Awakening

The room where Auric stayed at the inn was on the 6th floor, and he could see the market from the balcony. After briefly looking at it, he closed the window and curtains.

< Are those people following me around my room? > Auric asked.

[ Checking... ]

[ No hostile presence detected within 500 meters ] The system replied.

"It seems like they don't care what I do and are just keeping an eye on me for the time being," Auric muttered to himself. "Well, good for me."

Auric turned off the lights and sat on the bed in a lotus position. He checked his surroundings on the map and saw that except for two or three guards, most of them were not in the inn. The knights were taking rounds in the inn, and two of them were outside his room. "Bastards! They must have gone to the brothels... tsk!"

< Will it be painful when cleansing my body? > Auric asked the system.

[ No, you will not feel any pain in your body. The cleansing process is not painful, but you will feel very hungry after it's finished and will smell like crap ] the system replied.

After talking with the system for some time, Auric thought it was time to start the process. "Okay, let's start then!" he said.

**

The dark room was silent, illuminated only by the soft glow of the moonlight seeping through the window. Auric sat in a lotus position on the bed, his eyes closed in deep concentration.

Auric brought the fruit to his mouth and ate it whole. At first, he tasted nothing but sweetness, but then a strange sensation began to spread through his body. He felt a burning heat in his chest and then a sudden, intense pressure in his head.

Suddenly, there was a sizzling sound, like water dropping onto hot coals. Auric's body began to shake uncontrollably, and his head was spinning and painful, but he held on because it was necessary. He could not risk making the knights guarding his room come inside.

Steam began to rise from his skin, and thick, black and brown liquid oozed from his pores. It was a disgusting sight, but Auric did not stop. He gritted his teeth and held on, determined to see the process through to the end.

As the minutes ticked by, Auric felt his body changing. The burning heat in his chest began to recede, and the pressure in his head lifted. He felt lighter, as if a great weight had been lifted from his shoulders. The black and brown liquid continued to pour from his pores, but now it was thinner and less disgusting.

Finally, the process was complete. Auric lay on the bed, panting and exhausted, but feeling alive in a way he never had before. He sat up slowly and looked down at his body. His skin was glowing, as if he were lit from within. He felt clean, pure, and renewed, as if he had been born again.

But then he smelled himself and exclaimed, "Ah, ewww. This smells disgusting!"

Ting!

[ Quest completed! ] the system announced.

< I will check that later > Auric said, wrinkling his nose.

Auric grimaced, " And hey, you said there wouldn't be any pain!"

[ I was referring to physical pain ] the voice in his head replied.

Auric sighed. He couldn't stand this system.

Knock, knock

"Young master, are you alright? There is a bad smell coming from your room!"

Auric fumbled for an excuse. "Ah yes... umm, the food didn't suit me so... you understand, right?"

"Ah, okay... Should I bring some medicine?"

"No, it's okay. Sorry, I have to go again."

"..."

Auric felt ashamed of his actions. He had to lie about having diarrhea because he couldn't admit he had cleansed his body with a divine fruit.

He took the bedsheet with him to the bathroom and submerged it in hot water. Thankfully, hot water was available in this world, thanks to magic and magic stones.

Auric felt refreshed as he showered with soap-like liquid. "Ah, it feels good to take a shower at night. I kind of remember my past life," he thought.

**

"Hey Mark! Are you really going to approach her?"

Blake greeted his friend. "Hi Blake. Yeah, dude. I'm just tired of my lonely life, you know. I gotta come out of my comfort zone. And I really like her."

Blake rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, whatever. Don't tell me those cringey lines. Well, I never asked how your military service was?"

"Oh yeah, you're going next month, right?"

"Yeah, man. It's already time. I really don't want to go!"

"I know, mate. You know, it was hell. Those senior bastards did as they pleased and everything. Let me give you a piece of advice: don't ever question them or fall in their radar, or they will target you. And yeah, do as you are told happily, even if you are not. Don't show any signs of discomfort or they will make you do more. And take the training more seriously; it will help in the future. And focus on your shooting skills."

"Yeah, yeah, I know. You were the best shooter. No need to flex on me! Well, see you later!"

"Yeah, bye."

"Let's go and meet her then."

After a while, when Mark reached the coffee shop, he heard a voice.

"Hey Mark, over here!"

