As my vision flickered for a moment as the countdown finished Ivery quickly realized that I was in danger. I was screwed by that damn system, teleported me 20 meters away from the most deadly looking blizzard, a wall of ice and snow, bigger than I had ever seen.
Countless ice shardswere thrown from the vortex of ice, snow and wind. Into the fresh snow on the ground. As I looked around I also noticed that with the amount of snow in the air it was incredibly dark, snow usually illuminates a space, yet I could not even see a foot into the blizzard. As I was staring into the icy darkness in front of me, the giant blizzard of death came edging closer,I grumble loudly;
''Uh oh, I really need to get out of herelike now. Shouldn''t there be a tutorial for first time users? What kind of a damn system is this?''
I start torun, in the opposite direction, my lungs hurting from the cold air.
''This is pointless, I''ll never outrun this monstrosity, think, find somewhere to wait it out.''
There are absolutely tons of blizzards moving all around the place I pale as I think of what will happen if I get caught up in one of those things and how on Earth to escape the very deadly storm inside.
''Ican''t just run, eventually I''ll get trapped by themand I can''t just sit still and wait for the storm to die down, God dammit Blake, think, think...''
After a few seconds of contemplation and idea pops into my head
''I''ve got it I''ll burrow myself into the snow and let the storm pass over me, it''s worth a shot, right? Right?!''
As I start digging, I end up in a panic, the blizzards all around me coming togetherforming into one giant one right infront of my eyes. It was growing by the second, and it was heading right at me.
I start digging like a madman with my gloved hands shouting encouragement.
"COME ON! COME ON!! COME ON BLAKE!!!"
I manage to make a small hole with my hands, about 4ft, just enought for me to get in and curl
up into a fetal position.
''I''ll have to leave my sled up here, I don''t have the time nor space to bury it. Ijust hope it doesn''t get absolutely shredded by the blizzard''
As the blizzard of death gets closer. I crawl into the hole, taking a last look at the agony heading my way, as I crawl in I thanked a god I never believed in that I wasn''t claustrophobic. As I settled in for a long wait I felt suprisingly safe in the pure white hole.
''This must be what rabbits feel when they make a home.''
I try and make the hole a little bigger so that I can move my hands and make a place to put my crossbow thats currently
digging into my side as i finished got curious if i took damage while i was outside so i opened my
status.
''Status''
NAME: BLAKE SMITH
CLASS: MAGE
TITLE: FIRST ARCTIC EXPLORER
HP: 50/85
MP: 75/75
STATUS: HEALTHY/COLD
ATTRIBUTES????? STR: 11
AGI: 8
VIT: 17
INT: 15
WIS: 10
CHA: 6
LCK: 10
UNASSIGNED POINTS: 0
SKILLS:[COLD RESIST LVL 1][FEAR RESIST LVL 1][SURVIVOR LVL 1]
''Oooookay, apparently my stats went up, just by being here, I understand[COLD RESIST] and [FEAR RESIST] but what''s SURVIVOR, O great and wise system?''
SURVIVOR: SKILL GIVEN TO USERS WHO SURVIVE EVEN IN THE HARSHEST ENVIROMENTS VIT+2
''Well it''s more VIT so I can''t complain, but where did the rest of the points come from? And what''s this FIRST ARCTIC EXPLORER title O mighty and wise system?''
FIRST ARCTIC EXPLORER IS A TITLE GIVEN TO THE FIRST HUMAN SYSTEM USER TO REACH THE
UNEXPLORED ARCTIC {THIS IS A UNIQUE TITLE ONLY GIVEN TO THE FIRST HUMAN USER TO REACH THE
ARCTIC} VIT+5 LCK+2
''Well it''s pretty much what''s to be expected from a title with first in itbut, I''m worried that my HP is still the same as before I got the title, does HPregenerate automatically or what?''
HP REGEN 1 HP PER HOUR COLD STATUS -1 HP/H
''So basically because I''m cold my HP regen and loss are balanced, so Idon''t gain or lose HP I''m definitely gonna have to fix this. Ihave a lighter buuuuut it''s in the sled, and, well, I don''t exactly want to get ripped apart, limb by limb. It''s number 3 on my list of ways Ido not want to die. Number 1 is of course, being eaten by a kraken in the deep sea.''
Side tracked by my thoughts I begin to fear if my number one is now a reality in this new world.
''Oh no, oh no, if this is a fantasy world and there is monsters, then,there''s gonna be sea monsters. King of which is a kraken, undoubtedly.''
I was snapped out of my internal panic by a small *ding*.
[FEAR RESIST LVL UP]
''Either this system is pitying me, or mocking me, either way, I''m not a fan right now.''
[WIS+1]
''I knew it!! This damn system.''
I thought as i scowled at the screen.
''Okay, okay, enough of that. I need to get myself warm,in all those stories about people with magic it seems to bethat there is a mana pool inside of me I just need to figure out how to use it.''
I close my eyes and think of my body with a small pool of mana in me, I imagine it moving down to my left hand and collecting in my palm, as I gather more and more mana I feel a burning sensation in my hand. I open my eyes in a flash to look and see my hand disintegrating with a blue flame, along with the most agonizing pain I''ve ever felt in my life.
''AAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!''
The longest7 seconds in my life and all I had to show, or not show for it, was that my hand was completely gone, turned to ash. It wasn''t long after that my vision went black and I passed out. I woke up after what felt like days, glancing down at my left arm, to find it finished sooner than it should. The truth of it dawning on me.
''How could I be so stupid. Lost my damn hand on day one. It sounded so easy to use mana when I readabout it in those books. I don''t think I''m supposed to use mana internally. It didn''texactly help me, it''s burnt my hand into a fucking ash pile and the pain was worse than I could bear. So much so that I passed out, wait did Ipass out due to pain? Or did I run out of mana? ''Cause it looked like after my hand burned in the blue flame it went out and then I passed out. Well I''ll have to be more careful than that,but thank god I''m right handed.''
After getting over the shock of losing my hand, Idecided to check my status once more to see if it had any information about my body, mainly though, if there was any information about my hand.
