ă€ŠHero or Foolă€‹


 Prologue: A Simple Life

    The sun rose and it''s brightness woke me in the same exact manner as yesterday and the day before. I rolled out of bed dreading my responsibilities that are to come.

    After doing so, I proceed to get dressed in my school uniform and brush my teeth as I prepare to head to school. Taking one last look in the mirror to make sure I look presentable, I slowly head to school.

    There is a reason as to why I hate doing this. The reason I dread this activity so much is because it is all the same to me. No matter what I do, it''s always the same. I hate it. This world is...pointless. And it seems that only I realize this. I am forced to go to school just so I can get a high paying job. Even if I manage to achieve this, would I truly be happy? I''ve seen countless others get stuck being in unhappy positions for their lives. It makes me fear for the future. I think I will just end up thinking the same thing over and over. Again and again.

    Will I become like them?

    Is a worthwhile life possible in this pointless world?

    These thoughts plague my mind as I head to school down the same route I have traveled for many years. It''s so familiar, I could walk it whilst blindfolded.

    My mind had pretty much completely wandered off at this point. I failed to notice the person right in front of me. After bumping into something, I fall instantly to the ground with a shocking amount of force.

    "Ow," I seethe. It''s only a small trip down, but it still hurt a bit.

    "What the hell are you doing, you idiot," said the person I bumped into. She was fairly short and had a nice jacket that was covered in some sort of liquid. Her most noticeable feature was her shockingly blue eye that seemed to stare right through me. That''s strange. Why did her glare seem to scare me? I could barely look at her.

    After some time she finally spoke

    "This jacket was pretty expensive, you know?" No. I don''t know. "You do realize you''ll have to pay for this." Wait, what?! What the heck is this lady thinking?! It''s completely obvious that I am a high school student judging from my uniform. There is absolutely no way I would have that kind of cash on me! "Are you just going to stand there or pay up" The woman yelled, attracting any passersby.

    "I don''t have money to pay you back," I said, venom lacing every word.

    "Is that so, huh?" She looked down at me. "What''s your name, brat?" Her eyes held a message. Don''t lie.

    "It''s Waltraut Fayiz," I responded through my teeth. Who the heck does she think she is?! She has the guts to call me, an innocent student, a brat. And is now demanding my name?! I held back a glare. Whatever. She''ll probably just want me to do some sort of work.

    But what happened next was shocking. This woman grabbed my hand and bit into it, with enough force to break the skin. Blood oozed from me and dripped into the woman''s mouth. What the heck?! What is wrong with this woman?!

    She then proceeds to walk consider was going to stop her but, I felt a bit lightheaded from the blood loss. Hopefully, I never have to see her again, however, I know this desire is unrealistic.

    After walking around for a few more minutes, I finally arrive at the place I dread the most- school. I am by no means dumb nor lazy. In fact, I''m one of the top students at my school. Honestly, I hate how every single day at this place is the same. Just sitting down and learning every day, is there really a meaning to all the pointless banter the teacher spits at me every day? I don''t have any friends at this place or in general. I fail to trust people at all because I know the truth. Everyone has hidden intention or just wants to use you. I learned this lesson a long time ago. I also feel like putting in effort into making friends is worthless just like this world.Stolen story; please report.

    I start the day off with my math course, but my mind begins to wander to another place yet again. My mind drifts off to the past. The time when I was actually happy and motivated to do well. It was around middle school that I lost my drive for life.

    I was sitting a classroom learning about a different profession. They all sounded boring. I wanted to become a cool hero that fights monsters and saves the day. Later that day we were asked to list what career we wanted to aspire and I said a hero of course. Everyone laughed at me. They didn''t appreciate my ambitions. The teacher told me that day, heroes aren''t real. I didn''t understand. Why were they so... discouraging? I couldn''t stand it and left the school in tears. When I arrived home, I found my father on his computer doing his work. Feeling hopeful, I had asked him if it was possible to become a hero like I had always dreamed of, but he told me to just give up on my childish fantasies. Why? All I want is for someone to pat me on the head and say that anything is possible. But of course, the world doesn''t work that way. Everything in this world is a lie. And no matter what you do, there is no way to change that painful fact.

    *RING!*

    My thoughts were cut off by the bell. Finally, math was over. Six more hours passed before I was finally able to leave. I took my time going home. After all, it was not much better than school. When I arrived I was greeted by my father.

    "Fayiz, sit down we need to have a chat." I gulp at the tone of his voice. It was serious and unnerving.

    "What is it, father?" I ask, a bit unsure of the possible outcomes.

    "What do you want to do in the future? You have not told me yet and I thought we should start working toward something soon. Don''t give me the hero choice again." I flinch. What''s so wrong with wanting to be a hero?

    "I am not sure what I want to do," I reply. Honest. It is the truth. Nothing in this world interests me and he would get mad if I said a career other than business. After my father failed to start up his own business, he has been trying to live his dream through me. I inwardly smirk. What a fool. I hate that everyone is trying to force their half-assed ideas on me.

    I head to my room, my favorite place to go. I guess that it''s quite normal. Bored, I sit and do nothing but reading until the sun sets. After a while, I doze off and awaken in a strange room. It''s completely white, not saving anything. I''m all alone. Per usual.

    Soon, I sense another person with me. I turn around to see a figure appear before my very eyes. It''s the annoying woman from before, except she had a giant pair of elegant, white wings attached to her back. She looked likeˇŞ no she was an angel. I couldn''t believe my eyes.

    "Brat, the time comes for me to collect my dues. To remove your debt you will be sent to my world and become a hero under my name," No way... This was too good to be true. I must be dreaming. I pinch myself and flinch slightly. It was no dream. This is real. And everything I ever wanted is being offered to me, impossible. "You will awaken in my world where you will fight for in my honor to cleanse you of your debt. Do remember the name Ifoik as you travel."

    Everything around me starts to fade into a bright light. I shut my eyes in order to protect them from being blinded.

    When I''m sure that the light is gone, I slowly open my eyes and they immediately widen. The sight is completely different from where I once was.

    Surrounding where I stood, was a wave of green. Trees stood tall towards the south, giving off an aura that I can''t seem to pinpoint. I look in the opposing direction and see mountains spiking up. White snow was sprinkled on the tip, creating a relaxing gradient. Towards the west was nothing but the blue ocean and white foam. Ships rebelled the waves, fighting for territory. And off to the east, was a whole city. Around the center was a huge building that looked over the rest. It''s size and elegance put the other buildings to shame. A single gate marked the entrance, guarded by two men.

    Even after seeing all of this, I only had one single question. Where exactly am I?

 Chapter 1: The "Great" Goddess

    If I had to describe the world around me I would say it is beautiful, although it is much more rustic than I am used to. I glance at myself to notice that my clothes are completely different than before, instead of sporting a simple school uniform I had some well-made leather armor and gloves. I also notice that a huge sword is strapped to my back. Upon further inspection, I notice the sword is made of a blue material that I had never seen before and there characters that I could not read engraved in them. Yet, the strangest thing I am seeing is right in front of me. I see what appears to be a status bar that contains information like my attack, defense, wisdom, magic, and health. What is this video game *laughs to self* For some reason, it appears that my wisdom is almost double my other stats. This is due to a mysterious buff known as the blessing of Ifoik listed on my display bar. I wonder what that means I can see off in the distance what appeared to look like a village and journey towards it. Luckily, I do not run into anything dangerous on the journey because there is bounded to be monsters in this fantasy like world. The village upon first glance appears to be pretty rural but is filled with many different buildings. As approach the village I am stopped by two mean-looking guards.

    "Halt, which god are you with?" A guard roars

    What are they talking about? Oh, wait I know.

    " I am with the goddess Ifoik"

    "Oh I see *laughs* you must be a new member of the faith then?"

    "Yeah, I am completely new to this place"

    "Head to the back end of town where you will find the church of Ifoik and can explain everything to you" (city guard)

    I respond with okay and head on my way to head this church. On the way, I have to avoid crowds of people throughout the town. They appear to be in some sort of prayer, I wonder if it is to Ifoik. My curiosity gets the better of me and I decided to approach a man who has finished worshiping.

    " Are you guys worshiping the goddess Ifoik?"

    I ask the crowd one normal looking man replies

    "Ha who would worship that wretched goddess?

    I try to question him further about Ifoik, but he had already gone back to his prayer before I get the chance, darn. Well, there is only one place that I know can answer the questions that are eating away at me. I head to the edge of town where I find a building so run down, I do not even know if you could call it a church. My heart sinks I know this is going to be a tough experience. I reluctantly walk toward the "church" and notice that the name Ifoik is carved into the ruined door. I push the door open and see my "goddess" sleeping on the floor on the main altar.Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.

    "WAKE UP YOU GOT SOME EXPLAINING TO DO!"

    "Oh you arrived sooner than expected, I am tired so go fight some monsters or something"

    "WHAT ARE KIDDING ME I DEMAND ANSWERS!"

    "Fine I guess I will have to enlighten you, mortal, what do you need to know?"

    "First of all where I am I?"

    "You are in a completely different world, a place that functions similar to an rpg in your previous world. In this world, you can gain strength and level by killing monsters and absorbing their cores. These stats can be seen on the display right in front of you. You are a human who has been chosen by me to promote my personal glory and spread my name."(Ifoik)

    "Huh, that seems a bit extreme of a job for just ruining your jacket."

    "Ha you can not fool me, mortal, I can read your desires, living in this world is a like a blessing for a person like you."

    "Speaking of blessings what is this blessing of Ifoik that I see on my display."

    "Oh, I almost forgot the blessing of Ifoik is a gift specific to mortals who worship me. It increases your stats based on the blessings level, especially wisdom. The level of the gods blessing is determined by the total faith in said god. My total faith is almost zero so you are going to have to work really hard to stronger, teehee. So go fight some monsters for me would ya.

    My feeling from before was right. God help me, wait my god is definitely not going to help me. I leave the church still a bit confused, what a useless goddess. Even if I am stuck with a useless goddess I am still going to become a hero like I always dreamed of. I head back to the entrance of town and am greeted by the same two guards as before. I continue to exit the town, but then realize that I have no idea where to even find monsters to fight in the first place. I turn back and decide to ask the guards for advice.

    "Hey I am new to adventuring where do I find some weak monsters to fight"

    "Kiddo you should head north to a Umbe forest where you can fight low-level goblins to get some levels. You can sell the goblins claws for money back in town."

    "Wait how does money work in this town Ifoik never explain it to me"

    "As expected from that lazy goddess, there are three types of coins bronze, silver, and gold. 100 bronze is worth one silver coin and 100 silver coins are worth one gold coin."

    I say thanks as I head off to the forest, my adventure is finally beginning. Of course, my excitement continues to rise until I finally reach the forest. I then climb a tree to try to spot my first kill. After a few minutes, a spot a plump goblin wander through the forest. I jump down from the tree to engage the foe. I swing my sword at the goblin but is heavier than I thought so I only manage to graze his face. Darn, I was trying to take his head off. With my element of surprise gone the goblin begins to attack. Its movements were slow and clumsy so I was able to avoid them with ease. An Opening! As prepare to take the goblins head a fireball skims over my shoulder and hits the goblins and burns him to ash only leaving behind his claws and core. I turn around to see a red-haired girl with a smug look on her face. Oh god, what does she want?

 Chapter 2: An Annoying Ally

    That look on her face completely disgusts me. She''s unexpectedly short, like middle-schooler short, and has a mass of red hair that stems all the way down to her waist. She was holding some sort of staff with a blue gem at the top. I continue to stare into her soft brown eyes until she finally breaks the long-winded silence.

    "Hello you look like a new adventurer, so I guess I will allow you to party up with me."

    "No thanks dealing with you seems more like a burden to me rather than actual help." Wow. I am so blunt! I''m proud of myself, hehe!

    "What?! You dare mock the great Iria Llona. You should feel honoured that someone of my standing is willing to form a party with such a talentless fool." Sighing, I split the core in two and toss one piece to Iria. I''m hoping that she leaves me alone, one troublesome female is already more than enough. "Are you trying to make a fool out of me?! Not happening! Don''t you dare walk away!" Ignoring her demands, I start to walk away from her but she starts to tug on my shirt.

    "W-Wait! P-Please... L-let me party with you... Please... I promise that I will definitely be u-useful to you." Oh jeez, she looks like she is about to cry. I feel really guilty now, I guess it would not hurt to let her join my party, I would just need to keep a close eye on her. No. She is not a nuisance. Just some extra luggage. That is a pain to carry. And has no use. No use whatsoever.

    "Fine, you can work with me. But only today, okay."

    "Yay-- I mean as I expected." And that is how I killed her. I wish.

    "By the way what level even are you and what abilities do you have?" Iria huffed and looked down on me.

    "I know I''m a high level than you, you penniless vermin! The great Iria is level 3 and can use a vast array of fire and water magic." She is only level 3, whats with her haughty attitude? And did she just address herself in 3rd person? I''m starting to doubt her words, I wonder how "vast" her fire and water magic really is. Maybe taking her with me was not the brightest idea, whatever I only have to deal with her for one day. So the hunt begins.

    Iria and the beautiful moi have decided on a simple formation I will engage the goblins from the front while she attacks with her magic. According to her fire magic takes a bit to cast so I need to protect her from attack as well. We shot our first enemy together a pack of three goblins. I cautiously approach them, when I get within ten feet of them one notices me and charges straight I at me. Man goblins are stupid, I move slightly out of the way of the goblin''s thrust and sweep his legs out from under him. He fell to the ground and I stabbed him right in the heart, immediately his breathing ceases.

    The next one was a bit smarter than his companion, he approaches and swings his claws at me I was not able to avoid the blow completely, he managed to nip my shoulder. Blood oozed from the wound, but it hurt a lot less than I expected. Before the goblin could hit me with a follow-up attack I swung the sword as hard as I could severing the goblin''s head from its body. It was because I was over-confident from killing two goblins with ease, the third goblin was able to circle around behind me. Oh no my back was completely exposed to him.If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.

