"One foot in front of the other, yes, like that..." She was tired, "Just a few more minutes...almost there Eli-Eli." Very tired.
And Rossie didn't seem to want to let her rest yet, she was supposed to walk at least half an hour each day for her recovery...Why? She wasn't sure. She could walk just fine.
She had enough points in the constitution to prove it. But even so, she was made to walk like this, at least her sweat didn't make her look gross...Somehow.
Her charisma seemed to make her sweat shine with light at the right angles giving her an ethereal beauty look, even if she was breathing like a hog... A drunk hog that wanted to mate in a puddle...
"You can do it Eli-Eli!" Rossie cheered for her as she had momentarily stopped at the mental image that rose in her mind.
She was grateful for her exhaustion that made her face red from all the walking she had done, or Rossie would have noticed her blush. Or how her eyes darted all across the room except on her friend.
"Aaaand done!" Her friend rushed in her way and tackled her to the ground with a flying hug. "Did you get it?" Asked Rossie with her face full of expectation mere centimeters away from her.
Yeah, this was dangerous for her mental health. She wasn't sure where to look at, she didn't even have a boyfriend before...Or a girlfriend!
Was it rude to stare? Should she look at Rossie's eyes? Her face? Her cleavage? She didn't know!
So instead she tried to play it cool and answered "Yes Rossie, I got it." What she got you may ask?
Well, she had been working towards getting one of those fancy titles, or well, not fancy but normal ones. She needed to get a couple to try and make it less obvious she had some dangerous-sounding ones.
And this in turn meant that she was following Rossie's program to get such titles before starting to level up, or looking in the direction of her pending notifications, according to the pink-haired girl, opening them would risk her leveling up. If any had experience, and that in turn would make getting titles harder if she earned too much experience.
So she would need to do this the hard way...By doing things at level one with her pitifully low status.
"Here look," Elizabeth said while pushing the new blue screen towards Rossie.
The screen that had showed up told her about her more recent achievement.
| Congratulations! |
| You have achieved a feat worthy of [Recording], by sheer willpower and stubbornness you have managed to accelerate your recovery without depending on bonuses from previous achievements or levels. You have thus been granted the Title of: [Iron-Willed]
Iron Willed: Your determination is worthy of note, you strive to move forward against all odds when someone weaker-minded would fold and accept their defeat, so long as you have a clear objective to move forward you will receive a bonus to your stamina regeneration and a bonus of a fifth of your Constitution value rounded down.
-Increased proficiency towards physical skills. -Increased proficiency towards regeneration skills. -Increased proficiency towards passive mental protection skills. |
She had gotten a title out of this, and it only took her a week of constant struggle! She was half sure this title had come more from her sheer focus at not wanting to ogle more than needed her pink-haired menace than from her focus towards her recovery.
Not that she would admit it, "[Iron-Willed] huh...Weird, shouldn't it be [Adamant Recovery] or [Survivor]?" Rossie said while fiddling with a strand of her hair, still atop her body.
She was soft, so it wasn't that much of a problem "So any other easy to acquire [Title] before I finally look at the deluge of notifications?" Elizabeth asked.
The pink-haired girl was brought from her reverie of toying with her hair while atop her chest and just smiled "Yes, let's move back to the bed first. Just in case." And said as such while helping her stand.
She wasn't THAT weak but still felt grateful for the gesture, she also didn't mind the stream of healing mana flooding into her body from Rossie's hand, it was something akin to a second nature for Rossie at this point.
Every time she grabbed her hand a small trickle of [Holy] mana flooded into her body, and unlike what she knew of mana, her body didn't reject it but embraced it, coddled it, did a revolution across her body with it before sending it back.
It was a closed loop of their mana entwining in her body before being sent back...And then returned once again, if she was asked what part was her mana and what part was Rossie's mana...She couldn't answer that.
This wasn't how mana should behave, maybe hers had mutated when her soul fused into Chloe's and Alexanders, maybe it was the body that she now had. The one that was closer to mana than flesh, a legacy from Chloe's mother.
She wasn't sure, "There, just sit down and let me connect you." Rossie said while pointing to the bed, this wasn't a normal bed though, it was the one she had awoken in. A hospital bed.
It sat in her bedroom, and they...Hadn't really done anything to it, she no longer slept here, that bed gave her odd feelings, nowadays she sleep in Rossie's room, at the start they (Her idea) decided to take turns to sleep on the bed while the other sleep on the floor. So of course the first day she slept on the bed she woke up to Rossie at her side, and the first day she slept on the floor...She woke up to Rossie at her side. In the end, she surrendered and decided to share a bed with the pink-haired girl (Nothing happened though!)
