TIRS 16

CHAPTER 16:

 Awakening Complete

“Ansel…lot? How did you get here…?”

“Hm? Didn’t Her Highness call me? You were using that power, so I thought you summoned me.”

He tilted his head and pointed to the pendant hanging around my chest, then narrowed his eyes.

“Ah, no, I did call you!”

I quickly responded. I needed Anselot’s help desperately.

“I need a bug, like last time. We have to stop Hezen…!”

“Oh, that crazy player guy?”

Anselot gestured toward the newly revived Hezen.

“Yeah. But there’s no way to deviate from the system’s scenario…”

“Ah, so that’s what’s been giving you trouble, huh, Your Highness?”

Anselot chuckled, sounding utterly unconcerned.

“Do you have a good plan?”

“Unfortunately, there’s no good plan for this situation.”

His next words momentarily disappointed me.

“But… I don’t have to fuss about finding a good plan.”

“…?”

“You still look confused. I’m a bug, remember?”

Anselot snapped his fingers in the air.

A nameplate appeared above his head:

Prince of the Luenhart Kingdom – Anselot

It was the first time I’d ever seen a nameplate above him.

Then, he snapped his fingers again.

The letters above his head shimmered and transformed into red code.

System Bug: no.000000000001

“…!”

I gasped, staring at the red text floating over him.

The blue nameplates that floated over people’s heads were like ID cards — they showed names, occupations, traits.

‘But that’s not a name…’

There was no time to dwell on the mystery of Anselot’s identity.

Hezen came charging at us.

“Yaaaaaah!”

Clang—!

Hezen’s sword clashed with the spear that appeared in Anselot’s hand.

“You… what are you?! What happened to your name?! A system bug?! What the hell is that?!”

Hezen stared at Anselot’s nameplate in horror.

“Take a guess.”

Anselot smirked and gripped his spear tighter.

Hezen’s sword was knocked away and clattered to the ground.

[SYSTEM] Bug Detected!

[SYSTEM] Bug Detected!

Late warning sounds accompanied the reappearance of a system window.

[SYSTEM] System adjustment in progress due to sudden bug!

[SYSTEM] System adjustment in progress due to sudden bug!

[SYSTEM] System adjusting due to sudden bu—▤▥◐♧♨◈▨

The system window glitched and flickered—

[SYSTEM] System shut down due to critical bug.

Pop! And it vanished.

“…!”

Hezen’s eyes went wide.

But the system window was already gone.

“N-No… No way…!”

His face went pale with panic.

While he was frozen in confusion—

Thwack—!

<Lv.49 Bald Kraken> smacked Hezen again.

Hezen collapsed with a cough of blood, unable to even scream.

And he didn’t get up again.

“…”

I stared at his unmoving body.

Hezen was dead. Really, truly dead…

“SKREEEEEEE!”

No time to breathe a sigh of relief. The <Lv.49 Bald Kraken> let out an eerie scream.

I looked at the grotesque giant octopus with despair.

‘If even Hezen couldn’t defeat that monster, then who can?’

If we couldn’t get rid of that thing, everyone here — including me — would end up like Hezen.

“S-Sir Hezen…!”

“Sir Hezen was taken down by the Bald Kraken!”

“W-What do we do now…?!”

The knights panicked and scattered.

They hadn’t lifted a finger when Hezen attacked me, but now that he was dead, they were falling apart. It was… strange.

Then—

The glitched system window reappeared.

System reboot in progress… [08.27%/100.00%]

Even with Hezen gone, the system hadn’t disappeared.

System reboot in progress… [12.92%/100.00%]
System reboot in progress… [36.51%/100.00%]

Click.

Next to me, I heard Anselot snap his fingers.

The blue nameplate above his head faded away.

“What did you just do?”

“Camouflage. Wouldn’t want them realizing I’m a bug.”

System reboot in progress… [64.28%/100.00%]
System reboot in progress… [78.33%/100.00%]

“Camouflage? But I don’t see anything above your head…”

“Well, that’s because you’re neither a player nor a system pawn. Earlier, I just showed it to you.”

System reboot in progress… [99.07%/100.00%]
System reboot in progress… [100.00%/100.00%]

[SYSTEM] System reboot complete.

As we talked, the system fully rebooted.

Fanfare! Ba-bam-ba-ba-baaaam!

The sound effects were so flashy, they felt like a victory parade.

[Oh nooo~ Sorry I’m late, Player! (｡ŏ﹏ŏ) Those damn bugs caused chaos, and the whole relay system went nuts! ヽ( ຶ▮ ຶ)ﾉ!!!
But don’t worry! (｢･ω･)｢~~ I got the handover info just fine!]

