Nathaniel was panting slightly; the calm after the storm that was his escape was finally setting in. His entire body was throbbing due to the pain of being hit by the club. He was a bit surprised that someone was capable of sending him flying with ease by hitting him with a wooden club. But he was even more surprised that he took the hits and still survived.
He blinked, still processing the fact that the System told him that he received a Ring.
"Ring of Mana?" He said aloud, "What....?"
He saw a light shining from Borug's pants and watched as something came out of them and floated up into the air towards him. Without thinking much, he reached out for the object and saw a small iron band in his hand.
[Ring of Mana]
-Grants 20 MP
"A stat-boost item?" Nathaniel frowned and put the ring on his left ring finger, "Hm...."
He felt a shift in his body, as if something was flowing within him. This was clearly his magic power, and it was reacting to the Ring's effects, expanding his MP reserves. He saw that the blue bar in his line of sight got slightly bigger and the numbers changed to 120/120MP.
He blinked, "20 more MP?" He said as he let out a sigh, "I mean...."
He looked around, seeing that Hub and Borug were unconscious. His entire body began to tremble as anxiety crept all over him. He had just escaped the fort and fought his way down to "freedom". But the cruel truth was barely setting in; he was in a different world with something he didn't understand. He was fortunate enough to get a hold of his senses and steel his nerves enough to fight people who wanted to kill him. But it didn't change the fact that he had no clue what was going on at the end of the day.
He remembers getting caught in an ambush during an operation, bullets flying everywhere as he and his brothers in arms were fighting back. The only thing he could think of was something he didn't want on his mind; he died.
But that is what happened, and Nathaniel had to accept it.
He noticed the shift in the System's page:
[Kraetopia]
-Kraetopia is a medieval-themed kingdom in the Udoa Continent, bordered by the Vraeles Emptire to the south and the Xilotia Dynasty to the east. To its west, a vast ocean lies with a distant continent across it.
- It is lush with magic, which is harnessed from the Aether.
- From Mages to Magical Beasts, magic is wielded by many in this world. Only the strong can rise to the top and reign supreme.
- Necromancy is outlawed in Kraetopia, making your War Necromancy something that will get the attention of the Kraetopian Kingdom's Law.
- Kraetopia is filled with Bosses and Dungeons that need to be defeated/cleared to obtain Aspects, Aspect Shards, Necrotic Cores, and Magical Items. Doing so will reward you Points to level up your abilities.
- The King of Kraetopia is Theodore Kraetos IV. His Heir is Prince Tyrannus.
Nathaniel looked up and inhaled, "Okay..." He said, "This is it, then.....? I'm in a different world.....I have a System...and the power it bestowed me is outlawed. Well.....this is fucking great."
He let out a sigh, still feeling the pain in his body. He had so much information to take in, but right now, he was quite curious about being told the King and his Heir's names. He was trying to think if it would be relevant to him later on. He didn't know what this place was or exactly where he was in Kraetopia. He didn't know where to go or what to do. All he was just told was the setting of his dreadful new life.
"Aspect Shards...Aspects....." Nathaniel muttered, "Necrotic Cores..."
Suddenly, the System showed a quick message:
[ALERT: FORMIDABLE FOE(?) DETECTED]
Nathaniel felt a cold shift in the air as it got heavy, his body feeling an unseen pressure as he instinctively looked up. He saw what looked like a woman standing atop a broom, her blue hair flowing in the wind as her dark robe fluttered in unison.
She was wearing a large witch's hat, underneath the robe was a one-piece outfit with no leggings, her thick thighs exposed to the wind. The top of her outfit revealed her cleavage, which was something that Nathaniel was able to notice almost right away.
Her blue eyes pierced through him, something that unsettled him. But it wasn't just her appearance that stood out to Nathaniel; it was the powerful feeling he got from her.
"Ho...?" She said, her voice was soft yet cold, "What is this? The bandits are dead? Well, the two that visit me often aren't...and you....."
Nathaniel stepped back in caution, the System disappearing as he did so. He didn't know what to do in this situation, not sensing any sort of hostility from the woman. He was still appalled that she was standing atop a flying broom, but he quickly accepted that she was a Witch.
"Lookie here." The woman smiled slightly, "A Necromancer."
As she said this, Nathaniel's skeleton crumbled to the ground, causing him to look at it with a frown. There was only a pile of bones lying next to him as a faint amount of smoke emitted from them.
"And that is quite an interesting skeleton you had." The Witch said as the broom slowly floated down, "Not actually made from a corpse.....no.....it was pulled through the Aether, the bones were molded by magic itself. That is quite the spell...and the Necrotic Power emanating from you? It is faint, but there...."
"Are you also one?" Nathaniel asked, "One of those Necromancers?"
"O, Heavens No!" She chuckled as she was right above Nathaniel, only but five feet away from him, "I am a Witch, through and through. And you.....don't tell me, you were captured by Hota's gang?"
"Hota?" Nathaniel asked, "Who the hell is that?"
"Hota is the Boss of these bandits you killed." The Witch said with a smile, "A fierce warrior who was once a respected Knight of Kraetopia. He turned away from the grace of the Heavens after being seduced by the Evil Goddess, Kadione. I figured you would know this.....being a Necromancer and being captured by him. He's quite an infamous criminal, you know."
"No clue." Nathaniel said
"What is your name?" She asked
"Nathaniel." He replied
"Oh my." She said while covering her mouth, "Oh no. That won't do. A Necromancer known as Nathaniel, heavens...the Kraetopian Holy Knights would die of pure anger!!"
"It's not my fault it is my name." Nathaniel said with a frown, trying to scan her, still cautious about all of this, "Nor that I am one."
"A Necromancer?" She said with a smile, "Oh, but it should be your fault. Necromancy is a Magic that is sought after, not born with. Those who seek Necromancy seek the Demon's Power, that is all. But of course.....there are outliers...are you one of those?"
"Maybe." Nathaniel said, "Lady, who are you?"
"I'm the Witch in The Woods." She said with a chuckle, giving him a slight bow,
"Arty."