Mercenary System: I can increase innate potential !

"Don't worry too much about it for now, it's very rare for a fortress to be destroyed. Your priority is to stay alive. Ah, we're on our way to the armory."

They entered a room filled with sophisticated weapons, from futuristic bows to plasma rifles and energy-pulsing blades. A man in a white coat greeted them with a stern look.

"Welcome, recruit." he said in a neutral tone.

"I'm Chief Engineer Karad. Here, every weapon tells a story. A story of survival. And you're going to write a new one."

Maxime quickly observed the man in the white coat with a strange look.

"He talks as if he were a pnj in a video game." he thought silently.

As if sharing the same thoughts, Varek laughed aloud.

"Stop acting like the mysterious guys who guard the armor in movies and video games, otherwise the youngsters will mistake this battlefield for a game like Eternity." he exclaimed, laughing as he addressed Karad.

But the latter ignored him completely.

"This is for you, the new guy. It's the standard equipment for soldiers in this fortress."

He handed him a case containing foldable light armor, a rifle, a small dagger made of precious materials and a small tablet.

"Take good care of it, because to obtain this basic equipment, many men have sacrificed their lives."

Maxime nodded solemnly.

"For the explanation..."

"These energy rifles are reliable, lightweight and require minimal maintenance. They are equipped with an aiming aid system to compensate for the recruits' lack of precision."

He then pointed to the silver dagger with bluish highlights.

"And this is your best friend. A blade made of Eternium alloy, capable of saving your life when you run out of bullets so you can take a few enemies to your grave with you."

Karad's words were simple but demonstrated the brutality of the battlefield.

"Don't scare the rookie." commented the captain, raising an eyebrow.

"That damned engineer always has a bad habit of being too serious, is he a robot or what?" thought Varek with mild frustration.

"A little emotional intelligence wouldn't do him any harm..."

Maxime took the dagger, examined it for a few seconds, then looked up at Karad.

"It's impressive, but... Could I have a sword instead?" he asked.

Karad frowned, obviously surprised by the request.

"A sword? You know that's not a common choice for new recruits, right? A bigger blade requires more technique and will slow you down if you don't know how to use it."

Maxime nodded, remaining serious.

"I know how to handle a sword pretty well, and nothing in the world is more reassuring to me than holding a sword in my hands."

But in his thoughts, Maxime had a completely different explanation:

"I have a level 9 swordsman class, what kind of swordsman fights without a sword?"

Varek, who was watching the scene with amusement, intervened.

"It's an unusual request, but not necessarily an idiotic one. If he's more comfortable with a sword, he might as well have a weapon he can master. What do you say, Karad?"

The chief engineer seemed to hesitate, scrutinizing Maxime with a piercing gaze. Finally, he turned to a shelf where energy swords were lined up.

He picked up one, slightly smaller than the others, with a shiny blade traversed by luminous ribs.

"This one. A kinetic energy short sword. Light, maneuverable, and perfect for someone just starting out." He handed it to Maxime.

"But be careful. A sword is not a toy. If you want to survive with it, you'll have to be quick and precise. There's no question of wielding it like a brute."

Maxime gripped the weapon, feeling a strange connection as soon as he held it in his hand. The blade vibrated slightly as he made a quick movement, projecting a bluish light.

"Thank you for this. I'll train to be up to it." he said sincerely.

Karad nodded, a smile on his face.

"I hope so, kid. Battlefields have no place for amateurs." Explore new worlds at My Virtual Library Empire

Unlike Varek, to whom Maxime had shown a hint of his deadly aura, Karad thought he was a mere new recruit and didn't think highly of him.

In his opinion, if Maxime could survive this 7-day dimensional battlefield, it would already be exceptional.

Varek patted him on the shoulder.

"Did you tell me your first name?" Varek asked with slight embarrassment.

Maxime looked at his hand and then at Varek with a piercing gaze.

The latter understood immediately and removed his hand, to the surprise of chief engineer Karad.

"I haven't seen you so shy in a long time, Varek, is this young man a nobleman?"

"Not that I know of, I just received a mission from Peter, as usual." explained Varek while shaking his head.

"You haven't answered me, what's your name?" continued the captain with a smile.

