Chapter VI – Stats and Mysteries.
Bolva walked down the hall to where its newest resident was curled up in his furs in front of the fireplace. ‘It has been so long, I never expected to see one of his ilk walk the floors of this hall ever again, I thought them all dead or imprisoned. He doesn’t look like much now, but I can smell the spark inside him. It is thin, but his lineage runs true. I wonder who he takes after… Oh well, time to wake sleeping beauty from her rest.’
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Verdant had been sleeping for several hours now and the time for him to wake was fast approaching. He slept, swaddled in his blankets, truly feeling safe for the first time since he came to this world. Something in this place soothed him, calmed his roiling mind.
Unbeknownst to Verdant, the horned demon Bolva was a man of his word and there were only five seconds left before exactly ten hours had passed since he had left Bolva’s company.
Five… Bolva raised a bucket from his side, in two hands, filled to the brim with frigid water… Four… Light from the sconces hung above reflected off the ice floating inside… Three… He stood squarely over Verdant’s sleeping form… Two… He took one last look upon his sleeping form… One… Bolva tipped the bucket forwards and emptied it in its entirety; in slow motion, an ungodly amount of water poured from the bucket, hitting Verdant’s sleeping form and soaking him and his furs through.
Water flowed off the now rising form of Verdant, his skin practically glowed with heat as his Bloods Wrath ability had activated on instinct, water evaporated off his form in gouts of steam as his clothes quickly dried and he howled in rage. He launched off his left foot, swinging his fist towards his attacked and yelped in surprise as his fist passed straight through Bolva, he tumbled to the ground, his ability deactivated from sheer shock.
“So it is true. You are of the Aesir.” Verdant was horrified as he saw the large, bearded demon smile for the first time. His smile went from cheek to cheek in an unnatural curve.
“Why the fuck are you smiling like that? Good lord, you’d make the cheshire cat uncomfortable. I’m getting chills just looking at you.”
Bolva looked momentarily startled before the smile fell from his features and his stoic demeanour from the night before returned. He coughed lightly, before turning away and making his way to the back of the hall where they had spoken hours before. “Get up and come with me. We have some things to discuss and several issues to rectify before you begin the next stage of your quest.”
Verdant slowly rose from the ground, glancing at his quest timer briefly.
Quest Timer
Home is where the monsters won’t eat you (1/3)
Timer – 28hrs remaining
‘Twenty-eight hours, huh? Not that it matters now; I guess I’m going to find out what the next part is very soon. I know Bolva said something about undead, but I don’t know if that means what I’m thinking or if undead are completely different to what I’m imagining. I should follow him and find out, but I should also ask what the hell he meant about Aesir I know enough about Norse mythology to know that is the term used for their gods, but what the hell does he mean that I am of the Aesir?’
Looking towards where Bolva was walking to the back of the hall, Verdant started to follow at a measured pace, summoning a densewood berry from his storage to break his fast and renew his Well-Rested buff. Now that he had recovered, he looked more closely at the hall around him. The walls still appeared to be made of immeasurably large horizontal planks, stacked upon each other. He couldn’t see any evidence of ties holding the planks together. ‘Must be some kind of channelled grooves to join the planks into a cohesive whole, maybe with some kind of glue or hidden nails…’
As he walked, He noticed many more individual fireplaces along either wall, with a single large fire pit in the middle of the hall between the sleeping quarters and the feasting area. ‘I couldn’t see those fireplaces from the outside, there must be some kinds of double layered wall to capture the heat of the fires and funnel the smoke out of the vents I saw from outside. That would also provide an incredible amount of heating in the winter months, there must be some kind of fireproofing on the other side of the wall, or the embers would have caught the planks on fire at some point, unless the internal walls are stone also? That would certainly be keeping with the goal of heating and insulation. How freaking cold does it get here in the winter? This seems like a ridiculous level of overkill.’
Shaking his head to clear the thoughts from his mind, Verdant noticed that none of the fireplaces or the main pit were lit, instead all of the light game from iron sconces along either wall, holding some kind of candle. He sniffed lightly. ‘Likely tallow, from the smell.’ Looking up he noticed that a far greater source of light was hanging above him, antlers were artfully joined into a large chandelier, stacked heavily with more of the tallow candles and glowed with a warm and comforting light. These chandeliers were magnificent, looking around Verdant could see three in all, hanging magnificently above the hall below.
