NOVEL NEXT Chapter 3: (2)
Fortunately, there was no pain, as when he received treatment from the priest.
“It’s real… this isn’t a hallucination!” His heart was pounding as if it was about to burst.
That square box was not a fantasy.
Kaiyan did not even know why this happened to him, but one thing was for sure – the potion was real.
Touching the square box again with a pounding heart, he realized that the lowest-grade recovery potion had changed from (5) to (4).
If that was true, the number behind it was likely the number of remaining potions.
“Am I crazy? Does that mean I can take out other things?” Kaiyan could hardly believe it. A commoner like himself having four potions was something he had never seen before.
Thanks to the potion, he was curious about the other items in the box, although he didn’t know what they were for. They must be extraordinary things to be in the same box as the potion.
“Let’s go back to camp for now. There are too many eyes here.” He realized that the other items might not be as inconspicuous as the potion since they were larger in size.
It would be better to check them in safety, rather than foolishly taking them out here.
Thanks to the potion that healed his leg, Kaiyan was able to quickly return to camp without limping.
As he walked into the tent and through the barracks, he found that there was no one there since Jeff was still fighting monsters.
“Phew… Then I’ll have to check…”
In no time, he found himself calling the square box “Inventory” familiarly.
Ding!
As always, Inventory didn’t disappoint him and handed him an item in his left hand. It was a heavy object, unlike potions.
“…As expected! But is this really a book?”
The problem was that the item he pulled out looked more like a small rock than a book, despite its name. No matter how he looked at it, it was hard to see it as a book.
“Um… It’s very different from the books I know.”
Although he was a commoner, thanks to his father, who was a village administrator, he learned how to read and write. Sometimes his mother bought books and he had read them a few times. But he had never heard of a stone-shaped book.
“…Storage, how do you use this?”
He asked tentatively, but ‘Inventory’, floating in midair, didn’t answer. Perhaps it was natural.
“Well, that’s okay. You just need to keep the potions safe.”
Anyway, the most important thing to him was potions.
Other items were just accessories that came with the potions.
Ding! [Help for beginners]
“…hmm?”
While he was thinking about how to use the potions, a bright light appeared from the book, and words appeared.
The writing on the stone was a language he was familiar with.
[Hello! I’m Rieka, The Beginner’s guide!]
When he looked at the stone with surprise, the previous writing disappeared, and new writing appeared.
“…”
He was at a loss as to how to cope with the strange phenomenon. Although he was surprised when ‘Inventory’ appeared, it wasn’t as surprising as this. Even so, the fact that the writing appeared by itself was surprising.
“…Is this a magic artifact that I’ve only heard of?”
[How rude? I’m talking to you]
“Huh? Um… nice to meet you.”
As if the stone was talking to him, he answered without realizing it.
[Yes, nice to meet you! Your name is…Kaiyan, right? You’re a first-time player.]
“…How did you know my name? Rieka…”
He couldn’t help but feel awkward. The tone of the stone felt very lively and not suitable for the battlefield. It was the first time he had ever heard such a noisy tone. He felt uneasy and took a step back, moving the stone away from him.
[Simple. I checked Kaiyan’s status window!]
“Status window?”
T-ring! [Status window activated]
Name: Kaiyan / Age: 15 / Occupation: Player / Title: N/A
Level: 1 / Strength: 6 / Agility: 7 / Stamina: 7 / Intelligence: 9 / Free Stat Points: 0.
As soon as he finished speaking, a new window appeared in front of his eyes.
The status screen showed not only Kaiyan’s name and age but also other information that was difficult to comprehend.
“What is this….”
[Ahem! Could you listen to me first?]
“Ah, sorry.”
[As you just saw, the status window shows your current status.]
Kaiyan’s mind quickly calmed down, and he calmly looked at the status screen again and understood what it meant.
“…. So the Strength written here means it’s showing my Strength in numbers, right?”
[Yes! It’s fortunate that you understand quickly. And in the gamer system, there are various functions besides the status window, such as Storage or Inventory, mailbox, shop, and so on.]
“If the storage means that rectangular box, then I’ve used it. But Reika… Is there a way to make the status window or storage invisible? It’s too bothersome.” Kaiyan asked.
Although the storage box didn’t cause much inconvenience to the line of sight, the status screen covered half of it. It was impossible to walk properly, let alone fight monsters.
[You can say “close” and then say “storage” or “status window” when you speak! Of course, you don’t have to say it out loud, it will still work if you say it in your mind!]
“Close status window. Close storage.” Kaiyan said silently as instructed by Reika, and the two windows disappeared from his line of sight.
“Oh… It’s gone! Riaka, the status window and storage box are gone!” Kaiyan exclaimed.
[…It’s not that impressive, so please calm down. If you keep reacting like this, it will take me days to explain.]
Reika said a bit irritated by Kaiyan.
“Sorry. … please keep explaining.” Kaiyan apologized.
Riaka then explained various things that Kaiyan needed to know, including the importance of levels and how they affect one’s abilities.
“So… the level is important? If the level goes up, can you also increase any attribute?”
[Yes! I told you how to increase your level, right?]
“Doing Quests…”
[Yes, and what?]
For a moment, Kaiyan stopped breathing and closed his eyes.
In his head, he could hear the screams of people, the howls of monsters, and the burning village.
Family. The smell of blood. Fear…
“You said by Killing living creatures. Humans or maybe…”
Kaiyan answered, suppressing the hot emotions that surged in his chest.
“Monsters.”
He couldn’t hide the look in his eyes that represented the desire to kill those creatures.
[Kaiyan…?]
Perhaps being a player will be the best way for him to get revenge on those monsters.