North x Northwest - Chapter 7

Sophia Alcott, the daughter of Earl Alcott, lives a lonely life as a maligned and infamous shut in, with nothing to do but to work on her skills as a budding apothecary in the dusty storeroom she’s forced to call home.That is until she suddenly wakes up one day and finds herself in the body of an even more infamous villainess (one who actually earned her reputation) locked up in a tower.Although the only clue she has about how this happened is a cryptic note, instead of despairing about her new situation, she’s in awe at just how luxurious the treatment she’s receiving in this ‘prison’ is compared to how she had to live before.Meanwhile, back at Earl Alcott’s mansion, all hell is about to break loose.That’s because…

“One more round of ten rounds! This time I must draw Professor McGonagall’s Animagus!”

Draw a card!

Cash out!

Who is it?

“I am the great astrologer – Trelawney!”

【Divination +1】

Excited tears welled up from the corners of Tom’s eyes.

Facing the magnificent magical world, Tom deeply felt that the power of Muggles was limited, so he decided to shout out that sentence:

I’m not a muggle anymore!

- Description from novelbuddy

Warning This fiction contains:

Graphic Violence Profanity Sensitive Content

Summary – Level 1:

Delve is an isekai litrpg that follows an average guy who just happened to wake up in a forest one day. He wasn’t summoned to defeat the demon lord or to save the world or anything like that, at least as far as he can tell. The only creature there to greet him was a regular old squirrel.

Soon enough, he meets other people, only to discover that he can’t speak the language, and that not everybody immediately trusts random pajama-wearing strangers they met in the middle of the wilderness. Things generally go downhill from there, at least until the blue boxes start appearing.

Delve is a story about finding your way in a new, strange, and dangerous world. It’s about avoiding death, figuring out what the heck is going on, and trying to make some friends along the way. It’s not about getting home, so much as finding a new one.

Did I mention that there will be math?

Summary – Level 2:

Okay, but what are you in for, really?

Well, this story is supposed to be realistic, or at least, as realistic as a fantasy litrpg can be. The main character doesn’t instantly become an all-powerful god and murder-hobo his way across the universe. Delve is, at its heart, a progression fantasy, but that progression is meant to feel earned. The numbers in this story actually mean something. Everything is calculated, and if you find a rounding error, I expect you to tell me about it. That said, if math isn’t your cup of tea, there is plenty more that the story has to offer. Characters are meant to feel real, and progression isn’t only about personal power; it’s also about allies, connections, and above all, knowledge. Figuring out how the system works is a significant theme.

...

What, you want more details? Okay, fine, but this is going to get a bit spoiler-y. Are you sure?

Yes!

Really sure? I mean, this summary is practically half as long as the first chap–

Now!

Okay, okay!

The main character becomes a magic user, but he takes a route that is not very popular in adventurer culture, namely that of a support. There is a full magic system with various spells, skills, and abilities, but our MC decides that aura magic is the way to go, and that the only stat worth investing in is mana regeneration. Most people at the Adventurer’s Guild think that this makes him a bit of a dumbass, but he’s playing the long game. We’ll see how that works out for him, won’t we?

Because of his build, the MC levels up fast, at least compared to normal people. There are no cheats, though, and he is limited in other ways. There are some clear and pretty obvious downsides to his build. That’s what makes it fun, no?

Morals? Our MC has them. Again, we’ll see how that works out for him. Realism, remember? Would you be okay with killing someone and looting their body? I sure hope not.

POV? The focus is on the main character, but there will be occasional varying perspectives from people around him, or involved in the events related to the main plot. It isn’t going to jump all over the place.

Tech is standard medieval stasis. No smartphones, but the MC does have a technical background. Computers and their programming might be involved. There might even be a bit of uplifting down the road, who knows? Anyway, it isn’t the focus. He isn’t going to invent the gun in chapter 1 and change the face of warfare.

Romance is not a major focus. Friendships are more the name of the game, though there will be some characters in romantic relationships.

There is exploration, though not as much of the geographical nature as you might expect. It is more about exploration of the system and the culture.

The pace is slow and detailed, sometimes verging on slice-of-life. The action is meant to be realistic and grounded in the numbers, and it is intended to have meaning beyond simply punching things until they stop moving.

The general tone of the story is grey, and some parts can get quite dark. People die. Sometimes, people with names, but not anywhere near GoT level. There is plenty of light, too, though, to balance the darkness. The world is dangerous, but overcoming that danger is why we’re all here, isn’t it?

Anyway, if you’ve made it this far through the summary, you clearly like words. I hope you enjoy the story!

What if a power to level up or upgrade everything—your way of living, battle skills, military prowess, etc.—but this power is limited to your Eldritch tribe.Would you expand your tribe to rise above all adversaries, would you use it to gain more personal power or use it to toy with everyone?Lyerin wanted nothing more than peace on himself, but all he had was regret. He possessed a secret ability that allowed him to quickly excel at anything he chose, but he could only use it once.While others had to spend a long time to reach higher levels or master new skills, he only needed to complete a simple, specific task to level up.However, he had already used this ability to count a specific number of sand grains to save his own life. After that, his existence became a living hell.One day, he was unexpectedly sent back in time, where he would witness numbers appearing in the sky, signaling the end of the world again—an apocalypse he despised the most!But Lyerin realized he could use his ability once more, this time on a certain group of people.A TRIBE!```[ Ding! ][ You have chosen to level up knife slash! As a Wildling of your tribe, you can level up your knife slash. ][ Condition: Slash the knife 500 times. ][ You have chosen a random tree to level up! The tree is part of your tribe; you can level it up. ][ Condition: Water the tree 300 times. ][ You cannot level up anymore due to your limited rank within the tribe. Raise your rank in the clan first. ][ Condition: Give honor to the tribe. ][ You have reached the peak level of your tribe. If you want to level up further, improve and level up your clan! ][ Condition: Level up the Ancestral Healing Ritual, level up the Newborn Den, and level up the tribe's farm. ]```With this overpowered ability, can he still hold onto his selfish wish for peace within himself?