"Someone's speaking loudly!"

"Someone's thinking or musing in his/her head!"

Gamer's System prompt/notice

·—·—·

ARC I: FIFTH HOLY GRAIL WAR — CHAPTER 01: TRANSMIGRATION AND START OF TUTORIAL!

·—·—·

"What...?"

I jolted awake like a thunder had struck down me. I quickly checked my surroundings, only finding I was in an unfamiliar room.

The floor, the walls and the ceiling were cold grey stone. It was different from my bedroom in my apartment. It gave ancient sense and strange feeling as if everything was frozen. Contrary to my expectation, I wasn't freaking out like a normal people supposedly should be. When I tried to recall how I ended in this unfamiliar place, something stopped me. It was an eleven inches semitransparent screen with blue background, black borders and white colored text written with neat font.

Congratulation! The transmigration process has succeeded! You've been given a new chance for a second life after your death. You need to show your gratitude by entertain us!

I blinked my eyes. The self-centered text made me dumbfounded. What's the meaning of this? What it meant by another chance for a new life? Are you kidding me? I was healthy as horse the last time I remembered—wait!

A hazy memory slowly resurfaced in the forefront of my mind. I remembered leaving my apartment in the middle of the night, coming to nearby convenient store. I'd woken up because of hunger and the moment I checked out my refrigerator, there was nothing in it. Because of that, I went to the nearby convenient store, but I accidentally stepped into a crime scene.

A robber was pointing the muzzle of his firearm to the terrified counter guard. He/she was wearing a gas mask that covered his face and knee length long coat. It was hard to know if the mugger was either male or female. The only clue about the identity was the long hair. I wasn't sure it was enough to identify.

Anyway, the robber was startled because of my sudden arrival. He/she then shifted the muzzle of the firearm to my direction. His/her jumpy attitude told me it was the first time committing a crime. Because of the surprise from my sudden arrival, the mugger was startled and pulling the trigger. Afterwards, I felt searing pain in my chest before everything turned black seconds later. It seems like the bullet accidentally hit my heart.

"That's right. I'm dead. Then, what is this? Is this supposedly a cosmic joke toying me after what happened to me?" I couldn't help but complain in my head. I didn't dare to raise my voice because I didn't know my current whereabouts.

My attention returned to the floating screen that oddly reminds me of the textbox from an old roleplaying game. I blinked my eyes when a crazy idea appeared in my mind.

"Don't tell me I've been transmigrated into someone else's body and I got Gamer Ability like Han Jee-Han from Korean Comic 'The Gamer' for real?" I questioned my sanity silently.

Korean Comic 'The Gamer' was a comic telling the story of a young man who got ability to experience his life as a game character. He got that power from Mother Earth Goddess, Gaea. The Gamer was the name of that Ability. It was a reality bending, broken ability that gave the protagonist of The Gamer unlimited potential and fast growth strength by turning the ability owner's life into that of Roleplaying video-game.

I looked at the innocently floating screen for a while, before shifting my line of sight to my surroundings. The world had lost its color. I felt like the time itself had stopped. I climbed down from my bed and walked closer to the mirror. I took a note how the mattress didn't become flat after I left it, before continuing walking around. The floating screen followed me, still in front of my face. When I stood before the mirror, I couldn't see my reflection.

"Is the time really stopped because of this floating screen?" I questioned myself loudly, but I didn't have correct answer for it. I moved to the study table. I tried to move a book from its position on top of the table, but found out I couldn't move it even for a millimeter. "It seems that I can't interact with anything when the time is stopped," I concluded loudly.

I returned my attention to the screen and found a blinking triangle icon in the left corner of the screen bottom. I touched it and found the screen was replaced with bigger screen. The new screen displayed something anyone could find in game's main menu.

Status Window
Inventory Window
Skill Window
Logbook Window
Exchange Window

Before I could proceed, a smaller screen appeared in front of it. It displayed:

Before you can start your new life, let's finish the tutorial first! Say or Think Tutorial Start!

"Tutorial Start...?" I followed the instruction unsurely.

A new screen appeared, replacing the screen with instruction from earlier.

Choose the Difficulty Mode!
[_] Easy Mode
[_] Normal Mode
[_] Hard Mode
Proceed

I blinked my eyes. I didn't know why the system asked me for choosing this. My choice was obvious. I chose ｢Easy｣. Only a fool would choose other than easy since this wasn't a game anymore, but a reality. I didn't feel ashamed because of my apparent cowardice. It was natural for me to keep my life. I wasn't a suicidal clown. I loved my life so much. If I knew a crime scene happened in the convenient store near my apartment, I would hole inside my bedroom until it ended.

Choose the Difficulty Mode!
[X] Easy Mode
[_] Normal Mode
[_] Hard Mode
Proceed

Afterwards, I touched 'Proceed.'

A new screen appeared soon after.

Since you have chosen Easy Mode as your Difficulty Mode, you gain a Noob Package!

Although the system had insulted me, I didn't feel anger. If being insulted or cursed would keep me alive, I would accept those insults and curses with open arms. There was nothing more important than one's life in this world after all. Without life, we couldn't enjoy anything the world provided. Dead could do nothing and the living could enjoy everything.

You acquired: Noob Package
Noob Package contains:
· Permanent Exchange System
· 75% Discount in Exchange
· 100% refund in Exchange
· Free Edit Skills
· Mr. Help Me

I wasn't sure their uses were, but I had a hunch I'd discover their uses soon.

Afterwards, a new screen appeared, displaying:

You have chosen the DifficultyMode. You can open your statistic by saying or thinking Stat!

"Stat?" I followed the instruction, speaking the command word loudly.

Status Parameter:
Name: Shinji Matou
True Name: [N/A]
Age: 16 (23)
Alignment: True Neutral
Level: 1
Exp: 0/100

Statistic Parameters:
HP: 1,600 | MCU: 0
STR: 5 | CON: 5
AGI: 5 | DEX: 5
INT: 5 | WIS: 5

Battle Parameters:
P. ATK: 7.5 | P. DEF: 7.5
M. ATK: 7.5 | M. DEF: 7.5

AP: 5 | CP: 100 | SP: 5

I was dumbfounded when I found out what's written in the Name.

"Shinji... Matou?" I croaked helplessly.

·—·—·

MC Progress Sheet:

Name: Shinji Matou
True Name: [Unknown]
Alignment: Chaotic Neutral
Age: 16 (23)
Level: 1
Exp: 10/100
HP: 1,600 [E] |New!|
MCU: 0 [E] |New!|
STR: 5 |New!|
CON: 5 |New!|
AGI: 5 |New!|
DEX: 5 |New!|
INT: 5 |New!|
WIS: 5 |New!|
AP: 5 | CP: 105 | SP: 5

Skills:

Origin: Limitless Growth |New!|
Element: Wind |New!|