A Novel Concept

Priam paused. Pressed by the system, the Tutorial, the hoplite, Arnold, the Reunion, his quests, his problems, and his progress, he had forgotten some of the facets of the man. He had forgotten the cruelty and opportunism. Saints existed, but not all men were good. These three were like vultures. Greedy and looking for an opportunity.

“Good. We'll get the cores and go. We're not gonna hurt the girl, and we'll free her after going a few miles that you can't find us. Man, you have to understand that we have to be careful with what you showed us before.” continued the man while pointing to the corpses of wild boars

"The cores?" It wasn't the most pressing question, but Priam was surprised at the precision. The three idiots had a few things to gain for risking provoking him, and he wanted to know what. At the same time, one of the accomplices pulled a tiny object from the body of one of the beasts. Priam's perception alerted him instantly. What is that?

“Monster cores, know that? An info to show our good faith. Creatures in this new universe sometimes have a solid crystal in their heart. These cores contain some of the beast's energy. They sell for a lot of money in the city that me and my guys landed in.”

Interesting. They talked about a city. I'd be surprised if it were built last week, so they've been around aliens. They have the information I want, but I can't trust them. False answers will give me the wrong picture. Better to have little correct information than a lot of inaccurate information. No need to question them, I will find someone honest later.

Priam was tired. Not physically, because his Vitality ensured that he was in top physical condition as long as he didn't make an impressive effort, but mentally. In Elysium, he had begun to miss his fellow man. However, he had hardly found his people when some were already trying to exploit his work. Worse, they were threatening him. Priam's mental fatigue was mixed with weariness. The mixture turned into anger.

"... Thanks for the information. But you're not gonna bring her. In exchange for the information, I'll let you go unharmed. Now fuck off," scolded Priam. He took a step forward with what he hoped was a menacing look on his face. He didn't want to kill these men, but he would have no choice if they continued to take him for a fool. Priam didn't back down from his responsibilities.

"Don't come closer!" shouted the man dissecting the bodies. He was the one closest to Priam, and now he seemed to remember that the aggressive young man had slaughtered eight rabid boars in a matter of seconds.

"Stop." said the man who was keeping watch calmly. "The girl is coming with us, the cores too. And the spear."

Priam noticed they had recovered the spear he had left on the ground during the fight. He had been so amazed by the gall of the three idiots that he had not paid attention to this detail. Upon hearing the confident response of the leader of the idiots, he laughed angrily. I almost died against the hoplite, and this spear is my reward. Do they think they're going to steal from me? Do they think I'm a pacifist, just good at slaughtering animals? That I wouldn't dare attack a human?!

Priam's anger flared. He took no pleasure in violence against other humans. But pushed to the limit, he had already killed. The Tutorial had almost forced him to. He had learned that his survival was more important to him than the lives of strangers. When anger got in the way, he lost all moderation.

His anger was threatening to explode, and he was tired. He was not wholly controlling his emotions, and Priam realized he didn't care. If these men are in such a hurry to die... Taking a few deep breaths to calm himself down one last time, he replied coldly.

"This is not the same world as it used to be, and your actions remind me of that," Priam said. "There is no justice here, no police to right the wrongs. There is you, and there is me. There's the power I've gained by putting my life on the line these past few days. And there is your weakness."

Focusing his eyes on the man threatening Claire, Priam continued.

"You will leave. Leave the cores. Leave the spear. Leave one of your cloaks. Leave the girl. Leave quickly, or I'll break your legs to calm me down. It is a death sentence, and you know it. Leave or die. Claire, get back. If you advance towards her, you are dead." he indicated while pointing at the one who threatened Claire.

Priam was not perfect, far from it. Like many men and women, he had problems. For him, it was his anger management. He thought he remembered that this all-consuming anger had appeared during his parents' divorce. He was then ten years old. But maybe it was his subconscious making an excuse. In any case, Priam had trouble containing his anger when it rose. He would have violent urges, which he had always channeled because he knew it was wrong. In a functional society, violence between two men did not solve problems. There were police officers and a justice system to deal with conflicts.

Aware of his problem, he learned to calm down quickly as he grew up. He meditated, breathed slowly, and avoided getting into unpleasant situations. Unfortunately, when his anger crossed a certain threshold, it exploded. And so did he. It had happened a few times in his life. In those moments, he would go crazy. He didn't think about the consequences.

Priam felt an urge for violence rising inside him.

These three men had no shame. In addition, they were trying to take a young girl hostage, and Priam had no empathy for them. Just hatred. It was swelling, and he meant every word of it. He didn't want to put them into action but knew he couldn't back down now. If the three bandits sensed any hesitation, they would press their advantage, and Priam would be forced to act physically and hurt them. Despite their regrettable act, he did not want their deaths on his conscience.

