"I find it odd though. Why is the next Ascension 6 months from now on? Ain't that too long?"
He's not hoping for the ascension to descend faster, he just found this very odd.
'But it's true, If I'm an alien who plans to annihilate humans then I'll never give them time to fight back. I'll just give them trouble after trouble. It's not that hard unless I lack resources.'
He's sure that what happened on the plane is not a one-time lucky encounter but a wide-scale alien phenomenon. Much likely, it involves the whole world.
'Cause if not, the government would have already come running here. A plane crash in modern society's standard is a huge incident after all.' He mocked the government in his mind.
This time, he carefully scanned the contents of the screen.
Name.
That's obviously me. It's a bit creepy for the aliens to know my name.
Next is the title... 'Survivor of the First Ascension', what does it mean?
He tapped it and the texts formed:
[ *Title* Survivor of the First Ascension - You have been given a title for surviving a confrontation with the devils. When equipped, you earn an additional 5% experience when killing goblins.
This title will be upgraded once you defeated 20 goblins (1/20) ]
Well, that's handy. A 5% bonus experience is pretty generous I would say, If we think about how there are only goblins on this island, this is perfect for me.
"I still don't know how experience and levels work though. Hmmm..."
The title upgrade is probably designed to drive people into killing monsters. The awakened gift is like a drug, once people became intoxicated with the feeling of extraordinary power, they'll be driven to do anything to be on top of the food chain.
'Hmmm... I'm not in a rush or anything to kill the goblins. I'll take my sweet time torturing each and every one of them until there's nothing left.'
"Next are levels, let's see. If the levelling system here works like the games I've played before, it means I need to kill goblins to level up."
"How many goblins? That's not even a question worth answering... What will I get when I level up? That's a better question."
'I hope it's another ability.' Ransom smiled in eagerness.
' Does *Ascended: ×* means I've survived the first ascent? And then Ascent means the light and the goblins.'
'More like the phenomena where alien beings appear on earth.' Ran thought.
"Ahhh shit! Why are there no description to a system interface? You're obviously cheating me! Shit!"
Sigh, what else can I do but speculate. You know, future events may happen that will uncover the mystery of the system and those lights.
'The goblin I saw that night when we were on the plane exceeds 30 in number. I'm not sure about how many of them survived the crash, but it should be at least half right?' He smirked.
'I survived the crash. I don't know how it happened. But if a 13-year-old child survived a plane crash, then it is highly likely that other passengers also survived...'
The guilt from this thought cramps his stomach so hard as he thought about his father. The thought of his Father being tortured by goblins enveloped his heart in indescribable sorrow...
"No! No! I'll die if I go there now. At least 7 days! At least 7 days." He almost burst out crying but he managed to control his emotion.
He took silent deep breaths and focused his attention on his training for tomorrow.
'I can't do this half-ass. At times like this, I need to think clearly and plan ahead. I'll deal with all problems when I'm strong enough. Hopefully, the system will help me with this.'
...
"There is still some mystery regarding the stats and ability panel."
"If I'm correct, the average male adult's stats should be around 10 in Strength and Fortitude. I'm not sure about Agility and Psyche but the average should be lower than 10."
At least that's what he believed, and he'll test that hypothesis using his own body.
'The abilities are given by that strange light. I remember when the light gifted me Fleetwork Maneuver, there are 3 choices for gifts. An Ability, an Item, and Status Points.'
'Then it is safe to say that all 3 of these can be given directly by the Light, and the Light gives power to humans in order for them to defeat the ascension.'
"But f*ck! That's so contradictory!" He scratched his head in annoyance.
He contemplated the system and the light for quite some time. He memorize in his heart all the knowledge he gained that night.
All this time, the white screen is still floating in his vision. Then suddenly it vanishes like a ghost.
'So it lasts for around that long huh?'
He has no phone nor watch to accurately time the duration of the white screen, but based on his intuition, it's around 40 minutes-1 hour.
'I'll count on my head next time.' He thought.
Satisfied, he closed his eyes and prepares for the morning to come.
....
On 3rd Day in the unknown forest, Ransom decided to keep track of his days here by engraving lines on the walls of the cave.
He started his morning exercise first thing in the morning. He practised with the spear with every kind of knowledge he has.
But to be honest, he's just stabbing and flicking the spears around the trees, there's no actual technique.
His morning meal is the fruits and water from the cave.
'I should be thankful that there's even fruit.'
He prayed before eating. It's like an automatic habit he developed in a Christian household.
Later that afternoon, he dug hard using his hand and stick for the proper burial of the Bear.
He still wasn't able to finish it today, but he's more than 80% complete.
By night, again he took fruits as dinner and covered himself with his smelly jacket.
The cave is cold and lonely, yet his eyes are blazing like a fire ready to consume everything on its path
"This is just the start." He muttered.
...
[Ding!]
Finally.
[Time until the second Ascension - 25 days and 5 months.]
He slowly opened his eyes. He noticed something new at the bottom of the screen.
[ *Profile*
Name: Ransom King
Title: Survivor of the First Ascent
Level: 1
Ascended: ×
*Status*
Strength: 6
Agility: 6
Fortitude: 4
Psyche: 8
Free Stats: 0
*Abilities*
•Fleetwork Maneuver - You have tapped into your inner potentiality and can now move 1.5x faster based on the limit of your body. ]
[Congratulations! After 5 days of surviving on the first ascent, you've unlocked *Quests* which can be viewed in the user's profile. Struggle and survive Ransom King! ]
[ *Quests* (3)
Main Quests:
Dominator
∆ Annihilate all the goblins in the forest.
Reward: Random Gift
First Class
∆ Level-up to 10
Reward: Class Ascension
Fate 1
∆ Obtain 1 Shard of Light
Reward: ???
Sub-Quests: (2)
Getting Stronger
∆ Raise 2 stats by twice its current amount! Reward: +3 Random Stat Points
The First Step
∆ Reach level 3 in 7 days (1/7)
Reward: Unlock *Skills Shop*