Riding on a carriage moved by a horse was certainly an experience. Also it was my first time seeing a horse! This four-legged animal, whom Glen named Sally, was exactly like the picture books of extinct species. Chiho, that animal-lover, would be extremely jealous if she knew.
Sayuri would probably question my current outfit of choice. A brown leather vest over a white linen shirt, with dark baggy pants and a big cap over my head, where I also stuffed my hair inside. Not exactly a great look, but unfortunately, this world’s era wasn’t exactly kind to women and girls. So, I went by Glen’s advice. Better be safe than sorry.
That being said, Sayuri would likely argue for my clothes to be without a speck of dirt seen, but as a matter of fact, they did seem to be relatively clean as if they hadn’t been used for quite a while. I wondered why Glen, who had a large and built body, had a pair of clothes literally perfect for her size.
Maybe this was his clothes when he was a younger teenager, who had never once lifted a sword. Chiho would certainly love to secretly draw that kind of scene …
She isn’t here though. None of them are here.
Admittedly, it started to get a little lonely, not constantly hearing Sayuri’s fact-checking or Chiho’s sweet humming while we went on walks together back from school. Although Glen’s company eased it somewhat, he couldn't stop the foreboding reality that was settling down on me.
Maybe there was no way to go back, but I begged to differ. If there was anything she’d learned from school was that wormholes were two way paths leading to two different places. Both entrances were its own exits and the only thing left to do was to find it.
That was until I decipher everything about magic. Pure interest aside, the key to opening a gate back home surely lay hidden this magical system shown by the panel in front of me.
“Akari on your right.”
“Got it!”
I stood on the moving carriage, as Glen commanded the horse to go faster. Despite the slight rocking, the ground seemed mostly flat, and I managed to gain a solid footing. With my hand raised toward the target.
Goblins, three of them, short green monsters with long ears and sharp snouts, bulbous golden eyes, and equipped with wooden clubs. Usually they walked on foot, but these guys rode on leaping jackalopes, which looked like giant rabbits with deer horns.
Neither were, of course, in any books I’ve read of back in my world, but I have no reason not to accept what I currently am seeing, especially in another world.
“They’re catching up. What are you waiting for?”
“Jeez, be patient. [Flame arrow]!”
A bolt of flame shot out from my palm and darted through the air, hitting one of the goblins right in the head.
“YES!” I punched the air in excitement.
“What are you celebrating for? There’s still two more.”
“Don’t worry, Glen-san. I’ll get them two,” I said, when a notification bell rang and a small panel showed.
=====================================
[Fire Manipulation D] ===> [Fire Manipulation C]
=====================================
“There you go! You did such a good
“AAAHHH!” I yelled, as the carriage then rocked heavily for a moment.
“What happened? Were you hurt? Did an arrow hit you?”
“Sorry! It’s just that my [Fire Manipulation] skill levelled up from D-rank to C-rank.”
“That was fast,” he said. “Now try casting your spell again.”
I raised my hand once more and shouted, “[Flame Arrow]!”
A bolt of fire formed upon my palm like usual, when it suddenly grew twice its size. The larger bolt shot and struck one of the goblins, then exploded into a small-scale explosion, and the other goblin got caught in it alongside the jackalopes.
“Woah … so, this is the benefit of levelling up a skill. I want to level up some more!”
With the pursuers gone, the carriage returned to its original speed, as I witnessed the lone surviving jackalope fleeing the dust-ridden scene. I texted back and immediately went up to Glen”
“I know what you’re going to ask. You want to know what other perks there are in levelling up,” he said, and I nodded fervently. “Then listen well. As you know, there are seven skill ranks: E-, D-, C-, B-, A-, and S-Rank. Each rank determines your proficiency in the particular skill, increasing in firepower, speed, accuracy—whatever perks it can gain.
“E-Rank skills can only be used for household related things like lighting up a fireplace or filling up a bathtub albeit slowly. With D-Rank, you can start using skills in real-world applications. My [Flame Imbuement] and your [Flame Arrow] are examples of how a [Swordsman] and [Mage] fight monsters and alike.”
“Glen-san, there’s something I don’t get,” I said, while raising my hand. “What is the use of the [Intellect] stat then? If I managed to learn higher tier spells, then shouldn’t the firepower be much stronger regardless.”
