《Path of the Mind》 Prologue A long, long time ago, before the ages which we record our history began, the gods were born. There was a total of five of them, however, they were lonely. For them they had long gotten to know each other, yet no time passed at all as there was no purpose for it. They did not want to be lonely anymore, so they decided to make a world together that they would fill with life so that they would never be lonely. Swiftly was the creation of the world done, and the world filled with plants and animals of every kind. Yet, despite all that, they failed to create what they set out to do. Sentient life. None of them had any idea on how to create sentient life like themselves, and thus decided to be patient. Hoping that one of their current creations could come to communicate with them, all the while trying to make them. That time was later known as the Age of Patience. Countless years passed as the plants and animals spread across the world adapting to the environments and subtly changing it. Yet, none advanced at all towards sentience. When the gods had lost all but the last of their hope, four of them felt an enormous shockwave of power surge out. The scale behind it was more than the five of them had spent to create the world itself. Rushing to the location they found the last of them already there. They tried to questioned him what that surge of power was for. He responded to all their questions with just one word, ¡°Humans.¡± They looked in front of him and there laying on the ground were the first pair of humans a life unlike any other they had ever made. Before the rest could even celebrate, before their eyes the humans started vanishing as they had no substance and were just ideas. Their creator hollered at the rest command them, ¡°Form them a shell that may be part of the world, give them a soul to use the shell, organize functions for the shell so that may interact with others of their kind, set their destinies so that they may have a purpose for them to strive for, and I shall give them a home in which they can follow through with it all.¡± First the God of Creation, Terminus, formed their appearance according to the idea. Next the Witch of the Soul, Medusa, gave a soul to inhabit them, giving them the spark of life. After that the Saintess of Bodies, Corporea, organized the body¡¯s function, to let them interact with others. Thus the Queen of Heavens, Caeli, set what they can and cannot do, and set their destiny. Finally, their creator the King of the Earth, Rex, gave them a place to live that their appearance may be seen by others, their soul given room to grow, an area in which future generations may live, and for them to live out their destiny. Immediately after the gods used their powers to stabilize the humans, the pair gave off a great glow with gold radiating off the women and silver off the man. Once it died away the man and women opened their eyes and sharply inhaled similar to that of a newborn. As they gained their bearings their eyes came to rest on the site of the five gods standing before them. Rex stepped forward and with his power he transferred them knowledge of speech, as they had done to all species before in hopes they could talk and be sentient. As the knowledge entered them their faces scrunched up in frustration as the language used by the gods were too complex for them to understand, let alone use. As their bodies were still pure and filled with power from their creation moments before it quickly simplified down to a point that was usable for them. That language they spoke would be later known as the Common tongue. Upon hearing the humans speak the gods frowned in frustration and sadness, thinking that it was only making noises that were inherent to the humans just as the animals had their noises. However, Rex, whether out of stubborn hope that his creations would not be broken or curiosity to what it meant to them, gleamed into their minds. Upon learning what happened to the knowledge he gave them, he informed the other gods who paused mid-step in sheer surprise. Upon realization of was said they all turned around at once bombarding the couple with questions about everything in sheer excitement of having new people to talk to. Rex, the one still calm about this, shouted at the other gods. ¡°Enough of this, you are scaring them, let them come to terms with their existence.¡± Looking to the couple he saw how the woman hid behind the man in fear, with the man having only a little more courage than the woman to stand in front of her. Smiling with tenderness of a loving father at them and speaking softly, ¡°Go now and rest, we will return after seven days to let you rest and come to grips with your existence.¡± Dragging the rest of the gods to their realm they left the world. After the promised time, Rex returned alone to them. As he saw the couple look around for the others with a tinge of fear on their faces he chuckled, shocking the two staring fearfully at him. Seeing that he spoke to them soothingly, ¡°The rest will not be coming this time around, however they are watching.¡± Hearing the man and women looked at each other with worry in their eyes, the man then speaking, ¡°Who and what are you people?¡± With a smile still on his lips Rex spoke saying, ¡°I am Rex, the King of the Earth. I and the others are gods. We created you with the primary intention of making others that we could converse with.¡± The question that followed made Rex pause with a smile frozen on his faces and a vast sadness emerging in his eyes. ¡°Why would you make us by ourselves?¡± ¡°We were lonely. There was nothing new for us. We hoped to create others in which to talk to. Yet, I can see that while successful in making you, we failed miserably too. You feel that same loneliness that we felt. We are¡­. We are¡­. no, I am sorry. Despite everything we, no I, went through, I still ended up giving you the same problem just in a different form. At least you can have children and will not go without end. Feel free to ignore us. WE are sorry.¡± Before they could respond Rex returned to the heavens. Rex arrived and saw the pained expressions on the other faces and loudly sighed, ¡°What can we do to fix this?¡± For a long time, all they did was sitting there thinking, Terminus, was struck with the idea. Speaking out to the others, primarily Rex, ¡°Why don¡¯t we make our own races? Just like there are multiple animals, why not multiple sentient races? Maybe what cannot be made up in numbers they can make up in diversity.¡± Seeing the merit in the idea the other gods agreed with Rex immediately sharing the knowledge with the others. A few years passed before three more gods were ready. Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators! Terminus made the dwarves, who like him had affinity to creation. Corporea made the beastmen consisting of the tribes of Wolves, Foxes, Bears, Cats, and Deer. Caeli made the Coelum, a race that had three possible physical characteristics of any combination from possessing an additional eye, to an extra set of arms, or a pair of wings. Having an easier time than making humans the new races were introduced to the small population of humans that existed at that time. Instead of appearing they announced it by transmitting their voices across the world. The new races and humans quickly got along as though they were made to be together. Still alive and leading their children, the man and women that Rex made saw the new races and heard a small voice directed only at them, ¡°Be lonely no more.¡± Nearing the end of their lives the they looked at each other and smiled, ¡°We have long forgotten that feeling because of our children. We hope that all of you will too, and in the future you treat us as your children and guide us. We will spend the rest of our lives telling the story you told us. We just ask you to guide our descendents so that they will be happy.¡± After a brief pause considering their words, ¡°We are sorry for when we last talked to us. It was just all so new to us. We¡­ we were overwhelmed with everything. We were never lonely just young. We have seen it our own children¡¯s eyes.¡± Rex stood in shock at their words, after a while he responded, ¡°I, Rex, the King of the Earth swear on my existence that the children under my care will find happiness.¡± As he finished the oath the world trembled ever so slightly as it shifted the very fabric of laws that they had created on such a level that even the gods did not know. Upon that oath the second age started known as the Age of Prosperity. The races spread throughout the world now revering the gods and building temples to worship them. They were ranked according to the order they contributed to the humans with Rex being the strongest and Terminus being the weakest. Despite the prosperity of their children on the world Medusa was not happy. At first she did not mind that she could not make a race it began to grow and fester in her turning to envy and hate within her as was her nature to possess the extreme of emotions as the goddess that ruled over souls. However, these feelings surpassed all others before. In her rage she took some of the gods¡¯ ¡®children¡¯ and corrupted them, twisting them far from their original form. Not even the harmless animals were spared from this effect. What rose from those creations were the beings known as monsters. Unlike sentient creatures their souls were larger and overflowing with more power than they could contain in it, making it so the body received the overflowed power causing them to hover between sentience and barbaric tendencies. The monsters overflowed onto the defenseless races slaughtering entire towns and cities over night. In the heavens the gods did everything they could to save their children yet, the witch interfered at every step.of direct intervention attempted by the others drawing power from her rampaging monsters. Rex feeling his oath tugging at him, urging him to do something, felt helpless as the monsters tore through everything. Suddenly, he looked down and saw a lone bear-kin mourning the loss of their mate to see them undergoing a transformation when a few weak monsters attacked. He watched as the beastman tore through the monsters and as the excess energy of the monsters souls dissipated in the atmosphere with some entering the bear-kin¡¯s soul. Inspiration struck him as he moved more of the excess soul power into the beastman and watched in astonishment as their battle potential soared as they began killing even more of the monsters in the area. As system for doing this forming in his head he called the other three gods and told them of his plan to oppose the Witch. All of them agreed immediately as they saw the potential in it and had no other ideas themselves. Thus they began to shift the laws of the world once more, introducing the level system. All across the world citizens above the age of 10 received the first notification. Rex then appeared in front of the bear-kin he was watching earlier in a body that only carried his will and none of his power. It was able to avoid the attention of the Witch due to it being even weaker than regular animals. From that body he made the beastman his champion granting enormous power compared to others at her level. It was at that point the bear-kin bore the title of The Master, as it was them who taught all the warriors how to fight using their newfound powers. The other gods also blessed champions as well to help The Master accomplish the task of protecting the people. With the power to level, they were able to push back the monsters a little. With their ¡®children¡¯ increasing in power, the gods too increased in power as the new laws changed them to match the new world. Now instead of being hopelessly being outclassed by the Witch, they could fight her for a time and the King could even beat her. It was this, along with the drastic decrease in the chaos her ¡®children¡¯ caused that Medusa was released from the hate and envy that consumed her. Upon seeing the amount of destruction she caused, she felt terrible and begged for forgiveness. In an attempt to correct it she went down to order the monsters to stop, the emotions that seemingly disappeared, reappeared as they overflowed in the world of mortals. She then blessed her own champion to fight the King¡¯s champion, along with using the new system to spawn more monsters endlessly. When she returned to the heavens she did not even realize what had happened while she was down there. She reunited with the rest of the gods in order to see how the results would turn out. Instead of joy, what she saw with the rest of them turned her to despair. She saw a champion of her¡¯s destroying settlements and wiping out everything. What frightened her the most was the ability to control all monsters together like an army. She begged the rest of the gods to stop her champion, as she had no idea how it happened. All five of them descended this time but immediately the Witch attacked them. Rex and Caeli managed to restrain her and take her back to their realm. Yet no matter what they did she would not calm down. Terminus and Corporea were just too weak to affect what the Witch set in place. Upon returning Medusa instantly calmed down to how she normally was. The gods managed to realize that as long as one of them were physically in the mortal world Medusa would lose control. Instead of directly interfering like they tried before, they directly contacted their champions to confront the menace instead helping them as much as they could. The Master then lead an army of the sentient races to confront the monster one. In a large final battle against the monster champion The Master along with their direct students, the forerunners to the many warrior classes all at the peak of power battled against the champion, while their army clashed with the horde of monsters. After a week of constant fighting The Master stood alone against the champion with her students dead, but the monster champion was also dead. The Master could feel their life waning already, as all they had was spent in that one fight. The Master lived long enough to see the monster horde being routed as their coordination fell apart with their leader¡¯s death. The gods in heaven let out a sigh of relief at the passing of the champions. Before celebratory thoughts could even be formed, a scream of agony was heard from the King. His power to let the sentients fight back took two forms that of warriors, which were fully developed, and the mages, which were lacking to an extreme degree. The divide between the two ripped the King apart into two parts. The first part was Custos, Guard of the King, representing the warrior half, and Vigilem, Advisor to the King, who is the half for the mages. Comparing the two Vigilem was pitifully weak. In terms of levels he would only be a dozen or so stronger than The Master. While Custos, was on terms with Medusa, if only barely. Seeing the state of the former King of the Earth. The older gods were worried that their friend would forever be apart. The two new ones felt an indescribable feeling as they were urged to be whole once more. They all came to the conclusion of watching the world and waiting for a person suitable to be a champion for Vigilem and do what The Master did for Custos. In the meantime the others would make suitable people into champions to keep the world stable until that happened. As a last act of direct interference of the gods two more sentient species were made. Custos made the Giants, humans towering between seven to eight feet tall, with a vast width to match. Vigilem made the Elves, graceful and ethereal with profound wisdom. This final act started the third age, The Age of Champions.
