NOVEL NEXT Chapter 1: The Integration begins!
The door opened and the man stepped into the apartment, he stood there for a moment, his eyes scanning the dark corridor in front of him. His back was slouched and dark circles under his eyes made him look exhausted and old. He didn't bother with the light as he knew the way by heart after spending years in this run down dump.
In his hand he held a bottle, inside of which something rattled every time he switched it from one hand to the other. The man looked nervous as he entered the living room, a cloud of dust rose when he sat down on the couch. He always hated this thing but never had the energy to get rid of it. He looked down at the bottle and then to the left, on the small table a bottle of Jack Daniels that he got after the funeral from a co-worker.
He opened the bottle and swallowed a handful of pills before drinking straight from the bottle, again and again until he couldn't take it anymore. The bottle dropped from his hand and he rose to his feet, walking towards his bedroom. He evaded the bucket that was already half full again, fixing the leak would have cost a fortune or so he was told.
Laying down on the bed he took out his phone, the bottle still clutched in his hand as he looked through the photos of his sister, she was everything he had and now she was gone. He stopped at a photo of her, they took it only days before her diagnosis.
The image of a little girl on a warm summer day. The white summer dress that was far too long for her, the smile that shone brighter than the sun. Then the memories of seeing her lying in that hospital bed, hooked up to machines that kept her alive. How the machines got shut down and his sister drifted away into a dream she couldn't wake up from.
The days that followed after her death blurred into one big mess. He needed to arrange a funeral and prepare everything for it, there was nobody to inform. His family abandoned him and his sister, rather letting foster families take care of them instead of taking them in.
But that was no longer important, the bottle of sleeping pills slipped from his fingers and dropped to the floor, landing on the dirty carpet next to his bed. A smile crept on to his lips, just a bit longer and he would see his sister again.
A bright light appeared in front of him, even with his eyes closed it managed to see it clearly. The light formed into letters, switching languages until it settled on english.
Welcome to the System! Your universe will become the 152nd addition to the multiversal system! Integration will commence shortly….
Did he take so many pills that even his mind was playing tricks on him now? He tried to move but it was like his whole body was under constant pressure, pain started to flood his mind as his body changed in subtle ways. He gritted his teeth and shook his head but the words were still clearly visible to him.
The Integration is about to begin…we wish you the best of luck, citizen!
The text vanished and he felt like he was being dragged through the air by an invisible hand. Everything around him blurred his eyes couldn't keep up with the speed. Then a sudden stop and blissful darkness surrounded him, was he finally dead now? But he could still feel his body, how his heart pounded in his chest. He noticed the smell of old books and wax candles, he felt the hard uncomfortable chair under him and the table his hands rested on. The rough wood of the table rubbed on his fingers while he moved them around nervously, looking for something to do with him when he heard someone clear his throat in front of him.
"Young man you can open your eyes now, it's time we begin with your preparations…" The man sounded old, his voice deep and full of authority.
Slowly, he opened his eyes and blinked a few times, his eyes adjusting to the dim light. He noticed the bookshelves that surrounded him and the man that sat opposite him. He spotted the wax candles, one stood on the table between them and on each side of the bookshelves were iron candle holders, each of them holding a burning candle. Then he focused on the man. He looked old, very old. His beard vanished under the table and he wore a red robe that covered his slender frame. His eyes had sunken deep into the sockets and he looked as tired as himself.
"Can we begin now, boy? Good, first let's look at your status, shall we?"
The man opened a massive book that suddenly appeared on the table. He leafed through the book and stopped somewhere in the middle, at that moment a window appeared in front of his face again.
Name: Ethan Delaney
Race: Human(?)
Level: 1
Class: None
Subclass : None
Health Points (HP): 100/100
Mana Points (MP): 150/150
Stats
Strength: 10
Dexterity: 10
Vitality: 10
Wisdom: 15
Intelligence: 15
Perception: 10
Willpower: 10
Free points: 0
General skills
[System Language][Identify]
Class skills
Subclass skills
"Mhm, looks like I got someone interesting." The man pointed at his wisdom and intelligence stat. "Seems like you studied a lot in your life. It's not a big bonus but everything helps, right? Now, let's discuss your class. I hope you are fine with me calling you Ethan."
He flinched at the mention of his name. He hadn't heard it for a while now and it felt wrong to hear it from the man's mouth. Still, the man was right - Ethan had studied all his life. Things like history interested him the most, but he also read a lot of fiction and played games, so he understood some thing the man talked about. Curiosity got the best of him. "S-sir, what is up with those stats? Like I played games but we don't have things like that in the real world. Also, why does it have a question mark next to my race?"
