02 - The Newcomer of the Iron Black Gang
Amid a bandit camp, there is a young person with slightly dark skin, long and messy white hair, naturally menacing eyes with red pupils, strangely sharp teeth, and oddly well-maintained skin despite living in a place surrounded by bandits.
This young person is only a 5-year-old child named Ariel Levka, who is currently just watching some of the bandits training in the back of the camp which is quite open, specifically made for their training.
"Well, five years have passed since my reincarnation in this world, and so far I have been able to discover some things about this life... I was reincarnated as the son of a couple who are leaders of a gang of bandits in the forest, the Iron Black Gang, a gang formed mostly by former slaves who, after escaping from the places where they lived, ended up in the middle of the forest, and because they couldn't find a normal job, they decided to unite and form a gang. Well, I don't know if this is the best choice to make, but I don't think I can judge them considering the things I did in my past life; besides, this world is very similar to the ones I saw in the works that I read in my past life, a typical medieval fantasy world, with monsters, magic, humanoid creatures, and so on. At first, I was very surprised to reincarnate in this kind of world, which is so fantastic, but now I just got used to it, and it seems like a normal world to me, although I still have a strong desire to see the differences that this world has with Earth personally, not just through books or stories."
Ariel then gives a slight stretch while still sitting for a while, and soon continues his thoughts, reaching the part that he considers the most important.
"Now, talking about the System, although I have discovered some things about it, I believe that there are still many mysteries surrounding it, and there must still be a lot of things that I haven't found out that the System does. But anyway, the first and most important thing that I discovered is the 'Status Window'..."
With just a quick thought, a large screen appears in front of Ariel, of the same type that he had seen after his death, only bigger and with other information, showing his personal information.
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User: [Ariel Levka]
Age: [05]
Race: [Human]
Position: [Heir to the Iron Black Gang]
Attributes:
-Strength: [05] Endurance: [05]
-Agility: [06] Intelligence: [15]
-Resistance: [04] Charisma: [10]
AP: [00]
Skills:
-[Status Analysis]
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"That layout reminds me a lot of the MMORPG games I played in my past life, I don't know if this is the natural standard of the System, or if it was modified based on my memories to better understand it, but anyway, it's pretty easy to understand. Well, anyway, the second thing is about skills, apparently they are divided into ranks, being Bronze, Silver, Gold, Black Gold, Platinum, Diamond, and Black Diamond, I don't know if there are any beyond these, but according to the System itself, these are the ones available so far, with the only skill I currently possess being only a Platinum rank."
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Skill: [Status Analysis]
Rank: [Platinum]
Type: [Active]
-One of the most basic skills of the System, which gives the user the ability to see the status and information of a particular being, after focusing on a target and activating the skill.
-The amount of information shown and the accuracy of it varies according to the level of the target compared to the user, so if the target is much superior to the user, the System will not be able to show any information.
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As Ariel loses himself in his thoughts, he doesn't notice that someone has just sat down next to him, thus startling him as the person uses their hand to gently push Ariel's head to the side.
Varus: Hello, son!
This man is a mature man with relatively light skin, short and wavy white hair, eyes with red pupils, and two scars that cross like an X on his forehead, as well as carrying a gentle and kind smile; this man is none other than Varus Levka, Ariel's father, as well as the leader of the Iron Black Gang.
Ariel: Hi, dad.
Ariel greets while holding his father's wrist with his two hands to try to make him stop shaking his head.
Varus: What are you doing here? I didn't know you were interested in training the members.
Ariel: I'm not that interested, but if I want to become a reliable heir of the gang, I'll have to start learning about training as soon as possible.
"It's a little lie, but I really do want to start learning martial arts in this world soon. In my past life, I focused too much on magic, so I didn't have time to learn anything about hand-to-hand combat."
Seeing his son's response, Varus takes his hand off Ariel's head, and then responds with a slightly awkward smile on his face.
Varus: Well, son, I understand you wanting to start training soon, but you know you're not ready yet to become an active member of the gang.
Ariel: Dad, but if I start training early while I'm still young, I can grow stronger in the future, and at the same time gain the trust of the other gang members, it's killing two birds with one stone.
After being a little thoughtful, seeing how much his son wants to start his training, Varus finally comes to a conclusion.
Varus: Well, let's do this, if your mother agrees to the idea, I can inform the gang's instructor to start teaching you along with his granddaughter, but only if your mother agrees.
"My mother is a very serious and straightforward woman, it will be a little difficult to convince her, but it's better than getting a direct no without even trying."
Ariel: Thank you, Dad, I will go talk to Mom.
Thus, Ariel stands up from the grass he was sitting on, and after saying goodbye to his father, he decides to go to the tent where his mother is probably located.
Ariel: Excuse me, mom.
Upon entering the tent, Ariel immediately came across the large tent where his parents sleep, which had more things compared to the common members' tents, and even compared to his own, in addition to the double bed made of hay and cotton at the end of the tent, there was a large wooden chest with a sturdy appearance to the right of the entrance, on the other side, where his mother was, there was a small table and a chair, and behind the chair, between it and the bed, a bookshelf full of books, with only one missing - the exact book that his mother, Lilian, was reading at that moment.
Lilian is a woman who, despite having lived a difficult life, still surprises with her beauty, she has dark skin, long braided black hair with a white streak, beautiful eyes with very light blue pupils, and a body that is both feminine and voluminous yet well-trained with defined muscles, with a few visible scars on her hand showing that she is not a helpless woman or anything like that.
Seeing that her son has arrived, without even stopping reading or looking him in the eye, Lilian asks why he is looking for her at this time of night.
Lilian: You may come in, son. Why are you looking for me?
While still standing, Ariel, having roughly thought about how the conversation would go, decides to put his plan into action.
