"Those are representations of your might. Strength is self explanatory, constitution shows how tough you are, intelligence is your potency when manipulating E'er, and it has nothing to do with a person's ntal capacity when learning things. Wisdom represents how much E'er you have available for manipulation. Dexterity is also self explanatory." she smiled. "Growing up, people absorb E'er from their surroundings and improve their bodies. One can train the body and mind to absorb E'er in different ways. Once enough skills are learned, the 'system' labels them with a globally agreed upon term."
"What are skills, then?" I tilted my head. "Is reading and writing not a skill?"
"Not specific enough to belong to a class. Not anymore." she shook her head. "Accessibility to education increased to the point that everybody would have the sa class if it was treated as such." small purple sparks flew from her finger. "I studied E'er, becoming a Wizard. Then I specialized my knowledge in Pyromancy. I first learned to manipulate E'er into thermal energy, then controlling enough of it to produce flas. Fire has many uses, and the system recognizes such skills under that class."
"Would you not be a Pyromancer if the system didn't recognize them?" I asked.
"I'd be a higher level Wizard, though specialized, becoming a High Wizard." she nodded. "Classes are founded that way, a group of people share their knowledge and the system recognizes their skills to be specific and attainable enough to be a class." she smiled. "That is an amazingly good thing. It forces the scholastic elite that prides themselves in being unique to get off their high horses." she chuckled.
"What happens to being a Wizard, is it replaced by the new class?" Reality turned fantasy was astonishing.
"Not entirely. Basic techniques remain, and the rest either transform or change into sothing else." she raised a finger. "Take a warrior for example." and pointed at . "Basic training would require you to be aware of your surroundings, to exert yourself and survive combat. Techniques would be learned so that you act accordingly. Then a warrior takes up a spear and trains with it. Previous techniques would still be there, but the most important ones would transform into spear related skills, due to the warrior understanding and linking them to newly acquired knowledge." she tapped her temple. "This rules everything, the 'system' just shows you."
"How do you learn skills, then?" I got a little confused.
"Take your own example, how do you learn to read?" she smiled, then realized sothing. "Except Halves, you are born knowing."
I nodded. "Repetition, then."
"That's right. When you have mastered knowledge of sothing, you integrate it into yourself, allowing E'er expenditure, transforming it into a skill."
I thought of sothing. "How many classes can be obtained?"
"Well, it depends." she gave a wry smile. "At first, your body can only hold so much E'er, so the number of skills that can be recognized are sowhat limited. At the age of ten, as you reach level ten, also, the E'er within you reacts to your knowledge, so can choose if they know too many skills that can be recognized. Then when one reaches level one hundred, E'er within you has beco dense enough to allow further recognition. Then at two hundred and fifty in both classes, then five hundred in three. The rest is up to speculation."
What? Is this a cultivation world?
"What do you an choose?" I asked, that caught my attention.
"Well, will you follow the path of a warrior, wizard, scout, archer, craftsman?" she looked at like the answer was obvious. "Who has the ti to learn it all? A wizard who exercises regularly won't gain combat classes, their ti is mostly occupied with learning the Laws of E'er."
"What if so classes share so general knowledge?" A few classes from the ga coming to mind. "If an archer crafts their own bows and arrows, for example." If the classes were similar, that'd be easier for in the future.
"They'll be a Fletcher." she answered instantly. "A warrior that crafts their own armor and weapons will be a Squire. Though none like the na." she chuckled. "A wizard that does similarly will be an Enchanter." she smiled. "There's enough variety in classes to cover most niche activities, because there was a group of individuals that shared their knowledge and were recognized, receiving a na."
"I see." those classes I rembered. "What if I started studying the laws of E'er, then?" I rembered the formulas from the staff. I grimaced internally.
"You're a Halve, E'er would beco second nature faster than any species. But depending on its nature, the new class wouldn't complent previous ones." she thought for a second. "Most people who go out and venture the world group with others that compensate for their weaknesses. Perculis joined with Helena and Rozaria, a healer and a warrior respectively."
"What was he?" I asked, this Perculis fellow was brought up again.
"An Archon." she said as soone knocked on the door. "Our food is here."
She stood up, and went to opened the door. A middle aged lady pushed a trolley into the room, the sll of roasted at perating the previously odorless space. She was wearing a white apron on top of a black dress of sorts. She looked like a maid. She smiled at us and gestured at the various containers on the trolley.
"Roasted boar, boiled vegetables, fruits and rice." they were covered by silver dos. She took them off one by one and the sll intensified. She carried the pots containing the vegetables and rice to the table, the at laying on a slab of tal.
The fruits sat on a basket she placed next to , smiling. She put two wooden plates on the table along with silverware I doubted was silver. She grabbed a thick cloth, covering the sides of the tal slab holding the at, and put it in the middle of the table on top of another piece of thick cloth.