Verdant tried to see beyond the chandeliers, no matter how he squinted his eyes or tilted his head, the walls around him seemed to extend infinitely into darkness above, no ceiling in sight.
In that moment, he was reminded of the blackness of the void and the creatures waiting just out of sight. He felt a chill run from the base of his neck all the way down to the tip of his tail bone.
Verdant had reached the main feasting table from the night before and looked around frantically for the barrel he’d used to slake his thirst. He saw it, against the wall where he’d last used it and run for all his worth. Throwing himself headfirst, up to his shoulders in to the barrel and letting out a barrel shaking scream; releasing all oh his pent up rage and fear.
Frigid cold shocked his nervous system, shaking loose the tendrils of fear that had forced their way into his mind. He felt relief as the terror of the void ebbed and fled from his mind. The panic in his chest subsided and he once more felt the comfort of the place he was in.
He grabbed the edge of the barrel and threw his head back with force, throwing freezing water droplets in a large arc behind him. ‘What the hell was that? Did I just have a panic attack over a dark ceiling?’ Shaking his head he turned and looked to where Bolva waited for him.
Verdant held his head high and walked towards Bolva, his face flushing scarlet with shame.
He arrived before the tall man but could not look him in the face after such a shameful display.
“I sensed the fear you felt, abject terror filled your body and clouded your mind. Judging by your reaction I can guess some of what you have been through. Know this. Fear is the shadow that walks beside courage. True bravery is not the absence of fear, but the will to face it head-on. The warrior who stands firm before what chills his blood and grips his soul is the one who earns his place in the halls of the brave. Accept your fear—it is a part of you—but never let it command you. Stand tall, strike true, and let your deeds echo in the halls of Valhalla.”
Verdant was taken aback, in his mind he had shamed himself greatly with his display. He did not expect support from the one before him, having met him only several hours before. “Thank you for your kind words, I have seen many things in my new life and I am haunted by the time I spent before coming here. The darkness hunts me and seeks my end as it ended the one who saved me from my purgatory. I am on another quest to seek her inheritor, though I am not sure how I will ever find someone to replace her.” He lowered his chin and reached to his neck and grasped the runestone under his shirt. “Her name was Brynhildr, and she died so that I could make it here. I would like to complete the quest I was given for her; I would like to honour her sacrifice in some way.”
"That is an admirable goal, Verdant, and I am certain you will honour her memory. I cannot speak much of the time before this era, but I knew Brynhildr and her sisters well. She was a brave and valiant soul. For her to act as she did, something extraordinary must have happened. You are not an Einherjar, one of the glorious dead—you are very much alive, sustained by your own strength and not the will of the old gods.
Truly, you must be descended from the Aesir. I do not know why you have been brought here now, after all this time, but someone deemed you important enough to retrieve from the void and place you here. It cost the life of one of the last Valkyries, but she will live on through her inheritor. Brynhildr knew her purpose and took pride in serving the will of the All-Father. Know this: she was at peace with her decision to save you."
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“We will discuss this more over the coming days; for now, we must rectify some holes in your education. I know that you have an understanding of what each of your stats do but we must discuss them to ensure you are not operating under a misunderstanding of their true functions. Ordinarily other can not see your status or system screens, but with your permission I can access your status, and we can go over some things together.”
Verdant looked to the big man in front of him once more, “There are things on my status that I would prefer people did not see, but I understand that you can not help me unless I show you. I give you permission to access my status, this time; I only ask that you do not share anything you see with anyone else, living or dead.”
Bolva looked him in the eyes for a moment, weighing his words, before smiling once more. “Of course, I cannot harm you directly and now that I have confirmed who you are, I do not wish to harm you indirectly either. I am at your service. Now look here, we have much to cover before you must begin the next stage of your quest, please feel free to ask any questions as I explain.”
Pointing at the screen now fully displayed for them both, Bolva began to speak in an even, measured tone. “Look here. Your HP, or ‘Health Points,’ functions as a reserve of healing—a well of lifeforce that rapidly recovers your physical injuries. It is a combined measure of your Vitality and Strength in a two-to-one ratio, shielding you from lasting harm.
