…Pain.
Darkness.
Sprinkling discomfort.
It was different from the pain that I was used to feeling from my legs. It was all over my body, through my bones, poking from underneath my skin.
For a moment, everything was dark, and the pain felt suffocating. I controlled my breathing, heaving in and out softly. My senses that were urging me to enter fight mode calmed down. I heaved out a long breath.
Ambient sound filled my ears and light fell over my closed eyelids. The chirping of birds, the clinking of chandeliers from the wind coming through the windows, and the humming of a person reached my ears. I found myself opening my eyes to a grand ceiling.
"...What the?" I asked quietly, blinking rapidly. I shut my lips quickly. I frowned, realizing that I'd just spoken in an accent far from my own. How did that work?
What happened, where is this, how did I get here? Countless questions littered my mind. I couldn't recall how I ended up here. I… couldn't have been kidnapped, could I? No, that wouldn't make sense. I wasn't important enough… anymore… for something like that to happen to me. Besides, why would my kidnappers keep me in a lavish mansion?
Shifting my neck a little to look around, I found myself in a grand bedroom. It looked like something out of a medieval or renaissance painting. Very pretty…
There was also a person.
"Huh?" A brown-haired man in a butler uniform was holding a broom and cleaning the floor. He stopped when our gazes locked, and he stared at me in silence.
For a moment, he seemed like a statue in all except for his face that twisted in an expression of shock. "T-the," he shouted, "the young master has woken up!"
The what now?
Alright, what's going on?
The last thing I remember was… writing a review? I didn't even have the time to think about it. In less than a minute, the room was filled with more people than I had seen in my garbage-filled, dark room in the last few months.
A bunch of doctors, butlers & maids, and a middle-aged couple that followed. The lady dressed like some noble-woman cosplayer jumped at me. "Oh, my baby, what happened to you?!" She hugged me tightly, sniffling against my shoulders. "Are you alright now?!"
The middle-aged man, his expression stern, was rather focused on the doctor's words. A moment later, he nodded and pulled the woman back by her arm. "Let the doctors see him. Move, Rithea." He stared at me, frowning for a moment, while the doctors surrounded me, beginning to check on me like I was livestock.
I remained cautiously stiff, careful of any weapons or something they might be carrying or any weird injections that they might try to put in me. I was surprised to see that my careful senses remained even after so long. I'd thought I lost it over the years of… uselessness.
When the doctors finished their check-up, they quickly backed off, turning to the man. "My lord, uh, he seems rather fine… It's a miracle he woke up at all!"
I felt my breathing get sharper again. Is this some kind of elaborate prank? I tried to process the situation. It was a bit too sudden for me. I recalled drinking too many energy drinks, far too many, so was I hallucinating a whole different lifetime instead of just imaginary wings?
"I see," the middle-aged man said, his voice making the room go quiet. The woman wiped her tears and tried to approach me again. The man shouted, "Rithea, stay back. It's because of you spoiling him that he's turned out like this!"
The woman was startled as she froze in place. I sighed. Wasn't this too detailed for a dream? I was sleep-deprived, and I had drank one too many energy drinks. Was that the explanation? By the way, did he say 'Rithea'?
Rithea, the daughter of Sikandar the Great?
I was pulled back from my thoughts when the man spoke to me again. "You're only 19, and yet you're acting like this, Iskandaar? While your elder brother and sister are making the name Romani shine in Waybound." he scoffed, "If you do not take this family's honor seriously, then the next time you pass out in the middle of the street drunk with women of disrepute, I guarantee Sir Rashid al-Faris will drop you outside the territory instead!"
"…." I blinked twice.
He yapped a lot, but none of that mattered. Only three words registered in my head. Iskandaar? Romani? Waybound? There's no fucking way… The possibility made me tremble.
The Romani Family, from the game [Arcane Crown], was the only family with Arabic names located in the Ethenia Empire. No way. Why was I hallucinating about that stupid damned game that my friend recommended last night?
I recalled the contents of his message clearly.
[Aeth123: Hehe, I have a game recommendation from you. It's a bit different from 'The Chronicles of the Heavenly Demon God,' the entire world is different, but it's still quite enjoyable… It's actually from the same company, and I also happened to work on it! So I think you'll like it. Will you try it?]
The middle-aged man continued shouting, but my mind was somewhere else entirely. Let's backtrack a little. Starting with…
I was enjoying a late-night gaming session when that message found me. Actually, I wasn't sure if it was nighttime. My windows were shut for far too long for me to realize the time. I just know it'd been more than three days since I'd last slept, but I was enjoying the 27th playthrough of my favorite game, The Chronicles of the Heavenly Demon God.
I wanted to sleep when I'd completed the run, but my good online friend Aeth123 sent me a recommendation. I had to check that out; I couldn't sleep otherwise, especially since it was from the same studio! I had my expectations high.
Yet…
That game, [Arcane Crown], turned out to be utter trash.
