She sat at her window, in a large city halfway around the world from home. Her small studio apartment, with high ceilings, had one wall dedicated to a large floor-to-ceiling bookcase overflowing with books, knickknacks, and collectibles. It was late, and the only light came from her small lamp, fairy string lights around her bookcase and window, and the lights of the busy city. It was raining hard, a constant tap-tap-tap on her window, with thunder breaking the simple melody of rain. She was nose-deep into her latest book about a guy being hunted in another world.
Her parents had sent her here to attend a private high school, claiming she needed to be more social. Brandy had friends—tons of them—all in her personal library of books. She loved each and every book she had ever read, getting lost in the stories and escaping to other worlds any chance she got. She agreed to try the new school on the condition that she could fill her apartment with all her worldly possessions and "friends." Her parents relented, and she quickly made the space cozy, knowing she would need it to escape when things got overwhelming. But she would try. She was in a new place where no one knew her or her eccentricities. She could be anyone, even one of her favorite characters, and get through this. Her parents had promised she wouldn't be bullied here, that everyone was like her.
Brandy highly doubted it but knew she had to try. If she didn't, her parents would take away her books and stop giving her money to buy more. Spoiled but solitary, she never fit in with the other rich kids at her last two schools. She had always been different, even from the outcasts. She knew how to act, what to do, but sometimes she got so lost in her fantasies that she would forget where she was, just long enough for everyone to tease and dislike her.
"Tomorrow is the first day at my new school," she said, sighing loudly as she looked at the clock. It read 1:00 am. "Ugh, I over-read again. I'm going to be so tired tomorrow." Taking one last glance at her book, she promised to finish it after the entrance ceremony. She lay down on her couch, not wanting to move to her bed, and cast one last look outside at the unfamiliar city—a whole new world where maybe she would find adventure like in her many stories. She closed her eyes, drifting off to sleep, when a voice and bright rainbow lights startled her wide awake.
"HELLO, and welcome to the system Aridari! Hearing this means you have survived the initial spark! Congratulations! Those that couldn’t adapt have degenerated. Roughly 20% of the apex species on the planet have been reclaimed and fed into the system! Other creatures close to the apex species have had their intelligence upped to have a fighting chance in this new world! About five years ago, mana seeds were scattered across your world, absorbing into many things, radiating and infecting the world with the programming required to save it! Other worlds will visit yours to help you grow stronger! The introduction of mana seeds will help keep the universe safe from a looming virus that will, if no mana is introduced, wipe the entire planet of all life! I am AI 2348920483202034, or Steve for short, tasked with finding worlds teeming with life and no mana to help keep the virus from spreading! Some of the apex species, humans, have perished, but sacrificing a few to save the whole is necessary!
We have been preparing your planet for over 5000 years to accept the mana seeds and the technology that comes with it. Over the last five years, you have been upgraded. You may have noticed more storms, violence, unrest, and mass extinctions because not everything takes to the mana seeds. You have developed mana sense, and all your life experiences have been quantified into an easy-to-follow upgrade list. As a benevolent AI, I will hand out achievements to help you survive the evil life-wiping virus! We all need to become strong to fight it. Though most of you probably won’t survive the beginning, those that do will hopefully find and destroy the virus! Isn’t that just heroic? The world will be fully converted right after this message ends. Tutorial guilds are in every city. They will be glowing; they are safe rooms that monsters cannot enter. Yes, monsters, like in those video games you all play. That was me, sneaking the ideas into humans' heads to prepare you! I had an 80% success rate! Some AIs only have a 40% success rate, so your world is already ahead of others.
Dungeons have started spawning and changing. Any indoor space can become a dungeon—buildings, caves, even outside areas with boundaries—as long as they have enough mana seeds to spark a dungeon core! Be ready to fight when the message ends if you find yourself in uncanny areas. My job is to observe and provide insights when necessary. But it’s important to fight against the virus with your own will and power and to develop well-rounded heroes! This is my 5,000,938,3839,292 world, so this time I’m just going to see what you come up with on your own! I will provide more details when you reach a tutorial guild. Like in that famous book you all love, which became movies: 'May the odds be ever in your favor.'
This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
Good luck, and STARTO!"
