"Oh fuck..."
This is the shortest and clearest sentence to summarize the situation we are in. Standing in front of me is a 4-meter tall woman, looking ambiguous but definitely dangerous, and I have probably left the worst first impression in the universe by groping a certain part of her just a moment ago.
Although my brain was working with a survival instinct mixed with fear, the words coming out of my mouth were definitely not synchronized with my brain.
"L-Look, ma'am! I... I was just checking the wall! I mean, soft walls... Umm.. I... I never intended to harass you! I-I just thought it was moss! I love moss! Moss is my friend!"
The massive figure continued to lean over me without saying a single word. Since her shadow completely swallowed me and I had no other choice, I squeezed my eyes shut and began to wait for the inevitable end.
One second passes. Five seconds. Ten seconds...
Wait, am I still alive? Shouldn't she be crushing me, tearing me apart, or at least splattering me against the wall like a bug with her hand? Why is nothing happening?
I open one eye in fear. There is no one in front of me.
"Huh?"
I lowered my gaze and saw her. That 4-meter tall golden-haired woman... is lying on the ground.
"Is this a joke?"
Cautiously, as if approaching a bomb that could explode at any moment, I slowly moved closer. I'm not sure if she is still breathing. I extended my index finger and poked her shoulder lightly.
"Um... Ma'am? Did you die, perhaps?"
No answer. Only the heavy silence inside the cave and the smell of moss. When I didn't get a response, I put my hands under her shoulder and started pushing with all my strength.
"Hnnnngggghhhh!"
My feet are lifting off the ground, my face is turning beet red, but the woman doesn't budge an inch. What do you eat to be this heavy!? Come on... Be a little... helpful... HNNGG!
Finally, with a superhuman grunt and an effort that defied the laws of physics, I managed to roll the massive body onto its side.
"..."
I couldn't see it clearly at first because there was no light, but I definitely hadn't imagined something like this... Her white skin is covered in deep cuts, burn marks, and bruises. Some wounds are so deep they go down to the bone. Blood has formed dark stains on her black clothes.
If I hadn't spent my life in that damn lab getting cut and sliced every day, I'm sure I would have emptied my stomach right here. I don't think a normal human could look at this.
I looked at the unconscious woman's wounded face. Should I not use the Soul Bond? Connecting to someone who is about to die doesn't seem like a good idea. Am I wrong? If she dies as soon as I use my talent, I'll be stuck in a vegetative state until I die.
"..."
"..."
Sighing and hating my decision, I placed my hand on her forehead and tried to imagine using the talent. Good thing it worked on the first try; if I had to say it out loud to make it work, I'm sure I would have kicked the bucket from embarrassment before then.
[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]
Talent Triggered: Soul Bond
Creating connection with Target Soul...
%21...
%63...
%99...
%100...
Soul Bond Complete.
Target's Personal System WindowEstablished.
New Talent Acquired via Soul Bond! (x2)
I whistled involuntarily as the text scrolled past my eyes. So I can see her stats too. Let's see what my future wife is like. I hope she has some cooking skills.
[USER STATUS]
Name: Stella Aurei Draconis (SEALED)
Race: Dragon-Titan Hybrid
Level: 2556 - IMMORTAL
[BASIC STATS]
Strength: 761.447 > 2492 (Sealed/Injured)
Speed: 615.079 > 2138 (Sealed/Injured)
Endurance: 825.252 > 3047 (Sealed/Injured)
Intelligence: 792.725 > 2637 (Sealed/Injured)
Mana: 2.505.496 > 0 (Drained)
[TALENTS]
1. Light Magic (Pink)
2. Queen's Authority (Pink)
3. Titan-Dragon Heart / Broken (Pink)
4. Soul Bond (New!) (Pink)
5. Dragon Eyes (Crimson)
6. Titan Skin (Crimson)
7. Basic Element Master (Crimson)
8. Weapon Master (Crimson)
9. Dragon Scales (Gold)
10. Queen's Grace (Gold)
11. Unbreakable Wings (Gold)
12. Multi-Mind (Gold)
13. Eidetic Memory (Purple)
14. Transformation Magic (Purple)
15. Shrink (Purple)
"..."
I blink my eyes. I look again. I blink again.
"AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!"
I retreated in terror, screaming a scream that echoed inside the cave. Did I... did I just forcibly spiritually bond with a being like this? And our first contact was... That thing I just groped and poked...