I rarely had rage bursts during gaming anymore, but perhaps the lack of sleep had gotten to me. I remember my keyboard being split in two before me, and I was glaring at the screen. I, who beat the Chronicles of the Heavenly Demon God, one of the hardest games of the decade, 17 times, couldn't kill a boss after hours?
Ridiculous.
The fight mechanics were trash. I wish that was the only weak point of the game. And what in the shonen power-of-friendship was that plot? I really thought all that died with Fiery Tael back in the day.
Then there was the Academy arc. Did the writer attend high school? No, more plausibly, he went to an all-boys school. There was no other explanation for how the characters acted in the Academy.
The game had some good points, which I couldn't deny. Such as world-building, graphics, and some really good characters. However, every other major thing in the game was bad. I recall cursing: How can Aeth123 recommend me such trash? Is this some kind of petty revenge for something I did?
In the end, my rage got the better of me. I installed a new keyboard and started typing. I had to admit that I was frustrated and not in my right mind; I needed to release it so I wrote a very detailed review of the game on his DMs. Since he said he worked on the game, he deserved to know its flaws. After half an hour of typing, I clicked 'send' on the thousand-word plus rant.
I was too sleepy but forced myself awake for Aeth123 to see and read it. Soon, I received the reply I had been waiting intently for.
[Aeth123: …If you have so much to say about it, how about you go and change it?]
Huh? I recalled scowling at that text. What is this punk- My confusion had turned to panic then as my eyes spun, and I fell to the side.
I recalled my chair tossing over and my head hitting against the tiled floor. For a moment, I smelled the ever-so-familiar smell of blood, and then everything went dark.
"...."
Then, I woke up here.
Is this really what I think it is?
"...If you're so addicted to women, then so be it. I shall get you engaged as soon as possible!" the middle-aged man seemed to have had enough shouting as he turned around, stomping on the floor. "Rithea, let's go. You're not allowed to meet him for the rest of the week."
"B-but…!" the woman tried, but one glare from the man had her quiet down. She sighed before following behind him.
"Damn, the Count is really pissed this time," one of the maids whispered. The butler beside her pinched her waist, and she quickly shut her lips. The doctors cleared their throats and looked at me.
"Your health is alright, young master, at least as alright as it usually is," one of the doctors said. He had a mustache and a bald head.
"Usually?" I asked, voice shaky.
"Yes. So please, take better care of yourself. Your bones are very weak from birth. What if you had broken your skull by falling to the cobblestone street? You were really lucky this time. Please rest for a few days before you try to run around."
Huh, what a convincing plot. The body's owner died, and I took over? What a clear hallucination. But…
What if all of this is real?
The prospect made me pause. Suddenly my blood felt hot. The possibility that I'd been yanked from my crappy life, my ruined legs, and put in a new body? Could all of this be a second chance? I felt adrenaline rush through my veins, and it was odd to feel such a strong rush after so many years.
I closed my eyes, took in a deep breath, and reopened them. Let us assume… that this wasn't a dream or hallucination and act accordingly for now.
"…Understood," I said. Thankfully, that seemed to be the end of it. I needed some alone time, the doctors excused themselves, and the butlers and maids followed suit. One told me to call them whenever I needed them, but I barely heard that.
My mind was busy with something more important. Contemplation. Iskandaar Romani, the dead son of the Romani Count family? I didn't exactly recognize the character Iskandaar, but I recognized the family.
In Arcane Crown, it was a prominent family… destined for ruin. Ah, shit.
If I were inside the game world now, then that text from Aeth123 must be real. So, who- no, what the fuck is he? This was too clear to be a dream or hallucination… at least, I hoped it was. In that case, was Aeth123 some type of God? Or what?
Truthfully, I didn't know much about Aeth123. He'd always been a little weird and mysterious, and I met him in the forums of The Chronicles of the Heavenly Demon God. Thinking about it, maybe he was the creator of that game who didn't want to leak his identity and just wanted to connect to me, as I was the best player in it; I wouldn't be surprised.
…Damn, was I being too harsh?
No, fuck him, he sent me to this stupid Fantasy World. Since he was going to do that anyway, why not send me to the world of The Chronicles of the Heavenly Demon God? I loved Murim more than Fantasy, especially that game. It was the greatest piece of work in modern gaming history.
"So, Iskandaar Romani, huh?" Everything was still too sudden. Too crazy. Perhaps just to distract myself from all of it, I began to go through the information I had about the Romani Family in my head.
It was a family that birthed one of the heroine candidates and a minor villain: Heroine Riasmin and her brother, the minor villain Iaskin.
If I remember correctly, Iaskin made the grave mistake of teaming up with a major villain who was later defeated by the main characters, and his older sister Riasmin begged the main character to spare his life.
"Please, I already lost my youngest brother two years ago. I can't lose him too! My family will be devastated."
This was how Riasmin begged the main character to spare her brother's life in the game. And yet, the main character proceeded to cut off one of his hands as a punishment.
Thinking about it, that was quite ruthless. Well, not as ruthless as when one of the other heroine candidates got jealous of Riasmin and decided to ruin the Romani Count family. The family got into trouble, and it affected Riasmin's mentality negatively. Due to her change in mentality, the main character quit being interested in her. At that moment, the opposing heroine revealed Iaskin's past evil affiliation to the world. That was how the Romani Count family fell.
