Undertale, adalah sebuah game bergenre VRMMORPG yang sangat di gemari para gamers. Seorang pemain peringkat tinggi menerima kontrak dari developer game tersebut untuk membuat demonstrasi dari fungsi baru yang akan di luncurkan oleh developer game.

Sebagai pemimpin Guild Top Circle, Andika memiliki kewajiban untuk memimpin anggotanya untuk melaksanakan kontrak yang telah dia setujui dengan developer game.

Pada awalnya, semuanya berjalan dengan sempurna tanpa hambatan yang signifikan. Namun sebuah insiden yang tidak terduga terjadi ketika Andika akan menerima hadiah dari misi tersebut. Andika secara tiba-tiba dipindahkan ke dunia lain seorang diri, tanpa teman-temannya yang mengikutinya.

The line felt like an eternity. Well, it's not like it matters because I'm just a soul right now, not experiencing any pain or whatsoever. But still, you get my point.

I don't know how I died, but I'm dead, and that's for sure. I don't know what place this is, but another thing I'm sure about is that time doesn't exist here. Or maybe, as a science believer, I can say that a millennium here is equivalent to about a millisecond in the living dimension. In short, it came to the point where you can practically ignore it.

It came to the point where the flow of time was significantly insignificant here.

I also don't know why I'm here. I mean, okay, I'm dead, I'm just a measly soul, but can't I just go straight to paradise or chaos, wherever may my soul belong?


Putting those worries aside, I feel like we aren't moving forward at all. Are the humans way too much in number that even in the afterlife, it's way too crowded? This thought can only get a sigh from anyone.

Come on, people. Control, we need to control ourselves! Stop that plok plok and have another hobby, demmit!


Okay, I need to calm down. Seriously, even in my afterlife, I'm still as short-tempered as ever in useless things.


Finally, my turn came. The door was nothing impressive, and can only make one person at a time pass. The guard wore something like a robe. No, it was more like a hoodie or something, but he just looked like a guard. Like a typical frail-looking guy you know you'll never want to mess with.


"Job... UpDown" is all the guard at the door said.


"I'm sorry, what?"


Job and UpDown? What does that mean?


"Job... UpDown," he repeated. It made me more confused, but I can see he had no intention of saying anything other than that.

But job or UpDown... Does UpDown mean THE two places where souls go?

I asked the guard about it, and he nodded. Well, as much as I want to choose the UpDown, my gut was telling me that I should choose the former, even though I have no clue what that is.


"Job." I decisively said. The guard nodded once more, and he touched my left shoulder, making me glow like a sun.


"Uhmm... what's happening?"

Without answering my question, the guard smiled and nodded once again. He then said, "Choose one." before my eyes were covered with light.


As the light engulfed my whole being, I thought this is either the worst or best decision I've ever made in my life. I mean, in my death. Or afterlife? This is so embarrassing, I wish I can kill myself. Wait, I'm dead.

Seriously, what the heck? Anyway, you get my point.
~~
When my vision cleared, a screen was floating in front of me. It was a list of every single job there is in the world. 

As I scrolled down, there were many odd jobs such as dog food taster, and professional sleeper listed. For unknown reasons, they were already crossed out.

Popular jobs such as engineering, nursing, and teaching were also crossed out. As dumb as I am, I clicked on "Physician" only to receive an obvious notice.

"THIS JOB IS TAKEN."

Well, it was worth the try.

I clicked the 'jump to the top' button at the lower right corner on the screen. This time, I read everything thoroughly and noticed that the list started with Abattoir something then ended with Zoologist.

"Is Zumba Instructing not a job?" I thought out loud. The screen suddenly lit up, making me involuntarily close my eyes. When it returned to normal, there was already 'Zumba Instructor' listed at the very bottom.

Uhmm... okay?

It was quite a weird experience but I let it pass since I have yet to choose a job. I immediately looked for my dream job, writing, but almost every writing job was taken except for one.

Writer. 

It made me wonder why those who were before me chose the other writing jobs but I immediately was able to answer my question. Being a 'writer' was way too general, you never know what you will need to write next.

I mean, wouldn't it be more exciting not to know what'll happen next? Or is it just me? 

Probably just me. Anyway, I clicked 'Writer'. 

A notice showed up again, "YOU HAVE CHOSEN A JOB."

After that, the screen disappeared in front of my eyes, replaced by a computer. I was now inside a cubicle, sitting on a swivel chair. Normally, I would've asked myself what the heck was happening but for obvious reasons, I felt completely normal, not even a bit surprised.

Right in front of me was a paper with organizational markers and a pile of sticky notes. On my right was a half-whiteboard and half-bulletin board equipped with pins and whiteboard markers. To my right was a blank wall, probably for the post-its. 

This was how I came to have this job - the start of my career as a writer.

Well then, what should be my first title?

We all live, we all die. But have you ever wondered what really happens after we die?

I thought my end would be either at those two places but a dimension where time does not exist, existed.

In here, we all have one job. One can clean anything, another can teach anything. And mine?

Well, I can write anything. Even things I never knew in my whole lifetime, I can write about it.

I never knew what love is. I never knew what it feels to be loved or to love.

Will a pen really be enough to know? Should I write about the thing called "love"?

Is love that shallow?

I don't think so.

~~

Join 'Writer' and the fam as they uncover their life's biggest secret. This is a bit of a 'slice of life' genre (I think?) although the setting is on the afterlife.

Anyway, hoping for your support! (*ehem* PowerStones *ehem*)

For a moment, Hao Ren imagined his everyday life would be undone by the arrival of his two special guests; his idyllic and simple life, gone with the wind. Images of him fighting off combat police or superheroes replayed in his mind again and again.

However, after a few days, things remained the same. Nothing seemed to have changed. 

The arrival of the two ladies did zilch in changing his routine.

Lily's daily routine mainly consisted of sleeping, eating, more eating, even more eating, getting into a brawl with Vivian, and writing stuff—the lass was quite an accomplished columnist after all. Basically, her life was simple yet colorful and she seemed to be enjoying it up to that point.

