Leon followed Rika to the left wing of the guild hall. There was a receptionist at one of the counters.
"He's here to get his AAs checked. I'll be watching as well since I'm covering the cost."
"Right this way."
The receptionist led the two of them into the back hallway. Behind one of the doors was a private back room with a large table in the center. Shelves and book cases covered the wall. Holding boxes that the receptionist started pulling out what looked like dice. Three 8-sided and twelve 12-sided. Each was a different color.
"Farm boy, those are Crystalline Dice. The three diamond-shaped ones are for your attributes: Mana, Chi, and Essence. The twelve rounder ones are for your abilities; Strength, Intelligence, and so on."
"What's the difference between Mana, Chi, and Essence?"
"Chi is energy drawn from the body that you use to enhance the body. It's what I specialize in. Mana and Essence are similar, but I don't have any attributes for them, so I won't say much. I just know Mana comes from the mind, and essence comes from the soul."
"Can you have multiple different attributes?"
"Yes. Depending on which one you have and how much of it, you can decide what fighting style to pursue. Your abilities matter too, but those are easier to train than attributes. As long as you don't have zero attributes, you can train and improve."
"Zero? Is that common?"
Her voice was mischievous. She grinned as she teased him, enjoying his worries as she read him like a book.
"More common than not, Farm boy."
The receptionist handed him the 15 dice.
You can have no attributes? The Overseer said I was average. That must have been for the abilities, right? At least give me a 1.
"Moment of truth."
He rolled the dice across the table. They danced and flickered with light as they bounced, each glowing its respective color before finally coming to a stop. His attributes and abilities had been calculated.
Alright, the 8-sided ones are the attributes. This is it! The blue? A zero. What about the red one... another zero. Lastly, the green one?
Leon's heart sank.
As expected, another zero. Come on, man! I know the Overseer said I was average, but he also said I had a chance. What chance is there with nothing?
Rika laughed heartily before clearing her throat.
"Don't be so sad just yet, farm boy. Come look at this one."
On the other side of the table, Rika and the receptionist stood over a gold-colored ability die: 12. He had gotten the max value.
"That's a 12. That's max, right? That must be good. What ability is it for?"
She began to poke his chest.
"The gold die is your vitality. Everything else is average, but you'd be a great punching bag. Hey, can I stab you?"
"Eh??"
The receptionist cleared her throat to interrupt the two and began to speak.
"Your results are as follows, zero in all attributes and average in all abilities. The exceptions being, above average Intelligence and Vitality unconfirmed. Please excuse me while I get a bigger die."
The receptionist left the room.
"Wait, how are you an 8 in Intelligence? That's higher than me, and you can't even read?"
"That makes a bit of sense actually. I used to be a student."
"Eh!?"
"Yeah, but more importantly, that part about me being a punching bag? Also why is she getting another die?"
"Human abilities exist on a scale of one to ten. With attributes, you can perform skills to temporarily increase them during a fight. However, 10 is the natural human limit. People with abilities greater than their respective race limits are usually called 'Heroes.'"
"Wait, so you're telling me I'm a Hero?"
"You wish, Farm boy. Heroes usually have the majority of their abilities above ten and have attributes. You have no attributes and average abilities. Combining all your abilities together... you're about 20 points short of joining the guild. You'd need a vitality of at least 32 to pass, which is like dragon levels."
"What is vitality exactly? I get that it's health, but a dragon only having six times the vitality of an average human doesn't sound right."
"The values aren't equal like that. The difference between a 5 and a 6 is smaller than between a 6 and a 7. And it keeps getting bigger between each value. In terms of what Vitality is... Ummm, it's basically just health. Recovering, stamina, not getting sick, you get the idea."
It just sounds like I'm a basic human with a big health bar. The Overseer did say I lingered in limbo too long. That's probably why one of my attributes is high compared to the rest.
The receptionist returned holding a tray. A gold 20-sided die sat in the middle.
"Whenever you're ready, sir."
Another moment of truth. I need the die to say 20 here so I can go to the next size up. There are plenty of video game characters that use their health bar as a resource instead of mana. If I can join, hopefully I can find a way to do the same and go from there.
He took the die and rolled it across the table. It danced the same way, yet the light flickering from this one was almost blinding. Once the die had stopped, the light died down. He leaned over the table and looked.
"20! There's a chance!"
His celebration was cut short as he felt something poking into his side, almost knocking him over. Rika was pushing a thin 8 inch metal spike into his side, her whole body leaning into strike.
"Oi! What are you doing!?"
She stepped back casually, twirling the spike in her fingers.
"It's weird, I'm piercing skin but I'm also being pushed out. It's like your healing is forcing my bosu out. You don't have Chi, so you shouldn't be able to use any regeneration skills."
"Still, don't just casually stab me!"
She smiled.
"Hey I asked earlier, also I was curious to see what would happen. Having huge vitality but normal abilities is strange. I was pushing you off your feet, but couldn't seriously hurt you. You really are a punching bag."
The receptionist cleared her throat again to gain the two's attention.
"I'm going to have to inform the guild master about this. He should be here in the afternoon to continue your testing. If you could please wait nearby or in the guild hall, it would be very much appreciated."
She opened the door and led them out of the room and back into the foyer. The receptionist then gave a quick bow before taking her leave.
"Damn, I really wanted to see your results. I had a gut feeling about you, but you've really surprised me. Not bad for a farm boy."
"You need to go?"
"Yeah, my party and I are doing an important raid tonight. I was only here to pick up a few things we needed and get lunch. In the meantime, try to be careful and be less trusting of others. Tell me your results when I get back. Take care, farm boy."
She smiled before turning and walking away. He sat on a bench in the center of the left wing and watched as she left.
Rika gives off very dangerous vibes. Once I got her talking, she was surprisingly nice. She did stab me, but not in a malicious way. As far as first friends go in a new world, she's pretty good. Hot too. Overseer of Death, thanks buddy!