And in the meantime, her room (And hospital bed) stayed abandoned in her old room, so they didn't see any reason to move it back or try to do something with it, her room held...Nothing really, most of her belongings had been taken away while they searched for the cellphone her parents had given her, the same one that teleported away the first day she woke up.
No one came to bring trouble to them after the event, but even so, she went bringing everything on her [Inventory] to take stock, Rossie had been surprised at the size of her inventory, apparently the thing should work as a virtual pocket that doubled whatever amount she could carry on her person.
So with only a hospital gown, she would get only two slots, three at best that could hold around the same amount as half her body weight, instead of...Well, a wardrobe...Or that was what she thought.
Since she had evolved her skill into that aspect, instead what she got was a virtual space the size of a garage and some spots on the walls to hang clothes, a few shelves on the walls for her shoes and jewelry, and...That was it.
"Okay, I'm ready...Open [Notifications]." And when nothing happened, she decided to focus on the admiration symbol at the corner of her HUD and sure enough a deluge of notifications ran down on her.
| Notice: |
| You have achieved the minimum social standing to join [The World's System], welcome! Please listen to your [Parents] or [Guardians] about the intricacies of the [System]! Your current [Parents] are registered as [%$#$%&] and [%$#"$%"#$%].... Error. Current title [Daughter of the Gods] in effect. Redirecting authority over your status... Error.... No [God] or [Administrator] shall have influence over the decisions of the humans as per God [Mainframe] and Goddess [Odyssey] divine command. Authority over your status has been designed to you as the only remaining family member of the [Starbright] lineage. Be advised this should only happen when you are [15] [years old] and you currently are [1] [year-old]. Please accude to any [Guardian] that currently checks over you. |
Then it moved to the description of her [Daughter of the Gods] title that she had read before, so she skipped that one, a few of the older blue screens she saw that said she didn't have any achievement in her previous life...
And then moved on to the next big one...
The one that she had dreaded, the only one thing her Mother was adamant she stayed as far away as possible from those that bore such hideous and horrible marks. And also the one thing she didn't have and the prime reason for her suffering under Ethan.
The [Hero] Title.
| CONGRATULATIONS! |
| You have been deemed worthy to carry the flag of one of the finest and most valuable people in the world, you have been chosen by the Goddess [Odyssey] under the blessing of the God [Mainframe] as a [Hero]! You stand upon the precipice of destiny, this is a moment that shall echo throughout the annals of time—a moment when greatness converges with fate, as an individual who transcends the ordinary to become a paragon of valor and virtue. Heroes are not merely born; they are forged through trials, tempered by sacrifice, and anointed by their actions. As such be aware that while in your life you may suffer, every single trial by fire you surpass will have you stronger than before. The Gods have smiled upon you and given you this [Privilege] so that you may strive to be the best you can be under their blessing, know that should you call upon your [Divine Right] as a [Hero] their church will answer to your call and support you. Know that should you wish for it, you may even call upon the might of the Gods upon your body so they may smite your enemies! But also know that these powers come with restrictions, for the gods are busy and their influence in the material world is limited. Bonus: -Increased EXP gain. -Increased proficiency gain. -Lowered amount of proficiency needed to earn Titles. -Increased amount of jobs from the system. -Protection from foreign [Fate] from other [Gods] that didn't grant the [Hero] title. -Increased [Fate] weight.
-Permission to marry a pink-haired girlfriend when turning adult. |
This one was definitely from Father, how did she know? Because it didn't have as many silly jokes in it as [Daughter of the gods] had, Mother liked to joke around like that, and the whole [Can stay awake late at night] or [Can have a pink-haired girlfriend] reeked of her Mother's influence.
But then again...This one had one more dangerous one at the end "Can marry a pink-haired girlfriend when becoming an adult..." She mumbled aloud.
"What was that Eli-Eli?" Said Rossie at her side, had she said that aloud?!?
"Oh nothing, reading something, here look." She said while dismissing the [Hero] notification and sending the next one to Rossie.
She hadn't even seen it, but with some luck it wouldn't have anything embarrassing on it, right?
| About being a Hero: |
| There are many responsibilities about being a [Hero], so many that very few manage to do this alone, the [Gods] know this, as one who has traveled far and wide as [Odyssey] knows this from her travels, about how many [Heroes] formed groups to fight the problems together. And as one who shouldered this weight alone [Mainframe] doesn't wish this fate for you to shoulder alone.
But also neither wishes for others to be forced this terrible fate upon them, and as such they have given you the opportunity to decide if you wish to tackle this alone or with loyal companions.
The [Hero] title you hold allows you to bring others into your [Heroic Party]. So that they enjoy benefits from helping you while also giving you a loyal companion, the more they support you and help the more benefits they shall reap. But do advise them of the dangers of tying their [Fate] to you.
For while they will reap rewards, their fate will nurture your own, the bigger their [Fate] is the more you will benefit, and the more they will benefit in return from their help.