The Orphanage Overseer looked out on the sleeping children, letting out a tired sigh, while moistening her parched lips from all the speaking she did. ¡°These little brats sure love hearing this story don¡¯t they.¡± Despite the harsh remark she still held a smile on her face as she gently stood up shifting the sleeping child off of her and onto to the bed. She looked into corner and saw one child sitting up still awake. Walking over and talking to him quietly, ¡°Be sure to sleep tonight Merlin. Tomorrow is the day to unlock your status so be sure to get some sleep.¡± A quiet but energetic response could be heard from the child, ¡°Yes Miss. Arwen.¡± He laid down in the bed as she tucked him in once more. There was a moment of hesitation seen in the boy before he asked, ¡°Miss. Arwen did the third age end?¡± Another small smile came out on her lips as she responded, ¡°You were always the one for these stories, huh Merlin. The answer to your question is that it is still going on to this day.¡± Chapter 1 Peeking out from underneath the covers of his bed, Merlin managed to see the sun almost all the way above the horizon from the window by his bed. He rolled back onto his back staring up at the ceiling. Despite his best attempts and promises to Arwen he was unable to fall asleep last night. Deciding to get his chores done with before the others woke up, he rose up from the bed. After swiftly getting dressed in his clothes he grabbed a bucket from the kitchen and walked towards the lake behind the orphanage. Yes orphanage, he was an abandoned child. Though not by choice in reality. The reason was that Merlin was an elf. Amongst all the races they were ranked last for almost any job or position. This caused a great deal of elves to try and become adventures and fight the monsters for money, yet the only classes easily available to them were magic classes. Remembering to last night and how Arwen said that magic was lacking and it truly was. For magic users rising above level 60 was hard enough. This caused many elves to perish when they tried to encounter higher level monsters, just like his parents. He snapped out of his thoughts as his foot stepped in a puddle near the lake. Looking down at the puddle what reflected back at him was a 10 year old elf boy with white hair with eyes being a light blue seemingly possessing an intelligence beyond his age. Looking back up he filled the bucket from the lake and returned to the house. Unlike other kids, some even younger than him, he had terrible strength and his stamina was low. What some needed 10 minutes to even make a few trips with water he had take a half hour to do it. This morning however he took things a little slower than usual due to waking up so early. While he would never admit it, he was more daydreaming about unlocking his status than doing his chores. When he finally finished the rest of the kids were getting up and started to come to the kitchen were some of the older ones started making food for them. Merlin looked around at the 30 other odds kids that stayed their with him. In most other eyes it would seem that they are one happy family, though a large one at that. However for Merlin they were merely people who stayed at the same place. Unlike most of the kids here who could potentially become a craftsmen or warrior, Merlin was the oddball out with being an elf. Seeing him come inside, 12 year old human girl, named Mary, called out to him, ¡°Merlin can you wake up Miss. Arwen? We can¡¯t get her up again.¡± Looking and seeing how busy they were, with Mary and others her age all looking after the younger ones and cooking Merlin nodded in response. Seeing the response and acting like it was normal she yelled a quick thanks before resuming attention to the food she was making. Walking to the end of the hallway Merlin opened the door that led to Arwen¡¯s room. Like him, Arwen was also an elf choosing to help the children instead of other jobs she could have. She had one flaw when it came to taking care of children, she liked to sleep in. Most often the kids would have to do everything and wake her up afterwards. Merlin had been doing it recently and managed to get a good way to wake her up. Locating one of her feet, Merlin began to stroke the bottom of said foot. Almost immediately afterwards Arwen feel onto the floor laughing hysterically. Snapping out of the daze she saw Merlin at the foot of the bed with a large smile on his face. Yawning, Miss. Arwen rubbed her eyes and looked at Merlin, ¡°Thanks *yawn* for getting me,... getting me up again Merlin. Now hop on out so I can get dressed.¡± With a smile still on his face he walked out of the room responding to Arwen, ¡°As long as you don¡¯t go back to bed, got it Miss. Arwen?¡± ¡°Yeah, yeah,¡± she responded. After he left she muttered to herself, ¡°Just how in the world did he find out I was ticklish there so fast?¡±
After breakfast, the older kids streamed outside to do their chores or get to their masters as many took on in order to get used to and learn skills for their classes. The younger ones stayed inside as they went to a large room near the front and arranged themselves into their desks, not fully awake yet making the process easy for Arwen. As she prepared for the day there were a few knocks on the door before it opened up to reveal a few villagers with their own children. The children ran inside to their places where they greeted their friends for the day. Beside just housing orphan children, the orphanage doubled as a school for the locals where they could get together before going to learn various bits of information not said by their parents. Merlin was about to head out when, he heard Arwen call out to him, ¡°Merlin could you help me with class today so I can take you to the temple right afterwards?¡± As a bit of a loner with the other children he had no reason to disagree. Walking into the classroom behind Arwen he saw the 30 odd kids that were under the age of 10 and could still enjoy a bit childhood. Ignoring the stares he got from them he looked towards Arwen to see if she would tell him what she wanted done. Without even turning around she said, ¡°Please pass out the slates please Merlin along with utensils for them.¡± She proceeded to head up front in order to look over what she would teach today. Nodding, despite knowing she was not looking at him, he passed out the slates with a few younger ones grouping up due to there not being enough. Once Merlin finished he took a seat by one of the windows and stared outside. Moments later Arwen started her lecture. ¡°Now as a few of you are already aware with the creation of monsters the gods implemented a leveling system. Now write down on your slate the different class groupings, please¡± After waiting a few moments She asked them to raise the slates with their answers towards her. ¡°Very good most of you got three of the groupings, which are warrior, craftsmen, and unique. Starting with unique they can represent a wide variety of jobs however they are only offered by the gods or as successors to a current unique class holder. Warriors are those fight directly against monsters or even protect the peace in cities such as the local watch. They use Ki to enhance themselves with a variety of weapons to do what their jobs. Craftsmen is the group that covers everything that does not fit in the others. Now despite its name it can include jobs such as Chef, Scribe, or even my own class of Caretaker.¡±This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. Hearing the description one girl raised her hand and shyly asked, ¡°Would daddy¡¯s lumberjack job be a Warrior class? He uses his ax like a weapon.¡± Hearing the question Arwen smiled answering, ¡°No, his would be under Craftsmen. Craftsmen actually has the most of any grouping as most people do not have other class types. Now despite this there is one grouping that none of you mentioned. It is that of Mage. At the moment this has the least classes as no one has managed to reach past level 100. The highest level recorded is level 82. The ability of this group is the ability to manipulate Mana to create spells with high power for that level.¡± ¡°Moving along, now classes under Warrior are a bit special. At certain levels there are opportunities to advance their class and gain more power and specialization along a path. Now write down on your slates what levels you think the advancements happen at.¡± After a time she had them raise the slates again. ¡°This time most of you were off by quite a bit. Those of you who remember I hinted at a level earlier. Well for those who don¡¯t know the levels are 100 and 200. It is speculated that Mage classes are also able to do so, however no one has reached high enough to do it.¡± One the older kids raised their hands asking, ¡°Why do people choose a Mage class if no one can reach high levels?¡¯ ¡°Very good question. The reason people do it is for the chance of becoming a champion.¡± Upon hearing the word champion reverence and awe appeared in their eyes as their parents had long since told them the story of the first champion of the gods. Seeing the look in their eyes Arwen smiled and continued speaking, ¡°It has long been known that out of all the gods only Vigilem has not yet ever crowned a champion. Custos is known as half of the King of the Earth that took the Master in as champion. Who would not want to be a champion of the King of the Earth.¡± Hearing this the children excitement riled up causing Arwen to have to wait until they calmed down to continue talking. Once they did so Arwen continued. ¡°Now as part of classes a person gains skills related to the class. Each skill has five tiers with each tier consisting of Low, Middle, High, and Mastered levels. It should be noted that Mastered only appears if you max a skill at High when you are not yet ready for the next tier of the skill.¡± Speaking up suddenly Merlin called out, ¡°Miss. Arwen it is almost noon time.¡± She looked out the window to see what time it was and nodded her head agreeing with Merlin. Looking back at the class she told them, ¡°Alright class is over today your parents will pick up you up soon so I hope to see you tomorrow.¡± About an hour later the last of the non-Orphanage kids had left with their parents. Calling out to the older students done training for the day, ¡°Watch over the young ones. I need to take Merlin to the temple for his status awakening.¡± Voicing their consent Arwen smiled and turned back to Merlin, ¡°Now that is done let us get you to the temple, Merlin.¡± Merlin merely shrugged at her words and started walking out the door. Following the path they headed into the center of the village.
Now calling where they live a village might be slight understatement of the sheer size of it. A more accurate description would be a town. However the large reason for its size was it was a border town. It was one of the towns that were near the edges of the known kingdoms. While, not on the edge it was where almost all warriors passed through in order to reach the edge to expand the various kingdoms. The total population would vary on the number of adventures staying there, but the lowest it would reach was about 2,500 of permanent residences. Due to the skills of priest and priestess of Caeli for healing and proximity to fighting they had a permanent temple set up near the center of town. Unlike some of the inner temples this one was more low key in terms of scale or materials just in case it needed to abandoned due to a monster swarm. Though in reality most of the temples were identical with them always in fixed patterns. It was just a matter of how pretty it was. It was a temple that despite being on the low side still had plenty of activity with groups of coelum tending to the temple. Spread about were paladins looking for any that would dare to cause trouble. In reality they were here to help protect the town in emergencies along with protecting the holy people. It was this scene that Merlin and Arwen walked into. Seeing Arwen, one child who was training to be priest notified the local head who was in charge of such things. Merlin stared around the temple in awe as it was one of the largest buildings around with the only one surpassing it being the keep where supplies and soldiers for the town¡¯s defense were kept for emergencies. He soon noticed a person approaching them. He studied her as she approached. She was a coelum that possessed a third eye on her forehead who was in her elder years as he could see the wrinkles on her face especially around her mouth, indicating she spent much of her time with a smile, with hair greying unlike his own silver hair. She approached them and spoke first, ¡°Ah Arwen, it has been a while since you have visited. You really must come more often.¡± ¡°Oh, I really want to I just can¡¯t seem to make time while caring for all the children. You know that don¡¯t you Diane? I say this almost everytime.¡± ¡°Hehe, I know, I know. I just hope to loosen your mood you seem so tense all the time.¡± It was at this comment that Merlin muttered, ¡°Really she justs wants to sleep more, hehe.¡± The child who notified the head heard Merlin and tried his best to not laugh in front of Diane, but she caught onto his smile. She looked at Merlin and winked with a knowing smile on her face. Arwen just stood with a confused look on her face on what was going on. Merlin just put on a wry smile and stayed quite. ¡°So this must be the boy who I am to awaken a status for? An elf eh? Even I do not see many of your kind around often, and I am almost 200 years old!¡± Shaking her head to clear it from what happened earlier Arwen responded, ¡°Ah, yes this is Merlin. We do not know his exact birth date but my skill indicated he was ready for it. Also could we hurry a little I have quite a few little ones at the orphanage still.¡± ¡°Naturally. Follow me then.¡± Pausing for a moment she turned to the boy who called her, ¡°And you may return to your duties.¡± The boy bowed slightly before running off to where he stood watch observing a priest doing his duties.
