The lady explained to Rhen a direct yet powerful way for him to increase his strength.
One prepared by his forefathers as an emergency route to a quick power up.
Forbidden Talent Enhancement Ritual.
A technique created with the help of a divine being—yet it was a risky gamble.
It sounded ominous, even in name—but that didn't stop Rhen.
Still, Rhen decided he was going to do it. For that, he decided to go to the world of endless possibilities, Enma, as soon as possible.
Now, he was making preparations to venture into this world.
[The Loot System has been integrated into the Enma System.]
- - -
Name: Rhen
Citizen Tier: 5 [0/6000 Points]
Talent: Cold Touch [E]
Core Stage: 3 Rings
En Coins: 50,000,000
Haven: Emberhold
Tickets: Neutral Ticket x2, Item Gacha Tickets x3
Quests: 0/4
Inventory: 0/25
Mount • Character Gacha • Item Gacha • Loot Inventory: 10 • Pulled Characters •
- - -
This was what the spirit girl referred to as his status screen—a comprehensive feature of the system that displayed key information about him.
As he digested the information, a smile crept onto Rhen's face.
From what he understood…
'I am rich! My poor days of scavenging are over!' He beamed inside. 'Even without the money, this Loot System thing was sure to make me rich too!'
Rhen glanced at the spirit and asked, "Is there a way to thank my beautifully caring fathers?"
The question threw the spirit off guard as she took a moment to understand, but Rhen continued looking at the golden screen in his presence.
'The ticket, the two gacha stuff and the loot inventory should be the abilities of the Loot System.
'I understand the loot inventory, that's where I store the stuff I obtain through the system.'
"Hold on, why do I have this much loot? I only recognize the ones I got from opening crates from Lilac's kills," Rhen stated.
"Using the free 10 tickets that came with the Loot System, I obtained Lilac along with other loots," Zena explained. "Those are them. They are mostly not of use to you right now."
Rhen understood and continued going through the system. 'The gachas…'
- - -
[Character Gacha]
Single Pull - 1 Character Ticket
Ten Pull - 10 Character Ticket
[Obtainables • Expand]
Pity Feature: Every 100 pulls guarantee a Character of random grade.
- - -
Upon pondering, more info about the Character Gacha popped up, enlightening Rhen.
He further expanded the obtainables seeing a long list of stuff he could obtain. Some were simple while others were beings like Lilac.
In fact, he saw Lilac there, making him wonder if he could obtain two of her.
He also checked the Item Gacha and noticed it worked similarly, but this time it was for weapons and minor items that sounded and looked nice.
"I'm done," Rhen declared. "Now, how do I get to Enma?"
"It's a simple process, but before that…" the expressionless spirit frowned a bit as she said. "Are you sure about it… master?"
Rhen didn't ponder on her question so his uncertainty wouldn't show.
He shrugged as he replied:
"Of course. I need to protect myself from people that seem desperate to kill me and I also need to reclaim this land that my parents once oversaw. Basically, this fox needs bigger fangs."
The spirit seemed to have something to say. However, he continued, stopping her:
"And seriously, don't call me 'master.' I'm just Rhen—the son of fallen nobles–of course, you shouldn't tell anyone that.
"And since you were created by my ancestors, that technically makes you my relative—a cousin."
The spirit seemed moved by what he said, her body trembling slightly. "You flatter me… Rhen."
Rhen nodded approvingly. "Yes, yes. You're welcome… damn, I don't know your name."
"I don't have a name."
"Ah…"
Rhen pressed a finger to his lips in thought.
The spirit reminded him of his father… and of the child his mother had once nursed.
It was that resemblance—the same green eyes—that made him trust her instinctively.
More than that, she was the only one left who felt like family in this world.
Back to the topic, Rhen decided to name this spirit by one of the names his mother had in mind for his late younger sister.
"Zena. Do you like the name Zena?"
The spirit nodded slowly but faster than usual, expressing her well-concealed enthusiasm. "Thank you."
"Zena, let's go to Enma."
She dissolved into glowing particles that converged within Rhen. "Alright."
'That's an experience that'll take a while to get used to.'
Zena's voice echoed in his mind as she began explaining the next steps.
[If you close your eyes and concentrate while imagining a connection with 'Enma', an actual connection will appear.]
'Connection. Connection. Where the fuck are you?' Rhen began imagining.
In ways that couldn't be expressed by worlds, Rhen felt a connection extending from him to a place beyond his grasp.
Zena continued explaining. The main purpose of this was for Rhen to drop an anchor here so Enma can use it as coordinates for where he'll return to in this world.
After successfully dropping an anchor in this world, Rhen simply instructed Enma to open a gate to its world.
And so it did.
Rhen found a tall gold framed door with what looked like a starry night at the other side.
'Creepy...' he mused, staring at the swirling void beyond the door.
Still, he walked in—grinning like someone who'd just stepped onto the stage of a grand adventure.
His heart pounded—not from fear, but from the weight of everything to come.
- - -
Rhen's senses warped briefly before settling, and he found himself standing in an unfamiliar room.
"This is the home they've prepared for you in this world," Zena said, appearing and landing on the floor.
'It's all actually true…'
Just moments ago, Rhen had felt unsure—but now, he was certain everything Zena said was true.
With wide eyes, he began surveying the house.
Right now, he was in the main room which was linked to the kitchen.
There was also a single bedroom and bathroom.
"The plumbing of this place is like the other cities'…" he muttered.
After wandering through the house, he concluded that while it was better than his home back in Talia, it wasn't anything extraordinary.
"Huh, what do we do next?" Rhen asked, "We are to buy items for the ritual, right?"
"Yes, but before that, there's more to this place," Zena said, noticing Rhen's disappointment.
Rhen was led to a part of the kitchen that had a cupboard.
He was told to pull it to the side, and when he did, he saw a wooden trapdoor with iron hinges and a metallic ring to lift it.
As he held the ring a strange energy tickled his fingertips as he reached for the ring—something more than wood and iron waited below.
The enchantments linked to the trapdoor came to life with a small golden glow, confirming his identity and letting him in.
Stairs that led downward into a basement opened up to Rhen's amazement.
'I knew this place was oddly normal,' he thought.