NOVEL WEB Ch. 90
Chapter 90: Occupation
Sunlight poured into the room through the window, filling the space with peace and serenity.
Gauss opened his eyes, as if waking from a dream that had lasted a very long time.
He reached out to block the light in front of his eyes.
Perhaps because he had just woken up, the sunlight felt a little blinding.
Where am I?
He sat up in bed, dazed for a while, before he finally recalled the memory of falling asleep.
That's right.
I was in seclusion within the training chamber of the Mutual-aid Association.
First, he had gorged himself recklessly, and then drowsiness had struck.
So, does that mean I’ve successfully ascended?
Now fully awake, Gauss looked down at his body with excitement.
As his brain gradually recovered from its dormant state, he began to sense many differences.
These changes were indescribable. If each previous attribute enhancement had made him feel refreshed,
then what he was experiencing now was the cumulative sense of a full rejuvenation.
Every cell in his body moaned in comfort upon awakening, as if telling him that his body had entered a completely new and distinct realm.
In his vision, light streamed into the chamber. The rough red-brick walls, and the stone table nearby gleamed with a cold, hard luster. There were still remnants of food crumbs from his earlier feast—every detail and color rendered vividly.
Even every speck of dust in the air was clearly visible.
They floated about in the air, drifting freely like little sprites.
Clarity!
That was the only word Gauss could use to describe the world as he now perceived it.
And the magical energy in his body had multiplied.
With a slight probe, he found it to be many times greater than it had been before sleep, and the sensation it gave was entirely different.
Previously, magical energy had felt formless, a loose flow like water. But now, it had become exceptionally viscous, and even in equal quantity, it now carried a far denser texture.
So much of it.
The bodily feedback upon awakening overwhelmed Gauss.
After savoring the sensations for a while, he opened the Adventurer’s Handbook.
Moments later, a flood of backlogged information rushed forth.
「Job change successful!」
「Class level upgraded to: 1」
「Current Class: Spellcaster」
「Class Talent Acquired: Spell Mastery」
「【Spell Mastery】 enhances the caster's control over the essence of magic, improves learning efficiency for various spells, optimizes magical energy consumption, and boosts spell effectiveness.」
「Spellcaster, a master of spell application, a natural wielder of magic.」
What appeared first before Gauss was his job change information.
Spellcaster, huh?
Gauss blinked.
It looked similar to Mage, likely a type of magical class.
In fact, he had long anticipated that once he entered the Class Rank phase, the job he would change into might not be a conventional Mage.
After all, others—well, mainly Andini—had mentioned multiple times the uniqueness of his magical energy. Moreover, his abilities and talents were indeed more diverse, so it wasn’t hard to predict that he might become a more specialized magic-related class.
Feeling the surging magical energy in his body, he had no dissatisfaction with the class he had changed into.
Besides, the class talent that came with it made him very satisfied.
【Spell Mastery】—a single talent with multiple effects.
Whether it was improving his control over magical essence, increasing his efficiency in learning spells, reducing magical energy loss, or enhancing spell effectiveness—he was pleased with every single aspect.
Especially after he had inquired about the common class talents of some Mages, the comparison made him all the more satisfied.
Like many Mages, one might awaken with a talent such as 【Precision】, gaining a bonus to spell accuracy.
It could also be 【Penetration】, 【Alertness】, or 【Silent Casting】.：：
Normally, these talents offered relatively singular effects.
But his was quite powerful.
Gauss attempted to circulate the magical energy within his body, and immediately felt the effect brought by Spell Mastery—it was a fluid sensation, as if his will directly commanded his limbs.
The magical energy became especially obedient and perceptive, and:
Gauss noticed that the core skill 【Mage Armor】 had also undergone a transformation.
It was as if he could cast it with a single thought, no longer requiring intense concentration to channel magical energy. The moment he thought about it, he immediately gave it a try.
The moment the command to use 【Mage Armor】 was issued, a dense force field of armor erupted from his body with a roar!
