“The lion must make a choice.

Will it eat or will it be eaten?

Will it kill or will it die?

Will it survive, or will it perish?

The lion makes this choice every day. Tirelessly, endlessly, it decides the fate of itself and those around it. For the lion is not prey. It does not cower in a hole and await death. It does not look over its shoulder. The lion is not a gazelle, which allows others to choose its fate. The lion is king, and those in its presence will bow or be slaughtered.

Jason Takada, you are not a gazelle. You do not cower, you do not falter. You are a lion. And a lion does what it must as king.

So the time has come for you to make your choice.

Will you eat, or will you be eaten?

Will you kill, or will you die?

Will you survive, or will you perish?

Choose, Jason Takada.

Choose to be predator or prey.

Choose to be lion or gazelle.

Grasp your sword and be reborn. Not as Chosen, but as King. Make the world fear your name. Make them tremble in your presence. Make them worship you. Only then, will you be free. Only then, will you be King.”

“... and the development of the artificial islands Curonus, Avidion, and Helios is still underway, with many people wondering what their purpose is. We’re joined today by Mr. Larrio to discuss…”

“Morning.” I greeted Lisa, turning off my tablet as she walked into the dining room, hair in a messy bun. Braxton, a large german shepherd, leisurely trotted after her, tail wagging as he took his spot by the door, patiently waiting to be let out. She grunted in response, letting Braxton out and sitting down at the plate of eggs and sausage I had set for her. She stabbed her fork into her food, shoving it into her mouth. “Something wrong?”

“I’m taping sound proof foam to your walls.” She grumbled around a mouthful of eggs. “I couldn’t sleep. You’re lucky you can cook.”

I smiled and said nothing, lifting up the last of my sausage into my mouth. I got up and went back to the pan, scraping more food onto my plate.

“I don’t understand how you can eat so much.” She said as I sat down, eyeing my mountain of eggs.

I shrugged. “I’ve got a fast metabolism.”

Shaking her head, she continued eating. “So will your very loud girlfriend join us for breakfast, or is she still sleeping?”

I slid over the note I had found next to my pillow when I woke up. She picked it up, plate now completely devoid of food. “Thank you for last night Jason, I had a really fun time. I had to get ready for work, so I left early. Let me know if you want to get coffee sometime. My number is…” Sighing very loudly, she slid me back the note. “I swear to christ if I have to hear you two again, I’m kicking you out.”

I smiled, playfully pointing my fork at her. “You know, technically the house is under my name. I’m just letting you stay here out of the goodness of my heart.”

She snorted, standing up and carrying her plate to the sink. “Whatever, I’m going back to sleep. You’re working tonight, right? Mr. Lee wanted me to tell you to go talk to him whenever you get in. And don’t forget to let Braxton back inside.”

I nodded, watching her as she disappeared around the corner of the hallway. When I heard her door close, I wolfed down the rest of my food and leaned back in my chair. Then I finished my morning ritual, saying the words that had become habit over the past nine and a half years of my life. Of course, there was no need to say them, thinking them alone would be enough. But... habits were hard to break.

“Status.”

As soon as the words left my mouth, a window popped up in front of me, light blue and as thin as paper. Putting my hands to it, as I always did, what greeted my touch was the feeling of cool, smooth glass, firm and unmoving.

Name: Jason Takada

Lvl: 1 (Locked)

Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

Class: (Locked)

Current Title: Slayer of a Demon Queen (Other Titles: Arcane Spider, Former Sword Saint Candidate, World Savior...)

Skills/Spells

Perks

Items

Resources

Stats

Spells: 7 (Severely Limited)

Mana Mastery Lvl 1 (Severely Limited)

Currently Equipped Items:

Ring of Spatial Storage (Limited)

Shirt (Common), Pants (Common), Boots (Common)

Health: 250/250

Stamina: 134/135

Mana: 20/20 (Severely Limited)

Defense: 33

Mana Resistance: 10 (Severely...)

Energy: 20/20

(Severely...)

