A groggy groan leaked out from my parched lips.

As harsh light pierced my closed eyes and as my consciousness slowly returned, the first thing I noticed was the pain.

It hurt. It hurt a lot.

My right shoulder stung with a fiery heat, my back ached almost as if someone had just assaulted me with a brick, and my arms and legs felt as if they had been shredded to pieces. Everything hurt. It wasn’t just your ordinary pain either. It was this raw, visceral agony that throbbed and pulsated with a beat far different to the one that I was used to.

Sometimes, the pain would concentrate on a specific body part. One time, it would come from my shoulders, the next it would be in my legs, then my abdomen, forehead, stomach, and so on and so forth. The epicenter of pain constantly fluctuated, sending out shockwaves both small and large all over my body. They were like explosions on a minefield. With each subsequent blast, more would quickly follow.

It was so painful that it left me almost completely immobilized.

Fortunately, the human body was an impressive thing. After a while, I gradually got used to the pain. Of course, that’s not to say that I had completely gotten over it. After all, I did just fall off a cliff. That wasn’t the sort of thing that you could normally just shrug off. Still, considering the fact that I was still alive, maybe it wasn’t that tall of a cliff to begin with? Or maybe I just got lucky. It was probably a combination of both.

Either way, I was still reeling from the fall. I was just now beginning to regain some movement in my limbs. It would probably take a little while longer for me to be able to fully move again.

So, I waited.

I waited for god knows how long. Eventually, my body started going numb. Usually, numbness was never a good sign, but for me, it was practically a blessing in disguise. For a moment, it let me forget about the pain.

Now, even though I couldn’t feel anything, I was able to move my body through pure muscle memory.

I tried to lift myself up into a seating position. Unfortunately, when I tried to use one of my arms as leverage, I slipped on something warm and slippery. I fell back down but instead of the hard ground that I was originally expecting, I landed on something… softer.

It was somewhat squishy, a little bit warm, and covered entirely in hair. I looked down, only to realize that I was actually lying on top of the dog creature from before.

I instinctively jumped back in fright. I rolled off the dog and fell to the ground. Without hesitation, I scrambled away from the creature in haste. It wasn’t until I had significantly distance myself from the thing that I finally noticed something. It was already dead.

At least, I think it was. After all, it didn’t react to anything that I did, nor could I see any traces of movement. I could probably go up and check its pulse, but I wasn’t nearly that courageous.

Still, I was ninety percent confident that it was dead. It was definitely already dead.

I collapsed back onto the ground as a wispy sigh leaked out from my throat.

Looking closely, the corpse before me was a mangled mess. Its limbs were spread eagle, while bits and pieces of white and pink were scatted amidst the pool of blood that had gathered beneath its body. The impact from the fall had quite literally caused that thing to rupture from the inside out.

“So, that’s how I survived, huh?” I muttered to myself as I wiped a thin layer of blood away from my cheek.

From what I could tell, the creature had unknowingly cushioned my fall. Of course, there were probably other factors at play too, but that was the most significant aspect of my survival.

A somewhat bitter frown twisted my lips.

It’s not like I disliked surviving, but rather, it sure was an odd twist of fate. I mean, if it wasn’t for that damn thing, then I wouldn’t have fallen off the cliff in the first place. Then again, if that creature hadn’t latched onto me prior to the fall, then I would have most likely died by now.

It was like unexpectedly finding something good within something almost entirely bad… On the other hand, I can’t really call my situation good. After all, I still ended up in this damn mess. Any good that might come out of this can’t really be classified as good, especially when the end outcome was still something inherently bad.

A better analogy would be finding a good surprise hidden beneath a bad outcome, only to discover that the good surprise was actually something bad all along.

After a moment’s pause, I shook my head. Thinking about all this was unnecessary. For now, I should just be happy that I’m still alive.

“Still, how do I get out of here?”

I picked myself up and slowly limped over to the nearest tree. Sparse rays of light peeked in from the canopies above. I looked up. Past the towering Sycamores and beyond the outspread branches, I could just barely make out the cliff-side. I estimated the distance to be roughly three hundred feet off the ground.

It wasn’t too tall, all things considered, but it was still very much a fatal height for someone to fall from. Judging by a few broken branches, the trees had helped mitigate my fall.

In short, I really was just lucky.

As I continued to stare up, I suddenly noticed something.

There was this weird light in the corner of my vision. It took up only a small part of my eyesight, but it did distort my peripheral. If I squinted just right, I could even make out the vague shape of a square.

My first instinct was to cite brain damage. After all, traumatic head injuries were not uncommon, especially for people who regularly fall off cliffs. Hallucinations were a very common symptom of that.

Just then, the light rapidly expanded. Soon, almost ninety percent of my entire vision was overtaken by a pale white transparent square.

I reflexively jumped back. Still, it was weird. No matter how far away I moved, the transparent square remained the same size. In other words, it was following me. Either that or it was all in my head.

