Bell didn't know how the Minotaur was up on the Fifth Floor, he didn't know what to do and he had no clue whatsoever as to why a blue box was floating in front of him as a Minotaur tried to maul him to pieces. But seeing as he had no way of escape, he decided to read what the floating blue box had to say.
You have gained the power of The Gamer!
Would you like to take the tutorial? [Y/N]
"Yes?" Bell asked, confused. Then all of a second the world took on a grey tint as everything froze in place. A new screen appeared in front of him.
Welcome Gamer! To the esteemed tutorial. The system shall go over the basic functions of your new power, the rest is up to you.
Please select what section you would like to go over first;
Status
Skills
Quests
Seeing as the 'system' had responded to him when he spoke before he gave another verbal command.
"The 'Status', please." The screen rearranged itself as it showed him his 'Status'.
Bell Cranel
HP-225
MP-225
The Gamer
Title-None
Lvl-8
Race-Human
STR-9
VIT-8
DEX-23
INT-11
WIS-9
LUC-?
Points-0
Money-0V
The new screen made very little sense to Bell, so he decided to look further into it.
HP, or Health Points, are a representation of your life force. They will temporarily be reduced after taking damage and can be replenished by eating, drinking a potion or by other means. If your HP falls to 0 you will die, the system advises you avoid that at all costs.
Bell nodded to himself at that, if he could tell how close he was to death it would come in very handy. He also deadpanned at the last line, dying was obviously not on his agenda. He continued reading.
MP, or Magic Points, are a representation of your magic, or mana, reserves. These will be used up by certain skills or magics, but will replenish themselves naturally. Alternatively, you can drink a potion to refill your MP or to increase their regeneration rate, or by other alternative methods. There is no penalty for them reaching zero, though if you try to use magic after using up all your MP you will start to use up your HP as an alternative.
He froze in shock. Magic? As in actual, elemental bending, Magic!? Bell was ecstatic, he could do Magic!
Well not right now, but he was going to be able to! He read on.
Titles, are equipable names that grant certain perks. For example; If you kill a lot of the same monster you may get a Slayer Title that will grant extra damage against that monster and extra defence from then as well. You are only allowed to have one Title equiped at a time.
'Buffs are always pretty handy, plus I could get an awesome sounding Title!' chills still ran over his body from his earlier discovery. In a bout of excitement he selected everthing else and read it all in one go.
Lvl, an abbreviation of Level, is a rough estimate of one's capabilities and or experience. Though it is often misleading as someone's Stats can be much higher than their Level suggests.
Race shows which species you belong to.
STR, or Strength, is a representation of your strength. It judges how much you can lift and how hard you can punch, etc.
Vit, or Vitality, is a representation of your fitness. It judges how long you can fight or exercise or, in other words, stamina. You will gain a permanent extra 25 HP for every 10 VIT you have.
DEX, or Dexterity, is a representation of your agility, nimbleness and hand-eye coordination. It judges how fast you are, how good you can balance and how good your hand-eye coordination is. You will gain a permanent extra 1 HP recovery for every 10 DEX.
INT, or Intelligence, is a representation of your intellect. It judges how smart you are and how much MP you have. Some Skill Books, along with other things, will need a higher INT to be used and / or accessed. You will gain a permanent extra 25 MP for every 10 INT you have.
WIS, or Wisdom, is a representation of your ability to judge things and how well you can react to situations. It judges how well you can judge things and how fast your MP recovers. You will gain a permanent extra 5 MP recovery for every 10 WIS.
LUC, or Luck, is a representation of how lucky you are. The more Points you have in this slot, the more situations that will end in your favour. The system is unable to identify an appropriate number of points for your LUC as it is, in layman's terms, 'completely fucking unpredictable'.
Points can be allocated to any Stat to impove them. You will gain 5 Points per level up. You can also improve your Stats through other methods, such as; working out to improve STR or studying to improve INT and WIS.
Money is money bud. It's how much moola you got in your back pocket.
That was a lot of information, very useful information. He read through it a second time and dismissed the screens, then selecting 'Skills'.