The [Heroic Party] limit is tied to your level, earning one slot per every 20 levels. Current limit to Heroic Party: [1] Current Members of the Heroic Party: None Current Boost from Heroic Party: None Current Boost to members of Heroic Party: -Increased size of inventory (Access to a shared [Garage] Inventory) -Increased proficiency towards skills acquisition. -Increased exp gain by 5% (half of that gain is redirected to the [Hero])
[Boosts to the heroic party are decided by the current skillset of the Hero. At each new slot acquisition the Hero may decide on the next bonus.] |
"Yes, of course I will." Answered Rossie while she was reading her blue screen.
What?
This was the second time she got the impression Rossie was reading something different, but a new prompt brought her away from that notion.
| Congratulations! |
| You have managed to [Entice] a member to your [Heroic Party]! Name: Rossaline Singh May your future endeavors shine brightly upon the world [Hero]! |
And then another one.
| Congratulations! |
| You have adquired experience points from [Overflow] from [Heroic Party], you are now level 5. |
And then she felt it, a warm feeling in her heart as something within her [Soul] settled in place, she felt a tug in her [Soulscape] and closed her eyes to look within. She quickly found herself floating above the ruined city that was her [Soulscape].
Following the tug she flew to the apartment side of the [Soulscape] the part where her original piece of [Soulscape] had been, she had moved most of her stuff to the central building in the middle now, but still left the older apartment as it was.
There in the same apartment block, on the same floor even, she found...A door with a pink heart on it, she knocked on the door and found it open...Inside...
It was a ruined room, the walls were torn apart, the painting was missing, it was a mess of a room, but more importantly...This room hadn't been here before, she knew each part of the ruined city, and this...This wasn't part of it.
Inside the room, the windows didn't show the ruined city, but a black void, the room's door on the other side showed a door frame as if someone had destroyed it and now the rest of the apartment was missing. And on a desk in the room was a pink diary book.
"Eli-Eli?" And at the sound of that voice, she turned and found...A small Rossie.
But before she could even say something "Everything okay Eli-Eli? You blanket out on me after I choose yes." She was pulled back to the real world by Rossie.
"Huh?" She...What? "Rossie...What did you do to your [Soulscape]?" She asked without thinking.
Was...Was that Rossie's Soulscape?
"...No one can access their [Soulscape]. So I'm not sure what to tell you." Rossie answered as such.
But she could feel it, she knew what she referred too, "Here come with me." Elizabeth said while taking the pink-haired girl's hand and focusing inwardly.
She felt some resistance from the mana, but ultimately she managed to [Pull] the pink-haired girl inwards with her, it helped that her mana was mixed with Rossie's that much.
"What...Where are we Eli-Eli?" Said the voice of a little girl, she turned and saw Rossie had turned into the same little girl with pink hair she had seen before. "What happened to me?!?"
She smiled at the panic the girl was having and just flew them into the apartment building, fortunately, she managed to make them land quite close to the place. "This...Is what my [Soulscape] looks like, the true one anyway. The one I knew before was [Made up] it seems." Elizabeth said while walking into the apartment building.
"Is also the place I spent the time I was unconscious...Well not here here, I woke up over there." Elizabeth said while pointing at the building in the middle of the city, the HQ of the former mega conglomerate that ruled another world...And was probably on the way to bankruptcy...Since she hadn't found anything about them.
"Oh, that logo seems familiar? Can't quite place it though." Was all the answer Rossie gave.
Yikes, did the Saintsworth crash so hard that everyone forgot about them?
"Anyway, the point is...I took you here because after you joined the [Heroic Party] this door showed up." They had arrived at the door with the pink motif on it by this point.
"And you hadn't seen it before? The city is quite big..." Was the attempt Rossie made to divert it, but she could see it in her eyes, and the girl recognized the door.
"No, it wasn't. I know each and every part of this city." Elizabeth said while placing her hand on the knob of the door.
"Eli-Eli...." And before Rossie could say anything she opened the door, and the same little girl as before was inside.
And the Rossie behind her had returned to her normal form. "Oh, Hello again Eli-Eli...And...Hello me." The small little girl Rossie said.
"...Hello...me." And the normal Rossie answered.
Both girls just stood there looking at each other, the small girl was the first one to break eye contact and walk into one of the wardrobes, bringing a chair "Here, take a seat Eli-Eli." And giving it to her.
She of course sat down, trying to be a good visitor. "You sit anywhere." But the little girl Rossie seemed to be quite rude to normal Rossie.
"Yeah, I know." And the normal Rossie didn't seem to mind it!
But she did mind it!
"Be nice to Rossie...Rossie." Only...She wasn't sure how to deal with this, should she get angry at Rossie for being rude to Rossie?!?
