The road was calm, the hum of the car engine a lullaby to Viscus's ears. His eyes focused on the road in front of him, but that was only his appearance at a glance. If one took a closer look, they would have seen glazed eyes, unmoving and unblinking. Sweat ran down his face like a fountain, a damp odor slowly spreading through the car. The sweltering sun and the ever so expanding desert coupled with an unworking AC made the trip all the more uncomfortable, with the only saving grace being the driving itself only getting easier by time, and the System was measuring his progress.

[Driving Lv5 (12%)]

He'd been driving for hours, but one problem he ran into was direction, or the lack thereof. He may have had a map, but he did not have a direction, so he thought to use the sun, which was not the most reliable choice. No clock means no time of day, and he couldn't wait till sunset to carefully determine how he should move. He had to stop and search the duffle bags in earnest, only growing more and more erratic. Yet, to his dismay, he came up with nothing.

Frustrated, he stared at the vehicle he was sitting in and remembered something : compartments. With renewed hope, he immediately opened the passenger seat compartment and finally got his treasure, a working, albeit rusty, compass, and a piece of paper. The paper held a map different from the one he was using, showing moew specific detail unlike his other map. Streets and buildings were drawn, which must have meant that it was a map of some city or village, and, in a seemingly random location, a spot with a red X on it. Viscus felt puzzled, but decided to place the paper in his inventory for later use, since it could explain what the original motive of the bandits was. From then, he drove south, and hadn't encountered any living being or landmark. It made him realize why the bandits did not just keep going and rather camped in the location he woke up in.

A sigh escaped the blond's mouth, his mind as blank as he could make it. Slow and deep breaths echoed through the car, earning him a 'Meditation' skill. Viscus's eyes didn't even gloss over the notification, and the System understood that enough to dismiss it automatically. At times like these, the System appeared to Viscus as if it was not working against him, but trying its best to work with him in a horrible situation. When that thought pops up in his head, he instantly denies it. If the System truly wanted to help him, it shouldn't have placed him on this planet doomed with destruction in the first place.

As the sun started setting, he noticed a distinct shape appear in his vision. On a closer look, it turned out to be a building, which made Viscus think. Should he keep moving, or camp? It was a quick decision - Viscus professionally parked the jeep, or so he would like to call the struggle that was parking it, and took out the keys so that no one would steal it like he had done. The location he was in was also a ghost town like the one he came from, despite being closer to Vacuo. He found himself a building that looked more intact than the others, and secluded himself inside for the rest of the night. The building was clear of any signs of living, seemingly abandoned voluntarily, unlike the rest of the village. By the time he had himself in a comfortable room, the light outside the windows had dimmed with no other source but moonlight.

In the empty room, Viscus sat down, leaning his back on the wall below the window with his knees raised, and feeling the air become colder by the second. His eyes glanced at the hands he was resting on his knees, spots of blood and grime only serving as proof of what he had done, making him flinch. The road made him forget for a while, but he finally had to be reminded of his actions.

His breath quickened, but a glowing blue screen popped up in front of him.

[Main Quest : Baby Steps (Tutorial) - Objectives Updated]

Viscus's breathing slowed down at the words in front of him, where his eyes opted to turn sharper. Anger started filling Viscus, and words exploded out of his mouth. "Are you serious!? Is that all you care about? The objective?" his teeth started grinding, the screen unmoving, "I… You…" the outburst of anger only lasted for a mere moment, the emotion dissipating. "What is happening to me.."

[-Gamer's Mind LvMAX : Passive

Block any mental manipulation

Relieve emotions past a certain threshold]

That question, he imagined, made the screen change, and forced Viscus's brows twitch. "I.. see.." his gaze turned downward, his body curling up tighter. As if his words acted like a switch, notifications started swarming his vision, causing him to break out of his cocoon in a startle. Skill notifications for 'Meditation' and 'Driving' that the System had delayed were finally shown to him, but his mind couldn't help but feel conflicted.