Skills are all the special abilities you have. You can create a Skill through repeated actions, though simple tasks such as walking or punching cannot become their own Skills as they are depicted by Stats, or by reading a Skill Book. You can improve, or level up, Skills by using them repeatedly or through other methods. If you wish to see all of your Skills, just give the command 'Skill List' and they shall appear.
Bell did as the screen stated and his 'Skill List' appeared before him.
Gamer's Body Lvl:Max
Allows the user to live life like a videogame. It prevents negative status effects like Limb Loss, etc. It also removes the need for food and sleep.
-
Gamer's Mind Lvl:Max
Allows the user to calmly and logically think things through. Allows a peaceful state of mind, grants immunity to negative psychological status effects / attacks.
-
Dagger Mastery Lvl:4
Allows you to handle any dagger with ease.
20% more damage delt when using daggers.
Those 'Skills' were rather overpowered in Bell's opinion, but he wasn't complaining. Such Skills surely were a gift. He closed the window and selected the last option available, 'Quests'.
Quests are tasks that are given to you by others or by the system, after completion you will be granted rewards. To see all of your active Quests, just give the command 'Quest List'.
Bell nodded at the screen, not entirely sure what to make of it. But if he was to be rewarded more for slaying Monsters he was more than happy to take upon as many Quests as possible. As he was about to contemplate what to do in this frozen world Bell was surprised to her a 'ding' in his ear as a new screen appeared.
Main Quest obtained!
Apotheosis!
Get stronger hero! Stronger than everything else! This is a mandatory Quest and has rewards that will be given to you throughout your journey.
Rewards are given every few levels with this Quest, there is also additional rewards for defeating certain enemies or for other feats of strength.
Bell was surprised to receive a Quest so quickly but he steeled himself. He would follow on this Quest and reach new heights!
But he was harshly reminded just how far he needed to go when the world unfroze and he took a punch right into his gut from the Minotaur.
- 50 HP!
-
New Skill created!
Physical Endurance Lvl:1
Reduces damage from all physical attacks.
3% Damage Reduction
-
Skill; Physical Endurance has levelled up!
-
Skill; Physical Endurance has levelled up!
-
Physical Endurance Lvl:3
Reduces damage from all physical attacks.
9% Damage Reduction
He received another hit to his solar plexus.
- 46 HP!
-
Skill; Physical Endurance has levelled up!
-
Skill; Physical Endurance has levelled up!
-
Physical Endurance Lvl:5
Reduces damage from all physical attacks.
15% Damage Reduction
His vision blurred slightly but Gamer's Body or Mind cancelled that out. The Monster let out a bellowing roar as it went to finish Bell off with a final punch, but it's fist never reached him. The beast fell to the ground and split down the middle into two seperate pieces as it disintegrated into excelia. He was drenched from head to toe in blood and before him stood his saviour, a stoic blonde beauty flicked the blood from her sword as she turned to him.
Bell didn't recognise her, he wiped his eyes clear of blood and peered at the woman.
New Skill created!
Observe Lvl:1
Grants the user information on a selected target.
Info shown: Name
Another screen popped up after that one.
Aiz Wallenstein
Sword Princess
His jaw dropped at that, the Sword Princess had saved him!? Awesome! He felt emotions run rampant inside of him and as he prepared to run away, but Gamer's Mind kicked in and calmed him down. The teen looked to his saviour and heard her repeat a question.
"Are you alright?" She asked in a concerned tone and Bell started to get embarrassed, he was talking to a really pretty girl. A blush built up on his cheeks, though none could tell as Bell stood there covered in blood.
"Ah, thanks. I'm fine, thanks for the save by the way." He spoke very fast and tensed up. Aiz tilted her head and a very small smile slowly found its way on to her lips.
"Cute." She had said it to herself but Bell had heard and his body temperature rose tremendously and in a feat of great embarrassment he fled the scene, making a beeline for the Guild.
The Sword Princess frowned as he ran off. She hadn't even gotten to ask his name.
Bell ran through the streets covered in blood, a smile threatening to split his face in half. A girl called him cute! Sure it neglected his masculinity but he smiled nonetheless, a bubbly excitement set firmly in his chest.