    "FLAME BURST!" What a stupid name? A fireball bigger than before arced toward the goblin destroyed him instantly. All that was left of him was his core no claws like before. I wonder if cores are immune to magic because I was easily able to cut one with my sword before. It is annoying that there is so much I do not know about this world. My thoughts are cut off by Iria''s irritating voice.

    "Ha! You totally owe me one, I definitely saved you there."

    "Why should I? You destroyed the claws! Now we have no way of gaining money from it." I was truly grateful for her saving me, but I didn''t want her to get the wrong idea. I feel as though she is the type that lets the slightest praise get to her head, so to avoid future misunderstanding I will not praise her in any way. This might just be my pride speaking, but I still plan to stick to my gut about this one.

    She looks slightly disappointed by my response, but continue to journey through the forest. For the next hour, we ran into only goblins, the fights were simple I won every time with only a few scratches. At this time point I had levelled up to 5 and I could feel the increase of speed and strength from it.

    "Is there anything stronger than goblins in this forest they are getting kind of boring to fight." She grinned mischievously.

    "So you do need my help! You can find stronger monsters in toward the centre of the forest." I raise an eyebrow at her and question the girl.

    "Do you know that for a fact?"

    "Why do you always doubt me," Because, I know a classic cliche when I see one. You''re the classic lolita tsundere who will KILL me if I make a mistake. "I consider myself to be actually pretty smart." I really doubt that statement but, I do not press her on it. People can believe whatever that want.

    As we dive deeper into the forest the density of trees increases, making it hard to transverse. I have to say this forest is amazing though, I wonder if a forest like this was even possible in my previous world. Some the trees are over 100 feet tall and have an array of bright fruits hanging from them. I continue to travel with Iria deeper and deeper into the forest but still can find any monsters.

    "Are you sure there are monsters this deep in the forest?" A frown decorates my face as I look at her.

    "Yes, we should find some soon I promise." She was right after a bit more of walking a spot a figure that appears to be napping. I slowly approach it to discover that it is similar to a black from my previous world except it is twice as tall and has foot-long claws. I do not think that I will be able to defeat this thing.

    "We can not beat this bear lets head back Iria."

    What happened next surprised me greatly Iria shoved me toward the bear and shot a fireball at back. It hurts my skins is burning, the bear is waking up this is bad, really bad!! I look at Iria she is running away.

    "Do not blame me for this blame yourself for forming a pact with such an evil goddess."

    My vision is starting to fade.

    "N-Now I get it... You''re the m-monster..." My eyes shut close and everything turns black. No shit Sherlock. My fucking eyes are closed. Regardless, am I really going to die without achieving anything? No. I don''t want to!

 Chapter 3: The Spirit of the Sword

    I feel terrible everything around me is spinning. My vision is starting to fade from all pain. This is worse than anything I have ever experienced in my life even in my previous world. Although this pain was caused directly by Iria, I feel no anger just disappointment in myself. I failed to live up my ideals and I am just going to die here without demonstrating the slightest bit of heroism. What I disappointment I am, I do not want it to end like this. I want to live. My sword begins to glow as if it is responding to my desires. A white light blinds me as I look around I notice that the scenery had been altered greatly. I no longer reside in the deadly forest, but instead, I appear to be in some sort of a simple house complete with all white furniture. I soon notice that I am not alone. A white figure draped in a white dress is sitting in the corner beckoning me. I heed her command <u>a</u>nd approach her cautiously. When I get within a few paces of her I finally decide to break the silence.

    "Where am I and who are you?"

    "I am the ghost of Christmas past. Just kidding. I am the charismatic spirit that dwells in your holy sword. This place is a mental landscape created by you, basically, it is the inside of your mind."

    "How do I get out of here I am kinda about to die outside."

    "Yeah, I am the one who is going to solve that problem for you teehee."

    "HOW?!"

    "It is quite simple actually, the holy sword you hold gains its power from your desire. The stronger the desire the more power you get. A few seconds ago your desire to keep living was pretty strong so you should be able to use the sword. See you later boy."

    "WAI--."

    My voice is completely cut off as the scenery around me rapidly changes. I am back to facing the demonic bear, but things are different than before. I am brimming with confidence and the pain is completely gone. The letter in my sword begins to glow blue as my body is filled with a strength I have never felt before. The enraged bear swung its nasty claw only to find that it is only striking the air. Woah I am much faster than before, it feels great. Instead of getting discouraged the attacks again even faster than before. I parry attack after attack but, this bear is a skilled killer that leaves no opening for me. This sword has to do more strengthen me, I try to use the swords overflowing energy to attack but, nothing seems to come out. Am I doing this wrong?Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

    "You fool you have to name the attack before you."

    What that is such a stupid requirement to wield the true power of the sword. Ugh, what should I call this attack, it has to be something cool like a hero would say. Wait this is no time to think over something so stupid I am about to get all sliced up by this bear. I scream at the top my lungs.

    "DEATH TO EVIL"

    A blue light explodes from my sword and as I swing it the light expands slicing the bear. A nasty gash appears where the light touched the bear. It is still standing even after my super flashy attack. I charge at the bear as fast as I can with killer intent. The bear is too weak to move out of the way before my sword finds itself in the bear''s heart. Rest in Peace. Thank god that fight it over it seems like every muscle in my body is aching as I go over to examine the bear''s corpse, I use my sword to cut free the core and the bears claws. Upon absorbing the core my level shot up to 10. Wow, that bear must have been a boss monster or something to drop this much xp. I drag my half-dead body all the way back to town and barely manage to arrive at the run down church before collapsing on the hard stone floor. I by the time I awaken it is already bright outside. My goddess is leaning over me staring into my eyes.

    "What happened to you, child?"

    "I got into a little bit of a tough fight. Anyways you got a lot of explaining to do me!"

    "Huh, whatever could you mean."

    "Do not play dumb with me, I was attacked by someone who saw you as an evil god, why?"

    "You only need to know that I am greatly hated by the people of this world, the reason is truly unjust, it is too soon for you to hear. Your experience in this world is very low, so it is impossible for you to comprehend."

    Wow, she was visibly shaking and a noticed a tear forming along her eyelid. I decide to change the subject to avoid damaging the goddess''s mood even further.

    "I noticed someone using magic earlier is it possible for me for me to do the same?"

    "I guess I forgot to explain the concept of magic to you. The types of magic that someone can use correspond to god they are contracted with. Since you are contracted to a goddess of wisdom, you will be unable to use any sort of offensive magic."

    "What can I do then."

    "I can teach you to use strengthening, binding, and healing magic. It will take some time to learn but, magic''s potential is unlimited."

    I really want to learn magic now, with its power I could have prevented the whole bear ordeal from even happening. Just how air-headed is this goddess to forget to explain something so important to me. It is really unfortunate that I have to be dubious of everyone just because of my goddess''s reputation. What exactly did she do?

 Chapter 4: My New Life

    "Teach me to use magic!" I demanded of the goddess.

    "Okay fine since I am a pretty busy" I scoffed at the chosen word. More like lazy. "person, I only have the time to teach you the basics of one type of magic. So what do you want to learn? Strengthening, healing or binding magic?" Ifoik asked as she yawned.

    "What even is binding magic? How is a type of magic like that even used?" I was confused by the magic named, for I have never heard of this ''binding'' magic even in all of the RPG''s I''ve played.

    "As far as combat is concerned, its only practical use is to temporarily pin an enemy but has a much more interesting effect when used on people. Under certain conditions, you able to bind a person to your will making them unable disobey you. This magic only works on people that do not have a strong pact with a god though." Surprisingly, Ifoik actually explained in full and proper sentences.

    Wow... That kind magic sounds really useful. I''d be able to avoid incidents like yesterday, and it seems to be a pretty good ability to have with me on the battlefield as well. I looked at the goddess, a new form of confidence filling my eyes.

    "Teach me binding magic." Ifoik smirked at me then shut her eyes.

    "Okay kneel before me." Although I was confused and rather embarrassed, I do as I''m instructed. Ifoik held her hands above my head and it begins to glow. Without warning, all necessary instructions on how to use or control this magic enter my brain, flooding it with information.

    On my staus, two types of binding magic are listed. Bind Monster (weak) which summons chains from the ground to hinder a monsters movements and Bind Will (weak). Since Bind Will is weak, I can only give one command to the person I have bound and the success rate is pretty low. However, it is better than nothing.

    "You can improve the magic I have taught you by using it over and over again." The lazy goddess informed me.

    Sighing, I head towards the door ready for another day of adventure, which will hopefully be just a bit better than yesterdays.

    "Oh by the way magic drains your mental energy so if you use it too much you will pass out to be careful." After hearing that comment, I leave the church and head towards the market district to sell off the goods that I had gained in battle yesterday. I approach the monster goods tent to get my goblin and bear claws apprised. I was able to sell it all for 5 gold pieces! Apparently, the claws from the bear I killed, are made from a very rare metal. Must have been a really useful metal, because about 95% of my profit came from the bear surprisingly.

    As I take my leave, a noise erupts from my stomach. Right. I almost forgot that even in this fantasy world, I have to deal with my basic human needs. Quite weakly, I head to a nearby restaurant. I''m so lucky it happened to be this close. A young and cute waitress welcomed me with a happy smile and she sits me down a table near the back corner.If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

    When I received it, I look at the menu but I have no idea of what it even says. Though I can speak the language of these people, the written characters are completely different. When the waitress from before approaches, I simply responded with surprise me as to not be suspicious or look stupid. I was trying to sound cool but the words did not come out as I planned. God I hope she does not think I''m weird. I don''t want to earn a bad reputation in this town, even though I practically do because of the lazg goddess. What she came out with was more than I had expected, it was a huge slab of meat covered in some unknown sauce with a glass of what I think is water-down ale on the side. Does this world not have a drinking restriction? Whatever. Who cares? I''m on the verge of starvation.

    I pick a fork and knife and cut a piece of the meat off. As I chow down on it, I realized the differences from the one in my previous world. This meat tastes below average. It is far inferior to some of the food from my original world. I am really disappointed by this. I really shouldn''t judge a book by its cover. I leave 50 copper coins on the table to cover my meal expenses and take my leave. I wander around, heading to the same place as last time is really worth it? I mean the kill is pretty easy but, the goblin parts are really worthless. I stop by the two guards that I have recently become familiar with.

    "Do you guys know of any places with monster stronger than the goblins you told me about last time?" I ask in hopes of getting much more money out them.

    "For that kind of help you should check out the adventure guild in the centre of town, they will have lots of useful information for you." One said, pointing towards the direction of the centre.

    "Thank you." I bow a little out of habit and respect and leave.

    I head towards the centre of town and eventually find this adventuring guild. I step inside and find quite the lively scene. There is numerous hunt chatting and shouting. There''s a board filled with papers along the wall. I believe that these papers are quests, but I cannot tell since I cannot read this worlds characters. I walk up to what appears to be a help desk meet with the lady running it.

    "Um, miss. I''m a new adventure level 10 and I am looking for a place to fight monster. Could you offer some advice or help? Please?" I ask the lady.

    "It would be my pleasure, are you alone or do you have a party?" I thought that was obvious. Even so, I answer honestly.

    "I am a solo adventure."

    "Hmm... then I would suggest the Ot¨˘vio caves. They are around ten miles north of this town and the monsters mostly consists of wolves. Their fur sells for quite a good price on the black market." The guild worker hands me a small, pocket size map. I put it into my breast pocket.

    I thank for her information and leave. Before I embark on my journey, I stop a hunting shop to buy some tools to skin any wolves I come across. Mean but will be worth it. It''s pretty expensive for everything I got. A few knives, a huge carrying sack, and some torches and I had to pay 50 silver coins.

    At long last, I begin my second adventure. My only means of travel is by foot so ten miles on a hot day is not going to be fun. But I walked. For a long time.

    After a few hours, I finally arrived at the caves and due to my increased stats, I reached the location much sooner than I expected and wasn''t fatigued too much. The opening of the cave sure looks ominous. I feel fear wring me dry as I ventured into darkness. Whatever happens to me, I just hope I don''t die

 Chapter 5: The Dangers that Lurk Below

    Just as you would expect from a cave it is dark and the air is highly humid. I light my torch to illuminate my surroundings. I notice that the walls like pretty untouched. The most likely scenario would be that the wolves drive people away from this place. Someone could probably make a pretty penny from mining this caveˇŞ I can see bits of ores sticking out from the cave walls. In hopes of finding worthy prey, I journey deeper into the cave.

    After some time of searching, I realize something very important I have no idea how to get back to the entrance. I shake my head. Whatever, these things tend to work themselves out and I have enough supplies in my day to last for a couple days. I continue to walk down the twisting hallways in this maze of a cave.

    Finally, I spot my elusive target, I feel a chill run down my spine as glace at its body, it is much bigger than I imagined. It notices my torch and charges right at me. I ready myself for battle by setting down my torch and unsheathing my sword. To slow the momentum of the wolves I cast bind monster, gold chains rose from the ground, completely halting the wolf''s charge.

    Now''s my chance!

    I leap at the wolf, but the wolf manages to break the chain just in time to avoid a fatal blow. However, the wolf was not completely unharmed from this encounter, I was able to glace one of its eyes. It should no longer be able to see out it, the odds are shifting in my favour.

    Before I could register anything, the wolf howled making my legs weaken a bit. The wolf''s howl was so loud I also almost lost my balance from the shockwaves it generated. Arrogance is not going to win me this battle. I need to calm down and plan out my next attack.

    The wolf lunges at me baring its sharp fangs at me. I use a roundhouse kick to send the wolf''s body into the cave wall. While the wolf is still recovering from the impact, I throw one of my knifes straight at it, I was aiming for its last functional, but I miss my intended target quite significantly, only managing to grace its side, angering it further.

