Chapter 2 — "Welcome to the Worst Tutorial Ever Designed"
Cold.
That was the first thing Vee noticed.
Not the poetic kind of cold.
Not the "refreshing morning breeze" cold.
This was the kind of cold that aggressively informed your body that it was no longer in a comfortable universe.
He opened his eyes.
Then immediately regretted it.
"…Why is everything green and threatening?"
Trees stretched endlessly around him.
Not normal trees.
These ones looked like they had seen things.
Bad things.
The air was heavy, damp, and smelled faintly like something that had given up on being alive.
Vee slowly sat up.
His body felt… different.
Lighter.
Stronger.
And slightly like it had been reassembled by an intern.
He looked down at his hands.
"…Okay," he muttered. "New body. Slight upgrade. Still no user manual."
A faint chime echoed in his head.
Then—
A voice spoke.
Calm.
Smooth.
And deeply disrespectful.
[WELCOME TO THE DEATH MATRIX SYSTEM]
Vee froze.
"…Oh no."
[USER DETECTED: VEE]
"…Yes, unfortunately."
[INITIALIZING PERSONAL ASSISTANT AI…]
Vee squinted.
"Personal assistant? Finally. Someone normal."
A pause.
Then—
[HELLO, HOST. I AM YOUR SYSTEM AI.]
Vee nodded.
"Great. Be helpful."
[I WILL TRY MY BEST TO MINIMIZE YOUR EXPECTATIONS.]
Silence.
"…Excuse me?"
[YOU ARE CURRENTLY IN AN UNKNOWN DEATH ZONE FOREST. SURVIVAL PROBABILITY: LOW.]
Vee raised a hand.
"Okay, rude. But continue."
[GOOD NEWS: YOU ARE ALIVE.]
"…That's the good news?"
[BAD NEWS: THIS WAS NOT INTENDED.]
Vee blinked slowly.
"…I already don't like you."
📊 SYSTEM INTERFACE ACTIVATED
Suddenly, a glowing blue screen appeared in front of him.
Floating text.
Neatly organized.
Painfully judgmental.
[STATUS WINDOW]
NAME: Vee
AGE: 17
SPECIES: Confused Human
STATUS: Recently Respawned (Questionably Legal)
ATTRIBUTES
STRENGTH: 8
AGILITY: 11
ENDURANCE: 9
INTELLIGENCE: 14
LUCK: -3
MENTAL STABILITY: "Debatable"
Vee stared.
"…Why is my luck negative?"
[OBSERVATION: YOU WERE BORN.]
"…Fair point."
SPECIAL TRAITS
DEATH RESISTANCE: ACTIVE (UNSTABLE)
REVENANT CORE: INACTIVE (AWAITING FIRST DEATH)
Vee blinked.
"…Excuse me?"
[YOU MUST DIE ONCE TO UNLOCK FULL SYSTEM CAPABILITIES.]
Vee slowly raised his head.
"…So you're telling me the tutorial requires me to fail first?"
[CORRECT.]
"…That's the dumbest game design I've ever heard."
[AND YET YOU ARE STILL PLAYING IT.]
Vee pointed at the air.
"Don't start with me, Microsoft spirit."
🌲 SURVIVAL BEGINS
A distant rustle came from the forest.
Vee froze.
"…Did you hear that?"
[YES.]
"…That sounded big."
[YES.]
"…Dangerous?"
[ALSO YES.]
"…You're very unhelpful."
[THANK YOU.]
Vee slowly stood up.
"Okay. Plan."
He looked around.
"There's trees. That's good. Trees mean… oxygen? Probably."
Another rustle.
Closer.
He stiffened.
"…Okay. New plan."
He started walking.
"Plan B: not dying immediately."
💀 FIRST ENCOUNTER
The ground shook.
Not loudly.
But enough to make Vee rethink his life choices.
"…I don't like that sound."
[UPDATE: YOU SHOULD NOT LIKE THAT SOUND.]
A shadow moved between the trees.
Massive.
Heavy.
Wrong.
Then—
It stepped forward.
A creature unlike anything on Earth.
Four glowing eyes.
Black fur that looked like liquid shadow.
Teeth like broken knives.
It exhaled.
The forest went silent.
Vee stared at it.
"…Okay."
Pause.
"…I have questions."
The beast growled.
Vee nodded.
"Yeah. That seems fair."
⚔️ SYSTEM PANIC MODE
[WARNING: HOST IS ABOUT TO DIE]
Vee pointed at the air.
"Don't state it like that! Encourage me or something!"
[ENCOURAGEMENT: YOU ARE DOING YOUR BEST. IT IS NOT ENOUGH.]
"…Wow."
The creature lunged.
Fast.
Too fast.
Vee didn't move in time—
💀 DEATH #1
Everything went white.
Then black.
Then nothing.
Silence.
Then—
[DEATH REGISTERED]
Vee's voice echoed faintly.
"…That was instant."
🔁 REVIVAL SYSTEM
[REVENANT SHIFT ACTIVATING]
[USER WILL RESPAWN SHORTLY]
"…Do I get a refund?"
[NO.]
Air returned.
Pain followed.
Vee gasped as he collapsed back onto the ground.
"…Okay. That hurt more than expected."
[DEATH ANALYSIS COMPLETE]
[USER PERFORMANCE: EMBARRASSING]
Vee coughed.
"Don't roast me while I'm recovering."
📊 POST-DEATH UPDATE
The system screen reappeared.
NEW DATA UNLOCKED
COMBAT EXPERIENCE: +1
FEAR RESPONSE: IMPROVED
SURVIVAL INSTINCT: SLIGHTLY ACTIVATED
Vee blinked.
"…That's it?"
[YES.]
"…I died for +1 experience?"
[CORRECT.]
Vee slowly lay back on the ground.
"…This game is trash."
⚡ SECOND CHANCE
A second roar echoed.
The Nightmaw was still there.
Still hungry.
Still very committed to ruining his day.
Vee slowly sat up again.
"…Okay."
He cracked his neck.
"…So I respawn, learn nothing, and get chased again."
He looked at the system window.
"…Do I at least get stronger?"
[YES.]
"…Immediately?"
[NO.]
"…Then what's the point?!"
[MOTIVATION.]
"…That's not motivating."
The beast charged again.
Vee stood still.
"…Okay. New strategy."
Pause.
"…Don't die worse this time."
⚔️
As the creature closed in—
Vee suddenly felt it.
Something inside him shifting.
A faint pulse.
Like something had finally started waking up.
The system chimed again.
[REVENANT CORE: 1% ACTIVATION]
Vee smirked faintly.
"…Oh."
He rolled his shoulders.
"…So this is how leveling works."
The Nightmaw lunged—
And this time—
Vee moved.
TO BE CONTINUED…