A translucent screen hovered in front of Edric, its faint glow illuminating the dimly lit alley. His breath hitched as he stared at the text that seemed to shift and pulse like a living thing. The symbols were written in an unfamiliar script, yet somehow, he could understand them.

  [Tutorial Complete.]

  [Quest Reward: Beginner’s Guide to Survival.]

  Before Edric could even comprehend the meaning of this, the text flickered, replaced by a new message.

  [Welcome, Edric. The System is now bound. Tap to continue.]

  His hands trembled as he hesitantly reached for the screen. The moment his fingers brushed against it, the screen dissolved into thin air.

  “What? Where did it go?” Edric muttered, glancing around nervously.

  Just as the words left his lips, the screen reappeared, now bearing another message.

  [Memory sync process can be initiated. Click OK to begin memory transfer.]

  “Memory transfer?” he whispered,his voice confused . If it meant gaining answers,any answers—he’d take the risk. Without hesitation, Edric pressed the glowing OK button.

  [Beginning memory synchronization.]

  The words sent a shiver down his spine, and in the next instant, a surge of energy engulfed him. It felt as if he was teleported to an incinerator

  “What the hell is this?” he gasped as the energy pulsed through him.

  The screen’s progress bar appeared, starting at 0%. As the bar began to crawl forward, Edric’s head throbbed, a dull ache quickly turning into a searing pain.

  “You’re a disgrace.” said an older man.

  “Son, I hope—”

  Unfamiliar voices surged into his mind, drowning out his thoughts.

  “Make it stop! Ahh, my head!” Edric cried out, pressing his hands to his ears, but the voices continued to echo mercilessly.

  Flashes of images began to flood his consciousness. A sprawling mansion guarded by stern-faced soldiers—his home? No, it felt familiar yet alien, as if the memories belonged to someone else. A bedroom decorated with opulence, where a woman with kind eyes whispered, “Live a happy life.” Then, chaos. Screams. Fire. A man with a white beard, his face etched with sorrow, shouting, “Run!”

  Edric’s breath hitched. “Are these... my memories? Or am I seeing someone else’s life?” The thought terrified him. What if he wasn’t just in a new world—what if he was in someone else’s body?

  Faces he didn’t recognize appeared before him, vivid and haunting. Among them, a scarred man with a white beard and a commanding presence seemed to return again and again.

  “Son, go live a happy life,” whispered a gentle voice—a beautiful woman, her face warm with affection.

  BOOM.

  The image twisted into chaos. Screams. Blood. A raging inferno consuming everything.

  Edric fell to his knees, tears streaming down his face. He didn’t understand why he was crying or who these people were, but his heart ached as though mourning a great loss.

  “Stop… please,” he begged, his voice barely audible.

  The progress bar edged closer to completion:

  [99%... 100%.]

  [Memory synchronization complete.]

  With a final glance at the screen, Edric’s vision blurred. His body gave in to exhaustion, and he collapsed face-first onto the cold, hard ground.

  Clack. Clack. Clack.

  The sound of approaching footsteps echoed through the alley. A shadowy figure loomed over him, their features obscured.

  “A poor lad,” a voice muttered, rough yet tinged with pity. “What happened to him to be in such a mess?”

  The figure crouched, draping a heavy cloak over Edric’s unconscious form. With a practiced ease, they lifted him as if carrying a bag of grain and disappeared into the night

  By the time Edric had fully came to his senses he found himself in a dimly lit room.The warm scent of roasted meat and baked bread was the first thing he noticed when he opened his eyes.

  Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

  His head felt like it was pounded by a hammer and his body felt numb but the ache felt dull by the warm blanket that had wrapped him.Slowly he pushed himself up and blinked at his surroundings.

  The room was modest but clean, wooden beams supporting the ceiling and a single lantern on the table illuminating the room. He was cushioned on a wooden bench near a corner of what appeared to be a back room. He could hear muffled laughter and clinking glasses beyond the door.

  “Where…” Edric muttered as he tried to piece together the information from fragments of images that surged his head. The voices,the alley way- it all came running back to him. His chest tightened as he recalled the surge of images and emotions and the fleeting voice of his mother.

  Before he could dwell into the details , the muffled sound grow louder and the door creaked open.

  “Ah, finally awake ar ya” The voice was deep and rough with a hint of warmth.

  Edric turned to see a burly man with a thick beard streaked gray, his broad shoulders barley fitting the door frame. He wore an apron over a plain shirt and trousers nd his hands calloused from years of labor.