    This fight is harder than I thought it would be. I wish I could just fire of my spirit sword to end the fight instantly but, Istill don''t understand how it works and I lack the ability to control it. I use bind monster in an attempt to create an opening. The wolf sees it coming and jumps away from my chains, unfortunately for the wolf I expected this and stood exactly where it is about to land. In the air, the wolf is defenceless. Taking advantage of this, I swing my sword directly at its neck. Its head comes off and rolls to the floor. I stand to look at its lifeless drenched in sweat proud of my achievement in slight uneasiness. For the first time in many years, I feel true joy.Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

    Overcome by the joy I start to jump around a bit, but my celebration is cut short by a sudden noise that is unmistakably footsteps. Another challenger approaches, it is a wolf it is much smaller than the last one. It charges at me much faster than the first wolf. Using my fast reaction, I manage to block it with my sword just in time and push it back. I underestimated it at first because of its size, but it seems that it more than makes up for it with its killer speed.

    It goes for another bite, I proceed to block with my sword again. After I push it off I go for a counterattack, but the wolf speed far surpasses mine and it is able to avoid the blade with ease. This wolf may be fast but it has a weaknessˇŞ its blows are light. I can block its attacks infinitely, I continue to block attack after attack, darn this starting to turn into a stalemate.

    Then I realize the mistake with not thinking. My stamina may run out first. I need to do something soon. Panicked, I come up with a plan. It is risky, but I believe it gives me the strongest chance to win.

    The wolf lunges at me with the intention of either killing me or severely injuring me and instead of blocking I let its fang sink into my shoulder wincing at the intense pain. I throw down my sword and then wrap my arms around the wolf''s body. I cast bind monster and since the chains only affect monsters, they pass right through my body and pin down the wolf. It struggles, but it is no us. It lacks the power needed to break even my weak chains. I pick up my sword to put an end to this battle as I did to his ''friend'' I took his head off.

    Now it''s time to collect my loot from the two wolves. First off I absorb the cores and rise to level 11. I then proceed to skin the animals and collect their fangs. I thought I was mentally prepared to skin an animal, but it is a whole lot grosser in person. I felt like throwing up. Luckily, my wound is not that deep so I can still move around freely. Perhaps, I should rest soon from travelling and fight I am tired.

    Using wood from my bag and stone and flint from the cave, I create a make-shift campfire. After the fire gets warm enough I begin to roast the remains of the wolfs I killed over the fire, and hopefully, the meat is not poisonous or anything like that. I mean how lame would it be for a hero to be done in by bad meat. Eventually, the meat is fully cooked and I ''wolf'' it down with some water I packed. Haha... I''m horrible.

    Examining the area, I figure that I should be safe to rest here for a bit and since the wolves are so loud and I could hear one coming from like a mile away. My vision slowly fades as I begin to sleep, suddenly, in front of me lies a familiar white house, in a completely white land.

 Chapter 6: Your Name

    I run toward the house and am met with the gaze of a familiar woman, anger tracing my every move. Her appearance is completely the same as last but, her dress much fancier than the simple dress she wore last time.

    "What do you want? You are interrupting my grand adventure!" I yell. Seriously. What right does this ghost-thing-spirit have to ruin my adventure?!

    "How rude! I was actually thinking about helping you out." The spirit tried to calm me down. And I oblige. After all, at least she isn''t that lazy goddess that for some reason I worship.

    "Fine, I will calm down and I''ll listen to what you have to say." I take a seat next to her in the white building that she most likely labels ''home''.

    "You can not use my power in battle do you know why that is?" Actually... I wonder if there is more..?

    "I do not know do I not have enough determination or something like that?" I ask in my confusion.

    "No idiot, it''s a lot more simple than that. You simply never got a chance to name me." A cheeky yet small smirk painted her lips.

    "What do you mean by name you?" How do you do that?

    "Oh, that''s right! Due to your life being in immediate danger I never got a chance explain things to you fully. You see, you can utilize my power by calling out my name. The amount of power released is directly influenced by your mental strength and will." Oh crap. I''m not sure if I have enough will. Especially after meeting Ifoik. Even so...

    "Woah that sounds pretty cool, so let''s get to it how do I name you anyways?" Though I knew I''d regret it somehow, I ask this question with an excited tone.

    "It is very easy, place your hand on top of my head and think of a name to bind my soul to yours." Binding souls seems pretty serious, but if it is an easy way to gain power I''d down for it.

    I place my hand on her head as she commanded... Strange her head is ice cold. I begin to think, I have to pick a good name since she will likely be with me for a long time. Then it strikes her power is the result of my desires so I should name her what most desire most. That''s it. I have the perfect name.

    As soon as the thought crosses my mind, I feel my magic being pull from my body. I was worried at first but, then I realize my magic is creating a field of warmth around her body. Eventually the draining creases and a simile forms upon her face.The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

    "I am Hope." She introduces. Yep. That''s the name I chose. People around me are always feeling despair or as if they are lonely or depressed. So, people always want hope. Everyone feels it. Most people desire it. And I want to both feel and desire. So Hope.

    She begins to fade as I awaken from my dream. I am slightly annoyed that I ran out of time to enjoy her pleasant smile. I soon find the cause of my sudden awakening, a wolf is approaching my camp. My rage swells, I spot a perfect victˇŞ opponent to try my new skill on. I eye it down it is another wolf the same size as the small wolf I fought before.

    "Hope!!" I shouted. After all, who knows how loud I have to yell.

    "You do not need to scream I can hear you perfectly fine." ... Seriously? I was completely shocked, I never expected a sword to start talking to me.

    "I can tell that you want to use the same attack as last time, it will take some time to charge to keep the wolf busy for a minute." I nodded my head slightly in understanding. Handling this wolf''s attacks for a minute for a minute is easy for someone as... skilled as me. After a minute passes, the symbols on my sword begin to glow, it is finally ready. Instead of releasing all the energy at once like I did last time I focus the energy on the edge of my blade. The wolf lunges in to bite my head off.

    "Piercing Blade!" Oh god, that sounded so cringe... The energy around my blade strengthens it to the point where I am able to completely slice through its body.

    I pack up my camp and walk even further into this seemly endless cave. It is quiet until the silence is finally interrupted by an echoing scream. I break into a run spriting toward the location of the scream. I look with fear as I saw the arm of an adventurer being ripped off by a monster I had never seen before. It had the body of a tiger but twice as big and three long tails with black and stripes running across them. Its teeth are so sharp that the man who just got his arm torn off is definitely a goner. I notice there is another person with the adventure, frozen with fear as his friend gets consumed right in front of him. I jump in front of him and yell a ''stay behind me'' as I push him back. This must have woken him up because as soon as I did so he readied a bow and took aim at the monster. I charged at the monster without much of a plan. I just swung with all my might directly at its massive body. It swiped my blade aside with one of its tails. I jump back to avoid a swipe at my face. I thought I avoided it, however, blood began to run down my face, forcing me to shut an eye. This bad... Wait! I still have her!

    "Hope."

    "I am on it!" Now the question is how I am I going to stall for a minute. Whatever I will just have to give it my best.

    "Bind monster" The chain rise and bind the monster, it breaks free much sooner than I expected, but it still gives the bowman behind me enough time to fire off an arrow pining the monster tail to the ground.

    "That arrow is magic the beast should not be able to break it anytime soon." He said. I nod my head and smirk. Now''s my chance. I leap to finish the monster aiming for its heart. I should have ended the monster''s life with that attack or at least weakened it, but instead, I find myself flying backward. The monster jumped forward headbutt me in the chest. I crashed into a backwards in a daze. How is it able to move? Was the archer lying to me? No, that is not it. I finally see how the monster managed this, it had cut off its own tail to avoid my fatal blow. Pain hugged my body. I''m not sure if I can if I can stand any longer.

 Chapter 7: The Power of Magic

    Crap. That hurt, I struggle to stand. My whole body is aching the pain is terrible it''s binding me in place. With my focus completely broken, my link to Hope is served, cannot use the spirit sword, my finishing move is gone! To make matters worse it appears like the Bowman is out of magic arrows.

    The monster rears its ugly face at me. Shit, the thing is charging at me for the killing blow. I won''t be able to handle another direct attackˇŞ I need to dodge NOW.

    In desperation, I came up with a crazy plan. I''m not sure if this is going to work since I have a pact with Ifoik but, it''s the only thing I can think of.

    "Bind Will!! I commend this body to ignore all pain." I cast the spell on me. The pain fades and I am able to move. I jump away from the monster in the nick of time. The monster was clearly surprised by this, as it was unable to stop its charge and charged straight into a cave wall. It turns around to face me. Even if I managed to injure the monster, this fight is still far from over. I currently do not have to strength to defeat i, that or I can''t maintain focus long enough to charge the spirit sword, but still, I will not lose. "It''s all or nothing. Bind Will! I commend this body to go beyond its limits in order to defeat the enemy which stands before me!" I feel it, power swells through my body but, at the same time, my mental strength or magic power is rapidly declining. I estimate that I can only keep this up for a minute. Not wasting anyone more time I charge in on my foe at my maximum speed. The monster also lunges and attacks me with a rush, swiping at me with its claws. My new-found speed is unbelievable I don''t even need to block its strikes I can just dodge them.

    I smirk. It''s my turn!

    "Sonic Requiem!" At blinding speed, utilizing all of my strength, I swing my sword at the monster from all different directions it must have been in 50 no 100 strikes within the span of 30 seconds. I could not believe my eye, the monster lays before me, chopped into a million pieces. This is my power?!

    Suddenly, the power fades and I feel even more pain that felt before runs through my body. I let out a blood-curdling scream before passing out.

    Sunlight shines on my face waking me from my slumber. Wait, I was just in a cave. How is there sunlight? I take a minute to examine my surroundings, it appears that I am in a bed in some sort of wooden house. I am still wearing all my clothes, but my sword and bag are leaned up against a wall nearby. I hear footsteps nearby and reach for my sword. A person opens the door and immediately relax. It''s just the Bowman from yesterday. He no longer has a hood on so, I am able to notice a pair of grey wolf ears sticking out.This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    What do animal-human hybrids exist in this world?

    "Thank god, you woke up. I was worried your body could not handle the stress you put on it. You know what you did was quite risky." He said as I began to narrow my eyes.

    "Where am I and who are you?" He soon realizes the situation he put me in.

    "Oh, please forgive my rudeness. I am Tie, a wolf archer. You''re in my house, it is not too far away from the cave where you saved me from that terrifying monster. I carried you here after you had passed out." Okay. I get it.

    "Thank you, I was in no condition to move after I killed that monster and I was lost in that cave anyways." I smile awkwardly at him.

    "Here, catch!" Tiw throws a strange orb in my direction, I catch it and inspect the object. It must be the core of the monster that I killed before. I absorb the core and check my status. I managed to level up all the way to level 21 and my bind monster (weak) had ranked up to bind monster (mild). Most impressively, I have gained a new skill.

    This skill seems to have been awakened directly from this specific core. It''s called Kinetic Strike and it allows me to move at an extremely high pace for roughly a second. As awesome as it is, it has a clear weakness, unlike my bind magic it has a long cooldown time so, I will only be able to use it like once or twice during a battle.

    Still, I had no clue that it was possible to gain skills from a core, it is quite a mysterious property. Damn, that lazy goddess not explaining all these important things to me.

    I then prepare to leave. Crap, it hurts to move, but it''s nothing I cannot handle. As I head to toward the exit of Tiw''s home I am cut off by a voice.

    "Wait, take me with you I want to party up with you, great hero!" G-Great hero?!

    "Huh, you sure about that?" Confusion is very much evident in my voice. I didn''t even attempt to hide it.

    "Yes, for I am greatly indebted to you and my former party is gone. Besides support in battle is really important no matter how strong you are." He does have a point. I could really use some support. And having a partner could really save my life one of these days. Especially since the last person I trusted didn''t end up very well.

    "Fine, I will let you join under one condition, you must form a contract with my goddess, Ifoik." He looks hesitant at first but then agrees. Probably because she''s a goddamned lazy goddess. He then proceeds to pack up his things. I exit his home and head back to town with him.

    After a few hours, we arrive at the broken down church that I had recently grown fond of. I open the door and am greeted by that goddess.

    "What took you so long to come back? And who''s your little friend?" She questioned. I sigh at her.

    "He is going to be a new member of the Ifoik religion so make a pact with him. If not for him, then for me. If not for me, then for that ridiculously low eruption of yours." She froze at my words. Hmph. Seems like I''ve won this verbal battle.

 Chapter 8: Taken

    "Fine, my faith is in great need of expansion anyways." She sighed.

    "Yay I get to work with you from now on!" Tiw celebrated.

    "You might come to regret though, from here on out I am going to be working you like a dog," Ifoik smirked at him

    "Ha, I look forward to it." Tiw challenged.

    "Show me your hand wolf child." Tiw does as commanded and without warning, Ifoik bites his hand, Tie winces at the pain as blood rises from the wound onto Ifoik.

    "With that the pact is complete and you receive my blessing." She informed.

    "I have been wondering... Why do you bite people when you form a pact, I mean there are many other ways to draw blood from someone." I question.

    "Oh, the reason is quite simple, I love seeing the surprised reactions of my victims, I mean lovely new followers." What a stupid reason. Honestly, I''m starting to lose faith in this ''goddess''.

    I spend the rest of the day resting while Tiw gathers supplies for our next journey and selling the wolf fur.

    The next morning Tiw happily greets me, questioning me about of next adventure. I guess it is about time, to resume my career as a hero. Tiw and I head toward the guild building. Once inside we are greeted by an array of nasty glares from other adventurers. I ignore them but Tiw looks really nervous. I hate these people, I have only done well for this world yet, still, I am only met by hate in this world. I swear I will change these people no I will change this whole world, but for now, I have to make myself strong enough to do so.

    I head to guild desk to find a suitable location for my next journey with Tiw. The same lady as before greets me and points to many different locations where Tiw and I can explore. For the next week, Tiw and I head to many different locations to increase our strength. Currently, I have risen to level to level 31 and Tiw is at level 27. Our team work is pretty good and we have not come across extremely strong monsters as of late. I thought nothing could come between us, but there lurks something even more dangerous than monsters in this world.

    It all started during Tiw and I''s routine visit to the guild hall. I walked into the building and was immediately met with a new face.