"Maxime Valdreuve, an ordinary young man." Maxime replied simply.

"Don't you have a military family? How did you get onto this battlefield?" asked a surprised Karad.

Maxime looked up; it seemed that, as he thought, certain conditions had to be met to join these dimensional battlefields.

But Maxime didn't decide to explain, and went straight for the armor, sword and rifle, leaving the tablet in the case for the moment.

"Secret." he replied simply.

Varek was disappointed, but not displeased; murderous intent couldn't be issued by just anyone.

One needed solid combat experience and to have killed many times, in addition to courage and many other conditions.

It was only when all these factors came together that murderous intent could be expressed.

This was also why he had supported Maxime's request for his sword.

For his part, Maxime checked the fit of the armor. Although light, it offered impressive resistance.

"Maxime, if I have a word of advice, it's that no matter how good your sword or armor, it's by using your head that you stay alive," explained Varek in a pedagogical tone.

"Thanks for the advice." said Maxime, bowing slightly.

Advice from a veteran was always good to take, and Maxime didn't despise any soldier who fought for humanity.

"As long as you understand that, you'll be able to live longer than the others. Now let's go to the firing range."

Varek was rather pleased with Maxime's answer; many recruits didn't like being advised.

Indeed, Eternity being a game played solo and with the help of a system plus a talent, many people developed a superiority complex of living longer than others.

But they forget that everyone here also has a system and a talent in Eternity, and that dimensional battlefields are totally different from those in Eternity.

"Shooting range?" Maxime repeated, adjusting the sword on his belt.

Varek nodded, looking serious.

"Yes. Even if you know how to handle a sword, you'll need to familiarize yourself with the rifle. After all, this fortress has walls, so you have to take advantage of them."

"You're not planning to jump off the fortress wall every time and fight outside on foot with your sword, are you?" he continued with a teasing grin.

Maxime was speechless, he really hadn't thought of that.

"Don't worry, many recruits are so used to fighting in Eternity that they forget that real-world battlefields don't work out the same way at all."

"And you'll also find that our battlefields are more violent and bloody than those in the world of Eternity," Varek continued to explain.

Maxime listened attentively, especially as the more he heard, the more he seemed to realize the danger he was in.

"Follow me." Karad asked, interrupting them and opening a high-tech post at the back of the armory.

Maxime's eyes glazed over as he watched the door open.

He felt as if he were living in a spaceship from a science-fiction movie.

Maxime followed the two men down a long corridor. The metal walls looked old but meticulously maintained, marked with strange graffiti and small numbered notches, like mementos left by former soldiers.

They entered a vast circular room where several soldiers were already training. Moving targets floated in the air, projecting flashes of light with each successful shot. Some were using rifles, others sophisticated bows that seemed to shoot arrows formed from pure energy.@@novelbin@@

"Welcome to the shooting range." announced Karad.

"Maxime, show us what you can do."

Karad handed him a rifle. Maxime took it and was surprised by the texture and weight of the weapon. It was the first time he'd held such a weapon in his hands.

Maxime took a deep breath and positioned himself in front of the moving targets. He briefly scanned the weapon, awkwardly adjusted his grip, then aimed at the first target floating in front of him.

His rifle formed a small laser beam, but missed the target slightly and was knocked off balance by the gun's recoil. A muffled laugh emanated from the nearby soldiers.

"It's not that simple." he muttered to himself, completely ignoring the laughter of the soldiers nearby.

He knew that this was the army too, and that if he started intimidating everyone he came across, he might have less to worry about as an outsider, but he'd also alienate everyone in the fortress.

And there was nothing mean about the laughter, just a bit of teasing.

Karad crossed his arms and shook his head, but his expression remained neutral.

"Not bad for a first shot. Try again." he said, although his words were obviously just to encourage her.

"If that shot wasn't bad, I wonder what could be considered bad." Maxime thought wryly.

But he quickly concentrated again.

He frowned, concentrating, trying to calculate the best position for the shot.

He fired again, and this time, the target's luminous glow indicated that he had hit it. Not in the center, but on the edge. He felt a small surge of satisfaction rise up inside him.

"Keep going." ordered Karad.