I set aside my internal debate. If this were a dream, I would know when I woke up. If it weren't, time would tell. Deliberating further about it at the moment was useless and was only a waste of time.
[There are 3 unread notifications.
Would you like to access them?]
"Yes."
[Player System successfully installed!
You can access your profile at any time with the command "Access my profile" or similar expressions.]
"Next notification."
[You have entered an optimized training area.]
"Optimized training area?"
[Activating skill "Peer Beyond"
Answering the player's question…
Answer: Optimized training areas provide players with double the growth, in addition to having additional resources that offer personalized and optimized training. Optimized training areas are extremely rare.]
"Am I inside an optimized training area?"
[Activating skill "Peer Beyond."
Answering the player's question…
Answer: You passed through an optimized training area earlier, but you are not currently in one.]
"I see. Thank you. Next notification."
[The Temple of the Knowledge of Astar recognizes you as worthy and invites you to enter. The Temple of the Knowledge of Astar welcomes you.
Activating skill "Peer Beyond."
Details: The Temple of the Knowledge of Astar recognized individual Lilia Costa as worthy of entering because it identified in you true curiosity and perseverance in the pursuit of knowledge and truth. Only those recognized by the Temple of the Knowledge of Astar have permission to enter its domain.]
I frowned. "Does the temple have consciousness and free will?"
[Activating skill "Peer Beyond"
Answering the player's question…
Answer: The Temple of the Knowledge of Astar is a magical place that carries the will of its people, not its own consciousness.]
"Thank you for the answer. Access my profile."
[Profile (Some information is still under analysis…)
Name: Lilia Costa
Status: Player
Age: 25 years
Species: Human
Level: 1
Experience: 0/10
Attributes:
Strength: 4
Agility: 6
Defense: 2
Endurance: 2
Intelligence: 13
Class: (Unavailable)
Skills: Peer Beyond (Open skill description).
Achievements: (Under analysis…)]
My attributes, aside from intelligence, seemed quite low, especially defense and endurance. Well, that wasn't exactly a surprise, considering the routine I led wasn't the healthiest and I didn't exercise as often as I should. In truth, I was a sedentary. I sighed.
"Could you please explain how to gain experience to level up and how to increase my attributes?"
[Activating skill "Peer Beyond"
Answering the player's question…
Answer: You can gain experience through different types of training, by achieving certain accomplishments, and by defeating other beings, depending on the difficulty. Your attributes can be increased in various ways: by leveling up (all basic attributes increase by one point per level), through training and strengthening the body and mind, potions, items, achievements, and titles. Each time you level up, all your basic attributes will increase by one point.]
"Could you explain each attribute, please?"
[Activating skill "Peer Beyond"
Answering the player's question…
Answer: The Strength attribute refers to the individual's physical strength, and the higher it is, the greater the body's strength and physical attacks. The Agility attribute refers to the individual's physical speed and agility, and the higher it is, the faster the individual can move. The Defense attribute refers to the individual's physical defense, and the higher it is, the less damage the individual takes from enemy attacks. The Endurance attribute is related to the individual's stamina and physical conditioning, and the higher it is, the more energy the individual has. The Intelligence attribute refers to the individual's mental intelligence, and the higher it is, more easily the individual can acquire new knowledge, techniques, and skills. Note: Some spells, techniques, and skills require a certain amount of intelligence to be learned and executed.
Note 2: New attributes can be acquired over time depending on the player's experiences, situations, learnings, and items.]
From what I understood, other players didn't have the same access I did to the information explaining the Player System itself—this was a gift from my "Peer Beyond" skill.
"Do all players have skills? Did all players receive any skill with the system installation?"
[Activating skill "Peer Beyond"
Answering the player's question…
Answer: No player has received any skill from the Player System. All skills must be acquired, in some way, through the player's experiences. Some situations may lead the System to assign a skill it believes the player already possesses and add some extra effects to it. Therefore, it is likely that not all players have skills.]
"Who created the System and installed it in the players?"
[Activating skill "Peer Beyond"
Answering the player's question…
Answer: Information unavailable.]
So, there were restrictions on the information the System could share, even about itself.
"Why did the fusion between the two worlds happen?"
[Activating skill "Peer Beyond"
Answering the player's question…
Answer: Information unavailable.]
Was there a limit to how many questions I could ask per day, or could the System not share certain information about what was happening?
[Activating skill "Peer Beyond"
Answering the player's question…
Answer: The number of questions you can ask is unlimited. However, the System has access to a limited amount of information. Therefore, there are some questions the Player System cannot answer. Over time, the knowledge acquired by the player also becomes knowledge of the Player System.]
So, the System wasn't omniscient. "Is there another system besides the Player System?"
[Activating skill "Peer Beyond"
Answering the player's question…
Answer: The Player System is a branch of the Global System.]
"What is the Global System?"
[Activating skill "Peer Beyond"
Answering the player's question…
Answer: Information unavailable.]
Apparently, I wasn't going to get many new explanations about the System and the New World at that moment. I had to decide what to do now.
