Chapter 10
This is a fictional story by realTensai
One week had passed since Alvis had defeated the assassin and thus completed his first level. A lot happened since then, but Alvis would try to summarize it from the order.
After he had killed the assassin, Alvis lost consciousness. However, when he woke up, he found himself before the police. They had taken him and Dane in after seeing a dead vampire and a dead woman next to them. Their interrogation was very taxing, yet Alvis somehow convinced them to believe him. He had to use his brain to the fullest to give them convincing arguments. It wasn't every day a teenager claimed an assassin had attacked him and he survived by killing him. However, with Dane, a half-giant, next to him, they believed them in the end.
After this was over, Alvis and his family went to Dane's place, for obvious reasons. His house had burned down, after all. It would be an understatement to say his parents were worried. Their house had burned down and their son was injured. But to Alvis' luck, they didn't find out about him fighting an assassin. He had to pay the police quite a sum for them to lie to his parents about what had happened. Their corruption also had advantages.
After everything had calmed down a bit, Alvis opened up his blue box. His new profile looked like this.
LEVEL 2: A lone girl
Mission: Save the girl
General:
Name: Alvis Silva
Race: Human
Class: Mage
Level: 2-> 3
Skills:
Basic mana manipulation Lvl. 2-> Lvl. 3
NEW! Mastermind Lvl. 1
Stats:
Mana: 71-> 81
Strength: 24–> 29
Intelligence: 57-> 72
Endurance: 26–> 36
Reflex: 27–> 32
Health: 30/30–> 45/45
There were a lot of things Alvis had to take in, and honestly, he didn't even know where to start. However, he focused on his updated stats first because they were the easiest to explain.
Alvis's stats have shown remarkable development. Every stat went up by at least five stat points, which never happened before. He couldn't stop his lips from curving up, thinking about all his efforts to reach this point.
What had his brain overflowing with dopamine was seeing his intelligence going up by 15 stat points.
15 fucking stat points, let's go!
His above-average intelligence was something Alvis always was proud of. It was his only good trait, after all. So seeing it getting even better was an immense ego push. He still couldn't solve world hunger or find the world formula, but his improved intelligence would show over time. However, his high intelligence didn't hinder him from doing joyful dances on the spot.
But putting that behind his health and endurance also went up quite a bit. Those two were never his strong points, yet they gradually became better. It had him optimistic about the future.
I now at least don't have to worry about getting one-shotted by a kick.
Since fighting the assassin, he also didn't have mana seizures. He usually had at least one every day, but this somehow changed. Considering his improved health stat, it made sense.
Alvis' strength and reflex stats only went up by five. However, for him, there was no only. He would welcome every improvement with open arms. He didn't discriminate after all. With his newfound strength, he could now do 15 pushups in one go. Back then, before the time loop, he would have died even attempting one.
Now let's get to my mana stat.
He rubbed his hands, his smile as wide as when he thought about his intelligence stat. His mana went up by ten stat points, being his highest stat, standing at a proud 81. Alvis couldn't say how much mana he had compared to others, but 81 at least sounded like much. And it seemed like it would only keep growing.
He didn't even have to close his eyes to feel the compound of power lying dormant within him. What normally felt like hot liquid burning him from the inside now felt like a calm yet even more powerful ocean filling every cell of his with strength. However, he could only make the most of this power if he knew how to use it efficiently.
Therefore, he now looked at his skills. His basic mana manipulation skill went up to level three. It only went up one level, but Alvis wouldn't complain. He even thought it wouldn't level up in the first place.
Alvis hadn't used his skill to the fullest.
The skill's name was basic mana manipulation, yet until now Alvis only had used it to create fire. He knew he could do way more than that, though when it came to spell casting, he was a total beginner. That was something he had to improve on. He would watch some HoloTube videos for basic spells and would explore his school's library to learn some more.
Alvis also got a new skill with the name "mastermind". At first, he wasn't sure what it could do, but luckily, an explanation popped up.
