----***----
Evangeline
"Hey, you, finally awake?" was the first thing I heard when I woke up.
In front of me stood a man in a white toga, his visage reminiscent of the statues portraying Greek gods. He gently patted my head with an air of benevolence. Questions like `How did I end up here? Where the hell am I now? Who is this guy` flooded my mind.
"You are in what Eartheners call Heaven, and before you ask, yes I can read your mind; no I didn't do anything weird to you." the man immediately answered my thoughts.
"Then... How?" I croaked, while massaging my temples. `Wait... Massaging my temples? I have hands now?!`
"Easy, no need to panic. I'm Prometheus, the one responsible for aiding humanity in this realm. By staying in my presence and soaking up the environmental mana from my aura that long, you've regained your human-shaped soul. Since we're sharing the same mana, I can read your thoughts as if they were just another part of me. See it as a temporary state that will be solved if you stay away from me for about a week, and let your body naturally use up my mana and replace it with your own," he assured me in a calming tone.
"What about the demon? He looked like troubles, at this point I won't be surprised if this guy was called Lucif-" I wanted to ask but he immediately interrupted by putting a hand on my mouth.
"Wow, careful there, names have weight in this world, don't say them carelessly. Even if you're far of his reach, he can still know where you were when pronouncing his name”.
"Then do I erm... Get anything from being here? Maybe I can... Meet my grandfather if he passed away?" she tentatively asked.
Looking apologetic, he shrugged and said "Not my domain either. The only thing I can do right now is reincarnation, since your previous life was pretty much cut short by unfortunate events, or send you to Hades so that he deals with your soul, so... fancy a restart?"
I felt mixed emotions, on one side, the opportunity I wanted presented itself, on the other, my last worry was left unanswered. `At Least I tried... Still. Reincarnation! Maybe I can finally have some hero party's journey or be a Saint or something`
Prometheus, after hearing my thoughts, immediately dogeza'd. Shocked of such a outlandish display from a god I asked with a trembling voice, fearing the worse " D-Don't tell me..."
"No gods, at least those on the side of the Creator, are in need of a hero or a Saint as of now I'm deeply sorryy" said the god in an uncharacteristically squeaky voice.
"You will still be reincarnated, but there will be nothing as epic as fighting a Demon King or hordes of monsters. The Demon God you fled from, was in search of a new Demon King or Queen, and you successfully dodged his proposal. All the heroes right now are borderline close to fight each other, since they already pacified most of the demon army and finished their divine quests" he added.
"Wait, you knew that I was about to be poached by some demon god and did nothing?!" I almost screamed.
He recomposed himself and responded to my outrage in a matter-of-fact manner " You were wandering in void, devoid of divine mana or normal mana. No regeneration is possible there for a god, it is like a no man land where the faith of our followers that maintain our power can't reach. You've seen it yourself; he had allies with him."
"But when he took out his contract, he was alone!" I counterargued.
"A good way to judge character by watching how you would react" he stated, another dodge.
"He literally acted like a goofball and the cliché villain who has nothing good in mind. What kind of recruitment requirements is that?!" I said, voice filled with utter astonishment.
Prometheus, wearing an expression akin to a hurt puppy, opted to take the path of garnering sympathy.
"I was scared, okay? This guy had the environmental advantage, and I was not prepared at all, I'm sure he spent some time cumulating mana to travel safely. Have you not wondered why he did not pursue you? It was not worth it."
Noticing that the god wasn't keen on delving further into the topic, Evangeline decided to simply listen to the god's proposal.
Seeing her acceptance of his justification, the deity continued his proposal "So, usually, I would reincarnate you as a human however, since you've been very understanding so far, I will do you another favor: you can choose whatever race you want, limited to the ones whose ancestors has sworn fidelity to the gods that fight for the Creator. I will do my best to convince the deity in charge of the specie of your choice. You even get a small blessing from me. Deal?"
Not wanting to piss another god in the same week, I agreed to his proposal.