The man listened and nodded, "Well boy, because you're at the start of the integration. The system will make itself at home in your universe. About the question mark…-" he tilted his head and nodded a moment later. "Ah, sorry, I can't talk about that. Enough delays, it's time to pick your class." The man snapped his fingers and three people appeared behind him. They looked more like mannequins, their features rough and sloppy. The one on the left wore light armor made from leather, a rusty sword in his hand and a shield on his back . The one in the middle had only some leather patches sewn onto his shirt and a bow in his hand. The one on the right wore a long black robe and an oversized hat, a wooden staff in one hand.
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"What class, no you need to listen to me I have to get back. There is still my-" Ethan held his head for a moment, a splitting headache invaded his thoughts and everything felt numb for a moment. "W-wait…no.." he shook his head, fingers rubbing his temples. "W-what…right I was…the class yes. Or not?"
"Right, right my class…yes. I'm sorry my head started to hurt." Ethan rubbed his forehead and blinked a few times before he felt normal again. His eyes focused now back on the mannequins in front of him.
Of the three figures the right one called to him the most, when he focused on it a new window appeared.
[The Mage- A beginner class for those seeking to understand the arcane arts]
The man cleared his throat again. "Alright kid, pick your class then we need to talk about the advantage you want."
Ethan nodded. "I want to pick the mage class…ugh…please?" he said, unsure how to ask the system but it worked either way
*Update* Class updated - None -> Mage
*Update* Skill acquired - Mana Bolt
"Good, you seem to manage better than most people, but don't think it will be easy, just picking a class is the most basic thing to do. Now, at the start of every integration, the new citizens get to pick one benefit. This could be a powerful weapon or piece of armor, a spell, a magical item, an increase to your stats. or so on. It could be anything, but don't expect to be able to cheat just because you got a weapon. It will only be powerful compared to someone at level 1, understand?"
Ethan was already thinking about what he wanted, should he go with a mighty staff? A powerful spell to kill his foes with one shot? Maybe a magical artifact? Wait, he could ask for anything, so why not…He suddenly had a different idea, he needed something that could influence his path in a positive way from beginning to end.
Thoughts about the cold he felt before the system brought him here. A suicide attempt that felt a life time ago and he just remembered, the cold…the days he played outside with his sister, building snowmen, how they made snow angels and both of them on the couch with a hot chocolate reading a book while the snow drifted to the ground. The struggle when he lost her, it was still fresh in his mind, no wait that happened so long ago, right? The headache seemed to return so he shook his head and looked at the old man.
"I decided what I want…I want an...affinity, like elemental magic. Is that possible? Maybe a list I can pick from?"
The man looked surprised and then smiled, it was a warm smile that was quickly followed by a laugh. "Oh boy, you really are special, huh? Good choice kid, not many think about the long-term in this situation." He turned the book around and put it in front of Ethan. A long list greeted him
Basic: Water, Fire, Earth, Air, Light, Dark…
Advanced: Ice, Lava, Nature, Poison, Holy, Electric…
It continued for a bit and Ethan frowned. "I don't understand. Why are there basic and advanced affinities, and I bet even higher grades?" He looked at the man and raised an eyebrow. The old man nodded. "Yes, there are more. To explain it simply, if you look at Earth and Water, they focus on one element. You could also combine them to form a nature affinity, for example. Now as for Ice and Lava, those are just advanced forms of their base elements Water and Fire. Of course, you can succeed with all affinities, but specialized ones are usually stronger, at the cost of a narrower scope. That is all I can say, which one will you pick…before you ask, you can't look at higher grades."
Ethan rubbed his chin, the cold he felt before returning, but this time more as a friend than as impending doom. "I will pick the ice affinity…" he nodded. The decision felt right, not only was winter his and his sisters favorite season of the year but the cold had always something calming that Ethan enjoyed, aligining his path with it sounded like a choice he wouldn't regret.
*Update* Gained - Affinity: Ice
*Update* Race - Human(?) -> Human(Ice)
*Update* Skill change - Mana Bolt -> Ice Bolt
The old man nodded at him, a smile tugging on his lips that he tried to keep down. "I wish you luck, boy. You will need it. I will give you a small hint: in this world there are not only monsters and magic, but also gods and other beings you thought are fantasy. So be careful out there. "
With a simple snap of his fingers Ethan was dressed like the mannequin, a simple robe, an old hat and the walking stick you could call a staff with some imagination. A message appeared in his vision.
Welcome to the tutorial. During the tutorial the System will evaluate you and your actions and offer rewards after the tutorial is finished and you return to earth. Due to the integration your body is not completely physical anymore and has started the slow progress of attuning to magic. During the tutorial the following things are provided with magic:
- There is no need to eat or drink, your nutrition is supplied with magic. Eating still has a positive effect even if not necessary.
- Due to the high rate of mortality your health regeneration is increased
- The need for sleep is reduced but still necessary
- Assistance systems are reduced the further you advance.
Huh, that's neat, Ethan thought and another message followed.
Transport commencing...
3……
2….
1…
Transport completed!
We wish you a happy tutorial!