Leon's Pov
The warmth of her tears soaked through my shirt, a damp, unwelcome intrusion against my skin. Sarah clung to me, a fragile, trembling weight, her sobs a raw, ragged rhythm in the quiet of my room. The air, usually still and undisturbed, vibrated with the heavy, unspoken grief that radiated from her.
I watched as tears, like tiny, shimmering shards of glass, traced paths down her flushed cheeks, each one a stark testament to the world she'd left behind. A world where sunlight danced on familiar streets, where laughter echoed in warm, crowded rooms, and where the simple comfort of belonging was an ever-present hum beneath the surface of everyday life.
"What happened?" I asked, the question a hollow echo in the face of her overwhelming sorrow. It was a question I already knew the answer to, a formality in the face of her shattered composure. She missed home. The simple, devastating truth hung heavy in the air between us.
Her embrace tightened, a desperate, almost pleading grip. I could feel the frantic beat of her heart against my chest, a frantic drumbeat against the silence. She was a ghost, haunted by the memories of a life that was now forever out of reach.
"You should've thought about these things before dying," I said, my voice a low, gravelly murmur against her ear. The words were harsh, a jagged edge against the soft curve of her grief, but they were true. "You left such a good life and came with me. I had no one left in that world, but you had a family."
The words, meant to be a cold, hard dose of reality, seemed to only amplify her despair. I felt a flicker of something akin to guilt, a sharp, unwelcome pang in my chest. But I couldn't afford sentimentality. Not here. Not now.
Her sobs intensified, a wave of raw emotion that threatened to drown us both. She was a fragile bird, trapped in a cage of her own making, her wings beating helplessly against the bars of her past. And I, bound by the harsh realities of this world, could offer her nothing but the cold, unyielding truth.
Her tears were a relentless tide against my resolve. Any other guy, Luca excluded, of course, would've instinctively pulled her close, offered soothing words, a comforting embrace. They'd have become a warm, solid anchor in her storm of grief. But I wasn't wired that way. I couldn't afford to be.
The thought of Sarah becoming dependent on me, of her fragile emotions weaving themselves into some kind of clinging vine, sent a shiver of unease down my spine. I needed her to be strong, self-sufficient, a survivor, not a damsel in distress.
"Leon... Even though I miss my old life a lot, I believe that I have taken the right decision. Even now.... if I have to choose between staying here with you and going to our previous world without you, I will choose to stay here with you. So..... please... don't leave me alone," she choked out, her voice thick with tears, her eyes pleading.
The words hung in the air, a declaration that felt both absurd and unsettling. Love? For a stranger? A man she'd known for barely a day? It was ludicrous. She was choosing me, a stranger, over the life she knew, the family she loved. It was an irrational, emotional plea that grated against my sense of logic.
Don't fuck with me. The thought pulsed through my mind, a dark, simmering anger. I couldn't understand, and frankly, I didn't want to. I needed to steer her away from this emotional quicksand, back towards the harsh realities of our situation.
"Don't you think that we should try to become strong as soon as possible, otherwise we won't be able to survive?" I said, my voice deliberately flat, devoid of any hint of sympathy.
"Can I stay like this for some time?" she mumbled, her voice muffled against my shirt.
"As you wish," I replied, inwardly wincing. The sheer intensity of her hug was bordering on a full-body squeeze, like being embraced by a particularly enthusiastic octopus. Still, I figured a little comfort wouldn't hurt. So, with a sigh, I awkwardly patted her back, a gesture as stiff as a rusty robot.
"Thank you so much, Leon," she sniffled, her voice thick with emotion.
"By the way, since we're going to be in this… position… for a while," I said, seizing the opportunity, "can you explain the fundamental theories of magic? You know, while we're here?"
She pulled back slightly, her eyes narrowing. "This is exactly why you're single, Leon."
"Hey, knowledge is power," I protested. "And, speaking of power, I can feel your… assets."
"So? Are they to your liking?" she purred, a mischievous glint in her eyes.
Before I could formulate a witty retort, she pressed herself even closer, and, to my utter mortification, started… rubbing. My face flushed crimson.
"Please stop doing this," I groaned, my voice barely a whisper. This was a level of awkwardness I hadn't even considered possible.
"Hmmmmm? I can't hear you," she said, tilting her head, a devilish grin playing on her lips. "If you want me to stop, you have to properly tell me what and how is it wrong with it. Be specific."
She tilted her head, a picture of innocent curiosity, though I suspected she was enjoying my discomfort far too much. "Since you're not telling me about your… experience here," I said, my voice strained, "let me tell you about mine."
"Hmm?" she hummed, clearly amused.
