After checking his 'King Engine' trait, Raizer felt a strange energy oozing out of his body.
To further clarify on it, he opened his status window.
[Raizer Haze]
[Title: King-To-Be(provisional)]
- HP: 170/170 {Regen: 0.17/min}
- SP: 170/170 {Regen: 0.17/min}
- MP: 360/360 {Regen: 0.22/min}
[Attributes]
- Physique: 01.7
- Mind: 02.2
- Spirit: 03.6
- Free Attributes: 00
[Traits] - ⟪King Engine (EX)⟫
[Skills] - ⌈Absolute Control Lvl 1⌋
[Inventory]
All of his base attribute has been raised by 1 point. Even his below average physique has surpassed the average by 70% because of a single fact.
'The King Engine...'
Raizer pulled a palm over his heart.
- Thamp! Thamp!
He could feel a ridiculous amount of energy boiling up inside, waiting to erupt at the right moment.
'Sadly, I can't spam it endlessly.'
Despite being a trait, 'King Engine' drained his stamina. In his current state, he could utilize it for 170 seconds at most.
Of course, this miniscule increase was still incredible.
"Hey, system. Do you have daily quests? Like a certain monarch?"
[Sadly, I do not give daily quests. But if you desire, I can schedule the first quest to begin.]
"You mean travelling to different worlds and gaining skills there?"
[Exactly, host!]
Raizer paused, pondering over the concept for a minute. It wasn't exactly a bad idea but was he prepared to deal with it.
While Marvel wasn't exactly a peaceful world, it wasn't the most dangerous either.
"Hmm~ Can you tell me the world I will be travelling to?"
[I can't disclose that information, host! But unless you wish to, I can't send you to another world either! It all depends on whether you are willing to risk your life!]
Raizer frowned, scrunching up his temples as he picked up his ramen.
- Slurp!
He began eating, contemplating his move seemed easier with food in his stomach. The rusted gears of his mind began to work again.
The dark gaze swept across his house. A pitifully small but warm house, something that gave him a sense of security and safety. He kept scouring the place until his eyes fell on the photo frame near the entrance.
It showed the photo of two people. An elderly woman standing beside a brash young men. The young man was Raizer himself.
- Slurp!
"Fck, I wish I was an orphan."
Unfortunately, Raizer had a parent. His mother was farming in the quiet state of South Dakota. Far away from the menace that was New York.
And if the world was going to shit, he needed power to protect her.
'No matter what.'
"System, does the time pause while I'm travelling to another world? Or do I have to put my leave tonight?"
If the time didn't stop in this world, then HR would have a hell of a weekend. Getting spammed by Raizer was no small deal. As a person with no social life, he could easily destroy another's social life if he put his mind to it. He simply had to keep calling, emailing and messaging them every minute of their pathetic lives until they approved his leave.
A sinister smile rose up on his calm face, glinting with slyness.
[Don't worry, host! This 'King-Maker' system will pause time until you return! Except for a few, no one will even know that time was paused!]
"Tch, there goes my weekend plans."
Raizer clicked his tongue. Apparently, he didn't like the company's HR.
"Well, show me my skill first, System."
At his words, a transparent screen popped up.
Skill: Absolute Control Lvl 1/5
Description: Muscles? Blood? No, even molecules bend to your whim! Every thought is an action! Every impossibility is an opportunity! Your body is an extension of your mind! You think, therefore, you act!
Effect: Your body moves as per your thoughts, ignoring certain laws!
Cost: None
Unlike 'King Engine', this skill seemed relatively weak. However, Raizer felt that this was a skill he needed more than ever.
He hadn't entered battle before. Not once in his entire life had he fought. Except for the skirmishes with his schoolmates.
However, this skill could change that. He may not have fought humans but he had played 'Dark Souls'. If his thoughts moved his body like a game character... Then he was damn sure nothing could even touch him.
- Fsssh!
Implementing the skill immediately, he jumped up and threw the ramen in the sky, twisting his body and flipping once before kicking the empty space before him. The kick tore through the air; his jump, along with the body twist, had ignored the laws of momentum and gravity.
