It was afternoon, the two celestial bodies bathed the woods in a warm and gentle light of splendor.
The azure sky was freckled with puffy white clouds, providing temporary shade to all the things under the atmosphere.
It was at this time that Raven also finished attending to Uriel. Bandages were almost all over the poor kid's body.
Uriel's injuries were no joke.
She was fractured almost all over her body that it was a wonder how she managed to walk earlier.
Luckily for her, Raven knew human anatomy like the back of his hand so he quickly treated all the part of her that needs support; skillfully bandaging and re-aligning Uriel's bones with little-to-no pressure.
After all, first-aid was a fundamental thing to learn during his previous profession.
"Fuuu... Now that's one thing done."
Raven said, putting Uriel on a cozy bed made with dried leaves and shrubs while supporting her head with a thick bundle of soft fabric.
'We need to get out of this place immediately when Uriel wakes up.'
Raven thought, still worried about what happened earlier.
"There's no way a monster would have done that, right? Then what the hell is it?"
Pondering, he eventually shook his head.
"Regardless, staying here now will only be detrimental to our growth. We need to find a town or village to settle in."
Whatever occurred a while ago was a signal to him that this forest is a dangerous place to stay.
And it wasn't as if they'll stay in the forest forever, finding a human settlement is a must; it was after all the safest place to live. Settlements will also provide the basic necessities one would need to survive. Also there, he can gather much detailed information about this foreign world.
After all, it was only a year since he was transferred to this world, and the forest is the only place he's ever been into.
The current information available to him was lacking.
"And now, for the main course of the day."
Raven sat at the ground eager to see the changes of his upgraded system.
'System.'
Raven thought as the system still opened like before.
[ Profile ]
[ Shop ]
Two new functions are now on the newly designed panel that popped up in front of him.
'Profile.'
Ding!
[ Profile
Name: ???
Age: 17 years old
Species: Human
Spirit Insignia: Whitebean Tolta / ???
Stats
Strength: 12
Dexterity: 14
Vitality: 18
Energy: 11
Skills
Tolta Spirit (Passive)
Oracleosis (Novice)
Wind Needle (Intermediate)
Soil Manipulation (Elementary)
Fire Ball (Novice)
Water Ball (Novice) ]
"I mean, woah... now that's what I'm talking about."
Raven was shocked by all the figures he saw on his profile.
The precise quantified details about his body stats, the trusted skills that he used for the past year, some completely foreign things that he had no clue about, and of course those details that were filled with questions marks.
"Uhmm... system, why don't I have a name?"
Raven asked, confused by the question marks beside his name.
{The system will only be responsible for recording data that previously existed within the scope of the host. You can set your own name now.}
"Oho..?"
Raven thought deeply after that.
By what he understood from the system's explanation, this system was like a futuristic Pow*rP*int application, only showing the data if he manually put it on the presentation himself.
"Isn't that a little too lame?"
He frowned, thinking that there's no way that's the only limit the system can do.
He previously thought that all the stuff were readily available to learn now that the system's true potential has awakened.
Turns out, he still needs to work his ass off after everything that he's done.
This past year seemed nothing but a joke!
Raven was a little bit betrayed, his expectations for the system have all gone down the drain.
"No, let's not jump into conclusions first. I might just be missing something here again."
He quickly calmed down.
"What are these ranks beside the skills?"
{Through repetition of usage, the affinity from the components of a particular spell will rise. Reducing casting speed, energy consumption, and increasing firepower.}
Raven slowly nodded after hearing the system's answer.
Wind Needles were his most favorite spell this past year to use because he can conjure and control it with ease.
It was also silent and quick, perfect for his most beloved surprise attacks.
'That's probably why it's in 'Intermediate' rank', he thought.
Soil manipulation also helped him a lot, from creating tableware out of mud, basic tools for a house, a makeshift bath for him and Uriel etc.
The two least element he can communicate with, were both water and fire. It takes too much time and internal energy just to conjure a single water/fire ball, so he deemed it as unusable for fights. He only uses those two when it's convenient to use it.
"Oho? Whitebean Tolta? Is this my spirit insignia?"
Raven raised an eyebrow towards it, visibly excited.
He knew the importance of spirit insignias since it was unique to every individual, so he was quite excited about it.
'I'm going to see it for myself later, and as for this oracleo... huh?'
Raven has a confused look on his face while staring at this particular skill.
He remembered using fire balls, water, wind etc. but he can't really recall using this one ever in his life.
When suddenly...
Weeennggg
A familiar feeling.
