After Eir finished patching him up, they both left the medical room together. Axel headed into the courtyard, looking for Tyr to give him a falna while Eir had to attend to some matters inside the house.
The sun was dipping lower when Axel stepped outside. The Tyr Familia compound wasn't big, not like the Loki or Freya Familia buildings he'd heard about from wandering adventurers on the street earlier that week, but it was practical. It was a two story manor, built sturdily but without much ornamentation. A training yard opened up to one side, packed dirt worn down by countless boots. A small garden sat near the rear fence, and a row of laundry fluttered faintly in the evening breeze.
Some of the familia members were scattered about, Axel counted five members that were in the familia, not including himself.
He spotted Ragnar near the training yard, sitting on a wooden log with a whetstone in hand, sliding it rhythmically across the edge of his axe. Ragnar noticed him, gave a sharp grin.
"Hey, rookie."
Axel walked over, hands in his pockets. "That name's gonna stick, isn't it?"
"Oh yeah," Ragnar said, not even trying to deny it. "Better get used to it."
"You're not even that much older than me you know?" Axel sighed
"Yeah, well, Im the familia captain so it's my job to intimidate the newcomers" He grinned.
He set the axe aside and stood, towering over Axel as usual. But the grin on his face was less mocking now. There was a kind of… respect beneath it. "You held your ground well."
"I lost," Axel said simply.
"You fought," Ragnar countered, voice steady. "No one expects a guy without a Falna to beat me in a slugfest. But you got through my guard, that's already more than enough."
Axel snorted softly. "I'll take that as a compliment."
"You should," Ragnar replied, clapping him on the shoulder, gently this time. "Anyways, I'm heading into the kitchen to cook us some grub."
"You? Cook?" Axel muttered in disbelief.
The older man snorted. "I'm not a mindless brute you know, anyways Tyr-sama is in the living room if you're trying to find him, catch ya later."
Axel waved him goodbye, then headed towards the living room, it was a fairly simple room with a rustic charm, there was couch and some random ornaments and furniture scattered about.
Tyr spotted him, faint approval flickering across his face. Then his gaze softened slightly. "You've decided, then? To join us."
"Yeah," Axel replied without hesitation. "I want to fight. I want to grow."
"Then let's make it official." Tyr gestured for him to follow.
They entered a quiet room at the back of the manor, this one looked like a shrine. Candles burned in iron holders, their light soft but steady. A simple carved table sat in the center, a symbol of Tyr etched into the wood.
Tyr motioned for Axel to take off his shirt and sit down. Axel complied, feeling the cool air brush against his back.
Tyr's hand settled lightly between his shoulder blades. "Relax," Tyr said quietly. "This will only take a moment."
Then it came.
A sudden, sharp sensation, like invisible ink searing itself into his skin. But it wasn't pain. It was something deeper. Threads of power sank into his body, A faint glow filled the room as he felt his body change itself on an atomic level.
And then… it was done.
Tyr stepped back and handed Axel a folded piece of parchment. His status.
Name: Axel Thorne
Level: 1
Strength: I 0
Endurance: I 0
Dexterity: I 0
Agility: I 0
Magic: I 0
Skills:
[Rauðrblóðr]
Development Ability: None
Magic: None
Tyr raised a brow as his eyes scanned Axel's back again. "That… is an interesting blessing," he murmured. it was written in a language that even he couldn't decipher
The god didn't pursue the topic, there was no need to pry into someone that was in his familia. Axel nodded back, thankful.
Outside, the night air felt sharper. Axel followed Tyr into the main hall where the rest of the Familia waited. A long wooden table stretched down the center of the room, filled with steaming dishes—simple but hearty. Roasted meat, bread, vegetable stew. The smell alone made his stomach growl.
"This," Tyr announced as he entered, "is our newest member. Axel Thorne."
The first to speak was Ragnar, leaning back on his chair, a bandage running down the side of his face where Axel's elbow had connected earlier. "You hit hard for someone without a Falna," he said with a grin. "Guess I'll have to stop going easy next time."
Axel smirked faintly in responce.
Ragnar laughed, a booming sound that filled the hall.
Next was Eir, seated near the middle. She gave a small wave with a spoon in her hand. "Try not to beat yourself up too much, nobody from us won against Ragnar when we tried to join either."
Axel raised a brow. "No promises."