As Raizer landed, his right hand moved swiftly grabbing the ramen cup, moving it enough to catch on the thrown noodles back in the cup with its soup.
"Feels like Spider-Man."
He glanced at the cup in his hand and sat back down, finishing his meal. A maniacal glint passing through his eyes.
Unknown to him, the thing Raizer had ignored had the greatest effect.
Title: King-To-Be (Provisional)
Description: Thamp! Thamp! Thamp! You can feel it! The power boiling in your veins! The rage hidden in your bones! The tsunami rampaging in your mind! Show them what the heir to the strongest means!
Effect: Your greatness is destined!
[Looks like selling my kidneys was worth it! All to mimic the King!]
The system was truly a madman, devoted entirely to the 7th rank hero, King.
.
.
.
"Achooo!"
A certain blond sneezed, rubbing his philtrum.
"Is someone remembering me?"
"AHHH! How?! How did I lose?"
Next to him, the Caped Baldy crushed the remote controller in his hands, having lost for the nth time.
"Saitama-chi, you should give it rest. Half of my salary goes into buying controllers because of you."
The blond spoke with an exasperated tone, as if used to his actions.
"Genos, let's go hunt some monsters!"
"Yes, sensei!"
- Thud!
The Baldy and cyborg left the room, leaving the blond alone.
".... Man, I feel sad for the monster who will meet Saitama-chi today. Well, time to play some Doki-Doki Sweet Love Life!"
He switched the action game with a romance simulator and started playing it.
.
.
.
"Are you ready, system?"
Raizer asked with a resolved heart.
[I should be asking you that, host! Are you ready?]
"It's fine. I drank a liter of coffee. I'm pumped up now. Look, my hands are shaking with excitement."
[... Yeah, that-that's not excitement, host. Forget being ready, are you okay?]
Raizer couldn't care less about the opinions of his 'haters'. He smoothly cracked his neck and warmed up, jumping on the spot as he switched from right leg to the left. His neck circling and his shoulder jerking in a circular motion.
He paused, picking up the dagger he had bought for his personal safety. Wearing a thick, stab-proof jacket. Hiding three sharp knives under his clothes.
Hey, he lived at the edge of Hell's Kitchen. It was natural to have certain 'measures' in case somebody came knocking on his door.
As for where he bought it from, Hell's Kitchen could even sell you Thanos for the right price. Though that was probably just a huge guy with purple pain all over him.
(Thanos: Fck, am I some limited edition model?)
[Shall we begin the quest, Host!]
"All ready!"
Raizer wasn't one to wait. He loved to get a head-start.
At his wish, the general flat shifted. It wasn't dynamic but slow. The world greyed out, losing all color. Time came to a stop. From birds to walking pedestrians, everybody froze on the spot. Yet they didn't realize it.
Only Raizer moved. The frozen world was his domain and his kingdom alone. But he paid no heed to it.
Because at the same time, a dark shadow creeped in from the corners of the house. It unhesitatingly devoured more and more of the house until only Raizer was left. And then, it swallowed him too.
.
.
.
"Pwah!"
Raizer woke up on the ground, looking at the clear, blue sky above.
The eerie shadow ate him up and spat him out in a second. Though scary, he felt absurdly calm towards it.
[How would you like to your experience from 1 to 5 stars, host?]
'Was that Uber? A multiversal Uber?'
"Give it 5 stars because it didn't speak."
As a loner, Raizer valued the silence more than words. Unless he was the one speaking them.
His calm gaze swept the surroundings.
The air was the first thing he noticed. Crisp, cool, and smelling of damp earth and crushed mint, a sharp contrast to the city air he remembered. Sunlight filtered through the leaves in shifting, golden shafts, dancing across a carpet of vibrant moss and delicate azure wildflowers. For a moment, it was silent, save for the rhythmic, distant gurgle of a hidden stream and the soft hum of insects that glowed with a faint pulse.
Slowly, he pushed himself up, his palms pressing into the soft, yielding loam. He turned his head toward a break in the treeline where the density of the oaks began to thin, and that's when he saw it.
