Chapter 24: Faith
After about three minutes, the piece faded into the scraping hiss of the run-out groove.
For a brief moment after, Dante just stood there in the quiet room, catching his breath with a faint smirk on his face.
Then, he walked over and lifted the needle. After that, he made his way over to the already lit fireplace and settled casually into a tufted velvet armchair.
A small round table sat beside him, cluttered with a crystal decanter, a few books, and a bowl of apples.
Reaching over, Dante picked up an apple from the bowl and took a bite out of it, chewing slowly as he stared into the flames.
As for Edward, the Blood Demon had hopped onto the bed, staring at the ceiling.
After a moment, Dante reached up to his neck to search for his jade pendant, but he couldn’t find it.
’Oh, that’s right... I remember I lost the Template back in the Labyrinth after my head was chopped off,’ he thought with an expressionless face.
A Template was a Tier 1 red artifact that was sold in almost every basic Den of Antiquities.
It was an item that helped people check their status, and keep track of their progress.
It came in different forms. One could buy a pendant, a bracelet, a ring, a pocket watch, or even just a simple coin. And it cost somewhere between 400 to 500 crowns!
Of course, not many people could afford a Template of their own, so most simply went to a Den of Antiquities, where they paid a small fee of a few francs to check whatever they needed.
However, to someone like Dante, buying one was not a problem. But more importantly, losing it was not a problem either!
Not just because he could easily get another, but because ever since arriving in this world, he had realized he could check his status without needing a Template at all.
After some thought, he had figured that this ability was somehow a perk of his reincarnation into the game.
As for the jade pendant he had, that had been gifted to him by Caterina after she noticed he didn’t have one, even though he never asked for it. Though after some time, he grew used to using it.
’Status...’ he thought silently. ’Not the abridged version. The full version including my Faith stats.’
In response, a red screen appeared in his vision, glowing faintly against the dim light of the room.
~~~~~~ ============= ~~~~~~
Name: Dante Fioravanti
Race: [Otherworlder]
Status: [Apostle of Blood]
Age: [17]
Tier: [0]
Class: [High Priest]
Source: [Blood]
Traits: [Buffs], [Divine Attunement], [True Insight]
Divine Skills: [Blood Demon]
Grade: [Black]
Level: [11]
EXP: [—]
Faith: [0%-[2%]———————100%]
~~~~~~ ============= ~~~~~~
’I still find it strange that my race is Otherworlder and not human,’ he thought as he took another bite of his apple. ’Lately, I can’t help but wonder if there are others of this race here in this world.’
He dropped the core onto the table and took another apple. As he returned his gaze to the floating screen, he took a bite.
’I used to be level 10 before. But after becoming an apostle, I rose to level 11.’
In this world, the levels were tied directly to the tiers. From level eleven to twenty was tier one, and from twenty-one to thirty was tier two. That meant each tier represented a range of ten levels.
Before his rise in status, Dante was barely even up to the level of a tier one. But after becoming an apostle, his level rose. Which meant, even though his tier itself remained at zero, due to his unique nature, he could still have a normal progression just like everyone.
At the moment, his strength was comparable to a normal beginner tier one.
For a person to rise in levels and thus tiers, one needed to accumulate experience points. The method for doing so varied for all the classes, but the thing they had in common was actively utilizing and enhancing the traits granted by their class.
For instance, a mage raised their level by practicing their magic, studying arcane theory, and honing their traits. For a high priest like Dante, they gained experience by prayer, practicing buff and healing magics, and using their other traits.
However, for Apostles, there was an extra requirement they needed to meet in order to grow in power, and that was Faith.
From what Dante knew, Faith was the main power system of this world.
It was how a normal person became an apostle in the first place. When a person placed unshakable faith in a god, there was a chance of awakening as an apostle and receiving their first core divine skill, which began their skill tree.
To grow in power and become eligible to meet the conditions for unlocking another skill from their skill tree, an apostle had to max out their Faith.
And the way to achieve this was by repeatedly using and relying on their powers, which then forces them to pay the required costs.
Once an apostle finally maxed their Faith stat, they were granted the right to undergo a Divine Test of Faith.
’I’ve only managed to reach two percent faith resonance,’ Dante thought, taking another bite. ’Well, that’s understandable. I’ve only been an apostle for a few days, and I’ve used my powers a couple of times. If I want to build resonance faster, I’ll need to feed Edward more blood and use my abilities far more frequently.’
He tossed the apple core onto the table.
’I also need to train much harder. Being a Black Apostle means my Divine Test of Faith will be far more brutal. If the survival rate for a Red Grade apostle is already under thirty percent, the thought of what awaits a Black Grade makes me shiver.’
Dante sighed and leaned his head back against the velvet cushion.
’I was extremely excited after becoming a Black Grade, but now that a few days have passed, the reality is beginning to hit me. Now I see why most Apostles chose to remain in their rank.’
His hand reached for the glass on the table. Uncorking the crystal decanter, he poured himself a drink.
For a moment after, he just stared at the amber liquid before finally taking a long sip. The spirits burned pleasantly down his throat.
’Speaking of my powers, I think I’ve finally gotten a full grasp of what the Blood Demon can do.’ His eyes returned to the bed where Edward was sprawled out.
The first and main ability of the Blood Demon was blood manipulation, which allowed him to shape and alter the external density of his own blood using divine energy.
Of course, he could also channel that blood into enhancing his physical capabilities, though doing so demanded significantly more divine power.
Additionally, he could heal himself by consuming blood... preferably from living targets. Edward had even admitted that human blood tasted far better than that of other creatures.
There were also passive abilities like keeping himself warm, and recently, he had discovered a passive debuff.
The Blood Demon could induce the debuff: [Fear], though there were a few issues with it. The first was that it took a while for the effect to take hold, and the second was that the target already needed to be terrified of him. Because of those limitations, Dante couldn’t really rely on it in a fight.
’Come to think of it, the abilities of the Blood Demon are all well-rounded, and they also compensate for my weaknesses somewhat. The physical strength stat of a high priest is really low compared to the others, but if I strengthen my body, I can at least catch up to the strength of a warrior on the same or a slightly higher level than me. I can also match the speed and agility of a rogue on my level. It’s a good thing that I’ve already begun training with weapons. Heh. I can already imagine being one of the only high priests who is actually good in close-quarters combat.’
He smiled and looked away back to the screen in front of him.
After a few seconds, he took another sip and the screen in front of him disappeared. Then, his train of thought changed.
’By the way, Vincenzo said he would arrange for Ezio to fake his death during his next match, after which the doctor he bribed would declare Ezio dead.’
He drained the last drop from his glass and set it down.
So far, so good.
Dante smiled and glanced toward the door.
’Mother wasn’t here when I came back. She wanted me to meet with her later. Well, since she’s away, I should go train. The sooner I fully master my power, the better.’
Standing up, he pocketed his hands, and as he began making his way towards the door, he called over his shoulder.
"Come, Edward."
The boy perked up, then smiled.
"Roger, boss!"