To Eir's right sat Yrsa, a young woman, sharp-eyed, dark hair tied into a tight braid, posture like someone ready to spring at any moment, she didn't talk much, just gave Axel a short nod, she gave off a no-nonsense but reliable vibe.
Across from her was Halvard, a late teen, 16 to 17 with shaggy blond hair and a wide grin, clearly the least experienced of them all. "Hey, new guy! I'm Halvard! Try not to die on your first dungeon run!"
"Thanks for the encouragement," Axel deadpanned, which only made Halvard grin wider.
At the end of the table sat Kjell, a tall, slim, man with silver hair and an aura that screamed "I'm an intellectual", his sharp blue eyes had that sparkle of curiosity that drives researcherchers.
Axel took a seat beside Eir. The warmth of the room bled into him, the aching in his muscles slowly fading beneath good food and quiet company. He didn't say much at first, but slowly, he got accustomed to the atmosphere, started joining in on the laughs and conversations.
For the first time since he woke up in this world, Axel felt a faint sense of belonging.
Later that night, when the others had gone quiet and Tyr had retired to his personal quarters, Axel lay on his bed in one of the upper rooms. The room was simple, wooden floorboards, a single bed, a table at the side, along with a empty cabinet, and a window overlooking the courtyard.
But the moment his head hit the pillow, the faint glow of the System flickered in front of his eyes.
[Main Quest Completed: Join a Familia]
Rewards:
2500 Brutality Points
Quest Function Unlocked
Shop Function Unlocked
Point Conversion Rate: 500 Brutality Points = 1 Skill Point
Axel stared at the message, his fingers curling slightly. "Alright… let's see what we can work with."
[Brutality Points: 2500] Convert into Skill Points? (500 = 1) [Yes] / [No]
He tapped Yes.
Brutality Points Converted: 2500 → 5 Skill Points Remaining Brutality Points: 0 Skill Points: 5
Next, the Skill Tree appeared. Branches spread out, sharp and clean. His base skills—[Hardened Frame] and [Tempered Rage]—glowed faintly.
He spent 1 skill point on [Hardened Frame], turning it into Level two.
Next, he spent a good amount of time looking for a good movement skill, he was very lacking hwen it came to mobility which led him to finding.
[Blood Step Lv. 1]
A explosive burst of primal speed born from battle drive and bloodlust, when activated, user's speed increases significantly in short bursts.
Next, he needed a skill that would give him some experience with weapons, he was practically a master in hand-to-hand but incredibly lacking when it comes to armed combat.
[Axe Mastery Lv. 1]
The axe is an extension of your body, carving through flesh and splitting through skulls. Gives a natural familiarity with wielding axes.
He preferably would've chosen a spear and shield mastery skill but this was the [Berserker System], there was no such thing.
And last but not least, he needed a skill that would increase his survivability, yes, he had [Hunter's Intuition] which sufficed until now but it was mainly focused on tracking, which is why he got
[Danger Sense Lv.1]
An instinct sharpened by the heat of battle, this skill warns the user about incoming or approaching danger 0.5 seconds before it appears.
After he was done purchasing the new skills, his eyes wandered towards the Shop section of the system, wondering what wonders were being sold there
Axel's eyes widened, 'What the fuck was this?'
Price tags with zeroes that seemed almost endless, items that could summon heroes, make people immortal, and even slay gods appeared in the Shop
His eyes lingered on an axe that seemed to have a consciousness of it's own [LeviathanAxe], he looked at the prices tag.
5,000,000,000 Brutality Points. Yeah he was pretty sure that he wouldn't be able to get that much even if he wiped an entire species from the face of the Earth.
He closed the interface before he could start entertaining his delusions of becoming a god.
"Tomorrow," he whispered. "We start tomorrow."
Sleep came easy after that.
The morning air in Orario carried a crisp chill, the kind that made his skin prickle. Axel walked through the cobbled streets alone, the sun barely rising over the stone walls of the city. He'd chosen to go into the dungeon without the Familia. Not out of arrogance, but because he needed to test himself.
The Dungeon loomed ahead.
The Tower of Babel.
The colossal white structure rose high into the clouds, impossible to ignore, impossible to forget. Guards in armor flanked the entrance, and adventurers streamed in and out in steady flows, some confident, some tense.
But him, he was excited.