A/N: Greetings, fellow Mortals. I am Don Dokhmesy, and I started writing mid-year 2018. This is my new series "Relife System: The Unholy Mage" which is a reboot for a draft I wrote couple of years ago. Thankfully and after gaining enough experience at my other ongoing work "Dragonborn Saga", I am now ready to publish this series after a lot of planning and thinking. I hope to have your support in my second journey. Enjoy~
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< Oh Your Highness! The sweets were tasty. We should go out once again. >
*DING!! Amanda [+25 Love Points]*
"Fufufu!"
< Oh, my Prince. I really enjoyed this... ride. >
*DING!! Carolina [+50 Love Points]*
"Hehehe!"
< Oh my~ Your Highness, you're asking for such a thing. I am so embarrassed~ Kyaaa! >
*DING!! Nurse Lucy [+100 Love Points]!*
*DING!! Nurse Lucy's adult scenes are now available in the gallery!*
"Hahaha! Let's advance to the next phase. Conquer all of 'em gatcha harem."
Say what you want about Dating Sims especially if you are a winner in life who has a girlfriend, however, if you belong to the dark side of "Loners with Boners" then a Adult Dating Sim game on your phone is clearly justifiable and that was the case with our Male Lead here.
Meet Shady, a 29 years old Egyptian guy with one year left to be a wizard. To cure his aching loneliness, he resorted to all sorts of gacha RPG Dating Sims becoming known as an avid fan of the genre even as a Captain of a Black-Ops team.
Yes, no matter how his actions may seem like, Shady is the Captain of a Medjay team that acts as a worldwide wanted criminal known as [Black Cobra], one of the most infamous thieves and killers in the underworld. The man himself became some sort of Urban Legend with many leaked videos of his absurd videogame-like and cartoonish skills.
Speaking of the man can't be done without speaking of his organization, the "Medjay", a Secret Order that originated from Ancient Egypt which acted as the Royal Guard and the Intelligence Agency of the Old Kingdom being reduced to an secretive independent Sect in modern-day Egypt. The organization housed various individuals such as Hitmen, Thieves, Hackers and Mercenaries. Such an organization operated in a grey moral zone with the goal of liberating what belongs to Egypt and returning it back. By that, the specialty of the [Black Cobra] was ancient relics and artifacts.
Back to our Male Lead. Despite the various talents of Shady as a Thief, a Killer and a Tomb Raider; he was unlucky with the fairer sex which rendered his legends on the social media to be nothing but distant dreams.
"So, the man who spent a night with the said model and cuckolded the said dictator is lonely playing dating sims again?" A mocking voice came from his side as a pretty face emerged.
"Nadia… What do you want?" The man with tired eyes and ordinary face turned around to the beauty who was showing him his latest so-called scandals on her phone.
"There is a new article about the Black Cobra again. Apparently, some fool stole from some rich female celebrity after spending a night with her in Paris then left a replica of your signature cards."
"Not again! My reputation dammit! Tell the HR to do something about it already!" Shady screamed in agony while holding his head.
"Why? The Marketing like it. Seriously dude, your life is so amazing in the media. Knowing the real poor you… I think you should hand over your title to that guy and retire."
"… Can I game in peace now?" He asked while cowering back into his corner with two streams of tears.
"I was just saying… Anyway, I'm going to have dinner with some rich guy I'm dating this weekend. Come with me and I'll introduce you to some cute girl I know."
"Thot begone! I am about to unlock the Super Mega Harem of this new Bundle! Just one more Roll."
"Suit yourself."
As far as Nadia and Shady go, the two of them have been partners and friends for many years. While the two had a thing in the past, the organization forbade intimacy between its members to not compromise any operation. It reflected on Shady being a loner and on Nadia being open but that was not really the case… if only Shady agreed to the meeting, that rich boy may not show up and it ends up with him and Nadia on a dinner table together but… little did he know.
"You two are done wasting time?" A rough voice came from the other side of the dark room.
"Old man."
"Pops."
Shady and Nadia immediately stopped whatever they were doing and stood facing the old man in a suit who came walking on a cane. Mustached and suited, the man gave off the aura of a Boss.