「Boom!」
This time, the Mage Armor was vastly different from before.
First of all, Gauss felt it was much more “dense.” Of course, this didn’t mean it was heavy. In essence, it didn’t burden him at all and thus wouldn’t affect his mobility. Here, “dense” referred to its “shielding power.”
After ascending to become a Spellcaster, Mage Armor became several times more resilient and came with a special force field.
He lowered his head and looked around himself, feeling as though the air was slightly distorted under the effect of Mage Armor.
It was as if Mage Armor separated the inner and outer worlds.
Moreover, its casting speed was incredibly fast.
It was almost instantaneous—was this the effect of it being a core skill?
Gauss knew that other Apprentices, after ascending in Class Rank, would also experience enhancements to their corresponding core skills—for example, reduced mana cost, faster casting speed, and such—but to the point of near instant cast? He wasn’t sure.
But regardless, it was a good thing.
Looking again at the Attribute Panel in the Adventurer’s Handbook, the displayed information had clearly changed.
Name: Gauss
Strength: 6
Agility: 6→7
Constitution: 6→7
Intelligence: 7→8
Perception: 6→7
Charisma: 6→7
Core Skill:
Tier 1 Spell Mage Armor 1v4 (0→23/100) (This skill has transcended its original effect and can be renamed)
Other Skills:
Tier 0 Cantrip Light Spell lv2 (7→19/20)
Tier 0 Cantrip Mage Hand 1v3 (27→35/50)
Tier 1 Spell Magic Missile 1v3 (17→26/50)
Swordsmanship Basics lv2 (12/20)
Enhanced Jump lv1 (1/10)
Talents: Rapid Digestion, Magic Resistance, Spell Mastery
Except for Strength, all other attributes increased by 1 point, totaling a 5-point increase.
The most significant rise was in Intelligence.
On the surface, each attribute only increased by 1 point, which didn’t look like much.
But the shift from 7 to 8 brought a change that far exceeded the one from 6 to 7.
He even felt his 8 Intelligence was quite high at this stage.
It sounded strange, but because the Attribute Panel only displayed whole numbers, even the same value might hide significant differences.
According to Gauss’s estimation, whether it was 8.1 or 8.9, the panel would still show 8.
As for Skill Proficiency, apart from the two non-casting-related skills—Swordsmanship Basics and Enhanced Jump—the other four spell-related skills all improved to varying degrees.
Light Spell increased by 12 points, Mage Hand by 8 points, Magic Missile by 9 points, and the highest gain was from Mage Armor, which rose by 23 points.
In total, that was 52 points of Skill Proficiency gained.
「Would you like to rename the skill Mage Armor?」
Gauss hesitated briefly, then chose to rename it. Essentially, this spell had already transcended its original foundation.
「Omni Protection.」
「Renamed to Omni Protection.」
The information on the panel updated accordingly.
The reason for naming it Omni Protection wasn’t because it currently provided all-around defense—it was more of a hopeful blessing.
As a core skill, it would continue to grow with him. Perhaps one day it would evolve into the perfected form Gauss envisioned.
Gauss shifted his attention away from the Adventurer’s Handbook.
Returning to himself once more.
He felt that he had become very strong.
After a careful internal scan, he discovered something previously overlooked.
That was the origin from which the magical energy twined within his body—there seemed to be a vague anomaly.
Upon closer inspection, it was a small cup continuously surging with magical energy.
Gauss instinctively understood its existence.
It appeared to be the Class Rank, the source of power for a Professional.
It was not a physical object, but a conceptual presence.
Yet it wasn’t just some illusory thing—it was the conceptual core condensed by Gauss’s magical energy.
The existence of Class Rank allowed a Professional to command their own power effectively.
With its help, the once scattered magical energy now had a central anchor, and the “quality” of the energy had greatly improved.
In his perception, when he now used spells—even those not designated as core skills like Magic Missile—their power far surpassed what he had as an Apprentice.