Rossieception!
"It's okay Eli-Eli." Said the older Rossie, she found herself a cushion and sat down on it. "We are friends."
The smaller Rossie for her part brought her a cup of juice and sat on the lap of the older Rossie, "Yeah, even if she ripped apart half of our [Soulscape] I was okay with it." And said as much.
That is good, she should be good with hers...."YOU DID WHAT?!?" Screamed Elizabeth while looking around the room, she could see some cracks here and there on the floor and walls, the most obvious was, of course, the missing door frame.
"WHY DID YOU EVEN DID THAT?!? DIDN'T ETHAN FIX IT BEFORE?!?" She started fussing over the pink-haired girls, checking them for obvious wounds and finding nothing.
She prodded and even checked under their shirts searching for hidden wounds, but nothing obvious was on them.
"Of course to try and help you." Said the little Rossie, "We thought that if we used our [Soulscape] as material we could kickstart your awakening."
"Not that it ever worked, but I had to do something..." Finished saying the older Rossie.
Oh...Right...
"Well...It did help me wake up faster..."Elizabeth said, she still remembered those warm motes of light that she used to wait for, and how Chloe had warned her that Rossie was in danger.
"You don't have to comfort us Eli-Eli." The older Rossie said while hugging the smaller Rossie. "You would have woken up even without our help right?"
She...Wasn't so sure about that, granted it seemed as if she would have woken up eventually, but she wasn't that sure her body would be in good condition.
"Anyway, this won't do," Elizabeth said standing up and walking towards the doorframe that opened to an empty void. "This won't do at all, the [Soulscape] is the foundation of our [Magic] and [Skills] and yours is stunted like this."
She focused on the door that opened towards her ruined city, towards her [Soulscape]. She had plenty of empty buildings right?
So "I will give you part of mine, in exchange for all the mana that you have given me." She decided as such.
"Tha..."And before Rossie could even say anything she started funneling her [Mana].
Inside her [Soulscape] she always felt as if there was no limit to the amount of mana she could control, to the amount of [Authority] she held "[Heed my call dwellers of the darkness.]" And so she didn't limit herself.
She would need to make it extra special if she wanted to make sure this held together, "[On this day, on this night. I shall connect...]" but how to make sure the wording was right?
She couldn't risk it, Rossie's soulscape was crumbling and would need all the support, but she couldn't just use her name, she needed something enforced by the system.
Should she use her title as Saint of Healing? No, there were plenty of healers, and some even were called Saints.
No...She needed something more personal, something that tied them together...Oh...Right...It had been missing from the status screen Rossie showed her before, but it should work.
"[....The Ruined Capital City of Terra Invicta with the Everlasting paramour's bastion.]" The name flowed out of her mouth, so this was the capital of Terra Invicta?
The heck was a Terra Invicta? Apparently, the place where her ruined city was before. She felt the connection with Rossie solidify and could even feel Rossie within her [Soulscape]. The door that brought her in disappeared, but she wasn't panicked by that, for the ruined door frame transformed into a normal door, and opening it... She could see a normal apartment.
Her normal apartment, the place where her soulscape had started before it expanded to cover this whole place. She knew that should she wish for it, she could even move this place anywhere she wished for.
So long Rossie didn't mind it that is.
"And done, now your bad decisions will affect me too!" Elizabeth said with a smile on her face, "So no more breaking of [Soulscapes] please. I know mine is a little bit bigger than others, but I like it in one piece...Or as intact as possible, this place needs some redecoration after all." She joked while smiling.
Her ruined city was quite destroyed, only a small part near the central building was repaired, and even ravaged as it was, this room that represented Rossie's Souslcape was better than most of the city.
"You are really..." Big Rossie said while the little Rossie turned into motes of light that fused into her body, "...A reckless person."
"I'm not the one that broke her [Soulscape] to try and wake up someone!" Elizabeth defended herself.
"No, you are the reckless one that tied her [Soulscape] to someone that did just that! I could break it and let it would rip apart your [Soulscape]!" The pink-haired girl said while standing.
She wasn't convincing at all, "I mean yeah, but have you seen my [Soulscape]? It can survive a few rips here and there." Elizabeth said smugly. "Besides you wouldn't do that, I just woke up from a coma. Any trauma like that might just knock me down another half a year."
"Idiot." The pink-haired girl sighed in defeat.
"Love you too ~" The blonde girl answered in kind.
They both just stood there "Now, let's see what more there is to see in these notifications." And Elizabeth said as much while grabbing the pink-haired girl's hand and bringing her back to the real world.
She woke up on the bed with the pink-haired girl lying on her thighs, "With some luck the next parts don't have soul-shattering revelations, right?" And joked as such.
Yeah, no way there was something more groundbreaking on her notifications....right?
