Chapter 1 – Atypical Situation:

POV – Unknown:

As a firm believer in the Multiverse theory, I believe that Impossibility is an Impossibility. Any phenomena I or anyone else can conjure up through human imagination can happen, will happen, has happened, is happening and…well you get the point.

Anything is possible, what looks like it isn't, is simply a matter of limited perspective.

Which is why, despite my current circumstances I wasn't surprised, not even a little bit…is what I'd like to say. No, I should be feeling surprised! Heck, I kinda was! Only, something was stopping the surprise from overwhelming me. No, that wasn't quite right, it was like despite feeling it, I wasn't capable of being overly surprised in my current state. Well, that along with the fear, confusion, apprehension, dread, and the usual cocktail of emotions a normal person should be overwhelmed with when they find themselves deprived of all their usual senses.

I found this situation familiar despite never experiencing anything quite so exciting before. I should have had an idea of what was going on, but my mind was slow beyond compare and I couldn't finish the thought.

For some reason, I felt like should have been trapped in a void where everything was numb, but I wasn't. Almost anticipating and expecting an unfamiliar voice to greet me for reasons I couldn't understand, I waited, yet no one came. Like a lifeline, I held onto the new alien sensations I could feel.

That might have been more literal than I expected since something immediately stood out. I felt like I was reaching into my soul for something personal, a fundamental part of me only now remembered. Like moving my hand through mud, then water, then air, I pulled and – Oh.

[Gamer's Soul]

Allows the creation of Skills. Skills will be ingrained in the soul. ???

Looking at that, there was a lot I should have felt, and thoughts I should have had, yet my mind was still so limited. No, not looking, I still couldn't see anything, it was a new 'sight' of its own, I –

No! My thoughts kept slipping in every direction. I needed to truly think, so I turned to the only stable thing in the scope of my awareness. I focused; with everything I had, I truly thought, and with a soft chime everything snapped into focus.

[Gamer's Soul]

Allows the creation of Skills. Skills will be ingrained in the soul.

Mind is located within the Soul, unbound by physical limitations. ???

Mentally panting, I felt tired despite the lack of a physical body. "Haah - haah- This isn't what I expected to wake up to. This isn't a prank or a delusion…this is really happening."

I was tempted to feel disbelief but couldn't. This was my soul, and I couldn't deny what it was telling me. So, before I could even try to identify where I was or what my priorities were, I followed the purpose of my very being and once again I focused.

Empty mind: Identify emotions. Acknowledge emotions. Process without thought. Repeat…

~Ping~

[Meditation] Skill Learned!

[Meditation] has gained a level!

…

"Whew–." Minutes later, I left my meditative state and began to think about what happened before all this.

"I died. I'm sure I died, even if I don't really remember how."

Though I said these words, there was no weight to them. No reason to feel anything despite their implications. My entire life was so mundane, so normal, that even its conclusion wasn't worth any attention, even my own. But that really wasn't important. No, what was important was what I was 'seeing' now. What this meant was –

"Isekai! It has to be! This is what I've been waiting for my entire life! Ooooh Weeee! Finally, I've escaped from that shitty place! I can live through a real-life fantasy! So, what's it going to be?! Summoned as a hero to defeat the demon king?! Reborn as a noble in a world of magic and politics?! Transmigrated into the body of a dying cultivator?! Reincarnated, as a monster in a world of beasts and evolutions?! Starting life as a Dungeon Core and conquering the world?!"

Still riding my emotional high, I started 'looking' around as I voiced my questions. But as I continued to struggle and was answered by the same silence that pervaded my surroundings, I started feeling a sinking feeling in my gut despite seemingly not having one now.

"Hey! Who summoned me or revived me or whatever?! Can someone please explain what's going on, because this really isn't funny OK?" At this point, I was really hoping for a 'Ha! Got you!' or a 'Surprise!', I would've even accepted a 'Shut da fuq up!', but hope was a fickle thing.

It was sometime later that I'd accepted that regardless of what was going on I was going to be left alone with my thoughts.

Immediately, my mind spun, recalling more instances of fiction to try and get an answer to the silence, and more importantly to the fact that apart from feeling the ever-present system that was my soul, nothing new was happening.

"…OK, so no gods, goddesses, mysterious ROBs, eldritch entities, bored dead apostles, or intelligent quest systems. Right." I was left alone, feeling only my soul for comfort.

Despite my many guesses, the last one was something I was sure was not going to happen. My system cheat - if it could even be called one - wasn't connected to some higher entity, drip-feeding me quests while snarking at me. It was my ability, or rather it was simply what I was, I could feel it. Naturally, I didn't really know everything my soul could do, just like until I learned biology I had no idea how my own body worked. But I wasn't thinking about that!

"Am I in some kind of soul transit? Do I have to show my visa?" I was focusing on trying to feel something else, anything other than the only thing I could feel in this limbo, just in case I missed anything, despite knowing that there was nothing else.

Deciding to do something else, I turned back to [Meditation] and – "Woah! So, that's what it means to be 'ingrained' in my soul huh?"

Abruptly stopping my impromptu [Meditation] session, I stopped to think about my power. Of course, I'd noticed my Skill, its creation was completely intentional.

