Alright lads! This is the first chapter of the revamped version of this fic! Now, I beg some of you must be barking about how much of a lazy bastard I am considering how I remained in the dark with this story. I'd like to apologize if I trolled you with it.

Honestly, I can see why people could react that way since, let's face it, what I did was not cool at all but I'm man enough to admit my faults so I take full responsibility for this misunderstanding.

Anyway, leaving such matters aside, in this chapter we will see the Protagonist in all his "average" glory. So let's start with this!

Chapter 2: A Brash Awakening for a Lovable Fool. Part 1

Tsunemori Jomei.

He was the only child of a Japanese father and an English mother, while they're not what most people take as average couple considering their different nationalities they're quite a match made by heaven. At least that's what his parent's friends say.

Additionally, they are people to look up, a man and a woman that can inspire others with their very presences. His father was an accomplished engineer and the head of his own department in a multinational emprise. And his mother on the other hand was well known for being a beautiful woman and an "S-Class" athlete since she participated in the Olympic Games several times before she had to retire.

Such amazing husband and wife were successful people and some may think their children have to hold some talent at least… That wasn't his case though.

For starters, physically speaking he was neither a good looking boy nor an ugly teen, his looks were devilishly average. He has messy red hair and tan skin with a lean body built, but his eyes were rather unique according to his mom. His eyes suffered from a mutation that made them look like a hawk's ones, being yellow/golden-colored with a strange patterned and nigh imperceptible "halo" around his pupil.

Good news, this little trait of him allowed him to take a stage in the spotlight… Bad news, most kids and teens were a bunch of jerks. Some kids often bullied him either for the "gaijin" looks he inherited from his mother or his strange eyes, which were being covered by a pair of sunglasses to avoid stares.

His academic life wasn't exactly good either since he happens to hold as much talent as a snail. He wasn't stupid by any means and his grades weren't that bad but compared to his parents he was lacking in the talent department, and it didn't help that he was also a certified otaku

Translation: He is simple guy who happens to be an average person at best with no real abilities worth of reckoning, according to his classmates and teachers he was a minus as matter of fact.

A lame loser with an equally lame set of skills and luck.

His only real achievement was being a student of the prestigious Honnoji Academy, a school with so much recognition in Japan that it became one of the most famous. How did he accomplish such a feat? Simple, he bought a ticket.

No seriously, the only thing he did was going to a convenience store and made a quick solicitude to participate in a luck-based competition to get a full scholarship. Several weeks later he received a letter from the Headmistress of the school and here he was.

He took a flight to Honno City, bought a third-rate apartment and his school life in Honnoji began. It didn't surprise him that he was one of the less acknowledgeable students there is due his poor performance in the school activities.

However, today proved to be the worst day in his whole life.

Why, you ask?

KRRRRRRRAA—BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!

"AGAWAWAWA~!"

Well, when you're hit by a lightning the very moment you're about to take a bus, you tend to rethink how bad you luck actually is. Not only that, he also lost his chance to catch the fucking bus on time!

It was impressive that he survived that event with just a few scratches and burns though.

"And yet, here I am taking the long road" Jomei sighed in defeat as he walked through one of the most dangerous districts of the town, his neighborhood.

Then, something completely unexpected happened to him.

[Yeeeellow~! How is life treating you?!]

"…" The golden-colored teen widened his eyes like plates as he stared at a translucent blue screen floating right before him with pregnant silence for a few seconds.

[… Hello~? Are you here? Tick tock! System calling to the User!]

"…"

[I guess you suffered from a Sheer Heart Atta—]

"WHAT. THE. FUUUUU—!"

Meanwhile

"UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK!"

"Huh? The hell is that?" A young woman wondered aloud as she looked around with a frown.

She has a mid-length black hair with a single red highlight on her bangs and blue eyes that had gear-shaped pupils along with a developed and curvaceous body, which was well-masked by her outfit. The girl was wearing a simple white shirt along with a black and white jacket with rolled up sleeves over it, a black school miniskirt that reached above her knees and athlete sneakers. Besides, she has a metal guitar case strapped on her back.

"I don't know why but I think this is a bad omen" The teen girl commented dryly.