"What are you trying to do?" The question was not without merit. The way notifications appeared couldn't have been without reason. "Maybe it just released what was delayed." a sigh escaped his lips, and his gaze started hardening. The night was still young, and he had much time on his hands. His body didn't feel as tired as it was the day before. Rather, he felt a near-permanent state of energization ever since he had woken up, but he was too distracted to think about it.

Viscus stood up and decidedly checked the quest.

[Main Quest : Baby Steps (Tutorial) : Alone and in the middle of nowhere, you must find a way to reach a settlement.

-Objective(s) : Leave the village (Complete) - Reach a settlement (Incomplete)

-Reward(s) : 50XP, Unlocking Of ?, Continuation of Main Quest

-Failure : Death]

Somehow, the notification of getting this quest never popped up, so the fact that it was updated was unexpected, he noted to himself. At least he was close to finishing the quest. He didn't keep his gaze on the screen any longer, dismissing it for something he could do in preparation for any battles to come. He could train and become stronger through his skills and his stats, but he couldn't help but feel nervous at that moment. "What if this type of System doesn't allow increases through workouts?" The idea surfaced for a while till he checked his status. His increase in his WIS was without any usage of free stat points, so working out should increase his stats, he concluded.

Before he started, he decided to finally check one of two skills he'd not checked since the start.

[-Gamer's Body LvMAX : Passive

All damage translated into Health Points

Sustenance still required for survival

Ability to increase stats through specific actions

Stamina always tops up after 20 minutes of rest]

Viscus felt a tinge of happiness at the validation of his train of thought and the advantage regarding stamina, which led him to immediately start on push ups. Getting his hands down on the dusty ground and his body poised, he started going through motions he frequently did before coming to Remnant. Doing exercises and whatnot were a norm for him, even though he wasn't incredibly into doing it himself. It became more of a habit to keep his body fit and healthy and not go past that, since he was leaning more toward the sciences than sports. The cold air turned warm while his face attempted to mimic a tomato, his arms shaking after a while.

[For exercising vigorously, your STR increased by 1!]

He didn't let himself fall onto the floor, however. Viscus held his position and slowly went back into the push ups. One thing he may have to thank this System for was that the increase in stats was general, so if he just did push ups forever, his entire body structure would still be balanced. He knew he wouldn't do that, though. There are many more stats than just strength, and he would probably need to find a gym to efficiently raise his stats, or at least STR and AGI.

After a while, sweat had already formed a pool on the ground and he couldn't help but fall on it. Viscus felt parched and sticky, but gaining two more STR made him elated. He hurriedly tried to sit himself up and go for training his skills since his body was on cooldown. Easiest to train at that moment was meditation, but he also wanted to access his Aura correctly. That feeling of power was not one he'd let go of. The intense energy he had felt was unreal, and he was sure if he could access it, he would grow incredibly strong. For the rest of the night, Viscus went into a loop of training, only stopping when the breaking of dawn came.

As he opened his eyes from meditation, Viscus felt a twinge of thankfulness for the System's choices before entering Remnant. The 'Desperation' trait was incredibly helpful in raising his skills to the extent that he didn't know what he could have done without it. His increase in skills was accompanied by an increase in stats, giving him a bit of pride for what he accomplished from one night. His STR stat reached 18, seemingly a small amount for the time he took to get his first STR increase, but the point still stands : he nearly doubled his strength in a single night. Also, due to his strenuous exercise, he gained two points in END and VIT, raising his HP to 50 and its regeneration to 0.12/sec.

As for his skills, he didn't know whether he should feel happy or upset. The only increase he got was through his 'Dagger Mastery' and his 'Meditation'. Throughout the entire night, he tried to manipulate his Aura, but it ended in a failure.

On the bright side, with the Gamer's Body 20 minutes rest, he was able to do wonders for the training. By abusing it, he was able to raise his 'Meditation' up to level 12 and 'Dagger Mastery' up to 5. One thing he noticed was that his rate for learning 'Dagger Mastery' was lower than when he fought the bandits. His face scrunched up in disgust, but he couldn't help but admit it. Fighting them raised the skill quicker than his hours of training did.

