[ Time / Location ]: Unknown / Unknown
[ Pov ]: Sam ( Samuel Rivers )
First thing I saw when I opened my eyes was this endless white void, it surrounded me from all directions possible.
" ... " I was naturally speeches, not just from finding myself in this unknown space. No, what truly added to my bewilderment was, floating freely in it.
It didn't feel like I was underwater, I could breathe normally.
So, when I looked around and along my body to see if there were any harnesses that were holding me up or something, what I saw shocked me for the second time.
" What in the actual fuck is happening to me? " I said while looking through my hands.
Yep... I said it right, looking through my hands. They were transparent, in fact all of my body was transparent, and naked too, can't leave that part out.
< Welcome To Murim Online >
" Huh? " Any and all questions about my predicament could wait, the screen that just popped up in front of my face takes priority. It might even give me information about what's happening.
It looked very familiar to me, like I've seen it before. It was a Red-Brown holographic screen rimmed by a golden thread, like a system screen in a game.
The words at least confirmed one thing, it was game related. Focusing back on the screen, it started to display different words.
< A World In Which You Level-Up By Working Hard And Finishing Missions >
" No, no fucking way. " My mind focused on three specific words ( world, Level-Up, missions), anyone who played games or watched anime or read manga would know exactly what's happening. This was a generic reincarnation setup.
" This can't be happening to me. I was clearly finishing up with my assignment when I went to the store to...to. " I didn't get to finish my line of thought, one image came back to me so vividly, it felt like I was reliving it.
I remembered exactly what happened to me before waking up in this place.
What happened was, after finishing up with my robotics assignment that was due to tomorrow, it became too late for me to cook something to eat ( more like exhausted ), not that I had any groceries to make anything.
Fortunately, there was a 7-Eleven three blocks away from my apartment, and like the stupid hungry dumbass I was at that moment, I decided to take a shortcut in the back alleys to get to the store as fast as possible. Bad move.
All I could remember from that moment on was someone blocking my way, and before I could say anything, I heard a shuffling noise from behind me, next thing I felt was a sharp sting coming form my neck and the lights were out.
" Sigh.. " Back to the void, I was wondering if my mind was protecting me from remembering the pain or I was just too preoccupied by the fear that was running through my veins at that time.
" Sigh... fuck it, I'll just deal with what comes next as usual. " Sighing, I stealed myself for whatever comes next for me.
Some might see my reaction as unrealistic or unatural, to those who think that way, I have only one thing to say, you haven't went through what I have experienced.
I was very good at rolling with the punches, it was my whole life's moto at one point. I lost my father at the young age of 10.
And it wasn't any typical death, he was shot point blank by a shotgun when we were at a bank. Till this day, I still remember how it happened. The masked robbers wanted to put an example I guess, my dad was just in the wrong time at the wrong place.
Life got miserable for me and my mom from then on, eventually at the age of 15 my mom couldn't take the pain anymore so she hung herself in the living room.
It was a school day, so the first thing I saw when I came back home was her pale corpse swaying from the ceiling.
What I could take from seeing my parents die is that I wasn't afraid of death, even when I cried for them, I cried for how they died not why they died.
I didn't know when i had started thinking like that, but to me... death is simply the end of a story. Sure sometimes the ending is bad, sometimes it's good, but it's an end nonetheless.
Eventually life got better for me, I was taken in by my aunt and her husband.
The surprise came when they tried to take me to therapy, they were afraid I had suppressed my trauma. They didn't expect to see a normal teenager going about his life.
After 10 days of counseling with the therapist, to my and my new family's astonishment. He said that I had no lingering trauma from what I had went through.
Of course like the good people they were, they didn't believe the therapist and took me to three more others. And again to their shock, I was given the same diagnosis every single time.
' Okay, enough of this backtracking. Let's see what life got for me this time. ' I thought and got back to focusing on the holographic screen.
< Creating A New Character >
" Hmm, my hypothesis was right." I said, slightly proud of my right prediction. Nonetheless I still had that feeling like I vaguely know or I've seen this before.
< Checking Access Area Control Connection >
< Connection Error... >
" ... "
" Okay, I know I said I can roll with the punches, buuut... I don't know if I can roll through this one, hehe. " I said while nervously laughing.
