Chapter 6: Chapter 6. New life

Arthur stuck his head under the stream of water. The icy water rained down on him from above, taking away the last vestiges of warmth. He gritted his teeth and endured the vicious cold that made his body shiver uncontrollably.

- Damn you, - Arthur cursed and slammed his fist furiously against the bathroom wall.

It was monstrous torture for him. He hated cold showers with all his being.

"Isn't coming home, taking a hot shower, and relaxing after a hard day a true paradise for most people...Especially when I've had such a hard day... Then why can't I even get that?"

How is it that Arthur now finds himself in this position?

It was very simple. He had no idea how to turn on the hot water. There was a replaceable fire mana stone and a water mana stone built into the faucet. If warm temperatures were needed, the two stones had to be connected by a mana thread.

It might sound complicated, but in fact, even 2-year-old children in this world could do it. And it seems the only one who couldn't was Arthur. He didn't even have a chance to ask for help. It would look very strange that their dear brother and husband would suddenly forget the most basic things.

"Well, seriously, I could even use a grenade. It's on mana stones, too, and I only pressed one button there...Why can't I do that here, too?"

Sigh. Exhale.

Arthur applied a breathing technique that quickly calmed his nerves.

Today was a complicated and eventful day, when he had time to be taken to another world, to fight with a monster, to almost ripping someone's balls off, to get married unexpectedly...

"And die of ice water."

In addition to these things, the evening before he went to the shower, he could not avoid a difficult conversation with his new family. The atmosphere was generally awkward. Arthur didn't know how to act. He had no memories of this body's old self, and he didn't know how Arno had treated them. So for the most part he tried to keep quiet.

But who asked his wish?

The girls expectedly pounced on him with questions about how and why he came home in such a state. Arthur didn't want a long and agonizing conversation, so he didn't mention the incident at the guild. He explained the blood by the fact that he accidentally ran into a mana beast. Arno was a hunter and it was a fairly trivial reason, and shouldn't have raised many questions...Well, or so he only thought.

"Who knew that jerk had lied to them? I mean, who could even imagine such an option?"

Turns out the girls still didn't know that Arno had fought monsters. No, that he worked for the guild was well known. But they thought he was an ordinary technician and equipment specialist who never went out into the hunting area. With his poor health, they would never let him go out on a job like that.

He had to listen to the cries of someone else's wife and sister. The only thing that saved him was that remembering his health, the girls took pity and let him go.

"The last time I was scolded that much was by my mother. Brings back fond memories"- Arthur smiled sadly, but then immediately frowned.

"But if I ever get scolded again for your screw-ups, I promise I'll find a way to arrange a family reunion ... in a bloody way, Arno."

Arthur finished taking a shower and wiped himself off. But he was in no hurry to leave the bathroom just yet. There were still a lot of questions, and this was the safest place in the house for now.

"System, put 1 attribute point in strength and 1 point in endurance," Arthur ordered.

At first, though, he tried to put all the attribute points into luck, but the system refused. Unthinkable mockery.

Strength was the centerpiece of everything and its choice was not in doubt for him. Stamina, on the other hand...Arthur wanted to spend a point on something else, but the memory of how he almost died from a simple jog from the taxi to home was still fresh in his mind.

"Status."

[Status.]

Name: Arno Mann

Overall Rank: G-

Experience: 450/870

Mana Core: -

Bloodline Grade: -

Strength: 2.2

Agility: 1.1

Stamina: 1.8

Perception: 1.7

Luck: 0.5

Charisma: 0.1

Skills:

[Manipulation of Mana]: Advanced.

Note: There is no mana in your body. However, your level of control of external mana has reached a high level.

"Hmm...System."

[Yes, host].

"What are the experience points for? There's no indication here."

[Experience points allow you to level up the system. ]

"System-level? What level is it now? What's in it for me?" - Arthur himself couldn't keep up with the speed of his thoughts, but the System quietly understood everything.