He neared the Guild building, many a person being disturbed by his appearance. He spotted his Guild advisor and called to her.
"Miss Eina! I've got some news!" He waved to the Half-Elf who promptly screamed and dropped the papers she was holding.
After a quick apology and being told to shower in one of the Guild's shower rooms Bell sat across from the brown haired Eina Tulle. He wished to ask about Aiz's level, hope rising in him that he too could become that strong. Eina pulled out some files.
"Aiz Wallenstein. Level five and one of the top members of the Loki Familia. Why are you so keen to know about her? You have a crush on her or something?" she asked him lastly in a teasing tone. Bell blushed and scratched the back of his head.
"A-Ah, I dunno. She just kind of inspired me a lot when she saved me from that Minotaur, even if she was really pretty." He mumbled the last part to himself but his advisor heard him with her pointy ears, she chuckled a little.
"Well even if you wanted to go out with her, she's part of the Loki Familia while you're part of the Hestia Familia that already brings up a few problems. Plus she's a high class Adventurer, she could have several men bending to her every whim at this very moment." Wow. Bell was quite stunned, it was a good thing he wasn't overly crushing on the girl or his hopes would've been crushed. "But~," Eina began. "Women do tend to like stronger men, so maybe if you get strong enough miss Aiz just might like you back." A huge smile burst up onto his face and he hugged the young woman from across the table. He let her go, noticing she was blushing, and ran off.
"Goodbye Miss Eina, I love you!" and he ran out the door, a cheeky grin on his face.
Bell opened the door down to his and his Goddess' home in the abandoned church.
"I'm home!" he called as he took off his boots at the bottom of the stairs. His Goddess, despite short stature, reached him in seconds and hugged him around the waist. She beamed up at him.
"How was your day?" he patted her head and sat them both on the couch.
"Well I got twelve hundred Valis from Magic Stones and was almost killed by a Minotaur but I-," his Goddess immediately cut him off my jumping off him and inspecting his body for injuries, seeing none she sat back down beside him. "-was saved by Aiz Wallenstein. She cut the Monster down in one go." he looked his Goddess in the eye with a twinkle in his own. "Do you think I could get as strong as her!?" Hestia paused and smiled as she snuggled up to him, it was cold down there, and looked up to him.
"Bell, I think you can get even stronger than Wallen-whatever and anyone else. You're special and you know why?" Bell asked her why. "Because you're my hero~." she poked his cheek and he blushed. The petite Goddess giggled and stood up. She displayed a tray of still hot potato croquettes and a small pouch of salt. "Here's dinner, I know it's not much but-," Bell grabbed her outstretched hand in both of his. She met his eyes.
"Goddess, it's perfect." she blushed slightly and mumbled something under her breath as she munched on some croquettes with her only Familia member. They sat there for the rest if the night, chatting away about their experiences and telling jokes. They got ready for bed and Hestia pulled off his shirt to update his Falna.
She straddled his back and she let a drop of her ichor land on his back. Symbols moved at a rapid pace to access the change in strength of its host. Hestia didn't let Bell hear it but she was surprised to see he had a Skill. Bell was humming to himself when a new screen popped up in front of his face.
Your Falna has been updated! Plus one to all Stats!
-
A new Skill has been discovered!
Liaris Freese Lvl:?
Fast growth as long as feelings last. The strength of the effects corresponds to the user's feelings.
Current effect:
5 additional Points per Lvl up
Bell grinned at that and dismissed the screens.
He was gonna reach Aiz Wallenstein and he was going to surpass her! And after that he was going to keep on growing and he was going to be the strongest! He was gonna be a Hero!
Hestia got up off of him and handed him a sheet with his Falna stats, he pretended to read it. He had decided to follow his Gamer Stats, seeing as there was less numbers and it was easier to understand. He gave his Goddess a goodnight hug and layed on the couch, he was so full of excitement that he couldn't sleep. He soon heard his Goddess' light exhales get slower and got up to put on his gear.