Priestess Diane led them to a side room where on the floor was a complicated mess of symbols and runes, that separated seem weak, yet with all of them together were powerful. ¡°Stand in the center please Merlin so we may begin. I assume you know what to do Arwen?¡± Nodding to Diane, she looked down at Merlin and gave him an encouraging smile with small wave of her hand to gesture him forward. Standing in the center Merlin turned to face where the priestess and Arwen stood and saw them standing in two more circles near the edge. Diane had her eyes closed when Merlin felt a rush of power surge out her body into the floor, and instantly the room was filled with a white light. Chapter 2 For Vigilem it was another average time ever since he was split with his brother Custos. Together they sat in silence as they played a game of chess. The only thing that was different than the past was the fact that Custos had a large grin on his face. Looking at how the board was laid out it was no surprise. Usually he would crush his brother at this, but this time Vigilem only had three pieces on the board while Custos was missing only two. Vigilem let out a deep sigh as he was beginning to consider sitting with Caeli to watch the mortal world with her. Custos hearing the sigh gave an encouraging smile to him. It was not the first time it had happened. While the power difference between them was the greatest, they had the best relationship amongst the gods. Speaking to him Custos spoke, ¡°Just be patient brother. It has not even be longer than how long they wanted to make sentient life.¡± Responding Vigilem spoke, ¡°I know, I know. It is just that while they had multiple options for creating life I only have one! I fear even we may fade into nothingness before I get a champion.¡± Silence returned between the two of them as Custos made another move on the board removing another piece. Vigilem just sat there staring downwards seemingly trying to see the world below. ¡°VIGILEM!¡± His name being shouted he looked up to see Caeli rushing through a doorway from her own area. ¡°What is it Caeli? Do not tell me someone made a temple slightly off again?¡± Stopping in front of him with pouting look on her face Caeli responded, ¡°That was just one time! Why do you keep having to bring it up! Humph. To think I brought you good news too.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°Just come see and you will understand.¡± Saying that Caeli with a crafty smile on her face ran back to her own area beckoning him to follow. Sighing once more, Vigilem made a single move on the board before following Caeli at a slightly slower pace. Custos looked down back at the board and froze. He had just been checkmated by that one move. Walking into Caeli¡¯s area he walked into what most mortals would think as the temple¡¯s headquarters that all others are based off of. Though in reality it was just the fact Caeli was slightly obsessive about her temples wanting them all to look the same. Originally her race the coelum possesed all three traits looking exactly alike except for male and female differences, however Rex, before he split, manage to convince her otherwise feeling a bit of pity for them. Caeli herself still retained all three traits as she changed herself to match her race. The rest of the gods doing something similar as well. Vigilem walked towards the center of the temple where, in the mortal temples, would be an offering altar while she had a reflecting pool that displayed the entire world. Standing in a spot that seemed routine for him, he asked, ¡°Now what did you want to show me?¡± Caeli with a grin on her face simply pointed towards one of her temples. Looking towards the temple he saw nothing extraordinary about the town around it so he looked and saw that a status awakening was taking place. Focusing on it he froze instantly. ¡°See I told you so!¡± Caeli gloated with her smile only getting larger. Vigilem¡¯s eyes never moved from that spot his voiced that was once filled with melancholy suddenly filled with authority spoke out, ¡°Call all of them over. We must get him developed! Call Custos first. I will need his help to do this.¡± Suddenly overlapping the elf looking god was an image. One that had not been seen since the dawn of the Third Age. Caeli with tears in her eyes at the sight did not say a word and simply left, leaving Vigilem to stare down at the temple alone in silence.
Back on the mortal world Merlin felt like someone was watching him. However, behind it was a power far beyond what he felt before. The only comparison he could make were the warriors who passed through the town occasionally that neared the second class advancement. Yet, this gaze held far more power than even them. Turning to look towards where he felt it coming from all he found was the ceiling, yet that was where he still felt it was there. Shrugging it off he turned back to look at where the two ladies were standing. A moment later he listened to Diane speaking with power than did not match what her body looked like it could hold. ¡°Oh Goddess Caeli grant this humble servant''s request. Since the dawn of monsters we have turned towards you gods for aid and in return gave us the ability to level. I ask now that you give this child your aid in awakening his own status window so that he may aid in our defense!¡± As she finished speaking the white light that had now filled the room completely paused in the air and rushed towards Merlin. The congregating light caused Merlin and the others in the room to momentarily close their eyes. Opening them back up the light was gone. Suddenly in front of Merlin¡¯s eyes a blue window appeared.
CONGRATULATIONS!
After undergoing the Ritual of Awkening in a temple your status window has been unlocked! You can now train stats and skills. You will not be able to earn a class until you are 15 and therefore can not level.
After he was done reading it the window dissappeared automatically. Moments later another window popped up.
NOTICE
Due to a low stat (Endurance) you are not able to create Ki. As a result of it Ki and any other parts relating to it have been removed from your window. Ki may be added back if stats allow it before a class is earned.
Merlin¡¯s eyes widened as he read it. If he could not use Ki that would mean it would be impossible to become a warrior of any kind.You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author. Looking towards Priestess Diane he asked how to open the status window. Replying she said, ¡°Look at the palm of your hand like you are going to read a book. It should pop up, and if you want to show it to other just stretch the hand out towards the person. Doing as she said he looked at his status window.
Status Window
Name: Merlin Title: -None-
Class: -None- Level: 1
Race: Elf Age: 10
Health: 99/99 Health Regen: 1 / minute
Mana Pool: 416/416 Mana Regen: 9 / second
Physical Mental
Strength 5 Intelligence 13
Vitality 10 Wisdom 15
Endurance 2 Willpower 20
Neutral Miscellaneous
Agility 8 Gems 0
Coordination 13 Stamina 56
Luck 42 Movement Speed 9
Seeing the disparity between the two stat groups he was not really surprised. He was always not the most physical of people however his perseverance and intelligence had always been higher than even some adults. Wanting to make sure of what each stat does he looked back at the two waiting women saying, ¡°What does each stat do exactly?¡± Arwen taking on a her teacher mode stepped forward saying, ¡°You can focus on the the part of the window and it will explain it, but here I have it ready for you.¡± She reaches out her hand and on it appears a window like the ones he has seen.
Stat Desrciptions
Physical
Strength Indication of how strong the user is. Slightly affects size of Health, Ki, and Ki regen. Small bonus to movement speed. Main stat used for determining physical attack damage.
Vitality How healthy a person is. Has an large effect on Health and Health Regen. Will be reduced by sickness and age.
Endurance The sturdiness of a person''s body. Has a small effect on Health Regen and Stamina. Large effect on Ki and Ki Regen. Also determines how much of a person''s Ki that can be used at one time or over a certain time period. Overdrawing can cause damage and debuffsas well. Can result in death.
Mental
Intelligence How smart a person can be. It has influence on the Mana Pool size. Main stat used for determing a magical attack''s power.
Wisdom How sharp a person''s mind may be. Has an influence on Mana Regen. Can be reduced due to drugs or old age.
Willpower How a person will stand in the face of adversity. Has and influence on Mana Pool, Mana Regen, and slighty on Stamina. For spells this determines how many and what size of spells that can be cast. Using a large portion at once will cause debuffs to occur and overdrawing will kill caster.
Miscellaneous
Agility How nimble a person is at moving their body. Has a large influence on maximum movement speed.
Coordination How well a person may move each individual part of their body. Small influence on movement speed. Also helps with aiming projectiles and craftsmenship.
Luck Lucky! Higher the better.
¡°Why is Luck so lacking in a description?¡± Priestess Diane responds to this one, ¡°It is how the gods influence the world in a roundabout manner. Though how escapes us.¡± Seeing Merlin¡¯s understanding everything Arwen pulls back her hand. As she does she asks him, ¡°Can we see your status Merlin? It would help us connect you with mentors for future stat gains and skill development.¡± Simply nodding he holds out his hand like she just did for him he shows them his status, his Ki missing and everything. Seeing his stats Diane mumbles, ¡°Such a weak body. It is a miracle he is so healthy.¡± The only thing Arwen can do is nod in agreement with her statement as she is just in shock with lopsided his stats are. Seeing their reactions Merlin asks, ¡°Are they that far off?¡± Diane responds having seen more statuses than Arwen, ¡°Most stats around 10 to start. Occasionally one or two are outliers, but yours. You have six of them that are strange with high luck. In fact it is likely due to that luck that you are alive despite having 2 Endurance. I am just wondering where your Ki stats are.¡± ¡°Oh, okay. Right after I got the notice for unlocking my status, another popped up saying I am unable to make Ki due to current stats. It also said if I do not raise them before I get a class it will be locked.¡± Responding to the statement Diane nodded saying, ¡°Well with how your initial stats are I would say a scholar or an officials position would be the best for you.¡± As Merlin was about to respond to what she said suddenly a ring of light appeared around Merlin powerfully forcing back the women while doing so in such a way they were left unharmed. Diane upon seeing this light prostrated on the ground with Arwen standing there in even larger shock than she had been before. The light circled around Merlin before entering his body. The moment it did he saw the floor rushing closer as everything faded to black.
Up in the heavens Vigilem was staring down at the boy he had his hopes on. Custos entered and took a place next to Vigilem following his sight he too stared at the temple. To both of their surprise the boy turned and seemingly stared back at them. However, that last a moment before the boy shrugged it off and turned away. Looking towards one another a smile broke out on both of their faces. ¡°I told you to have patience.¡± Custos taunted with a I told you so attitude. Breaking eye contact they turned to see a deerkin walk in followed by dwarf covered in soot. ¡°Ah, Custos, Vigilem! Only you two would call me out my forge. I was so close too. I almost had a phancy new knickknack!¡± Admonishing the dwarf the deerkin spoke out, ¡°Now, now Terminus we both know they would only call us for something important.¡± ¡°Thank you, Corporea. I will explain everything when Medusa and Caeli arrive.¡± Hearing Vigilem¡¯s response both nodded understanding as Terminus stood across from Vigilem and Corporea across from Custos. Moments later in walked a human woman who took her place next to Custos. Caeli soon stood next Vigilem, still wearing a smirk on her face. Seeing them in their place Vigilem spoke up, ¡°I found one.¡± Astonishment appeared on the gods¡¯ faces before Caeli did a little cough. Hearing that Vigilem sighed, ¡°Well, Caeli found him.¡± Laughter rose from the rest of them before Vigilem coughed once to gather their attention. ¡°I need the rest of you to make sure everything is ready. We must get him to be my champion. I do not know if we will have a second chance at doing this. We must get it right the first time. He is located in this temple awakening his status right now. Quickly become familiar with him. Custos I need your help to mark and hopefully talk with him.¡± The rest hearing the words nodded without hesitation. However one of them still spoke up, ¡°Are absolutely sure he is the one? Otherwise all this activity is likely to¡­.¡± ¡°I know Medusa, however that is why I want to talk to him first. That way nothing is done in vain.¡± Hearing this the human looking women, Medusa, let out of breath of relief before indication her approval of the plan. ¡°Very well, since we are in agreement, Custos lend me your power.¡± Grabbing Vigilem¡¯s forearm Custos started sending power to Vigilem who spoke out in a commanding voice. ¡°COME TO ME CHILD! I WISH TO SHOW YOU WHAT I DESIRE!¡± Chapter 3 Merlin felt as if he was floating in water. Though how he floated now felt different. It was without water or anything holding him. As he was thinking about this he heard a voice, ¡°Awaken child.¡± In that instant everything that happened in the temple flashed through his mind all at once before his eyes flew open. The first thing he noticed was that he was in a grand temple. One similar to the one he was just in too. Drawing his attention back down were the six figures that surrounded him. Looking at the group Merlin could feel their power oozing out of them. ¡°Greetings, child.¡± Merlin turned his head to look at the speaker and was met with an elf like him. Somewhere in the back of his mind he could feel a connection with this figure, one that almost impossible to ignore. ¡°Who are you?¡± Merlin asked, though he felt as though he already should know the answer. Smiling at the question as though he was reminiscing the past the elf responded, ¡°We are the gods.¡± Towards any other person Merlin would have ridiculed them and brand them as mad, however he felt the certainty behind those words. Certainty that does not belong to those who try, this is one that is born in a person. A certainty rulers everywhere try to have when making decisions that impact everything. Suddenly the feeling in the back his mind that had appeared when he arrived burst forth possessing a power that Merlin felt was similar to that of the priestess used during his awakening ceremony. The people staring at him smiled, as though they felt that power bloom inside of him. Feeling that surge the elf spoke out softly, ¡°It is happening sooner than expected. This will help greatly.¡± Merlin barely hearing what he said asked, ¡°What is happening sooner than expected? Also where is this and why am I here?¡± Hearing the questions the man smiled before responding. ¡°Well to start with you are currently in the living area of Caeli, Queen of the Heavens. I am Vigilem, Advisor to the King. I have brought you here to ask for your help young Merlin. I wish for you to be my champion.¡± Hearing the answer Merlin was not shocked by location or identity of the people. What shocked him was how the gods wanted help. The gods wanted help? From him? If not for the fact he was still floating in the air he would have sat down and try to get bearings before continuing onwards. The elf, or rather Vigilem, gave a knowing smile to Merlin before continuing to talk. ¡°Yes, we do need your help Merlin. As you likely heard in your favorite story, of which I approve very much by the way, we can not descend to the mortal world anymore. Only small bursts of power here and there to bless people and make champions is all we can do. However despite what I said about you being champion, you will not instantly become a champion.¡± Hearing the last bit Merlin managed to shake himself from his stupor before showing a confused face, trying to process what was just said. ¡°A champion is not just given power. They must earn a large portion of it themselves. That way it will not corrupt them and turn them into existences similar to monsters. You will not be without benefits though. I will be able to grant you a portion of power to make a class for you.¡± Hearing even more things that he does not understand Merlin grew to become confused. Each moment He tried harder to wrap his head around what he needed to do. Vigilem not hesitating in his speech continued onward, ¡°Now I know this is a lot to take in. Some adults would even be worse off than you. However, we are short on time right now, so bare with it please. Right now all I need from you is the answer to this question. Will you be my champion and carry out what I desire?¡± Listening carefully to the the question while trying to put the rest of it to the back his mind, Merlin pondered on the question before asking one of his own back. ¡°What is that you desire Advisor?¡± Shock filled the other gods¡¯ faces as no mortal had even considered asking before. The first to recover were Vigilem and Custos. They looked towards each other and shared a knowing look before turning back and responding. ¡°I desire that that you children no longer live in fear of monsters. Can play and grow to heights that I can not yet fathom. To not just survive in the world, but to live.¡± Merlin watching Vigilem as he spoke those words watched as how his face slowly transformed from that of a stern person, like a guard of a town standing near the entrance of a town tolerating no crimes, to that of a caring father, one that would willing put his life on the line to save his children even if it meant his death. It was not the words Merlin paid attention to. No it was the way he said it and how he acted as he said it. Seeing the sincerity and feeling on the god¡¯s face Merlin simply nodded once. Seeing the nod Vigilem completely broke his facade he was trying to keep and smiled largely, as though he had no other way to show his joy. ¡°I thank you Merlin. I truly do. Since you have said yes what I want you to do is train as much as you can for a mage class. I will tell you more in five years when you are bestowed a class. Until then just, just¡­. just please wait patiently.¡± As Vigilem finished talking Merlin felt as though he was sinking downwards. Looking down to see what was going on, he was met with a glorious sight. Below him was the entire world from the view of a bird or maybe a cloud. Merlin could not decide which was true, he just knew one thing. The world was beautiful.