However, if your HP should reach zero, you will lose the ability to recover from injuries until you replenish some points. Be warned: the protective effects of your stats will only remain active as long as you have at least one point of HP. Without it, even the weakest monster in the realms could kill you with ease.”
Bolva glanced away from the screen briefly, pleased to see Verdant paying rapt attention. ‘Perhaps we will make a warrior of you yet,’ he thought.
“Next is MP, or ‘Mana Points.’ These represent your spiritual and magical reserves—the energy you can wield to influence the world around you or within yourself to perform supernatural feats. This includes abilities like casting lightning at your enemies, charming creatures, or healing the sick and wounded.”
“Your mana is determined by a combination of your Intelligence and Wisdom, weighted in a two-to-one ratio. Additionally, skills aligned with your natural affinities will often be easier to cast, are more mana efficient, and often capable of greater force. We’ll learn more about your affinities for the branches of magic as you continue to grow stronger and select a class.”
Looking back at Verdant, Bolva was surprised to see him still following along with apparent fascination. ‘We might have a scholar on our hands,’ he mused. ‘I’m not too surprised, given the quality of the armour he’s wearing.’
“Next are your primary statistics: Vitality, Strength, Dexterity, Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma. These are the most critical pieces of information for you moving forward. Since you haven’t applied any levels yet, you may not know, you’ll only receive two free points per level to distribute among these statistics and any mistakes will need to wait until your next level to rectify.”
You need to decide what kind of warrior you wish to become and allocate your stats in a way that best supports your class choice when you reach level five. Alternatively, you can wait until level ten, at the latest, to select your class, which might improve your accomplishments enough to gain a stronger class. The choice is yours.”
Bolva paused, then continued, “Let’s start with Vitality. This is the primary statistic affecting your HP, but its role goes far beyond that. Vitality strengthens your lifeforce, empowering your body and reducing the damage you take, whether physical or otherwise.
If your Vitality is high enough, it can even increase your chances of developing a formal skill for resisting specific types of damage you’ve recently experienced. For example, enduring and overcoming poison purely through the strength of your Vitality might unlock a poison resistance skill.
However, keep in mind that any resistances empowered by Vitality will drop to normal levels if you ever run out of HP.”
“Next is Strength, the cornerstone of physical might. It determines how hard you can hit, how much you can carry, and your ability to shatter defences. Strength directly enhances your melee damage and gives you the raw physicality necessary to wield heavier weapons and armour effectively. Strength may improve the damage caused by a sword overall, but it truly shines when wielding a blunt weapon like a hammer or mace. Never underestimate a warrior wearing heavy armour and carrying a two-handed maul onto the battlefield. It will be the last thing you do” Bolva shuddered visibly, as though reminded of something awful before composing himself and continuing.
He gestured, once more, toward the screen, drawing attention to the next stat. “Now, let’s talk about Dexterity. This is your measure of agility, precision, and balance. A high Dexterity increases your accuracy with weapons like bows, daggers, and other finesse tools, while imbuing your body with the flexibility and reflexes needed to get out of the way of an oncoming blow. It’s not just about speed—it’s about control. Dexterity also plays a significant role in tasks requiring fine motor skills, such as disarming traps or picking locks. A high dexterity might allow a fighter, with the right skills, to weave between enemies, striking fatal blows one after another, without ever being touched, like a ghost in the breeze.”
Bolva’s tone shifted slightly as he moved to the next stat, he looked to Verdant once more, giving him the opportunity to speak or question anything he’d said so far; he seemed content to listen so he turned back to the screen, his expression thoughtful. “Intelligence comes next, the foundation of magical knowledge and understanding. This stat is the primary contributor to your MP and determines how much raw magical force you can channel. It also governs your ability to learn and improve magical skills, allowing you to cast more complex and powerful spells. If you want to master magic and perhaps discover more about your innate talents while gaining greater control over them, intelligence will be crucial in that endeavour.”
Pausing briefly for breath, Bolva exhaled in a gust and continued, “Wisdom complements Intelligence but serves a different purpose. While Intelligence focuses on raw power, Wisdom is about clarity and insight. It enhances your ability to perceive the world around you, detect dangers, and make sound decisions in the heat of battle. Wisdom also governs your magical resilience, improving your defences against hostile spells and supernatural effects impacting the mind and soul. It’s a vital stat for healers, seers, or anyone who relies on intuition and adaptability to interact with the wyrd.”