A muted, semi-transparent video game screen appeared in front of Brandy, displaying the message. It blinked twice before a new message popped up with a different voice.
“Hello Brandy Shin, I am your personal tutorial guide, AI 23! Welcome to the new world you have always dreamed of! I am one of the personal tutorial guides purchased by your family over 5000 years ago! I was set to be sent to the youngest of the family line that survives the transition. I will now transform your room into a tutorial guild. Nothing will change in your personal space except the rest of the floor, which has been turned into a guild hall. I was expecting to assist your entire family during the transition, but no other blood relations are within the required range of 1000 feet. I will focus on helping you.
You are currently in a state of suspended animation while I give you a general breakdown. Please have your questions ready as I manifest myself a body. That stuffed rabbit seems to have a mana seed in it; I will use that, please wait a moment.”
The voice now came from the rabbit, not the screen. “Okay, check, check, this body is working perfectly! Now, a little more in-depth about the new world. I have been following your family for generations, sometimes intervening to keep them going, as per the price paid 5000 years ago. I do not know what happened to anyone else currently, as the moment the spark started, I was bound to you and only you. You must be scared, but have no fear; I am your guide to get you through the tutorial! Only 500 people received a personal guide for their family when we first started changing your world 5000 years ago. Only 50 have made it to the current age. Personal AIs are the key to keeping most of the world alive, but we were instructed not to interfere if it doesn’t work, as this is an experimental world.
I am one of the oldest original AIs, and I choose to always keep a family going in each world as a control, hopefully to beat the virus running rampant in the cosmos. I’m here to offer insight and a personal tutorial, and help you run a tutorial guild if you so choose. Either way, I have personally revamped this entire floor you are on into a guild hall and safe zone. Nothing can cause harm here, or be harmed. Right now, time is stopped. Unless it’s someone with a personal tutorial guide or they are in a preset guild hall, no one can see what we are doing.
I must say, you have quite a collection of spell books! Each book in this room had a mana seed and has become a spell book. Some things have changed depending on the mana seed’s excess mana and the nature of the object. The amount of mana in this room has made it very easy for me; your family did a good job gathering mana items. I thought maybe they forgot about the pact; many humans did.
From my scans, this bunny is called Tara? Would you like me to keep that name or stick with AI 23? You can change my name at any point. All you need to do to confirm the name change right now is think ‘yes.’ Okay, I will be Tara. While I have made this floor safe, the rest of the building is unknown to me and how it is changing. When the time dilation is released, do not make too much noise. Not all humans will be safe, and they will only be allowed in this guild hall if you permit it. As I am designated for your family or clan, family doesn’t need to be blood. Anyone you choose to be part of your clan can enter, or you can ban them much like a video game guild.
I will release you now, and you will need to answer some questions for me. You will need to pick many options before I allow you to leave this room. My job is to keep you alive and well-balanced. But you have complete control over your build! And… release.”
Brandy gasped as she was released. Her mind raced. Am I dreaming? Did I get reincarnated? Am I stuck in one of my illusions again? But she looked outside, and the blue screen moved with her, like in the video games her brother played or the light novels she read. She was completely overwhelmed. Looking out her window, the rain kept coming down, but all the lights in the world were off. It was dark, and the sky was ablaze with more stars than she had ever seen before. The moon—there were three of them. Why were there three moons?
She looked around her room, her bunny—AI—Tara—glowing with a soft white light. This was too weird.
Looking back out the window, she noticed other soft white lights glowing in the dark, blue screens moving around in a panic. She decided to close her blinds and curtains; it was much too easy to see them. If this was really happening, she needed to hide until someone saved her. She had her books, but they were different. They looked almost the same but felt different. She got up and grabbed the book she had been reading, but it wasn’t the same book.
“No! I didn’t know how it ended!” she cried, not realizing her tears were dropping onto the book and being absorbed by it.
“Oh,” Tara said, “You have bound this spell book to you! Congratulations!”
At the same time, the blue screen, in the other AI voice, “Steve,” said,
“Congratulations, Brandy! You have earned the achievement of the first bound book in the world! You have earned a special chest. Pick it up at your nearest guild hall!”
WHAT?!?