It was cold.
It was cold, and Van was wet.
He felt like some rinsed sock left behind in the washing machine.
"Ahhh shit."
Groaning, Van opened his eyes groggily. And what met him was not the beautiful sight of a queen's sized bed that he'd been expecting. Nor was it even a place with four walls and a roof.
Hell, Van wasn't even sure if this place was in his country.
Scrambling to his feet, Van saw that he'd been lying on a road. Not a civilised road made from paved tarmac. This one was carved from centuries of travel, winding through a forest that seemed to have no end.
"What the hell? If this is someone's idea of a sick joke…"
No that couldn't be it. Van didn't know anyone close enough to dare pull pranks on him.
Searing pain shot through his forehead, followed by his most recent memories.
"Oh shit. Oh no no no no no….don't tell me…."
With perfect comedic timing, a blue screen appeared in front of him. And with it, Van's worse nightmares were confirmed.
[ Congratulations USER ID : VAN HELSING
You have been successfully transmigrated into another world! All skills, progress and abilities have been removed. Call status to see your stats.]
Van Helsing.
It was a combination of his very basic name given to him at birth, Van, with an utterly epic second name he had chosen, Helsing.
And it was the moniker Van used to strike terror in VR. But, if his progress had been removed...that meant he was no longer the Van Helsing that made players run in horror. It meant he was practically a bottom feeder.
"Status."
Another screen appeared, deep maroon this time.
[Name : Van Helsing
Race : Human
Ailments : No ailments
Title : £!@£!@£$@££$%@£$@!@
@!£!@£!£!
£!@£!£!@£!@£!@£!@
!£!£!@£!@£
"What the hell is happening now?"
The status quickly dissolved into a spasming stream of weird symbols.
A follow up notification came, blue again -
[ERROR, UNAUTHORISED TITLE DETECTED...
**** of ***** is reviewing title....
Title Modder has been successfully incorporated
NOTICE : REALITY HAS BEEN UPDATED….]
"What the hell is going on? Status!"
Van had read a lot of novels, he was sure none of the other Mc's had to deal with faulty status's.
This time when the deep crimson status window reappeared, the weird symbols were gone.
[ Name : Van Helsing
Race : Human
Ailments : No ailments
Skills : N/A
Magic : N/A
Title : Modder]
All in all, Van found it to be a depressing sight. But for the moment he ignored them. Instead focusing on the new title that had appeared right at the place where his status had glitched.
Modder.
Obviously it had something to do with the fact that he had hacked the VR game.
If the announcement was to be believed, Van had been transported to another world. And this new world, and that announcement, it all had something to do with VR.
"Virtua Regnum."
That's what the announcement had called it.
Virtual Kingdom, a little on those nose in his opinion, but Van guessed world transporting gaming companies cared little for titles.
Pressing on the title, a new screen appeared.
[ TITLE : MODDER
BENEFITS : **** OF ***** will grant a singular 'mod' at random used by player ID : VAN HELSING during their VR playthrough.
MOD CHOSEN : REVIEWING....]
"YESS!!!!"
Leaping for joy, a triumphant grin spread across Van's face. If he hadn't been miserable and wet, he might've even done a little waltz.
The universe had decided to throw him a bone. Obviously it had recognised his greatness, and decided that I shouldn't be treated like any other mortal.
Speaking of mortals, Van wondered just how many people had been transported here?
In fact, speaking of here, where was here?
The road was a poor thing to judge by in his standards, and he doubted any of his previous knowledge would help. He had a strong feeling that wherever this place was, it wasn't Virtua Regnum.
Or at least, it wasn't the same Virtua Regnum he had played in.
[MOD CHOSEN : DETERMINING...]
"Still?"
After around half an hour of not so patient staring, Van eventually dismissed his status entirely. Obviously world transporting gaming companies had no sense of punctuality. They must've not had the same quality upbringing he had.
A complaint from his stomach tore Van away from his thoughts. Now that he thought about it, Van hadn't eaten any real food in over 24 hours.
Longer even if his regular meal of instant noodles didn't count as real food. The self-imposed diet of a lazy person was not for the weak willed.
After a quick glance in both directions, Van decided to get downhill. He'd be damned if he was going to spend the first hour in a new world battling inner demons to reach the top.
After an hour or so of walking, Van's interest in this new world waned. He'd hoped to see a swarm of fairies, or perhaps a phoenix. Hell, he'd even settle for a glowing fox.
