Cid was an overpowered overlord, a mighty force beyond reckoning, a destroyer and a savior to whomever he chose… at least he was in the fantasy games he played. Back in the real world, he was just an average accountant tapping away at a portable console, slaying monsters with one hit while he sat on a bench within his workplace's canteen. A final level-up got his character to level 99 and fully maxed out his stats, and now he had nothing to do but kill the final boss and finish the game. “Heh. I’ll go beat him with just my fists.”
“...If that happened to me then I’m definitely going to woo all their women!”
“You think your chances will improve just because you’re in a different world? That’s a good joke.”
Cid ripped his eyes away from the screen and stared at his colleagues chuckling to themselves.
“What’s up? What are we talking about?” Cid smiled and leaned closer, intrigued by the words he overheard.
“Oh, look. Cid’s finally back with us, what a miracle!” The taller of the two exclaimed—Jack, a hazel-haired man in the same dark suit as the three of them.
“Look at this, Cid.” The shorter and rounder blond man, Finn, pushed his phone towards Cid, highlighting a news article about an alleyway where people disappeared without a trace. “This is on the news! Spooky magical stuff!”
“This stupid muffin thinks it’s some gateway to a fantasy world.” Jack scoffed.
“Muffin!? Hey! If you keep flirting that hard, then I won’t be able to stop myself.” Fin winked and pulled his collared shirt aside in fake attraction.
“Hahah! Shut up, you imp! HR will get up on our grill if they hear your nonsense again. Last time was bad enough.” Jack shrugged him off with a smile.
“I’m telling you, it’s definitely a portal to–”
Cid grabbed Finn’s phone and sifted through it for more pieces of information. The article itself didn’t explain much other than warnings, but a secondary search led to all sorts of posts and blogs addressing the rumors with click-baiting titles.
A few said it was a portal to hell while others suggested it hid mysterious wonderlands full of adventure. Some even argued that the rumors were fabricated by criminals trying to catch naive victims for their black market operations. Everyone said everything, and everything was nothing.
“Maybe some divine being will grant us powers on the other side, Jack… I’ll pick super strength.” Finn rubbed his chin dreamily.
“Oh I’d pay to see you beefed up. It’ll probably look like a ball of muscle just rolling because you’re so tiny!” Jack laughed and clapped.
“That’s not what super strength means, you dunce!” Finn pouted.
Cid searched deeper on the web, not satisfied with what he learned so far, and found active forums discussing more theories in detail. A small number of messages were written with disdain and unnecessary hate, yet many chose to theorize about it with glee, even going as far as forming threads that evolved to co-written stories.
Government testing, advanced alien tech, ancient civilizations or some societal syndrome. As he expected, nobody had a clue about the origin of the rumors, but the possibility still excited Cid.
“Hey, Finn. Maybe you’re right. Maybe it’ll take us somewhere magical with flying horses and all that. We should go look for this alleyway.” Cid offered the phone back with a smile.
“I’m totally down!” The short man slammed the table, his glowing face as animated as a hyperactive puppy.
“Seriously, you two? It’s fine to daydream about these things, but if it’s in the news, then what if it’s something serious?” Jack shook his head mockingly. His concern was valid, but it didn’t change Cid’s mind.
“Then we’ll discover what that is. Isn’t that still exciting? It might kickstart our detective careers.” Cid chuckled.
“Not for me. Count me out.” Jack raised his hands disapprovingly.
“I’m down, but I have to do something after work first. I’ll call you when I’m free though.” Finn tapped Cid’s shoulder.
“You two are nuts… I’ll prepare a eulogy, I guess.”
“Cid, Cid! What kind of powers would you have if you went to a world like that?” Finn leaned closer, his happy eyes reflecting the stars.
“What else? Absolute Domination.”
“Like mind control? Or just overwhelming dominance of–”
Finn and Cid drowned in their endless fantasies, each of their questions and thoughts building on the other. They both worked in the same department, so they never stopped their conversation even after lunch.
The four dreadful hours of work which they normally had to endure became an illusion, cut down by their endless words. It wasn't long before they found themselves at the end of their shift, but that wasn’t enough to stop them from talking.
