The Systems Challenge - Chapter 422: Elmo’s Phantoms

Ethan's head throbbed violently as he opened his eyes, his vision hazy and unfocused. A dull ringing filled his ears, drowning out his thoughts.“What’s happening…?” he thought, his mind sluggish, struggling to catch up with reality. One moment, he was asleep—or at least, he thought he was—and the next, searing pain forced him awake.His vision swam, shapes blurring together in a disorienting mess. But then, muffled noises filtered through the haze—frantic, panicked sounds. Someone was trying to scream, their voice smothered, choked by something.A cold shiver ran down his spine.As his sight gradually sharpened, Ethan's breath hitched.He was on all fours, looming over someone. A girl.Her body twisted and writhed beneath him, ropes biting into her wrists and ankles. Her mouth was gagged, muffling her cries. Her wide brown eyes, brimming with fear and fury, glared up at him.Ethan's body locked in place, his blood running cold.“What the…?” His mind reeled, thoughts slamming into each other in chaotic disarray. “What kind of bizarre dream is this?”Panic clawed at his chest. His breath came in ragged, uneven gasps as he scrambled backward, only to realize his limbs felt sluggish, uncooperative, like they didn’t belong to him.“Is this… is this some kind of twisted fantasy I never knew I had?” A sickening thought slithered through his mind, making his stomach churn.The girl's frantic squirming slowed for a moment, her gaze flickering with confusion as she took in his expression—his trembling hands, his wide, horrified eyes. But the fear returned just as quickly. She struggled harder, her body arching, her muffled screams rising in pitch.Ethan wanted to speak, to say something, anything, but before he could force out a word, a glowing blue window materialized before his eyes.His breath caught.A translucent, hovering screen?“What…?”Lines of glowing text scrolled across its surface.---[System Activated…][Host Confirmed.][Simulating Previous Data…]Ethan awakens in a mysterious world, shackled by a curse that clouds his judgment and drives him toward choices he never wished to make. Burdened by guilt and responsibility, he must navigate the fallout of his actions while unraveling the truth behind the curse—and his place in this enigmatic new reality.

Amakawa Haruto died before he’d the chance to reunite with his childhood friend who disappeared five years ago. Rio, a young boy living in the slums seeks revenge for his mother who was murdered in cold blood in front of him when he was only five years of age.

There exists the earth many knows of and there exists an alternate world. Two people, each with their own backgrounds and values. For odd reasons, the memories and personality of Haruto, one who should have died resurrects in Rio’s body. As the two are confused over their memories and personality fusing together, Rio (Haruto) decides to live in this new world.

Along with Haruto’s memories, Rio awakens an unknown but special power. If he’s to use it, it looks as if he can live a better life, but before that, Rio encountered a kidnapping which results in involving the two princesses of the Bertam Kingdom.

After saving the princesses, Rio is given a scholarship to attend the Royal Academy, a school for the rich and powerful. His background being a poor orphan who once lived in the slums, the school full of nobles was rather a detestable place to stay at.

At the heart of a wish lies an attempt at completion, a human desire to become our true and final selves. Wishes are fuelled by regrets and are bound eternally to the past, serving as approximations of what once was. We all experience regret and nostalgia, leading us to make wishes and find despair, but can we become our true selves despite this all?That's where the story of a girl who struggles to control her desires begins...Two souls sharing the same body and memory are living in Kyoto 2031. Tang-Ji Shizukesa, a girl who's grown up in her previous life with a hardcore passion for gaming, is now a bookworm in her new life who has no interest in video games. Along with her, Kazami and Hoyeon, the three childhood friends who separated 7 years ago due to an accident, have now been reunited again in a VRMMORPG game known as Dusk Protocol. The game has a unique combat system known as “Leere,” a physical manifestation of an individual soul that can be conjured into deadly weapons.As Tang-Ji navigates this virtual world, she confronts the echoes of her past and the dissonance between her former self and her present identity. How will she cope with the rediscovery of a life she thought she left behind? How will Kazami and Hoyeon react to the new Tang-Ji? In a world where reality is malleable and death is just a click of a button away, the boundaries between past and present blur, forcing everyone to grapple with the truth of who they truly are.Disclaimer: This novel contains explicit language, violence, racism, and sexual scenes. There are also scenes that deal with various traumas, from physical to emotional to mental.(THE CHARACTERS’ CIRCUMSTANCES , TRAITS, AND BELIEFS IN THIS NOVEL ARE ALL BASED ON A TRUE STORY.)

They stole his future and crippled his body. Now, he’ll rewrite the history in blood.Damon was on the verge of greatness—first in line to claim Bloodreign, the legendary artifact said to grant unmatched power in Earth Online, the world’s first fully immersive VR game. But his best friend betrayed him, stealing the item, and leaving Damon broken, crippled and nearly deleted. Kicked from the guild, mocked by the community, and trapped in a weak, crippled body, he was forgotten until his last desperate attempt somehow brought him back in time to the day when it all began.Now Damon was back and he knew what he was going after.A hidden lineage. A cursed class. A bloodline sealed since the dawn of the multiverse.Last time he played fair. Last time he trusted. This time he would hunt and devour. With years of knowledge of every exploit, every secret quest, every bugged mechanic, he will climb straight to the top. Armed with the blood of the first Vampire King, he was an apex predator now who stood at the very top.However, unbeknownst to him, a catastrophe lurks in the shadows. Damon finds out that the game itself might not be as simple as it seemed and the entire future of the humanity might depend on this game.