Anything breathtaking enough to convince himself he wasn't having a psychotic episode.
Eventually, the fact Van saw absolutely nothing convinced him he wasn't insane. If he had been, his hallucinations would've surely been more interesting.
As time passed, the gnawing hunger only grew more demanding. Yet despite constantly walking for hours, the view of endless forest never once changed.
Soon after complete darkness had fallen, Van began to hear faint voices.
By this time, his legs had long since become weak. Stomach feeling as if he'd swallowed a black hole.
The voices were probably just made up, he reasoned. A new sign of hunger perhaps? Or was it the crippling exhaustion?
At this point, the pain was all melding together.
Grimacing at his pathetic stamina, Van pushed on. A usual novel protagonist would've at least lasted a respectable week without water or food.
"Hey what do you think we should do?"
Strange, the voices seem real.
"Not really sure" another one answered. "He doesn't remember anything."
"Odd isn't it?"
"I've heard it happen to some folks. These forests are old Gareth, its unwise to travel through them by yourself."
Van paused, head swivelling in the direction that he was sure the voices came from.
Real voices.
Like a moth to a flame, Van followed it. Hunger kept caution at bay. Van was more than willing to take the risk. After all, for the past hour his right arm had begun to look real delectable.
Lord above I need help.
As Van drew near, he saw that there was a campfire set a distance away from the path.
The orange light flickered, casting long shadows in the trees.
"Hello?"
Van's voice sounded hoarse. If he had heard himself in the same situation, he would've run the other way as fast as he legs could take him.
Hands up, trying to make himself as harmless as possible, Van stepped out of the shadows.
"C-Can you help me, please?"
Squinting, his eyes quickly adjusted to the firelight.
It was a camp, and not a small one either. Eight men stood huddled around the flame, food roasting on sticks.
The smell wafted seductively, calling him closer.
"Who are you?" One of the men called over to him. He was large, with arms the size of tree trunks. Dark eyes and braided hair, he would've looked cool if it wasn't for the slight belly that ruined the image.
Van replied slowly, trying to sound composed. But the entire time, his eyes never left the food.
"Van."
"Van? What's happened to you boy?"
What could he say? Van could try and pretend that something bad happened to him, but to do so, he'd have to be smart enough to pretend he was from this world.
So instead Van took the other cliche' root.
Shaking his head, in his best attempt of helplessness, which no doubt looking like a pile of rags only helped, Van answered in a confused tone-
"I-I don't know. I don't remember anything. I just woke up here."
"Hey, Arlong, he's the same as the other" another man said to the one that had spoken to me.
He was smaller, though still large, with long red hair tied back.
Arlong rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Could be..." he muttered. "Well, come on boy, let's get some food down your gullet first."
Gratefully, Van neared the camp at Arlong's beckoning, taking one of the spits he handed over. Salivating, he bit into the meat.
"HMMM."
The flavour exploded into his mouth, the slight spices sending waves of warmth across Van's body like a warm embrace.
It was perhaps the most delicious food he'd ever eaten.
"Hah! Look at that Gareth, the boy likes your cooking!"
Gareth, the red haired man, grinned. "Well naturally of course."
"Naturally he says" another man snorted. "Remember that time he tried to fry eggs."
"Hah! Tasted like tree bark."
"It was as tough as tree bark too."
The camp exploded into warm laughter, banter flowing easily between them.
Van barely noticed it.
Right now he was in the middle of eating this roasted meat, and she demanded his full attention.
Only after Van had eaten and drunk his fill. Enjoying that lazy contented feeling, did Arlong resume his questioning.
"So Van, you lost your memories you say?"
"Yes, the only thing I know is my name."
"Truly the exact same as the other boy" Gareth muttered.
He had said that before hadn't he?
Earlier Van had been too hungry to register the words, but now, now the implication dawned.
Following some of their gazes, his eyes landed on the person sitting opposite him.
Unlike the others, he hadn't spoken much. He was perhaps a few years older than Van, with blonde hair and green eyes.
"You don't remember anything either, do you Lex?"
The blonde haired boy looked up at Arlong, then shook his head. "Only my name" he confirmed, locking eyes with Van.
A cold shiver ran down Van's spine as he met Lex's gaze. There was something in the green of them that stirred his suspicion.
Was…he like me?