After that abrupt fall, Lindsey was woken up by the cold floor.
Her eyes slowly pried open, seeing nothing by a veil of darkness.
She groaned as she picked herself up, grabbing her katana before looking around her curiously.
'What is this place?' she wondered, squinting her eyes as the darkness began hurting her eyes.
"Your minds eye," the voice of her clone echoed in the darkness, startling her as her shoulders jolted for a second.
Suddenly, white smoke pooled around her, forming soft clouds around her, bleaching the darkness, allowing her to make sense of her scenery.
"Lindsey, as your true voice of strength, i will admit that you have grown stronger..."
"You are more confident, smarter; you were a hatchling, and now, you are approaching chicken-hood."
'Hey!' Lindsey retorted.
"But, there is still a great weakness within you..."
The white smoke formed vintages of two people.
The first person was Nico, the second being Laura.
"You rely heavily on these two, restraining not only them, but yourself. You are so useless that you were stuck on level 21 for months on end, only reaching level 30 thanks to Nico's guidance."
"Even before joining the Blood Fiend, you relied so much on your sister that at times, she contemplated discarding you."
The clone was right and Lindsey took full responsibility.
This was the reason why she took on the quest in the first place; to accept her weaknesses and grow stronger.
So, the clones harsh truth was doing little damage to her.
"But now, I'm offering you the chance to grow stronger. Lindsey, choose one path..."
The smoke clones glared at Lindsey,making her back away as she clutched onto her katana tightly.
Then, more clones of Nico and Laura, still made of fluffy clouds, appeared, surrounding her.
Hundreds of them said nothing, only stared, awaiting their commander's instruction.
"You can discard these two forever. If you close your heart to any and all connections with players, I will grant you my true strength right here and now."
"Abandon those who see you as a weakling and soar higher than they could even dream. Or, your second option..."
The cloud clones took fighting stances and prepared for battle.
"Fight your way to me. Both ways will guarantee you growth in the end. So, which will you choose?"
Lindsey chuckled and ended up laughing out loud, wiping her tears as she began crying from too much dopamine.
She sighed and slumped her arms. "You're lying. There's only one path that'll prove I've gotten stronger!"
Lindsey dashed past the cloud clones and began cutting them down with practiced ease, her decision a no brainer.
"If you think you can fly simply because you jump higher than others, you'll fall on your face and break your teeth!" Lindsey affirmed as she dodged an incoming attack and sliced off the heads of the clones.
"The very people you're asking me to cut off are the ones who helped me get to where I am today!"
She grunted, blocking an attack from multiple clones, and screamed as she pushed them back and cut them down.
She stashed her katana into her inventory and pulled out her 3-Section Nunchaku, spinning it as she dashed for the other clones.
"You're right about one thing; I'll definitely fly higher than them one day! But...!"
She was kicked away and punched, making her grunt as she slid backwards.
She shouted and swung her nunchaku in multiple directions, hitting more targets as she slowly walked towards the light.
"I'm going to claw my way to the top,earn my wings and learn hkw to fly before i become clear for takeoff!" she declared.
"My name is Lindsey McCarthy, and I am more than a twin from Hell. I am...!"
As she spoke, she took down more clones, picked up her speed and drew closer to the light.
"I am beautiful, smart, strong, and all those basic bitches wanna be me!"
She smacked the last clone and jumped into the light, her smile tugging at her lips as sge soared through the red skies.
Her body plummeted towards the throne room, but she gracefully landed, striking a pose as she took a knee, extended her arms and lowered her head.
She then lifted her head, then her body, abd spun the nunchaku in his hands while casually approaching her clone.
"How I grow is my choice. Not even you get to have a say in that," she confirmed, her gaze serious and her values instilled.
Her clone narrowed her eyes, clearly unimpressed. "Oh yeah? What makes you think that that is enough? Just because you're saying you'll work harder doesn't mean that you will."
Lindsey smiled confidently. "If you are my true strength, you are also my true mind. You know how much I hate my weak self, how hard I'm willing to work."
The clone's cheek slightly cracked.
"It's not just about me anymore. I have debts to repay, friends to protect and a sister to grow old with!"
Following the crack on her cheek, another formed on her arm and spread to her neck.
"I want to walk with them knowing that even if they get in trouble, i can save them without relying on anyone!"
The clone glared at Lindsey, clicked her tongue and stood up from her throne. More cracks formed on her skin was she approached Lindsey, who was determined to prove her point.
The clone scanned Lindsey from top to bottom, sensing no impurity from her words.
Lindsey was a coward, a sponge who leeches off other people's success and always ate the leftovers.
She also had the gall to complain about how weal she was compared to the other players, even though she never took the first step towards growth herself.
Childish, insecure, idiotic and naive.
She was drenched in impurities before stepping into this dimensional plane.
But now, she had changed. Not only for herself, but for those she cares about.
"What will you use this strength for?" her clone inquired, her cracks glowing as she looked at Lindsey.
"For my loved ones. I will become their sword, their nunchaku, their very weapon, if it means that they can rely on me for a change!"
The clone sighed and hugged Lindsey, a small but visible smile forming on her face.
"Use this strength for your own personal growth too, dumbass."
The clone disappeared afterwards, her mana pooling through Lindsey's pores and into her body.
Her body felt lighter than before, her fists harder, her longevity increased and her eyesight sharpened.
She felt brand spanking new, and she loved it.
「Player has cleared the Class Selection Quest!」
「You are a strategic but honest combatant」
「Your blood is filled with righteousness and a love for protecting those dear to you」
「Your body is versatile and flexible, pushing forward with the endurance of a true warrior」
「Calculating Class...」
Lindsey giggled as she read the system's praises, reaffirming that she truly had changed.
Although she still had insecurities to work on, and wanted to grow even stronger, this was a solid start.
Finally, her system pinged with her class...
「Class: Fighter
- Like a dancer, you move with practiced determination and motivation. Your body and mind are an extension of your weapon and will. You are leading a righteous path and fight for your loved ones」
"It's as Nico predicted," she noted as she smiled.
「Class Selection Quest Completed!
- Rewards:
1. æ300,000 coins [Congratulations]
2. Active Skill: Cloudy Jay (Lvl.1)
3. Passive Skill: Twin From Hell (Lvl.1)
4. Current Base stats doubled
5. Blessed Loot Box [Your most desired item]
「Your title now reflects your strength」
「Cloudy Jay: Summons pink jays who will transform into clouds, forming illusions of your choosing」
「Twin from Hell: When paired with your other half, your strength doubles for one minute」
Her rewards were beyond anything she expected. But, she was mostly excited about the amount of money she made.
She cackled as she saw her new bank balance.
「Aestrol Coins: æ750,000」
She was happy that she was getting closer to becoming a millionaire that the other rewards paled in comparison.
After forgetting about her funds, she reached for the Blessed Loot Box.
The gift turned into a bright golden light, dropping an outfit in her hands.
A red hoodie with arm and shoulder guards, a a black dress with a ruby pattern on the sleeve, black stockings, and black heels.
「Garments of Hera: Wearing these clothes grants the wearer +10 Endurance and +10 Dexterity」
Lindsey had wanted an outfit that would buff her stats, but she never imagined that they'd be to her style as well.
She earned new skills, new clothes to help her stats, made some decent cash and her base stats literally doubled.
Her class selection quest was more than a success.
After reading her rewards, a portal appeared in front of her. She stepped inside with no hesitation and return to the Adventurer's Guild.
"Nico, I'm back-! Huh?!"
Her eyes widened as she stared at him in pure horror.