[You have been exposed to poisonous fog.]
I walked through the streets of the now desolate and destroyed city. The buildings had seen better days; they looked like a hurricane had done 360s on them. The streets themselves didn't fare any better; giant fissures were visible, with huge debris still lying about.
Though the most concerning thing about the scene wasn't really the destruction, it was the visible particles of dark purple gas floating about.
-Step step-
I walked unbothered by the poison in the air, as it seemingly bounced off a thin white frosty aura surrounding me.
'Hmm… This will do.' I mused, looking at the open street. I slightly waved my hand, and a wave of frost spread around it. Nothing visible happened, but I could tell I had achieved what I wanted. Perfect.
[Several Constellations are curious about what you are trying to accomplish.]
[The Constellation 'Secretive Plotter' is watching your actions closely.]
[The Constellation 'One-Eyed King' strokes his beard in curiosity.]
Strange. Why couldn't they see what I just did? Is it a channel thing? Perhaps Bihyung was watching me, too. Either way, time to begin.
['Teleport Lv. 6' is activated.]
['Thought Acceleration Lv. 1' is activated.]
['Observation Haki Lv. 5' is activated.]
['Ice Age Lv. 5' is activated.]
I activated all four skills at once. I couldn't risk anything going wrong if I wanted this to work.
-Blink-
In a heartbeat, I was no longer where I stood. The world blurred, then snapped back into focus several streets away—and I found myself staring up at a mountain of flesh and bone. A rhino, if it could still be called that, loomed before me like a living monument. It stood thirty meters tall, its skin cracked, like volcanic rock, with veins of violet light seething in the fissures. The same eerie glow burned in its eyes. It flinched at my sudden arrival, a deep, guttural sound rumbling from its chest as it recoiled. The poisonous fog that choked these streets wasn't drifting in from nowhere. It originated from this creature. I could see it clearly now, thick and noxious, spilling from behind it.
'If my hypothesis is right… This could be very beneficial for me.' And the world did not disappoint.
---------
------
---
[The hidden scenario has arrived!]
_______________
[ Hidden Scenario – Hulking Poison ]
Category: Hidden
Difficulty: A+
Clear Conditions: Kill the 'Great Poisonous Rhinoceros'.
Time Limit: 1 hour
Compensation: 9,000 coins
Failure: Death
_______________
'Perfect.'
Before I could focus on the hefty sum of coins offered by the scenario, the rhino had finally snapped out of its stupor and was now charging directly at me. It didn't even bother aiming at me with its horn; it likely thought it could just crush me under its foot.
['Teleport Lv. 6' is activated.]
I blinked out of sight and rematerialized right behind the beast, its massive haunches filling my vision. I didn't hesitate. I stretched out my arm, palm flat, aiming dead center. The rhino faltered, confused by my disappearance, and in that split second of stillness, I let loose. A wave of frost erupted from me, flash-freezing the air itself. It hit the rhino's back and raced up its rocky hide like wildfire. The effect was immediate. The sickly purple fog, which had been belching from its back, choked off and died.
The rhino screamed. Not from the cold—from the pressure building behind the ice, all that poison gas trapped and compressing. It thrashed, trying to shake the frost loose, but the ice didn't even crack. And why would it? My mana stat's a joke, sure. That just means I can't spread Ice Age far or fast. But the ice itself? That's Aokiji-level quality already. You'd need a continent to move before this stuff shatters.
Though that also meant I couldn't freeze it whole, sadly. Never mind, I had a plan already in motion.
[''Seriously?! Another hidden scenario? What is with these incarnations?!? Can you believe this? Constellations?'']
He finally decided to show up. I could tell he was watching; I was gathering a lot of attention.
[The Constellation 'Prisoner of the Golden Headband' laughs at your tactics.]
[The Constellation 'Demon-like Judge of Fire' is cheering for you.]
[The Constellation 'Secretive Plotter' is watching you with interest.]
[The Constellation 'Abyssal Black Flame Dragon' scoffs at your attempts to kill the rhino.]
[The Constellation 'One-Eyed Father' wonders what you're scheming.]
[Many Constellations' eyes gleam with excitement.]
[Constellations have sponsored 500 coins.]
