Aedhira would say that character development was nice and all, but he really just wanted to get back to the world of the living. Floating around in endless voids of darkness and self-reflection was getting old. It wasn't that he didn't appreciate a good inner journey—he'd grown from it, sure—but being stuck in these spaces for too long started to itch at the back of his mind. Even though this wasn't one of those eerie, whispering shadows he'd encountered before, he'd had enough of them to last a lifetime.
The last of the cryptic messages addressing him had faded away some time ago, leaving him with, well, nothing. Just a big, sprawling blackness. No roadmap, no guiding light. For a moment, he wondered what the heck he was supposed to do now. The so-called "System" that had been such a major part of this transformation wasn't exactly user-friendly. No manual, no index, not even a "getting started" pamphlet. It didn't help that Aedhira didn't exactly have a customer service number to call up either.
But Aedhira wasn't a slouch. He'd read a ton of novels back in the Archives and the old library at Fort Blanche, and some of them were about this kind of thing. Sure, he mostly preferred a faster, digital speed-reading experience—turning paper pages got old real quick—but there was still a certain charm in those old books. The ones where the protagonist suddenly got some system power and proceeded to break reality over their knee like a stubborn branch.
And though he wasn't particularly fond of those over-the-top stories where the main character turned into a smug, overpowered, harem-collecting menace... he had to admit, those guys probably had some tips.
"Respect to my trashy isekai seniors," he thought to himself, crossing his arms. He observed a moment of silence for those fictional heroes, who somehow always figured out how to exploit their systems with ease. (It was at this moment, unbeknownst to him, that the quaint and innocent Aedhira would be tainted by the legacy of trashy isekai protagonists—a corruption of genre savvy he could never quite shake off.)
After his brief homage to those literary role models, Aedhira decided to try his luck. Maybe if he said the right words, the so-called "System" would show up and give him a clue about what to do next. He ran through a few phrases he'd seen in those novels, mostly mumbling to himself like an actor rehearsing strange dialogue.
"System?" Nothing.
"Player?" Still nothing.
"Mighty system, heed my call?" He felt the cringe seep into his bones on that one.
He continued to throw out words that varied between cheesy and desperate. "Menu," "Interface," "Open Sesame," but they all fell flat. It was only when he said "Status"—in a tone that was part annoyed, part giving up—that something finally blinked into existence before him.
Aedhira's mind nearly blanked for a second, a swirl of light and symbols forming a holographic window in front of him. He half-expected a more dramatic reveal, but all he got was a sudden, almost anticlimactic burst of information. And as he squinted, trying to make sense of the text, he almost wished he could go back to the darkness.
---
[Status]
Name: Aedhira Ver Novus Israejin
Titles:
- [Savior of the Damned (Provisional)]
- [Bearer of the Aes]
- [Unspoken Chosen]
- [Possessor of Ancient Flames]
Rank: Unranked
Attributes:
- Strength: ???
- Speed: ???
- Intellect: ???
- Resilience: ???
- Magical Affinity: ???
Skills:
- [Locked]
- [Locked]
- [Locked]
---
He stared at the screen, his eyebrows twitching with increasing frustration. The sheer number of question marks staring back at him felt like some cosmic prank.
"Oh yeah, this is exactly what I needed. Super helpful, right?" Aedhira muttered to the void, sarcasm dripping from every word. "Who needs to know their own stats anyway? It's not like it's important." He rolled his eyes, the glowing display reflecting off his pupils like some mockery of his current predicament.
Internally, he was livid, but he forced himself to focus. Maybe there was something he could actually use in this mess of a status screen. He mentally flipped through the titles, noting their vague nature, each one sounding like a dramatic tagline for some unwritten story. His "Rank" being "Unranked" wasn't exactly encouraging, but hey, at least it was consistent with how little this System had revealed so far.
He reached out, trying to swipe through the interface, but his hand just phased through the projection like mist. It shimmered, reforming right back in place. He tried tapping on one of the attributes, half-expecting some kind of pop-up to give him an explanation. Instead, the question marks just remained stubbornly fixed in place.
"Yeah, loving this system already," he said, letting his hand drop. His sarcasm was almost a defense mechanism now, one that made him feel a little more grounded, a little less out of his depth. "Really top-notch support. Would totally recommend to all my friends."
It was better than letting the frustration fester. At least now he knew what he was dealing with, even if it was just an endless stream of unknowns. The status window stayed in place as he moved around it, examining every inch for some hidden prompt or hint that might give him a bit more direction.
But as he tried to make sense of the display, something nagged at the back of his mind. There was a sensation, a tingle—almost like the feeling of something beginning to form at the edge of his awareness, a signal in the static. Aedhira's eyes narrowed, and after a bit of squinting, he noticed a small icon nestled at the bottom corner of the status window. It looked like... a tab?