[The system is currently at level 0. Increasing the level of the system opens up various advantages for the host. There are a total of 3 levels available. Would you like to know more?]

"Yes."

[Level 1 - The Realm of Power. Gives the host access to the "Original Powers"]

Level 2 - The Realm of Mind. Unlocks access to a library of various techniques and runes.

Level 3 - The Realm of Memory. Unlocks the host's access to the memory of the previous body owner].

"Ha...I have so many questions... I thought this body had no bloodline powers.  Then what are the Original Powers? My belated cheat?"

[ Bloodline powers are not available to your soul. The Original Powers are used instead].

" I ...  I didn't understand anything.  Again.  What's the difference between them? "

[This is difficult to explain.  If we simplify it as much as possible for your understanding, the generic ability is an inherited power.  This means that they have a certain limit to their development. So a divine bloodline would be limited to the maximum powers of an Ancestor God. Original powers come from the earliest eras and their limit is restricted only by the capabilities of the host himself. ]

"Well, finally...  it really does look like a cheat. I knew I wouldn't always be this weak. Although... What's the catch? I don't believe in my luck anymore."

[The higher the bloodline rank, the more powerful abilities a person can use. Inversely proportional to this, goes the speed of development.  So a bronze bloodline will be weaker than a divine one, but it will take much less time and effort to level up.]

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"Are you saying that these " Original Powers " will be even harder to level up?"

[Answer - Yes]

Arthur bumped his forehead against the wall.  That he could finally get some powers was incredibly good news.  But the cost of it was very great.

This dependence of strength on the rate of development was one of the main mechanics holding back the growth of the main characters in the novel Rise of Darkness. At the beginning of the story, when Eric had conflicts with various "villains," it was hard for him to defeat even someone of the same rank but with a bronze bloodline.

Simply put, a higher level of bloodline could be both an incredible blessing and an unbearable curse. It all depended on the individual, his natural talents, and his diligence.

"Okay...I guess I'll worry about that when I finally discover these abilities...What's next?"

* Knock * Knock

At the sharp knock, Arthur, completely immersed in his thoughts, jumped in place. His heart sank.

- Arno, is everything all right?

- Yes, everything is fine. - Arthur could not hide the irritation in his voice.

There was silence for a few moments.

- Um... I... I get it. I'm sorry, it's just that you've been out so long, and you had a wound. So I thought..." an apologetic, barely audible whisper came from behind the door. Sophia hadn't expected such a harsh response from her husband and started apologizing quickly, frightened.

"Damn, I didn't mean to hurt her."

- No, it's okay. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to be so rude. I'll be out soon.

- All right, love. Take your time. - The girl's mood changed like a weather vane 180 degrees in an instant. The last words were very affectionate and gentle.

"What's wrong with her?"  - Arthur rubbed his temples puzzledly.

The guy's burst of enthusiasm for talking to the system because of this brief interruption was completely over. Arthur let out a long yawn.

- Okay...I'll finish all the questions tomorrow. The system won't go anywhere overnight... I don't have the energy to stand anymore." - He muttered out loud sleepily.

He took slow steps and headed for the bedroom. His eyes were closing, and he held back the urge to fall asleep in the hallway with all his might.

The bedroom was most ordinary. There was nothing divine about it. A couple of closets, a TV... though something did catch his eye.

Arthur stared at this something with his mouth open for several minutes. Fatigue and shock seemed to play together on Arthur's nerves.

"Why is this bed king size. No, I've never seen one this big in my life...Hmmm...why? Don't they have enough space for "night games"? Or is it not just the two of them who spend time here? ... Should I be worried?"

But those thoughts didn't last long. Arthur fell asleep on the move, so without even undressing, he just collapsed on the soft bed.

*****

At the same time, while Arthur was still taking his so much-hated shower, two girls with completely different moods were in the room together.

-... a newsflash from Western Continent. Delegations from the Kingdom of Lafrain and the Vermilion Trade Federation have arrived in the Imperial capital of Helios Makran. The agenda of the meeting was the recent provocations of the Azark Republic...

