{System Message}
- [Yes] - [No]> I stared at the floating panel with my jaw wide open. It took me a while to get out of my shock driven state. I waved my hand above the panel... 'No strings'. I tried touching it, only for my finger to go right through it. "It seems like this is the real deal huh?" I mumbled as the tips of my lips curled up and the speed of my heart beat increased. I had a good life, I was privileged in many ways and I loved my friends and family. For the most part I lead a completely peaceful and normal life. No, it was more like a boringly normal and peaceful life. There was nothing worth noting that had happened throughout the fifteen years I'd been alive for. And so, to say that I was excited would be a massive understatement, I could barely stop myself from just instantly pressing the [Yes] option. After all, this is only something that happens in anime and manga, and as a devout weeb, how could I not be thrilled at this development? I paused for a second. "I can't just, y'know, dive head first into this, it might be like one of those novels where the main gimmick is that the characters suffer nonstop." I said discretely. I thought about it for a second. "Well, realistically, I don't have anything to lose… right?" I said while staring at the panel. "So..." I moved my finger towards the panel when suddenly, I heard a loud bang. "Well then Mister Hale!" Mr.Stevens said while slamming the door and subsequently startling me. 'What great timing.' I thought to myself. I guess I'll just do this after hearing what he has to say. After making that decision, I awkwardly turned and looked at Mister Stevens. "Oh crap." I mumbled quietly. I definitely looked like I was caught doing something I wasn't supposed to. Mr.Stevens silently looked at me while raising an eyebrow. The atmosphere was so awkward it made me want jump out the window and make a run for it. "W-what did you want to speak to me about sir?" I said in order to break the ackward silence. "You weren't doing anything…mischievous were you?" He asked suspiciously. "Huh? No sir. I don't think I was." I replied, maybe a little too quickly. Mister Stevens let out a sigh and, dismissing the entire interaction that happened between us, opened his mouth to speak. "Well anyway Mister Hale, I'm pleased to say that you've gotten a very good grade on your test." He said before a slight pause. I quickly nodded in response to his statement. "However that does not excuse your behaviour recently young man." He sternly followed through. Mister Stevens then proceeded to give me a thirty minute lecture about the school dress code and why we need to respect it, how to properly speak to a teacher and he also made extra sure to let me know that just because my grades are good, doesn't mean that I can go around doing whatever I want. "You're a smart young man, yet you tend to be strangely stubborn when it comes to changing your attitude." He sighed. "I'll take that into consideration sir." I said, going through the motions. But his words were actually quite close to the truth. Ever since I was younger I had a hard time adapting to almost any unexpected situation, and even now I find it kind of hard to get attached to someone and even harder to care about people I'm not attached to. If someone was dying right in front of me. I wouldn't feel any sense of panic or urgency, I would just do the absolute bare minumum of what was considered socially acceptable and call for an ambulance, then I would be on my way. As if nothing ever happened. The only reason I got so close to Skyler was because she was so adament on being my friend, so I gave up, but even then it took almost two years for me to open up to her. "Well then Mister Hale, I am done lecturing you now, you may leave." Mister Stevens said while smirking. I nodded, before taking my bag and excusing myself. ... Wait a second. 'Was he being sarcastic just then?' I thought, with a baffled expression. Just the thought of that tight ass professor even attempting sarcasm had me laughing as I passed between the school gates where I had met Abel at the start of the day. The sky was now painted in an ambient orange colour. I started walking home while enjoying the cool autumn breeze and the sound of the leaves crunching beneath my feet, when an important thought occurred to me. "Right! Where's that panel?!" I shouted aloud. I looked around worried that my one shot at living out my fantasies had passed me by, thanks to getting lectured by Mister Stevens no less! *Ding* At the exact moment those words left my mouth, the panel reappeared in front of me, easing my worries. This time I wasn't going to waste any time. It was getting dark and people were getting off of work, so the sidewalks were getting needlessly crouded. Not wanting to waste a single speck of time walking home, I took a luber and went back home. I opened the door and rushed to my room. The moment I shut the door, I finally pressed the [Yes] option and another window appeared in front