When Ethan woke up again he felt like days have passed since his battle with the weird man. The moment he opened his eyes a groan escaped his lips, the light was too bright for him after spending such a long time in the dim forest and cave. He blinked the tears away and rubbed his eyes. When his eyes adjusted he could see his surroundings.
He was sitting in a garden, the grass was cut short and had the same height, it looked almost like a solid piece of green, only the gentle breeze that was present in the garden broke the illusion. The edge of the small garden was adorned by flower beds, the flowers that grew there looked perfectly aligned, each of them the same length apart and of uniform height. The petals were of various shades of blue and white, the center of each flower was adorned with a blue jewel that shone in the gentle warm light of the sun.
Ethan turned his head further and spotted the man sitting a few meters away from him, he sat on some white outdoor furniture you would expect in a garden of a suburban home. When Ethan looked at him the man smiled and beckoned him to take a seat. Wary of the man he hesitated but what chances did he have? There was no visible way out of the garden and the man was faster than a bullet. He pushed himself to his feet and sighed before walking over to the man, he sat down and the next moment a cup of tea and a plate with biscuits was standing on the table.
“You did well hatchling, better than I expected. I knew my little riddle was placed in the current integration but I didn’t expect anybody to find it. But I guess you had some help from Ar’kzul, don’t bother I won’t explain.” he said and smiled.
“Ethan, right? Well you fought well for a human on your level, of course I helped you out a bit with all those injuries but you withstand pain quite well, after the first few hits. Of course it would be better to not be hit in the first place. Still I decided to offer you some help. First you should check your status before asking any questions.” The man took a sip of his tea and leaned back in his chair, smiling, amusement clearly visible on his face.
Ethan sighed and just admitted defeat and checked his system.
*Update* Aura(Special) unlocked - Winter’s Domain - Everything within the radius of your aura is slowed down minimally, when exposed for some time,the creature or objects starts to freeze. When frozen, when exposed for a long time movement is heavily reduced.
*Update* Elemental Infusion(Basic) unlocked - Allows the caster to infuse his elemental mana into an object, can grant buffs or debuffs depending on the object and desired result of the caster
*Update* Staff Mastery(Basic) unlocked - You don’t need a sword and shield, even an ordinary stick can become a weapon in the hands of an expert…you’re far away from being one but at least you know how to hit things.
*Update* [For unlocking your aura ability before reaching level 10 you gain bonus experience]
*Update* You reached Level 4! Stats gained! Free points gained!
Name: Ethan Delaney
Race: Human(Ice)
Level: 4
Class: Ice Mage
Subclass: None
Health Points (HP): 130/130
Mana Points (MP): 210/210
Stamina: 100/100
Stats
Strength: 10
Dexterity: 10
Vitality: 13
Wisdom: 21
Intelligence: 21
Perception: 10
Willpower: 10
Free points: 4
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“By the look on your face I know you saw all the changes. I must admit I’m rather impressed hatchling. You managed to earn yourself a head start in this little competition, but we’re not finished. I offer you my help but, remember if you change your mind it will damage your path more than mine so if you have questions, ask them now but remember. I can’t answer a lot of topics.”
Ethan furrowed his brow and grabbed the cup of tea while he was in thought, his mind was spinning. The fight fresh in his mind, the abilities he unlocked, the offer he got. The integration, the tutorial and his fight so far. He didn’t know if he even wanted answers. But then he decided on a few questions.
“Why are we here in this tutorial? Are all the tutorials this hard? Do we win at some point or does it keep going until one is still alive? Why couldn’t I use the magic the way I wanted before but it suddenly worked in our fight?”
The man took another sip and nodded along to Ethan’s questions. “I can answer some questions…why you’re in the tutorial, simply to help you adjust and yes all tutorials are like this but the environment could be different. It ends at some point but that is all I can say. Your question about magic…”
He ate a cookie and emptied his cup before looking at Ethan.
“Try to imagine what I say. The amount of magic can be compared to a gentle flowing creek in your case. As long as the water that comes from the spring stays the same nothing happens, even when the spring has a lot more water to give. But now you force more and more water from the spring and your small creek transforms into a river. Can you follow?”
Ethan nodded and looked at the man, his mind working. Before he said something.
“So what you say is even if I have a lot of mana I can’t use all of it because it damages my own body, because I try to channel too much power through myself.”
The man smiled and nodded. “ That’s right, it’s like forcing too much blood through a blood vessel, it can work but it will end in pain and it can rupture and you start to bleed. The same goes for a mana. But there are two ways to transform your little creek into a river. The first way is simple, you just need to level, with time your body will improve in many ways and bring the mess of blood, bones and organs you currently have into harmony. Organs will vanish, your bones will grow stronger and your blood will work more as a conduit for power than keeping you alive.
The second way is to go beyond your limits, it sounds brutal but if you force your body to adapt it will happen, it’s painful but with enough time your body will move mana a lot better.”
Ethan was still confused but he accepted the answer. The pain was bad, like someone was injecting molten metal into your bloodstream but maybe he should keep it up, he wanted a new life after all, nobody said it would be painless to exist in this new magical universe. The man helped him a lot and even answered his questions. If Ethan was honest with himself, he would have died without so much luck up to this point. He nodded and looked at the man, his blue eyes now speckled with white spots.
“I accept your help..” he shook hands with the man…no, not man, Ouroboros. The god smiled and nodded. “I believe you made the right decision, now for my gifts.” His hand glowed white and Ethan could feel something moving up his arm and settling in his chest, some kind of power connected him to the god and he could feel the deity in front of him, connected through his magic.
Ouroboros let go of his hand and smiled, then he pulled a small egg from somewhere, Ethan again didn’t manage to spot it. The god put the egg into Ethan’ still glowing hand and closed his fingers around it, his movements gentle and careful. “What I gave you is a blessing and…one of my children, this egg will hatch the moment you’re back in the tutorial. I know she will be a good companion to you and grow with you. She will influence you and you will influence her. I say this so you’re prepared, it will be subtle at first but keep it in mind.”
He stood up and helped Ethan to his feet while a door appeared next to them. “Go now and don’t disappoint me hatchling, I expect great things from you…the next time we talk it will be when you select your sub-class. I’m looking forward to it.”
Ouroboros gave Ethan a gentle push towards the door, the ice mage turned around and nodded. “Thanks for the help.” the egg held against his chest he stepped through the door.
The god chuckled. “I wasn’t that excited in eons.” he waited for the door to close before he and the garden disappeared.