In front of me was a wall of text and numbers. The first line at the top of the square simply read:

[Status Screen]

“What the hell is this?” I subconsciously narrowed my eyes.

Was I really hallucinating? This damn thing looked way too real to be a hallucination. Then again, it’s not like I’ve ever hallucinated before, so I can’t really say much about it.

Still, this thing, it looked strangely like one of those menu screens that you’d often see in a videogame. You know, the type that would pop up whenever you pressed the start button.

“The title is also pretty self-explanatory. ‘Status screen’, is it?”

Fighting games and First-Person Shooters don’t usually have those. Status Screens were generally limited to RPGs. Was it like that? Did the fall jumble my head so badly that I was now confusing fiction for reality?

Despite the absurdity of the situation, a tiny light of curiosity still flickered within my heart.

I inspected the rest of the transparent square.

Status Screen

Name: Holden Day

Sex/Age: Male/ 18 years old

Race: Human

Titles: N/A

Class: Writer Lv 1

Skills: Penmanship Lv 1, External Observation Lv 1

HP: 16/100

Mana: 100/100

Strength: 6

Dexterity: 9

Constitution: 5

Intelligence: 11

Unused SP: 0

Current Condition: Heavily injured. Beware of blood loss.

“…”

It was a bit different from what I was normally used to. Usually, most status screens have a level indicator, something put in place to indicate a player’s growth and progress. This one apparently didn’t, although the classes did have their own individual levels.

Speaking of which…

“A writer?” For a moment, my face contorted. A gravelly chuckle seeped out from my clenched teeth. “Really? A writer? Is this some kind of sick joke?”

The anger within my voice was almost palpable. Fortunately, there was nobody here to hear it, but even if there were, I probably wouldn’t have cared. A fog of dark emotions clouded my mind.

“Writer… writer… why a writer?”

It might seem unimportant to others, but to me, it held a far greater meaning than just some simple word.

Being a writer was something that I once strived to accomplish. After all, in terms of compatibility, a lonely job like that was perfect for a loner like me.

In short, it was a dream of mine. Calling it a career goal wouldn’t be necessarily wrong, but frankly speaking, I never did have the courage to openly admit it. It’s why I left most of my career exploration worksheets blank back in high-school.

To me, it was a far, far away dream that felt impossible to achieve.

Of course, I tried. I’d like to think that I tried hard. After all, a dream stays a dream unless you actually do something about it. As such, I did something about it. I wrote. For three straight years, I wrote. Every day after school, during the weekends, and even in the midst of my summer vacations, I constantly wrote. I wrote through the rainy days and the sunny days. I wrote even when my tests were breathing down my neck. I wrote from the moment the sun peeked out from behind the clouds up until it descended beyond the horizon.

I wrote every day for three years, yet… I failed.

My efforts did not translate into results.

It’s funny, actually.

Failing to write was a hard concept for many to grasp, but it was not at all a rare feeling for those who’ve actually experienced it. I failed. I failed to finish my manuscript. I failed to submit my work. I failed to make a good story.

It was a simple as that.

I was a failure. I’ve been wallowing in my own self-pity for over three months now. It certainly wasn’t something that I’d like to openly admit, but it’s the truth. At this point, what else could I do?

I sank four years into this thing, my entire high-school life, yet nothing came of it. Should I continue? What if another four years pass and I still don’t produce results? Do I keep going then? Do I keep trying, even while knowing full well that I’m not good enough to succeed?

That class… why was it on here? Why was it given to someone who did not deserve it?

I breathed out a heavy sigh. The sigh contained with it all the emotion and stress that had accumulated over the years. Unfortunately, a simple sigh was not enough to disperse everything.

Just as I was busy wallowing, a new window suddenly appeared before my eyes.

Warning!

System activity has been detected.

Commencing Personal User Interface early activation… Personal UI already online.

Otherworld System now commencing early activation.

…

A stream of text constantly appeared one after another. It was like watching a new computer start up for the first time. The operating system hidden beneath the PC’s hardware was slowly coming to life.

For a moment, I thought back to the first time I turned on my laptop. Strangely enough, the emotions within both situations were somewhat similar.

After a few seconds, a dull beep suddenly echoed through my head. At the same time, a new window popped up.

Congratulations!

You have slain a Lv 2 Mud Hound.

Due to the special circumstance, no experience has been gained.

You are the first inhabitant to kill an Otherworld Invader.

A Momentous Achievement!

“Kill? Is it talking about that dog creature?” My eyes momentarily landed on the furry corpse a few dozen meters away from me. A shallow frown twisted my lips. “Why did the system inform me so belatedly? Wasn’t the dog— err, the Mud Hound already dead before then? Shouldn’t it have informed me after I fell off the cliff or after I regained consciousness?”

As far as videogames go, achievements and the like usually come immediately after the monster’s death. Ignoring all the other crap that these window panels were telling me, the fact that it came so late only served to arouse my suspicions.