Somewhere

At the very top of the tower of Honnōji Academy there was beautifully decorated room where the "elite" group of the school where having a discussion in order to discus and organize all of their plans, such was the job of the Student Council after all.

However, unlike other times where they were able to have their conversation without interruptions from a third party—

"UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCCCCCCCKK!"

They were taken off guard the moment they heard the cries of an unknown person throughout their Headquarters and the most bizarre thing was that the room itself is supposed to be sound proof, and yet they could still hear the bloody shout!

"What in the nine circles of hell was that?!" A green young man shouted with annoyance.

"I bet it must be Tsunemori-kun" A hulking figure responded with a hum.

"Tsunemori? Never heard of him?... Isn't he some No-Star student?" A petite pink-haired girl wondered aloud, furrowing her thin eyebrows with a thoughtful expression.

"That's right" The taller replied with a nod.

"Ah, I think I heard of him…" Another voice, belonging to a teal-haired guy, interjected as he adjusted his glasses.

"You should have, he is one of the Dead-Last on his homeroom and is famous for having bad luck"

"And how the heck do you know who that voice belong?!" The green-haired teen questioned his taller peer.

"Usually, he is a target for bullies and he relies on me to take care of them… He's also a rather good listener" The hulking figure answered with a simple shrug.

"My, the toad has made friends with the weakest link in the food chain. Color me impressed" The petite one snickered.

"A trash he may be, but he is an outstanding rare talent in Hard-Working Department if his teacher's reports are an indication. So please, don't taint his honor, at least he making some progress" The muscular male replied with a frown, showing a great distaste for the smaller one's comment.

"Hey, hey. It's just a joke. Jeez, someone needs to chill out!" The small one shot back with a nonchalant grin.

"Hm!"

"Well, whoever it was, I just hope this wouldn't bite us in the ass later" The green-haired teen muttered with a sigh, without knowing he just jinxed them all.

Meanwhile— With Our (Un)Lucky Hero

"UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK!"

[Really man! What the heck is wrong with you?! Have you suffered from some sort of mind-screwing trauma or what?! Is not normal to have such a slow reaction! Have to say though, this isn't what I imagined after being born but alas, your mind is quite screwed up right now so I'd have see this coming]

"Oi! Look who is the one talking, you non-existential blue screen!" The redheaded teen shot back with sharp teeth in hysterical rage. "Wait, hold on a goddamnt minute! What am I doing talking with a holographic screen?!"

[Ah, that's the question of the century, huh? I wonder why]

"Shut it! At least give me some time to process what it's happening here!" Jomei replied to the blue screen. "Besides this is too sudden, what else did you expect me to do? You literally appeared out of blue with no warning!" The teen pointed out with a grunt.

[Ok, point taken but in my defense I'm not good dealing with humans… Though I guess that's to be expected considering I didn't exist a few minutes ago]

"Yeah, I can tell" The redheaded student deadpanned at the holographic construct before sighing tiredly. "Ugh, what am I even doing talking to you? For all I know you must be a simple hallucination… I knew I shouldn't have stay awake playing those games" The golden-eyed teen added gloomily.

[Huh! You got some nerve to talk to me like that! I assure you I'm as real as your highly non-functional cock!]

Jomei didn't know if this thing was making fun of him or was being serious with its statement, but he knew this thing was definitely on his black list for that comment about his "package". Now, if only he could figure out what was this thing…

"Mommy, why is that guy talking to the air?"

"Ignore him Shouta. Just ignore him"

The redheaded teen turned his gaze to the mother and child duo who passed him and stared at them with an incredulous expression.

"Hey, I'm not crazy ma'am! Aren't you seeing this thing too?!" Jomei gestured at his left side where the "screen" was, and oddly enough the woman was now looking at him as if he was a deranged person.

"… Let's get out of here, Shouta"

"Bye bye, Crazy-Man~!"

The woman gave Jomei and stern look before leaving the street with her child.

[…]

As for Jomei himself, he couldn't help but stare at the woman with shock. Did she really didn't see a thing? That's bullshit, this screen was still there floating in the air and that lady wasn't able to see it?!

