The Putrid Wolf snarled, a guttural sound that seemed to tear at the very fabric of the air, and then lunged with a speed surprising for its bulk. Kenji stumbled back instinctively, tripping over a protruding root and nearly falling. His brain, trained over years to analyze and solve logical problems, was in complete overload, trying to process the avalanche of impossible sensory data and the imminent threat. The ghostly lines of text had vanished, but their impression remained seared onto his mental retina. Corrupted. Blight Infection. This was definitely not an ordinary animal, but something twisted and malevolent.
As the wolf prepared to pounce, the small winged creature – which Kenji could now see more clearly was a kind of pixie with skin the soft green of new leaves and hair like the petals of a lilac flower – darted in a desperate zigzag between him and the beast. It emitted sharp, distressed sounds like tiny glass bells tinkling in panic, a fragile melody against the impending brutality.
"Flee, stranger! It... very dangerous! The Blight has consumed it!" the little creature chirped, its voice surprisingly understandable, despite a strange, melodic, and urgent accent. There was a tremor in its voice that mirrored the frantic beating of its wings.
Blight? The word echoed in Kenji's mind. Was that the "corruption," the "infection" he'd seen in the interface? A plague, perhaps?
The wolf ignored the pixie, considering it, at best, an annoying appetizer, and leaped at Kenji, a blur of black fur and gleaming fangs. Kenji squeezed his eyes shut, his body tensing, bracing for the crushing impact, the excruciating pain. But instead, he heard a dull thud, like something hitting stretched leather, and a sharp yelp of surprise and pain from the wolf. Hesitantly opening his eyes, he saw the pixie hovering in the air right in front of him, its tiny hands outstretched, a faint, greenish light emanating from them, forming a tenuous, flickering barrier. The wolf was recoiling a few steps, shaking its head vigorously, as if it had run into an invisible, yet painful, wall.
In that instant, the translucent interface returned to Kenji's vision, more stable this time, less like a hallucination and more like a head-up display integrated into his perception. He could see not only the wolf and the pixie, but also himself, as if he were looking at a real-time system diagram, with data overlaid on each entity.
Entity: Sylphid (Minor Air Elemental - Nature Spirit) Threat Level: None (to user) Elemental Affinity: Wind Active Abilities: Gentle Gust (distraction), Wind Shield (weak, unstable, high Aether consumption for its class) Status: Frightened, Low Energy (Aether), Protective
Entity: Human (???) - Kenji Tanaka (Self) Threat Level: Unknown (Uncalculated Potential) Elemental Affinity: None Detected (Potential for Universal Affinity?) Abilities: [System Architect Interface - Level 1 (Latent/Awakening)] Resources: Personal Aether (100/100 Units), Stamina (85/100) Status: Confused, Frightened, Adrenaline High, Slightly Disoriented
System Architect Interface? System Architect? That sounded... disturbingly familiar. It was, in essence, his profession, but now it seemed to be an inherent ability, applied to reality itself. Latent/Awakening. Did that mean it wasn't fully active? Or that he was just beginning to scratch the surface of its potential? And Universal Affinity? That sounded grand and somewhat unreal.
The wolf snarled again, frustration and hunger evident in its tone, and prepared for a new attack, clearly irritated and ignoring the Sylphid's flickering barrier, which was already beginning to fail. Kenji knew, with a desperate certainty, that the little creature couldn't hold it off for much longer. The shield's light was already dimmer.
He needed to do something. Anything. His gaze swept the forest floor, searching frantically. Stones of various sizes, dry branches, piles of leaves. Nothing that remotely resembled an effective weapon against a beast of that size. But the interface... if he could read reality in such detail, could he, somehow, write it? Modify it?
It was an insane thought, born of sheer desperation and a programmer's twisted logic. He focused his attention on the wolf, then on a reasonably sized, irregularly shaped stone near his right foot. Instantly, the stone's "code" lines appeared in his vision:
Object: Common Rock (Type: Feldspathic Granite) Unique ID: #GRN-FLDS-734X Physical Properties: Solid, Dense, Estimated Weight (2.31 kg), Low Aether Conductivity Residual Aether: Trace (0.02 Units) Available Functions: None (inert object, subject to standard physical laws)
Available Functions: None. That wasn't very helpful. It was just a rock. But what if he could add a function? Like injecting a simple script into a normally passive object?
He concentrated, his mind racing, visualizing a command, a logical sequence. Something basic, direct. In his mind, he "typed," as if at his old terminal, using a syntax that felt intuitive for this new interface:
// Simple Kinetic Hurl Script function hurl_at_target(entity_target_object, physical_object_to_hurl) // Check basic conditions if entity_target_object.is_hostile_to_user && physical_object_to_hurl.is_throwable_by_user: // Calculate trajectory vector (simplified) physical_object_to_hurl.vector_velocity = calculate_trajectory_to_target(self.current_position, entity_target_object.center_of_mass_head, 20.0m/s_initial_velocity) // Apply kinetic force via Aether physical_object_to_hurl.apply_aetheric_force(direction: vector_velocity, magnitude: 15_newtons_equivalent) // Execution Log system.log("Script 'hurl_at_target' executed. Target: " + entity_target_object.ID + ". Object: " + physical_object_to_hurl.ID) else: system.log_error("Execution of 'hurl_at_target' failed. Conditions not met.") end end
// Function Call hurl_at_target(PutridWolf_ID_LP001, CommonRock_ID_GRN-FLDS-734X)
It was completely ridiculous. This couldn't work. Magic wasn't programming. Or was it? But as he mentally "executed" the command, he felt a slight tug in his mind, a strange sensation, as if a small amount of energy had been drained from him, followed by a subtle warmth in his hands. The rock beside his foot trembled visibly for a fraction of a second.
