Chapter 7: Level Up:
[Loop Count: 3]
I woke up to the sound of the system message.
The Loop Count message confirmed my meeting with Chronos wasn’t a dream. Some parts of it were blurry in my mind, likely the parts when we talked about my previous deaths, as he did say that I would forget those. But one thing was certain: I was actually in a time loop. A time loop in which I couldn’t remember my past lives.
I opened up my status menu and saw the arrow pointing right. Switching to the new screen, I opened the Déjà vu system and its skills. So far, I only had the titular skill that matched the system’s name - the one which Chronos said translates to ‘already seen’ in some strange language called French.
Then I glanced at the corner of the screen, at the XP bar.
[Déjà vu System: Level 1]
[Loop Count: 3]
[Experience Points (XP): 760 / 1000]
Chronos said he placed me in the loop after my first death. So that means I managed to gain all 760 XP points in a single run. This means that even if I repeat the same actions I took in my previous life, at some point during the day, I should reach level 2 in the Déjà vu system and be able to upgrade one of the skills.
That being said, I don’t even remember which actions I took in my last run. And it’s not like I can just ignore my meeting with the God of Time. It’s definitely going to affect the choices I make in this run, even if I don’t want to.
Okay, breathe, Aidan. Let’s go over the skills again and see which ones might actually be beneficial to succeeding in this unforeseen task.
Currently, I only have the Déjà vu skill leveled up. Its description states that it triggers faint recollections of past loops, increasing awareness of events that have happened. Sounds useful enough. Since I won’t be able to remember my previous runs, having these faint recollections might be the next best thing. And I can only assume this for now, but I bet that leveling it up will improve the quality and frequency of these glimpses. The most curious thing about it was the fact that it was a passive skill. Meaning it would activate on its own accord. This good be both good and bad. Depending on the situation.
Next up, we have Afterimage. This skill supposedly allows me to summon an afterimage of my past self to see what actions and choices I made. It also sounds extremely useful - but the description was frustratingly vague. Too vague. What does brief duration mean? An hour? Ten minutes? A few seconds? And considering the fourth skill on the list, Echo Sense, which only allows me to hear conversations and voices from previous loops, I have a sinking feeling that Afterimage might be mute. Otherwise, why would Echo Sense even exist?
The third skill was Temporal Trace, which supposedly allows me to see and mark a specific location in the time plane. What does time plane even mean? And what kind of marks can I leave? Your guess is as good as mine. Again, another skill with a frustratingly vague description. But if I have to go with a hypothesis - the only thing I can really do at the moment - then this skill could be a way for me to leave detailed clues or warnings for my future self, which could prove useful depending on the type of marks I can leave.
The fifth skill was Checkpoint, and it was probably the most useful one out of the five. I can only use it once per run at level 1, but it lets me retain the memories of that specific run. Instead of waking up in the next run disoriented and forgetting everything I learned, this skill gives me an additional chance to remember and progress during a specific run. I could even use it to farm more XP in fewer runs.
Okay, it’s decided. Checkpoint will be the first skill I level up. It’s too good to pass up.
“The second inventory.” I whispered, recalling Chronos’ words about it.
I navigated through the system and opened its window. Inventory #2 was empty.
According to what Chronos said, any items I store in Inventory #2 will remain there between loops. So, as far as I can tell, it gives me another opportunity to leave clues for myself. But considering the fact that my inability to retain memories is a defense mechanism designed to protect me from Erebus, what kind of clues can I even leave? I assume that creating notes that blatantly describe previous runs would be impossible. Still, I should at least test the limits. I have time until Yana comes to pick me up.
I sat at the small table in my room, grabbing a pencil and a piece of paper.
What should I write?
Maybe…First level will have snail monsters. Beware and prepare with Salt Bombs.
I carefully tried to add the note to Inventory #2.
[Error: Picking up this item violates Déjà vu System Protocol #2706. Item is restricted and classified]
Ugh, figures…
Okay, what about something simpler? I scribbled on a different piece of paper: Take a left at the second corridor of the first level for good loot.