[Yeah, about that… Maybe it's a good time to tell you no one else can see me but you]

Ah, so that was the reason. It's still pretty odd and disturbing when analyzing the situation though.

"Hold on, if I'm the only one who can see you what assure me you're not a hallucination?" The golden-eyed guy asked cautiously at the "Blue Screen". Usually, when a person is seen talking with something that is not there, this person will be labeled as "Mentally-Unstable" before being thrown to an asylum… That is something Jomei is not looking forward.

The fact that he was asking this question to this thing made Jomei wonder if he's still sane… Thankfully, this was just a bad dream and he will wake up soon enou—

[Well, maybe this incentive would be enough for you]

KRRRRAAA—BOOOOOM

"AWAWAWAWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!"

And just like that, a lightning bolt descending through the sky and hit the poor teen… Again.

"WHAT THE FUCK IS YOUR GODDAMN PROBLEM!?"

[My~! You're recovery time is outstanding, I actually thought you died!]

"You were trying to murder me?!" Jomei shouted with sharp eyes in shock and anger. A lightning bolt has over a million of volts and its heat could easily melt iron, it was a miracle he was alive and kicking!

[Relax boy, you could've handle it]

"AS IF I WOULD!"

[Besides, that wasn't a real lightning… The real thing would've fried your body inside out so I simply casted a "modified version"]

"It doesn't change the fact that it hurt!" Jomei replied back fervently as he glared at the talking Screen with hate.

[YOSH~! Now that things are cleared and you have some grasp of my existence, we can properly introduce to each other!]

"DON'T ACT SO CASUAL ABOUT THIS! YOU TRIED TO KILL ME, YOU KNOW!"

[First things first—]

"You're ignoring me, aren't you?" Jomei deadpanned at the Blue Screen with a sweat-drop on his neck.

[Perceptive one, aren't ya, Mistah Tsunemori~?]

"Ok, what's with that Yankee accent?" This was getting weirder and weirder

Today definitely wasn't a good day to be him.

Several Minutes Later

"So— Let me get this straight. You said you're a sentient AI system created by higher-dimensional being, right?"

[Exactly~!]

"And you're 'born' when this power connected with my inner world, thus granting you a sentient conscience…"

[That's right, my unmanly holder~! You got power to live your life as if it is a videogame, and its name is The [Game]]

"What a weird name for a Reality-Warping power"

[Hey, I didn't name it]

"And I received this power because…?"

[Beats me, I'm just 35 minutes old]

"…"

Walking throughout the admittedly colossal entrance of Honnōji Academy, a large and oversized door (or perhaps gate?) which had three large star-shaped holes, Jomei looked at the Blue Screen— who refers at itself as "The System"— with an unsure gaze.

It has been half an hour since Jomei received this bizarre ability, and quite frankly he still didn't understand how it worked or— more importantly— why he has it. But at least the "System" proved to be helpful in that regard even though its sassy remarks were a pain in the ass.

Letting out a sigh, Jomei stared at his partner(?) with a serious look. "I'll let it slide aside because I got the feeling my brain would overcharge by the full explanation but I'm starting to get a gist of what are you" The redheaded teen mussed with an analytical look.

[Oho~! Do tell!]

"Basically speaking you are some sort of a symbiotic entity attached to my soul, and also represent the concept of [Growth]. Which means you will evolve further each time I break through my limits, thus granting me a new set of abilities and powers by rewriting reality itself to some degree" The teen summarized it in a scholarly manner.

True be told, it wasn't that hard to understand when thinking about it more carefully. The Gamer Power basically give its holder the ability to alter reality and overwrite it in order to modified things like Stats, Skills, Items, etc; it's the same principle found in most RPG games where the character selected can be customized and grow stronger by "Leveling-Up" and/or learning new Skills.

[… Wow, I never saw it that way]

"… Ok, leaving your own naivety aside—" [HEY!] "According to your explanation, I can see my Stats, Level and Skills by using vocal or mental commands, right?" Jomei asked already knowing the answer but wanting to clarify things first.