As Merlin left the temple Vigilem felt like he was bursting full of joy. So much so that it did not even phase him as he went pale and almost collapsed if not for the fact Custos caught him.Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. The only thing going on his head was the fact he had a potential champion. He had a champion! Seeing how little he cared about the spending of power, the other gods could only shake their heads. Bringing himself back to focus Vigilem cleared his throat before speaking, ¡°Now that we know he will accept begin your preparations immediately. Also Caeli I would like it if you could set a viewing point in my area so that I could view Merlin at all times. Now if you would excuse I need to go gather what power I can to give him my blessing and job in five years.¡± Getting up on his own, Vigilem with slow, but confident, steps walked back to his own realm.
Merlin opening his eyes once more looked around. He found that he was in a large room that had many beds located throughout it. Some of the bed had occupants in the forms of warriors or civilians that had major injuries. Walking around were priest and priestess with a few of them sitting beside those on the beds using a white light to go over where they might have been injured at all. Seeing him awake, priest told him to stay put as he ran out. Merlin concluded that it was likely to get Arwen and Diane as he did not see them around. Trying to figure out why he was here took Merlin some time. Apart from a few fuzzy memories the last thing he remembered clearly was awakening his status and reading the stat descriptions. As he was trying to piece together what happened afterwards Diane was talking to Arwen as they walked towards him from another room. Hearing shouts Merlin looked up to see what was going on and focused in on the two. ¡°What do you mean you will not tell me!¡± exclaimed Arwen. Sighing for what felt like the hundredth time in the conversation Diane responded, ¡°That is not what I am sayin. What I am trying to say is that I will only do it with Merlin present. He is the one that NEEDS to know. Even me knowing is unnecessary. Now will you calm down, see Merlin is awake.¡± Turning in the direction indicated Arwen say Merlin sitting up and staring at the two of them. As she saw him Arwen soon forgot about the argument and rushed over to Merlin. ¡°Merlin are you feeling alright? Does it hurt anywhere? Tell me quick!¡± ¡°I am fine Miss. Arwen. I feel perfectly fine.¡± replied the boy neither getting upset or panicked about how or why he was here. Before Arwen could respond, Diane interjected, ¡°He is at the temple¡¯s medical hall why would he be hurt? I also doubt whether he was injured or not to begin with. However, shall we head to a more private area to discuss what happened?¡± Nodding in agreement, Merlin hopped off the bed and walked over to the priestess with Arwen sitting there staring worriedly at him. Turning back to Arwen Merlin spoke once more. ¡°I am fine Miss. Arwen. Thank you for worrying. However, shouldn¡¯t we hurry for supper tonight?¡± Snapping out of it Arwen felt what Merlin said made sense so she got up and started walking towards the two of them. Seeing her moving Diane turned around and indicated with hand to follow as she started walking. Following her, Merlin and Arwen were lead to what appeared to be a smaller medical room, with a bed for one person in the center of the room. ¡°This is one of our private rooms we use for healing. It is for cases of sensitive people hurt or horrifying wounds not meant for the weaker minded. It has thicker walls to prevent sound so we should not be overheard here.¡± Nodding in understanding Merlin walks over to the bed and hopes up on it sitting down with his feet on the side facing the doorway. Arwen follows and walks to stand behind him. Both of them now staring at Diane. Diane starts closing the door before pausing and looking at Merlin. ¡°Are you sure you want Arwen to hear this Merlin? You can always tell her later if you want to. I just think that this is better told to only you directly.Please do not get mad at me I am just speaking what is best for you, Merlin.¡± Arwen who was about to go off again at her words calmed down as she heard the last sentence before turning to look at Merlin. Merlin having both of the ladies look at him glanced back and forth between the two of them and few times before deciding. He simply patted the bed beside him indicating she could stay. Smiling, Arwen took him up on that offer sitting down beside him. Seeing that Diane nodded her head before closing the door completely. She then proceeded to sit down on the nearby stool that sat near the bed. Neither side spoke as they sat there for a few minutes with Merlin and Arwen staring at Diane who was looking at the floor with a pensive look on her face. Deciding to break the silence Arwen spoke out. ¡°So what was that light around Merlin? I have been there for quite a few awakenings and that has never happened before. You seemed to know what is was Diane.¡± Hearing her speak Diane nodded once before looking at Merlin and responding. ¡°That is something every member of the temple are trained to recognize. However, all but a handful go their entire lives without even seeing it. That light were the gods wanting to talk to Merlin. That only ever happens on two occasions. The first is if a person in question has a high affinity to a god and wants them to do something specific with their lives. The other has implications much more profound.¡± Turning her head down to the floor once more letting out a deep sigh, Diane turned back to Merlin once more. ¡°Now Merlin do you know which it is? I can not tell by just seeing it happen.¡± Hearing the question Merlin goes into deep thought as one part stands out to him amid the chaos that he remember while unconscious. ¡°I do not remember much of what happened. I just know that someone said to be patient. They stressed that part very much.¡± Hearing the answer Diane took a contemplative look on her face as she considered the implications of it. Questioningly she asks, ¡°Do you know how many were there? Or which god talked to you?¡± Shaking his head Merlin responded, ¡°I do not really remember anything. I just know that only one talked to me for sure.¡± Accepting what he said, Diane shrugged it off before responding. ¡°I am not sure why your memory is hazy, that has never happened before as far as I know of. Nonetheless, you should do as you were asked. I do not think you should go out to learn skills or train stats at all, though an exception might be made for some physical stats. It is likely you need to wait until you get your class. That is most often the time when this happens. The only reason it happened this early is that they view you with high importance.¡± Nodding in agreement Merlin looked towards Arwen to see if she had anything to say. Feeling his gaze, Arwen broke off from looking at Diane and looked down on Merlin. ¡°Don¡¯t worry I understand. I was just really worried about you. If that is all Diane, I think we should get going. I got to get home so I can get the children feed and in bed on time.¡± ¡°That is indeed everything at the moment since Merlin does not remember much. Now follow me. I will lead you back to the main hall.¡± Following her back they returned to main hall on the opposite side that they took for the awakening. Merlin was then come over with a sense of d¨¦j¨¤ vu and turned towards the center of the temple. There sat a round offering table with six statues standing around it. The statue Merlin could see the clearest was that of an elf. Calling out to Diane he asked, ¡°Which god is the elf statue for?¡± Without even looking she responded, ¡°That is Vigilem, Advisor to the King.¡± Nodding in appreciation, Merlin along with Arwen said their farewells to her before heading out the doorway to return home. No sooner did they leave did Diane turn around to face the entrance. Her face was full of shock. ¡°How did he know those represented the gods? Everyone else assumes they represent the sentient races. Unless¡­¡± Speaking those words the implications weighed heavily on her mind, however they were already gone and she had other duties to attend to. Taking another look at the statues the priestess offered a quick prayer to the gods before resuming her duties. Chapter 4 Walking through the streets Merlin and Arwen steadily made their way home as people walked along the street. Merlin justed looked around in a disinterested way meant more as a facade to others. Inside he was trying to figure out what Diane said about affinity to the gods. Giving up eventually he turned towards Arwen who was walking next to him. He waited for her to finish greeting a few of the locals that she knew. Seeing Merlin looking at her Arwen turned her head towards him while continuing to walk forward. ¡°Miss. Arwen, what did Priestess Diane mean about holy affinity? I feel like I should know that term.¡± Looking at Merlin as though he was sick Arwen had answered, ¡°You should, I talked about it when we went over the members of the temples. Sometimes when a person is born there is an imbalance in the power the gods used to give us life. This causes people to lean towards one of the gods. It is through that connection and utilization mana and ki together some are able to invoke the power of the gods. Though are you sure you feel alright? That should be easy for you.¡± As she spoke everything became clearer to Merlin as though he always knew that. ¡°Yeah I am fine Miss. Arwen. I think it is just because of what happened today. How do you tell if there is a connection between you and a god?¡± Still wearing a worried face she responds to Merlin, ¡°I personally do not know what it is like. However, I have raised a few kids that became priests. They all say it is like a tug at the back of your mind. Always reminding you of its presence, but not enough for it to interfere at all. I had one even claim that he could occasionally feel like something was watching him. However that disappeared quickly, plus he was always a jumpy one.¡± Listening to her talk Merlin could almost feel something move in response. It was almost as if it was trying to say THAT¡¯S ME. Thinking back he could wondered if the one boy Arwen mentioned was right about being watched. He felt it strongly right before his awakening. ¡°Speaking of the kids, maybe you could ask one of the kids aiming to be a warrior about training your Endurance maybe? No matter what, that should be increased if only a little. Also you should do some chores and gain a few skills for them. They will be useful, like cooking for example.¡± Nodding in agreement to her words, Merlin¡¯s thoughts started to drift once more, as he thought about what he should train. Seeing him like that Arwen sighed knowing that despite what she wanted to say he was not likely to listen to her anymore. Removing her sight from Merlin proved easy as she heard yells up ahead indicating their arrival at the orphanage once more.
Morning came once more as everyone sleepily went about doing their chores. Merlin was part of cooking that day as Arwen set it up so he could start getting the skill at least. They were having oatmeal that day along some fruits the farmers would deliver on occasion to the orphanage. All Merlin had to do was cut up some of the fruits so the smaller children could eat them easier. As he finished that and started to sit down to eat with the rest of the children out of the corner of his eye a blue screen popped into his view.
NOTICE
You have learned a skill. Due to previous experience the skill has been updated accordingly.
Cooking The ability to put ingredients together and make something edible. Allows for using of basic utensils to make food from simple ingredients. Allowed ingredients and untensils will increase when skill increases with skill. Flavor and amount of success will increase with skill.
Level: Intiate Skill will not go past Novice unless Class permits it. Mastery: Middle
Smiling in satisfaction he continued to eat.
