Can't I raise myself?

He glanced at the time. It was already one in the morning. Ryan yawned and prepared to log off. Ever since activating the game system, his biological clock had been completely messed up.

There wasn't much entertainment in this world. He used to go to bed at nine or ten, but now, midnight was just the beginning, and he wouldn't fall asleep until past one or two.

That was bad enough, but he still had to get up precisely at eight in the morning, or he'd miss the morning shift clock-in.

"Sigh~ Life was better before."

Ryan found himself reminiscing about when he was little Camilla.

Being a peace officer in the patrol division, just coasting through life every day wasn't too bad.

Just as Ryan was about to close the interface, a new message popped up—

[Character Card function activated. Create Character Card?]

"Character Card?"

He clicked on the detailed description.

[Character Card → Lin Qi]

[Upon using the Character Card, you will gain all abilities of the current character. Duration: 1 hour. Cooldown: 24 hours.]

"Huh?"

Ryan's eyes lit up.

He definitely had to create this.

[Creation successful. Obtained 'Lin Qi' Character Card.]

With a thought, a dark card appeared in Ryan's hand.

The card depicted Lin Qi's post-job-change official artwork. The words 'Silent Nun · Lin Qi' were engraved above her head.

On the back of the card, another line of text was written—

[While holding this card, if the original character dies, you will have one and only one chance to pass down this job and its skills to a new character.]

Ryan's eyelids twitched.

Job inheritance?

"So, as long as I create a Character Card, even if Lin Qi dies, this job can still be inherited?"

Even though it was only once, this greatly increased the margin for error.

"Isn't this a bit overpowered?"

Then let's add a little more.

Ryan grinned and touched the card. The power of the Silent Nun felt reassuring.

He put the card into his inventory and entered the character information list. Beside 'Lin Qi,' in the previously grayed-out character slot, a '+' sign had appeared.

He paused slightly and reached out to tap the '+'.

The next second, the new character creation interface popped up, just as he had expected.

[Please name your new character.]

Chapter 24: Grandpa, I'm Kind!

"I can actually create a new character? Could it be because of the job change?"

Since the game didn't provide any hints, Ryan couldn't be bothered to investigate. He was more excited about creating subsequent characters.

If the number of characters could keep increasing, and he trained each one to the top, wouldn't one person be able to conquer the world?

"Name... Name... This is so annoying."

He stared at the naming interface, pondering for a long time.

For someone with severe naming difficulty, having to come up with a bunch of names consecutively was more painful than being stabbed.

"Let's call her 'Shyarly'."

He wasn't used to giving himself a foreign name, but names like 'Lin Qi' were too unique. 'Shyarly' was a more normal choice.

Actually, Ryan had just been thinking about whether he should use the names of familiar female characters from his previous life, like Raiden Shogun or Cocolia. But then he thought, those were waifus. Giving yourself your waifu's name felt a bit strange, didn't it?

"Wait, why did I subconsciously pick a girl's name?"

With strange thoughts swirling, Ryan entered the character customization phase.

This time, he was familiar with the process and created a rather heroic-looking character.

Hidden classes weren't easy to obtain. If he couldn't get one, becoming a Soul Eater wouldn't be bad either; it would still be a powerful tank.

[Character Information Generated:]

Shyarly (Female): Constitution 12, Spirit 9, Magic 7, Aptitude 7, Charm 9

"Constitution so high?"

She didn't look muscular at all, but her Constitution was actually 12 points. This was beyond Ryan's expectations.

"Damn it, when will we boys ever get to stand up? Even if there are female characters with such high stats, I..."

[Confirming name 'Shyarly'.]

[Generating initial identity...]

"Even if it's a beautiful character with high stats, I'd be willing."

With such good stats, what's there to hesitate about?

This is clearly a female knight template.

Not only is her physique high, but her magic talent isn't bad either.

In Empress Online, the strength of transcendents isn't solely determined by magic power; physique and spirit also have significant impacts.

If magic power is the primary focus, then specializing in spirit is a must, as high-level magic skill releases require the spirit attribute.

Physique has fewer limitations. For example, Ryan knows of a hidden profession called the Punisher Knight, which follows an extreme physique-focused playstyle.

However, setting aside these few extreme professions, most require secondary attributes. For instance, those who focus on physique still need some magic power for support, as magic power greatly enhances physical reinforcement.

Overall, Ryan is quite satisfied with Shyarly's stats.

Initial random identity inclinations: Knight, Gladiator, Refugee, Soldier, Mercenary, Bodyguard...

"As expected, no noble start?"

Ryan shook his head secretly.

It was pretty much as he had anticipated.

