"Well. This explains some things at least." Elias exclaimed.

  "Is that so." Kiki said doubtfully, staring at the strange text floating in front of her eyes. Somehow without actually blocking her vision. It was a strange feeling.

  "Okay, well." Elias said, trying to correct himself. "I guess it doesn't actually explain anything. But it does kind of make sense in association with the, you know, monsters. If you are familiar with a certain fantasy sub-genre." he says while pointing at the green creatures.

  "You can explain later." Jack interrupted. "For now we have to secure the building and make sure no more of these creatures can get in. Miss Kindra? We will bring you to the bunker and close the door. We will join you there once we are done here."

  "R-right... Let me just..." Kiki trailed off. Quickly, she walked over to the monster she had killed, leant down, and grabbed the handle of her sword that was still embedded in its insides.

  With a strong tug, she managed to pull it out a bit, before repositioning and pulling again. while trying her best to ignore the scene, sound, and very fact this had been a living being at one point. Even if it had tried its best to kill her.

  It took a few moments, but soon she had her sword back in her hands. Returning some measure of confidence to her, and immediately she felt just a bit safer. "Right! Let's go."

  With Jack and Elias staying in front and behind her, they quickly led her to the back of the entrance hall.

  It looked like one of those they liked to use in animated movies, where the hall extended the entire height of the building, and a mezzanine along the walls on both upper stories. And in the middle of the hall, a giant set of stairs leading halfway up to the first storey before splitting off to the left and right, providing a convenient platform in case someone planned to hold a speech.

  Not that that had ever really happened.

  It was behind the large stairs where the largest entrance to the basement was located, at least if one ignored the hidden car elevator that connected the garage to the outside.

  As the men escorted Kiki down into the basement, Kiki had the feeling that she was forgetting something. She decided to ignore it for now. There were many things she didn't want to think about at that moment, and it was probably one of those.

  As they entered the large underground hallway, Elias joined Jack in the front, one of them always staying with her while the other checked the doors they passed by. If it was closed, they made sure it was truly the case, and if it was open they would quickly check inside before closing it.

  It didn't take long before they reached the end of the corridor, Elias closing one last door on the right. Only when both men were together again did they approach the last door on the left. This time, they both approached it, and while Elias opened the door, Jack rushed inside with his gun out, the light flickering on the moment he entered.

  As soon as he declared the immediate surroundings safe, Elias joined him, both going in opposite directions as they checked between the shelves in the off chance something had snuck in here, somehow.

  "Miss Kindra, it's safe." Jack called back, prompting Kiki to enter the room. At first glance, it was just another basement room, albeit one with a lot of shelves filled with copious amounts of canned food.

  It didn't take long before they arrived in front of a certain row of shelves. While Jack stayed at Kiki's side, Elias went ahead and opened a hidden latch, letting him swing one of the shelves away from the wall, revealing the massive steel bulkhead hidden behind. The entrance to the hidden bunker.

  That wasn't to say that her daddy was a doomsday prepper, but the mansion, and estate surrounding it, had been her daddy's pet project for many years trying to bring his childhood dreams into reality. This in turn resulted in a few interesting features. The more obvious being the foyer straight out of a disney movie, or the underground garage with hidden car elevators. Less obvious, on the other hand, were the hidden bunker, equipped to let a small group survive anything human civilization could throw at you for at least a few months, or the hidden doors in the mansion and the secret tunnels beneath the entire estate.

  Elias stepped aside, letting Kiki through. She put her flat hand on the scanner, then her eye in front of the sensor, and finally, she typed in the password on a keypad where the numbers randomly switched positions after each input. That way, it became impossible to find the code by watching her hand movements or checking the wear and tear of the buttons.

  All she could hear was a silent humm as the bolts retracted and the door swung inwards, silent as a whisper.

  "Enter and close the door. We will return once the building is secured." Jack repeated his instructions.

  "You know, boss," Elias suddenly interjected. "I don't think that's a good idea."

