As the lift continued creaking upward, swaying slightly with the ropes, Vin closed his eyes and let his mind sink inward—into his soul realm.
Inside, two glowing domains hovered in the void.One was his: a realm of pure pitch-black, swirling shadows and faint echoes.The other, radiating soft blue light, clearly belonged to Miyo.
"Alright... let's see. What do I say again?" Vin muttered.
"'Stats,'" Miyo's voice chimed beside him.
Vin turned, startled. "Wait—you're here too?"
"Duh, we're soul bonded now. You can't check your stats without me," she said with a playful smirk.
Suddenly, a sheet of parchment blinked into existence in front of them, ink flowing across it in real time.
[Soul Bond Stats Display]
Name: Vincenzo
Realm: Dark
Mana: Very Low
Magic Mastery: Very Low
Physical: Mediocre
Power: Void Sword [Locked — Requires: Owner Permission, Mana Upgrade, Magic Mastery Upgrade], very low elemental magic
Name: MiyoRealm: Blue
Mana: Advenced
Magic Mastery: Advenced
Physical: Mediocre
Powers: Advanced Elemental Magic, Divine Magic, Healing, Low Light Magic, Low Divinity Magic
"Pfft..." Miyo stifled a laugh. "Magic mastery—very low."
"Tch..." Vin frowned, eyes narrowing. "And I need your permission to unlock my own power? and You have that much power?"
He paused, squinting at the unfamiliar line.
"What even is Void Sword? I've never heard of it. But for elemntal magic... that mean im good enough to use every element?"
Every player only have 1 elemnetal magic when spawning, those who have fully control of every elemnet consideret lucky, vin in the game plays with 2 element, fire and dirt
Miyo crossed her arms, tilting her head."Void Sword…? Nope, not in the original game. Must be a hidden class or something."
Vin scratched the back of his head, frustrated."Ugh, this damn god really threw me into another broken setup."
The paper crumpled and vanished into glowing particles.
"Guess you better start obeying me if you ever wanna unlock that sword," Miyo teased, skipping a step away in the lift.
"...This soul bond is cursed."
The lift jerked to a stop, creaking slightly before a large wooden door creaked open.
Standing before them was a dwarf clad in thick armor and a strange hat that barely fit over his bushy hair. His eyes widened a bit at the sight of them.
"Oh? Kids? I've never seen you two before... uh, what's your name, class, and guild?"
Oh fuck.Vin's heart dropped.
Right... I remember now. You need at least a guild permit to enter the Sovereign Forest.
He slowly turned his head toward Miyo, giving her a silent "what do we do" stare.Miyo, on the other hand, returned that look like "don't ask me!"
We're screwed.
"Hello?" the dwarf asked again, his voice more curious than suspicious.
Vin snapped to attention."Ah—yes! My name is Vin and she's Miyo! We're not in a guild because, uh, we woke up in the forest!"
"Ah, that explains it!" the dwarf nodded, surprisingly calm. "We've had a few cases like that—people waking up inside without knowing how they got in. Nasty business."
His tone dropped a bit, eyes narrowing slightly.
"You two didn't enter illegally, right?"
Vin swallowed hard.Is being transported by a god considered illegal...?"Uh, no. We were... teleported," he said, voice a bit shaky.
Miyo just shook her head, keeping it vague but in sync with Vin.
"Hmm. Alright, kids. I doubt anyone your age would willingly walk into that cursed dump anyway."
The dwarf stepped aside, waving them through. "Go on then. Try not to cause trouble."
Both Vin and Miyo bowed slightly and quickly walked past him.
Now stepping into the open light, they found themselves in the sprawling, lively chaos of Arsas, the City of Money—A place where trading, banking, casinos, slave markets, and auctions all thrived in one place.
"Miyo… right now, the only one who can fight is you."
"...What?"
"I mean, my mana and magic mastery are way too low."
She nodded slowly, groaning."Yeah… crap, I wanted to stay lazy..."
"...Now I see why your dad never cared abou—"Vin froze."I'm sorry."
Her eyes locked on him with a murderous glare.Dead silence.I almost died right there.
"A-Alright, Miyo. We're in the best place to make money right now… so what's your pick? Quest? Side quest? Heist? Or—"
"Of course, we're doing a quest that gives us the most money first."
"Yep. And the only quest that gives that kind of reward is—"
.
"THIS IS A BAD IDEA, MIYO!"
"DO YOU WANT MONEY OR NOT?!"
You're probably wondering why we're yelling.
Well—We're in the middle of a raging river, holding onto dear life. Our quest? Redirect the water flow that's been messing with the farmers' irrigation system.
Simple?Not when the river is basically a tsunami pretending to be chill.The current is insane.
The only thing keeping us from being swept away is the mana on our legs keeping us semi-grounded.
Well, not Miyo.SHE'S WALKING ON THE DAMN WATER, MEANWHILE I'M OUT HERE DOING ALL THE WORK!
"Use the wind magic now!"
Vin directed his mana to his hand, trying to force something—anything—out.Nothing.
See, to cast magic, you have to do it right:
Fire needs concentrated mana focused in your hand to generate heat.
Wind requires you to release your mana quickly from your body.
Water needs a calm, flowing stream of mana.
Earth requires dense, solid mana focused fast.
Vin, with his very, very low mana stat, managed to produce:
A tiny puff of wind,
A crumb of dirt,
A sad little flame that died in one second,
And a single tear of water.