As for Vivian, well, she had a more exciting tale compared to Lily. Sleeping, eating, fighting with Lily, job hunting, getting fired, job hunting again and getting fired again…ad infinitum. To be frank, Hao Ren could only sigh at her streak of bad luck. Three new jobs in the span of three days, imagine that. 

Yet, Hao Ren could not help but be amazed by her resourcefulness. Getting a job that quickly in such an unfamiliar place was no easy feat. That said, the longest she managed to hold a job thus far was about three hours.

It was a shame that Hao Ren did not have the chance to witness her bad luck unfold. Only towards the end of the day, when she came home looking worse than a sack of potatoes that he knew she screwed up somewhere. He thought he could maybe peek in at her workplace sometime, just to see how she would end up getting fired.

Living with the two ladies up until that point was about as normal as one could get. Sure, they had their quirks but they were not outrageous enough to rattle Hao Ren. 

One would think that a vampire like Vivian would be out bloodletting every now and then, or a werewolf like Lily would be howling at the moon and be out chasing rabbits. Yet, neither of this actually happened. Quite the opposite, they actually went on about their lives as how you would expect normal human would. It seemed to be their way of life since they were young.

In a sense, Hao Ren was both disappointed and grateful. At least he did not have to contend with any combat police or superheroes.

Although the effects of the weird dream had somewhat dissipated, it still left Hao Ren with goosebumps whenever he recalled it. There was nothing much he could do but wait for the return of the weird Goddess. At the same time, he also slowly got used to the routines of his new guests at home.

Lily was already up and about in the morning. She was busy choosing her outfit of the day. This lass may have seemed a little dumb at times but she was pretty much what you would expect of a usual girl. Maybe except when Rollie decided to pounce on her. She would end up on all fours in a fright.

"Going out?"  Hao Ren asked out of curiosity as he saw her milling about.

"Yep! I got a patient to see today," Lily replied as she tidied her dress. "Things seem to be going on pretty nicely in this town. I’ve been doin' good in my writings, rental's easy peasy and I got my first patient too…" 

Vivian who was tidying up the guest hall, perked up when she heard Lily. "You? A doctor?!"

Hao Ren realized that Vivian did not know that Lily was actually working. She was not around when Lily first introduced herself. Aside from butting heads every now and then, both of them never actually took the time to know each other. Hao Ren thought it was a good time to clarify things. "Lily's a freelance veterinarian." 

Lily suddenly turned towards Vivian. She stuck her chest out and with gusto said, "I'm a certified professional ya know?" She grinned. "Been so for about 10 years now. I'm also a bona fide columnist. I’ve been writtin' from the time of the Republic*. You know Zhou Shuren? I'm a good friend of his! Heheh!" 

Hao Ren was slouching on his chair and reading some magazines at that time. The shock he received from Lily's proclamation made him topple with a stunned look. "What?!"

"I'm a professional?" Lily blinked at the sight of his reaction. "When I was living in the midst of human society, writing was my rice bowl... I only became a vet some years back. I have actually done some treatment before ya know?' 

"I'm not talking about that!" Hao Ren said. All this while, he thought Lily was not the sharpest tool in the shed and did not pay her much attention. "You said, from the time of the Republic...?"

"Yep, I did write a lot then. Did the people of the Republic not read?" Lily titled her head. "I've been alive for... quite some time already. Don't tell me you’ve forgotten all about that?" 

Hao Ren was stuck in a stupor. He only came to realize how different these special beings were compared to humans. Even for the dumb werewolf... her past was quite a revelation!

True, he actually heard Lily and Vivian talk about their past before but he never paid much attention to them as their stories sounded more like fairy tales more often than not. It was only then, did he actually realize the vast gap between their generations.

Seeing how stunned Hao Ren was at Lily's past, Vivian, a very much older being was naturally unhappy about it. She forcefully dragged Lily to the side and sneered, "Listen now, you furball. Have you actually fought with Acherus* before, or kicked Woday* and Kaiser* into a moat? Have you kicked the Flame Emperor into... wait, I haven't done that yet. And oh! The Yellow Emperor, what a man!" 

Hao Ren sighed deeply. The conversation between the two supernatural beings was clearly much more engaging than any book in the world.

Lily did not even blink when she heard Vivian's achievements. "So what? Did fighting with Acherus earn you money? Did kicking Woday and Kaiser into the moat fill your pockets?" 

"Why not?! I charged for that!" 

"Then where's your sack of gold?"

"…. lets talk about something else." 

Hao Ren was now having cold feet. The conversation that took place that day clearly could not be disclosed anywhere else. The world would be in a riot at such a revelation. Vivian may have acted like a potato sack but she was definitely no slouch during her heyday. If the tales of their past were true, what else had the history of human civilization been neglecting?

Vivian's Achilles heel was clearly her luck with money or anything related to it. Even Lily, the idiot picked up on it and quite happily reveled in the schadenfreude. Vivian knew she had no second word when it came to that so, she just quietly went about cleaning the house.

Hao Ren was actually surprised that Vivian actually asked him for that. At least she was aware of her bad luck and did the housework to shave off part of the food and rental expenses.

Her attitude was another pleasant surprise for Hao Ren. He did have his doubts about letting her do such menial jobs but Vivian was adamant. Well, it was not cheap to have a live-in maid let alone, such a pretty one. Thus, it was a win-win situation for Hao Ren.

Lily was by then, out and about. Hao Ren did not even have the chance to ask her how she got a veterinarian gig in a place foreign to her. However, he could pretty much picture Lily squatting by the local strays and chatting with them, almost kin-like. With such talents, it was no wonder why she was such a spectacular vet.

After all was said and done, Hao Ren proceeded to get back to reading his crumpled magazine when his mobile phone rang.

Hao Ren felt that something was evidently off. When he grabbed the device, the only thing that appeared on screen was a series of numbers.

"00000012345."

The loony Goddess finally decided to show up again.