From under the trolley, she produced three glass bottles and a dium sized barrel. One bottle was what looked like wine, the others juice and water. The barrel had a tap for serving the contents. She put glasses and cups on the table and pushed the trolley to the door.
"Have a nice al, and an even better night, ladies." she smiled and left, closing the door behind her.
I glanced at the food, feeling a rumble on my insides. I wasn't particularly hungry, but the display was seducing my senses.
"Let's dig in, then." Lapia said with a wide smile, her sharp teeth peeking from under her succulent lips.
Stop that. I halted the line of though. People's lips aren't succulent.
My attention back on the food, I took a slice of pork and so vegetables that were actually just potatoes, broccoli and cauliflower. The at was delicious and the vegetables rich in flavor. I finished eating quickly. I reached for the water bottle, but was stopped by Lapia's hand.
"That's alcohol." she warned .
"What kind?" I took the bottle anyway and inspected its contents.
"Potato spirit." she said, taking a bite from her food.
My eyes went wide. Vodka?! I removed the cap, squashing the thin tal under my grip in my haste. I sniffed the contents and surely enough, the overpowering sll of high percentage alcohol assaulted my nose and my face scrunched up. My lips t the bottle and long gulps went through my throat.
"Yooo..." Lapia's surprised voice matched her face.
"This is pretty good." I said, licking my lips. I drank a third in one go. It was pretty diocre if I was honest, but high quality is not necessary for vodka to be good.
"Let's hope your liver is as strong as you are." she shook her head. "I don't want to deal with a drunk Halve." she shuddered at her words.
I ate more at as I drank the vodka. Lapia took her ti with her al, annihilating the vegetables mostly by herself. When we finished, the rice pot sat almost untouched, the Elf eating very little and not bothering with it. The fruits were juicy and sweet, an assortntof tiny apples and pears.
"That hit the spot." she sighed and leaned back on her seat.
I had finished the alcohol, a pleasant buzz at the back of my head, a smile on my face.
The Elf was drinking sothing that looked and slled like beer, served from the small barrel.
"Hey, Natasha." her voice was tired and smooth. I perked up at her calling directly by my na for the first ti. "What's it like, waking up as a Halve?" she took a long sip from her drink.
"Confusing, exciting, scary." I recalled the first days. "I thought it would be an epic tale of adventure, friendship and romance. Then I killed ten people in the blink of an eye." my hand shook and a jolt went up my spine, a queasy feeling in my chest.
"Want to know a little sothing?" she looked at with a smirk. I nodded. "You are the second Halve I've t, and you both show the sa symptoms after your first kill." her smirk turned into a shit eating grin. "Your body will rember the rush. It will try to reenact the flood of adrenaline and emotion until you do it again. Whether beast or people, the second kill is cathartic."
I had recognized the withdrawal, but didn't want to label it as such. Both because I thought it was ntal trauma and because it was too fast to form an addiction. I wasn't particularly haunted by the faces of those I killed. It was the mory of the shower of guts and blood that made quiver. The very next day I realized my reaction to the events was more an emotional overload than disgust, and yet I did not address it.
"How co?" though the alcohol buzz was there, it was not enough to impair my thoughts. My liver lived up to expectations.
"No clue." she shrugged. "Your minds are constructed for conflict, perhaps?" she waved that off. "Matters not. I see you struggling with sothing when you ntion the bandits you killed, and that is perfectly normal. If you choose not to kill again, it will fade with ti. If you choose to kill, it will instantly disappear." she gave a gentle smile. "Both choices are fine."
"Sounds more complicated than I feel it." I told her. "However, I see your point. Thanks."
"Not at all." she chuckled. "Anyway. Do you have a general idea of what you want to do from now on?"
"Go around, explore, see the world." I shrugged. "I've no need for money, I don't like the thought of staying behind walls, and a whole world sounds too exciting to pass on."
"Great." she had a weirdly excited smile, but covered her mouth and let out a long yawn. "I'm spent."
"Sa." I said, the buzz from the alcohol and the relaxation of being out of relative danger allowed for tiredness to creep in. "It's pretty late." I looked out the window and the dark sky was surprisingly not stained by the many streetlights.
Lapia stood up and walked to the window, closing the curtains. I removed my underwear with the super amazing power of storage and sighed in relief as my chest was liberated from the constrains of the surprisingly comfortable swimsuit. No piece of garnt in existence would beat the feeling of freed breasts. My new partner dangled inside my sweatpants, slightly uncomfortable, but not out of place. I also removed the hoodie, leaving in my sweatpants and t-shirt.
The King sized bed was bouncy and comfortable, the sheets smooth on my naked feet and arms. I saw Lapia undressing and entering her side of the bed naked, she lied on her stomach and her butt stuck out from under the covers. That's a thicc ass. I comnted in my mind.
