The Freelancer's Testament

Offered an ambiguous chance to give up their modest existence in exchange for being made a god in a simulation by a faceless corporation, the Protagonist reluctantly takes the opportunity to live a different life. They wake up in the Citadel, the centerpiece of the Known Infinite. In the Known Infinite, there are countless species, creatures, and planets to be met, seen, and visited. Rifts, gateways into pocket dimensions where treasures can be found and monsters slain, are spread throughout the Known Infinite, ready to be plundered by freelancers. The Protagonist finds themselves less god-like than they were promised, discovering that they're in fact a clone of the original self that had been uploaded into the simulation. These clones are typically called avatars, and the Protagonist is not the first. They become a student at one of many Freelancer Academy, manipulated by their original self into climbing the freelancer ladder to help prevent other freelancers from obtaining godhood. The academy is designed to train and educate freelancers in the practical application of aura - a source of magic - in the Known Infinite, and will provide the Protagonist a means to figure out where they fit in this new world, and whether or not they'll allow themselves to be a pawn in the greater game being played.

The Freelancer's Testament is a slow-burn progression fantasy. There is only a single first-person POV for the foreseeable future. The world itself is a kitchen sink fantasy, veering on sci-fi due to the integration of magic with technology. There will likely be more tags & content warnings as the story develops. The first part of this story, and the foreseeable future of it, focuses on the Protagonist in a school of adventurers, but the story is intended to grow largely beyond that.

Daily chapters of approximately 1000 words will be released at around the same time. If enough of a backlog is built, this will be increased.

[participant in the Royal Road Writathon challenge]