"Shady, do I need to remind you how important today is?" The Boss asked.
"I'm well aware of the operation details, Sir. We will slip in and out before they even know we were there." Shady replied.
"Good. And Nadia?"
"All the toys are up, we have access to the city's CCTV. New York is tightly secured like a needle hole but nothing is too secured when a woman winks and..." Nadia replied.
"Shut up!" Refuted the old man.
"Don't embarrass yourself!" And so did Shady.
"Either way, the sooner we get out of the United States, the better. I don't like it here." The old man's words were based on a lot of experience and facts. The target of tonight's operation is none other than the UN building in New York City.
How so?
Well, the long story starts with an Egyptian Tomb that mysteriously appeared in the Egyptian Western Desert and made a lot of fuss between archaeologists. Some said that this was the Tomb of Horus, an Egyptian Deity and the son of Osiris and Isis. It didn't make any sense but it was all true.
Strange as it sounded, this tomb took the world by surprise for its size that can't be ignored and having a ton of deadly traps and not so many treasures. Still, what stood out in the whole tomb was a Ring.
Once the Ring was recovered, the tomb mysteriously crumbled and turned to dust. Its relic became known as the [Ring of Horus].
One of three Elder Artifacts that were only fabled in Legends of Ancient Egypt; the [Ring of Horus], the [Wings of Isis] and the [Crown of Osiris]. The Legend goes that Isis herself made the three artifacts for her family to reunite it in the Underworld and conquer the realms together by stealing the Magic of Ra.
The thing is… these artifacts were supposed to be part of a Legend yet all of a sudden, a tomb is found and an item matching the description in its center. Such a thing was unimaginable and the Medjay Organization issued an order to retrieve that Ring.
The Discoverer of the ring was a foreign archaeologist. He managed to take the ring outside Egypt after a shady deal with corrupt government officials and the ring was taken to some lab to be analyzed but something unimaginable happened. The ring emitted unknown energy that the world has never seen before. It was harmless yet boundless if exploited the right way, who knows what kind of new energy source the world shall come across. It was even that it can power a whole city for... decades.
Possibly something even more powerful than a dozen Nuclear reactors.
And here when the nightmare started, every superpower in the world wanted to put its hands on the ring. The discoverer of the ring got his family kidnapped and couldn't save them because the government that got him first refused to make a trade. A shootout happened while he was getting transported and he managed to escape. Next time he appeared, he was in New York City at the UN seeking asylum. The devastated man appeared later on live TV and stated that he will sell the [Ring of Horus] in an auction organized by the UN to the highest bidder. Such a thing attracted everyone including the Medjay and the Black Cobra, Shady.
Today was the day, the intel was gathered, the schemes were complete, the escape route was secured. The Black Cobra was about to steal the [Ring of Horus] to return it back to its rightful rightful place, Egypt.
[A/n: If you leave a Comment or Vote, you will help promote this novel.]
***
He opened his eyes. The world looked hazy but still, he could see some things around him now that he turned his head.
Strange! It was all strangely familiar… but still unfamiliar.
Who is he and where did he come from?
Shady… right, that's his name.
No.
Wasn't it Leon?
Leon or Shady? Shady or Leon?
The question that distracted him from the things around him was "which one am I?"
Shady is the Black Cobra, a professional secret agent, someone who never failed a job.
Leon is a son of a noble family, a son of a Ducal family to be exact, which is a very mighty position but the person in question is not mighty at all. Leon was seen as a loser, a creep, a dark child, a manipulator even.
So which one is he?
Wait… now that Shady thinks about it, he knew a Leon once. A loser kind of guy with a skinny body and a weak appearance.
"How can two people from two completely different backgrounds run into each other in the same head?" One may wonder.
You see, Shady was once a Prince in a game… or so the Role-Playing Element went.
The Prince's name was Edward and he enrolled in the Royal Academy this year. Prince Edward was a man among men making the hearts of the female students flutter in seconds and getting access to their bedrooms… or so the Game synopsis went.