"So, focusing on creating Skills was something I could tell was needed instinctively, and I can see why. By ingraining a Skill, I make sure that I will never forget it. But it goes beyond that! It's almost like I have muscle memory for the soul! There's no delay in activating Skills and making use of what I've Ingrained! I can always reproduce what I've done before! Hehe he, even someone with photographic or eidetic memory can't be compared to me!" I was getting a better idea of how my power worked and sufficed to say I was feeling a little good about myself.

"OK, I've ignored it long enough let's face the facts. I'm probably in the process of being born. Despite my excitement at a new fantasy life (!), I still don't want to think about just where in the process I am right now…after all, I'm pretty sure even fetuses have underdeveloped, but still functioning brains."

Even after thinking through different Isekai and reincarnation tropes and cliches, I couldn't for the (re)life of me figure out a way to predict what was going to happen next.

"In fact, this whole situation is throwing me off the loop with how unpredicta– Oh no. No, no, no, no, no! It can't be that right?! It was just a stray thought I had once! No way it doomed me to this situation!" I finally had an explanation for my situation, even if it was just an unlikely theory, once I started the train of thought, my mind latched onto it.

Unlike the average literary enthusiast, I was a veteran fiction enjoyer. So, back when system and game-lit novels were truly gaining in popularity on every popular website, and LitRPG was a term getting thrown around a lot more, every day was practically a reading buffet for me. Once, I'd devoured the trending and most popular works, I'd decided it wasn't enough and like a hungry shark I went looking for more in the depths of every site possible.

Eventually, I ended up oversaturated with these types of novels. I was starting to pick out cliches, finding faults with the systems and complaining about the stories. In the end, I started growing jaded to game-like powers themselves, or pointing out how things were too easy for the protagonists with everything being spoon-fed to them, everything working out as plot armour protected them with the excuse of everything going as Fate foretold. It had gotten so bad that whenever I skimmed over the first chapter of a fic, I looked for the trademark bold speech of some kind of higher power and immediately clicked off the page. In my mind, I had already sorted these fics as ones where the MC was a slave to an omnipotent being or followed the whims of a trash system.

"I'm not like that anymore! I learned my lesson! I've started to enjoy all kinds of fiction now! I make sure to always mix it up with different genres and types to keep myself engaged! I understand that wish fulfilment OP system stories have an important place in the community! But more importantly, they have a place here and now! So please don't punish me for something so small!"

One might wonder why I was freaking out when I was just starting to feel smug about my brand-new superpower. It was because I had just started paying attention to something I had been subconsciously avoiding thinking about until now. I didn't have screens I needed to touch or commands I needed to voice out. My system was something I controlled like any other limb – no it possibly felt more natural than even them – which is why when trying to pull on my new senses to find anything other than what I had already 'seen' resulted in nothing new, panic began to set in.

"Menu! Quests! Settings! List! Inventory!" Again and again, I tried and came up with nothing new.

"Where're my Stats, where's my EXP?! No, I have to be optimistic, there's still more to [Gamer's Soul] I can feel it! But until then this is all I have."

I needed reassurance after the string of failures, so without much reason, I did one of the few things that I could do. I didn't have to say it but considering my frustration I decided to be fancy. "Skills."

~{Skills}~

[Meditation] {Active} (Lv. 6): The ancient art of meditation, used to cultivate focus, and observe the flow of thoughts and emotions without judgement.

Despite myself, a giddy feeling rose in my metaphorical chest. "So, what if I don't have many of the game-like features in my reach, I'll just succeed without them! Or better yet I'll add them myself!"

I knew that regardless of what the future had in store for me, I had to be patient if I wanted answers. But I wasn't just going to sit there, content with what I had, never taking the initiative to do something. I had enough of that in my last life. So, with a lot more confidence than before I began putting my thoughts in order and prepared [Gamer's Soul] to focus.

"I can probably sit around like this for months and years and never go insane or have my mentality deteriorate. It might not work like the mental immunity skills that I read about in fics, however [Gamer's Soul] did indeed remove the physical limitations of my mind. But I'm not going to do that! To hell with waiting for whatever reincarnation process to finish just to feel the wind on my face and the feel of my five limbs!"

I knew what I had to do. Countless media had depictions of the wonderful Mind skill, from anime, manga, and light novels to Korean Web novels, even Sherlock Holmes and Hannibal Lecter had their own versions.

The so-called [Mind Palace], [Mindscape], memory journey and…well it had many names, names which I couldn't actually remember. It was supposed to be a real ability, something that anyone could do. It would allow me to at least imagine myself with a real body. In my last life, it was something I had attempted to learn…for about one afternoon, with barely any real interest beyond the cool factor. Now, both my motivations and ability were different, and I was determined to succeed.

This wouldn't be easy, but few things in life ever are. And so, I began to focus, but before I could totally sink myself into it, in a burst of inspiration I simultaneously activated [Meditation] to help with the creation of the new Skill.

[Meditation] has gained a level!

…

I must have spent a good hour before concluding that this bullheaded, stubborn way of doing things wasn't going to work out any time soon. I needed to walk before I ran, so I shifted my focus.

