Derek was your typical fan of HoYoverse. He had been a dedicated player of Honkai Impact 3rd long before Genshin Impact came out, and even after its release, his heart remained with the Honkai series. Honkai: Star Rail was his latest obsession, and he enjoyed every aspect of it. While he loved all three games, the Honkai titles always held a special place in his heart.
That night, Derek was grinding his daily missions in Honkai Impact 3rd, diligently saving up for Kiana Kaslana Herrscher of Finality. He also wanted to complete his collection of the original three from Honkai Impact 3rd to Honkai Star Rail and one day use them all together in battle.
"Man, I almost forgot to log in today," Derek muttered, eyes glued to his phone. The clock read 2:43 AM, just enough time before the daily reset at 3 AM. He quickly rushed through the daily missions.
Exhaustion tugged at him, but Derek couldn't miss the daily missions in Honkai: Star Rail. After completing his dailies, he collected his rewards and sighed in satisfaction. "Phew, made it."
His eyes wandered over his character roster, stopping on Blade, the mysterious and tragic Stellaron Hunter with an immortal body and a past drenched in blood. Derek had always liked Blade's character design and lore, even if the curse of the Mara tormented him; he was a cool character introduced into the Xainzhou Luofu Arc.
"Man… Blade's so damn cool," Derek mumbled with a yawn, his eyes growing heavy. He barely noticed the world around him fading as sleep overtook him.
He quickly took a shower, brushed his teeth, and collapsed onto his bed, ready for a good night's sleep. Unbeknownst to him, that night would change his life forever.
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Derek's consciousness drifted somewhere between dream and reality. He felt something warm and rough against his cheek, accompanied by the distant sound of dripping water. His fingers twitched against the ground, not the soft fabric of his bed, but something cold and damp.
His eyes snapped open.
A dull, flickering streetlamp cast long shadows against the grimy brick walls. The air was thick with the stench of rain-soaked concrete and rotting garbage. A rusted dumpster slouched nearby, its contents spilling onto the pavement.
Derek's breath hitched. This wasn't his bedroom.
The weight of realization settled in his chest like a lead brick. The last thing he remembered was playing Honkai: Star Rail before crashing into bed. But now… now he was here. Wherever here was.
Something warm pressed against his arm. He looked down.
A battered, malnourished dog was staring at him with pleading eyes.
"What the hell...? Where am I?!" Derek exclaimed.
Then came the voices. A dozen. A hundred.
They clawed at his mind, whispering, snarling, urging. Derek clenched his head, his vision blurring. He felt like he was going insane.
"Where the hell am I, and why am I in an alleyway?" Derek yelled, holding his head with one arm. He walked out of the alleyway, and Derek stumbled onto the street, the neon glow of a flickering 'ACE Chemicals'. A homeless man lay curled up by a dumpster, muttering to himself.
Across the street, a woman hurried away, clutching her purse, her eyes darting nervously toward the shadows. Sighing in frustration, Derek realized he had no idea how he ended up in this situation.
He tried to make sense of the situation. He looked down and started patting his unfamiliar clothes. His breathing was uneven, his heartbeat erratic. He looked down, expecting his usual oversized hoodie and pajama pants. Instead…
An oriental-styled black tailcoat with red clothed insides and gray trousers. The tailcoat is embroidered with gold and dark blue colors, and a black belt, yet oddly familiar. His hands were different; he had a black glove on his right hand, and bandages could be seen wrapped around his right arm, right thigh, and left hand. He clenched a fist, and the sensation was… sharp, controlled. A pulse of energy ran through his veins, as if his body held far more strength than it should.
"This isn't my body." Derek thought as he saw his clothes and his body felt weird.
Ding!
A sound echoed in his head, startling him. Looking up, he was taken aback to see... a system?
Welcome [Player] to your very own Blade System!
This system is designed to assist you with various aspects such as [Inventory], [Party management], [Relationships], and [Shop]. For safety measures, you will receive a warning before enabling [Mara-Struck]. Failure to complete system-assigned quests will result in appropriate consequences. You will also have access to [Quests] and, most importantly, [Emergency Quests]. Please note that failing to complete the quests assigned by this system will lead to consequences and penalties. Good luck, and future updates will be provided as soon as they are ready.
"A... a system? And it's called the Blade System?" Derek was confused, but before he could process this bizarre situation, a sharp yelp behind him caught his attention.
Derek stumbled to his feet, gripping his aching head. His vision swam, and for a brief moment, it felt like something a foreign force was pressing against his mind. Whispers echoed in the back of his skull, fragmented words and voices he couldn't recognize.
"Kill…"
"Blood…"
"Hunt…"
Derek shivered and clenched his fists. He wasn't alone in his own head.
Then, a soft, yet sharp cut through the air. A whimper.
He turned around toward the alley's entrance.