However, with his and 'Lin Qi's' help, the initial identity wasn't that important.

[Game information confirmed. Shyarly, female, entering game...]

[Please select your birthplace.]

'Augus', 'Verdea', 'Arcadia', 'Holy Court'... Only the Augustus Empire is selectable.

[Confirming birthplace as 'Augus'.]

The game interface shifted to the Augustus Empire - Berman City.

"I'll probably need to unlock the map later."

As he pondered, the scene before him changed.

What appeared in Ryan's vision was a dilapidated room.

Compared to 'Lin Qi's' simple room, this place could practically be described as a refugee shelter. The floor was uneven, the ceiling had various cracks, the walls were dirty, and there were even fissures.

There was no bed, only a wooden plank with a pile of weeds underneath.

[Shyarly is a refugee who fled to Berman City. Her hometown was destroyed by war. Relying on her extraordinary physical abilities, you have become the big sister of the slum.]

"Does it have to be this miserable?"

She's a refugee? A farmer would have been fine.

"Why is it always an orphan start? Is it a fixed character setting?"

Ryan grumbled, then controlled 'Shyarly' to wander around the room.

After searching, he found nothing. He did, however, see a mouse that had starved to death in a corner.

Opening the door, he saw a dark alley outside. There were no streetlights. Based on Ryan's experience, he judged it to be a slum in Berman City.

He hesitated for a moment before deciding to wait until morning. 'Shyarly' currently had no level and no equipment. If she encountered patrolling officers in the dark, he'd have to bail her out of jail tomorrow morning.

Besides, it was indeed too late, already two in the morning.

After setting the AI to auto-pilot, Ryan yawned, washed up, and immediately went to bed.

The night passed without incident.

At eight in the morning, Ryan ate breakfast while opening the game as usual.

He glanced at 'Lin Qi'. Everything was normal, except he overheard some nuns discussing how two chairs in the church had inexplicably broken. Father Peter was investigating the matter.

Of course, 'Lin Qi' had broken the chairs, but given her status, Peter wouldn't dare question her directly.

In addition, 'Lin Qi' received a letter from High Priest Lia this morning, asking her to meet at a coffee shop on Shengning Street.

Ryan didn't need to worry about such matters; the auto-pilot mode would handle them. He then switched to 'Shyarly's' game interface, and the scene that greeted him made him frown involuntarily.

In the screen, 'Shyarly' was standing at the doorway, and a group of mafia members had appeared in the alley.

After dawn, Ryan determined from the surrounding buildings that this was likely the border area between the East and Central Districts. He had patrolled there before, and it was inhabited by poor people and refugees.

"Come out! Everyone get out now!"

The leader of the mafia shouted loudly.

"From today onwards, this place belongs to the Snake Mouth Gang. You lowly peasants, get out immediately, do you hear me?!"

As he spoke, Snake Mouth Gang members repeatedly stormed into the houses, dragging people out.

Those who refused to cooperate were beaten with sticks, and cries of pain erupted.

"Why! Why should we leave? This isn't your territory either, and even the imperial government hasn't kicked us out!" a scrawny young man shouted.

There are refugees and the impoverished everywhere. For the empire to be stable, it must tacitly allow their existence.

In the major districts of Berman City, for example, there are refugees living. Generally, as long as they don't cause trouble, the government won't interfere.

Moreover, these areas were planned and built by the government, serving as de facto 'slums.' If these slums were to be abolished, where would all these impoverished people and refugees find a place to live?

"Why?" the leader of the Snake Mouth Gang scoffed. "Because we have connections and power! This is our territory from now on. A bunch of sewer rats like you are just wasting air by living."

"You—"

Bang!

The young man was kicked flying. The leader of the Snake Mouth Gang seemed to want to establish his authority, so he had two people grab sticks and beat the young man mercilessly.

Seeing this, the others curled up, not daring to approach.

A child suddenly rushed over.

Ryan recognized him. It was the same child who had been given copper coins by 'Lin Qi' last night. There were no slums in the midtown area, but some impoverished people would sneak there to beg. After all, there were many wealthy people in the midtown area.

Perhaps they could encounter someone kind?

It was clear that the child had indeed met someone kind, but it still couldn't change his fate.

The child threw himself onto the young man. He was hit twice by the Snake Mouth Gang members. One of them looked at the leader.

"Boss ordered us not to cause any deaths."

The leader waved his hand.

"Alright, alright. This old man is kind-hearted and can't stand to see someone die in front of me. Hurry up and get lost, all of you. Get out of Berman City. I won't lie to you, we're taking over all the other slums besides this one too."

"It looks like the city is planning to 'clean up' the poor."

Ryan knew exactly what was going on.