Run through multiplication tables. Division. Addition, Subtraction. Commit to memory. Recall random multiplications. Train [Memorisation] skill.

~Ping~

[Memorisation] Skill Learned!

[Memorisation] has gained a level!

…

~Ping~

[Mathematics] Skill Learned!

[Mathematics] has gained a level!

…

Recall important moments in life. Commit to memory. Recall random moments and random details within the memories. Activate and deactivate [Memorisation] to recall details.

This continued for a while, with my thoughts switching between different ideas to lay the foundation for the [Mind Palace] Skill until eventually, I hit what could be called a milestone for my purpose but inadvertently, partially solved the goal.

~Ping~

[Replay Recall] Skill Learned!

~{Skills}~

[Meditation] {Active} (Lv. 13): The ancient art of meditation, used to cultivate focus, and observe the flow of thoughts and emotions without judgement.

[Memorisation] *{Active} *{Passive} (Lv. 5): Ability to store and recall information accurately and efficiently. *(Only information stored {Actively} while using the skill can be recalled {Passively} with it)

[Mathematics] {Passive} (Lv. 4): Analyze and solve problems using logical reasoning and precise calculations. Aids in understanding structures, patterns, and relationships.

[Replay Recall] {Active} (Lv. 1): Recall instances from your life in vivid detail.

Immediately, I activated [Replay Recall] and [Memorisation] at the same time. In hindsight, I should have been more careful. Maybe cleared my mind with [Meditation], and thought of happy memories, instead, I subconsciously used the Skill on the one memory I should've remembered right after finding myself here. Looking back, even if my own death didn't interest me, it should have stuck out as weird that I couldn't remember it, unnatural even. But I guess I could blame this on my excitement in the end.

Ironically it was the decade's first case of excitement in a town of boring, peaceful mundanity that killed me in the end.

[Replay Recall] Skill Activated!

______________________________________________________________________________________________________

The orange glow of the sunset washes over us as we walk back home. Something about the colour always manages to unfocus my gaze and just take in the surroundings.

The trees with leaves that are orange, red and every shade in between were almost glowing. The subtle intensity of sunlight left a pleasant warmth that I could feel under my uniform. Combined with the gentle breeze washing over us, I would say this was one of the best, most scenic walks in my life.

I was undoubtedly in a good mood. I guess it helps that I was in pleasant company.

"…Truly magical." My head held high, quite literally at around a 30-degree angle, I continued to amble in the direction of the long blonde hair glowing orange at the edge of my vision.

"— Hey, hey! Are you listening?! It's gonna be the first night of summer break, we have to do something special! We can go to Uncle Chen's for that moon festival thing? Or we could—Hey Dan, pay attention!" Excited amber eyes quickly turned irritated.

The truth is, I was listening, just not in the way she expected. Her voice was just another pleasant detail in the atmosphere that was lulling me to sit down and take a nap in the middle of the road.

I could've said that of course, if I was lucky I might've even gotten to observe one limited edition facial expression she had: I called it the pout-flush. It came with red cheeks and jutted lips.

Instead, I pulled a Kakashi. "Hmmm? Did you say something?"

Eyebrows twitching, she stopped her backward walk completely, instead taking a threatening step forward. "It seems like someone's in desperate need of a kick in the balls, wouldn't you say? Hmm?"

With a sudden spin, I abandoned my listless walk. My left hand found its way into my pocket with the shoulder bent backwards, while my right hand and leg shot forward to complete the sacred stance. My fingers curled inward, and my index finger pointed at her, with a sudden stiffness and stoic masculinity radiating my form, I assumed my favoured JoJo pose. "Do it. Do it and see how I'll get your mom to arrest you for violence…and sexual assault."

"Y-you…" Red in the face with anger and embarrassment, I left her at the side of the road as I walked past her.

"Besides, it's not summer it's fall break right now you dunderhead." Skillfully, I steered the conversation out of what could have become an awkward moment.

With a burst of speed, she caught up to my side, irritation bleeding off and leaving her face as she found a new topic to sink her teeth into. "Well, duh! I knew that! I was just testing to see if you were listening to me. I deserve that much for waiting back with you in school for so long! It's not like you had to sit and complete all your homework before you left school!"

"I don't care if it's called homework, at the end of the day it's part of schoolwork and should stay in school. Far, far away from my cosy room. Also, why are you saying that as if you didn't do the same thing as me?!" Then again, despite being my idea she finished her homework a lot faster than me…even if she pretended to take around the same time.

Ann was the resident genius. The kind that wasn't meant for this small town. While her smarts were indeed quite enviable, being the only child of the town's first female sheriff wasn't worth any envy at all. Top it off with the fact that Michelle Anderson was a single mother, well…it meant that she had a lot to prove when it came to her work.

What this ultimately meant for Ann Anderson was that she had a lot of free time, a mischievous streak a mile-wide, an adventurous nature and a distinct lack of any ambition beyond the town of Stowe. That and an absentee parent who pretty much left her with my family most of the time.

"Hmm, well I guess I don't mind if we binge on some anime the whole night." Yes - I nodded to show my agreement -that was acceptable, and a lot less tiring than anything else she could cook up.

