Inside his small and modest apartment, Arthur Vesper sat on his bed, staring intently at his phone, unwilling to miss even a single part of his favorite novel. After months of waiting, the sixth volume of "The Rise of the Sovereign Sword" —a story adored by many, including Arthur—had finally been released. The moment he returned home late from work, he began reading it eagerly, so absorbed that he even forgot to take off his shoes.
After several hours of reading, he tossed his phone aside onto the bed and stretched out wearily, muttering, "That was really good."
He stared at the ceiling, where faint traces of dawn light had begun to seep in, and only then did he realize he had lost track of time while reading. He wanted to get up, but his exhaustion glued him to the bed. Resigned, he thought, 'Luckily, I don't have work tomorrow.'
Before he knew it, his consciousness began to fade, and within seconds, he fell asleep just like that.
…
[ …1%…2%...99%…100% ]
[ Match Complete ]
[ Login Successful ]
"Mmm…"
Arthur's eyelids trembled, and after a brief moment, he opened his dry, tired eyes—strained from staring at his phone all night. The bright midday light greeted him, forcing him to squint, unable to see clearly.
He raised his hand to shield his eyes and thought, 'Dammit, I forgot to close the window.'
Once he regained some awareness and his eyes adjusted to the light, he moved his hand away from his face and tried to get up to close the window. But the moment he saw his surroundings—a vast expanse filled with trees and plants—his eyes widened to their limit, and all drowsiness vanished.
His mouth fell open in disbelief as he looked around in confusion before muttering,
"WTF…?"
He shot up, no longer relaxed. Despite seeing everything with perfect clarity, he couldn't believe it. After standing frozen for several minutes, he managed to regain a sliver of composure. He bent down, touching the cold, grass-covered soil, and confirmed that what he was seeing wasn't an illusion.
"Everything is real…" He looked around again before shouting loudly, his voice laced with a bitter, anxious smile, "If this is some kind of sick joke, stop it right now! This isn't funny!" He had seen prank videos where sleeping people were moved to empty locations, so that was the first thing that came to mind. But no response came.
*"…"*
Only silence. The faint rustling of leaves. A serene, beautiful stillness—but to him, it was terrifying.
"Please, stop!" he screamed in panic.
Ding!
[ Congratulations ]
[ You have received a First Login Bonus Gift ]
Suddenly, a soft notification sound echoed inside his head, making him jump in fright. He quickly scanned his surroundings warily, only to notice a translucent blue screen filled with text floating in front of his face.
He didn't understand what he was seeing, so he froze for a moment before reading the text and noticing a gift icon shaking intermittently.
"What is this?" he asked nervously, turning his head in every direction. He then realized the screen was attached to his vision—he couldn't escape it.
With fear and hesitation, he reached out and touched the gift icon. It shook violently before opening, accompanied by the familiar notification sound and several more translucent screens.
Ding!
[ Congratulations ]
[ You have obtained the Advanced Skill: Photographic Memory ]
[ You have obtained the Basic Skill: Logical Analysis ]
[ You have obtained the Advanced Skill: Dimensional Storage ]
[ You have obtained a Low-Grade Item: Rusty Sword ]
[ You have obtained a Low-Grade Item: First Aid Kit ]
Arthur read everything with a stiff expression. Before he could fully process it, a slight headache made him dizzy. He bent over, clutching his forehead in discomfort as his body broke into a light sweat. After a few agonizing minutes, his body returned to normal, and he exhaled in relief, some of the tension leaving him.
Unexpectedly, his mood had calmed, and he was no longer as terrified as he had been moments ago. Arthur was just an ordinary young man who had lived a semi-normal life.
He worked as an assistant accountant at a mid-sized company, having only just started his career. He wasn't physically strong—he barely exercised. In his free time, he usually read novels, watched anime, and occasionally documentaries. He was single, with no girlfriend in his life at the moment. As for his temperament, he was fairly average—a bit impulsive, neither particularly smart nor stupid, sometimes thinking logically and other times driven by emotions. In truth, he had mild social anxiety.
Once his mind cleared and his panic subsided, a strange thought crossed his mind: 'Could I have been transported somewhere else by some unknown force, and this thing in front of me is a system like the ones in simulation games and novels I've read?'
'This sounds insane, but given my current situation, it's the only logical explanation.' Unable to fully grasp his predicament, Arthur sat on the ground, leaning his back against a thick tree behind him. He raised his head, staring at the clear sky, and sighed heavily, his heart weighed down. "Damn it… I want to go home."
He began thinking of a solution to his problem when he noticed his mood had improved unusually—and more importantly, his memory had become unnaturally sharp. He could recall crucial survival tips from wilderness documentaries he had watched before.
'It seems the abilities the system gave me have helped calm my nerves and strengthened my memory. Let's see… If this is like fantasy stories, I should be able to summon and control the system screen.'
He cleared his mind and focused on summoning the system. Just as he expected, a translucent blue screen appeared before him, displaying his personal information.
[ Name: Arthur Lucian Vesper ]
[ Race: Human ]
[ Age: 21 ]
[ Class: None ]
[ Level: None ]
[ Abilities: Photographic Memory (Max Level), Logical Analysis (Level E), Dimensional Storage (Level D), Plot Savant ]
[ Carried Items: Modern-era clothes, fake noble seal, rusty sword, first aid kit, paper currency ]
"This is real…" Arthur scoffed at himself, unable to accept his reality.
The idea of gaining a system and developing powers—or whatever benefits it offered—was intriguing, but at the same time, terrifying. Arthur's dream wasn't to live an exciting life full of adventure. On the contrary, he just wanted to live quietly, enjoying life in the simplest way—eating delicious food, seeing beautiful sights, and eventually marrying a lovely wife and raising dutiful children who would take care of him in his old age.
He rubbed his forehead, afraid he might spiral into another panic attack. He forced himself to stop overthinking and calmed down, helplessly surrendering to his unpredictable and unknown fate.
To distract himself from the fear and loneliness, he turned his attention back to his status screen, analyzing everything.
"Plot Savant… This skill wasn't part of the login rewards. Did I already have it?" Given his familiarity with systems in novels, he tried summoning the skill's description—and succeeded as expected.
[ Plot Savant: A supreme skill. Based on your precise knowledge of this world's secrets, you can comprehend what others cannot and see what others overlook. If the storyline diverges from the main path, the skill's effectiveness decreases.]