Don't Mind Me, I'm Just A Mystic arts Major

[OVERALL STATS]

[Name: Zachariah Keal]

[Age: 18]

[Race: Human]

[Sequence Level: Ignorance]

[Healing Speed: 0.00001/s]

[Blood Stones: 5783]

[Existence Stones: 67/100] <Reach the threshold to jump to your next sequence level>

[Strength: 27]

[Speed: 30]

[Senses: 21]

[Intelligence: 32]

[Agility: 29]

[HP: 17/100]

[MP: 2/100]

[Soul Essence: 10/100]

[Blood Essence: 45/1000]

[Skill Name – Crimson Overdrive] [1]

[Channels flames to empower the body, heart, and soul.]

[Skill History – Crimson Overdrive was wielded by the Archangel Michael to split the Hades Dimension during the Final War against the Beast of Armageddon.]

[1/1]

~Tether mod~

…???… [Reach the Stage of Curiosity to Unlock]

~Arsenal~

[Cursed Tachi]

[Shadow Cloak]

[Map of Anchors]

[Warmth of Truth]

[Pendant of Truth]

[Light Chains]

[Aragoth's Token]

This was the only way he could check his stats.

Zach didn't understand.

Does the system just explain things when it feels like it?

There was no tag besides the existence stones, and Zach was confused about what they were used for until now.

But it made sense.

He was beginning to wonder what the requirements were to jump to the next sequence level.

And he was already at 67; he had really come a long way.

Now for his treasures, there were quite a few new ones like the Light Chains, Pendant of Truth, and Aragoth's Token.

Eli didn't ask for the blue stone back so Zach guessed it was a friendly token.

The real mysteries were the Pendant of Truth and Light Chains.

[Pendant of Truth.

Description: An enchanted necklace that compels people to tell the truth.

(Can be used on 2 people per day)]

Zach held the silver necklace in his hand.

"Tell the truth, huh..." Zach could imagine multiple scenarios where this astra would come in handy.

[Chains of Light: Summon blinding chains made with light to trap your opponent, (can be upgraded using blood stones for longer length and width).]

This astra was upgradable.

"IT," Zach shouted, and a silhouette appeared in the distance.

He stretched forth his hand, and a light chain shot out from its palm, impaling the poor silhouette.

If this was upgraded to a certain point, it might be one of the most important things in a fight.

Zach was kind of disappointed; he killed so many of those nightmare creatures, but still only had two astras.

Well, Zach summoned his blade and wrapped the hilt in the white chains.

The thing about tachis is their reach is long, but not long enough.

Zach held the chains connected to the blade and waved his hand. The chain traveled like a whip, hitting the silhouette, making it shatter on impact.

This was way better than just holding a long blade.

He always had to find a way to deal the highest damage.

And there was something he wanted to try.

Attack <on>

Defense <on>

Dodge <on>

When these 3 things are on, the silhouette turns into a literal fighting machine.

Zach wanted to copy its movements.

The training dummy performed such exceptional swordsmanship, and Zach could probably learn it.

If he was here long enough.

The first thing was mimicking the dummy's movement, which was a challenge on its own.

The silhouette performed a sort of twirling movement that focuses on confusing your opponent on where to strike first.

It was a foot-in-front-of-a-foot technique.

Zach battled with the training dummies, increasing the numbers and difficulty over time.

Two of the silhouettes dashed at him, delivering a flurry of stabs with their shadowy blade. Zach weaved through the attack, blocking with his sword and dodging incoming strikes.

What he learned was that the attacks seemed to come in a pattern.

Stab, slash, block, dodge, and counter.

This order was stunning and surprisingly unpredictable. Zach lost count of when the sword would hit him, but he wouldn't feel a thing.

Zach trained for a while and decided to exit his internal world.

He woke up in a huge bedroom with LED lights running through the walls.

He stood up and walked downstairs to find Zain passed out on the couch, the TV still on his favorite channels.

Zach smiled as he saw this sight.

When they were kids, Zach and Zain would sneak to their neighbor's window just to watch the TV they had.

Their mom usually came late at night, so they would go to their neighbor's house to watch a show called "Mystic Art Lifestyle."

