Chương 2: Integration

Corestone System Installation Begun. Version 7. 0321 prepared, integration ready. Pre-existing mana and spirit exposure detected. Adjusting body composition to new world defaults. Installation procedure has begun, Corestone forming… Corestone formed successfully. Race: Human, Level: 0, Grade: 0 Star, Corestone: Hero of Spirit. Administrator code AE42B entered, pre-loading classes. Detecting strong affinity for; Spirit Mage and Magic Smith. Natural third class deemed possible. Attempting third class formation…

failed, insufficient corestone density. Locking option behind growth of corestone. Classes selected and installed. Pre-existing traits and skills assigned. Mana, vital and spirit channel formation commencing… completed. Anomaly detected in spirit nexus, overload detected. Cause: Hero of Spirit Corestone. Restricting spirit nexus to compensate… completed. Trait assigned. Channels successfully formed. Integration completed. Integration successfully completed, system version 7. 0321 fully initialized, awakening host.

Administrator code TE12E entered, manual tutorial activated, transporting host to pinnacle for personal instruction. — I open my eyes to an all white room. Every fiber of my body is on fire. Muscles that I didn't know I had burn. My brain feels a bit foggy and tingly like when I stay up too late while studying imbuement. I move my hand to take a look at it.

"What the hell is going on!" My skin is translucent. I can see several lines running, criscrossing inside my hand and up my arm. As I ponder them, a word appears in my mind, channels. There are three colors, red, blue and white, seemingly all knotted together, as if they cannot exist alone. I look down at my body, and surely enough, it is also translucent. Somehow, I know that they represent three of the core energies. Vital, mana, and spirit. Something is going on here.

There also seems to be another energy not attached to these channels, stamina. I am familiar with the concept of mana. It's the stuff that mages use to perform magic, and how my equipment gets magical properties. I can presume that vital has something to do with the body. I guess spirit also exists, but I have no clue what it means. Stamina seems to do with normal body stuff, makes sense, considering it feels denser around my heart and limbs. All of the lines converge towards the center of my chest.

There lies a sphere, shining with a brilliant white light. A name comes to me once again, corestone. In the center of the corestone, I can see a rotating ball, with a mixture of vital, mana and spirit energies pulsing inside. My spirit nexus. When I try to bring my hand to touch the corestone, my body screams in pain and I collapse onto the floor. A strange voice speaks in my head, corestone access is currently disabled for your safety. Please await further instruction.

"Who is that? Who is there?!" I ask, shouting out into the apparently endless void. No one answers back. I get up off the floor and ponder my scenario. The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. My name is Orn. I am, or was, a magic smith, residing in the northern human lands. One of my long time customers proposed a business deal. Only to reveal that she was an elven mage, with a crown prince in tow.

They invited me to meet with their queen, who then asked me to go on some journey. Naturally, I accepted. I was attacked by some strange beast, and now I am here. I don't think I am dead, but I am not entirely sure. Wherever this place is, it does seem interesting. I feel like I am about to experience quite a fun adventure indeed, just as the queen mentioned. After an unknown amount of time, a rectangular portal opens up in front of me. Out emerges a… girl? I don't think that word is correct.

She appears to have a feminine form, but something about her tells me that she cannot be described as anything close to human. She wears a white cloak, covering most of her skin. Though, I can see that her skin is also translucent from the bits that are uncovered.

"Hero of Spirit, please put on these robes and follow me. All shall be explained shortly." She says, in a sing-song voice.

"Wait, what did you just call me?!" I ask, only to get no response. Instead, she hands me a set of white robes, which I put on. They fit quite nicely. Though I am concerned about why or how this place has my measurements. She walks back through what I now understand to be a gateway, and I follow. We enter out into a long corridor. The walls appear to be made out of some smooth white rock. I can feel some mana hanging in the air, far thicker than with the elves.

I also very faintly sense another energy, but I am unsure what it is. Perhaps something relating to spirit? As we walk, the pain in my body fades, in fact, I feel fantastic. Better than I ever have in fact. It's almost like I've been thrown back into my prime, and infused with mythical support spells. After a few minutes of walking, we come to a door, and the girl motions for me to enter. I push open the doors and enter into a grand room. In the center is a round table, with nine seats around it.

However, the seats are not empty. Sitting in them are eight others. Five are human, but two are elves and one appears to be a catkin. They all wear cloaks similar to my own, but each has a different color. They all stare at me as I enter, and the door quickly closes behind me. One of them, a young human girl who can't be more than eighteen, stands up and runs over to me. Grabbing my hands with a smile on her face. She wears a green cloak.

Information floods into my mind, I get an impression that the green represents life, and this girl is the Hero of Life. As strange as it is, the voice in my mind is quite helpful. Her long brown hair frames a lovely smile. She seems completely unbothered by this whole scenario and introduces herself.

"Hiya there, you must be the Hero of Spirit! You took your sweet time. My name is Uri, in case you were wondering!" she says with an unhealthy amount of cheer and joy in her voice.

"Um, uh, nice to meet you. I'm not quite sure what's going on, but my name is-" I feel a sharp shock of pain. Then a voice whispers in my ear, no one here knows of your previous life, your name may be whatever you wish it to be. Taking the suggestion, I shorten my embarrassingly long first name, it is almost like the voice knew I hated it.

"Orn, pleasure to meet you, Uri." I say, still unsure about what the heck is going on. She looks at me for a moment and squints her eyes.

"Woah, you must be one of the ones that start unfamiliar with our situation. Well, come sit down in your seat. I'm sure the goddess shall explain everything in good detail." Uri says, motioning me towards the seat that was empty. On its back is an emblem of a white dove, perhaps some symbolism relating to spirit? That's nice, I like birds. It seems I am some sort of Hero, of spirit that is. If a dove is related to me, I don't think this will be too bad.

Questions do plague my mind, and I can only come to many presumptions. I presume the 'great one' and the 'goddess' are one in the same. So, why did she summon me here, and presumably these others too? Taking Uri's suggestion, I sit down in my seat and stop thinking so hard. All of the other heroes seem to be giving me interesting looks. Almost as if they are peering into my very soul to discern who and what I am. After a few moments, a gateway opens in the center of the table. From the ground emerges a girl.

The moment she appears, I can feel an immense power radiating off of her. Far more power than I have ever felt before. The sheer force of it threatens to drown me. If this girl wished, she could simply make me disappear, of that I am certain. I try to look off to the side to escape her blinding brilliance, but It seems I cannot help but look at her, and only her. It's as though she is something fundamental to reality itself.

She speaks in a perfect voice that makes me wish to do nothing else but listen to her words and then follow her to the edge of the world. I can only hope the others are experiencing something similar, otherwise it'd be quite embarrassing.

"Welcome, heroes. I am sure that you all have many questions, but first, allow me to welcome you to my world." The goddess laughs lightly and once again, I find myself wondering just what I have gotten myself into.