“Caspian are you ok?”
Caspian nods rubbing his head the welt on his forehead is likely to disappear soon but for now, he can feel it pulsing there. No one prepares you for how dense a coffin is especially when you seem to walk straight into them every day. You would think he would get better and avoid the hundreds of empty wooden and stone coffins in his family’s store after living and working there for roughly 17 years but nope they still seem to always appear out of nowhere.
Caspian lifts his backpack back onto his back and continues out the front door.
“Bye Mom see you after class”
He yells back as he turns heading for the bus stop and the end of the block. After waiting just a few minutes he sees his bus make the corner and head down the road. As it gets closer he can tell today won't be his day. The bus is packed he prays to his guardian angel a whole lotta people just happen to be riding the bus to his little corner of town and he's about to witness some mass exodus. No luck not a single person gets off just shuffle around a bit to make room. Not that he needs too huge a space he isn't exactly some massive dude but if he were probably wouldn't have been called Casper the unfriendly ghost all of high school now would he? He wasn't even that standoffish in high school he got good grades, had friends, and even participated in the blacksmithing shop club something he still questioned the efficacy of in a town with only about 500 people in the middle of who knows Idaho. Alas, none of those things seem to matter to people just his pale complexion and the knowledge that he spent his nonclass time surrounded by bodies, Dead bodies.
Caspian eventually reached his stop about half an hour from his town at The Tower. The Tower was well a tower. It had been built by some enthusiastic startup as the next thing in virtual reality and technology. It was supposed to have allowed willing participants to truly live out that urge for a different life. To be an adventurer climbing the tower where projections of beasts visible through special glasses could fight to grow stronger. That dream had never quite panned out funding had been cut and now it was an empty fantasy environment used solely for online college courses. Not a bad place to spend all day learning about anatomy and physiology but community college was still community college.
Caspian had followed the same routine wake up bonk his head on something, go to class learn something, then go home and get lectured about something for the past two years. He was beginning to get a wee bit sick of the monotony he just wanted to go live in the real version of the tower a place of exploration and adventure or at least a place where he could punch something without consequence. Hed watched enough Isekai anime to know the only way any of that was happening was a world-ending disaster, a portal, or getting hit by a delivery van on a rainy day, and for some reason that didn't seem very likely.
The way home wasn't anything major same cramped bus, same long ride, different bus driver but that was likely the single difference from yesterday and the day before that. That was until the train slammed into the bus.
The train was odd in two ways one it was a steam locomotive looking straight out of the 1800’s, and two it was on the highway, the middle of the highway. These two facts hit Caspian at roughly the same time he felt his fists collide with the wall of the bus brought up just in time to protect his head as he flew from his seat, but not all that helpful as the rest of the crown crushed down on him, and certainly nothing to stop the bus from becoming a meat tenderizer as it rolled end over end.
“We've got a whole lot coming through just probe them and send them it's not worth it to filter for ascension criteria with this kind of a backup they'll prove their worth and all that … welp good luck this time around”
Caspian heard the words but couldn't place the speaker as if they were everywhere and talking through him, not to him. His vision cleared into a pale almost translucent box floating in front of him ‘Heck yeah’ he thought here came his OP abilities and life of glory. As he began to fade back into unconsciousness the box seemed to slam into him and he was woken again seeing the words displayed more clearly.
|Do you wish The Troden Path or The Path of Exploration|
An easy choice really but he concentrated on the two options the first seeing to pull at him slightly. He felt new knowledge fill his mind and the two options faded into a new understanding.
|The Troden Path|
Live along the path trodden before you history has paved a way for you to walk Ascendant take it and make your duty known.
Receive bonuses for passive skills and social-related abilities
Receive a small amount of xp for killing beasts and a large amount of xp for improving your community.
|The Path of Exploration|
Journey forth on your own or with companions discover new things walk the path of danger and discover both fears unamaginable and vistas unseen. Depend on yourself and none can stand in your way, become complacent, and lose it all.
Receive bonuses to tests of body and mind and combat-related abilities.
Receive a bonus to xp earned outside a community and that which is hard fought.
Receive a higher chance to find rare or forgotten places and objects.
The choice seemed easy but he could see many others making a very different one with the additional information either way that wasn’t him Caspian chose and felt a flood of what felt like pure energy rush his body.
|Choice: The Path of Exploration|
-Bonuses received
-Stats added
-Class choices are available!
Choose a class: errrrrrror
-New Ascendant class is automatically chosen
Class: Fighter
Subclass: EMPTY
Blessing: EMPTY
You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.
Path: UNKNOWN
Chapter 2: The Tunnel and almost dying ... alot
|Choice: The Path of Exploration|
-Bonuses received
-Stats added
-Class choices are available!
Choose a class: errrrrrror
-New Ascendant class is automatically chosen
Class: Fighter
Subclass: EMPTY
Blessing: EMPTY
Path: UNKNOWN
Caspian woke up in a cold sweat though the cold… stone beneath him was a welcome discovery. Why was he lying on stone? When had he gotten here? Everything felt weird and far away like a dream. As he pulled himself up he felt not only bigger than he should but also noticed that that weird pane box thing he saw in his dream was still there … and it followed him when he turned his head. Focusing back in he realized it had changed from his dream which was seeming less and less likely to be a dream.
Class: Fighter
Subclass: Attempt Ascension?
Blessing: Attempt Attunement?
Path: UNKNOWN
He focused on the Subclass option.
Do you wish to attempt to ascend and develop a subclass?
Note: More experience is required for stable ascension
Continue? Y/N
‘Nope definitely gonna wait for the stable version of that’ Thought Caspian. Now the question was just how to get experience. Should he try to find a weapon? Perhaps build a shield or something for protection not to mention armour and the like. Maybe it wasn't a good idea to go full combat with no knowledge of this new world but hey the other option seemed boring as hell so no going back now.
