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A/N: 12/27 – Corrections are made along with the publication [A
Squirrel’s Explanation on Fungal Class and Fungal Skills and The List of Fungal
Skills of Each Profession].
8/22 – Noa’s Fungal Skill’s name was changed from [Binding String]
to [White String]
Noa lays out another sheet of
paper on the table. This time it is a square piece of paper about 10 cm on all sides.
“This is the Test Paper
to identify the Fungal Class.” (Noa)
The quality of the paper is
similar to that of the previous paper for the level. The paper is similar to
the paper used for the level test. There is a circular frame for the blood to
be absorbed, and a hexagonal shape is surrounded by a line with a scale extending
from the circular frame to the six vertices. At the apexes are written what
appear to be letters, but they are neither in Japanese nor English, so they are
illegible.
“In the first place, just
so you know… Not everyone can learn a Fungal Skill even if they are ‘Threadweavers.”
(Noa)
“I thought that’s what
you said the other day when we were attacked by bandits in the wild. I thought
anyone could learn it by eating sporangium.” (Shuu)
Konno, whom I met yesterday,
seemed to look at the hunters as if they were a different race and said, “Your
abilities,” as if he were talking about someone else.
“The population of New Tokyo
is approximately a million. It is said that only around ten percent of them are
capable of learning Fungal Skills.” (Noa)
“That’s a surprisingly
low number.” (Shuu)
“Unofficially, the
majority of people who cannot learn Fungal Skills are classified as ‘Peasant’.
It is a term used within the hunting industry and should not be used on the
street. Some people will say, ‘That’s a discriminatory term!’ Some people might
be offended by the term.” (Noa)
“That sounds like a landmine.”
(Shuu)
“[Peasants] cannot
acquire Fungal Skills even if they eat many sporangium, and their levels can
only rise to about 10. Therefore, [Peasants] cannot be professional hunters.
Activities in the harsh Metro and It’s not suitable for rough times.”
(Noa)
“I see. Then, other than [Peasants].”
Is there any other Fungal Class? So, it’s like people who are not “Peasants”
can learn the Fungal Skills and raise the level of their mycelium?” (Noa)
“Yes. Before I explain
about the Fungal Classes, let me tell you about the different types or systems
of Fungal Skills.” (Noa)
According to Professor Noa, Fungal
Skills can be classified into six different systems according to their characteristics.
(1) The ability to produce
hardened mycelium in the form of an armament. It can be a powerful offensive or
defensive equipment, but its size and shape are not adjustable in many cases.
They are called Hypha Weapons, Hypha Armors, or collectively Hard Hypha.
(2) The ability to use
mycelium to create objects that can be adjusted in size and shape. Some of them
can be manipulated by your will. They are called Soft Hypha, Hypha Manipulation,
etc.
(3) The ability to manipulate
mycelium in the body to strengthen and change the body. It is called Physical Manipulation
Skills.
(4) Ability to make mycelial bullets.
It is called a Hypha Bullet or a Mycelial Bullet.
(5) Ability to disperse spores
with various effects. It is called Spore Dispersion or Dust Skills.
(6) Ability to produce mycelial
balls with various effects. They are called Hypha Balls or Ball Skills.
“For example, Abe’s [Katana]
and [Round Shield] are type (1), and my [White String] is type (2).” (Noa)
“I see.” (Shuu)
Skills (1) through (4) seem to
be something like physical skills, and (5) and (6) seem to be magical skills.
“What is it…” Obuchi
said. “It’s a strange scene where someone at the master level is being
taught the kind of knowledge that a child would usually learn.”
“The Fungal Class, in
other words, is a mix of the ‘systems of Fungal Skills that can be learned’
that we, the ‘Threadweavers’ are born with.” (Noa)
“The system they can
learn?” (Shuu)
“For example, I am a [Craftsman],
a Fungal Class that learns mostly from type (2). Mr. Obuchi is a [Fighter] and learns
mainly type (3). In this way, a Fungal Class is the classification of someone’s
aptitude to learn a specific type of Fungal Skill, the direction of their innate
skills, and the fighting style of each individual. Nowadays, it is sometimes commonly
called a ‘Class’.” (Noa)
I was beginning to get the
idea. It is similar to a job or a class in a game, as they say. The fact that
you are born with it is a serious matter, though.
“Oh, and by the way, demihumans
like me are also classified with the same Fungal Class as humans, oink.”
(Obuchi)
“Is there any Fungal Classes
for Magic Beasts, squeak?” (Tamiko)
“The actual
classification of the Fungal Classes is not always the same as that of the
humans. …There may be individual differences among similar people even among
human beings, but it is not clear if each race has a similar classification
like Fungal Class. As far as we know… ” (Noa)
“Did your mother not tell
you anything?” (Shuu)
“Mother calls herself a
[Kunoichi], squeak.” (Tamiko)
“A squirrel ninja, really?