“I don’t think a gun can kill the demon lord in one shot.” Cid huffed.
“Of course it will. It’s a super fast attack. It doesn’t matter if a fireball does more damage, that’s still only magical damage. This is like a hybrid, so he wouldn’t expect it putting a hole in his brain.” Finn argued back.
“Holy shit, you two are still going on about that fantasy stuff?” Jack walked to them with his mouth agape.
“Jack, a bullet versus–”
“Don’t drag me into this, Finn. My head hurts too much after today. Let’s just head home.” Jack sighed and walked out of the building towards a parking lot.
Cid walked behind them on instinct but then stopped and turned towards a nearby alleyway—its lightless hollow becoming unreasonably alluring after he let his imagination run wild.
“Cid, you coming?” Jack called.
“I… I’m going to walk back home today.” Cid shook his head.
“Be careful!” Finn waved at Cid and then kicked Jack’s leg.
“Ugh! You bastard!” Jack tossed his briefcase aside and ran after him.
Cid watched the two grown adults chase each other like children. It was pathetic enough to make him laugh, but it was the reason he liked them so much.
“Idiots…”
Cid let his smile linger as he headed towards the foreboding abyss. A sense of adventure pushed him into the unknown and he delved deeper into the dark only to appear on the other side with nothing to show for it.
“And I guess I’m an idiot too…” Cid chuckled and looked at several other grimy and narrow places around him.
“What’s the worst that can happen? It’s not a crime to dream.”
Cid walked through more slices of darkness within the buildings, but the passageways never took him anywhere magical and unexpected, just from one street to another. He still refused to lose heart and continued visiting different pathways for hours and hours—all while miraculously not getting shanked in the process.
The search lasted so long that eventually his body just moved on auto-pilot while he fantasized about fighting gangsters that wanted to kidnap him. The alleyways were so nicely dim that he could vividly imagine the scenes before him.
He suddenly walked into something that hit his waist, stopping him from proceeding.
“Huh?”
There was a white radiant desk in the middle of the alleyway. Or rather, in the middle of the void—the familiar roads behind him had disappeared, replaced with an all-consuming darkness that extended infinitely to the horizon. There was no fanfare, no blaring horns, no grand explosions nor magical effects to welcome him. He simply walked into an unnaturally dark backstreet, narrowly sandwiched between two worn-out buildings, and abruptly found himself in a lightless room.
“Oh snap! Did I get spirited away!? Awesome!” Disregarding his concerning situation, Cid’s face lit up brightly while he stared at the shiny desk, not once doubting the safety of the room.
Shimmering rosy particles appeared behind the desk, spinning around until a low resonating whomp reformed them into the shape of a well-featured woman with flowy coral hair and a graceful silk dress hugging her blessed figure which easily made anyone jealous. Everything about her screamed divine, aside from her pink irises that were unnaturally segmented into four diagonal parts, creating the illusion of a plus in the center.
“Ah, a human!” The woman smiled excitedly.
“Wh-Where am I? This is a gate to another world, right!? Then make me impervious to all damage! Give me that ability!” Cid already went over this scenario with Finn and was mentally prepared for it—he had no patience for the pleasantries, nor the whole song and dance of asking questions.
“Huh? Hahaha! Oh my! You already know how our system works? But impervious to damage… That’s a tall order… Try something else.” The woman tapped her rosy lips playfully, her perfect smile unbreaking.
“Oh man, oh man! I need to think of this one then… I need something really strong so…” Cid paced back and forth enthusiastically, envisioning the muscular heroes and powerful warriors he could become... The emperors and kings too! Which one should he be? What power would give him the most fun and comfort? The greatest road to lordship?
The woman moved closer to the desk and started shuffling through the drawers.
“Well, I still need to explain your position to you and calibrate your body. The lesser kin follow a strict manual to calm humans down, but you look so ready and willing to be a test subject for our reformation system, I’m glad to see that. I hope you know how valuable your experience is for improving our infant experimental system.” She leaned further down, pulling more drawers open to sift through them.
Cid suddenly froze, his head slowly creaking towards her in surprise.