"I will now send you to the vessel creation room. Brace for teleportation. Have fun!" was the last thing he said before space warped around me.
***
Before me stood a shining golden sphere. It was uncannily perfect. I looked around me, there was nothing else to see, except an infinite white expanse.
Suddenly, a familiar blue box appeared in the air. `A system prompt! ` I thought excitingly.
Welcome,
You have one [Reincarnation rights] coupon.
Use it?
>Yes
No
I immediately picked yes. Why would they even ask? I'm here for this.
You will now decide of the beginning traits that your physical vessel will have.
Please hold the orb with both hands.
Immediately after contact, an interface reminiscent of those character creation menu in MMORPGs appeared all around me. Contrary to their boring Earthen counterpart, this menu was breathtaking in its complexity. Like shuffling cards, one window immediately moved to the front.
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Name: Evangeline
Evangeline was set as default and even if I could modify it, I decided against it, out of respect for my family's choice.
Choose your Race.
Lineage or race will greatly impact your default skills and stats. It will also influence how the world interact with you. Choose wisely.
[Restriction imposed my system moderator] Races opposing [Admin: Creator] are unavailable.
[Restriction imposed by system rule] Reincarnator does not possess [Hero], [Hero's party], [Divine incarnation], [Demi-God] nor [Saint] advantages. The stats advantage and advanced descriptions of each race will be hidden. The choice is unique and can't be modified.
[System moderator has granted permission: "View Human base stats in full"]
`So Prometheus still wants me to choose human by making it a safe choice, and there is also a confirmation of everything he told me before. ` I grumbled. `Still, so much to choose from, it just sucks that I can't see their advantages, guess I will have to rely on what the simplified descriptions of each says...`
Looking around all of them, I first checked human, because it was the only one that had an advanced description of everything, including the asterisk that was next to all other races.
Humans:
Scattered across the globe, humanity thrives as the most populous race beneath the vast canopy of the World Tree. From humble settlements to mighty empires, their resilience and knack for mastering various arts stand out, a testament to their adaptability and endurance.
Base stats of an average human footsoldier:
Health: 3000
Mana: 250
Strength : 50
Endurance : 150
Agility: 20
Intelligence: 20
Advantages:
No restrictions in classes, elements and endurance stat.
Fast Growth of 1 chosen ability
Can wield 5 different classes but the growth and effectiveness of the 3 last will be reduced by 25% / 50% / 75%
(*) Blessing of Prometheus:
- Triple your lifespan compared to an average human
- 5% permanent bonus to base stats
- The twenty first levels of all classes will be gained ten times faster.
- [Prometheus's Favor]: mankind will unconsciously favor you.
- [Mental clarity]: other mortals cannot affect your mind with magic.
Warning.
The blessing will be lifted if you refuse the call of a summoning ritual condoned by your patron god. Your benefactor can cancel their blessing any time, only the extended lifetime will remain.
`So basically, he is keeping me as a reserve hero or saint. I guess it's still more lenient than the outrageous demands of Lucifer, let's check the other races`
Dwarf
Renown for their craftsmanship and expertise in minerals, dwarves are least populous race under Yggdrasil due to their isolationist culture and the disappearance of their guardians, the Dragons. Constantly fighting for the survival of their race made them the most unified specie walking the mortal realm.
Seeing the lacklustre amount of information available on her first choice outside of human, Evangeline sighed `Whelp, that's all? No other clues? Nothing at all? I feel scammed`.
After minutes perusing the list of choices, she was torn between three choices that seemed to have lengthier descriptions :
Faes:
Born from the delicate interplay of magic and nature, both courts have unrivalled mastery over the element of their choice, but to synergise perfectly, they must abandon part of their personality and soul.
(Seelie court): Favoured by Yggdrasil, these pixies are considered creatures of legends that elves cherish. Easily recognized by their radiant wings and reassuring presence, they usually dedicate their existence into safeguarding and nurturing nature. Renowned for their mischievous nature, artefacts, and ability to realm travel, they're adored or feared by many.