(Shuu)
Tamiko is feeling a little
proud.
“The Carbuncle Tribe…”
Yui said, “I’ve heard that the Carbuncles are a race who are physically unfit
for combat, but who have learned various mysterious Fungal Skills. By the way,
the Cait Siths have aptitudes at what humans call type (6) skills. We form them
in our mouths like this and spit out a Hypha Ball—like a hairball!” (Yui)
Judging from the smug look on
her face, it was a typical Cait Sith joke. She said, “I’m dead! Ha!”
Obuchi flips over.
“Maybe we’ll find out when we
meet your kin in the Nakano Forest. Let’s go there after we get settled.”
(Shuu)
“Squeak!” (Tamiko)
So, besides the goal of going
to see Tamiko’s father, I now have another purpose for going to Nakano.
“That’s why it’s the Fungal
Class, just like the Fungal Skills, they are classified into six systems.”
(Noa)
The [Knight] is mainly trained
in type (1) Hard Hypha.
The [Craftsman] mainly learns
the type (2) Soft Hypha.
The [Fighter] who mainly
learns Physical Manipulation, type (3).
The [Sniper] mainly learns the
Mycelium Bullet or type (4).
The [Illusionist] mainly
learns skills that can “attack others or cause negative effects” in Types
(5) and (6).
Also, in types (5) and (6), a [Healer]
mainly learns skills to “heal oneself or others or to apply a positive
effect.”
“I see that… (5) and
(6) are divided by the effects rather than just types. Why is that?”
(Shuu)
“Well… I don’t really
understand it. It’s just a classification set by the Hunter’s Guild.”
(Noa)
“I see.” (Shuu)
As an individual, [Sniper] stood
out to me. It sounds cool.
“But, can’t you learn another
Fungal Skills? Like a [Knight] learning a Hypha Ball?” (Shuu)
In this classification, I
don’t know the types I have an aptitude in. I think I have learned from all of
them except for (4).
“That’s not an absolute.
For example, my [Dagger] is a Hard Hypha. You can check whether you can just
check if such an individual has an aptitude for his current Fungal Skills or
other types with this Test Paper.” (Noa)
“Oh, so that is what this
is for.” (Shuu)
A square piece of paper with a
hexagonal diagram on it. It has six corners, the same number as the number of Fungal
Classes and systems.
“Is this a symbol or a letter
written on the corner of this hexagon? I can’t read the symbols or letters on
the corners of these hexagons.” (Shuu)
As far as I could tell from my
visit to Sugamo, the characters used in this country are the Heisei Era
Japanese language, which is still in use today. Some romaji were also used, but
on the contrary, I did not see any such symbols around.
“These are characters for
hunters only,” Obuchi said, “When the Hunter’s Guild was established a
long time ago, the first commander said, ‘Wouldn’t it be cool if we used
something like this?’ But it never caught on, and now it’s used only for this
test paper.”
“I also don’t like it.”
(Shuu)
It’s like he made something
like that just for the atmosphere, but it wasn’t practical.
“Clockwise from the
top–” Noa points to the Test Paper. “[Knight], [Craftsman], [Fighter], [Sniper],
[Illusionist], [Healer]. Now, let’s use the Test Paper. The method is the same
as before, but I’ll try it first.”
Noa fiddled with her injured
finger, smeared blood from it, and rubbed it in the circle in the center of the
hexagon.
As the blood is absorbed into
the paper, the same red line stretches out like a thread all the way down
again. Along the diagonal, in three directions. Up, down right, and down left.
The length of each is
different. The bottom right line is the longest, about two-thirds of the
diagonal. The upper and lower left lines are shorter, about one-fifth of the
diagonal.
“The bottom right is the aptitude
for [Craftsman], the top is for [Knight], and the bottom left is for [Illusionist].
It seems that most people have two lines like this. I have the longest line on
the bottom right, so that makes me a [Craftsman].” (Noa)
“Huh.” (Shuu)
“There are some aptitudes
in the [Knight] and [Illusionist] class, but their aptitudes are much lower in
terms of length. My [Dagger] and [Lightball] are those, but to tell the truth,
they are not rare abilities at all, and the possibility of learning stronger or
rarer abilities is also low.” (Noa)
“If the longest line is
the person’s Fungal Class and it extends to the other side, then there is a
possibility that they can learn that ability as well… And the length of the is
the level of aptitude?” (Shuu)
“Yes… So that means I’m
pretty average as a [Craftsman]. Still, there is a chance for me to learn rare
skills in the main line…”
Noa is looking quite sad as
she said it. Tamiko puts her tail on her hand to comfort her, and Noa squeezes
it, making Tamiko cry, “Ah… be gentle, squeak…!”
