In the dark alley, a mugging was underway.
A few thugs surrounded a terrified youngster, evil grins on their faces, grins that only became wider as they spotted the Taming Emblem in their prey’s hand… it was SILVER!
“Hehe, kid, no need to shiver so much. Just hand over that little toy, and we’ll let you go. Quite a good deal, isn’t it? Besides, there’s no way a runt like you can catch a Magical Beast in the first place.” The leader laughed.
The youngster’s grip hardened, his whole body trembling. This was choosing between his life and future! At this moment, he felt boundless regret: if only he hadn’t followed that damn cat!
Hidden behind the muggers was the source of all his woes, the hateful furry creature happily prancing away. It seemed so full of itself, even giving him looks of ridicule. But what could he do about it? Nothing!
Hand the Emblem over? No way! This was the last Memento of his grandmother. She had sacrificed too much for him to lose it to a bunch of villains!
The youngster dashed out, his legs moving so fast that—
— THUD! A mighty fist broke his nose, his vision turning blood red. He tumbled to the ground, losing focus as a bandit towered above him.
“Trynna run pipsqueak? You’re a brave one, I’ll give you that. Too bad, 'cause now we can’t let you live. You’ll end up on a missing poster, and your body won’t ever be found. We’ll get some Darkgulls to devour you and—“
That’s when the youngster’s brain stopped working.
It wasn’t from the pain or the fear.
Nope, it was from the sight.
A crackling portal of darkness had just opened at the other end of the alley?! A Dungeon, here in Town?! He knew what this meant. They’d all die; him, the bandits, and even that damn cat. They were so fucked they’d—
He expected Monsters to come running, but that’s not what happened.
First came the once arrogant cat, its tail between its legs, not putting up any air. Then, instead of roars of monsters, came the whistling of… a naked man?! He had to be hallucinating, right?!
Except he wasn’t. Damon had arrived…
.
.
.
“Gentlemen, fine night, isn’t it?”
Damon crashed the mugging the only way he knew how, relaxed.
Bad Guys A to E circled a bloody youngster who somehow seemed to have more blood on his face than his veins. Damon chuckled, seeing all those merry people: they’d be the perfect minions! The merry ironic...
“Where did you come from, fucker?! Who the hell are you?!” A knife-wielding boor spat out as he eyed Damon. Why was he naked?! What was he doing out so late? Was he a pervert?!
“Me? Just your friendly neighborhood streaker, you know. Never heard of me? From the river to the sea, this little brother of mine shall be free.” Damon glanced at the moon as if a poet, feeling mischievous.
“….”
“…."
“Just kidding. Guess I’m a Dimensional Refugee… kinda? I’ll need clothes, a cellphone… oh, and a Magical Beast ASAP! You guys wanna help? I’ll make it worth your while.”
Damon gave his most disarming smile, the bandits shuddering in disgust. So he was one of those, eh? Homeless and delusional. Loan him a cell? So he could call for help? As for the Magical Beast? He was dreaming!
A cruel glow suddenly appeared in their leader’s eyes as he “smiled” at him…
“Hehe. You’re in luck, brother. I’ve heard that Fortune Nekos have been sighted around… WAIT isn’t that one right there?! Talk about lucky! Quick, get it!” The mugger-in-chief gestured toward the cat in their midst
Wasn’t it the very same cat that had been traumatized by the portal opening? Yep! But before Damon could say anything, two warnings came at once:
1. The youngster tried to warn Damon, but only muffled screams and blood came out of his mouth.
2. The cat… actually miaowed in distress and protest. It wanted nothing to do with this shitty operation. Attacking this guy? NOPE!
With both warnings failing, Damon walked right in the middle of the bandits’ “trap” and happily started ruffling the cat’s fur.
Black, crafty eyes, shivering as it stared at him back warily, but most importantly, there was a Silvery Coin pattern on its fur. It would have been very convincing had the cat not completely lacked mana…
That’s when Damon finally raised his head, looking at the bandits.
The Knives they had out? Whatever.
Their murderous glances? They were cute.
Their “oppressive” auras? He had seen worse from children.
No, he ignored it all, making what he considered small talk…
“So, you guys are running the Fortune Neko Lure, eh? Disguise a regular cat into a two-star Magical Beast, bait a naive Tamer, and BAM… steal their stuff! That’s pretty fun, not my favorite though.”
“?!?”
“?!?”
“?!?”
