16 A Treasure Beyond Understanding

Kael lay on the cold stone floor, his arms spread out as he finally allowed himself to rest. His body ached, exhaustion pulling at every muscle, but for the first time since entering this nightmarish tutorial, he had a moment to breathe.

He thought about his 10,000 SP which he got from the wheel of fortune and asks the system about it.

[System Notification: The System Shop will unlock after Level 10.]

Reading it, Kael's eyes snapped open.

Sitting up, he furrowed his brows, staring at the glowing interface before him.

"What the hell…? Level 10?" he muttered to himself. Then his attention went towards the system mentioning about the shop.

A shop meant buying things.

And buying things meant there was a currency.

"Wait… so this is what System Points are for?" he murmured.

Kael's mouth twitched.

So, he had this many points, but he couldn't use them until Level 10?

That's so damn far away!

Leveling up was already getting harder, with experience requirements increasing exponentially. If things continued at this rate, reaching Level 10 wouldn't be easy.

Still, the fact that a System Shop existed at all intrigued him.

What kind of items, skills, or information could he buy from it?

He tried asking the system, but the response was as expected.

[System Notification: Additional information about the System Shop is locked until Level 10.]

Kael groaned.

"Figures."

There was no point worrying about it now.

He exhaled, shaking his head. Just as he was about to dismiss the interface, his hand brushed against something in his pocket.

He froze.

Then, as realization dawned on him, his eyes widened slightly.

The ring.

Reaching into his pocket, Kael pulled out the ring he had won from the Wheel of Fortune.

It was a simple, black metal band, unadorned and smooth, yet something about it felt different.

Holding it between his fingers, he focused on the system and asked:

"System, what is this ring?"

A new notification appeared.

[System Notification: Ring of the Pocket World] A rare artifact that grants the user access to a personal dimensional space. Current size: 100 square meters. Bound User: None.

Kael's eyes widened in shock.

"A personal dimensional space?!"

He had heard of storage rings in fantasy stories, but this was on another level.

100 square meters of space…

That was huge!

With that much room, he could store weapons, potions, supplies—even bodies if needed.

His mind was already racing with possibilities, but before he could think too much, another thought crossed his mind.

"What are the full benefits of this pocket world?" he asked the system.

The response was immediate.

[System Notification: Additional information is locked until the System Shop is unlocked.]

Kael's eye twitched.

"...Are you serious?"

It was the same damn problem as before. He had an incredible artifact, but the system was holding back details until Level 10.

Letting out a sigh, he decided to deal with that later.

For now, he would bind the ring to himself.

Kael slid the ring onto his index finger.

Immediately, a new system prompt appeared.

[System Notification: Do you wish to bind the Ring of the Pocket World to yourself?] Yes/No

Kael didn't hesitate.

"Yes."

The moment he confirmed, a faint blue glow pulsed from the ring, and then—

A strange sensation washed over him.

It wasn't painful, but it felt like a part of him had connected to something else—somewhere else.

When the glow faded, the ring fit snugly around his finger, its surface now faintly pulsating with energy.

Kael could feel it.

A connection to something vast—something he could access at will.

He took a deep breath.

"Alright… let's test it."

Kael reached into his pocket and pulled out the stats-increasing potion he had won earlier.

Holding it in his palm, he focused on the ring, willing the potion to enter the pocket world.

In an instant—

The potion vanished.

Kael's eyes widened as he instinctively focused on the ring's connection.

Inside his mind, he could see the potion resting in the empty space of his pocket world.

It was there.

Safe.

Untouched.

Curious, he reached out with his mind, thinking about retrieving the potion—

And just like that, the bottle reappeared in his hand.

Kael's heart pounded.

No mana cost…?

Unlike storage rings in some fantasy stories that required mana to store or retrieve objects, this one didn't.

Instead, he felt a slight mental fatigue.

It wasn't exhausting, but it meant that using the ring excessively might tire him out mentally.

Still—

This was incredibly efficient.

His excitement grew, realizing just how useful this artifact would be.

With time, training, and the right knowledge, this ring could become a priceless tool.

But for now—

Kael was exhausted.

He let out a long sigh, finally feeling ready to rest.

He lay back down, letting his body relax.

Just a quick nap…

Just as he was about to drift off, a sudden ding from the system jolted him awake.

[System Notification: Level 6 of the Tutorial will begin in 1 hour.]

Kael's eyes snapped open.

His body tensed as his mind processed the words.

Already?!

Sitting up quickly, he turned his head, looking toward Emily and Ethan.

They were talking to each other, but the moment Kael got up, their eyes turned toward him.

They exchanged glances, their relaxed postures immediately shifting into something more serious.

This brief moment of peace was over.