Later that day, a bit more than an hour before dinner was ready, I opened the system library skill to check the diverse stories.

Notice: System consumed 2 mana.

System Library:

World of Artana I, II

Fishing I, II

Baking I, II

Cooking I, II

With a joyful tone, I shouted inside my room.

“New books! Hurray!”

All the titles seemed interesting. It made me ponder between them before deciding on one. Very willing to progress, my lips opened, allowing a piece of my excitement to flow.

“More of that interesting story, please!”

A while passed and then I muttered, embarrassed, finding myself to be clumsy, and still not used to the way of the world.

“Right... I need to specify what I want. World of Artana II!”

Having finished the first volume along with the fishing one, I aimed toward the sequel with big hopes.

Notice: System consumed 15 mana.

World of Artana II

Author Name: Wise John.

A very interesting topic about this world is what I’ve found out from the system.

They composed it of 9 laws, possibly more, but these are the ones I’ve figured so far.

Together they make me realize humans will always be the weakest race as we’re born naturally inferior.

Those who are strong will become stronger. They can serve themselves of the weak by crushing them and consuming their experience, gaining higher levels.

The leveling law where everyone starts at level 1.

The experience law, where everyone can level up by killing other beings, including their own race.

The status law, where they can select what they wish to improve on through point distribution.

The skill law, where they can gain skills through different methods.

The class law, where everyone can get one of their own and improve it further, they’re usually, and mainly meant for combat.

The job law, a profession for those who do not seek to put their lives at risk, but to be part of society through distinct contributions. After all, without farmers, most of us would starve to death.

The title law, where everyone receives a reward for completing many achievements, which by no means is advisable upon the church standards.

The grading law, where every item, armor, and weapon receives a grade based on their quality and rarity.

The language law, where everyone can understand each other with enough intelligence and wisdom, even among other races.

Thanks to these laws, when the other races build large enough armies, we’re sure to be wiped out as compared to them our population grows slower and weaker. Not to forget our lifespans may very well be the shortest.

For those of the next generations, if you can, don’t hesitate on growing stronger. Otherwise, you’ll lose everyone you love during your life.

Page 1/12

Notice: You have unlocked experience, status, class, rank, and intelligence in status. 

As soon as I finished reading, my hands shook. Where there was great hype mixed with happiness and excitement, in its place, it got replaced by a blend of anxiety and dread.

‘This author sounds angry and serious. In the sentence where he mentions that we’re born inferior. Does that mean that other races are born with higher statuses than us humans?’

My thumbs rubbed onto one another, slightly frightened, ruminating on about it.

‘Is there possibly a way to surpass such natural growth? I wonder what humans are doing to prevent such invasions. These books must be in every library through the Lumen kingdom no?’

My eyes looked around my room as if looking for an answer, fully knowing there wouldn’t be one.

‘I somehow have a bad feeling,’ the pace of my breathing increased by the second. ‘What if in this world we don’t get strong enough?’

My palm landed on top of my chest in a failed attempt to calm down my loud heartbeat.

‘We’ll likely die, won’t we?’ 

My family came to mind, and with their safety in case, I started thinking about the oppressors.

‘Does that possibly mean that I will have to level up a lot? I’ll have to kill, won’t I?’

I started panicking further; accelerating the friction between my slender fingers. I ended up gripping the hands against each other fiercely as nothing else worked.

‘It might also mean that I’m bound to die early...’ a feeling of revolt grew within me, ‘I want to live a long and happy life! I don’t want to die again!’

I stood up and then began walking in circles, concerned about my family’s future, and, of course, my own.

‘I’ll have to kill. But can I? Will I be able to achieve it?’

I raised one of my hands in the air at shoulder height, squeezing it tight.

‘If it is to protect my family, then...‘

I inhaled and then exhaled deeply to relax.

‘Best to think about something else for now,’ my butt landed on the softness of my sheets and I reached out for my doll, embracing it.

