2 Chapter 2: Aetheria's Reward

[Aetheria has arrived on Planet Earth] 

[As the dominant species that rules the entire planet, you will be rewarded]

[you will be temporarily transported to receive your reward.]

…

All of a sudden, a very bright light flashed and everything went white. 

When Jin opened his eyes again, he was surprised by what he saw. 

Instead of the colorful place he was before, he was surrounded by complete darkness.

But he could still see glowing things moving around him, even though it was dark.

"What happened?" asked Jin. 

As a security guard, he looked around carefully, trying to see through his messy hair.

His black eyes narrowed, being wary and cautious. 

Soon he noticed a blurred shape not far from him. 

It was strange to see a shape in a place with no light. 

At first he thought it was an enemy. But when he tried to move, the shape moved just like him. 

"It's me?" he said. 

He moved part of his body to check, and felt less tense when he realized it was his own shadow.

After making sure there was no threat, he looked at his body. 

"I can see clearly, my clothes and weapon are still here, nothing is missing," he muttered to himself.

Then suddenly a game-like screen appeared in front of him, like he was in a virtual world. 

But this time, he didn't seem surprised. 

Instead, the screen made him start thinking deeply.

[What is your opinion on humans?]

Jin squinted at the hovering screen, different answers coming to his mind. 

"'Aetheria has entered Earth,' a game screen...what should I do next?" he said to himself, starting to remember the previous screen. 

In conclusion, somehow he entered the game or was transported into it.

Jin knew about video games. 

He tried an online role-playing game before but gave up because he didn't have enough time or money. 

Getting new equipment or special items cost too much for him. 

His focus was on survival as he struggled to feed himself and pay for his studies.

Just then, another screen suddenly appeared with two clear options.

[Is that your answer? Yes or No?]

"No," he answered strongly, making the screen in front of him disappear, leaving only the main question in his view. 

He had heard talk about mixing AI and augmented reality tech.

Was the government planning to use regular people to test it? Or was alien tech taking over human minds?

He stayed unsure, not answering right away.

Who knew what would happen if he gave an answer?

The not knowing of what could happen next, even becoming like an alien, seemed weirdly possible. 

However, even though he said "no," he didn't feel any changes.

[You have 30 seconds left to answer.]

But this message made him have to do something. 

Waiting for help seemed hopeless.

When people are in a hurry, they make quick choices without thinking, and he was no different.

Yet there was a strange feeling telling him that if he didn't answer, he would always regret it.

He slowly closed his eyes, trying to breathe the empty air.

However, his strong thought pushed him to take a deep breath, calming his worrying.

"Humans can be selfish, prioritizing their own needs without considering others," he answered calmly, drawing on experience. 

Working security and as an orphan, he never asked for special treatment.

But political promises of "helping the poor" and "free education for everyone" proved empty.

When they got elected, neither did what they said; instead, news spread about their corrupt behavior.

Normal people who could feed and house themselves thought those like him were already paid enough, dressing "ragged" only because they "wanted more."

They even called people like him "shameless" and "thick-faced."

[Why do you think humans are selfish and greedy? Can you give any examples?]

Another question came quickly

"Humans are selfish and greedy because they prioritize their own interests above all else.

They are constantly striving to get ahead and amass wealth, even if it means exploiting others," he responded, devoid of emotion. 

"Look at how we treat the environment and each other - engaging in destructive behaviors like pollution and deforestation without considering impacts on other species," he continued. 

In the past he wanted to help people like 'him' or get fairness, but what he saw was people laughing at him and being upset. 

This crushed his big hope, and made his heart sad for a long time after.

As he finished speaking, his throat and lips felt dry. 

He swallowed some saliva and blinked to feel better.

Thinking about it, he looked with mixed feelings. 

What he said did not come from a script - it truly came from his heart, a real showing of what he believes and sees.

[How do you think animals differ from humans in terms of their relationship with nature?]

As the question came, the answer easily formed in his mind and he spoke smoothly.

"Animals are inherently attuned to natural instincts and environment. 

"They don't seek to dominate or control nature as humans often do, and don't engage in destructive behaviors like pollution and deforestation," he responded. 

When the screen went away, he took a breath, getting ready for the next question he knew would come.

It's not that he loved animals more than humans, as people have always hunted them.

But he wished he could move freely without worrying what others thought. 

Animals eat when hungry and sleep when tired. 

But his work only lets him rest and eat, and he needs to pretend to be happy...

However, 10 seconds went by with no other question. 

After a minute, he started to doubt. 

Just as the negative thought came, the screen he had waited so long for finally appeared.

[Can you give an example of an animal that embodies these traits?]

The question surprised him. He thought quickly about what it could mean. 

Things like relationships between humans and animals, or similar topics.

"Animal..." he said quietly, as his mind raced through all the possibilities. 