In the living room, the sound of a working television could be heard. The blonde-haired girl, not even giving any TV channel a chance, quickly switched them with a bored look.

At first, Elia was poking the button on the remote, but when the speed of the switch seemed unsatisfactory, she just started wiggling her finger.  Thanks to the mana core in her body, she was free to perform this action without an additional device.

She wasn't burning to watch anything, just the sound of the television drowned out the endless complaints coming from the kitchen. The living room and kitchen were very close and everything was perfectly audible.

Sophia cleaned the kitchen after dinner and didn't stop the flow of disgruntled arguments for a second.

- No, how can he? Hunter... hunter! That's a too dangerous profession. There are these disgusting monsters out there. They're scary, they're hungry...what if he got caught by some beast. What if it bit him...or worse. He could have died. You know? Die...  - this kind of repetitive, looping talk, Elia had been forced to listen to for the last half hour.

- Enough already, Sophia. Don't exaggerate. You know Arno can't die. As long as it's on his finger, that's absolutely impossible. And you know that very well.

Elia lazily answered her brother's wife. She was curled up comfortably on the floor on the warm rug. Although there was a couch behind her, this place, for some inexplicable reason, was her favorite.

Then she reached for a nearby mug of tea and took a sip. But the tea was too hot, so she dropped it in surprise. The tea spilled all over the carpet.

"And got burned, though... well done, Elia."

The girl looked at the mess. Then she took a deep breath and extended her hand over the puddle. She slowly turned her palm clockwise, as if imitating a clock, and spoke:

- [Restoration].

The irises of her eyes glowed blue, and something like blue smoke appeared next to her palm.

Immediately, the picture in front of her changed. Right in front of her eyes, the water sprang up as if it were alive and began to flow back into the mug. Everything was back to the way it had been a few seconds before.   

This little event went unnoticed by anyone, as Sophia in the kitchen, like an overheated robot, was still pondering Elia's words.

- Yes, it's...it's true...he can't die. But it's still dangerous! And if there was a monster out there that could swallow him, Arno would be trapped. And anyway...why are you so calm, he tricked us. We agreed that he would just work for the guild. And no hunting! Why didn't you scold him?

She was too tired of this dialogue and chose another strategy - ignoring. But as if that could stop Sophia.

- No, no. Well, of course, it's not Arno's fault. My lover had nothing to do with it. He told us he was sent by the guild because there were not enough people in the group. That's right! They must have forced him. They forcibly sent my husband on a dangerous hunt.

Elia's bored mood immediately disappeared when she heard these words. Sophia's tone grew more and more dangerously cold by the second. The girl wanted to stop her before her ideas went too far.

- The Guild... Yeah. That's obviously their fault. They take my Arno from me every day, and now they've decided to take his life, too. It's unforgivable. Completely unforgivable.

Elia jumped up from the floor. A chill ran down her back from the misgivings.

- Sophia, when did you get a knife?

- Huh? A knife? What are you..." Sophia looked at her hand in surprise as if she had never seen it before. She was holding a huge meat cleaver in his hand. Though she put it on the table immediately, the gleam in her eyes told that it was just beginning.

- What if there was no guild? Wouldn't it have been wonderful? My beloved husband and your beloved brother could stay home in peace, there would be no reason for him to go anywhere. That's a wonderful idea, isn't it?

"Arno, you idiot, what have you done? She's getting completely out of control," Elia mentally yelled.

- Calm down, Sophia. We can't do this...

- Why can't we? What do you mean, we can't?... Why are you defending them? Are you on the side of the guild? You don't care about Arno and what happened to him? Did you see the state he came in? There was blood. Red blood. All the armor was covered with it...

"There wasn't much of it."

Elia grabbed her by the shoulders and forcefully held her in place. Sophia, who was about to head in the direction of the hunters' guild, threw a hateful look at Elia because of the sudden stop. A strong killing intention spread across the room.

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