CHAPTER 54: CH:54 THE PRINCESS OF PAPERWORK AND HER HIDDEN CLASS

The guild master waddled ahead nervously, his plump belly jiggling with every uneasy step, his hand constantly dabbing sweat from his forehead with a small, damp cloth.

"A-Ahh... come... c-come upstairs," he stammered, glancing back at Dila like she might summon another golem if he tripped.

Sarios raised an eyebrow. "You sure you’re okay?"

The guild master gave a brittle laugh, which came out more like a squeaky wheeze. "N-Never better! Just... just need some fresh air and to not die today!"

As they climbed the wooden staircase to the upper floor, the once-confident guild master was visibly shaking in his boots. He mumbled under his breath as he climbed:

"Evos is a top-tier fighter... Class B, strong enough to tear down buildings... and yet—beaten... by a rock toy... this world’s gone mad..."

He tugged at his curled mustache, now drooping from all the sweat, and muttered again, "Ridiculous... utterly ridiculous... did someone upgrade that golem to Class A++..."

Behind him, Dila clutched her left side, where bandages were tightly wrapped around her ribs. She moved carefully, each step followed by a soft wince.

Sarios noticed and walked closer. "Are you oky.... And Can I come too?" he asked softly.

Fran chimed in immediately, ears perked. "Me too!, I want to come. Sister seriously are you oky?"

Dila looked at both of them, then gave a quiet sigh... before smiling faintly.

"Of course I’m oky nothing to worry about, and yes you can come with me.," she said, even though her voice cracked a little. "Wouldn’t want to die alone if the guild master has another trap up his sleeve."

"Ehehehe... no traps, no traps!" the guild master wheezed up ahead. "Y-You’re my most precious guest now... yes yes... let’s not... explode... anything else..."

The moment they reached the top floor, the hallway widened into a beautiful wooden chamber, softly lit with floating candles and scrolls that hovered slightly above enchanted desks. Runes pulsed faintly on the stone-tiled floor, and a large circular seal glowed in the center—clearly the Appraisal Circle.

The guild master wiped his forehead again. "J-Just step into the circle, Miss ... and we’ll see what your true adventurer class is..."

Dila glanced at her companions. Sarios gave her a nod, and Fran’s eyes sparkled with excitement.

"You got this, sister!" Fran whispered.

Dila took a deep breath... then stepped forward. The moment her feet touched the circle— ■•••• —a soft magic hum filled the room.

☆ Appraisal Mode: Activated. Please wait... ☆ Nari’s voice chimed sweetly in her mind.

The runes began to glow brighter. The circle of light rose and scanned her body slowly, from her boots to the top of her head, causing her white-silver hair to shimmer with the radiant magic.

Even the guild master stepped back, holding his breath.

"Let’s see..." he whispered, watching nervously.

This was what it all came down to.

Not the fight.

Not the chaos.

Not the destruction.

Just this simple moment.

The glowing circle beneath Dila’s feet pulsed with more intensity now, flickering between hues of gold and white. Soft arcs of magic zipped upward around her like slow lightning, wrapping her in a ribbon of analysis.

☆ Initializing...

Analyzing magical signature...

Indexing class compatibility...

Loading... ☆

Nari’s frail system voice echoed gently in Dila’s mind.

"Huh?" Dila blinked. "Wait, what do you mean indexing compatibility? Isn’t my class already listed as Support Mage–Alchemist?" She tapped her temple as if trying to knock Nari back into focus.

But the only thing that returned was:

☆ Loading... please wait... ☆

Dila sighed in her mind. Great. Nari’s buffering.

Meanwhile, just a few steps behind her, Fran was watching intently, her big blue eyes wide. She tilted her head, ears twitching slightly. In her mind, she thought:

She must be nervous... I bet this is a deep, soul-searching moment... I won’t interrupt.

Her hands were clutched together in front of her chest, silently cheering for Dila.

Sarios, however, was visibly sweating. His red eyes twitched left and right while his face tried to stay perfectly still. He thought in panic:

Okay okay okay—this is bad. It’s already way past midday.

We haven’t eaten.

No lunch.

No snack.

No bread.

And King Harvey is going to roast me alive if we don’t bring her back soon!

Forget the guild card—this is a political incident waiting to explode!

He laughed awkwardly to himself in his mind.

Maybe if I run fast enough, I can fake an alibi and blame a magic pigeon.

Then there was the guild master, standing near the corner of the room, trying very hard to look patient while his thoughts were anything but.

What’s up with this girl?

Is her soul being scanned from scratch?

Why’s it taking five centuries just to spit out ’a class or something’?