There were so many animals to choose from, but which one would be the best answer?

Just when he was about to give a list of different animals, something clicked in his brain. 

It gave him a clear answer that echoed in his head like a magic voice.

"Tigers," he answered. "Tigers are solitary creatures, capable of surviving and thriving on their own. 

"They don't depend on others for support or protection, and they possess the ability to adapt to changing circumstances in their environment."

[All of the questions have been answered.]

[Calculating and determining your reward based on your answers...]

As he looked at the screen, he thought he would have to wait a long time again like before. 

But surprisingly, as he blinked, the screen quickly disappeared. 

Then some screens like from a game suddenly appeared in front of him all at once.

[You possess the bearing of a tiger!]

[New passive skill acquired: Uncrowned King!]

[New passive skill acquired: Resilience of the Tiger!]

[New passive skill acquired: Bloodthirst!]

[New passive skill acquired: Feral Hunger!]

"Wow!" he said excitedly, as his eyes filled with the dazzling stars. 

He felt overwhelmed by all the screens that suddenly appeared in front of him in a row. 

His heart beat fast with excitement as he looked at each screen one by one.

But then he realized that almost all of them were passive skills. 

Doubts and confusion filled his mind. 

Even though it seemed like he learned many skills, they were all passive.

"No, I shouldn't judge these skills just by how they look," he thought. 

"Let's take a closer look at this one," he decided, not wanting to dismiss them without even reading what they do. 

Maybe being away from games for a long time made his mind narrow and not think carefully. 

He was just about to read the skill descriptions when suddenly all the screens disappeared.

[The reward has been distributed.]

[You will be sent back to the real world in 5...]

[4…]

[3…]

[2…]

[1…]

He was caught off guard and couldn't react in time. 

His vision was again covered by a blinding, bright light. 

…

Back in the Luminous Sky Lounge, the whole bar was filled with many white lights, like a magic spell was cast. 

Jin, who had just returned to the real world, slowly opened his eyes. 

"What happened?" a voice said, sounding confused. 

"Are you ok, Gao'er?" someone asked with worry.

Everyone exchanged puzzled looks, checking their bodies for changes before breathing a sigh of relief.

"Did we go to another world?" someone wondered out loud. 

"Is this some kind of test by the government?" another guessed.

The area felt bewildered. Strange things had happened to them. 

A sudden shake caught them off guard, making some stumble and fall. 

But in a blink they found themselves in an empty space again. 

As they tried to understand the new place, a familiar game screen again appeared before their eyes, overwhelming their minds.

And now they were back to the real world, most people were confused but some looked excited, while most stayed perplexed. 

However, at that time, nobody noticed Jin frozen, with red skin and bulging veins. 

His face changed subtly - his jawline sharpened and his eyebrows became more clear, and his black eyes slowly shifted to fiery orange amber.

Without Jin knowing, his pupils had transformed into slits.

...

But Jin himself stayed frozen for what felt like forever. 

His mind went blank, and he could only feel the pain through his body before regaining awareness. 

Gasping for air and drenched in sweat, he glanced around warily, only to find everyone else busy looking at the empty space before them.

Realizing he was the only one sweating a lot while the others seemed fine, it seemed clear something strange happened to him. 

Setting aside the abnormality for now, Jin followed and focused on the scene in front of him too. 

To his surprise, he discovered a screen showing his personal details - a game-like status screen with his name.

[

•  Name: Jin Tianyi

•  Class: -

•  Level: 0

•  Race: Human

•  Health: 24.72/24.72

•  Mana/Stamina: 20/20

•  Attributes: Strength: 6 | Agility: 7 | Intelligence: 5 | Dexterity: 8 | Luck: 20 | Charisma: 20

]

As Jin read his details on the screen, his eyes opened wide in disbelief when he saw the section about his attributes. 

"My Luck and Charisma are that high?" he muttered quietly, very surprised. 

The screen, as he had thought, looked like an interface from a game, specifically a character screen from an RPG game. 

Familiar with such elements, he wasn't as confused by the numbers and strange names shown.

BANG-!

However, before he could fully understand what his attributes meant, a sudden loud explosion happened from the front door, six seats away from where he originally sat. 

The force sent chairs flying and created a cloud of dust, temporarily blocking everyone's vision. 

Caught by surprise, Jin became the direct target of the blast and was forcefully pushed into the wall behind, hurled from the middle of the bar to its corner.

"What the hell just happened?" someone said, very shocked.

The whole room fell silent as everyone's eyes searched for the unlucky person hit in the crash.

SCREEEECH-!  

But their attention quickly turned back to the door, where a group of bats entered with a scary cry.

"Ahhh! The bats are coming in!"

"Someone quickly kill them all!" 

"Security, security!"

At the same time, a familiar screen again appeared before everyone's view, catching their attention once more.