My name is Rein Feller, an average nobody. I am something like a background character in everyone's life.
I don't matter in the world.
Orphaned at a young age, I drifted through life like a ghost. My parents died in a car crash when I was eight—too young to understand, but old enough to feel the emptiness.
After that, I bounced between relatives who saw me more as a burden than family.
School was no better.
I was the quiet kid in the back. The one people forgot existed. If they did remember me, it was just to make fun of how skinny I was… or how I flinched whenever someone raised their voice. I wasn't just lonely. I was invisible. No friends, no one to lean on, no one who cared whether I showed up or disappeared.
Sometimes I wished I could disappear. Just vanish from that cold, gray world.
Every day felt like surviving, not living. I kept my head down, never spoke unless spoken to, and always walked with my eyes on the ground. I hated conflict. I hated attention. And most of all, I hated myself for being so weak.
That morning was supposed to be like every other. Wake up, exist, sleep, repeat. But instead…
I opened my eyes—and everything had changed.
I woke up staring at a sky I didn't recognize.
Above me, leaves rustled gently in the wind. Sunlight filtered through them, dancing across my face. The air was cool, fresh, and clean—way too clean.
"...Huh?"
I sat up slowly, my body sore all over. My hands sank into soft grass. Trees stretched in every direction, and I could hear birds chirping in the distance. Everything looked too real... and too peaceful.
This wasn't my room. Not even close.
"Did I die...?"
A faint beep echoed in my ears.
> [System Activation: Complete]
[Welcome, Rein]
[Level: 1 | HP: 30/30 | MP: 10/10 | Skill Points: 0]
[New Quest Received: Survive]
I froze.
A transparent blue window hovered in front of me. It looked like something straight out of a video game. Stats. Quests. A UI. No way...
"...I actually got isekai'd?"
There was no other explanation. The forest. The system. My name at the top of the screen. This was real. This was happening.
And then I heard it—a low growl.
I turned my head slowly.
A massive wolf stood at the edge of the clearing. Silver fur. Yellow eyes. Fangs bared.
> [Forest Wolf - Level 3]
[Status: Hungry]
I stumbled to my feet, heart pounding. I didn't have a sword. I didn't have armor. I didn't even have shoes.
All I had... was a stick.
I grabbed the biggest branch I could find and held it like a club.
The wolf lunged.
I dodged to the side just in time, barely avoiding its claws. My swing connected with its snout. A weak hit.
> [Damage dealt: 2]
[Critical Hit! Stunned for 1 second.]
One second? That's all I got?
I gritted my teeth and slammed the branch into its eye. The wolf howled and thrashed, sending me flying backward.
My arms were shaking. My lungs burned.
But I wasn't dead yet.
I grabbed a sharp rock from the ground and, when the wolf lunged again, drove it into the same eye with everything I had.
> [Damage dealt: 9]
[Bleeding Effect Activated]
It staggered. I didn't stop. I hit again. And again.
Until finally—
> [Forest Wolf Defeated]
[Level Up! Rein is now Level 2]
[+10 HP, +5 MP, +1 Skill Point]
[New Skill Acquired: "Analyze I (Passive)"]
The wolf collapsed in a heap.
I dropped to my knees, breathing hard.
"I... I survived..."
"Not bad," someone said behind me.
I spun around, ready to throw the rock again.
A tall woman stood there, arms crossed. Long silver hair. Green eyes. Bow on her back. Leather armor. She looked like a hunter—or maybe a mercenary.
"Didn't expect you to win that," she said. "Thought you'd be food."
"Yeah, me too," I muttered.
She smirked. "Name's Lyra. You?"
"Rein."
She nodded. "Well, Rein... you're lucky I found you. This forest isn't kind to strangers."
I hesitated, then got to my feet.
"Where are we?"
"Verian Forest. Middle of nowhere. You're a long way from civilization."
No idea what that meant. But I followed her anyway.
As we walked, the forest seemed to shift—trees taller, air heavier. Strange mushrooms glowed softly near our feet. The wind whispered like it had a voice of its own.
And then another message popped up.