''Status''
NAME: BLAKE SMITH
CLASS: MAGE
TITLE: FIRST ARCTIC EXPLORER
HP: 20/85
MP: 75/75
STATUS: HEALTHY/COLD/DISMEMBERED
ATTRIBUTES??? STR: 11
AGI: 8
VIT: 17
INT: 15
WIS: 11
CHA: 6
LCK: 10
UNASSIGNED POINTS: 0
SKILLS: [COLD RESIST LVL 2][FEAR RESIST LVL 2][SURVIVOR LVL 1]
[MANA RESIST LVL 1][PAIN RESIST LVL 2][MANA MANIPULATION LVL 1]
''Let''s see got some skills, almost died, have a status called DISMEMBERED. All in a few hours work. Well... Anyway... Lets see what it says for the status effect DISMEMBERED, shall we?
Ipress on the screen where DISMEMBERED is.
DISMEMBERED IS A STATUS THAT IS USED FOR WHEN USERS HAVE LOST A LIMB
''Well what should I expect from the obvious name,at least the description doesn''t say give the guy a hand will ya.''
STATUS DISMEBERED HAS BEEN CHANGED TO HANDLESS FOR USER BLAKE SMITH
HANDLESS STATUS GIVEN TO USER BLAKE SMITH FOR MISSING A HAND {GIVE
THE POOR GUY A HAND WILL YA}
''Oi now this system is diliberatly making fun of me.''
''You betcha it''s making fun of you.''
''I''m hearing that damn self proclaimed god''s voice again.''
''Oi oi oi, I''m not self proclaimed just ask one of the races native to this world. O wait you can''t ''cause you''restuuuuuuuuuck uuuuuuuuuup heeeeeeeeeeeeeere.''
''Urgh, take the mocking somewhere else will ya.''
''Nah, I''m actually enjoying watching your struggles,ONE MAN, ALONE, TRYING TO SURVIVE. AN EPIC TALE''
The self proclaimed god said in a tone as if he was introducing a terrible action movie, you know the ones, box office flops.
''Come on if I get a narrator, can''t it be a voice like Morgan Freeman? Huh I wonder if he''s in a better situation than
me at the moment.''
(GOD)well most of the 7 billion humans i transported here are grouping up
and forming small tribes but the militaries of each country are forming
there respective countries again but this time they have the power not
the goverment at the moment there also gathering scientists and civilians
to recruit into there new countries well mainly scientists so that they
can make weapons that work in this world.
so basically it''s a race for who can make the best weapons first.
(GOD)yup great isn''t it .
eh not really my problem at the moment.
(GOD)well im going to go cause i have god stuff to do oh i
almost forgot here as he said that i heard a sound of something
droping on the snow above me it''s a staff a magicians robe and a book
about mana im giving you preferental treatment because it''s enjoyable to
watch you struggle p.s don''t worry about the blizzards the''ve gone it''s
safe to come up out of your hidie hole little rabit.
well that was something but i have no time to waste now that the blizzards
are gone i think as i start digging up with my one hand with my crossbow tucked
under my other arm as i breach the surface i pull myself out of the hole and stand up
as i look around i see that it''s still dark and snowy but no blizzard of death is here
i see my sled broken and the bags on it strewn about and next to the hole i dug out i see
a big leather book that looks very old a pure white staff about a meter long wich i almost didn''t notice
because of the colour and a white old looking incredably long wizards robe its sleeves
are one and a half times bigger than my arm and it looks like id trip on the bottom
due to its length well its not like im gonna change out of my snowsuit when its -30
out here i need shelter i go over and grab the robe "i wonder" i mutter under my breath
and think about how usualy items in rpg''s let you see there bonuses
"apraise"
nothing happened alright lets try
"inspect"
as i said it a screen poped up out of nowhere
ROBES OF THE FROST MAGE
WIS+5
INT+10
DURABILITY 500/500
SKILLS
[COLD RESIST LVL 5][CRYOMANCY RESIST LVL 5][CRYOMANCY EMPOWERMENT]
ROBES GIVEN TO ICE MASTER ALEXANDER FOR HIS HELP IN SEALING
FROST DRAGON YMIR IN THE FAR NORTH
RATING:UNIQUE
uh oh that seems like a very big flag frost dragon ymir huh
after raising what seem to be a death flag i decide to
go on a inspecting spree
STAFF OF THE FROST MAGE
INT+5
DURABILITY 500/500
SKILLS
[CRYOMANCY EMPOWERMENT]
RESTRICTIONS
{CAN ONLY BE USED TO CAST CRYOMANCY MAGIC}
GIVEN TO THE ICE MASTER ALEXANDER FROM HIS TEACHER
FOR HIS GRADUATION FROM MAGE ACADEMY DUE TO ALEXANDERS
UNIQUE MANA HE CAN ONLY USE CRYOMANCY TYPE MAGIC SO HIS
TEACHER THOUGHT THAT THE STAFF WAS A PERFICT FIT FOR HIM
RATING:UNIQUE
MAGIC THEORY VOL 1
A BOOK MADE FOR APPRENTICE MAGES IN THE FIRST STAGE
OF LEARNING MAGIC WRITTEN BY THE FATHER OF THE MAGIC
ARTS
INT+2 ONCE READ
RATING:RARE
HIGH TECH CROSSBOW
DAMAGE:C
CROSSBOW BROUGHT FROM A DIFFIRENT WORLD
RATING:UNIQUE
cool so thats everything inspected time to salvage what i can from
the broken sled as i start collecting everything i very quickly realize
that the blizzard managed to obliterate the pack with my food in it
i could only salvage 1 weeks worth of food from my original 2 months worth
of food but hell its food i was starving in that damn hole as i salvage the
rest of my gear i make a mental list of prioritys in my mind.
okay i need shelter definitely secondly i need warmth and then i need to
find some civilisation not sure if there will be towns or villages in
this freezing hell but im a glass half full kinda guy next i need to
read that mana book and wear those long ass robe because a snowsuit out here
just ain''t gonna cut it for warmth.
i grab the rope i had with my climbing gear and tie one part of it
to the climbing harness i have and the other part around the remaning 3
bags with equipment in it and then wear the harness so that i have a makeshift sled.
then i started to walk
i walked for a few hours before i saw something of note in the distance as i got
closer i knew immediatly what it was.
