Refusing My God’s Advances

[Scarlet Siren has reached the requirements to evolve. Please select from the following options.]

As soon as I finished reading the message, it vanished, and a new message replaced it.

[Please select from the following traits:]

1. Raging Sea Sovereign: Scarlet embraces the untamed spirit of the sea, turning into a fearsome pirate queen during battle. Her attacks become as unpredictable as the ocean waves, and her strength and speed increase dramatically. This trait embodies the chaotic and powerful force of the open sea.

2. Mystic Corsair: Scarlet delves deeper into her magical abilities, becoming a mystical Corsair capable of summoning arcane storms and wielding powerful spells. Her proficiency in spellcasting takes on a piratical flair, blending the mystic arts with the cunning tricks of a seasoned pirate.

3. Ironclad Mariner: Scarlet transforms into an unyielding defender of the ship, becoming an ironclad mariner with enhanced durability and defensive capabilities. She can withstand powerful blows, protecting her crew like a sturdy hull protects a ship at sea.

4. Arcane Buccaneer: Scarlet further enhances her technological prowess, becoming an arcane buccaneer capable of manipulating both magical and technological energies with the finesse of a seasoned pirate. This unique blend of skills allows her to navigate the seas of both magic and machinery, making her a formidable force on land and sea alike.

This was not what I was expecting, but that being said, Scarlet was special. She would also grow with me, so I needed to think about this. Each of the first three classes had its merit, and I would personally pick the first one if it was just up to me. It would make Scarlet a good frontliner with Lila, but if I remember right, Scarlet was not good at close range.

Still, that was only my own thoughts, but I had to think about Scarlet and what she wanted to do. I could always make more golems, but none of them would ever be Scarlet.

With that in mind, I selected Arcane Buccaneer. As I did, the menu closed, and another opened.

[Please select from the following Non-Combat Skills:]

1. Gymnastics: Scarlet gains enhanced agility and acrobatic skills, allowing her to navigate complex terrain with finesse.

2. Navigation: Scarlet becomes an expert navigator, possessing an innate sense of direction and the ability to chart courses both on land and sea.

3. Enchanting Melody: Scarlet develops a captivating musical talent, able to use her voice or musical instruments to influence the emotions of those around her.

4. Technomancy: Scarlet gains proficiency in manipulating and understanding magical and technological devices, allowing her to interact with complex machinery and magical artifacts.

This choice was a bit more straightforward. Scarlet's abilities in technomancy would be highly beneficial, given her current role as assistant and potential as an arcane buccaneer. Part of me would love to hear Scarlet sing, and gymnastics sounds like it could be applied to more than one situation. Navigation would be helpful, but Technomancy was on theme.

The menu closed, and another opened, but this one looked like the last round.

[Please select two choices from the following Combat Skills:]

1. Broadside Barrage: Summon The Red Tide, Scarlet's formidable ship, to unleash a devastating broadside barrage for 00:00:10s, targeting up to 5 enemies and their surroundings. Cooldown: 01:00:00.

2. Pistol Plunder: Scarlet's twin pistols, June and Dawn, temporarily evolve into November and Dusk for 00:0030s. Cooldown: 01:00:00.
November: Inflicts increased cold damage and freezing effects.
Dusk: Damaged targets have a chance of becoming temporarily blinded for 00:01:00. If Dusk's first effect fails, the damaged target emits black mist, obstructing its view for 00:0030s.

3. Moonlit Marksman: Scarlet's Rifle, Sun Shooter, temporarily transforms into Lunar Striker for 3 shots. Cooldown: 01:00:00.
Lunar Striker: Gain infinite range when shooting at moons. Target a 5-foot radius with a 75-foot range of your current location. After firing a shot in an arc, it descends to the targeted location, dealing heavy damage. If a moon is targeted after selecting a location, the single shot becomes 5 shots, increases the radius to 25 feet, and doubles the damage. Cooldown: 01:00:00.

4. Crew's Call: Summon The Burning Crew, Scarlet's loyal ship crew, to fight alongside her. This skill summons 8 out of 25 crew members for 00:01:00. Cooldown: 01:00:00.

Now these choices were a bit harder, but at least I got to pick two. Every one of the skills looked useful, but they all had one-hour cooldowns. That might be fine in a dungeon where you could take breaks and wait for the cooldowns to reset. In a real open world battle like a war would make skills like this table turners, but an hour in combat could mean the loss of thousands of lives if used wrong.

Thinking about everything, Scarlet's potential as an Arcane Buccaneer, and her proficiency in Technomancy were on target with what Scarlet had wanted. It aligned well with her role as an assistant and could open up more possibilities in both magical and technological interactions.

For the combat skills, Broadside Barrage and Pistol Plunder seemed like solid choices. Broadside Barrage could provide a powerful AoE attack with multiple targets, especially useful in large-scale battles. Pistol Plunder, with the unique effects of November and Dusk, added versatility and crowd control to Scarlet's ranged arsenal.

With these choices in mind, I made my selections. and a confirmation window appeared.

[Chosen Trait:]
Arcane Buccaneer

[Chosen Non-Combat Skill:]
Technomancy

[Chosen Combat Skills:]
Broadside Barrage
Pistol Plunder

As soon as I made my choice, the messages vanished. The white around me bled away, and the frozen world around me started to unfreeze. The energy surrounding Scarlet receded, leaving her standing there with a slightly confused expression, but her body hadn't changed.

I wasn't mad about that. I personally thought Scarlet was more than perfect just the way she was.

"What just happened?" Scarlet asked, blinking as if she had just woken up.

I smiled. "You evolved, Scarlet. You're now an Arcane Buccaneer with some new skills."

Scarlet looked at me with a mixture of surprise and excitement. "Really? What can I do now?"

Danielle silently watched as I pulled up Scarlet's new info, and explained the changes and improvements she had gained. Once I started to explain the new skills and their potential applications Danielle had stepped in and pointed out a few things that I missed. Scarlet's eyes sparkled with enthusiasm as she processed the information.

"I can't wait to try these out! Thank you, Leon!" Scarlet exclaimed, giving me a quick hug.

I chuckled, patting her head. "Just be careful when you test them. I would prefer if you waited until we were in a dungeon to try them first. I have no clue just how much damage they will do."

Scarlet nodded, a determined look on her face. "I'll make sure to do my best. Now, let's go join the others for supper. I'm sure they're wondering what took us so long."