A large statue stood in the center of the accursed city's poor district, where Sylas found himself in. One known among the people of this world. It depicted a blindfolded priestess holding up an open book with empty pages. Variations of this statue could be found all over, somehow surviving even the worst of calamities. Finding one in an uninhabited area is said to signify a boon of old civilizations.

This area looks completely different from the rest. It was circular, perfect white marble stone laced the ground, revealing some of the black soil in cracks between the stones, through which grass and plants grew. The same marble material had been used for the statue. Streaks of the setting sun's light escaped beneath the ominous black clouds, somehow perfectly illuminating the statue's front. People around it seemed at peace as well, as if taking a break from a laborious day. This was the end of the road I found myself on, taking me a few hours to travel here.

[The priestess of adventures acknowledges Sylas Neverine as an awakened.]

Awakened are people in this world with the ability to manipulate mana and fight demons with the help of constellations. They can learn spells, gain abilities and become superhuman. Their main task is to defend regular people from lingering danger. Only an acknowledged awakened is able to be contacted or helped by other constellations, though it is a rare occurrence.

["Welcome new awakened. You are judged 173602764 strongest, F rank, mage."]

A perfectly clear voice mused in my head. It was the priestesses' voice. The strongest among awakened, gain the ability to become constellations, only after losing their life. They contact only those that caught their eye. Evil constellations existed as well, and the demons had their own. The priestess of adventures mainly dealt in binding a constellation with an awakened, ranking you based on what she thinks your strength is at, even if it may be inaccurate. She also gives out rewards from other constellations and gives entry to a shop where trade between awakened is possible. And she herself, was a constellation.

["Do you wish to purchase or sell any items? Or do you wish to view the rankings?"]

Having nothing to trade with, entering the shop didn't interest me. My eyes narrowed at another floating screen that had appeared with a ring.

[Rankings]
...
[56. The Monkey King, SSS+ rank, deceased, defeated the time dragon of the north]
[57. Blue Arsonist, SSS+ rank, deceased, saved the world from the ninth demon king]
[58. Pointy Eared Oracle, SSS+ rank, deceased, planted the first world tree]
[59. Priestess Of Adventures, SSS+ rank, deceased, seen all journeys]
...
[10997. Archiver Of Secrets, S- rank, deceased, hid the treasure of the fourth calamity]
[10998. Dwarven Beating, S- rank, deceased, saved the world from the twenty-seventh demon king]
...
[390429. Sai Tama, C+ rank, alive, defeated a few monsters here and there, average at best]
[390430. Mad Elementalist, C+ rank, alive, no stories shared]
...
[173602764. (you), F rank, alive, no stories shared]
...

That was me. Fixing my eyes on the screen, a name I'd thought up appeared, along with the priestess' voice.

["A name has been set, this cannot be changed in the future."]

[173602764. Blue Oasis (you), F rank, alive, no stories shared]

Once more, my eyes concentrated on the rankings. Confirming the name change, I began thinking of Evergarden's main character, or rather, his handle. The ranking screen rapidly scrolled upwards.

[98308372. Hero Of Gold, E- rank, alive, saved a random girl in the human realm from a monsters]

He's still alive. To my relief, the main character exists. Once my business was done, in my preperation to leave, the priestess, in her vibrant voice, asked an ominous last question:

["Do you have any stories to tell?"]

This priestess has never been on an adventure, ever in her life. Her passion lies in listening to tales; a secret revealed by her after a player reaches the peak as an awakened.

Another thing players find out, is that she casts a permanent debuff only she can lift, every time your story is not to her liking or a blatant lie. It will also end up on the rankings, her interpretation of your story, that is. Though if it is to her liking, a blessing is granted instead. The problem is, good luck satisfying this priestess that heard it all. I'm not gonna bother.

***

Ever since arriving here, survival had become my first priority, but anyone looking at me now would think that I was in the best place you could find yourself. Sitting on a marble bench near the statue, smiling wide, a book laid open in front of me titled "introduction to fire magic". It contained information about magic in general, and a single fire element spell.

Mana, exists all around us, spread out everywhere. An invisible energy containing material through which waves, like light, propagate. Knight-type users collect this energy, and turn it into internal energy. On the other hand, mages, naturally attract and interact with it.

A knight's strength is measured by the amount of cores they hold, ten being the highest. Whereas mages can store this energy all over, and are judged by the capacity they can hold, measured in stars. Having a ceiling of ten.

One core equals one star in strength.

I began reading more and more. Now and then a pattern would form above my palm, shattering ever so often, and once in a while a ball of red flames would shoot out into the air. Through anger, the ball would shoot out more violently. Happiness made the flames dance more gently, everything affected the process. Changing the pattern's shape, rapidly lead to the ball exploding, but it seemed to change the fundamental spell itself. Maybe creating new ones wouldn't be impossible, unlike in the game?

Thousands of possibilities have opened before my eyes, manipulating energy with the human body became real.

***

It was deep in the night. Most people had left the statue's area. It was now nearly empty, except for some warriors and mages, sitting around or entering here and there.