Looking around Caspian found himself in a long dark tunnel a dungeon perhaps or an underground city? Maybe there were dwarves or something? Goblins? With no real expectations and nothing appearing when he focused on his fighter class, he delved down the hall into the darkness.
Maybe 50 feet down the hall the light of what he was now realizing was the only torch nearby right where he woke up was barely illuminating anything. He kept walking keeping his eyes moving in case he wasn't the only thing in the tunnel. Nothing for what seemed like hours just a straight damp hallway devoid of light looking back he could not see the torch anymore but somehow he could still see though minimally. Suddenly a soft chime rang in his ear.
ding
New Skill!
New Skill: Dark Vision Lvl 1
-See in the dark and never lose your way
‘Wow ho ho a real skill’ Caspian thought as his vision became slightly clearer a vague outline of the hallway becoming more clear as it extended further. Maybe he could gain some new skills from just doing things to prepare for when he ran into a fight. Not an hour later he was rewarded with a soft chime in his ear.
Ding
Dark Vision Lvl 2
With the level up came a new alert as well.
Ding
You have improved a skill!
You have proven your dedication or are under the influence of a master perhaps both continue on your path and reap the rewards to come.
Not much more than a positive message but results were results and with more dark vision came the realization that something was moving at the other end of the tunnel. Caspian moved slowly forward unsure exactly what to do when he saw what seemed to be a boar or pig or some other swine though this one had 4 tusks two horizontal ones like a regular boar and 2 that pointed down like a sabertooth tiger. As Caspian watched it ram the wall the knowledge of what it was floated through his head. Four Tusk Boar: Easy. Not exactly sure what to do with the information Caspian snuck closer ... and closer. So close he was now standing next to it without it noticing. As he looked at the massive pig he felt his stomach rumble. Not having any food for hours would sure make a man hungry perhaps he could cook this pig somehow or eat it raw. He knew you couldn't eat raw chicken cause of some bacteria but was the same for pork? Magic pork?
Caspian was pulled out of his thoughts as the boar rushed him seemingly able to have heard his stomach Caspian did the first thing he could think and punched it in the top of its head the Four Tusk Boar was immediately driven a half-inch into the floor stopping its motion as it dug a small furrow with its snout.
You have killed a: Four Tusk Boar
XP earned
Bonus XP earned for killing your first enemy
Bonus XP earned for fighting solo
Bonus XP earned due to Path
Bonus XP earned towards Ascension
Power flooded Caspian as the notifications rolled across his vision.
Fighter class upgrade available!
Become Brawler?
Y/N
A brawler certainly sounded more specific than a fighter and specifics usually meant power in games. But was Caspian a brawler? Hed always thought of himself as more of a Mage type though he supposed there wasn't much to do about that having already gotten the fighter class. He accepted the upgrade.
Lvl 1
Class: Brawler
Subclass: Attempt Ascension?
Blessing: Attempt Attunement?
Path: UNKNOWN
Well, he had an actual level now so that was cool but not too much else he wanted some cool new skill like a teleport or shadow blade or to conjure a sword or other weapon already. As he contemplated where to go from here he paused to admire the furrow in the ground the boar had made. Was he that strong? Also, why was the boar so easy? He understood that that's quite literally what its info said but still one punch from him and it was just, what, dead? The body didn't disappear so that was nice could be food. Kneeling he touched the corpse and found his little clear pane reappear before his eyes.
Would you like to loot this Corpse with current tools?
Y/N
Did he need tools? Did he have tools? He selected yes either way may as well try. Before him appeared a pile of sausages, pork chops, and the 4 tusks all laid out on what appeared to be a piece of the boar hide now made into leather or something like it. He picked up the raw meats and tasks holding them in bewilderment. What happened did this boar really turn into its component loot? Did this mean tools would add some new features to the process? Excited and very hungry he bit into one of the pork chops tearing it from the bone.
Ding
You have earned a new Achievement!
New Achievement: Opportunistic
-You have run into the fire asking not how to protect yourself but how to benefit from it. You might not have the knowledge but you can get that later.
-Bonuses to new paths
-Bonuses to skill upgrades and fusions
As more power flowed through Caspian so did a sickly feeling. He definitely shouldn't have eaten raw meat. Feeling the meat return from his stomach his head got light as he vomited across the ground in front of him dropping and immediately falling onto his new loot and the sharp end of one of the tusks.
Caspian was awoken by a loud ringing in his ears and a dull pain in his stomach.
Ding
Ding
Ding
Ding
Notifications swam through his vision.
You have new skill options!
You have gained Experience!
You have gained an Achievement!
You are now Lvl 5!
Level 5!! What the flip had happened to him his face felt slimy and there was still a pain in his stomach rolling onto his side he was able to feel consciousness slowly beacon him back to reality. As he combed through his notifications and there were a lot he learned two things. One raw meat was poisonous and two he had just gotten very very very lucky.
In between the roughly 100 you've gotten poisoned by raw meat notifications were ones for the fact that whatever he had eaten had restored a slight bit of health and supposedly that boar meat was able to neutralize a small amount of poison. He had been left with roughly 3 health of his supposed 50 maximum though without the window giving him specifics he couldn't tell maybe it was 1 or 10 or something. Whatever the case he had gained levels in Poison Resistance, Self Heal, a new skill called Brawlers Resolve, and a new skill called Disciple of Entropy.
Brawlers Resolve:
-Gain a boost to resistance against all that might try and corrupt your will
-Steady forth warrior what you do not fear can not hurt you
Disciple of Entropy:
-Bring forth that which has been lost lose that which was brought forth
-You hold the endless cycle in your mind and bend its forces to help you on your journey Ascendant