As the light receded, the Otherworlder found himself standing in a massive hall with polished marble tiles and shining golden pillars.
He lifted his head and sighted a beautiful tapestry on the mouth of a well-rounded dome.
'W-wait, what is this place? Where am I?'
A strange vibration rippled through the ground as his body immediately flinched. He turned and shivered at the sight behind him.
"W-who are you?" He stuttered, taking a step away from a flight of stairs. The thing he saw blinked, and the floor trembled once more.
It was a floating Orb with three pairs of white feathery wings and three crimson eyes.
"Who are you?" He immediately queried the thing while his eyes darted around, desperately searching for an escape route.
If it could fly, it could be high.
The Orb's blood-hued eyes blinked, and a four-point white star shone in each of them. Its spread its wings over a wide area, and an unsettling aura permeated the place.
Again, the earth beneath Ryan shook violently, as its voice resounded in Ryan's head, "Otherworlder."
"Live, Rule and Conquer."
"What?!" Ryan's eyes widened as confusion filled every fiber of his existence, 'That was all?'
He was about to speak, but the world abruptly shifted. Before he could let out a word, he found his head inside a pool of water.
Waves rippled above the surface, distorting the view of tall trees swaying in the breeze.
[New life started]
Suddenly, a hand plunged into the lake and yanked his face from the lake. He gasped and coughed mouthfuls of water as his mind reeled with the thought of nearly drowning.
Desperate for air, he clung to the hand that saved him, shivering and wide-eyed.
He looked up and saw a man covered in clothes made from black, lusterless leather. Half of his pale face, particularly the lips and nose were hidden by a black leather mask.
Suddenly, the man's eyes turned sharp. Before he knew it, an arm grabbed his shoulder and pulled him to the side. By the time Ryan could make sense of what had just happened, he spotted a green blob flying towards them at high speed.
The Masked Man quickly unsheathed an iron sword from his waist, the hilt of his blade was engraved with a red crystal and along the sword's width were runes carved into its spine.
The runes lit up with a red light, the crystal released an intense red light as fire rapidly engulfed the blade when it unleashed a blazing red arc.
In a flash, the arc collided against the blob, creating a sizzling noise that followed with explosions thickening the air with smoke.
From a distance, Ryan saw a creature emerge from it. It was almost the size of an adult horse.
The creature announced its presence with a hiss, displaying a sharp fork-like tongue and bluish-green scales that glinted in the sunlight.
"Get back!" The Masked Warrior yelled before jumping forward and thrusting his blade. The runes glowed again, lighting the spine with flares that coalesced at its tip. With explosive force, they bolted into a ray that careened towards the enemy.
The Creature swerved its neck as the attack missed, then it swung its massive tail, earning a leap from the Warrior who swifly responded by unleashing another burning arc of fire.
The snake immediately turned to its scales to block. The attack exploded, covering the front view with smoke that later dispersed, revealing barely a dent on the creature's defenses.
"Very well." A muffled voice resounded from the mask as the fighter slashed the air with his blade.
The Snake Beast swiftly curled around itself before the attack struck.
The Masked Warrior doubled down by moving, circling around the creature as he sent out wave after wave of attacks, each of which exploded on impact.
During that moment, Ryan heard a voice ring some words into his head.
[Info updated.]
A new tab popped up.
[Info
Name - Alric Gilamel
Title - RedHeart
Element - Flame
Core Grade - First
Skill - Mutant
Mana - 40/40
State - Physically Stable
Spells
Flaming Finger - Sneak attack Spell. Unleashes a ray of attack on an enemy with one finger. Costs 1 MP and a 1-second cooldown per finger.
Burst - Defense Spell. Send your element through your body to unleash a short burst, dealing damage to enemies within a 5-mile radius. Costs 5 MP and has 30 30-second cooldown.
Mana Imagery - Cumulative Spell. The Stronger the image, the greater the mana deducted. It can also be used if the user is in contact with something while generating.
Skills
None]
Ryan found the tab's content a bit surprising, especially the name, but his attention was quickly spirited away by a loud hiss.
Subconsciously, he squinted his gaze, and another window appeared, displaying the serpent's details.
[Battle Info
Name - Poison Serpent.
Grade - Abnormal
Description - A creature that possesses an innate poison ability and little healing, constantly sheds its skin to change colour and become stronger.
The highest grades of this species are those with black scales.
Element - Nature
Mastery - First Realm
State - Slightly Injured]
'Healing,' Ryan was at a loss for words after reading that statement, redirecting his attention back to the field.