He nodded to Claire, and she walked away without doubting him. She walked towards Priam quickly, to avoid giving the bandits time to think. She had seen him in action and was pretty sure he could rescue her if needed. She didn't want to be a burden to him. In this new world, power was everything. If you lacked personal power, you might as well have powerful friends...

The man threatening her must have sensed that Priam was ready to prove his point. He hesitated to move forward, and Claire took advantage of his hesitation to put herself entirely out of danger. She placed herself behind Priam, so as not to get in his way if a fight broke out.

The man collecting the cores spoke up. "Sorry. We have to survive too, right? But we're not bad guys, we didn't touch the girl. We'll leave you the cores and a cloak, and we'll go, okay?" the talkative thug apologized. He understood that the tide had turned. They had no more hostages; if Priam were a bloodthirsty psychopath, they would have died. Strong with the weak and weak with the strong. The cowards.

"Now go away. Leave the spear, the cores, and the cloak. Do not cross my path again." Priam said.

The three pathetic bandits quickly consulted each other with their eyes. Priam was ready. If they were to act, it would be now. Fortunately for them, they chickened out. At a nod from the spotter, the spearman dropped the spear to the ground while his partner dropped some crystals. Seeing that his comrades had stopped there, the leader sighed and untied his cloak before throwing it to the ground. After gathering themselves, they went into the mist. The spotter was the last to disappear after one last indecipherable glance at Priam.

The scene had been very quiet, everything had already been said. He knew he had made enemies. But what does it matter? These three will be as important as insects if I get strong enough. As soon as they sensed the danger, they backed off. They did the right thing to survive.

You have gained the skill: [Intimidation].
[Intimidation] lvl 1: Your words and actions, coupled with your strength and anger, have intimidated someone. You have dominated one of your fellow human beings by provoking fear and desire to please you. This desire originates in a survival instinct, but what is certain is that he fears you. If you lose your dominance, this feeling may turn into hatred.
Any increase in characteristics is good, but be careful what your skills say about you. The power you have over others transforms the person who uses it.
CHAR +3

The attitude of the three men surprised Priam. He had argued with them to be on the side of morality, but he had little hope for a peaceful resolution. The bandits had proven him wrong. They were used to power struggles and had good survival instincts. They must have felt that it was better to leave. It probably saved their lives.

"Thank you." Priam gasped before turning around. Claire's thank you had pulled him out of his reverie.

"Ah. Mmmh, you're welcome. I wasn't going to let them take you," Priam said with a smile.

Claire's lips stretched into a smile. "Thank you. You certainly saved my life twice since midday. I won't forget that."

"Glad to help. Let's take a closer look at those cores, then."

Bending over to the crystals left behind by the bandits, Priam noticed that the cut to search the beast's interior was irregular. The boar's hide seemed to be very resistant to sharp edges. Perhaps an artisan could make me a leather outfit? My clothes wouldn't then tear at the slightest movement with my fast movements. We'll see about that later, I don't plan to spend two hours skinning a boar.

The crystals were tiny. All about the same size, blood red, they couldn't have been much bigger than a pea. Priam felt nothing special as he rolled them under his fingers. There must be some way to detect their energy.

"Can you sense anything?" he asked as he tossed one to Claire. The girl quickly grabbed it and watched him for a few seconds. "Nope."

"I don't think the three idiots lied to us about it. It wouldn't make sense, and nobody messes with boar entrails for nothing," Priam mumbled. "I only gutted one beast besides these monsters, which didn't have a crystal. Or I must have eaten it. Considering how small they are, it's not impossible..."

"This may not be the first time I've heard of these crystals. I think some of the hunters in my village have found them, but so far, no one knows any use for them," informed Claire.

"One more mystery." Priam stood up. "Enough wasted time! Let's go see if we can find some clues to our quest."

"Hmm." Claire scratched her throat to get Priam's attention. "Yes?" he replied.

Having caught Priam's attention, Claire continued. "I felt vibrations all the way here after you chased the boar. You were gone for about ten minutes. I assume there was a reason?" She felt the vibrations from here? She has a lot of points in perception...

"You're right. The mom came to defend its little ones. Why is that? Do you want to see the carcass of the monster? Its core is different, you think?"

"Potentially, yes. But that's not what I'm really interested in. We're on a new moon. The Concepts went to the trouble of recreating an ecosystem to test us. Everything is orchestrated here. From the vibrations I felt, the monster must have been massive. Which means it must be challenging to defeat - except for another monster like you," Claire shrugged. "Why would the System create an exceptionally tough monster if not to see us face it? Why fight it, and risk your life, if you gain nothing? Do you see where I'm going with this?"