"One foot in front of the other, yes, like that..." She was tired, "Just a few more minutes...almost there Eli-Eli." Very tired.
And Rossie didn't seem to want to let her rest yet, she was supposed to walk at least half an hour each day for her recovery...Why? She wasn't sure. She could walk just fine.
She had enough points in the constitution to prove it. But even so, she was made to walk like this, at least her sweat didn't make her look gross...Somehow.
Her charisma seemed to make her sweat shine with light at the right angles giving her an ethereal beauty look, even if she was breathing like a hog... A drunk hog that wanted to mate in a puddle...
"You can do it Eli-Eli!" Rossie cheered for her as she had momentarily stopped at the mental image that rose in her mind.
She was grateful for her exhaustion that made her face red from all the walking she had done, or Rossie would have noticed her blush. Or how her eyes darted all across the room except on her friend.
"Aaaand done!" Her friend rushed in her way and tackled her to the ground with a flying hug. "Did you get it?" Asked Rossie with her face full of expectation mere centimeters away from her.
Yeah, this was dangerous for her mental health. She wasn't sure where to look at, she didn't even have a boyfriend before...Or a girlfriend!
Was it rude to stare? Should she look at Rossie's eyes? Her face? Her cleavage? She didn't know!
So instead she tried to play it cool and answered "Yes Rossie, I got it." What she got you may ask?
Well, she had been working towards getting one of those fancy titles, or well, not fancy but normal ones. She needed to get a couple to try and make it less obvious she had some dangerous-sounding ones.
And this in turn meant that she was following Rossie's program to get such titles before starting to level up, or looking in the direction of her pending notifications, according to the pink-haired girl, opening them would risk her leveling up. If any had experience, and that in turn would make getting titles harder if she earned too much experience.
So she would need to do this the hard way...By doing things at level one with her pitifully low status.
"Here look," Elizabeth said while pushing the new blue screen towards Rossie.
The screen that had showed up told her about her more recent achievement.
| Congratulations! |
| You have achieved a feat worthy of [Recording], by sheer willpower and stubbornness you have managed to accelerate your recovery without depending on bonuses from previous achievements or levels. You have thus been granted the Title of: [Iron-Willed]
Iron Willed: Your determination is worthy of note, you strive to move forward against all odds when someone weaker-minded would fold and accept their defeat, so long as you have a clear objective to move forward you will receive a bonus to your stamina regeneration and a bonus of a fifth of your Constitution value rounded down.
-Increased proficiency towards physical skills. -Increased proficiency towards regeneration skills. -Increased proficiency towards passive mental protection skills. |
She had gotten a title out of this, and it only took her a week of constant struggle! She was half sure this title had come more from her sheer focus at not wanting to ogle more than needed her pink-haired menace than from her focus towards her recovery.
Not that she would admit it, "[Iron-Willed] huh...Weird, shouldn't it be [Adamant Recovery] or [Survivor]?" Rossie said while fiddling with a strand of her hair, still atop her body.
She was soft, so it wasn't that much of a problem "So any other easy to acquire [Title] before I finally look at the deluge of notifications?" Elizabeth asked.
The pink-haired girl was brought from her reverie of toying with her hair while atop her chest and just smiled "Yes, let's move back to the bed first. Just in case." And said as such while helping her stand.
She wasn't THAT weak but still felt grateful for the gesture, she also didn't mind the stream of healing mana flooding into her body from Rossie's hand, it was something akin to a second nature for Rossie at this point.
Every time she grabbed her hand a small trickle of [Holy] mana flooded into her body, and unlike what she knew of mana, her body didn't reject it but embraced it, coddled it, did a revolution across her body with it before sending it back.
It was a closed loop of their mana entwining in her body before being sent back...And then returned once again, if she was asked what part was her mana and what part was Rossie's mana...She couldn't answer that.
This wasn't how mana should behave, maybe hers had mutated when her soul fused into Chloe's and Alexanders, maybe it was the body that she now had. The one that was closer to mana than flesh, a legacy from Chloe's mother.
She wasn't sure, "There, just sit down and let me connect you." Rossie said while pointing to the bed, this wasn't a normal bed though, it was the one she had awoken in. A hospital bed.
It sat in her bedroom, and they...Hadn't really done anything to it, she no longer slept here, that bed gave her odd feelings, nowadays she sleep in Rossie's room, at the start they (Her idea) decided to take turns to sleep on the bed while the other sleep on the floor. So of course the first day she slept on the bed she woke up to Rossie at her side, and the first day she slept on the floor...She woke up to Rossie at her side. In the end, she surrendered and decided to share a bed with the pink-haired girl (Nothing happened though!)