'Wow, the whole gangs here.' I slightly sweat drop at the sudden attention from multiple constellations I knew about. Why were they suddenly here? Maybe watching Dokja sleep got a bit boring. I doubt Uriel would find it boring, though; she's kinda crazy. Hmm?
-ROOAARRRR-
['Teleport Lv. 6' is activated.]
-Blink-
I avoided another charge, and the rhino plowed straight into another building, reducing it to rubble in an instant. It snorted, furious, clouds of poison huffing from its nostrils as it locked onto me again. I think it's about time I end this.
-Blink-
I blinked back into its line of sight, putting some distance between us but making sure it saw me. The rhino's eyes locked on instantly. I raised my hand, and that same frosty aura spread across my palm. I had to nail this. One wrong move and it wouldn't work.
['Ice Age Lv. 5' is activated.]
['Thought Acceleration Lv. 1' is activated.]
The rhino lowered its head and charged again, those massive legs eating up the distance at a speed that made no sense for something its size. I focused, pushing my Haki out toward it, tracking its movement, calculating. I needed to know exactly where its eyes would be the moment it crossed that line. Come on…
[The conditions of use for the exclusive skill 'Calculation Lv. 1' has been reached!]
[Exclusive skill 'Calculation Lv. 1' has been activated.]
'…huh?'
The thought barely formed before my mind sharpened like a blade. Everything snapped into focus—too much focus. I could see it now, weird angles overlaying my vision, lines and numbers flickering at the edge of my awareness. Trajectories. Velocity. Mass. Distance. All of it calculating itself in real time.
'What the hell? Another skill?' Not that I could complain.
My hand moved, a single wave at exactly the right angle. I'd found it. The perfect placement. After that, there was nothing left to do but wait. I shoved my hands in my pockets and held its gaze as it thundered toward me, closer and closer, eating up the last of the distance.
[Several Constellations widen their eyes and tell you to teleport again.]
[The Constellation 'Secretive Plotter's eyes widen at your plan.]
-SCHLICK-
-Thud-
Mid-stride, the rhino just… stopped. Not on its own—something stopped it. An invisible force punched clean through its skull, and suddenly, there was a hole where its right eye used to be. Blood sprayed, and I could see it now: an impossibly thin spike of ice, rising from the ground at just the right angle, angled straight through its eye and out the other side. The beast collapsed before it even knew it was dead, hitting the ground with a thud that shook the street.
The poison fog hanging in the air started to thin, then vanish altogether. Not that it mattered much—we were far enough from Geumho station that the gas there was probably still churning. The scenario needed to keep going, after all.
["S-seriously…? How in the world did you manage to take down a 7th-grade monster head-on this quickly?!"]
Bihyung looked as if he had seen a ghost; his horns trembled as he stared at the monster's lifeless body.
[Many Constellations are in disbelief.]
[The Constellation 'Prisoner of the Golden Headband' is impressed by your cunning.]
[The Constellation 'Secretive Plotter' approves of your plan.]
[The Constellation 'Abyssal Black Flame Dragon' stares at the screen in shock.]
[Constellations have sponsored 600 coins.]
---
--
-
[The hidden scenario has ended.]
[You have obtained 9,000 coins in compensation.]
[You are the first to have successfully hunted a 7th-grade species.]
[You have earned 1,000 coins as an achievement reward.]
[Due to completion of a scenario at difficulty A+, a luck level 6 Gacha roll is deposited into your system]
-
--
---
'Daayyuuummmm look at allat bank.' I took in the sight of my rewards. Oh yeah. This was worth it.
I deactivated all my skills save [Ice Age]. I was immediately hit with a wave of pure exhaustion, unlike anything I've experienced before.
''Ughh...what on earth…'' I held my head in my left hand, almost stumbling. Why was it this bad? Was it because I had maintained the frosty aura around me too long? No, this was a different kind of exhaustion. System, what is this?
[It appears the user's soul currently lacks the strength to manage stories from multiple different worlds at the same time. If the user tries to use more than five abilities at once or stores more than ten abilities in total, their soul is likely to break apart, leading to their destruction. To overcome this limitation, the user must create or be part of stories—fables or tales—that build their reputation and strength. In short, to grow more powerful, the user must first develop their own inner strength and capabilities]
'…' We were going to talk about this later. I needed to get some supplies and leave before my mana runs out.