A loud green window appeared before my eyes, more obnoxious than before. And then—

“Huh…?”

A shower of star-like effects rained from the sky.

[SYSTEM] Quest completed!

‘???’

My eyes flew wide open.

[Ta-da-da-daaa!!! (๑˃̶͈̀∇˂̶͈́)و⁾⁾˚ Congratulations on your Awakening!!! ♪♪(oᐛ)o～♪♪ We knew we could count on you―!!]*

“What?! But Hezen just died a minute ago…!”

I frantically looked around.

Had Hezen come back to life?

No. That’s impossible… right? After all that?

Then… does that mean I’m doomed to die by Hezen after all…?

I grabbed the sword Hezen had dropped and readied myself — just in case he jumped out again.

[Main Quest: Death of a Lover] Complete!

▷Clear Conditions
– Death of a Lover [✓]
– 100+ Civilians [✓]
▶Reward: [Awakening — Warrior of Light]

‘…Huh?’

Something felt off.

The quest had two clear conditions: Death of a Lover and 100+ Civilians.

And I knew at least one of those — the lover’s death — wasn’t fulfilled.

Because I was still alive!

‘Wait… hold on…’

I looked up above my head.

“…!”

My eyes widened.

The pink nameplate that had always floated above me was gone.

There had only ever been one person without a nameplate — the bug, Anselot…

‘Wait. No way… does that mean I…?’

[SYSTEM] Beginning your awakening as the quest reward!

Flash!

A soft light surrounded me and flowed into the sword in my hand.

[SYSTEM] Awakening complete!
[SYSTEM] Title “Radiant Swordmaster” acquired! Golden nameplate activated.
[SYSTEM] Gained 1000 EXP.
[SYSTEM] Level up! (Lv.11)
[SYSTEM] Acquired 10 Skill Points.
[SYSTEM] Awakening reward sent to mailbox.
[SYSTEM] Tutorial Scenario <Awakening — Death of a Lover> complete!

[Oops! Your reproductive system was restored as part of the Awakening perks… wait, it’s fine?? ( •︠ˍ•︡ ƪ )
Anyway, damn those bug bastards(°ㅂ° ╬) They keep breaking everything! >:( ]

‘What… is the system talking to me now?’

[Please rest up until the main scenario arrives! ദ്ദി˶ˊᵕˋ˵)]

[SYSTEM] Time remaining until main scenario: 3 days 00 hours 00 minutes

Floating above my head was a golden nameplate I’d never seen before.

【Radiant Swordmaster】 Lv.11 Ruibel Azester

Just like Hezen’s — it showed a title and level. So that meant…

“Whoa, congratulations on awakening, Your Highness.”

Anselot clapped with a flat tone.

“What is happening?! Why did I become a player?!”

I grabbed Anselot and shouted.

A golden nameplate, an interface only players could see, and the system’s bizarre behavior…

No doubt about it.

The system recognized me as a player.

I had become a player!

“Not the time for questions. You’ve got a giant octopus to slay.”

Anselot replied nonchalantly.

“Oh, right! The Bald Kraken!”

I turned back to the <Lv.49 Bald Kraken>, then tilted my head.

“Wait. I’m a player now… so why is it ignoring me and going after that guy?”

The Kraken was charging not at me, but at the vice-captain of the palace guard, Ervine.

“Because you’re weak, duh.”

True. Even awakened, I was nowhere near Hezen’s strength, especially without his gear…

‘Wait! What happened to Hezen’s items?’

Nervously, I opened my inventory.

‘Holy— Jackpot!’

Hezen’s items were there.

One stood out:

Item
A potion made by a shady apothecary. Grants temporary Lv.99 invincibility.
Only works on awakened players.

‘Hezen couldn’t use this because he wasn’t awakened!’

It was a one-use item, but there was no time to hesitate.

I drank the potion.

[SYSTEM] Your level temporarily increases. (Level: 99)
[SYSTEM] You are now in an invincible state.

The Kraken, mid-charge toward Ervine, froze and turned toward me. Our eyes locked.

Shudder!

The Kraken stiffened and began backing away.

“What the…?”

[SYSTEM] The level difference between you and <Lv.49 Bald Kraken> exceeds 20.
[SYSTEM] <Lv.49 Bald Kraken> has entered a state of fear due to your overwhelming strength.

The system kindly answered my question.

“Monsters have pretty good survival instincts, huh.”

Sword glowing red, I dashed at the Kraken.

My body felt weightless.

Leaping through the air, I watched as the Kraken raised its massive tentacles to shield its smooth head.

And then, I slammed my sword down hard.

“GWAEEEHHHH!”

The <Lv.49 Bald Kraken> let out a scream and split clean in two.