Then, with a sudden, unexpected WHOOSH, the rock shot through the air with a speed and precision that no normal human throw, let alone Kenji's, could achieve. It flew in an almost perfect trajectory, striking the Putrid Wolf squarely on the snout with an audible, sickening CRACK.
The wolf howled, a high-pitched sound of pain and surprise, staggering backward, dark, viscous blood pouring profusely from the point of impact. It shook its head violently, clearly disoriented and in pain.
Kenji gaped, his eyes wide with disbelief. It worked. It actually worked!
The Sylphid, Lyra, turned in mid-air, her small wind shield dissipating. She looked from the rock, now lying bloodstained on the ground, to Kenji, her large violet eyes shining with a mixture of fear, astonishment, and hesitant admiration. "You... you did that? With... your mind? Like a Silent Incantation, but... different?"
Before Kenji could even try to formulate a response, the Putrid Wolf, now visibly enraged, injured, and arguably more dangerous, turned and, limping slightly, fled into the darkness of the forest, yelping in pain and frustration. The immediate threat had passed.
A tense silence hung for a moment, broken only by Kenji's ragged breathing and the soft hum of Lyra's wings. The interface was still there, but now it displayed a new, prominent message:
[System Architect Interface - Level 1] Ability Activated: 'Simple Kinetic Script' Aether Consumed: 5 Units (Base cost for small object manipulation) 'Simple Script' Ability Cooldown: 10 seconds (Optimizable with practice and Aether comprehension) System Note: Direct manipulation of physical objects with raw Aether is inefficient and resource-intensive. Study of runes, enchantments, or creation of 'Aether constructs' recommended for process optimization and cost reduction. New Ability Unlocked (Partially): 'Aether Structural Analysis - Passive Level 1'
"Aether?" Kenji murmured, the word foreign on his tongue, looking to the Sylphid for answers.
The small creature flew closer, still a little wary, but the hostility in her eyes had completely vanished, replaced by an intense curiosity. "Yes. The Aether. The energy of life. The breath of creation. Magic," she explained, her voice like the rustling of leaves in the wind. "You... you used it in a way I've never seen. Not even the Great Weavers of the Floating Cities manipulate raw matter with such... directness."
"Great Weavers?" Kenji asked, his head still spinning from the revelation of his new capabilities and the jargon of this world.
"Powerful mages," she explained, gesturing with her delicate little hands. "Those who weave the Aether into complex spells and enchantments, following ancient patterns. But what you did... was different. More direct. As if you spoke the secret language of the world itself, instructing it directly."
Kenji thought of the interface, the "scripts," the "functions." Maybe he really did. The language of programming, somehow, seemed to be universal, or at least translatable to the fundamental laws of this new operating system called reality.
"My name is Lyra," the Sylphid said, making a small, graceful bow in mid-air. Her glow seemed a little stronger now. "Thank you for saving me, Stranger-Who-Commands-Stones-with-His-Mind."
"Kenji. My name is Kenji Tanaka." He managed a weak smile, still processing the nickname. "And I guess I'm not really a stranger here anymore. Or maybe I'm the strangest one of all."
Lyra tilted her head, her petal-like hair swaying gently. "Kenji... Tanaka," she repeated, the pronunciation a little clumsy, but charming. "You are not from here, are you? Your... your Aetheric essence is different. Strong, very strong, but... raw, unrefined. Like a contained storm."
"No, I'm definitely not from here," Kenji admitted, the weight of his situation finally beginning to sink in. He looked around at the alien forest, the vibrant sky, the tiny fairy floating before him. He was in another world. A world with real magic, monsters corrupted by a mysterious plague, and, apparently, a god-like system interface that only he could see and use.
"You need to find a safe place," Lyra said, genuine concern in her thin voice. "The Whispering Woods can be very dangerous, especially with the Blight spreading like a poisonous shadow. The Putrid Wolf was just a small sign, a symptom of the sickness that plagues the land."
"Blight... you mentioned that before. What is it, exactly?" Kenji asked, remembering the information from the interface.
Lyra's soft glow dimmed a little, like a candle in a draft. "It is... a shadow. A disease that consumes Aether, that twists and corrupts life. It turns peaceful creatures into monsters and poisons the very land. It is spreading slowly, insidiously, from the Desolate Wastes of the Far North. The Elders of the Deep Groves fear it is the harbinger of a Great Evil, something this world has not seen for ages."
Great. Just great. As if being abducted or reincarnated into another world wasn't enough, he had apparently arrived just in time for an apocalyptic plague. His luck, as always, was impeccable.
"Is there any town or village nearby?" Kenji asked, trying to focus on the practical, on the next logical step for survival.
"Greystone Crossing," Lyra replied promptly. "A small trading post, a meeting point for hunters, merchants, and adventurers. It's not the safest or most refined place in Aethelgard, but it's walled and certainly better than out here, exposed. It's about a half-day's walk to the east, following the Hidden Creek." She pointed with a delicate little hand in the indicated direction. "I can guide you there. It's the least I can do for the one who saved my life."
Kenji felt a wave of gratitude. At least he wasn't completely alone in this bizarre situation. "Thank you, Lyra. I'd really appreciate your help."
He looked at his hands again, flexing his fingers. System Architect Interface. He had power here, something unique, something that could be the key to his survival, or perhaps to something much greater. Maybe, just maybe, this "fatal error" that had brought him here could be the beginning of a new "kernel" for his life. One with far more dangerous bugs and unhandled exceptions, to be sure, but also with an unlimited potential he had never dreamed of in his old, monotonous world of code and deadlines.
"Hello, magical world," he whispered to himself, a faint, ironic, and expectant smile playing on his lips. The initial compilation had been an unexpected success. Now, it was time to start debugging his new, frightening reality.