I glanced briefly at the closed door behind me. I didn't know if I could enter the temple again if I left, and the truth was, I was very curious about what was inside.
"If I leave the temple, can I enter again?"
[Activating skill "Peer Beyond"
Answering the player's question…
Answer: Since you have been recognized as worthy by the Temple of the Knowledge of Astar, you should be able to enter and leave the Temple of the Knowledge of Astar freely.]
Perhaps I should at least reassure my parents before continuing my exploration of the temple. As soon as I turned with the intention of leaving, wondering how I would get past the heavy stone doors that were locked, they opened and allowed me to pass. As soon as she saw me again, my mother's expression was one of relief, then irritation.
"What did you do? How did you disappear like that?"
I looked at my father's face, and he didn't seem to disagree with what she was saying. I looked behind me, and there stood the imposing, gigantic temple in perfect condition.
"Can't you see the temple?" I asked them.
"What temple?" my father asked.
[Activating skill "Peer Beyond"
Answering the player's question…
Answer: You can see the Temple of the Knowledge of Astar in its true form and enter it because you were able to break the illusion enchantment placed on it and because you were recognized by the temple itself. However, other people who have not broken the protection enchantments and have not been recognized by the temple cannot see or enter it.]
I sighed. Of course.
"The ruins are just an optical illusion. There's actually a gigantic temple back here" I pointed. "But you need permission to enter, and apparently, you can't see it because of that. And I think I've figured out what happened to us."
"What are you talking about, Lilia?" my mother asked. "What temple…"
"Let her speak" my father interrupted her. "What happened?"
"We weren't teleported to another place. Actually, the world we live in has changed. What I'm about to say will sound crazy, but remember that we've been seeing a lot of crazy things since we woke up today. In short, our world, planet Earth, merged with another world, and that's why everything is different. And there's a system, a kind of artificial intelligence, coordinating all of this."
"I don't understand" my mother said with a frown.
"What system?" my father asked.
It would be difficult to explain; the easiest way would be to show them.
"Say 'Access my profile' in your heads," I said.
"What is that?" my mother asked, extremely confused.
"What was supposed to happen?" my father asked.
"Nothing appeared?" I asked, but his expression already said it all. I sighed. If my parents didn't have the Player System, it would be much harder to explain anything to them. And even more difficult to make them believe me.
"Some people, like me, received this Player System, but it seems you both didn't."
My parents exchanged glances.
"Remember that everything is crazy right now!" I hurried to say. "It's hard to believe, but if this isn't a dream, this is the truth. Our world merged with another world. The geography we knew is different. And there's a system that seems like a game that some people received at random. For now, that's all I know."
[Due to the "Peer Beyond" skill, it is possible to view the profiles of individuals in front of you. Would you like to proceed?]
I really remembered that one of the features unlocked by "Peer Beyond" that the System had listed was Access to Third-Party Profiles.
"Yes," I replied to the system.
[Activating skill "Peer Beyond"
Loading the profiles of designated individuals.]
[Name: Renato Costa
Status: Common
Age: 56 years
Species: Human
Level: Individual does not possess the concept of level
Attributes:
Strength: 6
Agility: 5
Defense: 4
Endurance: 4
Intelligence: 10
Class: (Unavailable)
Individual has no skills]
[Name: Sandra Costa
Status: Common
Age: 57 years
Species: Human
Level: Individual does not possess the concept of level
Attributes:
Strength: 4
Agility: 4
Defense: 3
Endurance: 3
Intelligence: 9
Class: (Unavailable)
Individual has no skills]
"System, what is the difference between players and common individuals?"
[Activating skill "Peer Beyond"
Answering the player's question…
Answer: Players have the Player System installed, which allows them to use the concept of levels and have faster and deeper growth. The Player System enables individuals to transcend the limits of their species in terms of attributes and skills. Common individuals have their growth restricted by the limits of their species and do not have the ability to acquire attributes beyond the basic ones. They can, however, use items to increase attributes beyond the imposed limits.]
"What are the limits of the human species?"
[Activating skill "Peer Beyond"
Answering the player's question…
Answer: Common individuals can reach a maximum score of 15 points in each of the basic physical attributes and 50 points in the intelligence attribute. The use of items can increase attribute scores, but the items that can be used by common individuals are restricted. The number, nature, and proficiency of skills that common individuals can acquire are also restricted.]
"Lilia?" my father was calling me. "Shall we go back?"
"I want to take a better look at the temple" I replied. "I'll just take another look and see if I can find out more about our situation." I turned my back to them and entered the temple again. Just as before, the door closed behind me.
Before starting my exploration of the temple, I asked the system one more question.
"What are the growth limits of a player?"
[Activating skill "Peer Beyond"
Answering the player's question…
Answer: Players are free from the restrictions of their species, so there are no growth limits for a player.]
There were no limits to a player's growth. A shiver of fear and excitement ran down my spine, and my heart began to beat faster. It was about to get interesting.