of me. {System Message} I held my breath as the panel in front of me disappeared and another smaller one appeared. However this one's contents weren't that interesting. {System Message} "Seriously?" I snorted, we're not even four panels in and you're hitting me with a loading screen? Isn't this supposed to be instant or something? Well anyway I have a rough Idea of what this profile thing could be, but the real kicker is how the power system works... Power system? "Wait a second!" At that moment I came to realize something I had severely overlooked. "How the hell can I even be sure that this thing is like a Fantasy Rpg? Couldn't it be something that nurtures your innate talent or something?" I said while deep in thought. "Well not that it really matters I guess. Even then it would still be pretty handy." I said contently. "But it said 'beta test' so there should also be a full release shouldn't there? Not to mention that that phrase is mostly used when referring to Rpgs." Just as I said that another panel appeared beside the 'loading screen panel'. {System Message} - [Item]: (Blank Slate Sword×1) -[Skill]: (Advanced Swordsmanship Lv.1)> Right after I finished reading the message a medium sized sword with a pitch black handle and a matching sheath appeared out of thin air about six feet above ground. I barely managed to catch it, but to my surprise, it wasn't nearly as heavy as I thought it would be. I got up off the ground, sword in hand, when the loading screen panel was replaced with a much more interesting panel that had erased all doubt in my mind about this whole beta test thing being like an Rpg. "Now this is more like it." I grinned, gripping the sword tightly. {System Message} < {User Profile} [Basic Information] -Username: William Hale -Sex: Male -Race: Human -Age: 15 years, 8 months -Height: 181 cm [Combat Capabilities] Innate abilities:- -( Aura stigma Lv.1) (S-Tier) [Skill is currently locked] -( Instinct of the All Seeing Sage Lv.1) (?-Tier) - (Unoccupied slot) Skills:- -(Advanced Swordsman ship Lv.1 <0%>) (B-Tier) -(Hand to hand combat Lv.3 <83%>) (D-Tier) -(Situational Stability Lv.2 <12%>) (B-Tier) Stats: (Remaining points: 16) (Physical stats): - Strength: 9+ - Endurance: 7+ -Agility: 17+. - Vitality: 7+ (Arcane stats): -Arcane Compatability: 56+ -Arcane Resistance: 42+ -Arcane Capacity: 63+ > I examined my profile carefully, my grin getting closer and closer to my ears the more I read. 'I kind of get how the power system works now. Instead of levels you have stats and skills. So there's no obvious determining factor to tell the difference in strength between you and someone else.' I thought while examining my skills and stats. I smiled again. "It seems like I really lucked out huh? Most of my skills are B tier and above. I don't know about my physical stats, but all of my arcane stats, whatever those are, are pretty high." "But I probably shouldn't get too hyped, it might be normal for them to be this high. Especially considering that your starting stats tend to be higher in the beta test than they are in the full release." I commented in a calculative tone. "Normal?! Beta test or not! Those stats are borderline unfucking fair!" A feminine voice shouted, causing me to fall off my bed and land ass first onto the floor. The voice seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere at the same time. I sprung onto my feet, instantly unsheathing the sword, it resembled a bastard sword and its blade was a blinding shade of white, the sword had a thin diamond piece of metal that looked identical to it's pommel embedded on the blade. Just then a small panel appeared to my side accompanied by a ding sound. <[Skill] :(Situational Stability Lv.2) has been activated> My mind was instantly cleared. I realised that if this person wanted to harm me they wouldn't have alerted me of they're presence. I was amazed at the effect of the skill, but I couldn't let that distract me. "Who's there?" I asked, my tensions eased, still gripping my sword just in case. "Easy there buster. There's no reason to get all riled up." The voice said as if calming down a stray dog. "Not until I know who the hell you are and what you want, and more importantly where the hell you're talking to me from." "Well, if you must ask, I'm your personal assistant, and I want nothing but you're well-being." The voice answered. I couldn't see her, yet I could feel the voice's eyes rolling as she answered my questions in a snobby tone. "I doubt that for some reason." I replied in an equally sarcastic manner. "You've answered two of my questions, what about the third?" "Oh yeah. I can't tell you that." They replied nonchalantly. "Excuse me?" I exclaimed, raising an eyebrow. "Its not important anyway. All you need to know is that I'm your assistant that's been assigned to you by the system." They shooed my question away. "Okay then." I replied slowly. "Is there anything I can call you, miss assistant?" "How kind of you to ask." "Aether at your service." "Aether? What are you, some kind of crypto currency?" I snorted. "Oh shut up Sir William." She fired back. "Tooche..." From the few words we had exchanged at that point I had a somewhat decent grasp on her personality. I didn't want to admit it, but she reminded me of myself, overly sarcastic and rude. "Well anyway." I said dismissingly. "What are you going to be 'assisting' me with miss Aether?" "Well, I'll be giving you any information you need, that includes information on how to operate the system, veiw information on your skills and items, and notify you on the location of certain hidden dungeons." Aether said proudly. My eyes widened. 