"Trash System, tell your daddy what the hell is going on!"
Souya roared his fury at the System. He was supposedly a Water Fairy now, but in reality, he was just a conscious puddle of water. He couldn't move freely, nor could he stay in place. He could only flow along the stream with countless other currents toward an unknown destination.
[Calm down, Host. Please calm down!]
The System's voice sounded quite panicked. Clearly, it also didn't understand why Souya had turned into a Water Fairy, let alone the weakest kind. Logically, his soul should have become the person most compatible with him in that era. For this to happen, it could only mean that Souya's most compatible identity in Britain wasn't human, but a Water Fairy.
Chat, this is too much...
[Host, I know you are panicking, but please don't panic.]
The System racked its nonexistent brain trying to console Souya.
[As you know, Host, fate is inherently fickle. Just like the branches of a great tree, no one can predict how they will grow.]
[So, actually, it's not entirely unreasonable for you to have a possibility of becoming a Water Fairy...]
[Look on the bright side! At least you don't need to worry about a source of magical energy. As long as you can incarnate, you'll possess mana reserves comparable to the entire natural world!]
[Besides, becoming a fairy is an indisputable fact. Why doesn't the Host try to accept it?]
Listening to the System's persuasion, Souya's agitated heart gradually calmed down. The System was right. Although it was a useless existence akin to a smart search engine, its words made a lot of sense.
After all, Incarnated Fairies, or similar Incarnated Elementals, were not completely unheard of in Type-Moon's records. The most typical example was Akuta Hinako.
Although becoming an Incarnated Elemental sounded difficult, it actually was very difficult in reality. Souya had no confidence that a tiny fairy like himself could receive the planet's blessing. Whether he could even survive in this version of Britain where the Age of Gods was fading was a question in itself.
But regardless, the deed was done. After his initial resistance passed, Souya slowly began to accept reality. He carefully recalled some simulator novels he had read in the past and posed a question to the System.
"Trash System, by the way, do you have that kind of ability normal simulators have to speed up time and skip over unimportant growth phases?"
This time, the Trash System gave a definitive answer.
[I do, Host. I do.]
[It's just that because I recently awakened, using this ability will consume a massive amount of my energy...]
"Cut the crap and just use it. Once I finish the simulation, I'll let you enjoy all the high-quality catalysts I took from the Church."
[Understood. Serving you right away, my dear Host~]
As the System's voice faded, Souya felt his consciousness blur once again. Only this time, he didn't pass out. Instead, scenes and text flowed past his eyes like a zoetrope.
[Soon, you accepted yourself as a Water Fairy. You began to drift with the current, traveling across the land alongside the countless rivers intersecting the soil of Britain.]
[For fairies, the concept of time is very vague.]
[You only remember that the knights on the land, who should have been loyal to their lords and kings, began to gather. Wearing standard armor and holding standard knightly longswords, they honed their martial skills at King Uther's call and continuously threw themselves onto the frontlines.]
[From the knights' conversations, you learned they shared a common enemy.]
[The Vile King Vortigern, and his army of Anglo-Saxons, dubbed barbarians and pirates by the knights.]
[They said the Vile King was a traitor to the Celts, and the Anglo-Saxons were shameless invaders. Swearing upon King Uther, they vowed to defeat the Vile King and his army.]
[Though you never saw any of them again after they marched to the frontlines.]
[During this observation process, you also gradually came to understand the chivalry believed in by the British knights.]
[It was a knightly spirit of virtue and benevolence, a resonant knightly honor, loyalty to the lord, fearlessness in the face of sacrifice, and a series of other concepts highly revered by the people.]
[You scoffed at these. After all, you were a fairy, not a human.]
[However, you heavily agreed with the martial spirit contained within. Over a long period of observation and study, you acquired the skill 'Fairy Eyes: Martial Arts (B)'.]
[Fairy Eyes: Martial Arts (B): Long-term observation and study have allowed you to deeply grasp the essence of martial skills. In addition to the Fairy Eyes' intrinsic ability to see the flow of magical energy, it adds the effect of seeing through the flaws in an enemy's martial arts and studying martial skills with half the effort for twice the result.]
A skill?
Souya looked at the changing text before him in slight surprise. He could feel his sense of sight becoming clearer, and knowledge regarding the use of numerous martial arts appeared in his mind. Even the movements of the two knights dueling on the riverbank became transparent and slow in his eyes. In just a few breaths, he could tell whose strength wasn't fully applied and whose technique lacked proficiency, revealing minor flaws.
"Truly miraculous!"
Mumbling a sigh of admiration, the images and text before Souya continued to flow.
[As time flowed by, the knowledge of martial arts and techniques in your mind became increasingly profound. You just suffered from not having a physical body, possessing a wealth of skills but unable to use them.]
[Among the three weapons currently popular among knights—swords, spears, and bows—the one you are most proficient in is not the sword, but the spear, which accounts for the smallest proportion of the three.]
[You are confident that if you had a body, your mastery of spearmanship would definitely not be inferior to that of a master spearman among the knights.]
[After a long period of time, you realize that merely observing the knights in combat no longer benefits you much. Thus, you stop lingering by the riverbanks where knights often appear.]
[Now, you are able to control the direction of your flow and the waterways you inhabit.]
[You begin to explore the terrain of Britain. Even the most desolate and uninhabited forests are easily accessible to you.]
[You try to see if you can follow the river to the sea, but every time you approach the river mouth, you feel your life force draining.]
[Evidently, as a fairy born in the waters of Britain, you cannot leave this island. Once you lose the blessing of the British Isles, you probably wouldn't last a single day.]
[Then, one day, you discover a mysterious lake.]
[You can sense an aura within the lake that makes you both crave and fear it. You hesitate over whether to enter the lake to explore or continue drifting with the current.]
[Ding! The Host has triggered a destiny lock. A crossroads of fate has been triggered. Please make your choice as soon as possible, Host!]
"What is this?"
Souya, still immersed in the flood of memories, was a bit bewildered. His mind was dizzy, failing to react immediately.
[As you can see, Host.]
[Just as I told you, the paths representing the multiplicity of fate are inherently a part of you. As their master, you naturally have to face choices regarding the direction of your life.]
The System's voice was noticeably weaker than before. Clearly, just as it had said, pushing the simulation's progress forward consumed a lot of its energy.
[Therefore, Host, please make your choice.]
[Choice 1: Enter the lake and explore the mystery contained within.]
[Choice 2: Play it safe and continue flowing downstream toward the territory ahead.]