"Where am I?"
"Wasn't I just playing a game at home? What the hell is this place?" Ryu sat up, instinctively checking his body for any injuries. He didn't feel hurt, just a bit weak, as if he couldn't muster any strength at all.
Earlier, Ryu had been playing a terrible browser game he had just stumbled upon. While he was waiting for the latest episode of "One Piece" to update, he had eagerly clicked on the video—then everything went dark!
Before he could fully regain his senses, a flood of memories rushed into his mind.
"So, I've crossed over? Isn't this a bit quick?" Ryu couldn't help but complain, his gaze still a little unfocused.
Yes, he had crossed into the world of "One Piece."
This conclusion came after he pieced together the memories of this body he inhabited. He was now an orphan whose parents had died when he was very young. He had survived thanks to the help of the villagers.
However, a few days ago, a group of pirates had arrived in the village, demanding protection money from all the villagers or threatening to kill them.
The original owner of this body had been unable to pay the protection fee and was beaten up, losing the little savings he had left. Alone in this small cabin, he died, and at that moment, Ryu's consciousness took over.
Just as he was sorting through the chain of events, a mechanical voice rang out:
"System binding successful. Main quest triggered. Please check it yourself."
The sudden appearance of the system felt somewhat overwhelming. As Ryu blinked, he noticed several icons in the lower left corner of his vision. No matter how he turned his gaze, they remained fixed there, resembling the initial login screen of that dreadful browser game he had played!
"Character!" he thought to himself.
Sure enough, a transparent interface appeared:
Nickname: Murasaki Ryu
Race: Human
Level: 1
Health: 30/100
Energy: 0
Strength: 3
Speed: 2
Skills: None
Experience: 0/100
Combat Power: 1
Overall Evaluation: A weak, poor, and hungry human boy. Calling you a low-tier fighter would be a compliment!
Ryu suddenly felt an urge to punch something. He was being looked down upon by a system! What did it mean to have a combat power no of 1? He had no idea what a normal adult male's stats would be, but his were definitely pitiful!
After closing the character screen, he opened the second icon labeled "Backpack."
The backpack interface was made up of small grid squares. Apart from the first square, which held what appeared to be a starter pack, the rest were empty.
"Wow, there really is a newbie gift package?" Ryu exclaimed, surprised by the starter pack.
"Congratulations! You've received a starter outfit, 1000 berries, and a universal voucher worth 100 diamonds." A mechanical voice chimed in as he opened the pack.
Immediately, the starter pack in his backpack vanished, replaced by two pieces of equipment and a red scroll with a "100" printed on it. The number at the bottom of the backpack changed from 0 to 1000, which he assumed was the in-game currency, though he wasn't sure what it would be used for.
"Beginner's Sword? Beginner's Clothes? That's it? I need a legendary sword, something that could slay dragons with just a click! or a divine gear that could tear the heavens apart!" Ryu stared at the two starter items in his backpack, feeling like he'd been ripped off.
However, when he equipped the starter weapon, a wooden sword instantly appeared in his hands.
"What the hell? Just an ordinary wooden sword? No stats whatsoever?" Ryu tapped the wooden sword, confirming it was, indeed, just a plain wooden sword.
"Whatever, let's check out the shop. It's the only thing I have left to look forward to!" Ryu muttered to himself, using the universal voucher to get 100 diamonds before opening the last icon.
The shop interface opened, and it had that unmistakable trash browser game feel, with plenty of items for sale: Devil Fruits, skill books, experience books, god-tier equipment—all of it was there. But the prices were so high that Ryu couldn't immediately recognize what they were.
It was a long string of zeros; without careful counting, it was hard to tell what was what.
"Let's see what I can buy with these 100 diamonds!" Ryu clicked to sort by price.
The first item that popped up was: "Stamina Potion, restores a small amount of stamina, 10 diamonds."
He quickly skipped over the other food items, as he had no idea how to earn diamonds right now, so he couldn't spend any on that.
"Beginner Skill Book: Beginner Body Training, 100 diamonds." That seemed to be the only thing he could afford that would actually boost his abilities.
Without hesitation, Ryu bought the skill book and used it right away.
There were no flashy lights or dramatic changes—he just felt a warmth in his body, and then that was it.
Opening the character screen again, he noticed the first icon of the skill tree was now lit up.
Beginner Body Training Level 1 (0/1000) Passive: Slightly increases your physique, can strengthen it through training.
As for his stats, both strength and agility had increased by one point, his health cap rose to 120, and his combat power, which had previously been 1, was now a whopping 3. He was still so weak that even the evaluation hadn't changed.
"Right, there was supposed to be a mission too. I wonder what it is!" After organizing himself, Ryu remembered the system had indicated that he triggered a main quest and should check it out.