> [New Quest Received: Explore the Ancient Ruins]
[Recommended Level: 5+]
[Quest Type: Main]
[Objective: Reach the Ruins in the Heart of the Forest]
[Reward: ??? | Failure: ???]
I stared at it.
Ancient ruins? Already?
I wasn't ready. Not even close.
But something in my chest stirred. A spark.
Maybe this world wasn't a curse.
Maybe... this was my chance.
The forest pressed in around Rein and Lyra, its breath thick with damp earth and unseen eyes. Shafts of sunlight pierced the canopy like divine spears, casting the ground in shifting patterns of gold and green. Each crunch of leaves beneath Rein's boots echoed louder than it should have, his makeshift branch-weapon gripped tight in his hand.
Every rustle made him flinch.
But the presence of the System—a low, steady hum in the back of his mind—kept him grounded.
[Level 2 Achieved]
Stronger than yesterday, sure, but still a speck in this untamed world.
Lyra moved ahead with silent grace despite her injured leg. Her silver hair swayed like a banner in the gloom, her bow slung across her back. She'd barely spoken since they set out for the ruins, but her emerald eyes kept flicking toward him—calculating, assessing. Rein couldn't tell if she was curious… or suspicious.
"Any idea how far?" he asked, voice low, half-expecting some beast to leap from the shadows.
"Not far," Lyra said, clipped but not unkind. "The ruins are old. Older than any record in my clan's archives. Few venture there. Fewer return."
Rein's stomach knotted. "Sounds like a great vacation spot."
She glanced back, a ghost of a smile playing on her lips. "You're strange, Rein Feller. Brave, perhaps… but strange."
He shrugged, hiding the warmth her words stirred. Back home, no one had ever called him brave.
"Just trying to keep up."
The System chimed softly, glowing text flickering into his mind's eye.
> [Quest Update: Explore the Ancient Ruins]
Objective: Investigate the ruins with Lyra. Uncover their secrets.
Reward: Unknown (scaled to discovery).
Failure: Unknown. (Warning: High mortality risk.)
"High mortality, huh?" Rein muttered. "That's comforting."
Lyra's head tilted. "You often talk to yourself?"
He flushed. "Just, uh… thinking out loud."
She didn't press, but her gaze lingered—sharp, knowing. Rein focused on the path ahead. The System might be his edge in this world, but it was also a mystery. Why him? Why here?
Survive first. Ask questions later.
The forest began to thin.
Ahead, a clearing opened into a forgotten ruin—crumbling stone, moss-covered pillars, arches swallowed by time. Vines choked the structures like nature was trying to erase them. The central building, half-sunken into the earth, pulsed with ancient weight. The air shifted, colder… heavier. Like the place exhaled its own unease.
Lyra paused, brushing her fingers across a weathered rune.
"These markings… they're pre-elven. Maybe even pre-human." Awe threaded her voice. "This place held power once."
The System hummed again.
> [Skill Unlocked: Analysis (Passive)]
Description: Your Intelligence stat allows you to perceive patterns and lost lore.
Cooldown: 10 minutes
"Analysis?" Rein whispered, focusing on the rune beneath her touch.
The world blurred.
Flashes of robed figures. Glowing sigils. A ritual spiraling into chaos. The rune was part of a ward—meant to seal something deep within.
He staggered back.
Lyra caught his arm, steadying him. "What did you see?"
"I… don't know. Just… images. This place—it was sealed. Or something was."
She studied him. "My clan speaks of a calamity tied to this place. A force unbound." She tightened her grip on her bow. "We tread dangerous ground."
"No kidding." Rein looked down at his branch. "Really wish I had something better than a stick."
They stepped into the central structure—a wide chamber open to the sky. Moss-covered statues lined the walls, eroded faces staring blankly into eternity. At the far end, a stone altar loomed, its surface stained dark with age.
The moment they stepped forward, the ground trembled.
> [Warning: Hostile Presence Detected]
Lyra notched an arrow. "We're not alone."
From the shadows, they emerged—skeletal warriors, bones clattering, eyes burning with baleful light. Rusted swords hung in their skeletal hands. Rein counted six.
> [Quest Alert: Purge the Undead Guardians]
Objective: Defeat the skeletal warriors.