"Hm?" Turning to the voice, he saw her...

**

"Ahh, the water is too hot!" Auric exclaimed.

Mark had already cleaned his body of the black ooze that had come out of it. After he stepped out of the bathroom, his stomach growled, signaling his hunger.

"I'm hungry. Let's go and eat something," he said, changing into fresh clothes and calling a knight.

"Sir Thomas!" he shouted.

"Ah, young master. Did you call me?"

The knight came in and bowed to Auric. But when he looked up, he was horrified. The young master was very skinny, almost like a skeleton. Was the diarrhea that bad?

Auric noticed the look on Sir Thomas's face and knew what he was thinking. "Ahem! Sir Thomas, bring me some delicious food full of nutrients, and if possible, bring meat. I really need protein."

"Y-Yes, Young Master," the knight replied as he turned around.

"And bring a new bedsheet," Auric added.

The knight nodded and walked away.

"Well, it seems like everything went according to plan," Auric said to himself with a sigh. "Let's check my notifications and status."

[QUEST COMPLETED!!

- Obtain and consume The Divine Fruit of the Elements

Description: To increase your strength, you must cleanse yourself internally. And to do that, you have to obtain The Divine Fruit of the Elements!

Rewards: 300 EXP

100 SP

Cleansing the body of impurities]

"Good," Auric muttered as he checked his status.

<Status>

[Name: Auric Everlight

Age: 10 years

Level: 27 (EXP: 1982/2800)

SP: 1161

Strength (STR): 11 + 5

Agility (AGI): 12 + 5

Dexterity (DEX): 14 + 5

Intelligence (INT): 11

Mana: 70 + 50 + 30 (Curse Seal Jewel)

Element: Dark, Thunder

Skills:

Passive:

Language Sense Level 2

Active:

Appraisal Level 3

Mana sense level 1 (NEW!!)

Artifact: Curse Seal Jewel

Available Attribute Points - 105]

"Hmm, it looks like I gained an extra five points from cleansing my body and also acquired new skills from the Divine Fruit. My mana has also increased by 50 points."

[ Mana sense - Mana Sense allows the user to sense the presence of mana - the energy that permeates all things in the world. At Level 1, this skill is relatively weak, and the user can only sense mana in their immediate surroundings.

Cost - 3 mana ]

"This seems good, but I'll have to level it up," Auric said to himself.

<Hey, system, how do I level up a skill? The others were leveled up by using them repeatedly. Do I do that with this too?>

[ Yes and no. A skill can level up due to mastery, but you can level up a skill by using skill points. It is not currently available, but it will be unlocked at level 30. ]

< Oh, okay > Auric said with a sigh.

< Then add 14 points to strength, 13 to agility, 11 to dexterity, and 9 to intelligence > Auric instructed the system.

[ Name: Auric Everlight

Age: 10 years

Level: 27 (EXP: 1982/2800)

SP: 1161

Strength (STR): 30

Agility (AGI): 30

Dexterity (DEX): 30

Intelligence (INT): 20

Mana: 70 + 50 + 30 (Curse Seal Jewel)

Element: Dark, Thunder

Skills:

Passive:

Language Sense Level 2

Active:

Appraisal Level 3

Mana sense level 1 (NEW!!)

Artifact: Curse Seal Jewel

Available Attribute Points - 64 ]

As Auric used his attribute points, he felt a cooling sensation in his head, and his body felt lighter and stronger.

"Ah, I like this feeling! It's so addictive," Auric exclaimed.

Suddenly, he remembered a question that had been nagging at him for a while. < By the way, can I use magic now? > he asked.

[ Yes, since you have lifted the curse, you can use magic ] the system replied.

"Finally! I'll be able to use magic!" Auric rejoiced.

But then he realized he had no idea how to use magic. "Okay, but how?" he asked the system.

[ You can learn spells or buy skills from the system ! ] it replied.

< By using SP, right? > Auric asked.

[ Correct, but first you need to awaken your mana core. Since you haven't ever used magic, it's not awakened yet ] the system explained.

< Okay, teach me > Auric said eagerly.

[ First, you must focus your mind," the system continued. "Clear your thoughts and allow yourself to feel the flow of magic within you. ]

Auric closed his eyes and took a deep breath, centering himself. He could feel a faint tingling sensation in his fingertips, a sign that his mana core was beginning to stir.