Area: Empress's Palace – Training Room
Characters: Tristan, Daran, Rose
"We're here," Rose said, stepping into the wide chamber. "This is the training room."
The space stretched far in every direction—stone flooring marked with circular combat zones, walls lined with glowing racks of weapons, and along the far end, rows of humanoid dummies stood completely still.
Until one moved.
"These are the weapons you'll be using for training," she continued. "And those are active dummies—they simulate real enemy behavior and counterattacks."
She gestured toward a nearby rack. "Now, I can show you how to wield these weapons properly in battle, and—"
"There's no need," Tristan said, cutting in calmly.
Rose blinked, surprised. "Excuse me?"
"I have a list of fighting styles I can learn directly from the system," he explained, his tone casual. "It's showing me a full menu, including recommendations based on my build."
She stared at him with a raised brow, clearly intrigued but skeptical.
He wasn't lying. The interface had been feeding him options since waking in the Mirror Realm. Now, a transparent display hovered in front of him, listing styles, stat breakdowns, and animated previews.
<~~><~~><~~>
Recommended Styles:
Great Sword (Power Build)
Dual Blades (Agility Focused)
Spear (Precision + Reach)
<~~><~~><~~>
Tristan scanned the specs. The system had even factored in his athletic stats.
<~~><~~><~~>
Height: 5'7
Off-season 100m Sprint: 8.20 seconds
Deadlift Max: 380 lbs
<~~><~~><~~>
Not bad.
"I'll let the system handle my form," he said. "It's surprisingly thorough."
"Damn," Daran muttered beside him. "I don't have a list like that… and I can't even see yours."
He turned to Rose, who was already watching him like she'd read his thoughts.
"You want to craft something, don't you?" she said.
Daran blinked.
"Your expression's always a giveaway," she added with a smirk. "Almost as easy to read as Tristan's thoughts."
She stepped past them, motioning for Daran to follow.
"I'll take you to the Smith's Forge first. We can return here once you're done."
{—}{—}{—}{—}
Area: Smith's Room
Characters: Tristan, Daran, Rose
"Look at all these materials…" Daran muttered, eyes wide. "There's so many formulas."
He stepped forward, scrolling through the system interface that floated in front of him. Crates of glowing crystals and metals lined the forge's edges, casting dull reflections against the polished stone floor.
"This is great," he said, nodding to himself. "Now we've got something to work with."
He held out his hand and focused.
"CREATE… Green String Bow."
A flash of light burst from the forge platform. A green-lined longbow materialized in the air, shimmering faintly like it was woven from raw gemstone.
"Finally got it."
Tristan raised a brow. "You've been waiting to make that?"
"Yeah," Daran said calmly, without looking over. "I figured we'd be here for a while, so I picked a weapon that works for ranged defense. The Blade's Sense of Life can function as an arrow with the Green String Bow—but only by forging a Weapon Chain."
He tapped through a new crafting window and activated the forge again.
Tristan watched as the two weapons glowed, then fused together with a bright pulse. The blade disappeared.
But when Daran pulled back the bowstring—it returned.
The blade reappeared as the arrowhead, glowing green like pure emerald, suspended at full draw.
Tristan leaned closer. "Did its stats change?"
Daran nodded. A window popped up in his view.
<~~><~~><~~>
Weapon Chain Applied – Updated Stats:
STR: 10 → 15
AGI: 8 → 11
INT: 15 → 20
<~~><~~><~~>
"Stats?" Rose echoed from behind them. "What are you two talking about?"
Tristan glanced back but said nothing. It was clear now—Rose didn't have access to their system interfaces. She understood enchantments, maybe even crafting, but not stats.
"Well," Tristan said, brushing it off, "don't worry about it."
He turned back to Daran. "What exactly can you do with it now? You've been keeping this whole thing to yourself."
Daran released the arrow gently, letting it dissipate into particles.
"It gives me the ability to sense life energy. Like a radar for living things."
Tristan tilted his head. "A detection ability?"
"Basically."
"That's useful," Tristan admitted. "But you said earlier you couldn't enchant it with something you wanted?"
Daran gave him a look like he was waiting for that question.
"You seriously haven't noticed?" he asked. "Our weapons have levels."
Tristan blinked. "What?"
Daran pointed to his bow.
"The Green String Bow needs to be level 3 before I can apply the Search enchantment. It's a tracking ability—follows and locates its target."
He turned toward Tristan, arms crossed.
"Your Instinct Blade? It's already max level—level 1. That's why you could enchant it right away, but it also means it'll never grow. The stat boosts you got are the best it'll ever be."
He sighed. "I swear you've learned nothing from the games we play."
Tristan rolled his eyes. "We don't play the same games, dude."
Rose finally spoke again, looking between them.