「✦1 hour later✦」
''Thank goodness you're back! Woah! How much did you even get!?'' The first to run to me was Heewon. She looked a bit upset. Her mindset was yet to be hardened. In this new world, even children were capable of great things.
''Yeah, here is your portion. Don't bother refusing it; I risked my life for it.'' I slightly emotionally blackmailed her, making sure she wouldn't refuse. I doubt she'd take anything free otherwise.
''But… I can't just take it, you-'' I threw a bag at her, stopping her from speaking further.
''It's my spoils, I decide what to do with it. Share it with Sangah-ssi, Hyunsung-ssi, and Gilyoung.'' I walked away without giving her a chance to reply.
I went around the station, giving food and small amounts of coins to those who truly needed them. Along with each offering, I left them with this advice: "Wake up. The world you once knew is no more. This will be the last time anyone helps you—including me. Rely on no one but yourself. If you still can't adapt, you will die."
This was the only way I could help them without letting them get dependent on me. I can't help those who wouldn't even bother picking themselves up from the dirt.
[Coins Possessed: 19,100 C]
'Sorry for the coin steal, Dokja. You'll be fine, though, you have Bihyung after all.' I should spend some coins on rolls now. Should I go for differing luck values now? Yeah, let's try that. I have a few coins to blow.
[Rolls available]
━━━━━━━━━━━━━
◆ Luck 2 ◆ (2 remaining)
◆ Luck 3 ◆ (2 remaining)
◆ Luck 4 ◆ (1 remaining)
◆ Luck 6 ◆ (1 remaining)
━━━━━━━━━━━━━
[Coins Possessed: 16,900 C]
'Should I roll a few now?' I sat with my hands behind my head, looking at the ceiling of the station. Sangah and Heewon were currently chatting, and Hyunsung was standing watch yet again. Gilyoung was fast asleep, his head on my shoulders. They seemed a bit more alive after filling their stomachs. I was able to console them a bit by telling them that I'd rely on them for a bit since I was tired. ( I wasn't (⚈∇⚈ ) )
'Oh, right. System, explain what happened back there. I understood most of it, but what am I supposed to do about it? Just stop rolling for abilities altogether?'
That was something I was genuinely worried about. I was still far from strong or ready enough to get by without a few endgame trump cards—abilities that could grow stronger alongside me. Sure, [Heavenly Restriction] was broken in the early stages when raw stats mattered most. But eventually, physical power alone wouldn't be enough. And it wasn't without its downsides, either. The lack of mana and any means of healing was seriously concerning.
That was actually one of the reasons I hadn't used it to finish off the rhino in a single blow. I wanted to eventually rely on just my stats—and my own exclusive skills.
The other reason was that I wanted it to be a last-ditch move. To throw off Constellations and future enemies. A battle of wits is also a battle of deception.
[User will be unable to use more than 5 'Exclusive skills' that come from the Gacha, until their soul reaches a higher level of existence on its own. In other words, the user must gain fables/stories. The better the quality, the more skills they can gain. You are currently only able to wield 5 skills that come from the Gacha, while only 10 can be kept at once.]
'That's pretty washed ngl.'
That was just ludicrous. What about skills I don't even want? Did that mean rolling for skills right now was pointless?
[Due to the user's complaint, any Gacha Skill/Trait/item, etc., can be rerolled. However, the luck value will be halved every reroll]
…Hmm. Okay. That was okay, I guess. So, for now, it is better to just roll things other than Abilities. Wait. What about absorbing familiars? What exactly happens when I do? Do I gain exclusive skills based on them? Did that count?
[Correct]
(¬､¬) Bruh. Just roll everything I currently have, aside from the Luck 6 Gacha roll, on items.
_
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⫸-–––––––––––––––––––-⫷
Playful Cloud {4.1} -Elite[1]
Captain's Shield {4.3} -Elite[2]
Great Swamp Ring {2.9} -Uncommon[3]
Stamin Up {1.8} -Common[4]
Eochaid's Dancing Blade {2.2} -Uncommon[5]
⫸-–––––––––––––––––––-⫷
___
__
_
Holy shit. Two AMAZING weapons. What baffles me is the fact that I got both from the Luck 2 Gachas. While the fucking Stamina drink came from the Luck 3 one. This Gacha really was luck-dependent…
I will probably give the shield and ring to Hyunsung and Heewon. They will benefit more from them anyway. The sword, though… I have two now. Should I give one to someone else? Which one is best for me.
