It was nighttime in the town, the moonlight shining down on stone buildings. Shoddy wooden palisades and leather tents had been replaced with prefabricated metal structures, standing in contrast to their stone neighbors. A dark shadow passed along the roof, a humanoid wrapped in a black cloak. It landed on a stone structure next to the largest metal structure and began to scope out its target.

And then another figure leapt onto the roof, firing a silenced pistol into the figure.

The projectile passed straight through, and the figure spun around. It hissed at her and sunk into the stone roof.

Jhena frowned. Another one of these. Fortunately her nanobots had adapted their sensors to the new energy source and kept a lock on the target. Jhena leapt off the roof, landing by the wall the target was hiding behind. She formed a blade on her hand, which began to glow with a light gray shine.

Sensing mana was not the only thing her nanobots had learned to do.

She stabbed the blade straight through the wall and heard an unearthly shriek.

Level 59 Wraith slain!

Jhena grimaced. The messages had adapted, only showing her what she wanted to know. On the one hand, she was glad that they stopped bugging her with useless information.

On the other hand, that meant the system was aware, and changing.

And they still had no idea what it was or who was behind it.

Jhena let out a sigh and turned back towards the command center. Nothing she could do about it for now.

Jhena strolled into the command center. Colonel Dagurx stood in the center, staring at the holographic map above the center table.

“Infiltrators eliminated.”

The color of Colonel Dagurx’s chitin faded slightly.

“Thanks Jhena. If only we had someone who could, I don’t know, detect foul intent with their minds. Freaking cowards.”

Jhena shrugged.

“They were never allies. Just people with mutual enemies. So how are we doing?”

“Same old same old. Everyone’s quaking in their boots, imagining worlds filled with battleship-destroying giants. No one’s committing anything more than a token force without any naval support so there’s zero chance we break out of our current foothold. The locals are uncooperative, don’t seem to think we’re here to stay with our enthusiastic invasion and all. Even the other humans, still, wrapping my head around the implications of that.”

Jhena shrugged again.

“Even our universe’s humans don’t like to work together.”

“I suppose that’s true. The only good news is your victory at the portal seems to be giving the enemy pause, and they aren’t making any big moves. But we’re probably screwed once they do.”

“Any progress on closing the portal?”

“Even less. No one around here seems to know anything about it, and the scientists still can’t make heads or tails of it. Maybe I’ll ask the Dark Lord.”

“He’d probably be more cooperative.”

“I truly wish that was a joke.”

Jhena shrugged again and turned to leave.

“I’ll be out patrolling.”

Colonel Dagurx nodded.

“I’ll call you if anything happens.”

Jhena wandered around the town, her armor hidden under a cloak typical of the locals. Not that it would help in this case, no one here left their homes at night. Or during the day, if they could help it.

Jhena looked up at the moon as she walked.

And walked.

And walked.

Eventually she found herself in front of some kind of ruined temple. She shrugged and stepped through the ruined doors.

The inside was as dilapidated as the exterior, with one exception.

A sword, stuck inside a stone altar.

Jhena found her eyes drawn towards the sword. She walked up towards it. She reached out for the hilt and pulled.

The sword came out of the altar with no resistance.

“It…it can’t be…”

Jhena swung around, preparing a response. But she quickly stood down, it was naught but an emaciated old man, speaking in a raspy voice. He hobbled over to her leaning on a staff, his eyes spread wide.

“You…the holy sword…”

“What?”

“After all this time…the prophecy is finally fulfilled…we finally found the chosen hero.”

Jhena’s eyes narrowed.

“This is a holy blade, granted to us by the gods. It is filled with the power to destroy evil, and only the chosen hero can draw it from the altar. Please, hero! Help us! Only you…can defeat the Dark Lord!”

“I see.”

Jhena stood still for a moment, then turned to the altar.

And slammed the sword back into the altar.

“Keep searching. I’m no hero.”

And she stormed out of the building.

“H-Hero! Please…wait…”

As Jhena stormed away, a cloaked figure watched from a nearby alley, rubbing their chin.

Jhena sat on a hill, drinking from a bottle. A forest troll lay on the ground behind her, a hole in its head. Jhena heaved a sigh as the alcohol spread through her. She tried to command her nanobots once more, ordering them to stand down.

Alcohol intoxication was one of the few things she and they didn’t agree on.

