“Hi. I apologize for the coughing, I feel like a mummy.

How to begin? Hope this is coming through alright. Not sure how these recordings work.

Anyway.

I can‘t say for how long I’ve been under. Nothing here works, the only thing that seems to have held was my container. I‘m still feeling a bit unfocused.

When I was born, it was discovered that I had an incurable disease. I still lived for twenty years before we resorted to storing me away in the hopes that the future would make a great break-through.

I can feel the underlying pain course through me, this is the first signs of the end for me.

It’s a strange thing. My body would be close to immortal because of my cells constant regeneration but there is something that fights back with extreme aggression. It doesn’t make my body stronger, in fact it just makes it harder to gain and sustain muscle mass.

This causes my body to be in constant pain. Right now, it’s not that bad, but in a few years the destructive elements in my body will grow stronger and the pain will be more concentrated.

You must be wondering. Why am I telling you all of this? No reason, really. I am just having a hard time believing any of this is real. When I woke up the first thing that I saw, even before I opened my eyes, was this screen.

It was an information sheet. Filled with attributes, it looks like the role playing games I used to play. Stamina, strength, agility, dexterity, concentration, awareness, reflexes, vision, cerebral processing, hunger, endurance. It goes on and on. A bit more numerous than the norm.

I haven´t gone too much into it, but it is extremely user friendly. The problem is, what am I supposed to do with his information? There are empty tabs such as passive abilities, active abilities and empowerment.

Only the passive ability has something in it. Called rested. Apparently it gives me five hundred percent increased experience.”

|Rested|

Increases experience by five hundred percent.

Lasts for an indefinite amount of time. Currently impossible to calculate an approximate.

Experience penalties and experience caps still apply.

“You don’t have to mock me, I realize where this whole thing is going by now. But when I woke up I was in such a dazed state I couldn’t even make out what whatever that voice was telling me. I’m afraid I missed out on some important information.

My legs and hands feel so extremely heavy, my entire body feels off balance. I’ve been making my way around on all fours, crawling on the wet and muddy floor. I guess we have a leak somewhere.

I have no idea where I am, the last thing I remember before I was being put under was that I was saying goodbye to my family and friends. Being reassured by the doctors that I would be ‘just fine’. Well, I feel cheated.

I think the cold air makes the pain worse. I’m not sure where it’s even coming from, probably one of the vents.

Oh right. Check this out.”

“In the gloomy dark room, lit only by the half working machinery. Our hero sits in quiet contemplation.”

“This is an option I can turn on, it’s kind of nice. It’s almost like there is someone here with me. Wish I could the change the voice, it’s a bit unemotional. He tends to repeat things often if I’m not doing anything. Luckily I can edit everything on the fly, so I have some privacy.”

“After facing extreme odds our protagonist slept for over thousand years in a quiet underground facility used to house the sole heir of the incredibly wealthy Aleksy family.”

“Hehe, that’s me, Ji Aleksy. My friends call me Ji or Jay. Used to at least, somehow doubt they lived to be a thousand something. If I am to take the narrator's voice seriously, that is.

Although I had a pretty hard time moving when I got out of that container I’m much better now and improving rapidly. You see it wasn’t just the convenient user interface I found, there is also a digital inventory. And in it were some soft, pristine meat buns.”

|Not at all suspicious looking meat buns|

Adds twenty to regeneration, lasts one hour.

Increases regeneration by fifty percent, lasts one hour.

Delicious.

“I know what you’re thinking, that’s a suspicious looking name. I’m afraid I don’t have too much of a choice in my current predicament. I think I’m slowly coming to the realization that this is all real. It’s hard to ignore this pain.

I think I may have a couple years or so before the pain becomes so intense that I’ll need to be on constant pain medication.”

“Our delusional hero plans his future, believing that the world he left behind has been waiting for him. Unknown to him, what awaits him are horrors beyond belief.”

Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.

“Wait. What? Horrors? This is the first time I’m hearing this. Oi! You bastard, what has happened to the world?”

“The cries of the wronged echoes in the otherwise quiet underground cellar. Truly the world is unkind.”

“No. Not ‘truly the world is unkind’, what has actually happened? How am I even supposed to get out of this place?

I’m getting too worked up, I should be able to find a door somewhere around this place.

Curious why or how I can keep so calm?

You have to adapt when you’re told your life will be on the shorter end of the spectrum. Not only that, mine is and was supposed to be one riddled with chronic pain.

So you know, magic buns, mystical narrator and extreme changes to reality doesn’t seem bad in any way. Surprising, yes, but not really something I object to. In fact I embrace anything that gives me even a glimmer of a hope to battle what is essentially a fixed fight.”

“Oblivious to his surroundings and deep in thought our feeble protagonist doesn’t notice the incredibly obvious doorway leading to a stairway that leads to the upper levels of this underground facility.”

“Right, a doorway, that may lead somewhere.

This isn’t exactly the best place to take a nap, I guess I could try and lie on that table. At least it’s not on the wet floor. Being completely naked isn’t going to work though. I think it is time to try for a better place. Preferably somewhere dry and with clothing.”

