There were many classes James could choose from, but the one he found the most interesting and suited to his needs was the E-rank class "Mage."
'System, unlock the Mage class for me!' he excitedly yelled in his mind.
[The cost of unlocking the E-rank class Mage is 50 trial points. You will not be able to unlock a second class until you pass you advance the rank of your class if you choose to unlock it.]
Are you sure you want to proceed?]
[Yes/No]
"Yes!"
James had 100 trial points. He didn't mind spending half of them to unlock a class that could grant him the ability to use magic, especially in a situation where he needed it.
[50 trial points consumed]
[Class Mage Unlocked]
[First Perk of unlocking the Mage class: Obtained a Level 1 Mana Vessel]
A mana vessel is a place where mana is stored. A Level 1 mana vessel can store 100 units of mana.
Basically, James's mana storage capacity was 100.
[Second perk of unlocking the Mage class: +100 mana]
James's Mana Vessel filled up to the brim with mana. He could draw on it to cast spells if he had any.
[Third perk of unlocking the Mage class: Drawing a random active skill. Skill "Haste" drawn]
"Nice draw," James couldn't help but exclaim internally.
[Haste (Lv:1) is a powerful basic spell that, at the cost of 30 units of mana, temporarily boosts the caster's agility, improving their speed, reflexes, and hand-to-eye coordination. The spell has a cooldown of 30 seconds.]
The description of the Haste spell was very vague, but James had an idea of the limitations of this spell as it was used by a sidekick of Melody in the novel Tales of My Regression. At level 1, it could increase his agility by two times for 15 seconds.
'If I use Haste on myself, I will double my agility. Considering I have 8.5 points in my agility, once it doubles, it will reach 17 points. I will be around 3 and a half times faster than ordinary humans. With such speed, it will be possible for me to dodge the explosive lunges of the zombies. I am glad that this is the skill I got from the random draw.'
James didn't immediately buff himself after becoming a mage and gaining the Haste spell. He needed to time the activation of his spell perfectly. Only then would it not turn off in the middle of the battle.
He waited for the nightmares to get 15 feet away from him before he used it.
[You have cast the spell Haste]
[Mana -30]
[Agility has doubled to 17]
Immediately, James felt lighter as if the gravity acting on him had decreased considerably. Previously, he didn't think his head would hit the ceiling if he had jumped with all his strength, but now he was confident it would.
With the level of agility he had obtained, he felt ready to confront the nightmares head-on.
Meanwhile, the first of the group of nightmares reached 14 meters away from James.
Right then, it bent its knees.
Woosh!
Suddenly, it sprang towards James like a bullet shot out of a cannon. In just an instant, it was upon James. Its mouth was wide open, revealing sharp, jagged teeth dripping with a vile, dark fluid, ready to bite into him.
Faced with such a grotesque scene, James surprisingly felt not an ounce of fear. Instead, he felt calm, and in this instant, all his actions were guided by a level of coolheadedness that seemed almost supernatural.
Snap!
The nightmare's mouth snapped shut in empty air as James stepped to the side with an agility that defied belief, and, in a split second, thrust his dagger into its head, pulled it out, and watched its body crumple to the ground.
James didn't get a chance to breathe as another Nightmare pounced towards him. Its mouth was wide open, expressing its voracious desire for all to see. It wanted nothing more than to bite off a big chunk of James's flesh and stuff its mouth with the good ol' taste of human flesh.
James fulfilled its wish in an unexpected way. Its mouth did get stuffed, but not with James's flesh—instead, with James's dagger. He thrust the dagger into its mouth with such force and precision that it penetrated the soft roof of its mouth, reaching deep into its brain.
With its brain so badly damaged, it was impossible for it to be alive.
James pulled his daggers out of its mouth and kicked it to the side as three more nightmares approached him. Their claw-like hands extended towards him as if eager to tear him to shreds.
James's dagger flashed like a ray of light, severing their hands. The nightmares seemingly gawked as their severed hands fell to the ground and black toxic blood gushed out of their stumps in abundance, splashing on the floor.
The nightmares were one and a half times faster, and they even had a special move where they burst out with explosive speed that put them at a frightening advantage against other slower enemies. Meeting such monsters in just the second trial could only be attributed to a player's bad luck. A normal player would fall victim to their swift and brutal attack if they met them so early in their climb to the top of the Land of Trials. However, James, being a mage who had buffed himself with the Haste spell, was unlike an ordinary player who had completed only one trial. Buffed by his spell, he was more than 3 times faster than ordinary humans, which made him faster than the nightmares clawing at him.
It's no wonder that when he made his move, they were easily overpowered!
"Nightmare my ass. They are more like clowns in a circus," James couldn't help it. The nightmares looked ridiculous with only stumps where their hands should be.