I tried again to add the note.
[Error: Picking up this item violates Déjà vu System Protocol #3401. Item is restricted and classified]
[Warning: Continued attempts to pick up this item will trigger a System Lockdown]
“Okay, okay, chill. No need to yell at me.” I muttered.
So, leaving written notes was out of the question. I’d expected as much. Leaving detailed messages would basically amount to retaining memories - something Chronos had warned me was strictly off-limits.
I need a different approach to use the second inventory. Maybe leaving specific items and hoping my next self would get the hint?
If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
For example, if I stored a Coagulation Elixir to stop bleeding, my next self would know there are enemies that inflict bleeding status effects and that he should prepare for that.
Yeah, that sound smart. I can only hope I’m smart enough to understand such hints.
I took a deep breath and began preparing for Yana’s arrival.
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I donned my lightweight armor.
Equipped Nightfall.
Waited for Yana. She was late as usual.
We set off to the Tomb of Gaelith.
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***
On our way to the tomb, Yana was just finishing her story about her guild master’s, Lady Mikaela, abilities. “…She just darted from her spot instantly using Shadow Step and impaled it to death with one move. Gods, I’m not doing it justice describing it half-assedly like this. It was just...wow. It was wow, Aidan! Wow!”
But my mind was elsewhere. Loop Count: 3 – it meant I’d already died twice on this quest. But did Yana die as well? I had no memory of that, or even my own deaths. The conversation with Chronos and the revelation that we were dealing with the embodiment of Darkness itself, Erebus, still felt so surreal. But it had to be true. The Déjà vu system was proof that I wasn’t imagining things.
“What’s on your mind, A?” Yana asked suddenly.
“Hmm?” I raised my head, as if emerging from a trance.
“I’ve been fangirling over Lady Mikaela for the past ten minutes, and you didn’t even tease me about it once.” Yana chuckled softly. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah. Everything’s good.” I lied, knowing I couldn’t tell her the truth about what was going on with me. If I did, Chronos said that Erebus would turn my life into a never-ending, repeating nightmare.
“It sure doesn’t sound good…” Yana said, turning away from me.
No, no, no - this isn’t how it’s supposed to go. The whole reason I agreed to join this quest was to reconnect with her. I can’t let her think I’m pushing her away.
“I’m just nervous, is all.” I added quickly.
Yana turned back to me, her expression softening into a gentle smile. “Don’t worry. Lady Mikaela and Stephan Lorren are leading us. There’s no way anything could go wrong.”
She paused for a moment, then mumbled something under her breath – so softly I couldn’t make it out.
“What was that?” I asked.
She shook her head. “Oh, it’s nothing.” She replied before pointing forward. “Look, we’re already close.”
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We reached the entrance.
Exchanged pleasantries with Lady Mikaela.
Divided into groups. I was in group 4.
And then we entered the tomb.
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***
Our group leader, a mage named Jax, led us to the corner of the antechamber on the first floor of the tomb.
“Okay, sidekicks, introduce yourselves.” He said, an arrogant smile playing on his lips.
“Excuse me?” a woman - judging by her robes, likely our healer - said, raising an eyebrow. “Sidekicks?”
“Yes, that’s what you are.” A young man next to Jax, clearly his apprentice, interjected. “I know you. You’re Lena Lethen. A healer. Next.”
A large man with a buzzcut and a war-hammer slung across his back sighed. “My name is Waylan.” He bumped his chest with his right hand in a respectful manner. “I’ll be your tank.”
“Good.” Jax nodded. “Our meat shield.” He then turned to me. “And you?”
I didn’t like his attitude at all and wondered if my previous selves had done something about it, or if they just suffered through his arrogance in silence.
“Well?” he asked again, raising an eyebrow.
“I’m Aidan.” I introduced myself. “I’m a Spellsword. I’ll act as the frontline with Waylan.”
The tank nodded at me with a soft smile on his face.
“Great.” Jax’s apprentice muttered, rolling his eyes. “The weakest adventurer here just had to be in our team.”