    "Stop right there a follower of evil." A feminine voice stopped us. I look behind to see a girl. She was tall wearing well-made iron amour and long black hair was peaking out from her hood. She seemed very experienced, so someone I did want to fight. Maybe I can talk my way out of this one... Yeah no.Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

    "Is there something you want with us?"

    "Do not use such an arrogant lip with me, I am the great Therese of Shadow here to free the innocent child you have forced to join your evil religion." ... What?

    "What ate you talking about? Tiw joined me of his own free will." I deadpanned at Theresa. What''s her problem?

    "Impossible who would want to follow the wretched goddess Ifoik?" What did she just say?... Well,... I guess it''s not a lie.

    "No, it is true I want to be a member of the Ifoik faith," Tiw said full of confidence.

    "I see, you must have used magic to make him so loyal, fear not, child, I shall free you." Darn, looks like I am not going to be able to settle this without a fight. "Let''s settle this matter outside I would rather not disturb the kind guild members any further." That is fine by me. As we step outside I prepare for the upcoming duel. She leads me to an empty alleyway with Tiw and pulls out a huge white sword. I feel a strange energy radiating from it.

    "Watch out that sword is very similar to me!" Hope warned. This going to be a dangerous fight. Hope is extremely powerful so, her sword must be as well. I don''t want to see her full power so my plan is to defeat her with speed.

    "Kinect Strike!" I charge at her with my second fastest ability.

    "Heh, foolishness Tenebras Ligare!" A field of purple appears beneath my feet. My body suddenly feels much heavier and collapse to the ground. I am struggling to move what is this? I push my body to stand against the crushing weight. I tell Hope to begin charging up energy. "I am surprised you can still stand, you are stronger than I thought, but still you will not be able to stand for much longer." I hate to admit it, but she''s right. Hope still needs about 50 more seconds to charge. I really need to stall for time here.

    "You are the real evil here I have not done anything wrong and you are taking my friend against his will," I speak.

    "Lies are all you speak I have no reason to believe the follower of such an evil goddess." Seriously! What''s this girl talking about?!

    "What do you mean by evil? She may be very lazy and a bit strange, but she would never do anything bad!" I pant.

    "Oh, have you not heard of the past where her adventures killed and burned down everything in her name." ...

    "What?... That can''t be true, you are the real lier, I know Ifoik." I think.

    "I am done charging energy master." Hope comments.

    "Finally..." I smirk slightly. I can''t move enough to form my energy into a special attack, but releasing this much energy is sure to some damage to her. Hopefully, it is enough to remove spell she is binding me with. The mass of energy races toward her face.

    "Ha is that all you got?" She steps forward and prepares to attack the huge mass with her sword.

    "Ha, there is no way that is going to work." My smirk widens into a grin.

    "We will see." She brings her sword down upon mass instantly the energy loses its form and disperses all around her.

    "Impossible." My eyes widen in shock.

    "It is over I win." She punches me in the face, with force stronger than the tiger monster I fought earlier. I am sent flying into a wall. As my vision begins to fade I see her grabbing a panicking Tiw.

 Chapter 9: Hope?

    I wake from my long my long slumber and notice the huge bump that has formed on the back of my head. That evil lady... She didn''t even bother to move my unconscious body from the alleyway.

    I rise and observe my surroundings, how long was I out for? It''s already nighttime, they must be long gone by now. There is only one person I can turn to for help in this town.. Sadly. I sprint toward the ruined church on the edge of town.

    "Ifoik I need your help now! I refuse to take no for an answer on this one." I yell.

    "What has you so panicked child?" Ifoik said.

    "Tiw has been taken by some Theresa of Shadow I need to save him." I pant.

    "Her, huh. Listen. Give it up, right now you stand no chance against her and will likely lose your life if you confront her again. From your wounds, you must know this firsthand right?" I slam my fist into the ground out of rage. How can I be so useless? I came to this place to be a hero. "Calm down all is not lost yet. Tell me exactly what happened child." I explain to her the whole ordeal with Theresa. "I see, she is probably planning to forcibly remove the pact I formed Tiw. This is a big problem because you cannot form a pact with a god twice. This ritual takes three weeks to prepare so we still have some time to deal with this mess." She says finally serious.

    "What should I do?"

    "Isn''t it obvious? You have three weeks to surpass her, Mr Hero. Of course, you going to have my help." That''s strange normally this goddess doesn''t want to do anything. What''s with this sudden change in heart? "First of all do even know why you lost the fight?"

    "It was because I did not have enough strength to defeat her." I avert my eyes in shame.

    "That answer is only half right, you lost because of lack of experience, you have only been fighting monster so, it makes sense that you would struggle against an intelligent opponent. I mean firing off an unfocused energy blast was probably one of the dumbest things you could have done in that fight."

    "Oh, so that is what happened to my attack, maybe the situation isn''t as hopeless as I first thought."Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.

    "You fool! You cannot take your opponent lightly what you saw was only a fraction of her full power. You are going to have to spend every minute training from now on to even stand a chance." Okay. Of all times, why did she have to be serious now?! Oh... Well.

    "First of all I will teach you strengthening magic, give me your hand." I do as she says and I give her my hand, a light emerges from her as the spell strengthen body (weak) appears in my status box.

    "Only one spell huh."

    "What? That''s possible? Why didn''t you explain this to me before?" I raise an eyebrow. Geez. Just how lazy was she?

    "You were not ready to put this information into practice before. I did not want you to try something reckless without proper training first." I guess that makes sense... Darn, she knows me too well, I definitely would have tried to create some crazy spell if I knew this from the beginning.

    "I am ready to begin my training with you!" I exclaim.

    "Oh, did you think I was going to be the one training you? Too bad, I have already sent word to a former member of my faith, as a favour to me he will train you. He will arrive tomorrow afternoon." Gulping, I ask about this man.

    "What is he like?"

    "You will have to wait to find out!" I don''t like the sound of that. What does this goddess have in store for me?

    I spend all night practising channelling magic through my sword, but nothing seems to be working... Is there some kind of trick to it?

    Before I know it the sun rises and light shines through the holes of the church. I prepare for my training by eating a hefty breakfast and stretching. I am currently sitting outside the church waiting. When is this guy going to show up? This boredom is eating away at me. After a few more hours of waiting, I see a figure approaching from the distance. His appearance is hard to make out most of his body is covered in bandages and his face is covered with a black hood.

    "Are you the one who''s going to train me?" I question.

    "Depends are you the newbie, taken in by Ifoik." So he is the one.

    "I am, and I have a name, by the way, it''s Fayiz."

    "Nice to meet you Fayiz, I am Jax, your new tutor. Welcome to Hell." A smirk graces both of our lips.

    "Lots of confidence I see let''s see if you are able to say the same after today. Follow me." He leads me to an open plain not too far out from the church and pulls out a dagger. "I want to test your skills, come at me."

    "Do not blame me for whatever happens!" I charge at him and swing my blade at his head, but he manages to avoid every blow. Anger takes over me as I go in with a big swing.

    "You are wide-open." He skillfully avoids the blade and knocks the sword out of my hand. "You form is too sloppy your not in tune with your sword at all too much that is why you lost. Do not fret by the end of my program you will have much better control of your powers." I have a feeling that ''Jax'' isn''t lying.

 Chapter 10: Training

    "How can I get stronger then?" I also eagerly.

    "To simplify things, harsh training for the next few weeks." A grin swept across my face.

    "I''m ready for anything!" I am prepared to get stronger at any costs, just thinking of poor Tiw''s suffering drives me further, for the first time in this world I am fighting for someone other than myself, I will not give in.

    "Our first training is going to focus on increasing your affinity with your sword. You must learn to control your Aspectu." He says.

    "Aspectu? What is that? It sounds like a cool attack." Curiosity fills me as I speak.

    "You idiot, you have been using aspectu this whole time! It is the energy that is created by linking up with the spirit in your sword. It is extremely difficult to control without a spirit sword." ... Oh... Well, that''s embarrassing.

    "I see so you are telling me that I need to master this power? I can use pretty strong attacks right now, can it really even get much stronger?"

    "So young, listen here kid aspectu''s effects can be even more diverse and powerful than magic if you are able to gain some control over it. You have potential but lack both experience and training." He replied firmly.

    "Let''s start training already then!" I yell in anticipation.

    "Fine, catch." Jax tosses me a strange rectangular piece of paper with symbols I had never seen before inscribed on it. "It''s a talisman. Put it on your sword to begin your training." I put the strange paper on my sword, and wave a dread runs over me. I can''t feel my connection to Hope anymore. What did this paper do to her? Is she okay? "Stop panicking your spirit is fine, the talisman temporarily breaks your connection, it''s necessary to your training. You are going to learn how to use Aspectu without your spirit, as I mentioned before mastering this skill can lead to endless possibilities. In addition, aspectu can be combined with magic to create new or more powerful spells."

    "That is kind of complex, I am having some trouble understanding the nature of Aspectu." My hand rubs the back of my nape as I attempt to figure it out.

    "Uhh, to put it simply it is an energy created from your desires to fulfil them. Enough talk, it is time to start training! Focus on your sword until you are able to use Aspectu without your spirit." I head over to a nearby tree to begin my training, I focus on the centre of my sword and try to create the energy that I had fought with during my time with Hope. I am focusing extremely hard, but nothing is happening! This is the vaguest training ever, I have no clue how I am supposed to unlock this power. This is going to take more effort than I first thought, I assumed all things in this world were easy to learn because of the levelling system, but I now find myself sorely mistaken.Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    I continue to focus for the next two hours, there must be a trick to this, something I''m missing. I think back to the first time I used this power, I was about to die and greatly wanted to kill the beast in front of me.

    A spark of light shoots off of the sword... I am on to something! Wait, why did I want to kill the beast? Was it fear of death? No, that is not me, I fought with all my might because I wanted to win, I want to accomplish my lifelong goal.

    I feel it, Aspectu is running through my body... It''s quite faint compared to when I use it with Hope, but it is definitely there, finally some progress. I focus on my goals and begin to amass more Aspectu at a slow rate, in time I gain enough energy to use an attack. My eyes open and I smirk.

    I compress the mass of aspectu and surround the edge of my sword with it. I swing my sword at a nearby tree and completely slice through it.

    "That is some impressive power, but it took you way too long to amass it. Let''s call it a day. You can stay at my house nearby while you are training." He leads me to his home where I am treated with a meal and a warm bed.

    I collapse on the bed, my body aches from all the Aspectu I had running through it. Falling asleep, huh... Just an everyday thing is hard to do... My mind is plagued with thoughts of all the cool attacks that I could create. The only problem with having a bunch flashy attacks is that I would have to come up with equally flashy attack names, that could be a real pain down the road. After some more pointless though I fall asleep.

    Jax wakes me up in the morning and treats me to a heavy breakfast.

    "Today for training you are going to practice channelling aspectu through your body instead of your sword. Practicing this will help you to gain more control of aspectu and help you learn to apply it to other areas like magic." I sit down in a meditative pose and begin to create a flow of aspectu throughout my body, the flow is still weak, but it is improving. Before I know it, the sun has set.

    "What am going to be practising tomorrow?" I ask.

    "The same thing, in fact, you are going to be practising for a week straight." I gulp but nod. As promised I spend the next week, regulating the flow of Aspectu in my body, I have a pretty good grasp of it now, I can completely control how much flows and to wear.

    "I think you are ready to take the next step, mixing your magic with aspectu to change its form. It''s very dangerous to do without proper training, so these last two weeks are going to be focused on this concept." I spend the next two weeks personally under Jax''s close instruction on how to mix magic with Aspectu.

    During this time, I was able to accomplish many things, I am now able to improve the strength of my own magic by adding Aspectu to them and secondly I have created three original spells using Aspectu, they are basics of magic I''ve already learned.

    But I do wonder... Is really enough to beat Theresa and rescue Tiw?

 Chapter 11: Face Off

    I''m almost out of time before, they can remove Tiw''s pact I need to head to the church of shadow. I''ve heard from Ifoik that the church of shadow is the only location that Theresa could possibly remove Tiw''s pact, it is apparently a large black building on the south side of town. I prepare to exit Jax''s home but am stopped at the doorway.

    "Aren''t you forgetting something?" Huh?

    "What could I be forgetting? I am about to go into a life or death battle, you know." I question him. He walks over to me and rips off the talisman on the blade of my sword. Oh yeah, I was so focused on the upcoming battle that I completely forgot about Hope.

    "FINALLY I AM FREE!" She yelled. I feel so bad.

    "Good to have you back at my side Hope," I said smiling lightly.

    "Master, how could you do this to me, it is quite terrible being under a seal for so long." Yeah yeah. I know.

    "Sorry, it was necessary for my training, I promise that I will not seal you away again."

    "You better not! I am angry about this!" Okay, mom!

    "Sorry to interrupt, but I thought it would be important to inform you that will Hope on your side you can build up Aspectu almost twice as fast as you could during training. Keep that in mind. Also, take this it is a personal gift from me." Jax toses me a small badge shaped object. I catch it and inspect the object it has a gold outline with a symbol of a sword in it. "You put it on your sword, right now it will be useless to you but, in time it will be pretty valuable." I don''t have time to ask what he means by this. I exit his house and head straight toward town. Once I arrive, I waste no time heading to the south part of town where I, eventually, find a large black building, this must be it. I approach the door and am stopped by a scene of fear.

    No, I can not give in, I need to save my friend. I will my myself forward into the sinister building. The inside of the building is better decorated than I thought, black banners with complex patterns are draped across the walls. Across from my lies the main altar with Tiw laying on it, surrounded by robed figures.

    One of them notices me and heads toward me. I draw my sword and prepare for the battle that is able to unfold. The figure pulls off her robe, it is none other than Theresa!Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.

    "I never expected you to actually show up; I thought all members of Ifoik were extremely selfish and evil. You have the potential kid. How about this? I will cut a deal with you. You will fight me one on one, if you win we will release your ally and never attack you again, but if you lose, you must relinquish your contact with Ifoik and join our faith instead." Damn this bitch!

    "I will take that deal, you are going down! I am much strongest than before!" I declare. Who cares about my safety?! Tiw is top priority!