And in the meantime, her room (And hospital bed) stayed abandoned in her old room, so they didn't see any reason to move it back or try to do something with it, her room held...Nothing really, most of her belongings had been taken away while they searched for the cellphone her parents had given her, the same one that teleported away the first day she woke up.
No one came to bring trouble to them after the event, but even so, she went bringing everything on her [Inventory] to take stock, Rossie had been surprised at the size of her inventory, apparently the thing should work as a virtual pocket that doubled whatever amount she could carry on her person.
So with only a hospital gown, she would get only two slots, three at best that could hold around the same amount as half her body weight, instead of...Well, a wardrobe...Or that was what she thought.
Since she had evolved her skill into that aspect, instead what she got was a virtual space the size of a garage and some spots on the walls to hang clothes, a few shelves on the walls for her shoes and jewelry, and...That was it.
"Okay, I'm ready...Open [Notifications]." And when nothing happened, she decided to focus on the admiration symbol at the corner of her HUD and sure enough a deluge of notifications ran down on her.
| Notice: |
| You have achieved the minimum social standing to join [The World's System], welcome! Please listen to your [Parents] or [Guardians] about the intricacies of the [System]! Your current [Parents] are registered as [%$#$%&] and [%$#"$%"#$%].... Error. Current title [Daughter of the Gods] in effect. Redirecting authority over your status... Error.... No [God] or [Administrator] shall have influence over the decisions of the humans as per God [Mainframe] and Goddess [Odyssey] divine command. Authority over your status has been designed to you as the only remaining family member of the [Starbright] lineage. Be advised this should only happen when you are [15] [years old] and you currently are [1] [year-old]. Please accude to any [Guardian] that currently checks over you. |
Then it moved to the description of her [Daughter of the Gods] title that she had read before, so she skipped that one, a few of the older blue screens she saw that said she didn't have any achievement in her previous life...
And then moved on to the next big one...
The one that she had dreaded, the only one thing her Mother was adamant she stayed as far away as possible from those that bore such hideous and horrible marks. And also the one thing she didn't have and the prime reason for her suffering under Ethan.
The [Hero] Title.
| CONGRATULATIONS! |
| You have been deemed worthy to carry the flag of one of the finest and most valuable people in the world, you have been chosen by the Goddess [Odyssey] under the blessing of the God [Mainframe] as a [Hero]! You stand upon the precipice of destiny, this is a moment that shall echo throughout the annals of time—a moment when greatness converges with fate, as an individual who transcends the ordinary to become a paragon of valor and virtue. Heroes are not merely born; they are forged through trials, tempered by sacrifice, and anointed by their actions. As such be aware that while in your life you may suffer, every single trial by fire you surpass will have you stronger than before. The Gods have smiled upon you and given you this [Privilege] so that you may strive to be the best you can be under their blessing, know that should you call upon your [Divine Right] as a [Hero] their church will answer to your call and support you. Know that should you wish for it, you may even call upon the might of the Gods upon your body so they may smite your enemies! But also know that these powers come with restrictions, for the gods are busy and their influence in the material world is limited. Bonus: -Increased EXP gain. -Increased proficiency gain. -Lowered amount of proficiency needed to earn Titles. -Increased amount of jobs from the system. -Protection from foreign [Fate] from other [Gods] that didn't grant the [Hero] title. -Increased [Fate] weight.
-Permission to marry a pink-haired girlfriend when turning adult. |
This one was definitely from Father, how did she know? Because it didn't have as many silly jokes in it as [Daughter of the gods] had, Mother liked to joke around like that, and the whole [Can stay awake late at night] or [Can have a pink-haired girlfriend] reeked of her Mother's influence.
But then again...This one had one more dangerous one at the end "Can marry a pink-haired girlfriend when becoming an adult..." She mumbled aloud.
"What was that Eli-Eli?" Said Rossie at her side, had she said that aloud?!?
"Oh nothing, reading something, here look." She said while dismissing the [Hero] notification and sending the next one to Rossie.
She hadn't even seen it, but with some luck it wouldn't have anything embarrassing on it, right?
| About being a Hero: |
| There are many responsibilities about being a [Hero], so many that very few manage to do this alone, the [Gods] know this, as one who has traveled far and wide as [Odyssey] knows this from her travels, about how many [Heroes] formed groups to fight the problems together. And as one who shouldered this weight alone [Mainframe] doesn't wish this fate for you to shoulder alone.
But also neither wishes for others to be forced this terrible fate upon them, and as such they have given you the opportunity to decide if you wish to tackle this alone or with loyal companions.
The [Hero] title you hold allows you to bring others into your [Heroic Party]. So that they enjoy benefits from helping you while also giving you a loyal companion, the more they support you and help the more benefits they shall reap. But do advise them of the dangers of tying their [Fate] to you.
For while they will reap rewards, their fate will nurture your own, the bigger their [Fate] is the more you will benefit, and the more they will benefit in return from their help.
