In Loki's Honor

CONGRATULATIONS! This is the most important moment of your life!

You have become an adult of your species.

You are an Eleon. As an Eleon, you gain:

1 Attribute point every level.

1 Dexterity every three levels.

1 Endurance every five levels.

1 Charisma every five levels.

1 Luck every five levels.

3 (+3) Skill Points every level.

3 HP, 2 (+2) MP, 0 (+2) SP every level.

1 Perk every 3 levels.

You are small. Your HP and Damage are halved.

Attributes above the cap have been redistributed.

You have 36 / 100 withheld Attribute Points.

I woke up to the greeting message from the System. My entire Status came back. It also meant I would have periods again. Terrible. I smelled of blood. Without standing up, I sent my pseudopods to clean everything. A whiff of water magic and the sheets are cleaned.

After committing the racial page to mind, I pondered. Eleons were a pretty tame race. No big deals. The System might call for balance and stuff, but not everyone was born equal. Luck for most would be a hidden Attribute. Just like [Assassin] gains a bit of Soul too. They were physically weak, there was no surprise there. They had great Dexterity but that was the end of it.

I made a fluffy sanitary towel with my fae silk and removed panties from storage. With my bleeding problem solved, I checked my Attributes.

Strength 16 - Dexterity 24 - Endurance 19

Mind 21 - Willpower 21 - Charisma 21

Magic 110

Ego 110 - Luck 110 - Soul 110

HP 102.465

MP 311.850

SP 163.350

I grinned. Two hundred thousand HP at level zero. Thanks, {Head Start II}. I wouldn't reach the millions like my last life, probably. I wasn't going to pick a strong Class. I wanted a relatively normal life.

I had zero Exp accumulated. There should be at least a few bits. Guess the System also blocked that.

Now the most important thing. Nenandil should be awake and accessible now.

She yawns and answers,

I felt she leaving my soul and heard her flying around. Nenandil commented, "You have a nice bedroom. Very well organized, too."

"Thanks. I need to know where everything is. Otherwise, things can get ugly. But tell me. Is my blindness noticeable?"

"Your eyes are unfocused. But otherwise, they look normal."

It was as I feared. Neurological damage. I pulled my afflictions and found the culprit.

Sightless (disability, rare): You cannot process visual input.

Short, to the point, and probably without a fix. I shifted into my hybrid form. Nothing. I try animals, Lily, Silverstreak, nothing happens. The world remained dark. I had a ton of perks to help me get information my eyes would otherwise give me, but it was still a bother.

"Rosie, are you awake? I think I heard voices?"

Nenandil zips back into my chest. The door opens and Eirana enters. I can sense her through the banshee's {Sense Living Sentients} perk.

"Good morning, mom," I smile.

"Were you talking to someone? Are you alone?" There's suspicion in her voice. The whole house smells of freshly baked bread, as usual.

"Yes. Who else would be here?"

"I don't know. A boy, for example." She said with some amusement.

I make a disgusting face. "Eww. I can assure you, I have no interest in men."

She chuckled, "That will change. We're going to find you a good man to take care of you."

"Please don't. I'm going to turn all of them down."

A hand caresses my cheek. "You are such a lovely and beautiful girl. It's a waste if you don't marry."

I held her hand and squeezed. My next words were polite but firm. "I'll be the judge of that. And I don't need anyone to 'take care' of me."

I hear her going to the door. Eirana stopped and said, "Get yourself ready and come down for breakfast. We need to talk about your apprenticeship."

The door closes. I clean myself using House Magic. After putting on clothes and shoes - yes! We didn't walk barefoot - I join my mother at the breakfast table. I woke up late today, courtesy of a wonderful feeling called menstrual cramps. My first perk will be one to stop having periods.

"Hello. You chose a good dress. Today we're going to see if a master can accept you. We have the tuition money already set apart for you."

I had the treasure of an Elf Queen in storage. Not to mention two giant dragon bodies that would yield a shit-ton of materials. I needed no money from them. But how could I tell them that?

"Hey. You are spacing out. Have you thought about what apprenticeship you want?"

I nodded. "Pottery."

Eirana sighs. "You'll need to work around a kiln. Too hot. You might get hurt."

She would be right if fire and lightning didn't heal me. I couldn't tell her that. But if I was going to work with pottery, that perk that transmuted things into clay would be very handy. Oh, well. I could probably do that with alchemy.

"Did you have anything else in mind?" I asked her.

"Weaving. It doesn't pay much, but you'll be safe. And your husband will take care of the household expenses. We need to think of your secondary profession. How about being a [Nurse]."

'I've done that, mom. Seven lives ago,' I mentally groan. I couldn't tell her I had the Skills from the highest tier medical profession in this world.

She took me to a tour at the craftsmen's alley in the village. I could hear the din of the blacksmith, people talking. The interview with the crafters went as well as you can imagine. Nobody wanted a blind apprentice. The weaver was interested in taking me but it was because of the tuition money.

I forced myself to be a bit rude to the weaver. He then doubled his requested fee. I blew a raspberry at him and turned on my heels, walking out of the village. Eirana grabbed me.

"What do you think you are doing! You are a grown woman, you are soon going to access the System and will have to look after yourself. Why do you have to--"

"I'm not picking [Weaver], mom."

She sighed. "Tell me, Rosie. What do you want to be?"

I checked my list. There were a couple of juicy entries. "Do you want to know? I'm going to be a [Jeweller] [Enchanter]."

The street traffic around me stopped. I heard a ruffian openly chortling his belly out at my proposal.

