Vivan woke up with a yawn of freshness. His memory of the LME's judgment to seal his stats was still burning inside his chest.
He was about to check his stats and skills that's when a new female AI voice hummed inside his head with a jolly and cheering tone.
"Good Morning GhostWalker! Welcome to the main game."
Vivan responded with a serious tone.
"What's your name?"
"I'm Lenora! I will be your guide through your journey in the main game."
"That's good to hear Lenora." – Vivan opened his stats window and a gasp of frustration came out of his throat.
"All my general stats are at 20! All my efforts, they are gone. Mental stats are the same and it will really give me good boost but still …."
Then he opened up his skills stats and this time he understood what it was meant when the system notified earlier "The seal has been applied".
All of his unique skills were gone. Only the common skills he started with was there along with one epic skill Iron mind and two new unique innate skill Override and Call of flame.
"Lenora! What is this LME? I earned the skills and stats through my efforts. I thought with those I will be able to break the game and.."
He could not finish.
"Exactly GhostWalker. You would have broken the game world with those. That's why LME maintained the balance without robing all of your efforts. Override and Call of flame are there as your achievement for the extreme success."
The frustration was deep enough that Lenora's words were ignored subconsciously.
Vivan stood up after checking his inventory.
"Ok so what now, Lenora?"
"GhostWalker if we go past this forest at east, we will reach the beginner's town Novarim on the lap of the high mountains."
"Novarim, huh! That's a good name."
Vivan started walking towards the forest at east.
The forest was really condensed due to the long pine and oak trees. The rays of sunlight were playing through their branches. Different squeals of animals and birds were floating in the air like melody of the nature. Some unknown flowers and fruits were decorating the forest like wedding ceremony of the nature.
As he was walking through the forest his frustration was healing slowly through the soothing beauty.
Near about 200 metres the forest broke into two paths circling around a pond glittering in gold of sunlight. He took the left path as directed by Lenora.
He was walking slowly as he was enjoying the forest as an explorer but his day dream got interrupted as a sharp flying arrow past through his ear and head grazing his hair a little.
Vivan's instincts sharpened, eyes turned cold and observing like a hawk. Then another arrow rushed flying at him from a tree branch at his right. He dodged the air by stepping on his right toe.
Vivan equipped his basic sword out of his inventory. A third arrow almost touched his forehead before being deflected his sword. That's when his eyes locked onto the goblin holding a bow in his right hand on the tree branch behind the leaves.
He leaped toward the tree as arrows started raining. But he kept running forward dodging some of the arrows cleanly and some grazed him little by little.
A clean step on the tree trunk pivoted him to jump then a second step to reach the height of the branch and downward vertical slash made the goblin archer fall to the ground.
But Vivan was shocked as the mental multipliers were not activated.
Then the goblin took out a small dagger out of his roped hilt on its hip and rushed towards Vivan in tremendous speed leaving its bow behind.
Then the birds hiding in the tress flew in flocks of panic as the calm forest was vibrating through the noise of steel colliding with sharp *Clanks*.
A right swing of the dagger was deflected by Vivan's sword hilt then a backhanded horizontal slash launched toward the goblin.
The goblin jumped over the arc of the swing and tried to plunge the dagger in his eyes but Vivan dodged that by stepping to his left by twisting his body on the ankle, then the open hand clenched into a fist and the other hand holding the sword.
*RAAAGH!*
A heavy punch connected to the goblin's face thrashing its nose. The goblin got thrown away by few metres.
But it stood back up groggy but still holding its dagger, bleeding from its broken nose. Vivan did not give it the time to recover, a step side kick landed on the goblin's gut to throw it back to the ground again. Then he leaped in the air and plunged the sword into its lungs.
Blood spilled like fountain from its wound, then its body got shattered like memory fragments.
[System chime]
+2 STR for successfully slaying the goblin +2 AGI for successfully slaying the goblin +2 SPD for successfully slaying the goblin +3 INT for meticulously slaying the goblin +100 gold coins for successfully slaying the goblin
Vivan's eyes looked into his stat window in confusion. He gained 50 EXP for killing the monster.
"Lenora! Why the mental multiplier was activated?"
"The monster was too weak for your mental multipliers to be activated." – Lenora informed with graceful voice.
Vivan's frustration found its root back in his heart.
"So not only I lose my skills and stats but also due to lack of strength in current monsters I'm going to lose my mental multiplier." – the thought gave him the overview of his current situation.
He started walking past the mark where the goblin faded away. By the time the sun was just over his head he felt hungry. He gathered some dry branches from the forest a sets a small bonfire to roast the edible meat he got as starting bonus in the main game.