I launched into a detailed, slightly frantic, explanation of everything I'd gleaned about this bizarre world: the system, leveling, the infuriatingly persistent "bug," the whole shebang. I needed to distract myself, and apparently, rambling about digital interfaces was my coping mechanism.
"So, yeah, it's basically a glorified video game, except, you know, we're actually in it," I concluded, gesturing vaguely.
"What command did you use to turn on your system menu?" she asked, her eyes sparkling with newfound interest.
"Lots of them," I replied, "but none of them worked. I tried 'Open Menu,' 'System Access,' even 'Show Me the Magic Pixels,' but nada."
"Try this one also. 'Player Status'," she suggested, a hint of a smirk playing on her lips.
"Player status," I repeated, my voice flat, expecting nothing.
And then, a blue screen materialized before my eyes, glowing with a cool, digital light. My jaw dropped. "What the…?"
"See?" she said, a triumphant grin spreading across her face. "Sometimes, you just need the right cheat code."
Shishio Leon
Level: 4
Weapons: None
Jobs: None
Equipments: Otherworldly Clothes
Stats:
STR: 27
VIT: 19
AGI: 21
DEX: 22
INT: 29
MP: 280,000
HP: 190,000
Skills: None
My eyes widened as I stared at the glowing blue screen. "S-Sarah, my MP is 280,000," I stammered, my voice barely above a whisper. I knew there had to be some kind of cheat code, some hidden advantage.
Sarah, however, seemed unfazed. "Don't be so surprised," she said, a hint of amusement in her voice. "Even a small magic requires more than 1000 MP. You'll burn through that pretty quickly if you're not careful."
"But… 280,000?" I repeated, my gaze fixed on the absurdly large number.
"Yes, but it's relative," she explained. "It's like having a huge bank account, but everything costs a fortune. Sure, you have a lot of money, but you're not exactly swimming in it." She then added, a slight edge of surprise in her tone. "But I have to admit, your MP is much more than mine."
"Oh," I said, the initial shock wearing off. "So, it's just a big number. Meaning only the numbers are more, not the actual power."
"Exactly," she confirmed, nodding. "Don't get too excited. Now, let's see what else that fancy screen of yours can tell us."
Suddenly, Sarah's Status also popped up.
Tokino Sarah
Level: 1
Weapons: None
Jobs: None
Equipments: Otherworldly Clothes
Stats:
STR: 14
VIT: 12
AGI: 14
DEX: 13
INT: 17
MP: 200,000
HP: 120,000
Skills: None
Sarah's status screen flashed into existence beside mine, a stark, numerical contrast. Tokino Sarah. Level one. The numbers were… underwhelming.
"You're right," I said, my voice carefully neutral. "My stats are higher than yours. Maybe it's because I'm level four. I killed a lot of weak monsters in the jungle before, which increased my level and this difference is because of that."
"So, it's like that," Sarah said, a hint of accusation in her tone. "You went leveling without telling me?"
I didn't want that fairy to know that we can raise our levels. I was waiting for her to leave the whole time. I'm still not clear whether she is listening to our conversation or not. And If I didn't have told Sarah now, it would've been too late.
"By the way, how did you find out about the system?" I asked.
"Silph told me," she replied casually. "By the way, can you show me your status?"
"I don't understand. You can see it, right?" I asked.
"No, your status window is still hidden from other people. If you want everyone else to see it, you'll have to go to settings and unhide it. You can change system speed, transparency, distance, etc., in settings. And the thing you were saying about your system lagging? That was happening because the system speed was very low, which was on default. You can enter multiple commands to open the status window in settings. You can also open the status window with your preferred choreographic movements."
"Choreographic movements?" I raised an eyebrow. "Seriously?"
"Yep," she said, nodding. "Like a magical dance. Just make sure you don't look like you're having a seizure."
"How do I get to settings?" I asked, ignoring the dance comment.
"There are four icons in the upper left corner. Click on the one that looks like a gear."
I glanced up and, sure enough, there were four tiny icons. When I had some free time, I'd definitely explore the others. For now, I clicked the gear icon and a plethora of options sprang to life.
"Wow… this is how a real system should be," I muttered, impressed.
"Right?" she said, a hint of smugness in her voice.
I unhid my status window, allowing Sarah to see it. "Your every stat is higher than mine," she observed.
"Yeah, because my stats have been increased by leveling," I said, stating the obvious.
"Can you take me leveling as well?" she asked, her eyes wide.
"I don't think I can right now," I said, glancing around. "There's a barrier all around us, and I've already cleared out the weak monsters nearby."
"Then we'll have to wait until morning," she said, a hint of disappointment in her voice.
"Yeah," I agreed, a sigh escaping my lips. "Unless you know some magic choreographic movement that can break barriers, that is."