"Yeah. There must be a reward for defeating this kind of monster... In order to encourage humanity to excel? If so, the System is smart, there is nothing greedier than a human... For the monster, maybe its core is precious, or its wallow has a rare resource. But it is also possible that its fur or its organs are the rewards. I can't judge that sort of thing, and I have no desire to carry around fifty kilograms of fur on my back," Priam announced.

"Its wallow?"

"The place where it sleeps," Priam explained "Its den if you will."

"I didn't know the word. I didn't take you for a scholar. In any case, since we don't have any leads to look for the 'threat,' why not look there?"

"Okay, let's go get mama boar's core then. Over there."

The two headed for the scene of the confrontation. A few moments later, Priam was running again. Behind him, the girl was struggling to keep up. The mist swallowed the dead boars.

The confrontation had occurred only a few hundred meters away, but the omnipresent mist camouflaged everything. From time to time, the wind blew away some of the mist, and it was then possible to see the unusual landscape. Trees and rivers on the moon... At other times, like now, the mist was so dense that it was impossible to see more than three meters away. Fortunately, Priam had a good sense of direction and quickly found the monster's corpse.

Claire arrived three seconds after him. Priam had taken a few meters ahead to verify one of his hypotheses. She was running slower than he was, but she could find him even though he had lost track of her. She has more perception than I do. Or a skill that tracks me.

There was nothing wrong with that, but it was always good to know the strengths and weaknesses of your allies and enemies alike.

He watched Claire's eyes widen as she observed the gigantic corpse of a female boar.

"Did you really kill that thing?!" she asked.

"Yep!"

"I would have liked to see the confrontation. I knew you were strong, but not that strong. It's a mini-boss, a genuine Tier 0."

"Why not a weak Tier 1?" Priam had no idea of the differences between the Tiers. He knew he was in Tier 0, and his [Temperance Die] would allow him to increase his attributes before Tier 1. Going over 200 in any one trait would trigger a Tribulation. So, he assumed that most Tier 1 creatures would have at least one attribute above 200. The boar's constitution and strength seemed to be well above that number. Perhaps a genetic advantage? Did the boar get a physical bonus to compensate for its mental handicap?

"There is no way that this animal is Tier 1. In the village, some hunters were able to kill a Tier 1 with firearms," Claire said. "We have some guns and explosives for protection, brought in by military personnel who were able to obtain them just before the Tutorial. They received a Title for defeating a Tier 1. Small caliber bullets didn't penetrate the monster's skin, and its specialty was speed, not defense. This monster looks impressive, but I don't think you can kill a Tier 1 yet. Anyway, if it were Tier 1, we'd know it by identifying it."

Priam admonished himself. [Identification] was very useful, and he needed to develop the habit of using it at every turn.

He sighed before analyzing the beast.

[Identification]
[Sus scrofa territorialis] - A mother boar, fiercely protective of its children. Recently touched by the aether, wild boars, like most omnivorous animals, were able to quickly take advantage of this evolution to gain in mass, strength and intelligence. A piece of original information about wild boars: gestation lasts 3 months, 3 weeks and 3 days.

The organs were crushed under their own weight when they fell. Are you really going to look for the core of this beast?

"I've changed my mind, I'm not going for the core," Priam sighed.

"Um, we must have had pretty much the same final comment. Never mind, let's look for the treasure then."

Priam had learned in the Tutorial that the [Identification] skill gave information depending on its level and the user. Knowledge, luck and affinity with the Concepts were essential. So, no two people received exactly the same information when using it.

Following the boar's tracks back to its wallow was a breeze. The mother boar had been so heavy that a child could have followed its footprints. Fortunately for the two of them, the boars had not strayed far. Five minutes later, they arrived at a small grove. This one had a pond filled with clear water. Priam smiled. He hadn't bathed since the Tutorial, and he missed it. Priam was thinking of a real bath, not a forced swimming session in the stream that ran near Log-a-rhythm.

"Here's the reward!" Claire was jumping up and down with joy.

"I've dreamed of this moment," Priam agreed.

"Me too... And the effects are amazing!"

"The effects?"

Priam analyzed the pool.

[Identification]

[Natural Spring Infused] - A natural spring of water infused with a colossal amount of aether and a tiny fraction of a sub-Concept: purity. Because the Concepts have determined that humans are polluters, this spring is enchanted to be always pure. A trace of the Concepts' attention remains, purifying the first users of the spring. Bathing in the spring cleanses your body, increasing your physical characteristics and affinity for certain Concepts.

Remaining purifications: 6/15.

Jackpot!

Status: (Average value for a Homo sapiens male before integration: PHY 10 / MEN 10 / META 0)

PHYSICAL:
Strength 59
Constitution 77
Agility 90
Vitality 112
Perception 66

MENTAL:
Vivacity 77
Dexterity 49
Memory 29
Willpower 44
Charisma 39

META:
Meta-affinity 8
Meta-focus 20

Potential: 146
Tier 0