  "What are you..." Jack began to say, turning around with a mix of worry and anger on his face as he made to pull his gun on his subordinate.

  "Waitwaitwaitwaitwait! That came out a little wrong!" Elias quickly said, lifting his hands placatingly.

  "What I am trying to say is that I may have some degree of an idea of what the hell is going on. For one, those things seem like the type that stick together in groups. So if any more did get into the house, there is no way we will manage to survive with just the two of us, as things stand. And then the young miss would be alone and stuck in this bunker.

  But if you let me explain, and maybe test a thing or two, it might be possible to significantly improve our chances here. Okay?

  So, let's all go in there, have a short talk, and maybe, just maybe, all survive this thing together."

  Even in the dim light of the basement, Kiki could clearly see worry and confusion warring with his usual determination.

  There was a good reason Jack was the head of security. He was strict with others and himself, fiercely loyal to her father, and most of all, always did things by the book with absolute discipline. Usually, those were exactly what was needed in his position.

  But, well, even Kiki could tell that he was struggling dealing with the situation, it being so far outside the bounds of his rulebooks that she doubted anyone had ever even considered writing it.

  But ultimately, there was one big reason he was a security slash bodyguard guard, and not a soldier. For all his discipline and rule-following, he wasn't stupid and blind in doing so, perfectly capable of improvising if necessary.

  "Fine." He decided, having all three of them enter the bunker, closing first the shelf, and then the heavy door behind them.

  *****

  A short time later, all three of them sat around a table in the common room. It wasn't particularly large, since it was still an underground bunker and not a luxury suite, but Kiki's father had still made sure it would be comfortable to live in. So even spending a month or two down here wouldn't be absolute torture.

  "Now, explain." Jack finally said.

  "I assume you are not familiar with the concept of LitRPG, right?" Elias asked, receiving two headshakes in response.

  "What about RPG's in general? Like, NOT Rocket propelled Grenades I mean, but Role-playing-games?" he asked further.

  "You mean like that Dungeons and Dragons thing? I played that once when I was young." Jack asked for confirmation, while Kiki simply nodded. She had heard more than enough about that from Jason.

  I'm thinking about him an awful lot today, aren't I? Kiki realized.

  "Yes, kinda, though more the videogame variety. And LitRPG’s imagine them to be overlaid on reality. Imagine you could simply kill a bunch of monsters, level up, and get stronger. But in reality.

  Those stories usually have two very common trends. One are the monsters. And the other..."

  "The weird... messages I got? Something about an 'Achievement' and a... 'Class' I think it was?" Kiki asked.

  "Exactly!" Elias said. "Now, here are a few important things. For one, I have absolutely no clue how this particular System works, and in the stories they are all different from one another, but there ARE a few commonalities."

  *****

  "If anything of what you said is even remotely true, I don't think we should either trust, or engage with this... System, at all." Jack finally decided.

  It had taken almost an hour for Elias to explain as much as he could, and answer all the questions Jack had. One part of the reason was that Elias' explanation was an absolute mess.

  Yeah, I know that feeling. She thought. Every time she tried to explain something more complex, she would move on to the next thing only to realize two sentences later that she had actually forgotten to mention something else important.

  And I doubt the constant interruptions and questions from Jack are helping. It's... very unlike him, to act like that...

  And the longer this went on, the less Jack seemed to be able to trust the situation.

  "That... why?" Kiki asked, confused. If even one percent of the things Elias talked about were true, this System could basically make them superhumans. And, well, who wouldn't want that? Even if you weren't interested in playing vigilante or some such nonsense, it would definitely be convenient. Especially if you could choose your abilities to fit your job, as Elias had mentioned.

  "Something like this could only exist if it was man made. And we have no way of knowing what the creators want from us. So long as we don't engage with it, they won't be able to force us to do anything in return." Jack explained. "Our first, and now only, priority is to protect Miss Kindra, and we can't let either her, or either of us, be compromised."

  Huh... It was certainly a point of view Kiki hadn't considered. There was only one issue.