As a person who is down-to-earth as well as a good Samaritan, Hao Ren desires to live the rest of his life as a benevolent landlord. Stumbling into a curious yet mysterious lady, he began his journey of “collecting” abnormal and supernatural tenants. 
His life only became more chaotic when he receives a labor contract from “God”. Discover the many races, myths and worlds that lie beyond what humans define as normal! This bizzare fantasy full of fun is sure to bring you on a crazy rollercoaster of emotions!

Hey bros and people who don't like being called bros. 
So. 
Today I woke up. Checked my email. And apparently I got a contract invitation by Webnovel. I didn't even know that was a thing, I though we gotta apply for that shit ah. 

Anyway, I don't know if they say this to all their invited contract people but they said they read my work and praised my story as 'filled with imagination, has a fresh and interesting plot and well-crafted characters that speak deeply about your passion and talent for creation. Our content editors strongly wish to accompany you through your writing career and plan a beautiful future for your work.' And I'm like..

Fuck man you guys read my shit? Even the reverse shota thing? 

Embarrassed (/ω＼)

Anyway I'm like low key hoping it's copy and pasted praise because ugh it's like the parents you didn't know about finding your fanfiction and then praising you for how well Sasuke ***** Naruto in the ***, which... I totally didn't read when I was younger (¬_¬)

Anyway, anyway, what do you guys think about the contract? First off I'll get gift donations which is cool, I'm always looking at other stories being like damn I want a balloon from my readers too. But the profits you get is apparently 50:50 with the website. Which I mean, I sort of get since they'll help advertise etc.

Same with privilege ah. 50:50. Also premium chapters I may not get any cash at all since apparently it depends whether the coins are bought with real money? (And I know I don't do that personally. I grind out my daily free chapter tickets like a cheapskate lol).

However they do promise more exposure and will even offer to translate the story into different languages which sounds really good.  I'm a slut for praise. And international praise sounds reaaaal nice. And even though I love the donations you guys are giving me... I love the idea of forcing you to pay mor- lol jokes I'm kidding. But it would be nice to generate a bit more stable cash flow and as someone who wants to write more on the future (guys I'm at the point of my life where I just graduated and am looking for jobs that I don't even like and not qualified for anyway and it's terrifying) it may be good for me ah. It'll at least get me a foot in the door and such. 

I'm gonna go ask them some further questions now about this in a day or twos time? I can't think up many questions (what they expect for weekly chapters etc?) but if you think I should ask something just paragraph comment here. Even though I feel quite flattered I don't like jumping in blind- which I always do tbh and it never ends up well lol.

Also tell me your opinions ah! I wrote this to ask you readers and veteran Webnovel users to help me (ﾉ^ヮ^)ﾉ*:・ﾟ✧ 
Should I consider the contract or should I just keep to my kofi? Ugh I'm also such a lazy caterpillar can I even keep up with the contract's demands? Would having a contracted story look good if I want to pursue professional writing possibly? 
I tried looking at the forum but there was all sorts of things and I still don't know what's up. QAQ I'm no good at long term thinking.

Jia Hyson finds he has hit the jackpot after he dies. 

He's got a system! He's a transmigrator! So cool! 

System: "Please help us fix the plot." 

Jia Hyson: "Of course!" 

System: "Firstly there are too many love interests." 

Jia Hyson: "Okay." 

System: "The main character is too annoying." 

Jia Hyson: "Um." 

System: "Needs more world building." 

Jia Hyson: "..."  

Oi, is he fixing the plot or is he rewriting the whole damn thing?!

(This is bl/yaoi/danmei btw)

Hello, to anyone who still cares enough to read this. 

Firstly, I would like to express my gratitude to the people who gave me feedback on my novel and supported me during my short three-week run. For that, I am eternally grateful. 

I kind of disappeared out of the blue without saying anything because I couldn't take it anymore. It was stupid of me to do, but here I will be trying to list my reasons and I hope you can understand.

I began to write for WebNovel after seeing their advertisement for up and coming authors to make a living off of writing. I hate myself for being so naive. Looking back on it now, it was like falling for any other scam on the internet. Stuff like "Doctor's hate him because ... " and "Sign up to win ... " Etc Etc. 

As a twenty-three-year-old university student working two jobs, the only time I could fit to write was during the hours of 12 am and 5 am. It was literally killing me to publish chapters as I began to fall asleep in class, and my performance at work got a bit sloppy. 

But for the most part, I enjoyed writing the chapters because I loved to write. I loved to publish a chapter and stalk it until someone posted a reply. That moment when the first person said something meant the world to me. Because it meant someone cared that my story existed, and for this reason, I tried to push myself to put out more and more chapters. 

Things started to go wrong though, as most things do. Webnovel's feedback system is the most depressing thing. It actively tracked how many people had my novel in their collection and how many total views the novel had. However, the only number that matter was the collections. 

The thing was, these numbers were always bugged and never gave me a clear indication as to the scale of my readers. Aside from the usual comments from return readers, the number didn't mean anything. It was like running in one spot, over and over without any clear indication to if I was making any progress. It's horrible when the work you put in seems to yield basically no results. 

I was feeling euphoric watching my collections pass 100. You guys don't know the scale to my happiness. I basically woke up my whole household in celebration.

Then, in the author's discord channel, they confirmed that everything on the interface was bugged. Yep, talk about a slap in the face. 

To summarize ... I was and still am a hopeful about making a career out of my writing. But doing it on Webnovel is ill-advised. Unless that is if you are writing a fan-fiction or another cliche 'system' novel. In that case, I believe you'll find much success. 

Also, if you guys want to know the biggest reason for my departure from WN; in the search function, look up 'Da Contract'. It's the actual web novel contract. Even if you guys don't know the lingo its fine. Just take a look through and you'll understand my frustrations. 

The staff never really cared about us authors either. They seldom gave out prizing for contests and were hush-hush about even attaining a contract. But reading through it ... this thing is a slave contract. I kid you not. Anyone who is desperate enough to sign, I give you my condolences. But it's completely and utterly unbefitting of a professional "employer-producer" relationship. 