He could also switch Characters from the Prince and Play as one of the Party Females characters with endless cosmetics and a long list of items and magical abilities to use... or so the Party System went.
Whatever Prince Edward was up to, it was either about seducing a girl or sleeping with another. All he did was playing, enjoying life, meeting girls, etc. Such behavior was in no way suitable for a prince and in an academy but not that it mattered to anyone. The Prince was handsome, strong, and his academic grades were not bad. Also, any noble would want his daughter to get closer to the Crown Prince… or so the Storyline went.
In other words, there was no stopping this guy. As all girls felt good about him but the Prince felt that the girls who were more difficult to approach were more rewarding… or so the Reward System made it.
For that, the Prince put certain girls in mind categorizing them as the Main Targets, others were Secondary Targets, and some male students as Love Rivals… or so the Mechanics had it.
One of the Main Targets was the most difficult and rewarding Main Targets and had the most annoying Love Rival. That girl was called Nora Frye and the Love Rival in her quest was called Leon Dark. Yes, this is the very same Leon that Shady is confusing himself with. So remembering the rest of the story was the only way to make sense of this situation.
Prince Edward tried to pursue Nora but she was attached to Leon. The Prince and Leon were the polar opposites as one was widely popular while the other was keeping to himself, it may have sounded easy for the popular guy to beat the unpopular guy in a love game but that wasn't the case at all. Leon was not good with Magic or Combat unlike the Prince so if the Prince tried to use these advantages against Leon, it would be plain bullying and may cause a diplomatic issue.
On the other hand, Leon was always studying hard to make a name for himself in the academic field which was a pain to compete against since the game made it so frustrating. More to that, Leon was hella smart and very manipulative and dark from inside. He channeled his anger to even make problems for the Prince and put a lot of obstacles between him and Nora. Still, once the quest is complete, Leon will be humiliated by the Prince and repulsively requests a duel to regain his shattered image. This final part was made by the Developers to vent the players' frustration on the NPC known as Leon. It didn't make any sense storytelling wise since Leon would never request a duel but it was forced anyway.
So far so..... now.
That moment, it was about to be clear why Shady thought he was Leon.
He is… Leon.
Leon… from the game?
But that… can't be.
Finally, his senses were all regained and he saw the place around him clearly. This is not somewhere he is familiar with, the room filled with classic furniture and antiques couldn't be Shady's.
It is all Leon's.
But… What happened to the Heist? Where is the team?
***
He looked up in daze after he just had a panic attack. He couldn't move because his body was rejecting all movements. Something must have gone very wrong with Leon.
He was with his team on their motorbikes… whether they were heading to the Heist or escaping the site is still not clear to him.
Just how far south did things go?
But why is he having the memories of a Villain from a Dating Sim? Was it just some hallucinations? No, these memories were much more vivid than what the game provided about Leon. He had a completely different language in his head to begin with.
As he calmed down, he finally started to feel his numbed body sensing the coldness of the floor he was on. Why was he on the floor in the first place?
Unable to answer anything, he had to wait a few minutes until the body regains its strength but now that he thinks of it, how did Leon's story end in the game?
No one really knows. After the Prince dueled Leon and vented all his frustration by beating him, Leon disappeared from the game. When the developers were asked on the official forums, they said "Who cares? Leon drinks poison and dies LOL!"
Obviously no one cared for Leon after that point but Shady was given one glimpse of reality, Leon was beaten black and blue unable to move and thrown into his room.
It was easy to imagine that but for there to be no one nursing him, a member of a Ducal house.
What's going on?
He finally could move… Leon started to push his body up and as soon as he sat straight, he bent forward and…
*barf*
His stomach became as unstable as his mind and he started throwing up like crazy.
There was blood and stomach fluids which made his body shiver from the coldness of pain and his eyes become tearful. Well, all of this pain was a prologue for a mind shattering agony that followed the appearance of this message.
« Emergency! Poison Detected! »
« Detoxifying the Body! »
"… what?"
