17.

Santi watched as the slew of kill notifications scrolled by. The single kobold he had killed, the shamans, warriors, the chief, and finally the ent. Nothing exciting, nothing that he hadn’t expected. It was the rest of the achievements and class selection he was hoping for. He had listened to others who had done great things in the early days of the system’s coming, earning titles and rewards for their bravery. Most hadn’t done anything with it after the initial burst, but all the Champions had. They had built their momentum as early as possible, needing all of it to get past the planet's weak potential.

Achievement: Regressor (Greater)

Reward: Secondary Attribute Granted (Time: Lesser)

Achievement: First Five to Conquer a Rift

Reward: Loot Box (Minor)

Achievement: Survive an Ascendant’s Ire

Reward: Title ( Cockroach)

Achievement: Slay a Rift Guardian (Second)

Reward: Loot Box (Minor)

Achievement: Irritate a Grandmaster and Survive

Reward: Potential (Common)

“Holy hell.” Santi had to look at the stream of rewards and the single title he had earned. The name was infuriating, but it was the first title he had ever earned. Title’s were rare, most never having even sniffed the accolades needed to earn one. Loot boxes were fairly simple prizes awarded by the system for completing quests, but he had never heard of anyone earning one before without a system quest.

As soon as he closed the alerts there was a soft pair of pops as air was displaced and a pair of crystal chests were sitting on the floor next to his bed. Santi had earned minor loot chests before, and one common, but he was still excited to open them. That had to wait till after he read the title first, something that he was desperate to see.

Cockroach: Surviving in a world dominated by greater beings, the cockroach is a near unkillable pest. As are you. Congrats.

+10 to all stats. Upgradeable

Santi kept his eye on the word upgradeable. He had earned the reward for defying and surviving an Ascendant being, what would he need to do to upgrade the title? The train of thought left him feeling a little ill, but he was turning to the two chests, greed overcoming anxiety.

They were made of opaque crystal, three feet wide and three feet tall. There were no hinges, but at a simple touch, the top of the chest melted away and revealed its contents. Santi sucked in a breath, strangling the scream of delight he wanted to make. Nine potions lay in three neat rows. Three red health potions, three blue mana potions, and three amber stamina potions. Santi didn’t have an analysis skill, but he figured they’d be minor graded potions. At this stage though, they were more than enough for anyone. The health potion would be like a miracle, healing someone from the point of death instantly.

He carefully put them on the bed, the cool glass smooth beneath his fingers. Thick corks of some strange wood toppered the vials, each one three inches long. They were small potions and fairly sturdy vials, he wouldn’t need to worry about them easily breaking. When he turned back, the empty chest had vanished, leaving only the last chest, which he hurriedly opened.

There was only a single item in the chest. A saber that stretched from corner to corner in a sheath of royal blue lacquered wood. With trembling hands Santi pulled it free and felt a burst of contentment. The hilt was smooth, wrapped in leather with a brass handguard.

He was a mage, someone who commanded the raw elements of reality to his whims, as long as those whims were wind based. On occasion though, naked steel was needed. He had used that heavy splitting maul because it was the best weapon for the job, not because he favored it. He was no hatchetman looking to run around the woods. A sword was an elegant weapon, and the saber was his preferred sword. Setting the sword aside, he finally took the plunge and looked at his class options.

Hatchetman (Basic)

A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

Scout (Basic)

Mage (Basic)

Rift-Diver (Common)

Cockroach (Common)

Five class selections he could take. His first time he only had three selections he could take and all of them had been basic levels. He could immediately eliminate Hatchetman, there was no way in hell he would be wielding a brutish axe. Scout had some appeal, but Akthyr’s words hung in his ear, the system wanted to see him fight, struggle, and overcome. Scouting was what he had done in his previous life, which wasn’t a bad life, but it wasn’t what he needed to be.

Rift-Diver was a trap. Any class that specifically mentioned a place would be strong. In said place. If he was on a stable world, he was sure the class would be valuable for a career in rift diving. He needed more versatility though, so he discarded it as a serious option.

