Chapter 8

Father, as promised, mercilessly whipped me. As punishment, I had to learn to blend into urban environments naturally and raise my Stealth stat to twenty-five. If I failed to do so within a day, another beating awaited me in the evening. And so it would continue until I met these conditions.

Vitality +2

My backside burned from the strikes of Father’s belt—so much that I even got a debuff: Unable to sit for twelve hours. Any attempt to sit sent waves of searing pain through me. Father was clever—even his punishments were designed to make me stronger. But there was no way I could meet his demands today. Right now, I had to run to the city to meet Bernard.

After the tournament, the mage had told me to come to the city library the next day.

Muromaki, Level 292, was the librarian. He was enormous for a human, built like a bookshelf. His light, loose clothing barely concealed arms wrapped in steel-cable muscles. A massive scar bisected one eye, stretching across his entire face. Only his other eye moved as it scanned the pages of a book. The scene was surreal, clashing with the library’s usual atmosphere. With a librarian like him, who needed guards? The worst part? He refused to let me in without an adult, claiming I might damage or steal the books. I had to rely on Stealth, though it felt like Muromaki simply chose to let me pass without officially acknowledging it.

Bernard was exactly where he said he’d be—the northernmost reading room on the second floor. The day was clear, sunlight streaming into the room.

"Oh, you finally made it."

Bernard wasn’t reading—he was polishing his staff. Now he wore a mage’s robe adorned with the same sun emblem.

"So… you paid the librarian to keep me out?"

"Of course I did. Consider this your second lesson. The first? Never act without a clear objective—and always verify the conditions."

Then it hit me.

"Ah, you remembered our conversation. I never actually gave you a task," the mage cackled, his laughter grating. "How does helplessness feel, hm? Oh, and by the way—I took your winnings."

"I thought mages were people of their word."

Never let an opponent capitalize on their advantage.

"No. But today, I’ll be generous and honor our deal. You won eight fights and gave me immense pleasure. I placed two bets: one on your victory, and another on the outcome of each match—always at the last moment, wagering the entire sum from the previous win. By local standards, I made a fortune."

"The deal!"

"Right, of course. Listen carefully. Officially, there are nine primal magical elements—or nine Paths of Magic. The elemental ones: Earth, Water, Fire, Air. Life—mostly used by healers and elves, but that’s a separate topic. Spirit—mental magic, affecting the mind. Space—simultaneously the simplest and most complex. The last two: Light and Darkness. Magic can take countless forms—light, fire, water, earthen shields, or emanations of death."

"What about schools of magic? Specializations?"

"At Level 50, you choose a specialization and develop in that direction. For that, you need a Magic skill of at least fifty. There are fire mages, earth mages, life mages, mentalists, enchanters, artificers—endless variations. There are also hidden combat specializations, blending swordplay with magic, stealth kills, astral attacks, or siege magic. Those are usually reserved for exceptional students or those with unique merits. Some specializations aren’t taught at the Academy—Blood Magic, Ritual Magic, Demonology, Chimerology, Maleficism, Mysticism, Necromancy—anything classified as Black or Dark Magic. The Academy only covers the basics so students know how to counter them."

"Some are born with an affinity for a certain element, granting bonus damage. There are also family bonuses for mages’ children—hereditary mutations, ancestral skills, and relics. Specialization is a conscious choice—it boosts your chosen magic’s effectiveness by 50%."

"But you could always find outside teachers or self-study."

"So, what’s your choice?"

Bernard’s mood shifted again.

"The Dark side is tempting, but I’m not a mage yet—useless for now, but an appealing path. I can only learn the simplest spells."

Bernard didn’t even nod, just stared at me with contempt. His eyes screamed "Non-mage."

"Then make it Earth, Water, Fire, Air, Space, Light, Spirit. That’s all I can handle… or is it? One tiny spell more?"

"A hundred gold, and you’ll get your ‘tiny spell.’ You have it—from your winnings."

"Deal."

I don’t know how Father got his knowledge, but I might never get another chance like this. Money now and money later are two different things.

Bernard told me to sit across from him. Placing a hand on my head, he locked eyes with me. A burst of sharp, wild pain—then darkness.

Spell Learned: Minor Healing

Description: Heals wounds of the target. Effectiveness scales with Intelligence.

Effect: Restores 100 HP.

Mana Cost: 10

Life Magic +1

Life Spell Efficacy +1%

Vitality +2

First good news in a while. I lay on the table, a pool of blood around me. Ah, realism—my vision swam with a crimson haze. Bernard sat there, humming cheerfully.

"Use the spell, then we continue. Eight more to go." His malicious laugh echoed. "Clean the blood, unless you want someone using it for Blood Magic or worse."

What followed was hours of hell—pain interspersed with blackouts. Learning those spells raised my Vitality by twelve. No need to mention my shirt, soaked in blood from wiping the table. Father would probably whip me till dawn. Fine. Now we’ll fight on even terms—I can heal myself. Right now, I probably look like that guy from the colony’s lower levels who carried a plasma knife. Just missing the deranged glare.

"Oh, you survived. Excellent. The experiment succeeded. As a bonus—a reward for your performance—I’ll teach you… Meditation."

"What?" My brain barely functioned; the blood-haze lingered. "Why?"