"Also, what was that you said? 'Truly magical'? Well, I understand if you were mesmerized by my beauty, but I think you were talking about the sunset right? Well, it's not all that magical you know~. It's just that as the sun sets, more of its rays get scattered by stuff in the atmosphere so the shorter wavelengths of light like blue and green get dispersed, only leaving the longer wavelengths, in this case, orange~."

More scientific trivia than I needed…Let me remain ignorant and enjoy the fruits of the Earth dammit!

Wait, what's with the smug expression? Ah! Ruined the sunset for me and now this! This was the outcome she'd wanted all along! Hmph! I'll let you have this one evil woman. We were both dead tired anyway, we would end up falling asleep long before we reached midway through the second episode of the anime marathon.

But, I was a petty person, so I opened my mouth to try and irritate her further—

Teeee~ Teeee~ Teeee~ Teeee~ Teeee~ Teeee~

Both our phones sounded off at the same time. It didn't indicate an incoming call, so I couldn't quite place what it was. Ann, on the other hand, had an expression of distress almost as soon as she heard it and that was enough for me to whip out my phone with an urgency I didn't feel until I actually saw what it was showing.

An Amber Alert, in a town where almost everyone knew each other, wasn't a common occurrence or something to be taken lightly. A child was missing. I couldn't imagine anything worse than this happening today.

EMERGENCY ALERT / ALERTE D'URGENCE

AMBER ALERT, SUSPECTS: CCTV SPOTTED FOUR(4) INDIVIDUALS IN BLACK CLOAKS, ON FOOT, LAST SEEN HEADING INTO GAMEL FOREST TRAIL, FIVE(5) STUDENTS FROM STOWE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL WERE KIDNAPPED FROM AN EXTRACURRICULAR CLUBROOM, WEARING STOWE ELEMENTARY UNIFORM, AGES 11 – 13.

RESIDENTS ARE ADVISED TO STAY IN THEIR HOMES, ARM THEMSELVES AND DEFEND THEMSELVES IF ANY SUSPECTS ATTEMPT TO FORCE THEIR WAY IN.

THE SHERRIF'S DEPARTMENT HAS BEEN DEPLOYED, IF YOU SPOT THE SUSPECTS OR THE VICTIMS CALL US AT (701) 823-4012 IMMEDIATELY.

I just had to jinx myself huh? This wasn't just a case of a missing kid. "' Black cloaks '? Did they get taken by some kind of cult?"

"Dan, this was just across the street from us! I saw them when you were doing your homework! What should we do?!" Wait what?!

"You saw suspicious people in black cloaks and didn't think to tell me?! Wait, did you see the kids too?"

Our high school was just across the street from Stowe Elementary School. It hadn't been long since we left, the fact that we were so close to dangerous people filled me with dread. Frantically, I started looking around to make sure they weren't nearby, with Ann doing the same.

"I thought they were from the drama club or something! How was I supposed to know something like this would happen?! Nothing ever happens in this town!" Well, she wasn't wrong…

Click~

"Let's get out of here, we need to—What the hell is that?! Where'd you get that from?!" Ann started looking for something in her backpack immediately after we finished looking around, I didn't know what she was looking for, but I didn't expect a gun!

The determined expression on her face switched to a deadpan. "My mother's a cop Dan."

"Your mother, the sheriff, told you to bring a gun to school?!" I was going to have to reevaluate my opinion of Michelle.

"What? No! I meant that she has a bunch of guns lying around at home! I brought this one to fool around with in the forest in case we didn't get to binge anime at home!"

What the hell is wrong with you woman?!

She glares at me almost as if— " Ah, I said that out loud."

With an irritated expression, she hands me the gun.

"We don't have time for this Dan! Let's go save the kids!"

How many double takes do you want me to do today?!

I could tell she wasn't going to back down easily, still, I tried to be reasonable. "Look even if we somehow end up helping, your mom's gonna kill us right after."

"Who cares what she wants! Mom's probably at Uncle Chen's, that's on the other side of town, she'll take too long. And are you really going to leave those kids alone?" She was right, I was avoiding thinking about them. The fact of the matter was that we definitely knew those kids, this place was too small for it not to be the case. I just didn't want to put Ann in danger because I knew she would insist on coming with me.

"And don't even think about leaving without me, I'm faster than you are anyways."

Gritting my teeth, I agreed. "Fine, but if we're doing this you have to stay behind me. Show me where you saw them go." I left no room for arguments, and she acquiesced.

Soon, we left the road and took a detour through the trees. I inspected the gun Ann gave me. I couldn't really tell what its name was, I was simply never interested in guns beyond being able to shoot straight, but it was a kind of revolver.

There was a reason she gave the gun to me and didn't use it herself; I was simply a really good shot. But that didn't really help my nerves in this case. My heart was beating so fast I was worried I'd have a heart attack. Ann gave me a gun but was I really supposed to shoot another human being? Or was I simply going to threaten them? I wanted to ask her, but a quick look at her face told me that she was probably thinking of something, I knew better than to interrupt her train of thought.

So, I ran, and Ann followed. This went on for a while until she stopped me. "There, I see some tracks!" I couldn't but I trusted her too much to argue, instead I asked her for a plan.

