Cold hard ground was the first sensation that greeted Alex when he opened his eyes next. He was laying flat on his back and staring up at the moonlit sky, clouds obscuring all but the brightest of stars.
Despite the turmoil of the last few moments before everything faded, Alex felt as calm as could be. In fact, he felt great. Everything within him felt right, he was no longer off-balance and agitated. He was at peace.
"Varos doesn't take a liking to many. You are lucky." The androgynous voice broke Alex from his inner musings and forced him to sit upright. The same monk-like person from before was standing in front of the pagoda, but the golden doorway was gone. Alex didn't know what to think.
So many things about this temple contrasted with how reality worked, but then again, it was a temple to literal divine beings. Nothing about it made sense. "It would seem as though you have achieved all you came here to do. Leave the temple grounds immediately or face divine wrath." The voice didn't speak with any hostility, but that didn't stop the chills Alex felt when he heard those words.
Looks like he wouldn't get to ask questions or stick around for a little bit longer. Rising to his feet, Alex brushed the light bit of dirt off of his armour and then started retracing his steps back to the archway that marked the entrance to the temple.
Not wasting any time or testing the words of the monk, he quickly left the inner temple grounds, walked passed the angelic statues and crossed the bridge back into the town.
Just like it was before, the town was quiet and void of the presence of any other living being. Though it was well lit and it looked like people lived here, there wasn't anyone around. It gave Alex the vibes of a ghost-town, and it should have freaked him out, but he was completely at peace from the events that transpired inside the temple. It was that thought that caused him to open up his menu, leaving him somewhat shocked.
Name: Alexander Khelton/Alex Khelton
Age: 20
Level: 8
[Soul: F-Rank (Tempered)]
Class: (LOCKED)
Race: [F] Human
Alignment: [Earth] Forces of Light
Titles: Lesser than Trash, Death Dancer, God-Seeker, Soul Searcher
Soul Searcher: You are the first adventurer from your realm to reach the "tempered" stage of your soul. By passing the Trial of the Soul you have proved that you are worthy to walk your path and can continue on your way to enlightenment. +3 to Endurance and Wisdom.
Available skill points: 8
Strength: 19
Dexterity: 20
Charisma: 19
Endurance: 23
Vitality: 23
Intelligence: 23
Wisdom: 26
Luck: 21
Health Point Total: 240
Mana: 230
Armour Rating: 34
The major boost in stats, as well as the eight available skill points came as a complete surprise. However, the new title did confirm his theory that he could be rewarded for being the first to do something.
The theory that there were extremely specific titles out there was still up in the air, but he was more sure of it now then he was before. Just one thing, where did all of this come from? The system seemed to anticipate Alex's question.
"Repairing the Soul" quest has been completed, rewards granted:
[F-Rank Tempered soul acquired]
[5,000 EXP acquired]
[Congratulations! You have advanced to level 7. 4 skill points awarded.]
[Congratulations! You have advanced to level 8. 4 skill points awarded.]
The experience hadn't been listed as a reward when he had initially been given the quest, but Alex wasn't gonna complain about the sudden boost. Though he was surprised that five-thousand exp only gave him two levels. Just as soon as he pondered that, the system gave him an answer. It was being awfully helpful as of late.
[After reaching the sixth level, the experience required to level up is increased exponentially. Most adventurers reach level ten before getting stuck for a while due to their class quest. Only the most hardcore of players have just passed the fifteenth level. Keep growing your power and you will eventually pass them.]
Once more Alex was left somewhat dumbstruck. There were so many facets about the system and the universe that he just didn't understand or know about, but the more he learned the more engrossed he became.
Sometimes it felt more real than real life. He supposed it was real, and not actually a video game, but it was a hard adjustment to make and come to terms with. There was just so much depth to everything and he was often left with more questions than answers.
He still didn't have any clear idea about how to invest his points or whether it was worth dumping everything into one stat, but it couldn't hurt to try for once.
He figured that he still had a few levels worth of wiggle room to figure out what route he wanted to go down. Alex wouldn't even have his class until he was level fifteen, so his stats would probably be all over the place until he had a clear direction.
Available skill points: 0
Strength: 20
Dexterity: 20
Charisma: 20
Endurance: 23
Vitality: 23
Intelligence: 23
Wisdom: 32
Luck: 21
In the end, he decided to put one point into both strength and charisma, bringing them up to twenty. With the remaining six skill points he dumped them into wisdom, bumping it to his highest stat at thirty-two.
As was the usual case, he didn't immediately feel the effects of investing his skill points, but he had long since learned that even if the evidence wasn't tangible that didn't mean there wasn't any improvement.
He was just about to close his menu when he remembered something. He had been in too much of a rush last time to even look at it, but he had a pair of equipment from completing a quest that he had never looked at.
[Boots of the Valiant]
Rank: F
Tier: Bronze
Armor Rating: 7
Bonus: Wearing these boots makes the wearer more valiant, imbuing them with courage against impossible odds.
