Well, that was certainly one way to go out. I thought as I floated through the familiar sea of nothingness. Is everything back in working order again? No more issues with mana expenditure or anything?
I didn’t get a response, but I didn’t exactly expect one.
Activate diagnostic mode.
System : Activating diagnostic mode
I looked at the complex spaghetti of mana strands, and things seemed to be as they should be.
… At least, I thought. It was still the most complex bit of magic I had ever seen.
However, I had plenty of time if I wanted to try to unravel all of that, and other things were more pressing.
Let’s take a look at how Gram is handling the loss of their prisoner. I thought. I activated the scrying array and watched the [King] of said nation pacing back and forth.
“We have lost all contact?” he asked. “Not just the transplanar messaging?”
Wait. They figured out how to send [Message] across dimensions when I wasn’t looking? No fair!
However, his aid didn’t seem to care about my complaining that was done inside my own head in a different dimension and just answered the [King] after a slight pause. “Yes. At first, we thought it might just be an error with the artifacts, but we contacted the agents stationed on our side of the portal and… well…”
“Do not mince words with me,” the [King] admonished. “I need to know how bad it is.”
“The portal is no longer working,” the advisor stated bluntly. “It is now simply a pair of arches with nothing between them. We have to assume the worst.”
The [King] slouched onto his throne. “Could we not send a rescue party through the portal in our own land? Have them make the journey north on that side?”
“We… could, your majesty,” the advisor said hesitantly. “But I would not recommend it. Part of the reason that we chose that island is that the waters are supremely unsafe. If the [Demon Lord] had managed to escape our custody, he would have no choice but to either fight through the reinforcements surrounding the portal or brave the waters.” The advisor shook his head. “We’ve had reports of ice serpents more than a hundred feet in length and breaking level 25. We thought those monsters would perhaps be a match even for the [Demon Lord], but that, in turn, means that trying to cross to that island is a fool’s errand.”
“Then everyone stationed there is lost,” the [King] said as he closed his eyes. “Very well. The [Demon Lord] is dead, and the world has been given no indication of how. We can at least use that to our advantage. Put a narrative together about how our brave soldiers trailed and battled him in secret.”
“It will be done, your majesty,” the advisor said as he lightly pounded a fist against his chest in salute.
“Also, destroy all but the necessary materials from our research that was conducted on the [Demon Lord],” the [King] continued. “Bind the remaining as secret, and make sure that none of it leaks out. It would not do to have the world learn that we failed to keep the [Demon Lord] prisoner… and that we were the nation that ‘misplaced’ the [Hero].”
The advisor saluted again and then left the [King’s] presence. Meanwhile, I trailed along behind him with the [Scry]. If he was about to destroy secret documents, I at least wanted to take a peek.
It turns out that it’s hard to glean much from pieces of paper as they’re being bundled up and tossed into a fire. However, I did learn something new just from the destination that he went to in order to fulfill his orders.
The kingdom of Gram is a much bigger piece of work than I thought. I mused as I examined their secret facility.
Truth be told, it didn’t look like much. It was very utilitarian, but that was probably to be expected since I was basically looking at a magical equivalent of the CIA.
[Scry] spells all over the place. I thought as I peeked over the shoulders of their “agents,” watching people from all over Placeholder. That’s Pumil. That one must be Dryadal… Dryadal’s throne room? Wow. They have guts. Jenkins? And then that one must be Gert… err.. the United North.
Most surprising were the ones after that. Wow. Even spying on their own people. I thought as I looked over an entire section performing espionage on the Gram populace.
None of that was terribly concerning. I had been vaguely aware of scrying attempts in the past, and pinning it on Gram wasn’t a huge shocker. They did seem to be the go-to kingdom for shady stuff. No, my concern was at a different section where a group of people was sitting there and occasionally writing things.
What are they doing? I asked as I zoomed my [Scry] in closer.
I quickly realized they were writing down conversations. Conversations that had suspiciously clipped speech.
I put the dots together immediately.
Those motherfrickers. I practically growled. They didn’t have any phone lines to tap, so they had to make do with tapping [Messages]. Then I paused. Can I learn that spell too?
The answer was no. At least, not without watching someone actually cast it, and they weren’t actively casting anything that I could tell. That meant that it probably was something they cast once on a single target and then could get any number of [Messages] that were sent to them.
I didn’t know what the range was on it, but if they could cast it on me, that would cause quite a few problems.