"What do we do when we find them?"

She looked at me, as if searching my face for something, then after taking a deep breath, she spoke. "If the kids are safe, we can try to take one of the kidnappers hostage and tell them to surrender, if they don't have any guns of their own we can simply demand surrender from the get-go. If…If they hurt the kids, then we shoot first and ask questions later."

"I—I don't know if I can do that, Ann. I've never kille—" I felt one of her hands grasp mine. Huh, I was shaking.

"You big dummy, I'd never ask you to do that! You can shoot one of them in the leg! They'll probably be too scared to do anything after that!"

"Phew—Right, right. You're right, I can do that." That was a lot easier to stomach. A lot of my confidence came rushing back, I felt like I could actually do this.

Before I could start walking in the direction Ann said the trail went, she stopped me. "Hey, would you really have kille—I mean uhh, defeated them if I asked you to?"

"I don't know what I would do if I had time to think. But otherwise, I probably would yeah." I wasn't really thinking when I answered her question, which is why I didn't really react when she used game terminology to talk about killing the kidnappers.

Her lips twitched upwards, and when she spoke next her voice was filled with a resolve I hadn't ever felt from her before.

If life was a game, then for Ann the difficulty setting was perpetually set to easy. This was why even when she came up with crazy ideas that took way too much effort to set up just to have fun, it always felt half-assed.

"Daniel, when we get back, and I do mean when, not if, I have to tell you something that I've been putting off for too long."

Before I could speak she cut me off. "And I knooow~ there's the cliché about promising to talk about important things before doing something dangerous, but we'll be too distracted if I tell you now. So, chop chop! Let's-a-go!"

When she spoke of saving the kids, she was dead serious, yet I couldn't help but feel like to her this was something she thought would be harder to do. So, I simply kept it in mind and once again swore that I would keep both of us safe even if I had to shoot some people in the leg to do so.

As we trudged on in silence, the forest got darker, but we still had enough light to see the trail, that even I could spot now. It was like the kidnappers had only thought to reduce their tracks for a little while like they didn't expect anyone to follow them.

Maybe switching off your phone is an essential part of kidnapping, otherwise, these guys would have seen the alert and know that they weren't being nearly discrete enough when they decided to snatch kids from a school with multiple CCTV cameras.

"Dan, I think I have a rough idea of where they must have stopped. From the trails, I can tell they've been slowing down, but more importantly they've been getting sloppier. We should circle around that hill with the tree where we tried to build a treehouse for the 4th time. We need to know more about the kidnappers, a vantage point is a must." Ann was confident in her skills, and she sounded as much.

If she can tell all that from just this much, I can see the benefits of going out hunting more with her and dad instead of just sitting at camp waiting for them.

It was at this point that she looked a little unsure. "The alert said that there were 4 of them, but I can only spot 3 trails. And this is after I searched really hard. Either they split up, or one of them is good enough not to leave any trails whatsoever. A person like that is bound to be dangerous. So, if you spot someone who looks like they're walking with a lot of confidence, or if it feels like they're gliding along the forest, then don't hesitate and shoot them in the leg before they can try anything."

That said we made our way to the hill with the ancient-looking beech tree. Instead of stopping by the hill and looking over Ann dragged me over to the tree and then we helped each other climb up onto its branches.

When we finally reached as high as we could without exposing ourselves, Ann dusted her hands off then went to hold one hand up to her mouth, then stopped and looked at them.

"Hey Dan, can you open your mouth really quick?" Normally I'd always be on high alert for pranks, but right now I was too high-strung to question her decisions, so I did as she said.

Too quick to react she stuck one of her fingers in my mouth and rubbed it around until it was wet. Then she held it up in the air as I was spitting the dust she left in my mouth.

I was ready to raise my voice when she wrapped a hand around my mouth. "I'm feeling the wind. If that elusive guy is a ranger or something then I don't really know what he's capable of. But I know that being downwind of animals isn't a good idea, hopefully, his sense of smell isn't that great, but just to be cautious I'll check the wind. Also, make sure to either whisper or not talk at all from this point on. I'll look first, and then you can check, we need to keep our visibility at a minimum. The position of the sun isn't giving us any advantages, but it's the same for them."

Ann stuck her head out and I could instantly feel her tense. We were incredibly close, practically glued together but I wasn't going to let my hormones be the end of us, so I ignored my reactions. This was especially easy when my brain caught up and supplied me with the only reason she would tense up in this situation.

That means they're here. My grip on the revolver tightened, I had long since cocked it, simply keeping my finger off the trigger, and making sure that no stray branch or bush got close to it. I didn't want the click of the revolver to give us away.

When Ann stepped back and turned to face me again her face was pale. Her voice was barely above a whisper, but she spoke quickly and concisely. "4 OPFOR in total. 3 old dudes, unathletic and maybe in their 50s. Focus on the tallest one first, he's the one who left no tracks."

