The glowing system notification flickered one last time, then nearly vanished, swallowed by the pitch-black emptiness around him.
Yet Jack did not disappear with it.
His knowledge remained.
His awareness remained.
He blinked.
Or rather—he felt himself blink, even though there were no eyelids to move. No body to obey him. Still, his consciousness lingered, sharp and frighteningly clear.
'What the hell is going on?' he thought, the question echoing soundlessly in the void.
Then, without warning, something changed.
He felt himself being drawn.
It was strange—he had no body, yet the sensation was unmistakable. As if he were being dragged through a vast, invisible ocean. The pull intensified, violent and merciless, yanking him forward at an unimaginable speed. A crushing pressure wrapped around his awareness, like water filling lungs that didn't exist.
Suffocation.
For a split second, panic flared—
And then, just as suddenly, it ended.
—
Gasp!
Jack jolted upright, air exploding into his lungs as his body tensed violently. His hand flew to his chest as he sucked in deep, desperate breaths, his shoulders heaving. A harsh, disbelieving laugh escaped him between gasps.
"Ha… ha…"
His eyes darted around wildly as disbelief flooded his face. Slowly, trembling, he lifted his hands into view.
Hands.
Real hands.
He stared at them, flexing his fingers, feeling the weight of his body, the steady thump of his heart beneath his palm. His breath hitched as the reality of it sank in.
"I—what… what the hell is going on?" he muttered hoarsely.
Before he could process further, a violent surge of memories slammed into his mind.
The pouring rain.
The slick ground beneath his feet.
The sweat clinging to his skin.
And then—the slip.
The moment everything went dark. The slip. The fall. The impact that should have ended everything.
Jack's breath caught in his throat. He clamped a hand over his mouth, eyes wide.
"I… I don't believe it," he whispered. "I'm still alive?"
But before relief could take hold, another memory surfaced.
The system.
The cold, mechanical voice.
The words telling him he had unlocked a new power.
His body went still.
That was when he truly noticed his surroundings.
His eyes slowly swept across the space around him—and his heart sank.
This wasn't his room.
And it definitely wasn't a hospital.
Rather than a room, it felt more like an old shack—weathered, cramped, and worn by time.
There was almost nothing inside.
The space was small, barely able to contain more than a few steps in any direction. Rough wooden planks formed the walls, uneven and aged. At the center stood a single large bed, its frame creaking faintly beneath Jack's weight—the very bed he had awakened on. Aside from that, the room was nearly empty.
A broom leaned against one corner, forgotten and tilted at an awkward angle. Across from it was a lone window and a door set into the wall, its position suggesting both an entrance and an exit, though it offered neither comfort nor certainty.
Jack swallowed.
'Where am I?'
The question echoed in his mind—only for an answer to arrive before he could dwell on it.
A translucent notification materialized in front of him, hovering in the air. Its clean, mechanical text stood in sharp contrast to the crude room around him.
[Welcome Player.]
Before he could react, another pop-up slid into place beneath it.
[Congratulations. You have been transmigrated to the world of Emerald.]
Jack froze.
"…What?"
'Emerald? Transmigrated?'
His breath hitched as disbelief washed over him. He stared at the glowing text, his mind struggling to catch up.
'This isn't possible. This isn't real.'
'I transmigrated...like a web novel…' the thought surfaced unbidden.
He looked at the system again, then once more, as if repeated staring might make the words disappear.
But they didn't.
The notifications remained—clear, cold, and undeniable.
As if that wasn't enough, another notification appeared.
[Ding]
[Congratulations. You have obtained the Forbidden Harem.]
Jack's eyes widened.
[Rank: SSS]
Before he could fully process this new texts, the system continued, its tone unchanging.
[Congratulations player! You have received three gifts.]
[Would you like to open them now?]
Jack stared at the hovering text, bewilderment giving way to cautious curiosity. None of this felt normal—none of it—but strangely, he didn't sense any immediate danger. No warning. No penalty. Nothing holding him back.
"…Yes," he muttered after a brief pause.
The moment the word left his lips, three notifications materialized in succession, glowing softly in the air before him.
The first one unfolded.
[Gift Unlocked.]
[Name: Wizard's Buff.]
The system read aloud:
[Effect: Upon using the activation phrase (Insert Phrase), the player receives a physical buff for up to 20 seconds.]
[Cooldown: 6 hours.]
Jack exhaled slowly, eyes fixed on the words.
"…A buff," he murmured.
"...That's actually...neat to be honest." He added.
The second pop-up unfolded smoothly, its text reading aloud:
[You have received a gift: Dreamer's Mark.]
Beneath it, a block of information appeared.
[Gift Information:]
[Effect: The player may activate this skill to slow a chosen target for approximately 3 seconds. However, the target must remain within the player's line of sight. If the player cannot see the target, the ability will be ineffective.]
Jack studied the words carefully, then nodded to himself.
"…Huh."
It wasn't overwhelming. In fact, at first glance, it felt almost underwhelming. But the more he thought about it, the more its value became clear.
"Yeah… it's not flashy," he muttered,
"but if I use it right… this could actually be useful."
A well-timed slowdown. Three seconds in the right moment could mean the difference between life and death.
He exhaled softly.
'Not bad.'
The first two gifts had been solid. That left only one.
Jack's gaze shifted as the final notification expanded, its glow slightly heavier than the others.
[Gift Unlocked.]
[Name: Anchor.]
The description followed.
[Effect: Upon using the activation phrase, all beings of the player's level or below within range will become susceptible to the player.]
[Definition — Susceptible: Targets will be unable to lie. Their pleasure levels will increase as well.]
Jack blinked.
"…Wow."
That was—dangerous. Not just powerful, but disturbingly so.
"That's actually… kind of broken," he murmured.
But then his eyes dropped to the final line.
And his breath caught.
[Warning:]
[Regardless of activation, if the player is in the presence of a being whose sin level exceeds his own, the player will become susceptible.]
[Effect: The player will be unable to lie or resist commands from higher ranked beings.]
Jack froze.
"…What?"
The words didn't change. They didn't fade.
"I—" His voice faltered. "I can't resist…?"
His jaw clenched as panic crept in.
"…What the f—"