[Yeah, pretty much]

"I see…" The golden-eyed teen nodded with a solemn look as he kept his cool outside… Inside his mind, that's other tale. 'HELL YEAH! With this power I could basically ace everything I face smoothly be either homework, engineering, PE… And who knows, maybe I would be able to get a girlfriend!' He thought with an excited voice at the prospect of overcoming his "weaknesses".

Like many teenagers, Jomei's thoughts were more focused on mundane things like getting a girlfriend, making cash and becoming a "cooler" version of himself. It's a logical conclusion considering he is despised by his peers for being a rare case of "Absurdly Average" in all subjects.

However, for all his faults, Jomei was by no mean dumb so he will use an stealthy approach.

"Ok… First I need to determinate how this thing works and then see what I can do. I'd played enough games to have a gist of the dynamics behind the [Game] and how it could affect my prowess" He summarized with a thoughtful look. "In RPG games, Stats are often the most important aspect on a character so it would be wise to see them first…"

[You know… You're surprisingly good at analyzing this situation. I mean sure, you're frightened at first but now you seen more collected and even making a plan… With a profile like yours, that's something impressive]

"Huh?... Well, it's not like I ain't frightened. I just think that acting like an idiot and ignore you will do no good for me… The fact that you could kill me with a lightning bolt made me realizes that I'm at your mercy so the only thing I can do is follow the flow instead of fighting" The redhead explained with a shrug.

[Nah, I wouldn't kill you. If you die then I'll die too. We have a symbiotic link and I depend of your existence to sustain me]

"So you're a parasite"

[PARASITE?!]

The AI hissed at that.

KRAAA—BOOM!

"GAAAK!"

And short after that, a lightning bolt fell from the skies and hit the poor teen at full force, this time leaving a car-sized smoking crater.

"Ghu…!" The teen remained motionlessly in the ground, moaning as his felt how his nerves were overcharged by the unbearable pain.

[Next time don't use THAT term on me, got it?!]

"D-Dully noted" Jomei couldn't help but groan in respond as he tried to stand on his own. "For an AI, you sure have an colorful personality" He muttered in pain as he made his way to the school building, not caring about the unnerved stares of his peers.

[Damn straight!]

"Jeez, and here I thought we have a civilized association…" The golden-eyed teen whispered with a roll of his eyes. "In any case, I still need to figure out how this power works so… I can't believe I'm saying this aloud… [Status]!" He shouted, trying his best to ignore the odd looks he received.

Status Screen

Tsunemori Jomei, The GAMER

Level: 12| Next Level: 11.00%

Titles: The Gamer, "The Nameless Student with A Not-So-Amazing Background", He with the Eyes of Heaven

Perks: High-Insight [LOCKED]

HP: 200

STR: 18

VIT: 20

DEX: 22

INT: 38

WIS: 28

Money: 22,000¥

Attribute Points: 0

…

Jomei just stared at the Blue Screen with a deadpan look, having a bad time trying to suppress his anger as his gaze went to the "Titles" page, wondering if the [Game] have a twisted humor sense.

Seriously, just what kind of title is "The Nameless Student with A Not-So-Amazing Background" in the first place?! Not only it was extremely long and mouthful, it was so unrealistic that it appeared to be a joke.

'What am I? A Manga Character?' He couldn't help but think.

[Actually—]

'Don't. Just don't speak' The redhead didn't let the AI to finish, knowing it may try to screw with his mind further, and instead he focused on analyzing the situation and his stats.

He could guess that he was at the bottom of the food chain considering that; A) He was a No-Star student and; B) He was a normal person a few minutes earlier.

"Wait, if that's my level… What about the other students?" He said with curiosity as he glanced at the crowd of people entering the main building. "Hey. System… You got some ability to measure others' levels?"

[As matter of fact yes, I do. You only need to focus on a certain target and say the words [Observe]! But considering how dumb you would look, maybe you could try using mental commands instead]

"Ah, ok. I guess that's make sen— I'm an idiot for not thinking about it sooner, aren't I?" The revelation of that aspect of the [Game] made Jomei want to stomp his face on the nearest wall for his own stupidity. Granted, no one expected anything outstanding from him but that didn't make it any better. '[Observe]' He sighed tiredly as he used a high school girl as his target.