“What did you say? Test… subject? ‘Test’ like an exam sheet? And… ‘subject’ as in math and history, right?” Cid was sure he misheard her, he was too fond of his organs to lose them in a place as suspicious as this.
Unfortunately, her words made sense. People were mysteriously vanishing beyond the reach of the police. The people who disappeared were never found either, so abductions for illegal experimentation fit the mold perfectly.
“Hmm… Did I overshare? The lesser kin are so fussy about me breaking your minds by saying more than I should… Oh well… It’s not like you can resist us, so I don’t know why they’re hiding our true intentions… Now… They told me they stored the data sets here but I don’t see anything… What a pathetic bunch…” The woman sighed and straightened up, her smile returning when her sights landed on Cid again.
For some reason, her cheerful grin stopped feeling so friendly… And her eyes, did she blink even once since she showed up?
“Don’t worry, human. I still remember some parts of the script they used on another tester… Ahem… Welcome, player, to a world of heroes and legends! To a realm of fun challenges and rewarding adventure! To your dreams realized in our specially designed game system!”
The haunting woman’s unblinking smile and theatrical gestures added to her creepiness, but none of that mattered after she uttered the magic words.
“G-Game system? What do you mean?”
“A game system! We actually have several systems based on different worlds and realms. Lucky for you, the one you’ll use is from yours, so you should be familiar with it, hm? It’s called a Ra’peg.”
“A… what?” Cid was very knowledgeable when it came to games and game systems, portable consoles and desktops too. That ancient-sounding relic was far from human.
“Strange. I heard it was rather popular in your realm. Maybe you’re more familiar with its shape rather than its name?” The woman snapped her fingers, commanding astral glitter to form the pearlescent letters R, P and G.
“An RPG? Wait, a role-playing game!?” Cid’s eyes lit up again, even brighter than before. Even if the ominous undertone of her conversation had the words “test subject” in it, he would gladly sell his soul if it meant entering a game world, especially an RPG. It wasn’t the fantasies of endless power he imagined but who would say no to that?
“Correct, and you’ll actually live your role instead of playing it, so ‘role-living game’ is more accurate in this context? Heheh… Ahem… Without further ado… choose your role!” The woman pressed her arms against the desk and leaned forward with great anticipation behind her unnatural eyes.
“Gladly! I’m ready!” Cid raised his fists up with an excited grin, waiting for anything to pop up in front of him with his possible RPG classes.
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She kept staring at him motionlessly, her smile frozen in time.
“...C-Can I see the roles?”
“I don’t have them. Your roles are on that data set the lesser kin misplaced. Oh, don’t worry, I’ll ensure they’re restructured into a chew toy for this a grave misconvenience. Hmm… The lesser kins aren’t allowed to proceed without the data sets, but thankfully, I am an exception and I do as I please. So tell me a role you’re familiar with and I’ll search it up and assign it to you.”
“Demon Lord!” Cid’s eyes glimmered like a child’s.
“Demon Lord? You can only be a basic class at the start.”
“Demon Lord is a basic class! How would you know it isn’t? I’m sure it’s written right there in the data thing. How embarrassing that you don’t know that simple fact.” Cid glared at her, trying his best to sell his bluff through false anger.
“You can’t be a lord at the start, it’s common sense so common that even commoners commonly know it.” She wiggled her finger at him with a playful wink.
“Not if you’re born a lord!” Cid shot a determined finger towards her with a scowl.
‘Tsk… I probably can’t fool her into giving me a powerful class right off the bat… I need a basic class with the potential to become really overpowered… From my experience with video games, I know that mages and rogues usually have setups that are hard to balance early on… Since she said this system is experimental, that means it’s in beta… so there’s a chance the classes are not fully balanced yet.’
Cid nodded confidently.
“Alright then, listen up… The role that I want… is a Rogue.”
“Oh. What’s a Rogue? I’m not getting a ping in our system, so maybe they labeled it as something else?” She tilted her head innocently.
“Can I get one of your lesser kins instead of you? This feels more difficult than it should be…”
“The audacity… If you knew how high up the chain of command I am, you’d burst into atoms from the mere embarrassment. Fortunately for you, that’s what I adore about your kind. You never fail to surprise me.”
