1 Chapter 1 Start The Game!

Waking up at 6:00 am every morning was definitely something that any diligent student would do in order to get the most amount of study time per day and by extension, maximize their information retention. It was however, not the best use of time for-.

"Yes! Yes! I finally cleared it! The first solo clear of a World-Tier Raid Boss! Prostrate yourselves before the one you call God!".

A young man, probably around 16-17 years old raised his arms up in the air in celebration, as the sound of trumpets and choir noises echoed throughout his apartment. The image of a mage-like figure wrapped in a misty green garb with a massive staff that was even taller than his character stood still as it looked over the computerized mountain range below.

This young man was Akira. Tendo Akira. And he was a Gamer.

Not one of those casual players that spent the majority of their time playing just to have fun or to hang out with their friends, but a true blue, solo, pay to win, absolute whale of a human being who spent every waking minute either playing games.... or researching about said games.

He wasn't just a dedicated player who grinds for the sake of grinding.... but because he enjoys grinding.

A young man who by all means would constitute the category of "not having a life".

Because apparently, talking, or interacting with other people wasn't a very good game. That "life" itself wasn't a very good game.

"Even otome games are based on real life. They create a character starting with the visuals and then build a personality for them. Likes, dislikes, preferences, personality quirks, background.... some games even add in an emotional value for their characters. Make it so complex that hanging out with one character decreases the value in another making it near impossible for a "True Ending"", Akira sighed as he peered at the wall of games in his room. Their must have been over a hundred different games, belonging to over a dozen different genres.

It was an impressive collection, even if one could only appreciate how much money was spent on all those games. From RPG's to dating sims. From FPS' to handheld console games. From PC all the way through to the first generation consoles.

To put it simply, Tendo Akira, was a gaming addict.

He left his room covering his mouth while trying to stifle a yawn. The first thing he would do after pulling an all-nighter on a school night is immediately have a shower. The cold water wouldn't just held keep him awake, but also give him some time to think about what game he was going to play next.

Letting the cold water flow over his thin physique, Akira leaned back up against the wall while a conflicted expression appeared on his face.

".... maybe another RPG? Not another MMO, but maybe just a good-old fashioned single-player, story driven, cinematic masterpiece..... Or maybe I should play a mobile game again. I could play it at school so long as that crazy woman doesn't try and stop me again... nah, I couldn't take that chance. If she takes my phone off me, I'll have to explain it to Aunt Aoi, when she next calls..... I'll just get another RPG this weekend".

Nodding, the 17 year old turned off the stream of water and reached towards the towel on the rack. Despite the cold water awaking not just his body, but also his mind, closing his eyes if only for a moment caused a wave of drowsiness to wash over him.

Akira stumbled but steadied himself as he grabbed onto the towel railing. His eyes flashed open and he let out deep breath as all feelings of drowsiness and mental fatigue disappeared. Even his body felt more relaxed as he straightened his posture and-.

[Ding! Congratulations! You have awakened to the Game! All HP, SP, and MP have been restored!]

He blinked.

Once.

Twice.

Thrice.

"Hahaha! Holy shit I must be tired! Hallucinating and hearing voices? This might be the sign that I need to stop pulling all-nighters", Akira held onto the towel railing as he laughed so hard his stomach started hurting. He wiped a tear out of his eye and exited the bathroom in nothing but a towel.

It was normal for him to walk around his house with nothing but a towel protecting his dignity. This house has pretty much been his own since he entered middle school, his Aunt only coming back once or twice a month just to check up on him and give him money.

Considering his parents both passed away when he was young, his Aunt Aoi was the only family Akira had left. Even if she wasn't present all the time, he couldn't wish for a more lenient and compassionate Aunt.

Akira smiled at the thought of his Aunt, opening the pantry door while his eyes observed the dozens of different types of foods and spices for him to cook with.

Just because he lived by himself, didn't mean that he would just eat junk food all day, was the response he gave his friends when he told them he lived alone.

".... Now where did I put the-".

[Ding! A new skill is created by a specific action. Due to the continuous observation, a new skill [Observation] is created. It shows the information of the target].

He blinked.

Once.

Twice.

Thrice.

"Holy motherf*cking crap!", Akira leaped back slightly, backing up towards the island table in the kitchen. The translucent blue screen still remained in front of him, keeping the same amount of distance between them despite him backing up a few feet.

He reached out to touch the blue screen, but felt his hand pass through nothing as he pulled it out much quicker than he put it in.

The translucent screen vanished after a few seconds and Akira couldn't help but look at one of the fruits in his pantry, his arm shaking slightly as he picked up the apple and spoke,

[Observe].

[Ding!]

[Apple] [Level: N/A]

[HP: N/A] [MP: N/A]

[A piece of fruit with no distinguishing qualities whatsoever].

Another blue screen popped up in front of Akira, the effects of observation making themselves known as the details of the apple were revealed from his observation.

"..... No f*cking way. It's real?", his mind was travelling at a million miles per hour. It was something that he had dreams about. Something that he read novels about. Something that he had started working on the basis for an actual game about.

When a young person's life changes, the moment their life becomes a [Game].

Hundreds, if not thousands of different ideas popped up in his head at that single moment. His heart started beating faster, his breathing started becoming shallower, his mouth started widening at the corners at the prospects that this single moment-.

