It was suffocating...!
I found myself in a place of unimaginable darkness and unease. It wasn't just dim or shadowy—this was pitch-black nothingness stretching in every direction. It was so suffocating, I would've gladly taken a swim in Venus's acidic oceans over being stuck here.
I stood in the middle of it all, surrounded by absolute void. My heart kept tightening with every passing second, every random thought. I just stood there, staring into the emptiness, one breath away from completely losing it.
It felt like I was about to fall. Like standing upright was just some illusion my brain was forcing on me, while reality was something else entirely... like I was both grounded and falling at the same time.
GREK
GREK
GREK
Suddenly...
What the hell was that? I felt something shift around me. The space, or whatever this place was, started shaking. Not like an earthquake—more like the whole place was... twitching. I don't even know how to describe it. It was weird as hell. Just plain wrong.
GREK
GREK
GREK
There it was again! Something's definitely off here, I thought, trying to calm myself down. I kept telling myself, It's fine. It's okay. Everything's gonna be alright.
But then a thought hit me outta nowhere:
'It's not like I'm gonna get thrown into some warand-power-hungry world where I get fucked over repeatedly, all so the 'Author' can milk some character development arcs out of my suffering.'
…Huh? What? Why the hell am I thinking like that?
'No no no no no', I tried to calm myself down again, but at this point it felt less like reassurance and more like I was fighting off a full-blown panic attack.
And honestly? I wasn't that far from one. The whole situation reminded me of that panicked SpongeBob meme. You know the one.
'WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH ME?!'
Why am I switching between paranoid, existential dread one moment and casual thoughts like my life isn't at risk the next?
The suffocation kept getting worse with each passing second. I tried to move .... To do something, anything to save myself, to cling to my life—but it was like my body had straight-up stopped listening.
I just stood there, frozen. Eyes wide open, never blinking. Not even once. My eyeballs were starting to burn, like someone had rubbed them with sandpaper. And the more I stared into this endless darkness, the closer I felt to losing it. Mentally. Completely.
I wasn't even a person anymore. Just a puppet.... motionless, lifeless, waiting for the puppeteer to give me my next twitch. Whoever or Whatever was pulling the strings was clearly having a good time, watching me spiral. Probably laughing. Probably judging me.
GREK
GREK
GREK
There it was again... that damn sound. I've only heard it, what, twice in the last eight seconds? But I already hate it more than the bastard judge who gave my ex half my income in the divorce.
And trust me—I didn't think I'd ever hate anything more than that guy.
Hmm… it stopped?
Just like that, the weird sound I'd grown to passionately hate went silent.
But there was still something inside me.....Some gut-deep unease, like my instincts knew something worse was about to hit. Something louder. Something bigger.
GREK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
"HERE IT IS!" I screamed in my head as that damn sound came back with a vengeance—ten times louder and a hundred times more annoying. But this time, it didn't come alone.
A second sound followed it, like a freaking church bell ringing straight into my skull—and through the endless void.
GRATUS ESTO DOMINO!!!
..…What the hell was that supposed to mean?
{DING! The Archmage Template Has Activated!}
{The Archmage Template is a system that links you to the greatest mage who ever lived. You'll gain access to their spells, inherit their talents, and earn powerful titles.}
{More information will be provided on the other side of the Great Path… once you complete your first mission.}
{Do your worst}
What the hell is this??
Out of nowhere, a golden, transparent screen popped up right in front of me—hovering in the air like some budget RPG tutorial. The words were written in this overly fancy script that made my eyes hurt just trying to read them.
And… Chat, am I cooked?
WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK?! Why am I having these weird thoughts again?! First existential dread, now I'm thinking in UI panels and game logic?
"UGH..." I groaned as I opened my eyes, immediately squinting as sunlight hit them like a slap. I wasn't annoyed by the sun, though—if anything, I was relieved to feel it again.
I was just… irritated. For no reason. And I had no idea why.
As my vision adjusted, I saw the sky above me—bright blue, scattered with white clouds lazily floating by. Branches of a Sakura tree hung overhead, some of its petals drifting down and landing on me, one after another like a soft, floral rain.
Before I could even start processing where the hell I was, a voice echoed in my head again.
{Assigning first mission to the host!}
{1: Please shove a hot iron rod down Shimura Danzo's ass 😊Reward: Forbidden Knowledge of Assassin Magic, 100,000 System Points, Body of Shadow, Title "The Revenger", Gift Package**
{2: Please burn down Kumogakure 😊Reward: The Spear of Thunder, 300,000 System Points, The Eye of the Dragon, Title "The Burner", Gift Package**
{3: Kill a tiger 😒Reward: Fireball Magic, Fire Arrow Magic, 100 System Points, Gift Package**