The woman’s eyes narrowed condescendingly.
“But don’t worry. Simply explain what a Rogue is and I’ll send you off to your new life. I’ll even give you a few bonus skills, something those lesser kin of mine are forbidden from doing.”
Cid perked up and quickly glanced down in thought. He imagined several badass hooded figures hiding in the shadows, sprinting out in a blur with impressively high agility, and using poisoned daggers and crossbows to make others bleed—the Special Ops of the fantasy world.
Cid’s eyes narrowed with a sultry look as he imagined an arrow piercing a monstrous troll. He bit his bottom lip sensually when the imaginary attack summoned a large golden number above the monster—easily in the millions—suffixed by the words Critical hit!
“Mmm… High damage is so good… Okay, so a rogue is a quick character who’s all about building status effects by dual-wielding weapons. They’re cunning and crafty, the type to hide in shadows, scanning for weak points to strike for massive critical damage.”
The woman gazed up at the ceiling, her eyes shimmering visibly like a computer monitor processing digital codes.
“Hmm… Description search… Let’s see… Quick character… Building statues and effects… Dual-Welding weapons… Cunning and Craftsy… Shadows and weak points…”
“Wait, I feel like you said some of those things incorrect–”
“Ah, the system found something! Alright, role assigned.”
She suddenly leaned over the desk and squeezed the air, the simple gesture pulled Cid closer as if gripped by an invisible giant. He was close enough to see her segmented irises cluster together in a look not so different from a cat’s pupils contracting. On the bright side, she smelled sweet and floral.
“Remember this well, human… This is not a simulation. We will send you to a living, breathing world full of real creatures and other players like you. You will die if you’re not careful… Please survive long enough to yield good results, an entire civilization relies on you.”
“Huh? Can you elaborate on the-”
The woman snapped her fingers and a blinding light swept through Cid uncomfortably. It wasn’t painful, just incredibly hot, like putting on freshly ironed clothes.
[Calibration in-progress. Retrieving personal information to build a personalized database for Player Cid, Identification Serial 13720199.]
[Reconstructing cells… Complete.]
[Assigning personal support system… Complete.]
[Distributing VRISDAF augmentations… Error – Incompatible with outdated role.]
[Mapping assigned role… Error – Outdated role clashes with current system modules. Suggestion: Default to Fighter role.]
[Master bypass detected – Insertion of Legacy role authorized by Grand Arch Matron Eiela.]
[Synchronization complete. Teleporting to Spawn Area #4.]
Cid winced but then slowly opened his eyes to find himself standing in the middle of a lush green forest full of vibrant vegetation. The pleasant fresh scent of lavender and something earthy invaded his senses.
The first thing he noticed was how his clothes changed to a gray tunic and black pants, both wrapped in ebony leather guards that looked too plain but still nicely matched his dark and flowy neck-length hair.
A soft beep tickled his ears as a digital emerald panel unfurled with a message.
[Welcome, adventurer! Your game has started. You are fully unbound and have complete reign over your personal progress and actions. Your VRISDAF stats have been adjusted based on your Legacy role…]
“Ahh… ‘Welcome, adventurer…’ This feels like a dream…” Cid grinned and continued reading.
[The system responds to your cognitive commands, therefore gesturing is unnecessary, mental inputs are enough. Try using it on the following tabs: Objectives, Recipes, Inventory, Status, Help.]
Cid took a deep breath and closed his eyes, taking a moment to enjoy the crystal clear breeze seeping into his lungs. He bathed in the sensation of pleasantly cool wind against his skin and listened to the rustling of leaves calmly tickling his ears. Everything around him was beautifully vivid.
“Nice… Ahh… She still said I could die, but I should be able to avoid that with my knowledge of RPGs… First things first, I summon you, status!” Cid outstretched his hand with flair, snapping open another green screen.
________________________
Name: Cid Renz.
Class: Novice Crafter.
HP: 50/50
Level: 1 (0/10)
Skills: [Swift Dash], [Shadow’s Presence], [Weakpoint Exploit].
Passives: [Crafter’s Vow], [Builder’s Resilience], [Quick Build].
________________________
“Crafter…? I knew she misheard me… Hmm… Where are my stats?”