Note to self. Find a way to subvert their message tracing and/or encrypt messages as soon as possible.
I had one last surprise while looking around at Gram’s stuff. And that was a portion of their building where my [Scry] cut out.
At least, it cut out briefly. It came back in soon enough, but that didn’t surprise me much.
Whatever this scrying array is, it has enough power to punch through the [Scrying] defenses of the fey. You mortals don’t have a chance.
And that’s when I stumbled on their room that was transmitting some type of scry-blocking spell through their entire compound… which I hadn’t even noticed until I got right up next to the source.
You may need to up the power on that. I chuckled as I examined it a bit closer. I was hoping I might be able to reverse-engineer the enchantment, but that didn’t pan out.
The problem was that there were 2 different ways to make an enchanted item like that. The first is to carve out the runes that have the same function as the spell. It gives you the most control over it and is more efficient. That method has the downside of being rather complex compared to the other method. The second method? Create an enchantment for storing a spell. It still has to have information about the spell school and what power it is being cast at (for spells that have variable costs), but it’s much more straightforward.
That meant that I couldn’t learn anything from that aside from the enchantment to store a spell for… whichever school was opposite of [Scrying].
I puttered around looking at their secret facility a bit more, but I could tell I was mostly just killing time at that point.
I shut off the [Scry].
It was time to do my post-life review.
So, what did I learn from my last life? And what did I gain?
The first thing that came to mind was items, so I opened up my inventory.
Lost most of my armor set, but at least I still have the helmet. I thought as I looked it over. Wait. What did they do with my armor anyway? I would have frowned if I could have. It better not be at the bottom of the sea in the dragonlands…
There was no way to tell unless I came up with a locator spell, which didn’t sound like a bad plan after I thought about it a bit.
It’s a good thing that the armor was just a bonus. I thought as I stared at the one item that actually mattered.
Singularity
A masterwork staff corrupted by the Demon Lord for his own nefarious purposes.
Materials
Black mithril
Tier
Masterwork
Casting Type
all III
Enchant
Masterwork Mana Capacity (1000)
Cursed - Infernal
User takes constant fire damage
1000 extra mana to play around with and cast my spells. That was the real win from this life.
… Definitely not a fan of that description, though. I thought as I took a closer look at the stat block. Also, I didn’t realize that it amplified every school of magic. I thought it wouldn’t have done any since I focused solely on mana like my wands. Huh. Well, I guess it’s good to know that I have lightning III damage as an option in my back pocket if I have to deal with someone with good armor.
I quickly looked at some other things like Insurance, my helmet, and even my scrying mirror. However, there was one last item I couldn’t find.
Is it not here? I would have sworn they stayed on me until I died.
And that’s when I realized.
Frick. The handcuffs aren’t in my inventory because they were still on my body, and I respawn in the same equipment I died in. Am I going to respawn cuffed forever?
That put a huge damper on my mood. While most of my passive and toggle skills weren’t affected, I wasn’t looking forward to clearing the tutorial again with no access to [Fire Strike] or my inventory.
Can I modify what equipment I respawn in? I asked the automated system in desperation.
System : Choose respawn equipment
I gave a mental sigh of relief as I unequipped the handcuffs and shoved them into my inventory. As for choosing what else to equip instead, I could have picked from among several disguises and changes of clothes or even put on my helmet, but I just left that alone.
Disaster averted. Now, what else was there to go over?
Thinking about Singularity and those handcuffs meant that my thoughts had to go to their makers.
Leaving them alive was a mistake. I finally admitted. I was only worried about them revealing information about me, but I should have been concerned about how they could have used their crafting skills against me too. I gave a mental shake of my head. I could have tried to cover that with another oath, but I’ve seen how well that worked out.
I chuckled a bit inside as I remembered the care I had taken with my oaths, and the mental gymnastics I had put myself through so I could do what I needed.
As long as there are that many loopholes, death really is the only option. I thought. That brought up the internal debate of whether or not I was capable of doing something like that, but I decided to table it.
They lived, so I was captured and died. Oh well, it worked out in the end. Besides, I got a ton of practice on [Cast From SP], so it should be fairly high level now…
I flipped open my status and checked things over.
[Spatius] was up to 3 since the last time I checked, which made sense because I had been using [Teleport] quite a bit while traveling around. [Temporus] was also at 3 because of all the practicing I’d been doing. I needed to get that up higher before I could cast the ritual, though.
