19. The System

[WELCOME]

Sid rubbed his eyes, staring intently at the blindingly white text displayed against the black background of the holographic panel floating before him.

The text quickly morphed and vanished, replaced by new words.

[Congratulations on awakening]

[The world's intelligence is assisting you in your rise]

[Initializing the system...]

"Is this the destiny system panel the beggar mentioned? The one everyone sees after awakening?"

[Yes, indeed.]

"But the old man from the awakening room clearly said I didn't awaken. And why is this black instead of blue?"

[Don't know!]

"Did the system's projector malfunction? Maybe it's just a darker shade of blue?"

[Of course not! And the system doesn't use any kind of projector.]

"Huh? Did it just respond to me? Nah, I must be imagining things. This isn't how the system works, right?"

[Generally not. Maybe you're special.]

"Hahaha, you're right! This young master is definitely special… (O_O) … F*ck, it really responded to me! What's going on?"

[No idea!]

[Initialization complete.]

"What's with your tone? It's like a mix of an emotionless machine and... human emotions? Are you sure you're not malfunctioning?"

[Of course not! It's your fault for running away before I could fully awaken.]

"Huh? Dammit, I knew it. So the awakening stone incident was your fault! You... What are you called, anyway?"

[System panel.]

"No name? Nothing? Just system panel?"

[Should I have one?]

"Hmmm… do you want one?"

[Not specifically. What about you? Should I address you with something special?]

"Hmmm... hmmmmm (>^<)... Aha (☆○☆) got it! Hehehe... you can call me 'young master—the greatest expert.'"

[Absolutely not!]

"Huh? F*ck, why not? It sounds so cool!"

[Definitely not! Maybe you should reconsider your naming aesthetics.]

"Huhhhh...? (>~<) Hmph... Fine, how about just 'master' then?"

[Maybe after you stop cursing.]

"Forget it, forget it. Just show me my stats. That should be one of your functions, right?"

[Of course! Here you go...]

[Optimizing system interface... please stand by...]

[Analyzing the host... recovering status information... recovering skill information...]

[Optimization complete.]

[Here are your stats...]

[Name: Sid Shoka

Age: 19 years

Faction: -

Level: 3 (15/1200)

HP: 60/60

MP: 20/20

Strength (STR): 6 (5+1)

Stamina (STA): 6

Defense (DEF): 9

Agility (AGI): 7

Intelligence (INT): 3

● Talents:

Unpredictable Luck (Innate)

● Skills:

Omniflux (Innate)

Death Curse (B)

Limit Break (A)

● Resistances:

1. Pain (A)

2. Physical (D)

● Equipment:

Ragged shirt (+0)

Ragged pants (+0)

Pocket knife (+1 STR)

Spatial bag.

● Quests: –

● Title: –

● Inventory: (0/10)]

"Ugh, it's so f*cking complicated. And people used to play with this in Destiny? How do they even understand this gibberish?" Sid cursed, glaring at the overly complicated system panel.

[That's what happens when you've never played a game in your life.]

"You're saying people understand this stuff at a glance?"

[Some might. For those who can't, there used to be a Destiny game brochure explaining every term on the system panel, along with the necessary knowledge to play.]

"How the hell would I get that? It might be some precious piece by now—maybe even a sacred text. Dammit, I feel like an idiot."

[Well, at least you realize it. But worry not. I, as an awesome system panel, can guide you through this.]

"Huh, you can? That's awesome... wait, did you just diss me?"

[Of course not! That's your imagination.]

"Ahh... forget it. Anyway, tell me about my awesome stats. Quick, quick..."

[Um, sure, what do you want to understand?]

"Hmm... like what's this Faction thing?"

[It refers to the faction that you belong to.]

"Obviously! Do you take me for an idiot? I asked what's a faction."

[Ohhhh... well, in that case: a faction refers to the side you belong to—Nether or Divine. It will show once you join a specific organization or worship a certain being from that faction.]

"Hmm, guess I get it. Well, attributes I understand. But.... what's with this f*cking low intelligence? Are you implying that I'm stupid or something?"

[Of course not. I'm not 'implying' anything.]

[Besides, the intelligence here refers to your ability to sense and control mana. It doesn't represent your actual intellect. For that, another hidden attribute exists—wisdom.]

"Huh? Hidden attribute? What's that?"

[It refers to attributes that don't grow naturally. It's hidden and develops based on your specific actions.]