« Detoxifying… 1% »
*barf*
« [Poison Resistance Lv.1] has been added! »
« Detoxifying… 29% »
*barf*
« [Poison Resistance Lv.2] has been added! »
« Detoxifying… 77% »
*barf*
« [Poison Resistance Lv.3] has been added! »
« 100% … The Poison has been removed! »
« As a precaution, the body will undergo an emergency recovery after Reincarnation! »
"Re- what?"
« Healing… 1% »
"ARGH!"
« [Damage Resistance Lv.2] has been added! »
The pain he experienced was unbearable as it came in a second, it went in a second.
His broken bones and bruised body all forcibly healed in a second. It was terrifyingly painful how that felt. It didn't matter whether that was Leon or Shady or even the two combined, none of them wanted to experience that ever again.
But on the plus side, he was able to move and he was able to stand up on his feet. He is also aware that he is two different people in one body by now.
As mysterious as everything is; Leon and Shady have now fully realized the situation, it is not safe here in the academy.
Poison in the vomit, injuries on the body, cracks on the bones… this was no silly plot of a gacha game, this is a murder attempt plain and simple.
Leon was aware of many strange things that were happening and the anomalies that occurred in the academy this past month. To summarize it, someone wants him dead and wants his death to be pinned on that stupid Crown Prince.
Also, what is that about him being in a relationship with Nora Frye? She simply was a study partner. Was she the reason that stupid Prince kept harassing him? It started to make sense now that he pieced together the behavior or that idiot Prince but the plot is way too complicated. There is an international crisis that was brewing and... and... on the other side, Shady was hoping that this is just a bad nightmare.
The ideas of the two suppressed one another badly.
"Shit! I should focus. Maybe this is a dream but damn that pain just now was so fucking real. This is not the time to worry about the team. I'm not sure where I am but I think this is not… the same world... Shit!"
Stranded on a different world, Shady was like a small boat in the middle of a raging ocean. Hell, he is even missing a lot of memories. Leon too, he couldn't remember some things and there were many clouded spots in his memory. This was mostly because one brain can't process the memories of two souls at the same time.
But it took Shady and Leon a minute to realize one thing in this whole mess, the more they try to think independently from each other, the more confusing it gets. They had to submit to one fact and that the two of them are one person right now.
No Shady! No Leon! But someone completely new. It is impossible to happen. It is impossible for two to accept that they are one but that third personality was growing and consuming the two, Leon becoming Shady and Shady becoming Leon.
It is strange but as that New Man took a deep breath in and out, all that noise in his head was finally quietened. The thoughts, feelings and ideas are now one.
Missing some memories and maybe with a very flawed character but this person found himself becoming whole and fulfilled that he is made of two different people.
[A/n: If you leave a Comment or Vote, you will help promote this novel.]
For now, he will call himself Leon.
Strange? Maybe.
Still, that wasn't the strangest part. There was that voice and strange screen providing him guides just a while ago. It detoxified the poison inside him and healed his damaged body.
"Who are you? What is your purpose?" Leon asked as he waved his hands at the remaining screens that were still around.
It wasn't as if he knew what he was doing but the moment he touched those notification screens, they all disappeared and a new large one appeared in front of him.
———————————
- Name: Leon...
…
..
.
And it was like something hit him on the head. It was all there in front of him proving all what he thought and making him doubt his senses at the same time. A ton of conflicted emotions and thought ran amok in his head with too much headache all at the same time.
Part of him wasn't believing he had a game-like system while the other part was shocked to see that thing which he heard about in Legends.
"Knowledge Magic!"
So it was those messages after all. Leon knew very well that he was unable to use anything other than the Combat Magic which is the most common form of magic. But just now, he called out a reading of his Status, something only the rarest Sorcery can do. Leon was shaken but the only way to confirm was to look down the list.