This circle has never taken this long—unless...

He scratched his curly beard nervously and forced a smile. "Haha... t-takes a while sometimes, y’know? Sensitive magic, hehe..."

But his inner voice was screaming:

Why is she still glowing?!

Why are the lights pulsing faster?!

Why does it feel like she’s loading a whole other personality?!

Back at the center of the circle, Dila casually tilted her head and muttered in her mind, "Maybe the circle is syncing with my vibe or something..."

The magic lights intensified.

Fran gasped quietly.

Sarios clenched his stomach.

The guild master clenched his beard.

And then...

☆ Compatibility class found...

Finalizing... 98%... 99%... ☆

Dila blinked.

"Huh? Oh no, that usually means something dramatic—"

■••••

☆ Class Compatibility Achieved:

Support Mage – Alchemist

— with hidden subclass: Archaic Conductor ☆

Dila’s mouth dropped slightly. "Wait... what?"

And Then glowing circle beneath Dila pulsed with light.

Then—

Fwoooosh!

A tall column of blue-white light erupted upward around her, swirling softly like misted glass. Within the glow, intricate sigils and holographic runes rotated mid-air, forming letters and numbers as a deep humming filled the room.

Everyone in the upper appraisal chamber squinted as a new line emerged in the center of the magic circle, projected like a glowing sign:

Support Mage – Alchemist

— Hidden Subclass Detected: Archaic Conductor

"...Huh?"

Sarios blinked.

Fran tilted her head. "That sounds... fancy!"

The receptionist nearly dropped her clipboard.

"W-Wait, hidden subclass?"

Even the guild master’s fake smile froze.

His pupils shrank, and his hand stopped stroking his beard.

"...That... isn’t even on the guild registry list," he muttered under his breath.

Gasps broke out from the attending staff around the room. One of the appraisal clerics stepped closer to the magic circle with a wide-eyed stare.

"Th-That’s a lost class...!"

"No way. Hidden subclasses like that only appear in legends..."

Dila just stood there, her eyes narrowed in confusion as the runes kept spinning around her.

"...Archaic... what?"

☆ Archaic Conductor detected. Classification: Rare/Unknown. Authority access locked. System compatibility incomplete. Class description unavailable. ☆

Nari’s frail voice echoed softly in her head.

Dila raised an eyebrow. "Wait, even you don’t know?"

☆ I-I’m sorry Master... this subclass wasn’t part of my primary in your local mind database... This is a relic-type title... older than most documented magic systems... ☆

Dila narrowed her eyes and responding back into her mind. "What am I? A robot because of that local mind database thing?" she questioned, her voice dry.

☆ N-no...! Master your not a robot☆ Nari’s delicate voice stuttered in her head. ☆ It’s just... a top secret. I-I can’t tell you sorry... ☆

Dila sighed inwardly. Oh man... even she’s hiding things from me now...

☆ I’m really sorry, Master... ☆ Nari added softly, her tone filled with guilt.

Sarios leaned forward. "Okay, what the heck does it do?"

Dila sighed, her hand rubbing her bandaged side gently. "I don’t know... but it sounds like more trouble than it’s worth."

Fran, meanwhile, had stars in her eyes.

"That. Was. Awesome."

As the last of the glowing runes faded from the air, another line appeared in the floating circle beneath Dila’s feet.

Curren Class: H

There was silence.

Then—

"Hahahahahaha!!"

Sarios burst into laughter, nearly doubling over. "Class H?! You’re as strong as me!!"

He clutched his stomach dramatically. "Wait—no no no—on second thought, I don’t think so! Maybe this appraisal machine is broken! Haha—oh gods, Class H...!"

He slapped the side of the glowing magic circle like it was a misbehaving vending machine. "Maybe it stands for Helpless like me!" he paused and laughed again. "Hahahahaha."

Dila’s eyes went flat as a deadpan expression overtook her face.

She didn’t even blink.

Fran, standing nearby, turned her head slowly toward Sarios.

Her face was completely expressionless, but her eyes gleamed with silent judgment.

Sarios was still giggling now, unable to contain himself.

The guild master, on the other hand, stared at the result with visible frustration.

"Impossible..." he muttered, wiping sweat off his shiny forehead. "This appraisal circle costs more than my house... There’s no way she’s Class H! She summoned a borderline apocalyptic golem! I’m going to lose my mind—I want to rip my beard out!!"

He pulled at his long mustache with a choked grunt.

"Class H?! What is this nonsense!?"

Fran leaned toward Dila, whispering softly,

"...I think the guild master’s brain is melting."

Dila let out a long sigh and whispered back, "Good. That makes two of us."