a hill huh and damn its big i guess this is the best its gonna get for shelter
i thought as i approuched it and started so make a small hole in it using the remains
of the sled as a sort digging tool i continued digging until i had a area of 4X4 meters
i placed my tent and set it up at the back of the makeshift cave and started
unpacking my gear.
i still have pretty much everything exept the food seems a bit suspicious to me
but i don''t think blizzards eat so it must be my bad luck anyway lets put this
damn robe on i headed to the tent and got in to change into the robe i got.
well this is much better who would have thought that those old robes would
be this comfortable i still need to do some thing about the length of the bottom
but i can learn to live with the massive sleeves i thought as i stepped out of the tent
much better than that stuffy snow suit and warmer well i guess it''s because of magic
speaking of magic i thought and went over to grab the book i was given.
i sat down at the mouth of the makeshift cave and opened the book about magic i was given
and as i did a brilliant white light enveloped my vision and blinded me as i shut my
eyes to block out the light i heard the ding of the system as i opened one eye to see what
it was i saw that the light had stopped and a message was there infront of the book.
DUE TO THE USER READING A RARE MAGIC BOOK THE USER HAS GAINED THE TITLE [SCHOLAR]
INT+3
yus lets see my new status.
NAME:BLAKE SMITH
CLASS:MAGE
TITLES:[FIRST ARCTIC EXPLORER][SCHOLAR]
HP:85/85
MP:150/150
STATUS:HEALTHY/HANDLESS
ATTRIBUTES
STR:11
AGI:8
VIT:17
INT:20+(10)
WIS:11+(5)
CHA:6
LCK:10
UNASSIGNED POINTS:0
SKILLS:[COLD RESIST LVL 5][FEAR RESIST LVL 2][SURVIVOR LVL 2]
[MANA RESIST LVL 1][PAIN RESIST LVL 2][MANA MANIPULATION LVL 5]
[CRYOMANCY RESIST LVL 5][CRYOMANCY EMPOWERMENT]
seems like my stats got a boost aswell as my understanding about magic
judging by my level of mana manipulation but damn that book was good
i now understand why i lost my hand it seems it was because mana
is highly volitile when compresed so when i gathered all of it
inside of something the size of a hand it was so pressured
that it was looking for a way out so it destroyed the container
similar to when you throw a can of spray deoderant in a fire.
after my understanding setion on losing my hand the i got up from the snowie floor
of my improvised cave and decided to use this week to train in my magic and
after the food has run out i''d go search for something to eat.
*4 days later*
''pant... pant...''
sigh this magic business is alot more difficult
then my stats would have me belive i thought as i
run out of mana for the 3rd time today sigh i guess
i just have to mess around and find a style that''s right for me i wonder
if i could combine magic with my crossbow i thought as i walked over
to my tent and grabbed the crossbow inside i sat down next to the tent
and put the crossbow inbetween my legs so i could load it with one hand.
there better be a magic prosthetic for me to find soon because this one handed
business is really damn annoying i thought as i reached for the bolts in the tent
after much hardship and a few curse words i finally managed to load the crossbow.
i stood reviling in my success and begun trying to come up with a way to supply the
bolt with magic after reading that book on magic manipulation i was versed in
lots of ways to use mana but the one that caught my eye was that everything could absorb
a certan amount of mana even my crossbow bolt''s thinking this i reached my handless arm
over and touched the stump against the metal and started to put mana in it being carefull
not to make it explode or burst into blue flames.
after pouring in a appropriate ammount of mana
i checked to see how much i had used MP 120/150 eh thirty points isn''t that bad but
that means i can only use it 5 times before im out of mp okay lets see what this baby can do
i thought as i went outside and found a few snowmen that i had made for the use of
practicing magic i walked untill i was around 10 meters away from one of them i noticed that
a few of them were half destroyed or missing bits and pieces due to the failure of trying various
spells i pushed my embarressment at not being very good at magic down into the depths of my mind
and aimed my crossbow at one of the less destroyed ones.
i pulled the trigger and the bolt exploded
as soon as it hit the snowman and produced a blue flame that exploded and
destroyed all the other snowmen in a 5 meter area a gust of wind ruffled my mage robes and my black
long hair whipped back woah now that was awesome not like those half assed attempts in the day''s before
as the thick black smoke and ash settled down on the snow i looked around for the bolt i shot
and found that it was destroyed by the explosion i guess that''s the tradeoff for that attack
although it''s powerfull it destroys the bolt now for the next shot wait sigh i have to load
it again don''t i.
huh there''s gotta be a better way to do this hey there''s magic in this world
why don''t i use some form of telekinisis to load the bolt as i walked back to the makeshift cave
i placed the crossbow on the floor near the entrance and walked to the tent and grabbed the pack of
now four bolts and got one out dropping the rest on the floor as i did eh i''ll clean it up later
i walked back over near the crossbow and looked at the bolt in my hand and imagined it flying in my
hand to no avail you need contact with something to use mana with it so why don''t i just make a
mana string to hold it damn Blake your a genius i mentally praised myself as i thought of a string
coming from my hand made of mana grabbing onto the bolt it succeded now to make it fly as i tensed the
string trying to make the bolt float with the string i heard a message from the system.
GAINED SKILL[MANA STRING]
ah yes the everhelpful system at least your here to help with that message from the system
the mana string got easier to move well now that i have a somewhat interesting skill lets train
in my new specialty ah i can picture it now the crossbow mage they''ll sing my praise through
the world for the marvalous use of magic and crossbow combined as i went down the rabbit
hole even more i started to train with my new way to use magic.
