Rick woke up abruptly, feeling as if something was off about him. His vision was still blurry from the deep sleep, but his body felt... light. As if the physical burdens and wounds that had weighed him down before had vanished without a trace.
His eyes slowly opened, and as he moved his body, he felt no pain, none of the soreness he had experienced before. His entire body felt different, and there wasn't even the slightest ache where his wounds had once been.
He ran his hands over his body, touching every part of himself, hoping to find an explanation for this strange sensation. Rick stared at his right hand, which was usually covered in bruises and cuts from punches or iron shackles. Now, however, his skin was smooth, unblemished.
When he touched his face, the cheek that had once throbbed with pain from a heavy blow was now flawless. No bruises, no soreness, everything was gone. Even as he reached into his mouth, probing the spot where a tooth had been knocked out, he found it had been completely restored.
Rick froze, utterly bewildered by what was happening to him.
"What... what happened to me?" he murmured, his voice laced with uncertainty.
He glanced around the cramped cell he was in. Everything looked the same, yet he could feel a drastic change within himself. How was it possible for his body, which had been battered and bruised, to heal so quickly?
Just as his confusion reached its peak, something unexpected appeared before him. A transparent screen materialized in the air, right in front of his face.
Rick flinched slightly, instinctively rubbing his eyes to make sure he wasn't hallucinating. Yet, no matter how many times he blinked, the screen remained, hovering in midair as if waiting for him to read it.
His eyes carefully scanned the details on the panel. The information displayed was unfamiliar, yet oddly recognizable at the same time. It was a status system, just like the RPG games he had played in the past. Slowly, he began to read through it, taking in every word.
Name: Rick Carter
Age: 26 Years
Gender: Male
Status
Level: 1
HP: 1800
MP: 1000
Strength: 40
Attack: 55
Intelligence: 65
Vitality: 35
Dexterity: 42
Agility: 37
Skills
Passive:
Divine Awareness
Enhanced Vision
Warden's Will
Active:
Prison of Light
Divine Shackles
Bifrost Barrier
Hofund Sword Ability
Dimensional Storage
Titles:
Vassal of Heimdall (Incomplete)
Divine Warden (Incomplete)
Bearer of Gjallarhorn (Incomplete)
Watcher in Training (Incomplete)
Item:
Hofund Sword, The Sentinel of Asgard
Rick stared blankly at each line of information. Everything written there felt completely unfamiliar. Level, HP, MP, strength, and skills things he had never expected.
Names like Hofund Sword and Bifrost Barrier sounded like something straight out of mythology or legend. And as if that wasn't strange enough, at the bottom of the status screen, there was a message that left him even more confused.
[ Heimdall, the guardian of the Gods, has taken interest in the resilience within Rick's heart. He grants you the opportunity to become a Vassal of Heimdall, a bridge between Asgard and Midgard, and the one destined to halt the Ragnarok cycle. ]
Rick read the message over and over, trying to grasp its meaning.
"Vassal of Heimdall?" he thought. "Guardian of the Gods? A bridge between two worlds?"
The words felt like something pulled from an ancient epic, filled with riddles. He tried to piece together the significance of each phrase, but the more he thought about it, the deeper his confusion grew.
Rick took a deep breath, trying to calm his chaotic thoughts. He closed his eyes for a moment, attempting to recall all the information he had heard while in prison. Slowly, fragments of memories began to piece together in his mind, forming a clearer picture.
Six months ago, he had ended up in this prison for assaulting someone. That impulsive decision had led him behind bars, far from freedom and the life he once knew. But soon after he was incarcerated, the world outside changed drastically.
One month after his imprisonment, the world descended into chaos. A dystopia that he had always thought only existed in stories became a harsh reality. An economic recession hit with devastating force, and worse still, it felt like the apocalypse had begun.
Portals and dimensional rifts began appearing across the globe without warning. From these portals, monsters and alien creatures, unlike anything humans had ever seen, emerged, attacking major cities and destroying civilizations that had been built over centuries.
The world governments, even the United Nations Security Council, were powerless to fully address the disaster. They could only leave the safety of each country to its respective national security agencies. However, this system created a huge imbalance. Countries with weak military forces collapsed faster than those with advanced weaponry. Destruction spread in waves, and fear gripped everyone.
Rick let out a heavy sigh, remembering how, one month into the crisis, militaries around the world began to struggle. Stockpiles of weapons and military equipment were nearly depleted, while the waves of monster attacks showed no signs of stopping. Yet, in the midst of the desperation, something strange and inexplicable happened, some humans suddenly gained extraordinary powers.
No one knew for certain where the powers came from or what caused them. What was clear, however, was that some people suddenly possessed abilities far beyond those of ordinary humans.
They were called by various names: the Chosen, the Awakened, the Transcendent, or the Blessed. No matter what they were called, the point was the same. They became the new hope for humanity, teetering on the brink of destruction.
"Guardian angels, huh?" Rick muttered, his eyes drifting to the ceiling of his cell. He hadn't believed in any of it before. To him, it was just a rumor blown out of proportion by the media to calm the public. But now, after seeing the status screen appear before him, he was starting to realize that maybe it wasn't all nonsense.
He looked back at his hands, still finding it hard to believe the drastic changes to his body. All the injuries he had sustained while in prison had vanished without a trace. Not only that, but the power he saw in his status felt all too real.