< Reconfiguring Based On The Players Memories >
" Phew... "
< Error...>
< Two Sets Of Memories Detected >
" ... "
< Initiating Foreign Object Termination >
" !!? "
" Oi oi oi, the fuck do you mean termination? " I was sweating at this point, I didn't even know if I could sweat in this void, but I did feel dread running through my veins.
" Ugh " All of a sudden, my whole being felt like it's being shackled and held in place.
" Ugh, I guess this is it. At least i could experience something like this once, hahah... " I said with the last remaining strength I had, everything felt like it was going numb. Eventually I closed my eyes, drifting to deep sleep.
< Object Locked >
< Termination In 3, 2, #?@? >
Suddenly, the system stopped the countdown, what came after was just gibberish, like it was corrupted.
{ Sigh, I can't even leave a simple job of reincarnation to those winged pigeons. If this one wasn't special he would have been erased by now. } Said a Grand sounding voice out of nowhere.
{ Hmm?, so this one was promised two gifts huh. The first one seems to be already determined, guess I will use the second one to fix this. } And with a snap that reverberated through the white void. The shackles unlocked.
{ What kind of garbage system is this? Erasing it would do the trick but it holds quite the natural authority. That would be too wasteful. } Said the unknown being to no one in particular.
{ Let's see, based off of his memories he didn't like the leveling system, the forced mission system, the skill system... HE DIDN'T LIKE ANYTHING ABOUT IT!? Why was his wish to get reincarnated here anyway? Sigh, mortals. } By the end of his analysis of the system and my memories, the unknown being gave up on even trying understand my thoughts.
{ Haaa, I'll just rebuild the system based on his imagination of it and be done with it. } And with anthor snap that seemed to almost shatter the surrounding void, the unknown being disappeared, leaving a parting message. { Good luck, kid }
< ... >
< Rebooting initiated >
< P rogress: 0% >
< P rogress: 15% >
< P rogress: 56% >
< P rogress: 99% >
< P rogress: 100% >
< Rebooting Complete >
< Welcome To The New And Approved Murim Online >
< Anomaly Detected: Unsuccessful Merging Of Two Souls >
< Optimal Course Of Action Based Off The True System [ Owner/User ] : Complete Merging Of The Two Souls While The [ Owner/User ] keeps Complete Control With No Ego/Psyche Deviation Caused by Foreign Memories >
< Proceeding... >
< Merging successful >
< Proceeding With Character Creation >
< Process Complete >
< Loading Position/Time Frame Of Placement >
< All System Functions Running at 100% >
< May You Have A Successful Endeavor In Your Adventure [ Owner/User ]: Dan Yuseong >
---<>---
[ Time / Location ]: Morning / Unnamed district in the west side of Central City.
[ Pov ]: Dan Yuseong ( Originally: Samuel Rivers ) ( A/N: hopefully no one gets confused here, when the two Souls of our OC and the MC of the manwha merged, our OC got the memories of the original MC without the actual MCs ego. So he won't question who he truly is. )
" Ugh, that was Uncalled for. I didn't even get to go to a new world man, sigh. " I said after I grogirly opened my eyes, my vision was slightly blurry, making it harder for me to conceive my surroundings.
Eventually my vision came back to me, and whet I saw, disappointed me greatly.
I was in what looked like an old fashioned mudd-concrete house supported by wooden beams on the walls. I at least was on a somewhat comfy bed with a cover that was rougher than my hair.
" Is this what's heaven supposed to look like... cuz there is no way in hell it would be this shitty. " I said absent mightily when suddenly that Red-Brown holographic screen popped up in front of my face again.
< Loading Complete >
< All System Functions Online >
< All Functions Will Be Automatically Uploaded To You After This Message >
" Ugh!? " Suddenly a rush of memories and instructions flooded through my head, it was like watching someone speed run through a game.
' And it was a hell of a game. ' I thought.
When the rush of memories stopped, something deep in my head clicked.
It all made sense now, the holographic screen, the familiar names, the premise of the memories that I just inherited.
" I just replaced the original Dan yuseong who died, and took his opportunity for reincarnation, in fact it was a fantasy of mine when I read the manwha of InfiniteLeveling- Up in Murim. " I exclaimed out loud with both excitement and trepidation.