"In what has now been marked as the greatest disaster in the modern era, the fissure disaster has caused the death of over 2000 young talents, making it the third most casualties in history."

The narrator spoke, detached.

"Passersby describe the gate transforming into a passage to hell, but there's hope as a select few managed to survive this onslaught."

Zach watched, curious as a list of faces appeared on the screen, including his.

"These candidates managed to survive the brutal onslaught of the fissure's challenges, earning the title 'The Chosens.'"

The narrator continued.

"Enterprises are now scouting for these individuals in order to recruit them, making them the 5th most sought-out personnel."

Zach just stared at the TV and turned it off, carrying Zain gently into one of the guest rooms and laying him there.

Zach quickly went to take a shower, finally able to operate the machine.

There were a few snacks in the fridge, so he just munched on those.

Zach sat on the upstairs balcony, reminiscing about his life.

Just a few months ago, he was a nobody, someone who could be easily tossed aside.

But now.

He was better.

A private, detached duplex and loads of cash in the bank.

Zach chuckled at the thought.

He wasn't the nameless street rat; he was a Chosen.

Zach thought back to the fissure, the Witcher, the friends, the foes.

Now that he was out of danger, everything felt so... surreal.

More like a dream.

But his body knew it wasn't a dream.

Zach touched his chest; the scar of the knight's attack still hurt when he poked it.

His mind drifted toward Iris, the way she dispatched a foe that seemed to be an astronomical mountain for the cohort was so magnificent, yet terrifying at the same time.

He had to enter the next sequence level.

Not only to get stronger but to make sure none of his comrades had to die again.

He thought back to Alfred's offer.

"Saint Academy..." He muttered, looking into the sky.

Zach had heard a few things from the local news about the Saint Academy.

And as a person that knows just how stressful academies can be, this was one of those things.

Being a member of the Western Dragon Enterprise didn't look so bad.

But a 10-year contract was way too long.

Zach carried his phone, dialing a familiar number.

The phone rang for a while, and a sleepy voice yawned through.

"Zach...?" Alfred yawned.

"Why are you calling me in the middle of the night! It's basically 2 a.m."

"I've thought about your offer," Zach said.

"Good job, Zach, you truly made the right offer."

"But only on one condition," Zach interrupted.

"Condition...?"

Zach knew it wasn't his right to issue any conditions, but he was sure that company would do it anyway because it's only a matter of time before other corporations begin to snuff him out.

But the W.D.E. had a head start.

"The contract is too long. I want it to be a five-year contract."

"Pardon..." Alfred raised a brow.

"Yep. If the Western Dragon Enterprise wants to hire me, I think a five-year contract would be appropriate."

"Zach, I don't think you understand..." His voice was calm.

"Giving you a five-year contract is just like training you to join our competitors."

"I'm not joining any corporations after that," Zach said firmly.

Alfred's stressed voice interrupted.

"Don't worry, I'll prepare the documents, so please... avoid calling me anywhere between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m."

"Yes, sir."

Alfred hung up the call.

Zach could tell the man was stressed out.

Well, he had a higher position in the company, so his workload was so much.

Zach dropped the phone and tried to sleep.

Sleeping without drifting into his internal world was hard, but ultimately as Zach laid down longer, his body felt heavier and heavier.

Tomorrow would be another day.

His mind went hazy and then blacked out.

He fell limp on the bed, drifting into sleep.

******

The next day came upon him like a storm, the curtains bled sunlight, illuminating the huge room in a golden radiance, Zach was woken up the intense light, groaning as he forced his eye lid open.

His phone buzzed besides him, he reached for it checkimg the name.

"Alfred..?"

Zach checked the time.

"11:45"

His eyes few open.

"What..!?"

He was asleep for a long time.

Zach quickly got up, picking up the call.

"Where have you been I've been calling you for the past hour!"

Alfred's annoyed voice rang out.

"Ahhh ummm.."

Zach quickly thought of an excuse.

"Nothing.."

"Nothing?!... that was the best you could come up with ?"

"I overslept okay"

Zach quickly put on some decent cloths and head out.

As expected Zain was still sleeping.