A group of thugs surrounded the same dog that had woken him up. One of them, a bulky man with a scar down his cheek, kicked the animal hard in the ribs, sending it sprawling. The dog let out a weak yelp.
Derek's fingers tightened around his fists. The whispers grew louder.
"Kill them…"
"Hey! Cut it out! It's just an animal!" he shouted, stepping forward toward the alleyway he had just left.
The thugs turned to him with sneers.
"Well, well, look at this guy. Thinks he's some kind of hero, huh?" One of them, a burly man named Rick, cracked his knuckles. "Let's teach him a lesson."
Derek gulped. He had never been in a fight before, let alone against multiple opponents. But before he could react, another system notification appeared.
Alert!
Emergency Quest: Release the Mara!
Bloodlust detected! Hostiles seek to eliminate the [Player]. Kill them all and ensure your survival!
Enemies: 0/4
Warning: Failure to complete this quest will result in stopping the [Players] heart.
"W-what the..." Derek's mind raced, after reading the emergency quest, panic surging through him.
"No… no, no, no… this can't be happening." He stumbled backward, heart pounding as the thugs advanced.
A fist flew toward his face.
SMASH!
Derek crashed against the alley wall, his vision blurring. Pain flared through his jaw as he tasted blood.
"Heh… this is gonna be easy," Rick taunted, approaching for another blow.
Derek looked up to see Rick advancing to finish him off. He was out of options. He needed to fight… to kill.
But why? Why does this happen? Why, why, why?
Why did this have to happen? Why him? He was just a regular person who played gacha games, not a fighter. He is a high school student with no job or even a degree. Why did he have to resort to murder to survive?
The warning from the system echoed in his mind. Mara-Struck. He remembered that from Star Rail.
He was going to regret doing this, and it would haunt him for the rest of his life.
Run. That was the only thought in Derek's head. He wasn't a fighter. He was just a high school kid who spent his time pulling for virtual characters, not throwing punches.
His legs tensed, then stopped. The system's warning flashed in his mind. Failure to complete this quest will result in stopping the [Player's] heart.
Rick cracked his knuckles and grinned. "Heh, this is gonna be easy."
Rick's punch came, and it hit harder than he ever imagined. Pain exploded in his jaw as he crashed against the wall.
He coughed, tasting iron. I can't fight like this… I'm too weak!
Derek barely had time to react before Rick swung again, his fist aimed directly at Derek's face. But this time, something inside Derek snapped. His vision blurred. The voices in his mind grew louder, more demanding.
Kill them…
Slaughter them…
Release the Mara.
"Release the Mara." Derek said copying what the voices in his head were telling him.
The instant he uttered those words, his body surged with unimaginable power. A chilling wave of energy flooded through him as his vision turned crimson, and he saw red spider lilies.
Rick raised his fist to punch Derek again, but his punch never landed.
A flash of steel sliced through the air, and before he could react, pain erupted from his wrist. He looked down, and his hand was no longer there, only a stump.
Looking down in shock, Rick recoiled, his eyes widening in horror as he saw his hand severed, falling to the concrete floor, fingers still twitching.
And then, he screamed.
"Aghhh!" Rick's scream echoed as his hand hit the ground, severed cleanly at the wrist.
He turned to Derek, who now had a sword that had appeared from thin air, crackling with yellow energy. Derek's eyes glowed red as he smirked.
"Hahahaha…" A chilling laugh escaped his lips as blood dripped from his sword.
"You think you can escape now?" Derek's voice was cold, dangerous.
Rick's eyes widened in terror.
"M-monster…"
"Your end… approaches." Derek said as his sword cleaved through the air with blinding speed. In an instant, Rick's head was no longer attached to his body, the blood splattering against the walls in a gruesome spray.
Derek then smiled as his gaze shifted to the three remaining thugs. "My sword will be the last thing you see."
The other thugs froze in terror, unable to comprehend what had just happened, but they understood those words; they were a legend.
"H-holy shit… he's… Blade?!" one of them stammered, stumbling backward.
"Quit hiding." Derek growled, vanishing in a blink, appearing behind them.
By the time they realized what had happened, two more bodies had fallen.
The last thug dropped to his knees, tears streaming down his face.
"P-please…" he whimpered.
Derek's glowing eyes bore into him, his cracked sword humming with energy.
"A blade's edge knows no mercy."
With one final slash, he finished the job by slashing his head off as blood spilled onto the wall, and the alley fell silent.
Ding!
Emergency Quest: Release The Mara Completed!
Enemies 4/4
Rewards: Location Map, Skills Info, Money: 1000, 200 Credits, New Quest!
[Mara Struck] Cool down: 10 minutes till available to use
Derek didn't care about the system's notifications. His vision was clear as the bloodlust faded. His breathing was ragged, and as he looked down at the carnage he had created, the weight of what he had done hit him like a freight train.
