Marisol had heard of 'Symbiosteel' before, of course—parasitic artifacts and equipment powered by the bioarcane—but as a desert bumpkin who'd lived far and away from any of the major battlefronts, she'd never actually seen any Symbiosteel before.

Let alone one that could burrow into her spine, eat into her nape, and manifest itself as some sort of spirit bug in front of her eyes.

[... Greetings, Marisol Vellamira,] the bug said, waving one of its legs at her. [I am designated 'Archive', your personal artificial intelligence, here to support your bioarcanic integration with the Altered Symbiosteel System. This ship will sink in thirty minutes, and if you do not leave before then, you will die. Would you like to choose from one of four classes?]

And there was only one appropriate response.

"... Ew!"

Her mama's bug-smashing sandal skills were hereditary. She swatted the tiny bug off her shoulder so hard it made a little splat against the wall, but the metallic voice clicked its tongue in her head. She tried to glance at her own nape to no avail, and by the time she whirled back around—in full-fledged panic mode—the bug had reappeared on the floor in front of her.

It waved its leg at her again, although its jerky motions made her feel like it was just a tad bit pissed off.

[I understand you must be very confused. However, you are not currently in a situation where you are allowed to panic,] it said, its voice bouncing around her ears. [You must remain calm. Remember your mama's teachings. Come a blizzard or a sandstorm, a Sand-Dancer must—]

"Comport herself with utmost grace and dignity," she breathed, eyes going wide. Then she scrambled onto her knees, peering down at the little bug with her brows furrowed. "You ain't real. You have no weight. You're… you're some kind of sand mirage. How are you—"

[The world calls us 'Altered Symbiosteel Systems'. We are highly advanced bioarcanic implants designed to allow humans to increase their physical attributes, unlock and upgrade class-specific mutations, and use class-specific biomagic. You can call me the 'Archive', an artificial lifeform created by the eminent bug-slaying organization known as the 'Hasharana' to assist you in all things related to fighting the Swarm,] it said, its head dodging to the right as she tried to poke it with her finger. [Antonio Saranno was my previous user, a Hasharana with a Deepwater Crab Class. Unfortunately, he has perished in battle. Soon, it will be your turn to perish, so if you do not want that to happen, please refrain from interrupting any further. I shall explain your current predicament.]

A talking 'artificial lifeform', she thought, pulling back reluctantly as she nodded slowly, shakily. Well, ain't like I never heard about 'systems' and 'classes' before, but I thought—

[You have forfeited all rights to mental privacy the moment you integrated with me,] the Archive said suddenly, making her freeze. [Worry not, Marisol. I will not judge your thoughts. Neither of us can afford to do so—as of this moment, an F-Rank Giant-Class crustacean is swimming below our vessel. Left unchecked for thirty more minutes, it will eventually deduce there are no remaining fighters on board and proceed to sink the entire vessel. You are two hundred and forty-one kilometers away from the harbor you set sail from. If you are stranded out here on a plank of wood, you will die.]

The fact that the bug in her nape was talking to her still had her a little stunned, but she managed to nod, breaths quickening.

"Got it," she breathed. "Big monster under ship. Far from shore. It's stormy and the waves are strong outside, so we ain't gonna last five minutes as sitting ducks."

[Correct,] the Archive said. [If I were not here, your chances of survival would have been zero. The backup rowboats have all been destroyed, and the sails are all torn. You cannot sail this broken vessel by yourself. However, Antonio Saranno requested I integrate with you as his dying wish, so I must comply according to the Hasharana Code. To that extent, the breadth of assistance I can offer allows you to choose your own class, of which there are four. Now, please—]

"Stop." She raised a palm, placing her other hand over her mouth as she suddenly felt a bit seasick. The waves were rocking the ship hard. "I know the Hasharana… are, like, the heroes of humanity. Wandering bug-slayers who fought on the frontlines in the old war against the Swarm God, but I ain't know nothing more than that. Don't give me options to save myself when I don't even know how the word 'option' is even spelled in your tongue."

The little bug dipped its head apologetically. [Then, for a brief explanation: do you know how humanity has been waging war against the Swarm so far?]

"Yeah. There's this… bioarcanic essence thing in the flesh of all bugs in the world, and when we consume it, it mutates our bodies and gives us the ability to use their biomagic," she said hesitantly. "If you have a 'system', you can control how your mutations and biomagic manifest, so the more bugs you eat, the stronger you are. That's about it, right?"