After breakfast Merlin headed to the side of the orphanage where a training field was located. Here was where most of the warrior focused children would spend time as there were a few practice weapons along with training dummies. There was even a few circles of dirt that were designated for sparring. Noticing his approach Mary called out to him. (AN: Chapter 1 girl) ¡°What are you doing here Merlin? You don¡¯t seem to like a warrior type at all.¡± Hearing her call out a few of the kids turn towards him. One in particular formed a sneer on his face. ¡°Yeah we don¡¯t want some wimp like you hanging around. It might make us like you. Hehe.¡± With a look of exasperation on her face Mary yelled at him, ¡°For the last time Mavis, just shut up. We do not need you telling everyone about yourself now, do we?¡± Laughing at the remark the tense atmosphere that had unknowingly built up dissipated as the rest returned to their activities. With a angry look on his face Mavis walked away to corner of the area and started beating a dummy out of anger. Turning back to Merlin Mary smiled. ¡°Sorry about that. Mavis gets a big head while training, but he is alright once he calms down. Now do need something Merlin?¡± Nodding in appreciation Merlin asked, ¡°Do you think you can help me train my Endurance? It is really low and I would like to at least increase it by a few points.¡± Understanding coming to her face Mary nods before tapping her chin in thought. ¡°Well if you are not becoming a warrior the best way would to run until you collapse repeatedly. Any other form of training it often overlaps with warrior skills. Unless you plan on becoming a warrior?¡± Her last question told Merlin that his chances of being a warrior were terrible. The thought saddened him as even those barely older than him could tell that. Thanking her for that, Merlin got advice on a good way route to use, as some were doing right now. Starting off on the closest point near the field Merlin started running. The result after five minutes was him collapsed on the ground out of breath. The distance he ran was about one tenth of the entire course. Looking up he watched some of the other run as they went almost double the amount of what he did and over five times the distance. The part that disappointed him most was instead of collapsing like he did they merely started walking before resuming after a minute. It took at least ten to even start walking and an half hour to start running just to end in the same predicament. Merlin continued like that until lunch was called where he was only about of the fourth of a lap. A few of the kids who ran also walked over to Merlin and helped him to the house. Many of them felt pity as they passed him at least ten times in that period.The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. This continued for a few days before Merlin approached Arwen. ¡°Miss. Arwen is there a person I could learn how to use my mana from? Even if I don¡¯t end up needing it I would like to have it for now.¡± Tapping her chin in thought Arwen spoke, ¡°Maybe, let me get in contact to see if he will help. I will let you know when I find out.¡± Smiling in appreciation Merlin walked away to do his ¡®run¡¯ for the day. Watching him leave with a worried look on her face Arwen grabbed one of the kids heading into town and had them deliver a message.
A few days later Merlin came in for lunch and felt someone of some power located in the building. While not the greatest he felt it was still above average people. Before he could question the source he found a man sitting talking with Arwen. Seeing him walk in Arwen motioned for Merlin to come over. The action caused the man to turn around and show that he was a cat-kin. Pointing to him Arwen spoke, ¡°This is the one I was talking about Merlin. His name is Austin and he is a level 34 Mage.¡± Giving the boy a look over he spoke out in a voice that betrayed his age, proving him to up there in years. ¡°Boy why did you even bother with asking about mage skills if you are clearly doing training for a warrior?¡± Contrary to what he expected, Merlin answered in a calm manner, as though he did not hear the insult hidden in the words. ¡°My Endurance is really low. I want to improve it a little more. My interests though, lie in mana. So please accept me as your disciple Mr. Austin.¡± Seeing the boy¡¯s collected manner Austin smiled before responding, ¡°Your attitude certainly shows you are no warrior. Very well. You have a range used for archery practice correct? Please take me to it.¡± Smiling Merlin nodded and started leading the way before he heard Arwen¡¯s voice. ¡°Aren¡¯t you forgetting about lunch Merlin?¡± Rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment, Merlin excused himself before heading to eat lunch.
Some time after lunch what seemed like all the children in the town were sitting near the range to see magic. Despite mages meant to be fighters a few turned it into a small show. It was not uncommon. It had even managed to become its own class, becoming a Craftsmen related one. Making sure none of the children were near the targets Austin looked down at Merlin who stood close by. ¡°Now Merlin, unlike warriors, mages require that we use chants to use our spells. This makes them take time to cast and be used. This makes us slower than warriors who can do it on almost thought alone. However, mages will always have superior power when comparing similar levels. I find it is best to start with memorizing the chant along with having an idea of what you are trying to do. Now stay behind me and watch.¡± Nodding his head Merlin backs up and joins the crowd of children who were being watched by Arwen and a few mothers who bring their children here to play. Checking one last time, to make sure no one is near the targets, Austin closes his eyes in concentration. When he next spoke, his voice was filled with power. ¡°Come raging wind and slice my enemies, Airball.¡± Invisible to the eye, a rush of wind streaks down the range and strikes one dummy, creating slashes, similar to blade marks, to appear all over the dummy. Without stopping he continues. ¡°Come swirling water and wash away my enemies, Waterball.¡± Unlike wind, everyone could see this one as water rushed from the lake and formed a ball of water before crashing into another dummy. Despite that he continued. ¡°Come steadfast earth and pierce my enemies, Rockball.¡± In front of him the earth rose as it formed another ball before it too rushed down the range and made a hole in one dummy that was still untouched. Unlike the previous times Austin waited a moment before chanting one more. ¡°Come consuming fire and burn my enemies. Fireball.¡± Above his head a giant ball of fire appears and soars down the range striking the last dummy setting it on fire. Nodding in approval Austin turns around with a smile on his face before exclaiming, ¡°That my children is the four basic spells that all mages know when given the class as ordained by the gods.¡± All the children there with a few of the adults mixed in had a shine in their eyes. One truth accepted by all was that spells had a charm about them that no ki technique could match and have the same effectiveness. Seeing the look in their eyes, Austin chuckled before gesturing with his hand to have Merlin come forward. Seeing that Merlin quickly walked forward not even noticing how a few of the younger ones started walking forward too, only to be stopped by the adults nearby. Standing next to him, Merlin looked up with a expression on his face asking what he should be doing. Pointing down towards a few untouched dummies Austin told Merlin, ¡°I want you to try and cast Waterball so that it strikes a dummy. The reason for using Waterball is because it has the lowest cost and easiest to deal with any accidents should anything happen. I do not expect you to get it right the first time so do not get discouraged. However, do not force yourself. I mean it when I say that. Otherwise you will be hurt or even killed. Now, you may begin when ready.¡± Seeing the seriousness on the old man¡¯s face Merlin calmed down almost instantly as he looked towards the dummies mentioned by Austin. Recalling what he said and the action described Merlin held out his hand as he pointed towards the dummies. Seeing that Austin nodded in approval as accuracy greatly increased while doing so. The only reason he did not was due to his age, despite he was only Novice Low in his magic. Feeling inside Merlin tried to find energy similar to what he felt was used in the spells he saw. Initially all he found was what felt like an empty cavern in his stomach before moving up to his head where he saw a pool of energy that could easily fill up the cavern he found earlier with some to spare. Drawing it out slowly he found it moved easily in his body. Moving it towards his mouth to speak words of power similar to Austin, Merlin spoke the chant. ¡°Come swirling water and wash away my enemies, Waterball.¡± Instantly he felt a portion of it leave his body and start pulling water towards it. Excited at his success Merlin suddenly felt as though the energy was dissipating rapidly. Using his connection to it he found that it seemed like something was tearing it apart, forcing it to dissipate. With a maddened look on his face Merlin did not gently move the energy anymore. He forced it to obey him. To stay together. To submit itself to his will power. Merlin forced more of the power outside his body to compensate. Suddenly Merlin felt as though he broke past a barrier that stopped the spell as the energy suddenly left his control he opened eyes to see what was going on. What he saw was a Waterball larger than the earlier one fly down the range and strike two dummies at once. As he took that Merlin did not feel himself fall to his knees as the ground rushed up to greet him he managed to see two screens.
NOTICE
Due to successfully casting a spell on your first try you have earned the following stat points. +1 Intelligence +1 Wisdom +2 Willpower
NOTICE
Due to your amazing feat of performing a spell on your first try you have been granted the following skills.
Water Magic The ability to manipulate water around you to form what you desire. Can use following spells: Spells: Waterball
Level: Intitate Mastery: Low
Mana Manipulation Using this will allow the user to control how much mana is used for a spell. The less mana the weaker the spell. The more the stronger. Simple. WARNING: Some spells will have unintended side effects when improper amount is used.
Level: N/A Mastery: N/A
Mana Sight Allows you to see mana around you. Details and distance are determined by skill level. WARNING: In presence of large amounts of mana user can be blinded. Will affect Health in extreme cases.
Level: N/A Mastery: N/A
That was the last thing he saw before passing out. Chapter 5 Groaning Merlin slowly sat upright as he held his head. He felt like his head was pulsing, as every beat of his heart sent new waves of pain. ¡°Your lucky boy. Most are out for a day or two. You managed to get up in a few hours. Though considering your willpower not surprising.¡± Opening his eyes Merlin glanced next to the bed and saw Austin sitting there with a helpless expression stuck on his face. Seeing Merlin recognize him Austin nodded before continuing to speak. ¡°What you are experiencing is a debuff called Fractured Will. This happens when a mage uses to much of their willpower to cast a spell or to many at once. Depending on how much you used and how long makes the recovery time vary. Though considering you are awake now it shouldn¡¯t be too much longer.¡± Instinctively Merlin pulled up his status to see what else was there. However what he got was far from making him feel better.
NOTICE
Status unavailable. Debuff detected. Fractured Will.
Time Remaing:
1 Hour and 38 Minutes
Seeing a frown work across Merlin¡¯s face Austin chuckled. ¡°Let me guess, you just tried to pull up your status window, huh. Yeah for that one reason alone Fractured Will is ranked as one of the nastiest debuffs you can get. Unlike some debuffs it scales. Bigger spell equals bigger debuff. However, be warned. The real reason it is ranked so high is that it will kill you for going over. This is not a joke alright?¡± Seeing the seriousness cross Austin¡¯s face Merlin nodded eagerly before stopping wincing in pain. Noticing the pain that crossed Merlin¡¯s face Austin spoke out once more, ¡°You will probably have to take a few days rest for pain to disappear. Your status might say you are fully healed but that is only for long term. Short term there will be pain, especially since it is your first time to do magic and somehow got one the nastiest debuffs one can get.¡± ¡°Though I am curious how did you manage to do that? It has happened before, but under unique circumstances. Of which I know for certain most are impossible in this situation. Was there any notification before you passed out? If not I will come back tomorrow when your status will be unlocked and you should feel better.¡± Pausing for a moment Merlin recalls what he saw right as he passed out. ¡°I think I got two new skills. One was Mana Manipulation, and I think the other was something called Mana Sight. It just mentioned them alongside Water Magic and I did not have a chance to read them.¡± Going into thought about what Merlin said Austin slowly spoke, ¡°Obtaining Water Magic I am really not surprised. I would be shocked if you didn¡¯t get it. As for the other two, hmm. Mana Manipulation I have heard a little of. I will need to double check with a few fellow mages. As for Mana Sight, hm, I have not even heard of such a skill. I will likely need to head to the Mage¡¯s Guild personally and access their records to be sure.¡± Nodding his head in understanding Merlin wondered if this had anything to do with what happened when he unlocked his status. ¡°Now Merlin, one thing I must warn you about is to never take magic lightly. Magic, even at the very beginning, is deadly to most non-combat classes and those with few to no levels. So I must insist watching you whenever you practice magic. While I am not the best, I have still managed to reach Novice rank with my spells so I can help avoid the large mistakes that could be devastating.¡± Merlin listened attentively, as he heard Austin speak with voice one would not normally take with children. Hearing the explanation and remembering the demonstration he saw earlier that day Merlin readily agreed. After getting the acceptance from Merlin, Austin smiled fondly, similar to that a grandparent would show their grandkids, before continuing to speak more. ¡°Now I believe that is enough learning for today. Rest until tomorrow. I would recommend that no running around or whatever you are doing until the day after. I come back in a few days. I wanna talk with other mages about your skills to see if how we can include training them. Now goodnight Merlin, I must go speak with Miss Arwen for some arrangements regarding your condition and the future.¡±This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. Waving to Merlin as he left the room Austin quickly disappeared from Merlin¡¯s sight. Laying back down Merlin quietly fell asleep once more, his young body exhausted from the magic.