Maybe I should keep the Longsword and give this one to someone else. No one is strong enough to actually handle. Eh, I'll just keep both until I get something better, or when I find someone who I can actually give it to. Playful cloud is MINE though. Heck yeah.
Hyunsung was going to shed tears though, haha.
I finally drifted off to sleep once more. This time, with [Observation Haki] activated while I slept.
[Coins Possessed: 16,900 C]
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|3rd Person Perspective|
It had been three days since Ethan had spent in this new world. Joonghyuk left the station on the night of the very next day. Earlier that day, he had dropped off a bit more food for the Mainstream group—nothing more, paying no attention to anyone else. He might have glanced at Hyunsung. Maybe.
Earlier that day, Cheon Inho actually showed up trying to recruit Ethan and Hyunsung into the Mainstream group. Unsurprisingly, both turned him down—and Heewon almost threw hands with them. Inho was clearly pissed, but since Ethan had already donated all his food yesterday, he had nothing against him. So, he just left, saying nothing. On top of that, the four main ORV Constellations had finally stopped observing him. And thankfully, Secretive Plotter was gone as well. That one seriously creeped him out.
By late night, hunger had begun to gnaw at Gilyoung. The mainstream group held onto every scrap of food they had, leaving him with nothing to do but glance at Ethan with an adorable, expectant look.
"Let me deal with those mainstream bastards. You're not going out there again, Ethan. I'll handle it."
Rage simmered in Heewon's voice. The adults had eaten their fill yesterday—they could endure some hunger. But the children couldn't. And there was no way she'd let Ethan be the one to provide for them yet again.
Yoo Sangah and Lee Hyunsung exchanged uneasy glances but remained silent. Ethan's serene smile didn't waver as he spoke, his tone flat and even. "I won't be going out to get the food." Now even Heewon looked confused.
Without a word, Ethan reached out his hand. Light gathered in his palm, then faded to reveal a bowl of steaming shrimp fried rice—freshly made and incredibly tempting. Just seeing it made everyone's mouths water.
''W-what the hell?!'' Heewon snapped back into focus after Ethan handed the bowl to Gilyoung; it came with a spoon, too. ''What kind of skills do you even have? Is there any more?'' She asked slightly expectantly.
"Sadly, I only managed to get one. My skill gives me things at random—I don't control what I get or when. Gilyoung just got lucky this time." Ethan's tone remained flat, though a faint apologetic smile tugged at his lips.
He didn't mind revealing a little about his Gacha. But it was still incomplete information. Mostly, he told them so he wouldn't have to explain things later—when he randomly gave them items or suddenly had something himself.
"Damn…" Heewon drooped slightly.
Sangah and Hyunsung exchanged amused glances at her reaction. Still, they couldn't quite hide their own surprise at how casually Ethan had revealed his skill. Their supporting Constellations had made sure they understood the importance—and secrecy—of such abilities. Sangah had even signed a pact explicitly forbidding her from disclosing hers to anyone. So why was Ethan so open about it?
'Gacha, get rid of the cigarettes and omelet.' He internally commanded the gacha. Those items were simply bad for consumption. 'And reroll my exclusive skill [Material Absorption]. Roll for a trait.' That skill was also pretty useless to him as of now. It was better to have a trait than a skill he wouldn't even use.
_____________________
[Rolling at Luck value: 2]
[Goth Magnet]
|Uncommon Trait| {2.4}
Goths and emos are drawn to you for some reason, making it easier for you to garner affection and favor from goths or those with daddy issues. In addition, people turn a blind eye to your less-than-favorable actions more easily, just like how those fathers turned a blind eye to their daughters.
_____________________
''COUGH-cough'' Ethan coughed out loud into his fist in surprise. Gilyoung, who was eating next to him, gently patted his back. The gesture caused Ethan to ruffle his head. Before he focused back on the trait he had just gotten.
––––––––––୨ৎ––––––––––
| Ethan's POV: |
Life could NOT get better. Where was this trait in my last life? I definitely needed to roll more traits from now on. This shit was gas.
