2 System
▬▬▬Notice▬▬▬
Welcome to the System's interface! To get started, please tap on the on the button below.
[Start Tutorial]
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Before the sun had risen, when the brunette named Darren woke up on the leather mat that he calls 'bed,' the first thing he noticed was a floating blue panel in front of him.
"Ugh . . ." But all he did was groan and cover his eyes with his arms. His sleep was by no means comfortable, and his shoulders and back ached from sleeping on a had surface. He also had work today so that he could get the money to feed himself and his siblings for tomorrow. It was no time to care about strange things that had nonsense written on them.
He sat up on the bed and looked over to the opposite side of the small room. His siblings were still asleep, and their skin glistened from their sweat. It was probably very hot at night, as the side of their room was the one that had no window.
It wasn't as if he wanted to keep the nighttime air all to himself, but being beside the window had its own dangers, and he didn't want Arven and Celzen to be subject of such.
Darren went off his bed and silently walked towards the bed of the sleeping eight-year olds. He found the handfan on the cold stone floor right beside the children's bed and crouched to pick it up. He then sat on their bed and started fanning his siblings.
As his mind automatically wandered off to his worries and his siblings needs, the panel still in front of him hummed.
▬▬▬Notice▬▬▬
TAP ON THE BUTTON BELOW
[Start Tutorial]
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Darren's eyebrows furled as the text on the panel updated. He had no idea whatever the hell was the floating, transparent thing in front of him, and he found it quite annoying. The words 'start tutorial' made him a bit curious however.
"So I just . . ." He muttered under his breath, raising a skinny finger over the panel hesitantly, "Tap on it?"
The panel made a low pleasant beep as his pointing finger tapped against the button, prompting the panel to update its content.
▬▬▬Tutorial▬▬▬
From this point onwards, you will now be addressed as 'the user,' while this unit will be called 'the system.'
On the assumption that the user is still unsure as to how to use the system, the user can can click on anything and be assured that nothing unwanted by both user and system will happen.
The system's task is to make the user as powerful as possible, for him to be able to carry out a grand mission.
[Next]
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'A grand mission?' Darren looked incredulous as he stared at the text of the panel.
▬▬▬Answer to Query▬▬▬
The grand mission's details cannot be disclosed until skill [Ethereal Senses] is learned.
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Darren blinked a few times in surprise as the panel phased into view and vanished exactly a second after he finished reading it. 'It's reading my thoughts.'
▬▬▬Answer to Query▬▬▬
Indeed. The system is able to hear the user's thoughts.
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Darren's breath and heart rate accelerated in the presence of such 'miracles,' and he excitedly clicked on the [Next] button, forgetting about fanning his siblings.
▬▬▬Tutorial▬▬▬
The user's general power will be measured by a value called Level or LVL. Normally, having a high LVL means wielding much higher power.
Increasing the user's LVL requires a certain amount of Experience Points, or EXP. Mainly, EXP can be gained through killing creatures.
The event of the user's level increasing by one is called a Level Up.
[Next]
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Darren doubted the words of the system, but the fact that it could hear his thoughts helped him believe in the texts before him. And so, wanting to know more, he clicked on [Next].
▬▬▬Tutorial▬▬▬
By leveling up, the user is given various rewards. Instant Regen, Stat Points, and Skill Points.
Instant Regen heals the user's Health, Stamina, and Ethereal Energy by a certain degree.
Stat Points are used to strengthen a certain aspect of the user's being.
Skill Points are used to learn various skills that will help the user in his journey.
With the basic's all covered, the user is invited to accept his first Quest.
[View Quest Details]
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Darren shrugged and clicked on the button, prompting the tutorial panel be replaced by a different one.
▬▬▬Quest Details▬▬▬
Quest
Suggested Minimum Level: 1
???: ???
???: ???
[Accept]
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Ignoring how there were two lines of hidden information, Darren clicked on the [Accept Quest] button, prompting a confirmation panel to appear.
▬▬▬Confirmation▬▬▬
The user will Accept the Quest
[Confirm]
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Not knowing what he was getting into, Darren tapped on the Confirm button.
He suddenly felt his consciousness rapidly leaving his body, and the next thing he knew, was that he was in the center of a circular clearing in the midst of a dense forest. The sky had few clouds, and the sun seemed to be at its peak.
▬▬▬Notice▬▬▬
You are currently in an area separate from your world. Do not panic, as you will return back to your room in exactly the same time that you left from your world.
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It was a good thing that Darren wasn't a huge fan of panicking, and that he took the time to read the System notice. Still, he couldn't help but feel both anxious and exhilarated at the same time. He had never imagined interacting with anything that had the power to control Space and Time.
▬▬▬Notice▬▬▬
In a few moments, a weak monster will appear and the user will kill it. Please tap on the button below to claim a basic weapon. Note: The weapon will vanish upon returning to your world.
[Claim]
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Blinking rapidly as he tried to take all these in, he tapped on the claim button, prompting for a sheathed knife to appear before him. It fell to the ground with a dull thud.
". . . Wow." He exclaimed uner his breath. The knife didn't look anything special, but he didn't remember ever touching anything that was in its prime condition. With how poor and weak he was, the best he could get for himself and his siblings were second-hand items.
He crouched down to pick the knife up and felt how nice it was to hold the hilt of a new dagger.
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The system pledges that the user will gain access to strength, wealth, and fame for as long as the user follows the will of the system.
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Darren's black eyes were filled with resolve as he gently grabbed the sheathe of the knife. It made a beautiful sound as he slipped the sheathe off, baring the knife's shiny blade to the light of day. He then wondered about what kind of creature he would have to use such a beautiful weapon on.
▬▬▬Answer to Query▬▬▬
The type of monster the user has to face is the Slime. It can deal very little actual damage, but its attacks can be very painful. Its membrane might be hard to puncture, but puncturing it even once is enough to kill it.
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"Hm." Darren hummed in curiosity. He had never heard of such a creature in his life. He thought that maybe such creatures didn't exist in his world, leading him to believe that this really was another world.
"Oh--" Darren noticed a transparent, stretchable bag-like thing filled with transparent green goop appear through a bush. It didn't seem to have any orifices, nor did it have any limbs.
The slime rolled itself forward, closer to the skinny teen in the center of the clearing. Darren didn't feel threatened by the creature, so he decided to attack. He held the knife with both his hands, the blade pointing downwards, before stepping forwards and driving the knife deep into the green slime.
Darren had made use of most of his strength just from that strike, and it was enough to create a tear in the slime's outer membrane. The tear, upon appearing, immediately became larger, causing the slime's goop to spill out.
"Level 1 Creature: Green Slime killed. You have gained 4 EXP. No items dropped." A woman's voice sounded out in his head. The tone of the voice was monotonic, but the voice still sounded smooth and alluring.
He stood there, unsure if he even felt surprised anymore from the voice that rang in his head. But even if he felt surprised, there was no time to waste. Three more green slimes had appeared into the clearing, and Darren couldn't be more eager to strike each one.
"Level 1 Creature: Green Slime killed. You have gained 4 EXP. No items dropped."
"Level 1 Creature: Green Slime killed. You have gained 5 EXP. No items dropped."
"Level 1 Creature: Green Slime killed. You have gained 5 EXP. No items dropped."
And as he killed more, slimes would roll in to replace the ones he killed. And as he killed more and more, he felt his breath getting shorter and shorter. He wasn't used to doing wide, swift motions with his arms, so he already felt tired just from the repeated killing of slimes.
Still, he didn't relent. He continued to kill the slimes until the 23rd, where the announcement in his head changed.