    "Ha, I would like to see you try and hit me." I charge at her armed with my spirit sword. "The same move as last time I see. Do you really think that this can defeat me?" She begins chanting and the same purple rune as before appears below my feet. This is what I have been preparing for! I channel my Aspectu as I begin to cast one of my brand new spells.

    "Bind Spirit." Chains rise from the ground and wrap around her sword, at the same time the rune beneath me disappears. My new spell Bind Spirit combines the spell Bind Monster with the principals of the talisman Jax gave me to seal off her connection to her spirit. Theresa looks surprised at first but soon regains her composure.

    "I guess you have improved, but this is still not enough." She lunges at me, her blows raining down on me, this is bad I can tell that her swordsmanship is far superior to mine. I cannot win is straight in the battle like this. I leap back to gain some distance from her.

    "Hope, let''s go!" I yell.

    "On it!" Hope and I both begin to build up Aspectu at the same time, I can feel the energy begin to well up inside of my body. My next attack with taking some time to charge up. Hopefully, I can hold off Theresa longer enough.

    "I know you are plotting something do not think I will let you do as you please!" Crap, she''s onto me! She leaps toward me and swings her blade at my head, I barely manage to block. This blow was much more powerful and faster than before; could she have been holding back before? No, I can detect a faint energy leaking from her sword, she must be using Aspectu to strengthen her attacks. Shit! I continue to block attack after attack but my arms are in great pain from the shockwaves created from Theresa''s blows. I can barely keep them still.

    How can I buy time? Magic seems like my only option, I wanted to save this spell for later in the fight due to the risk, but Theresa''s power leaves me no choice.

    "Bind Space." Bind space is a spell I created based on Theresa''s rune, it allows me to take control of the space around me, unfortunately for me whatever I do to the space around me also affects me. I have increased the gravity around me greatly so neither Theresa nor I can move an inch.

    "This accomplishes nothing!" Oh no... Theresa''s releasing a massive amount of Aspectu into the air, this amount of energy could possibly dismantle my spell. Slowly by surely, I feel the force upon my body lesson.

    "Ready!" Theresa finally manages to move and lunges at me for a killing blow, but it is too late. I whisper my attack to myself.

    "Ultima Blade."

 Chapter 12: Trap

    My Aspectu began to shift colors, it faded from blue to complete white, the color reminded me of the landscapes in Hope''s world. In addition, the metal on my blade temperature is dramatically increasing. I will be in trouble if I hold onto this mysterious white energy any longer. I release the energy and direct it toward Theresa The Aspectu is focused in a much smaller area unlike, the unfocused mass I launched at her last time. My final attack races at her with terrifying speed, this has to end it.

    "Final Wall." Theresa is trying to intercept my Aspectu with a dense barrier, I can''t tell exactly what it is, but it appears to be a mixture of magic and Aspectu. Will my attack be able to break through this barrier? I will have to fight Theresa completely drained if she can stand up to my final attack. Eventually, my attack reaches her barrier, sparkes are spent flying from the initial impact. Yes!

    Her barrier is beginning to falter, I can see cracks forming along the sides of it. My confidence began to fade as the cracks disappeared, Theresa must be continuously strengthening her barrier using magic! Oh no, slowly yet surely my attack begins to shrink, it is not going to last much longer! How could my strongest attack fail...?Whatever, I not giving up until my last breath, I will save Tiw! The once overwhelming Aspectu finally has dispersed into nothing. I glace at Theresa, using all that magic to defend has clearly taken a toll on her mind, she can barely stand up straight. I still have a chance to win this fight, I will free Tiw no matter what. I charge in for the finishing blow at full speed but, am suddenly held back by two of the hooded figures from before.

    "What is the meaning of this? I was about to defeat you fair and square! Why are your friends stopping me?" I grit my teeth.

    "Ha! Even if you managed to defeat me did you really think that I would uphold my side of the deal? You are too young allow me to teach you how harsh this world really is!" My anger turned into a smirk.

    "Oh, so finally reveal you''re true colors! I never that whole noble protector thing had to be an act." I try to break free from the grasp of the two hooded figure, but I do not have the strength left, I fear that both my magic and Aspectu are too low to do anything monumental. I am not giving up so easily though, I continue with all my might to struggle against them, I do not know if I will be able o break their grasp like this, but it is better than doing nothing!

    Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.

    "Now it is time to begin the ritual to remove to his connect to Ifoik." An explosive amount of magic is released as a huge rune form in front of Tiw. The massive shockwaves from the run seem to even surprise my captures. This is my chance! I break the grip of the two hooded figures and sprint toward Tiw. I will save him! I step onto the main altar preparing to finish off Theresa.

    "Ha, you fool you have fallen into our trap! This rune was not meant for Tiw- it was meant to end your life in the most painful way possible! Your lack of magic knowledge is outsounding, I mean even an average mage can tell this rune is clearly not for removing pacts." ... Bitch.

    "What?" The rune begins to light up shrinking until I am the only one in the circle''s circumference. I try to escape, but I am unable to pass through light around me. I tried slicing it, punching, and kicking the light. Nothing happens. I cannot escape. How could I have fallen for such an obvious ploy? My hotheaded decision to charge in recklessly is going to cost me my life. Ifoik is totally right about me, my recklessness and rash decision are a huge weakness of mine. I could believe that now of all times this is coming to haunt me. Why did it have to be when someone else''s life was at stake? I feel terrible I promised to save Tiw, but I have failed him some hero I am.

    "It is all over for you!" The light around me rapidly expands and flashes blinding me. When I open my eyes I the scenery had completely changed, I am surrounded by blue and clouds? Huh, why I am seeing clouds is this the sky? I look to find my answer, I am falling at an incredible pace. If I do not slow do there is a strong chance I will die! I channel the rest of my magic into one last spell. Through the power of friendship!!

    "Bind Space." Yes, I managed to decrease the gravity of the space around me to fall my fall, my descend slows to crawl and I land on the ground safely. I collapse upon accomplishing my feat, what this my body feels heavy and my vision is beginning to blur. This must be what Ifoik warned me about me about magic drains away my mental strength. Crap, I am about to pass out in an unknown land this cannot turn out good for me. My vision completely fades to black.

    "Is that a body over there?"

    "Yeah, I think that it is!"

    "Check it out he is still breathing, should we help him?"

    "Yeah, he looks strong we could use him to further our goals."

 Chapter 13: How I Enlisted in the Army

    I woke extremely startled, but awesome I am still alive! Unfortunately, the fact that I am alive is the only thing I can really confirm, I have no idea where I am or how I got here. My hands are bound to a heavy object and I am blindfolded. In addition, I cannot detect Hope and my sword is missing. I do not think the people who kidnapped me are with Theresa based on the fact that I am still alive.

    "Hello, is anyone there?" I called out, hoping there was.

    "Oh, you woke up faster than I expected, to regain your mental strength that quickly. My hunch was right you are talented." An unknown voice replied. From the deep raspy voice I could tell that he was a man, but I still unable to pinpoint an age on him. I should probably question him about my situation.

    "Who are you and why am I here?"

    "For now you can call me Dues, I am an ex-knight and I want you to help me achieve my noble cause." Noble cause? Ex-knight?

    "An ex-knight achieving a noble cause? But isn''t that kinda contradictory?" Honestly.

    "I am an ex-knight only in name, I lost my title after I decided to rebel against the evil king. I want you to join my army to fight against him if you do so I can promise you titles and land in my new government." Wait, evil king?! I mean... I would but...

    "I appreciate the offer, but I have people I need save and I am bound to a goddess in my hometown. I was teleported here in an attempt to end my life." And I still can''t believe that bitch.

    "I see where are from, I can at least point you in the right direction." That''s strange. Just a second ago Dues seemed really passionate about recruiting me, but when I refused him he did not really seem to care. Did he give up? No, has to know something I do not.

    "It is a town called Ume, I doubt you have ever heard of it though." Mainly because of how small it is... I guess...?

    "I have heard it, unfortunately for you that place is on the other side of the world, it would take about 5 no 6 years worth oftravellingto reach your home. Only if there was some way to reach your home sooner." Okay, that is suspicious.This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    "What? Do you really have a way to send me back?"

    "Maybe, Maybe not." Damn, he is totally trying to play me right now, I will just have to use force to get answers out of Dues. although I cannot move I can still use magic against him.

    "Bind Will." What? I used the spell, but nothing happened my magic did not activate.

    "I thought you might attack me so, the cuffs that bind your hands together cut off your flow of magic, rendering it useless. Listen to what I have to say, I can offer you a deal that can benefit both of us. How about this, I am quite skilled in teleportation magic, but your home is too far away for me to send you back without help. I could do it with the assistance of my brother, but he is locked up in the royal capital. If the rebellion is successful he can be freed, and we can send you back home. How does that seem?" It is a good offer, in theory, there is a chance that he is lying about the distance between here and my town. I should go along with it for now since he may be my only way to get home, plus defeating an evil king sounds like something a hero would do. Forgive me Tiw, it will take me some time before I am able to save you.

    "It seems like my only choice is to say yes, so I will fight alongside your army." He removes off the blindfold and cuffs. I finally get a good look at his face. His face is very rough and he has a scar that runs down the left side of his face, he''s dressed in black and kinda of reminds me of Jax. I can also see the room I am being held captive in, it is composed of a table and a few chairs. The only way out seems to a staircase that leads up.

    "You can have this back as well." He tosses me my sword, I catch it and hear a familiar voice echo throughout my head.

    "Master, I thought you were a goner. I am glad you are safe!" Hope yelled.

    "Now that you have joined my army you have to look the part. I got a gift for you while you were sleeping, here catch." He hands me a set of clothes. I examine them, they are completely black with three white stripes on the top left. On the top right there are three golden stars surrounding a whale.

    "What does the whale mean?"

    "In this country, the whale is a symbol of the king," meaning he''s fat? "the three stars mean that it is our fate to overthrow the king." That is deeper than I thought, I should write this down somewhere for future use. I tell Dues to toward around while I change into my new set of clothes. After I put on the full outfit, Dues approaches me.

    "You can view the outfit in a mirror I have upstairs." I comply and head upstairs to find a full-length mirror in the corner of the room. I look as good as always.

    "Like what you see? You are now an official member of the rebellion wear your uniform with pride. Unfortunately, you will not have time to break it in." Enough time?

    "Why''s that?" I question, pure curiosity lacing every word.

    "Your first mission begins in 2 hours."

 Chapter 14: My First Mission

    "What do you mean two hours? That is completely insane. For someone like me who has no experience working with a team or completing a mission, I would only hinder mission." The complaint just naturally came out of my mouth. It''s whiny but true.

    "Don''t worry about any of that I picked this task out for you with all that in mind. Your first mission only requires two people, but it is still integral to the success of the rebellion. You will head to the grassland ten miles north and hunt three-tailed foxes native to the area, bring back the remains of at least ten of them back to this base; be careful though they are fast and dangerous." Dues handes me a map with the location marked red.

    "I see... But am I suited for a job like this, are the foxes a danger to the local people?" My time turned serious. I will gladly kill them if they are a threat.

    "No, they just taste really good. I want to give the army members a special treat for there efforts." This comment catches me completely off guard, I almost completely lose my composure and shout "are you kidding me." What a lame first mission when he said this was integral I thought he meant something more dramatic like saving a princess or even slaying a demon, what a letdown! My disappointment must be showing on my face because Dues quickly changes the subject.

    "You can meet your partner, come on Hadriana." The lady, who walks in, definitely has the "military look," she has short brown hair and a brown eye, the other one has covered a red eye patch with a golden cross on it. She is sporting an outfit similar to one Dues gave me, it must be the female version. In addition, she has a huge backpack slung over her shoulders, I wonder how she can handle all the weight. She speaks in a tone just as stern as her appearance.

    "My army name is Hadriana, I will be supporting you in your journey to retrieve provisions for the army." I don''t know if I can handle her type, I mean other than Tie I really have not gotten along with anyone. She probably only sees this as a mission that must be completed so, there is a strong chance all my fears will never transpire.

    "Be ready to leave in ten minutes." What-- ten minutes!? What happens to the two hours he gave to me to prepare before? I rush to grab all my belongings and sling my sword across my back.If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

    "Hmm, you are quite slow at getting prepared." I ignore that insult, I do not want to lose her favour.

    "Oh wow, no response looks like you do not have a backbone either." I grit my teeth these comments are starting to get a bit annoying-- j-just slightly. Totally not pissed off AT ALL. Why is she this rude to a person she just met?! God, it is unbelievable!

    "Now, now Hadriana you should treat our new member with respect, he will have an important role to play in the rebellion." After Dues'' words, we depart for the grassland. Throughout the journey I tried to engage in some small talk with her but, I shut down every time. She refuses to give me any information about herself and only talks to me about the mission, I doubt that I am going to be able to trust a person like this. The tumultuous journey finally ends when Hadriana shots the grassland off in the distance. I bend down to hide among the grass while surveying the area.

    In time I spot my first target a three-tailed fox. I wonder what they taste like, Due claimed they tasted amazing but, he could just be blowing smoke. I will just end up disappointed if I take anything Dues says at face value. I slowly approach the animal with caution, I have no way to tell how capable this beast really is. When I get within five feet of it, all three of its tails perk up, it must have noticed me.

    I draw a sword and ready myself for battle. I swing my sword with a quick overhead attack at the fox, but it avoids by a sight margin. Hmm, it looks like direct attacks are not going to work too well. Use the same attack again and fox avoids it by jumps to the side, this is what I have been waiting for! To throw the fox off balance I go for a kick to the side, in midair the fox rolls over my leg completely avoiding the strike. Then something surprising happens the fox begins to build up lightning around its body, the wait is this a form of magic? I tense up my guard in anticipation for whats to come. The fox charges at me and then suddenly vanishes. I did not realize where it went until I felt a bolt of electricity strike my back. It burned a little bit but, the pain was lower than I thought it would be. This fox''s speed is a serious problem for me I need a way to deal it, maybe Hadriana can help me out. Wait why hasn''t she been helping me at throughout this fight, I clearly need some aid in this battle.I decide to call out to her for some much need help.