Waking up the next day Merlin noticed two things immediately. The first was that the pain he had yesterday had decreased drastically. Similar to going from a full blown migraine to a dull headache. The other was that he woke up late. Really late, as the noise from the other room indicated that everyone started eating already. Getting out of bed while stretching a little, Merlin dressed quickly and walked out to the main area. As he was walking in, he was quickly noticed by Arwen, who strangely enough was actually doing the cooking for once. ¡°Ha, and they call me a sleepy head. Look who woke up after me.¡± With a smile on her face Arwen exclaimed happy to not be the last up for once. Until some the younger kids muttered about them waking her up this morning still. Her celebration quickly brought to an end, Arwen wordlessly went back to cooking and serving egg omelets to those who wanted one. All of the older children laughed quietly while the younger burst out in a fite of giggles that infected everyone at the table with Arwen eventually laughing alongside them.
Approaching Arwen before she had to get ready for class, Merlin said he was sorry for not doing his chores this morning. Rubbing his head she responded, ¡°It¡¯s alright. Mr Austin said that would likely be the case. So I had others do it for you. You don¡¯t have to worry. So you just have to not get a nasty debuff again, go it? Otherwise I am going to have re-educate you about them with the schoolkids.¡± Responding in a mock fright Merlin went, ¡°Oh no anything but that! I am sorry Arwen it will never happen again.¡± As he finished Merlin ran away back towards his room. In his room Merlin sat down on his bed for a little while before realizing he could see his status once more.
Status Window
Name: Merlin Title: -None-
Class: -None- Level: 1
Race: Elf Age: 10
Health: 99/99 Health Regen: 1 / minute
Mana Pool: 454/454 Mana Regen: 9 / second
Physical Mental
Strength 5 Intelligence 14
Vitality 10 Wisdom 16
Endurance 2 Willpower 22
Neutral Miscellaneous
Agility 8 Gems 0
Coordination 13 Stamina 60
Luck 42 Movement Speed 9
Merlin sighed once more as he had no gains to endurance as he hoped, but the relatively large increase in his mana pool made him excited. Following that he opened his skill screen to see the new skills he got. After reading the descriptions Merlin frowned trying to think of ways he could potentially use them. To start off with he tried using Mana Manipulation which got him nothing. However not discouraged he sat there trying to feel what the skill was doing. As he repeated it over and over soon it was lunch time. Getting up to go eat lunch with everyone else, he stopped. It felt like an itch you don¡¯t have to scratch or a sneeze that never comes. Like something should happen but it is not. Sitting back down, Merlin quickly started to try using the skill once more only to be interrupted an hour later. Opening the door in walked Arwen with a relieved expression on her face as she looked towards Merlin. ¡°There you are! I was wondering why you weren¡¯t at the lunch with us. What were you doing in here to miss it?¡± Shocked on how he had missed lunch Merlin quickly responded, ¡°I..., I didn¡¯t mean to. I just was trying a new skill and lost track of time. Sorry.¡± With a smile Arwen reassured him, ¡°It''s alright. Just none of the other kids had seen you since this morning so I was worried. But what skill are you using? I mean there is nothing here to practice a skill with. Or are you trying to fool me? Hmph, is that?¡± Going from her initial expression Arwen slowly becoming one of mock fury. The only thing giving it away was the slight smile she had at the edge of her lips, that did not manage to escape Merlin¡¯s eyes. With a slight smile he went along with it. ¡°Oh you got me Miss Arwen I just wanted to sleep in all day. You have foiled my plan, oh woe is me.¡± Collapsing back on the bed with an arm across his eyes, Merlin peeked out from under his arm to see her face. This time however was outside his expectations. She was closing in on him with her hands outstretched reaching to tickle him. So like any child he quickly got up and ran away only to be stopped by the younger children who heard the commotion and soon he ended up spending the rest of the afternoon playing with Arwen and the younger children. Chapter 6 The next day Merlin got up at his normal time and managed to do his chores with no problem. He thought about going out to do endurance training. However still feeling the a slight twinge of pain and decided against it. Going back into his room he sat down on his bed once more and looked once more at his skill screen looking at Mana Sight. Not sure what to do he activated it and for a moment nothing happened then he blinked once. The world all of a sudden shifted as everything seemed to shift into various colors of gray and silver. Looking around he noticed how everything seemed to be made of of gold and silver colors with the gold being the more dominant one. In some cases there would only a tiny sliver of silver circle the golden color. Looking down at himself, Merlin gasped in surprise. Unlike some items he was entirely silver with a sliver of gold around the edges. Enraptured by the sights he spent his time looking at everything around him in fascination. Hearing a sound he looks towards the door to see Mary (AN: cookies to those who remember her!). Looking at her she was full of gold and silver. To Merlin it seemed like it was two thirds of gold with only a third of her a silver color. Comparing the two colors the gold color was richer and deeper being more vibrant and alive. The silver color in comparison was dull and darker making it seem more like a lifeless gray. Comparing her color to his own his gold lining was more like a dull bronze just sitting there with like it was there for just appearances. His silver on the other hand was MOVING, forming intricate and delicate patterns. It appeared with an almost glowing color as it pulsed and had various shades as it shifted through the different possible colors of silver and gray each more unique than the last. ¡°HEY! You listening Merlin?¡± Shaking his head and blinking rapidly he deactivated Mana Sight, and the world once again returning to its normal colors. ¡°Sorry Mary, I was using a skill. What were you saying?¡± ¡°I was saying that it is lunch time and Arwen sent me to get you. Now are you sure you are alright, Arwen is still a little worried.¡± ¡°I feel like I could run downstairs with and only barely be out of breath.¡± Mary who was about to respond to Merlin paused before bursting out in laughter. Waving her for Merlin to follow Mary left the room and headed downstairs. With a smile on his face Merlin followed after her.
After lunch Merlin returned to his room and used Mana Sight once more. This time instead of just looking he tried activating Mana Manipulation once more. This time he clearly saw what was happening. At first he tried to manipulate mana in other objects however after a few tries with just seeing the the silver parts just sort of twitch or move a little faster inside their own objects. Eventually he tried using it on himself. His silver which was flowing smoothly and gracefully earlier seemed to halt. There were parts that still moved around however the impression the rest gave him was a group of guards or an army lining up in ranks before a fight. From there he tried to move them and he watched as it shifted and churned, but overall nothing happened. Sighing Merlin stopped using Mana Manipulation and just kept looking around. Occasionally he would get close to something and try to look at it in detail. However by the end of the day Merlin had no real progress and figured it would have to wait until tomorrow with Austin.
Waking up the next day, Merlin went through his routine before sitting near the front steps to the orphanage as he waited for Austin to come from his place in town. As he waited he turned on Mana Sight to look at the world around him to pass the time. One thing he noticed was that unless he really focused only the silver color he kept seeing would be in focus. Often times the gold color would be fain or even nonexistent with the only indication being an empty space that should not occur in a living thing.Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. He soon noticed Austin¡¯s approach as he was a bright silver color that dwarfed his own luster to a point. Deactivating the skill he ran to Austin who was leisurely approaching. Seeing him approach Austin wore a small smile he made small talk with Merlin as they both entered the orphanage. Settling down in the now empty lunch table Austin had Merlin sit down so he could talk about the skills Merlin learned. Pulling out some papers Austin began to tell Merlin what he had found. ¡°Well starting off simple, I confirmed my thoughts on Mana Manipulation. It is actually one of the high tier skills a Mage can learn as it allows more variety in their attacks without new spells. With so few spells, we need all we can get. It was actually learned first by the highest level mage ever, who managed to reach level 82 and was a High Novice in Fire Magic. However that was only near the end of his lifespan and in an attempt to cross the level boundary and extend his life he went out in the wilderness and was never found again. Before you get your hopes up this happened almost 500 years ago so even the oldest people alive now would not have even been born.¡± Looking towards Merlin to see the confused expression on his face Austin sighed before motioning Merlin to ask his questions. ¡°What do you mean by level boundary? And how would that affect how old you would live? Also who are the oldest and why are they able to get so old?¡± Firing out these questions in rapid fire Austin almost felt like his head was spinning from them he went to answer the questions. ¡°In a sense the answer to all your questions are the same.¡± ¡°The level boundary I refer to is the one that stops people from going to level 99 to 100. When people reach level 100 their class undergoes an advancement and specializes in what they trained for, taking into account skill levels and base class. There a deep divide between the two. With often times seeing an almost doubling in power between the two levels. That jump in power rejuvenates the body often allowing for some to live to well past 200 years. The amount of time they get varies depending on their age when the advance and race with humans typically being on the shorter end.¡± Taking a moment to pause he had Merlin get him something to drink before continuing. ¡°There is another level divide at level 199 to 200. From what I have heard there is another doubling in power and class advancement to suite your personality. I have not seen a person who has reached that high as we are in a less dangerous area where low levels can get by. So, I can not guarantee everything I said. As for how long they live I am not entirely sure, however it is not a huge increase compared to the earlier advancement.¡± Taking a look at Merlin to see if he had anymore questions what Austin found was the boy sitting there in thought, like he was processing everything he had just heard and seeing if it benefits him in anyway. Smacking the table lightly to get Merlin¡¯s attention once more he started talking again. ¡°Now if we can continue on with what I am here for. For the Mana Sight skill I hit a dead end. No one I knew had heard of it. None the records I accessed had it written down. That said it is not like no one ever had it. The Mage¡¯s Guild just does not have record of it. There might be one place that does, however I will not likely go there in my lifetime. Before you ask only those with high positions within the kingdoms and those in the church have access to it. It is the the Ancestral Library.¡± Hearing that name Merlin began to remember the lessons he had with Arwen for class on history. All of the current kingdoms surrounded the place in which the original members of the species were placed by the gods. That place is the Ancestral Grounds. It is there that the true powerhouses of the sentient races reside. The Ancestral Grounds also hold the church¡¯s headquarters along with the library mentioned containing the entirety of knowledge of the combined races. However, the true reason it is called the Ancestral Grounds is that no matter what race they must obey the leaders of their races that inhabit the grounds. The leaders here are not chosen by blood or any mortal reason. There are appointed by the church through the commands of the gods. To anyone in race their words are absolute as they are the true leaders appointed by the gods. Like any leader they can not be everywhere. Thus, the kingdoms arose around the grounds to govern the land they had settled as the races expanded outward. Those in the Ancestral Grounds largely let the local rulers be. However, when it came to rebellions and monster outbreaks, the local rulers did not dare take the lead. *cough* *cough* Hearing the cough, Merlin looked back towards Austin breaking out of his recollection once more with an embarrassed smile on his face. ¡°Since we do not have access to those records we will do what we can with testing it out in various scenarios. However, before we do that I would like to at least you be at Middle Initiate in all magic categories so you have an idea of what you are doing. For now let us review your Water Magic and go onto Wind Magic if we have the time.¡± Nodding in agreement Merlin left with Austin towards the archery range where he would practice for the next four years. Chapter 7 Merlin sat on his bed pondering once again. It had been just a few months short of 5 years since he had awakened his status and he was considering what class he should take. Like any person at his age would be thinking of what class they would take. It affected the rest of their life and they could only change under the grace of the gods, however that only really occurred when the gods took a champion. Taking another look at his skills Merlin perused the various categories of skills he had. The first he looked at were his general skills. Here he had Cooking, Cleaning, Sewing, and a few other miscellaneous skills that people would acquire throughout life that would not go past Novice without specialization in a class. Most of these he had in Novice with only a few of the lesser used ones still in Initiate. Next up was his Mage skills. He had managed to get Fire Magic, Water Magic, and Air Magic all on his first tries at them, which astounded Austin even more than he was already. Adding those along with the Water Magic they were all High Initiate and had managed to stay that way for a few months now. Alongside those he his beloved Mana Sight and Mana Manipulation. Though they did not have skill levels his applications of them had grown. He however, did not like how the other kids treated him like a match for starting the fire though. Merlin was really eager to have more skills for Mages, however he had been informed by Austin that no more common ones existed other than the basic magic ones. The rest were all acquired under life threatening danger, which neither he nor Austin wanted to go through. Under what people would consider Warrior skills was only two skills. Running and Perseverance. Both of the skills were still only at Low Initiate as he only managed to get them a few months ago. The Running skill allowed him to run longer and faster more efficiently, while Perseverance gave him a general decrease in stamina consumption no matter the action. A second effect Perseverance had that truly classified it as a Warrior class was that it reduced cost of ki for skills. Now while he had managed to get a few more stat points while training his skills he had no gain in Endurance than what he had initially training. That meant he still did not have access to Ki. He had managed to get an point in strength, vitality, and coordination through the physical training and chores he had to do. Then from training magic he had managed to gain three points in intelligence and wisdom, with a shocking increase in willpower at six points. If this kept up until his class selection he would have to go without ki for the rest of his life. For most people this would be terrible, Merlin felt strangely at peace with the idea as though it suited him better than waving a sword around. As he had practiced his Magic skills over the last few years Austin told him the only way to improve was to practice alot. This was the idea for almost every skill with a few exceptions. However just doing it over and over again felt wrong. He could not describe it in any detail and any attempt to talk to Austin about it was just waved off. However, the feeling went away a bit when he was allowed to practice by himself after almost two years of practice. Before he would cast a spell until he could no longer continue due to lacking mana or low on his willpower. Austin¡¯s explanation of why willpower was used was because the soul could only handle so much magic at one time, just like a warrior¡¯s body could only withstand so much ki coursing through before harmful side effects would start to occur. It was like Merlin was just missing a crucial piece of the puzzle and everything would just fall into place. Sighing Merlin got up from the bed and went outside to a range that was separate from the warrior area so he could practice without worrying about hurting others and not take the field from any archers. Almost a year later after he started practicing solo, Merlin started doing a routine he had set up. Merlin would sit down and close his eyes in concentration. He would then activate Mana Sight and slowly speak the words for an Airball. Instead of letting all the mana rush out of his body at once for the spell, Merlin used Mana Manipulation to slowly insert one point of mana at a time while observing the spell via Mana Sight. Merlin had discovered on accident while he was casually using Mana Sight that it was not tied directly to his eyes, but instead to his soul and could ¡®see¡¯ no matter what. It was this discovery that lead him to do this practice method. It was this method that Merlin would slowly make progress. For anyone else at that point it would have been a strain on their willpower and would only be able to do this once they passed level 50, but by then they would not even bother as it was to weak. It was not without its rewards though. A month after he started he reached Middle Initiate in all his magic skills. Keeping with this method he could feel himself rapidly improving as though this was what was meant to happen. Still, Merlin had felt the discomfort from before present. The source he was almost entirely sure off. It was how other were to do this if they did not Mana Sight. With how Austin described this could not be a common skill and so that would eliminate almost everyone. Not knowing what to do Merlin continued to practice when he felt something give way.
