Pitch-black darkness.
Not the kind of darkness you get when you turn off the lights before going to sleep.
This was thick, suffocating darkness like someone had poured a whole bucket of black ink straight into my lungs. I blinked once… twice… but nothing changed.
No light. No shapes. Just absolute nothingness tightening around my chest.
"Where… is this…?"
My voice echoed weakly, trembling in the endless void.
A wave of dizziness crashed over me, dragging along shattered fragments of memory like a burnt out film reel.
Võ Thanh Tiến.
Right. I'm Tiến. Nineteen years old. A certified weeb the kind of guy who finds talking to real humans harder than slaying dragons in Monster Hunter. I used to daydream about isekai worlds, dazzling magic, epic adventures…
…but definitely not like this!
"Why… did I believe that stupid joke…?"
I let out a dry laugh, mocking myself.
690452. Write it on your wrist before sleeping and you'll be transported to another world.
A dumb rumor on the internet something even kids wouldn't believe and yet I did it anyway. Simply because I was sick of this bland reality. Even the dumbest sliver of hope… I still clung to it.
And now…
"Congratulations, Tiến. You actually did it."
Yeah, except my body didn't seem very happy about it.
My heart pounded like it wanted to tear out of my chest. Cold sweat drenched my back. Thousands of icy ants crawled up my spine.
"Calm down… Come on, Tiến, you're fine… you're fine…"
I tried to reassure myself, though even the voice inside my head was shaking.
I reached forward.
Thud.
My hand hit something hard and cold.
Left.
Thud.
Right.
Thud.
Above my head.
Thud.
My throat tightened.
A closed box.
Cramped.
Freezing.
"Don't… tell me… this is a coffin?!"
"What the hell?!"
Grinding my teeth, I mustered every ounce of strength and shoved upward. My arms trembled, veins bulging, shoulders straining like tightened strings.
Crack… crack…
Only my joints screamed back at me. The lid didn't move an inch like it had been welded shut or nailed down from the outside.
"HELP!! SOMEBODY!!! ANYONE?!"
My scream slammed straight back into my ears.
No footsteps.
No breath.
Just deathly silence.
"Calm down… you wished for this, remember?"
A hollow laugh escaped my lips.
"How ironic. An isekai with no beautiful goddess, no system menu just an idiot suffocating in a coffin."
But wait…
The air wasn't stale. It was surprisingly cool and fresh.
No smell of rot.
No oppressive stuffiness.
And from the waist down… I couldn't move at all.
"What's wrong with my legs?! Am I paralyzed?!"
I tried to tense them, but they felt like giant slabs of stone.
"Come on! Don't do this to me!"
While I was spiraling into panic, my fingers brushed against something cold and metallic.
A knife.
The sharp edge grazed my skin, snapping my mind awake.
In this darkness… this was my only lifeline.
Clutching the handle tight, I poured every drop of anger and desperation into a single strike
BANG!!!
A deafening crash echoed.
I didn't stop.
"Hit it! Again! KEEP GOING!"
CRACK!
A tiny gap split open.
And then
LIGHT.
The numbness melted away as the first beam pierced my vision.
I went wild, tearing the wood apart.
Bam!
Bam!
The coffin lid burst open.
I shot upright, gasping hard.
Cold cave air rushed into my lungs and I swear, it tasted sweeter than anything in the world.
"I… I'm alive… I'm really still alive!"
I looked down at myself
and froze.
My arms and legs were slender.
My skin smooth and pale.
My height… noticeably shorter.
And my hair… shoulder-length… and bright orange?!
"What… the hell is this?! A trap character?! Don't tell me I turned into a girl!!"
My heart went berserk.
Hands shaking, I checked the most important "asset."
One second… two seconds…
"Holy THANK GOD!! Still a man!"
Though… severely nerfed.
Only about the size of my thumb, but hey at least I wasn't gender-bent. I almost collapsed back into the coffin in relief.
I stood up, grabbed a shining necklace and the remaining knife.
Right then, a cold, emotionless voice echoed inside my head
"Request detected: Activate "Analysis"? YES / NO"
"What?! A cheat system?! YES! Of course YES!"
"Analysis: Failed… Failed… Failed…"
"Useless piece of…!"
I cursed.
But then
A transparent hologram appeared.
Name: Yon
Race: Light Tribe
Synchronization: 10 / 100
Affinity: Fire
Mana: 1000
"Yon…? Light Tribe…?"
I glanced around the jagged black stone cave. Dim light leaked in from cracks above, glinting off the knife.
My fear slowly faded… replaced by a strange thrill curling in my chest.
I took a deep breath and tightened my grip.
Whatever this world was… there was no turning back to that cramped little room of mine.
"Alright then, Yon. Let's call this… a fresh start."
A reckless thought darted through my head, heating my face.
I raised my arm dramatically.
"Time to go build myself a proper harem!"
Before the last word even finished echoing, that cold voice cut in mercilessly:
"Warning: Please stop daydreaming, sir. The survival rate of a 'pathetic weakling' with zero combat ability in this area is 0.01%. I strongly advise prioritizing escape before being ripped apart by monsters, instead of… recruiting wives."
I froze.
My lips twitched.
"Hey… did you just roast me?"
"Response: I am merely presenting objective reality, sir. No insult intended."
I clicked my tongue and picked up the last knife, sulking.
Great. A cheat system… with attitude.
Still, maybe having something to keep me grounded wasn't so bad.
"…Let's go."
Leaving the shattered coffin behind,
I stepped forward
into the endless darkness of the cave.
----END OF CHAPTER 1----
Author: Võ Thanh Tiến 25/12/2006