Then she stepped forward wrapped me in a tight hug and whispered into my ears. "I'm sorry Daniel, but we can't aim for the legs. We have some time by the looks of it, but we need to end this quickly. I messaged Tony a while ago, he should be here with Mom soon, but apparently, they followed some false trails that we never noticed and it's going to take even longer to get here. The nerdy kids from the Magic Research Club are there, they're gagged and tied up. One of the kids is down, I can't tell from here, but it looks bad. These guys are bad news, some kind of crazy cultists. I—I don't want you to think about it for now, OK? Just think of it like a game. Like it's me and you on Modern Warfare 2. I promise I'll make up for it later all right?"

At first, I tensed because of the hug, but I froze further when the implications of what she said hit me. I didn't know how I would feel after this, but I knew Ann would be there for me. So, I didn't think about it. I didn't think about how one of the kids from our elementary school was probably dead. I didn't think about how the kidnappers were apparently crazy cultists. I didn't think about how I was going to kill someone in cold blood. Instead, I focused and opened myself up to something I didn't know I could do until then.

~Ping~

If someone unfamiliar with us was listening in they would have been confused with the confidence Ann had in my chances of successfully taking down someone who could be a skilled combatant as long as I caught them by surprise.

The real reason why I never went hunting with Dad and Ann was because, when I did they didn't actually get to make any shots before I'd already taken down the game. The same went for FPS games. I was good enough to top the leaderboards most of the time. My aim was unnaturally good, and it showed.

Assume proper stance: My feet were shoulder-width apart, and my body was slightly crouched. My right hand tightened on the grip, with my left supporting it.

Identify targets: My eyes scanned the clearing below. I saw 3 robed men standing in a circle drawing something with red liquid on the stone floor. One of the 3 looked more important than the others. They were in a hurry, with the important one urging the other two on. They were conversing quietly, but I was sure they were speaking in a language I couldn't recognize. The 4th was a tall lithe man who walked in a way that made it hard to spot him if you took your eyes off him. He had a bow, and possibly other concealed weapons under his cloak. First the tall one, then the important old one, then the other two. Targets decided I moved on.

Align sights: I brought up the revolver and aimed down its sights. I made sure the front sight was between the rear sights. Then I focused on the front sight.

Control breathing: I took a deep breath, and prepared to hold my breath halfway through when I would breathe out.

Squeeze Trigger: Using the pad of my index finger, I started applying gentle pressure at an optimal speed.

The dangerous one had walked over to another one of the kids. It was little Liz. Elizabeth had been posting videos of silly little 'magic' rituals and potions she made with her friends online. They'd been getting quite a fair number of views. I guess they got the wrong kind of attention if some kind of cult watched their videos and possibly got offended by them, maybe?

Bending down, he tried to reach for her, completely ignoring Liz's muffled panicked cries. The moment he took the position I was waiting for; I took the shot.

*~Bang~* 5 rounds left.

Amazingly, I realized that the man had moved right before I took the shot. If someone else were in my position they would have possibly been in trouble. After all, who knew what he was capable of? He looked like he spent his entire life in the woods. Walking with a preternatural grace, making no sounds whatsoever, he was almost definitely faster and stronger than both I and Ann combined. Given the chance, he would disappear into the trees and kill us without notice.

Alas, this world would never see his skills. I was already expecting the worst, which is why I made sure to compensate for the event that one of the others would warn him after spotting me. And so, instead of the bullet shredding through his chest at a deadly angle, it found its way into his spine, right below where the neck begins. The man dropped over Liz, like a puppet with its strings cut, creating the perfect meat shield for her, and ensuring she wouldn't see anything more traumatic. Aside from being pinned under the corpse of her would-be killer. Nice going, Dan.

*~Bang~* 4 rounds left. *~Bang~* 3 rounds left. *~Bang~* 2 rounds left.

Of course, the surprise didn't stop me from following through with my plan, adjusting my aim, and taking a shot at the rich-looking cultist as soon as the recoil from my shot was under control. It didn't stop me when the bullet intended for him hit a force field that glowed briefly and outlined his form. It didn't stop me from moving on as planned and gunning down the other two cultists as they startled and fell on their asses.

No, what stopped me was that when I turned back to the important cultist, I saw him point a glowing necklace of some kind in my direction. What surprised me was how a beanbag-sized fireball materialized in front of it and was promptly shot in my direction with a yell of, "Granar!"

*~Bang~* 1 round left.

I took another shot, and I hoped to hit the necklace right on the glowing gemstone I noticed before turning around to grab Ann and jump off the tree. Only, I noticed that she had already slipped off and was discreetly moving over to where the kids were kept tied.

Our eyes locked and I knew what I had to do. Distract the possibly crazy cultist wizard or the possibly crazy cultist with insanely advanced technology, while Ann takes the kids away, then lose his fat ass in the woods.

Right as I touched the ground and rolled to lose momentum, I noticed the tree behind me explode in a shower of flames. I mean, it has to be advanced tech, right?! I mean he totally didn't look at my gun like it was an alien looking to probe him! Was this guy really a wizard?!

The possibility that Magic was real, was almost enough to distract me from the life-and-death situation. After all, this was something that I'd always wanted. However, I managed to rein in my excitement and focus on the current issue.

I needed to take him down, but he had a forcefield or Magic shield of unknown capabilities. Normally pretty much any problem could be solved with an application of enough bullets, but I only had one shot, I had to make count.

