The fateful day finally arrived. It didn't matter if one waited with bated breath and excitement, or was terrified of what was to come; the awakening day came as if it were always an inevitability.
In the end awakening process began much smoothly than many had expected.
One moment, everyone was on Earth.
Next, they found themselves standing on a vast, endless field of grass. The ground was soft beneath their feet, and the air was crisp, carrying the faint scent of pine.
For as far as the eye could see, people of every race and nationality stretched out across the meadow, confirming that all of humanity had been summoned here together.
The space was not empty, however.
Great canopies of trees formed natural partitions across the plain, dividing the masses into separate areas like vast, shaded courts.
The blotted light beneath the branches painted shifting patterns on the ground.
And beyond, at the edges of this strange world, mountains rose sharply against the sky, their jagged peaks wrapped in clouds as if forming the walls of the dimension itself.
Raven was also among this crowd; he was naturally as confused as the rest of them. However, it was clear that something was about to happen. Though most expected it, everyone couldn't help but jump as a transparent blue screen appeared in front of them.
For almost everyone, ten different options appeared.
[Please choose 5 attributes from the options below.]
Strength
Dexterity
Mana
Aura
Casting speed
Stealth
Fire Affinity
Recovery
Healing
Sword Affinity
[Note that your attributes can't be changed after being chosen.]
For most people, this is what their attribute panels looked like.
There were exceptions, however, as the attributes they received as options were due to their affinities.
Even with all this controversy and fuss about equality, no one was truly equal.
Some people are born with what others don't have.
For example, talent. Hard work has its limits, and this was the case even here in the other dimension. Some people were simply more blessed.
Everything continued to proceed smoothly for almost everyone, well, everyone except Raven.
He had no idea what was going on.
Around him, whispers about attributes between different individuals continued to enter his ears and in his head, he cursed, "What the hell are these attributes everyone is talking about?"
Indeed, this was because his attribute panel was blank; Raven didn't receive any attribute choices at all.
Did all his anticipation and desire amount to nothing at all? Was he not going to receive what everyone around him had received?
Starting to lose hope, Raven started to believe that it wasn't meant to be; maybe he was destined to die with no power while always living at the bottom.
[You have 10 minutes left to choose]
A booming voice sounded across the whole of the dimension, startling everyone and forcing them to pick faster.
Hearing this, Raven gained some motivation to find a way; after all, this would probably be his only chance.
Although he had no options to choose from, his attribute screen wasn't fully empty either.
There was one thing: a search bar.
He was at first reluctant to try it as it only seemed to be a waste of time, but now he had no other choice.
"I wonder what it does."
He pressed the search bar on the screen, and a keyboard popped up on the attribute panel.
Even though he was completely unsure as to what to do in this situation, he thought that he should at least enter something in. Raven, however, wasn't sure what to try.
He wasn't even sure what counted as an attribute.
...
"So, what do we do with these?" a man nearby asked, glancing at Raven and the others around him.
"How the hell should I know..."
"I think it's like those games and stuff."
Conversation rippled through the group like a wave.
"Yeah, you should think about what type of powers you want."
"Ah... so I'll just pick mana so I can sit still and be powerful," a slightly chubby-looking man added with a grin.
"Don't think that's how it works, but sure, you do you."
"I swear, if humanity has to depend on people like you, we're truly doomed..."
From the whispers around him, Raven quickly understood that these attributes were like the ones in the games, novels, and anime he had consumed years ago.
It felt strange, like echoes of a life that no longer belonged to him. Most of those memories were hazy now, blurred by years of pain, but they stirred things inside him he had buried long ago.
Yet one word cut through the fog, something present in almost every fantasy story he had ever read when he was younger.
Mana.
He typed it in knowing that he would have to be quick. Although he wasn't even sure that anything would happen, he had to try. He was only hedging his bets, but somehow it miraculously seemed to work.
[Would you like to pick Mana as one of your attributes?]
The message that popped up on the panel was like a ray of hope shining down on him from above. He couldn't believe that work, and although he was able to hide his emotions extremely well at this point, he couldn't help but almost jump in joy.
