"Shit! Shit!"
I had never imagined that one day I would be thrown onto a battlefield as nothing more than a low-level college freshman. In my world, everything is decided by your system level. Strength, status, worth... all of it. I do not even know when the system first appeared. I was born in an era where everyone receives one the moment they open their eyes.
It gives people superpowers. Some can control lightning. Some can create gold out of thin air. The possibilities are endless, ridiculous, almost godlike. But me? Well...
You could say I was one of the unlucky ones who received a useless system. My power is super sight. I can see a little better than everyone else... Yeah, pathetic, I know. I have heard that enough times already from everyone around me.
Maybe, in another time, I could have become a scout. But with modern technology, people like me are obsolete. Drones, scanners, satellite tracking... they do everything better. Maybe that is why I received a summons to fight the next horde of monsters, an alien species we call the Another. They have haunted this world since the medieval ages, pushing humanity to evolve faster and faster with every generation just to survive.
And I was nothing more than wasted food. The government did that all the time, sending useless citizens to die and pretending it was necessary, but nobody ever said it out loud.
The massive city walls stood far behind me, almost like they belonged to another world. The familiar smell of cars, smoke, and factories had long been swallowed by the stench of sweat, dirt, and fresh blood baking under the scorching sun. Around me, the tall grass bent and rustled in the hot wind, the only thing that gave me even the smallest bit of comfort.
But I knew. I should have hidden somewhere and pretended I never received the summons. Who in their right mind would stand in front of a five-meter-tall ogre-looking monster?
Its skin was green like a leaf, but its body was built like a bull, thick with brutal muscle. The moment its huge wooden club slammed into me, it happened so fast I could not even feel pain yet.
Am I going to die? I asked myself that again and again while lying on the cold ground, surrounded by screams, steel, and blood flowing so heavily it looked like rivers cutting through the field. Several others like me were already lying still, their bodies cooling as their souls had long since fled. I would be next. Any second now.
I wish I could have spent more time with you, Grandpa. Why did you leave me in this world all alone? On the edge of death, all I could remember were the few happy days I had with the only family I ever truly had.
Soon I will come see you, Grandpa. Just watch me from above... Is death scary? Answer me... No... it does not matter now. I can already feel its cold embrace wrapping around me. It terrifies me, yet at the same time, it feels strangely warm... strangely welcoming...
The ground trembled as the ogre stepped closer. From the corner of my eye, I saw its club rise high into the air, ready to smash me into a bloody paste. Blood was already leaking from everywhere, warm and sticky against my broken body. Maybe this really was for the best.
BZZZZ
Suddenly, something vibrated in my pocket.
Then it vibrated again, harder this time, growing more frantic with each passing second. But the only thing I had in there was an old camera, the heirloom my grandpa left behind.
[Ding!]
A sharp bell exploded through my ears, making my vision blur for a second. Then a robotic voice followed, cold and emotionless.
[You have received a system upgrade!]
[10x growth activated]
"Who's this? Hello?" I tried to speak, but my voice came out weak and broken. My lungs had probably already collapsed, and every breath felt like fire ripping through my chest. I could not see anyone nearby, and my system had never spoken to me before. Was it really my system? No, impossible. I had never heard of anyone being able to talk to theirs.
[You are now connected to the HIVE]
[A new viewer has joined the livestream... A new viewer has joined the livestream... A new viewer has joined the livestream...]
[Streaming system activated]
[Dimensional Frog: "Who's this clown? Is he already dying?"]
[Breakfast4life: I joined a rookie, but damn, looks like we're losing him already lol. Might as well stay. Watching them die is always fun.]
"Who's talking?!" Rage rose inside me like a spark catching dry grass. The ogre was about to kill me, and now I was either hallucinating on the verge of death, or some sick bastards were watching me and laughing while I bled out in the dirt. That was enough to snap even my patience.
[Your Daddy: Watch this, chat. I'm about to give you all one hell of a clip before he kicks the bucket.]
[Dimensional Frog: Holy shit, Your Daddy is in the chat! Aren't you loaded, bro!?]
The unfamiliar voices kept talking inside my head, overlapping one another, until a heavier voice cut through them all and silenced the rest.
[Stream your actions to the dimensional viewers for XP and rewards]
[If you refuse to stream, your life will end here]
[Are you willing to accept?]
My heart trembled.
Did that mean I still had a chance to live?
A laugh escaped my bloody lips.
"Why not? Why wouldn't I accept?!" I spat out, forcing the words through the pain. "It's better than dying here... Whatever you want me to livestream, for whoever's watching, I'll entertain you all. But if you want a show, then pay the price!"
I pulled together the last scraps of my strength, hoping whoever stood on the other side of this madness could hear me. I did not care if this was just a dying illusion. If there was even the slightest chance it was real, then I was ready to grab it with both hands and gamble everything on it.
[Your Daddy: Hahaha, good. The kid knows how this works. Let me give him something to bite back with.]
[Viewer Your Daddy has donated a buff: Super Recovery - 5 seconds]
[Viewer Your Daddy has donated a buff: Super Strength - 20 seconds]
[Viewer Your Daddy has donated a buff: Super Durability - 20 seconds]
The moment those words appeared, my body ignited from the inside. My thoughts cleared in an instant. Broken flesh stitched itself back together, wounds vanishing as if they had never existed. A violent surge of power flooded my muscles, so overwhelming it almost made me groan.
I felt alive.
No... I felt powerful.
Whoosh
The ogre's club tore through the air, descending toward me with enough force to flatten me into a smear of flesh and bone, but all I could do was laugh at how slow it suddenly looked.
I rolled to the side with ease, dirt and shattered earth exploding in every direction as the club smashed into the ground. Then I rose to my feet with a lightness and speed I had never known before, my body almost too responsive, too alive, making me nearly stumble from the shock of it.
"Twenty seconds, huh?" I grinned, staring up at the monster. "That's more than enough time to beat your ugly ass into the dirt."
I launched myself forward, my fist cutting through the air straight toward the ogre's face.