The training also made him think about staying for another day to grind out his skills and stats, but a look out the window reminded him that he was not in the clear. He could train later, so it was for the best that he reached Vacuo as soon as possible. Viscus still felt reluctant to leave the building, but logic won out.

He was soon standing in front of the vehicle, the sun hadn't yet heated up the desert. The chill in the air made him shiver momentarily before he unlocked the door and took out the keys from his inventory. The engine was roaring in no time and he was back on the road, his hands steady on the driving wheel and his eyes clearer than when he came.

-CEM-

For hours he drove away from ghost town no. 2, with no end of the desert in sight. This time, he was moving southeast rather than straight down south. According to the map, the distance between ghost town no. 1 and no. 2 was shorter than that of the second town's to Vacuo. Fortunately, he got a headstart and was hoping he'd reach Vacuo before the sun set. The fuel meter was ticking down slowly from the 70% mark, making him realize how remarkable the fuel efficiency of dust was. He'd been moving at 120+ km/hour speeds for over 12 hours and the meter still hadn't reached the half-way mark.

"I wonder if my family realized that I disappeared." The thought suddenly got brought up in his mind, coming at a time where Viscus felt most relaxed ever since he came to this world. The thought pained him and also gave him motivation. It was a reminder that this was not his world, but one he was kidnapped into and forced to "end its dilemma", as if he was the one who started it. Annoyance creeped up Viscus's mind, his tongue clicking in response. "I'll go back home." He reassured himself out loud as he held the driving wheel tighter. "I'll end whatever this dilemma is, and I'll live." His eyes burned with determination.

Suddenly, in sandy land in front of him a black spot began peeking out of the ground, and Viscus couldn't help but rub his eyes while thinking he was hallucinating. In reality, he wasn't hallucinating and he saw a massive rabbit the size of his jeep running at him, its antlers poised for a straight clash. Viscus's eyes widened as he froze in place, not knowing what to do. His eyes frantically glanced all around the car before he just put all his hope in the car and smashed his foot on the gas and put his head between his two arms.

Just a few moments later, Viscus felt himself become weightless and the light coming from the sun going dark. A quick look he found himself flying upside down, the car heading straight into the sand. The vehicle rattled violently as it burrowed into the ground, Viscus's head crashing into something in response. With his vision shaking, Viscus sat there for a few seconds, his hands digging into the driving wheel whilst he sat upside down. The seat belt did wonders, he thought for an instant, before unbuckling it. His body immediately reacted to gravity and slammed into the top of the jeep. Huffing, he looked around and found the backside window as his only current opportunity for escape. Viscus hurriedly took himself out of the driver seat and crawled toward it then hit it with his fist as hard as he could, only making a small dent. His aura flared in response but he was too focused on the window to care. He punched repeatedly before it finally broke and he pushed himself through, sustaining some cuts and tears in his clothes in the progress.

Just as he felt the outside air hit him, he dropped face first into the sandy ground. A tired chuckle escaped him as he rolled his face upward, spitting some sand in the progress. He expected to be met with some sunlight, but instead he saw antlers coloured in red and white, then a white mask followed by black fur. His mind jolted awake as he realized the antlers were coming right toward him and he pushed himself off the sand. The antlers dug deeply into the ground and he couldn't help but crawl backwards as adrenaline filled his blood.

Hurriedly, he pulled out a random pistol out of his inventory and started blasting at the creature's mask. The bullets merely made clinking sounds as they deflected off the mask until Viscus realized the mag was empty. A shiver ran down his spine as the black creature slowly took out its antlers from the sand and stared Viscus in the eye with its glowing red ones.

"What do I do!?" He furiously asked himself. The only answer that echoed in his mind was "Run", and he did. He scrambled up and ran in the opposite direction of the creature, but it followed soon after. The way the light of the sun slowly lessened caused Viscus no small amount of discomfort while he heard it inch closer to his back. Through his gut feeling, he tried to roll to his right at the last second, and he found the monster flying a few meters ahead of him before slowing down and rotating its body in Viscus's direction. He concluded that he only had a few seconds before it dashed toward him again, and had to form a plan.