And the fact that tried to keep the contract under wraps ... they knew what they were doing.

Thankfully, a fellow author "ink bamboo" was quick to point this out to me. Otherwise, I would possibly be still slaving away here, with no end in sight. I probably would have hung myself if all my stress ended up culminating with being presented with this contract ... 

There are so many things I want to say, but I find myself more and more depressed as I think about it. An entire month of my life down that drain ... it feels bad.

I was told to try my hand with self-publishing on Amazon with Kindle. I believe it's more worth it for me to try there. If people buy my book and like it, at least I can get immediate feedback. If it doesn't work out... well, I suppose it just means I don't have the talent for writing.

Imperious Edge will continue, but not here. Not in this depressing hellscape. 

To my frequent readers, I am sorry, deeply and truly sorry that I have let you down. I can only hope you understand my choices. I often end my chapters with a bow, and to that, I give you my final respectful gesture as I sign off here. 

Perhaps it's asking too much, but I hope you guys would care enough to support me in my endeavours to becoming an amateur author. When I publish my first Volume, I will update this. 

Again, thank you and best wishes to all your future endeavours. May they yield more fruit and success than this. 

Forever yours, 

-Vincent-

WN is crap. They're slave drivers and made me question why I was wasting my time here. I'm sorry, but I just can't sit here and take it.

Mo Ning was surprised as well and he quickly helped him up. She apologized and said, "Sorry, I'm not used to being so close to people. That was a reflex. Are you alright? Should I take you to the hospital?"
The young man massaged the back of his waist and gave her a grin.
"You've got moves, but that's a funny quirk you have there. We are all men, there's no need to be shy."
He stood up straight and smiled warmly. "I'm fine, there is no need for a hospital visit. After all, I am a strong and healthy man."
Mo Ning coughed. "That's great."
Eighteen years of being a woman made it almost impossible for her to switch into "guy" mode.
Just then, another student in the room whistled.
He looked handsome and well-dressed. There was a naive edge about his demeanour, but that did not hurt his appeal at all.
Unlike the other two roommates' daily dressing, he wore a casual shirt and pants that were clearly expensive.
He must come from a wealthy or aristocratic family.
"Mo Ning, right? You couldn't be a secret agent from some mercenary organization, would you?"
The others may not realize it, but he did.
Mo Ning's attack earlier was swift and precise. It was a reflex borne out of professional training.
Mo Ning frowned but he did not get the chance to respond.
"What kind of nonsense is that? Do you think this is a spy movie? He is what we call a well-rounded person!"
The female senior student retorted promptly.
"..."
The two young men scowled in return.
The third occupant was a quiet and solitary young man.
He went about his business silently during the entire exchange with their new roommate.
When the female senior finally left, Mo Ning began to unpack her things.
She worked quickly and was soon done with making up the bed and arranging her things into their respective places.
The happy young man was called Luo Bei and was a chatty one.
It did not take long for her to learn more about the others through him.
The handsome roommate who commented earlier was a genius called Huo Junyu.
He was not even seventeen years old but he had taken two and a half years off from school before enrolling in the university.
The final roommate, the solitary guy, was called Gao Mo.
He was a tall and quiet person who liked to avoid attention and minded his own business.
As a guy, Mo Ning encountered an obvious problem on her first day in university.
The bathroom.
"Ning, do you want to use the washroom?" Lu Bei invited her to come along and even called her by her first name.
"..." Mo Ning went silent for a long while and tried to mask her awkwardness. "Go ahead, I don't need to use it yet."
"Okay."
Mo Ning had thought that disguising as a man was not too difficult, but she realized then that there were many inconveniences.
She would have to use a secluded bathroom and take showers late at night. The latter was also done as fast as she could manage.
Moreover, she had to deal with all the flirty looks from the girls wherever she went and that made her uncomfortable.
Hours passed and soon night fell.
Mo Ning sat in front of her study desk and typed rapidly on her keyboard.
Luo Bai woke up from his sleep and approached her. He saw lines of complicated code on the screen and exclaimed in awe, "Mo Ning, you can do coding?"
Mo Ning replied without looking away from the screen, "It's just a part time stint. I can earn some pocket money by writing simple software."
As a self-taught programmer, she would surf popular forums and websites to look for coding jobs. Occasionally, she would provide technical assistance to larger companies.


She was the little chief secretary at Huo Yunting’s office, who carried out jobs both on the table and "under" the table. 
She was also his obedient wife at night, fulfilling his needs.
It was a repentance, a redemption to her sin, Lu Zhaoyang was swallowing all these humiliations as heaven forbade, her mother was the other woman in this ugly affair with the wealthy Huo family, and eventually shattered the entire family, droving Huo’s mother insane.
It was probably the fairest, also the most horrible bargain of Lu’s life as Huo Yunting raided their house one day.
“You would compensate with your body. On daily basis.” The offer was made and she could not say no. 
“If you think you aren’t having enough fun… Well, perhaps we could play the divorce game, then we could have another marriage, making the same vow with you always as my bride. I can do this, again and again. Again, and again. Isn’t that sweet, honey?”
 
Was it heart-moving, or simply tear-moving?
ISN’T IT OBVIOUS?
Huo Yunting, he’s a devil, both body and soul a devil!
Join the Fifty Thunders of Huo Yunting! 
As you see dominance occurs in the classic office romance taken place in modern world with a hint of quirky comedy and heart-wrenching episodes!

Sylos had decided to get a head start on his quest for citizenship. He had twelve lunar months to accrue ten thousand points in order to become a citizen of Vanerlos. If he wanted Eurymian citizenship, he would have to gain sixty thousand points. If one got at least five thousand, the permit would be extended for a year. This extension could be repeated only once but ensured that those with a minimum of five thousand points were guaranteed citizenship. Quite a few applicants had employed the strategy of extending their permit.