Damon was merely making small talk, but the thugs felt like they had been hit by lightning on a clear day. He had seen through their “genius” plan with merely a glance?! Who was this guy?!
The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
Damon couldn’t help but sigh. This felt so nostalgic. One had to know that Fortune Nekos were basically useless, except for one quality. They were SUPER easy to contract.
This meant that anyone and their mother could become a respected Tamer if they managed to throw a Taming Emblem at them. But while he found it nostalgic, the bandits instead found it scarily uncanny.
“Boss, this is bad! What if he tells the Guardians about us?!”
“Yeah, we have to get rid of him, now! Just give the word, and we’ll handle it!”
“C’mon Boss, why are you hesitating? This pervert’s obviously not a Tamer, and he’s too young to be an Awakened, either! Let’s skin him!”
Yet, even with the urging from his bloodthirsty subordinates, the Boss still felt something was wrong. Even now, he was so calm. What if he was the scion of some Tamer Family? What if had a trump card? What if—
“How about working under me? Wouldn't that be fun?” Damon shamelessly proposed. Helping the poor youngster? Sure, he could have, but wouldn’t it be better to get an army of minions?
That’s when something changed in the leader’s gaze. This guy, he didn’t just want to join them, he wanted them as subordinates?! He who had kept his cool before finally couldn’t take it.
“Kill him! Hack this guy to pieces so he's easier to transport.”
“Hehe, gotcha, Boss! Kid, you’re so fucked, DIE!”
The time for talking was over…
— SLASH! SLASH! SLASH! —
They rained slashes on him, their daggers reflecting the moonlight, forming a “deadly” dance in the darkness! Yet, every slash was met with a laugh and lazy dodges.
Damon tilted his head, a blade barely missing his eye. He took a step to the left, bypassing the abdomen stab. He twisted his body, completely avoiding the horizontal slash. He even had the time to chuckle!
“Say, are you all naturally gifted, or are you actively training to be canon fodder?”
“Dammit! Hit him all at once! Get that slippery fuck!”
“I’ll take the right; you take the left!”
The bandits performed an incredible pincer attack! After shouting it like true Shonen protagonists, they hacked at him from both sides and successfully… ran out of breath?! Yep, that was the height of their accomplishments.
As for Damon, the defenseless naked guy, he was completely unharmed…
“M-Monster?! I-Impossible!”
“Is it now?”
Damon didn’t even bother arguing. Even now, he could feel his stats reverting; might as well while he still could...
He radiantly smiled, dashed through all the goons, relaxedly made a claw with his hand, and — GOUGE! He struck faster than an alcoholic ran out of booze! As for the effect?
Many fell to their knees weakly, some remained in place, scared silly… but all shat themselves! In his hand, Damon held a still-beating heart. It had belonged to the thieves’ leader, but now it was his.
“As I was saying. How about a change in leadership? Raise your hand if you want to cooperate~.” Damon’s “friendly” smile sent shivers down their spines. Actually, no, they couldn’t even feel their damn spines!
Miaow! Amidst the chaos, a certain cat urgently raised a paw. Actually, it was even tip-toeing to go even higher. Seeing this, it didn’t take long for the bandits and the bloodied youngster to follow suit.
Damon nodded, pleased. Beat the body, terrify the soul, cut the head… and replace it!
The entire scene turned silent, not a single soul daring to move a muscle, internalizing lifelong PTSD.
But just as he was about to keep going, it happened...
A head-splitting headache suddenly assaulted him! It was so powerful that it rocked his consciousness, soon followed by countless System notifications as if a game.
Of course, this heinous thing was still here…
[You’ve Traveled Back in Time!]
[Your Arrival Has Considerably Altered the World!]
[Ding! Time Crushes ALL! Stats Reverted to Original Values!]
[ERROR! ERROR! Memory Overflowing! Erasing Trivial Memories! 7%, 42%, 69% — ERROR! ERROR!]
[Warning! Space-Time Conundrum Detected! You Have 24 Hours to Resolve it, or You Will Die! Good Luck Surviviving!]
Damon felt all his strength leave him like he had received the strongest Curse of Feebleness. Without his steady will, he would have instantly collapsed on the floor.
Goddammit! There were so many drawbacks to time travel!
Grunting, he refocused his eyes on the thieves.
“Leave your stuff. SCRAM!”
