Arthur closed his eyes as he basked in the feeling of his entire being undergoing the change. His muscles, bones, mind, and every part of him were pumped with endless energy that he didn't even know the origin of.
The feeling was way better than anything he felt before as if he was taking a warm bath after a long, tiring day.
The change also affected his state of thought. All his nervousness vanished along with his anger, stress, and every other unnecessary thought in his head. He just enjoyed the moment of blessing that he worked hard for.
A few minutes passed before the effect finally started dwindling and soon enough, it vanished completely. That's when Arthur finally opened his eyes and smiled widely.
"Hahaha! I'm feeling amazing!" Looking at his hand, Arthur could feel the raw strength in every fiber of his body. He had so much strength that he believed he could easily crush rocks with his fists.
Sucking a deep breath in, Arthur stood up and opened his status window to finally see how much changed about him.
[Name: Arthur Colbert.]
[Age: 17.]
[Mangaka Rank: Unranked (0/1)]
[MangaVerses Created: 0]
[MangaVerses Finished: 0]
[Ink Points: 20]
[Stats: Strength: 10(+5)/ Agility: 7(+5)/ Stamina: 11(+5)/ Dexterity: 12(+5)]
[Skills: Ink Absorber.]
Arthur's smile widened as he saw his stats. He was now way above a normal human in all departments. Just seeing that made him smile widely. He was now certain that he truly became a different person. He was now stronger, faster, and more durable.
At this point, there was nothing else he could do to prepare and the time for the real deal finally arrived.
*Gulp*
Taking a deep breath to calm his beating heart, he walked out of the room to get his lunch first. Although Arthur was excited to finally enter MangaVerse, he knew that he couldn't rush it without prior planning.
First of all, he needed to make sure that the idea he chose for his next story was perfectly aligned with his situation. What he wanted was a direct plotline, less danger than what could kill him and at the same time keep it enjoyable for his readers.
"Hmm, I guess that fits perfectly."
Looking carefully at what he decided on, Arthur could see that it fit perfectly with what he wanted. Well, generally speaking, he didn't know how the story would go since MangaVerse only allowed him to give an initial idea so things could still south very quickly. However, he had to put his belief in MangaVerse and how it wanted to lead the story.
As he was contemplating all of that, Arthur heard a dinging sound which caught his attention.
[Ding!]
[Objectives have been updated!]
[Objectives: (Divine Artist) Draw your first one-shot and sell 10000 copies of it.
-One Shots finished. (0/1)
-Copies sold. (0/10000)
Rewards: +100 Ink Points, +15 in all stats, New random skill]
"And here I thought when this cursed thing will give me the new objective. I guess it's clear what I need to do now. But, the rewards are really good! Especially the skill!" Arthur sighed as he bent his head down and continued eating with a sigh. Arthur had to start soon. He was at least getting rewarded properly for this dangerous ordeal which worked amazingly well in alleviating his spirit.
"But, now that I think about it… Can I even leave these worlds I draw whenever I want?" He murmured in confusion. Kofia didn't explain to him whether he was going to get stuck inside the stories he created until he finished them or if he had the freedom to enter and leave however he wanted.
If it was the first possibility then that would be a huge problem for Arthur. He didn't know how long it would take for him to finish the story. It could take days, weeks, or even months which would be stupidly suspicious.
If he disappeared, his school would notice it and then alert his parents who would think he disappeared for some reason, and then the problem would only grow bigger.
As if it heard what he said, MangaVerse sent a message to Arthur.
[Entering MangaVerse doesn't happen in physical form but in mental form. Host will enter something akin to a comatose state while his consciousness is inside the story. Host can enter and leave his stories whenever he wants. However, if Host is going through an important or crucial event in the story, you could be denied leaving.]
"Oh… Wait, really?! So it's similar to a lucid dream?" Arthur rubbed his chin. Although he was slightly concerned about the 'Important Event' part which could turn out to be even more problematic than he expected since there was no clear definition of what an important story even could be, he still was relieved that he wouldn't be stuck there till he finished the story.
"Do I need to carry weapons with me though?"
[The option of carrying objects with the host to the targeted world isn't available yet. Only the host's clothes are preserved.]
"Oh, that sucks. Ah well, beggars can't be choosers." Shrugging his thoughts away, Arthur finally stood up and walked back to his room before he picked up his phone and opened the messaging app. There, sitting alone in the list of friends he has was the name of a girl.
"Should I… talk to her before leaving?" Arthur had a complicated gaze on his face as he contemplated speaking to Kaede.
Ever since the second time she invited him over to dinner, the two had been talking through chats basically every single day.
If before Arthur was uncertain whether he was friends with Kaede, now it was a certainty. The two had grown really close in the past few weeks. Their conversations were so fun for Arthur that he could only find himself getting addicted to them.
He and Kaede actually got along so well that even he was surprised. They shared the same taste in food, music, and even in movies. Arthur couldn't almost believe that the most popular girl in Tokyo had the same interests he had. It felt too much like a dream and not reality.
What he didn't know was that Kaede shared the same feelings he did, if not even more. She simply found Arthur to be the target of her thoughts the whole day. He was growing faster and faster in her heart, taking a bigger place. She was certain that she considered Arthur one of her best friends now even though they barely talked for a month.
But, they had already shared with each other their lives, struggles, and problems that haunt them. They found solace in each other where the world never truly accepted them for who they were for completely opposite reasons.
One had to hide her true self because of her popularity and the other had to hide his true self because the world around him didn't accept him as a part of it. That was why the two of them got closer to each other.
"No, I need to. Kaede is my friend now. I want to at least tell her that I will be busy for a while so that she doesn't worry." He shook his head before he sent her a message.
Arthur didn't realize at that moment, for the first time in god knows how long, he took into consideration the feelings of another individual… Something that he didn't do in a very long time.