Chương 5: Chapter 1.5: The White World

Favius stood knee-deep in water, suddenly and fully awake. A frown creased his face. He looked around the featureless white environment, but there was little to see. The water's temperature was pleasant. So was the air. As for where he was, or even the size of the space—he spun in a circle and found nothing but well-lit whiteness. It could have been an infinitely large space, or the walls could be—he stretched out his hand but grasped nothing but emptiness. He took a few steps forward, then shook himself.

But the walls can still be just out of reach, and I couldn't tell. He shook his head. What a strange dream. He recalled sitting on the wagon, seeing the Academy of Magic, and then falling asleep while Urania was hugging him. He waited, but nothing happened. The dream didn't move on. Frustration welled up in his chest when he noticed it—movement. He spun around, but there was nothing but the endless whiteness. He shifted his eyes from right to left. Suddenly, he saw it again, at the very far left.

He spun again, and again found nothing but the swirling resistance of the water. The waves faded into the distance as he stood still. He narrowed his eyes and growled, then took a deep breath and shifted his gaze. Maybe—yes—there. He located it but didn't spin around. Instead, he focused on what lingered in his peripheral vision. It was the outline of a tall, almost transparent humanoid. And suddenly thoughts that weren't his own filled his head.

"Greetings. You were quick to notice me."

"Quick?" Favius replied out loud, more on instinct than anything else.

"Yes," the—he pursed his lips—entity—let's go with entity for now—replied.

"Some of the others took nearly an hour." Unease settled in his gut. Others. Nearly an hour. He turned instinctively, but of course the entity was gone, and he let out a growl as he heard the chuckle ringing in his own thoughts while focusing again on his peripheral vision.

"What others?" The entity cleared its throat, an odd sensation as it came from his own head. He didn't hear it, but knew it was happening.

"Twenty-five others, to be precise. Only one of you shall stand victorious in the end. You have 250 years. Then the portals between the worlds will open." Favius chuckled.

"Well, this is the strangest dream I've ever had, I'm going to give you that." The words slammed without warning into his mind. THIS IS NOT A DREAM. THIS IS REAL. It burned itself into his mind like the commandment of a tyrannical god. And suddenly he knew this was real and wasn't a dream. He narrowed his eyes. But what if this is— THIS IS NOT A DREAM. THIS IS REAL. The commandment hit him again. I can't even consider that this is— His heart beat faster.

Again, the strange oppressive feeling pressed into his mind, and any thoughts about how the entity had casually violated his free will slipped out of reach. A brief flash of panic ran through him. Something is altering my cognition. And it's even— But then he blinked and frowned. I was thinking about something, but— He shook his head and focused on the entity. Keeping his attention on his peripheral vision for so long was getting annoying.

"Alright." The entity seemed to nod to itself.

"Next point on the agenda. I assume you have some questions." Favius chuckled and considered for a moment.

"How is this going to work? If I meet the others in 250 years, won't I be dead then?"

"Oh, haven't you heard yet? You are immortal now. Congratulations." Excitement bubbled up in Favius's chest. Immortality. He had always known that it was a theoretical possibility. Nothing in the laws of physics said that biological entities had to die, and science had actually gotten close to figuring out the mechanisms of aging. But then again, he had also read a lot of stories, and there was magic in this world, so—"Define immortality." The entity's chuckle rang through his head like a dozen tingling bells.

"Your biological age will depend on your self-image. You will age at a normal rate, but you can age backwards or not at all. Any injury, even the loss of a limb or the head, will result in regeneration from the largest remaining piece, even if you are burned at the stake." Favius grimaced. That was good. Amazing even, full biological immortality and superhero-level regeneration powers. Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.

But then again, the classical counter to that was—"What if I'm imprisoned in a metal box and thrown into the deep ocean?" The entity answered with a dispassionate noise while studying its hand.

"That doesn't sound like it would be my problem." Ice ran down Favius's spine. Fuck. This is one of those cursed-type immortality deals. Fuck, fuck, fuck. After calming himself with several deep breaths, he tilted his head. Not dying and not getting imprisoned in cruel and unusual ways are things most people are already doing their best to avoid. So I am getting immortality in exchange for potentially very bad consequences if I fuck up badly enough.

I need to think about establishing proper protocols for dealing with this later. Especially about not getting burned or buried alive. Brutus will probably be able to help me with this. Again, the sound of a bell rang through his mind.

"Moving on with your briefing. As you might have already guessed, you have knowledge of your previous life and are gifted with diverse and significant talents that I can and will improve if you choose to spend your rewards that way. You can become who you really want to be, or maybe who you really are in this life." Favius nodded, and the entity continued. If this is some sort of demented contest, I might as well learn about the nature of the entire mess before making decisions.

With the entity present, the water and air of the white space suddenly felt much cooler than before.