Never had humans scampered so quickly. They may have been third-rate villains, but they sure were first-rate cowards! As for what they had left behind…
[Ding! Obtained Shit-Stained Garments! Store in Inventory?]
[Ding! Obtained Cat Hairball— Carefully Regurgitated!]
[Ding! Obtained Hardly-Used Cock Ring! Equip?]
How about no! Disgusted, Damon hurriedly changed the System’s notification settings. There were also food/drinks, a few titty bars membership cards, yet not a single Taming Emblem or Awakened Gear!
“Trash, so much trash.” Damon sighed. Had he known they were that broke, he wouldn’t have bothered. Total: 23 Credits, not even enough to buy Pure Aqua for one's Pet in an Awakened Shop.
The loot also included daggers and the fluffy black cat, whose only utility was to lure fools to their deaths. In terms of power, it wasn’t even Unranked; talk about worthless!
Damon instead turned to the youngster, who instantly fell on his knees in gratitude.
“B-Brother… Thank you so much for saving me! I swear I’ll never forget this favor! I promise that one day I’ll definitely repay—” He wanted to keep going, but Damon instantly stopped him:
“Great. You're just in luck, then! That day’s now. Strip!”
“W-what?! Don't tell me?!”
Strip?! He was grateful, but this?! This wasn’t how he wanted to graduate from his virginity! Yet he complied, clenching his butt cheeks as he felt the cold night breeze. Oh, wait, his savior was naked. He wanted the clothes, right?
Damon reached for the clothes and.... actually looted EVERYTHING!
— Obtained Clothes! —
— Obtained Cell Phone! —
— Obtained Silver Emblem! —
[Congratulations! Obtained Silver Taming Emblem!]
[Silver Emblem: Perfect for Hosting a Magical Beast! A Tamer's Necessity!]
Damon didn’t care about the youngster’s manly tears for his lost treasure, and he ESPECIALLY didn’t care about the System’s pernicious congratulatory message.
Liar. Goddamn fucking liar. This thing contained far too little Mana. Damon intently stared at mid-air, his gaze burning through the Translucent Screen that had appeared before him until…
[̶C̶o̶n̶g̶r̶a̶t̶u̶l̶a̶t̶i̶o̶n̶s̶!̶ ̶O̶b̶t̶a̶i̶n̶e̶d̶ ̶S̶i̶l̶v̶e̶r̶ ̶T̶a̶m̶i̶n̶g̶ ̶E̶m̶b̶l̶e̶m̶!̶]̶ ̶
[Updated Status! Obtained Fake Silver Taming Emblem!]
Well, that explained a Silver Emblem appearing in the Starter Village. Sighing, Damon threw the Emblem back to the youngster, who instantly cried in joy.
“I can keep it!! For real!! You're a good guy! No, you're the best!” The kid's admiration was as boundless as the bust of a 3★ Succubus. Still, the young man's adoration was welcomed. It was time to gather information from his new number-one fan!
"There's someplace I need to be. Say, what's the fastest route to Amber City?" Damon knew that the so-called Space-Time conundrum he had to resolve could only be there. But as soon as the kid heard the word "Amber", his eyes glowed like diamonds!
"A-Amber City?! Wait, are you also taking the Taming Exam?! The Lockwood train station has a direct line to it, but the exam's only in 2 days. How about we go together then? I've been there before; I can show you around and—"
"No need. Can you draw me a map for now? Village, Station, Tracks, everything." Damon requested, only for the youngster to look around helplessly. He would if he could, but it wasn't like there was anything to write with here in the first place?!
"Here, use this as ink..." That's when Damon handed him a certain Heart that had luckily stopped beating but was still bleeding all over the place. The youngster reluctantly took it and started writing, forcefully ignoring the bucking of his stomach.
"S-Sure. You go here, and the tracks are here. Eventually, you'll reach Amber City. You can't miss it."
"I see. Thanks! See you later, kid. Try not to die in some random alley, will you."
Damon lazily waved as he departed, grabbing the ̶V̶i̶l̶l̶a̶g̶e̶ Town's map. But seeing him go, the youngster in the back hurriedly shouted back.
"Wait, you can't leave now! That's a really bad idea! Passenger Trains don't run at night, you know, with the Specters and all. Let's crash at my place instead, then we can—"
Damon didn't bother replying; he simply checked a certain Status Screen as he departed.
[23:37 Hours Until Termination! Good Luck! ^_^v]
Hopefully, he'd make it in time...