"Hey weakling, heading out to die today?" a voice called out as Roman was about to pass through the village gates.
Roman spun around as he recognized the voice. He scowled.
Crid stood across from Roman with a nasty smirk on his face. Crid was Roman's age, and easily a foot taller than Roman. His family was better off too as his older brother had been accepted three years ago to the same academy as Grace had been, the Tree Root Taming Academy.
Roman was often the main subject of Crid's schemes. Crid would spend hours at a time searching for Roman just to pick on him. He would even take his lackeys along for the ride, just so he could gain gratification from Roman's pain.
"Enough Crid, shouldn't you be getting ready for the Egg Hunt?" Roman retorted.
Roman was thoroughly ticked off at Crid's nonsense. Even though Roman was at heart his 25-year-old self from Earth, he still did his best to immerse himself in his new persona and the world of Aeon.
It was simply to prevent people from discovering his secret as a transmigrator and now, the system.
He had, in the past, noticed that his father picked up on the discrepancies between the way other children behaved and the way he conducted himself when he was around two-years-old.
Roman adjusted the way he acted around people but at times couldn't completely mask his original self. As a result, his father and family friends had attributed his maturity and awkwardness with the other children as his eccentricity, but nothing more.
This was something Roman was willing to live with.
However, Crid's actions kept pushing Roman's patience. After all, how much could a five-year-old body sustain before it shut down completely.
Roman tried to hold his anger in by simply resulting to simple retorts, as he usually did.
"None of your business, weakling. The boys and I will head out soon, never mind you. Can't wait to see you come crawling back home tonight without anything. You better watch yourself out there," Crid shouted back.
"Suit yourself," Roman couldn't be bothered to bicker any longer and left town.
---
Roman set the issue with Crid to the back of his mind as he carefully made his way toward the forest.
He had to be extra careful with this journey as beasts could be on the prowl along the path to the forest. Roman didn't want to be caught up in any unnecessary trouble before he achieved his aims for the Hunt.
After an hour, the village began to fade to the rear and the morning sun had risen above the clouds.
Roman was halfway to the forest at this point. He wiped off the sweat along his brow before taking a sip of water from the canister he had placed in his inventory the night before. He then took account of his location.
He had estimated his arrival time around an hour from that point. If nothing went awry, he would pass the forest and arrive at the foot of the mountains by noon.
After a short rest, Roman quickly collected himself to continue onward. Since he had some time to kill, Roman decided to clear some of the doubts he had with the system. This interaction would help him not only pass the time, but it also allowed the system to keep him company on this long journey.
Roman had never traveled out so far from the village by himself before. The furthest he had ever gone was to the plains with his father, and even that was only two hours away from the village.
"Hey system, last night you kept talking about the importance of having companions and a team. But if the system is located in my soul, and my physical body is out here on Aeon, how would it be possible to allow my team to reside in the domain?"
[Host's potential companions must take an oath of allegiance to the host, pledging to serve the host till the death. At which time, the Host's companions may enter and exit the domain with the Host's permission. In addition, the system will experience an upgrade, thereby allowing the Host's body to enter the domain. The system will then form a projection of the Host's body on the spot at which the Host entered the domain and will temporarily function as the Host's decoy.]
[Once the Host finds a companion willing to take the oath with the host and when the host is ready, the host may summon the black stone stele for the oath taking by calling it out mentally. The oath can be done by dripping a drop of blood from the vassal onto the stele.]
"Wait! People have to pledge to serve me? I thought I was supposed to search for partners?" Roman demanded.
[Incorrect. Host is supposed to search for a team, with the host as the leader, naturally.]
"Right but what does this have to do with taking on vassals?" Roman was perplexed as he trudged along the path toward the forest.
[Of course, this has everything to do with taking on vassals. While the host's title may begin as a simple team leader of a taming group, the host is also responsible with fulfilling the main mission.]
"Wait, mission?" Roman finally remembered the Mission tab of the system before deciding the pull it up.
---
Main Mission:
Mission 1: Title
The road to supremacy starts with prestige, prestige must be gained through deeds and a title. The Host is required to fulfill this quest through attaining any nobility rank and recruiting at least one vassal.
Objective(s): Attain Nobility Rank and Recruit One Vassal.
Deadline: 15th Birthday.
Reward: Unknown
Failure: Host will lose the system and memories will be wiped about anything pertaining to the system. Additionally, the host will lose the ability to recall memories from host's previous life on Earth.
Warning: Do. Not. Fail.
---
"Shit!" Roman cried out loud.
"How in the world is anyone supposed to gain the rank of a noble at fifteen years old?" Roman thought.
At least fifteen was a good ten years from now, but even that was ridiculous. According to Roman's estimates, if he wanted to make significant impacts on the Plant Kingdom that he lived in in order to gain a title, he would have to make contributions to a certain field.
First, he would have to gain knowledge and experience through attending an academy till he was twelve. That's a six and a half years of academy training in a certain field.
Next, Roman would have to apprentice with a guild that he chooses or with a master within the field that he chooses in the future. That would last for three years till he turned fifteen.
At that time, Roman could choose to conclude his training and begin as a professional in the military, the government, a guild, or some other organization.
The system expected him to already have achieved something big at fifteen when only a select few lucky and talented masters gained a breakthrough in their mid-thirties to mid-forties. Absolutely preposterous!
Roman couldn't accept this and attempted to convince the system.
[Host is forgetting that the host has an unfair advantage over all beings in Aeon. That is me. The system. Host has to gradually work his way to fulfilling the main mission, but cannot forsake the sub-missions, as well.] The system calmly stated.
Even though Roman was quite angry at the system, he opened the missions tab once again to check out the sub-missions that the system was talking about. He had to know what he was getting himself into.
---
Sub-Mission(s):
Sub-Mission 1:
The life of a Tamer is rigorous. Taming is merely the first road one embarks upon before exploring the horizons of the universe. The host must begin his taming journey somehow. This sub-mission is to facilitate the genesis of a tamer.
Objective(s): Attain an Egg.
Deadline: The End of the Egg Hunt.
Reward: Basic Beast Evolution Token
Failure: Host will lose the system and memories will be wiped about anything pertaining to the system. Additionally, the host will lose the ability to recall memories from host's previous life on Earth.
Note from System: If you fail here, don't even bother contacting me ever again.
---
"Alright, something reasonable this time," Roman thought as he nodded, even as he was ticked off by the note from the system.
[Of course.]
But if the system was corporeal and had a smile, it would send shivers down the spine of even the evilest of villains.