Warm sunlight touched Alex's face. For a moment, he didn't move. His entire body felt heavy, as if every muscle had been pushed beyond its limit. Then the memories rushed back.
The wolves.
The fight.
The glowing system.
Alex's eyes snapped open. He sat up quickly in the tall grass, breathing hard. The sky above him was bright blue, completely different from the dark night he remembered. The two moons were gone.
"So… it wasn't a dream."
He looked around the field. The wind moved the strange blue grass gently, and distant mountains stood like giants on the horizon.
Everything looked peaceful.
Too peaceful.
Alex slowly stood up, stretching his sore arms. His body ached, but strangely, he didn't feel as exhausted as he expected.
"That fight should've destroyed me," he muttered.
As if responding to his thoughts, the familiar glowing interface appeared in front of him.
Host: Alex Varyn
Level: 2
Strength: 2
Agility: 2
Intelligence: 1
Mana: 0
Alex stared at the numbers.
"So leveling up actually makes me stronger."
He clenched his fist. His grip felt firmer than before. Even his movements seemed lighter.
"Not bad."
But one thing still bothered him. His eyes focused on the last line.
Mana: 0
He sighed. "So I really can't use magic."
In a world where everyone apparently had magic, that was a huge disadvantage.
Alex looked down at the ground where the wolves had died the night before. But their bodies were gone. Only dark stains remained in the grass.
"Did something eat them?"
Then he noticed something shining nearby. Small black crystals lay scattered across the ground. Alex walked closer and picked one up. Immediately, his Analyze skill activated.
Shadow Core
A small energy crystal left behind by Shadow Wolves. Often used as a low-level magical material.
Alex raised his eyebrows. "So monsters drop items."
He turned the crystal in his hand. It was smooth and slightly warm.
"If these things have value, maybe I can sell them."
That meant money.
Food.
Possibly even equipment.
Alex carefully collected every crystal he could find. After searching the entire area, he ended up with five Shadow Cores. He placed them in his pocket.
"Well… not a bad start for day one."
For a moment, he simply stood there, thinking. Yesterday he had been an ordinary university student struggling to pay rent. Now he was in another world, collecting monster drops and leveling up like a game character.
Life really had strange ways of changing. Alex looked toward the distant mountains again. Somewhere beyond them were cities.
Kingdoms. And probably powerful people who could destroy him easily. But he also remembered the system's warning. This system is prohibited in this world. That meant something. Something dangerous.
"Whatever this system is," Alex said quietly, "I should probably keep it secret."
If people found out about it, they might not react kindly.
He took a deep breath and looked around again. That's when he noticed something else.
Smoke.
A thin gray line rising into the sky far away.
Alex squinted. "Is that… a village?"
Hope flickered inside him. If there were people nearby, he could finally get answers. Food would also be nice. His stomach growled immediately as if agreeing with the idea.
"Yeah… food first."
Alex started walking toward the smoke.
The journey took hours. The grassy field slowly turned into a dirt road. The wind carried distant sounds—wagon wheels, animals, and faint human voices. Alex followed the road until he finally saw wooden walls in the distance. A small settlement stood behind them. People moved through the gate carrying supplies. Some wore armor.
Others carried baskets or tools.
Alex stopped for a moment, staring at the town.
"This is real," he whispered.
Another world.
Another life.
A strange excitement rose in his chest.
He had nothing here.
No family.
No reputation.
No expectations.
But he had something else.
The glowing system appeared again briefly.
Level 2
Alex smiled. "Maybe starting from zero isn't so bad." He stepped forward toward the town gate. Little did he know…
Deep beneath a massive stone temple hundreds of kilometers away, an ancient crystal suddenly began to glow. Strange symbols appeared across its surface. A hooded figure standing nearby froze.
"…Impossible."
The crystal displayed a single message.
FORBIDDEN SYSTEM ACTIVITY DETECTED
The figure slowly raised his head.
"After all these centuries…"
His voice echoed through the dark chamber.
"…the system has returned."
And somewhere in a small town far away, completely unaware of the danger surrounding him…
Alex Varyn walked through the gates of his new life.