"Does it actually send me back in time or not?"
"Does it actually send me…"
"Does it actu.."
---BLANK---
---
"Did I actually travel back in time?"
Arlo found himself lying on the bed, his left wrist emanating a soft, ethereal blue light. For someone who had just experienced time travel for the first time on the entire planet of Aetheria, he was surprisingly calm.
Just like the previous time, he didn't feel exhausted, parched, or breathless. He was filled with astonishment but also preoccupied with deciphering the recent events. His gaze wandered around the room, questioning the reason behind these occurrences.
[Ceiling?]
[Cup Noodles?]
[Empty Cup Noodles?]
These words materialized inside a blue prompt as he focused on these objects. This time, he noticed something different: a question mark beneath the name of each object. He attempted to interact with it, but to no avail.
"THUD!" "THUD!"
Remi's knock on the door was as forceful as ever. Normally, this would irritate Arlo to the point of hurling empty noodle cups at Remi, but now, Arlo found himself eagerly awaiting Remi's arrival. As he rose and ambled towards the door, his body suddenly felt like a ton of bricks, his chest ached, and his legs gave way, causing him to collapse.
He tried to call out for Remi's assistance, but he lacked the strength. His consciousness was fading. Suddenly, a series of red windows popped up before him, displaying:
[Warning!]
[Warning!]
The windows kept piling up, each one displaying [Warning]. Then, a new grey window appeared, and Arlo's consciousness slowly slipped away.
[Arlo Templeton - Game Over]
"THUD!" "THUD!"
Only the echo of Remi's persistent knocking filled Arlo's room as he tragically passed away.
[Game Over]
---
"Where am I?"
Arlo couldn't see anything; he was engulfed by darkness. However, he could sense that he was floating on water. It wasn't deep, so he managed to stand.
Gradually, his eyes adjusted to the darkness. He could feel the gentle lapping of water against his body, its coolness contrasting sharply with the warmth of the surrounding air. Arlo seemed at peace, perhaps because the sensation of death was no longer foreign to him.
Suddenly, the water heated up, and it began to undulate. A small golden light emerged from beneath the water, casting a soft, warm glow.
Startled, Arlo stepped back but lost his footing and fell. As the light orbited him, Arlo regained his footing, and the light moved towards his right side. It seemed to be guiding him somewhere, so he decided to follow it.
After what felt like an eternity, Arlo's patience began to wear thin. He could feel the dampness of the water seeping through his clothes, the slight stickiness of his skin as he moved. However, the light provided him with a sense of tranquility whenever he felt panicked. Suddenly, the small golden light vanished.
After a few moments of complete darkness, a massive golden light illuminated the distance. As he neared it, the area started to glow, bathing the surrounding water in a warm, golden hue. The water began to evaporate, but Arlo didn't feel any heat, only a comforting warmth.
"BANG!"
A deafening sound erupted from within the light, propelling Arlo backward as the golden light morphed into red and swirled around, pushing him further back. Arlo was left wondering what was happening as the red light took on the form of an elderly man with a stick in his hand, although Arlo couldn't see him clearly due to the intense glow.
"Yh Esdfped thy tyne."
The old man's light emitted strange words, accompanied by a drilling voice that sounded like a machine boring into a wall.
"Yo Espd ths tym."
Arlo tried to move closer to hear better, but an unseen force kept repelling him.
"You escaped this time, Player 1."
---
"GASP!" "GASP!"
Arlo woke up with a start, disoriented. He looked around and found himself on the bed, with the upper half of the door shattered, and Remi looking concerned.
"Arlo, you bastard, what happened to you? If I hadn't broken in, you would have died."
Arlo, scared and bewildered, confessed, "Remi, I actually died, and I returned from hell."
That's when it truly dawned on him: he had died a few minutes ago, and he was terrified on the inside, but he didn't let it show.
Remi, irate, retorted, "This is not the time to be joking, idiot. Let's go to the hospital now."
Arlo glanced at Remi's face and noticed a blue prompt hovering over him. He smirked, "Remi, I think I'm immortal."
"Oh yeah! Then I'm your god. Give me my rent for blessing you with immortality and letting you live in my holy place, you useless peasant."
Arlo kicked the half-broken door and scoffed, "You call this dump a holy place?"
Remi, with an unwavering tone, shot back, "Shut up, peasant. This is the only place you can afford if you keep living this reckless lifestyle. It's a good thing I came today; otherwise, you would have died."
Arlo grinned and teased, "Oh, look at our god Remi, worried about his disciple, aren't you?"
Remi adjusted his glasses and replied coldly, "Shut up. I'm not worried about you; I just want my rent, that's all. So don't die before you pay me."
Remi's tone was icy, but Arlo knew the kind of friend Remi was and responded with a gentle smile. Suddenly, a window popped up before Arlo.
[Remi Endrick]
[Found Mutual Relationship between each other.]
[Do you want to add him as
Friend 2. Intimate partner 3. Adversary?]
Arlo pondered, 'Let's see, what is this? Found mutual relationship to Remi! Add him as a friend! Init—'
"Intimate partner!!!" Arlo stuttered, blurting out in shock, "Who? Him? This freak."
Remi, enraged, snapped, "Who are you calling a freak, bastard?"
"Shut up, I'm sorry, just shut up for one second," Arlo apologized, even surprising Remi.
Arlo mulled over the new window that appeared and selected the [1. Friend] option. A new prompt appeared:
[A new menu option is created, People Slot.]
It has three sub-menus:
[Friend, Intimate partner, Adversary.]
[Each submenu has three empty slots.]
In the Friend submenu, Remi's name appeared in one slot, and there were two empty slots. In Remi's slot, it displayed:
[Remi Endrick]
[Someone the player relies on very much
Affection bar: 1/100
Trust: 100/100
Strength: 50/100
Health: 100/100
Weapon Class: Guns.]
Upon seeing this, Arlo inquired, "Do you use guns? Is that your specialty?"
Remi, still taken aback by Arlo's question, replied, "Not a specialty, more like it's what I use for security work. I can't use magic, so guns are my only option."
Arlo began to understand the system and thought,
'I used to play a game like this in my childhood. I think the name of the game is... Yeah, I got it. 'System Ascent.' Okay, then let's name this window system as 'System Ascent' also.'
As Arlo smiled to himself and Remi remained annoyed, he said,
"Seriously, dude, nowadays you're freaking me out more often than not. Here, I thought I could give you that job offer from my security firm. You probably freak out the clients too. You're probably going to work in mining until you die."
Arlo suddenly exclaimed, "Mine!"
He stood and sprinted towards the Mine without looking back.
"Yes, Mine! How could I forget about that? "Arlo shouted.
As Remi was left alone and confused in Arlo's room, he muttered,
"I should stop coming to this idiot's room."
[End of Chapter]