Incarnate of the war God

Another world

Alaric watched from above as the storm calmed after the billboard fell on him, shattering his body. He noticed he had already become a ghost, and his body was crushed beyond repair.

As he turned to leave, going home to check on his siblings, he heard a mechanical voice in his head.

{ Space travel portal activated! Transporting Alaric to Henarld!}

Just as the voice stopped talking, Alaric saw a black hole appear behind him and a force pulling him into the hole, and then he passed out, thinking he was being transported to the afterlife.

"Alaric! Alaric!" A voice echoed his name through the house, making him groan in pain from the splitting headache he was feeling.

"Alaric!" The voice called again, this time a little closer than the last. Alaric picked up the pillow and covered his aching head with it, trying to shut the voice out, only for him to hear his name again.

"Give me five more minutes, Tom; I will come to make your breakfast," he rasped, continuing to sleep.

As he turned over to continue his sleep, his mind jolted awake with the memories of the previous night. He hurried out of bed and looked around the unfamiliar room he had been sleeping in. "What is this? Am I in the afterlife already?" He mumbled as he continued to look around.

"Why does it feel so real? Didn't I die last night? What is going on here?" He questioned himself while looking into the mirror at his reflection. "And what was that voice the night before?"

{That will be me!} The mechanical voice responded, startling Alaric, who looked around in fear in search of the voice that had spoken.

"Who are you? Show yourself!" Alaric demanded, and a golden screen with an image resembling a Cupid robot appeared before him. "What the heck?!" He cursed and moved back, falling on his buttocks, only to realise the screen was still very much in his face.

{Did I startle you? Haha, do not fret! I won't harm you!}

"I don't think being calm in this situation is possible! What are you, and where am I?" Alaric asked with an alarmed voice.

{I am the war god system, and you can call me System. I am a system. put in place to guide you through the new world you are in!}

"New world? Is this not the afterlife?" Alaric asked curiously, and he noticed the image moved as he asked.

{Yes! This is not the afterlife! Your physical body was crushed under the impact of the billboard collapsing, and then I brought your soul into your body in this alternate world! Interesting, isn't it? Is your mind blown?}

"Not exactly; instead of being me here, you could have allowed me to somehow survive so I could take care of my younger siblings," Alaric voiced, and the image on the screen frowned.

{That would have been impossible. Your physical body would have remained paralysed for the rest of your life, and you would have become a burden to them instead}

"Fair enough. Dying would have also been another option; a little rest from a hectic and boring life would have been more appreciated," Alaric argued, and he felt a vibration in his head as the image moved again.

{You have a mission to fulfil! If you died in both universes, there is no way to save...} As the system continued to talk, Alaric felt a static energy coarse through as the system trailed off, unable to complete its words.

Alaric narrowed his eyes. "So what is this? And what is this mission that won't allow me to die in peace?" He asked, feeling something bad would happen if he continued to push the system for the previous information.

{This world is called Henarld, and it's a world that is very different from yours. Here they use mana and magic, and there are powerful mages who guard this continent} the system explained, and Alaric frowned.

"Guard the continent? From what? Other continents?" Alaric asked.

{No. This world is suffering from a demonic beast invasion! Due to the mana being used, the world is closer to the origin of life, and they have more knowledge about the unknown than your world}

{And due to the large quantity of mana and magic items, the demon beast is easily attracted to this continent, making them invade to take over}

"Okay... So from everything you've mentioned now, I don't see where I fit in to carry out a mission or whatever. I'm an earthling, and I don't knowhow to use mana or anything of that sort."

{ You are occupying the body of the Alaric in this world, so you already have the basic thing needed in place, which is a body to cultivate mana!} The system argued.

"You could have saved yourself all this stress if you had just stopped the Alaric in this world from dying."

{It doesn't work that way!} The system argued exasperatedly.

{If you can complete the tasks given to you, you will get the chance to go back to your world!}

As Alaric heard the system's words, his ears perked up, and he became a little more attentive. "Are you saying that just to get me to do your bidding?" He questioned me suspiciously.

{I am not lying; you will get a reward for every task you complete, and the ultimate reward is for you to be able to go back to your world!}

"Fine, if that's the case, what are these tasks I'm supposed to carry out?" He asked.

{The task will be given as you go on! But first, we will have to generate your profile to monitor your progress!}

"Why was I chosen to do this? Why was it I who got chosen in both worlds?" Alaric asked, and the system went quiet for a brief moment before responding.

{It's because you have the closest synergy to him, and this task will help him regain his powers to destroy the demonic beast. Your family in this world will be here any moment from now!}

The door was pushed open, revealing a middle-aged woman with long black hair and tired-looking eyes. She walked in carrying a bowl of warm water. "Alaric? "Are you okay now? How do you feel?" She asked worriedly, and a tear fell down Alaric's face.

"Mom!" He breathed out, and the woman's frown deepened with worry.

"Do you need to go to the medic? Was the beating that bad? Does your head still hurt?" She asked as she began checking him over. "I already warned you to stay away from those backstreet children; you wouldn't listen. Now look at you!" She rants.

"Mom!" Alaric breathed out again, his emotions in a mess at seeing his mother again after so many years. He had already forgotten he was in an alternative world, and the person standing was not his biological mother.

"Hurry and get dressed; take this one Hed coin and go to the medic if it hurts. I would have brought them here, but I don't have the extra four Heds for home service," she explained with a sorry expression while Alaric remained in his own little world.

He shook his head and declined the coin as he burrowed into her embrace, getting lost in her warm embrace and the beautiful memories they once shared.

{Not to be a party pooper or anything, but she isn't your mother. This is the mother to Alaric in this world; she doesn't have the same memories as you do}, the system announced, and Alaric went rigid as he looked up at the woman.

"Did you hear that?" He asked, and she frowned while placing her hand on his forehead to check his temperature.

"Hear what?" She asked

"The mechanical voice," he replied while searching her eyes. "Can you see this?" Hepointed to the golden screen, and his mother's heart sank. Thinking her first son was brain damaged.

"Nevermind, I will take you to the doctor myself!" She declared this and began picking clothes for him to change into. "I'm fine, mother; there is nothing wrong with me. I think I just had a nightmare," he lied, trying to reassure her.

"Take things easy for today; I'm making porridge; when it's done, Cassandra will bring it for you. Tomorrow, the government officials will be here to recruit the new students, and we will need you in your best game," she smiled at him while helping him wipe his face.

Alaric frowned, feeling guilty for taking over her son's body while also feeling happy to be experiencing a mother's love once again. As he heard her words, his heart skipped a beat.

"What is it she's talking about?" He asked the system with his thoughts, trying to see if he could communicate with it through his mind.

{The recruitment is for those who have mana affinity. Every year, the government sends out officials to test and recruit those who have mana affinity into the magic school for training} the system began.

{Although this is a magic world, not everyone can use magic; only ten out of every two hundred can use magic, and the number of mages is lower than the number of demon beasts that plague this continent}

"How do they recruit?"

{It is simple: every child awakens their mana source at age eighteen, and the officials come during the month where the mana concentration is the highest. They test for the new adult's mana affinity, and once confirmed, they are recruited into the magic academy}

Alaric nodded as he digested the information. "Mother, what if I don't awaken my mana source?" He asked worriedly, and she smiled up at him.

"It doesn't matter, my dear. You are always welcome at home!"