*3 days later*
i guess it''s time to leave huh i thought as i got up from the snowie floor with
a energy bar in hand i walked over to my tent finishing the energy bar
i had in my hand as i walked once i finished it i threw the wrapper
on the floor in the tent and grabbed the crossbow i had with my
right hand as i grabbed it a small tendrill of blue mana reached for the
pack of 4 bolts that was next to it in the tent as the tendril got closer
to the pack the end of the tendril changed into a small hand and grabbed the pack
tossing the pack of four bolts over to me the tendrill dissapeared and the four
bolts exited from the pack and procided to rotate around my head if seen from
far away one would mistake this for the suposed telikinesis that psychics in the
21st century claimed they had but in reality there were small tendrills of
mana similar to the one that grabbed the pack of bolts holding the 4 bolts around
his head well thank god i managed to learn this before i had to go look for food.
right now i need to grab what i need to hunt i thought as i quickly went around and grabbed
things that may be useful in a hunt against monsters right i have 4 bolts a crossbow
a magic staff and magic ah how will i take the magic staff i cant use the mana string
to hold it its too heavy it takes 5 mana a hour just to float one of those bolts
even if there pretty light it still ads up to losing mp id rather have most of my mana
if i start a fight if possible hmmmm ah i''ll just tie the staff to me using rope as
a psedo holster i thought as i grabbed the spare rope for climbing and tied it around
my waist and made it a little bit loose so i could put it there without much difficulty
and after confirming that it didnt bash into my knees as i walked i ventured forth into
the land of snow and ice.
sigh im a bit nervous about not finding food in this wastland but
still i need to find some my luck shouldn''t be that bad saying that i did lose my hand
on the first day here so who knows as i walked for an hour or two a horrible realization dawned
over me "aaaaaaaaa! damn i forgot to have some way of finding my way back i''m damn stupid"
as i said that admition of stupidity out loud i heard some thing like snow being trod on i very quckly
stop walking to make sure that it''s not my own footsteps ''crunch''''crunch'' wait thats not me.
i immediately went into alert mode and started scanning the surroundings but as i did the noise
stopped as quick as it started i continuesly scanned around me with my mana bolts at the ready
aiming at each piece of snow that could be used for cover by something as i aimed at one of the
possible hiding places i heard a noise of rapid footsteps and a blur in the corner of my eye
i quickly turn to where i saw the blur and shouted "WHO''S THERE... COME OUT NOW I HAVE A CROSSBOW
AND I''M NOT AFRAID TO USE IT!". As i shouted that i saw the blur again this time i could make out
a bit of grey as i saw it dash to another hiding place what the hell is it,fuck im really out of my
depth here i need to get out of here now as i came up with a plan i saw the blur poke its head out
gray skin bald head pointed ears black eyes and razor sharp elongated teeth were what i saw when the
figure decided to reveal itself i was shocked at how human it looked and how unhuman it looked
oh fuck by any chance is it some form of friendly elf i immediatly regretted my naivety as i heard
the loudest shreik come out its mouth "WWWWRRRRRAAAAAGGGGGG!!""AAAHHHHH". I shelded my ears with my
hand and stump due to the loud noise that pierced right through me making my ears bleed dropping
my crossbow in the process as well as my bolts that were held in place due to my concentracion
that was broken due to the immense pain coursing through my head as i knelt down due to the pain
and closed my eyes in reflex due to it i realized my error no what have you done you fool open your
fucking eyes and see what that damn thing is doing after realizing my mistake i opened my eyes and was scared
because the crature was no longer in my sight as i looked around deafened by the scream the creature
let out moments ago i saw a flash of grey in front of my vision and a frightening amount of pain
in my face "FUUUUUUUCKKKKKK YOU FUCK AHHHHH" i saw the blood come down over my eyes and used my hand
to try and wipe it away unsuccesfulley as i did i felt what the creature had done to my face five
long cuts were across my face bleeding profussley luckally missing my eyes by a centermeter
i shouted due to the immense anger i felt at the creature "WHATEVER THE FUCK YOU ARE IM GONNA
FUCKING GUT YOU AND MAKE YOU INTO A FUCKING FLAG YOU FUCKING ASSHOLE". I reached over and grabbed
the crossbow on the ground and got into a kneeling position and used my mana strings to load the
crossbow i had in my hands i looked around for the creature franticaly but all i heard were gurgling
sounds and the sound of very fast feet fuck how can i fucking kill him if i can''t fucking see
him as that thought passed my mind rapidly i saw the blur infront of my vision and more pain this
time on my back but due to the adrenalin from the first time the creature cut me i didn''t feel it
that much i simply grunted and continued to scan the area if this goes on im gonna die
in this fucking place i need to do something drastic here. I channeled mana into my brain to try and
speed up my perception and it worked i managed to see the creature granted only for a second but
i managed to deduce what made those cuts on my face and back five elongated sharp fingers were
on the things hand and it ran on all fours like an animal as i forced more mana into my brain and
eyes it got slower and slower until i could see it as if it were running it was a 2.30 meter
grey hairless humanoid with very long arm''s and leg''s disproporcionat to its body its arm''s reached
down till it''s knees and its legs were 3/4ths of its body. I aimed my crossbow at it as i saw
it running for me again this time able to see it as it got to 9 meters i shot and prayed that it
hit as the bolt flew straight at its torsoe i watched in anticipation as the crossbow approched its
torso come on come on COME ON!! as the bolt neared its torso the creature dodged nimble with its
body and using it''s frekishly long arms it plucked the bolt out of the air and looked at it
as the creature looked at the bolt i was stunned by how fast it moved no way it plucked
a crossbow bolt out of the air bolts fly at 300 feet a second just how fast is this thing as i
kneeled there stunned at the show of agility i saw i came back to reality as the creature ran back
to cover i loaded the next bolt and pressed magic into this one why not catch this one asshole
Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.as it dashed around i waited for my chance again as it aprouched once again i fired my crossbow
and smirked as the creature did the same thing it did to the first bolt and plucked it out of the air
as it exploded i saw fear on the creatures face for 1/10th of a second before the area around it
was consumed with a explosion of blue flames i shouted as the black smoke arose from the explosion
"ha see that you fuck im top dog around here now and im gonna ...!" cut short from my victory
celebration i saw the creature rise from the settling black smoke and ash with blue flames
over it''s body it screamed and rushed towards me "WWWWRRRRAAAAGGGGHHHH" oh fuck oh fuck oh fuck
im dead aren''t i no im not gonna fucking die here am i come on blake are you an idiot that''s
gonna die here in the middle of nowhere or are you gonna win and use this magic thats so
useful it''s frightening to destroy this fuck infront of you. After that thought my
mind kicked into overdrive and started to work as fast as possible using all the mana and
willpower i had i dropped the crossbow i had and grabbed
the staff in my holster with my hand stood up and got into
a baseball pose as the creature got closer and closer more and more adrenelin filled my brain
and as it got in striking distance i swung as fast as i could with all my strength and
bashed the staff across the creatures head i hit it so hard i heard a crack in both the staff
and the creatures skull as the creature flew back due to the ridiculus amount of strength put
in the swing till it was 4 meters away my mind went blank and i stood there for a few seconds
until one thought came up in my mind i won as that thought surfaced i walked over to the body
to look at my kill and as i got halfway there my legs gave way under my own weight and i was forced
to lay on my side due to collapsing no more adrenaline huh my eyelids felt heavy and the pain of the
cuts on my face and back were coming back i guess this is the end of me huh i was expecting a big
bang for my death not to be snuffed out like a candle huh maybe death isn''t so bad i feel... warm
it feels like im in bed in my house laying in on a sunday evening... it feels comfortable like a hug
from mom NO! im not gonna damn well die here my eyes flashed open and i felt my mana i pushed the remains
of my mana to the wounds on my face and back to try and recover as i felt the cuts slowly heal i fainted
due to the expenditure of mana as in my unconsius state i heard the reminescent ding of a system message.
