Lucas stood still in the middle of the desert, trying to understand what had just happened.
— ...System, are you there?
[Yes.]
— What just happened!? Why did you disappear out of nowhere and who was that person!? — he shouted angrily, spitting out some dirt that had entered his mouth.
[Classified information.]
— It seems I can't blindly trust you like many protagonists do...
As reality hit Lucas' mind, he decided to ask about something that truly interested him.
— ...So, System, what are your functions?
[I have 5 functions available at the moment.]
After hearing the message, a translucent screen in shades of green and yellow appeared before Lucas' eyes, displaying the following options:
[FUNCTIONS]
[Status]
[Abilities]
[Shop]
[Backpack]
[Settings]
[...]
The young man blinked a few times, trying to get used to the screen that suddenly appeared before him, before reaching out to touch it and realizing that his fingers passed through it.
— ...System, what are these ellipses for?
[Functions that will appear when the owner possesses sufficient strength.]
— So I need to become stronger... — the young man thought, considering whether he should undergo extreme physical training, similar to that in anime. — ...System, can you explain each of the functions to me?
As soon as he finished his sentence, a new screen appeared before his eyes, providing a brief explanation of each function.
[Status: Shows relevant information about the owner.]
[Abilities: Displays the owner's current abilities.]
[Shop: Shows what the owner can obtain from the system if he have enough points.]
[Backpack: Stores items for the owner. 0/10]
[Settings: Allows the owner to make changes.]
[...: Unavailable]
While reading the information provided by the system, the young man decided to start walking, lost in his thoughts. However, he didn't notice a stone in his path and ended up tripping over it.
— Pfft! Pfft! ...Now my mouth is dry, and I have no water... — he said after falling face-first into the sand, but he fell silent when he noticed something approaching.
Along with a slight trembling beneath his feet, a large cloud of sand approached him from the horizon.
— ...System! What is that!?
[It's a desert fish.]
— And why is it coming towards me!?
[Possibly, it's interested in devouring you.]
— What do I do!?
[Run.]
Upon hearing the system's response, the young man started running in a direction away from the fish.
[Thirty minutes later...]
Lucas changed direction several times, trying to lose the fish and reach the nearest city, which the system indicated as he fled.
— Ha... ah... ah... It seems that... Ha... it wasn't coming... towards me. — he said, gasping for breath, as he continued to walk, battling dehydration. However, his exhaustion was evident, and when he spotted another cloud of sand approaching, he resigned himself to his fate.
— ...Is this the end for me? I didn't even have a chance to try the system's functions... — he muttered, accepting his imminent death.
The deafening sound of sand scraping against scales, the vibrations in the sand that made his feet tremble, and the immense cloud of sand approaching only heightened the young man's despair as he saw his hopes dissipating with each passing moment.
[To be continued...]
??? — ... If the protagonist were to die now, wouldn't the story end too quickly?
??? — I haven't even appeared yet!
??? — Well, leaving the ending aside... The functions have changed.
??? — That reminds me, there was a function that the author only used once and never mentioned again...
??? — I hope he uses all of them now... By the way, where is that system?
??? — He said he went to check the list of potential candidates, in case something unexpected happens...
??? — I feel sorry for those who are chosen by him...