Keynes sat on the roof of the tallest tower in the Capital and watched the stars. It was the only place in the city where vines didn’t reach and he could be truly alone.

This place had a serious issue with privacy. Keynes didn’t have proof that the vines had come from the king but he’d bet the entire content of his dimensional bags that this was the case.

Anyway… a few more days and we are gone.

He jumped off the roof and flew south, watching carefully his surroundings. His aura control was improving at a rapid rate but wasn’t yet close to cross the next threshold of the technique’s rank.

The subject of his thoughts prompted a question out of him. One he was meaning to ask for some time now.

You said your role is to help and guide.

Yes, master. Why do you ask?

Because I feel like we have approached this from the wrong angle. I keep asking you questions you cannot answer because the System is not permitting you. It doesn’t make sense to me. Why would the System birthed you in the first place if you barely share any knowledge? There must be more to you than you’re giving away.

There was something like an ‘OH’ coming from her through the bond. It matched Keynes’s feelings when he’d realised that the whole spiritual companion business must be misunderstood by them. So he decided to approach this from Alice’s position.

Tell me everything from the beginning. What would you do if I just ascended?

I would welcome you and introduce your profile and the System to … you.

And have you done any of that? He asked, knowing the answer well.

I have not. Shall I? Keynes gave her a silent consent and she launched into a mechanical monologue.

Welcome to the System, human ascender Keynes Kid, I am your new spiritual companion. You are about to embark on the journey of power. What you see is your profile. Every ascender possesses one. The profile is divided into four sections: general, powers, status and attributes.

Even though Alice’s voice became a little automatic and she lost her chaotic attitude, Keynes was mesmerised with what she was saying.

The general section specifies your name and species. While you can change your name from the level of the System, species is unchangeable unless permitted by a Talent-grade ability or item. Furthermore, your current Level, progression, spiritual stage and companion are shown in this section. It is important to note that other, far stronger ascenders may be able to see your profile and it may be worth preventing this through gaining a higher spiritual stage, relevant spiritual technique or item. Note that I am not permitted to name any of them prior to your discovery. The System values challenge.

Yes. Keynes was aware of that. The System seemed to like it when people struggled.

The next section: powers, is further divided into three subsections: skills, Talent and techniques. Skills are magical abilities either active or passive. They come in countless names and shapes, and permit nearly anything. Skills follow the Law of Spirit and can break the Laws of Physics. Talent is your gift from the System. But it is important to note that Talents are purely random, cannot be replaced or removed like spells. But they can be improved or modified. Talents follow the Law of Soul and can break the Law of Spirit and the Law of Physics. Technique is a way of comprehending new skills and knowledge. The System is vast and to prevent ascenders’ minds from being overwhelmed, techniques facilitate that knowledge and understanding. It is important to note that techniques are not skills.

Keynes had to halt the flight and drift to the ground as he couldn’t concentrate on flying anymore. There was a buttload of knowledge coming out of Alice’s ethereal mouth. He landed a few kilometres from the Capital, on a hill with sparse trees and a couple of boulders. Alice continued on.

The third section is: status. It possesses two subsections: buffs and debuffs. Buffs are effects that benefit you and debuffs are ones that negatively impact you. You can acquire resistances to counter debuffs. Very weak effects like alcohol and the Laws of Physics are not shown in this section. To see the entire list of all effects currently influencing you, you must develop a better understanding of your body. How it is done is for you to discover.

This was straightforward although the part about seeing all the effects was intriguing. Keynes wondered what kind things would be listed there.

The last section covers attributes. There are six basic attributes. Attributes are calculated upon ascension and follow the formula laid in the Seed of Life of your species. In your case, each attribute is 20 points. While generally, the value of each point is equal between ascenders, it is possible to improve attributes other than increasing the numbers. If you have questions, please ask.

The Seed of Life? What the hell was that? Wait a minute. Did it mean the humans had been created by the System? He wanted to ask so many questions but eventually settled on the very mundane one.

Why haven’t you told me all of this before?

Alice landed on his knee and looked at him with a playful expression that quickly grew irritated.

Because I told you, the System did not function as intended.

Does it now?

Alice’s face was tiny and many details of her expression were lost on Keynes but her emotions were leaking through their bond. Still, Keynes saw the frown and the stare which almost made him laugh.

It still does not… she replied reluctantly. But your circumstances make it possible for me to glean some information from the System.

If that was the case Keynes wanted to push her a bit more before she hid behind the wall of ‘I am not permitted to say’.

Can you tell me what your role is then? According to the System. He knew she meant to offer him basic information about the System so he could stand comfortably on his own feet. But he still felt it couldn’t be all.

It took Alice a moment to collect her thoughts.

Initially, my role is to facilitate a transition from a non-ascender to an ascender and provide basic information about the rules. After that is done, my role shifts and I become a keeper of knowledge and help planning an ascender’s build. I can also scout but my senses can be fooled so I should not be treated like a scout. At higher stages and Levels, my role can be expanded and modified. That would be all for now.