There were many ways to obtain points. The higher the degree of difficulty, the more points one could get. The easiest way was to report daily at the Office for one point. At the end of the lunar year, a bonus point would be given for each day one had reported if one had reported every day. One could thus win five hundred and four points extra. Another way, was to take up a trade or profession. There were dozens of options. One was free to seek someone with at least a senior position and ask to be taken under their wing. If that mentor was an expert or master, they would have higher requirements for which applicants they'd accept.

Once the mentor admitted the applicant as an initiate, they would receive a weekly stipend and a hundred points would be given. Two hundred points would be given for becoming an apprentice, three hundred for becoming an assistant and four hundred for a chief assistant. Five hundred points were the reward for acquiring the title of the title of junior associate. One could also get eight hundred points with an advancement to senior associate rank, but that was very difficult to achieve in one year. Each promotion would be accompanied by an increase in salary and rank-related tasks would pay off more points and coins. 

There were significant differences between the types of professions as well. They were divided into three tiers: lower, middle and upper. The jobs that rewarded the most points were also more difficult to progress in. Those ranked at the top were the most specialized and included herbalist, pharmacist, doctor, machinist, and alchemist. Nevertheless, the highest paying careers were in the middle-tier because the demand was greater. 

Furthermore, middle-tiered jobs like hunter, guard, and soldier provided the greatest advantage for receiving missions. Becoming an assistant in a lower-tier profession within twelve months, was easily attainable to most, but the points you would gain were insufficient to even extend the permit. One would have to either be very productive or combine it with other jobs and tasks. Most applicants had opted for middle-tiered jobs and many of them obtained local citizenship after twelve months. Obtaining Eurymian citizenship had been deemed an impossible goal by the vast majority, although some tried their hand at it, none succeeded.

The occupation one chose could effectively be combined with joining a guild. A trader joining the merchant guild would be synergistic, for example. It would facilitate job completion, provide a professional network and bonus points for each fulfilled task. Nonetheless, it was up to the aspiring citizen make their choice. Some took risks and elected to be strategic and creative with their job and guild selection. Joining several guilds or combining different jobs could also exponentially raise the points one could gain. However, those who could effectively do that would have little reason to seek citizenship in Vanerlos since their skills ensured their worth in most kingdoms.

Thirdly, there were job and guild independent tasks, quests and missions. Tasks denoted local activities that benefited the town. Unlisted acts could also be rewarded, but the standard of evaluation was not explained. More importantly, good behaviour, i.e. respecting the law, and passing the civics exams were both requisites. Failing one of those would guarantee an immediate expulsion. The latter's reward was two hundred points while the firsts was fifty points. Quests pertained to ventures outside the locality of Vanerlos. And missions could only be given by someone with both some status of nobility and political power. Moreover, they would only be given to applicants who had already proven their competence.  

The ranking of those three activities was done by stars. It went from easiest, one star, to hardest, five stars. The local tasks didn't exceed three stars, however. Some quests could take one outside of Vanerlos for days., Taking them up implied one was willing to give up on the five hundred and four bonus points for reporting daily. One had to truly be intelligent every step of the way and make smart and strategic decisions. Nevertheless, those who were earnest, talented and hardworking people generally obtained citizenship. Since Lord Vanyor the XII had introduced this system centuries ago, thousands of applicants had become faithful and fervent citizens of Vanerlos. A number of them were incorporated into the Hunter's Collective and became loyal subjects of the Loze family. However, some aspired to a comfortable and peaceful life after working hard for naturalisation. They usually changed professions and picked less stressful jobs after officially becoming citizens.



Since the exam could be taken freely, Sylos initially wanted to wait a few weeks. Taking it immediately didn't seem like an appropriate move. However, his conversation with Camilla had convinced him otherwise. He then thought of joining the Naturalist Guild which regrouped the top-ranked jobs in Vanerlos and to apply for an apprenticeship with one of its senior mentors, or even masters. He had also selected a few tasks during his late-night reading. 

Sylos arrived at the Citizen's Office a few hours before midday. He recognized Mérias who was posted outside and went up to him. "Greetings, sir Mérias." The guard's eyes widened. "His spirits have recovered?" The guard thought to himself. "Greetings, sir Sylos." He imperceptibly smiled and nodded. The applicant confidently entered the hallway. He continued towards the central room of the ground floor after flashing his permit to some guards. The Office was way livelier than the previous day. It was filled with people, both civilians, clerks, and officials. Some clerks gave Sylos a quick and curious glance. He was greeted by several people and politely exchanged names and brief pleasantries with them.

Sylos went to the front desk and was greeted by a middle-aged secretary. "Good morning. You're an applicant for citizenship?" The man had already heard of the popular foreign candidate but could hide it well. "Yes. Good morning. I was asked to come here at midday by miss Mirella. I came earlier to take the civics exam." The experienced clerk showed no reaction as he replied: "Very well. Please wait for a moment as get someone for you." He proceeded to quietly speak into an ivory horn-shaped object.  

A minute later, miss Mirella entered the central room and motioned Sylos to follow her. Although the Office was now packed, she still effortlessly stood out from the crowd. "Follow me to the first floor, you can take the exam in the classroom there." She calmly said. Sylos was surprised that neither the secretary nor Mirella were asking him to reconsider and take more time to study. There were over thousands of pages of course material! Was this sort of performance within their expectations? 

Few things were known about the kingdom of Eurymia. Very little information seeped through Her borders. Books, like those that Sylos read, could hardly be found elsewhere. Nevertheless, the stories of Eurymia being peaceful and prosperous appeared to be true. "It must be because of many great talents, and not only the King's Seal, that this kingdom has maintained its peace and prosperity." he silently reflected and felt grateful for Camilla's guidance. "No more hiding." He again remembered.

Mirella lead him into a small classroom, picked a seat for him and took out a bundle of papers. She put the papers on his desk and said: "You would normally have three hours, but as your tutorial starts at midday, you'll have to make due with two. Clear?" Her smile contrasted her impartial tone. "Yes." Sylos nodded. She took out a horn, spoke into it and moments later, a guard came in. She went to the door, turned around and smiled: "Good luck, Sylos." As the guard stood watch, Sylos wasted no time and picked up a feather pen. 