NOTICE!
Air Magic has ranked up!
Due to increase in Air Magic the spell, Wind Blade, has been unlocked.
Merlin sat there frozen as his magic dissipated in the world as he did not finish the chant or even give the mana needed for the spell.You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. He had talked to Austin quite a bit about anything and everything that Mages had done before. The earliest time someone became a Novice in a magic was when they were level 12 which would have a large advantage over him. Yet here he sat not even able to level and he had just ranked up in magic. Eager to use the new spell Merlin brought up its information.
Spell Name: Wind Blade
Chant: Air coalesce and become my blade that I may detroy my enemy, Wind Blade.
Unlock Conditions: Air Magic Rank: Novice
Spell Cost: Mana Cost: 50????Willpower Reserved: 3
Seeing it confirmed on both the skill screen and the spell status Merlin was shocked. He had become a Novice! Like a child with a new toy Merlin immediately put it to good use. ¡°Air coalesce and become my blade that I may destroy my enemy, Wind Blade.¡± Since it was his first time using it Merlin did not use either Mana Sight or Mana Manipulation so that way he can get a feel for how the spell should react under ideal conditions. While he was not able to see anything initially he was not disappointed and waited a little longer. Not a moment after that the target he had been aiming at all of a sudden had its top slide off. Surprised by the development Merlin went forward to look at the target. Inspecting the edge along which the target was split he was shocked to see that it was smooth like one of the warrior kids came up and cut it. Even when Merlin was practicing normally the only time he had managed to damage the targets like this was when he used Fire Magic and he did not do it often to not waste targets. He was more likely to launch them either in the lake nearby or the air. It helped distract the younger ones at times. Shaking his head to focus Merlin walked back to where normally stood to do magic. This time he used Mana Sight and Mana Manipulation to to slowly let the magic form. Instead of forming a ball like with the Airball this formed a thin half-circle facing forward that took little mana to form. Most of the magic went towards increasing the speed of the spell. This time Merlin saw as it sliced the target in half again before disappearing a few feet beyond. Excited by the new spell he spent the rest of the day until it turned into the night using it before he felt a headache come on and a popup to accompany it. Burdened Will: Makes concentration difficult 30 mins Seeing the contents realized just how deep he had engrossed himself in the new spell. Deciding he should have stopped an hour ago Merlin went inside determined to see if he can get the other magics up to Novice also.
A few days later and several lectures by Arwen for being so reckless later Merlin finally had all the magics up to Novice. For each rank up, a spell accompanied with it.
Spell Name: Fire Bolt
Chant: Come great fire and let me unleash my fury on my enemies, Fire Bolt.
Unlock Conditions: Fire Magic Rank: Novice
Spell Cost: Mana Cost: 50????Willpower Reserved: 3
Spell Name: Stone Cannon
Chant: Oh firm earth come do what I cannot and scatter my enemy, Stone Cannon.
Unlock Conditions: Earth Magic Rank: Novice
Spell Cost: Mana Cost: 50????Willpower Reserved: 3
Spell Name: Water Scythe
Chant: Giver of life water come and take the life you have given, Water Scythe.
Unlock Conditions: Water Magic Rank: Novice
Spell Cost: Mana Cost: 50????Willpower Reserved: 3
Of the spells unlocked Wind Blade was undoubtedly the fastest of them. Fire Bolt looked similar to an arrow and had the most destructive power with a little explosion happening after it collided. Arwen did not appreciate Merlin waking the little ones from their nap when he tested it. Stone Cannon was also a ball but one could tell by looking at it that it was much denser, but it was less deadly than the other spells but had great power in delaying or forcing an enemy to where you want them to go. Water Scythe mimicked the Wind Blade in looks and was the jack of all. Merlin just felt like Water Magic did not like being used for it in that form. Unsure about what to do with the new information Merlin decided to keep it to himself. He was not sure why but he felt like something was watching him with hate. It had not been the first time he felt it, and the hate in the stare only seemed to increase with time. He could never find the source and nothing had happened so ignored so far. However, something told him that their would be action if he told someone. Feeling a little helpless about the situation Merlin continued to train until he had to stop for the day. As he continued training his resolve become unshakeable. When the class selection came about he would undoubtable chose mage! Chapter 8 Waking up Merlin got dressed and walked downstairs to his chores for the last time. Today was his last day at the orphanage. It was his fifteenth birthday today and after breakfast he would immediately head over to the temple to get his class. Merlin was excited to say the least. However, as he had started doing since he learned how to manipulate his magic he went down and filled the buckets with water using the Waterball with only 5 mana as that seemed like the perfect amount to fill a bucket. Shaking his head from reminiscing on what he was likely going to miss once he was gone. Looking back towards the buckets he quickly filled the remaining ones, and went to help get the fire started for the last time.
Walking alone Merlin slowly made his way to the temple. Looking at his status he was shocked to see that his gems said 100. Looking in his pack on his back he found two purple gems each worth 50 alongside a note. It was from Arwen. ¡°Merlin if you are reading this then you must of noticed my parting gift. It is just a little starting fund for whatever you want to do in the future. Just know I am rooting for you and to stay safe. Sincerely, Arwen.¡± A choked smile found its way on Merlin¡¯s face as he had never heard of any of his older ¡°roommates¡± ever getting this. Though they almost never came back so it was not surprising none of them mentioned it. Thankful for the gift Merlin continued on towards the temple with a peep in his step.
Entering the temple he was greeted with a familiar face. Smiling he greeted her. ¡°Hello, Priestess Diane. Do you remember me?¡± Turning towards the voice Diane smiled as she saw Merlin standing there. ¡°Of course I remember you Merlin. I try to remember all of those who status¡¯ I awaken. Especially one as strange as yours. I assume you are here for class selection then, because I remember you coming here five years ago.¡± Nodding in confirmation to her statement Merlin started feeling a little nervous now that he was actually going to select his class. Seeing the nod Diane waved Merlin to follow as she went towards the back rooms of the temple. Following her Merlin found himself in a room similar to the first one he saw where his status was unlocked. ¡°Stand in the middle if you please Merlin this should be faster than awakening your status. Once you are ready to start let me know and I will begin.¡± Taking his place Merlin took a few deep breathes in and out cself before sending a nod toward Diane as he kept his eyes closed. Seeing the nod Diane started the ritual not caring that his eyes were closed as it would matter little since it took place in their soul. ¡°O gods that rule this world the humble priestess presents to you once more a child who has come to you. Once they wanted their status to granted themselves. Now they comes asking for the completion of it by acceptance of a class. O gods grant the child their desire.¡± For the second time Merlin felt a rush of what he now knew to be holy power as a screen appeared in his mind.
Warrior Mage Craftsmen Unique
Not available due to lack of ki. Multiple Available
Merlin hesitated for a moment before he heard a voice. ¡°Thank you for waiting child.¡± As the voice rung in his ears Merlin passed out once more.
