Wolf

Putting aside the question of whether the System can actually taste or not…

“Do you know what a progenitor is?” I ask Sapphire with a frown. But she just shakes her head in the negative. “Didn’t think so.”

I look back at the message again, my frown deepening even further as I stare at the part about him making me a void harbinger.

Is that even possible? I know that harbingers came about during initializations, but can The Reaper really just turn you into a harbinger?

Then there’s the fact that I’m already an ice harbinger. Can someone really be a harbinger of more than one element? Because that just sounds unfair.

The message disappears from in front of me and I turn to look at the ice walls on either side of us covered by zombie corpses on the other side of the walls. And after looking at them all, I open my status to look at my EXP.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Name: Wolf Adler

Class: Harbinger of Eternal Winter

Privileges: Beta Tester

Soul-bound Ability: Ice Reaper

Species: Reaper of the Blue Moon

Level: 2184

EXP: 3823/218400

System Points: 1565.20

Viewing Room Profits: 14829

Skills List

Inventory

System Communications

Beta Administrator Dungeon

Beta Administrator Dungeon Beta Tester

Administrator Dungeon

Administrator Dungeon Competitor

System Terminal

Player Auctions

System Map

System GUI

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Huh. I didn’t think about this before, but the Beta Dungeon is going to give me a lot of System Points. Not that those things are going to be all that helpful for me anymore, seeing as I can’t use the Player Auctions.

On that note, I open my System GUI and shift around my status, getting rid of the three menus from my status screen that I can’t access.

Regardless of how infrequently I actually open my status nowadays thanks to the information I stuck to the top right corner of my interface, I’d still prefer to have my status clean looking.

“Looks like my System status has changed from a Competitor to a Beta Tester,” I mutter to Sapphire, making her nod her head in agreement while her attention is mostly focused on the zombies.

I wonder what effects that’ll have? Is it just giving me access to the Beta Administrator Dungeon Beta Tester menu? Or something else?

Out of nowhere, a message appears in my vision from Diane.

System Notification

You have received a message from Administrator: Diane Frost

“Please look at the System Forums for the latest news in the System!

After you check that, come visit me in the Executive Stream whenever you can!”

I blink in surprise at that message before glancing at Sapphire, who seems to be having mixed feelings about the idea of visiting Diane. Seeing as she isn’t exactly a fan of my ‘adoptive mother’. The reason of which I don’t blame her for.

“Let’s see what’s going on outside…” I mutter as I open the System Forums, only to immediately focus on the current top threads.

‘‘Progenitors’ Titania and The Reaper, creator of the System, declare war and drag every Player into it!’

‘The Reaper makes a public appearance, dragging every viewer currently into a viewing room into Arcadian Live before further dragging them into his war!’

‘The Reaper exposed as a Progenitor! What are these ‘Progenitors’? What powers do they have if The Reaper can be considered one of them?’

‘The Reaper’s name exposed as Grim!’

My mouth drops open slightly in surprise.

That’s… what?

I open the top thread to find a video in it. And immediately after I watch through the video, everything I’d just read begins to make sense.

“No wonder Diane wants me to meet up with her ASAP,” I mutter, to which Sapphire wordlessly nods her head in agreement.

The term progenitor in the dictionary is generally the origin of something. Like the origin of a bloodline. And considering how they’re being called the Progenitor of Void and the Progenitor of Radiance, does that mean they’re the origins of those elements?

Just the thought of there being people in the universe with more control over an element than harbingers is honestly a little scary.

My thoughts return to The Reaper mentioning turning me into a harbinger of the void element, but I shake my head at the thought of a connection between the two.

It can’t be…

If that were the case, then there would be a progenitor for every element…

I shake my head again.

Maybe I can ask The Reaper the next time I see him. Or, I guess his name is Grim? Which reminds me even more of the connection between Earth’s mythology and the beings that actually exist in the universe.

Because a reaper known by the name Grim?

The Grim Reaper.

Then again, considering that the guy went around Earth and had descendants there, it makes sense that his name would be there. Even if only in legend or mythology.

He is one of the most powerful beings in existence. In fact, he might just be the strongest being I know of.

Although if Titania is also a progenitor, then I’m not so sure about that anymore.

“Well,” I mutter, turning back to Sapphire, “we should start trying to find somewhere safe to see her.”

Sapphire groans without saying anything. But she does nod her head in agreement, so I go ahead and swipe my hand across the air in front of me, causing a large amount of eternal void flames to leave my fingers and rush straight past my ice to burn the zombies – both the dead ones and undead ones – outside with its pale icy blaze. I then remove the walls between us and begin walking straight past the ashes remaining of the zombies.

Just a few seconds later, I see Sapphire joining me, walking by my side as we continue down the corridor. Meanwhile the voided ice element leaking from my body continues spreading out, freezing the hallways as we walk.

“At least the other Competitors won’t have to deal with you freezing everything anymore,” Sapphire mutters with a hint of amusement in her voice.

I just shake my head and retort, “It’s better than me turning the monsters on a floor into arctic lycanthropes.”

Now that I think about it, I still haven’t had the chance to test since becoming a reaper. What with all of the undead floors I’ve had to deal with, and the fact that I kept forgetting on the floors I could do it.

“Speaking of, we should test out our venom on the next floor theme,” I suggest, to which Sapphire nods her head as we continue walking down the corridor.