Glorious Vanity (SI LitRPG)

I opened my eyes.

[Welcome to Babel. You have been chosen.]

I blinked, realizing that those words weren't just an illusion. And then I blinked again when I realized where I was.

A stone chamber. A polished ceiling with etched runes in strange hieroglyphs.

I was lying on my back, staring at that ceiling. When I realized *that* I also realized what was going on. "Did I get sent into another world?"

[Querying... Response: You have been chosen to ascend Babel due to your qualifications.]

I waved my hand and dismissed the message. "I wasn't talking to you. Dammit." I forced myself up to my feet and looked around.

It was a small chamber, like I thought. An array of weapons were laying on the ground, glowing in soft white light. A sword, a shield, a spear, and an axe.

"Looks like a tutorial area... But dammit. Didn't think I'd ever have to deal with this bullshit."

Was it because I read too many of those novels? Or was it because I'd been thinking about writing one of my own for a while? Either way, it looked like I'd have to experience one personally this time instead of through a character's eyes...

[Confirmed. This is a tutorial area for the chosen. Please, select your starting weapon and confirm your status.]

Status, huh? If this was anything like the typical story, then-

"Open Status."

-V-

[Status Screen]

-Biography-

Name: Vain Glory

Age: 20 (Adjusted)

Race: Human (Heaven Defying)

Current Condition: Healthy

-Racial Traits-

Divine Anathema - Those not only forsaken by their gods, but those who have killed their gods and constructed their own. Drastically reduces effectiveness of Divine Attacks. Minor probability of obtaining partial Divine Authority through analysis and perception. Greatly increased hostility by Divine Beings.

-Traits-

Man of a Thousand Faces (Can filter emotions and experience through personas)

Well-Read (Increased intelligence growth)

Self-Determined (Luck is treated as 100 for calculations)

-Titles-

World Creator (Minor) - Allows construction of non-magical items through one's will

Hero Creator (Minor) - Removes growth limitations on user and their allies

-Parameters-

Level: 1

Strength: 8

Agility: 6

Vitality: 5

Intelligence: 13

Luck: 10 [100]

-Skills-

No One's Story - A gambit that defies the gods through sacrificing one's identity and very memory. All attempts to scry your status are denied. Removes skill requirements. Memory and visualization abilities are enhanced.

A Different Path - Direct interference with a hero's fate, granting him a new path and divergent futures. Allows reproduction of 'conceptual weapons' provided the requisite materials. Allows reproduction of 'sword skills' provided the requisite understanding.

-V-

That... was interesting. So it seemed that 'I' was being enhanced through the stories that I had completed. And as a result of creating those stories, I was being granted some additional strength.

[Would you like a detailed explanation of your status?]

"Yes."

That was obvious, wasn't it? If I was really going to do this, then I needed all the information I could get. Especially if I wanted to make it back home... Scratch that. If I wanted to live.

I highly doubted I could ever make it back home if this was the setup... but time would tell.

-V-

[Name - The alias granted to you in accordance with your qualifications. For most, it will be their true name, but others may possess a different name that is more suited to their feats.]

[Age - The current age of the user's body. Most will correspond directly to their true age, but older individuals may have their age adjusted to their prime.]

[Race - The race of the user. Can vary widely according to the world the user comes from.]

[Human (Heaven Defying) - A race of humans that have killed their gods and rule the world through their greed and ambition, fashioning their own idols in accordance to their whims. However, they have also reached beyond the edges of their worlds and begun to delve into the foundations of reality itself while simultaneously creating alternate realities.]

[Racial Traits - The unique traits of the race that one belongs too. Can be considered an additional passive skill.]

[Current Condition - The current status of the user in terms of physical and mental condition. Can be considered a measure of 'status ailments' akin to RPGs (in the user's terms).]

[Traits - The unique traits of the user, reflecting the user's personal life experiences, personality, and beliefs.]

[Man of a Thousand Faces - A trait born from the user's ability to adopt various personas in order to write stories. This trait has become magnified during the adjustment process to further aid in the user's survival]

[Well-Read - A trait born from the user's accumulated knowledge gained from reading countless textbooks, stories, and other written works. Intelligence growth is tripled and may be improved through reading.]

[Self-Determined - A trait born from the user's history of striving for greatness, falling short, and getting back up. You are unswayed by the tides of Fate and Destiny, and choose your own path. All luck-based events are negated unless enforced by Divine Authority (Synergy with Racial Trait).]

[Titles - The unique accomplishments of the user, given respect with an appropriate name.]

[World Creator (Minor) - The title given to one who has created a world of their own. As the user has done so through the usage of words and other media rather than physical construction the modifier (Minor) has been attached. Ordinarily allows for complete construction of whatever the user envisions, but restricted to non-magical items in this case.]

[Hero Creator (Minor) - The title given to one who has led a person to their destiny and created a Hero. As the user has done so through stories rather than true guidance, the modifier (Minor) has been attached. Ordinarily removes growth limitations on the user and their allies as well as rapidly accelerates growth, but the latter has been removed in this case.]

[Parameters - An assessment of the user's capabilities, broken down into various attributes]

[Level - A measure of the user's experiences and the power emanating from their soul. Increases through combat, enlightenment, or other means.]