‘I can’t allow myself to be so frail,’ despite what I told myself, there was little to nothing that I could do to change my cowardly and damaged self.

Recollecting the changes in the status, I opened it to investigate more about it in hopes of further development.

Notice: System consumed 2 mana.

Status:
Level: 1 | Experience: 0/100
Health: 8/8 | Mana: 22/39
Vitality: 8 | Intelligence: 0 | Wisdom: 13
Status Points: 10
Class: <None> | Job: <None>
Race: Human | Name: Iris
Fame: 800 | Disgrace: 400
Titles(+)
Achievements(+)
Skills(+)

‘Zero intelligence... does that mean I’m dumb?’ I fretted at my own words, feeling like the system was having fun mocking me with such a value.

Believing that I could become smarter by reading books, I reached out for the book list screen, checking what was left.

‘Baking. This could be fun,’ the moment I imagined myself making desserts made me believe I could replace the days I ate the leftovers of my maids and step-siblings. Which was still rather better than the times when there was nothing on my plate. 

With a cracked grin, the tip of my finger softly touched it, still trembling from such terrible memories.

Notice: System consumed 15 mana.

Baking I

Author Name: Baker Xuxu.

The art I make is baking; I use a skill that allows me to make a lot of different food.

My job is baker. One of the easiest choices when we’re peasants. Personally, I love it. I make the most delicious bread, cakes, pastries, pies, cookies, and other things.

I can also cook many meals a person with the chef job would be able to. The difference is that I receive experience by doing bakery things and my skills level up faster, unlike doing proper meals.

I also can learn advanced skills from doing so, while chef ones I don’t have access to. However, I can learn how to make it with a chef or even create a recipe on my own, still it won’t profit me.

It’ll never be as good as a real chef, but it’ll still be pretty delicious. I’ll be passing some of my recipes to future generations like the ash cake whenever I save enough! 

The first step is to build a fire and let it burn down to a thick layer of coals. We’ll know it’s ready once they become white ash, then we must make a thick dough made of flour, adding only enough water so that it doesn’t stick in the hands.

We can add wild fruits that you can find in the forest, as well as chopped nuts or even wild berries. Then roll the dough into small balls and smash them so they become plain circles.

Place them onto the hot ash, not on the coals, then it’ll slowly become cooked and brown. Once it’s brown, you can lift it, clean the rest of the ashes, and use butter or some jelly to eat it!

I hope you’ll enjoy this recipe, and the achievement it shall bring to you!

Page 1/1

‘Baker Xuxu her name sounds so adorable.’

I imagined the woman being a bit like an old lady, perhaps a grandmother like the ones from the village. She would give the sweets her aged hands made to the children with a radiant smile and a big heart.

I did my best to hold back my tears, realizing once more that this person was probably gone from this world.

It also made me realize she didn’t sound strong at all. Kind was how my heart described this lady. Which possibly meant the job itself didn’t quite grant power. Perhaps I’d be able to make some money if I became good at it. Despite wishing to increase my combat expertise in any manner.

For the time being, fulfilling the achievements seemed like the best and safest bet.

I crossed my arms, feeling refreshed by the kindness of Xuxu’s words.

‘To think I’d find such information in a baker's book.’

The pair of skills I received upon birth by the system turned out to be quite valuable. They allowed my mind to experience stories of others which I wouldn’t be able to otherwise.

Not only that, but it motivated me to do more. Hopefully one day, I could bake something to surprise my parents.

“Iris!”

Speaking of the devil, a yell pierced my thoughts as I heard someone calling out for me, the source coming from the living room. With small and fast steps, I headed in a rush through the room entrance. My hand quickly opened the door, and I kept going, colliding with my dad. He felt a minor bump into his soft belly that felt like a cushion.

“Ouch, didn’t expect you there.”