"Really, that's the best interface design they could think of?" he muttered under his breath. He almost wished he could file a complaint with customer service, but given the nature of the situation—being a mechanical soul-child with an identity crisis—he figured that option wasn't exactly on the table. With a sigh, he pressed the icon, and the screen flickered, shifting into a new display.
Out popped a new option. Just one.
Quests.
"Well, well, well, how convenient," Aedhira mused, an eyebrow arched. He had read enough from the archives—both the digital and the dusty paperbacks—to know that quests were a staple in every cliché system. Despite his reservations about adding more stress to his plate, he couldn't help but feel a little curious. And maybe, just maybe, he was channeling a bit of those isekai protagonists he had spent too many nights reading about.
He clicked it.
The interface flashed, displaying a menu with three quests. The quests seemed separate, each with a name, a rank, conditions for completion, and a reward—basic stuff, really. But one quest caught his eye immediately. It had a bold tag next to it: (Exclusive to Aedhira Ver Novus Israejin).
He blinked at the name. The additional titles bothered him a little, like an itch he couldn't quite reach. But at the same time, Aedhira couldn't deny that there was a certain ring to it. Not that he'd admit that out loud, of course.
The first quest's name? Run Little Lamb.
His mouth twitched. The words practically dripped with mockery. He had the distinct feeling that someone or something was having a laugh at his expense. Still, he pressed on, trying to ignore the imaginary feeling of being badmouthed.
The quest details unfolded before him. It was ranked Befei, which didn't mean much to him yet, but he figured it was probably related to the difficulty. The conditions for fulfillment were... not exactly comforting.
- Evacuate all under your care.
- Get them off Lokir.
- Reach Lagrange Point 2465.
He tilted his head, mulling over the last condition. "Lagrange Point... sounds like a space station or some kind of orbital platform. Perfect, more logistics," he grumbled. The screen flickered with a few more conditions, but they were clouded with a thick haze of ??? marks.
Aedhira rubbed the back of his neck, tension creeping up his spine. Great, just great. He had a feeling they'd only be revealed after he completed the initial conditions, or maybe even later—assuming he lived long enough to find out. A cold laugh escaped him before he could help it, a humorless edge to his tone.
"...Impossible," he muttered, breaking the silence of his own thoughts.
Finally, he scrolled down to see what sort of reward awaited him after all that trouble. Appropriate reward will be calculated at the end of quest, it read.
Aedhira froze, his expression going blank. A moment later, something in him snapped. He swung a hand at the glowing window, only for it to pass through like mist. The digital panel reformed instantly, taunting him with its indifference.
"SCAM!" he screamed internally, clenching his fists so tightly that they creaked. "THIS IS A BLOODY SCAM!"
He almost wanted to throw his hands in the air and walk away, but there was quite literally nowhere else to go. The dark, suffocating nothingness around him didn't offer any other options. It was either deal with this ridiculous system, or… yeah, there was no 'or.' He calmed himself down. Well, slightly.
With a huff, Aedhira scrolled down to read the next quest.
Don't Screw With the Baby Man, The Little Baby Man.
His eye twitched. Not a second passed before his hand flew through the window again, the display flickering in protest. It tried to reform, only for Aedhira to slam his other hand at it, disrupting the process. He stood there for a moment, hands digging through the ethereal light, feeling a faint sense of satisfaction. Therapeutic, really. For once, he could vent some of his frustration on something that wouldn't scream or cry or break down in tears from the weight of responsibility he constantly carried.
A different thought crossed his mind after another wild swing, and he stopped. He stared at his hands and sighed, feeling… well, a little pathetic.
"This is just sad," he muttered, defeated, and let the screen reform in front of him.
There was no way those quest names were a coincidence. Someone, somewhere, was screwing with him. Some admin, some cosmic being beyond comprehension, was sitting on their multi-dimensional throne laughing at his expense. And oh, he'd remember this. If he ever met such a being—and who knew, it could happen—he was going to pick a fight. Sure, the average person wouldn't dare to pick a fight with possible transdimensional beings far beyond mortal understanding, but Aedhira? His intelligence was... well, maybe a bit below average when it came to making good decisions, but who cared?
He looked around, suddenly feeling like someone in some distant realm was badmouthing him. Again.
After a moment of suspicious glaring into the empty void, he finally settled enough to read the quest details. Befei ranked again. Exclusive to Aedhira Ver Novus Israejin, as expected. He felt a twinge of pride and annoyance with the full title still hanging on him.
The fulfillment conditions were simple. Almost too simple.