Meanwhile, the skill that got me on that tangent, [Cast From SP], was capped at 5. I should have realized that earlier. I must have received a System message about needing to raise my level cap, but I must not have noticed it.
I was probably too focused on casting the ritual to blow up the island.
Speaking of the ritual, that casting had done much more for me than I expected. I had several new entries at the bottom of my skill list.
Ignis
Passive
4
Frigis
Passive
2
Aeris
Passive
3
Terris
Passive
3
Well, that confirms that the ritual counted as all of the elements. I thought as I took a look at the entries. [Frigis] being lower than the others confused me a little bit, but as I thought about it, I realized that it was the one I struggled with most when making the ritual. I must have “low talent” in that one.
Meanwhile, [Ignis] being at 4 didn’t surprise me. Fire came easily to me, but not quite as easily as lightning magic did.
I probably would have capped out [Electricus] at 5 if I had made the ritual with that. I thought. However, [Electricus] wasn’t feasible for that situation. Casting electricity magic took a toll on my HP, and the [Guards] would have noticed that quickly because of the vital monitors they had checking my HP.
In hindsight, that did mean I could have just killed myself with a quick electric spell at any time after the respawn was re-enabled, but I didn’t really regret destroying every trace of that wretched prison from the face of the map.
Besides, I learned that you can use the runes from enchanting to stabilize and power a ritual. I thought. That should have earned me a few levels in [Magic Researcher] and maybe even one in [Enchanter].
I flipped over to my subclasses and mentally frowned as I realized they hadn’t gone up.
Right. Have to go to an obelisk to level subclasses… Even though I don’t have to for my main class.
Then I had an interesting thought.
Technically, my “physical location” might be inside the obelisk in the tutorial right now… so… Upgrade?
The familiar screen that would allow me to pick new skills, spells, or perks popped up. Unfortunately, being dead must have counted me as level 0 since I didn’t even have the leftover points anymore.
The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
Oh well. What matters is that it worked. How many subclass levels did that ritual net me?
The answer was 4 in total. 3 in [Magic Researcher], taking me from 3 to 6, and one in [Enchanter], taking me from 7 to 8.
One more level in [Enchanter] and I can make masterwork enchanted items all by myself. I thought. Well… If I can get the right materials… For some reason, I doubted that I would be able to find someone who could make mithril as pure as Thorgrala did or who would be able to carve a staff like Elnil.
I cleared thoughts of those two out of my head as I went to look at what skills my level-ups gave me.
Level 4 had a rather exciting one. [Spell Failure Resistance]. At first glance, that sounded great. Less of a chance to fail my spells? Sign me up!
… It didn’t do that. It gave resistance to any spells that decided to blow up in my face because I miscast them. At least, that was what I could glean out of what my subconscious was trying to tell me.
Level 5 was an interesting one, though. [Suspended Spell]. I could trigger that to increase the cost of a spell but leave it suspended in the air. That would be great for showing other people since it would be a lot easier to copy with [Copy Spell], but I was also debating about other utilities of it.
I wonder if I can suspend a [Hell Blaze] and then release it whenever.
Obviously, I would have to do science on that one as soon as possible.
Finally, level 6 gave me [Simulate Spell]. I could use that skill to envision what would happen if I put a specific spell together and then let it fly.
The nicest thing about it was that it didn’t have any cost, just a cooldown. It was a rather hefty one, but I was going to use it during my stay in the obelisk since there was no reason not to.
As for [Enchanter], I got the skill [Rune Amplification] for my 8th level. While Elnil had been a bit cagey about what his skills did, I had an inkling that the 8th level was something like that.
It always did seem like he could get more out of his runes for less. I thought. However, I was again thinking about the dwarf responsible for the enchantment on my chains, so I decided it was time to distract myself.
I wonder what Theo’s up to? I asked myself.
I turned the [Scry] over to him, and the answer was… not much. He was quite a bit older than the last time I saw him, but that had been before my imprisonment, so at least 20 years.
He’s probably going to die of old age before I come back. I realized. Unless he dies of something else first.
That was a bit sad to think about. Theo wasn’t exactly a friend, but he had been a fantastic subordinate. Even more so than the rest of the [Speakers of Flame]. I couldn’t help but be sad to see him go.
I decided I might as well tune into all of my speakers just to see how things were going.
It was a good thing I did, or I would have missed... well… something.