Cockroach, well, that was a bit more of a struggle. The title was massive, likely doubling all of his stats. The class was even more intriguing to see if maybe it would play into the title and enhance him even further. It was still called cockroach though. If Santi was being honest with himself, then there had only ever been one option. He chose Mage.

Power ripped through him as the system started to do its work. The title came into effect, adding ten stat points to each of his attributes. It was like his bones had become molten pillars, his flesh an inferno, his mind screaming in agony, even as he detached himself from the pain of his awakening. Laying on his bed, body arching as if he was possessed, Santi endured. His first awakening hadn’t been this extreme, but the added potential and stats were likely the culprits.

The agony faded after an indeterminate time, his rigid muscles finally growing lax and allowing him to sink into his bed. As the aftershocks of the pain fled, Santi felt good for the first time since he came back. His mind was clear, his emotions in check, strength surging through his veins. He brought up his status screen and had to restrain a whistle.

Santiago V. Silva

Mage lvl. 1

Strength: 10 (20)

Durability: 10 (20)

Stamina: 10 (20)

Dexterity: 10 (20)

Vitality: 10 (20)

Perception: 9 (19)

Intelligence: 10 (20)

Mana: 0 (10)

Willpower: 9 (19)

Potential: G (25%)

Free Points: 10

Primary Attribute: Air (Common)

Secondary Attribute: Time (Lesser)

It had been a long time since he had seen numbers that low, but seeing them was a welcome relief. The boost to his willpower alone was the biggest boon he could have asked for. His rampant emotions, swinging wildly about for the last three days, were finally under a semblance of control. His mind was crisp and sharp, thoughts and plans formulating nearly instantly.

He dumped all ten of his free points into mana, boosting it up to twenty. He was unlucky that the kills in the rift didn’t count towards his class, having killed enough enemies to level several times. Can’t earn experience in a class you didn’t have though. The title more than made up for it as Santi scanned the Mage class synopsis.

Wielder of Magic; the Mage is a specialist class that focuses on a narrow branch of magic, often utilizing their primary attribute in their works.

+1 Mana

+1 Willpower

+1 Intelligence

+2 Free Stats

One Free Spell Available

Santi knew what he wanted for his one spell, but he still browsed the small list that was offered as a starter spell. There wasn’t much choice, most magic classes were weak to start with, then scaled violently after they passed their watershed. By the time he hit Disciple, he would be able to match any physical classer, but till then he was going to need to be careful.

Air Current (Basic)

Gust (Basic)

Air Bubble (Basic)

Identify (Basic)

Air Manipulation (Common)

Winds of Time (Rare)

And those were not the beginning spells he had been expecting to see. Or, at least, Air Manipulation and Winds of Time definitely weren’t. He couldn’t take either of them, both spells much too powerful for his weak soul to handle right now. They would stay on his list of spells he could choose in the future though, and there was now a burning question in his mind as he looked at the information offered.

Winds of Time

The user rides the Winds of Time backward 30 seconds.

Usable once every 168 Hours.

The system, as always, kept the description short and sweet. Santi could feel the weight of that spell though. It would take up at least fifty slots though, the rare ranking making it nearly impossible for anyone short of a Champion to wield it though. A basic spell only held one slot, while common would hold three. Rare took up fifty slots, something only a Champion could afford to roster. You only earned a slot every five levels, with the Initiate level maxing out at five slots before one was forced to evolve if they wanted to keep progressing.

It was a skill far into the future, one he would be eagerly awaiting to take. In the meantime, even with his heart clouded by the greed of future power, he took Air Current. It was a basic skill that allowed one to feel the air currents around them. It was a low mana skill that his regeneration could keep active at all times, giving him an extra sense about six feet all around him or, if he focused in one direction, thirty feet. It was also fairly easily upgradeable, something that he had done, bringing it up to common before the last battle. It had saved his life many times, alerting him to enemies or projectiles that he normally would have never seen.

Santi got off the bed, a smile on his lips as he belted on his saber and gathered the vials and tossed them into his school backpack. He would need to salvage what was left of the pack he had taken down into the rift, he was sure that it was in terrible shape, but he was determined to get all of his loot out of it before they left for his hideout. Steeling himself, he headed downstairs to gather everyone and lead them to safety.