———————————
- Name: Leon Dark
- Age: 16
- Race: Human
- Level: 3
- Class: Warrior (+10% STR)
- Class: N/A
- Titles: {Loser} {Legendary Thief ★} {Man Slayer ★} {Black Cobra ★}
———————————
[STR: 7] [END: 8] [AGI: 8] [PRC: 9] [INT: 8]
———————————
- Talent: 200%
- Affinity: Universal
- Unique Traits: Double-Classed
———————————
[Artillery Technique Lv.9] [Blade Technique Lv.5] [Unarmed Technique Lv.5] [Stealth Technique Lv.8] [Riding Technique Lv.5] [Martial Technique Lv.5] [Engineering Technique Lv.3] [Poison Resistance Lv3] [Pain Resistance Lv.2] [Space-Time Magic Lv.1] [Knowledge Magic Lv.1] [Combat Magic Lv.1]
———————————
[Ring of Relife]
———————————
"Oh God!" This was one long list of things Leon never had before. Well… Shady can be attributed to most of those skills but there was one thing in particular that shook Leon deep inside... The Talent section!
———————————
- Talent: 200%
- Affinity: All
- Unique: 2nd Class
———————————
What in the world was that thing? This was impossible to happen. Talent is basically the Growth rate of an individual and the amount of experience he gains while the Affinity is the type of Elements an individual can use. On the other hand, he never heard of anyone having a second class.
It may have been problematic to understand this Status alone but the past self of Leon, Shady, has seen such a status window before in the Game. Even though it was a Dating Sim, it had an RPG element and it was a nice touch to the game world but this reality was way too vivid compared to a game.
But the most important matter is that Leon's life dilemma was because of his lack of Talent. His Talent was 17% and had no Affinity. It caused his whole life to be a tragic torment but with this… he can… he can be recognized by his fath…
"No! Stop it you fool." Leon spoke to himself in a tone that was of Shady, "Recognized by whom? You are well aware that none of this is natural… This is too dangerous to be revealed. Being a lab rat for the rest of our lives is merely a best-case scenario."
The hopeful expressions caused by Leon's feelings turned frozen cold. A man can be innocent but his only sin may be possessing a precious trinket with no ability to defend it. He witnessed that first-hand in his past life.
And speaking of it, there was one thing that bothered Leon. A Unique Skill called the [Ring of Relife]. There was not much explanation around such a thing but Leon thought of trying out something. He simply tapped on the name of the special ring.
———————————
[Ring of Relife]
The Ring that passes the Inheritance of an Ancient Pharaoh
- Stage 1 (Inherence): Proof of Death.
- Stage 2 (Might): ???
- Stage 3 ???
- Sta...
———————————
"Wait! Relife Ring… like… the Ring of Horus?"
Leon couldn't overlook the description and the coincidence of Reincarnation. This must be it but where is the Ring?
As soon as he asked the question, the answer was already appearing around his right hand's ring finger. A serpentine-shaped ring of a snake eating its tail.
"Motherfu…!"
It was the culprit after all… the Ring of Horus… No, Ring of Relife. Who could have thought?
This explains a lot. Inheritance of an Ancient Pharaoh should probably mean all that unexplainable amount of Talent but is that really though. Leon wanted to analyze things more but his head was already lagging.
It was time to start taking action, staying any longer than this will cause problems. There were two options, door and window. The window was barred and if he guessed right, the door was guarded.
"Now that's some situation we are in. Let's see what other options we have?"
He has no backup team, no connection, no coverage. He can barely remember the outer layout of the room based on the fading memories of the past Leon. Trying to spy through the keyhole and look from beneath the door resulted in detecting two individuals standing guard.
Retreating back to the room, he clicked his tongue in frustration.
"This is bound to get messy. I need an advantage."
What he had in hand was everything in the room that can be carried and the skills that can be used. Speaking of which, Leon tried to remember how to use magic from the faint memories of the lessons he attended in the past and just like that, a new message screen appeared to him.
———————————
- [Space-Time]: Storage
- [Knowledge]: Read, Forgery
- [Combat]: Power Attack
��——————————
"A spellbook… like that Game's spell menu?"
Leon realized that not only the so-called [Knowledge Magic] is at play here but it seemed that this ring has added something extra on top of it. On top of that; Storage, Read and Power Attack are common game mechanics but Forgery seemed like an extra.
