System rewards, Engel’s guest room
The 15th Vulcarian day, year 2025
People kept calling him “My Lord,” but at least no one else was kneeling. Whether they mistook him for a noble or simply respected him for defending the village, they treated him with a deference he was not used to.
His sore muscles and exhaustion grounded him in the present, a stark contrast to the numbness that had shadowed his life. The fight had brought clarity, a raw sense of freedom, but the weight of bloodshed lingered. The grief around him – mothers clutching the bodies of sons, friends searching for the fallen – dampened any triumph he might have felt. He had embraced battle, and for the first time, he had acted on instinct rather than cold logic. Yet, even as he acknowledged that choice, he couldn’t ignore the sorrow woven into his victory.
Though bewildered by his own abilities, Adrian understood what had happened. The sword had delivered on its promise – beyond all expectations. He didn’t feel ready to battle monsters, dragons, or live out some grand epic. However, against people of similar strength – or even slightly stronger – he was confident he would emerge victorious.
Now, Adrian lay kneeling on the floor, slowly cleaning himself. His clothes had mostly protected him from the battle’s gore, but his hands and left arm were still stained with blood. He tried to recall the decisions he had made the day before, when everything still felt like preparing for a new game setup. Adrian opened the notifications he had been ignoring.
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NOTIFICATIONS
You entered combat!
[Coin Launder] level 12 defeated
Your resolve has earned Ertar’s recognition. Class available!
[Breaker of Chains]
Not all prisons have walls, nor do all chains rattle. Some are woven from fear, regret, and the weight of a past that refuses to let go. The Breaker of Chains wages war against the unseen – the silent bindings of doubt and restraint, the shackles forged by a lifetime of unspoken pain. To break free is not to deny these burdens, but to bear them without being ruled by them.
With every battle fought, another chain is severed. With every wound endured, another barrier falls. This is a path of ruthless honesty, of embracing struggle rather than retreating from it. The Breaker of Chains bows to no master, not even the ghosts of their former self. Their freedom is not given – it is seized, carved into existence with will unshaken and steel unsheathed.
+3 Strength per level; +1 Endurance per level; +1 Dexterity per level;
+1 Free Attribute per level; +1 skill point per level.
New Competence - Martial Versatility
You can wield any weapon or object as a combat instrument with basic proficiency. Additionally, you have an innate talent for warfare, and further development comes more naturally to you.
[Fence Mover] level 12 defeated
[Thief] level 7 defeated
[Stalker] level 12 defeated
[Thief] level 12 defeated
[Smuggler] level 15 defeated
[Dunner] level 13 defeated
[Smuggler] level 16 defeated
[Assassin] level 9 defeated
[Smuggler] level 18 defeated
You've earned an achievement!
Baptized in Blood
You have no levels, experience, nor obligation to fight. Still, you entered the battlefield and defeated 10 enemies. Your thirst for the blood of your adversary and severity in delivering lethal blows make you a bloodstain on the battlefield.
+100% combat experience
[Coin Launder] level 12 defeated
[Smuggler] level 15 defeated
[Assassin] level 9 defeated
[Bootlegger] level 19 defeated
[Thief] level 24 defeated
[Fraudster] level 17 defeated
[Rogue] level 26 defeated
You've earned an achievement!
Boundless Hero
You entered a battle without allies and with no hope of victory, willing to pay any price to follow your sense of justice. Your courage to protect, inspire, and free oppressed people will never falter.
+ 25% to all attributes
+ Magic Skill – Overload
All attributes are raised by a factor of 5 for 60 seconds, with the side effect of halving all attributes consecutively for 60 minutes. Cooldown time: 24 hours.
ALERT! Immediate distribution of accumulated experience.
[Breaker of Chains] level 1 -> level 6
New Competence – Indomitable Spirit
Reduces the effects of fear, confusion, hypnosis, and other types of mental domination.
[Breaker of Chains] level 6 -> level 8
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In Ertar, reading each system notification was considered a tacit agreement to accept the information presented. So, when Adrian finally read the notification for his new class, only then did he receive its benefits; before that, everything was held in reserve. The same applied to achievements. When he received the “Boundless Hero” achievement, and especially after the experience was allocated to the [Breaker of Chains] class, the young man felt a invigorating energy, as if a pulsing electric current was running through his veins, awakening new strength.
While wiping blood from his hand and reading the notifications, the continuous alert about defeated bandits made him relive every strike he had delivered and every enemy he had killed. He realized the blood on his hands was not his own, and the urge to vomit came in waves. Adrian hadn’t collapsed only because he was already on the floor.