Keynes had a lot to digest and all the questions he had would only lead to even more questions. He didn’t have time to fall into that loop and didn’t think Alice would answer most of them.

Thank you for telling me this.

I am sorry. I should have been able to do this the moment I came into existence. If only the System was fixed…

Do you know how to fix it?

She didn’t know. It made sense, the spiritual companions weren’t omniscient, they knew only what the System shared with them.

Keynes got back into the sky and continued his journey south. Ten minutes into the flight, he took out a geo navigation device that was meant to find the coordinates for him. He was close.

Unlike the north of the Capital, the south was sparsely populated. Keynes landed on the exact spot indicated by the device, then swept it with his aura.

The coordinates of a Level 3 rift given to him by Shaper were false. Why would he lie to him though? He wanted me here obviously. But why?

Just in case, he and Alice checked one kilometre square of the area, finding nothing. Frustrated, Keynes returned to the palace.

***

Hawthorne visited him the first thing in the morning.

“We’re being moved to the preparation camp.”

The race was meant to take place in three days so it made sense.

“Is Vivena going with us?”

“No. Only the participants and their handlers go.”

“You’re my handler now?” Keynes asked sharply and out of character. The fact that they wanted to leave Vivena in the palace was setting off every alarm in his head.

“Yes,” Hawthrone replied roughly. If he wanted he could be an unpleasant man. “That’s how it works here.”

“I don’t like leaving Vivena behind.”

“She’ll be safe here.”

Keynes wished he could read auras on a level that would allow him to tell if someone was lying. He didn’t want to make the mistake of accusing anyone of wrong-doing without proof. In this case he had a strong hunch that Hawthrone wasn’t honest with him.

“I don’t think that’s going to be the case, Hawthorne,” Keynes’s voice grew colder.

Hawthorne’s body language changed.

“What do you mean?” But his voice didn’t shake.

“I’m about to compete against the people living in this palace and at the same time leave my friend to stay in their grip. Don’t you think they may be—”

“I’d be careful about your next words, Keynes,” Hawthrone interrupted him. “Some words are best left unsaid.”

Of course, others were eavesdropping. It’d be foolish to think they were not. Keynes took the other man’s advice. He didn’t want to antagonise the king. He just wanted to fulfil the stupid vision and get out of here.

“Before we go, I need to speak to Vivena.”

***

The camp was located two kilometres south of the Capital and calling it a camp was a big stretch. Dozens of half-ruined hovels were scattered around. It wasn’t a camp, it was punishment for refusing to adhere to the royal code of conduct. Vivena had told him that something like this might happen.

It happened.

“You know that I am doing you a favour, Hawthorne. You asked me to win a race for you to save the tribes from tearing each other and this is what I get.”

To his credit, Hawthrone wasn’t happy with this either.

“They are trying to insult you.”

“And I guess they succeeded.”

Hawthorne turned to him.

“This is politics. We warned you about this. What did you expect?”

“A race,” Keynes replied without thinking. “I am genuinely keen to compete with others. But your politics make me sick.”

“In three days it will be over,” Hawthorne replied. “Pick any house you want to stay in. It seems we are the first here.”

They were the first and while Keynes wasn’t in a hurry to pick a hovel, he decided to look around. There was an uncultivated apple orchard nearby and he found a sand arena invaded by weeds. Beyond that were ruins without a roof. Most of its the walls collapsed.

To get a better understanding of their past function Keynes took off the ground. From above he could see that the ruins had been a single building in the past. Judging by colourful but mostly smashed tiles, it could have been a bathhouse. So maybe this place was a camp in the past. It just was left to crumble.

Walking around, Keynes found more clues that pointed in that direction: remnants of an open-air gym, now mostly pieces of scrap metal or a swimming pool turned into a stinking swamp.

And then Keynes came across an obstacle course. It ran alongside the wooden wall that circled the camp. Most of the wooden parts rotted away but metal and stone ones were still here.

Was his replica of the one they’d use for the race? It was worth giving it a try. He set off at a brisk pace at first, taking in the makeup of the course. Then he picked up the speed after just a dozen seconds.

This is fun!

Obstacle courses were popular worldwide but the ones Keynes was familiar with put safety first. Here, the challenge was a paramount part of the race, not the safety.

Keynes’s physical attributes turned the course into a child’s play. He finished the two-kilometre long run in less than two minutes.

This really is fun. What is my time?

One minute and fifty-six seconds, Alice replied. She was a timer now. Nice.

I wonder how others would fare against me… Viven, Haruka and even Pandora. His good mood vanished as he sensed a young black man in royal gold and white. Keynes didn’t remember anyone with so much contempt in their eyes and arrogance painted on their expression.

“Outsider, I was looking for you.”