Rick bit his lip, frustrated by the lack of information he had. The prison where he was held was quite isolated from the outside world. Only a little news trickled in, and even then, it was often contradictory. He had no idea how someone could gain such powers. Was there some kind of selection process? Or was it all just random?
With all the limitations he had, Rick couldn't fully understand the situation in the outside world. All he knew were the things he heard from the guards or fellow prisoners who had relatives out there. And most of them could only speculate about what was really happening.
However, one thing that still gave Rick a little relief was that the prison he was in seemed relatively safe from the disasters happening outside. Thanks to its location at the edge of a remote island, they hadn't been directly affected by the chaos in the outside world. So far, no portals or dimensional rifts had appeared near the prison.
This prison, despite being grim and confining, had become the safest place he could imagine. There were no terrifying monsters roaming inside, no destruction like the kind happening in the major cities. The only threats were a few wild animals in the surrounding forest that had evolved into more vicious creatures. But as long as he stayed inside the prison complex, he would remain safe.
Rick leaned back against the wall of his cell, his eyes staring out through the prison bars, the darkness surrounding him with only the faint sound of the night wind. The outside world may have become hell, but inside, everything still went on as usual, monotonous routines, the oppressive silence, and the long days.
Rick shifted his gaze back to the status screen still floating in front of him. There were many things that confused him, from the numbers and stats to terms he'd never heard before. But rather than dwelling on it all, he chose to focus on one thing that caught his attention, the bottom of his status screen, under the Item section.
"Item, huh?" Rick murmured softly, his eyes narrowing as he examined the small text on the screen.
His hand slowly extended, and his index finger tapped the blinking word [Item]. As soon as his finger made contact, the status screen changed instantly, displaying a detailed description of a weapon he had never heard of before.
Hofund Sword
[ Hofund is a divine sword belonging to Heimdall, originating from Asgard, and forged from Asgardian Orichalcum and Bifröst Light Crystals. This sword has the power to cut at the speed of light, open dimensional rifts, and create protective barriers. Anyone who possesses Hofund is recognized by Heimdall as his vassal. However, in its incomplete state or at an early level, its powers are still limited. ]
Rick read the description carefully, his brow furrowing.
But before he could absorb more, a radiant light suddenly filled his cell. Rick instinctively stepped back, his eyes widening as he saw a sword slowly materialize in midair, floating directly in front of him.
The sword looked exactly as described in his status.
The blade was sleek and elegant, about 1.2 meters long. Its surface was a shimmering silver, emitting a soft rainbow spectrum effect along the rune carvings that adorned the entire blade. As Rick looked closer, the runes seemed to glow faintly, almost alive and waiting to be activated.
The sword's hilt was adorned with a magnificent dragon-head ornament, its eyes seemingly watching its surroundings. The grip was wrapped in what looked like dragonhide, sturdy yet comfortable to hold. Rick slowly reached out, carefully touching the hilt. As his fingers made contact with the sacred dragonhide, a warm sensation spread through his entire body.
The sword vibrated lightly in his hand, as if acknowledging its presence. The rainbow aura surrounding it flared briefly before gradually dimming to a golden glow.
"So... this is real?" Rick murmured in disbelief, staring at his reflection in the glimmering blade. He swung it slowly, and the sword felt incredibly light in his hand, almost as if it were an extension of his own body.
The light around the sword slowly shifted from rainbow hues to silver as he tested it by striking at the empty air. In contrast, when he focused on defense, the light turned golden, creating an invisible barrier around him.
Rick took a deep breath, trying to control his astonishment.
As Rick remained focused on his sword, a sudden bright light flashed in front of his cell from the corridor. His instincts immediately reacted. It was undoubtedly a guard's flashlight, making its usual rounds.
"Damn!" Rick hissed, panicking.
Without thinking, he quickly dismissed the status screen, searching for a way to hide Hofund before the guard reached his cell. He gripped the sword's hilt tightly and thought hard.
"Disappear! Return!" he whispered urgently, hoping something would happen.
As if responding to his intent, Hofund glowed briefly before vanishing instantly, seemingly returning to some unknown place. Rick exhaled in relief, but the sound of the guard's footsteps grew closer. He quickly jumped back onto his bed, tucking himself under the worn blanket, trying to cover his body as much as possible.
A few seconds later, the flashlight beam swept through the bars of his cell. Rick held his breath, hoping nothing suspicious would be seen. The guard paused briefly in front of his cell, observing with a sharp gaze.
"Troublemaker, are you already asleep?" The guard muttered as he directed his flashlight into the cell.
Rick remained still, pretending to be asleep. His heart pounded loudly, cold sweat dripping from his temples, even though his body was covered by the blanket. He could feel the guard's sharp gaze searching for anything out of the ordinary.
What felt like an eternity passed before the guard mumbled something and continued on to the next cell. As soon as the footsteps faded into the distance, Rick slowly opened his eyes and took a deep breath.
"That was close..." he muttered softly.
He lifted the blanket slightly, glancing toward where Hofund had been. There was no trace of the sword, as if it had all been an illusion.
Rick looked at his hands, still feeling the warm sensation from the sword's hilt earlier. This wasn't a dream; it was real. He now possessed something far greater than he had ever imagined.
However, one thing was certain, he had to be much more careful from now on.