"Shoot it in the body?" he took out another gun from his inventory, having left the other one when he ran off. He took aim and shot as it poised to run at him, but it didn't appear to have done the job. The monster shrugged it off and dashed. The only thought in his mind before it was up in his face was "How-"

By some miracle, none of the antlers hit Viscus. Instead, he got shoved onto the ground where the monster sat on top of him. As if it was celebrating its hunt, it roared in the air before facing Viscus once again. Its mouth wide open as it aimed to bite his head off, and he couldn't help but push his arm inside its mouth in defiance. The hand in its mouth was his right, which also held the pistol. The monster bit and Viscus howled in pain. In reflex, he shot once, twice, thrice, and he kept shooting till the gun clicked and the creature let his arm go. Blood dripped from its mouth, and Viscus stared with eyes filled with tears as his arm was revealed. It was barely hanging with meat already pierced down to the bone, but he also saw the arm slowly stitch itself to its previous state.

The creature decided it won't let the harm it took be for naught, opting to kick Viscus in the face with its paws. Hurriedly, he took a page out of his last fight and took out a dagger from his inventory then stabbed it into its underside. The creature roared and backed off, black ichor dripping from its mouth and underside. Its eyes glared at Viscus with seemingly more hatred than before. In response, Viscus scrambled up and decided to kill it once and for all. He doubted the creature would let him put a gun in its mouth again, so he had to play it right. If his previous exchanges meant something, then this monster had a problem in turning, and he needed to capitalize on that. Viscus took out his second and last dagger in his hand and held it in a reverse grip. His legs were shaking as he stared the creature in the eye, and the creature decided that it was enough time waiting. It dashed at Viscus once again with its antlers poised ahead, and Viscus did something that it didn't expect.

Rather than standing in place or rolling to the side, Viscus hopped to the side then grabbed onto an antler as the creature was running. He was soon lifted off the ground and was hanging for his dear life. He didn't scream, or so he would have liked, and slowly climbed onto the unstable creature's back. It slid on the sand kicking dust everywhere as Viscus made himself comfortable on the creature's back.

"Here we go!" he yelled in his mind as his dagger began stabbing into the back and nape of the creature. It roared in pain and started jumping up and down erratically to throw Viscus off, but he wrapped his legs around it and held its black fur tightly with one hand and his dagger in the other, repeatedly piercing the monster with all his might. The creature's movements slowly but surely started lagging, and Viscus's arms seemed to be mimicking the creature's speed. His arms were tired from holding onto the creature and his legs were feeling numb, whilst his hand holding the dagger was becoming weaker due to the thickness of the fur and toughness of the skin of the monster.

Soon enough, the creature went for a last ditch effort and stood upright. Viscus realized what it was trying to do and jumped off as it tilted backward, falling with its back onto the sand with a thud. It was on its last legs and Viscus knew it, so he pulled out his last gun from his inventory and took aim at its open roaring mouth. He shot all its rounds before reloading and shooting again.

The gun clicked and Viscus was dismayed. The creature rolled off the ground and stood up, staring Viscus in the eye. He had done all he could, and it still lived. His legs and arms were tired and he didn't know what to do. The red glow of the monster's eyes, as bright as it was from the start, was looking directly into Viscus's soul, but then it dimmed. The standing creature crumbled and started dissipating into smoke, and something popped up that caused Viscus to jump from his place.

[+25.5 XP]

Viscus stood there for a few seconds staring at the screen. A chuckle came out of him, turning into a full blown hysterical laughter followed by silence as Viscus's body tilted backward, falling like a ragdoll onto the sand with a relieved smile on his mouth.

Slightly longer chapter. I hope you are ready, because soon we'll find ourselves in Vacuo! How fun.

Do also remember to check out maakl2001, he does write Project CEM, too.