'Damn' 'I thought she would just be this annoying voice in my head who insulted me every now and then, but it turns out she's quite useful.' I thanked my good luck and resumed the conversation. "I apologise for my prior rudeness." I apologised, having realised her usefulness. "Yeah yeah, whatever." She said in a less than flattered tone. "Now what was I saying before you rudely threatened me?" "No clue, I was busy threatening you." "Oh, I remember now, thanks for your help smart ass." "Don't worry about it." Aether cleared her throat, indicating that she was tired of my witty remarks. "I was saying that you're arcane stats are abnormally high, to the point where they surpass the stat limit of the beta test." Aether noted. "That being?" I said, inquiring about the stat limit. "The current stat limit should be forty." Aether replied. My face contorted into a surprised expression. "I didn't expect my stats to be that much higher than the limit." "Yeah, but that isn't necessarily a good thing. Atleast not for now." Aether said in a serious tone. "How so?" I asked curiously. "There are a few things you need to know before I can answer that question." "First things first, you need to know what the objective of the beta test is." "Go on." I urged. "The beta test will give you a bunch of unrelated quests, formally known as objectives, but the actual goal of the beta test is to thin out the number of beta testers so that the actual trials aren't too easy. You'll find yourself fighting other users who can use the system's privileges just like you." Aether explained. I nodded, signalling her to continue. "Each user has one or more unique innate abilities, some maybe similar, but they're all different in some way." "One of your innate abilities, Aura Stigma, is prohibited from being used in the beta test. So it's been locked." "I see... Would you mind telling me what this aura stigma thing is?" "Well, I have absolutely no clue." She replied concisely. "I see... So what's the difference between a Skill and an Innate Ability?" "I didn't think I needed to explain that..." She sighed quietly. I chose to ignore her condescending tone and swallowed my pride. 'Information is much more important than being respected at the moment.' "Alright! I've figured out how to explain it in a way that even a third grader can understand." "Just get to the point." I spoke through my teeth. I wasn't used to being this ignorant and I especially wasn't used to being treated like an idiot. 'It's fine. I won't get aggrevated just because of a few playground taunts' "Basically, Innate abilities and Skills both serve the same purpose. They give you supernatural powers." "Thanks for pointing out the obvious." I said, instantly taking the first chance I got to ridicule her. Aether ignored my taunt and kept explaining. "How they differ though, is a different story." "Innate Abilities are latent abilities that you already had, but couldn't use due to the limitations placed on you by your bodies." "While Skills are abilities which you gain, either by doing missions, through pure physical training or by meeting certain requirements." "Although you would think that Innate Abilities are more powerful than Skills, that only applies to a certain category of Innate Abilities which don't have a rank and some S rank abilities." 'If I recall correctly, one of my Innate Abilities had a question mark for a rank.' I thought, holding my chin. Aether took a deep breath before saying "So, after all that explanation. We can finally get to the point." "Okay then, lay it on me." I replied expectantly. Almost all of my previous irritation had been replaced by curiosity. "The system may be unfair when it comes to your starting abilities, but it's incredibly strict when it comes to stats." "As I said before you're stats are so high, that it's unfair to other users, so you'll either be nerfed or prohibited from using Arcana." "Arcana?" I asked. "Magic." "Oh." Bang My door launched open. I saw mom standing there. I couldn't make out her features but just by reading the mood, I could tell that she was beyond pissed. "Mom? What's up-" "You barge into the bloody house without saying anything, then proceed to ignore me calling for you to come down for dinner for fifteen minutes straight." She said calmly. I looked at her, my face frozen in fear... 'I'm fucked.' (End of chapter)