chsdbacks Chapter 1: The Bullet from Last Night Hit Me Right Between My Eyes This Morning
Chapter 1: The Bullet from Last Night Hit Me Right Between My Eyes This Morning
"I actually...time-traveled."
Allen felt the excruciating pain emanating from his wounds, and looking at the mottled and dirty stone prison walls around him, his thoughts churning.
Now, he has finally accepted the fact that he has been transported to a world of swords and magic and has become a magical experiment.
It wasn't just the physical pain, but also the ever-present system panel in my mind called "Lord's Manual".
Yesterday, Allen finally released "Lord's Handbook," a fantasy world lord simulation game that he had been waiting for for a long time.
This game was developed by the latest generation of quantum computer "Hill 13" and was confidently launched for global trial.
The trial results proved the game's quality.
In just three days, players around the world experienced an incredibly realistic virtual fantasy world.
Whether it's the landscape, history, magic, culture, or technology, everything has a complete development history and unique application scenarios, making it incomparable to previous template-based games.
Moreover, each time the game is launched, the players' starting identities, positions, and even races are highly randomized, with almost no repetition.
As officially advertised, the game content of "Lord's Handbook" is virtually unlimited!
So after the trial, Allen immediately ordered the top-of-the-line gaming pod and even stayed up for several nights before his vacation to catch up on the project's progress.
So, just as the official version of the game was released during the short holiday, I immediately lay down in the game pod.
So much so that when he first woke up in this world, he thought he had fallen asleep from exhaustion while playing the game and was continuing to play in his dream.
But then, an old wizard in black robes, withered and shriveled like a dried specimen, burst into the cell, bringing him back to his senses.
The old wizard extended his thin, withered finger and gently touched Allen. Allen felt a tingling sensation like an electric current, and then his body collapsed to the ground, completely out of his control.
Then, the old wizard took out a thick iron needle and roughly stabbed it into Allen's forearm, drawing out a large amount of blood and directly plunging the newly awakened Allen into a weakened state due to severe blood loss.
It was long after the old wizard left that Allen finally regained his mobility and slowly came to terms with the situation.
"hiss……"
Allen gasped for breath in pain and died suddenly. Before he died, he saw a news article about people selling blood on the other side of the ocean. Then, the scene changed and he became a blood producer himself.
The bullet from last night hit me right between the eyebrows this morning.
He made a self-deprecating joke.
After getting up from the ground, Allen assessed his situation.
It seems that I, as a "living magical material," am imprisoned in a stone cell.
This is clearly not a normal start for someone with parents.
This stone cell contained only four mottled stone walls, nothing else, and the cell door was a heavy, locked wooden door.
Judging from the huge commotion when the old wizard in black robes closed the door, Allen guessed that even if it wasn't locked, he wouldn't be able to push the wooden door open with his strength.
It is worth noting that the stone cell was completely dark, without any windows or candles.
But Allen discovered that he could see things clearly in the dark.
"Dark vision?"
Considering the old black-robed wizard's act of drawing his own blood, it seems that the original owner may have possessed some extraordinary bloodline.
Allen explored the original owner's memories and discovered that the original owner didn't even have a name. Since the beginning of his memories, he had been kept by a slave caravan until yesterday when he was bought by the black-robed wizard.
The original owner of this body, who was deliberately kept in captivity, spent her days in a daze, eating and sleeping as if she were full, and eating again as if she were a beast, with almost no valuable memories.
If we compare the original owner's memories to a book on a bookshelf, then Allen from Earth is a library.
Therefore, Eren holds absolute dominance in the fusion with the original body.
As he was thinking, Allen noticed that the wound on his arm had scabbed over. He moved his arms and legs and found that the weakness he felt from the blood loss was also subsiding quickly.
"No wonder it was bought by the evil wizard; it turns out this bloodline is an innate blood-drawing sacred body."
Before leaving, the black-robed wizard only left behind a few hard pieces of dried meat.
It seems this old wizard in black robes is in dire financial straits; he has to do even trivial things like drawing blood himself, and he doesn't pay attention to the hygiene of his "experimental supplies."
Allen thought to himself, trying to find a bittersweet humor in his thoughts.
Now that they have confirmed their situation, the most urgent task is to escape as soon as possible.
The original owner was bought yesterday. In just one day and one night since being bought, this is the second time her blood has been drawn.
According to the black-robed wizard's blood-drawing method, Allen felt that he would be drawn to death in two or three days.
Even the most precious bones can't withstand being dug up every day!
He focused his mind on the "Lord's Handbook" in his head. Regardless of whether his transmigration was caused by this game, it was now his only hope of escaping.
Using your mind to open the manual, the three interfaces you used during the trial appeared before your eyes: [Lord], [Territory], and [Followers].
The Lord is the character controlled by the player and receives power bonuses from both Followers and Territory, making them the strongest unit.
But once the lord dies, the entire game ends.
Therefore, the lord itself is both the strongest defensive tower and the core crystal that needs the most protection. It cannot be acted upon lightly and is generally only used in the final battle.
He first opened the [Lord] panel:
Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.
Name: Allen
Race: Human
Age: 13
[Character Template: Hero]
[Level: None]
[Faction: Absolutely Neutral]
[Status: Hunger, Anemia]
Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.
Character templates are divided into Normal, Elite, Hero, Boss, Legendary, etc.
Higher-level character templates correspond to stronger growth and learning abilities.
For example, at the same level, an elite template unit would require a squad of about 4 to 5 ordinary template units to fight against.
The differences between other character templates follow the same pattern.
It seems that due to his extraordinary bloodline, Allen's initial template was that of a hero, but he just didn't have the opportunity to grow.
Allen can also use this character panel to see information about other people.
