Percy Hable woke up early today, even before the servants come to wake him up, it is his 13th birthday and the day that he becomes an official Armiger.
An Armiger is basically an arms bearer for a knight. This sounds like he needs to carry and maintain the weapons of a knight, but it is more than that. He needs to be able to carry all weapons of a knight, and be able to deliver them to the knight in the middle of a battlefield.
The Hable family has been Armigers for generations. They're famous for being the epitome of the chivalry code, but also as the fantoms of the battlefield.
Armigers used to stay behind the knight, switching out his sword and shield with a morningstar, flail, two handed blade or whatever is needed with the situation. In this situation archers used to aim at the Armigers disabling half of knight's fighting potential.
The Hable family ancestor, Primus Hable, overthrew this concept completely. He created a skillset that made him practically invisible on the battlefield, this together with his strong observation skills and battlefield awareness made him only appear in the fraction of the second that the weapon switch took.
Percy trained the Hable footwork since he could walk, in game at first, true training later. The technique is called Atlas's Phantom. Atlas is known to have carried the whole world on his back, this shows the strength an Armiger needs to be able to carry all the weapons. The phantom part of the name shows that the one who masters this technique will be like a ghost, invisible, unsenseable, only appearing when the phantom wants to. Even though Percy's father, Peter, told him there's more to it than meets the eye, Percy doesn't understand this yet.
Getting out of his big bed and moving into his own bathroom he performs his morning ritual. He goes to the toilet, cleans his teeth, washes his body with the water the servants prepared earlier.
He looks in the mirror and looks at himself. He has messy hair with the color of dried grass, grayish green eyes, an angular face, and a slim build.
After getting dressed in loose woolen pants and shirt he goes to the dining room. After walking down the slightly irregular steps, and walking through a long hallway without meeting anyone he opens the big doors into the dining room.
A big hall stretching 20 meters by 10 meters with a single table in the centre surrounded by 12 chairs, 2 on each heads of the table, another 4 on the long sides.
Only one chair is being used now, Percy's mother is having her breakfast. "Good morning Percy, a happy birthday to the newest Armiger of the family!" she smiles sweetly at Percy and Percy smiles back.
"Good Morning mom, it's finally my day! I can't wait for dad to come and get me." I walk next to her and give her a kiss on her cheek.
"Don't be so anxious Percy, come sit with me, eat your breakfast." she points at the chair next to her on the long side, the other chair on the head was reserved for her husband.
Percy sits down and rings the bell four times. "Did you know Percy, 13 years ago I was awake even earlier than today. You woke me up in the middle of the night! But happily everything went pretty quick and we were done at around this time.."
Percy listened to his mother obediently as he knows that if he interrupts his parents while talking he will get harsher training as punishment. So he learned to sit through the embarrassing talks that he really doesn't want to hear.
His mother continues talking about how he was born and all the stupid and embarrassing stuff he did over the 13 years of his life, like how he had diarea as a baby and the first and last time his dad decided to change his diaper he shat in his dad's face. The elusive phantom, impossible to hit by both arrows, magic, or any other technique, was hit in his face by his own child.
As his mother keeps rambling and Percy has an absent smile on his face to keep her happy something happens.
[Moeder has given you a mission]
Words start popping up in his mind's eye, no voice, nothing in his vision, but in his head words pop up.
[Your mission is simple, yet difficult]
[Become unbeatable, and beat all the other contestants]
[Moeder will support you with a system that sells techniques]
[Only one type of techniques to buy can be chosen, this will be your specialisation]
[Points to buy techniques can be earned in different ways, depending on type of specialisation]
[Choose:
Sword techniques
Axe techniques
...
...
Firemagic
Watermagic
Illusion magic
...
...
Footworks
Cloning techniques
...
...
World alterations
Sense enchanting
...
...]
An almost infinite amount of categories come before his mind's eye, even though it's almost infinite it takes him but a second to read them all.
Just as this happens a servant comes to bring Percy's breakfast, two eggs, white rice and a piece of chicken breast. He pokes the egg yokes to let the golden yellow goodness drench in the rice as he contemplates all the choices. Most of the choices don't make any sense to him, so all of those fall off. Percy is a careful person and wouldn't just randomly choose anything that he doesn't understand at all.
As he thinks like this he suddenly realises he fully trusts the words that show up in mind. But as he starts to doubt the words a strong feeling arises from everywhere around him, something he has never felt before. Even the king, who is rumored to be one of the strongest humans to ever have lived didn't make him feel like this after he asked him how strong he was, this was Percy's most traumatising experience in his life.
~~~~~~
When he was nine years old his father reported to the king, and the two of them stayed the night. In the evening his dad slept early and Percy went to explore the royal palace on his own and he just so happens to meet the king while waking into the garden. He was using Atlas's phantom, so Percy was startled when the king spoke to him. "Young Hable, can't you sleep?"
