Classless Ascension

Josh could already see flaws in such planning! Would he expose it right there and then? Perhaps...not! Not yet at least…

He was there to evaluate them, subtly if possible. He would wait before determining his verdict. Instead, he started inspecting the room.

All around, Josh could see the faces of his school colleagues, that Amelia girl included. Their eyes were as bright as stars and full of dreams, naive but beautiful ones.

There were dreams of power, dreams of wealth, dreams of fame, all kinds of dreams really. How many would actually fulfill them? How many would settle for something else? How many would die chasing their ideals?

Josh ignored it and it didn't matter to him. For such things, there was no right answer. It was simply a matter of choices.

Of course, Josh understood the attraction of the Tower. He simply had too much baggage of his own to care about all these things. For him all that was but a mirage.

Furthermore, he knew that power, wealth, and fame could easily come and go. The triad back on Earth had all these things and yet died to the broke, unknown, and alone Josh. Sure, he was very strong at the end of his training but he was but a single man of flesh and bone.

That is when the teacher surveyed the entire classroom nodding to himself in satisfaction. He knew that one 'rankers' keyword had been enough to bring the students on board. Josh however doubted that the man himself was one. Thus started the lesson.

"Alright, the first thing to know is the Tower has very specific rules. The general rule is that each Floor has one Boss, one lore about the Tower hidden somewhere, and one mission to accomplish in order to teleport out."

Josh hadn't really paid attention to the lore part, to be honest. He had somehow missed it all so far. Was it so well hidden? Also was it worth searching for?

The teacher kept going about how every Floor 5 must be carefully attempted and how every Floor 10 needed a very careful party composition. He also added that from time to time there would be optional missions available. According to him, those should be avoided at all costs.

Josh couldn't help but scoff internally. Becoming Rankers like that? Please! How is one lacking the courage to try anything new supposed to become a leading figure in the Tower? There would be no guides, there would be no security net. There would be none of that!

Then came the part about the preferred group compositions.

"There are 5 roles to fill in a typical party. It is written in the documentation provided."

Indeed there it was:

1. The Vanguard

Needs to assure the safety of the whole party. Needs to be able to keep the aggro. Usually a defender, knight, templar, guardian, juggernaut, etc.

2. The Scout

Needs to notice the possible threats and objectives quickly so the party doesn't waste any time and energy. Sometimes an assassin, a ranger, a warrior, anyone really with sharp senses.

3. The Mage

Needs to provide a magical source of damage. Can be a regular mage, spell-blade, enchanter, summoner, etc. All that is required is the ability to use mana to kill creatures that are weak to such a thing.

4. The Warrior

Needs to provide a physical source of damage. Usually great for prolonged fights as they don't rely as much on mana. Warrior, assassin, lancer, berserker, etc.

5. The Healer

Needs to provide cover for the allies. Dedicated healers are hard to find so often this slot is replaced with someone that has support abilities. Could be a healer, a bard, a barrier master, etc. As long as it can heal or prevent damage in some way it is enough.

"As long as you learn how to do your role and do it well there won't be an issue. Just focus on that one aspect. Teamwork is vital because no one can ever master all the roles at once."

Josh felt this was a mistake. Who was he to judge? He hadn't even tried climbing with a party after all!

Still, there was something profoundly wrong with such a mentality. Focus on simply your role? Josh disagreed. One should instead try to learn it all! Sure, focusing on one aspect could work, but it didn't mean neglecting everything else.

The vanguard would protect? What would happen when he couldn't anymore? Would the others simply die? Everyone should learn tricks to survive.

What about scouting? All members remaining alert would help a ton especially in something like a Disaster Zone. Such an instance was long and people would need to sleep. How much time would be saved if the whole party simply awoke by themselves when attacked as Josh had learned to do?

The warrior part? There was no reason for a mage not to be able to simply bash his opponent with his staff. Ronan had been doing just that as a healer! While maybe at some point their power would become lacking it would still help them read the opponents' movements.

The support part? Josh wasn't sure how he felt about that one. It would be a good thing to have in a party, but only as long as people weren't reliant on it. If they only knew how to fight while supported they would easily make mistakes once it all ran out.

The mage class was probably the only one that could maybe really require someone dedicated to it. Josh had yet to figure out how to use mana so he couldn't comment on that point just yet.

Josh couldn't help but raise his hand:

"Say, teacher. Wouldn't it be more advantageous to have people try and understand every role before finally putting them in the same party afterward?"

"Such a thing is impossible! The only strength humans have in the Tower is their teamwork and their skills. Since skills are predetermined by the class and one's luck the only thing we can actually improve is teamwork!" The man had the calm expression of an all-knowing mentor.

"What about having people climb to Floor 10 alone? Wouldn't that train them well to get used to the basics? At least they'd learn how to take care of themselves easily."

"How preposterous! The only way to Climb that far alone would be to have heaven-defying luck to obtain a powerful skill and insanely good gear! It would be bound to fail at Floor 4 for anyone else since there are goblin villages!" The man snorted.

Right…the goblin villages that Josh had cleared easily…alone. Sure, Josh had put points into strength, agility and had experience fighting...But he had also killed every Boss on his way. He had also completed the optional challenge on Floor 5.

Josh was convinced any Newbie would be able to accomplish as much with the proper tactic and would gain lots of practical experience in the process. Nothing better than the fear of death and an acceptable danger to accelerate progress.

"Remember, all. Climbing alone is NOT a good idea. This is the best way to get killed fast!"

Josh couldn't help but wonder why Draconic had sent him here in the first place. Did Dario intend for him to hear just this? Was it a wake-up call so he would learn some common sense?

That was the exact moment Josh decided that if he ever joined a party it would be one with members being more polyvalent and self-sufficient.

Meanwhile, the teacher had been droning on about the history of the Tower. Josh had learned about it from Hegel already.

On that note, Josh remembered the crazy researcher's warning quite clearly. He would need to learn skills before climbing Floor 15+, otherwise….

Just as he was pondering about that came lunchtime. All the students rose up and started chattering happily while ignoring Josh. That is when a young woman approached the Amelia girl.

Normally he wouldn't have cared in the least, but he got curious for a simple reason. In the young woman's eyes, Josh could see pure and unadulterated greed….