Desperate system

[Congratulations! You have met the criteria to unlock a system of the Gods. Do you wish to accept?]

Slightly taken-a-back, James stared blankly at the message in front of him.

As he wondered to himself weather he should accept or decline this message, a voice sounded in his head.

[Please, I'm begging you, accept my system] an old, robotic voice spoke straight into his mind.

Since he was unable to talk yet, James could only respond with his thoughts. 'What is this system thingy?'

[I'm not entirely sure *cough* but I do know that it can bring you power, allowing you to stand at the pinnacle of this world.]

'Will it be able to save me from this mess' James asked.

[For the system, I believe that this should be a trivial matter.]

'I'm not really interested in power, but I suppose I have no choice if I want to live', 'I accept' as James wished this, a tingling sensation ran throughout his body.

[system installation beginning]

[Warning! This process is extremely painful.]

Suddenly, the subtle feeling around James' body burst out into flames at once. He could only scream in pain, it was like fire ants scurrying through his veins, clumsily bumping into every organ and muscle on their way around his body.

The burning pain only worsened. James struggled to hold on. But somehow he managed.

***

[ding! Installation complete!]

The pain finally relaxed, James' small body stopped shaking, only shivering every few seconds now.

While he shook the pain off his body, James wondered how long had passed exactly. Just as he had this thought, a voice promptly answered his question.

[Hello host, congratulations on integrating with the system successfully. To answer your question, the installation process took a total of 12 years.]

'12 years? How the hell did I stay alive for that long?'

[The host was able to survive due to constant nourishment from the system. Your safety was also guaranteed from the spirit beasts because of the temporary cocoon generated by the system, preventing any external threats while also hiding the hosts presence from enemies.]

As he scanned around, James noticed a slimy, cast-like substance mixed in with the wet mud on the forest floor. And, after getting the feeling back in his body, he realised that he had definitely grown a lot. It seems the voice was telling the truth.

It had only been a moment since James had returned to his senses but he could already feel the predatory stares piercing his back from deeper in the forest. "where am I? How can I get to safety" he spoke for the first time since entering this world, he had a slightly high pitched voice; one befitting of a young boy yet to reach puberty.

[You are currently located in the outer area of the beast glades in the east of this continent - this is all the information I have been able to collect so far.]

[As for how you should get to safety, based on my calculations, if you head west you should be able to leave this place.]

Nodding in agreement, James quickly glanced up towards the sun to get his bearings, before setting off in a hurry towards the west. His body wasn't used to movement at first, his muscles were stiff and each time they contracted they caused an achy pain. This, however, didn't stop James; he was already used to pain. He had the pain tolerance of a warrior who tempered their body in the fires of a volcano, despite being at the young age of 12.

It had only been after around ten minutes, when James could start to make out the edge of the forest. The thick mud slowly formed its way into worn down stone paths, evident of the many people who travelled on them making their way towards the beast glades, each hoping to make a fortune.

Once he saw this, James could finally relax. As he met with the manmade paths, he slowed his run into a fast paced walk - not wanting to attract too much attention. He passed many different kinds of people, some in large groups while others in smaller, more familiar teams. But they all had one thing in common - the way they looked at James with disgust. He was naked, after all.

Luckily, the fifth group he passed were kind enough to throw him some spare clothes. A large, rough man shouting out to him as he tossed the clothes "you should take better care of yourself, the beast glades isn't a place for a kid like you, no matter how desperate for money you might be."

Quickly, James dressed himself then bowed before the group, offering his thanks. He seized his chance; knowing that these were kind people, he asked "How can I get to the nearest town? I'm a bit lost" he said while scratching the back of his head.

The man looked at him strangely for a moment before shaking his head and replying "not from around here, eh?" James shook his head while looking down at the floor, he was in a rather shameful situation; he would have never dreamed of this kind of situation back in his past life, but alas, he had no choice.

After letting out a slight chuckle at James' actions, the man said "if you keep on walking down this path, you'll eventually come to a crossroad, take the left path and it'll take you to the city of Oreson."

After thanking the man once again, James waved to the group as he set off towards Oreson.