There were over a hundred sheets in the exam bundle with a few questions per page. Sylos did not delay and started immediately. Subjects were randomly ordered, some tested information retention, others tested comprehension. He was fascinated by the thoroughness of this examination. There were even psychological and moral questions. Most answers were didn't take more than a few words, some a few sentences. Most of the time would go into reading and comprehending the questions. This was not an issue for Sylos who wrote at a high pace. To the guard, it looked as if he was quickly writing answers without reading the questions. He finished in less than an hour. "Finished?" The guard neutrally asked when he saw Sylos put his pen down. "Yes. I am." Hearing his response, the guard spoke into a horn and Mirella was back within minutes. 

She promptly retrieved the bundle and briefly gazed at Sylos. "If you have nothing else to do, we can start the tutorial immediately." She proposed. "If it isn't inconvenient for you..." He replied to her. "Not at all." She then nodded to the guard and gave him the exam bundle. He nodded back and left the classroom. "You learned everything at night, right? Did you read through the naturalisation chapters as well?" Mirella smoothly asked as if she already knew the answer. "Yes, I read everything." He replied. 

Mirella put her horn next to her ear and appeared to be listening. "Let me get straight to the point. Since you could process all the information, there is no real need to go through with the tutorial. Everything you would need to know was included in the books and documents you received" She started walking around the room as he explained. "I will tell you this, however. The process of admitting citizens is adaptable. Young Lord Vaner and his father have always been adamant about testing each applicant as an individual and adopting the necessary methods to draw out their unique potential. The rules and procedures you read about are thus subject to change. Do you see what I'm getting at?" She cordially asked. 

A light went on in Sylos' head: "This period is not only for testing but also for training?" Mirella smiled brightly. "You could say the testing is the training." She suggested. His eyebrows abruptly rose in shock. "Could it be?!"

Camilla of Roy fortuitously meets a  mysterious boy while patrolling the border of the King's Domain. Their fated meeting marks the beginning of a pivotal turn in the history of The Realm.

Sam's physic used to be normal, he wasn't fit but was neither big nor slim too as he carried heavy boxes as a part time job for three years now. He was also pretty tall from his culminating 190 centimeters (6 feet 3 inches), now that his body shape was upgraded he gave off a strong and manly feeling. He looked at himself in the mirror and a big smile appeared on his face, even his facial feature seemed a bit better now as his jawline was not pronounced.

He tried putting on a tee shirt but the bulging muscles made it tight for him to put it in, he would have to buy a size above from now on. Until his next shopping session he would have to put on some oversized shirts. After finally getting tired of looking at his new body he went to do breakfast and next went to wake Em up.

While they were eating breakfast Sam saw that Em seemed a bit down as she didn't eat very much and her mind seemed elsewhere. 
"What'up Em' ? You seem a bit low, did something happen at school ?"

She looked at him with tearing eyes and replied 
"Next week there is that sport contest at school and everyone will be participating with their dads or moms..."
Of course he understood the meaning behind her words, he felt bad for this little girl. He had grown up with his parents until 3 years ago but she probably didn't even remember their faces as they had died when she was 4 years old. He hugged her and whispered "Don't worry baby, big brother will be here with you ! I'll skip university and come with you."

Em finally flashed a big smile
"Big brother is the best ! I love you !!"
 he wiped her tears and kissed her on the cheek. She ended her breakfast in a very happy mood while watching a cartoon on TV and then was sent to school by Sam.

Today Sam didn't have class but he'd have to go to his part time job, he worked as a mover and had to carry heavy boxes and furniture for a living. He had 4 days free of classes in the week so he worked full time on these days instead of working after class, he had proposed the idea to his boss and his boss didn't even think about it and answered yes. The boss was an old friend of his dad and he took care of the siblings as much as he could after their parents had died. 

Sam was greeted by all his coworkers when he went in the local, he had worked with them for 3 years now and all of them were good friends, after changing into his work clothes, a navy blue overall and old brown boots he went with the rest to wait for the boss to dispatch them on their missions. After a few minutes the boss's secretary came over, she was a  chubby cute girl around the age of Sam. She wasn't only a secretary, she was also the boss's daughter and she was an old friend of Sam, Emma. They had went to the same school from the primary school to the high school but she stopped her studies after high school as she already had a work in her dad's company. "Sam, the boss want to talk with you." She said with a cute smile, when she and Sam were on the road to her dad's office she looked curiously at him and asked "You seem different... did you gain weight recently?" This was exactly what he was wary of, would the people around him realize he had changed from a day to the next ? He didn't mind Em as she was still young and wouldn't mind these details but the rest would definitely think it was weird so he answered "Yeah I've been eating healthy and training a lot lately and I'm finally starting to see the results of my hellish training." With a big smile and she didn't think much of it she just looked a bit more at the changes with a bit of blush on her cheeks...

When Sam got into the office he was greeted by his boss and dad's old friend, Oscar. He had called him uncle Oscar since young as he was very close to his father, way more than his real uncle which he had met only once when he came to their home a few years back.

Uncle Oscar looked at him guiltily and said "Sam take a seat, want a drink ?"
Sam saw that look in his eyes and realized that something happened or was going to happen so he just sat down and answered "I'm fine uncle Oscar, what did you call me for ?"
Uncle Oscar seemed to hesitate and finally launched himself
"I.. I'm sorry Sam. I know your situation but mine isn't that good too, it's a hard decision but I had to take it for the benefit of the company... the company is dismissing a few workers because we can't pay them anymore. We're keeping only a few full time workers."
He didn't need to end his sentence, he wouldn't call Sam to tell him this if he wasn't amongst the dismissed workers.

