Chapter 1: If Regret Could Kill

Bang!

Amid a bustling early evening, the usual sounds of lively conversations and passing cars filled a busy city area, flanked by commercial and residential buildings. Then, suddenly, a starkly distinct sound pierced the atmosphere—a sharp, loud gunshot!

This abrupt noise cut through the ongoing hum of traffic and chatter, sending a collective shiver through the crowd. People halted their activities, their gazes turning curiously towards the source of the sound. Some, overwhelmed by panic, perspired and sought refuge or fled from the vicinity.

Drivers slammed on their brakes, their faces etched with caution, as the gunshot reverberated between the tall buildings, leaving a palpable tension hanging in the air.

For a moment, the frenetic pace of the street gave way to a tense silence as people held their breath, waiting for more.

Then three men moved between the vehicles on the street, darting between the cars at high speed, pistols in their hands, but also with frightened expressions on their faces.

Of the three young men, one had pale skin, so pale he looked sick. His black hair blew wildly in the wind created by his fast running. His eyes, also dark, beautiful enough to have won him compliments from girls, now lacked their usual beauty. There was something else today, a dullness, an unusual trembling.

It was a frosty night, but he felt none of it. His only focus was on escaping, getting as far away as possible. His companions shared his urgency. Their faces, etched with the tension of the moment, featured furrowed brows and mouths slightly open as they held their breath while fleeing from the scene of their miscalculated endeavor.

"Shit! What did you do?" one of them blurted out.

Marcus, a black-haired young man of 19, standing 6'3" tall and in the prime of youth, said nothing in response to his friend's panicked question. Right now, he couldn't.

Marcus was haunted by the face of the woman who had reacted to their attempted carjacking, which had spiraled into an accidental shooting. Whose gun had fired? It was his—the one he had used to force the woman out of their targeted car.

'Damn! What have I done?'

The chilling image of the woman with a bullet hole in her head kept flashing through Marcus' mind. If remorse could be lethal, he would have succumbed right then and there.

Crushed by overwhelming sadness, he wished he could rewind time and undo the catastrophic decision he had made three weeks ago. Unfortunately, or perhaps mercifully, time travel was not a reality.

...

Three weeks ago...

In a neglected corner of Silverpine City, signs of public abandonment are clear throughout this neighborhood, home to over 50,000 residents, mostly impoverished people. The streets are lit by often faulty streetlights and paved with low-quality asphalt, riddled with cracks and potholes.

The buildings, primarily residential, feature cramped apartments with faded facades and, sometimes, walls of unfinished exposed brick. Bars on the windows and posts of each home are visible from a distance, contributing to the area's miserable appearance. The pervasive smell of rust from the weathered bars mingles with the odor of sewage emanating from a nearby stream, underscoring the community's decay.

Gray Village was hardly an ideal place to be born, grow up, or live. Located 15 kilometers from Silverpine City's center, it gained a reputation as the area's most perilous neighborhood, attracting the city's most troubled individuals.

Not everyone in the community was problematic. But in neglected areas like Gray Village, it was common for some individuals to fill the void left by the lack of official oversight.

Navigating the alleys of Gray Village, one might easily encounter armed individuals, black markets for stolen goods, and other illicit activities. In such a setting, the sound of sirens was frequent. Police often raided the area to confront local criminals, and it was not unusual for ambulances to rush in to transport those injured in conflicts, many of whom would not return.

Through it all, the people of Gray Village survived as best they could. Informal commerce on the principal streets of the neighborhood was strong, with many types of services offered, as well as street markets, open-air shops, and more.

The area was in disarray. The wiring on the poles appeared randomly installed by amateurs, with cables crossing over one another, complicating any maintenance work. Perhaps this was one reason local companies rarely ventured into the neighborhood to address complaints about illegal trading in fiber optics, electricity, and other services.

Despite these challenges, the neighborhood buzzed with activity. People of all ages bustled about, continuing to work there out of necessity, as they had no other alternatives.