Percy bowed down right away and did as his mom thought him "My lord, I'm sorry to disturb your rest, I will return to my father right away." But he stayed still as he can't just leave without being dismissed. "It is okay young Hable, rise."
As Percy rises and looks the king in his eyes that are both strict comparable to his father, and gentle comparable to his mother he feels at ease. "My lord, can I ask you a question?" The king laughs softly at this "Yes, but you just did. So if you ask another wouldn't you be taking two after asking for one?"
Percy feels conflicted at this. He almost wanted to ask for two questions right away, but then realised that his next question would be his second. "Then may I ask three questions my lord?"
The king laughs again. "You may."
Percy looks deep into the gentle but strict eyes of the king. "My dad told me you are the strongest human that has ever lived, is this true?" as Percy asks this the gentleness leaves the king's eyes and a pressure is building up.
Percy feels as if a mountain is being build on his shoulders, slowly the pressure increases. He looks up but sees nothing, so he keeps standing to not look silly in front of the king. Although this sounds simple he needs to use all his strength and willpower to keep standing he will not fall down and embarrass himself in front of the only man he knows who's more powerful than his own dad.
After the mountain actually feels like the world is on Percy's shoulders surprise flashes in the king's eyes. Then he speaks "I needed to test if you could bear the answer on your question, but surprisingly you can. The Hable family has a promising new generation. But the answer is no, I'm not even close to being the strongest in this world. When you can carry the aura of this country I will tell you more about this." after the king said this the aura changes from a normal mountain of rocks and earth to a mountain of bodies and blood. Even before the aura can change completely Percy passes out and falls down.
~~~~~~
Back to the now where the terrifying pressure comes from everywhere he doesn't feel threatened at all, it's a soothing presence, it's how he imagines babies feel inside the womb. Just to such a strong degree that it's terrifying.
This conflicting feeling of soothing and terrifying magnitude makes him feel like it's real and he can pick, but also that his future might be even grander then he ever thought.
After taking a bite and tasting the wonderful deep taste of the eggs with the fresh taste of rice he thinks everything true one more time.
He doesn't think it's a good idea to specialise in a specific weapon as he knows how dangerous it is to not have the right weapon at the right moment.
His family specialises in footworks and strengthened senses to observe the battlefield and he wants something to support this. And then his eyes fall on cloning techniques.
If he has more than one self he can be at more places at once, he can make people focus on a clone and stay safe himself maybe he can even train multiple things at the same time, or train the same thing multiple times at the same time.
'What if I can have a hundred clones training Atlas's Phantom at the same time every day. Wouldn't that be like training a year in under 4 days? Couldn't I become the only Armiger on a whole battlefield? Can't I become both my Armiger and my knight at the same time? I want the cloning techniques!'
[Choice confirmed]
[Specialisation set to Cloning Master]
[First technique randomly chosen]
[Name: One True Master
Quality: firmament(Taboo)
Type: Passive
Effect: At the moment of learning the user will sacrifice 5% of current willpower to forever limit all clones to 95% of total willpower to ensure clones can never fight for supremacy.
Detailed effect: Sacrifice 5% willpower at moment of learning (13x0.95=12)
All clones summoned will get a willpower limit of 95% willpower at moment of summoning]
After reading the name of the technique Percy is assaulted by a ton of information followed by a massive headache.
Percy runs out of the dining hall while calling "I'm sorry mother, I need to go to the toilet."
At the toilet Percy sits down while heaving heavy breaths. At least he knows what happens, as it is explained in the technique. The sacrifice of willpower to create the limit. "At least I kept my breakfast in."
He reads the rest of the description but there's nothing new that isn't explained in the knowledge he gained. But there's more in the knowledge, like a certain understanding to how cloning techniques work. Maybe even a certain talent gifted to him.
When he calms down the words continu again.
[Shop can be opened by praying "Moeder, I need your teachings"]
[Points can be earned by learning how to create more clones]
[Beginning number from system techniques do not count]
[Current profile can be seen by prayer "Moeder, show me shortcomings"]
"My shortcomings!? Why do I need to phrase it like that?" Percy quickly quiets down before someone hears him. 'Mother, show me my shortcomings' he says in his head with a little grudge in his inner voice.
[Name: Percy Hable
Title: None
Job: Armiger (Hable family)
Job bonus:
1 Carrying weapons does not affect movement speed.
2 +1 stealth on a battlefield (limited at firmament)
Stats:
Endurance: 10
Strength: 9
Agility: 12
Perception: 11
Intelligence: 14
Willpower: 12
Traits:
High Comprehension
Strong Willpower
Skills
Active:
Name: Atlas's Phantom (simplified)
Quality: Earth
Level: Adept
Effect: A footwork made to move unhindered and unnoticed on the battlefield. Move around people as if you move through them, increases stealth, and heightens perception.
Detailed effect:
1 Movement affected 50% less when moving through obstacles like people or trees.
2 Aura suppressed, and harder to focus on. Depending on the situation up to Earth rank stealth.
3 +2 perception
Passive:
One True Master]