Thankfully, they were all pretty straightforward and Leon didn't need much understanding of those spells so he went to try them right off. [Read] was already experienced as it reveals information and status, [Storage] seemed to be able to make things disappear somewhere but Leon can call them out again, [Forgery] works in Status but Leon still needed to give it more time to understand, [Power Attack] is an attack that uses Mana for delivering a stronger strike with any weapon or even unarmed. Despite being useful skills, they aren't any good at escaping.
"I still can assign a Second Class. From what I know, each Class adds a buff to a certain Attribute. Let's see…" Leon tapped on the empty class section in the Status menu and another one appeared.
———————————
Available Classes:-
- Rogue (+10% AGI)
- Hunter (+10% PRC)
- Mage (+10% INT)
———————————
"Only three classes for three different Aptitudes. I already have [Warrior] which means I can't use the same class as a second class. It also means I didn't meet the requirement for an Endurance Class. Still, not bad." Leon thought for a few seconds then decided, "Rogue is the most reasonable for an escape as Agility means Speed. I'll take it."
———————————
< Status >
- Name: Leon Dark
- Level: 3
- Class: Warrior (+10% STR)
- Class: Rogue (+10% AGI)
———————————
"This looks better."
His strength is 7 and his agility is 9 which all means he merely added a 0.7 and 0.9 to them but it still is something. Classes also enhance the behaviors that fall under the Class Description such as fighting for Warriors and sneaking for Rogues.
"Now, what should I take with me?"
It is Leon's room so everything is practically his, also, a thief like Shady wouldn't ask for permission to begin with. It was time for salvage.
What was useful for the escape was… nothing. The past Leon was poorly equipped. There were some books about magic and knowledge that Leon was going to take anyway and all the common looking clothes in the dresser. Still, as he emptied a certain drawer in his storage, he found two objects hidden in that place. A dagger and a pocket watch.
"Good stuff!"
Leon picked them both but as soon as he did, his heart felt like aching. He couldn't remember exactly what they are but one thing is certain, they are important mementos to the previous Leon.
"I don't need any attachments at the moment, the dagger is all I need." Leon hardened his heart and unsheathed the blade to find a remarkably crafted knife with a rose insignia and a green blade.
The green blade looked extremely expensive as if the material was speaking of its own quality. Still, the sharpness of the knife was insane.
"That's truly good. Nice blade, incredible tip. Let's try this… Read!"
———————————
[Merlin Dagger]
- Not Enchanted
———————————
The first time using magic was as magical as it can get and Leon loved how it felt even though it was accompanied with an increase to his headache. Also, he took an instant liking to the blade and decided to use it right away. It was almost as perfect as his favorite bayonet.
The last item Leon needed was his Magic Plate.
Magic Plates are ID Cards created for the students of the academy and anyone who can afford them in general. Such an item was truly significant as it can view a portion of one's Status. Leon can't let his Status be found out by the next person who comes to find him.
His plate was over there on the bed viewing the following.
———————————
< Leon Dark - Lv.3 Warrior >
- Age: 16
- Titles: {Loser}
- Magic: [Combat Lv.1]
- Proficiency: (Talent: 17%) (Affinity: None)
———————————
Still, once he touched it, it changed into this.
———————————
< Leon Dark - Lv.3 Warrior / Rogue >
- Age: 16
- Titles: {Black Cobra} {Legendary Thief} {Man Slayer} {Loser}
- Magic: [Space-Time Lv.1] [Knowledge Lv.1] [Combat Lv.1]
- Proficiency: (Talent: 200%) (Affinity: All)
———————————
"Well… this looks problematic."
The plate indeed would be dangerous if found out by someone but hey, there is a Spell called Forgery in this world, forging an ID sounds like a walk in the park now.
And with everything done, Leon had nothing left in this room. He walked to the door with a knife in hand lurking for an opportunity ready to let the killer on the Loose.
———————————
- Merlins' Dagger
- Merlins' Pocket Watch
- Magic ID Plate
- 14× Books
- 27× Piece of Clothes
———————————
[A/n: If you leave a Comment or Vote, you will help promote this novel.]
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