Even though Sam was ready to head a bad news this one was definitely the worse he could hear at the moment. This work was his only source of income, if he lost it he couldn't even pay his rent. He had to do something but uncle Oscar was closed to any negotiation. Sam left the company dejectedly, as the owner of the company was his uncle he would pay him more than any other place for the same amount of work...

After a while Sam was home lying on the couch and thinking of what he could do now. 
Even after thinking for a long while he couldn't think of a job that could pay him enough, the jobs he was the most qualified to do were physical ones like carrying or moving heavy things, even more since he had gotten the +10 strength points that he didn't even have had time to try.

After thinking about a lot of unconvincing alternatives he was about to give up for the moment when a voice resounded in his head, this voice made him happy just hearing it.
[System awakening - Master please make a choice :
- Level 1 singing skill book.
- Level 1 writing skill book.
The system is nearing the required energy to wake up completely, please be patient master.]

This notification came right on time, Sam was thinking where or who did this heaven sent gift came from when a pop up appeared in front of him. Both skills could help him make money, Sam had heard that people on YouTube made good money if they did enough clicks... if his singing skill were up to par he could make a place for himself on that platform and if there was a level 1 book there was obviously next levels books so he could definitely do well in that domain. He could also write a book and sell it but would a rookie's book sell enough ? And even if he sold enough writing a book wasn't a one day story. For the songs it was easier as he didn't have to sing his own songs but could make covers. Sam hesitated for a bit before clicking on the singing skill book.

Now the question was if a Level 1 book was enough to make him famous, a lvl 1 boxing book was around the same as a black belt taekwondo user. He guessed a lvl 1 book was around the level of a very good amateur or a rookie professional, this was only in the case where all the lvl 1 books gave the same amount of experience and technique. 

Now Sam has to find a cheap recording studio to rent for the shortest time it would take him to record his first song. He went in his room and turned on the old computer, it was an old model from Dell. It took around a minute to completly launch, he first went on YouTube to check other people's cover and to inspire himself, he couldn't do a bad job as it would definitely reduce his view count if the video was of a bad quality. Then he went on the internet browser and checked for the studios not to far and called them to check their prices. Finally he found one, now he needed a camera of a good enough quality but when he checked the prices they ranged from 600€ to exorbitant prices like 3000€. And those were only the amateur materials, he preferred not to check the professional ones. The price was too much but he found a site where he could buy it in many times so the price was divided in 4. He went on and ordered his camera, for the next few days he got the rest ready, he chose the song he wanted to cover and started training his singing.

Sam and his little sister live alone but his life is already hard enough trying to end his studies and give her the best life possible while facing bullies and financial issues. This is when he acquires the choice system which from time to time give him the choice between two skills or attributes.

If someone likes my work and can do me a better cover than the one I did myself for free I’ll take it thankfully haha

2 weeks passed. Aariv was back in Patliputra. He had defeated the Chera and Pandya kingdom. He once again took away all the administrative rights from the royal families and just let them live with some personal guards. They weren't allowed to hire more than 5,000 men.

He was currently writing books. He knew that soon his kidnapped philosophers will arrive and will want to see what they were offered. He buried himself in work and wrote more than a thousand books. He had created a small paper making factory for this purpose. 

He also felt that the city was too cramped for making all the new workshops and factories. Hence he decided to start planning the city out. Also according to the history, the river would change its path in the future, submerging the whole city.

He needed to make cemented riverbanks to stop that from happening.

After writing books about every field that was withing the understanding of the current humans, he put them in a library. The library was quite big and a major part of it was underground. There were separate cabins for people to site and do their work without getting disturbed.

He also finished writing the constitution. Now he needed to promote it to people. Most of the population was illiterate so he needed to use Kautilya's men and people from local administration around the country to announce it to the public on a regular basis.

He hired stonemasons to make big stone edicts in hexagonal shape with their faces having the constitution carved on it. On the top of it was the Mauryan emblem, 4 lions sitting with their backs touching each other and their faces looking in 4 directions. The edicts were 6 feet tall and 4 feet wide. 

He put them in each town center or any other public gathering in the empire. The constitution laid down the framework demarcating fundamental political code, structure, procedures, powers, and duties of government institutions and sets out fundamental rights, directive principles, and the duties of citizens. It also stated the fundamental responsibilities of the elected government.

It promoted JUSTICE, LIBERTY, EQUALITY above all. He also wrote the book of law, It was a comprehensive book intended to cover all substantive aspects of criminal law.

He was going to bring democracy in some years but still he didn't abolish his own powers. He wrote a special case in which if the state fails to fulfill the fundamental duties and has become corrupt then Aariv Maurya has the right to dissolve the government and take things into his own hands and no one can remove this clause from the constitution by any means. He knew that in some years when he disappears from the public eye and starts acting from behind the scenes, the people will forget about this clause. 

He limited the special right to himself as he didn't trust all his descendants to be good people. There was bound to be a rotten apple every once in a while.

This was going smoothly but as more people found out about the constitution, trouble started to come.

Aariv had not mentioned castes or gender in the constitution, he had just used words like 'mankind or humanity'. The people from lower caste were very happy with this. This meant that they would not be treated differently but there existed some people from Brahmin and Kshatriya caste who disagreed with it as it decreased their status and authority.

Hee was sitting with Kautilya, Chandragupta, and Black in the private meeting room.

"What should we do about the possible riots?" Kautilya asked with a tense face.

"I am sure that there are some people who are trying to influence others and start riots. Just arrest them and trial them according to the book of law. We will increase the surveillance and guard patrol. It will probably take some years to let them accept all this." Aariv said.

There was no social media so it was not easy to organize a riot or a protest. He was not going to introduce internet and communication devices to the public till things aren't back to normal.

He left the meeting and looked for Surupa. He was going to give him books to let him study architecture and he was also going to hand him the job of extending the city. The first thing which was going to be made was the huge palace, the palace would not be just the residence of the emperor but also have administrative block, courts and stuff. It was going to an administrative hub.

He found Surupa in the library.

