— STATS —
Exp: 01/20
Level: 1
Health: 100
Mana: 100
Underwater Breath: 30
Sword Damage: 0 (10 + stone sword)
Bow Damage: 0
Bow Shoot Force: 0
Gun Power: 0
Magic Damage: 0
Walk Speed: 0
Fly Speed: 0
Dig Speed: 0
Stat points: 5
"No… it can't be! How is this possible? The I.P.B. should have transported me to another world, not… whatever this is. And these stats— I recognize it. It looks just like that game I used to play as an alternative to that famous sandbox game called Minecraft. What was it called again? Wasn't it… Block Story?"
"Holy sh*t!" Gael gasped, his voice trembling with a mix of shock and dread as the realization slammed into him.
(I've played this game before… and with what I can remember is that it had that insane plot twist—the one where the Wizard is actually the Dragon Lord. A tyrant who seeks to conquer the world, commanding dragons to burn everything in their path.)
He turned his gaze toward the Wizard, a chill crawling down his spine.
Under his breath, barely more than a whisper, he muttered, "His path."
While Gael was still struggling to digest this new revelation, a sudden sound snapped him out of his spiraling thoughts. Another pebble worm burst from the ground, drawn toward him by the loud outburst he'd just made.
It had managed to bite his heel.
Pain lanced up his leg, sharp and sudden, nearly making him lose his footing. He couldn't spare even a heartbeat to look—the worm was already lunging again. All he felt was the hot sting of punctures tearing through his skin and the gritty scrape of its rocky mandibles, leaving his heel burning with every step he took as he fought to stay alive.
"F*ck another one!" He yelled drawing more to come his way
It attacked again—its head snapping back before driving forward, the creature's entire body coiling tight as it gathered the power for an explosive, rapid lunge.
Gael, still riding the surge of adrenaline, managed to slip out of the creature's lunge by throwing himself backward. As the pebble worm surfaced, jaws snapping at empty air, he spotted a brief opening. He tightened his grip on the stone sword, raised it high, and swung with every ounce of strength he had.
The blade came down in a clean arc—
shhk!
It landed just off-center, slicing into the right side of the worm's rocky flesh. The creature shrieked, a jagged, vibrating screech that echoed through the clearing, and thrashed violently for a moment.
Not wasting a second, Gael surged forward. Planting his uninjured foot, he brought it down hard on the creature's head, crushing it against the soil and ending its life instantly.
"I did not expect that you would be so kind to a monster," the Grey Wizard remarked.
"Kind? I crushed that thing's skull," Gael said, genuinely confused.
The old man shook his head. "You noticed its pain and suffering when your sword strike didn't kill it. You chose to end it swiftly. That is compassion."
Gael lowered his gaze, still catching his breath. "You're right… I don't like seeing people or animals suffer. If they have to go, I want it to be quick."
His eyes drifted to the pebble worm's corpse, its small body already still.
"Peaceful," he murmured.
"Oh really?" the Grey Wizard said, genuinely intrigued.
"There has to be a reason or a purpose for things like this to exist," Gael replied quietly. "And it's not entirely their fault for attacking me. They have to live too. From what I remember of its appearance—before I crushed it—it didn't have any eyes. So it must rely on ground vibrations or sound to detect prey. It probably thought I was one."
"Why do you care?" the Grey Wizard asked, brows raised.
Gael exhaled softly. "To me, this isn't a monster. It's an animal doing what it must to survive. That's just how nature works."
His eyes drifted toward the bright, silvery full moon hanging overhead. "Looks like this world is no different after all."
Then, something flickered in his peripheral vision—a faint green glow.
2 EXP
He snorted lightly. "Or… maybe it's not the same. But honestly? I don't care if it's not real. It's real enough for me." His gaze slowly shifting to the wizard "I have bigger problems to think about"
"It seems like trouble is coming there's two more of them coming" the Grey Wizard said calmly like it's a normal nightly stroll.
Gael focused and mentally tapped the level icon
— STATS —
Exp: 03/20
Level: 1
Health: 94
Mana: 100
Underwater Breath: 30
Sword Damage: 0 (10 + stone sword)
Bow Damage: 0
Bow Shoot Force: 0
Gun Power: 0
Magic Damage: 0
Walk Speed: 0
Fly Speed: 0
Dig Speed: 0
Stat points: 5
(Okay… five stat points. I need to spend these carefully. This system isn't like those cliché games where you can dump everything into Strength and instantly become overpowered. Here, damage is split into four different stats—Sword, Bow, Gun, and Magic. I don't have a bow, a gun, or any magic spells, so those three are useless for now.)
(That leaves Sword Damage. I'll put two points into that. As for the remaining three… Health is absolutely the safest option. The rest of the stats won't help much.)
Exp: 03/20
Level: 1
Health: 124/130
Mana: 100
Underwater Breath: 30
Sword Damage: 2 (10 + stone sword)
Bow Damage: 0
Bow Shoot Force: 0
Gun Power: 0
Magic Damage: 0
Walk Speed: 0
Fly Speed: 0
Dig Speed: 0
Stat points: 0
"I should be fine… right?" Gael muttered to himself. "I am definitely not getting Murphy-lawed just because I said that… right?"