Anyway, blood type
fortune-telling thing in this country is amazing. It can determine not only the
level but also the talent.
“This is the basic
explanation of Fungal Classes… On top of this, there are high-rank Fungal Classes.
They are usually people who can acquire powerful skills not only in their main
system but also in other systems. They are quite something.” (Noa)
“Most people who are labeled
as charismatic or heroic are like them,” Obuchi said, “They are either
higher-ups in the military of their cities or tribes, or they are the ones who
have risen through the ranks as hunters.”
It’s like an Advance Class in
a video game. Improvement.
“Are the High-Rank Fungal
Class also innate? Or is it possible to change class by leveling up from a
basic Fungal Class?” (Shuu)
“People are born with it,
but on rare occasions, there are people who have acquired a High-Rank Fungal Class.
Though, I’ve never seen anyone actually do that.” (Noa)
It would be fun if we could
change classes at will, but it’s a shame that it’s almost always set at birth.
“What happens to the Test
Papers for a High-Rank Fungal Class?” (Shuu)
“It looks like
this…” (Noa)
Noa traces the ruled line with
a pencil.
“If your line reaches the
top, it’s usually considered a High-Rank Fungal Class. For a [Knight], it’s [Holy
Knight], for [Craftsman], it is [Puppeteer]. Of course, if the lines for other
systems are long, they can be called Geniuses.” (Noa)
Her final sentence sounded a
little prickly. The squirrel that had been knocked down as her tail was grabbed
hard was shaking on the table.
“So should they be upward
compatible with the basic Fungal Class… Well, maybe I am that? Well, the “Master
Threadweaver” I heard before, that is a High-Rank Fungal Class, right?”
(Shuu)
It seems that I have many rare
Fungal Skills. I don’t know what my basic class is, but it looks like it’s
definitely a High-rank one. More and more improvement.
Both Noa and Obchi have a
weird expectant look. I now feel nervous and stiff.
“There are five types of High-Rank
Fungal Classes,” Noa said.
There is the [Holy Knight],
which is the higher level of [Knight].
The [Beast Warrior] is the
higher level of the [Fighter] class.
The [Puppeteer] is the High-rank
Fungal Class of [Craftsman].
[Mage] is the High-Rank class of
the [Illusionist] Fungal Class.
[Sage] is the High-rank Fungal
Class of [Healer].
“Only [Sniper] has a
slightly special class, and it seems that there is nothing considered as a
High-Rank Fungal Class. Sometimes [Sniper] itself is treated similarly to High-Rank
Fungal Classes. Anyway, there are basically five types.” (Noa)
“…Really? Then what is [Master
Threadweaver]?” (Shuu)
“…Let’s try the Test Paper
for now.” (Noa)
Noa presents the second sheet in
front of me. I was confused but I just shrugged.
“Well, let’s try
it.” (Shuu)
Seeing is believing. It will
be clearer in practice.
Now it was time for my fateful
aptitude check. I was a hundred times more nervous than I had been for the
aptitude test when I was job hunting.
Borrowing the knife again and smearing
the blood on the paper.
“……Eh?” (Shuu)
The reddish-black blotches
creep along the scale line and reach the corners.
Six… all six corners.
And then the line branches off
into a myriad of branches.
Like blood vessels running
deep into the skin, they twist, intersect, and extend.
The hexagon is eroded and then
floods outward.
The paper is covered in red
and black, like a child’s random doodles, and then the veins finally stopped.
For about ten seconds, it felt
like time stood still and soundless. Tamiko then speaks on everyone’s behalf.
“…Is this a defective
product, squeak?” (Tamiko)
“…no, I don’t think
so.” (Shuu)
Noa’s face scrunched up.
Obuchi is slumped with his hands on the tatami. Yui’s pupils are fully dilated,
and her mushroom tail is wagging vigorously.
“Well Mr. Abe… There is
no limit to the Fungal Skills you can learn… and you have a higher aptitude
that can’t be measured by a piece of paper like this” (Noa)
“…What do you mean?”
(Shuu)
“Of the countless tribes
that were once in New Tokyo, the first chiefs of the twelve great tribes were hailed
to be the strongest warriors. However, there have only been twelve of them, and
none have appeared since. The [Master Threadweaver] who bear the name of the [Nation
of Threadweavers]—Mr. Abe is the thirteenth, after the previous twelve.”
(Noa)