A calm voice that was soothing to the ear completely caught Jules off guard.
He wanted to reply to his new mother, but his teeth chattered as his mind went blank.
Looking at the door with dead eyes, Jules subconsciously took a step back, eager to run away.
As the voice awaited a response, sweat welled up on Jules's forehead.
Jules wanted to crawl under the table and hug his legs until the woman behind the door gave up.
"Are you okay?" his mother asked, her voice laden with worry. "The maids heard noises from your room and I was concerned."
Jules took another step back. "M-mother…" he said, his voice barely audible.
At 19 years old, Jules didn't expect to still react to the term 'mother' like this.
After years of mental care, he could have sworn he had overcome his trauma.
He actually was…but the original Jules's memories had sparked a bit of it once more.
The good thing was that this new mother of his was very different from that bastard he originally had as a mother.
And remembering who he was dealing with now, Jules tried to collect himself.
His trauma was still different from the original Jules's own, and he was already trained for situations like this.
He closed his eyes and imagined all things that soothed him… but he was interrupted by the voice again.
"Are you worried about the mission? If you don't want to go… I could beg the council to postpone your mission."
"That won't work," Jules replied. "You know it."
Positioning himself closer to the door, he tried to say said calmly, "I-I will go, they will not budge. I'll just start what I finished."
'Aside from that, it's easier to try and escape your death when you know when it's coming.'
Jules's mother muttered, "If I try hard enough–"
"It is okay…and I am alright. Sorry for worrying you."
Behind the door, Jules's mother hesitated for a moment as she heard her son's voice.
She wanted to support him…but he always avoided her support.
A mother who couldn't support her child failed at her primary responsibilities.
Biting her lips a bit, she said, "Alright, darling. I brought some equipment for you. Do you mind if I come in?"
"I mind!" Jules yelled unconsciously. "I'm not in a suitable position for you to come in. I apologize…"
A dejected look masked her face.
"No problem. Did the potions from the last mission run out? I have a few more here. Oh, and I managed to commission a good sword for you."
Jules smiled as he heard her. "I'm grateful, mo–mother."
"Ah- Alright. I'll leave the briefcase here then."
Jules heard a small thud at the other side of the door, then his mother said, "May Noctharis be with you. Have a great day, my love."
Hearing her walk away, Jules muttered solemnly, "That bastard, Jules, should have at least treated her well."
The idea of having a caring and nice mother was foreign yet alluring to Jules, but he had to put it aside if he wanted to survive.
After a bit, he opened his door to see a brown briefcase and brought it into his room.
As he placed it on his bed and was about to go through it, he heard another beep sound.
[System Loading Completed.]
- - -
[Status]
Name: Jules Evanava
Mana Core: Light Orange [25%]
Affinity: Water [Mid-grade]
[Skills]
[Quests - 1]
- - -
[Successful System Integration Reward]
Pick one of the three system features below.
~Stats Allocation Feature
With this feature, you'll be able to obtain stats points from the system, granting you the ability to increase any of the available stats.
Available stats: Strength, Agility, Endurance, Dexterity.
~Inventory
Grants you a pocket dimension where you can store non-living things while preserving them.
~Title Boosts
Titles can be gained, and from them, different effects can be applied on you.
- - -
'Of course. While the protagonist got every one of these features, I have to pick one! I'm so blessed!'
Jules hissed, trying to avoid comparing himself with the novel's protagonist.
'At least, it's better than the system the general people in this world have access to. When I obtain skills, it'll be easier to use them.'
Jules looked at his mana core stage.
"Out of all Jules's current stats, only the core stage is impressive and I'm only saying that because he cultivated it for 2 years!"
Core stages were listed as: Black, Red, Orange, Yellow, Silver and White.
The middle four stages were further divided into 3 and the higher stage one reached, the harder it became to advance, especially through normal methods.
Jules had a lot of work ahead of him.
Jules thought about the rewards to choose for a bit, then said, "System, what do you suggest I choose?"
[...]
He tilted his head slightly. "Hello? Is there any being trapped in the system? One that can guide me and stuff?"
[...]
Jules chuckled. 'I guess this system doesn't have a consciousness like the protagonist.'
Going back to the point at hand, he decided.
'I'll refrain from choosing right now. Depending on how I move forward, I'll know what to do.
'That has its disadvantages too, but I'd rather do this.'
Jules spared a moment to look at the quest he had…
- - -
[Quest: Survive your mission.]
You have been assigned to a mission designed for your death; survive it.
Rewards: Location of the Artifact, "Warforged" and the Archangel of War's Heart.
Failure: Death.
- - -
'This rewards...'
A smile crept onto his face as he mused.
'This alone change my entire plan.'
Things might be easier than he thought now.
Jules glanced at the briefcase on his bed before he turned towards the window.
"I better get prepared. The others will soon gather… I still have to get familiar with mana beforehand too, I can't rely on the muscle memory I'm feeling."
After almost two hours, Jules had taken a bath, dressed for the mission, and made his other preparations for the occasion.
Donning a new leather armor his mother got him, he stood, resting his back against a corner of the training hall.
He was waiting for his teammates while reflecting on his practice with mana.
'I think it's because of my transmigration. My general perception and control of mana is better, and it was already above average before it was improved.'
Jules looked around.
Traces of mana of five different colors were flowing in the atmosphere.
The blue mana, particularly, was attracted to Jules because of his affinity with it.
Pulling mana from his core, Jules turned it to a small blob of water that floated above his palm.
His lips curled as he watched it happen. This was fun!
"Hey there, young master!" A voice suddenly appeared near Jules, startling him. "How are you? Are you ready for today's mission?"
A young man with brown hair and black eyes, two years older than Jules at nineteen, stared at the blob of water in Jules's palm.
Curiously, he pointed at the bag near Jules's leg and asked, 'Young master, what's that?'
'Ryan!' Jules recognised this young man as one of his teammates and a thorn of the mission.
Why was he a thorn? He was just too cheerful for Jules!
Looking at him intensely, Jules thought, 'I need to be careful around him... He's the closest thing to a friend Jules have had in a long time.'
Seeing Jules stay silent, Ryan frowned. "Is there anything wrong?"