For centuries, I’d been able to accurately gauge the passing of time. But now, I had no clue how long I’d been asleep. Losing a passive sense, much less two, was a strange feeling.
From experience, I knew it wouldn’t be long before I adapted, but it was still unpleasant to know how poorly I now perceived my surroundings. It was like going color blind or losing depth perception but s...
2025-11-15 20:38:55 +0000 UTC View PostA/N: And here we go! I'm not totally satisfied with this chapter, but that's probably because starting a project has always been the hardest thing for me. Worldbuilding is fun and everything, but actually sitting down and getting the first several chapters written is always difficult. They never quite seem good enough.
Anyway, I hope you like the start to Emie's n...
2025-11-12 21:33:17 +0000 UTC View PostA/N: I made a few changes to the last chapter. The named inheritor could decline, and if they did, the deity would select the next possible inheritor from among her acceptable relatives. Also, Emie did not get to discuss it with Amie first.
“Dame Amie. Welcome home,” the golem greeted with a respectful bow.
Ignoring the title that came with the role of Dungeon A...
2025-11-05 22:55:34 +0000 UTC View PostA/N: This is the last normal chapter! The next chapter will be the Epilogue.
I’ve never been all that creative. In fact, most of the ideas I’d gotten for new enchantments had either come from trying to recreate the comforts and advances of modern-day Earth or designing something to fill a specific need.
Because of that, I struggled to come up with ideas that wer...
2025-11-01 20:41:44 +0000 UTC View PostA/N: Only one more chapter and the Epilogue left for the series!
I barely managed to hold it together as I said my goodbyes. As soon as I entered my demesne, that control broke, and I bawled like a baby until my tears finally ran dry.
When I eventually pulled myself together, I realized that I’d forgotten all about the interviews I promised to do for Lucas.
A/N: I meant to get this out yesterday. I've been working on Book 4 edits (and revisions), which has distracted me from everything else. Hopefully, I'll finish that up in the next week or two. I'll be sure to share a PDF for any who ask (I do track the copies in hopes that I can prevent unauthorized sharing... Finding my book on unauthorized sites is never fun.)
“Do you...
2025-10-26 01:13:52 +0000 UTC View Post“How was your day?” I asked Bell when I saw her waiting outside in the small, covered plaza located between the various guest rooms.
Like the rest of the people who’d come with small children, Bell and her family had spent the day in one of the parks geared toward the youngest park-goers.
“Shorter than I expected,” Bell admitted with a tired grin. “The girls passed out j...
2025-10-21 23:44:23 +0000 UTC View PostAmie and the others present when we arrived were thrilled to learn about Raymond’s gains during his time with me.
When Zavira had learned about Raymond’s feat, she jokingly mentioned having me do the same for Xanin if he ended up with a weak affinity. Though said lightly, I could tell she was deeply worried about her youngest child’s prospects.
Her older children had all start...
2025-10-17 22:04:07 +0000 UTC View PostIt took very little effort to convince Raymond and his parents to let me take the newly awakened youth for the next week. Once I’d explained my plan to potentially improve Raymond’s Time affinity, they were all on board.
I waited until after Raymond’s awakening celebration to take him, since I didn’t want Raymond to miss something he’d undoubtedly looked forward to for years. 2025-10-14 22:35:44 +0000 UTC View Post
“What if you learn a skill but don’t have a skill slot? Will the system cause whatever you’re working on to fail?” Lucas asked.
“No, but there will be a limit to how well you can perform the related tasks,” I replied. “Take Smithing, for example. An un-‘Skilled’ but experienced Smith would still be able to craft items and weapons up to roughly the level that cou...
2025-10-11 20:08:56 +0000 UTC View Post“Oh my gosh, these are amazing,” Zavira gushed as she stuffed another macaron into her mouth. “I thought you didn’t like cooking.”
“I don’t mind cooking,” I replied, snagging one of the macarons for myself. “In fact, it’s pretty relaxing. What I don’t like is cleaning up afterward.”
“Just use a spell,” Zavira said with a shrug before raising a brow. “I...
2025-10-09 16:10:17 +0000 UTC View PostMom’s new apartment was very obviously built after Earth’s reintegration into the Alliance. It was easy to tell because the style and method of construction were very different from most of what could be found on Earth before mana returned.
The apartment itself felt spacious for what it was, though the Space Mage in me itched to make it larger.
“Would your landlord be upset if...
2025-10-07 00:16:53 +0000 UTC View PostThe subtle pressure that settled on my mind let me know I’d reached my goal without ever needing to look at my status. Still, I pulled up the familiar screen to verify I’d finally reached my goal.
***
Name: Emie Momentia
Level: 100 (204771/204610)
Profession:...
When the timer approached zero, a portal appeared in front of me. The NPCs nearby gave no indication they could see anything, which was no real surprise.
I smiled sadly as I handed Coco to one of the neighbors I’d been chatting with as I waited for my time within the virtual world to end.
“Please take good care of her,” I said, completely ignoring the fact that the simulation ...
2025-09-27 17:29:39 +0000 UTC View PostI appeared in a small ritual room and was quickly greeted by a priestess named Helen. She eagerly showed me around, explaining several basic things about the situation in which I found myself.
I was considered a ‘traveler’, not an ascender. I had also arrived in a small temple instead of one of the many ascender dungeons spread throughout the realm where a ‘real’ ascender would ha...