Cid was familiar with the status windows listing off a character’s strength, speed, vigor, intelligence and more, so the fact the woman called it a role-playing game meant he should’ve had them in the status panel. They were incredibly important for growing powerful in these games.
As if to answer his questions, a smaller window popped up with a message.
[Help: Where are my stats? — The Crafter’s role dynamic outdates the established leveling up system, therefore the Legacy role of Crafter lacks conventional VRISDAF stats and other additions. However, it unlocks recipes upon leveling up.]
“Huh!? Who the hell cares about recipes!? I’m not trying to be a chef! Tsk… What about my skills then? What do they mean?” Cid asked with a scowl, his dreams shattering before he even started the game.
The status window changed:
________________________
Skills:
[Swift Dash]
Double your running speed.
(Two minute use. Two minute cooldown.)
[Shadow’s Presence]
Become invisible in darkness and half visible out of it. Generate less noise and presence when active.
(Two minute use. Five minute cooldown.)
[Weakpoint Exploit]
Can see and automatically target weakpoints for 300% more damage.
(Five minutes use or until triggered. Five minute cooldown.)
…
________________________
“Three hundred percent!?” Cid couldn’t stop himself from grinning like he won the lottery. A powerful skill that gave him a hefty damage increase right at the start was a welcome boon to a stat-less life.
“RPGs are usually packed full of equipment, weapons and gear, so if this world is following the same rules, there should be weapons with varying levels of damage. It doesn’t matter if I can’t strengthen myself with stats, with the right gear I can still…”
Cid imagined himself holding a large violet greatsword in his hands, lunging at a black-scaled dragon with a wide swing that sent a darkbound arc of purple light forward. It sliced not only the beast’s neck but also the mountain behind it and even the sun in the far distance. That was his goal.
With an elated grin, Cid quickly looked down at the remaining skills.
________________________
Passives:
[Crafter’s Vow]
You do 500% more damage against resource deposits and structures but only 25% of your total damage against creatures.
[Builder’s Resilience]
You have resistance against environmental and structure-based damage, and you recover all your health and energy when you interact with a bed.
[Quick Builder]
Instantly construct mastered recipes where feasible. Obstructed constructions will lose their integrity and break quicker.
________________________
“Only 25% of my damage!? Not only am I crippled with my inability to improve my stats, but I’m also weakened naturally against anything that isn’t a resource deposit!? Are there even monsters tagged as resource deposits!?”
Cid fumed and crossed his arm.
“First of all, why a Crafter!? None of the RPGs I ever played had a Crafter class as a main thing! I’ve never heard of a hero who saves the world by building a house! Ridiculous!”
A sudden snappy flash of crimson blinded the irritated Cid, interrupting his tantrum. He winced and waited for the glow to settle before looking at its source.
Blazing red particles danced around a woman who had messy scarlet hair and a hateful glower. She was dressed in the same plain tunic and dark leathers as Cid.
‘Another player? Normally I’d be happy to go and greet her, but from my experience with online games… a lot of people love to stab you and then say hi to your corpse afterwards… Let’s see if she’s friendly first.’
The woman inhaled deeply, as if trying to fill her lungs entirely with air.
“That bastard! I’ll gut his intestines and turn him to soup for the vultures! Then I’ll turn the vultures into dog chew for wolves and then feed those mutts to the sharks!” the woman shouted with all of her fury directed towards the clouds above.
Cid gulped, it was apparent he wasn’t the only one who had a bad experience with the entities that transported them here.
Her burning crimson eyes suddenly shot towards him, her gaze fierce, akin to a provoked beast. Cid stepped back, raising both of his hands up reflexively.
“Y-Yeah, that guy sure was annoying, huh? I’d love to gut him too! Hahah…” He chuckled nervously and moved further back.
She kept her glare going for a little longer then looked back in front of her and simply stood there, as still as a statue while her intense eyes traced something unseen.
‘Is she reading her welcome message? I guess I can’t see her panel… Oh. I still haven’t fully explored mine, so if you’ll excuse me…’
Cid moved his hand in front of him with an exaggerated motion.
‘Quests!’