I rubbed my nose while chuckling a bit, watching how my father’s expression didn’t seem unbothered, almost like he expected this to happen. In fact, it wasn’t the first time, as I always rushed to either of them upon their calling. 

“Hey princess, I wanted to know if you’d like to tag along to the store. Maybe they have a rod.”

He gestured by waving an invisible rod which made me confused as I’d never seen one before.

“Of course, I’d love to!”

My voice filled with energy made him smile instantly. After all, this meant I could visit the village. Few were the times my feet stomped on such barren ground where men, women, and animals lived by.

As soon as he traded glances at my passing mother, his face changed to a more serious look and inevitably he added.

“I always tell you to not go so fast through the house. You’re bound to end up hurting yourself!”

I lowered my head, feeling guilty, and consenting to such words.

“I’m sorry. I’ll try to be more careful!”

He placed his right hand on my left shoulder and, with a less stern voice, his lips danced, “good girl.”

I raised my chin up, looking at him with expectation.

‘I don’t get many chances to go to the village,’ in all these years I had gone there about seven to ten times despite how close it was. 

My parents had their reasons not to show me to the world, not to make appearances and much less to take me there. 

My seventh birthday was the sole exception where others were invited to the nearby field.

Yet, they didn’t dare set foot inside our house.

He gestured with his head by turning it, quickly nodding in the door’s direction, very much like cows do when they’re annoyed.

“Alright. Let’s see what we can find there. Hopefully, something promising for you to become a master fisherman.”

We started walking towards the exit.

“Yes! A magical fishing rod capable of pulling any type of fish, no matter how big or fast they are!”

Luke laughed at my wish, causing me to giggle.

My mom shouted at us with a serious yet happy expression, making sure we would understand the idea, otherwise, a punishment was all both of us would get for dinner.

“Don’t take too long, you two. I’ll be preparing our meal!” 

“Yes, ma’am!”

“Alright, mom!”

I waved back at Rosaline, stealing a grin from her.

After 20 minutes of heading northwest, we arrived at the village.

“This wooden sign says...”

I started reading it filled with nostalgia. Something I would do every time I came to this place. It had become a sort of tradition between the three of us now, as it was one of the few words they taught me.

“Astia village... it truly is a pretty name.”

Father next to me grinned, possibly from the wonderful memories he had in this place.

“Indeed, it’s a cozy place to some extent.”

We walked for a bit more, reaching closer to a small building called the general shop.

‘What an odd name...’

Upon entering, I noticed a woman behind a counter in the furthest center end, which faced directly to the exit. Conceivably to force people to go through the middle of everything she had to sell. But possibly, it was also to avoid thieves getting their way without the owner noticing it.

“I like how everything is inside either small bottles or boxes with a name labeled above them.”

To my surprise, the woman explained as she heard my tender comment.

“It’s to make things easier for the customers. If someone doesn’t know how to read, they can still check the products by their appearance or smell. Asking me is also fine.”

“Sounds like they’ll easily find what they need.” 

At my rebuke, she grinned proudly.

Dad added calmly and educated, smiling while looking at me, “good afternoon.” 

I added a greeting faintly, gazing at everything while mesmerized without knowing what most things were.

“Welcome, Luke. How may I help the two of you today?”

We walked closer to the counter, going through the middle of two tall wooden shelves with four shelf brackets dividing the different products. 

“We’d like to know if you sell utensils like... a fishing rod, perhaps? It’s fine if they used it before.”

She raised a finger in the air before speaking as if to announce herself or perhaps grab our attention with a positive result.

“I have different kinds, yes, from kitchen pans, clay pots, and some basic tools for farming, forage, fishing, well, for the diverse jobs basically, I’m sure you get the gist.”

My father responded loudly, unlike before, surprising me with the abrupt change.

“That’s fantastic Elisabeth!”

The woman smiled happily, feeling proud of her wide stock.

“Yes! It wouldn’t be possible without a deal that I have with a sibling who works in a blacksmith shop in the capital, and some of his friends from diverse areas.”

