Ethereal Ascension

Chapter 2

Chapter 2

~ The System ~

Glitch...

[Wake up.]

[Alan, wake up!]

A synthetic voice kept probing Nathan, who was fast asleep on a moderately-sized bed. He turned and turned, relishing in the comfort of the bed. It felt so soft, unlike the thin mattress he was used to.

[Wake up!]

The synthetic voice hollered once more.

“Ugh... Just five more minutes,” Nathan mumbled under his breath, throwing the blanket over his face. But after a second or two of trying to get back to sleep, he paused, “Wait...”

Tossing the blanket aside, he sat up immediately, his eyes wide open. He gazed down at his body and felt his torso. His ribs were still intact. There was no sign of bleeding. He couldn’t even feel the slightest pain.

“The hell..?” he lifted his head and scanned the room he found himself in. It was two times bigger than the single room he was accustomed to. The walls were even painted, and the floor was tiled. He could see a wardrobe, a standing mirror, and other essential furniture needed in a room.

But what stole his attention the most was the bed he was seated on. It felt so fluffy, he feared he could sink into it. There were two pillows behind him.

This room was in complete contrast to the one he lived in before he died.

“Aren’t I supposed to be dead?” he gazed at his hands once again. “Is this some kind of afterlife trance or what? Where am I? What happened?”

[You have been--]

He heard the synthetic voice once again, but it quickly faded when a knock came from the door.

Before he could react to the knock, the door swung open, paving the way for a young girl to walk in. Her hair was blonde, sweeping down her back. She had deep brown eyes, just like a particular person Nathan used to know.

She was clad in a floral-themed gown that swept below her knees, with a colour mixture of lemon and yellow.

Nathan narrowed his eyes, just to make sure he wasn’t seeing things. This girl that had just barged had a striking resemblance to his deceased younger sister. She looked a few years older though.

His eyes dilated and he muttered, “Lily...?”

 Lily was Maya’s middle name. He didn’t even know why he called her that, instead of just Maya.

She lifted a brow, sizing him up sceptically, “Who’s Lily?”

“Uh... But... You...” he didn’t even know what to say. His mind was boggled with overlapping thoughts.

She grunted, shaking her head, “I told you not to go for that raid yesterday. It was a Myriad 4 gateway. Only God knows how you survived. But I’m sure you must have hit your head a lot, because now you see me as someone else.”

Silence ensued for over five seconds as Nathan stared at her blankly, “Eh?”

She sighed and moved closer to him, rubbing the bandage on his left cheek, “Maybe you should get some rest today. I have to go to school now or I’ll be late.”

“Hm-hmm. Sure, sure,” Nathan nodded repeatedly, urging her to leave.

She took one last melancholic glance at him before walking out of the room, closing the door gently.

Nathan sat there listlessly for seconds, waiting for her to leave the house completely. Once he was sure she must have left, he ruffled his hair, “What in the world is going on? She’s like an older version of Maya. How did I even get there?”

A glitching noise spurred in his head, immediately followed by the synthetic voice that had been trying to communicate with him.

[Alan, calm down.]

He groaned, “Stop disturbing me, you stupid voice. And stop calling me that. My name is Nathan.”

[Not anymore. Nathan was your mundane name before you completed the transferral ritual.]

He raised a brow, darting his eyes across the room to confirm if he was alone, “T-Transferral ritual?”

With a very lacklustre tone, the voice answered... [You died.]

Nathan didn’t even know what to believe but he decided to play along. He sighed, “So that wasn’t a dream, huh? Then what is this place? How am I still alive?”

[I assumed someone of your wits would have figured it out by now.]

Nathan could have sworn the voice said that with a tinge of emotion — sarcasm.

At that moment, his mind clicked and a sudden realisation dawned on him. His eyes dilated, “I’ve been transmigrated?... Or wait, is it reincarnation?”

[The term doesn’t matter, Alan. Just know that the transferral was complete. Welcome to Oratoa, Alan Hermolith.]

Nathan, or rather, Alan, was no longer confused as to how he was alive or where he was, but he still had a ton of questions.

However, the first one that came to his mind was, “Who or what are you?”

[I am your guide through this world of magic and death. I am the System.]

“Oh... That kind of thing,” Alan nodded in understanding. This ‘System’ was quite popular in the few open world games he had played before his parents died. They usually came with a lot of perks and helped the player level up faster.

A small smile escaped his lips, “So, a world of magic, huh? With you inside me, I’m like one of the strongest Mages, right? What’s my ability? Death magic? Fire magic?”

[Actually...]

Alan waited in anticipation.

[I will just show you your stats instead.]

A rectangular green screen flickered to reality before him.

---

[† Name: Alan Monolith.

Alias: The One.

Race: Human.

Level: 1.

Title: Nil.

Class: Awakened.

Health Points (HP): 100

Mana Points (MP): 50

Experience (XP): 0 / 100

 

† Attributes:

- Strength: 10

- Agility: 10

- Intelligence: 10

- Endurance: 10

- Dexterity: 10

- Luck: 5

- Wisdom: 5

- Charisma: 5

 

† Skills:

- Combat Skills:

  - Basic Swordsmanship: Level 1

- Magic Skills:

  - Basic Fireball: Level 1

- Miscellaneous Skills:

 - Basic Cooking: Level 1

 

† Abilities:

- Active Abilities:

  - Quick Strike: Level 1

- Passive Abilities:

  - Enhanced Senses: Level 1

 

† Equipment:

- Weapon: Wooden Sword

- Armour: Locked.

- Accessories: None.

 

† Inventory:

- Health Potion: 1

- Mana Potion: 1]

[Other parts of your stats are yet to be unlocked.]

 

“Hmm...” Alan rubbed his chin, using his free hand to scroll through the screen. “Basic cooking? What am I even going to use that for? Ugh... These points are too low. How powerful is my basic fireball?”

[Why not conjure one and see for yourself?]

Alan raised a brow. Though it was subtle, this so-called system conveyed some emotion through its words, and they weren’t good ones.

He sighed and raised his right palm, visualising a ball of fire coming to life. His thoughts acted as a trigger, channelling some of his mana to his palm. Flickers of sparks began to emanate over his palm, momentarily igniting into a ball of flames.

Alan smiled widely, “I did it! I—What the...?”

The fireball was barely as big as a tennis ball, struggling to keep itself ignited.

[Oh, I must have forgotten to add your Myriad level to your stats.]

Alan resisted the urge to roll his eyes. He could tell the system was messing with him. Why would something powerful enough to move his soul from the afterlife to this new world, forget something as basic as that?

[You’re a Myriad 5 Mage, the lowest of the ranks.]