  “You were cold as a corpse in that alley,” The man said , walking with a bowl of hot steaming meat stew. “Figured you either had too much to drink or you got beaten up by something. Anyway leaving you out there to die didn;t sit right with me”

  Edric’s body still ached, every muscle protesting as he shifted on the bench. But the warmth of the room and the man’s calm presence eased the tension in his chest.”Thank you–”

  “Save it” The man placed the bowl on the counter “Eat first and talk later. You look like you haven't had a proper meal in several days”

  Edric hesitated and wild thoughts flowed in his head but eventually his stomach took the decision. He reached for the bowl and began eating, the warmth of the bowl spread throughout his body with each bit. The stew was simple - some meat, vegetable, spices and a hearty broth - but it tasted like the best stew he had in his life.

  The man watched with an amused expression, he took a chair and sat leaned on the table. “You look like someone who doesn’t belong here. What’s your story boy?”

  Edric paused mid bite, unsure on how to respond. Should he tell everything or only a half truth. “I don’t know myself, I just woke up and everything seems wrong”.

  The man grunted, scratching his head. “Amnesia ah? So your dont remember anything” He smirked but there was no malice in his voice.

  “Only the fact that my name is Edric – and that’s all” Edric replied in a calm tone.

  “Edric hmm not a bad name. Name’s Garrick by the way. This here’s my tavern. You can count yourself lucky that I found you. This place was going to close for the night.”

  “Thank you so much Garrick” Edric said earnestly “I will find a way to repay you somehow.”

  Garrick waved his hand dismissively “ Don’t worry about. This place was needing some spare hands”

  “Alright , I will do my best”

  “Don't sweat it, but don’t go dying in my tavern; bad for business.” Garrick chuckled as he said it and went outside to finish work.

  Edric chuckled to himself . For the first time after waking up he found someone warm and nice to talk to.

  Later, the tavern quieted down as patrons left, their laughter faded for the night. Garrick returned to the room carrying a bottle of ale and two mugs. He sets them on the table and begins pouring it into the mugs. Then offered a mug to Edric

  “Go on. Won’t kill ya,” Garrick said with a grin.

  Edric took the mug hesitantly and sipped . The bitter liquor burned his throat but seemed to calm his nerves.

  “So you really don’t remember anything?” Garrick asked his toned was softer now.

  Edric shook head “Not much, just fragments. Images of places I don't know ,strange voices i can’t place”

  Garrick studied him for a moment “ Well isn’t the first time someone wandered into my tavern. But be careful this place isn’t all welcoming to newcomers as me”

  “Ya I know” Edric replied as he remembers the morning events.

  Garrick chuckled , he can tell Edric got in some mess. As both of them were calmly drinking. Edrick tried to make sense of his memories, His mind shifted to earth-The truck, the screeching , the scream and the impact- flashes of his old life came running back to him. He had been an engineer who designed various machines. But his passion was on old history, war and martial arts classes.

  “Edric?” Garrick's voice snapped him back to reality

  “Sorry” Edric muttered “Just got stuck deep in thought”.

  As the night wore on, Garrick showed Edric to a small room upstairs, sparingly furnished but comfortable enough.”Get some rest” he said “Your mind works better after some much needed rest”

  Edric thanked him and Garrick closed the door and left. Edric sat on the edge of the bed, the events of the morning began swirling in his mind. Then he thought of something.

  “Open Status” Edric muttered after remembering some novels he read.

  [Skill Window available: Tap to open]

  The screen appeared out of thin air. He reached out hesitantly to tap it.

  [Skill]

  Marksmanship level 3.

  Hand to Hand combat level 5.

  Intellect Level 8.

  Item available: [Click to get an item]

  “This is like a game” Edric muttered trying to make sense of this but before that his eyes focused on the click to get an item. He reaches out and clicks and immediately a flash of light occurs in front of him and the light seems to keep condensing into an object.

  THUD

  An Object drops on Edric’s palms. Edric stared at the object,his breath catching his throat.”A pistol? no wait a flintlock” he whispered, running his fingers across the metal. It was a sleek combination of modern design and a flintlock.Edric rotated the pistol to look at all the details.Upon closer inspection, there were strange runes across the wood

  “How is this even possible?” he muttered . The system had given him a weapon from his old world.

  Maybe I am not completely helpless after all?. He thought, gripping the gun titley, his eyes carefully observing the engraving and putting it under his shirt.