The anger wanted to claw apart the dream while the sadness wished to wallow in pity; both were in vain, as it was the trust that his older brother had in him that pushed it all aside and allowed him to follow along memory lane in acceptance.
The dream eventually shifted into one of conquest, ascension, and finally going on the offense against the dreadful foe that invaded his home. It was vague and supported by intent rather than legible images. He soaked it all in just the same.
The dream ended abruptly as a voice entered his mind, and his eyes shot open in an alert focus. He surveyed his surroundings, but there was not a single threat in sight. Thalric glanced down to see only his battle axe, which was still on the floor with no hint of moving from its position. He sighed in exasperation and then looked at the floating words hovering in front of him.
Thalric had the insights of an entire world’s worth of soldiers ingrained into his soul. Yet, he had never seen anything remotely like what was in front of his eyes.
[ The Grace Period Has Ended! Class Designation Will Begin!]
[You Have Unlocked the Class: Peerless Conqueror (X) ]
[ Peerless Conqueror (X)
This class is for individuals with the highest innate capabilities for conquest.
- +25 STR, DEX, CON
- +20 INT, WIS, CHA ]
[Unlocked Class Perk: Simulated Planning]
[Retroactively Distributing XP…]
[You Have Reached Level 2!]
[Say ‘Status’ to Observe Further Changes]
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Thalric rubbed the bridge of his nose, getting the hint that these floating words were fundamental to this world and his survival. It was this gesture that made him pause, pulling his hand away from his face, sensing a change.
He homed in on the muscles in his hands as he closed and opened his palms in slow and deliberate motions, searching for the subtle shifts in his body. He was obviously a mortal, weak and fragile. Yet, compared to yesterday, it was like he had improved exponentially after resting. What had changed? The only thing new was the messages. His eyes lingered on the words before him, and then he spoke.
“Status.”
Instantly, a transparent window of words appeared in his vision.
[ Name: Thalric
Titles: Outsider, Former God of War
Level: 2
Class: Peerless Conqueror (X)
Class Perks
Simulated Planning
Attributes
STR: 104
DEX: 97
CON: 101
INT: 72
WIS: 65
CHA: 59
]
He studied the page for a minute, mulling over what these values represented. It was apparent that significant changes had occurred with his class designation and level-up. Thalric focused first on the section underneath ‘attributes’ as his instincts screamed to him that this was of great significance.
It took some time to compare his physical capabilities to what they were yesterday, underneath the haze he had been in, but he could tell that the changes were more drastic than he was first led to believe. Thalric felt an overall improvement in his state of mind, body, and soul. And while he could make inferences on what STR and other abbreviations represented, he understood the implications. Nevertheless, this gave him an explanation as to why he felt slightly closer to his original self. But before diving deeper, he focused on his Class Perk, which immediately caused another window of words to appear.
[Class Perk: Simulated Planning
- Can run simulations of future events based on set parameters by the user.
- Accuracy depends on the available information provided and Perk Level. ]
‘How odd…’
This seemed to be an ability unlocked by the class he gained, and while it was certainly a useful tool, he could not help but wonder how warfare advanced with benefits like these. Though he had no baseline to know whether his perk was ordinary or something special as he was still ignorant of the wider world.
Lastly, he focused on the more self-explanatory values of his status.
[ Title: Outsider – You are not from this world.
- Universal Language Translation ]
[ Title: Former God of War – You have lost your place among the gods. But never forgotten.
- +50% XP from combat. ]
‘Huh’
The benefits of the titles were large based on what he has figured out so far. Particularly the Outsider title. Already his mind was abuzz with tactical maneuvers that such a gift could support.
As he contemplated the bigger picture, it was easy to understand that progression in this world centered around killing other living beings. Especially with the benefits it provided. The former deity could already imagine the countless innocent lives extinguished to receive easy levels instead of combating beasts. A coward's way of improving, but most likely effective.
It was still helpful considering his aspirations, though it did indicate that future opponents could have widely different capabilities from one another, far beyond the expected disparities. He did not have a proper understanding of what was viewed as weak or strong in this world called Arvis. He would have to find civilization to properly gauge the situation.
Suddenly, his train of thought was interrupted as a rumbling could be heard and felt from his stomach. It was hunger. A sensation that was new to him and quite irritating. A sigh escaped his lips. Thalric lifted himself up, rolling his shoulders to get a good feel for his current capabilities, and dropped down from the tree to land on the surface. He landed with ease, feeling no discomfort from such a height. He picked up his battle axe over his shoulder and started to walk in a random direction.
“Time to hunt, Vulkrath.” He said with a bloodthirsty smile. And level up.