The room that has become mine wasn’t that big, but it wasn’t small either. The man called Johan bought me a bed and took away the couch I used to lie on for about a week.

The first few days were quite uneasy for me and for the couple that took me in as their own daughter. At first, I was so happy with all the fortune that was happening to me: I got a place to stay at, warm food daily, I was treated very well by everyone, and Johan with his wife treated me kindly without asking me anything about my past or parents. Yet, the seeds of doubt started to sprout inside of me. Why didn’t they ask me anything? Why they let a child stay in their home and not report it to the authorities? Why the people that saw me sometimes in the store didn’t ask where I came from?

No one around me seemed to even think that it was a strange situation. When these thoughts started swirling in my mind, I decided to ask them, but all I got was just a puzzled look from Johan who said that I was family, and that I didn’t need to ask such strange questions.

Strange questions? How in the world what I was asking was strange?

I tried it out a couple more times with other people, but no one seemed to be aware that something was off and just asked me if everything was alright. In response I just smiled and then run away.

The more I racked my brain, the less I could understand. There was another thing that made me puzzled; where did the voice I heard my first day in this world come from? I didn’t hear it anymore since then.

While I was looking at myself in the mirror, Johan’s wife came in with a bright smile.

“Aww, sweetie you look wonderfully in your new dress. Ready to go to the Temple with mommy?”

I felt a shiver going down my spine. Her name was Layla, and she was a beautiful woman with an energetic personality and a smiley face. She was always nice and lovely, yet something about her made me uncomfortable. But just like everything else I couldn’t pinpoint the reason to that feeling. It was like my intuition was telling me something really important, unfortunately I couldn’t understand what it was saying. The first time I saw her, it was like looking at the sun without sunglasses, and it hurt so much that the first few days I passed crying and looking away whenever I saw her around. Fortunately, now it was more bearable.

“… Yes, I am.” I answered belatedly.

“Good! Let’s go my darling. Daddy will stay at home, so it’s a girls’ outing today!”

She reached out her hand indicating that I should take it. I hesitated for a second, then just gave up and played my part. Like this we walked through the store, said hello to a couple of customers and finally went outside joining the bustling crowd on the streets. We walked quickly through the people, zigzagging carefully headed to the Grand Temple where Layla worked as a carer. From what she told me, her job was to care for people, be it healing, mental support (just like our psychiatrists), give advice, help them with cores or anything else they needed. She was like an employee of a caritative association, which helps people, but of course not for free. Nothing was free in my world, and here neither. People paid to the Temple a sum, and depending on it, they could access its services.

That day I was going there with her to get my first blessing. Two days ago, she came home running and jumping enthusiastically saying that the High Priest gave her permission to receive a blessing. From the looks of it, receiving a blessing seemed to be something extraordinary, even though no one cared to explain to me what it was, and my questions were just liquidated with giggles and smiles. Whatever it was, I had no choice but accept such an honor.

I was agnostic in my other life, and I didn’t follow or believe churches or other things related to them. I always tried to keep as far from the religious world as I could, even though I still thought a god existed.

Well… after this experience, I would say that a god did not exist. Definitely didn’t. So maybe now I should define myself as atheist.

I was wondering what kind of religion there was in this world. Maybe I could find illumination and change my idea on everything in the blink of an eye.

Afterall, human beings are prone to changes.

It took us half an hour on foot to reach the Temple and… Oooh. Ok, imagine the Duomo Cathedral in Milan, you see it? Now make it five times bigger and a hundred times more majestic. Here, that was the main building of the Temple in the capitol.

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With my eyes wide open and my mouth agape, people probably thought I resembled an idiot. I was stunned by the magnificence and the amazingly detailed statues, and decorations, and columns, and arches, and… I heard a giggle that was like a cold shower which made me return to reality.

“I see you like this place! Inside it’s even nicer! C’mon, we should hasten our pace, the High Priest is probably already waiting for us.”

And like that, we made our way inside and I was once again stunned by the architecture and opulence of that place.

Looking curiously left and right, I didn’t notice how we arrived in from of a luxurious giant door. Layla took out something that resembled a rectangular stick and touched the door with it.