The [Heroic Party] limit is tied to your level, earning one slot per every 20 levels. Current limit to Heroic Party: [1] Current Members of the Heroic Party: None Current Boost from Heroic Party: None Current Boost to members of Heroic Party: -Increased size of inventory (Access to a shared [Garage] Inventory) -Increased proficiency towards skills acquisition. -Increased exp gain by 5% (half of that gain is redirected to the [Hero])
[Boosts to the heroic party are decided by the current skillset of the Hero. At each new slot acquisition the Hero may decide on the next bonus.] |
"Yes, of course I will." Answered Rossie while she was reading her blue screen.
What?
This was the second time she got the impression Rossie was reading something different, but a new prompt brought her away from that notion.
| Congratulations! |
| You have managed to [Entice] a member to your [Heroic Party]! Name: Rossaline Singh May your future endeavors shine brightly upon the world [Hero]! |
And then another one.
| Congratulations! |
| You have adquired experience points from [Overflow] from [Heroic Party], you are now level 5. |
And then she felt it, a warm feeling in her heart as something within her [Soul] settled in place, she felt a tug in her [Soulscape] and closed her eyes to look within. She quickly found herself floating above the ruined city that was her [Soulscape].
Following the tug she flew to the apartment side of the [Soulscape] the part where her original piece of [Soulscape] had been, she had moved most of her stuff to the central building in the middle now, but still left the older apartment as it was.
There in the same apartment block, on the same floor even, she found...A door with a pink heart on it, she knocked on the door and found it open...Inside...
It was a ruined room, the walls were torn apart, the painting was missing, it was a mess of a room, but more importantly...This room hadn't been here before, she knew each part of the ruined city, and this...This wasn't part of it.
Inside the room, the windows didn't show the ruined city, but a black void, the room's door on the other side showed a door frame as if someone had destroyed it and now the rest of the apartment was missing. And on a desk in the room was a pink diary book.
"Eli-Eli?" And at the sound of that voice, she turned and found...A small Rossie.
But before she could even say something "Everything okay Eli-Eli? You blanket out on me after I choose yes." She was pulled back to the real world by Rossie.
"Huh?" She...What? "Rossie...What did you do to your [Soulscape]?" She asked without thinking.
Was...Was that Rossie's Soulscape?
"...No one can access their [Soulscape]. So I'm not sure what to tell you." Rossie answered as such.
But she could feel it, she knew what she referred too, "Here come with me." Elizabeth said while taking the pink-haired girl's hand and focusing inwardly.
She felt some resistance from the mana, but ultimately she managed to [Pull] the pink-haired girl inwards with her, it helped that her mana was mixed with Rossie's that much.
"What...Where are we Eli-Eli?" Said the voice of a little girl, she turned and saw Rossie had turned into the same little girl with pink hair she had seen before. "What happened to me?!?"
She smiled at the panic the girl was having and just flew them into the apartment building, fortunately, she managed to make them land quite close to the place. "This...Is what my [Soulscape] looks like, the true one anyway. The one I knew before was [Made up] it seems." Elizabeth said while walking into the apartment building.
"Is also the place I spent the time I was unconscious...Well not here here, I woke up over there." Elizabeth said while pointing at the building in the middle of the city, the HQ of the former mega conglomerate that ruled another world...And was probably on the way to bankruptcy...Since she hadn't found anything about them.
"Oh, that logo seems familiar? Can't quite place it though." Was all the answer Rossie gave.
Yikes, did the Saintsworth crash so hard that everyone forgot about them?
"Anyway, the point is...I took you here because after you joined the [Heroic Party] this door showed up." They had arrived at the door with the pink motif on it by this point.
"And you hadn't seen it before? The city is quite big..." Was the attempt Rossie made to divert it, but she could see it in her eyes, and the girl recognized the door.
"No, it wasn't. I know each and every part of this city." Elizabeth said while placing her hand on the knob of the door.
"Eli-Eli...." And before Rossie could say anything she opened the door, and the same little girl as before was inside.
And the Rossie behind her had returned to her normal form. "Oh, Hello again Eli-Eli...And...Hello me." The small little girl Rossie said.
"...Hello...me." And the normal Rossie answered.
Both girls just stood there looking at each other, the small girl was the first one to break eye contact and walk into one of the wardrobes, bringing a chair "Here, take a seat Eli-Eli." And giving it to her.
She of course sat down, trying to be a good visitor. "You sit anywhere." But the little girl Rossie seemed to be quite rude to normal Rossie.
"Yeah, I know." And the normal Rossie didn't seem to mind it!
But she did mind it!
"Be nice to Rossie...Rossie." Only...She wasn't sure how to deal with this, should she get angry at Rossie for being rude to Rossie?!?
