"A system?" Roger was a bit stunned.
"So, crossing into another world really comes with a system? I thought that was just something made up in novels."
With a slight thought, a glass vial filled with red liquid appeared steadily in his palm.
"It even comes with a system inventory."
He pulled out the cork stopper, and an unexpectedly sweet aroma wafted out. Roger instinctively waved his fingers above the vial's opening, guiding the scent toward his nose.
"Why does it… smell like strawberries?" The unexpected fragrance made Roger furrow his brow.
He took a tentative sip, and the sweet-tart taste of strawberries bloomed on his tongue, filling his entire mouth.
The potion he drank turned into a warm current, flowing gently down his throat. It felt like a soothing masseuse, tenderly easing every part it touched.
The discomfort in his organs, stirred up by the magical impact, was noticeably relieved.
The sharp pain dulled quickly, and the lingering unease quietly faded away.
After confirming the potion's effects, Roger raised the vial and downed the rest in one go. The potion's power swiftly reached the scorched wound on his back.
The blackened, dead skin peeled away like dry mud, revealing fresh, healthy, wheat-colored skin beneath. In mere moments, the gruesome wound had healed completely.
Touching his now-smooth back, Roger was amazed. "The effect of a small life potion is this good?"
He pulled out another vial, this one glowing faintly blue—a magic recovery potion—and hurried to the unconscious Erza's side. Gently, he propped her up.
Positioning her at a 45-degree angle against his chest, he steadied her chin with his left hand, gently opening her mouth, and carefully dripped a small amount of the potion into it with his right.
Her body, nearly drained of magic, reacted instinctively to the faint energy.
Erza, still in a deep coma, swallowed the liquid as her throat moved unconsciously.
Seeing she could swallow, Roger carefully fed her the rest of the potion, bit by bit.
When the last drop disappeared between her lips, Erza's long lashes fluttered like butterfly wings, and her brow furrowed slightly.
About five seconds later, she pressed a hand to her forehead, opening her eyes with a groggy, just-woken haze.
"My head… feels so heavy…" Her voice was hoarse as she instinctively licked her lips. "Why does my mouth taste sweet?"
"Did we sneak some of Aunt Bella's apple brew again last night?"
Roger gave a helpless smile. "It was you who got rejected by Aunt Bella and went to steal her brew. Since when did it become 'we'?"
"Hehe," Erza stuck out her tongue playfully.
"Oh, I remember now! We were fighting those bad guys who attacked the village."
"I knew you'd beat them, Roger!"
She looked at him but noticed he was staring thoughtfully at the top of her head, his brow slightly furrowed, a hint of confusion in his eyes.
Puzzled, she reached up to touch her hair. "Is there something on my head?"
Her words snapped Roger out of his thoughts. He looked at her with a complicated expression, his gaze fixed on the glowing golden exclamation mark that had suddenly appeared above her head.
"There's… probably something there."
[Ding! Would you like to form a contract with Erza?]
A system?
Contract magic?
After a few seconds of thought, he quickly pulled the still-confused Erza into a nearby bush.
Scanning the surroundings to ensure no enemies were nearby, he responded clearly in his mind: Yes.
Almost instantly, Erza let out a soft "Huh?" and tilted her head, looking at Roger with obvious surprise.
"Roger? I just heard a voice in my head asking if I'd agree to form a contract with you."
"It also said signing it would awaken extra magic. Is this your magic?"
"It's my magic," Roger nodded, confirming her guess.
[Ding! Contract successfully formed.]
[Ding! Acquired Transformation Magic: Knight.]
[Ding! Acquired Additional Magic.]
The moment he gained the magic, Roger clearly felt a new, independent space connect with his consciousness.
He focused his mind and entered it—a pure white space.
At its center, a set of armor floated silently. It was deep black, with striking white cross emblems on the shoulder guards and belt. Behind it, a pair of folded, batwing-shaped black metal wings.