“We must avenge our lord!” one of my speakers shouted in a gathering of their chapter of my cult. “The heathens of Gram have boasted of their victory over the Lord of Flame! We shall make them regret their heresy! Prepare the ritual!”
Ritual? That’s right… I think they mentioned they got an option for a spell when they leveled up?
After making essentially 2 rituals of my own, I had a general expectation of how it would go down. Channel the mana in the appropriate paths for the spell, say the right words with more words equaling a stronger cast, and then cast once it was ready after a couple of days to a couple of dozen years.
I had forgotten that I was watching a cult.
There was ominous chanting in faux Latin. The channels for the spell weren’t made out of powdered magicite or runes but were instead done with blood. That was enough to put me on a tangent.
Are those daggers enchanted to always cause bleed or something? I asked as I watched in somewhat horrified fascination as my followers cut themselves. I don’t see any enchantments. Maybe it’s a skill that’s-
“The ritual is complete!” my speaker said.
Already!? Daaaaang. Leave it to [Cultists] to complete a ritual in a fraction of the time… and with a thousand times the bloodloss.
“Everyone, prepare yourselves!” The chanting reached a fever pitch, and the speaker intoned the final words. “[Summon Demonic Portal]!”
As a glowing red symbol appeared on the nearest wall, I mentally frowned.
Wait a second. Wasn’t the last summoning ritual that I interrupted summoning a single demon? I tried to remember what happened that night at the church so long ago but couldn’t seem to place what that crazy cult leader Lizzie had tried to cast.
I also didn’t have too long to think about it. The portal opened, and a figure strode out, even as the fake System so helpfully sent me a message about what I was already watching.
System : Warning. Major event detected. Deactivating temporal controls
In some ways, the figure that strode through the portal reminded me a bit of Admin. Tall, incredibly beefy, red skin and horns, oh, and the look on his face that told me that he really wished everything around him was on fire.
“Why have you dared summon me, mortal?” he asked in a rumbling voice.
“We have summoned you to exact vengeance for the [Demon Lord]!” my speaker shouted, completely unafraid.
The large demon paused briefly, and I thought I caught a hint of fear in his eyes. “Is the [Demon Lord] here?” he rumbled in a slightly less intimidating manner.
That took the speaker back. “No,” he stated slowly. “We have summoned this portal to bring forth his vengeance on the nation of Gram!”
A smile slowly broke over the demon’s face. “So, what I heard is that the [Demon Lord] is not here.”
“Of course not, you oaf!” the speaker shouted. “That’s why we’ve summoned you to-“
He was interrupted by the demon’s loud whistle. No sooner had the note faded than a dozen hellhounds burst through the portal, and more monsters followed behind.
“Then he won’t mind if we start here,” the demon grinned as it pulled a black battleaxe from nowhere and rushed the speaker.
I watched the ensuing bloodbath of my cultists in frustration.
Hey! I was using those guys! I groaned. Great. Just great. That will set my magicite collection back years.
And that was what I was really irritated about. I wasn’t so upset about the [Cultists] dying. No, I figured that was squarely in the category of playing stupid games and getting stupid prizes (with summoning demons about as stupid of a game as you can get).
After my [Cultists] were massacred, the demon and monsters moved on to the rest of the town. It was honestly a closer fight than I thought. The hellhounds ended up getting put down by the Watch, and they disappeared without even a chance to be looted. Meanwhile, the demon wasn’t so easy to put down. He crashed through buildings and defenses with diabolical glee, only to eventually vanish without a trace.
I had a suspicion and then confirmed it immediately.
He was sent back when the portal closed. I thought as I looked over the initial site that was now missing its portal.
So, what did I learn? High-level [Cultists] can open a portal to Hell. The portal is temporary, and the demons can’t stay over on Placeholder when it closes. I paused. Also, the demons seemed less scary than the ones that Admin brought over. I wonder if that’s because-
I paused and remembered the words I saw every time I died.
Reduced morale. That might translate into just reduced stats since this is a game-like world. I thought. Well, either way, I’m not going to test that out any further. As those poor saps figured out, help from demons is never help at all.
From there, my stay was boring. I upped the speed and goofed around with [Simulate Spell] quite a bit, but nothing significant happened.
Well, aside from Theo and the rest of my speakers passing on. I made sure to take notice of that and see who they put as their replacements so that I could make contact during my next life.
Before I knew it, the respawn timer was up.