Coming around the side of the hill, I mentally reviewed what I knew of the forcefield. It had created a glowing outline around his body, but it wasn't a tight fit. There was plenty of space in the middle, which meant that pressing the gun to his body and taking a shot might work. But trying to close the distance would not be easy.

When I finally saw what had happened in the time between me jumping off the tree and running downhill, I couldn't even say I was surprised. The previous shot I had taken had paid off. The bullet had hit the necklace, but instead of destroying it, it had knocked it off the wizard's hand. Ann had somehow managed to free the kids and still had time to steal the Magic necklace, she was now running away with them while trying to figure out how to use it against the Wizard.

"Granar! Granar! C'mon you piece of shit, work!" While that was a good guess, I was pretty sure he was just swearing at us, and it wasn't some chant used to activate the Magic item.

The Wizard, on the other hand, was struggling with his robes, possibly trying to look for another Magic item. Well, I wasn't going to give him a chance.

I picked up a thick fallen branch and sprinted faster than I had ever before. Halfway to him, the wizard heard me running up to him. He had already retrieved a handful of gaudy gem-encrusted rings, putting some on his fingers and dropping the rest on the ground.

With an angry sneer, he pointed his hand at me, the ring on his index finger glowed blue, materializing a blue bolt of magic which he then promptly flung at me.

Filled with fear, I threw the branch at him, hoping that it would be enough to either throw off his aim or intercept the Magic bolt. Instead, the bolt simply destroyed the branch and impacted my left shoulder.

I screamed as I felt the worst pain I'd felt in my life since the time a coyote had bitten my leg. But instead of falling, I simply stumbled and ran up to the crazy wizard kicking him in the chest as hard as I could, using the momentum to jump back as far as I could and taking cover behind a tree.

The forcefield around him materialized and saved him from any damage but that didn't stop him from falling backwards.

Feeling the pain in my shoulder I resisted the urge to look down at it. I couldn't feel my arm and was afraid I wouldn't like what I would see. Instead, the pain brought the realization that the tree likely wouldn't stop one of those bolts from hitting me.

Just as I was about to start running away, my attention was taken away by a bright orange light that manifested some distance away from me. It was coming from the direction Ann had run in.

"RUN AWAY DANIEL! I'M GONNA BLAST THIS CRAZY BASTARD BACK TO HIS ANCESTORS!"

By now the last rays of the sun had already abandoned us, with the full moon shining down on the forest.

There, in the distance, Ann stood with the magic necklace held high above her head. A massive fireball the size of a tank was floating above her illuminating the entire section of the woods. Her face was a mask of concentration, with rivers of sweat running down her brow and with a wordless shout she unleashed it in the Wizard's direction.

Distantly, I noted that the orange glow lighting up her hair made this scene quite like the one earlier today. Huh, can't deny that her smiling face was nice, but I like this one too.

Her warning though welcome was unneeded. The moment I recognized the light I had already started running.

The wizard had completely forgotten about me, perhaps due to my inability to bypass his protections. From the beginning, his face had only ever shown anger and momentary panic. Now, after seeing Ann use his own Magic item to greater effect than himself, all that was left on his face was terror and disbelief.

Ann's words had snapped him out of his daze, hurriedly he slammed his palm onto the forest floor. His face said that he didn't truly know what he was doing, it was an act borne of desperation. No, it's not some random place, that's where the centre of the magic ritual is!

Instantly, the clearing began to glow an eerie red, with blood-red symbols drawn all over the floor indicating a perimeter of the ritual circle. It was with a sudden feeling of dread that I bounced off an invisible barrier that trapped me with the wizard.

Prone to the dirt I watched as the fireball disappeared into the invisible barrier, almost as if the barrier had sucked it into its walls. The blood-red symbols were now glowing brighter, pulsing, and flashing like a heartbeat.

Ann's face showed despair and the Wizard was hysterically laughing at his success and survival. Taunting Ann in a language we couldn't understand. Truly he could say that he had claimed the last laugh. Fortunately for me, in this case, I was being quite literal.

*~Bang~* 0 rounds left.

With a hole in his head, the last crazy cultist fell dead to the ground. At the same time, the flashing of the blood-red symbols stopped, slowly glowing dimmer.

While the Wizard was celebrating his victory, I had snuck up behind his back and fired the revolver at his head at a point-blank distance. His forcefield was unable to protect him from such a close threat.

Dropping the revolver to the floor, I stumbled in Ann's direction, with my heart pounding in my ears. In a detached manner, I observed that the reason I couldn't feel my arm anymore was because half my shoulder had burnt off leaving my arm hanging off it. Man, adrenaline can do wonderful things if I was able to ignore this. This is probably gonna hurt like crazy in a little bit, huh?

"Dan! Hey, talk to me, please! I need to know you're OK!" Ann was banging her hands on the barrier, which I noted still hadn't come down. Liz was standing next to her wringing her hand and looking around nervously, tears falling down her face. Guess the other kids ran off to find Ann's mom.

"H-Hey there, Ann. I'm doing fine. Say, Liz when exactly is t-this barrier coming down? Now that Magic is real, I'm going to be taking you a lot more seriously." I slumped down on a log by the barrier, too tired and injured to stay standing.