Not wanting to wait any longer, he was about to click yes to finally gain his first bit of supernatural and otherworldly power, only to stop in his tracks as extreme thoughts of all of the possibilities of this power popped up in his mind.
'Wait, could I really type in anything?' Raven's thoughts were a complete mess, and his heart started to race due to the infinite possibilities that were present before him.
'But should I still go for mana, as it always ends up being important?'
'No, Mana is too basic. I need something stronger.'
Raven knew that this would be the moment that decided where he would be in the pecking order when he returned back into his world. And as previously mentioned, anything below the absolute apex was not enough.
[Such an attribute does not exist in the system catalogue]
'So, I still have to choose something that is an attribute,' Raven thought to himself as his previous attempt failed. He had tried to put 'god' into the search panel to see if it was possible to gain basically omnipotent power instantly, but obviously, that was not possible.
'Well... It was worth a try.'
It's what Raven truly desired. To be able to control every living thing to his every whim. Only a god could do that, and so that had to be his ultimate goal.
Raven wasn't without ideas as he remembered many things he had seen or read in his childhood. Something came to his mind, something like mana but stronger. Aether, something Raven remembered as a stronger version of mana and something that had no limits.
[Would you like to pick Aether as one of your attributes?]
Without much thought, Raven clicked yes, knowing that he did not have a lot of time remaining.
[Aether has been added to your attributes.]
[Aether is the origin of mana. Due to being much purer than mana, it is far more powerful and has the ability to control mana around you. You can also purify mana and turn it into Aether.]
"Wow!" Raven exclaimed. He had expected Aether to be stronger than mana, but to be able to control mana around him; it really was overpowered.
Well, now he needed an element, after all, his aether, like mana, won't be of much use unless channelled through an element.
"The lightning element seems quite strong compared to the rest." Raven was in deep thought about which was the strongest element, but he soon realised that he may not have to choose.
"How about all elemental magic?" With this, Raven would be able to use every kind of magic without a problem. After typing it in, a familiar screen appeared in front of him.
[Would you like to add all Elemental magic to your attributes?]
After promptly clicking yes, Raven Dmitry came to the realisation that he would need to be physically strong as well as have Aether. He also knew that it would be much more satisfying to take the lives of those mafia bastards with his own hands.
He thought that just having something like strength wouldn't be enough, so he thought about going with something like inner strength or QI instead, which he had seen in some Chinese novels and comics.
To go with this, Raven needed a skill that lets him master all types of physical combat. Though not having any idea as to what it would be called, he decided to enter all physical skills mastery into the search bar.
[Search unsuccessful]
[…]
[Such an attribute doesn't exist, but a similar attribute, All master, has been found instead]
[Would you like to add All Master to your Attributes?]
For the first time, Raven was happy to have the system AI, as it seemed to be quite helpful, and so he promptly clicked yes after glancing at the time above his head, which let him know that there were only two minutes left.
He also quickly added inner strength to his attributes.
[Search unsuccessful]
[…]
[Such an attribute doesn't exist, but a similar attribute, Martial power, has been found instead]
'This definitely works, but what about the last one? Is there anything important I'm missing?'
He needed one more attribute, and as his final goal was still to be as strong as a god, he needed divine power. Although his earlier attempt to quickly become something akin to a god had failed, he had not given up on the idea yet.
[Divine power does not exist in the system catalogue, but a similar attribute, Divinity, has been found.]
[Would you like to add Divinity to your attributes?]
Knowing that he would not be able to go back, Raven hesitated for a moment. It was almost as if this moment would decide everything going forward.
[One minute left]
The booming voice again sounded. Though everyone had already heard it once, it still managed to startle them. This also made Raven click yes on his attribute panel in panic, and so now he had chosen all his attributes, and of course, he didn't regret any of his choices.
[10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 …]
As everyone hurried, a countdown started at ten seconds, which promptly ended, and the system let everyone know that they would be given a class based on the attributes chosen.
Without much explanation, everyone was enveloped by pure white light, and the whole dimension started to shake.