Remaining Stat Points: (Locked)

Vitality: 50 (Limited)

Endurance: 50 (Limited)

Intelligence: 50 (Limited)

Perception: 50 (Limited)

Agility: 50 (Limited)

Strength: 50 (Limited)

Physique: 50 (Limited)

Wisdom: 50 (Limited)

Expected Lifespan Remaining: 117 Years

General Weapon Skills: 3 (Severely...)

Weapon Mastery

Lvl 4 (Limited)

Dagger Skills: 2 (Severely...)

Dagger Mastery Lvl 4 (Limited)

Sword Skills: 3 (Severely...)

Sword Mastery Lvl 7 (Limited)

Spear Skills: 3 (Severely...)

Spear Mastery Lvl 5 (Limited)

General Blade Skills: 3 (Severely...)

Blade Mastery Lvl 5 (Limited)

Bow Skills: 2 (Severely…)

Bow Mastery Lvl 3 (Limited)

General Projectile Skills: 2 (Severely…)

Projectile Mastery

Lvl 3 (Limited)

Unarmed Skills: 5 (Severely…)

Unarmed Mastery

Lvl 6 (Limited)

Miscellaneous Skills: 5 (Severely…)

Other Perks: 7

(Severely…)

I sighed wistfully as I looked over my Stat Window. Though it was a shame that so many Skills and Spells were lost and that every Stat and Perk had been reduced to a fraction of what they once were, what remained were some of the few testaments that I had really even been there, in a world that was so different yet so similar to my own. A world that had taken from me, yet given me so much. A world that...

I forced myself to stop spinning my ring. “Close Status.”

Soundlessly the window closed, disappearing like it had never been there in the first place. I stared at the spot that it had been in, in its place nothing but air. After a long while, I forced myself to stand up. Pulling out my phone, I dialed the number that I had been dreading calling.

After a few rings, I heard them pick up.

“Hello Jason.” The voice was pretty and melodious, but I winced at the coolness in its tone. “You were absent at our last meeting. And the meeting before. And the one before that as we-”

“I know, Alyssa. Thanks for the reminder.” I cut her off, and I heard a sigh on the other end of the call. I could picture her slender fingers pinching the bridge of her nose, blue eyes scrunched shut, so similar to the gesture Samantha used to do when she was frustrated. Yet another thing in a long list of comparisons that I knew weren’t fair to make, to her or me.

“Okay. But please ensure that you are present for the next one. The Secretary of Defense will be attending it.” She finally said, and I checked my watch. It was the 19th of September. Meetings were held on the 2nd and 24th of every month.

“Alright, I’ll be there. Manhattan or Seattle?”

“Manhattan. So you’ll have even less of an excuse if you are absent.”

“I said I was coming.” I grumbled, and I could practically feel the eye roll she was making.

“You said that the last few times too. Unreliable Returned are not looked favorably upon, remember that.”

“I’ll be there this time, I promise.” Just as I was about to hang up, I paused. “By the way… the anniversary is next month. Are you going to be there?”

A long period of silence. Then… “Please make sure you’re at the next meeting.”

She hung up.

I let out a long sigh, slipping my phone into my pocket and scratching the back of my head.

Gods damnit Jason. Why’d you have to screw that one up?

I poured myself some water, trying to get a sudden bitter taste out of my mouth, when I heard a scratch at the side door. I turned to see Braxton panting on the other side of it, tail wagging, and when he saw me looking he scratched at it again. I chuckled and let him in. He immediately wandered over to the stove, sniffing upwards towards the pan that still had some eggs and sausage in it, and looked back at me expectantly.

I frowned. “No begging Braxton, you know better.” I chided, and he gave me a deep boof in response. After a long staring contest I gave in, setting the pan on the ground. He hesitantly looked between me and the eggs. “Well go on, if you’re going to beg then eat up.”

He immediately started inhaling the food in the pan, and I scratched him around the ears. “Don’t tell your mom though.” I whispered, and his tail wagged, though whether in response to my petting or my words I didn’t know.

I stretched my arms above my head, enjoying the release it gave me. It was about time for me to get ready for the day. I had errands to run before work.