“Ahhh, it’s good to be-“ I froze. Something was incredibly off. My body felt strange, and my voice sounded like...
I wiped some dust off the obelisk and confirmed my worst suspicions.
“Fricking darn it! Son of a birch!” I yelled in a voice that was slightly lower pitched but most obviously feminine.
I fumed as I took in my new female body. I had the same red hair as before, but it was long and flowed down to the middle of my back. I still had horns, but they were curly goat horns that rested mostly on the side of my head. Then, saving the most obvious for last, I had two prominent… mounds of female biology on my chest.
“I can’t even see my feet when I look down,” I muttered.
The surprises kept coming.
System: Change in biological sex during reincarnation detected. Would you like to change your name?
I almost yelled at the System that I wouldn’t, but I managed to catch myself.
Calm down, Titus. I thought. And that was a bit trippy because the voice in my head hadn’t quite caught up to matching my external voice yet. Think this through. Would it be helpful to change my name?
My eyes widened as I realized yes. Yes, it would be helpful.
This could be the greatest cover story I’ve had yet! I thought as I started pacing. Not only would they not expect to see a woman, but I could also say directly to a truth stone that I’m not Titus! I still might have to worry about verifying my class…
I flipped open my status and quickly confirmed that I was still a [Demon Lord].
I… guess that makes sense. If it’s based on anime logic, the Japanese term that gets translated to that is gender-neutral. I paused. Also, Demon Lady just… doesn’t sound like a final boss. It just sounds like a different name for a Karen.
System: Change in biological sex during reincarnation detected. Would you like to change your name? Please answer within 10 seconds
“Yes!” I blurted out. My mental rabbit trail had almost cost me a golden opportunity.
System: Please select your female name
Alright, what’s the rule 63[1] name for myself? I asked. Let’s see… Titus. Tie… I paused. Can I not think of a single girl’s name starting with Ti? I mean, there’s Tia… Tianna… Tiffany…
I frowned. I wanted a name that started with a long I sound, just so that there would be a bit of continuity between my two names. Unfortunately, I couldn’t think of any except…
“Titania!” I answered the System as I cackled.
System: Name set to Titania
“Behold! I am Titania, [Queen] of the fey!” I snorted. It was a good thing that I already knew that this world’s fairy queen was not named after the same one in Shakespeare and several other sources. Otherwise, I had a good chance of incurring their wrath… again.
I wonder if the fairies would recognize me in this body? I thought. Probably. Best not to risk it.
“Alright, this life should be a cinch,” I said. “Just blend in, prepare, make contact with the Children of Flame… Who won’t know who I am.”
I paused.
Frick. This might be more complicated than I thought.
------
I wasn’t the only one who was having difficulties. The OmniverseEngine was having a rough go of it too.
It started with a routine check. Now that the Demon Lord was back, the System had to ensure the Hero was in place.
… Except he wasn’t. He was nowhere in Placeholder, and, to make matters worse, there was no record of him dying either.
The System scoured the logs methodically and finally found the issue that was too late to correct. That wouldn’t stop it from fulfilling its duty, though.
Disciplinary: Filing disciplinary action against Admin #ERROR_ADMIN_NOT_FOUND. Reason: unauthorized removal of Hero without replacement or notification. Recommendation: 50 demerits. No reduction available
Its job was done. However, it still needed a new Hero, which was the next sticking point.
There was no one suited to be a Hero in the entire dimension the Demon Lord was currently in. There was also no method for a Hero to make it to that dimension from Placeholder proper. And that was because that dimension was not a part of the original specification and had been created as an add-on with an invalid dimension ID.
The System would fix that!
Disciplinary: Filing disciplinary action against Admin #ERROR_ADMIN_NOT_FOUND. Reason: creation of invalid dimension. Recommendation: 100 demerits, reduced to 25 upon removal of the dimension
Problem solved, the System still needed to bring in a Hero. And if it couldn’t bring someone in from Placeholder it would just have to pull someone in from elsewhere.
Info: Attempting to locate new Hero
It searched through the active feeder world, found a likely candidate, and then ran a quick simulation. The Demon Lord was only level 1, so it shouldn’t need to send anyone terribly strong, so the odds of success should be…
0%.
Assuming that there was just an issue with the candidate, the System just needed to try again and-
0%.
It found someone that might make a stronger Hero and-
0%.