2025-09-24 01:49:24 +0000 UTC View PostI immediately eliminated the fourth option since I didn’t see the value of improving or learning a weak skill at this point in my progression. Perhaps if I’d been offered such an opportunity earlier in my path, my choice would have been different.
Of the remaining options, the affinity boost appealed to me the least. Sure, it might make casting Arcane spells a slight bit easier and ch...
2025-09-21 02:58:14 +0000 UTC View PostI shook off my feelings of melancholy and stared at the portal leading to the dungeon’s final trial with focused determination. I was as ready as I’d ever be to face the trial’s challenges.
I’d trained my skills and spells so much over the past decades that I was confident I’d be able to use anything I needed without the system. Even the spells I intended to select as my legacy ...
2025-09-18 04:23:52 +0000 UTC View Post“Are you going to watch the ascension ceremony tonight?” a young woman asked her friend as they sipped their specialty drinks leisurely at a small bistro table next to the door leading to the neighborhood market.
Avery Mercer recognized both girls from the apartment complex, filling all but the first story of the building. They were both relatively new additions to the neighborhood, h...
2025-09-15 02:28:16 +0000 UTC View Post“How was your visit with Wilham?” I asked.
My mentor had started spending time with his fellow Alchemist during the monthly markets shortly after his arrival, and seemed to enjoy his visits greatly. I’d tagged along at first, but it quickly became clear that I was more of a third wheel since I did not share their interest in the field.
Instead of joining them during their mont...
2025-09-12 02:01:10 +0000 UTC View Post“You are getting quite good at using the Core Four elements,” Kai commented when the last of the simian creatures were defeated.
I’d been practicing with Direct Casting the basic four elements of Air, Water, Fire, and Earth via my Arcane affinity, and I was happy with my advancements thus far.
I’d even managed to cast simple elemental spell effects in just a handful...
2025-09-07 21:57:22 +0000 UTC View PostA/N: I'm still tweaking my worldbuilding for the next series, so I've made a few minor changes in the last few chapters. Basically, the zones limit how many spells a challenger has access to, in addition to suppressing the system's assistance with skills.
“Again!” my virtual trainer shouted as my opponent rushed to reclaim his staff.
I was pleasantly surp...
2025-09-04 16:26:51 +0000 UTC View Post“Before we do, there is something I want to talk to you about,” I said, motioning toward one of the sets of chairs placed strategically throughout the open area.
We headed toward the closest pair of chairs and sat down. I could have transported us back into my demesne for the conversation, but aside from saving a bit of time, I didn’t see the point. I could sense the privacy formati...
2025-08-31 04:22:44 +0000 UTC View PostThe ants provided more experience than I expected, and it took me a moment to remember the floor’s welcome message had mentioned something about bonus experience based on the zone we were in.
As expected, the dungeon nerfed my ability to travel freely on the floor. As soon as I entered Zone Two, I lost the ability to open a portal directly to the Trading Pavilion.
It really wasn...
2025-08-28 03:49:31 +0000 UTC View Post“Before you start crafting, you should probably put this on,” Kai said before handing me a familiar-looking ring.
“Isn’t Anya supposed to wear this until she reaches the pinnacle?” I asked as I took the experience-boosting ring Anya and I had earned together from his hand.
“She said to give it to you,” Kai replied with a shrug. “Since she’s already reached level ni...
2025-08-24 19:18:39 +0000 UTC View Post“If only I could progress as swiftly as you,” a dual Earth/Water Mage named Mikael sighed when I appeared at the Challenger’s Market.
I’d decided to leave through the primary portal instead of bothering with one of the bosses now that I’d reached Tier Ten. As an added bonus, leaving through the primary portal allowed me to say goodbye to the few acquaintances I’d regularly int...
2025-08-21 01:46:36 +0000 UTC View PostI teleported behind the massive wyvern, barely avoiding the corrosive spray of its breath attack. This wasn’t my first time fighting this boss, so the attack didn’t catch me off guard like it had the first time I’d fought the boss of the second zone.
Having prepared the technique in advance, I shot a beam of plasma created from Arcane mana at one of the boss’s weak points, ...
2025-08-18 02:52:10 +0000 UTC View PostI was a little worried about how few waves I’d managed to complete. Failing during the sixth wave seemed like a poor performance, especially since I was used to finishing dozens of waves during trials.
The challengers I’d spoken with about this particular trial never gave details about how many waves they managed to complete, but I’d gotten the impression that it was more than a han...
2025-08-14 00:09:36 +0000 UTC View PostThe ninth-floor trial’s challenge was a town defense scenario. Aside from the dungeon-spawned town members, some of whom could ostensibly provide a bit of assistance with the challenge, the setup wasn’t all that different from the wave trials I’d undergone on earlier floors.
In fact, making the challenge a town defense instead of a standard wave scenario made things more difficult s...
2025-08-10 01:06:02 +0000 UTC View PostBefore leaving my demesne, Niall made sure to tell me the location of the ninth-floor trial since it was well-hidden.
Like the last few trials, this one required a challenger to be at peak-tier before they could enter. Having already challenged the trial a few years earlier, Niall hinted that the rewards were particularly valuable on this floor. Unfortunately, that was all that he could s...
2025-08-06 20:52:07 +0000 UTC View Post“Perhaps you should consider giving up Teleportation for a different type of spell,” Lisa suggested when I finally returned to my demesne after a long day of grinding. “Haste is by far the most flexible of the two spells. It might be worth keeping an offensive spell instead, especially if you get to keep your soulbound personal dimension.”
Lisa’...
2025-08-02 03:25:00 +0000 UTC View Post