    "Hey, Hadriana can you help me out I am having some trouble in this battle? Do you have a way to bind movement or slow this fox down?" Our eyes met before she closed hers and turned away.

    "I will not help you, you need to win this battle on your own if you want to earn your place in the army." I. Don''t. Want. To. Join. The. Army.

    "What? Aren''t we a team here? We should work together to accomplish our mission." I hold back my anger in fear she''ll leave me to die.

    "You really are slow, don''t you get it, this is not a mission it is a test to measure your abilities." ... What?!

 Chapter 15: Success?

    Dang, this army has a pretty rough entry exam, I could very well end up dead on my first mission. If I were on the verge of death would Hadriana help me or not? I feel like the chances of her helping me are slim, she must be thinking that is I cannot overcome this task, I am too weak to join the army anyway. Looks like I need to take this battle a little bit more seriously. I calm my breathing and analyze the situation, the fox''s aeration magic is too fast for me to see with my eyes so I need to away to seal off its movements. Binding magic will not work since the foxes, base speed is too quick to get hit by it. Hmm, maybe I can figure something out through more combat may be a weakness to expose. I charge at the fox swinging in a series of quick swing but, nothing in connecting. I try to catch it off guard.

    "Bind Monster." The chains rise from the ground and soar toward the fox but, as I first expected it dodges all of them. Oh no, it jumped backwards and is beginning to charging up its magic again, I need to stop the spell before it is completed. I rush in, to interfere with the spell but, I know it is too late when lightning flashes and the foxes body begin to disappear. I might not be able to avoid the foxes strike but, I can limit the damage. "Bind Space." The gravity around me increased to heaviest I could conjure. The Fox was clearly not expecting this attack as its body slam into the ground behind me unable to move. This is an opportunity, the gravity is so crushing I can barely move, I cast my sword aside to reduce my weight and slowly inch my way toward the unmoving fox. I grab all three of its tails and release the spell. The fox regains movement but, is unable to escape my iron grip. Utilizing all my strength, I slam the foxes body into the ground rapidly until it is completely unconscious. Ooh. So gruesome. I totally care. I do! Not.

    "That is an interesting way to defeat it. Most people just set traps to hind its movement but, you used magic to face it head-on." A certain annoyingly familiar voice said.

    "That''s just how I roll." I speak, attempting to sound ''cool''. That worked out just peachy! A sigh resonates in my mind. I''m such a loser.

    "Traps are much easier to use and use less energy but, if that is how you operate I guess I will not stop you." She tips me.Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.

    "By the way do you guys mind if I absorb the core?" Well, I don''t want to come off as ill-mannered or rude. So I have to ask.

    "It is fine as long as you be careful not to damage the meat as you remove it." Hadrania warns me. Finally some good news, now I know that I can gain something personally from this so-called mission. I gentle cut into its body to retrieve the core. I absorb it, for such a hard fought battle it did not yield as much experience as I was hoping for. I wonder how the system of this world works, such knowledge would make hunting monster for levels far more efficient.

    "Are you just going there lost in thought? I have already prepared the rest of the fox to take back, and you still need to hunt down the rest of them." Crap, I was so focused on the battle that I forgot that I need to kill like two more! I believe that enough magic to pull through but, it will be close. I spend another twenty minutes hiding in a tree of the forest, I learned from my past experiences a trap is much better suited than head-on combat.

    I have spent the last twenty minutes doing nothing I have been using my Aspectu to spread my bind monster spell across a large area, even with its insane speed it cannot escape the huge range my spell encompasses. I smugly active my trap when an unfortunate fox traverses into my zone.

    "Bind Monster." Golden chains rise from the ground they were like a torrent raining down upon the fox. The fox tried to avoid it but, in time chains began to wrap around its limbs. Plan successful. I walk toward the pinned fox sword in hand and swing down claiming its head. Sweet only more left, I can complete my first mission!

    "Nicely done, looks like you took my advice to heart, can you pull off such a grand spell twice though?" Hadrania taunted me as I grin.

    "You bet!" The next fox capture went just as smooth, my first mission is complete I can finally head home for some sleep and ate this fox.

    Hadrania and I head back to home base. When we finally arrive it is already dark outside, we are greeted by Dues upon entering. I notice surrounding Dues on the main floor table there are around five men all wearing fancy uniforms, they must be the leaders of the rebellion.

    "Was the mission a success?" Hadrania hands over a bag and Dues smiles.

    "Nice work Fayiz, I had faith in you. There is another base five miles south that is where you can sleep tonight. You will also find your new captain and team there."

    "What? I thought I was going to be working under you."

    "You can if you prove yourself useful in the future."

    He points to a location on the map and tells me I should leave before it gets too dark. I exit a bit indignant. What the heck is wrong with Dues! After all my hard work I do not get to even try the fox, instead, I have to walk another five miles to just get a place to sleep. This Army sure has a strange leader.

 Chapter 16: New Base

    Night approached faster than I expected, I am nearing the base, but visibility has greatly decreased, I can barely see the path. I fear that I might get lost in the forest. Too bad flashlights do not exist in this world because it could solve my dilemma in an instant. I wonder if in this world they have like torches or something, I have a fair grasp of this worlds level of technology, but more populous towns could contain better technology maybe Dues could explain this to me.

    "Ahhh." I trip over wait appears to be a branch and face plant into the ground, since my body is strong in this world it did not really hurt me, but it sure did hurt my pride. I mean a hero forced to take a knee by a mere branch talk about embarrassing. I am glad no one is around to see that shameful display.

    "You look like you could use some help." Oh, I forgot about Hope, she is always watching me, which is creepy in a way, but I am okay with that. "Here is some light." My sword begins to glow that familiar shade of blue and my surrounding become visible again. Perfect, I can tell that I see the base off in the distance.

    A few minutes pass and I finally make it to the building. It is nothing fancy just a plain looking wooden building with a few windows, the only distinguishing characteristic is the armies logo carved into the building. I reach the front door and gently open it. I am greeted by an older man staring at a map. There is a small candle in the corner of the table he''s at barely lighting up the area He has a short black hair that is beginning to grey and a sword slung over his shoulder. The sword was very oddly shaped, its curve is similar to that of the moon, I can hardly imagine it being practical actual in combat. He finally notices me surveying the area.

    "Are you the new recruit Fayiz?" Ooh! I''m popular!

    "I am, and are you, my new leader?"

    "You betcha nice to meet you, laddie, I am Deus same as the leader." Finally, I''m not treated like a nuisance! "If you do not ask to mind me asking why is someone your age joining the army?"

    "It is a long story, but to simplify it I need a favor from your leader Dues."

    "Hmm, I ask that question to every new member sent my way and out of all them, no one has replied like that. Your situation has peaked my interest you will have to expand your explanation in detail sometime." This guy sure likes to talk. I have already had quite the exhausting day without any food so, I all I want to do right now is collapse in a bed.If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    "Let me show you to your bed you must be tired." He grabs a candle and leads me to a section of bunk-beds and points to a bottom bunk on the far left side of the base.

    "That will be the new bed you can store your belongings under it. Make sure you get a good nights sleep because tomorrow you have to deal with the other four members of our squad." Dues made sure I remember. What a nice guy!

    "Thank you." I too tired to even question what he means by a deal with them. I lay my bag and sword down under my bed and change into my night clothes. I can finally rest. The bed is rough and uncomfortable but, I completely expected this. I soon drift off into a deep slumber.

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    .

    .

    "Master your in danger!" Hope''s sudden voice rouses me from my slumber, I wake on notice there is someone sitting on top of me.

    "He--." My words are cut off by hands suddenly covering my mouth.

    "Calm down would you if you scream you will wake up all the other members and that would be bad." From the voice I can tell she is a female, but who is this person I am assuming this person is another member of our squad because Hope would have alerted me if someone broke in. She slowly removes her hands from my mouth and I begin to speak my mind.

    "What are you doing, it is very late at night!"

    "I was just inspecting the new member. I am confused on how you even woke up; I know I made no sound as I infiltrated your bunk so you should still be sleeping." The girl comments. And honestly, I starting to get angry

    "That''s irrelevant, stop trying to change the subject! Why are you still on top of me? I need to sleep and I cannot do it will you being here."

    "Fine, meanie I will leave you alone for tonight." She slows got off of me and pulled herself up to the bunk above mine. Hmm... She reminds me of a certain redhead who got me attacked by a bear... Oh well!

    Darn, why did I have to get the bunk directly beneath this strange lady? Although these thoughts are quite pressing, I push them aside as I attempt to enter dreamland again.

    I am later awakened by the sunlight peeking through the window. I stretch and proceed to observe my the area around me. I was unable to get a good view of the house since it was so dark yesterday. I notice a few other sets of bunks around me, strangely they are all empty, did everyone leave or something? I continue to investigate and find a stairwell leading to an upper level of the building. I head up the stairs and I have discovered why the bunks are completely empty. I don''t know if I am cut out for this squad anymore.

    "Why did I even come here...?"

 Chapter 17: My Squad is Extraordinarily

    The scene unfolding in front of me lacked glamour that I was expecting, perhaps it was my fault for having all these preconceptions and expectations for this army. The members I am staring blankly at have enough rowdiness to rival drunkards. Directly beneath my feet, two men slightly older than me are wrestling each other knocking over pots and pans. In addition to them, I have spotted the same girl from late night getting into a heated argument.

    The only one with a trace of sincerity is John who appears to be paying no mind to chaos surrounding, whilst he intently reads in back. I am scared to approach but, my hunger gets the better of me and I approach Dues with thoughts of breakfast on my mind. I pull up a chair and sit next to him, I have some questions for him, however, I have decided issues can wait until I have eaten.

    "Hey, Dues I am kind of peckish where could I get some food around here?"

    "Just in time boy, I was playing on showing you around today. Arata usually cooks for us. He''s pretty skilled so he can get your stomach settled in an instant. Arata can you set our new member up with some grub he''s mighty hungry."

    Now that my main issue is settled I needed to start pressing Dues for information. In order to not sound rude, I decided to be indirect in my questioning.

    "So, why are those two fighting so early in the morning?" I questioned

    "Oh, don''t mind those two they are just prone to violence, them fighting is a common occurrence around these parts. I mean this group as a whole is made up of those who have been rejected by the main army but, would be a waste to not be on the resistance." Replied

    Dues

    "Wait, what?" I exclaimed

    "Oh, did Dues not inform you about what is on this squad in tails? To summarize in crude terms everyone here is a specialist with a screw loose. For example, the two fellows you saw fighting earlier is ranked highest among the armies strength and defense, but their aptitude for violence makes them hard to control and they only end up being a nuisance."

    "If everyone here has a strange quirk, in their personality then, why I am here? I mean I do not have any strange ticks in my character, in fact, I tend to act as ideal like a hero."The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    At this comment, Dues begins to chuckle, I do not know why and it agitates me a bit.

    "According to a report sent to me by Dues you have a terrible hero complex, that would possibly lead to insubordination under the armies strict rules and regulations."

    Darn, that Dues I want to be a hero, is not that an ideal trait for a warrior I do not understand why he sees my determination as a deterrent in the army.

    "Being put here is not a completely bad thing, it is proof that you are very talented and to top it off members here have a lot more freedom than other squads. Personally, I think that you will make a great addition to the squad. You might not acknowledge the other member currently yet, one day you will come to see them as your loyal comrades I promise you that, so I all I ask you to give them all a chance."

    With that statement, I am struck speechless, I just do not know how to respond. I want to express my own doubts and issues with John''s requests yet, I refrain because I can only sense kindness stemming from his words. I need some air, I need to focus this situation as a whole is a bit too much for me to take in all at once.

    Before I can rise without a word Arata drops down a hefty meal on the table, I inhale all of it without a second thought, it was delicious I did not recognize the meat but, I am assuming the white substance paired with it is milk due to the familiar taste. It was a great meal, I definitely need to thank the chef for his efforts later.

    "You must have really enjoyed his cooking to have engulfed it that quickly laddie. Today we do not really have any duties so you should go socialize with your new comrades, you will be fighting with them soon, it is nice to know who is covering your back."

    I understand Dues'' intent and plan to follow through with it in time in spite of that, I still cannot adjust to this new lifestyle and just need some time to go collect myself. I head toward the door and on my way out I hear one more comment from John.

    "There is a training ground out back if are up for it, keeping in good physical shape is important as well."

    I wave and exit the building, the fresh breeze feels nice as it runs across my face. Training sounds like a pretty swell idea to me, getting stronger is integral to accomplishing my goal. I head around back to examine the training grounds, it fairly standardˇŞwooden swords, training dummies, weighs, a small arena. The only thing that seems to be out of place is a funky looking device, I wonder how it is even, used. It has a gauge with numbers labeled on the side a metal pole attached to the pole, it looks interesting but, I should fiddle with something a do not know how to use.

    "It''s for practicing magic, you just put your hand on the pole and the gauge will tell you the strength of your magic, it absorbs it." An unknown voice sounds behind me.

    I turn around to see one of the guys wrestling on the floor before standing right in front of me.

    "Hey, new kid I want to see what you''re made of let''s have a duel."

 Chapter 18: A Not So Friendly Match

    "I guess I should introduce myself first, I am Sir Hans the destroyer, but since we are on the same squad I will allow you to call me Sir Han."

    Such a haughty attitude, everyone in this squad is supposed to be considered equally, yet the fool standing before me is trampling on our dynamic. Is it because he sees me as a newbie, or does he just act this way in front of everyone? Either way, he could stand to be knocked down a few pegs. I gleefully accept his provocation.

    "At least, the newbies not a coward. Before the match begins since I am such a nice senior I will give you a word of advice. My strong suit is defense so, you will never be able to even scratch me unless you fight seriously."

    He''s overconfidence annoys me, I definitely cannot afford to back down now.

    "We will see about that, I pack a pretty nasty punch and those on the receiving end do not fair too well," I replied

    I jump backward and draw my sword; my adversary, in turn, gets into a fight stance without wielding any sort of weapon. He must be really underestimating me to fight bare handed.

