Wow. I really lost, huh.
….
I’ve never been beheaded before. What an experience. The world was spinning. I don’t even know how the bastard did it. To be honest, that wasn’t as bad as I expected it to be.
….
Ow. My eyes.
“He’s a handsome boy,” a woman gently said. She smiled while rocking him gently from side to side. Manny squinted at her dark brown face filling his vision.
“What shall we call him?” a man asked.
Manny Okoro. That’s my name. I don’t need you to name me.
“I don’t know,” the woman replied. “All the names I had in mind don’t seem to fit.”
Good.
Out of nowhere, a small crimson cube materialised and floated by Manny’s shoulder.
“Honey, what is that?” the woman asked.
The man tilted his head to one side. “It’s advanced level magic. If I remember correctly, it’s a storage, energy spell.”
“But that’s impossible,” the woman gasped.
“It’s a miracle. Our boy must be blessed with a special ability.” The man bent over and brushed Manny’s forehead. “How about Caution? He’s not crying and seems to be glaring at us. Looks like a troublemaker.”
Both parents smiled.
“I love it,” the woman whispered. “It feels right.”
Manny thought about the name for a moment. He liked it. It sounded cool. He tried giving a thumbs up but instead found himself waving his hands up and down while jiggling his body.
“Look, he’s dancing!” his mother yelled.
“My god, he’s dancing!” his father cried. “It’s a dancing baby!”
Already drowsy, Manny stopped fidgeting. He couldn’t even control his body the way he wanted. The stark contrast between annihilating hordes of monsters and not being able to hold his head up was jarring. He was only born five minutes ago and already he felt a strong urge to throw a string of punching combinations into a heavy bag.
Manny, who was now known in his second life as Caution, frowned before closing his eyes.
I’m helpless. Just great.
----------------------------------------
The first three weeks of Caution’s life was mundane yet stimulating at the same time. Confined in a crib, he could hardly do anything, but every day he absorbed fresh sensory information like a sponge, gradually growing accustomed to the new world.
All of his mental capabilities seemed to remain the same and he didn’t bother trying to hide it, even shaking or nodding to rhetorical yes-no questions. His father, Dayo, quickly realised his intelligence when any goofy attempt to make him laugh was met with a glare that said, “Am I a joke to you?” He was a silent baby who watched and only reacted unless it was important. If he needed help, instead of crying, he clapped continuously or tapped a surface.
As far as Caution was concerned, he was still a grown-ass man and he was still a father and husband in another world. He was supposed to support, not be supported. Whenever his new mother, Clara, breastfed him or changed his diaper, he squirmed and fidgeted. It was humiliating.
Initially, in the new world he found himself in, there didn’t seem to be any drastic changes. His parents spoke English and they lived in a house with the typical amenities you would expect a human to have minus the modern technology. Every so often, he overheard intriguing snippets— hints of a magical world filled with spells and incantations.
On Caution’s 27th day in the world, everything changed when he discovered the dashboard, a transparent circular icon always located in the top right corner of his vision. When pressed or stared at long enough, a holographic display appeared which seemed to be only visible to him.
The first tab was reminiscent of an RPG page menu. At the centre was a baby rotating and on the right-hand side was a list of information.
Status
Name: Caution Hunt (Level 1)
Titles: Ultimate Challenger
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
Health points (HP): 1
Mana Consumption (MC): 0/2
Stats
Strength: 1 Agility: 1
Stamina: 1 Vitality: 1
Perception: 1 Magic: 1
Healing: 0 Free points: 0
Special items: Crimson energy store. (Creator gift)
Distraught at seeing the low numbers, Caution explored the next tab titled Skills:
NO SKILLS AVAILABLE.
Even more distraught at not seeing any cool skills, Caution jumped to the next tab titled Rule Book.
“Gaaagoo. Gaagoo Goo.”
His father looked up, sitting in a nearby chair. “Are you okay, little man?”
Caution nodded. He had tried to say, “Finally. Now we’re talking.” But “Gaagoo” worked just as well.
THE HALF-DEAD RULE BOOK.
1. The winner of the game is the last contestant remaining and will be rewarded with the ability to wake up from their coma.
2. Contestants will be rewarded a 100,000 XP bonus and 1000 points for killing another contestant.
3. At certain stages of the game, special events will be organised by the creator. Refusal to participate will result in a fee of 50,000 points.
4. Points can only be gained from killing other contestants or winning special events.
5. Contestants will be ranked on the Half-Dead leader board solely based on the number of points they have. The top fifty will be rewarded with weekly prizes such as items, money and weapons. The higher the rank, the more lucrative the prizes will be.
6. Any schemes carried out to destroy the world will result in a fee of 99,000 points.
7. The game’s maximum length is 40 years which is the equivalent of 4 weeks of the contestants’ first life. If no winner is decided, all contestants will die in their first life.
8. Temporary/additional rules can be added whenever the creator sees fit.
9. If a contestant has insufficient points to pay a given fee, they will be eliminated.
Eyes wide with excitement, Caution read the rule book almost a hundred times that evening. He wanted to annotate and highlight the crap out of it. There was so much to think about but eventually, he put his thoughts to one side and moved on to the third tab titled HD Leaderboard:
PAGE 100
Rank Contestant Points Kills 991 Liam Coulson 0 0 992 Alessandro Young 0 0 993 Tyrone Jacobs 0 0 994 Stewart Perry 0 0 995 Zuzanna Small 0 0 996 Lennie Grey 0 0 997 Amanda Keith 0 0 998 Isaiah Brady 0 0 999 AJ Jefferson 0 0 1000 Manny Okoro 0 0
“Goo gaa goo?”
Translation: What the fuck?
“Goo gaa goo goo goo, gaa, waa? Goo gaa, gaa!”
Translation: How am I only just born and in last place? This is outrageous!
Caution noted that the first life names were listed instead of the new names given to them in their second lives. He decided to search for Albert’s and Lennon’s positions later and moved on to the final tab titled Radar:
Searching for contestants within a 30-mile radius…
Please wait…
One contestant detected.
Caution fiddled with the display further but nothing changed. He stared at the bold statement for some time before clenching tiny fists. Clearly, the game favoured those willing to kill other contestants. If he wanted to maximise his chances of winning, he would need to get his hands dirty.
One hour later, he made an important decision on how to approach the game.
“That’s a serious face you’ve got on there.” His father picked him up and kissed him on the forehead. “It’s nap time, little guy. Good night.”
Caution flicked the crimson cube floating above his face. Tiny red sparks flew and crackled.
He was clueless on the specifics but he now had clear objectives. Just like with any boxing match, he was going to prepare and train relentlessly. He was going to eliminate the most players in the game and rank number one on the HD Leaderboard as a result.
There could only be one winner out of the 1000 contestants, but victory had already solidified in the former champion’s mind. Every other contestant was going to die and he was going to survive. He was going to win, no matter the difficulty, no matter the cost and return to his family.
As his father placed him back in the crib, Caution’s eyes slowly closed.
First things first… I need to learn how to walk. That’s probably important. Tomorrow I’m crawling out of this bitch.