"She's going to kill me, absolutely kill me. She'll incinerate me the moment she wakes up. She won't even leave ash behind, she'll separate me into my atoms! Wait a second... A Dragon-Titan hybrid named Stella. No... It can't be... You couldn't have done this, right Bamboo Sister? No... you can't be that heartless, that sadistic..."
"I should have understood when you said someone familiar! How many women have I seen in my life outside the lab?! Selfish woman! How could you bring me to a place like this?! You Bamboo-brained #₺&@!#£&!"
***
Hello everyone. While the current Reiner is busy conveying his "polite" messages to Goddess Gaia, I, your narrator—the handsomer and smarter Reiner—will pause the story to give you a brief introduction to our wonderful game, Throne of Tyrants (TOT).
Behold the damn Souls-like game released after 2018, specifically designed to ruin players' mental health. Famous for its terrifying difficulty, brutal boss fights, and death traps springing from every corner, I, your narrator Reiner Hart, tried this wonderful game where we fight against leaders of many races combining territory conquest strategy with the Souls-like genre, just to find a "challenge" during the most boring period of my life. And after trying it, I am a fan who has buried more than 2000 hours into it. Unfortunately, no matter how wonderful a game is, not everyone may harbor the same admiration. For instance, I must say that the day my beautiful childhood crush Angelina dismantled my computer still appears in my nightmares occasionally... Sob.
Anyway, the intro guide is over. You can go back to watching my pathetic state.
***
"WHY IS A SOULS-LIKE GAME BOSS LYING IN FRONT OF ME?! BAMBU #₺&£#@!, COME OUT AND EXPLAIN THIS TO ME RIGHT NOW!"
After conveying my polite messages to the gods for a long time while punching the ground, I finally relax. I do nothing but examine Stella in that same cross-legged pose, resting my chin on my hand.
"But she doesn't look much like the one in the game... If I hadn't seen her stats, I would never have recognized her."
In the game, Stella is not a race leader. She appears as a DLC Boss in that creepy "Graveyard" zone filled with Titan and Dragon bones, which you descend into via a terrifying elevator from a dark pit at the edge of the map. And the biggest reason I didn't recognize her is that her in-game form is literally a...
Lizard.
Yes, you heard right: A lizard. Unlike other dragons, Stella has arms and legs in a humanoid structure. Although she is a huge, armored, terrifying Titan-Dragon hybrid, because her wings are broken, she is basically no different from a very big lizard.
As for her power; she easily enters the top 3 in difficulty ranking. Because of her mindless, savage attack style, she showed me the "YOU DIED" text exactly 127 times.
"So what am I going to do now?"
I take a deep sigh. I feel like I'm sighing too much today... Anyway, let me at least look at the talents I obtained. If nothing good comes out of them, I guess accepting death in advance would be best.
[USER STATUS]
Name: Reiner Hart
Race: Human
Level: 1 - MORTAL
Points: 0
[BASIC STATS]
Strength: 10
Speed: 10
Endurance: 10
Intelligence: 10
Mana: 10
[TALENTS]
1. Sacrifice (Pink)
2. Soul Bond (Pink)
3. Smile (Crimson)
4. Tough Guy (New!) (Purple)
5. Gentle Husband (New!) (Blue)
"Gentle Husband? Tough Guy? Are you kidding me, system?" I couldn't help but make a comment as I reached out my finger to inspect the Talent.
Gentle Husband: The closer you are to the person you are bound to via Soul Bond, the stronger the healing and status effect reduction effect you provide to them.
... F-Finally! There is something to help! I think my eyes are tearing up. My potential wife won't die!!! She'll still kill me when she wakes up, but hey, at least I won't die alone! It's all thanks to you, Gaia Sister! Forgive this servant of yours!!
With the joy of learning something good after a long time, I check my other talent.
Tough Guy (Description: What can I do if my wife is too strong?): Allows you to use 1% of the Basic Stats and a heavily weakened version of one selected Talent from the person you are bound to via Soul Bond for 30 minutes.
(Cooldown: 3 Days.)
The moment I read the description, I fell to my knees, closed my eyes, clasped my hands together, and couldn't help but pray to my one and only goddess.
"Thank you, my gentle goddess! You didn't leave me helpless in this hell! I always believed in you! Continue watching over this gentle servant of yours!"
"..."