starting the new world

As they were leaving that corridor.

System:

"Readers Min-Su Ah and Yuki, before heading to Phase 2, let's see if you'll gain any skills."

Yuki (thinking):

It'd be nice if one of us got a skill… We're still too weak…

Min-Su Ah (thinking along):

It would be nice—

Min-Su Ah's system opened.

System:

"Congratulations, you've obtained the skill 'Mist of Disdain.'

This skill works as follows:

Reader Min-Su Ah releases a mist that covers a 200-meter area. However, if he moves while releasing the mist, the area of effect will shift with him.

Effect:

Releases a dark mist that induces intense negative emotions in targets—such as disgust, repulsion, and disdain.

Under this influence, the enemy loses emotional focus, becoming vulnerable to mental manipulations and stealth attacks."

Yuki (shocked, incredulous):

WHAAAAT?! You got a skill?!

Yuki made an "I want one too" face as he stared ahead. Yuki's system also opened.

System:

"Better luck next time :b"

Min-Su Ah looked at that and covered his mouth, holding back laughter.

Yuki (irritated):

Go fuck yourself, System.

System (mocking):

No, you fuck off.

Penalty imposed on reader Yuki: Your voice will be silenced for 5 minutes.

Min-Su Ah (laughing hard):

That's unfair… but it's pretty funny.

Min-Su Ah laughed while Yuki tried to scream, but no sound came out. Each funny face Yuki made only made Min-Su Ah laugh harder.

Min-Su Ah (regaining composure):

Well, hyung… Putting that aside, the next phase will probably separate us, but we'll still be in the same kingdom.

System:

"The start of the Second Phase — The Fallen Kingdom — is now.

Second Phase: The Fallen Kingdom is set in a medieval era.

Each reader will receive a unique mission—no duplicates.

Missions may vary from super easy to super difficult, depending on your luck.

It takes place in the Kingdom of Sunlor, known for its military power and corruption.

Time limit: 30 days.

Reward for first completion: Conqueror's Mantle.

General reward: 1 gold coin and 1 Skill Evolution Stone.

Failure: Permanent entrapment in Phase 2.

Good luck."

Min-Su Ah (casually bidding farewell):

Bye, hyung, see you in a bit.

Yuki waved his hand, still unable to speak.

They were both teleported.

Yuki still wasn't used to everything around him during the "loading" process.

System:

"Penalty time has ended."

Yuki (relieved and annoyed):

Finally… This system is messing with me.

Suddenly, he felt a massive headache, and slowly his vision darkened until he lost consciousness.

When he started regaining consciousness, he heard distant voices in the background.

??? (surprised):

The hero is waking up!

???2 (alerted):

Call the priestess!

Yuki opened one eye, turned his head slightly, and saw a woman dressed in black waiting for him to fully awaken.

Yuki then sat up on what seemed like an altar, surrounded by a setting with an old-fashioned style.

Yuki (confused, looking around):

Where… am I?..

He looked at the woman in front of him. Now that he could see clearly, she was a woman with brown hair and green eyes, with a gentle and delicate expression, dressed in black clothes with a strange symbol on her chest.

Eliza (smiling, introducing herself):

First, hero, allow me to introduce myself. I'm Eliza Kantis, a priestess from the revolutionary group.

Yuki (confused):

Revolutionary group?

Eliza (serious):

We are those who stand against the corrupt government of King Zhul.

System:

"The second phase — The Fallen Kingdom — has begun, and reader Yuki has been given one of the main roles.

Mission: Become the hero who will lead the revolutionary group against the King of Sunlor.

(Mission Difficulty: Hard)

Bonus Reward: Emperor's Crown.

General Reward: 1 gold coin and 1 Skill Evolution Stone.

Time limit: 30 days."

Yuki froze, making an incredulous and funny face, unable to believe he got this mission right away. Eliza then snapped her fingers in front of his face.

Eliza (concerned):

Hero? Are you conscious?

Yuki (sighing, ironically):

Yeah, I'm awake… Eliza, right? Could you explain the situation in more detail?

Eliza was happy to see the hero "agreeing" to help them.

Eliza (serious, explaining):

As a priestess, I read about a prophecy that said with the right spell, we would summon the hero destined to save our kingdom.

Yuki stared at her after hearing that cliché line, then sighed and scratched his head.