Such it was that she didn’t hear the footsteps behind her.

“Mind if I join you?”

Jhena whirled her head around. Some figure in a cloak stood behind her. The figure lowered their hood, revealing a human woman, a scar over her face and her hair just starting to gray.

“Leave.”

“...tell you what. I’m just going to sit here. You can always leave if you want.”

Jhena thought about doing just that but sighed and sat back instead. She was too tired for this. Fortunately the newcomer kept her mouth shut for the time being. Jhena took another swig.

“...smells pretty good, mind sharing?”

Jhena glanced over and sighed once more, holding out the bottle. The woman took a swig.

“Wow! What is this?! I’ve never tasted anything this delicious!”

Her eyes started to shine. Jhena blinked a few times.

“Um, iorlan wine.”

“Iorlan? I’ve never heard of that before. Where did you get this?”

“Oh…I…uh…made it myself.”

“You made this?!”

Jhena scooted back as the woman leaned in far too close.

“Um…yes?”

“That’s amazing! How did you do it?!”

“Oh, um, well I started just replicating the store-bought stuff, then started experimenting with different ingredients and processing methods. Figured out a dozen different starting points, then ran a few thousand simulations to find the one I liked best…”

“What sort of ingredients and methods did you try?”

“Well…”

The pair began to talk about Jhena’s quest for the tastiest wine. Jhena found herself talking faster and louder as time went on. She couldn’t help herself, she was quite proud of her wine and didn’t often get a chance to talk about it.

Eventually though, there was a lull in the conversation. The woman stared down at the bottle in her hands.

“You know, this reminds me of my brother. He used to love messing around with the garden. Trying different growing methods, figuring out what works best.”

“...used to?”

The woman nodded slowly.

“He died, a while back.”

“...I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be, it was my fault after all.”

The woman turned to face Jhena, a sad smile on her face.

“You know, when I first left to join the Resistance, I was full of righteous zeal and innocent excitement. I was joining a cause greater than myself, becoming someone special, someone who would save the world.”

“...”

“And you know? I was right! And I didn’t understand what that meant. So when I came back…”

She took a deep breath.

“They came to my hometown, looking for me, the famous Resistance fighter. And when they didn’t find me there, they killed everyone else instead.”

“...”

“...have you lost someone?”

“...my sister.”

“I see, I’m sorry.”

“...don’t be.”

Jhena took a deep breath.

“...I went off, left my family behind, made a name for myself. Endured experiments that killed most people, became the ultimate weapon. My sister…she followed in my footsteps, hoped she’d find me again…”

Jhena clenched her fists.

“...they didn’t tell me she had joined. They took her, subjected her to experiments. They hoped to figure out why I was better. When she died…they still didn’t tell me. They continued their tests…”

Jhena glared into the air.

“The day I found out…well, I found out what the cause I joined was really like. And while I waited for judgment, kneeling in the blood of my former team…they did nothing. I was too important. So they said nothing, and I stayed, until I couldn’t stay anymore…”

“And then when they call you a hero, you are filled with disgust and rage. You know, deep down, you’re no hero. You failed when it mattered, and everything you do is just to run away. And all these people, they can only see what you achieved, never who you actually are.”

Jhena turned to the woman, eye’s widening.

“...at least, that’s how it is for me. It’s really tough, huh?”

Jhena continued staring for a second, before slowly nodding.

“...yeah.”

The pair sat in silence for a moment, before the woman slowly opened her mouth.

“What was she like?”

“Hm?”

“Your sister, what was she like?”

“...I hardly remember.”

“What do you remember?”

“...”

“...they’re gone, nothing will change that. But that doesn’t mean they can’t still be a part of who we are. At least, that’s what I believe.”

Jhena sat in silence for a moment, then opened her mouth. The words just started to come. She didn’t know why. She didn’t know this person. She didn’t really want to talk about it.

But she did. And the woman told her about her brother in turn.

The feelings she buried inside, the feelings she couldn’t control, they started to come out too.

As the night went on, two women began to sob. When the woman gave her a hug, Jhena didn’t resist, to her own surprise.

By the end, her heart was drained, and she lay still on the ground.

But she could think clearly, without the fear and the doom hanging over her, for the first time she could remember.

So she thought about a lot, about what was going on.

She stood up.

She still didn’t know what she wanted, who she was or who she wanted to be. But she knew one thing.