Up in the heavens Vigilem could be seen busy meditating as he prepared power to use for the blessing of Merlin which would happen soon. Nearby Custos also appeared meditating as he sent power towards Vigilem. Suddenly Caeli enter their domain and told them that it was time as Merlin was undergoing the class selection. Hearing what she said both of them stood up and walked towards her realm. Standing by the pool that looked down towards the world. Filling his voice with power Vigilem spoke with conviction and determination. ¡°Thank you for waiting my child.¡±If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Suddenly, power started flowing out of Vigilem in an unrestrained manner as he summoned Merlin to the realm. Rising up from the pool similar to last time in a smokey and indistinct form. As one all the gods except Vigilem stepped back, while Vigilem stepped forward and a dome rose from the ground surrounding the two cutting them off from the rest. Inside the dome the world twisted and distorted as the scenery changed to an open field and Merlin¡¯s form became solid looking exactly like how he was on the planet below. As Merlin¡¯s body laid on the ground a groaning sound came from Merlin as he sat up suddenly with a hand on his head like it was in some sort of pain. Looking around Merlin immediately noticed the elf standing in front of him as all the memories from last time came rushing back to him. Speaking out slowly Merlin wanted to confirm one thing. ¡°You, you are Vigilem aren¡¯t you? I greet his holiness!¡± Not even waiting for an answer Merlin came to his own conclusion as he got on his knees and bowed before the god. Chuckling, Vigilem walked over and pulled Merlin up to face and spoke while doing so. ¡°There is no need to stand on ceremony with me young Merlin. I am the one that called you here, and as you might have guessed is that I have something to ask of you.¡± Sighing turned around to look around at the field around with a thoughtful face Vigilem went quiet. Seeing how the god before him went quiet Merlin hesitated to speak out before swallowing hard and speaking up. ¡°Is it related to last time? I remember you saying something about waiting and earning power. Could you advise me on that?¡± Hearing Merlin speak out Vigilem smiled before turning around and answering Merlin. ¡°Advise huh, it is interesting the titles you mortals have given us, appropriate, but interesting nonetheless. Yes, it is indeed related to last time I summoned you before me. Last time you caught me unaware and in the weakened state that I am stuck in right now, so I could not talk to you for long without borrowing from Custos and that was only a stop gap measure for fatigue. I spent the last five years gathering what power I could along with Custos transferring what power to me he could stably. The reason for this is simple. I wish for you to become my champion.¡± Stopping to see Merlin¡¯s reaction what greeted Vigilem was a truly hilarious sight. Merlin stood there frozen as though he had turned to a statue in the middle of a step forward as he seemed to teeter back and forth threatening to fall over at any moment. Tapping Merlin on the shoulder seemed to get him to react as he suddenly fell backwards on his but with his eyes not leaving Vigilem¡¯s face. ¡°You, ¡­ you are serious telling me that I am gonna be a powerful champion to a god?!?¡± Seeing Merlin started to get excited Vigilem smiled and let him celebrate for a bit before pulling the joy out of him just a little. ¡°You will not be super powerful, well not immediately. With the power I have saved up I can only give you a class and a title that should help you. I am to weak to put you through the trials that the other champions have to go through. Frankly speaking there is no trial I could give you any way since the path to the peak of magic is still undefined. So at most it would be a boost to somewhere around level 150 as it varies from soul to soul.¡± Pausing in his celebrations Merlin heard everything Vigilem just said and deflated as he carefully thought over what was just said. ¡°So will I be a champion when I go back or what? From what you are telling me, I feel like I will be slightly powerful, but nothing like a champion is and only at my level range. Is that right.¡± Nodding in confirmation Vigilem sighed loudly before explaining carefully. ¡°In regards to status and others around you, you will effectively be a potential champion. However, to us gods you are already seen as my champion. So, if they can help out in a small way they will do. Caeli will contact any churches near you so can go there in case you need to, Corporea will try to help guide you in the wilderness and few other things she can try in times of trouble. Then Terminus, when you are stronger, will make a weapon for you depending on what is needed in the end, and when I say stronger I mean approaching level 200 as the dwarves are a needed as part of the process and will not help unless there is some personal strength. The rest of us will help in small ways, but you will likely not even notice ours as it is minor.¡± ¡°I will only be able to bestow you proper championship when you reach level 250 and max out all of yours skills. Normally I could do it once I had enough proper power, but, like I said earlier, there is no proper height for me to take you to and the process in which I will give you a class and title limits what I can do later.¡± ¡°Until you reach that height there are a few things I want you to do. For starters reach at level 100 before you go wandering around the kingdoms. I would suggest heading to the Mage¡¯s Guild while you do so. The second task is that I want you to teach other mages. You may have realized it already, but everything mages do now is based off warriors. While they are able to make some progress that way it is inferior. I would tell you more, but that would potentially set off Medusa into a rampage. However, I will send quests to you directly every once in awhile if you need it or something urgent comes up.¡± ¡°There is more I wish to tell you however, I feel that we should end this soon as any free power I have is dwindling. Before you go there is a small ceremony that we need to do. Kneel in front of me if you would.¡± Seeing how vigilem started rushing Merlin did not question and went in front of him and kneeled down like a knight would to their lord. Breathing in and out slowly with his eyes closed Vigilem seemed like he was preparing for something. His eyes suddenly shot open with white power flowing out from his body and forming a fog around them. Vigilem then began to speak. ¡°CHILD OF THE GODS, I BRING YOU BEFORE ME TO GRANT ON YOU MY FAVOR. I LOOK FORWARD TOWARDS YOUR DEEDS AND SHALL REWARD YOU WHEN TIME COMES. NOW, GO AND BE MY WILL!¡± Feeling the power in his voice, Merlin¡¯s body trembled out of respect for its creator. When Vigilem finished speaking the white mist around them rushed towards Merlin and disappeared inside of him. With the power flooding his body, Merlin fainted and returned to the indistinct form he arrived in as the surroundings returned to normal. Slowly Merlin sunk back in the pool towards the world below. Chapter 9 Unbeknownst to Merlin as he descended back to the world below Vigilem left the area with pale face as when he returned to Caeli¡¯s to see it in tatters. Near him stood Terminus and Corporea in what could only be described as battle mode. Farther he saw Custos and Caeli in a similar state fighting an orb of darkness. Looking into the orb standing at the center stood Medusa. However it was not the one any mortal would associate with a benevolent goddess. No it was one that could only be attributed to one being. Madness incarnate, jealousy given form, hatred taking on a embodiment, however the most common and proper name, Witch of the Soul. Vigilem stood there almost helpless as Caeli and Custos fought to contain her, with the other two protecting him. From his defenseless state as he spoke with his hero. The strange energy spike he felt was the reason he rushed with the talk with Merlin. Upon his return he senses a change in the air. The power that had been climbing with no end in sight, started dwindling suddenly. The darkness that started spreading with no end in sight rushed back into Medusa, returning her to normal. After all the power was dispersed Medusa spoke the words that hoped to not hear for a little while longer. ¡°She has noticed him.¡±
Back in the mortal world Merlin woke up to a another familiar place. Though he only been here once it had left a lasting impression on him. Sighing Merlin once again sat up in the temple¡¯s medical hall. Hoping that he did not need to come here often, like what had seemed to happen the previous times he has talked with his god. Looking out a nearby window he saw that the sun was either starting to rise or fall. It was one of the murky times of day where time was indistinguishable. Suddenly Merlin paused as everything that happened rushed back to the forefront of his mind. His god talked to him. Not just in a dream or something vague, but in the flesh, face to face. He had meet his god, his god! Then Merlin paused. His god? Why was he calling Vigilem that? Did he own Vigilem? Why was he thinking that? He suddenly felt the impulse to check his status. Bringing it up he was shocked.
Status Window
Name: Merlin Title: Favored of the Advisor
Class: Teacher Level: 1
Race: Elf Age: 10
Health: 139/139 Health Regen: 2 / minute
Mana Pool: 693/693 Mana Regen: 14 / second
Physical Mental
Strength 9 Intelligence 22
Vitality 14 Wisdom 24
Endurance 5 Willpower 33
Neutral Miscellaneous
Agility 10 Gems 100
Coordination 16 Stamina 106
Luck 43 Movement Speed 12
Favored? Realization dawned upon Merlin. As the implications of what Vigilem said to him bean to sink in. It was not just doing something for him, no, it was not nearly that simple. It was acting as him on the mortal world. Favored of the Gods were ones that were one step away from becoming champions of the gods themselves. It was higher than the blessed who held an affinity to the gods, but the gods held no part in bringing them to that level. The amount of favored ever appearing could only account to a little over two dozen throughout history. As for blessed, they were at least a few each generation. Even then, being favored was just a prerequisite for becoming a champion, that number was even lower. His god, eh? It made sense now. He was not in a position that most mortals feel upon due to their birth. He had changed from a child of the gods to their companion. He was lost in thought when more windows appeared.
Ki Available!
Error encountered.
Class selection has permantently locked Ki away.
Title Unlocked!
Blessed by the Advisor
Title has been upgarded to Favored of the Advisor
increases experience by 50% Skill mastery speed increased by 25% Following Stats have been added:
Stength 3
Vitality 3
Endurance 3
Intelligence 5
Wisdom 5
Willpower 5
Agility 2
Coordination 2
Luck 1
NOTICE
You have been granted a skill! This is a unique skill that can not be taught to others.
Godly Connection Very few people are able to talk with the gods, yet you are one! This allows for your patron god to talk with you easier. In person talks will still require a holy place to make a stable connection.This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. individuals and monsters with certain skills can sense this connection.
Level: N/A Cannot be increased.
NOTICE
You have gained the skill True Sight. Mana Sight detected. Mana Sight has been assimilated by True Sight. As a combination unque skill, only parts of the skill are teachable to others.
True Sight Your eyes are blessed by the gods themselves allowing you to peer into reality. Allows you to see part of person''s status. Shows name, level and health of monsters. Increases visibilty in poor vision areas. (Teachable) Allows for visualization of various energies. (Teachable)
Level: N/A Cannont be Increased
CLASS GAINED!
Name: Teacher
Description: A teacher must walk a path before they can teach their students. Unlike others who follow that they themselves were taught, you must find your own. Increases skill gains in the follwoing ways: 10% in Skill Creation 20% in mastering Self Created Skills 0.01% increase per person who uses your skills 5% towards all other skills (nonstackable)
Stats Growth Potential
Strength Terrible
Vitality Decent
Endurance Minimum Allowed
Intelligence Great
Wisdom Great
Willpower Excellent
Agility High
Coordination Great
Luck None
Overwhelmed by the windows, Merlin took a few deep breaths exerting his increased willpower to calm himself. Going through the windows slowly Merlin came to understand what happened. While a little unfortunate that he could not use ki at all, he could not miss what he never had. He did find it a little curious that he actually would have been a blessed, if not for the meeting with Vigilem. Following that thought he hoped the connection skill would allow him to not pass out every time he talked the the gods. Otherwise it could prove harmful in the future. The True Sight skill seemed very useful considering how much he had relied on Mana Sight to train so quickly. Even if it was the last thing he thought about, it was on his mind ever since he read the notice. Teacher? It did not seem to be a crafter class, yet it felt familiar to him in some fashion. Wait, hadn¡¯t he chosen mage? So why was he a teacher? He brought up the window on his class and read it over once again. Like a puzzle, looking at it again allowed Merlin to slide it in its proper place. A unique class only available to those favored by the Advisor? Realization hit Merlin as he knew why it sounded familiar. Teacher, wasn¡¯t that almost similar position to that of a master? As in THE Master. Creator of countless classes, Champion of the Guard, and protector the races. Despite everything Merlin had been through, he was still a 15 year old boy. Barely old enough to go out in the world. Everything that happened was almost too much for him. In that moment as Merlin¡¯s thoughts were scattered he brought up a memory of him on the training field watching those who wanted to become berserkers. The first thing they had to do was learn to control their rage. He had seen many of the newer ones close their eyes and breath in a steady rhythm to control it when it would get close to going out of hand. He decided to imitate the idea, however he went further than that. Instead of controlling his thoughts, he let them all simply fade away until his mind was clear. Merlin continued to do this until a ding went off in his ears and upon opening his eyes he was met with another window.
NOTICE
You have created a skill!
Meditate Clears excess thoughts. Increases regeneration of mana by 5% while meditating. Blocks outside interference interrupting the user except under certain circumstances.
Level: Intiate Mastery: Low
NOTICE
Due to making a skill you have gained the following title. Skill Creator For every new skill created the follwoing stats will be earned.
Strength 1
Vitality 1
Endurance 1
Intelligence 2
Wisdom 2
Willpower 2
Agility 1
Coordination 1
Luck 0
Merlin sat there stunned. He had created a skill? Since when were skills so easy to create? However, the information on the skill proved to show him a hint on what he could do. In that moment of clarity he had, a plan began to form in Merlin¡¯s head. If he was to be a favored he might as well due his god¡¯s will. The thought brought a smile to his face as he started to imagine what the future would like. Interrupting the day dream another window appeared before Merlin.
QUEST
You have attracted the ire of the Witch of the Soul. Survive to reach level 250 with Max ????? ????? level skills. She does not know where you are currently. However, she is looking for you, and her reach does not stop with the known monsters. She will try to destroy you with her earthly servants at any cost.
Difficulty Unknown
Reward Title: Champion of the Advisor
All of a sudden the air in his head escaped at once. That was right, he was so lost in fantasy that he almost forgot how reality worked. If one could watch Merlin¡¯s eyes in that moment, one could see determination set in stone for him. He had a long way to go before he could become a champion. Merlin was once more drawn out of his thoughts by click, as the door to the hall opened up. Walking in was a tired Priestess Diane. Seeing Merlin sitting up seemed to have her perk up a little. ¡°Good morning sunshine. You must really feel comfortable sleeping in the temple, eh?¡± Hearing what she said Merlin blushed a little in shame. ¡°No worries deary, despite you being bigger I still have plenty of young helpers to aid little old me.¡± Struck by a sudden urge Merlin proceeded to use True Sight on her.
Status
Name: Diane Muller Titles: -None-
Class: Priestess Level: 138
Race: Coelum (Third Eye) Age: 188
It truly was powerful. Normally you had to let others show it to you see to this kind of stuff. Dismissing it he focused on Diane. ¡°How long have I been here?¡± Thinking about it for a moment Diane answered that it was only for the night. Sighing, at how much longer he had been out this time Merlin thought for a moment before deciding on asking a few questions. What he really needed right now was the location of the nearest newbie training area. He didn¡¯t exactly know where, as kids were kept from going outside of town. Deciding at what to do, Merlin walked out of the temple with a plan in mind. Little did he know how much of change he would bring to the world. Update Nam iaculis felis ut mi finibus tincidunt. Nam laoreet tellus elit, tempus congue ipsum tempus id. Integer auctor sem nec lobortis tempor. Vivamus cursus dignissim pharetra. Fusce quis ex ligula. In molestie hendrerit pretium. Vestibulum sit amet nulla mauris. Integer volutpat in orci sit amet commodo. Morbi sit amet fermentum nulla. Maecenas ultrices volutpat augue id tempor. Donec consectetur felis et aliquam gravida. Cras a urna a leo lobortis feugiat vel a risus. Curabitur elementum vehicula sodales. Nulla pretium felis tortor, eleifend efficitur ligula ornare id. Aenean dolor elit, ullamcorper et augue a, egestas ornare turpis. Aliquam in volutpat lacus, in commodo magna.If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.