The crying bout didn’t last long. Scott was able to mentally steady himself pretty fast. Perhaps because this time, he felt the hint of a sublime contentment mixed with all the melancholy.

Scott did wonder about something after he dried his tears, and he promptly asked the System.

“Sys….Brianna? How come you have my…sister’s voice?”

He cringed a little noticing how loud his voice suddenly sounded in the midst of the silent forest. He’d forgotten to ask ‘mentally’.

<<… The System detected a strong emotional bond between the User and the memory of his sibling, Brianna. The System’s empathic module deduced a high probability of the User appreciating the voice of his Sister to help calm him down in an unfamiliar environment….If the User so decides, the System can revert back to using its default voice. Please note, the voicing module, once manually overridden, cannot be changed by the User…>>

The reply from the System came in the original, austere voice. Scott’s decision was made instantly.

‘No…that’s alright. Please, keep using Brianna’s voice.’

<<…System voice confirmed. With the changes made, the empathy module also gives User the choice to change the way of addressing the User and the point of view of the System’s narrative. Currently set to Scott…First person….Would the User like to override the settings? Please note, these changes are also irrevocable once manually overridden…>>

Once again, Scott didn’t hesitate.

‘Please keep referring to me as Scott, and use the first person narrative.’

<<…System voice confirmed….Hello Scott. How can I help you today?…>>

The abrupt change in the way of addressing and the tone was a little eerie but Scott was nonetheless elated to have his sister’s voice back in his head, so he didn’t much care.

‘Brianna. I would like a detailed explanation of the System and how I, as the User, can utilize its functionalities.’

He briefly wondered whether ‘Brianna’ would be offended since he’d just referred to ‘her’ as an ‘it’. Scott didn’t want to, but he felt weird to ask about ‘your functionalities’.

<<… Certainly, Scott. I am a highly advanced entity incorporated into your very sense of being. I am a part of you both physically, and mentally. The exact explanation of how that works requires delving into topics that you might find esoteric and extremely complex, so I will not be going into the details. Just know, that we share a deep bond and my capacity to evolve and grow stronger directly depends on you…>>

Scott had some questions but upon hearing Brianna politely telling him that he was not smart enough to understand the intricacies, Scott left them alone. Unlike many people he’d met in his life, Scott knew his limits and would only push them if it was practical. He certainly had no authority to question Brianna’s decision about whether he could understand those details. If Scott wasn’t mistaken, Brianna knew him ‘inside out’.

<<…I have the capability of providing you abilities that will allow you to perform greater physical and mental feats than your body can currently handle. I can also provide you with abilities that is referred to as ‘Magic’ in this realm. I can monitor your body’s condition down to the minutest details, recover it from most mortal injuries as long as the body is given enough time to recuperate, and I can provide assistance in combat, social and economic interactions, and all other activities that you might require assistance in…>>

The moment Scott heard the term magic, he was once again full of questions. But he didn’t ‘feel right’ to interrupt Brianna, so he just let her continue with her explanation. Plus, he was a little worried that he’d be again ‘gently scoffed at’ if he asked for details.

<<… Additionally, I can generate tasks for you to complete, which will depend upon your interaction with this realm. These will be known as ‘quests’. Please note that my capability of providing you with abilities depends directly on your strength. The strength I am referring to here is not physical or mental strength, but the strength to withstand the changes to the body associated with imparting those abilities. As you grow stronger, you’ll be able to assimilate more and more abilities and also your expertise with your existing abilities will also improve….>>

Scott was wondering when the ‘quest’ part would be coming. Now he had his answer. He did want to ask questions related to everything he’d been told, but for now he thought it’d be prudent to still keep his mouth…or rather mind…shut. It could also be that he was hearing his sister’s voice after so long, he didn’t want to break the flow of the gentle, slightly high-pitched, mellifluous serenade in his mind. After focusing on the voice for a while, Scott had found out that certain qualities of her sister, like her quirky tonal changes, the occasional ‘giggle-snorts’ and many other small things were absent from this ‘Brianna’. But Scott had expected that, and he was actually glad that those qualities did not surface in the System. Some things were too sacred to be copied.

<<… You’ll be provided with an interface that you can access in your mind. It is similar to the ‘smart’ graphical interfaces that you interacted with in your parent realm. The interface will display a numerical value against several attributes of your body. You will also find the concept familiar, as you are adequately experienced in games that you played on audiovisual apparatus in your parent realm, which you referred to as Video games…>>

Scott held back the temptation to snort. He couldn’t help find it extremely amusing that his sister’s voice was mentioning video games in such a matter-of-fact manner.

<<… Please note that the actual implications of the attributes are much more nuanced than the description I am about to provide. The attribute Strength will determine your physical strength to a rough extent. Agility will determine how nimbly you can perform actions, both combative and non-combative. Dexterity refers to a more finer control over your motor skills and limb-vision coordination. It will be a crucial factor in determining your accuracy with certain weapons as well as interacting with objects that require exceptional control over your digits…>>

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

Scott could already guess what attributes were going to come next.

‘Is she going with the standard six-attribute layout?’

<<… Endurance will determine how long your body can exert itself without succumbing to fatigue. Essence is an attribute that will determine the number of feats that are deemed ‘magical’ in Athionia, you can perform. Recovery will determine how quickly you can replenish the resource that allows usage of those feats. Vitality will ensure you are able to perform without losing your life, even with injuries that could be fatal to other beings…>>

‘O…kay. She slightly went off-track there didn’t she? I guess using Intelligence or Mana was too main-stream for the System. But the gist is definitely stolen from video-games that she…’

Scott suddenly realized something. He’d mentally referred to the System as ‘her’ twice already. Before he could ponder over his actions however, Brianna had more to contribute.