Mastermind: Once activated, mastermind boosts your intelligence by ten stat points for one minute. It can only be used once per day. Its effects will improve by leveling the skill.
Interesting,... I guess?
Alvis wasn't sure about this skill. He even read the effects twice, yet it still felt somehow weak. However, the last thing Alvis wanted to do was to write the skill off as useless, but it would take time for him to understand its potential. But if Alvis learned one thing from his excessive gaming history, then it was that they were no useless skills. Only useless players who couldn't make the most of the skills. And Alvis didn't want to be one of those useless players.
However, now it was time for Alvis to focus on his class, which, in his opinion, was the most important. After defeating the assassin and completing his first level, Alvis unlocked the Mage class, which now officially made him a mage.
Alvis knew a lot about mages in video games, but not so much about mages in real life. It was common knowledge that a human couldn't be a mage. How should they if they didn't have mana? However, not only did Alvis have mana, but he could also control it now, which basically made him into a mage. Unlocking this class was just a formality.
But now that he was a mage, his high mana made sense. Mages specialized in spell casting, so a high mana capacity was essential. He would have to learn a lot of spells to become a proper mage.
With his new class, Alvis also felt that the mana inside him had become a lot calmer. Before it felt like his mana was like an uncontrollable beast that tried to break free at any given time. But now, his mana lay dormant, peacefully waiting to be used. It was a welcome change of pace.
Alvis had analyzed every change within his profile. He also leveled up to level three, though that didn't really matter to him. However, there was one last thing left, the most important one, that he just couldn't wrap his head around.
It was his new level and mission.
Alvis had completed his first level, so it was a given that he would move on to the next. But the name of his new level and also the mission he got had him scratching his head.
"A lone girl? Save the girl? What the heck?"
The name of his new level was "a lone girl". This alone wasn't problematic. Games tended to give levels weird names, though the names didn't actually matter, so he could just overlook it. However, it was the mission he had to complete that made him uneasy.
"I have to save a girl…. a bit more information is welcome."
The system didn't state which girl he had to save or from whom or what he would have to save her.
"And why do I have to save a girl in the first place?! I'm not some kind of hero!"
He sighed, slumping his shoulders and closing his blue box. With not knowing what to do, all he could do was wait and see how things would develop. Yet he couldn't shake off the hunch that this level would be a lot more complicated than the last.
——
"T-This is impossible!"
Alvis and his parents just looked at the doctor, not knowing what to expect. Right now they were at one of Alvis' regular checkups. However, the doctor acted weird after having inspected Alvis' mana. He walked around in circles, scratching his head, contemplating.
"What is wrong, doctor?" Alvis' dad said, not hiding his irritation.
The doctor stopped, forcing his body back into his chair in front of his computer, and now kept looking at the X-ray, without saying a word. The long silence started weighing down on the Silva family and even Alvis didn't know what was going on. Cold sweat dripped down Alvis' face, his heart nearly exploding. However, the moment he looked at his parents, he saw their faces being as pale as the hospital's white walls. Seconds ticked by, yet they felt like an eternity.
The doctor's eyes widened, and he couldn't suppress a wide grin. He fumbled with the X-ray images, his hands shaking with exhilaration.
"This... this is a miracle!"
Has he lost it?
"Doctor, please explain what is going on."
"O-Oh yeah, of course. The excitement kinda got the best out of me," he said, blushing. "A mana core formed inside of Alvis. His mana that was all over the place now is confined in his mana core."
Alvis just looked at his parents and saw how question marks formed on their faces. The doctor also seeing that projected the X-ray onto a hologram for everyone to see.
"This is how Alvis' inside looks now. Do you see the purple light at his solar plexus? This is his mana core. But for better understanding, I will show you how his inside looked last time."
He switched the X-ray that was shown and a new one appeared.
