Together with the other performers, Gilang Aryandi sat behind the stage, waiting for his turn. The room was noisy with various sounds, but it felt silent when so many thoughts were swirling in his head. "I have to succeed, this must be the best!" he thought to himself.
His hands couldn't stop trembling, and his heart was pounding so hard that it felt like it was going to explode. Was he nervous? Too excited? He tried to take a deep breath to calm himself down, but instead choked when he realized his emotions were like a symphony colliding. "Why now?" the bespectacled teenager wondered in his heart.
A few moments later, Gilang heard his name called. With all his might, he walked towards the stage. "Finally, after this is over, no one will ever underestimate me again," he thought to himself.
For his debut performance, Gilang had practiced so hard for days on end that he often forgot to drink, eat, and sleep. Now was the most important moment for him.
In front of hundreds of people, Gilang began playing his violin without sheet music. His hands and fingers felt stiff, and his overwhelming feelings started to make him forget some of the notes he was supposed to play.
Gilang stopped playing, looking back at the audience who was watching him in silence.
He had failed.
Gilang felt angry, sad, and disappointed as he left the stage, lowering his head. What was the point of all the hard work he had done? Only to end up feeling ashamed.
Trying to hide his emotions from everyone, Gilang ran to the back of the school library and sat down there.
Not long after, Gilang heard someone walking towards him. He turned to the sound and saw a girl he had never seen before.
The girl said, "Gilang Aryandi?" as she looked at him.
Gilang just nodded, trying to avoid eye contact.
"I liked your performance just now," she said enthusiastically. "You're amazing, I could feel all the emotions you poured into the music and your violin."
A bitter smile started to grow on Gilang's lips. "Maybe it's just your feelings," he replied, slightly choked. "My performance was a mess. I shouldn't have gone on stage at all."
The girl looked at Gilang sympathetically. "But you worked so hard for this, didn't you?" she said. "You even forgot to sleep and eat just to prepare for this art performance."
Slowly, Gilang nodded his head, surprised. "How did she know?" he whispered in his heart.
"I just want you to know that you're amazing," the girl continued. Then she turned around, smiled sweetly at Gilang and said, "I'm sure others feel the same way, you just need to give yourself another chance. Good luck!" before leaving Gilang alone behind the library.
After hearing that, Gilang hugged his legs and buried his face. He didn't know what to feel now after hearing the girl's words. Gilang then closed his eyes to relieve some of his fatigue.
When Gilang opened his eyes, he found himself in a different place. Everything looked white and bright, but for some reason, he started to feel warm and peaceful.
Then, in front of him appeared the girl he met earlier, but her figure looked different. She looked like a goddess, her body surrounded by various colors of light.
"Welcome, we've been waiting for you," the girl said.
Stunned and confused, Gilang asked, "Who... who are you?"
"We are called the Primordial of Light," she replied, walking towards Gilang. "Gilang, you have passed away," she said with sympathy in her smile and gaze.
Gilang wasn't surprised to hear her words; perhaps his inner self had already realized it.
She went on to explain that Gilang had died of a heart attack while sitting behind the library earlier. "You have a choice," she said. "We have a mission for you, Gilang. You can reject this mission, and we will take you to Avernus, or what you often refer to as hell, or you can accept this mission and have a chance to live in a better place."
Gilang looked at her with mixed emotions. "What mission? What if I fail?"
"If you fail to carry out this mission, Avernus will be your resting place, but if you succeed, we will take you to Celestia, or what you call heaven." She paused for a moment, then smiled broadly, looking at Gilang. "Or you can choose to return to your world, or stay in the world where we will send you."
"Am I the right person for this? My hands are too small to do great things," Gilang said, lowering his head and looking at his hands, which were starting to tremble.
"Your life in the previous world is proof that we chose the right person to carry out this mission," the girl replied, smiling sweetly at Gilang, like their first meeting behind the library.
Gilang thought for a moment, remembering what his life was like. With tears streaming down his cheeks, he smiled. So many good and bad memories in his life, and for the first time, Gilang was grateful for his simple and short life. "If I am the right person, then I will accept this mission," he whispered.
The girl nodded her head, smiling slightly. "You will embark on a journey in the world they call Eredar. Your mission is to save that world from an event we call the Second Calamity."
"Second Calamity?" Gilang asked, confused.
"The Second Calamity is a great disaster that will destroy Eredar, and you have been chosen to stop it."
"But how do I stop it?"
"We will give you various powers as you develop later." Then a book appeared before them. Each page flew out of the book and fluttered around Gilang like butterflies surrounding a newly bloomed flower. "These pages represent various races in Eredar. They have different abilities and uniqueness. Choose one to determine your race there."
At first, Gilang was confused about which one to choose. Some fascinated him, such as the graceful elves, the different-looking dwarves and goblins, the seemingly strong orcs, and many races he had never heard of before, such as the eagle-human race, Shakuru. But in the end, Gilang chose [HUMAN], "Maybe it's better to take something easy for me to understand," he thought.
...------------------------------------------------------...
...[ HUMAN ]...
...------------------------------------------------------...
[ ATTRIBUTES ]: Choose two with each +1
[ EXPERTISE ]: You gain one [EXPERTISE]
[ TRAIT ]: You gain one [CROSS TRAIT]
...------------------------------------------------------...
Description:
[HUMAN] is one of the new races in Eredar that came at the beginning of the First Age of Light. Their adaptability and ability to learn new things make them one of the dominant races in Eredar. On average, they are 170 cm tall and do not live longer than a century.
...------------------------------------------------------...
"Since you have chosen to be a human, now choose a trait to help you on your journey." In an instant, the contents of the page transformed to showcase Gilang with various traits.
Gilang shook his head in confusion. "I'm sorry, but I don't understand any of this. Why does this feel like a video game? What are traits?"