Rossieception!
"It's okay Eli-Eli." Said the older Rossie, she found herself a cushion and sat down on it. "We are friends."
The smaller Rossie for her part brought her a cup of juice and sat on the lap of the older Rossie, "Yeah, even if she ripped apart half of our [Soulscape] I was okay with it." And said as much.
That is good, she should be good with hers...."YOU DID WHAT?!?" Screamed Elizabeth while looking around the room, she could see some cracks here and there on the floor and walls, the most obvious was, of course, the missing door frame.
"WHY DID YOU EVEN DID THAT?!? DIDN'T ETHAN FIX IT BEFORE?!?" She started fussing over the pink-haired girls, checking them for obvious wounds and finding nothing.
She prodded and even checked under their shirts searching for hidden wounds, but nothing obvious was on them.
"Of course to try and help you." Said the little Rossie, "We thought that if we used our [Soulscape] as material we could kickstart your awakening."
"Not that it ever worked, but I had to do something..." Finished saying the older Rossie.
Oh...Right...
"Well...It did help me wake up faster..."Elizabeth said, she still remembered those warm motes of light that she used to wait for, and how Chloe had warned her that Rossie was in danger.
"You don't have to comfort us Eli-Eli." The older Rossie said while hugging the smaller Rossie. "You would have woken up even without our help right?"
She...Wasn't so sure about that, granted it seemed as if she would have woken up eventually, but she wasn't that sure her body would be in good condition.
"Anyway, this won't do," Elizabeth said standing up and walking towards the doorframe that opened to an empty void. "This won't do at all, the [Soulscape] is the foundation of our [Magic] and [Skills] and yours is stunted like this."
She focused on the door that opened towards her ruined city, towards her [Soulscape]. She had plenty of empty buildings right?
So "I will give you part of mine, in exchange for all the mana that you have given me." She decided as such.
"Tha..."And before Rossie could even say anything she started funneling her [Mana].
Inside her [Soulscape] she always felt as if there was no limit to the amount of mana she could control, to the amount of [Authority] she held "[Heed my call dwellers of the darkness.]" And so she didn't limit herself.
She would need to make it extra special if she wanted to make sure this held together, "[On this day, on this night. I shall connect...]" but how to make sure the wording was right?
She couldn't risk it, Rossie's soulscape was crumbling and would need all the support, but she couldn't just use her name, she needed something enforced by the system.
Should she use her title as Saint of Healing? No, there were plenty of healers, and some even were called Saints.
No...She needed something more personal, something that tied them together...Oh...Right...It had been missing from the status screen Rossie showed her before, but it should work.
"[....The Ruined Capital City of Terra Invicta with the Everlasting paramour's bastion.]" The name flowed out of her mouth, so this was the capital of Terra Invicta?
The heck was a Terra Invicta? Apparently, the place where her ruined city was before. She felt the connection with Rossie solidify and could even feel Rossie within her [Soulscape]. The door that brought her in disappeared, but she wasn't panicked by that, for the ruined door frame transformed into a normal door, and opening it... She could see a normal apartment.
Her normal apartment, the place where her soulscape had started before it expanded to cover this whole place. She knew that should she wish for it, she could even move this place anywhere she wished for.
So long Rossie didn't mind it that is.
"And done, now your bad decisions will affect me too!" Elizabeth said with a smile on her face, "So no more breaking of [Soulscapes] please. I know mine is a little bit bigger than others, but I like it in one piece...Or as intact as possible, this place needs some redecoration after all." She joked while smiling.
Her ruined city was quite destroyed, only a small part near the central building was repaired, and even ravaged as it was, this room that represented Rossie's Souslcape was better than most of the city.
"You are really..." Big Rossie said while the little Rossie turned into motes of light that fused into her body, "...A reckless person."
"I'm not the one that broke her [Soulscape] to try and wake up someone!" Elizabeth defended herself.
"No, you are the reckless one that tied her [Soulscape] to someone that did just that! I could break it and let it would rip apart your [Soulscape]!" The pink-haired girl said while standing.
She wasn't convincing at all, "I mean yeah, but have you seen my [Soulscape]? It can survive a few rips here and there." Elizabeth said smugly. "Besides you wouldn't do that, I just woke up from a coma. Any trauma like that might just knock me down another half a year."
"Idiot." The pink-haired girl sighed in defeat.
"Love you too ~" The blonde girl answered in kind.
They both just stood there "Now, let's see what more there is to see in these notifications." And Elizabeth said as much while grabbing the pink-haired girl's hand and bringing her back to the real world.
She woke up on the bed with the pink-haired girl lying on her thighs, "With some luck the next parts don't have soul-shattering revelations, right?" And joked as such.
Yeah, no way there was something more groundbreaking on her notifications....right?