"Rosie," Eiralla came closer and hugged me. "We don't have the money to pay for that kind of tuition. And these professions trainers are available only at the capital."

One needed to apprentice to a crafter to learn the requirements for the professions. The master usually held back some key components to stretch the apprenticeship beyond the minimum that was at least two years. But I didn't need to. I had the professions unlocked. [Jeweler] was rare and [Enchanter] very rare. They gave three and a half and four Skill Points per level.

"Then I'll move to the capital."

"Honey. You can't live in the capital on your own," She said with care but there was a condescending note in her voice.

"I will stop arguing in the middle of the street. Come, mother. Let's go back home," I said as I grabbed her arm.

I selected the two professions and set my Exp allocation to eight-one-one. This way my professions would stay three levels behind my racial level. I got a nice surprise.

You are now an Enchanter (very rare). Enchanters gain 4 Skill Points and 1 MP per level.

You are now a Jeweller (rare). Jewelers gain 7 Skill Points every 2 levels. They also gain 1 HP and 1 MP every four levels.

Professions now mattered for your HP and MP. Good to know. Since changing level zero professions were free, I checked [Soul Surgeon]. It gave 2 SP per level. Damn. I could've used that SP in my last life.

We were walking home when a mud ball hit me on the side of my head. It stank of goat manure.

"Get out of here, freak!" One of the kids a bit younger than me jeered.

I sensed him and prepared a wind spell. I was pissed, dirty, and I couldn't clean myself. He tossed another mud ball and the wind picked up suddenly, flinging the filth on his face and open mouth. He coughed and threw up. His mud balls were enhanced with manure, we both knew that and fell on his fours retching.

I heard a man asking, "What happened here?" I recognized the voice. It was guard Conrich, one of the four full-time guardsmen in the village.

"That boy Wendon, he threw a mud ball at my girl!" Eirana cried as she wiped me with her handkerchief.

"And why is he covered in mud and retching?"

"That was his own folly, Conrich. He threw the mud on himself."

"Really?" He asked, suspicious.

"You think either Rosie or I would throw mud at a child?"

Facing the guardsman, I rolled my eyes.

"Right. Your child can't see it. Well, a good day to you ladies. I'm going to have a talk with our boy there."

Our village had between four to six hundred Eleons.

"You blind bitch!" The kid came running in my direction.

I probably could've dodged. That would betray the fact I already had Skills. Instead, I took the punch and threw myself to the ground.

Village bully punched you. You lost 1 HP. Mana shield burned 1 SP. (Base 3 x 0,5 size x 1.2 strength x 1.1 Skill).

I saw the notification with a feeling of dread. I should've dodged. Stupid, stupid, stupid! My only hope was that nobody saw the mana shield effect.

"What was that glow?" Conrich asked. "Rosie, what was that glow?"

"What are you talking about, Conrich?" Eirana was holding the bully at bay.

I got back on my feet.

"It's a {Mana Shield} Perk!" The bully answered. "She has a mana shield. She's a freaking [Witch]! That's how she made me eat the dirt ball. Eww! I bet she cursed me. Oh, no! I'm going to die!" He whined.

Damn. He had his own notifications to read. I should've dodged. Once more in less than one hour, I was the village's main entertainment.

"Guardsman Conrich, you take care of this bully. He assaulted my little girl!" Eirana screeched.

She took me by the wrist and pulled me to go home. I could hear the whispers of the villagers and knew I would never be able to silence the rumors.

Once we were home, Eirani made me sit at the dining table. I crossed my arms in total defense.

"You already have a system!" She exclaimed.

"Yes."

"Since when?"

"This morning."

"What did that kid said about {Mana Shield}, is it true?"

"I have no Class. I am no [Witch]."

These redneck simpletons out there had a prejudice against some Classes. As if taking a Class would mess up with one's mind.

"Answer the question."

"I have {Mana Shield}."

Eirana gasped. "You can use magic."

"Yes."

"Of course. That's why you want to become an [Enchanter]! Some kids are born with perks, that's nothing unusual. But magic! Magic is dangerous."

"I don't think so."

"Why can't I see your level?'

"I'm level zero."

"No. I'm using {Appraise} on you. I get nothing."

I had to think fast. I had to lie to Eirani even though it broke my heart. "That's expected. Maybe because I have a prompt here since this morning."

"You... Oh, Galbarar's mercy! You can't read! You never learned how to read!"

"Should I accept it?"

"I guess? We can't know what it says."

I paused for a while and cup my hand over my ear. I nodded. I said "Yes. Yes. No." in a monotone voice. It was all an act. Then I set my level to zero and display it with {Status Forgery}. Just the level, no Class or title.

"I can see it now," She sighed with relief.

I also relax, "It seems the prompt was to change my System to a spoken version. I have a voice telling me things now."

"Yes, it makes sense. I heard it is like that for illiterate people, but it takes longer to transmit the information."

I extended my arm over the table. Eirana grabbed my hand.

"Mom. About my apprenticeship. I'm moving to the capital."

"You can't. You're blind and small, you will be eaten alive in the capital!"

"I must, mom. People will talk. The fact I know magic has already leaked out. It is just a matter of time before some crazy mage or another kind of weirdo comes to get me. You know children with magic never stay in their home village. The army might draft me. I must go."

Eirana starts to sob. I stood up and hugged her from behind. "Mom. I'll tell you a secret. I'm strong. That kid could spend the whole day punching me. he would get nowhere near hurting me."

She sniffled and squeezes my arms, pulling them tight around her neck. "Let's wait for your father to come back from the bakery. We'll talk about that."