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Han stared at his food.
He sat in a booth at his favorite local Asian restaurant.
The establishment had great food for a low cost. A simple beef dish with vegetables and fried rice cost $7.50, and just a dollar extra for fountain drinks. The workers knew him by name, considering how often he would stop by, either by himself or sometimes with Beth.
Thinking about how many sweet memories he made with her, talking about various nerdy things as they enjoyed the affordable meals, made him numb.
The usual “what could I have done?” and “was this my own fault?” went cascaded through his mind.
Considering that finding out his girlfriend was cheating on him was par for the course, he sighed. He mentally congratulated himself on how he reacted — better than before.
Han thought it ironic — all of it happening on the same day.
The image of his parents lying in their coffins still felt surreal, making him feel detached. It all felt like a bad dream.
Han pondered whether the dazed emotions helped contribute to his mild reaction — watching his ex going to town on top of his former best friend.
As he chewed on the food, savoring the flavors. He was glad that at least one thing was going right.
Han winced and raised a hand to his temple — a ringing noise overwhelming his mind.
As it got louder, his head felt as though it was being squeezed by a vice. He groaned in pain. He dropped the fork in his hand, not hearing it clatter on the floor.
Slowly the pain had receded, and Han looked up to see a screen in front of him.
Congratulations!
Based on your miserable life and being able to stack so many horrible memories in one day while keeping a cool head, you have been selected to gain the Creation ability.
This ability allows you to enjoy a wide range of experiences.
With it, you’ll be able to manipulate anything and everything — gaining credentials to areas no being has had access to.
You are free to do whatever you wish. We encourage such actions. So do not feel chained to common sense and other silly burdens.
There are no requirements or strings attached to this gift.
We just ask you to try out new things and have fun.
To access the Creation ability, just imagine a menu.
Feeling confused, Han swiped a hand at the screen to dismiss it.
He thought it all silly and just his brain deciding to break.
“This has to be a dream,” Han shook his head.
Curious, Han chose to see what would happen. At the very least, Han would feel ridiculous and request the waitress bring him a new fork.
Han closed his eyes and tried to concentrate on opening a menu.
Immediately, something felt different.
He sensed something had changed.
Han opened his eyes to see a menu — hovering in front of him.
The menu was similar to games and anime.
Looking at the first two (Create and Modify), they sounded self-explanatory.
However, Han didn’t know about the last one, Translate. It had multiple meanings.
Deciding to see what it meant, Han pushed on “Translate.”
A new menu appeared.
Just by guessing, Han determined that the word “Translate” was similar to the mathematical concept, not the linguist form.
Pressing “Advanced Selection,” Han was presented with a wide range of choices — shortened by specific criteria. The criteria were fantasy, science fiction, magic, and others. Also, a list of names with additional details next to each with a brief description of the world.
Han perused through the various descriptions. Some were of Earth but slightly changed.
There were options such as America losing the revolution, China sailing past the tip of Africa, and Alexander the Great developing his empire after gaining an heir.
It was tempting to imagine what it would be like to visit those alternate realities. After consideration, Han decided to go someplace he had never been.
Selecting “Fantasy,” “Magic,” and “Early Development,” the list of names changed drastically.
Of the names listed, Han glanced at the world called, Eletran.
World Name: Eletran
Eletran is a world similar to what many consider a “fantasy” world, with ogres, elves, humans, beastman, and other creatures.
In addition, Eletran has a strong flow of mana, allowing magic to be widely used and practiced. All main creatures can use magic, while many animals aren’t able to use it.
There are many similarities to Earth — especially the animals and civilizations. Still, there are enough differences to make this world a good choice for those searching for something new and different. Many civilizations are still in their infancy, so there are no issues with overpopulation.
Several continents exist on the planet. Similar to Earth, there is an abundance of both fresh and saltwater.
Suppose you’re the type who enjoys watching and reading fantasy-related entertainment. In that case, Eletran is the one for you!
The description was entertaining.
It was like shopping at a store, only to have the salesperson frequently try to convince you to purchase the store items.
Feeling like this would be a great first world to visit, Han pressed on Eletran and confirmed his decision.
Immediately, he felt slightly woozy. The room morphed and changed around him.
Everything faded to black.
It felt like he was floating.
After a couple of moments, everything around him changed again.
Various colors came into focus, and slowly Han realized he was standing in a grassy area under a clear blue sky.
Turning his head back and forth, he couldn’t see anything aside from the field.
Wishing he had a map, Han brought up the menu to see if he could figure out his location.
After materializing it, Han noticed a new option, “Map.” He couldn’t help but think it was convenient, considering how he had just wished he had one.