Alex was about to equip the boots, but stopped before he did. Outside of the bonus, the boots didn't actually provide any real advantage to him. The boost he got from wearing the whole set of Adventurers Gear was just too good to pass up on. If anything, wearing these boots would be a detriment to him overall. They would decrease his armor rating and he would lose out on the three extra dexterity, it just wasn't worth it.
Maybe if he was able to find better equipment to replace the rest of his current gear, or if there was a Valiant Gear set out there, then he would equip the boots. For now though, he just had to accept that his gear was the best option he had. Getting better gear soon should be a priority for him.
Speaking of better gear, his gaze roved over the [Daggers of Beruviel]. Last time, he had been exhausted and ready to get back to Earth, so he hadn't been thinking clearly. The daggers hadn't revealed their true properties to him because it required the Inspect skill. He still didn't have access to that, but there was one thing he could use. The Inspect Scroll.
[Beruviel's Blades of Frost (Tempered): These ancient Elven blades once belonged to Beruviel, a High Elven princess. They were a gift for her Coming of Age celebration from a renowned blacksmith. It is said they were meant to capture her grace and beauty, all while reflecting her skill in battle and her cold heart.
Rank: E
Tier: Iron
Melee Damage: +15 (per blade)
Bonus: The user of these ancient blades is blessed with the grace of the original owner, + 2 to Dexterity.
Effect: Elven magic was imbued into these blades the moment they were crafted. All attacks made with these blades have a chance to inflict extra freeze damage. If enough freeze damage is inflicted, the target will be frozen.
He didn't even have to think before equipping the daggers. They were a straight upgrade in every way. His damage output was basically quadrupled, his dexterity got put up to twenty-two and to top it all off he could potentially freeze his opponents. These blades were only one rank above F and they were this strong? Just what was the top echelon of gear like?
It was also the second time he saw that something was "tempered" and Alex wondered what it could mean. Clearly it was an upgrade or an improvement of some sort to what the base item was. He could gleam that much by the fact that his own soul was now tempered, as opposed to having gone up an entire rank.
Unfortunately the system's streak of being helpful seemed to be at an end, as it stayed quiet to his inner questioning.
Overall though, Alex couldn't be upset. What was once a terrible mishap and unfortunate situation had been turned on its head. Getting stuck in Mediya had turned out better than he expected.
Not only had he resolved the issue with his soul, but he was basically two times as strong as when he originally arrived. The titles, the levels and the daggers had all been extreme boosts to his own power. He still wasn't glad that he was here, but he was a lot less disappointed about it. Now all he had to do was wait for two weeks.
***
Nope. He couldn't do it. Two weeks was just too long of a time to be stuck somewhere. Only thirty minutes had passed since he was unceremoniously kicked out of the temple, and he was completely and utterly bored out of his mind. The town was completely void of any life, though there were signs that it was inhabited.
He had opened his menu and closed it for what seemed like the umpteenth time, expecting something to change each time he opened it. But no, it was the same old menu with the same old things on it. Turns out that not having anything to do made him extremely antsy.
Ever since his rebirth it had been non-stop action and craziness. Being forced to pause and wait was such a jarring switch up, he just didn't know what to do with himself.
He had contemplated exploring the town, climbing the buildings and screaming at the top of his lungs, but in the end he just returned to the spawn portal that he had appeared out of when he first arrived. The first few minutes he had just enjoyed the feeling of progress and getting stronger, but once that died down and he was left alone to his own devices? He would go mad if he had to wait two whole weeks.
Eventually he turned his thoughts inwards, focusing on the profound sense of peace he now found within himself. He was now actively conscious about this small golden kernel of energy he felt inside his body. Before today, he wouldn't have been able to pinpoint or identify what it was; but now he knew that it was his soul core.
Though he hadn't been proven correct, as far as he could tell, the soul core didn't really serve a purpose other than being the housing chamber for the actual soul. When his soul had been damaged before, the core itself had started cracking and threatened to release his soul. Had more damage been sustained, his soul… Well, he didn't actually have any theories as to what would happen.
Would he spontaneously combust from within? Would he just collapse and die? Would he keep on living, just without a soul and unable to feel things? All were very credible possibilities, but he had no real idea about what would actually occur. Maybe he would just turn into some horrible gruesome looking monster. His guess was as good as anyone else's, and once more the system didn't seem too keen to provide any answers.
All in all though it was a strange sensation, being aware of his own soul. The concept of a soul was something human-kind had always questioned. The fact that the soul was a real and tangible thing would make hundreds of doctors and scientists ecstatic.
To Alex however, it was like having a second heart. It didn't beat or pump blood throughout his body, but it was just as important to living. Without a soul he wouldn't be Alex.
He was just about to follow through on his earlier idea of handling his boredom by exploring the town, but that thought was cut short by the interruption of a notification from the system.
[Warning! Source of the mana disruption detected. Chaos raiding force inbound, prepare to be teleported.]