I walk through the door, into the office. Sitting down at my desk, I open my stat screen, my daily routine before I start work.
(Name): (Roy)[Speed Writer*]
(Race): (Bat Harpy)
(Age): 17
(Stats): 102+193
(Strength) 19 [1%][+10: Levels]
(Agility) 26 [3%][+15: Levels]
(Vitality) 25 [0%][+15: Levels]
(Perception) 35 [5%][+20: Levels]
(Dexterity) 51 [3%][+40: Levels]
(Reflex) 18 [2%][+8: Levels]
(Intelligence) 52 [6%][+40: Levels]
(Wisdom) 31 [2%][+20: Levels]
(Will) 38 [2%][+25: Levels]
(Class): (Accountant Level) 25
(Passive): (Quick Thinking) 20
(Passive): (Calculator) 2
(Passive): (Fast Writing) 10
(Subclass): (Social Worker Level) 18
(Active): (Calming Words) 12
(Passive): (Organization) 23
(Hybrid): (Paperwork Manager Level) 14
(Active): (Paper Control) 11
(Passive): (File Management) 13
(Passive): (Improved Memory) 15
(General)
(School):(Dark Magic) 10
(School): (Wind Magic) 10
(Passive): (Echolocation) 10
“Wow,” I mutter in thought, thinking of how this will be the last time I listen to the system's voice as it says my skills, the last time I'll be sitting at this desk preparing for a day of flying paper and calculations. A mix of sadness and excitement fills my heart, as I hear a man's footsteps run down the hallway and throw open my door.
“Roy Boy, how good it is to see you! I was worried you weren't gonna show up considering you were so late, so I'm-”
“Hey boss,” I say to him with a sad smile. He stares at me dumbfounded that I'd interrupt him before raising his voice.
“What's wrong?” He asks grimly. I can hear the barely contained rage and despair in his voice, and I can feel his eyes burrowing into me. I flinch before sitting up straight and looking him in the eyes.
“Today's my last day,” I state. His jaw drops as he stutters, trying to form an actual thought before words fall out of his mouth.
“What do you mean today's your last day? Did someone wrong you? Why are you leaving? You were supposed to replace me, you know. I-”
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I tune him out and begin my work. He pauses for a moment, but then starts pacing back and forth as he continues questioning me. There's no point in answering his questions. He wouldn't ever be satisfied with any answer I gave him. After 10 minutes he calms down and gives a sigh before looking at me and speaking slowly.
“What are you going to do when you leave? There are no other offices that need an [Accountant] and-”
I hold up a hand and all the paper flying around the room halts in place. I sigh before giving him a response.
“I'm going to be a Hunter”
“How?” He screams at me. “Do you want to die?”
“I'd rather die if it meant that I got to live the life I wanted. Accounting is great, but it is awful sitting around moving paper and doing nothing. And I'm not stupid enough to just run into the nearest forest unprepared.”
He sighs again, this time, solemn. “I can't stop you. Be safe. And remember that you'll always have a place here.”
“Thank you, boss” I smile as he walks out the door. The moment it closes I get back to work.
Paper whirls around me, flying left and right, carried along by magic trails flowing around me, lining up to be looked through and signed. I pick up my System Reader and have it float with a bit of wind magic as it scans all the pages going by. Numbers appear in my head as words begin to vocalize, noting what every line is for as I watch the numbers flow. I immediately begin filling out order forms based on what the information should be, cross reference files to mark any deviations for further confirmation, and point out any errors made by the other accountants. Then with a brief pulse of will and magic, the papers sort themselves into baskets.
Time goes on like this for an hour until a runner comes to grab the papers. She walks stiftly toward my desk and grabs the paper. Before she turns to leave, she hesitates for a brief moment before leaning down and whispering softly, “Sir, are you really planning on leaving?”
I pause briefly and paper slowly drifts around us before I take hold of my mana and begin working again. “I suppose that it’s already begun making the rounds,” I sigh before continuing. “Yes, it is true that I’m leaving. I plan on resetting my class and becoming a Hunter.”
