[Customise your Character]
Ignoring the blue floating screen in front of me, I looked through the open window on my left side, which showed a scenery of a forest path that led deeper into the forest. On closing my eyes, I could hear the rustling wind against the trees and the sound of a water stream at a distance.
I then opened my eyes as I looked on the opposite side at the dusty sofa and a lamp right beside it. The slightly cracked walls held a picture of a hand drawn flower, which somehow complemented the wall more than an aesthetic one could.
My eyes turned back to the System Message
[Customise your Character]
There were a bunch of panels for hair colour, eyes colour, etc. Even though it said 'Customise' it didn't give much options. This was because the game only allowed minimum changes to your body, which can't be much different from your original body. It was all the more important because of the [Synchronisation rate] that will determine your ability to control your character.
'The more you deviate from your original body, the harder it is to control your character,' I recalled the words of a famous top player in my last time.
Though I already had planned what changes to make and what not to make.
[Are you sure you want to make these changes?]
[Hair: Black -> White]
[Eyes: Brown -> Green]
Other than these two, any other changes will decrease the [Synchronisation Rate] so I didn't touch them. While I made some changes because last time I went with the same look as my original body. Don't want another regressor to come 'skedush!' me.
Pressing the [Yes] button, I then found another screen appeared in front of me.
[Choose your race!]
[Human]
[Elf]
[Dwarf]
[Half-Human]*
[Gnome]
.
.
One of the interesting things about the Races in Arcadia was that each race provided some benefits and some difficulties of its own. Other than that, there is always a [Race Quest] which you can do to find out the origins of your own character.
In other words, the character you create will have its own backstory, which you can explore in your free time. It was an interesting concept which many players loved. The rewards weren't half-assed either.
For example, my last race [Dhampir] allowed me to have more experience during the night while also having the ability to manipulate blood, and some aptitude for dark magic. As for the back story of my character, it had a tragic life where the character had been outcasted by the village. Fun old days to kill the entire settlement.
This time I chose [Human]. It was the weakest race, with no visible benefits. The only benefit it had was its limitless potential. Unlike an elf, who can't use magic related to decay and death, or Dwarves who lack the ability to use ranged magic properly, the Humans could use any or all magic. Though they didn't have the visible benefits provided by the other classes as well.
Getting off the bed, I stretched a little as I spoke out,"Status."
[Your Status is being Updated!]
[Update Done!]
[Name: Ezekiel
Race: Human
Title: None
Class: None
Subclass: None
Blessings: None
Level: 1 (0/10 Exp)
Health Points: 50/50
Mana Points: 50/50
Stamina Points: 20/20
Attributes:
Attack : 10
Defence : 10
Endurance : 10
Vitality : 10
Agility : 10
Intelligence : 10
Fixed Attributes:
Wisdom: 10
Charm: 10
Arcane Power: 10
Luck: 10
Fortitude: 10
Free Attribute points: 3
Skills: None
Quests: None
Equipments: None
Currency Balance: 0
Items in Slot: 0/5]
"Start from the very bottom, huh? Though I wonder if I can…" a smile formed on my face as I silently muttered,"[Lerainca Ereit limai wapid(Bless the God who knows the boundations of time! May he get prosperity beyond all multiverse)]"
[You have used an Ancient Language!]
[The "Prayer" to the God of Time has been delivered!]
[You have been granted a random bonus of 1.1x times Attack for 24 hours!]
"So it still works, huh?" I thought as I looked at the notifications with a smile.
Arcadia has many secrets… with Ancient Language being one of them. Though it's not much of a big secret as long as minor blessings and prayers are concerned.
As long as you follow a God, you can easily access the prayers from the respective church and they will allow you access to the prayers depending upon your [Believer] Status. The more you increase this status, the more powerful prayer you can offer, in return getting more powerful blessings.
For Gods like the God of Time, who are hidden within Arcadia, you need to really work hard to even find a single proper prayer.
'Since it was a pain to find the Prayers, I just over worked towards learning the Ancient Language itself,' I chuckled as I opened the door and began moving down to the ground floor.
Ancient Language, or the language of the Gods. It's mostly lost in Arcadia, but if you are somehow able to find out the powerful dungeons or temples of the lost Gods, you might be able to find the records there. Though the ability to decode the Language? That's totally up to you. As for me? I decoded the entire language and learnt it word by words… was a pain but was worth it, anyway.
Sadly, there are limitations there as well. As a lower being a mortal, using the [Ancient Language] will give me debuffs that are real pain to deal with. Normally small words like the prayer don't have any debuffs, but if I were to use a powerful word like "Die" or even a normal command like "Stop!", I might end up losing most of my stats permanently or for a long time, if temporarily.
'Well, but it's always good to have a powerful trump card in my hand,' I thought as my steps reached the ground floor, which seemed like a small tavern. Half a dozen tables and a reception counter behind which bottles of wines were visible from where I was standing.
A couple of kids were wiping the floor while a fairly aged lady was cleaning the bottles of wine behind the counter. I could see the village settlement through the open gate while I traded my path towards the counter.
[Name: Tiera Porti
Race: Human
Class: Housekeeper
Level: 10
Mana Points: 200/200
Health Points: 1000/1000
Remarks: Just an average houseworking mother who is trying her best to feed her two children]
"You seem to be refreshed now. Is there anything else you need?" she spoke as she looked at me. Brown eyes that complimented her brown hair, wearing a white top and mud-coloured long skirt, she stood there, her eyes fixated on me. Her red patched bandana held her hair as she smoothly cleaned those glass bottles.
"Thank you, Miss Porti. Can I ask you to show me the way to the Elder of this settlement?" I asked politely, and she nodded with a smile,"manners, huh? Now that is something that I would love for every customer to show. Sure, come with me. I'll take you to the Elder," she spoke as she stood up, and walked around the counter as I stepped towards the main door of the inn.
"Lila. Aerie. Take care of the place while I am off,"she asked her children with a slight commanding tone while both of them spoke,"Yes Mother."
"Teach them young,"Tiera spoke as she smiled at me before both of us got out of the inn and a village settlement with minimum building blessed us with its presence. I could see about 6 or 7 wooden houses scattered around the area without any proper floor plan.
Looking at a distance, one could find many trees, telling that the settlement was deep within a forest and the clay path that treaded two directions, one towards the big house on the edge of the settlement, and another to outside the settlement, probably took the direction towards a bigger town or perhaps a minor city.
Like a meadow garden, one could find many flowers, herbs and even small trees scattered all around the area. Even the path was covered with green patches in many places.
Walking through the path, I slowly reached the edge of the settlement and Tiera, who was right in front of me, knocked on the door of the big house as she shouted,
"Thompson! Are you there? You have a guest here."
After that knock, Tiera stood there for a couple of minutes waiting as the gate opened up and an old man in his 60s walked out of the house as he turned to Tiera,"What is it, Tiera? It's quite uncommon for you to come here during the morning hours."
[Name: Thompson Inara
Race: Dwarf-Human
Title: Village Elder
Class: Blacksmith
Level: 16
Mana: 800/800
Health: 800/800
Remarks: Never seen a Dwarf-Human before? Don't worry, they are rare to begin with. Though I must warn you, be careful with how you approach this one. There is more to him than meets the eye]
"Ho! Who do we have here?" Thompson then finally paid attention to me as he looked behind Tiera and gazed at me with an interested gaze.