Well... it's not terrible for someone just starting out. Practicing builds up mana control and magic mastery, after all.
"HAAA!"
fowsh...A small breeze.
"HAAA!"
fwsh...Smaller.
"HAAA!"
fsh...
"HAAA!"
...
[Your mana is empty]
"...What."
"PFFT!"Miyo burst into laughter. Relentlessly. Loudly.
One tear rolled down Vin's cheek.
"Haha... wait, this is too funny..."
Meanwhile, Miyo casually extended her hand, flowing wind magic to redirect the water perfectly. With a flick of her finger, she shifted the dirt and corrected the river's path.
Vin stood there, drained, defeated, and wet.
Heading back to the quest merchant, they grabbed their reward: 1 gold, 14 silver, and 25 bronze.
"So, Miyo... what are we gonna use that money for? You're gonna spend it on a lodge, right?"
"Of course," she muttered. "Lodges are 2 silver per room."
They made their way to one of the nearby lodges—a modest building connected to a lively bar. The bartender had a neat mustache and clean-cut hair. The room was filled with armored men laughing, drinking, and tossing coins.
Vin took off his hoodie, now just wearing his school uniform and jeans. Both of them walked up to the counter.
"Two rooms, please," Miyo said calmly.
"Oh, kids? Sure, sure, that'll be 4 silver," the bartender replied, raising an eyebrow.
Miyo handed over the coins without hesitation.
"And here are the keys, kids. If you don't mind me asking—why are you guys in this city? I mean, it's fine and all, but it's kind of dangerous for people your age. You could get kidnapped... end up as slaves."
"We're moving out tomorrow," Miyo said, still calm.
"I see..."
Then Vin spoke up."Oh, can I have a bucket?"
"...May I ask why you need it?"
"No reason."
Strange kid. Girl pays for his room, then he asks for a bucket? Weird."Okay, here you go."
—In his room, Vin sat down and entered his soul realm.
To upgrade his mana, he had to use his magic—a lot. Repetition was the key. Simple spells. Non-stop. When his magic mastery hit its limit, it would automatically level up.
He placed the bucket on the ground.
Then began.
He conjured a small gust of wind.Then a small stream of water.
Again. And again. And again.
Whenever his mana ran out—he'd have to wait 10 minutes to recharge. He didn't waste that time though.
Sit-ups. Push-ups. Crunches.
Train the body, and you train the mana. Better stamina = better mana pool.
It was gonna be a long night.
But Vin didn't plan to sleep.
Later that morning, Miyo stretched her arms with a yawn. Using her magic, she gently floated out of bed and touched down, landing softly on her feet. After washing her face and hands, she stepped out into the hallway and knocked on Vin's door—only to realize it was already unlocked.
"Vin? Come on, we need to leave—ugh, it smells awful in here..."
"Ah... it's you, Miyo?" Vin mumbled.
Miyo stepped in and looked around. A bucket full of water sat in the corner. The bed was soaked. One wall looked slightly scorched and cracked from some wind magic. And Vin? He stood in the middle of the room, white school uniform drenched like he'd just lost a water fight.
"Ah… um, Miyo, could you dry me off?"
"...Ugh. Fine."
With a flick of her wrist, she conjured a focused gust of wind, drying his clothes in a few seconds.
Afterward, she stood up, brushing her hands clean."Alright, done."
"Ah, Miyo—can I check my stats?"
"Sure."
They both closed their eyes, syncing into their soul realms.
"Stats," Miyo said calmly—but with that usual edge of command in her tone.
[Soul Bond Stats Display]
Name: Vincenzo
Realm: Dark
Mana: mediocre
Magic Mastery: low
Physical: Mediocre
Power: Void Sword [Locked — Requires: Owner Permission, Mana Upgrade, Magic Mastery Upgrade], low elemental magic
Name: Miyo
Realm: Blue
Mana: Advanced
Magic Mastery: Advanced
Physical: Mediocre
Powers: Advanced Elemental Magic, Divine Magic, Healing, Low Light Magic, Low Divinity Magic
"What the heck..."
"You still can't unlock it? That's bad."
"I'll do it later. Right now, we need to start Bold III."
"Hondur—that's the first place that triggers the main event," Miyo said.
"I know, I know... but from Arsas to Hondur, it's a two-month walk. I usually used fast travel."
"Sigh... me too."
Two months passed. During that time, they took on jobs in small villages and towns to earn money for travel. Miyo helped Vin improve his mana and magic mastery—going from very low and mediocre to beginner. His elemental mastery also advanced to medium. Thanks to constant physical training, Vin's height increased from 167 cm to 175 cm.
Already strong Miyo pushed even further, growing her magic and mana mastery from advanced to master. Every one of her powers leveled up, and she grew slightly taller, from 164 cm to 165 cm.
Both of them bought new clothes at a shop near Hondur. Vin chose a white medieval-style short-sleeved shirt with a fresh pair of long pants. Miyo picked a white, long-sleeved casual dress. Around her waist, she wore a belt lined with potions. Her blue hair perfectly matched the soft style of the outfit.
"Alright, dumbass, you finally reach the mastery to use that power," she said with a smirk, tying her hair up into a loose bun. Soft, wispy bangs framed her forehead — delicate strands that lightly brushed her brows, swaying gently with every move.
"I hate those two months..."