"Your highness, this is unbelievable... all this knowledge and to think that a single person wrote all this," Surupa said. He was overwhelmed by the knowledge Aariv had.

Aariv smiled and sat down on a chair. 

"This is just a small branch of a big tree. I know many more things, but current people cannot digest all that... that aside, I've come here to assign you a job," he said.

Surupa straightened his back and asked about the job.

"I want you to design a big palace, with courts, halls, and many offices. It will not just be the place where I will live but also the place from where the administration will work. The residential part should not be accessible to the other areas...." Aariv said, he also told him about his other requirements like he wanted a very big basement.

Aariv then got up and took some books with him and gave them to Surupa. These books consisted of knowledge about constructing big structures. He then introduced him to bricks, cement, concrete and how to make a strong foundation for a building.

he knew that he would need to do many new things to make the construction easy as he understood that the whole empire will heavily invest in building infrastructure in the future.

He also established the world university and started the first class. Anyone could enter the courses free of cost and they must complete the studies. The courses currently offered were very few and were mostly professional courses that would prepare people for new upcoming changes and jobs.

Aariv was going to introduce heavy machinery such as Excavators, Backhoe., Dragline Excavator, Bulldozers, Graders, Wheel Tractor Scraper, Trenchers, Loaders. But he was troubled because he didn't want them to run on fossil fuel. He needed to start working on his fusion reactor.

...

2 months passed and Aariv worked in his room, he made the frame of the fist-sized fusion reactor. Now he just needed to go out and try to get it struck by lightning to jump start it. Once it starts, then it would be self-sustainable. He had also selected 10 men with exceptional intelligence, they were all introduced by Kautilya. He taught them about the basics of electricity and how to lay lines and connect the whole city. 

He then ordered them to lay wires underground around the city. Juno was also continuously working on making things with the help of her matter manipulation. Now that everything was ready he just needed to go out and find a thunderstorm.

While he was working on a fusion reactor, things in the empire were drastically changing. Many arrests were made and people were punished. Most of the people understood that there was no going back now. They had no other choice but to accept the constitution, however, the discrimination was still rampant. Seeing that Aariv created the department of police. He reduced his army and changed them to the police.

He believed that the army should not aim for quantity but quality. Hence the new department was made, many new people were appointed, rule books were issued and finally the police started to do their jobs. The citizens were told that they could go and report any crime to a policeman and the police were obliged to help them.

All this required a lot of money but money was the least of his worries. 

The world college was also working efficiently but the college lacked infrastructure. He called Surupa to start designing universities, prisons, police stations, and hospitals. Aariv's main goal was to improve the living standard so that people could focus on other things than just surviving.

Surupa came to Aariv's office to show him the designs for the palace/office.

"Your highness, this is what I designed," he said and laid down the designs.

Aariv meaningfully looked at it and was quite pleased with it.  He knew that it was not possible to make a skyscraper yet as he lacked skilled labor so he had to make amends with what he got.

"Very good. I like it, you can start organizing workers," he said. 

[Pictures of how the palace will look are in discord]

Aariv had already set up sites for making bricks, cement, and other necessary things for construction. 

He then headed out to start up his fusion reactor, after all, he still needed to make heavy machinery. 

He headed east, where the thunderstorms were ongoing. He ran as fast as possible. He could feel that the more he used his powers the stronger he would get but the rate of increase was very slow.

After running for a day he reached the place. The sky was covered with dark clouds and it was raining heavily. The deafening sound of thunder could be heard multiple times every second. He knew that his fusion reactor was very conductive in nature but still he needed to do something to make sure that lightning struck it.

He started throwing it in the air again and again, in the hope that it would attract lightning. He kept on doing that for a day and when Strom started to move away, he followed it.

After 3 days Aariv was starting to grow impatient, he screamed in irritation and jumped in the air with the reactor in his hand. Just then an eye-piercing light came close to Aariv, His last thought was.

"F*CK ME"

Then everything blacked out. The lightning struck Aariv. Although he had the strength of 100 men, he was still nothing compared to the mighty lightning. He wasn't seriously injured but the top layer of his skin had burnt down.

He fell down on the ground and groaned in pain. His body was constantly healing itself, draining his energy. After 3 hours, the pain finally stopped, leaving Aariv energyless. He knew what happened to him and started to channel natural energy from outside to his body, trying to recuperate the lost energy.

After half an hour he stood up, full of energy. He looked at his body. He felt significantly stronger than before. He had a feeling that he was near a breakthrough. 

Aariv cleaned the remaining bits of his clothes and searched for the fusion reactor. He looked around and finally noticed a blue light on the ground.

"HAHAHAHA... YES...YES"

What if "THE GREAT FILTER THEORY" was real and the filter was not something supernatural but a WAR.
.
A war that spans the whole universe.
Only the strong and advanced can survive.
.
(The Great Filter theory says that at some point from pre-life to Type III intelligence(galactic civilization), there’s a wall that all attempts at life hit. There’s some filter in that long evolutionary process that is extremely unlikely or impossible for life to get beyond. That stage is The Great Filter)
.
In the year 3500A.D humans had colonized all the moons and planets that could harbor life in the solar system. But then the Earth was attacked by an extremely advanced civilization and all human life in the solar system was destroyed.
.
Aariv Hector, the last human to die, was reincarnated in 320BC as son to an Indian Emperor, Chandragupta Maurya. With his old memories and newfound powers, he is to shoulder the great responsibility of saving humanity. 
.
But what would happen if the ancient gods and mythical monsters were real too and how will Aariv deal with them?
.
He has 3800 years remaining before the Doomsday.
---------------------------
After chapter 56 I have uploaded a long chapter with the whole plotline of the novel till the end. 
---------------------------

At least read till chapter 40. Starting chapters aren't very good.

----------------------------
Please support me on:
patreon.com/misterimmortal
or
ko-fi.com/misterimmortal
or
paypal.me/misterimmortal

----------------------------
Join my discord server.
https://discord.gg/drcz5yS

I will daily publish 1-2 chapters of this novel

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