden speed. In fact, she fully anticipated it.

  [Each Adventurer can maintain 3 Food Buffs. If they exceed more than three, they choose which buffs to retain. As for Favored Flavor, it only adds an additional effect to your actual dishes that would actually take a Food Buff Slot. Unless, of course, the specific dish didn’t take a slot in the first place.]

  “Was there something like that?” Shallies tried to recall from memory about Food Buffs, and completely came up with a blank.

  [You haven’t eaten Chef dishes for a long time, Shallies. You don’t exactly need them.]

  “I guess so…”

  Within just a few minutes, Shallies reached the mountains at the end of the main road. The moment she felt a hint of exhaustion, her passive Skill, Mana Energy, started kicking in, draining her mana to recover her fatigue. At the same time, her current mana pool filled her with energy.

  It had been an odd sensation the first time around, she remembered. How to recognize her fatigue, if it was constantly being boosted by her Skill, was a challenge she had quickly had to get used to. Her exhaustion would drain her mana exponentially if she wasn’t careful. And if her mana pool was drained, tiredness would slam into her like a speeding mana-engine vehicle.

  She began heading back, starting with a walk to allow for her Skill to fully recover her exhaustion. The trick was to wait for the Skill to stop draining mana. At that point, her stamina would fully recover, as if she had just taken a short rest.

  In the meantime, she looked around while she made her way back.

  There was barely anything to see in the countryside at this hour. Just her, the stars, the empty road, and the occasional rustling caused by nocturnal animals sneaking away from her presence. A curious cat directed its glowing eyes at her for a second before scurrying into the fields.

  If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

  Despite this, her keen ability to spot details brought her attention to a white speck buried in the grass on the side of the road. A white feather, almost as long as her arm.

  “Angel feather…” she whispered, looking above the clouds.

  She didn’t feel anyone particularly powerful hiding amongst them, nor anywhere nearby. Normally, she would’ve been convinced that it was simply an angel passing by. She was, however, at the edge of the kingdom, a province on the other side of heavenly territories.

  After spending a few moments making sure no one was hiding from her, Shallies sprinted back home. All the while, she kept the mystery of the angel feather at the back of her head.

  The Chef was barely out of breath when she got back to her new abode. The faintest sign of first light emerged from behind the main town. It reminded her of the potential customers she would be having this morning.

  As soon as she opened the door, she saw Apple already there, wide awake, wiping the tables and counters with mana controlled cloths before covering them with sheets. She beamed at her arrival.

  “Good morning,” Shallies said, receiving a small chime from her fairy companion. “Did you include the kitchen?”

  Apple shook her head, pointing at the second floor to indicate that she still needed to clean upstairs.

  “I’ll do it then.” Shallies took a mop, filled a bucket with soap water, and started cleaning the kitchen. At the same time, she made a proper assessment of this section.

  “Hmm… We don’t really have a lot, huh…”

  They were lacking a ton of fundamental equipment as far as a tavern kitchen was concerned. They needed a wider stove, preferably two large, mana-crafted ones with four sections; one for cooking, and one for maintaining heat for soups and the like. The oven was old and too small to run a business. She wanted a large one for now, and maybe a second if needed. Better water pressure, two faucets, preferably with their own sink basins.

  “Smoking racks as well, maybe a griddle grill too…”

  She also considered where to store ale and other kinds of liquor. Where to keep all sorts of meat frozen, racks and lines to hang vegetables, shelves for condiments, a better sink for more efficient cleaning.

  “I said we were open, but if we get a bunch of customers right now, we won’t be serving all of them,” she admitted.

  As Shallies finished mopping the floor and wiping the stove, and the counter and other such, she stood in the middle of the kitchen and admitted something she wanted to avoid.

  “We need to renovate this place.”

  Apple zipped in front and pointed to herself.

  “No, we can’t have you do it,” Shallies said. She rested her head on top of the mop handle as her azure eyes scanned in and out of the kitchen. “It’ll be too suspicious. Plus your designs are too natural. If we expand this section of the house, it’ll be completely out of theme with the rest of the structure. We need to look for some Carpenters or Engineers.”

  Apple was visibly disappointed. She pouted and crossed both her arms and legs. The movement caused her to float and rotate slowly as her balance went sideways.

  [Most high-level Builders are employed either in the main city, the railway, or to the West Wall,] Stachie said.

  “That’s fine, we don’t need high-level ones anyway. Just someone who can help make a larger, more efficient kitchen.” Shallies pressed a finger over Apple’s head, setting her up straight again. “You know we can’t do anything too grand. We don’t want our neighbors getting too suspicious.”

  It reminded her of another important thing.

  “Oh, that’s right. We should probably settle on which Classes we’ll be. We’re supposed to only have two, remember?”

  Apple set aside her disappointment and nodded. Shallies took this moment to return to the front counter and make some coffee and tea.

  “You can probably keep the Grovekeeper Class, Apple. It’s only one tier up the Advanced Classes and it can explain your mana-control, but you should take Chef as well. You can substitute for me when needed, and I wouldn’t need to hire an extra hand right away.”

  The teacup fairy didn’t object. She opened a tiny panel in front of her, and just like that, she changed her Class.

  [Apple initiated Stellar Engage and activated the Chef Class to replace the Astral Lord Class.]

  “Hmm… I think keeping Cataclysm Archmage for me would be too much.” Not only was it the highest tier, only a handful of people—mortals—had managed to achieve it. And a younger-than-twenty-year-old looking girl couldn’t possibly reach that tier, or even the one below it, without becoming suspicious.