A boy with a golden glint in his eyes stood out. He was sitting on the cold ground. Items cluttered around him and a book nearly on the last page, laid open before him. Stretching his arm, followed by opening his palm, a circular pattern formed, containing geometrical patterns within, becoming more and more complicated. Soon, a perfect ball of fire flew out briefly illuminating the surrounding.

Sylas laughed at the sight.

[You have learned fireball!]

Time had went by, but he hadn't noticed, a feeling he had lost, something that only happened during childhood. Satisfied, Sylas closed his weary eyes and fell asleep on a patch of grass near the statue, smiling slightly. Tomorrow, I'll gather some more books. Braving the street was dangerous, but there weren't many alternatives. Once people gather, you'll naturally wake up.

***

Inside a luxurious room, there was a masked figure, draped in a white neat hooded cloak. It sat behind a wooden desk, with pen in hand, writing away. In contrast to the room, one view through the window, showed poverty everywhere. People from the outside could not see in, nor did any sound permeate; magic had been applied on the window and entire room. The silence, which the figure enjoyed, soon broke with knocking on the door. It was shortly annoyed, but, the knocking was done in Morse code, something it had picked up along the way. Remembering it, the feeling dissipated, and the figure let out a slight chuckle at the sound. Guests did not come by often in this area, so it hadn't anticipated any.

"Information? Come in." Spoke the figure. Its voice, tired, deep and rugged. It was the voice of a young man.

A tall guard with cold eyes entered with a boy, politely bowed then left quickly. Quiet returned to the room, except for the ticking of an old clock. The figure ignored the boy, as if it had no interest, but it then spoke:

"Young human, not many know of this place, especially you, who seems to recently have entered the world of an awakened. What is it that you desire?"

***

Sylas faced the figure. It was an information broker everyone who had played Evergarden knew well. It existed, seemingly everywhere at once. But most people only met it at higher levels, as it has a stingy personality, to those it didn't know. Death could come at the drop of a hat. But for a veteran, it was the fastest way to quick power at early stages of the game, and my environment left me few safe routes. Luckily, this place stood at the same area as in the game, after this city faced pandemonium.

It always starts by asking what you wanted, no matter how insignificant or powerful you are. Sylas pondered shortly. Asking too little, will lead to death, as will asking too much.

"A book."

The figure tilted its head, as if asking me to elaborate.

"The art of barriers, by Batha-."

The figure quickly raised its right hand, signaling for silence. Blue aura emanated around it, and behind its white mask, two deep blue eyes appeared, showing a glint of anger. It felt as if gravity on my body had increased. 

My breath became shallow, as I fell on one knee, having trouble breathing. The circuit veil of ether, which was normally invisible underneath the skin, slowly lit up from below, preventing my imminent collapse, as its mental resistance powers kept me in check.

"Archmage Bathaar? Child, your soul will allow you an hour read. Think carefully, what is it, that you can offer me?"

After a brief pause, it spoke again.

"If you cannot barter, tell me who told you about this place and we'll act like this never happened, I'll take that trade. Otherwise, you can keep your secrets and perish."

I looked at the figure with tired eyes, taking deep breaths, my gaze hinting for a break. The figure seemed to understand my plea, as its snow-white cloak stopped rippling from the release of energy and the room returned back to its original state.

"Speak." The figure said.

In response to its question, mana collected on my fist. With swift movement, drawing a few arcs, mana lingered for a bit, akin to a neon sign hovering midair. It formed a letter that the figure seemed to recognize. This time, its blue eyes stared at me, wide-eyed in shock, as if looking at a ghost.

An ancient elven rune, lost to time, but one that I had used often. No ordinary human should have knowledge of them, as the figure itself didn't know. But it seemed to understand. These letters contain power only elves could draw out, thus, currently useless to me. As my eyes squinted, I stared at the figure's mask, waiting for its response. She should let me go with this, and it is custom, for her to not pry into her clients, despite the cold attitude. Only what is traded would be taken by her; multiple centuries old, newly appointed queen of the elves, Ceres Galatea. Or rather, one of her clones.

***

[Current status of "Sylas"]
[Lvl. 3]
[78% Till next level]
[Free points: 0]
Strength 2.1 Dexterity 2.25
Vitality 2.1 Magic 6 => 6.25
Intuition 2.25 => 2.5 Magic Resist 2
Resilience 1.25 Charisma 2.25
Luck 3.25

[Main class: Arcane craftsman (grade - mythic)]
Veil of ether (grade - legendary) [Effect: Strong resistance to mental effects. When activated, induces fear and significantly increases concentration, raising magic by 15.] (cooldown - 24h)

[Sub classes]

None

[Spells]

Attributes: Fire, wind, water, ice, darkness, light.

Fireball (grade - common) (cooldown - 4s)

[Equipment]

Regular hooded cloak (grade - common) [Effect: Increases movement speed]

Staff (grade - common) [Weak water circuit: Increases total mana]

3x - Silver ring (grade - common) [Weak water circuit: Increases total mana]

Dagger (grade - common) [Weak wind circuit: Increases movement speed]

[Blessings]

None

[Curses]

None

...