Reward: 50 XP, Item Drop (Random).
Failure: Death.
"Six against two?" Rein muttered. "Yeah, those are great odds."
Lyra loosed an arrow. One skeleton dropped, skull shattered.
"Five now," she said calmly.
Rein grinned despite himself. "Show-off."
The skeletons charged.
Rein activated Basic Combat, the System guiding his movements. He ducked a swing and smashed his branch into a ribcage, cracking bone.
> [Skeletal Warrior - HP: 80%]
"Harder than wolves," he grunted, dodging another blow.
Lyra danced around the battlefield, her arrows flying with deadly precision. But the skeletons were relentless. One slashed her thigh—blood welled instantly.
She hissed and stumbled.
"Joints," Rein said suddenly. "Aim for the joints!"
He swept low, smashing a skeleton's knee. It collapsed, and Lyra finished it off.
"Nice thinking," she called.
They fought in sync—his strategy, her skill. One by one, the skeletons fell. The last charged Rein, blade raised high. He braced
Lyra tackled it from the side and fired an arrow point-blank into its spine.
It collapsed.
> [Quest Complete: Purge the Undead Guardians]
Reward: 50 XP, Item Drop - Iron Dagger (Common)]
Level Up! You are now Level 3.
Stat Points Available: 2
Rein gasped, sweating and sore. The System prompted him.
> [Stat Allocation: +1 Endurance, +1 Agility]
Endurance: 5 | Agility: 8
A dagger materialized in his hand—simple, sturdy. He tested the balance. So much better than a stick.
Lyra leaned against a statue, wincing. Blood trickled down her thigh.
"Let me help."
He tore a strip from his hoodie, kneeling beside her. Her skin was cool beneath his touch as he wrapped the wound.
"You're not what I expected," she said quietly.
"What did you expect?"
"Someone weaker." She met his eyes. "Most humans would've run."
Rein looked away. "I'm done running."
Silence.
The ruins around them seemed to hold their breath. Then Lyra nodded toward the altar.
"The heart of this place lies there."
They approached the altar. The air thickened, vibrating with unseen power. Rein's Analysis skill activated on its own.
A ritual. A shattered seal. A prison, long forgotten.
This wasn't just a ruin.
It was a tomb.
> [Quest Update: Uncover the Ruins' Secret]
Objective: Investigate the altar.
Reward: Knowledge, Possible Artifact.
Failure: Unleashing the Unknown.
"Why's it always unleashing?" Rein muttered.
Lyra's fingers hovered over a recess in the altar. "A key was placed here once. Without it, we can't go deeper."
Rein scanned the room. A shimmer beneath a fallen pillar caught his eye.
He knelt, digging through dirt and rubble, and unearthed a jagged shard of crystal etched with faint runes.
> [Item Acquired: Fragment of the Warden's Key]
Description: Part of an ancient seal. Additional fragments required.
"Found something," he said.
Lyra's eyes widened. "That's no trinket. Keep it safe."
Before he could reply, the ground quaked. A low growl echoed from the entrance.
Something massive was coming.
> [Warning: Elite Hostile Detected]
The beast stepped into the light—twice the size of a bear, a grotesque fusion of fur and scales. Horns curled from its head, and its eyes burned with mindless hatred.
> [Forest Behemoth - Level 5]
HP: 500/500
[Quest Alert: Slay the Forest Behemoth]
Reward: 100 XP, Rare Item Drop
Failure: Death
Rein gripped his dagger, heart pounding.
"Lyra," he said, "any bright ideas?"
She loosed an arrow—it bounced off the behemoth's thick scales.
"Eyes and underbelly," she said grimly. "Everywhere else is armor."
The behemoth roared and charged.
Rein dove aside, stone shattering where he'd stood. Lyra moved to flank, arrows flying. But the beast ignored her—its gaze locked on Rein.
It was after the key.
"Lyra!" he shouted, "Distract it!"
She nodded, unleashing a volley.
And Rein ran, not away—but toward the altar.
If this thing wanted the key, maybe it feared what it could unlock.
Or maybe… Rein was about to die.
Either way, he wasn't running anymore.