Luke responded after remembering the things he noticed, like spices, sugar, salt, alcohol, and what looked like farming seeds.

“That explains the variety and quality of the things in this place.” 

Her hand changed to an open palm faced to the ceiling.

“Besides all of this…” she grinned cheekily. “I also do hay deals, since some farmers have animals and sometimes what they produce isn’t enough.”

Luke quickly nodded in agreement.

“Fair trading I’d say.”

Recollecting something he heard about, he added, “weren’t you the one who also negotiated with the adventurer’s guild?”

She giggled and then responded effortlessly, “I’m surprised you remember that!”

Luke smiled happily at his feat.

“Well, it has been a while since I last took a quest. But I remember a few friends from the village selling monster parts to you. What was that all about?”

She stared at him with a smug making Luke smile uncomfortably.

“The guild doesn’t need all of it, and I ended up figuring that they had some use for herbalists and alchemists.”

I noticed how a drop of sweat fell from my father’s eyebrow, causing me to giggle softly at how hard he tried to justify himself.

“In my defense, I only enchant the potions at Vicent Shop. He’s the one who makes them.”

Elisabeth started laughing upon hearing such words, since she didn’t know he wasn’t an alchemist but a healer, and an assistant at that.

“Fair enough, dear Luke. With that said, I take basic ingredients for potions, from monsters and beast parts.”

She looked at me, noticing my features, and added some more words, causing me to blush.

“Will that adorable daughter of yours follow through in her parents’ footsteps?”

My father glanced at me as I looked at them with an innocent-like face. 

“If blood doesn’t tell, time will...”

I tilted my head, confused about the complex way he responded.

“Hum? What do you mean by that, dad?”

He smiled faintly and then lifted his hand all the way to his hair, scratching it a bit behind his left ear, “it’s something my dad used to say, but don’t worry about it, dear.”

The adults traded a glance at each other.

“What your father meant is that children often pursue the same path as their parents.”

I opened my mouth, then closed it, understanding what she meant. It caused me to remember the conversation where they mentioned learning swordsmanship and magic.

“Oh... I understand. Thank you, miss.”

Elisabeth, who was close to Luke’s age, around the thirties, hid her rosy cheeks, feeling merry.

“To be called miss at this age...”

She then moved to the corner of the shop towards a vase, grabbing three different rods. The woman then brought them to the balcony and showed them to me. I looked confused at them. After all, I didn’t understand the differences. As if reading my expression, or my mind at that, she effortlessly explained the details.

“These are the various models I have, and by that I mean the diverse materials used to craft them. Though I recommend this green one since you live by the river.”

Elisabeth winked at me, causing me to follow with a happy nod. In return, she kept going, pointing with her index finger at the different tools as they passed by our hands.

“This fishing rod is made of bamboo about sixty centimeters long. It is more flexible than these two made of wood, and also shorter.”

She then pointed at me, who remained with brilliant eyes of expectation towards the tools, knowing that one of them would be mine today, and I couldn’t wait for that.

“You’re still young, so having something you can carry around and handle should be better than the other two.”

We replied in unison at her, ending up staring at each other, trading delighted smiles.

“I agree!”

The woman then pointed at the label where a price was visible, not that she waited for us to read it.

“With that said, it’ll be a special price of eighty mana coins.”

Luke then opened a leather bag after removing it from the pocket and took three shiny coins out, placing them all in my left hand. I stared at them, going from five to twenty-five and lastly a fifty-one, the higher the value the shinier they looked like. The cost was equivalent to the mana necessary to create them, and a number related to the amount spent was noticeable on it. The top one could see their worth and on the bottom the first king portrait.

“I can’t help myself but say this every time I see it, they truly are very shiny!”

Despite my comment, the brilliance in them was faint. Enough to illuminate the hand inside a dark room, whereas currency of higher value would further irradiate the surrounding zone. Yet, my father smiled kindly at me, watching over the proceeding trade. Soon I had a rod in my hand.

