Systemless Swordsman in a world of Systems

You'd think that the eternal release of death would be a cold, cruel void, yet such is not the case, as this place is anything but cold. Granted, it could be better, maybe the fire could be a little hotter, the breeze a little gentler, the forest a little calmer and the woman holding me a little shorter, but this definitely beats a void of nothing. Though these tiny limbs were not helping that much either, as they only helped to be unable to come closer to the fire's warmth. Yet, despite all these flaws, compared to my previous endeavors and experiences like bathing myself in a shower of innocent blood, razing poorly-built houses to the ground, becoming used to the smell of burnt corpses as well as the heart-rending screams of both my people and our enemy, this was better. Much better, actually. This was nice.

- "Done! You can come here now! Grilled ribs taking your fancy?"

And just like that, my humble tranquility was interrupted as, against my will, the woman carried me to a table and the cold breeze truly seeped in. Maybe a void would've been better after all...

My sorrow was left ungrieved as I was put on a chair near a table. The voice from earlier seemed to come from this man by another, smaller table. One with an exotic purpose of acting as a bowl for the fire below. I know not how he has come to posession of such sorcery, but I will not let my gua-

The missing tranquility had returned with a vengeance, packing the most pleasant fragrance I have ever felt. It was as if I happened upon the smell a sacred spring, uncontaminated and pure, said to reduce the age of whoever bathes in it by a dozen or so years. Was this the true Heaven I expected..?

- "Hey Vicky, I know it smells good and all, but could you not drool so much? That table cloth is expensive, y'know..."

...Apparently, Heaven had enchanted me, causing my body to not follow my commands. Those cheap divine bastards! I dispel their snare and clean the mess that they made on my attire. Such embarrassment...

Before long, the source of this heavenly fragrance was bestowed before me. It seemed to be some kind of meat, cooked to perfection by a master of their craft. Mayhaps I underestimated you, large man.

- "Careful, it's hot!"

I devour the piece whole. Do not speak such foolishness. My body had endured the fire of Mount Hua and withstood holding molten magma in the palm of my hands. A mere sizzle like this... A mere si...

...

It hurts. It really hurts. A raging inferno entered my throat and incinerated everything it came across on it's journey down. The sudden heat made me attempt to inhale some air, only for a fragment of the meat to come along with it. I enter a coughing spree as I attempt to clear my insides of this threat. This ambrosious meat was actually poison in disguise. I barely lived.

- "Goodness! You shouldn't just eat the thing straight out of the grill! That was very dangerous!"

...I see. I gained four valuable pieces of information from this exchange:

1. That small table over there is called a "Giril". It seems to be some sort of apparatus capable of producing or holding flame and using it to make meals.

2. This body is not in any way, shape or form mine. It's much more fragile and needs delicate care to not be damaged. What an inconvenience...

3. Despite almost ending my life, these two were not after it. They wished me no harm. In fact, they seemed to particularly care for my well being.

4. I am not of my right mind. Such bravado was not befitting of me. It's almost as if my brain isn't fully developed.

Judging from this information, I can deduce a working hypothesis:

I am inside an infant's body in either a different world from mine or at some point in the far future. I can then use the prior evidence to make this into a theory:

After dying, my soul took over that of this infant, somehow in a world far more advanced than mine. If this is true, I'd be inclined to believe Buddhism was the true way of life. A soul leaves it's body to take another. Yet I retain memories of my past life, which directly contradicts Buddhism, so it's likely not the case.

- "Aww, did you burn your throat? Here, let me heal it real quick!"

The woman, who at this point is more than likely my biological mother, raised her hand and put it in front of me, her index finger stretched slightly. Is this supposed to be some sort of ritual to cure ailments? Maybe this world isn't as advanced as-

The hellscape left by the previous inferno was doused in some divine warmth, alleviating the pain and restoring the damage in seconds. My initial assumption wasn't that far off, as this is most certainly sorcery. My theory was slightly mistaken, however, for this was a completely different world from mine, one with sorcery like this. How fascinating!

- "There! Better?" The woman's smile carried the very same warmth that I felt just now. Is this what it feels like to be truly loved by a mother..?

"Thank you for your assistance, mother"...

Is what I wanted to say. In reality it came out as:

- "Waa au ouyo auuiwa Waua!"

Curse this prison-like coil! I can't even utter a word, let alone an expression of gratitude. I never thought being entirely conscious as an infant would be this painful.

And just when I think it couldn't get worse... The stench of hell erupts from my behind. It appears that, in my desperation to relay my gratitude in verbal form.. I have... soiled myself...

...

...

- "... Let's go clean you up..."

I couldn't agree more, woman...

*********

It's been two years since I awoke in this world. Learning how to control my body all over again has been... a harrowing experience. However, through sheer determination, I managed to learn to crawl on all fours. I could finally move around and investigate my surroundings.