[Indeed. The bioarcanic essence in bugs gives them their incredible power, and the presence of a system—a highly advanced bioarcanic spinal implant—allows you to obtain a class and convert all bioarcanic essence you consume into usable essence represented in 'points'. You would then use those points to increase your attribute levels, unlock new mutations specific to your class, and upgrade said mutations with branch mutations,] it explained. [The strength of your mutations and class-specific biomagic is determined by the class you get, but even a conventionally 'weaker' class can be more powerful than a 'stronger' class if you have more points to work with.]

Then the Archive paused, raising its head to stare at her with beady black eyes. [Typically, we automatically decide your class the moment you survive the integration, and the class you get depends on a variety of factors: your physiology, the environment you grew up in, your dietary habits, and your idiosyncratic preferences, so on and so forth. Your assigned class should, theoretically, be the most biologically compatible for you, but it appears you are a little… special.]

The Archive paused again, as though deep in thought, but she tilted her head and picked up the irregularity immediately.

"You're offering to let me choose from four classes instead," she realized. "Why?"

[... You have equal aptitudes and compatibility with the four classes I am about to let you choose from,] it said, after a bit of thinking. [It is already quite rare that a single person can choose between two classes, let alone four. You must have lived a colorful life and accrued a variety of physiological experiences.]

She managed a small, cheery smile. "Thank you. But I'm only a humble Sand-Dancer from the middle of nowhere, and the most peculiar thing about me is my bloodline. My parents hail from the far west, so they're attuned to the seas, but since they ran away from the west during the old war, I grew up in the sands—"

[I know that much from reading your memories, yes. Three of the four classes I am about to offer you are based on desert-type bugs. Without concern for why you are special at the moment, shall I list out your options? We do not have much time left—this vessel will sink in approximately twenty-seven minutes.]

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

The mental timer wasn't helping soothe her nerves, but if the Archive's intention was to have her make a decision quickly, then it was a working strategy. She sat up straight on her knees, folded her hands in her laps, and bit her lips as she nodded down at the little bug.

"Tell me."

The Archive nodded back. [First, a brief introduction to Class Selection. The moment you pick and confirm a class, you cannot revert the decision, and both your mutation tree and the 'Swarmblood Art' you will be given—your unique class-specific biomagic, that is—cannot be changed. Under normal circumstances, I would have you think long and hard about which class you want to pick, but I can also offer recommendations if you have no particular preferences.]

"Got it. Anything else?"

[Second, the moment you confirm a class, the tier one core mutation—the most basic ability specific to your class—will begin manifesting on your body,] it continued. [It might be a painful process depending on what you mutate. Please prepare and brace yourself for the minor inconvenience. I can guarantee your safety throughout the mutation process, however, so there is no need to concern yourself over your potential demise—]

"Just hurry. What classes am I allowed to pick?"

The little bug tilted its head to the side, and a series of black boxes lined with white edges flashed into existence, hovering next to her head.

She winced and reeled back from the sudden light, almost toppling over as the ship rocked hard right again. The Archive vanished from the floorboards and reappeared wriggling on the floating box furthest on the left, tapping its leg at the words on top.

[Advanced Class Option #1: Desert Locust]

[Swarmblood Art: Sand Eater]

[Brief Description: You can transmute your blood into desert locusts that can devour organic material for you. The locusts will dissolve once you run out of bioarcanic essence]

[T1 Core Mutation: Migratory Wings]

[Brief Description: You will mutate long, aerodynamic wings optimized for sustained flight. These wings will allow you to ride air currents and travel vast distances with minimal energy expenditure]

[Ignore the Art for a moment. If you pick the Desert Locust Class, the tier one core mutation you will immediately unlock is 'Migratory Wings', which will mutate wings between your shoulder blades and allow you to fly downwind at speeds of up to fifty kilometers an hour,] the Archive added, crawling down the status screen to highlight every written line. [As the storm is currently blowing back towards the continent, even an inexperienced flyer like you will easily be able to return to one of many small islands neighboring the harbour. You can wait out the storm on the island and either rest up to fly back to the harbour yourself, or you can wait for a ship to pass by and rescue you. In any case, the Desert Locus Class may not be the most powerful class in terms of fighting power, but I highly recommend it if you simply wish to return home safely.]

She blinked. Being able to grow wings and fly immediately sounded like a great option already, to the point she wasn't even sure if she should hear the other options. What more could she want from a beginner mutation?

She came from a cheap household, and apart from Antonio, she didn't know anyone who had a class. She felt she couldn't ask for more—but then she looked at the second option, and her eyes widened in surprise.