"You start out with this list of five potential quests and one active quest slot." Knowledge bloomed in his head, and he didn't precisely see text. It was like reading a blank page and still receiving the meaning of the words. Available Quests 1. Survey Local Technology Examine 50 examples of local technology. 2. Shifter Advancement Develop one new shifter ability. 3. Magical Initiation Successfully perform your first spell. 4. Cultivation Insight Achieve your first cultivation insight. 5.

Political Awareness Analyze the history and politics of the Republic. Favius went over the list and frowned.

"All of those are vague. How exactly is completion being judged?" The tingling laughter of the entity could be heard again.

"I will know when it is complete. Precise definitions only encourage exploitation." The entity seemed to shrug, even though it was hard to make out.

"Make your choice for your active quest slot." But Favius raised a finger.

"Wait a moment." He paused, then asked several questions.

"What happens if I have selected a quest and cannot fulfill it?" The entity did not move but simply replied, "You will be able to reject it. However, when we meet at night, each time you reject a quest, the quality of the quest rewards decreases. For each quest you select and complete successfully in series, the rewards of quests will improve in quantity and quality." Favius tsked, then nodded.

"Alright, what about the rewards? They aren't listed." The entity nodded.

"Rewards are negotiated after quest selection. They can be anything. You want to improve your talent with a specific magic? I can do that. You want technical specifications from your old world? I can do that. You want to know with which leverage you can manipulate a certain politician to pursue your agenda? I can give you that." The entity stroked its chin.

"Consider the rewards another test. It's a skill to balance your creativity and the quality of your achievements." Favius nodded again and focused on the list of quests. Picking out a quest is fundamentally an optimization problem. With only one slot, I need to actually be able to fulfill it. He glanced at the entity. I need to assume they are given in good faith and not malicious traps. He chuckled and glanced at the entity. If it's malicious, I am screwed anyway. He considered the three magic-related options.

I have seen examples of magic, but I know nothing about how to attain or develop those powers. Maybe if I ask my mother— He choked and swallowed hard. My mother is dead. He ruthlessly suppressed that thought and focused on the present. Magic would be nice, but— He furrowed his eyebrows and focused on the entity. It was getting harder to keep his attention on it as his eyes grew tired of looking to the side.

"What will be the nature of the contest between the other worlds and me? Will I have to fight the others one-on-one, or can other people pass through the portals?" Though the entity had no facial features, he could have sworn there was a wolfish grin on its face.

"Anything and everything can pass through them." A grin spread over Favius's face, too. I'll have to see what the limits of magic here are. If some idiot spends centuries becoming the most powerful mage alive, I can spend them building the technology to bury him under nukes and tank divisions. Probably. Dismissing the risky magic options as something to explore later, he considered the first and last one: surveying fifty examples of local technology and understanding the history and politics of the Republic.

Between them, the choice was easy. I need to minimize the risk of sitting for a long time with a quest that I cannot fulfill. I can always find examples of technology. But history and politics require a book or teacher, and I can't guarantee access to either.

"I select the first quest."

"Good, good." The entity drew out the second word into an almost purring sound.

"Now, as to your reward, what would you like? Keep in mind, this is a relatively minor quest, so the reward shall only be minor." Favius clicked his tongue as he thought. I don't actually know what I need.

"Do I have to specify exactly what I get? Could I simply request that you answer me a question in a manner that is commensurate with the value of the quest reward?"

"Yes," the entity replied, and Favius could have sworn he sensed approval.

"Though if you were to limit the scope of the question, I would be able to provide more information." Favius considered briefly but shook his head. He took a moment to formulate his request precisely.

"No. I want one open-ended question, the value of whose answer you are going to provide will fully use up the value you assigned to the quest." The entity nodded, and again, the jingling laughter filled his head. Favius took a breath and organized his thoughts. Well, time to see how much this entity is willing to tell me. His mind went over the dozens of questions that might be important. But he settled on what was key: the competition. If there can only be one person remaining…

"Tell me, does everyone involved have the same starting condition—" He was no longer in the white space. Instead, he was again lying in a bed, soft linen sheets covering his body. For a brief moment, there was the impossible hope that everything that had happened so far—everything that had happened since Marius threw the bucket of cold water in his face—had been a dream. But looking around confirmed his suspicion. This wasn't his room. It was some sort of guest room, well-appointed with understated luxury.

Similar to his home, but oh so different.

"Good, you are awake." He nearly jumped out of the bed as he heard the voice and only now noticed that Brutus was sitting in a lotus position, his back to the closed door of the room. His axe lying before him. Noticing his confusion, the powerful cultivator chuckled.

"You were out cold last night. Not surprising after all that has happened. I carried you up to the room and guarded you. And kept an eye on your siblings. They are safe."

"Where—where are we?"

"In Senator Marcus's townhouse. In Cindrath." Brutus's face curled up with distaste.

"He said it's important that the two of us see something, so we are going on a trip into town today."