  Apple perked up and made gestures in the air. She pointed towards Shallies, then to herself, and then made a flexing motion like a bodybuilder would do after some weightlifting training before finally pointing outside the window, towards the stars that were slowly fading.

  “Oh, that’s a good one.” Shallies stood up straight. “Stellar Engage.”

  [Stellar Engaged. Please choose a Class.]

  “Replace Cataclysm Archmage with Guiding Star.”

  A confirmation sound dinged inside her head before the world around her halted into a complete stop. Intense mana surrounded her, causing the pink and blue highlights underneath her white hair to glow. The surge of power enveloped her completely, condensing within her instead of exploding outward.

  Screen after screen appeared and disappeared, surrounding her from head to toe with notifications that she had seen a million, billion times already.

  They were constant updates, rapid deactivation and activation of Skills and Perks. The System left behind overlapping Skills available for the new Class that she already possessed, or switched them with whichever had the higher Skill Proficiency.

  The difference was this new Class only possessed five passive Skill slots compared to the fully expanded Cataclysm Archmage.

  Shallies chose to keep Mana Energy and Enhanced Mana Regeneration, which remained at their maximum proficiencies for being a general Spellcaster Skill. They were too valuable to get rid of, and their value alone could explain why she focused on them in case someone questioned it. She chose three other passives specific to Guiding Star.

  Apple managed a blink before the change was finalized. She smiled, knowing exactly what Shallies had gone through.

  [Stellar Engage: Complete. Congratulations. You are now both a Guiding Star and a Chef, Shallies. Would you like a review of Guiding Star?]

  “No need,” she replied, already opening her Class Inventory to manage her equipment. While the Cataclysm Archmage Class shared the same spellcasting archetype with Guiding Star, their paradigms were complete opposites. Thus, their equipment loadouts weren’t exactly interchangeable with each other.

  Shallies exchanged her staff for a wristwatch that mimicked the cosmic constellations instead of telling the time. Her coat remained the same, but she switched out a couple of other accessories and gear, exchanging them for lower quality ones. This helped maintain the fabricated narrative that she was just a lucky adventurer who had afforded an early retirement. Too many shiny, legendary items would be too suspicious for an adventurer who had supposedly gone on adventures for only two years, no matter how lucky or cute they might be.

  After that, she finalized them as her main gear and current loadout, before storing them back into her Class Inventory. The action made her equipment vanish, returning to her jogging attire.

  “That should do it,” Shallies said. “Breakfast?”

  Apple nodded, but before any of them could make a move, a knock came from the front door. The two of them looked at each other. The sun had risen, but it hadn’t been an hour yet.

  Regardless, the teacup fairy went to open the door.

  “Apologies for being a little early, Shallies,” Schooner said as he entered the foyer, taking his hat off. He was courteous enough to stay there and await permission, despite his position as Town Mayor. “We wanted to have an early start. We had planned to wait a little while longer, but we saw the lights were open when we arrived. I hope it’s not too much to ask.”

  “It would be rude of me to decline paying customers,” Shallies said as she left the counter to meet her guests with a smile. There were three of them in total. “Mind you, I haven’t taste-tested my recipes using the local ingredients yet. For now, I only have my current supply, same as yesterday. But please, come in. Take any seat you want.”

  Shallies increased the heat from her fireplace while Schooner chose one of the four-seater tables. He had brought his family with him, as promised.

  One, a tall, human lady with black hair as straight as her back, smiled expectantly. She was obviously the wife, and was admittedly more beautiful, just as the orc claimed. Like with Schooner, Shallies barely reached the wife’s gifted chest area.

  Lucky, Shallies sighed.

  The final guest was a younger version of the wife, with the mixed blood from her orcish father. Her skin was as pearlescent as her mother’s. On the surface, she looked more like a pureblooded human than a half-orc, with nothing but her emerald eyes giving it away. Younger, however, didn’t mean shorter, and it could be argued that her orcish blood had provided her with a more refined body than her mother could have given through human blood alone.

  She was fiercely staring at Apple at the moment.

  Lucky…

  “I thought you had a son?” Shallies asked, returning to the counter to prepare more coffee and tea. It wouldn’t do her good to dwell too long in envy. She was used to it.

  “Ah, my son left for the Southern Fissures last month. Raid quest. He sends letters and messages constantly, so we know he’s okay. This, here, is my daughter, Grace Allturia.”

  “And your wife?”

  “I’m Elesia Allturia, Miss Shallies.”

  “Please, just call me Shallies, Elesia.”

  The wife responded with a smile and a nod.

  Schooner tilted his head. “You’re not surprised I shared their last names, and not mine?”

  “I’ve met a lot of orcs, Mayor. I know a lot of you keep your clan names to yourselves. Once you leave the clan, you voluntarily forfeit the right to pass it on to your offspring. Some orcs I know, like you, forfeit the clan name completely.”

  “Oh… that saves us a lot of explaining then,” Schooner said.

  “You seem a well-traveled person, Shallies,” Elesia followed up.

  “I can share some stories while you wait for your food, but first…” Shallies nodded towards Grace, who was completely mesmerized by Apple. “Would you mind asking your daughter to give my Soul Confidant some space?”

  “She’s your Soul Confidant?” the half-orc yelped in surprise. A small necklace flickered as she turned excitedly. Her Badge.

  Apple took advantage of the distraction and zipped behind Shallies’ head. The tavern owner scratched her head.

  “Ah, now I get it,” she sighed in understanding. “Now I know why you’re so early. We got an energetic newbie right here. Let me change into work attire, then I can cook something up for you all.”