Yuto Arakawa died on a Tuesday.
It was not a glorious, or a tragic accident, or a noble sacrifice, like saving a child from a speeding truck.
Unfortunately, Yuto died in his one-room apartment, slumped over a half-eaten convenience store meal while his finger still rested on the touchpad of his laptop.
The screen displayed the 763rd chapter of The Overpowered Alchemist King's Dungeon Harem—a fantasy web novel he had been hate-reading for two years.
[ Fatal Error: Cardiac Arrest Detected ]
[ System Override Initiated… ]
[ Soul Integrity: 63%. Commencing Transfer Protocol. ]
His last thoughts were not of loved ones… He doesn't have those. It wasn't his unfinished dreams, or even the novel's cliffhanger ending…
Instead, it was just confusion…
"Wait, did I just die mid-scroll?"
Just like that, darkness consumed him.
***
As soon as he had woken up, he felt warmth, pain… and dirt. He smelled pretty bad as well.
Yuto gasped and sat up…
However, this sudden movement caused him to cough violently. His lungs were burning as if he had inhaled smoke, sand, and even vomit...
Thankfully, it didn't last that long.
After a few moments, he blinked, confused at his current situation...
'This is…'
Whatever place he was at smelled of blood and burning wood... It was a nauseating experience…
As he looked around, he was able to slowly assess his current situation…
There was a smoke that could be seen from a toppled wagon, and a horse's distant screams could be heard not too far from him.
At this time, he also noticed that several bodies littered the path, and many of them were dressed in rough, travel-worn clothes. The strong smell of blood came from them.
Looking closer, there was actually a sword lying inches from his shaking hand.
What is this? A battlefield? Movie setting? A medieval re-enactment?
'Am I dreaming?'
Then he looked down. He finally realized something off… These were not his hands.
They were thinner, paler, younger, and even scarred.
His voice even cracked when he spoke, "What the hell?"
It was also a different voice…
It was then followed by a headache as fragmented memories of the original owner of this body drilled into his brain…
"Calem?" Yuto muttered as he learned his current body's name. This time, he couldn't help but feel confused whether he actually transmigrated into this world or he simply recalled his past life.
However, there was no time to think about this as something magical happened.
[ Skill Sync System Activated. ]
[ Welcome, Yuto Arakawa. You have inherited the Coinbound System. ]
[ Skill use requires GOLD COIN expenditure. Passive cost: 0. Active cost: Variable.
Current Balance: 0 Gold.
Available Skill Market: [ Refresh to View List ]
Beginner Bonus Unclaimed. Claim now? [ Y/N ]
"What in the actual gacha-hell…?"
Yuto—no, Calem now, apparently—stared at the translucent blue panel floating in the air. He knew about this from many novels he had read before!
For now, he instinctively accepted that his name was Calem.
He then reached toward it instinctively. His fingers passed through the blue panel like mist, yet the system reacted.
[ Beginner Bonus Claimed. ]
It seemed that he pressed the "Y" option just fine.
[ You have received:
[ Skill: Mana Flick ( Common ) ]
[ Skill: Appraisal I ( Common ) ]
[ 50 Gold Coins]
[ Starter Robe ( Statless ) ]
[ Potion: Minor Healing ×1 ]
May your death be more affordable next time! ]
"…What is this situation?"
Before he could ask more questions, a groan to his left snapped him back to reality.
One of the bodies—no, one of the people—was still alive, and blood was seeping from his side. A man, maybe in his thirties, said something in a language Calem didn't recognize.
Then another alert popped up.
[ System Quest: Survive First Encounter
A wandering forest wolf has caught your scent.
Objective: Defeat or escape. Reward: 20 Gold.
Penalty: Death. ]
Everything was happening so quickly that Calem had no choice but to adapt. He had just died. Seeing that he could die once again, he knew that he could not let that happen.
In the distance, the forest wolf growled as it surely knew that there was a lot of food it could devour at this place.
"...Right. Okay…" Calem whispered.
"Let's think this through. I've got a beginner spell, fifty gold coins, and no idea how anything works."
Thankfully, controlling the Coinbound System seemed to be quite easy. He opened the Skill Menu.
[ Mana Flick – Common ]
[ Cost per use: 1 Gold
Effect: Fires a weak burst of mana, capable of pushing small objects or causing minor burns. ]
"You're kidding me…" Calem muttered. Thankfully, the system gift gave him 50 gold coins at the very least!
Still, Calem had to move, so he was already backing up from the sound of snapping twigs caused by the wolf.
There was no way this Mana Flick would work!
From the description, the most if could do was to irritate the wolf!
Snap~
The wolf stepped onto another twig, and Calem could now see the mission target. It had a gray fur that was already filled with dried blood.
'It looks tough… and hungry.'
Calem had to do something… 'Maybe it will get scared with the Mana Flick? Please work… Wait--How to activate the skill anyway?'
Thankfully, the system was cooperative… As soon as he thought of using the Mana Flick, he immediately knew what to do…
In just a moment, he felt a wave of heat in his palm—and then he shouted…
"Mana Flick!"
Just like that, a blue spark burst forward and hit the wolf square in the nose! The Mana Flick was fast at the very least!
However, the wolf just yelped in surprise. It was not down!
[ 1 Gold Coin deducted. Current Balance: 49 ]
'Seriously… How do I survive this?' Calem then ran as he knew that this wouldn't work!
As he was running, there was only one thought repeated in his mind:
"This system better come with a cashback feature."