"Here you can see how bad his condition was. The purple thing you see is his mana. It was all over the place and spread out in his body. It was uncontrollable and constantly harmed his body like poison killing him from the inside."
Alvis nodded. Just like the doctor had stated, the mana inside him felt like an uncontrollable force that acted against him. However, since he had unlocked his class as a mage, everything changed. Now his mana lay dormant within his mana core.
"Alvis' condition was a normal one for a human with mana. Humans don't have the gene necessary to form a mana core, that was why humans born with mana would eventually die because of it. This also was the case for Alvis, so it was only a matter of time before he would die, but now it is different."
The doctor switched back to the initial X-ray and carried on his explanation.
"As you can see, a miracle happened. A mana core formed inside Alvis. Even I can't explain how it happened, but it did. I absolutely have to take a blood test afterward. Maybe we just found the cure for the mana illness!"
Alvis' parents' lips trembled, no words leaving their mouths. No wonder it was a lot to take in, after all. Even Alvis couldn't grasp what he just heard. Everything the doctor said made sense and Alvis also understood the meaning of his words, yet somehow his brain didn't catch on. A torrent of memories flooded his mind. The weight of years of suffering began to lift, and he dared to entertain a newfound hope, though the moment it took on shape, Alvis shattered it into dust.
N-No, there has to be some kind of twist. I can't get fooled.
One look at his parents was enough for Alvis to know that they thought the same. However, they were braver than Alvis and asked the unthinkable.
"W…W-What does that mean, doctor? Are you saying…?" his mom couldn't finish the sentence, not daring to speak it out loud.
However, it was the doctor who said the words.
"Yes. Alvis will survive."
It was like time stood still, as Alvis couldn't perceive reality. Everything went blank and his brain stopped working. Only the doctor's words echoed in his head. He shook his head, struggling to find the right words. He opened his mouth, yet the words got stuck in his throat. No, it was his brain that forbade him to even utter these cursed words. As if the chains of pain had locked them up.
However, he kept trying, opening his mouth again and again. He stuttered, only air and incomprehensible moaning leaving his throat. His heart itched, his sweaty palms and stocking breathing showcasing his misery. Yet he kept trying to do the unthinkable. To ask those cursed words!
"I-I can live? I… am allowed to live?"
Alvis severed the chains that held him back.
His mother's eyes glistened with unshed tears, and a quiver passed through his father's voice as he whispered, "You will live, Alvis. You will." Their tight embraces spoke volumes, a mixture of joy, gratitude, and parental love.
"Alvis! Alvis! Thank god! I-I am so happy, Alvis!"
Feeling their warmth, memories of his childhood flashed up in his head. How his parents were there for him, embracing him after the kids in the village had bullied him again. How his parents never gave up hope and always supported him.
It was with those memories hitting in that Alvis felt a tear running down his cheek. He wiped it away, only for it to be replaced by more tears. The tears didn't stop running and Alvis broke out crying.
Like a little kid, Alvis cried his heart out, still being embraced by his parents. He buckled forward, clenching his chest with his trembling hands. His whole life, he had wished no more than to be normal. He didn't want to be cursed; he did not want to die. They labeled him as the son of the Devil. Every time he heard that, his heart shattered.
Alvis had suffered. He had bawled his eyes out to the point he didn't have enough water in him to keep crying. He couldn't even count how often he had fallen asleep, wishing he would wake up the next day and he would be normal.
But in the end, he gave up. He told himself that he didn't want to live anymore. Though deep down, he always knew it was a lie. It was just a sweet lie to make his life a bit more bearable. But now everything changed.
Alvis could live.
A lump formed in Alvis' throat, and his vision blurred as tears welled up. His body shivered with a mixture of disbelief and relief, and a choked sob escaped his trembling lips. The chains that had bound his life to misery had been released. He was finally free.
"I-I will live!"
This moment was Alvis Silva's origin. His life would only start now. With tears rolling down his cheeks, Alvis freed himself from his curse.