"Open Quest!" he thought, and a transparent quest window popped up in front of him, the top line reading: Main Quest (Incomplete), Level up to 5. (Reward Unknown)
"Level up? How do I level up right now? Whatever, I'll just find something to eat first; otherwise, I'll probably lose the remaining thirty health points!" Ryu shook his head helplessly and stepped outside the cabin.
"What a ridiculous starting situation! This is so troublesome!" Leaning against the door, Ryu felt a wave of frustration wash over him.
As he walked to the village center, he noticed a group of pirates leaving the only restaurant in the village, laughing boisterously as they left. Behind them was the owner, wearing a forced smile that revealed his helplessness. It was clear these pirates hadn't paid, and their presence was ruining the business!
"Looks like I need to deal with these pirates, otherwise, I won't be able to stay here safely," Ryu thought, hiding to the side as he watched the pirates leave the restaurant, his head beginning to ache at the thought.
"Right!" Speaking of the system, Ryu suddenly remembered that the starter package he opened earlier included a 1000 beli money reward. He wondered if he could actually withdraw it.
Ryu tried to take the money out of his backpack, and sure enough, a stack of banknotes appeared in his hands—anime-style beli!
With the berries in hand, Ryu headed to the restaurant to solve his hunger problem. The meal didn't cost much, and he figured that with 1000 berries, he could last for over half a month if he budgeted carefully.
"First, I need to deal with my experience problem. Finding a way to level up is essential for me to establish myself in this world!" As he left the restaurant and made his way back to the cabin, Ryu pondered how he should navigate his future.
"Since this is a game system cheat, let's try killing something!" With a mindset of just trying it out, Ryu turned around and bought a live fish. Once back in his cabin, he quickly killed the fish and was rewarded with 1 experience point.
"Wow, it really gives experience!" After seeing that he needed 100 experience points to level up, Ryu felt a bit disheartened; the good mood he'd just had faded away.
"Forget it; it's great that I can earn experience at all. Even though I don't have enough money to buy fish to level up, I can fish for myself! That way, I can gain experience and fill my stomach at the same time!" Ryu sighed, trying to comfort himself.
In the following days, Ryu spent most of his time fishing. However, after trying to cook the fish he caught on the second day, he quickly gave up on that idea.
Eventually, he negotiated a deal with the restaurant owner to sell the fish he caught, and each time he brought in a catch, he would personally kill it before selling it. Although this meant he got a lower price, Ryu didn't mind since he didn't plan to fish forever.
He also discovered that every time he exercised, the proficiency of his Beginner Body Training skill would increase. So, in addition to fishing, working out became part of his daily routine.
Ryu's cabin was located in a more remote area of the village, close to the sea, which helped him avoid drawing the attention of the pirates.
A few days later, after Ryu killed all the fish he had caught, he felt a warmth in his body, and the system finally rang with an upgrade prompt.
"Congratulations, host! Level up! You've gained five attribute points and one skill point!"
"Hey, Ryu, today's catch isn't enough!" The restaurant owner handed over the beli for the fish with a smile.
"I had some things to do today, so I had to head home early!" Ryu replied with a slight smile as he took the beli.
Once back in the cabin, Ryu let out a breath of relief and eagerly opened the system interface. After days of training, his strength and speed had each increased by one point, bringing them to 5 and 4, respectively. His health had also risen to 130, and the proficiency of his Beginner Body Training skill had reached 102/1000.
After leveling up, his character level had risen to 2, and the experience required for the next level was now a hefty 300 points. He had five free attribute points to allocate to health, energy, strength, or speed, but after thinking for a long time, he decided to hold onto them for now. As for the skill point, he only had one skill, so he didn't hesitate to invest it into Beginner Body Training.
After using a skill point, the proficiency of Beginner Body Training skyrocketed by 1000 points, leveling it up to Level 2 (1102/5000). The upgraded skill provided him with an additional ten points in both strength and speed, and his health increased by 100 points as well. His stats were now: health 230, strength 15, speed 14, and his combat power jumped to 25, finally elevating him from being considered weak.
Ryu clenched his fist, feeling the power within his body. He threw a few casual punches and even generated a slight wind with his fists, which excited him. He moved around the cabin, adjusting to his newfound strength and speed, feeling an urge to find someone to test his skills against.
"Bang~"
Just as Ryu was ready to give it a try, a loud crash sounded as someone kicked open the door to his simple cabin.
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(TL: Welp seems like a lot of people dont like the mc's name so yuh and since he'll get the title Purple Dragon in later chapters I'll give him Murasaki Ryu to fit in with his name. Fuck you Nova255 making me do all this work. Hehe just kidding , thanks for the feedbacks leave a review if you hate or like this novel ^^.)
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Started editing the chapters now ^^
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