Yuki (sarcastic):

So I'm that hero? Wonderful…

Eliza looked a bit confused by Yuki's sarcastic comment.

Yuki (thinking, worried):

Probably the king of this kingdom will also be a reader… And other readers would love to be in my position…

But I know nothing about what might happen…

He crossed his arms, thinking.

A woman in the background, with pink hair and black eyes, looked at him suspiciously and commented:

Iris (suspicious):

I think this hero is kinda crazy…

Eliza (serious, scolding):

Watch your mouth, Iris! He's just… a bit different.

Yuki gave both of them a "You know I'm right here, right?" look. He then noticed something odd: only women were present.

Yuki (thinking, confused and embarrassed):

Why are there only women here?!

He started feeling a bit embarrassed since they were all staring at him. He stood up.

Yuki (serious, straightforward):

Alright… Eliza, what do we have to fight the king?

Eliza (awkward, scratching her chin):

Uh…

She looked a bit embarrassed.

Yuki (already annoyed):

Don't tell me you don't have…

Eliza (confused):

Don't have what?

Yuki (frustrated):

The bare minimum to fight a kingdom's army…

Eliza paused, thinking about what to say.

Yuki (impatient):

Do you have weapons?

Eliza (hesitant):

Not many…

Yuki already gave her a suspicious look.

Yuki (more skeptical):

Do you have people?

Eliza mentally counted the average number of people.

Eliza (estimating):

Around 300…

Yuki (still skeptical):

Women?

Eliza (nodding):

All of them.

Yuki scratched his head, trying to process the situation.

Yuki (shocked):

Why only women?

Eliza (serious, explaining):

Because the Kingdom of Sunlor has a law forcing all women to be completely submissive to men…

Yuki took a few minutes to fully grasp the situation.

Yuki (determined):

Okay. I have some time to improve this before the confrontation.

Eliza (curious):

What are you thinking, hero?

Yuki (serious):

Don't call me hero… Just call me Yuki.

Eliza (surprised):

Yuki? But isn't that a woman's name—

Yuki gave her a deadly glare.

Eliza (scared, quickly correcting herself):

Got it, Yuki.

She looked a bit scared but realized it wasn't serious—Yuki simply didn't want to be teased.

Eliza (focused):

So, what's your plan?

Yuki (direct):

First, I want to know how many here can fight.

Eliza (thinking):

Most of the girls… But there's one in particular who's much more skilled—Uzura.

Yuki (planning):

I want you to have half the girls train with this Uzura. Do you know magic?

Eliza made an unreadable face.

Yuki (remembering):

Ah, right… I forgot. Well, do you think you can at least teach basic spells to the other half?

Eliza (determined):

It really depends… but I'll try. Anything else?

Yuki (decisive):

No, for now. I'll go gather some information outside.

Eliza (advising):

I suggest you take a weapon. There are many bandits out there…

Yuki scratched his head.

Yuki (curious):

Alright… What do you have?

Eliza sent some girls to fetch the weapons, and after a few minutes, they returned with a sword, a spear, a dagger, and a bow.

Yuki (frustrated, thinking):

I forgot we're in a medieval era… I wanted a machine gun.

He looked a bit disappointed. Eliza and the girls exchanged glances, thinking, "Are we really that hopeless?"

Yuki sighed and reached for the sword, but then the system appeared.

System:

"Selected weapon incompatible with user.

If you keep this weapon as your main, your damage will be reduced by half.

Your Regalia isn't compatible with swords."

Yuki (thinking):

Hmm…

Mysterious Voice (whispering):

Spear…

Yuki withdrew his hand from the sword and grabbed the spear.

System:

"Regalia Cú Chulainn is pleased with your choice."

Yuki (decided):

I'll go with the spear.

The girls returned with the other weapons.

Eliza (skeptical):

Do you know how to use a spear?

Yuki froze for a moment.

Yuki (lying confidently):

I do.

He gave a thumbs-up—a habit he picked up from Min-Su Ah. Eliza wasn't convinced but just sighed.

Yuki (casually, leaving):

Well, I'm heading out. I'll be back in a few hours.

Eliza (trying to ask):

Where are you—?

Before she could finish, Yuki activated his Regalia skill "Superhuman Speed" and dashed out, leaving only the wind blowing through their hair and dresses.