As i came to i had the worst headache in my life i pushed myself up with the help of my hand and stump
out of the snow that had formed around me and looked around to confirm where i was thank god im not dead
was the first thought that came into my head as i was examining the place where i confronted that monster
i saw a arm with long sharp fingers pertruding out of the snow i walked over to the arm after grabing
the crossbow the bolts and staff that was buried in the snow i put the crossbow under my left arm
and using my right hand i pulled the creature from the snow to examine what i had gone up against.
"inspect"
ELVEN WENDIGO
A MONSTER THAT MUTATED FROM A ELF
AFTER IT WAS POSSESED BY A WENDIGO
SPIRIT WENDIGO SPIRITS CAN ONLY CHOSE A
HOST IF THE HOST HAS CONSUMED THE FLESH
OF THE SAME SPECIES AS THE HOST
THIS MONSTERS DANGER RATING IS:A-
how the fuck did i kill this thing i must be fucking amazing although
feeling my face as i thought maybe not considering i almost died and
now have five massive scars on my face well i guess it got reckless and
died because it underestimated that i have the awesome magic everyone will want to learn
once i get out of this frozen wastland as i entered my fantasy world again i was snapped out of it
due to the hunger i had oh right i was sopposed to get some damn food well mr wendigo it looks like
we part here im gonna burn your body because it''s the least i can due to vent my anger at you
as i ingected mana into the body i realized that i had larger amount of mana than before the fight
i quickly inspected my status "status".
NAME:BLAKE SMITH
CLASS:MAGE
TITLES:[FIRST ARCTIC EXPLORER][SCHOLAR][EXTREME HUNTER]
HP:115/115
MP:160/160
STATUS:HEALTHY/HANDLESS
ATTRIBUTES
STR:15
AGI:10
VIT:23
INT:22+(10)
WIS:13+(5)
CHA:8
LCK:12
UNASSIGNED POINTS:0
SKILLS:[COLD RESIST LVL 5][FEAR RESIST LVL 4][SURVIVOR LVL 4]
[MANA RESIST LVL 1][PAIN RESIST LVL 5][MANA MANIPULATION LVL 5]
[CRYOMANCY RESIST LVL 5][CRYOMANCY EMPOWERMENT][MANA STRING LVL 4]
[RAPID HEALING LVL 2][CROSSBOW MASTERY LOW LVL 5][MAN ENHANCED PERCEPTION LV 3]
[LIMITLESS STRENGTH LVL 2]
hell at least i got a lot of my attributes up thanks to killing that wendigo thing
what''s this extreme hunter thing then o helpful system.
[EXTREME HUNTER] TITLE GIVEN TO SYSTEM USERS WHO HAVE KILLED MONSTERS OVER DANGER
RATING A ALL STATS +2
so whats this danger rating system then.
DANGER RATING SYSTEM USED TO RATE MONSTERS DANGER LEVELS THE SCALE GOES FROM F TO SSS
EXAMPLE:
SLIME DANGER RATING: F
GOBLIN DANGER RATING: E
MAGICAL BEAST DANGER RATING: D
ORC DANGER RATING: C
OGRE DANGER RATING: B
TROLL DANGER RATING: A
WYVERN DANGER RATING: S
DRAGON DANGER RATING: SS-SSS
NOTE THAT THESE ARE THE BASE DANGER LEVELS OF THE SPECIES A MEMBER OF THE
SPECIES CAN EXEED THERE RANK DUE TO ABILITY AND SKILLS EXAMPLE:
ORC KING DANGER RATING:S
METAL SLIME DANGER RATING:B
ah it seems i''ve done something increadable killing
a creature fourth from the top in danger rating, eh
at least i got some stats from it anyway now that i know what this stuff is
i think i''ll take my leave i found some very faint footsteps away from the
battle site and followed the direction at least i don''t have to worry about getting
home now i can just hansel and gretal my way back but instead of breadcrumbs
it''s barely visable footprints. ah the snow has covered the footprints that were
there but all i have to do is walk in a straight line as i didn''t change direction when i left for
food ah food i stooped in my tracks as that thought made my stomach cry out in longing, fuck i''ll
make my way back for now but i''ll have to head out tomorrow for some food as i walked i gradually
saw the massive hill that i had made my makeshift home in i walked quicker in anticipation of
siting down in the tent and relaxing as i reached the mouth of the makeshift cave i quickly made my way to
the back where the tent was i unziped the door crouched inside and layed on the floor inside it and very quickly
fell asleep.
NEXT DAY
i was roused from my sleep by the sound of scratching somewhere and brushed it off as my dog back home
scratching the door to get out into the garden in my half asleep state but quickly awoke myself due
to remembering where i was "where the hell is that comming from" i got out of the tent and looked all around
the makeshift cave only to pinpoint the source of the scratching that was coming from deeper inside the hill.
