Free Web NovelChapter 3: The Math Isn’t Mathing
The supplies the council gave him were inadequate.
The look of shame flashed across Maeva and the rest of the council. "The summoning required the majority of our resources and most of the village’s residents aren’t fighters," the scaled one explained.
He didn’t express his disappointment but having to travel by foot on supplies that were below average already felt like he was working for exposure.
He stepped out of the hall and stopped. The hall was located in a clearing inside a forest.
The air had a distinct smell, one that came after it had rained. The sky was different than he expected. He had woken up this morning but the sky looked like the day was ending.
He stood there for a while, taking in the entire scene.
It is what it is, he thought.
The council had mentioned the direction of the free cities but he didn’t know where east was. He considered using his phone but seeing how the time varied in this world, the compass could be wrong too.
The system fixed his problem:
[Free Cities. East]
[A directional indicator has been provided.]
A small blue arrow appeared in the lower corner of his vision, pointing in a particular direction regardless of where he turned. It was quite helpful even though he preferred a minimap like in games he had played. freewebnoveℓ.com
"Thank you, Iris."
[You are welcome.]
He bid the council farewell as they returned to their respective villages. Maeva had asked Julius to come along but the nearest village was two days away from the summoning hall and Iris mentioned it would slow his quest’s progress.
He started walking, still wearing the clothes he brought from his world. frёewebnoѵel.ƈo๓
The first few minutes were quiet. The kind of quiet in horror movies he’d seen before a big jump scare. He held the dagger regardless of its condition.
Half bread was better than nothing.
He checked his phone. The battery was at sixty-nine percent. He turned off everything he didn’t need.
He opened his photo app and scrolled through images. Most of the pictures in the phone weren’t his; memes, screenshots of codes and zoom meetings, food pictures were among the many images that filled his gallery.
He stopped at a blurry photo of Vincent mid-rant after losing a ranked match. Julius had never played ranked matches before so he found his brother’s rage funny.
Eventually he shut down his phone, trying to save battery in a world he wasn’t sure had electricity.
Besides, he had other things on his mind. The problem of food and water was heavy enough but having to spend the night in the open was already becoming an issue he would have to address. He could have slept in the crypt where he was summoned and started his journey in the morning but the council told him the place was deserted and at night wild beasts may linger around.
So much for that.
By the time the last rays of sunlight left the sky, he had reached a cluster of trees. Huge ones, wide trunks with branches that spread out like they had been growing without disturbance. The kind of trees that would have been replanted in a park for tourists to spend money to see in his world.
He sat against the largest one and ate half of what the council had given him. The food tasted like dried bread that had some sugar mixed in it. The water was fine.
It seemed water was fine in every dimension.
He turned his attention to the system screen as he ate.
"Iris, show me my stats."
[Name: Julius McKnight]
[Species: Human — Only current living instance]
[Path: Architect - Builder (Tier 1)]
Julius looked at the stats and noted the path. The Architect?
"What does that do?"
[It is your ability.]
He noted the evasion, another thing to file away mentally. "What other paths exist in this world?"
[The path is a system designation for your ability. It is unique to you. The world doesn’t run on paths nor do they have a system like you.]
"So I alone am the honoured one?"
The system didn’t give a response.
[The Architect ability unlocks in tiers. I will observe and document as you progress.]
[Iris’s note: I find this professionally interesting.]
"What are the tiers?"
[Tier 1: Builder, Tier 2: Crafter, Tier 3: Forger, Tier 4: Artificer, Tier 5: Architect.]
Julius read the list slowly. The final tier shared the same name as the path itself. He couldn’t decide if that was intentional or just terrible writing. Maybe both.
"What can I do at tier 1?"
[You can build]
[Basic structures. You require materials for all construction at this tier. Materials can be extracted from the environment.]
[Skill unlocked: Extraction.]
[You can extract raw materials via tactile contact.]
Julius stood up after he finished eating. He turned to look at the tree he had leaned on and placed his hand on it. For a moment, nothing happened, then the bark hummed underneath his palm as a faint blue glow outlined the tree.
A prompt appeared.
[Oak tree - Harvest?]
He acknowledged it.
Instantly, the tree shifted into a skeletal ghost before collapsing into a single icon of a log that appeared for a split second and then vanished.
[You have received: Oak Log (x1).]
[Skill unlocked — The Architect Draft: a personal pocket space.]
[This passive skill manifests as an inventory for holding and managing your items.]
[Items have been stored in Draft.]
"Draft?"
A new tab appeared on the screen. Julius clicked on it and saw his inventory. A grid like screen. A log symbol with numbers was in one of the grids and two other icons. A small green stone and an anchor shaped object.
[You can access items in the inventory via the tab, gesture or thought.]
He looked at the log count.
[Oak Log (x10)]
He was sure Iris told him he received one log and even checked the notification to confirm. But here the inventory was saying ten.
"There are ten logs in my inventory but you said I received one." Julius paused. "Or did you make a mistake?"
[I don’t make mistakes.]
[You have a 10x multiplier on items you extract.]
[Extraction costs mana. Your pool is extremely limited at this tier.]
He’d heard enough from his brother on certain systems giving a multiplier for items. He harvested a couple of smaller trees to confirm and received twenty logs.
He checked his inventory for the logs. There was a satisfaction in seeing them confirmed in his inventory.
[Oak Log (x30)]
That confirmed his theory. He would find a way to exploit it sometime.
[Skill unlocked: Processing.]
[Raw materials can be refined into usable components.]
[Iris’s Note: This skill can work passively during construction.]
Julius considered this and decided to build a makeshift tent.
He had never built a tent before, but he knew the basic geometry. He propped the logs at an angle and filled the gaps with bark. Drawing on knowledge he didn’t know he had, and the processing skill.
It wasn’t beautiful, but it was functional enough as shelter and could provide cover if it rained.
[Structure Complete: Basic Wooden Tent.]
[Durability: Low.]
[Iris’s Note: It is functional. We can revisit your standards later.]
"My standards are fine."
[If you say so.]
He went inside and laid down. The dead leaves made crunchy sounds as his weight settled in.
He took out his phone, resisting the urge to play games and instead took pictures of his new creation and himself within it before putting the phone away.
The sounds of the forest were unfamiliar to him. It wasn’t his first time sleeping outdoors — the streets had taught him that but the forest was different. Clicks, hums, buzzing and something in the distance. He hoped it was the wind.
Sleep did not come easily and when it started to arrive — the slow heaviness around his eyes and the weariness that his body gave in to — something else arrived with it. Idle thoughts that floated on the surface of his mind: that this could all be a weird fever dream and he would... might wake up from it.
An inhuman growl echoed from the inner part of the forest, ending all vain thoughts.
He reached for his dagger.