“Not at all,” he answered. “Let’s say you have high [Intellect] and learnt the [Tornado] spell, but your [Wind Manipulation] skill is D-Rank. You’d still be able to summon a tornado, but it’ll just be a little tornado the size of your palm instead of the genuine article.”
“I see … So, I assume that every spell has a rank-requirement for it to actually work as intended.”
“You’re very much spot on,” he said. “But here’s the thing, the most basic of spells, blessings, and techniques also grow alongside the skill rank. You’ve seen how your [Flame Arrow] now explodes on contact. You might as well just use that one flexible spell over and over, instead of learning a bunch of random ones that may or may not be useful to the situation at-hand.”
“But I want to create a burning tornado that can break the earth and create medium-sized lakes.”
“And where do you intend such a dangerous spell?” his brown eyes narrowed at mine, both of which couldn't help but steer clear from the burning gaze, putting an end to the thought.
“Oh, and another thing. Once you’ve learnt every spell there is and raised your magic-related skills to the max, excess [Intellect] is relegated to increasing your mana, which you can expend more so than the initial cost for a more powerful result. The same goes for [Wisdom] if your class was a holy-related one.”
Learning more and more about the system really was enlightening. As the teachers back home said, ‘the more knowledge you have the more respected you become’. I wonder what would they think of me, the infamous troublemaker, transforming into a highly respectable and powerful being? Just thinking about it made me want to hurry up and search for more monsters to slay.
“Oh, I forgot to ask. About the rankings, you said it only reaches up to S, but what about EX?”
“So, you do have one.”
“[Translation EX], that’s the name. It is one of the reasons why I travel across many different lands, as I’ve heard many stories from many different people of different languages!” I spoke in an exaggerated tone, proclaiming myself as a great adventurer despite not having gone to any.
“And yet you have no clue about the system nor about magic?” he raised his brows. “Your story is already full of holes, so you better get your story straight from this point on. Especially once you’re in town.”
And yet you yourself never questioned it. I crossed my arms, having no idea why Glen was so trusting in the first place. Those farmers were suspicious of her, yet none from him … Maybe it’s better to be direct?
Glen seemed like a trustworthy person, with how much he’d taught her about everything to know about this world called Orbiterra, ruled by five kingdoms: Meinsdottir of the frozen tundra, Kalizar of the desert oasis, Aeryn of the forest watch, Selestine of the flowery plains, and Pylfur of the skyward hilltops, where they currently were. More precisely, the border between Pylfur and Aeryn in the southeastern part of the continent.
Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
But apart from them was the corrupted lands of the northwest, the dominion of the demons, monsters banding together under the banner of the Demon King and the Seven Sinful Beasts. They sought only one thing and that was the eradication of humanity and all living things, and right after, the planet itself.
Just thinking about it gave me shivers, but fortunately the five kingdoms seemed to be working together in order to hold off the demon’s invasions and were slowly but surely advancing to depose the Demon King and bring true peace to Orbiterra.
Just like how my world had come to be since the rise of the foundation, though I seriously doubt that such an organization would exist here. The technology was far too primitive compared to what I’ve always known. And even then …
No, it’s too soon to be certain. I erased the thought and focused on the road ahead. This adventure was to be enjoyed and learnt from all angles, and so far, it was the kind of learning that wouldn’t lead me to sleep through lessons. Probably because I was actually doing something instead of just reading through the school’s tablet.
Oh right! Can’t forget to allocate the points. Something I discovered along the way was the fact that I could scroll down the panel with my mind, which listed additional information.
=====================================
STATUS PROFILE
Name : Akari Takebayashi
Age : 15
Race : Human
Class : [Mage]
Titles : [Hero], [World Traveler]
HP : 50
MP : 80
STR : 6
DEF : 3 + 2
AGI : 7 + 2
INT : 14 + 10
WIS : 6
CHA : 7
LCK : 7 + 2
Skills : [Appraisal C] [Translator EX] [Fire Manipulation C]
=====================================
STATUS EFFECT
Buffs : —
Debuffs : —
=======================================
STAT POINT
Used : 16
Unused : 5
=======================================
STAT POINT CONVERSION
You’ve learnt [Flame Arrow] spell => 1 SP
You’ve gained 1 new skills = 1 SP
You’ve learnt your first spell = 3 SP
You’ve killed a total of 11 Goblins => 11 SP
You’ve killed a total of 2 Jackalopes => 2 SP
=====================================
SPELLBOOK
Water : —
Fire : [Flame arrow]
Wind : —
Earth : —
Light : —
Dark : —
=====================================
Granted, it could’ve been better arranged. If it were me, I’d separate them into multiple tables rather than one long scroll. It must’ve gone so long without an update. Back home, this kind of arrangement would be considered archaic, used by my grandfather’s grandfather.