Rationally, he didn’t blame himself. He knew he had done the right thing. And yet, the discomfort remained – an instinctive unease at having taken so many lives. He felt lost. He felt alone. But he wasn’t going to run from that. He wasn’t going to numb himself again, wasn’t going to retreat into cold logic just because it was easier. He was still reserved, still prone to rational thinking, but now it was by choice. So, he let himself feel the sadness, the solitude. And as countless questions raced through his mind, they gave him something to hold onto – something practical.
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STATUS
Name: Adrian
Age: 18 years
Species: Human
Class: Breaker of Chains level 8
Attributes (8 free points)
Strength: 43
Endurance: 22
Dexterity: 26
Intelligence: 12
Perception: 13
Magic: 13
Competencies
Martial Versatility
Indomitable Spirit
Titles
Freeborn Sovereign
Baptized in Blood
Boundless Hero
Magic Skills (8 free points)
Overload
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The noise outside the bedroom was starting to go down and Adrian was conscious he’d better try to sleep, morning was but a few hours away, but he just couldn’t shake the emotional discomfort and tried to guide his emotions into the anticipation for more magic skills. So that’s what he did, deciding to look for where to invest his free skill points.
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Magic skills – Breaker of Chains
Rebellious Roar – 3 Skill Points
A powerful shout that instills fear in enemies of lower level and boosts the morale of nearby allies.
Cooldown: 12 minutes.
Survivor’s Instinct – 3 Skill Points
Heightens awareness in combat, increasing the chance to anticipate enemy magic skills before they are executed. Automatically activated.
Cooldown: 60 seconds.
Ruthless Execution – 3 Skill Points
Delivers a brutally precise strike. Surprise attacks or attacks against gravely wounded enemies deal critical damage. Automatically activated.
Cooldown: 60 seconds.
Blood Unleashed – 6 Skill Points
As the Breaker of Chains suffers damage, his blood transforms into a conduit of his pain. When activated, his weapon becomes coated in his own blood, increasing its sharpness and hardness with every drop spilled. This blood-fueled weapon remains enhanced for the rest of the battle. However, the effect does not stack after activation.
Cooldown: 12 hours.
Escape Chance – 6 Skill Points
The Breaker of Chains taps into his survival instinct, instantly teleporting up to 12 meters away. This escape leaves behind a faint illusion for three seconds, confusing enemies and buying the time to reposition or flee.
Cooldown: 30 minutes.
I Am Free – 6 Skill Points
Shatters any restraint that hinders mobility or freedom. Instantly removes all stun, root, and crowd control effects, whether physical or magical.
Cooldown: 12 minutes.
Chainbreaker’s Wrath – 9 Skill Points
Defeating enemies accumulates chains of violence, drawing the attention of adversaries. When activated, these chains are shattered in a violent burst, instilling terror in all enemies around him.
Cooldown: 30 minutes
Unyielding Determination – 9 Skill Points
If suffering from damage-over-time effects (such as bleeding, poison, or corrosion), activates a regeneration effect that nullifies health loss for 6 minutes.
Cooldown: 12 minutes.
Broken Chains of Fate – 9 Skill Points
When on the brink of death, all stats increase fivefold for 5 seconds, and any lethal damage is completely ignored during this period. Automatically activated.
Cooldown: 24 hours.
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Magic skills – Otherworlder’s Authority
Analysis – 1 Skill Point
Identifies a target, revealing fundamental information based on the truth of Ertar. This magic skill cannot be resisted or falsified, but the depth of information provided depends on the nature of the target and the user’s knowledge.
Cooldown: not applicable
Inventory – 1 Skill Point
Reserves a portion of Magic to link a personal storage space in a parallel reality. Only inanimate objects can be stored. The storage volume is 1 cubic meter per reserved Magic point.
Cooldown: not applicable
Multiclass – 1/6/12/18/24 Skill Points
Allows the simultaneous use of multiple classes, with an increasing cost for each additional class. Experience gained in combat is evenly distributed among active classes.
Cooldown: not applicable
Creator’s Trance – 3 Skill Points
Upon activation, the user enters a state of absolute focus, where mind and body synchronize perfectly with their purpose. For 30 minutes, every action – whether crafting a masterpiece or engaging in battle – utilizes the full extent of the user’s dexterity and perception.
Cooldown: 12 hours.
Arcane Meteors – 3 Skill Points
Summons a rain of pure mana meteors. Impact power scales with total Magic, while the number of meteors depends on the mana invested in the skill.
Cooldown: 6 seconds.
Magnetic Chain – 3 Skill Points
Creates energy chains between the user and nearby enemies, pulling them closer and making it harder for them to attack allies. The number of chains depends on the Magic invested, while the pull strength is determined by the user’s Endurance.
Cooldown: 30 minutes.
Mark Prey – 6 Skill Points
Marks a target, ensuring all attacks against it land as critical hits. The marked enemy cannot escape the user’s perception and is visible to all linked allies.