Eliza (exhausted, sighing):

Looks like I'm going to have a major headache… hah…

Yuki, meanwhile, was already running through the kingdom. Occasionally, he saw what he assumed were other readers doing something. But in truth, he was looking for one specific person.

Yuki (impatient, frustrated, thinking):

Did Min-Su Ah vanish off the face of the earth? That shorty…

He sighed, then suddenly heard a scream. Turning around, he spotted a girl—this time, Yuki was certain she was a reader—her arm wounded, surrounded by four armed men wielding swords.

Yuki saw that and remembered what he had gone through before with Yulia. Even so, he couldn't just stand by while someone was ambushed.

He dashed in at high speed. Just as one of the bandits was about to strike her, Yuki slashed through, cutting off the bandit's arm with his spear.

Yuki (cold, staring with disdain):

Attacking a defenseless woman? What a bunch of cowards.

The bandit, now missing an arm, collapsed and quickly died from blood loss. The remaining three grew even more furious.

Bandit 1 (furious, shouting):

BASTARD!

One of the bandits charged at Yuki, swinging his sword. But Yuki easily dodged, still under the effect of his speed skill. With a swift move, he stabbed the enemy with his spear.

However, due to his lack of experience with the weapon, Yuki couldn't pull the spear out quickly. Even with the spear lodged in his body, the bandit still tried to attack. As the horizontal slash was about to hit him, Yuki's mind clouded, as if time had stopped.

Mysterious Voice (calm, deep, in the darkness):

Hey, kid…

Yuki found himself in a completely dark place, where a tall, muscular figure with white hair stood, his back turned toward him.

Cú Chulainn (calm, explaining):

You already know who I am.

Looks like you're in trouble. I'll help you this time.

He slowly began to turn, and just as his face was about to be revealed, Yuki snapped back to reality.

System:

"A new Regalia skill has been added: 'Spear Mastery.'

At least now you won't die… for now -_-."

System:

Reader: Yuki Adams

Age: 17

Number of chapters read: 0

Regalia Skills — Cú Chulainn:

Superhuman Speed (Level 1)

Spear Mastery (passive, doesn't need activation)

Character Attributes:

Natural Reader (Level 2)

Plagiarist (Level 1)

With his new skill, Yuki quickly lifted the back of the spear, blocking the bandit's attack. With a swift spin, he pulled the spear out of the enemy's body and, in one fluid motion, slashed the enemy's neck.

The bandit's body collapsed to the ground, lifeless.

Yuki (cold, staring at the remaining ones):

I suggest you give up.

The two remaining bandits were terrified by the scene and immediately fled.

Yuki (grumbling, muttering, thinking):

My "Natural Reader" skill leveled up to 2 and the system didn't even notify me…

I should've expected that from this damn system.

And didn't Min-Su Ah say that statuses would be displayed in this phase?

While he was thinking, the system popped up again, showing the status window it had "forgotten" to display earlier.

Yuki (sighing, irritated):

Damn system…

System:

Reader: Yuki Adams

Age: 17

Number of chapters read: 0

General Status:

Health: 100%

Strength: 5

Speed: 8

Intelligence: 10

Endurance: 4

Regalia Skills — Cú Chulainn:

Superhuman Speed (Level 1)

Spear Mastery (Level 1)

Character Attributes:

Natural Reader (Level 2)

Plagiarist (Level 1)

Yuki (assessing, analyzing):

It's basic… but at least now I have an idea.

He then turned to the girl. As soon as he looked directly at her—black hair and brown eyes—for more than three seconds, something happened.

System:

"The 'Natural Reader' skill was activated unconsciously.

The other person's system will be exposed, even if they don't introduce themselves."

However, before the skill could reveal her information, a loud noise behind them caught his attention. He quickly turned, interrupting the skill's effect.

When he looked, he saw that the previous bandits had returned, now bringing more reinforcements. There were now around ten bandits running toward them.

Yuki (desperate, cursing loudly):

FUCKING HELL!

Without thinking, he grabbed the girl in his arms, making her blush instantly. Before she could say anything, Yuki dashed away at high speed.

Girl (shouting, flustered and indignant):

WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!

Yuki (focused, running):

JUST SHUT UP, I'M SAVING US!

He kept running, evading the bandits. His speed skill eventually wore off, but luckily, they were already far enough.

Yuki set the girl down, and she was still blushing from being carried like that without warning.

Then, the "Natural Reader" skill activated again…