Chapter 2 – Plans

  Halo-wicker, an action fantasy MMORPG created by my rival company—for which, ironically, I was a fan.

  Why wouldn't I be? The game was ruthless to its players. There was no pay-to-win, and above all, once your character died, it was game over. No respawns, no cheat revives. You had to start again from the very beginning. It was too ruthless, as a matter of fact.

  But in a world where Nano System resonance ruled everything—where all knowledge could be transferred to your brain in the blink of an eye, where the higher your resonance with The System, the more technological miracles you could perform, where your resonance determined your status—this game was embraced by the public and loved by the rich.

  Normally, the influential would have boycotted this kind of entertainment, but being all-powerful made one prone to boredom. We were superior compared to the masses, but we weren't gods.

  And now, I was born as the most hated character in the game. Bedivere Argil—a 4-star character with the potential to become 6-star. Due to his ability to grow his potential, he was also shrouded in misfortune. Thus, he was the worst character to play as, with ratings even lower than most 2-star trash minions.

  “Bedi, what are you reading?” my mother, Rosellas Argil, asked as she sneaked up behind me.

  It’s already been four years since I came to this world—enough time to realize my situation. And the fact that, even though most things here were similar to the game, there were still things that were very different.

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  For example—Cores, the vital organ of any magic user. In the game, there was a system of nourishing cores through methods of cognition, but here the method was underdeveloped. The highest any magic user had reached was Orange Core.

  Because of these minor differences, I made sure to research this world more thoroughly. Who knows where the path I choose might go haywire due to lack of knowledge? Currently, I was reading an encyclopedia on Magi-beasts—a cool compilation of extra lore added to the already known information.

  “Mum, Magi-beast cool!” I exclaimed. Though they never suspected me for my interest in reading, a four-year-old child capable of perfect speech would be too suspicious. Besides, I didn’t want to give my parents false hope of me being a 5 or 6-star genius.

  “Rose, have you seen my—uh—that leather something? That... what do you call it?” Agnus Argil, my forgetful father, asked Mom. Probably searching for his satchel where he stored his potions.

  “It’s there, on the room hang!” Mom shouted.

  It always surprised me how well they understood each other. Mom never explained where things were, just gave a half-assed description, and Dad never bothered to remember the correct names for his equipment—but they somehow just understood what the other meant.

  “Well, Bedi, Dad will be gone for hunting. Why don’t we go down to the market?” Mom suggested, her hands already preparing me for the journey.

  Why even bother asking? I sighed.

  I had expected more from Bedivere’s parents. Though none of the characters’ families were introduced, I had imagined something grander from the parents of a non-minion character. But I wouldn’t say I disliked them. Actually, I liked this life better than my previous one. All I had to think about now was my plan for further growth.

  This time, everything I achieve will be the result of what I carve or snatch for myself. I won’t walk the path that Heaven wills me to.