She waved towards the lamp on the ceiling and the light turned off. I closed my eyes, relaxing my breathing and mind.
"Hey." a whisper next to made turn. Lapia grabbed my arm and closed in. "Good night." she gave a quick kiss on the lips.
"Sleep well." I said back, caressing her face and smiling.
I closed my eyes again, and this ti no horny flirty Elf kept from falling asleep.
Screeches and growls surrounded . The source of the aggressive cacophony rushing to . Corpses littered the ground of a massive cave. My naked feet tread on a yellow sticky liquid that filled the air with the stench of vomit, piss and shit. The first creature reached , flinging clawed hands on my naked torso. Gashes as wide as my fingers and just as deep spurted crimson blood on both the creature and .
I scread in pain and rage, grabbing the offender by the horns it grew on both temples. I jumped on the spawn and wrapped my legs on it, twisting my upper torso, breaking its neck and separating the head from the body, a shower of the sa liquid that covered the ground from wall to wall fell on .
I bit the stump and sucked with all my strength, the all consuming taste of urine bringing to the edge of ecstasy. Falling down and quickly standing up, I heabutted the severed head with all my might and split it in three pieces, now holding its horns as makeshift weapons. I ran at the approaching horde, my wounds closing and my energy renewed.
Pain. Agony. Suffering. Death.
Kill! Kill! Kill them all!!
Consu! Pain! Death! Consu!! Survive!!! Live!!!
Annihilate! Obliterate! Exterminate! Extinguish! Eliminate! Kill!
I jumped into their numbers, swinging my improvised weapons around, kicking, and biting.
"DIIIEEE!!!!" my throat bled as my loud scream injured my vocal cords.
Demonic beasts fell as fast as they approached. Those that had any body part resembling weapons I could use fell first, twisted, broken, ripped open and apart by my bare hands to be used as tools to bring death upon their kind. Beheading, dismbering, bisecting, impaling. My body cleaved, impaled, cut open, crushed, and destroyed in equal amounts.
Every ti I received injuries, I'd feast on the corpses of the fallen, consuming blood, flesh and all manner of fluids I could get my hands on to heal and strengthen the most important tool I had access to.
Spawns were slowly replaced by bigger, stronger demons as ti passed. Their bodies magnitudes tougher, though ultimately useless in the path of my unending thirst for death.
I felt primal, unending hunger. Such starvation caused madness to break my mind, finding the briefest of respite when consuming those I butchered. Nothing more than prey for to slaughter.
I lost legs, arms and sections of my torso. The sheer amount of blood and flesh I consud changing my body to regenerate even mortal wounds. The pain, however, was crippling, bringing waves of insanity and unhinged madness which empowered my rage, breaking my body ti and ti again to end those in front of .
Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill.
My mind broken by unimaginable pain and rage. My body abused to its limits and forced to adapt or die.
Until there remained one demon among a sea of carcasses. A female like . I could sll it.
"L̶̷̲̅ö̶̷̲̅ ̶̷̲̅ғ̶̷̲̅ᴇ̶̷̲̅ɴ̶̷̲̅ ̶̷̲̅ᴋ̶̷̲̅ᴀ̶̷̲̅ᴊ̶̷̲̅ʜ̶̷̲̅!̶̷̲̅ ̶̷̲̅R̶̷̲̅ë̶̷̲̅ ̶̷̲̅s̶̷̲̅ᴋ̶̷̲̅ᴜ̶̷̲̅ɴ̶̷̲̅ ̶̷̲̅ᴍ̶̷̲̅ᴀ̶̷̲̅ᴀ̶̷̲̅s̶̷̲̅ᴛ̶̷̲̅!̶̷̲̅!!"
She snarled sothing and the world around shook. Her wings kept her floating high above ground, near the ceiling.
I hated that.
Beasts such as them should not enjoy power.
I did not.
All should suffer. Pain. Anger. Hunger. Kill. CONSU!!
I leaped and reached her in an instant. She tried to dodge, only to expose her back. Holding onto her wings, I placed my feet between her shoulder blades and pulled until my muscles scread and bones creaked.
"DIE!!" I scread as I plucked her wings off.
She scread in pain and rage.
The fall was a storm of blood and flesh as I grabbed everything I could and ripped it from her. My body tattered as she fought back, claws and teeth rending my body. I ate what I took from her, forcing the flesh down with her own blood, and sotis even mine.
Her screams shook the world, saying things in a tongue alien to .
I locked her in position when her struggles ceased, my legs around her head and my arms keeping her own legs open, devouring what was between them. We crashed on the ground, her head first, bursting like many creatures before.
Screeches and growls surrounded . A new wave approached. A savage smile twisting my face in anticipation, insatiable hunger and unquenchable thirst. As long as I lived, all would die!
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