My small crisis was roughly stopped by a nock to the Head. " Stop blabbering like a fool and get yourself ready for the registration to the military Academy at CheonBong before it's too late." Said a man that looked like in his 40s with a weirdly fashionable blue hair and beard, and apparently is natural in this world.
" Oww!?, uhh... I-i will make sure to get there on time... Dad. " After I second of taking in the site of what will be my new dad in this world, I spoke back in fluent Korean without even thinking.
"... Good, don't forget the registration fee on the counter. Last thing I want to hear from you is you failing just because you forget the money. " He said and looked at me for second, like he was examining me. then walked off outside.
" Phew, that was more stressful than a PowerPoint presentation. Now back to the system، let's see what I got, hehe. " I said while rubbing my hands like a Je- cough cough, merchant.
' Status. ' I called out in my head based off of the instructions the system uploaded to me.
And what I saw blew my mind away, in a good way that is.
< Status >
Dan Yuseong ( Originally: Samuel Rivers ) Note: user is capable of freely changing the Name.
Age: 15
Lv 1: ( 00/10 )xp
Stamina: 100%
Qi: 100%
[ Attributes ]
Strength: 25
Agility: 31
Endurance: 51
Spirit: ( first stage of enlightenment + 89 ) = 189 ( A/N: for those who are curious to know, the spirit attribute includes three separate attributes in itself. The soul, the senses, and the mind. The reason why it's so high is because the system used all of the original MC's 40 something year old soul as a nourishment for our OC's Spirit attribute. )
Qi: 12 years ( A/N: same thing here. )
Attribute points: 00
[ Skills ]
Map lv 1
Storage lv 1
Resistance lv max ( A/N: OC's second gift. )
Before I could thoroughly examine my status, a mission window popped up. " Ahaa, right. The missions. "
' but still, it's great that I got the storage and map skill already, don't know what's the resistance skill, and it's max level already, I'll check it out later anyway. "
< Normal Mission >
Register for admission and pass at the military academy of CheonBong in( 2 hours ) time.
• Mission Rewards:
- Strength + 1, 25xp.
- First mission bonus.
• Mission Penalty:
Mission removal.
< Do You Accept: Yes or No >
" Oh ho, it is completely different, just as the instructions said. Both the system itself and the missions, hmm. "
' How was it changed so much?, I'm all up for this change honestly. It's a hundred percent better than being erased. ' I thought.
" Just thinking about the fact that I was almost erased gives me chills. " I said, a deep shiver creeping up my spine.
" Yuseong, stop daydreaming or whatever you're doing in there and get a move on, the registration isn't going to complete itself. " My * new dad * said.
" Uh.. yeah, I'm going. "
' I should only check the system when nobody's looking at me, unless I want to be called a crazy ass cracker in this world. ' I thought while exiting the house/bedroom not forgetting to pick up the money for the Academy registration. And the most crucial part, accepting the mission.
' yes. ' I mentally called out.
< Mission accepted >
< Timer: 00.02.00 >
" Catch. " The moment I got out, something was thrown to me.
And what an experience that was, it felt like my senses zeroed in on the object sailing through the air to me.
I could see it so clearly, to the point that it looked like it's going in slow motion.
' guess this is what spirit is all about, it enhances my perception to this point even at the first stage. ' I thought all of that, while what looked like a potato was still halfway in the air from me.
I didn't even need to calculate where it needs to land or anything like that, just held out my hand where the trajectory it would land on and bam. It landed dead center in my palm.
' ohh, I'm going to love this world so much. '
" Eat that while you're going for the registration. And don't forget, your efforts will always pave the way for you. " He said casually and got back to sweeping the yard. Not knowing that what he just uttered could be on an aura farming clip back in the modern world.
' Damn, that was actually cool. ' I shook my head and headed out.
After 10 steps of walking I stopped abruptly, and deeply thought of the memories I got. ' although I will never know if I could actually accept someone else as my father, I know for a fact that there is no father or a person as great as him. So I promise you this Dan yuseong, wherever you are now, no one in this world will get the chance to even remotely cause him harm. '
" Hey, Dad. " I called out to him.
" Hmm, what is it? " Confused, he asked me.
With a deep bow I thanked him. " Thank you for everything. " Then sped up out of there, too embarrassed to even look back.
" Hahaha, this kid. " I didn't see it but he had this bright smile of a father that has accomplished his job.
***
Thanks for reading.