Finally, he moved his finger, pointing to the last stat on Verdant’s sheet, his tone becoming slightly lighter, almost amused. “And then we have Charisma. Don’t underestimate it—it’s not just about charm or how good you look. Charisma reflects your ability to influence others, command attention, and inspire loyalty. It enhances your interactions with allies, makes it easier to sway negotiations, and even helps with taming or charming creatures. For leaders and diplomats, this is the most important stat. Even in battle, a high Charisma can make you a force to be reckoned with, rallying allies to your side or intimidating enemies into submission or subduing the masses under your religious fanaticism, tearing down millennia of rituals and tradition. Doing away with those who had defended us since the beginning of time to take their place and pretend to be their equals…”
Bolva choked suddenly, as though a large object had been shoved down his throat. Seconds later, he heaved a deep breath in before doubling over and hacking spit and other fluids on the floor beneath him.
He recovered slightly before straightening his back and grumbling to himself, “Wyrd-blasted dung eaters. Fine. I got your thrice-cursed message.”
Looking back to Verdant, he schooled his features and attempted to pat down his dishevelled beard and garments.
“It’s important to remember that no stat should be entirely ignored. Every statistic plays a role in shaping your capabilities, even if it isn’t the focus of your chosen path. That said, greater emphasis should be placed on the stats that align with the vision you hold for your class. These are the attributes that will define your strengths and ensure your growth matches the role you seek to fulfill.
Still, don’t despair over any perceived deficiencies. Some of the greatest warriors in the world have overcome such gaps by earning achievements recognized by the world system. These achievements can enhance specific attributes, bringing them to greater heights, even if they were once neglected. The system rewards effort and adaptability, allowing even those with imbalances to carve out their place in history.
Ultimately, the path you choose is yours to shape. Balance your priorities carefully, for even the smallest difference between your stats may make all the difference in the class that you can select or whether you come out ahead in a multitude of situations.”
Verdant reached up and rubbed his hand across the, now more prominent, stubble on his chin; speaking for the first time in what felt like hours but couldn’t have been longer than a half an hour. “I’m such an idiot. I spent all sixty of my free points in physical stats. I was just going off instinct and what I remembered from games I used to play, then I got this new ability that doubles my physical stats anyway. If I had invested more points in my magical stats, I might have been able to use it more effectively with far less points invested… No that wouldn’t have made a difference I’d have just killed myself because it costs HP to use in addition to MP. It seems like that skill wants me to have more of a balance between my physical and magical resources.” He looked to Bolva. “You mentioned it before, what do you mean when you call me an Aesir, I know that is a term used for the Norse gods like O…”
Verdant stopped talking and flinched back as Bolva jumped forwards, raising his hand to cover Verdant’s mouth and whispering in a harsh undertone. “No! We do not speak their names, lest the usurpers would hear and eradicate us for colluding with intentionally hidden and forgotten gods.”
“What I can say is limited. The system is connected to everyone, everywhere to everything in everyplace. The usurpers have calmed over the millennia and do not hunt, as they once did, for remnants of the old ones. But it is taboo to speak the true name of any god, lest they hear us and call down divine retribution on our heads. Or, say tilt the odds of an upcoming quest to heavily out favour a certain individual who is about to be thrown against hordes of the undead.” He had placed his hand firmly over Verdant’s mouth in an attempt to stop him speaking and now looked in his eyes for understanding of their situation. “This is not something you can do without consequences, perhaps too great for either of us to bare. Do you understand?”
Verdant nodded dumbly as the hand was removed from his mouth. “Then what can you tell me? I need something to go off here, there’s this huge mystery sitting in my status screen and unless I know what I’m dealing with I don’t think I can make an informed decision about my future, let alone where I’m going to spend some free stat points.”
“Take a seat boy, this is a story that requires some telling. But for the love of the old ones and all you hold dear. Do not even think the true name of another god, let alone utter it out loud for all to hear.” Two wooden chairs appeared beneath them a moment later and they sat heavily.