Everything seemed so clear down to its very last detail.
Rustle
He can see every leaf slowly dancing under the hymn of the wind.
Whooosh~
He also felt the warm breeze, caressing every pore in his body.
'This..?!'
This particular sensitivity towards everything, Raven recalled this familiar feeling.
And then, the world slowed down to a crawl.
Whoooooommm
Information about everything within a small distance from him were passing through his mind in split seconds.
The length of his hair, his height, how far his hands can reach, how far the distance between him and Uriel, the small critters that were crawling behind his chair.
'So this was it.'
Thoughts and information were quickly being generated and discarded at the speed of light.
Like a quantum computer doing its utmost duty to perform a task.
Heck, he can even see Uriel's body condition!
Her beating heart, the blood flowing through her body, the amount of internal energy Uriel currently possessed.
Everything around five meters of him were like his arms and legs!
'Well, this shit was OP.'
Raven contentedly thought.
Even though he didn't know where did this skill came from, this will undoubtedly help him when it comes to those crucial situations.
As he was currently marveling at this state, from the corner of his vision, he saw the figure of number 'eight' slowly becoming seven...
And six...
It was so slow the he felt like an eternity has passed by.
Three...
Two...
But eventually, the timer hit zero.
Hooooonggg
"Urghh..k!?!"
A sudden pang of dizziness and headache hit him right through his very core.
The unexpected side effects put him in an unbearable, giddy, and lightheaded state.
Blood was flowing out of his nose and ears, but he wasn't aware of it.
After that, he felt everything coming back to normal. He felt his senses becoming numb for a second, and then the world started playing in its normal flow again.
"Why isn't there any warning about that one?!"
Raven panted heavily, grabbing his head with both of his hands.
The answer came up quickly though.
{Any recorded spells can be instantly used by saying its name orally or through the mind.}
"No, not that one. That feel-"
Then, a sudden realization dawned upon him.
As if his current headache just now was an illusion, he stood up as a ridiculous idea popped out of his head.
"Woah... t-then?!"
He quickly tried what he thought.
Then..
Crackle
The same familiar flame sat atop his palm.
Crackle
But what's different was the smooth swaying motion of the flame peacefully burning like an obedient servant of his will. Also, the heat emanating from it was on a completely different level from his previous attempts.
The quality was just night and day compared to before.
But what shocked Raven the most was the instant casting!
Usually when conjuring a spell, Raven will first think of how much internal energy will he use. From then, he'll gather the necessary essences to create the spell, for example; fire ball.
Earth essences as the fuel, wind essences as the support, and fire essences as the source of heat.
After mixing those essences with the proper ratio, a fire ball will be created.
But that's not how it ends. Of course, to move the fire ball towards the desired place, you'll also need a substantial amount of internal energy to control it.
Internal energy is the purest of all the energies and can complement any essences to firmly control the spell.
Through internal energy, the arcanist can decide what shape, speed, or trajectory the spell will have. And that's the last piece of the formula to properly use any spell.
This conclusion was the result of his countless experimentation towards spells this past year living in the forest.
Well, that's why he's been in shock just now because the system broke his knowledge towards it!
Before, it'll take Raven roughly thirty seconds to formulate a single fire ball.
But now, within an instant, he conjured a fire ball without formulating those mentally tiring stuff!
'This shit is OP!'
Yes, definitely. The system was OP indeed.
Raven tried it again but with a different spell.
"Water ball."
The fire ball on his palm collapsed through the air and in just few seconds, what quickly took its place was a perfect sphere of water; so pure and clear it was almost like a glass.
Take note that previously, Raven didn't have enough aptitude to conjure spells with these two essences quickly, let alone this perfectly!
Calming down his pounding heart, he now tried it again with his most familiar spell, the wind needle.
Swish
In but an instant, a fearsome wind pressure floated atop his palm.
The pressure made the spell seemed a bit more solid. But contrary to what's happening, there are no disturbances in the surrounding air.
Raven can feel the sharpness radiating from the spell just by looking at it. He almost felt like his neck will be punctured by it anytime just by observing it from a distance.
He immediately cancelled the spell since he's too nervous regarding this abrupt change in his skills. He didn't want any mishaps happening now.
"I need to meditate. My energy reserves were almost empty, and I need to study and experiment these newfound abilities of mine.
Only by knowing oneself can he truly exhibit his utmost potential in every situation, so he quickly calmed down.
"Fuuuu... system, truly, you didn't let me down."
< Chapter 11 > Fin.