I decided it was time to have a look around the hill that i had called my home i walked out of the makeshift
cave and walked around the hill as i got around to the other side i saw a cave with fog at the entrance
the cave stuck out of the massive hill of snow like the entrance to a iglu as i looked closer there
was a layer of black rock underneath the white oh is this the famed dungeon the hero encounters as he''s
getting used to the world in all those books i''ve read ah if there is a dungeon then there''s monsters
and if there''s monsters then there''s food "perfect" i mutter under my breath and ran back to my
cave and grabbed the crossbow,bolts and staff that had half of it''s durability gone after killing the wendigo
and ran as fast as i could towards the dungeon ignoring my hunger pains i ran to
the cave entrance and as i approuched the fog at the dungeon entrance a window popped up.
ARCTIC BEAST DUNGEON
DUNGEON RATING: C
seems like it''s the perfect dungeon for food a smile made it''s way onto my face as i thought this
as i made my way past the fog i saw that inside of the dungeon on the wall was a wooden board that
had a map of the dungeon huh it seems like this dungeon is one long cavern it spyrals in on itself
and has a massive tube at the top of the spyral that goes underground it drops to the bottom of the
board damn that''s a long way down i guess nobody''s been down there i memorize the map i look around
this dungeon is massive.
After memorizing the map i set off for some delicious food i make my way deeper inside
the dungeon i wonder what food im going to eat if it''s dog then i dont mind that much but if it''s orc i dont
think i''ll eat it although the tab of information said that someone only turns into a wendigo if they
eat there own race so i think i''ll be okay but i don''t really want to eat something inteligent sigh
i guess desperate times call for desperate measures even if it is a orc i guess i''ll have to eat
but could it at least be the japanese style orc that looks like a pig if it''s the western style orc
i may be sick but i guess i''ll still eat it ''scratch''''scratch'' broken out of my thought process that
if anyone heard would question my sanity by the noise i look over to where it originated from and saw
what was the best possible outcome for something to eat YES a bear thank god it isn''t a orc
i noticed the bear was pure white and 3 meters tall but my need for food disregarded it''s appearence
i quickly loaded the crossbow in my hands using my mana strings and aimed at it''s head while it
was distracted scratching the wall for some reason i pulled the trigger and the bolt went straight
through the bears head and pinged off the wall leaving the bears head in a pitiful state with a
big hole through it with the bear colapsing to the ground i ran over to it and my thoughts went into
a frenzy thinking off eating it yes yes now how to cook it well i don''t have any way but apart with magic
so... wait calm down Blake let''s inspect this guy first "inspect".
"MAGICAL POLAR BEAR"
AN ANIMAL THAT BECAME MUTATED
DUE TO THE MANA OF THE DUNGEON
DUE TO THE CONSTANT EXPOSURE
TO MANA IT HAS BECOME RESISTANT
TO MAGICAL ATTACKS
DANGER RATING C-
yes it say''s nothing about being non edible that''s always a good sign alright now it''s time to cook this
baby up i used the bolts i had to try and cut up the bear''s skin to get to the meat but after
10 minutes of trying all i could get was a disformed lump of meat and a sore hand i held the
meat from the bear in my hand and imagined a hot fire under it after a minute i heard the sound of
meat cooking a heat in my hand and a system message.
[PYROMANCY SKILL OBTAINED]
ah i guess i never did learn how to use fire after i got these mage robes i didn''t really need to
after five minutes of cooking the meat that had turned from red to brown i couldn''t wait any longer
and i ate the meat not caring that it burned my mouth and throat as i chewed and swallowed it
ah that may be the best food i''ve ever tasted that may be the hunger talking but still as i sat down
to get some more meat off of the bear carcase i heard footsteps i immediately loaded my crossbow
and activated mana enhanced perception and turned around to see a bright flame
and 4 human figures as soon as i saw them i could tell that they saw me too because
they immediately changed to a diamond formation with
the torch bearer in front and the other three behind him .I pushed the bear out away from the wall
so i could use it as cover i crouched down behind it with my head and crossbow visable ready
for combat as they got closer i made out the features of the humans coming towards me
white hair white skin purple eyes leather armor pointed ear''s?! shocked by the realization that they
weren''t humans but elves i shouted out "DON''T COME ANY CLOSER... STATE YOUR BUISNESS!"
the elves where suprised at the loud voice and the one holding the torch walked forward but
one of the other elves a girl tryed to stop him by pulling on his sholders "Eren have you lost
your mind we are the only ones supposed to be in here that man is either a dwarf or a
rogue elf we should report this to the elder immiedietly" i heard her whisper due to the
mana enhancing my brain "your right fei we should report but first we should see the identity
of our mysterious guest" eren said to fei "zil max spread out and block the exit fei take out
your bow and give me cover if he try''s to attack you know what to do" the elven man whispered
to the group the elves moved to block the exit all three spaced out evenly to be able
to intercept me if i try to run for it as the elven man holding the torch walked towards me
judging by what that elf said it seems that the dwarfs aren''t on freindly terms with the
elves but luckaly im fairly tall so i should be fine now to talk and figure out where the
hell i am.
"greetings i am Eren of permafrost city what is your name stranger".
ah he''s speaking like a gentlemen eh i guess i''ll talk to him in the same manner for now should i
give him my name or should i give him a alieas hmm what should i call myself ah i''ve got it.
"my name is Black greetings Eren of permafrost city might i ask why you act hostile to
a humble traveler such as myself?" i said in a confident tone.
"traveler you''ve got to come up with a better lie than that nobody ever travels this
far north now tell us why your really here mr Black?".
"that is the truth mr Eren i came here from a distant land and was looking
for some food when a party of 4 elves decided to trap me in a dungeon"
while not the whole truth it isn''t exactly a lie.
"if you are a traveler then why are you here in this dungeon?".
"well when i arrived in the north i lacked any sort of map or knowledge about the area
and became lost after finishing off the last of my provisions i was looking for food
when i stumbled across this dungeon, while enjoying a wonderful meal i was rudely
interupted by a group of 4 elves and thus here i am"
the elves looked at me suspiciously pondering whether to belive my story until fei
spoke out in a mocking tone.
"ha who would belive that stupid story coming here without a map or knowledge
either your stupid or lying" ah she''s got me there.