"This is Transformation Magic?"
"The size of this space seems tied to my magic power. The stronger my magic, the larger the transformation space, and the more armor and weapons it can hold."
"It's like carrying an entire armory with me."
"With just a thought, the armor inside can replace the clothes I'm wearing."
As Roger was analyzing his new ability, Erza lightly tapped his arm.
"Roger, look over there!" She pointed toward where the black-robed man had fallen, her tone filled with the excitement of discovery.
"Around that guy, aren't there some blue and white glowing orbs floating?"
Roger's heart skipped a beat. His gaze shot forward, and the next second, a familiar sight greeted him.
Like in a game after defeating a boss, white and blue glowing orbs were scattered around the man's body.
"It can drop equipment twice?"
Roger stepped forward and bent down to pick up one of the white orbs. But the moment his fingers touched it, they passed right through, brushing against the man's cold clothing instead.
[Ding! Use Skill: Gather.]
[Acquired 7,000 J, Magic Item: Breath-Suppressing Necklace, Communication Magic Crystal.]
He could loot corpses?
But it seemed he couldn't touch the dropped equipment.
Was it because he had the system, so the equipment automatically went into his system inventory?
Then the equipment on the ground… was it for his teammate, Erza, who helped defeat the enemy?
With that thought, Roger pointed at the nearest blue orb and said to Erza, "Erza, see if you can pick that up."
"Okay," Erza nodded, stepping forward to grab the blue orb. The moment her hand touched it, the orb vanished.
Erza froze, her voice tinged with surprise. "A prompt in my head said I got the 'Black Feather Armor'! It went straight into my transformation space!"
"Got it. Then pick up the rest of the orbs, Erza."
As expected, while Erza collected the orbs, Roger grabbed the black-robed man's ankle and dragged him to a nearby clearing.
He gathered dry wood from the ruins, stacking it neatly over the body, then pulled a flint from his pocket.
Scritch! Scritch!
Sparks flew, landing on the kindling. Soon, a wisp of smoke rose, followed by orange flames.
The fire greedily consumed the wood, crackling loudly. Over time, the flames spread to the body below, and the air filled with the acrid smell of charred flesh.
[Ding! Incoming message from Communication Magic Crystal. Accept?]
"It's that item I looted from the corpse—someone from the dark magic cult."
Roger's eyes narrowed. He quickly adjusted his throat muscles, mimicking the black-robed man's voice and tone as best he could from memory.
"Ahem…"
He accepted the communication.
A cool, slightly youthful female voice sounded directly in his ear. "Valko, report the number of children your team has captured."
The moment he heard the voice, Roger's heart skipped a beat.
Forcing his breathing to stay steady, he replied in Valko's slightly sycophantic tone, "Reporting to Lady Ultear! My team… has successfully captured 52 children!"
"Good," Ultear's voice remained calm but carried an undeniable authority. "Speed up. The number of children directly affects the construction speed of the 'R-System.'"
"Lord Zeref's revival is near, and the era of great magic we all await is almost here."
"Yes! I'll do my utmost, my lady!" Roger responded, mimicking fervent loyalty.
The communication cut off instantly. Roger took a deep breath, calming the turmoil in his heart.
"Ultear… I thought of her the moment I heard about the Seven Kin, but her voice sounds young still."
"I didn't expect her to already be one of the Seven Kin. Probably not many know her identity yet. No wonder that guy was so shocked when I called out her name."
His expression grew serious. "It won't be long before they realize something's wrong. We need to leave this area before news of Valko's death spreads."
He took the communication magic crystal and tossed it into the roaring fire without hesitation.
The crystal let out a few faint pops before being consumed by the flames.
Roger turned away from the fire. After a few steps, he saw Erza running toward him.
"Roger," she stopped in front of him, looking up. "Where do we go next?"
Roger's gaze moved past the burning ruins of the village, toward the unknown darkness in the distance.
"The magic guild—Fairy Tail."