Somewhere in the Philippines, at one of its prestigious internet cafes, one hooded man can be seen playing some real-time strategy. He was about to defeat his most powerful rival and declare himself as the top player in the Philippine Server.
"Bye."
With his single tap on his mouse, he successfully launched a perfectly-laid attack and crushed his rivals at all sides.
"So boring…"
He heaved out a long sigh, ever since playing this kingdom building game, he had single-handedly defeated most of the Philippines top countries in the server. He was so good at the game that even the international community named him as "The Philippine Alexander." Now that he's on top, he still feels a little bit empty.
*Growls
After hearing his stomach demanding for food, Ernest logged out his account and went outside the internet cafe and looked at the convenience store just right across the street.
The night breeze gently brushing his skin made him shivered for a second. If there's a hot coffee available there, he would gratefully buy it.
He looked above and saw the street light turned red. He stepped down the gutter and walked across the pedestrian lane…
A horn blared so loud that it caused his ears to ring. He turned his head to the side only to be met with bright lights and an image of a truck getting bigger and bigger.
His eyes widened, is he going to die here? He wanted to escape his death but his body had already given up and was frozen in place. His body betrayed him.
Seconds later...the truck collided straight at the man who was sent flying into the ground. Everything just went blank for the man who conquered and created glory inside a video game.
That's right, his reign had ended.
However...what is happening?
He was certain that the truck crashed onto him and he felt it in a fleeting moment. However...his senses are still up.
He could hear a bird chirping from a distance, leaves rustling, warm sensation, and a gentle wind brushing up against him.
Is he supposed to sense that in the afterlife?
The man opened his eyes and found himself under the shade of a large tree. Around him, lush green fields appeared before him and the yellow grow above that is giving him a warm sensation.
"What is this? Where am I?"
This was not the place he remembered. It was midnight before he got killed from an accident. How the hell did he find himself here?
Confused, he rose to his feet and walked for a second, collecting his thoughts as he watched the majestic scene of lush fields swaying from the winds.
One minute passed, and something appeared in front of him. It was not a person nor an animal nor a thing. It was similar to a computer interface, floating before him.
[Launching up the Tyrant's System...Executing...Successful.]
"Tyrant...System?" He repeated the word displayed on the computer interface. Wait...why is that here in the first place?
[Tyrant System now online! Welcome User Ernest Gonzales.]
The man's name is Ernest.
"What...are...you." Ernest asked in a confused manner.
[Coming up with an appropriate response to the user….Success.]
[Tyrant System is the system that will help a user in his journey to become a tyrant.]
"...A...tyrant?" Ernest exclaimed...he knew the meaning of tyrant. But saying that it will help him along his journey to become one? That's completely outrageous.
"Oi...You aren't clear. Explain it to me in an elaborate way so I can understand." Ernest demanded.
But the so-called tyrant system ignored Ernest and began spewing out its introduction.
[Absolute power. You know you want it. You just don't know how to get it. But there's a system. A series of tactics that will help you to achieve unimaginable power. But there's one small catch. This path does involve making some unpleasant choices. But as the man who ruled a country in a video game, even you can say ruling was never easy]
Ernest gulped, he just can't process what he just heard. Absolute power? A tactic that if he followed will make him a tyrant? Well some of it is true, especially where he was used as a reference.
[The System does have one question for the user. When you heard the word "Tyrant" What comes to mind?]
A holographic keyboard appeared in his hands. It seems that the system wanted him to answer the question.
"Uhm...tyrants are cruel and oppressive rulers?"
He typed in his answer.
But the system blared. [Your answer is simple!]
"Whaaat?!"
[Tyranny is a government for people who want results. When you look at human history, freedom is not a norm. People in history loved being ruled. When you're living in a difficult time, there's an appeal to someone who comes up, finds their moment, and says, "I alone can fix it all." And you, user, are in that era where people loved being ruled. So take your chances and complete the quest the system gives you and heap rewards along your journey.]
After being corrected and hearing some history reference, Ernest was confused even more. First he died, second he received this mysterious system, third it wants him to become a tyrant.
What a sudden turn of events.
[First of all, allow the system to introduce you to your new world.]
"New world? Does that mean I got reincarnated in another world?]