  "And what do you suggest we do then?" Elias asked the same question that was on Kiki's mind.

  "Simple. We stay here, and we wait it out." Jack decided, his voice determined.

  "But we know that there are monsters." Elias argued. "Just because we have only seen a single type, doesn't mean there won't be more, and there is no way to guarantee that they can't get in here."

  Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.

  "But you also can't guarantee that there WILL be more Monsters. For all we know, this is all just a paper thin ruse to trick us into accepting Some Kind Of SLAVE CONTRACT!" Jack argued, his voice growing louder towards the end.

  "Nono, that's non..."

  "ENOUGH!" Jack suddenly explodes and stands up with force, his chair falling over behind him.

  Kiki had known that Jack was a large man, it was rather obvious. But as he stood there, looming over her and Elias both, he seemed more dangerous than the monsters before him.

  "I made my decision! It's my DUTY to keep Miss Kindra safe, and I will NOT allow you to put her in danger with your nonsense!"

  Just earlier, Kiki had thought that despite his discipline and love for rules, Jack was more than capable of improvisation where it was required.

  But maybe I overestimated him? she couldn't help but think.

  It made sense, in a way. His personality was rigid and disciplined. Even if he was adaptable, he was still more of an oak than a willow. While he could bend farther than other oaks, a sufficiently strong storm would still break his trunk. And if the current situation was anything, it was an absolutely massive storm. A shit storm, that is.

  Besides, his arguments made some measure of sense, so it made sense he would try to stand his ground despite a broken trunk.

  But, if there was one lesson that her father had hammered into her mind, it was this: "If you see an opportunity, don't hesitate to take it. There is no success without a good measure of risk."

  It was why she decided to quit school at the first opportunity and become an influencer. Sure, in the beginning she needed a lot of financial support from her father, until she managed to become self-sufficient.

  It was also why she started doing naughty cosplays after her ex introduced her to the scene, increasing her follower base far past mere self-sufficiency.

  And now? This? Well. Kiki made her decision.

  "System." she said.

  "Miss Kindra, what do you..."

  But she didn't let Jack interrupt her: "I want to choose my Class!"

  The moment she finished her words, the world around her seemed to stop. Elias still sat, looking at Jack defensively. Jack, still standing, his head halfway turned towards Kiki, his mouth open to speak. But neither of them was moving.

  No, that's not quite correct. Kiki realized. They were still moving, but very, very slowly. And Kiki herself was the same, even if her thoughts seemed to be accelerated.

  But before she could think about anything else, all her attention got dragged towards a single line of text:

  =====

  Congratulations! You have chosen to engage with the System!

  From now on, controlling the System will be possible through mental commands.

  Focusing on certain words may provide additional information.

  Please Focus on [Class options].

  =====

  Immediately, Kiki was reminded of the first two messages she had gotten. And just that thought alone was enough to call them back to her mind. And just as she thought to remember, two of the words in them had been marked the same way as [Class options] in this.

  Doing as the text asked, she focused on the word, bringing up another window full of text.

  =====

  Please choose your Class from the following.

  Your current state won't end until you made your choice.

  Your choice is final!

  Options:

  [Illusion mage]

  [Illusion mage blessed by Shine]

  [Light mage]

  [Disguise artist]

  [Deceiver]

  [Deceiver blessed by Dezep]

  [Influencer]

  [Dancer]

  [Manipulator]

  [Warrior]

  [Warrior blessed by Luxuria]

  =====

  Hmmm... That's quite a few options. Let's start from the top.

  =====

  Illusion mage [common]

  An Illusion mage conjures Illusions of all kinds to deceive another’s senses.

  Requirements:

  You have used Illusions to deceive others many times.

  [see more]

  =====

  Is it... referring to video filters?

  =====

  Illusion mage blessed by Shine [uncommon]

  An Illusion mage that has been blessed by the God Shine.

  Requirements:

  You qualify for the Illusion mage Class.

  A true Illusionist knows how to gain the greatest possible effect from the smallest details.