In short, this was a family moving toward destruction.
Now, I had become its youngest son, Iskandaar Romani, who had already died before the game started. Not that it mattered. If my guess from playing the game was right, this world itself was destined for annihilation. It was a package.
"Goddammit," I grumbled. Why am I in this world? I couldn't help but complain again. Look, I was happy to be anywhere where my legs weren't ruined, but… Fine. I was asking for too much, but I wish I was sent to a Murim Cultivation world instead. My love for Fantasy was low.
Also, I could feel my legs, but wasn't I in the body of a cripple? The doctor said I had weak bones from a young age. No wonder this body felt like shit, I had a stupid chronic illness. Who knows if I'd survive if some old lady accidentally bumped into me?
I sighed and sunk deeper into my pillow, feeling the soft thing embrace my head... Surprisingly, the pillows of this medieval-like world were quite soft. Huh. Maybe it's not that bad. Whatever the case, this was a second chance at life. I shouldn't spit on its face.
I could make things right this time. I was ill, but this was a world of magic. I could probably find a cure…
****
I lay on the bed for another minute before I got up. I realized how true that thing about my soft bones was when I stood on my feet. I was wobbly. This Iskandaar's legs were almost as bad as my own since I had been released from the hospital after a 'successful recovery'. I could walk, but barely.
"How was he supposed to be a womanizer with a body like this?" That was crazy.
Putting those thoughts away, I slowly walked over to the window facing a grand garden outside. The smell of flowers, nature's beauty, was a little startling for someone like me who hadn't seen the sunlight in a long time. Huh. This place looked a lot more beautiful than the medieval times I saw in picture books; it was as beautiful as the game.
I'd been thinking while lying on the bed… Was I really inside a game world now, or would I wake up all of a sudden and find that this was a dream? Well, I didn't have the memories of this body. That'd be troublesome.
Anyhow, if this was real, how about Status? Could I access the Game Status page here? "…Status." Unwilling to embarrass myself, I whispered softly.
And immediately, a blue screen popped in front of me. My eyes widened.
Name: Iskandaar Romani (???)
Age: 19 years
Race: Human
Level: 2 | 36% EXP
Mana: Nonexistent
Class: [Level Requirement Not Met]
Class Skills: [None]
General Skills:
The Heavenly Demon Skill Tree [0%]
Status Effect: Weak Bone Syndrome [Severe]
"No way?" I frowned. Surprisingly, instead of caring about the prospect of Status being real, I was more shocked at what was written in the skill section.
The Heavenly Demon Skill Tree [0%]
What the hell? Was that the proof that this was a hallucination? Because how could that be here? It was a skill from The Chronicles of the Heavenly Demon God.
I reached out a finger and clicked on it. "Let's see–"
Then, I shouted and fell to the floor as unimaginable pain bloomed in my brain. My head felt like it was splitting in two, and I grumbled on the floor, rolling from one side to the other, my eyes going bloodshot.
Painful, painful, painful…!
Memories, not one but two sets, began to swirl in my head. Five seconds into it, I realized such pain couldn't be fake. This was real. All of this was real.
It seemed that seeing the Status Page was some type of activation mechanism because all the memories of Iskandaar Romani began to flood into my brain. Flashes of images in front of my eyes that I've never lived, a different childhood I didn't remember, friends I never talked to, and faces that were all new to me began to fill my head to burst.
Then, just when I thought it ended, another set of memories was pushed inside.
The Heavenly Demon of the Murim God Cult, the Cult Leader Lee Cheon-Ma, nested his knowledge in my head. Rather than all kinds of memories that I received about Iskandaar, mundane or otherwise, I only received memories related to Murim, medical techniques, and the general idea of martial arts from the Heavenly Demon. The specifics were less.
That was fine with me since I knew all about the Heavenly Demon like the back of my hand. I had cleared the game 17 times, after all. I knew Lee Cheon-Ma better than he knew himself… and I was grateful since fewer memories meant less pain.
Still, memories of two characters, one from the body I currently occupied and the other from the Chronicles of the Heavenly Demon God, made their home in my mind. Just who… what… was the creator of these games? What was Aeth123?!
"What the hell…" I cursed and slowly got up from the floor, looking around to realize the sun was far from the position it was at earlier. It's been hours since I fell on my knees.
I looked at my hands, fascinated. Knowledge of two worlds, three if I counted my original, now they rested in my head and made up my whole being. How interesting was that?
If it was like this, it wasn't impossible to make use of this weak body to rise through the steps. The Heavenly Demon knew how to cure simple weak bones.
Since I had the knowledge of the Heavenly Demon, I could not only stop the fall of this family, to which my own fate was intertwined but also reach the peak of both worlds.
If I had the power of the Lone Star in Blue Sky, the strongest man in Murim, couldn't I easily survive the Devils and the Demon King, who are aiming to bring this world down?
Insanity.