    My emotions get the better of me and I rush in an attempt to damage both him and his overblown ego. I aim my sword directly at his arm; he might be rude but, he is still a member of my squad killing him because he was a bit smug probably is not a valid excuse. A second later I learned that his words were not empty. I was expecting to leave a deep gash in his arm to teach him a lesson, however, when the blade collided with his bare skin it bounced off.

    Unfazed by my sword he began to build up Aspectu in his right hand. I sense danger and jump back to get out the range of his fist. Even though I am three  feet away he still punches forward, a gust of wind extends from his fist running along my face causing a steady flow of blood to form.

    "That was a warning shot, give it your all or face death, we do not need weaklings."Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.

    This guy is certainly no pushover. I will need to start fighting seriously to prove my worth. I signal to Hope it is time to use my newest ability "Prefect Perception" by channeling my Aspectu into my brain then connecting it with all the mana that naturally flows throughout my body I can sharpen my senses and increase my strength. Normally, connecting the flow of mana in my body with my brain during battle would be impossible to do due to the concentration needed but, I got a little angel helping me out.

    With my senses raised to their limits my ability to detect Aspectu has also risen greatly allowing me to notice Han''s true power. He is wrapping Aspectu around every part of his body to ward off incoming attacks. The distribution of Aspectu was so evenly spaced across his body that I failed to notice it before. Now that his trick is revealed I might actually have a chance.

    "It is time for me to break that set of armor."

    I activate Kinetic Strike to quickly close the distance between us, his shock from my sudden movement was evident on his face, he threw his arms in front of his body in an effort to block my attack. My sword slices down upon him, he winces in pain and creates a gust of wind to blow me away from him.

    Hmm, only a bruise is visible on his body he must have focused his Aspectu around his arms to block the attack. Something is strange though, he clearly is in more pain than the wound lets on. With my accelerated thinking, I put the pieces together, he might be able to stop my sword but, he cannot negate the shock created, his bones ought to be damaged from my attack.

    "Hmm, you are better than I originally thought, I give you that. However, you are still nowhere near me. Soul of the Beast!"

    At this moment I felt fear, his Aspectu spiked and took a new form. It is giving me a headache just to read it. Heck, now I do not need to even attempt to read it because the Aspectu is visible. It is glowing a sharp shade of red, straggling the nearby scenery.

    This why I am so scared, normally when my Aspectu is visible it is only after charging up a huge attack yet, he managed to pull off in a few seconds. I knew this could spell out doom for me in order to lower damage until I get a better understanding of his attacks. I used my gravity magic to increase the gravity to increase it to the maximum possible. For me, that is around x100 times normal gravity. My body is crying out in pain from the sheer pressure, I can only bare the pain for only one more minute at most. I struggle to lift my head but, when I finally do I am met by a fearful sight, Hans is charging toward me.

 Chapter 19: The Power That Lies Ahead

    He closes the distance between us an incredible pace despite the crushing gravity surrounding him. How can this army be struggling with members this powerful, I cannot comprehend why they even need me to fight. Accepting my fate I throw my hands in defeat, I will lose my life if this battle drags on any longer.  Hans recognizes my surrender and the ungodly energy surrounding his clears up.

    "Finally, noticed the clear difference between us? You have talent and creativity which, is important for developing your strength, however, two critical aspects set our strengths apart."

    Hmm, this is the first time Hans has used a serious tone with me, could this whole bout be an attempt to make me realize my own weakness. I am now curious, getting stronger only sounds like a plus to me.

    "And what are those critical aspects?"

    "I have been fighting and training for 10 years, what could have gained in that time that cannot be gained through talent alone?"

    "Oh come on! Can you just tell me what I am lacking? Riddles are for kids."

    "Fine, I was looking forward to giving an important life lesson to a student but, your temperament has completely doused my hopes.  What you lack is skills and mastery, from what I saw in our battle you only have gotten one skill from killing monsters and have low mastery in it."

    "How does having lots of skills make a difference if you just get a few strong skills can''t you achieve the same effects?"

    Hans stares blankly at me after this comment.  Although I have limited knowledge of this world, I cannot see how my statement is incorrect.

    "You really don''t know anything, do you? Fine, to help you understand I will explain the basic principle behind my skill that had you quivering in fear. I am able to suddenly generate so much power by combining twenty different skills."

    "What! That is possible? I never even thought to do that."

    "Yeah, it can be done and yields some awesome effects but it takes time to master the art. First of all the link skills together you need complete mastery of the skills you want to combine. Then you need to practice using a phrase to activate them all at once, the more skills the more difficult this step is. "Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators!

    "That is actually a lot more simple than I expected. I cannot wait to try out this new method."

    "Sorry to rain on your parade but, actually creating new skills requires a variety of skills to experiment will and you only have one."

    Darn, he is right I need to fight a lot more monsters to increase my strength in ways other than leveling. Speaking of leveling I have not checked my level recently. I pull up my status box to see that I have risen to level 40. What''s strange is that there is new slot flashing with the words class unselected. Ifoik never told me there was a class system in this world. Dues seems like a pretty intelligent guy I should ask him for advice on the matter sometime. Speaking of the devil Dues is running towards us right now, he looks a bit worried.

    "What in god''s name are two doing out here? I could hear the crashing noises from the house."

    "I was just having a friendly match with the noobie to test his abilities."

    "That is a total lie, you and I both know his abilities have been thoroughly tested by the higher-ups you just wanted to flaunt your strength. And you, Fayiz you are not innocent either getting provoked so easily. You both need to be in battle ready condition at all times, missions can arise when you least expect it."

    I remain silent I do not have a retort because he is correct, what I did was completely irresponsible and I want to have favor with Dues. After all, I need to get information and he currently is the best one to get it from.  I head back to the base with Dues and Hans. When we finally arrive the base is as lively as ever. I call Dues off to a corner of the room to speak to him in private.

    "What''s up boy?"

    "I have a strange message on my status board, about choosing a class. I am very confused on how the whole system works and you are only one I can turn to for help."

    "Didn''t nobody ever teach ye about the class system, it is basic knowledge around these parts."

    "Sadly, I am not from around these parts so my knowledge is more limited than you can imagine."

    "Everyone here has a class; not having a class is a weakness as classes increase your capability and skills. Get some supplies around we are going away for a few days on a journey to steal a class stone for you."

    "Huh, why do we need to steal it? I thought it would be easy to get since everyone has a class."

    "Normal, it is sold widely but, the Royals have taken control of the mines where the ore needed to produce a class stone are mined. They do not let class stones are only handed out to their army. We do not currently have enough troops to take back the mines, therefore, the only way for us to get a stone is to steal it."

    "Okay, I get it but, where are we heading?"

    "A Royals Mansion."

 Chapter 20: Im the Decoy?!

    "A mansion? Wouldn''t a place like that be heavily guarded, two people seems a like bit under-staffed for this mission."

    "More people would just end up attracting more attention, don''t sweat it, boy, this old man got a plan that will probably work."

    I am beginning to worry about my safety the word "probably" only deepens my fear but, I can only get excited when the thoughts of heroicly storming a castle flood my brain. I do not have much gear, to begin with, so I pack only the bare minimum of supplies. Dues is pretty experienced so he should be able to deal with any problems that arise, right?

    I spot Dues outside the base making some preparations for our journey, I also take note of the transportation he has arranged for us: two horse with a small carriage attached to the back. Well, we are acting as thieves it is best to blend in, a grander mode of transportation would definitely warrant suspicion. Dues spots me and calls out to me.

    "Boy, you finally ready? Hop on already we ain''t got all day."

    I approach the carriage and get on with Dues. the inside of the carriage is actually pretty cramped, so I will be smacked up against Dues for this whole trip, hopefully, this mansion is not too far out. Dues kills that dream, unfortunately.

    "The journey will take three days during the night we will set up camp and rest before traveling again be prepared for hours of boredom boy."

    Three days?! That sounds like it going to be such a pain this carriage is way too uncomfortable to even sleep in. Eventually, despite my constant moaning and preference for death I managed to survive the journey, nothing noteworthy even happened. I was so bored that I prayed that something interesting would happen like getting attacked by monsters or bandits. My prayer went unanswered perhaps because I have the laziest god ever.

    Dues hoped out of the carriage and started stretching. He ties the horse down to a nearby tree and castes some sort of magic that covers their whole bodies.

    "We will proceed the rest of the way on foot, the horse could get scared off by the battle that''s about to unfold."This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    "What do you mean by battle? I thought we were sneaking into the castle to steal the stone."

    "You are only half-right I am sneaking into the castle to steal a few stones meanwhile you are attacking the guards to cause a distraction."

    Being the decoy, how lame! I will play the role, for now, however, I will not forget this. It seems even Dues isn''t above tricking me.

    I step over and join him down below. We walk together toward a town which, Dues has informed me is completely controlled by the Royals. When we step through the town I feel a strange pressure run through my body. It feels like the pressure is trying to weigh me down however, it is not strong enough to stop my movements only hinder them. None of the townsfolk seem to be affected am I under attack?

    "What you are feeling right now is the main reason the Royals are still in power, the four their four highest knights by combining over 500 skills are able to create a gravity field that affects all who bear malice toward the Queen, since a normal soldier would be crushed by the pressure we are unable to invade a lot of their important cities, however, to our advantage the constant shield has made their defense inside the barrier lax. The mansion is deeper in the city, we will be invading in one hour. You will attack the front and distract as many guards as possible after I have succeeded in taking the stones I will meet up with you and aid in your escape."

    "That plan sounds especially dangerous for me you know."

    "You will be fine, I made this plan so there is no way it could fail."

    An hour passes and I prepare for the battle by equipping the only sword I got, good old Hope.

    "That''s rude master I am not that much older than you," Hope''s voice echoes in my head. Oh, I forgot she could read my thoughts I will have to be a bit more careful from now on. I depart and head directly toward the front of the mansion it is less grand than I would expect from a Royal, this Royal must be from a lesser family or something.

    The mansion is painted white with frilly gold leaf designs around the sides. In the front yard lies a slightly larger than life statue of a man who I am assuming is the owner of the estate. I can only imagine the look on his ugly mug once we pull this off. Surrounding the mansion is a large black fence with several guards patrolling the perimeter. Well, Dues wants me to create a distract so bigger is better right? I hide myself behind a tree think of a way to draw all of their attention at once.

    "Hope we are using the Ultima Blade"

    I begin to amass energy, after a few minutes it is finally ready. My target is the front gate destroying it certainly should attarct them all to me. I releasing the energy toward the gate and expodes with a satisfying boom. Mission accomplished wait, not yet I still have to fight the army of guards running toward me with hate and rage in their eyes.

 Chapter: 21

    From the beginning, this whole plan was a mess, challenging a group of individuals with unknown skills sets without a means of escape, what was I thinking. Well, dwelling on the past is pointless whats done is done.

    I ready myself toward the mob of guards bearing down on me. From the first glace, I spot 10 no 12 guards approaching me. All of them are heavily armored with a wide array of deadly weapons at their disposal. The front 6 are armed with nasty spike maces while 4 others are going while the classic sword and shield build. The last 2 are wielding staffs, I notice a cross insignia on their armor, they must be mages contracted with a god. Long-ranged magic is very useful in group combat so I''ll have to be on guard for the time being. A mace-man steps forward raising a flag of the royals, he must be like the captain or something.

    "For the crime of damaging the great Bais mansion, I sentence you to death, your soul may find peace in the afterlife if you repent of your actions before your execution."

    His voice was powerful and proud, definitely the mark of a strong man, however, a hero always manages to get stronger after a match with a strong opponent, so I cannot help but, get excited. I guess I failed to hide my excitement as an evil smile breaks out across my face, oops it is bad to break character.

    I signal Hope and activate perfect perception to sharpen my reflexes and thus the battle begins. The captain charges at me with his huge maces with the others follow suit, I dodge his first strike and swing my sword at his body it only manages to scratch his armor, I jump back to gain some distance, however, before I land earth rises up out of the ground heading straight toward my body I avoid the blow by the slightest margin. I need to break their formation to win this battle.

    I activate kinetic strike in an instant I move to pass all their troops to assault pouring Aspectu into my blade I aim for the mage''s throat, a success he was unable to react in time and lose his life for it. I ventured toward the second mage for another attack, in response he created a gust of wind and I was sent flying backward. I soon regained my footing and was met will a mob of 11.

    Maces and sword were swung at me from every direction, however, I am able to dodge even if it is just barely. The problem is I am not getting anywhere I cannot take an offense and since I already used kinetic strike they will be on guard for a second use. I am heavily disadvantaged here. I have to yet to see any knights use skills and my stamina is quickly wearing down.You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

    They must be getting tired as well because I notice a hole in the captains'' guard, this may be my only chance at an offense I must take it. I lunge forward to unleash my strike...

    "Iron Reflect"

    My strike went through and created a gash in my opponent, however, a shock wave was sent through my hands. My body feels slow I need to get away. I active Kinect strike to get distance on the mob.

    "Now unleash your magic." The captain roared.

    Darn, I should have known the mage was up to something since I had not been hit be magic in a while. I search my surroundings for any signs of a magic attack and come up blank. It appears I am not the only one confused, the captain''s face also had hints of confusion. I look toward the position of the mage and there a different man lies. It is none other than Dues.

    "Sorry I was waiting for an opening to strike down this mage."

    Wait how long had he been there watching, could this possibly have been another test. The Knights'' attentions have all been drawn toward Dues. Before they can charge Dues unleashes several small balls from his hands towards the knights. They erupt smoke blinding everyone. I try to sense Dues amongst the confusion but, there are far too many people around to accomplish that. Suddenly, I feel a tug at my shoulder.

    "It is time to run boy."

    Dues grab my arm and we begin to dash away. After around an hour of running, we manage to lose the knights, mostly thanks to Dues'' thief skills. After a quick lunch Dues and I head to the secret location where we stashed away our carriage. We set off on the main routes for the three-day journey back home. Along the way, I questioned Dues on many things involving the class system and his explanation follows as:

    There are many different classes you can choose from, the classes you are able to select are dependent on your personality and experiences. The benefits of classes are vast, depending on the class you can gain strength through stats and class unique skills. The leveling systems for classes is pretty different from the normal leveling system I have used. Once a class is selected the stone will become a part of your soul and judge your actions. Actions that are befitting of your class increase your class unlocking new features.