For example, he had also seen the panel of that old wizard in black robes:
Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.
【Name: Obitus - The Decayer】
Race: Human
Age: 146
[Character Template: Elite]
[Level: Wizard lv25 (lost) / Demon Slayer lv18]
[Faction: Chaos & Evil]
[Status: Extremely aged, life-threatening, half-demonized, flesh and blood mutated]
Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.
Clearly, this is an evil sorcerer who is already on the verge of death and is even willing to resort to demonic power to prolong his life.
Continuing down, the [Territory] interface popped up as an empty screen; there was nothing there yet.
"They didn't even give him his initial territory... what kind of lord is he?"
Allen was slightly disappointed, but also thought it was reasonable.
The pain in his arm, the weakness in his body, and the ruthlessness of the black-robed wizard all clearly told him that this was a real world, no longer a simulation game that could be ended at any time.
He himself is currently being bled dry, so how could he possibly have his own territory at the start of the game, like in a game?
So he quickly clicked on the last screen: [Followers].
The Follower interface is divided into two parts: a Recruitment interface and a Training interface.
Recruiting and training followers not only allows them to fight for their lord but also provides them with a power boost.
Although as long as enough resources are invested in the training interface, even a naturally crippled character can be developed into an invincible force, that's something for later stages.
In the early stages of the game, recruiting followers with good attributes who are suitable for developing your territory can make the development process much easier.
Allen looked at the [Recruit] function, which showed that each follower summon required 1 crystal.
Crystals are a universal resource that players consume when summoning and nurturing, and there are multiple ways to obtain them throughout the game.
These include, but are not limited to, lord upgrade rewards, territory expansion rewards, enemy hunting rewards, achievement rewards, etc.
In the initial state, one crystal is given as a gift.
"I hope the result won't be too bad."
Allen took a deep breath and embedded the crystal into the groove in the center of the summoning interface.
If they can't escape, this will probably be the only time he ever recruits someone in his life.
After a flash of azure starlight, three character panels appeared on the interface:
Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.
Name: Green Kingston
Race: Human
Age: 21
[Character Template: Standard]
[Faction: Lawful/Neutral]
[Level: Wizard Apprentice lv3; Alchemy lv1]
[Status: Mana Depleted]
On the panel was a pale-faced, plain-looking young man with deep eye bags, messy hair, and a very tired appearance.
Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.
Name: Tasha Lillard
Race: Human
Age: 28
[Character Template: Standard]
[Alignment: Lawful/Evil]
[Level: Thief lv5; Locksmith lv3]
[Status: Sleeping (Magic)]
The panel showed a woman wearing a half-mask, revealing only the upper half of her face, with her eyes slightly narrowed, revealing a sinister look.
-----
【Name: Solina Starchaser & Viola Starchaser】
[Race: Half-elf]
Age: 16
[Character Template: Elite]
[Level: None]
[Status: Malnutrition]
[Special: The Twins]
On the panel are two girls with identical faces, about thirteen or fourteen years old. Both are somewhat thin. The girl on the left has a calm expression, while the girl on the right has a lively expression.
Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.
"Why are they all in such bad form..."
Allen thought to himself that he was unlucky.
In the game, followers are always in good condition when they are summoned.
But this is the real world after all. If these followers are real people in this world, then it is possible that they are in various negative states.
The important thing is which follower is helpful to his current situation.
Allen immediately noticed the last pair of girls. Not only did they share a character card, but they also had an elite template and a special ability called "Interlocking Twins".
Move your consciousness to the [Special: Intertwined Twins] entry to view detailed information:
"The Twins: Solina and Viola are not only connected by blood, but their souls also shine with the same brilliance."
In the process of growth, one party can quickly learn the skills that the other has already mastered. However, if one party dies, the other cannot survive alone.
With half-elf blood, an elite template, and shared experience, the Twin Girls are clearly the most promising of the three followers.
However, having the highest potential does not help the current situation.
Allen frowned deeply as he looked at the three follower cards.
"In the past, everything was simplified in the game; followers were summoned directly to your doorstep... But now..."
Allen's concerns remained the same as before.
This is the real world, no longer just a string of data within a game.
He doesn't have the initial territory that should have been given directly according to the Lord's Handbook.
The followers who were supposed to be in good condition when recruited are now real people.
So, in what form will these supposedly loyal followers appear?
Are they summoned directly from afar and made into a contract to become one's servant?
Or is it that you can only connect with your followers remotely?
If it's the former, Allen should choose between the wizard apprentice and the female thief.
Both the magical knowledge of a wizard's apprentice and the lock-picking skills of a thief are very helpful for escaping.
If it's the latter, then the half-elf twins are the best choice. Take the time to train them, and you'll have more opportunities to share experience.
Gemini is an elite template, and their learning speed is naturally faster than others. Coupled with the special talent of the Twins, they may be able to level up quickly.
Their increased power will amplify Allen's abilities, giving him a better chance of escaping on his own.
Which one should I choose...?
Allen's margin for error is too low right now; any slight deviation between the rules of the game and reality could cost him his life.
This put him in a difficult position, making him struggle with the decision.
While the unknown extraordinary bloodline grants self-healing abilities, this ability is not without its costs.
His body, which was producing large amounts of blood, craved food, and the intense hunger had interfered with Allen's thinking.
So, ignoring the dusty jerky that had been thrown on the ground, he grabbed a piece and put it in his mouth to chew.
"Click—click—"
The boy's teeth were much sharper than those of a normal human, easily crushing the hard, wood-like jerky with a crisp chewing sound.
Allen continued to think as he ate.
Suddenly, his keen ears caught some subtle noises not far away, or more precisely, noises coming from next door.
The chewing sounds inside the stone cell stopped.