"Is that so...? Then what's my wisdom? It must be quite high, right? Am I awesome or what? Hehehe..."

[Well... it's hidden.]

"F*!%#$&.... what do you mean it's hidden. What kind of 'awesome system' are you if you can't even get this bit of hidden data for me? What's the difference between you and those cheap roadside systems?"

[It's hidden because of users such as yourself.]

"Huh? What's that mean?"

[Nothing!]

"Dammit, son of a... system!"

"Whatever, what's this talent?"

[That's your talent—unpredictable luck.]

"Ughh..."

[Here's an overview of your talent...]

[Talent:

Unpredictable Luck (Innate)

(Being extremely unpredictable, your luck can no longer be expressed in terms of numerical data. It will take you to places.)

(LCK: ???)]

"Damn you, system! You son of a b*tch! What do you mean, it'll take me to places? Are you making fun of me? I'll kill you... wait, can I even touch you? ...Huh, guess not."

[Of course, you don't have enough ability to touch me... as of right now. Well, even if you kill me, what would you do afterward? You cannot gain levels to grow without MY HELP.]

"Ughh... sonova..."

[Hmph... Worship me, human. You are nothing without me.]

"Shut up, you..."

"Ahhh... f*ck you! At any rate, what's with that ??? in front of my luck?"

[As it says, your luck can no longer be expressed as numbers—it's always fluctuating. That is to say, it's extremely unpredictable.]

"Hmm... hmmmm.... Aha, got it! It means my luck can either be zero—extremely poor luck, or it can even be off the charts—good luck, right?"

"Hahaha, does that mean my luck is so awesome? Although dangerous, it takes me to various fruitful adventures, that's what you meant, right? RIGHT?"

[Interpret it however you like...]

"Hehehe, you're definitely dodging the question because I'm correct, right?"

"Hmph, stupid system. Because of you, for a moment I was starting to doubt my genius intellect."

[....]

"Whatever, this luck is also supposed to be a hidden attribute, right? You said I can't see my hidden attributes, right? How come I can see it despite owning a shitty system like you?"

[That is because of your talent. Besides, what's the point of seeing a bunch of question marks for an attribute anyway? It's no different from giving no information.]

"Ughh... dammit, system, you son of a... forget it."

"In any case, what's with these attributes? They're all over the place. How are they distributed anyway? Is it random or something?"

[Hmm... how to put this in a way your genius brain can grasp?...]

[...The system starts by allocating a base of 5 points to each attribute. Then, an additional 5 points are distributed through a complex process involving a non-linear function that assesses your progress between levels. This function evaluates changes in your experiential metrics, factoring in both growth magnitude and rate. A dynamic, weighted algorithm adjusts the point distribution to reflect these variations. Consequently, the final allocation results from a detailed analysis of your performance, ensuring that the distribution accurately captures your developmental progress and growth patterns...]

Sid: (@_@) ahhh...

"Shut up! What's with you all of a sudden? What even is this gibberish? Can't you talk like usual? Are you okay, no malfunction or something?"

[Well, I just thought that the usual explanation from this shitty system might be a bit beneath your genius intellect. Hmph...]

"Dammit, system, are you holding a grudge? Ahh... f*ck! Whatever, please, oh please, my G..RE..AT system, please enlighten this ignorant one in a way I can understand."

[Heh..heh..heh.. worry not, human. But why is your compliment so distorted? Are you sure I'm an extremely awesome, overwhelmingly great, and a truly remarkable system?]

"....umm... of... course... hehehe..."

[Good. Then here's a simple explanation for a simpleton such as yourself...]

[The system begins by giving each attribute 1 point. Then, it adds 5 additional points using a detailed method that checks how much you've improved since the last level. The points are adjusted based on this check to make sure the final amount reflects your progress and development accurately...]

[Basically, that's it.]

Sid: (=_=) !*#%$&...

"F*cking system! Do you take me for a fool? That gives a level three person a total of 30 points. Why in the hell would I have 31 points?"

[Oh, you actually know how to calculate! Though it's quite a simple one...]

"Dammit, just say it..."

[But of course. Aside from simple attribute distribution, some skills or equipments may also affect them—increasing or decreasing them in some way. Basically, it's different for every individual.]

"Ohh... so it's like that! It depends on the individual, is it? So my having extra points is good, right?"

[Mostly, yes.]

"Hehehe... so you admit that I'm quite special, huh system? I am the great—the one who stands above all. Hahahaha..."

[..... When did I ever say that?]