- Eliminate the Horde.
- Eliminate the Hordemother.
Aedhira stared at the screen, blinking slowly. Wasn't that just… lovely? He was pretty sure—no, absolutely sure—that Astiron had very specifically told him not to take the Horde head-on. So what the hell was this? Was he supposed to fight? Or run? Or do both at the same time? What kind of messed-up multitasking was this?
His internal monologue started to ramp up, frustration bubbling again as he was about to go on another rant about the sheer unfairness of the universe. But then he saw it—the reward.
This time, it wasn't vague. The reward for culling more than half of the Horde could be claimed in advance. His eyebrow quirked up. "Incentive, huh?" he mumbled to himself. He couldn't say no to that.
The actual reward? Unlock skill: Coupling.
He stared at it, unimpressed. Coupling. What even was that? He half-expected something grand, something worthy of a space-fantasy epic like Descent of the Thunder God, or Descent of the Fire God! Or, you know, maybe more descending gods? Or Fireball! That was a staple in these types of systems, right? Throwing fireballs at your enemies, shooting sparks with a flick of your wrist?
Nope. Instead, he got Coupling.
If this was fair, then there was no justice in the universe.
Aedhira folded his arms, glaring at the floating screen like it personally wronged him. "Coupling, huh? Yeah, I'll pass. Thanks for nothing." But despite his snark, a part of him knew he was stuck with it. He'd probably have to use that skill at some point, even if it sounded underwhelming. He just knew it was going to be more complicated than it looked.
Because of course it was.
Because of course it was.
The System experience so far had been pretty terrible, bordering on a cosmic joke. Aedhira couldn't help but feel like he'd gotten the short end of the deal. In fact, he was starting to think that maybe Elysium had scammed him when they tacked this System onto him. If this was supposed to be some grand gift, it was shaping up to be a huge disappointment. The so-called gift from Elysium? Nowhere to be seen. Which made him wonder if this—the glitchy, sadistic System—was the gift. If that was the case, Elysium had a twisted sense of humor.
Sure, he knew he was being a little greedy. Maybe just a smidge. After all, trillions across the universe would probably kill for an opportunity like this—enhancements, powers, quests. It was the stuff of legends, the kind of thing people dreamed about. But somehow, in the midst of his cosmic sulking, that thought did little to cheer him up. The System just wasn't living up to the hype.
After that little bout of self-reflection, he shifted his focus back to the next quest, keeping his expectations dialed all the way down to zero. He read it with a twitchy eye, hand poised to fling at the window again if he saw something as ridiculous as the last two quests.
But this time, it wasn't as bad. Or, at least, it wasn't what he expected.
Elysium's Guide to Learning How to Raise Your Hand.
"??????"
Aedhira blinked.
"??????"
That was… new. The quest rank read unranked, which was strange enough. And the fulfillment condition? It just said raise your hand. No complex puzzles or demands for mass destruction. Just a simple, almost laughably mundane task. There was another condition too, but—similar to the first quest—those damn ??? marks clouded the details.
Aedhira squinted at the floating text, suspicious. He wasn't inclined to believe that something this simple wasn't going to come back to bite him somehow. The last few quests had been unreasonably chaotic, so he doubted raising his hand wouldn't somehow trigger an explosion or open up a wormhole.
Then he read the reward.
Patch Fix 1.11.
He didn't know what that meant, but it had the word "reward" in it, which was usually a good sign. Maybe. Aedhira felt a little wary—rightfully so, considering his track record so far. But there was also that word that made his heart beat a little faster.
"Rewards."
His greedy side—one he liked to pretend didn't exist—perked up. This quest was easy. Like, ridiculously easy. He wouldn't even have to fight anything. His mind raced through the possibilities and potential downsides, but he didn't really think it through a fourth time before his hand shot up into the air.
And just like that, the quest completion notification popped up. Condition met: Completed.
A new System message followed in that ominous font with its jagged, jittery edges.
{FORCE Distributing Rewards}
Aedhira stared at the message for a moment, his skepticism melting into cautious curiosity. He was about to ponder what the cryptic phrasing could mean when a sharp, stabbing pain pierced through his head, cutting off his thoughts before they even formed.
"Shit, not again," he muttered, clenching his teeth, his mind reeling from the sudden agony.
Then, righteous fury boiled over inside him, bubbling past his pain. He threw his head back, yelling into the empty void, "I'VE BEEN SCAMMED AGAIN!"
The void swallowed his voice, echoing his rage back at him. And then, just as quickly as the pain started, the world around him spun and tilted, blackness creeping in from the edges of his vision. His consciousness flickered, and before he could even piece together another coherent thought, everything went dark.
Again.