A chill wind blew past, and Rhodes, dressed only in a thin shirt and shorts, shivered.
"Hiss... damn it... what's going on? Why am I here?" Rhodes said, hunching his body.
What the hell!
He had just gotten off work and returned home, happily starting a game of heroes of might and magic III, planning to crush the novice computer.
He had just randomly selected the Necropolis faction, and in the blink of an eye, after a dizzying spin, he was transported here!
Rhodes observed his surroundings; the nearby houses were extremely dilapidated, with broken windows and drafts everywhere, and the architectural style looked somewhat similar to medieval Europe.
There was a trace of dry, dark red blood on the sheets, and the furniture in the room was in disarray, suggesting the owner had left in a great hurry.
The occasional roar of monsters from outside filled Rhodes with dread.
"Is this... transmigration?" Rhodes rubbed his still sore neck, whispering as he looked at the desolate scene outside the house.
What terrible luck!
He was an honest, hard-working office drone; although his monthly salary was only a thousand dollars, his life was relatively comfortable.
He truly never thought about transmigration, and he definitely didn't want it! Especially not transmigrating to a spooky place that looked wrong immediately.
Rhodes carefully leaned out and looked through the window, then saw an utterly terrifying sight.
A walking rotting corpse, with only bits of decaying flesh clinging to its body, several large holes in its bald head, yellowish-green brain matter oozing from its broken eye sockets, holding a broken machete and bearing a hideous expression, was walking by.
Beside it were several Skeleton Warriors, just bone frames holding weapons made of broken iron scraps.
"Holy crap!" Rhodes quickly crouched down and hid under the bed, afraid to move.
Transmigrated into the apocalypse? Doesn't seem like it! Since when do apocalyptic zombies carry weapons and turn into skeletons that run around?
This is clearly somewhat magical; could it be a world of magic and fantasy?
Might and Magic III?!
The surrounding architecture resembles the Middle Ages!
If I had to transmigrate, at least send me to a nice place, or somewhere slightly normal!
Why transmigrate to this hellhole?
Those things outside are terrifying enough; this is absolutely not Earth!
Could it be that I am going to meet my end here today?
Just then, a virtual screen suddenly appeared in front of Rhodes, with a relatively large area in the center dynamically displaying the hero's full-body portrait.
The portrait was his own image, and the panel also showed 'Hero Status and Attributes,' as well as an equipment slot.
"Is this the hero interface from heroes of might and magic III?" Rhodes exclaimed in shock, looking at the panel before him.
Level and Experience: Below the portrait, the hero's level and current experience/experience required for the next level were displayed.
Hero Name: Rhodes, Class: Necromancer.
Primary Attributes: Attack 1: (Sword icon).
Defense 0: (Shield icon).
Spellpower 2: (Clenched fist icon). (Affects magic damage and maximum mana.)
Knowledge 2: (Open book icon). (Affects maximum mana.)
Hero Specialty: Eagle Eye, Necromancy
Skill List: Basic Eagle Eye, Basic Necromancy.
A total of two skills, the standard setup for a Necropolis hero.
Below that were 7 troop slots.
Rhodes checked his starting forces: 25 Skeleton Soldier, 10 Zombies, and 4 Ghosts.
This troop count was relatively lucky; at least he didn't start with just one stack.
Three stacks were the maximum.
So, is this his cheat? It doesn't seem like a disastrous start; it's barely acceptable!
However, the hero's specialty was slightly frustrating: Eagle Eye, one of the most useless skills in the game, if not the most useless.
This ability allows the player to "steal" magic from enemy heroes.
While it sounds powerful, it is actually useless, the kind of skill you wouldn't even want on a secondary hero.
This is because you can only successfully learn the spell if you win the battle; if you lose, it's a wasted effort.
Furthermore, it can only learn Level 1 and 2 spells; Level 3 and 4 spells require the corresponding Wisdom Spell to learn.
But learning magic in the wilderness, at a Witch Hut, or a Magic Shrine, or in other cities is far more effective.
This skill pointlessly occupies one of the 8 precious skill slots.
It's truly frustrating to randomly roll this skill for the hero!
It's utterly trash.
As for Necromancy, that is a true divine skill, though it is also standard for Necropolis heroes.
Rhodes quickly opened the spellbook panel.
There was only one spell listed: Magic Divine Arrow, the most basic and relatively useful offensive spell in the early game of heroes of might and magic III.
If he could use magic or summon his troops, he would be much safer.
Rhodes concentrated, and a Zombie from the troop slot was summoned, along with a Skeleton Soldier and a Ghost.
There was a skeleton frame holding an iron sword, a limping Zombie with only one hand holding a cleaver, and a Ghost wrapped in tattered grey cloth.
This appearance definitely belonged to the heroes of might and magic iii unit types.
This meant all his remaining troops could be summoned.
Rhodes tried commanding these three big guys.
Left, right, swing sword—no problem.
If he summoned all his troops, dealing with the creature outside shouldn't be an issue.
Rhodes felt a little more confident.
Since he had the hero panel, did that mean the Necropolis town he started the game with was also brought along?
Rhodes' eyes landed on the Town interface.
Opening the Town interface, Rhodes saw a gloomy, ancient castle, which was the main town view for the Necropolis in heroes of might and magic iii.
The town had four default buildings: Town Hall, Tavern, evil shrine, and Fort.
Clicking on the Necropolis Town interface, a square build list appeared before Rhodes.
City Hall, Capitol, Marketplace, Blacksmith, Shipyard, Council, Necromancy Amplifier, skeleton transformation field, Graveyard, Dark Veil, and Level 1 Mage Guild.
The seven unit buildings were also present: evil shrine (Skeleton Soldier), Graveyard (Walking Corpse/Zombies), Cursed Temple (Ghosts/Spectres), Vampire Crypt (Vampire), Mausoleum (Lich), Black Tower (Dread Knight), and Dragon Vault (Bone Dragon)!
Before starting the game, since he just wanted to relax, he hadn't chosen the highest difficulty of 200%, but rather 160% difficulty.
Therefore, he currently possessed 10,000 gold, 4 units each of the rare resources Sulfur, Crystal, Gems, and Mercury, and 10 units each of the basic resources Wood and Ore.
Having starting funds was decent.
With this Necropolis castle, he at least had security in this unknown world.
He could now consider himself a transmigrator with a cheat system.
Clicking on the build page, Rhodes immediately chose to upgrade the Town Hall to City Hall; he wasn't worried about the other buildings yet.
This building was crucial, as once completed, it would provide the town with 1,000 units of gold resource daily.