  [see more]

  =====

  Duh! I mean, of course I have to be subtle with my use of video filters. How is anyone supposed to trust my make-up tutorials if I don't even look like a real person in them?

  Also, can I interprete this as getting praised by an actual god? Well, anyways, let's check the other Classes first.

  =====

  Light mage [common]

  A Light mage conjures and controls light for their own purpose.

  Requirements:

  You have used Light to your advantage many times.

  [see more]

  =====

  I mean, lighting is important if you want the shot to look nice...

  And it seems like it might have at least some combat potential if it can do lasers and stuff.

  =====

  Disguise artist [common]

  A Disguise artist uses physical tools to change their own or another's appearance.

  Requirements:

  You have used Physical tools to change your appearance many times.

  [see more]

  =====

  So, a make-up artist, basically.

  =====

  Deceiver [common]

  A Deceiver uses their actions and words to deceive others.

  Requirements:

  You have used your actions and words to deceive others many times.

  [see more]

  =====

  Pah, what Deceiver!? At least be direct and call it horny-baiting. And let's be honest, which influencer wouldn't do that if they have the option? In that sense, you can hardly call that being deceptive nowadays...

  =====

  Deceiver blessed by Dezep [uncommon]

  A Deceiver blessed by the God Dezep.

  Requirements:

  You are qualified for the Deceiver Class.

  You know what you did.

  [see more]

  =====

  'You know what you did'? What the hell is THAT supposed to mean? I DON'T know!

  =====

  Influencer [common]

  An Influencer uses their actions and words to influence the opinions of others.

  Requirements:

  You have used your actions and words to influence other people's opinions many times.

  [see more]

  =====

  Any other situation? Definitely my first pick! But without being able to tell the extent of the whole monster situation?

  =====

  Dancer [common]

  A Dancer dances for either their own enjoyment, or that of others.

  Requirements:

  You have learned both freestyle and structured dance. You are proficient at moving your body.

  [see more]

  =====

  I wouldn't call 'knowing twenty different dance moves without any connection' knowing structured dance, but thanks, I guess?

  =====

  Manipulator [common]

  A Manipulator manipulates another’s emotions to their own advantage.

  Requirements:

  You have manipulated another’s emotions many times.

  [see more]

  =====

  What do you mean? That's a bald fucking…

  Okay, maybe not a lie, but isn't this basically the meanest possible way of calling me a good actor?

  =====

  Warrior [common]

  A Warrior fights in close quarters using [cold weapons].

  Requirements:

  You have trained using a close quarters cold weapon.

  [see more]

  =====

  'Cold weapons'? What's that supposed to mean?

  =====

  cold weapons

  Weapons that work at their maximum intended potential without the need to burn physical fuel. Contrary to [hot weapons].

  =====

  Huh... Interesting. So, it means swords and bows and stuff like that. And 'hot weapons' would then be... Yeah, guns I guess. I wonder, would a chainsaw count as a 'hot weapon'?

  Anyways, this is the last one.

  =====

  Warrior blessed by Luxuria [uncommon]

  A [Warrior] that had been blessed by the Goddess Luxuria.

  Requirements:

  You qualify for the Warrior Class.

  You possess and have worn the proper attire.

  You have trained and used an appropriate weapon.

  We can work on the rest ;)

  [see more]

  =====

  ...what the hell is that smiley supposed to mean?

  Okay, first let me check this thing.

  =====

  common

  The lowest of all [rarities].

  =====

  =====

  rarities

  known rarities:

  common

  uncommon

  All Classes and Skills have Rarities.

  The rarer a Class or Skill is, the more powerful they are.

  =====

  Yeah, that sounds pretty close to what Elias had mentioned.

  That means the 'uncommon' Classes should all be better than the 'common' ones? Though that makes me wonder if having a God's blessing is a requirement to get anything better than common, or if this is just and accident…

  Urgh... I wish I had a pen and paper to take notes. This is so much stuff all at once. Though I guess I have a lot of time to make my decision...