Derek started to stumble backward, his sword slipping from his trembling fingers. The cracked weapon, now stained with blood, clattered onto the cold pavement. His chest heaved as he stared at the lifeless bodies sprawled across the alley.
"W-what… have I done?" Derek thought in horror.
His knees buckled, and he sank to the ground, his hands trembling as they hovered over the pool of blood.
"This… this isn't me." Derek tried to convince himself in his mind.
His mind screamed as memories flooded back of countless late nights spent grinding in Honkai: Star Rail. He was just a high school kid who obsessed over video game lore. A fan who admired Blade's tragic backstory, not someone who actually lived it.
But now… he had become the very monster he used to sympathize with.
"This isn't a game…" he whispered, his voice barely audible over the ringing in his ears.
Visions flashed through his mind.
Rick's severed hand hit the ground with a thud. Rick's horrified face moments before his head rolled off his shoulders. The blood sprayed across the alley walls as if they were painted with death. Then the other thugs' faces, and one of them begging for mercy.
"They… they were just thugs, right? They deserved it…" His voice quivered as he tried to convince himself.
But deep down, he knew the truth.
They were human.
They begged. They feared him.
And he killed them anyway.
"Oh… God…" Derek said as he doubled over and vomited onto the pavement.
Sure, they were scumbags but he had killed them.
Derek caught a glimpse of his reflection in the pool of blood. But what stared back at him wasn't his face.
It was Blade's.
"W-what the hell…?" Derek touched his face, feeling the unfamiliar features. His heart pounded.
"I... reincarnated as Blade?" Derek thought in horror as he realized he had reincarnated into this body, which shouldn't be possible it only happened in novels and manga.
But it all made sense now.
Derek took a shaky breath and accessed the system's new [Map] feature. His eyes widened as he read the location.
Location Currently: Gotham City.
"Of all places… I'm in Gotham?!" Derek's mind raced. "If I'm here… that means…"
His blood ran cold.
Batman.
"Shit… I need to get out of here before I get caught…If I'm in the DC universe, that means Batman is here in Gotham, and I don't want to know which version of Batman it is." Derek thought as he didn't want to get brain damage or even want to know what Arkham Asylum is like.
Derek then heard a whine as his gaze shifted to the dog, who had woken him up, wagging its tail weakly.
"Poor thing…" Derek knelt down, noticing the dog's bloody, weakened state.
"System, open Shop." Derek said in his mind.
A list of items appeared, and Derek quickly found what he was looking for: Basic Healing Potion.
"100 credits… fine." Derek said.
He purchased the potion and carefully poured the red liquid into the dog's mouth.
Within seconds, the dog's wounds closed, and it stood up, wagging its tail weakly.
"Heh… you're tougher than you look," Derek murmured, scratching behind its ears.
The dog barked softly, its tail wagging.
"You're sticking with me, huh?" Derek gave a small smile. "Alright… Spark. Let's get out of here." Derek said, not minding the company for a while since he was alone and didn't know where to go.
The dog barked again, almost as if answering.
"Fine… I'll call you Spark." Derek said, giving the dog a new name.
Derek sighed as he put his well...Blade's sword away in his [Inventory]. His mind was a whirlwind of questions, but one thing was clear.
He was no longer just Derek. He was Blade.
And in a city as dangerous as Gotham, that could mean only one thing.
Survival was the only option. He could be a wanted criminal since that thug knew him as Blade, which means he has some sort of reputation in Gotham. This isn't good, as Batman might come after him.
"Come on, Spark…" Derek muttered, heading out of the alley with his newfound companion by his side.
Derek quickly left the alleyway with Spark, eager to escape without being caught. He didn't know much about D.C, but he was certain that Blade had a history in Gotham, especially since the thug had mentioned his new body's name. However, Derek was unsure whether Blade was affiliated with the Stellaron Hunters.
After making it to a park, Derek sat on a bench and opened the system to explore its features while Spark settled nearby.
Status:
Name: Blade
Age: 20
HP: 9,000
Race: Long Life Species(Mara Struck)
Passive Skills:
Swordsmanship Mastery
Self Healing (High)
Auto Healing [Blessing of the Aeon Of Abundance]
Enhance Swordsmanship Mastery
Bloodlust (High) (During Mara Struck)
Occupation: None
Party Members: Spark
Notice: Party members also gain skills for completing quests, emergency quests, and daily challenges provided by the system, as well as additional knowledge about the DC World.
"My name in this world is Blade. But who even am I, Derek or Blade...Am I both or not?" Derek thought as he sighed and got up.
He remembered the blade felt natural in his grip. Too natural. He had never trained a day in his life in his stance and weight distribution, but his body knew what to do. Was it really his body anymore?"
Derek then decided to travel a bit around Gotham for the time being and see if he could find any more clues on what this version of Blade had done in Gotham with his new partner, Spark.
Little did he know, high above, the Dark Knight would investigate the crime scene that happened in an alleyway with four thugs being slaughered ruthlessly.