In the Nardi Kingdom, on the Scorpion Continent, specifically within the royal palace, Roman sat alone in his room, drinking. Outside, the day was bright, but inside the prince's chamber, it was the opposite. The room was completely dark, and in its center sat Roman Nardi, the drunken prince and disgrace of the royal family.
"Damn them, how dare they lock me in my room! Luckily, I hid some bottles of wine in here, otherwise they would have taken them."
"Drink, drink."
Roman sat on a luxurious chair made of gold and the finest materials. His private room was adorned with all sorts of decorations, from rare paintings to gold-framed mirrors and other finery, but none of it mattered to Prince Roman. The prince was addicted to alcohol, and his problems had worsened in the last year. He had become a complete burden on the royal family. After a major argument with his father, King Maxwell Nardi, the father had locked the drunken young man in his room for a month and forbidden him from drinking alcohol.
"Heh, now I'm the one laughing. I will drink in my room until my punishment ends, but I must show remorse when it's over. 'Oh, sorry, Father, I won't drink again.' Not that it matters, my brother will become king anyway, so why should I work hard when I know I won't gain anything?"
Roman seethed with anger, tapping his foot nervously. Then, he returned to drinking and didn't stop until the bottle was completely empty.
"Ah, the ground is shaking, this feels wonderful."
Norman stood up, swaying, and headed towards his bed.
"Oh, hop."
He fell onto the bed and slept deeply.
...
...
...
After a long time, Roman woke up. His head was throbbing, and the light in the room hurt his eyes.
"Ah, who turned on the light? Damn you, vile servants, don't you know the light hurts?"
He rubbed his eyes, and then he heard a buzzing sound.
(Zzzzz zzzzz)
He moved his hands involuntarily, trying to swat away the fly. The sound changed.
(The host has been connected to the simulation system.)
"What?"
He opened his eyes and found something like a transparent window of light in front of him. Roman had never seen anything like it, but he thought he was still hallucinating.
(Ding, does the host wish to start the simulation?)
"..."
Roman didn't know what to say, but he decided to go along with it.
"Maybe I've gone mad."
He thought, looking at the screen in front of him.
(If the host wishes to start the simulation, they must consume 100 energy points. To obtain energy points, they must exchange magical items for energy points.)
Another notification appeared, but Roman didn't say a word, instead looking around. The prince was bored, so he decided to play along with this madness a little. He searched around for magical items. The royal palace contained many magical items.
Roman got out of bed and went to his wardrobe. Inside, there was a large collection of magical items of different grades: red, blue, and gold. He initially took a red-grade magical item, which was the lowest grade.
(Ding, a magical item has been exchanged, and you have gained 10 energy points.)
The item disappeared from Roman's hand, and the notification appeared in front of him. Roman was shocked by the disappearance of the magical item.
"Good heavens, it's real!!"
He took another item, but this time it was blue-grade.
"How many points will this give?"
(Ding, a magical item has been exchanged, and you have gained 20 energy points.)
"100 energy points to try the simulation, but what is the simulation in the first place?"
Roman held a blue-grade magical item and thought about it, but the screen didn't respond.
(Ding, a magical item has been exchanged, and you have gained 20 energy points.)
(Ding, a magical item has been exchanged, and you have gained 20 energy points.)
..
..
He continued until the points reached 140. Roman had consumed more than five blue-grade magical items and four red-grade items, but he had never used the gold ones. He didn't want to get rid of those items as they were very useful.
(Does the user wish to start the simulation?)
"Yes."
Roman said, excited about it.
(100 points have been consumed, and only 40 points remain.)
(The simulation has started. Because this is the first simulation, you will receive assistance from the system.)
(Do you wish to draw a random talent?)
(White-grade talent: 10 points, Green-grade talent: 20 points)
"Draw a green-grade talent."
Roman said.
(Ding, 20 points have been consumed. You have obtained the talent 'Unwavering Fighter'.)
[In the first week, you continue your same lifestyle of drinking and sleeping. You do nothing useful and only get drunk.]
"....."
[In the second week, the same thing continues: drinking and sleeping.]
"What is this nonsense?"
[In the third week, while you are drinking, your brother Simon, the crown prince, comes and tells you that there is a problem in the capital and you must prepare to flee, but you were stubborn and caused another problem with him.]
[In the fourth week, your family continued to tell you to prepare to flee with them, but you ignored it. One night, they told you it was time to flee the capital, but you ignored them as usual. Instead of fleeing, you hid in your room and continued to drink wine until you fell asleep. Your father was angry when he discovered you were not with them, and your family was saddened by your absence, but they continued to flee to avoid dying with you. Before sunrise the next day, you woke up to the sounds of fighting. You opened your eyes and began to wander around, searching for the source of the sound. Then you found that the palace had been attacked by rebels. You were sad because you had not listened to your family. The rebels attacked you after recognizing you. You tried to resist and activated your talent 'Unwavering Fighter,' but they were more numerous and stronger than you, so you died.]
(The simulation has ended. After your death, do you wish to receive the rewards? Because this is your first simulation, the rewards will be excellent. This time, you can choose two items.)
(100 blue-grade magical items, for 50 energy points)
(The talent 'Unwavering Fighter' for 30 energy points)
(A normal-grade sword for 10 energy points)
Roman looked at the screen, unable to comprehend what was happening.
"Am I going to die? Is this simulation real?"
He couldn't grasp what was going on.
(The simulation is real, but that doesn't mean you can't change the future.)
"Ah, yes, that's right, I can change the future."
He reassured himself a little, then focused on the rewards.
"I must take more energy points."
He took a red-grade magical item and exchanged it.
(Ding, you have gained 10 points.)
He now had 30 points, so he decided to take the 'Unwavering Fighter' ability.
Ding..
Roman felt something change within him. He felt more certain of what he wanted and more determined.
"I must take the other reward."
He took magical items and consumed them.
Ding..
Instantly, 100 blue-grade magical items appeared before him.
"What do I do with these? Hmm, let me use fifty pieces and keep the rest in the box."
(Ding, 50 magical items have been exchanged, and you have gained 1000 energy points.)
"Yes, now I'm rich, heh heh."
(The next simulation will begin in one week.)
"What?"
Roman thought he would get another simulation immediately. He hadn't imagined there would be a time gap between each simulation. However, he wasn't too worried. He sat on his bed, thinking about what to do.
"If what happened in the simulation is completely real, then I am doomed. But I must change myself. Ah, all the problems started with this thing called wine."
Roman lived in torment because of his alcohol addiction, but he had decided not to drink anymore. Roman resolved to start training from today onwards and begin trying to do something good.