Once I questioned about the currency, my mother taught me they created it by the first king of the Lumen kingdom orders. Mainly to avoid wasting natural resources like copper, silver, or even gold. As not everyone possessed a significant amount of mana. This ended up escalating through the entire human territory, as it had plenty of uses. Turning this currency into the greatest success since the forming of the country. It was impossible to make any attempt at falsification, as energy itself was something anyone could estimate by viewing its value.

There were even some banks, and facilities that worked with money, that used a mana-length machine to peerlessly evaluate the high-valued coins. Even if these had protection from a banker’s job skill, which maintained their energy from coming out. The best part was that they also had a different apparatus that enabled people to trade their energy for money, even if little, it was better than nothing. At the very least, it kept beggars from starving to death, but not quite enough for them to stop that lifestyle.

System: You have received the achievement, Beginner Merchant.

‘A new achievement? Did dad give me the money on purpose for this to happen?’

I stole a glimpse of his expression, only to find him smiling kindly at me.

‘I guess not. He just looks happy for me buying things with him. Father probably doesn’t think much about it.’

Interrupting my thoughts, Elisabeth spoke, stretching something towards me.

“Here you go, little miss. I placed some cloth around the hook so that you don’t get hurt with it.”

I stared at it, and then at him, as both of my hands were filled with the fishing rod.

“Thank you for everything. I’ll be careful with it.”

Understanding the look on my face, dad assisted with the edge and the hook and then he returned his gaze to the woman.

“By the way, Elisabeth, what would you suggest using as bait?”

She placed a finger on her lower lip, muttering a murmur before speaking.

“I’d say... get some from a fellow farmer or a fisherman, but I can also take that request as a commission.”

Dad nodded confidently, thinking of various solutions.

“I’ll see what I can do about it, and in case I fail, I’ll return here.”

She extended her arms to the side.

“You’re always welcome here! Anything else you might need?”

Dad swayed his head to the sides, understanding that we had gotten all we came for.

“For now, we have everything. Thank you for the help, Elisabeth.”

They traded warm smiles, and then the woman glanced at me.

“Take care, little one!”

My eyes shifted the focus from my father to the woman and bid her farewell.

“Bye-bye, and thank you for the rod!”

The woman from the general shop said happily while waving her hand. 

“Take care, both of you!” 

A while later, we got three boxes full of worms from a fellow acquaintance of Luke, a farmer. On the way back home, dad decided to ask me something, putting my emotions on the line.

“Will you be okay with killing the worms to catch the fishes?”

I consented with a nod, not paying it much attention.

“Yes? Bugs don’t bother me. I find them cute.”

Luke then followed my response by squirming his hand, mimicking, and giving life to his words.

“If you take the fishes out of the water, they’ll meet their end too.”

My head swayed to the sides in disagreement, eventually lowering my gaze to the barren path toward home.

“I know, but they won’t die without a purpose. I want to learn how to cook and make wonderful dishes for you and mom.”

For a while, we stood silent. From the look of it, I believe dad was brooding over something, but unsure, I remained looking forward to my mother’s meal.

‘I wonder what she’s cooking for us...’

A bit of drool swam through the corner of my mouth as I thought about the mushroom stew she made sometimes.

“Are you excited to fish tomorrow?”

I slurped the saliva back inside before replying to the sudden question.

“Yes! A lot! I wonder if I’ll be able to catch anything though...”

I shifted my gaze from Luke to the road ahead while thinking.

‘I understand what dad meant, but after reading those books... I’ll have to resolve myself.’

I breathed deeply, feeling a tad anxious on the inside.

‘There is a big need to kill things to become stronger at some point.’

I squeezed his hand tighter.

‘Better to get used to it now than later. Otherwise, when I’m faced with a monster and hesitate to defeat it... it might not end so well.’