Copying The Universe
Magnus crossed his arms and shifted his weight to one side, his armor rattling slightly with every move. Speaking of which, he just now noticed that he was standing atop an invisible floor, the darkest of black filling the expanse beneath and all around him. With eyes still glued on the floating screen, he scrutinized the imaginary eyes that may or may not be looking back at him right now.
'This reminds me of that time long ago where I used to be paranoid of my own laptop camera, imagining some FBI agent hacking into it. I even went so far as to put a tape on the camera. Ah, the good old days.'
Magnus stayed silent for the longest time, before he sighed and shook his head. There was no point worrying over The Viewers. It was obvious they were watching him. "So, you will be copying the entire Universe, yeah?"
[Correct.]
"I do have a couple of questions before that, though," asked Magnus while massaging his temples. "First of all, I have never imagined I would be saying such a thing so casually. Which begs the question, how is that even possible? I don't think making a copy of an entire Universe is something that can be easily done. Besides, I'm guessing that the system will need an astronomical amount of power to pull it off."
[Anything is possible as long as The Viewers allow it.]
'There you again with The Viewers.'
"Any reason why they're allowing it?"
[The host has expressed his desire to return to the past, and The Viewers have compromised by providing the system the means and power to copy The Universe once.]
Magnus forced a smile. "That…that doesn't explain anything."
The system was silent for a moment before saying, [To provide the host with context, the host must first know the role that the gods played. In order to continue using the system and its powers, they had a task of providing entertainment to The Viewers. For years, they had been doing a decent job, until the host's acts of rebellion. The Viewers had not expected one of the Protagonists to defy The Authors and become a potential Author himself by stealing the system. The Viewers found this Plot Twist very interesting and have expressed a wish for the host to make a better story than the ones the gods have come up with.
Therefore, in return for granting the host's wish to return to the past, The Viewers have given the host a mission.]
Suddenly, a second screen glimmered to life right next to the first floating screen.
[Mission Alert
Race for The Best Viewership
Description: In exchange for the host to be sent into the past within a copied Universe, the host must agree to raise The Viewers' satisfaction in a consistent manner by coming up with an entertaining plot. The host must reach a Satisfaction Level that surpasses that of the gods' within a certain time period.
Rewards: Lighter restriction and less points required to write manual narration.
Penalty upon failure: 1. Huge loss of Divinity Level
2. Stagnation in Satisfaction Level may result in The Viewers' disappointment and could potentially cause them to abandon The Universe.
Time Limit: 1 year after the Prolog]
Under the Mission box was a bar indicating Magnus' current progress on Satisfaction Level.
[Satisfaction Level: 13%]
After reading the contents of the second screen, Magnus pulled his head back and heaved a deep sigh. 'This is like being given the power and chance to have my revenge on the demons who have toyed with my life, but the price is signing a contract with the devil himself.'
It was then he realized something he hadn't expected to see on the Mission content. He snapped his head back to the second screen and reread what was written before asking, "What does it mean that I must reach a higher Satisfaction Level than the gods? They no longer have the system, right? Surely, there's no way for them to narrate a story any longer."
[The process of copying The Universe means copying everything it contains, including the system itself, albeit as an inferior version of the original. Thus, having less power to exert Divinity toward turning manual narration into reality.]
"Ah, got you." Narrowing his eyes, Magnus noticed one more thing that piqued his curiosity. "What would happen if The Viewers abandoned The Universe?"
[The stories within The Universe would die and time would freeze.]
Magnus raised his eyebrows, definitely not expecting something so extreme as an answer. "Holy shit, that sounds…bad. World's end level bad."
[Would the host like to start the process of copying The Universe now?]
Magnus scratched his head and sighed. "Fine, I guess."
[Copying The Universe in progress…]
[10%...]
[34%...]
[68%...]
[97%...]
[The Universe has been successfully copied.]
Magnus's eyes traveled left and right, looking for some changes in his surroundings, anything that might indicate that there was now a new Universe identical to the one he knew. "Umm…I don't feel any different."
[What did the host expect?]
Magnus cocked his head back in surprise. 'Why do I feel slightly insulted?'
[The place the host is currently in is a space separated from The Universe. Therefore, any changes that happen to either the original Universe or the copied one will not be visible to the host's eyes.]
"Ah, I guess that makes sense. Well, one thing left to do then." Magnus turned his eyes back to the first screen, before saying, "I'd like to appoint myself as Protagonist #1, please."
[That is not possible. The host has taken the role as an Author, therefore cannot select himself as a Protagonist. One individual is not allowed to bear two roles at the same time.]
Magnus rolled his eyes. "I'm guessing this rule was set by The Viewers?" he asked, to which the system refused to answer. He clicked his tongue and was about to think of a solution before a voice came from behind him.
"I might be able to help you with that. Or should I say, help 'us'?"
Magnus whipped around and was shocked to see who was standing just a few meters before him. Dirty blond hair—his own hair. Heterochromia eyes—exactly the same colors as his. Blue and black armor—precisely what he was wearing. The person he was looking at right now was…himself.