"Knowing my mother, I think it's best not to try to beat around the bush or anything like that, because it will only decrease my chances of convincing her, so I'll just get straight to the point."
Ariel: Mom, I want to become an official member of the Iron Black Gang.
Lilian, seeing the absurd request her 5-year-old son made to her, while furrowing her eyebrows, responds to Ariel shortly and rudely.
Lilian: Son, you already know the answer I'll give you.
Ariel: But mom-
Trying to end her son's insistence, Lilian cuts him off in the middle of his speech and, after closing and slamming her book on her desk, looks at Ariel and responds.
Lilian: Ariel! Don't stress me out in the middle of my pregnancy!
After a while of just looking at his mother, Ariel decides to continue with his plan, as receiving a no at this moment is not an option.
"Well, I was already expecting her to get stressed, but not that much."
Ariel: Mother, you know better than anyone else how much strength matters in this world, both you and dad suffered so much in your lives because of the lack of strength in front of your enemies, so do you really think it's so bad for me to want to get strong as soon as possible?
Lilian, upon hearing Ariel's response, simply sighs and relaxes her angry expression.
Lilian: Son, you're only five years old. Just wait a few more years and I'll let you join the gang and start your training.
"That's it!"
Ariel: But mom, Liana, Instructor Pedro's daughter, is also five years old and has been training martial arts for a year, and no one has ever seen her have any physical or mental problems because of it.
Lilian: *Sigh* Alright, son, but promise me one thing, if you ever complain or talk about giving up on the training, even just once, you will leave the gang, and only come back when I allow it, okay?
Ariel: Yes, Mom, I accept.
After getting what he wanted, Ariel simply turns to leave the tent and let his mother go back to reading her book.
Ariel: Thank you, Mom, you won't regret it.
Ariel says with a slight smile as he looks at his mother.
Lilian: Oh boy, talking like that, who would think he's just a five-year-old boy? Sometimes I wonder if I gave birth to a genius or a monster.
.
.
.
After finally getting his mother's approval, Ariel returns to the training location of the gang members, looking for his father to inform him about his mother's decision, but he is no longer there.
Ariel: Sir, have you seen where my father went?
Ariel asked one of the members who was resting on the grass.
Member: Hmmmm, if I remember correctly, he said he had to deal with some problems involving the map of the forest routes, so he is probably in the tent of the leader and vice leader.
Ariel: Okay, thank you.
"Problems involving the forest route? Well, it's not my problem, so I'll just go there and inform him about mother's decision."
After walking for some time, Ariel finally arrives at the main tent of the gang, the tent where the gang leader and vice-leader, in other words, Ariel's parents, gather to solve some important gang problems and discuss decisions about it. This tent stands out when compared to the others, not only because it is located in the center and at the end of the camp, but also because of its size, which is easily more than double compared to the other tents, both in size and width.
Ariel: Excuse me, Dad.
Varus: Hmmm, you're here, son.
Varus's mental exhaustion was evident to anyone who looked at him, with piles of maps on his desk, and some books that were knocked off the shelves, lying in the middle of the floor.
Varus: So, tell me, son, what was your mother's answer?
Ariel then responds to his father with a slight smile on his lips.
Ariel: She allowed, father.
Varus: Oh, I see, that's too bad... Wait, what!?!! She allowed it!?!!
Varus was surprised since he didn't want to disappoint his son directly, and therefore left it for his mother to respond, and he be reprimanded and not allowed to train for a while.
Ariel: Yes, dad, she said I can, as long as I don't complain or talk about giving up.
Varus: *Sigh* Alright then, a man must keep his word, from now on, you, Ariel Levka, are an official member of the Iron Black Gang. Congratulations.
Varus then pulls out a simple ring from one of his desk drawers and tosses it to Ariel to catch.
Varus: This ring represents that you are officially part of the gang, and it also has some extra functionalities.
"Extra functionalities?"
Ariel then takes the ring in his hand and, using his "Status Analysis" skill, decides to take a look at these extra functionalities.
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Artifact: Star Ring
Rank: Bronze
Type: Ring
-The ring that symbolizes that its bearer is an official member of the Iron Black Gang, having been made by an unknown black market blacksmith.
-This ring, although appearing common and old due to its worn appearance, as an artifact carries with it special effects that, while not surprising, can be useful if utilized correctly.
-+10% Physical Resistance
-+5% Magical Resistance
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"Wow, who would've thought there was a magical artifact in this small gang. Well, not that it's a particularly impressive magical artifact, but it's still surprising. Although, for an artifact, I expected a more distinctive appearance, but it just looks like a worn-out ring with a few cuts on it, at least it has a slightly silver color and a star-shaped hole, which is probably why it's called the 'Star Ring'."
Ariel: Thank you, leader. As an official member of the Iron Black Gang, I promise to never betray and always fulfill the gang's obligations, no matter how I am.
With a pretentious smile on his face, Varus tries to hide his happiness in seeing his son finally joining the gang and dismisses him with the excuse of having to continue his work.
Varus: Okay, son, good luck from now on. Now daddy has to focus on his work, so see you tomorrow.
Varus: ... Oh, and before I forget, your training won't start for about a week because the instructor is out doing some things in the city, so until then, you are free to prepare however you want.
"Well, that was unexpected, but I think I can use this one week to take my next step in my goal of getting stronger. With my body as it is now, I believe I can create and awaken a mana core... Well, I'll leave it for tomorrow night. At the moment, I think it's best to go to my room and check the notification I received from the System."
And so, Ariel took his first, and probably most important step, towards reaching the top of this world, once again treading a path of crime and running the same risk as his previous life, but he will no longer suffer the same fate. With his knowledge from his past life and the help of the System, Ariel is confident that he will be able to fulfill his goal this time.