"Ethan-ssi, I would like to have a word with you."
I should probably buy some rolls soon. Get my coins to a nice, round number like 10k.
"Ethan-ssi? I wanted to talk about the food problem."
I kept ignoring Inho's nagging. The guy had seen me summon food out of thin air, and with Joonghyuk gone, he was desperate to secure another source. Too bad for him, I wasn't interested.
''Hey brat! Are you even listening?!'' Bang Cheolsoo had come over with his group of lackies. I continued ignoring them. But just in case…
[Strength Lv. 5 -> Strength Lv. 15]
[Agility Lv. 10 -> Agility Lv. 15]
''Hey! Fuck off, handle the problem yourselves. Wasn't that the whole point of you bastards managing the food distribution?'' Heewon-ssi stood in front of me, with Hyunsung next to her.
''You fucking bitc-'' -Smack-
He didn't even get the chance to draw his weapon. My fist smashed into his face, and Cheolsoo rocketed backward like a ragdoll. Heewon and Hyunsung looked a little shocked, while Inho looked pale. Han Myungoh looked like he wanted to run away.
[The Constellation 'Monarch of the Small Fries' is amused.]
[100 coins have been sponsored.]
Not wanting any more smoke, the group carried away a severely swollen-faced Cheolsoo.
''Remind me not to get on your bad side kid.'' Heewon said with a grin. She looked more satisfied than even I.
––––––––––୨ৎ––––––––––
Gacha, let me get 1 Luck value 4 gacha roll, and 4 Luck 2s.
[Rolls available]
━━━━━━━━━━━━━
◆ Luck 2 ◆ (4 remaining)
◆ Luck 4 ◆ (1 remaining)
◆ Luck 6 ◆ (1 remaining)
━━━━━━━━━━━━━
[Coins Possessed: 10,100 C]
I'll keep these in storage for a while. Opening multiple at once might work better. So, Dokja's joining us tomorrow. Can't lie, I'm a bit nervous to finally meet him. He already knows about my existence thanks to Bihyung. Backstabbing bastard. Let's see how this goes tomorrow, then…
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–
»»––––––––⍟––––––––««
(AN: I swear this guy has a different breed of luck. Somehow he pulled Captain America's shield AND Playful Cloud BACK TO BACK, with and Avg luck of 2! To put into perspective thats like pulling an epic with common ass luck. And then he proceeds to get garbage with an Avg luck 4 -_- Anyway, I was going over the Gacha index (Options), and there are a lot of abilities that aren't in this. So it's not exactly 'EVERY' fictional world. I might expand the gacha myself because I wanna add op powers to it. Not that there isn't smth busted already in it, but there is NO SCP stuff in it, like whaatt? )
(PS: Guys, I'm picking Han Sooyoung as the female interest. Ong she's best girl, and someone needs to show her much-needed love. It will not be a harem, I've decided. Idk how that would work either way. Jihye was an option too, but I don't see how she and Ethan would connect. Bold and calm don't go along. Sooyoung's sarcasm does pair well with someone who has 'memories' from THIS world. They would cause so much mischief. It'll be the mischief trio now. )
[1] JJK - A cursed three-sectioned staff that amplifies in destructive power the higher the strength of its user is.
[2] Marvel - The Shield of Captain America, created out of Pro-Adamantium, one of the toughest materials known to man, capable of withstanding even the toughest of blows. The shield also has a knack for bouncing back to its owner when thrown.
[3] Dark Souls - Ring said to be chiseled from the bone of a flame salamander by blighted Pyromancers living in the Great Swamp. It bolsters flames wielded by its wearer, increasing the potency of fire-based abilities and spells.
[4] Call of Duty - "For when you are going at it long and fast." A special kind of Soda that, when drunk, slightly enhances your agility and stamina for the duration of 1 hour. Effects apply after finishing an entire can and do not stack by drinking more than 1 can. Warning: Drinking more than 3 different buff drinks at once will cause intense hemorrhaging, strokes, and heart attacks.
[5] Elden Ring - The famed blade of a family of executioners, this sword is greatly sharp and durable. In addition, the user can imbue their energy into the blade to make it fly according to the user's will, with the same power and strength it would have if it were swung normally. Making the sword fly consumes energy.