"Umm, I-Its not a barrier? At least it's not just a barrier. The dark wizards said they were going to sacrifice our souls to pay for passage b-back to their world…" She can understand them?

"Wait, you can speak their language? Also, what's this about not being just a barrier!?" Ugh, don't scare the kid now Ann.

"W-Well, I-I think it's because I summoned them? So, I couldn't understand their language, b-but I could somehow understand what they meant!" While still nervous, scared and most probably traumatized, the talk of Magic still managed to bring back some confidence to the 13-year-old. Adjusting her glasses, the brown-haired girl rambled on with wild hand movements.

"Summoned?! So, they weren't from some secret organization coming to silence you for revealing magic on the internet?" Well, it made sense. Magic probably couldn't be hidden in today's technologically advanced society.

"N-NO! We accidentally summoned them! I think they were running away from someone, so they took a risk and entered a rift or void or something! My summoning circle must have intercepted them somehow? I don't think they could teleport because they wanted to enter their own world from some other point, that's what this ritual circle is for!"

"You said they wanted to sacrifice your souls?! Is Daniel going to be OK?!" At this point Ann had taken hold of the girl's shoulders and was shaking her.

"Y-Yes! He'll be fine! T-They were going to kill us so that the ritual would capture our souls. T-That's why they took all of us. O-One soul for one trip. A-Also, they k-killed Sam, *Sob* s-so they could u-use his blood for t-the circle…" As she spoke her shoulders sunk low and she started sobbing quietly, reminding both Ann and me that despite running headfirst into this situation we couldn't save all the kids.

Liz continued to speak. "B-but now that you k-killed the bad wizard, his soul was probably f-fed to the circle. I d-don't know how to stop the ritual…A-also, u-umm the l-last wizard, d-didn't know any real magic besides using m-magic items, from w-what I heard the o-other two complaining about, I think he was a n-noble's lazy son?"

At that, both Ann and I started. Looking down I noticed that the symbols were glowing with an increasing intensity. From the back of the forest, I noticed the sounds of police sirens. Michelle, you really need to work on your timing.

I imagine Ann heard them as well, but she completely ignored them. Looking at me, her face was cycling through different emotions.

Thinking about my situation, I let out a sudden laugh. I always wanted an Isekai experience. To escape the mundane world. Learn Magic, go on adventures, explore ancient ruins, go dungeon diving, and save the day.

"Hahaha, I-I never thought this was how my Isekai adventure would begin. I never even got to meet Truck-kun. Hey, Ann, I guess I won that bet, huh? Listen, Ann, I don't know how I'll do it, or how long it'll take but—"

"No." What?

"…" It was the same expression. The one I'd seen on her face when she said she had something she'd tell me after we went back home from this ordeal.

"I don't want to hear it! You don't get to make some speech where you get in the last word! You don't get to make me wait for you while I'm left behind worrying for you!" I wanted to say something. To tell her that I would be back, that she didn't have to worry about me. But I couldn't, not when I was looking at her face, but I couldn't turn away from her, not now.

"This is how it's going to go. You're going to find a safe place for yourself, and I'm going to find you. No matter how long it takes or how far you go, I'll find you." All I could do was stare into the eyes whose gaze had pinned me down. Dad did say I could never win against her, even if I defeated her. I never truly understood that…until maybe today.

"Well, at least we agree we'll see each other again, even if we don't agree on how we do it."

"Did you really think you could go to another world alone? You're not going to get rid of me that easily Daniel Walker."

At that, I simply snorted. "How are we going to find each other?"

She simply deadpanned at me. "How do we normally find each other in open-world games? Besides, this is gonna be a sandbox with complete freedom, we can use any of the options." All right, I guess that was dumb of me.

The light from the symbols was reaching blinding levels now. Liz had run off towards the sirens. I could see Ann's mother walking through the clearing with her gun in hand. Instead of worrying about anything else I refocused on Ann.

"Hey, do you remember that thing we used to get our DnD characters to say when we used the Plane Shift spell in the campaigns?" I asked with a hopeful expression.

Ann giggled. "Well, it is pretty appropriate in this situation. Then let's say it as one!"

We balled our fists and let our knuckles meet on either side of the Barrier.

" "May the Great Adventure never end!" "

With that, the red light completely engulfed my vision, and everything went dark.

…

[Replay Recall] has gained a level!

[Replay Recall] Skill Deactivated!

~Ping~

[Firearms Mastery] Skill Relearned!

[Firearms Mastery] has gained a level!

…

~{Skills}~

[Meditation] {Active} (Lv. 13): The ancient art of meditation, used to cultivate focus, and observe the flow of thoughts and emotions without judgement.

[Mathematics] {Passive} (Lv. 4): Analyze and solve problems using logical reasoning and precise calculations. Aids in understanding structures, patterns, and relationships.

[Replay Recall] {Active} (Lv. 4): Recall instances from your life in vivid detail.

[Firearms Mastery] {Passive} (Lv. 34): Skill in wielding firearms ranging from pistols and shotguns to rifles and heavy weaponry.

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