Rising above the rolling hills like a needle of bleached bone was a tower of impossible proportions. It was colossal, a monolith of white stone that seemed to pierce the very fabric of the sky. Its base was shrouded in a soft, low-hanging mist, but its summit climbed higher than any skyscraper he had ever known, disappearing into the clouds like a ladder for the gods.
As if recognizing it, his eyes twinkled with newfound enthusiam.
[Welcome to Orario, host! The world of adventurers and Gods!]
The tower in the distance was the the Tower of Babel. The lid of the Labyrinth that laid beneath.
"Hehe! Time to hunt GAWWBLINS!!"
[.... What was that?]
"Sorry, always wanted to try that."
Raizer dusted his pants and walked forward. He kept moving until the end of the forest was in sight. As soon as the forest ended, a huge wall appeared before his eyes.
Naturally, there were no monsters in the area close to the city. The Ganesha Family, responsible for the security of Orario had already exterminated all nearby monsters in a recent purge. Of course, the monsters would gather up again until they were purged again.
It seemed that Raizer was lucky to arrive, only a day after the purge.
Raizer scoured the wall with his gaze and walked around it, trying to find an entrance.
"So, what's the quest in this world, System?"
To escape boredom, Raizer asked about the quest.
The quest details were hidden until he entered the other world to maintain secrecy. But that wasn't needed now. As a result, the system could show him the quest now.
[Main Quest: Proof of a King!]
[Description: In a world, where power begins from Gods and ends with them, rise out of the ordinary! Make the world recognize a different method of growth! Make them acknowledge that different doesn't mean wrong!]
[Condition #1: Reject joining any and all Familias! (Incomplete)]
[Condition #2: Defeat a Level 4! (Incomplete)]
[Reward: Random trait/skill from King of OPM!]
Raizer looked at the quest and smiled. It was expected to a certain extent. But the condition of not joining any Familia would create a troublesome path.
After all, joining a Familia was necessary to enter the Great Labyrinth. That's how the Guild could tax you. Legally, he had to escape their notice, unable to sell his gains from the Dungeon. Physically, a Falna would allow him to grow faster.
"Mah~ Nothing to be disheartened about. This simply means I don't have to talk to others, right?"
Even in this situation, stranded in a foreign world, stuck with unfair conditions, Raizer looked at the bright side.
'Considering the fact that I might have killed my Familia if they annoyed me, this works in my favor.'
In his thoughts, Raizer soon reached the entrance of Orario. It was maintained by the Ganesha Familia.
And despite his lack of credentials, he was easily let into the city. For a simple reason; he didn't have a Falna. Meaning he was a normal human. Even if he tried to cause some trouble, any adventurer in Orario could take him out.
As Raizer walked into Orario, he saw the bustling "Northwest Main Street," lined with stalls and crowded with people from every race imaginable. For the first time, he saw the spark of blue light from a magic lamp hanging in a shop window.
The otherworldly sight urged him to say something. Anything.
"Eat Jagamakurun! Hot and Ripe! Only for 10 Valis!"
Raizer parted his lips, only to hear that sound come from his left. He turned around to notice a young boy with white hair, ruining his moment. If that wasn't all, a short but busty woman was cooking 'Jagamakurun' on the stall.
"There goes my moment."
He shook his head and walked forward.
- Growl~
"..."
[... We don't have money, host!]
"I know."
[Stealing is wrong, host!]
"Do you really think so low of me, you bastard!?"
Raizer scoffed at him, explaining correctly, "It's called borrowing, if I do it."
And feeling a bit too proud of him, Raizer looked away from the dead-eyed gaze that the system threw at him.
Despite his words, he didn't have the heart to 'borrow' from the two poor-looking paupers.
Raizer hadn't watched the anime 'Danmachi'. He hoped to watch it after completing One Piece. And we all know how that ended... Or, how that didn't end. Anyway, most of his information came from the hearsay of the anime community. Hence, he couldn't recognize the main character selling potatoes at the entrance of the city.
Raizer walked deeper in the city's heart. His feet carried him towards the tower unknowingly.