Chapter 1: 1-Awakening in another World

Earth was embroiled in a 300-year-long war ignited by the discovery of Magic, The development of magic science has propelled nations into an unparalleled arms race, each vying for world supremacy. The East Asian Magitech Coalition was formed by the countries of East Asia with the goal of making a strong military pact in the East Asian Region, sharing technologies and researches that made them the forefront of Magitech, Magic and Science combined. The Coalition is currently facing setbacks as they are losing ground on the northern front as heavy winter strikes the frontlines.

The winter frontlines, Takumi lay on the frozen ground, his body battered and broken. His blood stained the white snow beneath him. Bullets, reinforced by magic, blitz past Takumi, accompanied by the relentless barrage of artillery fire and large assaults of magic barrages, he accepts the harsh reality that the winter front will be his final resting place. With each passing moment, he felt himself falling deeper into darkness, his eyes heavy through exhaustion. As he lies on the ground, Takumi knew that his time had come.

At the steps of death, Takumi feels a bit of regret – he longed for a life not embroiled by war. And with a tinge of bittersweet feeling, he smiles, finding comfort in the thought that, at the very least, he could now find peace.

Moments later, Takumi's eyes slowly open and he blinks his eyes as he checks his surroundings. Disoriented, he struggled to make sense of his surroundings. The white walls of the unfamiliar hospital room made him confused as to where he is.

Memories flood back as he recalls fragments of his past life fighting in the winter front. East Asian Magitech Coalition, he remembers that name, he remembers he was an Infantry Mage serving the Coalition's Forces for 4 years. The relentless combat, the clash of spells and steel, the winter front and the Coalition—all now felt like distant memories in his head.

"I was supposed to be dead, wasn’t I?", Takumi furrowed his eyebrows as he tries to grasp his situation. How was it possible that he was still alive, he clearly recalls falling in the frontlines. The escape routes were cut-off and no reinforcements were arriving, there was no way for him to come back alive unless he was captured.

Pushing himself upright, Takumi grunts as his body aches. His gaze fell on his reflection by the window —there were no scars, he then checked his body for injuries and saw no fatal wounds, no bleeding, not even marks, which he finds odd as he clearly recalls plenty of scars from training and wounds from the frontline. He did notice he was wearing a hospital gown with white clothes underneath, Takumi could only surmise he is in a hospital facility.

"Was I really captured?", this was the thought Takumi had the entire time, but now he doubts it as due to having no wounds and there was no healing that could remove old scars and wounds that cleanly., it could only be that time passed a lot when he fell. He then checks and surveys his surroundings some more and walks around the room. He observes outside the window and that’s when it hit him.

This is not the same world, he thought to himself, Did I go back in time?. He looked around and saw a calendar and checked the date."Year 2051", that's over 200 years ago. Things weren’t adding up, the war started in the year 2042, 2 years after the discovery of magic, the world looks too different from what he has heard from history.

Takumi realized that he is in a different world—another chance at life is what he thought to himself but there are also problems. He has too little information.

As he struggled to come to terms with his reincarnation, he sat on the side of the bed deep in thought, Takumi's attention was drawn to a small device on the bedside table. Its screen flickered to life, displaying a series of words and numbers.

Curious, Takumi reached out and touched the screen, causing it to pop with new information. He is shocked and confused as he reads the words before him, "Player Level: 1. And he sees his stats were all question marks "

It was a realization that made him very nervous. Takumi had entered a different world, in which he was level one, he had played games in his extra curricular days in the academy, the games he played were from the old civilisation before war broke out.

He hears the door open and he looks in the general direction of the door, the door opens revealing the figure of a middle-aged man in a white coat—a doctor.

"Ah, you're awake,"the doctor said as he entered the room, his eyes scanned Takumi's face for any signs of distress or confusion.

Takumi replied, as he tried to think of a plausible explanation for his presence in this unfamiliar situation. "Yes, just feeling a bit tired," feigning confusion. "Can you tell me where I am?"

The doctor continues to observe Takumi , "Oh, you're in the hospital, Mr...?"

"Takumi. Otsuka Takumi," Takumi answered.

The doctor nodded, writing on his clipboard. "Do you remember how you ended up here, Mr. Otsuka?"

Takumi furrowed his brows, pretending to struggle to remember. "I... I'm not sure. I just woke up here, and I don’t remember much", Takumi decided to play like he has some sort of memory loss

The doctor's expression softened with understanding. "It's not uncommon to experience memory loss after a dungeon accident," he said reassuringly. "We'll run some tests to make sure everything is okay."

The doctor mentioned something that shocks and confuses Takumi.

Takumi was confused and shocked by what he had heard, "A dungeon?"he asks in confusion. "Ummm… How did I end up there?"

The doctor hesitated, his gaze shifting slightly. "We're not entirely sure," he admitted, "You were found unconscious near the entrance of a dungeon by an exploration team. It was highly unusual for someone to be in such a place, especially in an unexplored part of the dungeon."

Takumi nodded, his head filled with questions. The doctor's answer raised more questions than answers. "And dungeons... what are they?" Takumi asked, his voice tinged with genuine concern.

The doctor gave a confused look but answered anyway. "You don’t know? Dungeons are filled with all sorts of danger, traps, monsters and even the environment is dangerous. It's fortunate that the exploration team found you when they did"

"Do you really not remember anything? Not even before you were in the dungeon?", the doctor pries.

Takumi shook his head, "Nothing at all," he insisted. Pretending to have amnesia seems to be working, and he decided to continue in this setting.

The doctor finishes writing on his clipboard. "Looks like you might really have some memory issues," he confirms, "Well, worry not, given time you might recover your memories."

The doctor stands up,"Well, Mr. Otsuka, as I mentioned, we'll run some tests to ensure you're okay and to rule out any other issues. Please rest here for a bit, and I'll return later to proceed with the tests."

"What sort of tests?" Takumi asked.

"Hmm, We'll evaluate your memory and psychological state to ensure if there are any underlying issues that may have affected your memory. And there would also be a physical examination to check if your body is really fine as you were found in a dungeon. Blood tests and scans may also be necessary to provide a comprehensive assessment", the doctor answered.

Takumi looked to be deep in thought.

"You were already subjected to treatment and tests when you were found. We found no issues on your body, and it was safe to assume you would wake up eventually. We waited for you to awaken before proceeding with further tests to ensure your comfort and cooperation throughout the process." the doctor added.

"How long was I asleep?", Takumi questions.

"Today would be your 3rd day in this hospital. If that is all your questions please wait here for a bit", the doctor then left the room leaving Takumi to ponder to himself.

In a dimly lit meeting room, a group of people sat around a table, all of them looking at documents on hand.

"Otsuka Takumi, he's a complete unknown," a man remarked, concern and confusion in his voice "No records, no identification. It's as if he doesn't exist."

Another one nodded in agreement. "And what of the clothes he wore in the dungeon? It's clear he has some connection to the military,and his insignia is unknown, we can't determine his rank or affiliation from it and he had no equipment of sorts."

A third person chimed in, "We need to find out how he ended up in that dungeon. His presence poses a potential security risk, he got into a dungeon managed by the government and no records of entry was found, no sightings of him either, there could be a potential breach in the security network."

The room fell into a tense silence as everyone of them contemplated the implications of Takumi's mysterious appearance. It was clear that he was no ordinary individual, and his sudden appearance in the dungeon was of great concern. They decided to observe him further before making any further decisions.

"Let’s put a tail on him", one man recommended.

"Who should do it?", another asks.

"Don’t fret, I have someone in mind", he gets his phone and makes a call.