[Gamer's Mind].

All faded in a single moment. His breathing returned to normal and his heart no longer pumped at the speed it once was. A clear and logical thought process returned to Akira, and he let out a deep breath as the first thing anyone in this situation should do came to mind.

[Status].

[Ding!].

[Name: Tendo Akira] [Title: The Gamer]

[Level: 1] [Experience: 00.00%]

[HP: 100/100] [MP: 100/100] [SP: 100/100]

[STR: 10] [VIT: 10] [AGI: 10] [INT: 10] [WIS: 10] [PER: 10] [LUC: 10]

[Stat Points: 0]

[Money: $0]

Akira nodded his head, not caring about his low stats or lack of level or money.

In most RPG's, the initial character state had nothing but their basic clothes and perhaps a cheap but durable weapon. Their stats were sometimes higher than this if one could chose the [Race] or [Nature] of their character, but this was different.

He smiled,

"I'm the character. I am both the Player, and the Character..... No that wouldn't be right.... If this were a Game, I could save and start over whenever I wanted. Wouldn't have to worry about anything..... but this isn't a Game, it may look like one but it's still real life....".

Even if these powers were real, and I was my body was that of a Game Characters now, it didn't mean this was a Game. No saves, no do-overs, no restarting and fighting the boss again..... I had one chance, only one chance.

Akira let out another deep breath and sat down at the small table in the kitchen. His arm reflexively scooping up a spoon full of cereal as his mouth automatically chewed on it.

His mind was somewhere else right now.

'I have to be careful. I don't know if their is some sort of secret moonlit world were the supernatural roam wild and free. Hell, I don't even know if I'm the only Gamer', Akira swallowed his cereal before looking at his phone beside him.

'Increasing my stats should be the best way to help boost my physical and mental abilities for now. I could try and create some skills later.... although I still have some time before I get to school perhaps "that" could be useful the earlier I get it?....'.

Getting up out of his chair and onto the floor Akira sat down in a lotus position with both of his hands joined together in his lap. In a complete contrast when compared to his earlier self Akira's breathing slowed considerably, and his heartbeat became slower.

It would've been hard for anybody to pick up meditation on their first try. Most were just repeating the physical attributes of mediation, hoping to mimic those Buddhist Monks who could sit still for days upon end. All they were doing was attaining a form of physical mediation. Akin to laying down or resting, nothing to do with what meditation was at its core.

'Feel the flow of mana with me.... Understood how it pushes and pulls, rises and falls.... deeper.....'.

Meditation was a form of self-reflection. A spiritual action in the physical world.

Mana itself was not naturally a physical substance. There was a reason that not every human being in the world could use magic, and it was because most considered magic to be a hoax.

Magic, may be a hoax, but mana was the flow of spiritual energy in the world. It flows between all things. It is generated from all things. It returns to all things.

At its core, mana is just another form of energy. If one runs out of mana they might lose consciousness or even die in serious cases. That was Mana Depreciation. A common status aliment in games where your character uses up all their [MP], causing them to either become stunned or immobile for a few moments.

The manipulation of mana could be done after reaching inside oneself and drawing upon the latent mana within. Since mana flows through all things, it was only natural that some would be found inside-.

[Ding! A new skill is created by a specific action. Due to continuous mental self-reflection, a new skill [Mediation] has been created! It is both an active and passive skill that boosts mental faculties in addition to mana regeneration rate!]

[Meditation (Passive/Active)]

[Level 1] [Experience: 00.00%]

[Increases the mind's mental faculties allowing for a smoother thought process. Increases memory retention rate. Increases thinking speed].

[Passively increases INT by 10%]

[Passively increases WIS by 10%]

[Passively increases PER by 10%]

[Actively increases INT by 30%]

[Actively increases WIS by 30%]

[Actively increases PER by 30%]

[Actively doubles mana regeneration rate].

Akira smiled as he felt a metaphysical power in his body grow slightly as a small bundle of white colored energy expanded by a fraction of a millimeter, letting out a deep breath to allow his mind to adapt to the sudden changes in his status.

"Passive skills and their proficiency often decide the battle between two opponents of the same level. In almost all RPG's there is some form of level cap, meaning those with the higher quality and high proficient skills will be the winner in any battle.....". Akira quoted a well known RPG streamer and nodded as he placed a tick on the long list he had on his phone.

Considering that it was a list and had over a thousand points, it was definitely something he hadn't created just today.

"The power of the [Gamer] may not be the one I am familiar with. There may be limits that I may not be aware of. My body and mind are that of a games, but even they must still obey the rules of the World around them", picking up an apple the 17 year old took a bite before pulling out one of his textbooks opening it to the first page.

It was a book on mathematics, and considering the thickness of dust on its cover, one could see how long it had been since he had picked it up.

'Math is my worst subject. Thus it is at a level where it can grow higher when compared to studying a book that I am familiar with. Think of it as starting a ladder from the bottom, rather than halfway', he smiled.

[Ding! For your rational and logical thinking you have gained + 1 WIS!]

My smile grew even further.

The book full of equations and numbers and letters didn't look so much like a mathematics book anymore.....

But just stat points and experience.