That and the addition of some skill mastery progress log, where I could actually see how many percentages were left before a skill could rank up. But oh well. Got to make use of what you were given.
Ok, I have five points in store, I thought. Making a decision was pretty difficult, since I needed to make sure the stats are all relatively balanced, while pouring most points into the most important stat, and that would be [Intellect] since I’m a mage.
But now that Glen said, the ability to learn higher spells was kind of useless unless I manage to rank up my magic-related skills. My goal was to acquire the skill for every element, which would still require more [Intellect]. However, I should start prioritizing fire as my main element for daily and combat uses, since this world lacks a sense of security unlike mine.
==============================
HISTORY
You’ve added 1 SP to INT
You’ve added 3 SP to AGI
You’ve added 1 SP to LCK
==============================
Advice from Glen Number 12. “The ability to run away is not something to be ashamed of”. In running away, whether from assassins or dragon fire, a mage should always find themselves at the best position to cast spells.”
The thought of being assassinated by some stranger or burnt alive by a flame-breathing lizard was … very much unpleasant. Kept me up for two nights just by overthinking. The nightmares, however, persisted till now.
As for luck, look into Advice from Glen Number 7. “The luckier you are, the luckier you’d survive”. I counted five other pieces of advice where Glen talked about survival. He seemed to be keen on being that sincere yet overprotective father-figure.
Nevertheless, I noted every single useful piece of advice and information he saved into the notepad Chiho gave me as a birthday present. Before it was simply out of sentimental value, since who used papers nowadays really. Now though, in a medieval world, pen and paper proved invaluable.
I recalled Glen’s shocked face when he saw the notepad, saying that it could cost up to ten gold coins. Not sure about the conversion rate from gold to yen, but it had got to be a lot.
=====================================
STATUS PROFILE
Name : Akari Takebayashi
Age : 15
Race : Human
Class : [Mage]
Titles : [Hero], [World Traveler]
HP : 52
MP : 84
STR : 6
DEF : 3 + 2
AGI : 7 + 5
INT : 14 + 11
WIS : 6
CHA : 7
LCK : 7 + 3
Skills : [Appraisal C] [Translator EX] [Fire Manipulation C]
=====================================
The separation between base stats and added stats was really neat, and it looked like I gained some health and mana passively. A bit curious as to how it worked, since it didn’t seem to be tied to any of the stats.
Could age be a factor? My sixteenth birthday was coming up, while it sucks to celebrate it in a place where no one knew you, I got Glen to at least wish me a happy birthday. But wait, do people here celebrate birthdays? I better ask Glen for a calendar and maybe a clock if technology permits, because for all I know this world could have a different planetary rotation and revolution.
I really am in another world …
A part of me still wished this to be some kind of dream. The kind of dream that never ended. Sure, I missed my friends, my mom and dad, and even my stuck-up teachers, who always reprimand me for my below average test scores. It felt oddly surreal to no longer hear them and only receive praises everytime I do something regardless of failure or not.
“Akari, see that sign over there?” asked Glen, pointing at the sign stationed in the middle of the road that said ‘Peryer Ahead’, which we promptly passed by. “We’re about to reach our destination. First things first is to get registered to the Adventurer’s Guild to get your ID. Otherwise, you’d be considered a non-civilian and be up for purchase.”
“Heh, do people do that?”
“So, slavery isn’t common where you came from? Then you better put up your guard from now on. What’s scarier than a monster is a human who acts like one, for unlike monsters, humans can hide their intentions behind masks of virtue.”
“Looks like I’m adding Number 22 to the list,” I wrote it down on my notepad.
“Better hide that thing somewhere safe or you might end up getting pickpocketed.”
“Got it,” I immediately put it inside the pocket behind my vest, as well as fixing my cap. I have to act like a boy and that should be easy. Sayuri always did say that I kind of act like one, despite me rarely hanging out with them outside of sport lessons.
What perfect timing it was to practice my acting skills in front of other people. Aside from the fear of getting lost in an alley, kidnapped by suspicious people, and then sold into a slavery …
Maybe this adventure isn’t as fun as I initially thought.