"ahhhh of course it was a lapse of judgement on my part however i truely
have no clue where i am at the moment i only know i am in the far north .If possible
i would like to come to the town of permafrost you speak of so that i may understand where
exactly i am have a good meal and a place to stay where i dont have to constantly
be on guard" after all the elves looked at me pitifuly Eren spoke up.
"very well mr Black we will guide you to the town of permafrost so that you may rest however
we shall not do it for free what can you offer us?".
damnit i really don''t have much all i can give them is this bear at the
moment "would you consider doing it for this bear that i killed".
"terrible sorry but that is not enough to enlist our services although we came here to hunt
a lone bear is not enough".
ah i''ve gleamed some information from this it seems they came here for animals could
they be here for food aswell.
"well then would you consider my proposal" Eren spoke.
"go on".
"you help us hunt more animals such as that bear and then once we have enough we shall
all leave together and journey to the town of permafrost".
eh thats a better bargin than i expected
"that is acceptable i agree".
"that is very good but first allow me to ask what race are you?" Eren
said in a stern voice.
ah of course this will come up"i am human if you must know".
"hu-man"the girl archer said in a confused voice.
"yes human it is a fairly new race" i said dispeling the confusion
as i stood upto show them my apperance one of them gasped after looking at my face.
"do..do all humans have scars like that on there face?" one of the other elves at the back asked.
"they do not this" i reached up to touch my face with the stump "...was when i encountered a
wendigo" this time they all looked shocked.
"a,a wendigo where did you encounter it?".
"i encountered it whilst looking for food luckily i managed to kill it before it killed me
but it took my hand and gave me these beauty marks"no need to tell them i lost my hand due
to stupidity they must already think im an idiot already going somewhere like the far north without
a map ah well let''s just keep the lie like this.
"might i ask how did you kill something like a wendigo?" Eren asked in a curios tone.
"i used a combination of magic and crossbow to slay it".
"your a magic user aswell?".
"yes i am a mage" i replied in a confident tone.
"sigh i guess that''s enough questions come Black let''s hunt some monsters together
so that i can see the skill that took down a wendigo."
"oi Eren you sure we can trust him?" one of the elves said to Eren.
"sure it''s fine the guy''s clean i checked him with my skill".
huh skill must be something like seeing through lies eh im not worried im not
exactly a bad guy i got up from behind the bear with my crossbow in hand and used my mana strings
to pick up the bolts i walked over to Eren and he called the other elves over so i could meet them
"here Black this musclehead over there is called zil" Eren said as he pointed to what looked
like a elven bodybuilder with metal armor on about 2 meters tall with white skin white short hair
and purple eyes holding a metal greatsheild with a golden tree painted on it and a mace that
was out of place with how small it was compared to everything else "he''s a guardian" Eren added
helpfully so that i knew his class.
"and these two over here are feila and maxim " pointing over
to the two remaining elves the girl feila was a textbook elven beauty pretty face excelent
curves and pale white skin and hair tied into a neat ponytail different from everyone else
in the party she had red eyes she was holding a bow in her hands and had
a quiver of arrows on her back she was wearing leather armor with fur in certan parts of it
such as the collar and the arms
the man maxim had a toned build slim but powerfull he had purple eyes same as Eren and zil he was
holding a longsword in one hand and a book in the other
he was wearing the same type of leather armor the girl was wearing but had metal gauntlets
instead of leather gloves "they are the ranger and cleric of our group and i of course am Eren
the warrior and leader of the group"he said in a confident tone.
"well as you already know im a mage and my name is Black" i said .
"ah yes now that introductions are over with let''s hunt"
as he said that the party started to move the guardian Zil in front Maxim behind him then me
and Eren with feila at the back as we walked we hunted and we got deeper and deeper the first time i
used my technique to load the crossbow eren asked me about it.
"ah yea i lost my hand to that wendigo so i had to come up with a new way to load it with
one hand and puting it between my legs took too much time so low and behold the mana string"
i spoke in a confident tone.
"you don''t use magic in the traditional way?" he asked puzzled.
"it''s not like i can''t use it it''s just a bit difficult
for me is all" i said in a dejected tone.
"hahahahahah ah truth be told i switched my class for that very reason that''s why i respect mages
a great deal i know how much concentration they must put into there spells"
he doesn''t seem like such a bad guy but it''s never wrong to be a bit cautious.
as we went up the spyral cave the monsters got more numerous and grew stronger with every encounter
however with my assistance and the party''s teamwork we eventually made it to the large shaft at
the top of the spyral i leaned over the hole and looked down the shaft that was around 4 meters wide
to see uter darkness no light nothingness as if it were the void as i was leaning over the hole
leading to the void i felt a foot on my lower back and looked back in suprise but it was too late i was already
kicked into the hole i looked up at the elves and saw Eren smirking and a laughter coming from above
why did they push me? i quickly tryed to use my mana strings to latch onto the wall but they were torn due
to the weight in a desperate bid to stop my descent i grabbed the staff on my hip dropping the crossboow
in the process imagining a layer of ice with alot of snow on top but as i went to cast it i was already moving too
to cast it and for it not to kill me it was impossible im going to die.
I had given up i was simply freefalling
at this point until the shaft walls broke away leading to a absolutely massive dark cavern as i descended at terminal velocity i saw just how imense this cavern was as i was halfway to the ground and my death i heard a cry from what sounded like a bat
"SCREEE" i looked around for the noise and realized that it was a absoulutely massive bat around 3 times bigger than me and it was flying towards me to intercept me before i hit the ground can''t i catch a break for once it''s been one problem after the othersince i arrived here now either i die as a smear on the ground or.. wait if that bat catches me i can survive this fall as i was gettting closer and closer to the ground the bat got faster and faster obviosly it''s a hunter if it want''s to eat me alive as the bat got closer it reached out it''s clawed feet to grab me as i was plumeting i let it grab me expecting a claw dug through my shoulders i readied my mana to heal the wound but much to my suprise it didn''t stab me it grabbed my mage robe and it gradually lowered it''s speed to cancel out the momentem as we aprouched the ground my mind was frantic trying to think of what the beast wanted me alive for if it was a normal predator it would just grab me not caring about the momentum but it did as we got lower to the ground i saw various lights and a few figures standing there as we got closer i could make out
what it was it was a small village huh a village down here i guess this means they tamed this beast to grab people who
fell as we got closer to the ground there was a group of very small people waiting outside the village as i got down to 1
meter off the ground the bat let go of me and i dropped to the ground hurting my feet when i landed i grunted and looked
at the surroundings rocks strewn about and a large clearing with large rockfaces on all sides as if it were a gladiator pit
were what i saw as i took in the surroundings.