His Skill Gamer's Body said it negated the need for sleep and he was ready to try that out. So he left as silently as he could and made his way for the Dungeon in the middle of the night.
The white haired teen had decided to Observe what he could as he walked along the dark path to the Dungeon. It had levelled up thrice and would now let him the target's Race, max HP and Level.
He saw an aura of red light spread from the Entertainment District and shook his mind free of any unnecessary thoughts.
He neared the ancient dwelling of Monsters and walked down the spiralling stairs to the First Floor.
A Goblin immediately ran at him while screeching bloody murder, Bell promptly slashed its throat and it fell to the ground only to disintegrate into excelia.
Critical Hit! Instant Death!
-
You defeated a Goblin!
Rewards:
25 Exp
20 Valis
Crude Dagger
-
Crude Dagger has been stored in your Inventory.
Bell paused after reading about an 'Inventory'.
"What's an Inventory?" he asked and the system quickly responded.
Your Inventory is an extra dimensional storage space only accessible by yourself. If you wish to see the contents of your Inventory please give the command of, 'Inventory'.
Bell did so and was greeted to a screen full of empty boxes save for one, which held the crude dagger he got. He picked up the Magic Stone the Goblin dropped and placed into one of the boxes, a new box was filled. When he selected it it read.
Magic Stones; 1
Do you wish to withdraw this item? [Y/N]
He selected no and closed all the windows save for his Inventory which he moved to his right peripheral vision.
He carried on to the Second Floor, killing two more Goblins and getting the same loot. He stored all his loot in his Inventory when a new screen appeared.
Would you like to enable the Auto-Loot program? [Y/N]
Bell immediately selected yes, that was going to save a lot of time. He killed a Kobold before going down to the Third Floor.
Loot!;
35 Exp
40 Valis
Kobold Pelt
He withdrew the pelt and rubbed its fur, it wasn't the softest but it would serve as a warm blanket for his Goddess if he got more of them.
He reached the Third Floor and was almost immediately jumped at by two Kobolds, he punched the one on his left in the snout and stabbed the second one through it's eye and into its brain. The second Kobold died immediately and he threw his dagger at the head of the other stunned Kobold, killing it.
Bell marveled at his hand, it wasn't sore. Whatsoever, sure it had hurt a little but after a couple of seconds he felt fine. Thinking back he realised he could move fine even after being punched by a Minotaur. Gamer's Body really was something else.
Before he knew it he was on the Sixth Floor and had killed seven more Kobolds, two Frog Shooters and one Dungeon Lizard. He had received some weird loot from the frogs and lizard, in the forms of a tail and two tongues. But he forgot about that for now.
Because right now, several War Shadows were surrounding him on all sides. Despite not being sentient they left no gaps for Bell to escape through, he was stuck.
They started to slow their circling as the first one jumped him and slashed at him twice. Before he even had a chance to defend himself the rest joined in and started to wail down on him with their knife-like fingers.
Constant notices told him of his HP decreasing and one or two others as well, Be didn't even acknowledge them.
A tear fell down his face as he bent over to let his back take the brunt of the attacks. It couldn't end like this for him, right?
Even his taughts seemed to shake like his voice would if he spoke.
He had only started his adventure! He hadn't even saved anyone. He had failed his grandfather, but at least he had been saved by Aiz earlier that day. Why had he decided to come here anyway? The rush of excitement was too much to handle? Ya, that sounded like him. Now his Godde-
Memories rushed to the front of his mind of a young Goddess taking in a boy who no one else would. A Goddess who did her best for her one and only Familia member. A Goddess who cared for her child! A Goddess who, out of the kindness of her heart, took him in and treated him as her own!
The mere taught that he would fail her and leave her alone filled him with rage. He wouldn't stand for this!
He'd show the world who he was!
He'd get stronger and prove himself worthy of his Goddess compassion.
Gods dammit! HE WAS GOING TO BE A FUCKING HERO WHETHER THE WORLD LIKED IT OR NOT!
And so the adventure of Bell Cranel began. ..
As fire erupted from his form and incinerated every Monster in sight.
Sparetime101