The Mecha Ruin
[Searching for related ability...]
[Sorry, you're still yet to unlock that ability.]
Leon raised his brows. "Seriously?"
[Tip: Every paradox you create alters reality. Meanwhile, the Three Gods of Fate are silent watchers upon occurrences. If you alter it too much, then you risk getting exposed and the agents will locate you right away.
They end paradoxes. If not, you might become unstable in this timeline. This could erase you with no chance to come back. That means you must be mindful of whatever event you wish to alter with your PS points.]
Leon sighed. He jumped off the wolf. A sharp pain shooting through his joints made him wince—the after-effect of the fight.
He slapped his face and sighed again.
"Still not yet? That means I have a long way to go."
But a thoughtful idea crossed his mind. He glanced at the screen with a flicker of excitement. If he accessed
Leon ordered, "Access the Memory attribute."
[Initialising...]
[Access granted...]
A momentary numb feeling washed over him...
***
This ruined dystopian world was originally a thriving environment. It used to have skyscrapers like the Dragon City and even had awakening centres. Their scientists made AI machines to make life easier.
But their situation went from lively to dire when a huge fireball fell from the sky and destroyed everything.
At first, they thought the Great Reversal was happening, but then they saw the difference. Instead, this could be a disaster sent by the gods of fate to test their strength.
The fireball burning districts, undeads emerged from the sky. Dungeons broke loose, monsters gushed into the outside world.
But, unbelievable as it may seem, the Ascendants were able to protect quite a lot of districts from the invasion. To date, those districts were under the safe zones in Remnora.
The infested areas became victims of evil spirits and danger. This zone was the Mecha Ruin, a symbol of lost hope for scientific technology and invention.
Quite a few people still remain alive in Mecha Ruin. Of course, those that have the abilities to protect themselves. The twist about the fireball incident was a rise to a new concept of classifying magicians.
Constellations. This is a concept that defines humans' personalities, trust levels, and ability types.
The primary goal of most survivors in Mecha Ruin was to make it to Remnora.
Yet, a safe journey wasn't guaranteed.
***
Leon sighed, reopening his eyes.
He looked at the screen. "So, people in Mecha Ruin not only face danger. But also find only low-level resources available?"
Resources like rotten food and close-to-rag clothes, like the one Leon was wearing. As a matter of fact, money was useless in Mecha Ruin.
The only mode of exchange was those low-level resources. And these same materials were the target for dubious teams riding towards Remnora.
Leon smiled in a slight manner. If he were to head towards Remnora as well, then he would need allies. The only way to keep everyone loyal was to have plenty of materials available.
"What else will I spend my PS points on then?" Leon asked the air in a sarcastic manner. "Create a paradox such that, in Mecha Ruin, only I have access to elite resources. Fresh food, clean clothes, good water to drink... limitless ones, I mean."
[This is a minor alteration, one which won't disrupt reality too much.]
[You have made a thoughtful choice. Your intelligence stat has received +1.]
[Intelligence: 34.2]
Leon's eyes locked on that stat. 'Intelligence' had increased so much now that he had reached level 3.
Right at that moment, he noticed something creeping over his skin. Leon raised his arms to see a grey leather jacket that had replaced the rag on him. He immediately walked to the window of the funhouse.
"Incredible," he mumbled, staring at his own reflection.
He appeared to be in a skintight jacket, and his green hair had a flawless style. A fingerless glove sat on his palm, and a brown bag stared from his back. As a matter of fact, he had a neat pair of sneakers on as well.
There was bottled water inside, sodas, and even sealed raw meat and cereals in that bag.
Leon found a map in it as well.
He spread it wide. With the included names like Old Factory and Abandoned Temple, Leon knew this was a map of Mecha Ruin. The system screen then opened at his eye level:
[Make it to the underground city. It's circled in red on the map.]
Leon, after reading the information, searched for the red mark on the map.
And there it was, near a location called the Dead Man's Descent.
Leon folded the map and stacked it back in his bag. Then he strode forward and climbed to the top of the wolf. He forced the rod out of its eyes.
For one, he understood the message behind 'make it to the...'.
Besides, it wasn't safe to stay outside Remnora.
Leon began his journey, following the directions on the map.
***
He chose walking inside the buildings over taking the outside path. He surfed the walkways in hospitals, convenience stores, and offices.
At a point, Leon heard a snarl the moment he stepped into a building. He hid behind the receptionist's table without delay and peeped. It was a goblin with an axe in hand, no taller than an adolescent.
Leon grabbed one of the meats in his bag and placed it atop the table. The goblin fell for the trick, running fast to gobble it. Only for Leon to jump up and stab its hand to the table with the rod.
Killing the goblin earned him an extra 50 EXP.
Leon noticed himself being strange amidst all these brusque sceneriaos.
The journey was long and filled with unbelievable sights. Such as a grotesque creature killing off a team of fighters attempting to slay it.
Finally, the sight of the Dead Man's Descent greeted his face. It was a neon-striped stairway leading to the gate of the underground city.
Leon gripped the rod tighter as he descended those stairs. He reached a sturdy iron gate without facing any obstacles, which was surprising to him.
The system allocating 50 EXP again confirmed he had made it to the underground city. Leon toggled the lock of the gate and moved inside with care.
Clang!
The door's closing sound clattered in his ears.
Leon heard a solemn female voice that pleaded, "Take everything you want! I don't need them anymore..."
Leon halted, glancing at a distant left corner from which the voice came from.
Unexpectedly, he heard a man saying, "Interesting. Does that mean I can take you as well? Haven't had a romantic night in a while. What do you say?"
The system screen flashed before his face.
[Welcome to the real Mecha Ruin.]