“No, there’s also another possibility…” My eyes narrowed as a certain thought suddenly sprang to mind.

If we go off the basis that this new ‘system’ worked much in the same way that real videogames worked, then an achievement notification like this one would naturally appear almost immediately after said achievement was obtained. Then, that left only one explanation: the creature was not actually dead. Or rather, it had still been alive a few seconds ago.

Instead, it had died just now, moments before the new window panels started popping up in front of me.

“…”

I subconsciously shuddered.

It certainly was a possibility. After all, the corpse wasn’t exactly cold the last time I had touched it. What’s more, it’s not like I had the courage to go up there and check its vitals. Aside from my vague guesses, it was impossible to tell whether or not it had really died.

For the first time, I was thankful for my cowardice. If I had naively gone up to its neck to check, then who knows what might have happened. Whether that thing was really incapacitated or if it was just bidding for time, the world will never know. Or at least, I won’t.

The realization somewhat shocked me, but curiosity was still a far stronger motivator. A few new panels appeared. I continued reading.

Achievement has been recorded.

Now Distributing Rewards bonus...

A short pause later, another window panel appeared.

Congratulations!

You have earned the Trailblazer Title.

I stopped to briefly read through the new window. Titles were often given in-game for achieving certain feats. This was probably something similar. I didn’t worry too much about it. In fact, I was a little bit happy. After all, titles were a good thing. They were almost always beneficial to the player. The effects differed depending on the title and the game, but generally, they can help increase stats, boost fame/infamy, strengthen damage given to certain mobs, and even help improve relationships with NPCs. Really, they were useful little things.

As for the title itself, I was thoroughly lost. If it had been something like a Vampire Hunter title gained after killing a bunch of vampires, then I could somewhat deduce the effects of the title. Unfortunately, Trailblazer was a bit too vague.

I only ruminated over this topic briefly before I turned my attention back to the transparent squares. There was still a bunch of information that I had previously skipped over.

Achievement Reward: Skill evolution.

Please choose a skill to undergo forced evolution. Caution, only one skill can be chosen.

“First, it was titles, now skills?” I raised my brow. The more I delved into this weird little semi-delusion of mine, the more and more it felt like something lifted straight from a videogame.

I turned my attention over to my Status Screen. Fortunately, a single thought was all I needed in order to switch between window panels.

Pushing aside my abysmal stats, I focused my attention back over to the skills tab.

“Penmanship and External Observation?” As I read those words, my expression visible sank.

They were both level one skills, which was probably normal, but… what the hell were these skills?

Penmanship? What sort of crap was that? Even outside of this whole game-like situation, good penmanship was a slowly dying talent. The advent of computers had made it all but obsolete. At the very least, schools no longer required their students to teach cursive.

As long as you could write down letters and form words, what was the need of penmanship?

On the other hand, you’d think that sort of thing would be important for a writer, but that was far from true. Take me for example. I do all my writing exclusively on a laptop. In fact, doing it all by hand would serve more as a detriment, rather than a benefit.

What was the point in penmanship, especially as a skill?

I shook my head.

And then there was External Observation. Again, what the hell? Since it was a skill paired up with Penmanship, then it was also probably related to my Writer class.

Judging by the name, was it based on the fact that writers tend to observe their surroundings in search of inspiration? It was somewhat of a stereotype, but I do have to admit guilt in occasionally observing strangers for my own enjoyment.

Still, there was something wrong with the way this thing worded the skill. Why did it have to sound so… so voyeuristic?

“Neither one of these two are any good.” I breathed out a despondent sigh.

If my thought process was correct, then these two skills should be derived from that damn class of mine. As expected, Writer really was a trash class. In an unknown situation like this, I would have much rather preferred something like swordsman or mage. How the hell do you expect me to play along with your little game when you give me such a terrible start?

Unfortunately, there was no point crying over the things that I could not change. Instead, I thought about the issue at hand.

The reward bonus only allowed for the evolution of one skill. After thinking about it for a while, I eventually decided to go with External Observation. Penmanship felt like a dead end. More specifically, I did not know in what direction it would evolve in, nor was I very optimistic about that direction.

With External Observation, I was a little bit more hopeful about the outcome.

So, I picked External Observation.

A beat later, the screen in front of me suddenly changed.

Choice Confirmed.

Now configuring skill… skill structure undergoing evolution…

Fifteen long seconds passed before a dull beep echoed through my head.

Evolution complete!

Now granting rewards bonus…

[External Observation] has evolved into [Eyes of the Observer]

For a moment, I marveled at the new skill. Unfortunately, my awe did not last long.

Without warning, a severe migraine suddenly struck me. I subconsciously let out a cold hiss. I dropped to the floor as a wave of nausea swept me off my feet. My head felt as if it was being crushed by a hydraulic press.

I only lasted three seconds before my vision turned black and I passed out.