I wanted to retaliate, but Jax immediately shifted the focus of the conversation, addressing the second woman in our squad. “And you are, young lady?”
She smiled proudly. “The name is Dina. I’ll act as our support mage. It’s an honor to meet you, Jax of Belenia.”
Jax’s smile widened. “You’ve heard about me, eh?”
“Is there someone who hasn’t?” Dina asked, smiling flirtatiously.
Me. I hadn’t heard about him. Of course, I kept that thought to myself.
“My name is Henry.” Jax’s apprentice interrupted, breaking the awkward silence his master and Dina had created with their lingering glances. “I’m a mage, same as Master Jax.”
Jax finally turned to the last member of our squad. A rogue-assassin type, by the looks of him. He stood silently, leaning against the wall, his eyes darting around us but never settling on any of the squad members.
“And you are?” Jax asked.
“Why does it matter?” The rogue replied, his gaze still fixed on the ground.
“Building relationship is a must in this career.” Jax responded.
The rogue sighed. “The name is Goren. An assassin. I’ll act as secondary front line this time around.”
I glanced at his status. Level 57. Decent enough, especially for an assassin.
Jax then cleared his throat and addressed us all, a cocky smile on his face. “We’ve been assigned to the northwest chamber of the first level. Follow my commands, and everything will be fine. Do a good job, and I might even put in a few good words with guild master Lorren.”
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We cleared the chamber. It was filled with Undead Warriors.
The chamber split into three additional ones. We cleared those as well.
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***
After I killed the last of the undead warriors, the eighth one this morning, a system message popped up.
[+34 XP]
[Level Up! You have gained 1 Skill Point]
[Skill Point Available: Choose a skill to level up]
My heart raced with excitement. Chronos said I would be able to gain XP and level up, and yet it felt so unreal to finally receive those XP gain messages. This was my first leveling up in years. Now I just needed to allocate this skill point to acquire the Checkpoint skill. I did so, and a new message appeared.
[Skill acquired: Checkpoint lvl.1]
[Next Level: lvl.2: Increases the time allowed between setting the temporal anchor point and your death to 1 hour]
Wait, what?! There’s a time aspect to this skill? Why didn’t it say so in the description?
So, if Checkpoint level 2 grants me a one-hour window, how long does Checkpoint level 1 give me? I opened the Déjà vu system skills menu but it didn’t specify. The only thing I could now was assume it’s less than an hour. Significantly less to be on the safe side.
But when and how should I use it for now? Did I just waste my first skill point for nothing? Who knows how many loops I’ll have to go through to reach the next level…
Okay, breathe out. Everything’s fine.
I glanced at the corner of the screen.
[Déjà vu System: Level 2]
[Loop Count: 3]
[Experience Points (XP): 32 / 1100]
Okay, so it took me slightly more than one loop to level up once, which means I’ll hit level 3 somewhere on my next loop. Unless…Unless I do something different this time. But how can I even know if I’m doing something different?
I was already consciously trying to land last hits on enemies whenever I could assuming the Déjà vu system acted similarly to the Core System which rewarded more XP to those who dealt the final blow. But it was hard, and I barely secured any kills since Jax and Henry’s careless magical strikes kept wiping most of the enemies before I could kill them.
I sighed in disappointment, feeling like I’d made a mistake by leveling up Checkpoint too rashly.
Then that weird feeling struck me again - the unmistakable sensation of Déjà vu.
As Goren walked past me, ignoring me completely, something felt off.
“Goren?” I called out, confused.
He stopped and turned around, a puzzled expression on his face. “What?”
I didn’t even know what to say. Why did I stop him, really?
Just as I was about to apologize, he spoke again, his voice tired. “Right, right…my bad.”
He extended his hand, holding out an item.
I accepted it and added it to my inventory.
[Item Acquired: Blackberries (Consumable) – Added to Inventory #1]
“Blackberries?” I asked, confused.
“Yeah.” He nodded and turned away, leaving me standing there in stunned silence. I didn’t even get the chance to make a joke about it.