That previous Hero’s weapon was rather strong for the current world. So perhaps if it took someone with similar training and weaponry, it could-
0%.
The OmniverseEngine is the most incredible merge of technology and magic I have ever encountered. It is capable of simulating countless universes at the same time, and even the admins that maintain them. However, it was still capable of overlooking something simple like… the fact that I could respawn while in the tutorial and, therefore, couldn’t be defeated there.
Also, at the end of the day, it is still a machine.
That means that if at first you don’t succeed, keep running until you use up your entire allotment of processing power for the task and then give up without a second thought.
The fact that it was in the middle of simulating one of the much less likely candidates was hardly relevant.
-------
Pros and cons. I thought as I continued pacing. Pro, no one will recognize me, so I should be pretty safe this life. Con, that means that children of flame won’t recognize me either, and I’ll have to prove it is really me. Probably by showing my class to one of them.
I pivoted sharply and nearly lost my balance. Con, I am much more… top heavy. [Martial Arts] will take some getting used to. I threw some test punches, and my mood didn’t improve. Please tell me someone has invented the sports bra in Placeholder, or I might just off myself to get a new body.
That seemed a bit drastic, so I tried to think positively. Pro… well, not really a pro, but a mitigation of a con. [Asexual]. At least I don’t have to worry about that part of this random gender swap. I frowned. That perk better mean I don’t get periods.
I could probably have paced back and forth thinking about the primarily negative aspects of my new life if not for the System message that came through.
System: A new Hero has been summoned
“Wait, summoned!?” my voice came out in a high pitch shriek which… I didn’t have to worry about the fact it sounded feminine.
I ignored the unexpected pro because the System wasn’t kidding about the summoning. It was happening at the obelisk right in front of me.
A swirling mass of light appeared before me, and I entered [Sneak] out of reflex. If the last two [Heroes] summoned were my direct counters, I was already dreading the conflict. What could be more powerful than a [Hero] with a pistol that one-shot me? How dangerous would this new [Hero] be that they got their own light show for their summoning?
It got bright enough that I had to shield my eyes from the light with my arm. Then, just like that, the glow faded…
A woman? I asked. Then I got a bit closer and realized how small she was. A young woman… no. A girl? I finally settled on “a junior higher” when I realized she was wearing a school uniform.
“Where am I?” she asked as she spun around in a slow circle. “Hello? Is anyone there? Hello?”
She’s my hard counter? I asked myself in confusion. I decided that caution was the better part of valor and committed myself to just watching her for a bit.
“Wait. What’s this blue text?” she frowned. “What’s a [Sorceress]? And what’s a base class?” As she spoke, another glow appeared, and a shining white and gold wand materialized in her hand. “Oh, God. I’m going crazy. No, wait! This must be a lucid dream!”
Her reactions were not making me any less puzzled.
“See, if I pinch myself… it didn’t hurt! It must be a dream!” she concluded. “That must also mean I could fly if I want to! I just have to-“
Even as I mentally corrected her that her pinch wasn’t enough to do HP damage, she had already jumped off the obelisk platform spread eagle. I winced as she landed flat on the hard rock of the cave floor and her weapon rolled away harmlessly.
“Oowwww,” she said. “Wait. Why did that hurt? What’s going on? Is this not a dream?” She curled up into a ball. “Then that means… that truck…”
And truck-kun claims another victim. I thought as I watched over the now-sobbing girl. Things were getting awkward for me, but I wasn’t sure what else to do. Let the [Hero] out of my sight? Just go on and clear the tutorial without her and leave her to figure it out?
Unfortunately, I felt too bad for her to do either. That meant I had to stick around as she slowly put herself back together and stopped crying.
“What are you supposed to do when you’re lost?” she asked herself quietly. “Food, water, and shelter, right?... In what order?” She looked around. “I’m in some kind of shelter, so next is food and water… which I have no idea where to get. Maybe I can wait for whoever lit those torches?” she asked.
Oh. No wonder she calmed down. She thinks that there are people nearby… she has no clue that those are dungeon torches that never go out.
“While I wait, I have a wand, and the blue words said I’m a [Sorceress],” she said as she walked over and picked it up. “So I should be able to do this!”
She pointed her wand at one of the mounds of dragon bones.
“Wind guard and levitate coleslaw!” she… cast?
Was that an attempt at a Harry Potter spell? I asked incredulously. She tried a few more times before giving up.
That girl is doomed.