[Strength - A measure of the user's physical might. For a human, the average is 5.]

[Agility - A composite measure of the user's reflexes, speed, and dexterity. For a human, the average is 7.]

[Vitality - A measure of the user's physical well-being and ability to recover from wounds. For a human, the average is 7.]

[Intelligence - A measure of the user's mental capacity and facilities. Synergistic effect with Mana. For a human, the average is 10.]

[Luck - A measure of the user's ability to defy Fate and Divine Machinations, as well as overall good fortune. For a human, the average is 10. For Human (Heaven Defying), the average is 50.]

[Skills - Abilities that have been recognized by the world as skills, granting unique effects when utilized.]

[No One's Story - A skill born from the 'record' of the story that the user has created regarding a nameless protagonist that established a gambit tricking fate, a goddess, and reality itself. Some of the protagonist's abilities have been granted.]

[A Different Path - A skill born from the 'record' of the story that the user has created interfering with the fate of one who was fated to become a defender of justice and granted him divergent futures. Some of the protagonist's abilities have been granted.]

-V-

I frowned, mulling over the deluge of information. There was a lot to process... but essentially, I was 'chosen' to come here, given the name Vain Glory in accordance to the two stories I had completed, and then given the appropriate skills, titles, and means in response.

I also seemed to be part of the 'Heaven-defying' humans... which implied that there were other types of humans. But that bit about garnering the hostility of Divine Beings... That could get troublesome in the future.

Thankfully, my status was concealed by [No One's Story] so it should be fine as long as I was careful.

Still...

"I'm not the only one here, right?"

[Correct. User is number 497 out of 1000 new entrants to Babel.]

I placed my hand on my chin to think, frowning. "So there are a thousand in this wave... I'm for sure not that special, and there's definitely going to be people who aren't human as well... Not to mention that there's this whole business about 'Babel...'"

The system said something about being 'Chosen'. I didn't know exactly what I did to qualify, but considering I was number 497, I definitely wasn't the first choice. It was better to assume that almost everyone else was better than me in some way... Or had a 'cheat' even crazier than my own.

My frown deepened and I eyed the weapons lying on the ground.

A sword... [A Different Path] seemed like it would give good synergy with it, and I *did* know a bit about how to use one. But that wasn't too safe. Not to mention that it was the usual choice of weaponry in this sort of situation. But because of that, I didn't really need to get one *now*. And I could probably make one on my own later, so pass.

A spear... that was the safest option. Attacking from the distance meant less risk of bodily harm. But it was unwieldy and also bad in close quarters. And considering that there were probably at least 400 people with better stats than me, no good.

An axe... It was strong, but also heavy. If I was a body builder or something, I'd consider it, but my build... although I was in the prime of my life, I had also never been that built. Which meant that was also no good.

A shield... Yep. That was the safest bet. In this case, defense was best. I could make weapons on my own, and the fact that the shield was a weapon of its own instead of paired with another indicated that it might be the better one. At least, that was my thought about it.

I walked over and picked up the glowing white shield. The moment I did...

[Do you want to choose 'Ego Shield' as your initial weapon?]

Ego shield, huh? It seemed like these were the growth type weapons then. That would explain the glowing white light.

For a brief moment, I considered the other weapons. But then I decisively gave them up.

There were countless legends about mythical weapons, but how many were there about shields? Even in isekai stories and those Korean web novels, only the Shield Hero came to mind in terms of legendary shields. So...

"Yes."

[Confirmed. Binding 'Ego Shield' to the user...]

I felt the shield warm up, sending a shiver through my arm like it had fallen asleep. But then that passed and the shield reappeared on my left arm.

['Ego Shield' has been bound. Would you like to name it?]

A name... Right. Since it was an 'ego' weapon, it needed the appropriate name. And for a shield that I'd be trusting with my life...

"Name it Avalon."

Avalon. The ever distant utopia, the fairy realm where King Arthur finally came to rest. And also the inviolable domain that defied even extra-dimensional attacks.

I doubted that it would reach that level, but even so I had high hopes for it.

[Confirmed. 'Ego Shield' has been renamed 'Avalon.']

[User has confirmed his status and selected his initial weapon.]

[Commencing tutorial...]

I sighed and held up my shield. "I figured that'd be the case. No rest for the wicked, huh?"

Light surrounded me, the glyphs above emanating an ominous aura.

[Beginning the first mission.]

[Objectives: Arrive at the Imperial Fortress.]

[Reward: Level +1, Hidden Attribute awakening, Starter Bag]

I glanced at the mission information and scoffed. "Seems easy, but I highly doubt it. Also, you guys are really stingy where it counts, huh?"

Not even giving a Starter Bag to begin with... Well, it was definitely a good thing that I had my skills to work with along with my title.

The light grew in brightness, blinding. And then I felt a *lurch* being pulled somewhere else.

[Good luck, Vain Glory. May you achieve ascension.]

"Like hell. I just want to go home... But screw it." I hefted my shield and said, "Let's give it a shot."

Now, I just hoped that all those novels I read and the story planning I did would help out...