I can feel her look of astonishment before she collects herself and bows. “Thank you for your work,” She says, “And I hope you succeed in your new class.” You can almost hear the smile in her voice as she begins to walk out, before turning around, bowing once more, and leaving the room. I smile at the first positive interaction I've had since deciding on my new path, then continue working.
Hours pass as I continue scrawling numbers on the stack of papers flying through the air, taking only a couple of breaks to refill my mana, and shredding through papers as they fly to neatly arranged stacks, and a few storage cabinets for those that aren’t needed currently. When I hear the eighth bell ring, I pack up my stuff one last time and begin my leisurely stroll home, taking in the feeling of the town as I walk through the dimming streets, the heat slowly fading away as twilight starts. I feel the city’s gentle breeze as I linger outside the door to my house, preparing for the conversation I’m about to have, knowing how mother is.
The moment I open the door she speaks with barely contained rage. “What do you think you’re doing, Roy? Quitting your job out of the blue for some stupid dream. I want you to go right back there and apologize and ask for your position back. I can’t believe you would almost ruin your career just so you could go off adventuring. For what? You’re just gonna get yourself killed the instant you leave.”
I sigh as I step in my house and take off my shoes. I look back at her for a second before I even begin a counter argument, knowing this will go nowhere.
“Mother, I’m not going back to work there. I’ve already made up my mind about being a Hunter and you’re not going to change it. Now please let me go to my room. Work was tiring and I want to rest before tomorrow.”
She stares at me, and I can feel how dumbfounded she is. She stutters for a moment before raising her voice.
“Do you know how hard I worked to get you that position? I spent years building up contacts so that you could work there. You’ve been there for years, before you even got a class, and now you just decide that you’re going to leave?" She walks up to me and grabs my hands, then kneels. I can hear the pleading in her voice, but I know it’s all fake. “Please think about this, Roy. Think of your family. How much you’ll worry me and Dad, at least?”
Before she can say another word I cast the wind spell I weaved while she was monologuing and swiftly move past her and up to my room. As I run up the stairs she follows me. Before she gets the chance to stop me I pull up the board where I kept my extra coins, in case I ever decided to leave.
She charges up to me and grabs at my pouch as I barely pull it away in time. “What’s this? Have you been stealing money from us and hiding it?” She’s yelling even louder and my ears are starting to hurt.
“Mother, this is the money I made from my job. My money. I simply used what you taught me to embezzle a couple coins here and there so you wouldn’t notice. And before you say anything, thank you for all you taught me. You were a decent Mom. Sometimes. Now could you please leave my room? I’d like some sleep.”
“No!” she yells, the moment I finish. “First you abandon us and all we built for you, then you steal from us, and now you want to sleep in my house? No. If you wanna leave us then you leave tonight.”
She looks at me, and I can tell she’s doing her typical smug glare, like I'm trapped. I sigh again, then simply nod, grab my backpack with a couple emergency clothes and such, and push past her. She keeps yelling as I put my shoes on, and as I check myself one last time, the door opens and I see Dad. I didn't notice him because of mom’s yelling but now that he’s standing in front of me. He looks at me then at Mother and asks, “What’s going on?”
She starts ranting about how I’m leaving them and how she tried to stop me and such, and knowing her, he looks at me after a moment and asks, “Is it true?”
After staring at him briefly I gave him a nod. Before I know it he already has me scooped up in a hug and the moment he sets me down, he says, “Good luck,” and pushes me out the door before closing it behind me.
I stand, as I hear Mother yelling at him, then begin to walk off. Then, as tears start to fall, I start running. To where, I’m not entirely sure, but as I slow down I notice the same fountain I like to lay at before work, when the city starts working as stands are being set up. The place where today's events started.
I sit down and cry a bit before reconciling with myself and laying on the bench with my pack as a pillow. This road is going to be long and arduous. But it’s also the life I asked for. It’s what I wanted. That's what I told myself as I fell asleep.
I dreamed of throwing spells in the forest with Dad. I woke up with tears in my eyes.