I learned a few things since then. My name is Victor Phillips, child of Stella Hearth and Leonard Phillips. We are a family of three living in the commoner realm of Liebe, the land of sunshine and moonlight. This region earned it's name due to being almost completely bereft of clouds and fog. You'd expect such a region to have scarcity in water, yet that is not the case. Half of the water here is imported from other countries, the other half, strangely enough, is grown using "Aqua Plants" that store drinkable water in boluses about two fists in size. This water has a sweeter taste and can also be used to let plants grow faster. Seems ridiculous, but this is by far the least asinine part of this world.

From birth, people of this world have access to some sort of ethereal scroll that only they can see called a "system". This scroll visualizes your current status. Your health, age, name ect. It also allows you to use sorcery, or as this world calls it, "magic". Magic is a way of bending the laws of reality, shaping them into your desire. Using magic, you can create balls of flame, summon rivers of water, call down thunder strikes, lift objects with your mind and much more. This seems absolutely revolutionary and possibly world-ending, but that has obviously not happened yet so there are probably a lot of restrictions and limitations to this power. I wouldn't know for sure, as I seem to be missing a system of my own. My hypothesis for why that is the case is because my soul is not of this world. Systems use Magic Power (or MP as this world abbreviates it) produced by "Mana Particles", which are the very essence of life. Every living being has these Mana Particles (or, again, just Mana as this world shortens it) and it is what gives them life. Therefore, my theory is that the Soul is made (possibly partially) out of Mana. My soul comes from a different world, so I assume that such was not the case where I'm from, therefore I completely lack Mana, this world's equivalent to Qi. I've noticed that Mana behaves in a lot of similar ways to Qi, being the source of all life and granting supernatural abilities. However, Qi could mostly only strengthen your body, there being exceptions like Partial Levitation, but that's about it. It had no way of being used for such divine abilities like bringing forth fire and manipulating its shape, or making thunder do your bidding and smiting the enemy. Of course, I can't prove this theory, but it seems the most likely for now, so I'll proceed with it in mind.

The concept of a child without a system seems to be completely bewildering to this world, as there have never been any cases of someone not being born with one. The book I am currently reading did seem to imply they could be removed, but I haven't gotten far enough to get the full picture.

Oh, wait. I spoke too soon. This seems to be related. Hmm... "System Rankings"

"A System User is ranked in seven different tiers:

F Tier

E Tier

D Tier

C Tier

B Tier

A Tier

S Tier

This ranking determines their battle prowess and/or skill in certain fields of work. A User's rank is determined through the results of their "Tier Evaluation Test", or T.E.T. Every single User is required to take this test once their age reaches 20, and then retake the test every 10 years until they reach 50. Failure to do so will result in incarceration for 10 years, when they will be asked to take the test if they didn't. Not partaking in the test at 50 years old results in excommunication from their respective countries."

That is... strict. What if they were ill that day? What if they couldn't come to the test site due to personal reasons? This seems really insensitive...

Moreover, why must they take a test to determine their usefulness? This world seems to follow a much different philosophy than I originally assumed.

Okay, there's more here.

"Users are expected to reach a minimum of D Tier before they become 50 years of age. Failure to do so will-"

- "Vicky, what are you doing here? You can't read these books yet, we haven't even taught you how! If you want to look at the pictures, there's a fairy tale picture book right here!"

After barging into this room, my mother picks up a book from higher up the shelf before presenting it to me. It hadn't crossed my mind how suspicious it was of me to read books as a child barely past infanthood. I was careless.

I take a gander at the cover before me. "The Tale of Twin Dragons". I go over to turn the page. My mother places me on her lap and begins reading the text as I stare at the pictures.

- "Long ago, there were two sibling Dragons. They were the Dragon of Order and the Dragon of Chaos. The Dragons....."

I couldn't even focus on the tale. That line was still bothering me. Failure to reach D Tier will... what..?

As I ponder that cut off line, I can feel myself getting droozy. Curse this weak body...

I fall asleep, still wondering what the book was trying to tell me.

********

The air around me was still, yet brimming with life. Countless colors enveloped the sky, all converging at one point to make a black spire stretching towards the heavens all the way from hell. I attempt to look to the side, yet to no avail. I try again, and fail again. I try to move my arm, I fail another time. I try my legs, yet another failure. I was completely stationary, floating in this heavenly realm.

- "...and you think this will work?"

- "I'm sure of it. This will end it all. This war has been going on for far too long".

As I lay there, staring at the sky, the sky gazes back.

- "...Hey! How in the blue blazes are you here! This wasn't the plan!"

- "My apologies, I don't know either! It should be impossible for him to be here, let alone see us!"

- "...Ah, well what's done is done. Might as well make the most of it."

The sky springs into motion and extends forth in the shape of a hand. The gigantic hand opens an eye in the middle and it gazes into the deepest depths of my soul. Even though I can feel that I'm clothed, I feel as if I'm completely naked.

- "You won't remember any of this when you wake up, but you will have a task you will feel in your soul that you will want to complete. This is farewell for a while now. You'll know everything in due time..."

The eye itself opens a gaping maw and instantly swallows me whole.