“We watch him muster his courage to explore the new world he once abandoned but has now no choice but to embrace.”

“Gotta love the dramatics, we need some background music though.

Haha. No way! Some instrumental music just popped up, really fitting to the gloomy situation as well. Not bad! Not bad at all.

Hmm. I was twenty one before I was put under. But the narrator said a thousand years have passed. Does that make me the oldest human beings in the world?”

“The ancient ones rises. Makes his way through the terrifying doorway. A doorway that has not been passed for over a thousand years! Every step now sullies this ancient place. Surely this is considered sacrilegious.”

“What ancient place? It’s a rundown cellar with machines to run my life-support. There is dramatic and there is overly dramatic. I like your style narrator.

Even though it’s very dark. There is some light coming of still surviving machinery, giving the whole area a pretty dangerous look it, but it allows me to barely make out the place. At parts its pitch black though.

But we don’t fear the dark, now do we?”

“Fearless, courageous, brave, determined and light hearted. Our naive little protagonist makes his way through the abandoned facility.”

“See, abandoned. Meaning there is nothing here but me.”

“Little does he know that in the darkness lies terror, ready to strike.”

“What!? Mention that sooner. Damn.

I feel naked without a weapon. Well, I’d still be naked even if I had a weapon, but that is beside the point. I have to keep an eye out for something I could use to swing.

Oh. Right.

There is a stick in the inventory, I was wondering what that was for.”

|Worthless stick|

While in hand

Increases physical damage by an additional ten

Increases physical damage by ten percent.

“This is a stick.”

“So, I’ve been given food and weaponry. Were clothes too much to ask for? People will think I have a strange hobbies if this continues.”

“With weary eyes, tired limbs, heavy heart but high spirits our protagonist swiftly makes his way up the staircase, ready to fend off anything thrown at him.”

“Damn straight! Come and get it!”

“Our hero is given the choices of turning left, leading into an ambush and to the right which leads to the surface. Will he clear a hidden quest for a reward or head to safety?”

“Safety? Ambush? Hidden quests and a reward? Ha! Not much of a choice is there? Let’s see what lies is in wait for me. Left was it?”

“The stench of rot exudes from the otherwise inconspicuous room, down the hallway is a half open door. If you listen closely, you’ll hear the silent breathing of the undying.”

“So it’s a zombie scenario? Can’t say I’m very surprised. But I’m starting to appreciate the narrator more and more.”

“As if guided by the divine ones, the ancient one, picks the one choice that would leave the unprepared in dire straits.”

“Haha. God, I love this guy. Or is a girl? It’s hard to make it out from voice alone.

Alright, let’s stay focused here. Got my stick raised and ready to swing it down.”

“Slowly approaching the half open door, our protagonist kicks it open with his left leg, his stance horribly awkward. He barely manages to keep his balance.”

“Hey! I’ve been asleep for a millennium!”

“The noise created by the door being violently kicked into the wall behind it alerts what should not have been disturbed.”

“My. The gloomy instrumental music starts changing into a more simplistic beat. Something like ‘boom. Du, du. Boom. Du, du.’ No? I guess it’s hard to describe. Let’s leave that for now.

I still can’t see any terrifying being. I’m expecting a zombie to pop out sooner or later. I think it’s a better idea to stay back and wait for it to show itself.”

“The slow moving undying creature makes its way towards its prey. Ready to feed it’s never ending hunger. Will it taste flesh after centuries of perpetual starvation? Will our protagonist persevere and vanquish this foe? Stay with me and find out.”

“I can’t help but smile. I can see the over hyped foe slowly inching his way towards me. It looks disgusting sure, its face as if it was melting. The smell is becoming more intense but the speed it’s moving at though.

I mean, come on. This can’t be a challenge, right? It can’t even walk properly.“

“A standstill occurs, the calm before the storm! The vile beast rushes towards the protagonist who in turn moves with lightning like reflexes and swings his unyielding weapon.

The weapon manages to break through the aberrations defenses and crushes its dome. A magnificent performance.”

It was incredibly slow, how was that dangerous? In what way? Even a child can kill what was essentially a walking target dummy.”

Your level has increased to two!

You have met the experience cap. You gain no further experience for this enemy.

All attributes have increased by one for clearing a hidden mission.

All attributes have increased by one for leveling up for the first time.

You can distribute ten attribute points as you like.

“Thrilled by his victory our hero stares blankly into the air in awe of himself, a surprising act of narcissism.”

“Stare blankly into the air? I'm reading the notification! Injustice, an assault to my character.

Well. This is just plain amazing. I’m watching the disgusting looking corpse dematerialize, at quite the rapid pace as well.

“As the undying is allowed rest, it leaves behind a reminder of its tortuous stay on this plane.”

|Undead remains|

Crafting materials. Can be used for various crafting professions.

“Eh. Waste not, want not. Right? No? What? Whatever, I’m keeping it.”

“Some shiver at the image of our hero picking up a rotten piece of undying skin and storing it. Let us not judge, people can have hobbies.”

“What?! Want me to just leave my hard earned loot?