Chapter 2: Awakening

Alex felt his breath shorten, his chest heaving with the effort. Multiple wounds covered his body, and his adrenaline was pumping hard. A long, ringing sound reverberated in his head, blood trickling from his ear. His vision was blurry, a strange light blinding him.

The moment he blacked out, a golden, soul-like figure emerged from his body. It dissipated into nothingness and reappeared in a new world, its golden hue weaker, almost unrecognizable.

The weak white soul flew around, searching for a body. It found a frail young boy with eyes black as ink, hair brown as earth, and lips pale, dry, and cracked. His body was thin, and his hands were full of calluses. Sudden jolts of his body were visible to everyone around, but they merely sighed and moved on.

The soul entered the boy's body, fitting perfectly. The pale lips slowly regained some color, his fingers twitched.

...

All Alex could remember was the pain his body felt. He knew he was dead. Suddenly, a thought struck him: dead people shouldn't be able to think. Then he felt something—dead people couldn't feel.

Why could he feel weakness all over his body? Did he survive? No, even if he somehow survived the explosion, his enemies wouldn't let him breathe. A happy thought appeared in his mind: he had succeeded. His brothers now had a fighting chance.

He knew the war was far from over, but his brothers would be able to sustain for more days. The government might change their mind and send reinforcements. Their post wasn't strategically crucial, but controlling it would give their country an advantage. It might not provide an upper hand immediately, but an advantage was still an advantage.

Suddenly, Alex felt strange. A blinding light disturbed his rest. He figured this might be heaven. He tried to open his eyes slowly. At first, it was blurry, but then he saw clearly: he was at some sort of gate outside a village. The sun was rising in front of him.

It was big and warm. Alex felt the golden rays shining on his body—a rare feeling. His heart felt heavy, and a tear escaped his eye. He looked at his body and felt weird. It was thin and weak, unlike his athletic and lean body.

A barrage of headaches attacked his head. Memories flooded his mind, and an uncanny feeling struck his chest.

Alex Draven—a beggar and a refugee. No memories of his childhood, nor of his parents and background. It was as if he just spawned in the world. Speaking of the world, it appeared that this world was in the Medieval Period. Several feudal kingdoms ruled the land and were constantly at war.

Oh, what convenience, he thought. A veteran soldier died honorably and was transported to a world where war was as common as bread. Alex cursed the author of his life for not thinking of another world. He had already died miserably; why not give him a life where he could get laid all the time?

"F*ck you," he thought.

Looking at his weak but callused hands, he figured he really had gone to another world. His calmness in this situation was uncanny. Not everyone would be as accepting. But Alex knew this was as real as it could get. His mind was trained to be calm in every situation, and this was no exception.

With his still weak body, he sat down and leaned against the wall. He smiled weakly. All along, this was what he wanted—a second chance at life.

Finally, he could live a life and do what he wanted without worry. In this life, he was going to be happy and content without any regrets. Here, he could choose what he wanted.

After lingering in his thoughts, he stood up, albeit weakly. He found some food at his feet—a piece of bread. He remembered this was bought by the previous owner of his body. It tasted bland, plain—everything a bread shouldn't taste like.

He went inside the village, eating his bland bread. In his memory, this village was called Arest. A small village in the kingdom of Eldoria, far from the border where war was as common as bread. Here, what was common was bread tasting like sh*t.

As he walked along the path to the center of the village, he heard a ringing in his head followed by a monotonous voice spouting a series of words.

Ding!

System Activate!

Daily Task

100 Pushups

100 Situps

100 Pullups

10km Run

Please finish your daily task if you don't want to be punished.

Alex blinked, trying to make sense of the strange voice. A system? He had read about things like this in fantasy books, but experiencing it was different. He cursed under his breath, "Oh, come on! Really? You've got to be kidding me. How original!"

He shook his head, skeptical. He didn't want to experience any so-called punishment, but first, he needed to test if this system was real. He found a secluded spot and began his tasks.

Starting with pushups, he felt the strain immediately. His muscles screamed in protest, unused to such exertion. "Damn you, author," he muttered between labored breaths. The villagers stared at him strangely as he continued, their curiosity and pity evident.

Ten pushups was a problem, twenty is a struggle, thirthy is pure hardship, while the rest? It's an ordeal. Each breath he takes, he spout a word of encouragement to the author.

"Did you run out of ideas or just forget to pick them up from the store?"

"Do you write with your eyes closed? Because it sure seems like you're guessing where this story is going."

"If your book were a movie, it would win an award for the best use of filler scenes."

It sure was a sight to behold. His face dripped with sweat, his nose running like a leaky faucet, and his eyes bulging with like a maniac. His breath came fast and ragged, as if he were running from something unseen. People who caught sight of him couldn't help but sigh and quickly avert their gaze, unsure whether to offer help or keep their distance.

Moving on to sit-ups, then pull-ups using a tree branch, each exercise was harder than the last. His body felt like it was on fire, the unfamiliar weakness making each movement a struggle. Finally, he began the 10km run, his legs trembling with fatigue.

People watched him, some with pity, others with confusion. To them, he was a madman pushing his frail body beyond its limits. He could hear their murmurs and feel their stares, but he pushed through, cursing the author and the system every step of the way.

By the time he finished, he collapsed to the ground, panting heavily. The system dinged again.

Ding!

'Daily Task Completed!'

'Reward: Strength and Stamina stats unlocked.'

Alex felt a sudden rush of energy. His body didn't change outwardly, but he felt stronger, more capable. He grinned despite himself. This system was real, and it was his ticket to survival and strength in this new world.

"Even though this is all true, you're still a piece of crap!!", People looked at him oddly, wondering who he was cursing.