Initially, Tim was joking around with the system because he was in a state of information overload, simply unable to comprehend the situation he found himself in, making jokes to try and ease his growing nervousness.
But now, a few scant seconds later he was acclamatizing to this new reality. Accepting it. He wanted this to be real, and not for the reasons you'd expect.
A normal person at this point would either be questioning their sanity, trying to make sense of what the system said or banging their head at how their life was about to drastically take a turn for the worse at this point. With the whole ominous warning the system had given about the invaders.
He would too, if he had not lost the one thing in the world that he loved more than even himself. Now, his eyes only saw a dull, muted landscape full of misery, hate and self-loathing. But that was not enough a reason to accept this bullshit that might bring harm to his parents. There was something the system offered which Tim was fixated on.
All this was not his concern as long as he could get what he wanted, taking the bizarreness and ridiculousness of the situation he found himself in stride. He wondered if he had finally lost his mind, finally completely broken without repair. But he didn't blame himself... this could change everything. And as for his parents, he knew better than to worry about them too much. Anything George and his team couldn't handle, Tim would hardly fare better. The world may collapse, but the rich and powerful always had their ways.
Down and out though he may be, he didn't want to give himself hope without carefully reading what the system offered. That was a price he could not afford. Concealing his burning desire and anticipation, he examined each option carefully looking for any traps or vague wording.
He had to admit that the options the system offered were pretty fair. The first option may seem pretty lackluster and boring, but was actually a cheat. Now, he had no idea what trials the system is going to throw at them, but the first option was like starting a new rpg, swiping the credit card and getting a set of fancy looking but relatively useless starter gear. It would last you a few days before you outlevel it, but this was real life and the important thing was that it kept you safe and alive.
The second option was more of the same, but that only made him think about how supposedly weak humanity is to need five whole levels just to get them at par with whatever monsters the other residents of the multiverse were. But for now that was not his concern, he'd cross that bridge when it came for it. Needlessly deliberating over stuff he had no way of knowing was pointless.
As for the third option, it seemed like a trap. Very gatcha game esque, god knows what terrible drop rates are gonna be on the mythical creature pet. He had lost enough money on those damned games to glare at it in anger. But, still maybe the trade off is worth it, he just knew some lucky kid was gonna snag a dragon egg and steamroll through everything the system threw at him. And well, he personally knew from experience how much humans liked to gamble.
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However, Tim had never considered any of these options since the begining. His usually dull, lifeless eyes had a dangerous gleam in them. Standing at the pinnacle of humanity? What a fucking bad joke. After all, who was he? A graduate from a top law school who after spending 300k of his parent's hard earned money, ran away from his responsibilities and shut himself off from the world. Present a case in front of a judge, ha! He could barely speak to his customers without stuttering, part of the reason his dad let him work at the store at all. It was therapy for him, said the psychologist.
Each time he tried to reignite his passion for law, his naive dreams of working under one of the top lawyers in the country, his anxiety overwhelmed him. It was like floating in an endless sea with nothing but a rickety wooden raft without a paddle, moving aimlessly with neither the ability to steer his direction nor the will to do so.
Reminded of his trauma, he once again recalled the times he had spend with her, how she had been cruelly taken away from him and there was nothing he could do about it.
NOTHING. The day she was driving to get to her friend's house, he was just enjoying a lazy sunday morning sleeping. She was always fiercely independent, asking to drive her anywhere when they were not going together was the same as asking for a beating.
The sudden nature of it, the abruptness, the shock, the trauma. One moment you're happily napping on your bed looking forward to your beautiful girlfriend's cooking when she comes back, and the next it's all gone. No goodbyes, no time to regret the times he'd been mean to her, no time to tell her to marry him. No amount of his dad's money could bring her back, so what was the use of wealth? What was the point of working. Earning money? It was just a stupid piece of paper that could do nothing.
However he had a chance now didn't he? This system, that can terraform earth and control the multiverse..... can it bring her back?
Tim closed his eyes, took a deep breath and shouted at the system " I CHOOSE OPTION 4".
The loud, booming sound was back. " Ask your question, Timothy Quill. "
To which Tim replied " Is there anything or any power that can bring the dead back to life?"
Tim's heart was pounding, he was sweating and tightly clenching his arms hoping, begging, beseeching, please let Amanda come back. He would give anything as long as it meant her coming back. Even if the system gave him a 1 percent chance, he'd take it. Even if he would most likely die trying, he wouldn't even blink. If there was a chance, then there exists a possibility. That was enough.
" NO. There are many life saving measures that can be taken as long as a person has a single breath of life remaining. However, the dead cannot be brought back to life. Perhaps, if you reach the very pinnacle of the Supreme Dao of Life, you will be able to create new life, even impart what memories you have of the person you want to resurrect. But she will only be an imitation, life and death are part of the natural order itself, the edicts of the energies of all creation."
Tim felt his carefully crafted castle of delusions crumble into a million pieces.