Mankanshoku Mako. Lv 38

…

…

…

[… Wow… I bet your pride as a man received quite a blow, huh?]

To say that Jomei's self-confident was shattered would be the understatement of the year. Sure, he half-expected to be far behind some student but not like this… It didn't help that this was what he got from a girl, who was a No-Star student like him!

"Suddenly, I feel like the lowest scum in the world" The redheaded muttered with a depressive aura as he made circles on the ground. He was 26 levels below her! That was humiliating for any man!

"Hey! Hey! Are you alright?!"

Hmm?"

The now depressed teen turned his gaze upwards to see who took pity of him this time. This person was brown-haired girl with a bowl hair-style in a white and blue sailor uniform who was currently looking at him with a friendly smile.

"You seem a bit sad, you know?" She said, still grinning goofily as she reached her hand at him. "Do you need help?" The brown-haired girl asked with genuine concern.

Jomei just stared at her with an even more depressive aura. "Go away…" He cried.

"Huh?" The girl blinked in confusion. She didn't expect such a rude— and yet pitiful— respond.

Ah, right. You must be wondering what's happening here.

You see, the reason Jomei was being rude with the girl was not because he was a jerk… It was because her presence was depressing him to no end, which was increased by her actions at pitying him.

Why, you ask? Because she is the exact same girl whose level dwarfed his! There was no way he couldn't feel any more pitiful.

"Ah, I got it! You're an emo guy that doesn't have many friends, aren't you?!" The girl, Mankanshoku Mako, said with a knowing nod. "There, there. I know it must be difficult to make friends when this school looks down at people like you" She assured him with a gentle pat, trying to cheer him up. "I mean yes, I bet you most have zero abilities that one should expect from the main character, along with a huge inferiority complex regarding your manhood but don't worry! A lot of guys suffer this!" She added with her cheerful tone.

—And unknowingly, she only made him felt worse!

"Ghhuuu…! Go away!"

"Worry not, mister gloomy guy-san! I, Mankanshoku Mako, will cheer you up!" She proclaimed, ignoring the poor Jomei's pleads as she dragged him to the classroom, taking him by the neck of his uniform. "We will be good friends! I know it!"

"OI, DON'T YOU SEE I'M VERY BUSY LAMENTING MY OWN INCOMPETENTNESS!" The redhead objected with a small glare making a futile attempt to free himself from her grasp… But she too damn strong!

"Now, now, don't be such a gloomy guy, mister gloomy guy-san!"

"That's a redundant statement and you know it!"

"Redu—what?"

"… You aren't gonna let me go, aren't you?" Jomei asked with a deadpan tone, glaring at the smiling brown-haired girl.

"Nope~!" Her grin grew larger.

[Aw look! Someone has made a new friend! And she is quite stacked under that uniform too!]

'SHUT UP!'

It seems like our young protagonist's journey will have a rather unlikely start, huh? Granted, this piss-poor Main Character will not remain as the useless piece of shit he is right now and he will have several [Took-A-Level-In-Badass] moments as he tries his best to not die in this bloody world full of strippers and dominatrix girls.

"FUCK YOU TOO, NARRATOR!"

As you can see, he is not amused by this~!

Aaaand Cut!

Now, I know some of you didn't expect this and I'll the first one to say this was also not what I wanted to publish either. The problem is that my laptop is not properly working as it should be, I bet I'm being attacked by an Enemy Stand!

No, seriously, this thing is making me worry because I can't do anything to solve it. And considering that most of my files are in this computer… Well, you know my point.

Luckily, I have another computer at my house… Unluckily, this is used by my siblings too and they have tons of works due the quarantine and the measures the school are using to evaluate the students.

In order to avoid conflicts, I have no choice but work at nights— when I'm exhausted thanks to my job. It's very, very, difficult to write something when I felt so tired and unmotivated… And the whole COVID-19 issue is not helping!

But worry not, I promise I'll do my best to publish new chapter and I want to stay true at my word.

HOWEVER!

If there is something I can say, is that our dear MC's life will become more exciting in the next chapters!

Anyway, without anything else to add, I bid you farewell~! And remember, Reviews are what full us writer and inspire us!