judging by the people waiting outside the village they must know im here by now as i was thinking about my situation i
heard a chorus of footsteps and what looked like 10 small bulky bearded solders coming out of a path cut into the rock they surrounded me
each had a wooden sheild that was as big as there body and a spear 1.5 meters long they were all wearing metal armour
as if they were a order of knight''s dwarves huh id heard they were small but damn there only half my height as i
was thinking about the second race i had encountered in this world a dwarf wearing purple robes and dazling rings with ginger hair and a massive beard steped into the clearing
"welcome to the underground dwarven kingdom unknown creature as you are neather elf nor dwarf we would like to ask you what you are?"
ah it looks like its some sort of noble by how he''s dressed.
"if you do not speak the common tongue then we have mage''s capable of telepathy now please answer the question or you will not live very long"
as he finished speaking the dwarves surrounding me all pointed there spears at me i guess he want''s me to introduce myself well then let''s hope that this noble is reasonable
"my name is Black i am a wandering mage i was tricked by the elves and was pushed into this place
my race is human it is a fairly new race".
"i see any enemy of those damn elves is a friend to all dwarves we welcome you to this kingdom
of course before we allow you into town we will have to ask you a a few questions and confirm
whether you have commited any crimes as per usual when any traveler enters the village" as he said that the guard''s stopped pointing there spears at me and stepped back a few steps to break the encirclement as they did a small woman the same size as the dwarves wearing a blue mage robe with short ginger hair stepped beside the dwarf noble and whispered something in his ear
i focused mana into my ear to be able to hear but the female dwarf glared at me as soon as she felt my mana and said.
"it''s increadably inpolite to eavstrope" in a threatening voice i was stunned obviosly this girl is a very good magician.
"i''m terribly sorry i was simply curious as to what you were whispering about" i said in a apolagetic tone.
"hahahahah it''s enterly normal to be curious but you should never overstep your boundreys Black ah i still
haven''t introduced myself i am Oal Norast head of this village and this is Arya Thaast our resident mage and
master of the creature that saved your life"ah so she was the one that saved me.
"thank you ms Thaast for saving my life".
"do not worry in truth the reason i was whispering was because you are not the only one that was dropped down into
this cavern" wait what somebody else came here at the same time.
"ah here comes my pet now" as Arya said that the giant bat came holding somebody who i recognized is that
feila why is she here? as the giant bat flew over my head and hovered there flaping it''s wings it dropped her
and she fell onto the floor without trying to stand up what''s wrong with her? as i looked at her condition
i saw that she looked like she was beaten unconsious it must have been those others up there that did
this to her as i looked at her Oal asked me a question "do you know this elf Black?".
"ah yes she was a part of the group that tricked me and threw me into the pit however i have no clue why
she is here aswell perhaps the other party members beat her unconsous and threw her down here after a
dissagrement however we shall not know for sure until she wakes up and tells us" i said calmly.
"hmmm very well Arya take her to town lock her in a cell and use healing magic on her until she wakes up
and then we shall interogate her"Oal said in a commanding tone.
"as you wish Oal" she replied and two guards walked forward and grabbed her and with Arya in the lead
and the two dwarves carring feila behind her.
"now black follow us" Oal said as he turned around and the rest of the guards went with him through the path
as i followed them through the passage which was incredably narrow at certain points we finally reached the village
i was suprised by the farms around the village it was as if it was a normal villadge in the middle ages apart from
the crops that i saw instead of wheat it was mainly mushrooms and potatoes near each field there was a sort of
stret lamp that projected light onto the crops as we neared the village it had a large wooden wall surrounding it
aswell as wooden keeps on each corner all in all it was a very small village only around a 100 people could possibly
live here as we aproached the gate the gate guards all saluted and opened the gate in a hurry.
"Black stay here and wait for Arya she will be out shortly to perform the inspection".
"very well i shall wait in advance thank you for allowing me a place in your village Oal".
"do not worry about it as i''ve said before any enemy of the elves is our ally"he said and then walked inside the gate
with six of his guard leaving two to stay behind presumably to watch me after waiting for a few minutes i saw Arya come out of the gate.
"hello there mr Black i''ll now perform the inspection im going to search your soul for any trace of evil so stay still and
don''t try to expel the mana that im going to inject into you okay"she said.
"very well im in your care"huh i wonder what she means search my soul as i thought that she muttered something and a circle of pure mana apeared infront of me with countless runes on it, it gradually began to move until it passed through me and i felt a tiny bit of mana inside my body from the spell after a while the mana vanished and she spoke after a while.
"it''s done you are now welcome into the city of norastir obviously i would refrain from breaking the law while here
but now that''s done i would like to talk as a fellow mage about magic after your settled in come find me at my shop
you can''t miss it it''s the only building thats clean the inn is next to the lord''s mansion it''s called the weary
blacksmith now then i shall take my leave".
"could you please wait a moment truthfully i lost all my currency when i was tricked by the elves so i do not
believe that i could afford to stay at the inn"o well if i have a excuse as to why im poor then i''ll just have to
use it it might not be true but still it''s the best option i have at the moment.
"ah do not worry here" she said as she took a small piece of engraved metal shapped like a sheild out of
her pocket and gave it to me "this is my proof of citizenship just show it to the old lady behind the counter
and say that i sent you then when you come visit me return it" she said with a smile "oh but please don''t lose it
it''s a pain to get a new one".
"thank you once again Ms Thaast".
"ah don''t worry about it and call me Arya Ms Thaast is my mother"she said smiling once again.
"very well ms Arya".
"ha never had someone call me that before but still goodbye Black i''ll see you around"she said as she walked into the gate ha i guess she is kinda cute nonnonnoononon blake please get a hold of yourself no need to get the FBI involved in this she''s probably just interested in magic that''s it exactly no fantasies please as my mind started to gradually go into meltdown i walked through the open gates of the city of norastir.