[Advanced Class Option #2: Click Beetle]

[Swarmblood Art: Snapbound Surge]

[Brief Description: You can concentrate bioarcanic essence in your wings and release it in an explosive snap, generating instant propulsion. This allows for rapid aerial redirections, mid-air recovery, or launching yourself forward with high-speed bursts. The force of the snap can also create concussive shockwaves that disrupt nearby enemies]

[T1 Core Mutation: Armored Wings]

[Brief Description: You will mutate a pair of massive wings with hardened forewings that will shield the delicate flight wings underneath. These armored wings will provide excellent defense against environmental hazards like sandstorms and enemy strikes]

[The Click Beetle Class has 'Armored Wings' as its tier one core mutation, which will mutate a pair of giant wings between your shoulder blades. The hard forewings known as 'elytra' will protect the membranous wings underneath, allowing you to fly downwind at speeds of up to twenty kilometers an hour,] the Archive continued. [Additionally, this class has the unique Art of 'Snapbound Surge', which is the class-specific biomagic that would allow you to 'click' your wings and generate propulsion, allowing you to launch and right yourself mid-air. Considering the violent force of the cutting winds, having armored wings will prove to be extremely useful. I can recommend this class if you wish to fly with ultimate comfort and safety.]

There were small blueprint-like diagrams under each of the description boxes so she could see what each bug looked like, and she didn't even think the click beetle looked that sluggish. It might be big, sure, but the vibrant colors on its leg segments and the diamond patterns on its wings made her wonder if she'd look just as pretty if she unlocked the higher tier mutations. The kids back home would love her dancing with a bunch of new colors.

But now she knew. The other options were just as good as the first, and the third option was no exception.

[Advanced Class Option #3: Spider Wasp]

[Swarmblood Art: Sunder Mist]

[Brief Description: You can transmute your blood into a poisonous mist that can significantly weaken regeneration and paralyze your opponents. The larger the target, the stronger the paralyzing effects]

[T1 Core Mutation: Aposematic Wings]

[Brief Description: You will mutate a pair of large, vividly colored wings that serve as both a warning display and a powerful flight mechanism]

[And for your final option, the tier one core mutation of the Spider Wasp Class is 'Aposematic Wings', which will mutate brightly colored wings between your shoulder blades and allow you to fly downwind at speeds up to seventy kilometers an hour,] the Archive finished, jumping onto the diagram of the final hovering box. [While this is typically a class chosen only by bug-slayers, owing to its incredibly powerful Art and offensive-oriented mutations, its wings are still good enough for you to fly to the nearest island with. You enjoy dancing, correct? The brightly colored wings should enhance the shape of your silhouette as you twirl and caper. I can fully and whole-heartedly recommend this class.]

An equally 'pretty-looking' option compared to the click beetle. She really, really liked the orange wings on the diagram of the spider wasp, almost as much as the patterns on the click beetle, and almost as much as the compactness of the desert locust's wings—any one of the three options would be completely fine with her.

There were just two things she wanted clarification on, though.

"... What if I don't want to go home, though?" she whispered, waving the hovering boxes away and making the Archive vanish. "You keep saying downwind speed, downwind speed… but I don't want to fly back to the harbor. I wanna reach the Whirlpool City. Are any of the three classes' wings strong enough to carry me all the way there?"

The Archive made a clicking noise inside her ears, as though trying to calculate an answer. [Unfortunately, not at the moment. You will only unlock the tier one core mutation of each class the moment you select one. Without any points to immediately increase your stamina and strength, it will be impossible to fly headwind against this storm. Please prioritize your own safety and return to the harbor.]

She furrowed her brows, looking at the Archive strangely.

[Please prioritize your safety and return to the harbor. Please prioritize your safety and return to the harbor. Please prioritize your safety and harbor—]

"You said there are four classes for me to choose from," she said, narrowing her eyes. "You only mentioned three. What's the last one?"

If an artificial lifeform could look 'fidgety', the Archive certainly looked the part, wriggling on the floor uncomfortably.

[It is a class nobody chooses,] it said quickly. [It is a terrible class that will most certainly not help you survive. Its tier one mutation is nigh-impossible to control, its unique Art is unknown, and the risk-reward ratio of the class' entire mutation tree is typically not worth it even for a highly trained bug-slayer. For the purpose of expediting your Class Selection, I elected to omit the option—]

"Is it a class that'll let me go forward in this storm?"

[...]

"Show me," she said firmly. "What's the fourth class?"

[... Very well.]

And the moment she saw the final hovering box pop up with the diagram, she knew she'd made the right choice asking for all her options.

[Advanced Class Option #4: Water Strider]

[Swarmblood Art: Unknown]

[Brief Description: Unknown]

[T1 Core Mutation: Striding Glaives]

[Brief Description: Your lower legs will become water-repelling glaives. You will be able to stand and move atop water so long as you are able to maintain your balance]

[Please do not pick this class]

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.