“Maybe I’m trying to lift something that’s too heavy. What’s in those piles anyway?” the new [Hero] asked as she approached a pile of dragon bones.
I wondered why that was even a question, but I forgot that the room wasn’t terribly bright. The problem with having [Dark Vision] and all.
“They look like…” she froze before falling backward onto the floor. “B-b-bones. Those are bones. Oh, nonononono.” She took a deep breath but got back up and approached them. “They’re picked clean. What could eat something that size!?” She gave paranoid looks around her before finally saying, “I need to get out of here before it comes back.”
Technically, the culprit is right behind you. I thought as she continued to panic.
She ran for the side of the room, pulled one of the torches off the wall, apologized to no one for taking it, and then headed down one of the tunnels.
I followed behind and wondered exactly what her game plan was… and what mine should be.
Am I just going to follow her around until she completes the tutorial? I asked myself. Is she even going to be able to complete it? I don’t think that she’s even opened her status-
My status flipped open, and I almost tripped on flat ground.
Been a while since that got me. I grumbled as I closed it. Anyway, she’s a [Sorceress] who doesn’t know how to cast spells. I don’t think this is going to end well.
It didn’t take a prophet to make that prediction. Things went sideways in the very next encounter.
“What are those things?” the [Hero] asked as she wandered into a room with 5 giant ants. She moved her torch towards the skittering insects and then froze. They all turned in her direction, and she screamed.
She took off running at top speed, and I followed behind while still in [Sneak].
You’re… not that fast, are you? I thought as I watched the ants start to catch up. No! Not that… way.
I sighed as she sprinted down another tunnel that led to a room with even more enemies. Her next scream told me she found that much out soon enough.
I snuck into the room and watched as the [Hero] of Placeholder cowered on the floor with her arms protecting her body.
“Please… don’t eat me! I don’t taste good!” she whimpered.
The ants ignored her, and one took a bite of her.
“No! Please! Stop!”
Meanwhile, I stood close by, watching the entire thing.
Should I help her? I asked. She’s the [Hero]. The one sent here by the System to kill me. The one with the overpowered class that can take on any obstacle.
“Please! Someone help me!” she shouted, her voice full of tears.
I should leave. I thought as I silently pulled out Insurance. I should just let her rot in the tutorial. I told myself as I moved closer.
She continued sobbing.
I’m such a frickin’ softy. I thought as I [Flash Stepped]. Insurance cut through the ant that was sitting there biting her, and that gathered the attention of the rest of them.
Even at level 1, and even with my new awkward body, it was still a slaughter. I carved through them without taking a single hit and barely expending any SP.
That just left the problem of the girl crying on the floor.
I stowed my sword.
“There, there,” I said softly as I gently picked her up in a princess carry.
She immediately buried her head into my chest and continued crying… which was messy and irritating, but I ignored that.
“It will be okay,” I said as I gently stroked her hair and carried her back to the obelisk room.
My goal was hospitality protocol. The poor girl had been through a lot, and I figured a quick nap on not hard stone floor was just what she needed.
I activated that, and the flashing light show and subsequent zap didn’t seem to impact her much, but it was hard to tell when she was still a crying mess.
I carried her toward the dormitories.
“This might make you feel a bit nauseous, okay?” I said.
She gave a slight nod, which was significant progress, and I stepped into the teleport.
I was a bit worried that it would separate us since we weren’t in a party, but it took the fact that I was carrying her into account. I walked her to the only room that it provisioned us and then gently tucked her into bed.
“You’ve been through a lot, so just try to get some sleep, alright?” I said as I gently stroked her hair.
She was so emotionally drained that she took my advice soon enough. I stood up carefully to avoid disturbing her.
I looked over the next [Hero] of the world and had some choice words for the System.
You’re pretty frickin’ lucky that I’m going to be reverting all of this. I thought. If I weren’t, machine or no, I would find a way to tear you apart piece by piece. You don’t send children to fight your wars for you.
I slowly released the fist that I hadn’t realized I was clenching.
Can’t get wrath form. That doesn’t go too well. I thought.
I leaned against the wall and slowly slid down to the floor.
Well, I guess that means I’m watching over her for now. I thought as I looked at the sleeping [Hero’s] form.
I wonder how long until this one kills me?
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[1] Rule 63 – One of the so-called “rules of the Internet” that states “for every given male character, there is a female version of that character.”
Mostly a rule due to fan-art and cosplay.