There was a bastard who needed to be taken down, and she had the skills to finish him.

And maybe…if she could put a stop to what was happening back home…someone else’s sister wouldn’t have to die. The folks who hadn’t made any mistakes of their own.

She took a deep breath.

A good hunter used every weapon at their disposal. So it was time to take stock of hers.

“Status, open.”

Blue boxes filled her eyes, numbers everywhere she looked. She ignored the stats and levels. What she told Colonel Dagurx was true, even if it wasn’t the real reason she avoided checking. She knew what her body could do, she didn’t need numbers to tell her that.

But she did take a deep breath, and focused on her class.

Class

Level

Description

Nanomeister

32

One who is bonded to and directs tiny machines to reshape the world. One who truly understands the machine, who sees past calculations and writes music instead.

Hero (Nanomeister)

221

One who defies the odds, who never gives up, who always finds a way. One with great potential and grand destiny.

*This class works with other classes to maximize their potential. Maximum system assistance granted to assure continued progress.

She let out a sigh. Nanomeister was much better by far.

But she decided she could live with that definition of the h-word.

Instead she focused on the skills and titles, searching for new entries. Most of it was just descriptions of what she could already do, or had already done. She didn’t need ‘Physical Combat Level Max’ to tell her how to fight, or ‘Nanocontrol Level Max’ to define her relationship with her nanobots. But there were some gems.

Like this:

Title

Description

Effect

Invincible Challenger

Awarded to one who won a fight against impossible odds.

Your attacks always have a minimum impact on your enemy, regardless of the level and stat difference between you

Jhena frowned, her heart pounding. She had been truly foolish. If she hadn’t had this title, her nanobots probably wouldn’t have affected that Ogre General at all, even from the inside. Her life had been saved by an ability she wasn’t aware she possessed.

But that wasn’t the entry she was interested in:

Skill

Level

Description

Nanomagic

3

The use of nanobots to manipulate mana and activate spells

Until now, her nanobots had treated mana like any other energy source. They tuned their sensors to it so they could detect it, and they infused it into her weapons when she encountered foes that resisted mundane attacks. But this skill hinted that there was so much more, an entirely new field of capabilities for her nanobots that she had been completely ignoring.

No longer.

The other woman lifted off the ground with a groan, holding her head.

“Ugh, I may have drunk too much.”

She let out a sigh and stood up, walking over the Jhena.

“I’m Erune, by the way.”

“Jhena.”

“Nice to meet you, Jhena. What are you going to do now?”

“Figure out magic. Then, my job.”

“And what’s your job?”

Jhena made a light smirk, staring out into the distance.

“Hunting, and killing, the most dangerous targets there are.”

Erune grinned as well.

“I like the sound of that. Why don’t I help you? I happen to be something of a wizard myself, you know?”

“That would be appreciated.”

“It’s settled then. First thing first, can you sense and manipulate your mana?”

Jhena nodded.

“Great, the hardest part is over then. Next, you need to channel your mana into a magic circle to form the spell. Here, watch this.”

Erune lifted her hands. A blue light appeared in the air, drawing a geometric pattern contained in a circle. Once the circle was finished, a small ball of water appeared and flew towards a tree.

Jhena’s eyes flashed as she watched.

“Interesting…could you show me some others? Preferably with different effects.”

“Sure! Let me show you what I got, disciple!”

A few days later.

“What the heck is this?!”

Erune stood, eyes wide, staring at a glowing sphere of lights spinning in the air. Jhena shrugged.

“My nanobots are analyzing the magic circle structure and testing all the possible combinations and permutations. Most are failures but they’re testing thousands every second. And they’re a lot smarter than me at this sort of thing, so I’m sure they’ll come up with something good.”

“I see?!”

She didn’t see at all!

“Oh, here’s an interesting one.”

Jhena held a hand out and a white magic circle formed in the air. The air distorted in front of her, and a nearby stone vanished, appearing in Jhena’s hands.

Nanobot Magic has increased to level 35!

New skill acquired: Space Magic

Skill Space Magic integrated into skill Nanobot Magic

“Heh, true warp after all.”

“Spacial magic?! Just like that?!”

Erune walked behind a tree as Jhena continued playing with the magic circles. She fell to the ground, crouching against the tree and holding her head with both hands.

What sort of monster had she unleashed?!