(Unseelie Court): After losing Yggdrasil's favor by transforming parts of its seeds into Thornwood trees in their attempts to grow another world tree, the Faes of the Unseelie courts were hunted down by their counterparts. Thousands of years of conflict turned the once playful and mischievous pixies into vicious tormentors and ruthless fighters. Shunned by all but the dark elves, they war their kin for revenge and a will to show to the world that they are more worthy than them of Yggdrasil's blessing.
I imagined myself going around, playing tricks to unsuspecting people and having a laugh at their expense `I'm not going to be some important individual, so it would make more sense for me to choose a race that is fun to live as... still, the soul and personality part sounds way too ominous`
Elves:
From woodlands to Skylands, the elves grow with the environment they live in. The discrimination among themselves is the worst of all races, and due to their long lifespan, they are renown for holding grudges for centuries and how old fashioned they usually act.
High Elf:
The royalty among all elves, they are the epitome of magic or healing. They usually live in reclusion on floating islands and rarely interact with others, including other elves.
Woodland Elf:
The most common among elves, as the name suggests, they live in forests, but they also settle anywhere close enough to woods. Their nature magic is renown, but some dabble in rune and shamanic magic.
Marshland Elf:
The lower class among all elves, recognizable from their rough appearance, breathtaking architectural feats and specialization in martial combats and earthen magic.
Dark Elf:
Pariahs among elves, they excel in poison making, assassination or charm magic while having access to elemental magic. Aligned with the Unseelie court, dark elves faced a powerful curse imposed by both the Seelie court and high elves. This curse thwarted their ability to excel in any field mastered by their elven counterparts
Half Elf:
Born of unions between elves and other races, their existence is often marred by discrimination, particularly from high elves and those of the non-elven side of the demi elf's parent. This shared blood gives them part of both lineage's heritage, and the constant persecution usually forges renown diplomats and unbiased historians.
Fae touched Elf:
Favoured by both Faes and Elves, their mixed heritage give them access to both mastery over space magic and the high elf’s proficiency in either magic or healing. This made them the prime target of rulers and slave traders. To avoid being hunted down like game, they are usually taught , obfuscation magic after the apparition of their first stigmas or given an obfuscation artefact.
After a long read, she sat down and started weighting the pros and cons of each choice that attracted her attention.
`First, I will not take High elves, no fucking way I will have to bear with stuffy stuck-up assholes even if it gives me an edge in magic. The Marshland elves would have been fun if I was a muscle maniac, and throwing around dirt will definitely get boring really fast...Diplomacy ain't my forte, and I don't want to be shunned everywhere I go I'm not that kind of masochist, so no half elf... and for dark elves, I have a feeling that they're either Chūnibyōs reincarnators or...`
she blushed just by thinking about it.
`ughhh GET OUT PERVERTED THOUGHTS.`.
After calming herself, she looked back at her list. Only one race remained: Fae touched Elf.
`Has access to space magic and elemental magic or healing magic, has no direct enemies if I hide the stigmata, that sounds like a good choice`. Satisfied with her choice, she validated her pick.
Race : Fae touched Elf.
Gender : [Locked]
Backstory : [Locked]
Starting Location : [Locked]
Please set your starting stats.
`Whelp, how thoughtful of you to give me one other choice` she thought sarcastically after seeing how little control she had.
Base stats points available : 10
Strength : 4
Endurance : 4
Agility: 6
Intelligence: 12
`A simple enough approach to base stats huh, Let's put as much as I can in intelligence and agility while upping by one the weaker stats. Would be a nice foundation, and a tried and proved formula after all` She told to herself, remembering some of the LitRPG from Earth and how elf MC or side characters built their stats.
Base stats points available : 0
Strength : 4 > 5
Endurance : 4 > 5
Agility: 6 > 10
Intelligence: 12 > 16
> Confirm selection?
She shrugged and confirmed her selection.
Congratulations. You will now be reincarnated. Thank you for your cooperation.
`Finally` was all she could think before blacking out.