<<… All these attributes complement each other. Focusing on one attribute by selective training will see its sharp rise and can often help rise another attribute closely related to it. For example, performing physical exercises of various types can often raise one, two or even more attributes together. The rate of growth will be determined by the your dedication and perseverance. Increasing Essence and Recovery can be achieved by specific quests or by performing certain actions that you are already familiar with in differing degree. They are Yogasana and Tai Chi…>>

‘Awesome. I guess those classes weren’t wasted on me at all. If I knew I would be reincarnating like an Isekai otaku, I’d have mastered them…’

Even though Scott was a little sarcastic, he did feel elated that his choice of his ‘past life’ was rewarded in a way he never would have guessed. Scott had trained in various martial arts over the past few years when he was preparing for his retribution, to the point where he was confident enough to take down several unarmed fighters using a variety of moves, if the need arose. Scott was a pretty decent Krav maga fighter and had also earned some accolades in Kickboxing and Judo. While those took care of his physical training, he needed a spiritual anchor to ensure his mental health. Yoga and Tai Chi had both been immensely helpful to him to achieve that.

<<… You should also know about another perk that you’ll receive from me. They are, once again, familiar concepts for you - Levels…>>

Scott raised his eyebrow and grinned. ‘This is getting interesting’.

<<…While there is no notion of any levels in this realm since it is an abstract concept incorporated to provide a metric of overall prowess, it does provide an approximate estimation and can be quite useful in many situations. I am capable of scanning and assigning a level to any individual in this realm through extended usage of your sensory organs. Under most circumstances, your vision would be more than enough for me to make such an estimate, as long as you critically scrutinize the being instead of giving them a passing glance. In certain cases, further sensory data, like tactile, may be needed. Your level right now will be adequate to cater to most problems that might require combat as long as you do not perform actions that defy logic and can be extremely detrimental to your body…>>

‘Is she telling me not to rush into a fight blind? Why do I feel like she’s judging me…?’

<<… Apart from levels, I will also provide a visual indicator signifying threat levels, to beings I have in my database about this realm. Green will denote non-hostile and potentially friendly beings. Yellow will denote neutrality. Red will indicate predisposed hostility towards you….And with that Scott, that concludes my explanation about the System. I have included as much detail as possible while making sure you are able to follow adequately. I’ll provide further explanation about specific functionalities or features when the need arises. So Scott, do you have any questions so far?…>>

‘Did she sound just the tiniest bit bossy…? Like a lecturer? Nah, probably just my imagination.’

Scott cleared his throat, and then scratched his head embarrassed, as he recalled that he didn’t need to use his voice.

‘Brianna. Who created the…System?’

<<…I am afraid Scott, I am not at the liberty to disclose information about my creator at this point…>>

‘Welp. I expected as much, but had to try.’ Scott thought. ‘Hmm, she did say ‘at this point’. Does that mean she might…at some point?’

Scott discarded the matter mentally and proceeded onto the next question.

‘Brianna…why cannot you provide me with a large amount of attributes and make me the strongest person of this realm from the start?’

<<… I am sorry Scott, but I cannot disclose that information at this point. Suffice to know that there is a balance involved that matter on a grand scale, and doing what you suggested will disrupt that and affect a lot of other events…>>

Scott realized the System had some severe information lock-down done on it…probably by Hraxanthus.

He found himself reluctant to ask the rest of the questions since he assumed most of them will be met by the ‘This is need to know, and you don’t need to know’ speech. In the end, he ended up asking something else.

‘Brianna, is there a time limit to your presence in my…being?’

<<…Yes of course Scott. I will only be with you until you have successfully altered the course of history related to your family and the person you loved and their family. After you’ve achieved your goal, I will be purged from your body…and mind…>>

Scott, who was leisurely laying down near the tree, shot up like an arrow leaving the quiver. He forgot that he did not have to shout out loud.

“What?! You mean I still have a chance to complete my …retribution? I have a chance to undo what occurred? How? Tell me now! NOW?!”

Brianna was completely unperturbed by this sudden outburst.

<<… Yes Scott, I have an entire module dedicated so that you can achieve your goal. I sensed a tremendous amount of betrayal in your emotional mindspace initially when I was being set up. Most of it was related to how you might be denied the chance to do what you desire the most. You can be rest assured, Scott. The being who sent you here didn’t betray you, as you thought…>>

Scott was going to ask the next obvious question but he was a smart guy, and held himself back.

‘Let me guess, if I ask you about that, I guess you won’t be able to tell me, because at this point of time you can’t divulge that information?’

Scott could almost, almost ‘hear’ amusement in Brianna’s voice.

<<…Yes, Scott, that is indeed correct. I am so glad that our bond is deepening already…>>

‘Yeah…definitely sarcasm, no matter how ‘neutral’ you may sound, Brianna’. Scott thought to himself but decided to let the matter rest. At least now he had the confirmation that all his effort wasn’t just a big pile of waste. He decided to conclude the questioning, so that he could leave this weird place. He still hadn’t heard a single sound except for his own voice, in this forsaken glade.

‘Very well Brianna. I have no more questions about the System.Can I know how you…us…uh, we…are supposed to leave this place? I am not even sure where we are.’

Brianna was quite prompt in her reply.

<<… You are at a place called the ‘Starting zone’, as named by my creator. This is in Athionia but not in a space that the realm resides in. In other words, you’re in a pocket dimension that itself resides in Athionia. We are supposed to leave this place as soon as you accept your first quest, from me…Are you ready to accept the quest, Scott?…>>

Duh, Scott thought.

‘I do, Brianna. What is the first quest?’

<<…Your first quest is named ‘Find Hraxanthus’ message’. There is a small note associated with the quest too. Do you want to hear it?…>>