Such was the case of a young man who had graduated from elementary school a few months earlier, Marcus Jenkins, 6'3", 180 pounds, handsome, with a striking gaze, who was returning home from the electrician's course he had been taking since graduating from high school.

He wore his usual attire—a simple black shirt, his only one reserved for important occasions, a pair of jeans that were his only pair, and aged sneakers, older than his younger brother Vincent.

Today was Marcus's 19th birthday. After a day at his technical college, he strolled home through the bustling main street of his neighborhood, lined with various stalls. Normally, Marcus would barely glance at the items for sale, but today he allowed himself a small extravagance to celebrate—two churros, his favorite dessert, and a stereo, spending $50. Although this amount was significant for him, having taken four months to save, he felt the occasion warranted the expense.

In Azura, the world where Marcus lived, turning 19 was more than just another birthday. It was the age at which a special phenomenon known as Immersion affected some individuals. The exact reasons for this happening at 19 were uncertain, with speculation suggesting it was because individuals at this age were starting to develop the ability to make informed choices and take risks. However, the statistics mattered less than the impact of Immersion itself.

For those sensitive to Immersion, their 19th birthday could bring about a unique event, offering opportunities that might lead to extraordinary benefits or challenging problems. Ultimately, Immersion had the potential to dramatically alter a person's life.

For someone like Marcus, it was all worth the risk. He didn't know if he was one of the few people sensitive to Immersion. He had long dreamed of this day, hoping to awaken an opportunity that would take him and his family out of the Gray Village.

After buying what he wanted and seeing that his 19th birthday was only 14 minutes away, Marcus rushed home, eager to spend this critical moment in his life with his family.

At 9, Marcus had lost his father in a car accident. At 13, his older brother, Dominic, had died of cancer. Then, Marcus was left with his mother, Rebecca, his sister, Charlotte, his brother, Joseph, and his paternal grandmother, Natalie. They all lived in a 66-square-foot house on Block 25.

As soon as he arrived home in the early evening, Marcus received "Happy Birthday" greetings from his loved ones, but no presents. And he didn't really care, his family was too poor for that. He had earned enough from his work over the past few months to celebrate. The fact his relatives were there for him was all that mattered.

In other places, there might be a cake, even a simple one, waiting for a birthday boy or girl on a date as important as this. But how could there be a birthday cake for Marcus?

The Jenkins' four-room house was tiny. There was only one bedroom, one bathroom, one living room, and one kitchen. Yet there was no sofa in the living room, let alone a closet in the bedroom.

In the house's sole bedroom, a single and a double bed occupied most of the space. Meanwhile, the family dining table stood as the only piece of furniture in the living room.

Aside from a table and chairs, the only other thing there was a dirty, old mattress in one corner, where Marcus slept and a small pile of clothes was next to it. Given the family's modest means, baking a cake was out of the question—they barely afforded one meal a day.

It was no surprise that most family members were quite slim, except for Marcus and Charlotte, who had access to free meals on their school campuses.

After wishing Marcus luck in this crucial moment of his life, everyone took their seats around the cracked and soiled table, watching the black-haired young man lying on the floor, awaiting the decisive moment.

As the clock ticked on, time seemed to stretch, with only the "tick-tock" of the solitary clock breaking the silence in the Jenkins' living room.

With one minute to go, the elderly women swallowed hard in anticipation, feeling her heart pound. Her family had never experienced the Immersion, but the phenomenon wasn't genetic. Immersion had affected the lives of Azura's people for over three decades, and even regular citizens were familiar with its various elements.

Immersion could happen to anyone, regardless of skin color, intelligence, genetic background, or any other discernible factor. It appeared to be completely random, a destiny for the chosen few. Its unpredictability meant that even someone from their humble family might be sensitive to this extraordinary event.

If Marcus wasn't affected by the Immersion, hope would still remain for Charlotte in three years and for Joseph in fifteen.