"A mage’s most precious resource is mana. Meditation multiplies mana regeneration. Blade masters use it for combat trance, replenishing stamina mid-fight. Archers use it for focus—sharper aim, multiplied damage. So sit like me, relax, let your thoughts flow." He assumed the lotus position.

I mirrored him, mind racing. On one hand, gaining spells in all nine official paths was a huge advantage, boosting Intelligence, Wisdom, and Spirit. But there were limits. For the next six years, I needed every edge I could get. Right now, I won only because no one knew my fighting style.

Skill Learned: Meditation

Meditation +1

Mana Regen Speed +1%

"Meditation only grows when your mana is depleted. Places of Power accelerate recovery. You’ll learn what those are later. Now scram."

"The money! My winnings!"

"Ah, right. Take it." Still meditating, he opened the trade window.

Bernard transfers to you: 130 gold, 17 silver.

"Thanks."

Then came the long sprint back to the village. First—I had money. Second—night was falling. I stashed my shirt in my inventory, running shirtless. Healing my backside removed the debuff, but I knew it wouldn’t last.

Sure enough, when I reached home, Father stood waiting, belt in hand.

"Where’s your shirt?"

"In the bag."

"Put it on. Don’t embarrass yourself."

I did. Father marched me inside. When I told him about the spells and the deal, he laughed—long and tense—before whipping me till morning. A brutal battle between his belt and my Minor Healing. Mother cried. Father whipped. I never saw his face. Maybe that was for the best.

Dawn brought relief—not just from the whipping. A new notification appeared:

Physical Damage Resistance +0.03%

Damage Ignored: Up to 2 HP/sec

Life Magic +8

Life Spell Efficacy +9%

Vitality +3

Spirit +6

Intelligence +8

Wisdom +5

Checking my stats:

Name: Saji

Level: 0

EXP: 0/100

Race: Human

Class: Unselected

Core Stats:

Strength: 20

Agility: 20

Endurance: 20

Intelligence: 9

Wisdom: 6

Unallocated Points: 0

Secondary Stats:

Speed: 6

Athleticism: 3

Spirit: 7

Vitality: 19

Combat Stats:

Physical Damage: 10 (Strength/2, min 1)

Carry Weight: 50kg (Strength × 10/4)

Mana: 60 (Wisdom × 10)

HP: 200 (Endurance × 10)

Stamina: 200 (Endurance × 10)

Regen Rates:

HP: 190/min (Vitality × 10)

Mana: 70/min (Spirit × 10)

Stamina: 30/min (Athleticism × 10)

Run Speed: 6 km/h (1 + Speed/10)

Defense: 1

Physical Resistance: 0.03% (Ignore up to 2 DPS)

Skills:

Cooking: 3

Trap Setting/Disarming: 8

Archery: 2

Swimming: 4

Breath Control: 5

Stealth: 3

Life Magic: 9

Spirit Magic: -1

Space Magic: 1

Earth Magic: 1

Water Magic: 1

Fire Magic: 1

Air Magic: 1

Light Magic: 1

Dark Magic: 1

Meditation: 1

Professions:

Herbalist: 2

Fisher: 16

Tailor: 2

Blacksmith: 1

Carpenter: 1

My expression must have betrayed my thoughts. Father smirked.

"Eat. Then tell me everything about that mage’s deal."

Over breakfast, I learned Father had saved two mages’ lives. Each taught him spells in gratitude. Rumors said more could be bought, but he never learned how. The 100 gold was the tournament prize—the rest came from Bernard’s bets. When I revealed my total winnings (minus Bernard’s cut), Father choked on his porridge; Mother dropped a plate. Silently, I handed Father 100 gold.

"You keep this. I’d just waste it."

They both laughed—until they realized how naive I sounded.

"Mages don’t teach spells to commoners," Father said. "No idea how much Bernard won to be so generous. Those 100 gold? Probably a principle—‘everything must be paid for.’ Same way I got my spells."

"So I won him nine lives?!"

Father and Mother exchanged faint smiles. The tension eased.

"Or even ten."

Then their faces hardened.

"He gave you another spell?"

"No. Taught me Meditation. Said it’s stronger in ‘Places of Power,’ but I don’t know what those are."

"Meditation…" Father stared blankly. "Saji, do you want to be a mage when you grow up?"

"Haven’t decided. I know too little about other classes—Rogues, Assassins, Archers, Swordsmen, Warriors, Paladins, Monks, crafters. But getting non-class skills is near impossible. When I learned you knew spells, I realized I could too. Luck just lined up."

"About the tournament—you fought erratically, sometimes targeting weak points, using stances, planning ahead. Your mother and I know you’re a Stranger from another world."

My unexplained disappearances must’ve tipped them off.

"Then why worry? We don’t die—I’d just respawn at the nearest checkpoint."

"And if you didn’t? I’d rather not test it."

He wasn’t lying. After breakfast, the whipping resumed with doubled force. Until dinner, we trained Minor Healing.

Physical Damage Resistance +0.05%

Damage Ignored: Up to 12 HP/sec

Life Magic +6

Life Spell Efficacy +15%

Vitality +1

Spirit +6

Intelligence +5

Wisdom +8

Skill growth was great, but the moral exhaustion from nearly 24 hours of whipping? Indescribable.

Exit.