At first nothing happened, then the door started to glow with a yellow light and opened. On the other side columns and a walkway made of what seemed to be white marble with greyish veins leaded to an octagonal space placed in the middle of a pond which was emanating a light blue hue. In the middle, a hooded man was standing with his hands placed on top of a swords pommel. He didn’t have a color. It was the first time someone didn’t have a color, so I blinked a couple of time, but nothing changed.

Hand in hand, Layla and I walked towards him, then stopped before the octagonal platform and she bowed while I remained staring at the darkness that was under the hood. Nothing could be seen, but strangely I felt like he was smiling at me. Then Layla tugged my dress’ gown. I looked at her for a moment not understanding what she wanted from me, then understood that I had to bow too, so I tried to imitate her pose.

The moment I did it, the man in front of us giggled. Differently from Layla, it felt warm and loving and it made my heart skip a beat.

Then a soft voice reached my ears: “Come forth, child of another world. Come and take the gift of the Mother.”

!

He knew! He knew I wasn’t from this world! How? Shock, surprise, fear, and many other feelings flushed down me. Baffled I remained there, unable to move or even think properly.

“Go.” Layla whispered next to me.

I gave her a glance before getting up and walking slowly to the center where the High Priest was standing. Once in front of him, he smiled then his right hand left the sword’s pommel and touched my forehead.

[The System welcomes you.]

The voice from that day! Together with it a window opened in front of me, there I could read the same words I heard just now.

[Processing. Access granted.]

[The System’s Menu will now be available to the User. Please say Activate Menu.]

“Activate Menu.” I did as I was told, and an informative window opened in front of me.

[Title: Child of another world

Name: Feyra Lankan

Affiliation: None

Level: Error!

Stats: Error!

Skills: Error!

Others: Bearer of the otherworldly eyes, Stigma of Chaos.]

The window in front of me reported different things, like my name and a surname which I didn’t know I had, but the strangest things were the error lines. My brain couldn’t come up with anything, and while still looking down on the menu I heard a man’s voice: “Uhm, interesting. It’s the first time the system can’t load some information. And… Stigma of Chaos? I never saw something like this. I should visit the Archives and look it up.”

Over my head the High Priest was glancing at the window and talking to himself rather than to me. I stared at him, not knowing what to ask first, but fortunately he was quick to understand and started to explain: “This is system. It has many other names, depending in which country you are or time in history, but this is the way itself introduced to you, so I’ll call it the same way. Not many people can use it, but it’s not something unusual either. Most of the time, if someone can evoke it then they end up in the army or the Temple.”

He paused and glanced at the menu, just to point with a finger: “It’s a first for me. Usually, the level ranges from Beginner to Expert, plus some other levels which are usually obtained when joining an Affiliation… But yours… And your statistics and skills are unknown too.”

“What does it mean?” I asked with a serious face.

“…,” the man looked back at me, then answered, “I don’t know. I will need some time to research it. I’ll call you again through Mrs. Layla when I’ll find something. In the meantime, ask her or Johan if there’s something you’d like to know about it. Both of them are able to use system.”

I turned and looked at the woman who was still bowing. The strange feeling that something was off made my insides curl up. Whatever it was, I had other things to think about, so I ignored that sensation.

***

Once back at home I went straight to my room saying I needed some time for myself. I laid on the bed while staring at the ceiling. Many were the questions, and I had a hunch that it was better to not ask anything the couple that was letting me stay here. Calling that gut feeling distrust was not right. It was something more concrete, something that made me keep my mouth shut.

‘There’s something strange with her. He seems a good man, but if ask something Johan I’m sure she’ll know it.’

[Your intuition is right.]

The System’s voice startled me, making me flinch in surprise. Did it just answer me?

‘Uhm, you can… speak… with me?’

To myself I sounded stupid. Could the System talk with its Users?

[That is right.]

I jumped up and sat straight on the bed.

‘Then… can I ask you some questions?’

[Your current level does not allow me to answer all of your questions. If you wish to know more, please level up.]

I was puzzled by its words. It asked me to level up, but my level wasn’t even visible. There was an ‘error’ written instead of my current level!

‘Uhm, hey can you tell why next to my level it’s written Error?’

[The Error is due to the low compatibility with the current Vessel.]

‘… What is a Vessel?’

[This question can’t be answered. Please level up.]

So, it couldn’t tell me more about it right now. Then there’s only one question that was needed to be answered.

‘How do I level up?’