Cooldown: 6 hours.
Phoenix Embrace – 6 Skill Points
Envelops the target in the flames of the true Phoenix, initiating a powerful regenerative process that heals wounds, restores vitality, and mends even the most grievous injuries. Continuous channeling.
Cooldown: 24 hours.
Portal – 9 Skill Points
Opens a gateway between two locations in Ertar. The user must be familiar with the destination. Only willing individuals can use the portal; unwilling ones will pass through the thin veil without resistance. Duration: 60 seconds.
Cooldown: 30 minutes.
Dream Labyrinth – 12 Skill Points
By locking eyes with the target, the user traps them in a deep nightmare, distorting their perception of time and causing pain, confusion, and mental exhaustion. The victim may experience hours or days within the dream while only moments pass in reality. The degree of temporal distortion scales with the user’s total Intelligence. Investing more mana increases the chance of success and extends the effect.
Cooldown: 24 hours.
Verdant Ruin – 15 Skill Points
Channels the force of the natural cycle, accelerating decay. Dead matter, poisons, diseases, and pollution are absorbed into the earth and air, restoring the environment’s vitality and magical energy in equal measure. When used against living beings, their bodies and life force rapidly wither, strengthening the caster. Continuous channeling.
Cooldown: 6 seconds.
Horizon of Inspiration – 18 Skill Points
Allows allies to unlock and explore their hidden potential, granting them access to soul-sealed classes. These inner gates are illuminated by renewal energy, allowing the chosen class to evolve instantly. Each ally can only open their inner gates once.
Cooldown: 24 hours.
Reset
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As Adrian cleaned himself and reviewed the Magic Skills list, he took a moment to familiarize himself with his new body. On Earth, Adrian had never been much of a sports person. While he wasn’t obese, he hadn’t given much thought to a balanced diet and was certainly out of shape. His height was average, a bit over 1.70 meters, and that had never been a real concern, although growing a couple more centimeters had always been a welcome thought.
Now, everything had changed. His body was perfect – his dark skin, though similar in pigmentation to his previous life, now carried a warmer bronze undertone and a glossy smoothness. His muscles were thick and defined. His body wasn’t heavy, like a weightlifter’s, but lean and strong, like a rock climber’s. Just by the size of his hands and feet, he could guess he was about 1.90 meters tall. The scar on his shoulder, which was now almost healed thanks to Wakina’s pomade, was the only blemish on his otherwise immaculate body.
As he finished examining his body and the Magic Skills list, Adrian checked his mental system for more information and discovered that he was using a temporary inventory, created solely for the purpose of transmigrating.
ALERT! This is a temporary inventory. It is impossible to move or add any items. Attempting to do so will result in the immediate discontinuation of the skill, and all stored items will be lost in the alternate space. It is only possible to remove all items simultaneously.
When Adrian received the message, he immediately decided where to spend his first Magic Skill point and acquired the Inventory skill. He still wasn’t sure what the Reset button at the end would do, or if it had any limitations, but Inventory was a practical skill to have. With that, the Alert! message vanished, along with a electrical surge sensation. However, instead of feeling more energized, he felt a drain of energy from his body and guessed that his Magic had been consumed to fuel the skill.
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Inventory
Leather Wallet – 5 vedras, 5 liras
Peasant Set – linen undergarments, thick linen trousers, cotton tunic, thick linen beret, woolen socks, rustic leather shoes, woolen cloak, woolen gloves.
Survivor Set – woolen cloak, leather gloves.
Supplies – water flask (1L), dried meat (500g), crystallized fruits (1kg), cured cheese (1kg)
Travel Log – journal, pen of echoes
Camping Essentials – flint and tinder, metal lantern, sleeping bag
Explorer’s Tools – Granada map, ropes, compass
Weapons – bow, 20 arrows
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The inventory had tabs for organization, and sections were automatically created for ease of use – which pleased Adrian quite a lot. He put on his peasant clothes, grabbed an apple from the fruit basket, and bit into it. The memory of the battle still gnawed at him, and sleep was out of the question.
He turned his attention to his remaining free attribute points but decided to wait before distributing them. However, there was something he could deal with now – something that might help him regain a sense of control, as long as he used his shill points wisely. The decision might even be permanent, and if it was, he knew he wouldn’t regret it. He spent the remaining magic skill points on Analysis and Phoenix Embrace.
It wasn’t a selfless decision; his need for control far outweighed any moral consideration. Pure altruism had never suited him, and he knew it, but gaining knowledge and cultivating goodwill could go a long way. He could already command authority with Aurora, but building power through fear – especially power that wasn’t truly his – was not the path he wanted to take.
The sounds of people working carried into the night. Adrian took a slow breath, his focus gradually sharpening as he exited the room and followed the noise.
