"How did you get in here?" A freshman asked, his voice pitching up. His older companion, a second-year girl stepped in front of him, as if she wanted to protect him with her body."Who are you? Which Guild?" She demanded, and Jake blinked in surprise."Guild?" The system didn't reveal their names but confirmed they were from the student council. Glancing behind his back, he stood on the edge of this plane of existence.Beyond that edge, only the endless void.This wasn't a dream. He was already sweating, but now his heart doubled its pace and the world began to spin. Jake took a shaky step forward, away from that dangerous edge.[Achievement: Dungeon RaiderYou have entered your first Virtual Barrier—apart from your dreams earlier. You better not fall into the Void. It might seem like a constrained space, but you took your first step towards a much larger world.Reward: Virtual Barrier Skill unlocked on Beginner (1) level. Your class is no longer hidden.]This was a lot to take in. He was stuck between hostile students, the gaping void, and his urge to check his character sheet. He had no time for any of that.A screeching sound, accompanied by a chilling cold washed over him, and his sweat froze to his skin. Jake half-expected the student council President to appear but wasn't in such luck.[Mean Spirit (Regular Ghost, Level 1) Hostile.]The creature was almost transparent, flying through him, leaving a cold trail behind. If it weren't for the text above its amorph shape, he would've discarded it as a floater in his eye."You idiot. Fucking loser. Go, kill yourself." He heard a voice echoing inside his head, and pain engulfed his body. The students were too slow to react and the ghost shot up into the sky.[You've lost -12 FP (Cold Damage, Emotional Damage)]"Emotional Damage?!" Jake howled in disbelief before he finally cleared his mind. "Right, the fucking system. I must've failed an astral saving throw," he mumbled.Thanks to his high intelligence and willpower he didn't panic anymore. Flinging his backpack around, he reminded himself of the game mechanics. He went over them with Dave today.The system would differentiate between Health Points and Fortitude Points. The latter indicated how much pain his body could withstand before passing out. He wouldn't die from it.Getting his HP to zero though—that was game over. The combat was different from what he got used to from Dungeons & Monsters. He summoned his relevant core stats.[You wield a weapon you're untrained with. (Init -5/ Atk -10/ Def -10, Dmg halved)]That was a hefty malus. In Magicus Adeptus, fights revolved around the hundred-sided die. If he were to fight against a clone, they'd both roll for initiative to decide who goes first.He ignored the debuffs for now, it made the math simpler.[Init.: 8 (18-5) (Base 5 + (Agility -10) + Weapons (10) + Modifiers)Atk.: 29 (44-10) (Base 20 + (Strenght + Agility + Dexterity -30) + Weapons (15) + Modifiers)Def.: 86 (88-10) (Base 75 + (Agility + Dexterity + Perception -30) + Weapons (2) + Modifiers)Aim: 7 (7) (Base 0 + (Dexterity + Perception -20) + Weapons + Modifiers)Dmg.: (D6+1 HALVED) (Base 0 + Weapons + Modifiers)]The system was kind enough to break down each score, adjusting as he grabbed his knife and dropped the bag. His uncle Robert would have been mad that he took it to school.He had to add his attack roll to his attack stat, and if the total were higher than 88, the enemy's defense, he'd score a hit. A shallow cut would only cause FP loss.But if he rolled 138, or 50 higher than the defense, the damage would be HP. It was usually much lower than FP and wouldn't improve with leveling up. He only had twenty too.A lucky strike or a high attack stat could kill even the highest-level creatures in one hit. But the undead was different. Dave's explanation echoed in the back of his mind."Zombies and ghosts don't feel pain, so their FP is infinite. Only critical hits can deal damage to them." And he had to encounter a fucking ghost as his first enemy.Too bad, his Appraisal skill didn't show its stats at the current level. But it's not like he rolled actual dice in combat. As the Mean Spirit turned around for a second attack, he only had to do his best to hit it."Idiot, you can't fight supernatural with a knife." The second-year girl yelled, pulling out a wand from her uniform jacket. She began chanting a spell, but the spirit was too fast for her."Well, good thing it's enchanted," Jake mumbled, focusing on the ghost with all he had.[You are now eligible for the skill: Weapon Mastery. Would you like to spend a skill point on the first level?]He had never clicked a virtual button so fast and even hit the upgrade once until he ran out of SP. That took care of that nasty debuff he had earlier.The window disappeared in time to brace for impact, and he stabbed at the blob's center.[Critical Hit! You've caused -10 HP damage. (Piercing Damage, Magic Damage, Doubled from your enemy using Charge.) You have vanished a Mean Spirit.]It was easier than he expected. He saw the transparent little blob burst and dissipate. He couldn't decide if getting Exp or seeing the council member's faces was more satisfying.He couldn't bask in his glory for long though. A trio of ghosts appeared, coming in fast from the old building, and he could only see their names floating."Colin, you're the left, I'll take the right." The girl yelled, sparing only a glance for Jake. "You take whatever's left. Whoever the hell you are."He could work with that. Taking up a stance, he braced himself for another attack. The girl shot a measly magic missile from her wand, and the boy pulled a fancy sword.After seeing Rebecca and Sonokawa fight in his dreams these guys weren't that special. But even that scrawny magic missile was enough to dispatch a ghost, and Jake stabbed his.Only the freshman—Colin—struggled with the last one, but their trio finished it fast. Jake heard a soft ping, and a warm feeling washed over him, his pain forgotten.He deduced that he leveled up since his Appraisal Skill now displayed some extra info.[Sophie Green. (Human Mage, Age: 16) Student Council. She is stronger than you.][Colin Taylor. (Human Fighter, Age: 15) Student Council. You are evenly matched.][More information will be available once your Appraisal skill reaches the next level. Time remaining to learn the Master (4th) level: 29 days 23 hours 59 minutes and 45 seconds.]"One month?! Bullshit." It stumbled out of Jake's mouth. But before he could check his character sheet Sophie confronted him."Thanks for the assist, but if you don't tell us who you are, I'll have to restrain you." She gave the warning, her wand pointed at his chest, and Jake raised his hands. He still held the knife though."Ugh, I'm Jake Jones from Class 3 E." He said, hoping it was enough to calm them down."I don't care about which class, what is your affiliation?" The girl pushed closer, but he had no idea what she meant. "If you refuse to talk, I'll take you to the President.""Oh, um, that's why I'm here. I need to talk to Miss Sonokawa."