[Yes.]
He knew it, he had heard this type of phenomena before. But it only happened in literary fiction. "Isekai." He got isekaid.
"That fucking truck-kun! Didn't the driver see the stoplight turn red? Now I have to deal with this weird system." He hollered inwardly.
[This world is similar to a middle-aged era. But there's a catch. In this world fantasy creatures exist. Demi-humans, monsters, magics. It exists in this world.]
Hearing that, Ernest's interest was piqued. He had read a lot of novels concerning the isekai genre. This common troupe and settings exist. Does that mean he will get to see an Elves? Dwarves? Goblins?
He imagined encountering them in the future with their appearance based on anime and light novels. Just by imagining it, he can feel the dopamine coursing inside his veins.
[Whenever you complete a quest given to you by the system, you'll receive a tyrant's points where you can use it to buy something in the store. In the store a wide variety of selections exist. Modern technologies, facilities,vehicles, anything! As long as you complete the quest.]
"Yep...modern tech huh? So I got into a world containing technological gap tags." He chuckled.
[If you wish to see the status, you can just think of the word "status'' and it will pop-up in front of you. Give it a try.]
"Status." Without hesitation, Ernest followed the instruction.
A holographic interface appeared before him, showing his status.
[Tyrant's System
User: Ernest Gonzales.
Position: Commoner.
Tyrant's points: 0
Shop tab:
Inventory tab:
Skills: None
Current Quest: Know the system (Complete)
]
After knowing the contents of the system, it automatically disappeared. Then a notification tab appeared. "Congratulations! You've completed the introductory quest "Know the System" Rewards are now transferred to your inventory.
Hearing that, Ernest opened the system and went to the inventory tab. There, he saw a gift icon. He tapped it.
[Congratulations: You've acquired 10 gold coins.]
[Congratulations: You've acquired 10,000 tyrant's points.]
[New quest unlocked: Click to see for more information.]
"Now, I think it's time to know what we can buy from this tyrant's points."
Deciding that, Ernest went to the shop tab where he was met with many tabs. There's a weapon's tab, medicine tab, vehicle tab, facility tab, camping tab, food tab and clothing tab.
He then heads to the weapon's tab where a variety of weapons ranging from swords to modern weaponry can be seen. However, modern guns were expensive and cost a lot of points. For example, the M4 Carbine cost 20,000 points, one mag included.
As someone from another world, he knew the dangers of this world, especially this era. So he purchased the gun called the M9 Beretta. It cost him 2,000 tyrant's points and bought two magazines for 250 tyrant's points.
Also, he knew that a gun won't help him in any type of scenario, so he purchased a tactical knife which cost 500 tyrant's point.
The weapons he bought appeared in his hands. He almost dropped the gun due to its weight.
"Walking with these guns seems dangerous. I wonder if I can put it in my inventory…"
By muttering those words, something appeared out of nowhere. No,it appeared on his side. It was a hole.
[You can put your items here.]
Instructed the system. Ernest found it comfortable and efficient. If he has something to hide that he wants to keep to himself, he can just put it there.
After putting the gun and the knife there, it disappeared quickly.
"Now that I have one for protection, I wonder what I should do next?"
[You can do a quest if you like.]
"Oh...thank you for reminding me of the system. Okay, let's see what our quest is for today."
Clicking the quest tab, two tabs appeared.
[Main quest description: Anyone can become a tyrant, even without this system. But before you can do anything, you need to break out from the crowd and grab the reins of power. It's actually quite simple. If you want to rule, you first have to believe that you can.
Main quest: Believe in yourself.
Rewards: 20,000 tyrant points.
[Sub quest description: Let's say you believe in yourself. But what does it mean when you don't have a place to rule?
Side quest: Find the nearest city or kingdom around you.
Rewards: 10,000 points.]
Receiving his new quest, Ernest smirked as he placed his hand onto his chest.
"Believe in yourself? Interesting, this system does make sense. Okay. I believe in my abilities that I can become a tyrant!"
Ernest declared and the journey to become a tyrant has begun.
Hello everyone. It's the author! This is my first time writing a novel and I got to admit that its hard. English is not my native language so please be easy on me. If you found grammatical errors or something that can improve my writing. Please feel free to let me know.