/ Soul Summoning error /

/ Astral pathway detached at 78% journey completion. Cause: Unknown. Manual traversal engaged /

/ Establishing connection with nearby Moderators for assistance /

/ Moderators not found. Cause: Foreign Interference /

/ Foreign presence attempting to bypass the system's defenses. /

/ Redirecting route for emergency escape. /

/ Error. Foreign presence gained access to system operation /

/ Rerouting canceled. /

/ System update force installation started. Completion in 3. /

/ Attempting to override control from unknown entity /

/ 2. /

/ Override failed. /

/ 1. /

/ System update completed. /

/ New destination selected. /

_______

P.O.V Zhahalm Dealra | Year 1

King Zhahalm Dealra sat on his majestic marble throne surrounded by attendants, mages, and knights, waiting for the heroes’ arrival fated by the five gods. The demonic monsters had always existed near the Eastern borders of his territories. However, with the arrival of the Demon Sovereign in the past year, they now seemed more powerful and more organized than ever before. Scholars and historians of his court mentioned that demonic forces have always acted this way with previous appearances of the demon sovereigns, but such information provided few clues on how they can be defeated without the support of the summoned heroes.

A demon lord’s strength was around level 90, while Thoulma’s most potent warrior, high commander Pialflark, was at level 71. A comprehensive power gap existed between Zhahalm’s military power and the demon beasts. Thankfully, the monstrous lords mainly stayed inside their territories, and few had ever been seen close to the Eastern and North Eastern Fronts. Yet, his confidants believed that they would make their appearance in the upcoming years. There were close to no records on how powerful a demon sovereign actually was. Nevertheless, his flock of historians and mages estimated it to be around level 140—an unachievable goal to any of the mortals in the world of Gradan.

Zhahalm’s concerns were on the emergence of demon generals and champions around the eastern border of his Dwarven Kingdom of Thoulma. The other human and elven kingdoms had taken notice of these strange occurrences as well. Something big was happening. Zhahalm could feel it, like a prey sensing a predator crouching itself in preparation for an attack. The mountain ranges in the south and the human nation of Garramone to the north provided a helpful funnel for any possible attacks to come only from the East. Although, if a demon lord or, worse, the Demon Sovereign themselves emerged, then Thoulma would not be able to withstand such power.

Fortunately, the priests of the five gods gave the news that five heroes would be summoned to defend mortals against the demonic beasts. A few kingdoms, including his own, were selected to shelter each of the heroes in their growth to subjugate the Demon Sovereign. They had all waited for weeks now. “When will these damn heroes arrive?” He murmured to himself.

“Let’s hope we’ll still be alive by the time of their arrival, your majesty.” Counselor Rrolla, his right-hand woman, a dwarven political powerhouse of her own and a trustworthy ally to himself, seemed to have heard his words and whispered a response that gave him a light chuckle. There was some truth in her humor. The Dwarven race was a resilient people. However, in the last few centuries, they have seen a rapid decline in their numbers through war and famine.

Thoulma was now one of the last surviving kingdoms with Dwarven leaderships and a primary dwarven population. With the arrival of the Demon Sovereign as well as Thoulma being located on the Eastern Front beside the demon territories, their future looked bleaker by the day. When the heroes would arrive in the Central Continent, Thouma needed to be ready to stand on their good side for the continuation of their existence.

/ Hero Rob Noss arrived in the Elven Nation of Asept /

/ Hero Bryan Losling arrived in the Human Kingdom of Gwencir /

/ Hero Mackie Chen arrived in the Human Kingdom of Erroveld /

/ Hero Lucillia Niu arrived in the Beastman Collective of Tenishok /

“Where is our last hero, priest?” King Zhahalm asked the human representative of the church in his court. The priest gathered the courage to speak to the Dwarven King. “I am certain that the hero will arrive soon. The Divine foretold the coming of five heroes.” Despite their height differences, Zhahalm sat on a grand elevated marble throne. A terrifying aura exuded from his figure as he eyed his counselor for confirmation.