"Well, now that you've got your weapons," she said firmly, "what about your armor?"
She stepped toward the racks along the back wall.
"With the things we'll be fighting… you'll need it."
Armor. Of course they'd need armor for what was coming.
Tristan browsed the crafting interface again, scanning through recommended sets. As someone marked for Great Sword, Dual Blades, and Spear, he knew he'd need medium-weight armor for balance. Speed mattered for the duals and spear, but strength was everything for the great sword.
He tapped the screen to load armor formulas—only to find the menu grayed out.
"None?" he muttered.
A red message flashed on the screen.
<~~><~~><~~>
To craft armor, you must collect monster materials.
<~~><~~><~~>
A quest tag popped up immediately.
<~~><~~><~~>
Target: Flashing Serpent
Description: A beast known for its blinding light and reactive scales.
<~~><~~><~~>
"Rose," Tristan asked, turning to her, "do you know where I can find a Flashing Serpent? I really need one."
Rose glanced over—and smiled.
But not the usual smug smile.
An excited one.
"This system you two keep talking about," she said, tilting her head, "it's fascinating. Knowing so much about the realm—more than some of us born here. Yes, I know where the Flashing Serpent lives."
She pointed toward a side rack near the exit.
"And that makes this a perfect place to start your training. But first—gear up. You'll need crystal vests."
She tossed each of them what looked like a plain, sleeveless undershirt. Smooth to the touch, light in the hand.
They pulled them on easily—like regular underlayers. No visible stats, no fancy enchantments.
But when Tristan tapped to scan it, the system listed only one ability:
<~~><~~><~~>
Item: Crystal Vest (Under Armor)
Passive: Dead Luck – Weakens killing blows. May reduce fatal strikes to survivable injuries.
<~~><~~><~~>
"It doesn't even have stats," Daran said, rotating his shoulder.
"It doesn't need them," Rose replied. "These vests can't be cut, ripped, or pierced by ordinary weapons. If you're caught off guard, they might be the only reason you stay alive long enough to fight back."
Daran nodded, gripping his bow. "Well, I'm good."
Rose turned toward the exit. "Alright, now that you've got your weapons and vests—let's go hun—"
"Wait," Tristan called out, stopping her mid-sentence. "I haven't made my weapon yet."
He turned back toward the forge, hands flying across the interface, scrolling rapidly through dozens of designs.
Come on… something useful…
Then he stopped.
This one.
"Rose," he said, eyes still focused, "I need a Black Rose to craft this. Can I use—"
The room froze.
He looked up.
Rose's expression had changed entirely.
Gone was the teasing grin or confident smirk. Her eyes now held nothing but cold silence.
And warning.
"I know you don't know much about this realm," she said slowly, voice low, "but don't ever ask for the Black Rose again."
The air around her seemed to shift.
"That flower is our family's greatest treasure. Our Empress's strongest weapon. It is not to be crafted. Not to be touched. Ever."
Tristan stood frozen. This was the first time she had looked truly serious.
Damn. That struck something deep.
He swallowed, then adjusted his tone.
"…Then can I have a red and blue rose?"
She blinked.
"I'll craft this weapon in memory of what you just said. A promise—between you and me. I won't forget it."
For a moment, she said nothing.
Then—finally—a genuine smile.
Soft. Honest.
"Making an effort to remember something for me?" she said. "I'm flattered."
She turned to the shelf behind her.
"Fine. I'll give you some roses."
Rose slowly lifted her hands, palms glowing faintly.
One hand shimmered red. The other, blue.
With a flick of her wrists, she formed two roses—one from each color. Ethereal, delicate, and pulsing with quiet energy.
She offered them to Tristan.
He accepted them carefully.
"Thank you, Rose."
He turned to the forge and focused.
<~~><~~><~~>
CRAFTING INITIATED
ENCHANTMENT APPLIED
<~~><~~><~~>
A surge of light filled the room.
In his hands, a blade formed—dark metal laced with crimson and sapphire lines. Floral engravings bloomed along the fuller of the blade, ending in a twisting double-edge near the tip.
<~~><~~><~~>
Item: Twin Rose Sword
Level: 1 / 20
Stats: STR +20 | AGI +35 | INT +18
Ability: Twin Rose Slash
A dimensional strike that multiplies damage based on the number of active Mirror Copies.
Affects both body and soul.
Mirror Limit: 4 / 40
Cooldown: 20 seconds
Enchantments:
+20 Piercing
Freeze (Stops an enemy briefly. Cooldown: 40 sec. Requires Level 10)
<~~><~~><~~>
Tristan held the blade in both hands, letting it rest for a moment. Its weight was perfect—balanced, lethal, beautiful.
"It's going to be tough to level up," he said, admiring the blade. "But it'll last. Let's go test it out."