Leo stared up into the mans face, confusion easily visible in his expression. Everything still felt surreal to him, from when he first woke up in that vast expanse of nothingness to staring up at this man's grinning face.
The man seemed to smile even more when he saw Leo's bewildered expression.
"Now, now," the man, "there's no need to panic. My name's Argus. I'm here to show newcomers like you around".
Leonardo looked up at the man, craning his neck to make eye contact. "Where am I? What is this place?"
Argus guffawed. "The questions never change, no matter how much I do this. Didn't you read the menu? This is Dorei, the world of the chosen. And by chosen I mean randomly selected out of an almost infinite number of beings. You and every other hero here have been chosen to come to this plane and fight for domination and the chance to return back to your previous life, although few choose that option in the end".
Leonardo wasn't nearly as shocked as the first time he had heard the description.
"So, what's the catch?", Leo asked, not entirely believing the straightforward explanation.
Argus chuckled again. "Well, you're a sharp one, aren't ya? The catch is that nearly everything and everyone in this place will gain something out of killing you, lad. Danger lurks around every corner, and there are only a few places in the world that are safe, such as this city we're in right now, Aegis".
Argus paused and looked at Leo, making sure that he understood what was going on. Leo nodded his head and gestured for Argus to go on. Seeing that the new hero was following along, Argus continued. "There are a lot of different options for what you can do with your life. The safe option is to just live here in the city. Never venture outside or risk yourself at all. It's by no means an easy life, but you will not die doing it. Many of the weak-willed that come here choose that path, and end up living their whole life in this city."
Leo shook his head. "Now that I have been transported here, I should make the most of it. What else can I do?"
Argus nodded affirmatively. "The second option is to become a fighter. There are many different routes a fighter can take: mercenaries, guards, assassins, etc. But the most common option is dungeon raiders. Dungeons are areas that are completely dominated by monsters. However, inside the dungeon lay many treasures and equipment that could greatly improve one's wealth and strength. The dungeons are the fastest way to reach the top of Dorei, but they are the most dangerous. It's almost impossible to go in alone, and even large groups may not come out of certain dungeons unscathed, or come out at all."
Leonardo became lost in thought. Argus waited patiently for Leo to sort himself out. After a couple minutes Leo looked up at Argus. "I've made my decision. I want to be a fighter, especially a dungeon raider. It just seems like what I was put here to do".
Argus looked at him approvingly. "Good choice, lad. I knew you were a fighter! Alright, follow me and we'll get you the equipment for your class and get you ready to go."
Argus turned to walk off, but then looked back at Leo. "Oh, I almost forgot. Whats your name, lad?"
Leo made eye contact with the big man. "Leonardo Mikalson. But you can call me Leo."
Another grin appeared on Argus's face. "Alrighty then Leo, let's go!"
10 minutes later, Argus stared at Leo in disbelief. "You chose that as your class? What the bloody hell is wrong with you?"
Leo looked at the ground, a little abashed at the scolding. "I think I can make it work. At worst, I'll just change it later, right?" he asked, raising his gaze to meet Argus's.
Argus slammed his palm into his face. "The attribute points and bonuses you get at levels 0-10 are not to be underestimated. Many powerful people gained fame in their first 10 levels by excelling in their class. At least tell me you got a good personal attribute."
Leo shrugged. "It doesn't say what mine is. It just says I have to kill 5 beasts to unlock it."
The disappointment vanished off of Argus's face as he heard what Leo said. "An unlockable attribute, huh? People who get those either die young and never unlock that attribute or become amazingly powerful off the back of it. Thankfully, your quest doesn't seem to hard. The no class might actually work out for you, considering that you could tailor your attribute to your class."
Leonardo nodded again. "That's what I was thinking, but I didn't really understand what no-class meant."
Argus scratched his beard as he thought. "To be honest, I don't really know what it does either. I've just never heard of anyone strong who started out as no-class. I'll have to bring you to the class specialist. I was going to take you there anyway, because that's where you receive your class bonuses and equipment, but now we can come to them with a real question". He then turned and started walking up the steps to a looming building. "Come on, the class specialist is right this way". Leonardo turned and followed him, gawking at the massive structure in front of him.
Argus walked through the double doors that were swung wide open, nodding at the two guards standing on either side of them. Leonardo came right behind him, admiring the intricate designs on the guards armor. "This is the City Hall", Argus said to him, without even looking back. "You will obtain all your quests, sell all your loot, receive training, and do pretty much everything outside of battling and grinding here".
The inside of the hall was just as impressive as the outside. The ceiling was extremely high, and Leo had to crane his neck just to see it. On the ceiling was a painting, although it was too far away for Leo to see what it was. On either side of Leo were beings of every shape, size, gender, color, and species talking and trading. The walls contained a multitude of doors, each with different department and office names written on the front. Argus's deep voice pierced through his stupor. "To the left of you is the merchants," Argus said, pointing to a long line extending out through a wide archway. "There you will sell and buy anything you get or need for dungeon raiding."
Leo continued to gawk at the different creatures he saw around him as Argus continued to give him a tour of the City Hall. "On the right is the stables", Argus continued, gesturing to another wide archway. Peering through the entrance Leo could see a long hallway full of different kinds of beasts, most of which he had never seen or even heard of before. Argus then turned and approached a door. The words "Class Specialist" had been engraved onto the stone door. Argus grabbed the handle and easily pulled the door open.
A cute girl dressed in lime green looked up at them from behind a desk. "Welcome!", she said, her voice sweet on the ears. "How's it going Argus? Is this a newbie?" she asked staring at Leo intently.
Argus laughed and slapped Leo on the back. "He sure is! You've got a handful with this one Marie".
Marie gazed at Leo curiously. "So, did you bring me another tank, like you? Or maybe he's a support? We could always use more of those".
Argus just shook his head and turned to Leo. "Well, are you going to tell her? Or am I?"
Leo shuffled his feet and developed an interest in his shoes. Argus shook his head again and turned back to Marie. Just as he was about to open his mouth, Leo raised his head. "I chose no-class", he answered.
Shock appeared on Marie's face. "Well, uh...", she said, obviously at a loss for words. "That's interesting. I've never met anyone myself who chose that option, but thankfully I know someone who did. Just give me one moment, let me go get my sister, I'll be right back", Marie responded before standing up and running out of the room.
Argus and Leo made eye contact, Argus with a barely contained smile and Leo with an exasperated expression. "Don't you worry Leo", Argus told him. "Her sister is one of the brightest minds of this city. I'm sure she'll know what to do with you".
Leo's expression softened, somewhat reassured. Just then, the door behind the desk opened and a girl dressed in black and pink strode into the room, exuding confidence with every step. Her gaze swung across the room before finally settling on Leo. Leo felt like her eyes were peering into his soul, and shivers ran down his back.
"So you're the no-class, huh?" The girl said looking at Leo. "My names Callie. Nice to meet you".