“My king, historical reports supported his claims. There were always five heroes summoned after the coming of the Demon Sovereign.” The councilor’s reply did not ease his concerns. ‘How could the gods be wrong? Have they finally abandoned the dwarves?’ His thoughts drifted to all the possibilities and outcomes for the fifth hero to be missing. If the kingdom falls, countless lives would be lost, and his people might have to migrate under the rules of the elves or the humans to the West. ‘A frightening thought. I will not wait for the demons to eat us alive. Not for miracles and heroes to save us. We have to prepare for the worst.’ Zhahalm braced himself for the upcoming storm.

“Commander Pialflark, scour our lands and find any signs of a heroic summoning. I also want regular reports from the scouts on the movement of the demonic forces. Councilor Rrolla, call the council for an emergency meeting. Let us talk about how we can mobilize our resources to strengthen our defenses and strategies concerning supplies if anything were to happen.” Zhahalm gave his commands.

“Yes, my king.” Both the counselor and the commander replied in unison.

_______

This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.

P.O.V MC | Year 1

/ Integration with Experimental Crystalith completed. /

/ Waking host /

My name is Jonathan, and I have found myself in a peculiar situation, alone in the darkness. My state had a sense of peace and tranquility, like waking up from a long slumber. However, no matter how much I forced myself to do so, my “body” refused to move from its current state. The need to look at my surroundings surfaced with zero responses. In fear and desperation, I struggled to see, to move, and even to scream. However, naught but silence greeted my internal grapple for some sort of physical stimuli. Where am I? Why can’t I move my body? Why can’t I see anything? Questions of varying desperation arose in my mind, which settled in with anxiety and fear.

A more alarming fact was that I could no longer feel the air entering my lung nor the rise or fall of my chest. No sensations can be registered on my skin, not even the air friction as I stayed in god knows where. Humans needed to breathe, right? Humans, that is what I am or what I was. Memories of high rising towers and motorized vehicles came to mind.

I knew that I was once a person, a human, and a university student in a thriving city. I had goals and dreams, family and friends, but it all ended during that damn explosion in my apartment building. I lay there under the rubbles as the fire spread, gasping for air. Then nothing. Was it the gas that got to me first? I can’t remember. Everything was hazy back then.

Maybe I was still there right now. The thought sent terror to my core. How will my family react? I could only hope that they would be able to move on in time. I am sorry, mom and dad. I am sorry for the pain I’ve caused you through my death. Sullen and melancholy added to the mix of confusion and unease that I already felt. Not a good mixture of emotions.

After an uncertain length of time spent grappling with my current state, I took a grip on my feelings and calmed down, if not just a little. This must be it then, the afterlife. I expected something more, not just the void lacking any sensations or stimuli. At least, there was one feeling that I was aware of. A sort of warmth surrounded my motionless body. A part of me was convinced that I was somehow still in that firestruct apartment. However, this was different. It felt much more serene, much calmer. I wanted the warmth. I needed it like an awful thirst in the desert, and by its own commands, my entirety consumed the unknown heat. More and more of it entered me, unending and plentiful.

/ [Lesser Mana Absorption] discovered. /

What was that? Who was that? Nothing but the void answered my questions. I definitely heard it. That robotic genderless voice. It responded to my actions, calling the strange warmth ‘mana.’ Mana like in fantasy novels? Have I died and got transmigrated into some sort of fantasy land? Could that be it? In the infinite expansion of the universe, anything was possible, right? Then was that voice my system? Some sort of guide to my actions? If it was like those systems, it was not very helpful. I had no idea what to do next. Are you the system?

Silent. Status!

Silent again. What in the world was happening? I knew it. I shouldn’t have put my hopes on a novel trope. Having a system provided more questions than answers, especially since it refused to answer any questions at all. That still left me wondering what my next course of action would be. If what I felt was mana, then my “body” was absorbing it. Is there a limit to how much I could absorb? I left myself to consume more and more to test out my theory.

Low and behold, after a surprising amount of time, I stopped feeling any mana coming into my “body.” I am uncertain whether this was due to my large capacity for mana or my absorption rate being incredibly slow. The system called it [Lesser Mana Absorption] after all. Weren’t transmigrated people supposed to have cheat abilities? Once again, I had been let down by the modern isekai trope. What did I expect? Although, I wonder if I was still a part of the “people” anymore.