With just his thought and a proud gesture, he forced open a green information window.
________________________
[Objectives]
-Tier 1:
Gather wood (0/20)
Gather stone (0/20)
Build a workbench (0/1)
Craft a stone axe (0/1)
Gather Deadwood (0/50)
Gather Heirachtic ore (0/50)
-Tier 2: [Locked]
Craft an iron axe [Locked]
Build a bed [Locked]
Build a closed structure [Locked]
…
________________________
Cid sighed deeply. The quests, the skills and even his class reminded him of those relaxing games where people made houses and gathered materials all day. It was not the exciting rush of killing monsters and dragons for treasure, nor the tense exploration of dangerous dungeons and satisfyingly grueling boss fights to level up.
Still, he was curious if that was all to it. Surely even a builder had to fight something at some point. The green panel grayed out the higher tier objectives with a lock icon next to them, but he was able to see them. So he scrolled down using his finger in the hopes of catching a glimpse of his future.
Cid’s eyes widened, the first few tiers were idle tasks but the final tier asked him to defeat something called a Destroyer. It sounded combat-oriented and powerful.
While he was trying to imagine what kind of creature it was, the woman suddenly shouted with all of her might like an unrestrained warrior.
“INVENTORY!”
Cid flinched and covered his ear as her voice travelled past the trees with an impressive range.
‘What’s wrong with her!? Didn’t she read the welcome message? She only has to use her thoughts… What an idiot.’
Cid shook his head with a scornful sense of superiority and swiped the air with an exaggerated motion.
‘Inventory!’
________________________
[Blueprint]
Can save equipment, items or structures as a recipe | Tool | Infinite uses.
________________________
“Huh? That’s it?”
Cid slumped his shoulders. He didn’t even have gear that he could use to fight, he was cruelly deprived of everything.
A snarling sound within the bushes interrupted his sulking form, drawing his eyes to three wolves with dark gray fur moving to him with a predatory gait. He quickly jumped away and tensed up.
‘Wolves! A starter enemy! Dammit, if only I had a–’
“Equip sword!” the woman shouted with authority in her voice, commanding scarlet sparkles to coalesce in her hand and form a double-edged blade with a dark pommel.
She ran past Cid without hesitation and recklessly swung her sword through a beast’s head, instantly severing it in two as if it was made of soft cake.
Another wolf leaped closer and gnawed on her non-dominant arm with the same fearlessness as her.
She flinched and hastily stabbed its stomach with equal ferocity. She was so focused on her kill that she didn’t notice the third wolf gliding to her leg, its sharp teeth instantly piercing her.
“Argh! Get off me!”
She kicked the beast away like it was a featherweight toy and then quickly leaped to it before it could reorient itself. Both of her feet crashed against its body with an audible crack, forcing a yelp out of the beast.
The woman smashed the sole of her boot against it over and over again, mindlessly collecting viscera and gore under her leather boots. She didn’t relent her attacks even after the poor beast stopped moving.
Cid audibly winced and his shoulders jerked in rhythm with the sound of her stomps. He found it hard not to feel a sympathetic pity for the wolves.
She finally stopped when she exhausted herself, her modest chest heaving as she leaned over the dead carcasses to catch her breath. Her manic smile and the blood covering her limbs gave her a terrifying image belonging to some serial killer.
“Heh… Heheh… That man wasn’t lying… I just make my body move and it does the rest for me… This feels…”
The woman looked at Cid, her face softening pleasantly.
“This feels so good! Fighting feels so good, it beats any virtual reality game I tried! We need to find more wolves, you seriously should give it a shot!” She laughed with childish innocence contrasting the brutal damage she inflicted.
The way she talked about it made her seem deranged… but the joy she showed sparked a curiosity inside of Cid, a want that grew into a need. Fighting dangerous creatures as easily as she did was definitely his plan.
‘Ahh… A game system that lets us fight beasts and experience the thrill of combat… A game world full of hidden treasures and dungeons, quests and bosses… I want to experience it all!’
Cid didn’t realize it, but he was smiling as widely as she was, spurred on by his own thoughts.
‘Seriously… How bad could being a Crafter in an RPG world really be?’