Old Natalie, her hair white and eyes framed by wrinkles, closed her eyes with 15 seconds left. She couldn't bear to watch, unsure if she wanted to see her grandson succeed or fail.

How could she tell? There were only two outcomes: the disappointed expression of someone who felt nothing, or the unusual behavior of someone who had experienced the phenomenon.

Either way, it was always somewhat obvious.

'5... 4... 3... 2... 1...' Marcus closed his eyes as he finished counting.

Then all he heard was silence, while he felt nothing special.

Gulp!

His heart beat faster, a sign of his nervousness at the delay.

He obviously didn't think he was going to fail. Why should he? This was his family's only chance!

In Crescentia, the country they were in, it was impossible to grow up and change status using normal methods. Unless one was born into a good family, changing one's life and destiny would be as difficult as being one of the few sensitive to the Immersion.

'It's not unusual to be a few seconds behind schedule. Medical records are never really on time. It's common for them to be a few tens of seconds later.' He tried to convince himself that he still had a chance.

When Marcus opened his eyes, he could see his little brother, the only one with his eyes open, looking at him in disappointment.

It broke Marcus' heart and made him feel a strange chill, a defeat that he honestly didn't believe would happen.

As difficult as it was to be one of the 'chosen few', he had truly, perhaps naively, believed since he was younger than Joseph that he would one day achieve Immersion.

He smiled bitterly, tears welling up in his eyes, and moved to sit at the edge of his bed. A second later, his relatives opened their eyes, eager to see if he had experienced the Immersion.

At that moment, Marcus' eyes snapped wide open, his pupils darting back and forth as if he were reading an invisible book. Seeing this, Natalie's face creased into a gentle smile, and she felt a renewed strength that allowed her to stand without help.

"He did it!" she exclaimed, her voice louder than Joseph had ever heard before, startling him.

Then, as Marcus' family members observed his weird behavior, the tears in his eyes dried. Simultaneously, text boxes resembling those from a computer program appeared to him, floating in the air before him.

[Welcome to the Immersion Tutorial. First, congratulations. You are one of the 3,113,938 people sensitive to the Immersion. Ahead of you is a decision you must make immediately.]

Marcus felt his eyes darken, no longer seeing the inside of his poor house, but two dark paths ahead.

{A: Give up the Immersion and get on with your life.}

{B: Continue the Immersion and inherit the Crime Lord's legacy.}

[Raise your right hand if you prefer option A. Otherwise, continue without moving. You have 10 seconds to decide. 

9... 8...]

Marcus read the stupid question and obviously didn't raise his right hand. How could he do such a thing?

'The legacy of the Crime Lord? The name doesn't sound good, but so be it. Better than nothing!' He smiled in anticipation, curious to see what Immersion was really like.

Rumors said Immersion wasn't so great. An artificial intelligence would enter your mind strangely, and you would behave differently from then on.

Exactly what the Immersion was like for each person was hard to say. There was a wide range of possibilities.

Some became great tycoons shortly after the Immersion, while others became famous for their artistic, intellectual, athletic, etc. abilities.

Without experiencing Immersion, it was impossible to predict where one might end up.

[0... The host has decided. Opening the system.]

[Ding!]

[Crime Lord System successfully opened!]

[Displaying Home Screen on 3... 2... 1.]

[Missions] [Achievements] [Assets] [Deaths: none] 

Marcus saw his view change, with four buttons appearing at the top of his view, just like on a computer browser page.

He then saw personal information about himself at the bottom of his view.

[Name: Marcus Jenkins] [Skills: Level 1 Electrician]

[Legacy: Crime Lord] [Domain: None] 

[Ding!]

A warning sound appeared before another message box opened in the middle of Marcus' vision.

[First mission unlocked!]

[Host, perform your first attack within 24 hours!]

[Reward: Achievement—First Crime]

[Penalty for failure: Loss of the Crime Lord System and half of your vitality.]

Upon reading this, Marcus' expression changed completely, as he learned firsthand why the Immersion wasn't always so positive!