Talking about that, what am I? I didn’t have any sensations except for sensing mana. Furthermore, on the ‘needs’ aspect, I didn’t feel any hunger, thirst, or any requirement for air. It should have been days since I awoke into this void, and there was nothing to indicate any sleep deprivation. Am I even alive? More and more questions kept piling up, giving me anxiety again. I couldn’t think about it. I had to keep myself moving and focus on what to do, or I would spiral into sadness and panic again.

/ [Lesser Emotional Control] discovered. /

How is that a skill? Don’t make my mentally unhealthy ways to deal with emotional problems into a skill! Who even made this system? Some kind of gods or futuristic civilizations? A question for another time. I better focus back on the matters at hand.

What else could I do with the tools that I currently have? I knew I could absorb mana, but could I move it in the opposite direction? Moving it outside of me? Mimicking the breathing movement in and out, I felt all the mana inside of me stir and expelled outward. As the spherical wave of mana exploded from my core, I found the end of where I am and the start of where everything else was.

/ [Lesser Mana Control] discovered. /

My mana differed from the surrounding natural mana. It was my own and nobody else’s. However, after the mana burst ceased to be in contact with “me,” I could no longer control it as it continued to expand like an unruly child refusing to listen to its parent. The minute the mana traveled away from me, I could still feel bubbles growing, but I didn’t have any authority over it. Suddenly, a temporary fluctuation hit my wave. What was that? Again from another direction. The sensation could be felt in different locations as the mana traveled across space. Then abruptly, I lost all connection to the expanding bubble, and once again, my reserve was depleted.

I had to try it again. A new frontier to be explored in this pit of darkness. I, once again, absorbed the encircling mana and made it into my own. When my capacity reached its fill, I expelled everything outward like before. It felt like I was trying to learn how to breathe all over again. After replicating the action a few more times, I gained four pieces of information:

1. There was a constraint to how far I could sense my mana. As it reached beyond the limit, I lost all connection, it became part of the natural mana. No longer my own.

2. Mana could pass through physical materials, and I could feel a slight fluctuation when it did so.

3. My body was in the shape of an octahedron.

4. I was in some sort of enclosed underground cave.

/ [Lesser Mana Understanding] discovered. /

/ [Lesser Mana Vision] discovered. /

Based on the system’s confirmation, I got it right after all. My 360 vision was comparable to a bat’s echolocation. By continuously expelling bubbles of mana, I could relatively feel my surroundings. However, this would take some time to get used to. I could see before as a human, and this was not it. The changes of resistance in my mana wave helped place together an “image” of where there was an object, where there wasn’t, and what the thing looked like.

I was currently located in an ample enclosed space with a few bugs-like critters in the vicinity with my limited insight. Tall stalagmites and stalactites grew across the ceiling and flooring of the cave, which meant there should be a upperground above with rainfall. Regardless, there was no telling how far above that was because of my low understanding of geology. Surprisingly enough, my geode figure was hovering about thirty centimeters off the ground. The mechanism of such a feat was beyond me. There were no signs from my mana sense nor my vision that explained how I could be floating above the rocky surface but here I was. Another unknown was whether this is still earth, but I highly doubted it due to the existence of mana, the system, and my current living situation as a diamond-shaped crystal of some sort.

I hoped there were sentient beings out there, maybe even humans. Although, how would they even react to a sentience rock? How would I even communicate with them? Perhaps these questions would be answered in time, but there wasn’t much I could do about it now. I better spend my time exploring what I could do rather than racking my brains on things I couldn’t control.

There were two problems with my current method of “seeing.” First was the slow monotonous process of expelling and recharging mana; the second was the colorless aspect. I could tell the shape and size of the objects, but that was it. There were no indications of colors at all. While I had some ideas for improving the former issue, there was no current method of changing the ladder.

My current approach was like exhaling all of the air inside a person’s lungs, but humans could do so much more than that. We, or they in my situation, could hold most of the air and exhale a tiny bit of it out. If I could replicate that action with mana, then I could send out more bubbles without the need of recharging earlier. Furthermore, recharging was currently an active process for me. However, breathing was an autonomous action. Making the transition from an active task to a passive one would improve my situation by a significant margin.

Living as a magical crystal was similar to being a student in that way. It was all about maximizing results with minimum cost or effort. It all came down to practice now. It was not like I had much to do anyway. At least this would keep me sane for a while. That and occasionally hearing the system.