The snake's resistance was fading; hints of blood and exposed flesh patches were all over its scales.
Part of him smiled, glad that the repeated attacks were having an effect.
But his joy waned when he saw the snake's tail sprawling towards the warrior, who was starting to lose speed.
"Watch out!" He roared.
However, his warning did not arrive quickly enough. The tail grabbed the man's ankle and hurled him towards a tree.
He heard a loud crash before the fighter collapsed to the ground, his runic blade clattering with a metallic sound.
"Shit!"
[You have received a Quest.
New Quest - Kill the Poison Serpent
Failure - Death.]
"A Quest?" Ryan felt this was malicious.
The creature was slithering towards the incapacitated opponent as green orbs of energy hovered above its wounds.
It then dove towards the warrior with bared fangs.
At that point, Ryan took a gamble and pointed his finger.
"Activate Flaming Finger!" He thought, and a ring of fire appeared right before his forefinger.
As the beast was about to finish the job, it noticed a red light beaming towards it. Before it could react, the attack blazed against its right eye, burning into its sclera.
With a sharp recoil, the monster sprawled on the floor, writhing and tossing around in agony, releasing painful hisses from a fiery turmoil.
From his position, Ryan stared at the smoke that clouded his finger, amazed that the attack had hit.
Then he seized the moment with a sprint towards the sword.
The moment he grabbed it, the serpent arose with a seething expression, and white smoke billowed from its bloodied, blinded eye.
He subconsciously tightened his grip and moved closer.
In an instant, the snake reared its head and lurched. He reacted immediately, taking a wide leap before he witnessed its twist in position, fangs now aiming for his legs.
This creature was about seven meters long.
His first thought was to run, and yet he remained, patiently waiting the beast's advance. When it thought it was close, that it had gotten the chance to enact vengeance on the prey, a sharp glint appeared in Ryan's eyes as he echoed a spell inside his head.
'Burst!'
Flames suddenly appeared, hovering around his clothes. In one second, the fire pushed outwards, engulfing the nearby surroundings as the snake came within its range.
Its remaining eye and a huge portion of its face were immediately scalded by the flames. The Monster yeeted backwards, hissing as its head dragged upon the dirt.
A hasty Ryan dashed forward, attacking from the side. His gaze fixated on the exposed white flesh.
With a sharp grunt, he swung the blade upwards. Fire burst from its handle, fully enveloping its spine. The attack made contact, burning through tissue as it cut through the side, and severed the monster in half.
Ryan quietly watchedthe creature spasm around the floor with two bloodied eyes, hissing in discomfort while he clenched the sword, bracing for another attack.
After a short time had passed, its movement came to an end.
[Enemy Defeated - Quest Completed.]
He dropped to his knees, breathing heavily as he loosed the blade.
An announcement came after that.
[Reward obtained - King Alric Gilamel has been awarded three points. Would the ruler like to update his stats?]
"Not now," Ryan replied.
[Affirmed.]
After taking the time to process it all, he slowly stood up, but spotted an orb swirling around the dead, partly scorched body.
Squinting gave him the needed info.
[Item
Name - Poison Snake Orb (Abnormal Grade)
Description - Used in medicine, poisons, or advancing a nature user's prowess.
Touch to equip]
Ryan didn't know what awaited him after this, so he equipped the item and moved to the unconscious figure.
The fighter's mask had fallen off, revealing his features as a bearded man with a little black scar around the nose.
Curious, Ryan squinted his gaze as he did with the snake.
[Character Info
Name - Pierre
Title - Nameless
Elemental Affinity - True (Flame)
Core Grade - First Realm
Weapon Grade - Rare
Skill - Wielder
Description
As a Wielder of the Flame, Pierre's core lacks the ability to generate fire directly, hence a weapon forged with the essence of a beast must be made to draw out his potential.
Since only you skillfully survived this encounter, it is up to you to decide if a weakened card is worthy of use.]
Ryan turned away from the window and looked at the one named Pierre.
"Who knows," He thought before looking back at the snake's body. If he didn't have mana imagery with the sword to slash, it was possible he'd already be dead.
In the end, the ridiculous gamble paid off, and now that it was over; he felt relieved that it was. Another question arose from his head.
Wherever the fuck in this 'Tum' were they?
The ground below him trembled, drawing his attention to the trees in the south where thunderous hooves and loud neighing noises emerged, sparking a mix of curiosity and caution.
He pressed the sword's handle, hearing his heart pound heavily at his chest as he braced himself for another event.