"These are part of your power, which will continue to grow during your journey. We call it [SYSTEM], and with it, you will easily understand all of these abilities," the girl explained.
As Gilang browsed through the traits, which were much more extensive than before, he thought, "If I want to succeed in this mission, I have to be smart in survival." He then asked, "Is there a trait that can help me attack enemies from afar?"
The girl gave him several options, such as Gunner, Stinger, Thundering Shot, Prowler, and Crossbow Mastery. In the end, Gilang chose [THUNDERING SHOT] because it sounded cool to him.
...------------------------------------------------------...
...[ THUNDERING SHOT ]...
...------------------------------------------------------...
Requirement:
[ ATTRIBUTES ]: 14 [ DEXTERITY ]
[ EXPERTISE ]: Bow or Crossbow
...------------------------------------------------------...
Description:
With this trait, you can shoot with great force using a bow or crossbow, causing thunder-like impacts. But the shot is challenging to perform and easy to miss the target.
...------------------------------------------------------...
Pros:
~Shoot with the power equivalent to a thunderbolt.
~Can push back or disable enemies with the strength of its shots.
Cons:
~The shot is challenging to aim, reducing accuracy.
~The shot takes longer to prepare and fire, making the user vulnerable to attacks.
~The shot can cause a loud thunderous sound.
Bonus:
~Change the attack type of bow or crossbow, [PIERCING] to [FORCE].
...------------------------------------------------------...
Then the pages transformed as Gilang picked one, and it vanished in his hands.
"Now choose a class that represents your role and responsibility in Eredar," the girl said.
This time, Gilang wasn't too overwhelmed with what to choose, although other classes sounded powerful, such as Warrior, Barbarian, Wizard, or Rogue. With confidence, he chose [BARD].
...------------------------------------------------------...
...[ BARD ]...
...------------------------------------------------------...
...------------------------------------------------------...
...[ HIT POINTS ]...
...------------------------------------------------------...
[ HIT POINTS ] = 5 + [ ENDURANCE ] + [ BARD LEVEL ]
Hit Points at Next Level: [ ENDURANCE ] + [ BARD LEVEL ]
...------------------------------------------------------...
...[ EXPERTISE ]...
...------------------------------------------------------...
Armor:
[ ??? ]
Weapons:
[ ??? ]
Tools:
[ VIOLIN ], [ ??? ]
...------------------------------------------------------...
...[ CLASS TRAIT ]...
...------------------------------------------------------...
[ ??? ]
[ ??? ]
[ ??? ]
...------------------------------------------------------...
...------------------------------------------------------...
Hearing his choice, the girl smiled. "A wise decision."
Confused about the less detailed pages than before, Gilang asked, "Why is everything empty?"
"It's because you're not yet ready to be a true bard," she replied.
The girl explained to Gilang that he must train to understand the power he will have before reaching level 1 to complete everything. She added that his attributes would be filled as Gilang progressed, although he did not understand most of what she said, but he hoped he would gradually grasp everything.
"Right now, we are going to wake you up in the body of a child who has just died in Eredar. You will live with his parents and grow up until you are old enough to start your journey to stop the Second Calamity," she said, revealing Gilang, a lifeless child lying in a dark cave.
"But what about the child's parents?" he asked, feeling guilty about taking over someone else's life.
"They are still unaware of their son's death," the girl said, closing her eyes. "We have already sent the child's soul to Celestia, and as a replacement, you will become a good child for his parents." She opened her eyes and approached him. "Perhaps the child's soul will be grateful knowing that the one he loves is in the care of the chosen one." She whispered with a smile as she gazed into Gilang's eyes.
To prepare himself mentally, Gilang took a long breath. "Alright," he confidently said.
The girl instructed him to close his eyes. In an instant, Gilang felt as though he was falling into an endless pit. He calmly kept his eyes closed until the sensation of falling disappeared.
When he opened his eyes, Gilang was in a stuffy, foul-smelling cave.
He woke up in the body of an eight-year-old child he had seen before. The body was covered in bruises, and his head was in pain from the wound that was starting to bleed.
"Errhh, where am I?" he mumbled, confused.
Then, Gilang heard a moan that seemed to come from outside the cave. He stood up and cautiously walked towards the sound. Soon enough, he saw a woman running towards him, tears streaming down her face.
"Aimer?" the woman cried emotionally as she ran towards him and hugged him tightly.
Still not understanding the situation he was in, Gilang asked, "Who are you?"
"I'm your mother," she answered while stroking Gilang's face and shoulder.
Then, Gilang realized that this woman was the mother of the child he had just replaced. He could only stay silent, unsure of what to do.
"Aimer, my child," she said, her voice choked with deep emotion. "Thank goodness I found you."
"What... what happened?" Gilang whispered, still holding back the pain all over his body.
"I will explain everything, come on, let's go home," the woman said with a smile, wiping away tears from her cheeks.
The woman carried Gilang on her back, and together they left the cave.
Slowly, Gilang saw a new world that he had never imagined before. It was here that he realized how much he had to learn before he could embark on his journey to save the world from the Second Calamity.
.
.
.
.
.
[ CHARACTER SHEET ]
...------------------------------------------------------...
...-- Gil%^&*Aimer @ LV0 -- BARD 0...
...------------------------------------------------------...
[ RACE ]
Human
[ STATS ]
HP: ??? DC: ???
[ ATTRIBUTES ]
STR: ?? DEX: ?? END: ???
INT: ?? WIS: ?? CHA: ???
[ CROSS TRAIT ]
Thundering Shot
[ CLASS TRAIT ]
???, ???, ???
[ MAGIC ]
???
[ EQUIPMENT ]
Common Clothes
[ EXPERTISE ]
Violin
...------------------------------------------------------...