Han pressed “Map.”
It looked like something out of a video game. There were continents and various countries. Some called kingdoms or empires. He even noticed free states — though he didn’t know what it meant.
Seeing a blinking red dot, he assumed it indicated his present location.
Han was currently inside the Helios Kingdom.
Focusing on the Helios Kingdom made the map zoom to fit the screen. Various villages, towns, and cities were scattered across the kingdom.
One of the names was larger than the others.
“I suppose this is the capital?” Han talked to himself.
What looked like the capital city far away, in the approximate center.
The dot indicated that he was near the edge, somewhat close to a village.
Part of him wanted to head over there, but considering the amount of walking, he decided to look at the menu more.
Now that he had confirmed that it wasn’t a hallucination, Han decided to check what other abilities he had.
The menu was adaptive to his wants and needs, so he thought about what else he could do.
Bringing up the menu again, he selected “Create” and presented several options. There were several he could choose — one being “Shelter.”
This brought up various structures he could create.
Han noticed “Stronghold” as one of them. He tapped on it. Multiple strongholds appeared on the screen.
Considering how he wanted someplace where he could feel safe, he looked at the selection and thought about one that was impenetrable. Han wanted something that would never let armies be able to invade it, regardless of ability.
Slowly, many vanished, leaving behind a handful.
Comparing each picture, Han chose one that looked like a large vertical rectangular block. Basically a skyscraper without windows.
A massive vertical solid block of stone appeared near him. The displaced wind and shaking ground made him step back.
Based on his requirement, it didn’t look like something that could be invaded — lacking openings.
Judging that there must be some way for him to enter, he headed towards the building.
As he reached the structure, Han imagined an entrance for him to use. Stone steps slid towards him. The grinding of stone was heard as an entrance was revealed.
“This is pretty unbelievable,” he thought to himself.
Walking up the steps and entering the structure, Han saw a long corridor with marble columns on either side spanning the entire length. It was lit by light from opulent globes hanging from the columns.
Han saw that the ground was smooth, the appearance of polished marble with gray veins throughout the Floor.
There didn’t appear to be any spacing — normally seen on floors. It was as if the entire floor was created from one massive slab. The walls and ceiling appeared obsidian. They contrasted perfectly with the floor and columns.
Thinking about it, Han wondered if he needed to bring up the menu if he wanted to change anything.
When he approached the building and thought about an entrance, the building modified itself to his thoughts. Han imagined it wouldn’t be far-fetched to try changing parts of this structure.
Han focused on the idea of hanging golden bowls filled with fire. The material flowed, and soon the orbs conformed to his thoughts. The golden bowls of fire made the corridor appear mythical.
Walking down the hall, he casually wondered what else he could change.
At the end of the hallway, a staircase flowed out of the floor and split to either side.
Reaching the second Floor, Han saw various supporting columns throughout. Unfortunately, there wasn’t much else besides the columns. Just the columns gave a dull appearance.
Each of the columns had a similar golden bowl on each face.
Feeling it looked relatively empty with just him, Han wondered if he could create something to help him.
The more Han thought about the idea, the more he thought it would be valuable to have an assistant. He thought back to the message in the Asian restaurant — suggesting how he needed to abandon common sense.
Han imagined a hand floating in front of him to test his ability.
He imagined that they would belong to a beautiful woman. With long slender fingers, the hand would be as smooth and white as porcelain.
As his mind imagined the hand, soon out of the void, one began to take shape. His eyes widened upon seeing an actual one beginning to form.
He sighed at what he created. Just as he pictured it, the hand looked stunning. It wouldn’t be strange to say they belonged to a hand model — the ones that appeared on commercials but several times better.
It floated in the air in front of him — lifeless.
Han imagined it alive.
It slowly started twitching and moving its fingers.
The hand moved like someone that came out of deep sleep — uncertain at first but slowly gaining control.
Seeing that he was successful, Han imagined the hand to have a decent amount of intelligence. After a few minutes, he said, “shake my hand.” Han reached out towards it.
The hand floated to his outstretched hand and shook it.
Han was surprised by the realism — especially how he could envision a woman being the owner. The way the muscles moved beneath the skin gave a clear sensation. The gentleness of it just added to the feel of who it would belong to. Between a guy’s and a woman’s, the hand felt like it came from a woman.
Releasing his grip, the hand returned to floating in front of him. The fingers would occasionally move slightly as the hand awaited orders from Han.
Then, imagining it being erased, Han made it vanish from existence.
After testing out that he could give life to his creations and seeing how difficult it was, Han decided to create someone to help him.
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