As the smell of the charred meat blew in the wind he saw 2 pair of eyes looking at him hiding behind the trees just past the bonfire. He set the out the fire and pulled out his sword from the inventory and let it rest by the tree trunk he was sitting on.
He took out the cooked meat and grabbed a bite keeping the sharp eye contact with the observant pairs of eyes. Once he finished his food and stood back up to move forward those eyes lingered into the shadows of the tree.
And the system notified –
[+2 INT for calmly deescalate the threat]
He moved into deeper woods.
The sun started dialing to the west as the cold breeze started blowing through the deep woods carrying fallen leaves on its back as Vivan's steps had reached the watering hole.
Different species of animals gathered around it drinking in harmony by forgetting the racial contradictions. Deer, buffalo, tiger, lion, rhino and much more. The tired sun was looking at the harmony half asleep.
Vivan was also enjoying the moment, hiding himself behind a trunk of oak. That's when Vivan felt a cold breath over his shoulder and a rattling noise of movement made him turn his gaze to the upper branches of the tree.
His body froze in fear. A huge snake was coiling in that branch and slowly moving towards him in slow and steady rhythm through the shadows of the half asleep sun.
Iron mind activated helping him conquering his fear, Vivan jumped back by few steps equipping his sword.
The Snake charged at him with a spine shivering *HISS*
Vivan dodged its fang by performing a forward roll under its attacking arc. Then a horizontal strike landed on the snake's body living a small slash spilling blood.
With a low hiss, the snake flared its hood and exposed its gleaming fang, launching forward in a blur of fury after uncoiling itself from the tree branch.
Vivan jumped to his right and a body roll helped him sustain his balance but the snake turned back in the same speed, this time a tail sweep connected at Vivan's rolling body dropping his HP by 300.
*HISS* - and a rattling noise echoed around the watering hole of its tail.
Vivan struggled back up. Then he countered the next tail sweep with a leap over it and plunged his sword at its tail, spilling blood like ink out of a broken pen.
The snake hissed in pain then plunged it's fang on Vivan's shoulder with tremendous speed leaving nor room for Vivan to react.
[System chime]
Status poisoned. Critical condition detected. Initializing Mental Multiplier.
Even in extreme pain and burn through his shoulder due to the poison Vivan's eyes glistened in anger, his face smirked as he heard the chime.
As its fangs were still stuck on his shoulder Vivan stabbed the snake its head for below with his sword.
**RAAAAGHHH!!**
Once, twice, thrice.
The noise *Stab* echoed three times before the snake lost its strength. Its fang came out of his shoulder then as a final blow before death it tried to bite Vivan in his neck but Vivan was untouchable for the monster due to the multiplier.
A flash flickered across the deep woods as the sun went down. With tremendous speed the glowing beginner's sword chopped down the monsters head.
"Mana Strike" – a last battle cry echoed.
And the snake shattered.
Vivan fell down on the ground by his back. The silver moon in the sky smiled at him as he lay on the ground. The cold breeze was flushing out the battle heat out of his body as the system chimed-
[Successfully slain the King of the reptiles: Zarathiss.]
+5 STR for slaying Zarathiss +5 AGI for slaying Zarathiss +5 SPD for slaying Zarathiss +10 INT to survive a critical situation + 2 LUK to survive a critical situation +1000 gold coin for slaying Zarathiss +600 EXP for slaying Zarathiss Fang of Zarathiss dropped
[Player Levelled UP]
HP and MP Restored Due to level up all status ailments neutralized Due to level up through critical conditions current stats have been doubled up
As the system voice faded the chorus of nocturnal insects hummed, their sound echoing softly beneath the canopy carrying the forest back in silence after the storm of battle.
Vivan looked at his status window.
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Player Level – 2
Player EXP- 200/1500
HP – 2000/2000
MP- 400/400
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General stats: Mental stats:
STR – 54 Courage –1000
AGI – 54 Resolve – 1000
INT – 66 Blood thirst – 700
LUK – 44 Empathy – 100
SPD – 54
HP – 1000/1000
MP – 200/200
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Vivan released a sigh of relief under the soul soothing silver gleam of the full moon in the night sky. The petals on the tree branches danced along with the cool breeze blowing through the forest.
"What a System! It didn't rob me. It forced me to understand. It's not about what you start with. It is about how you fight." – Again he fell in love with the LME as he realized how to activate his overpowered mental stats during combat.
A steel resolve rooted in his heart as he figured out a way to grow even without his true stats and skills which were locked under the skill OVERRIDE.
….To be continued.