    I wonder if there is a hero class, I bet I would be able to progress in it quickly. Unfortunately, I have to wait until we arrive back at the base to select a class.

 Chapter 22: Hero, Hero, and ......Hero

    Without, a hitch our escape was successful we managed to return to the base. Thanks to Dues'' thief skills we were basically untraceable nonetheless, new techniques are constantly evolving in this world. I sometimes fear the unexpected in battle. Even if I am surrounded by the unknown there is a simple solution: hone my skills to the point where I can blow away any foe. I know that gaining a class is just a stepping stone in my path, but I cannot help but bustle will excitement. To my dismay Dues tells me I cannot perform gain a class until nightfall. Something about the moon has to be present for the stone to be active.

    I kill time by training with Hans in the grounds. After a few bouts, I am dead tired he never cuts me a break and goes all out, I can barely keep up with him. Well, to be more precise I am unable to keep up with him that''s why I did not come out unscathed. I can''t wait until I can match him, with my awesome class abilities, speaking of which I can see the moon! I head to a campsite Dues prepared outside of the base. A transparent blue stone rests on top of a simple stone structure. I assume it is a class stone and it is surprisingly beautiful. In my previous world, it would probably fetch a high price.

    "The time is now child, you will find your class. As the moonlight strikes the stone glare deep into the stone." Dues calls out to me.

    I stare in the stone as the moon becomes visible through the clouds, the stone begins to glow as a symbol becomes visible in the center. It looks like a sword no a shield, wait it is constantly changing. The stone glows even brighter and flies toward me and heads straight for my chest. I feel no pain as it passes through my body. I begin to feel a buzzing sensation throughout my body.

    "The stone seems to be reading your memories, even ones from your past world. I am unable to protect your memories from the stone," Hopes voice echoed in my head.

    "It is fine I have nothing to hide, besides everything about me must be put in if I want to select the perfect class."

    The buzzing suddenly stopped, it was so sudden it took my body a second to adjust. Before me appeared a giant table.

    <table>

    <tbody>

    <tr>

    <td>Hero</td>

    <td>Hero</td>

    <td>Hero</td>

    <td>Hero</td>

    <td>Hero</td>

    </tr>

    <tr>

    <td>Hero</td>

    <td>Hero</td>

    <td>Hero</td>

    <td>Hero</td>

    <td>Hero</td>

    </tr>

    </tbody>

    </table>

    Huh, lots of diversity. Does it even matter which hero I choose, there must be a deeper meaning behind presenting me with so many of the same choices. Perhaps, my luck is being tested and only one of the hero choices contains a super powerful skill. Whatever, my strong resolve to be a hero has betrayed me in this instance, severely limiting my class choices. I steady myself and select the top-right hero. My status bar flashes it fading in and out of view rapidly when the light finally fades a message is displayed.This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    You have earned the class Storm Hero

    Unique Skill Unlocked: Resolve

    Class Skill Unlocked: Lightning Blade

    In addition to unlocking new skills, my status bar has become far more detailed than before and my stats are listed numerically unlike before where the only number I could get was a level.

    ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

    Fayiz Age: 16 Level: 30

    Class: Storm Hero Level: 1

    Blessings: Ifoik''s Favor(weak)

    Strength: 750

    Vitality: 890

    Defense: 870

    Agility: 790

    Magic: 900

    Skills: Kinectic Strike, Perfect Perspection, Lightning Blade, Resolve

    Magics: Bind Will, Bind Monster, Bind Space, Strengthen Magic, Strengthen Body

    ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

    This world is turning more into a game every day it feels like. I am very excited to test out my new abilities and skills, however, I am still fatigued from the training earlier so I will hold off for now.

    "So what class did you get boy," said Dues

    "As expected of me not only did I manage to earn the title of Hero, I gained a unique skill in the process."

    "Good for you! Getting a unique skill is pretty rare."

    He responded with a simile but, I hear a bit of sadness in his voice, does he believe that becoming a hero is a bad thing? I choose to ignore it, Dues may have lied to me in past but, he never had evil intentions when doing so. To be frank, he may have lied to me to teach me how to think on my own or something.

    I part with Dues and head back to the base looking for my area to rest. My fellow army members seem to have other plans though. Apparently getting a class was not a very common occurrence and warrants a small celebration. Looks like turning in early is nothing but a dream to me.

    The party was pretty simple I was congratulated on achieving a rare class by the other squad members. Even Hans who has done nothing except talk down on me voiced words of praise. Praising me was not the only propose of this party however. Dues used this opportunity to introduce all the members of the squad to me. They all explained their abilities to me which is important since we will be fighting together soon. Looks like I have finally been accepted.

    The Squad including me and Dues is composed of seven members. The members I already know are the leader Dues, who is thief, and Hans the warrior. The other one know as Arata, is skilled in everything except combat he handles the information, cooking, cleaning, and other activities along those lines. The last member I kinda already know is Roxanne(The one who attack me in my sleep) she is an assassin very skilled at spying but, she tends to take her role too seriously going as far as to spy on her own squad members. The last three members whom I just met formally today are Quim the Paladin, Emma a priest, and Lynette who commands an array of elemental magic. They seem friendly enough however, I cannot rest easy for everyone on this squad isn''t normal.

 Chapter 23: Plan

    The next morning I woke, a bit drowsy from a night of introductions. A normal person would want to sleep for the maximum amount of time, however, a hero never rests or rather I need to practice my new skills. I had Hope wake me around two hours before everyone normally does. I estimate that I have just enough time to test my new skills; I guess combining skills will have to come later. First up is the skill I understand the least Resolve. I clearly know what the word resolve means yet, I cannot picture how to attack an enemy with determination, maybe it could intimidate them or something. I head out to the training yard and face a wooden dummy.

    "Resolve"

    I faint white energy wraps itself around my body until it slightly outlines the entirety of my body. I feel no warm nor resolve from the outline. Nothing! What a Rip-off! I try to calm myself, I test my current strength by bashing my sword against the dummy, it is stronger than before but, it''s not thanks to Resolve, I received a decent stat boost thanks to the hero class. The outline fades away with time, accomplishing nothing. I am a bit disappointed however, I cannot afford to waste time. I move onto the next skill Lightning Blade, this one is far easier to imagine.

    "Lightning Blade"

    As expected my a great amount of energy is transferred to my sword and it takes the form of lightning running across my blade, the lightning seems to be bound to my blade. What''s strange is I am touching a metal object cloaked in lightning yet, I suffer no damage. Perhaps, because it is a skill and the lightning was created by me. When I strike the dummy the lightning transfers to it burning it black, I deactivate the skill immediately, I cannot risk starting a fire in the training grounds. In hindsight, it was probably unsafe to strike a wooden object with an extremely hot object. After this I continue to active my skills over and over again until I get the feeling of how they work, I am now able to control the output of Resolve now. Sadly, no matter how many mana or Aspectu I channel into it all I get is a useless white outline.

    "Time is up," Hopes soft voice echoes in my head.

    Darn, has it already been two hours I wish I had more time. Whatever this will have to do for now. Right on time, Arata approaches me at a somewhat hurried pace.Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.

    "Dues has called all members together it is time for an important meeting no one is permitted to be absent," Arata called out to me.

    "I will be right there!"

    Must be serious if everyone is required to attend after all this is the most "free" of all the squads. I head back to the base, everyone is gathered on the top floor surrounding a table with a map laid out across it. Dues stand at the front wielding a 2-foot-long pointer. He seems to just now noticed my presence in the room.

    "Now that everyone is present we can begin the meeting."

    Huh, his normally joking attitude in his voice is nowhere to be found. His manner is now more befitting of his position. He continues his explanation.

    "Soon we will be embarking on a very important mission, Intel has reported that one of the barrier lords is leaving the capital in two weeks and heading toward the city of Luxic, the reason for his sudden departure is still unknown and he surely will have several guards. This is such a rare occurrence that the army cannot overlook this chance. The army has determined that is best to send in a small group to avoid attracting attention, of course, the most skilled small group is us of course."

    "I do not mean to interject but, can you explain what I barrier lord is?" I questioned

    "Oh, I forgot, that you were new to this land. You remember the barrier that hindered our movements at the capital well, that the reason we cannot launch a full-scale invasion, a normal soldier would collapse on the spot. The four who maintain the barrier is known as barrier lords: they are very skilled mages who have mastered the art of barriers. Now that everyone''s up to speed I will be going over our plan of attack. We will be attacking them at an intersection they are guaranteed to cross. Our formation will be simple Hans, Quim, and Fayiz will take the front lines while being supported by Roxanne and I. In the back we will have Lynette and Emma casting magic. Arata will travel with and function as a scout, I do not intend to have him fight."

    After explaining the plan of attack Dues clearly explains the other member''s abilities to personally and explains some basic synergies, it might be hard to put them practice now but, I will need to if I truly want to be a member of this team.

    The journey will take five days so that gives us two weeks to prepare. Dues and Arata will secure a route and supplies for the journey while the rest of us will train and practice the new formation. And thus my first major mission was assigned. Up to now, I had mostly fought solo, so I am blessed to have two weeks to grind out all the kinks in my teamwork. Even though I have my doubts these guys have been fighting for years together adding one more person into the flow cannot be that hard, right?

 Chapter 24: Unfortunate Teleport

    What''s the best way to learn teamwork? I assume it is to build experience fighting weaker opponents like mindless monsters then gradually fighting stronger foes as our coordination and understanding of each other improve. However, my squad has a completely different approach: storming a stronghold full of traitors of course!

    It began next day after Dues gave us the rundown.....

    "HEy WaKe UP!"

    Someone was shaking my body quite violently. As I recover from my shock I am able to make out the figure of Hans. The last person I want to see this morning, why is he so violent this early in the morning? It''s unreasonable to be this loud in the morning.

    "I am up, STOP YELLING." I returned

    "Took you long enough we only got two weeks to transform you into the perfect teammate and the perfect opportunity has arisen."

    "What has a new monster elimination quest been posted?"

    "Even better a people elimination quest has been posted!"

    "Huh, what do you mean by that?"

    "It''s just as I said we are hunting a group of people while Dues is out preparing for the big mission."

    "I could assume that much! I need details, like what kinda of people are we hunting and why?"

    "Someone else will fill you in later, I actually do not know a whole lot due to the suddenness. Follow me toward the basement we have a teleport ring set up there that will be ready soon."

    I follow Hans to the basement where everyone except Dues and Arata is gathered. Everyone''s here? This must be a bigger mission than I had originally assumed. Hunting dangerous criminals sounds cooler than hunting monster but, am I really prepared? I mean could possibly end up needing to kill someone. That''s an experience I''ve never had. What will it feel like? I feel like I''ll be casting aside part of my humanity and most importantly killing is not very heroic. Whilst these thoughts were running through my mind Lynett, stepped up to explain the situation.

    "One of our many groups has gone rogue and holed themselves up inside one of our strongholds. The reason for the sudden betrayal is still unknown and their total numbers are unknown, however, we estimate that it cannot be greater than forty. They are our men so it was requested that we leave them alive if possible. To increase our chances of these I have secured some magic sealing cuffs and rope. We do not have enough for forty people so we will have to save the cuffs for their stronger members."This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    "Securing them sounds a bit difficult but, I guess I can manage. More importantly what our plan of attack?" Hans spoke up

    "I was getting to that. My plan is pretty simple the teleport circle in the stronghold is still active so we will teleport in and rush them."

    "That sounds extremely reckless," is what I was thinking, however, no one else seemed to voice opposition so perhaps this is a reasonable method of seiging.

    "Any last questions? If not step on the circle so we can head out."

    I have many and I do not ask because I know they will only create more questions. I choose to go with the flow this time.

    And thus, first mission with my team began.

    The circle warps and flashes as I felt my body being whisked away. When the brightness fades I notice that we are in another location. The only lighting in the room is from the teleport circle, its not bright enough to light up the whole room.

    "I detect several presences nearby!" Hopes voice echoes in my mind.

    "Light Ball."

    Confirming Hope''s statement, Lynette lit up the room revealing ten figures throughout the room. In center who looked unfamiliar or rather different from the rest. He wasn''t wearing the standard army outfit in fact, his was fancier and had a completely different logo. Most striking was his appearance he was a bit taller than average and had well-developed muscles. His demeanor oozed confidence.

    "Oh, the army sent only sent six members to defeat the rebels I have raised how disappointing."

    Hans was the first to speak up.

    "Oh, let''s see how disappointed in us you are when I have you begging for life."

    The man''s confidence did not falter instead he snapped his fingers. Twenty more soldiers came rushing in armed looking for a battle. As they did the man''s grin expanded hoping that he broke Han''s will to resist yet, he was only met with failure.

    "Only twenty I was expecting more."

    "I''ll remember those as your last words as my army ends you. Attack!"

    With his command, the 29 men charged at us. Surprisingly the man after all his talk left the battlefield to his men. He truly underestimated us, thinking that we would be defeated by only 29 men. Quim and I took the front to protect our allies from the swarm of people. Meanwhile, Hans completely abandoned the formation breaking through the sea of men to chase after there leader. I try to call out to him, but Emma places a hand on my shoulder indicating that it is pointless.

    She''s right I need to focus on the battle in front of me. I activate perfect perception to parry several strikes at once. In my current state, it appears like their moving in slow motion yet, I am having trouble keeping up with so many. In order to avoid killing them, I will refrain from using lightning blade as their amour would probably conduct the shock. Blunt force seems like my only option. After parrying one soldier take an opportunity to do. I use my sword to flick weapon out of his hand. The sword flies out of his hand and I ready my fist for a punch. This is no ordinary punch I have filled it with Aspectu to increase its power to the point where armor means nothing. I hear a cracking noise as my fist collides with his body. He was knocked completely out cold falling into several of his allies before he hit the ground. I can win this battle!