Rogue Ascension 1. Welcome to Multiverse Z

[Adventurer or Commoner?]

Joey was alone in a stone room. The walls were covered in strange runic letters that glowed multiple colors across the spectrum. He couldn’t stare at them for long or his head would hurt.

The other things of note were the dark doorways, one to his left and right. And the blue system message floating in front of his face.

[Adventurer or Commoner?], asked the system message.

“This is a joke, right?” He chuckled. “Alright, it’s time for me to wake up. Let’s pinch my way out of this craziness.”

Joey pinched himself. It hurt more than he expected. The lingering sting felt real. “Uh.”

He looked back at the floating system message. Then he examined his surroundings again. For the first time, he noticed more system messages. Two, to be exact. Each floated over the doorways.

One said, [Adventurer].

The other said, [Commoner].

“Do I get more information than that?” Joey asked, waiting for someone to answer. No response. This was getting creepy for him.

I remember playing video games and getting drunk before ending up here, he thought.

He’d wanted a relaxing night to himself. His work at the shipping center was getting harder because of the holidays, but he needed the overtime. He could barely afford his rent even with two roommates.

“They spiked my drink, didn’t they?” He palmed his face, feeling annoyed.

Life at the age of eighteen with nobody to help him forced Joey to compromise.

Untrustworthy roommates?

Check.

Hard job with micromanaging managers?

Check.

Barely able to live because of rising inflation?

Check. Check. Check.

At least I only have myself to take care of. He sighed, wondering if he was going to play this straight or call out this nonsense. Screw it. My curiosity is pulling toward the adventurer door. But let’s not be hasty.

Joey walked around to check his surroundings first. He touched most of the walls. But not for long. Getting close to the runes gave him weird tingly sensations and made his stomach quiver.

He was barefoot and dressed in black basketball shorts and a black tank top – his usual home outfit. So he stepped carefully wherever he went. He’d hate to get something stuck in his foot and die of an infection.

If anyone was watching through a hidden camera, they would see a black man with curly black hair searching every nook and cranny. As if he was in an escape room. He was shorter than the average male. Young-looking, too, while also built lean and wiry with some athletic traits.

“Alright. So the drugs are strong as hell. Or my roommates know some rich people and set this all up to mess with me. Or I’ve been sold off, and I’m part of a strange game. Again, for rich people.”

Either way, he was definitely not home anymore. And he couldn’t find a trap door, a secret button, or any clues. At least talking and thinking to himself helped him keep his cool.

When all other options are removed, make the best decision, he thought.

He faced the [Adventurer] door and carefully walked inside.

The darkness transitioned into a gray light. When he looked back, a stone slab closed off the last room. There had been no noise.

He inhaled deeply and pressed forward. The tunnel led to another room. But the walls had less glowing runes compared to the last one.

Pale lights hovered in the air. No wires. No connections to the walls or ceilings.

He waved his hand around the pale lights. Each one was the size of his head. They made him think of will-o’-wisps.

He nearly touched one but backed away. “Nope.”

He turned to assess the rest of the room. Two books waited for him on a stone podium.

[Greatness or Steadiness?]

One book had [Greatness] hovering over it. The other book had [Steadiness].

Joey sighed. “Oh, gods of trashy anime and web stories, why tempt me so? You know greatness is the only way.”

He was leaning into the craziness now. But just to be on the safe side, he checked the entire room and found nothing suspicious. The tunnel he’d come from was gone, too.

Back at the books, he touched the [Greatness] one.

The [Steadiness] book disappeared.

The [Greatness] book slid to the center of the podium. Joey stepped back and watched his chosen book do some funky things.

It flipped open by itself. The pages flew by. Then colorful runes floated into the air.

It hurt his eyes to look at them. Thankfully, a system message popped up between the floating runes and him.

[If you had a special elemental aspect, what would it be? For example, fire, water, air, earth, or … ?]

“Am I getting my celestial signs read here or something?” Joey rubbed the back of his neck, trying to play off his anxiety with jokes. “Oh, wait, did I get kidnapped by a rich stalker girl? Preferably one who wouldn’t torture me and is actually kind of nice once you get past the crazy … side?”

He blinked.

“You know what, nevermind what I said. I’m a perfectly normal person, by the way.” Hand to his chin, he refocused on the question. “Is lightning available?”

[Do you wish for the Lightning Aspect? Turn yourself into a walking light show. Electrocute your enemies. Avoid the water or electrocute yourself. Maybe you’ll smell as crispy as your victims.]

Joey raised an eyebrow. Well, clearly that aspect has a dark connotation to it. And I’m a little unsure about messing with lightning. It’s not really my go to element.

“Let’s try something else. Fire Aspect?”

[Do you wish for the Fire Aspect? Burn it all! The village. The villagers! The baby villagers! Burn, burn, burn!]

“Bro, what is with these grim descriptions?!” Joey shouted. “That’s not enticing at all. Why is it written this way?”

[Do you wish for the Writer Aspect? Scribble down your hopes and dreams. Create unreal wonders from your thoughts. Keep yourself entertained even if nobody finds your writing in the dump.]

Joey winced. That aspect description was the most brutal of all. But it showed the flexible range of the elemental aspects.

I’m wondering if the descriptions are there to warn of the follies.

If each aspect was given a negative description, it was a test of willpower to choose an aspect anyway.

“Ah. So you really should go after the one you want regardless of the negatives.” Joey nodded to himself. That felt right. “Is shade a thing?”

[Do you wish for the Shade Aspect? Become a shadow of your former self. All your friends will be ghosts. In your house of darkness, you will be forever damned.]

“Shadow. Ghosts. Darkness. Yup. That’s the one.”

He always found this elemental type interesting. He’d looked it up while imagining his own original character and story. He’d never gotten around to writing it.

The shifting runes and system messages might lead to a fantasy come to life. Depending on how long the rich people running this simulation kept the charade going.

[Shade Aspect selected].

A new message overlaid the first.

[If you had a spirit creature, what would it be? For example, monkey, ox, snake, rooster, or … ?]

“Dragon,” Joey said seriously.

[Do you wish for the Spirit Dragon? Princess-hungry. Gold hoarders. Wretched terrors of the skies. Pride and greed flow through their veins. Nothing but death and destruction and treasures can satisfy them.]

“I would be disappointed with myself to go with anything but a dragon,” Joey said. The other option would be going for the monkey, but I’m not feeling for the trickster angle right now.

[Spirit Dragon selected].

A third message popped up over the last two. This one was different.

[Select a class: Rogue? Warrior? Archer? Tamer? Cleric? Mage? The initial classes are your foundations, your guide. How you grow from here is up to chance and choice.]

Joey stared openly at the selection. For some reason, this felt stranger than the last picks.

At the same time, he felt weirdly excited. There was only one suitable for him.

“Rogue.”

[Are you certain on selecting the Rogue Class? Scoundrels. Backstabbers. Thieves. Daggers in the night! The only good rogue is a dead rogue. And if they aren’t dead, then you better have enough coins to pay them off.]

Joey chuckled. He liked the rogue description. Even with the negative angle, he had no doubts with his class choice.

“Yup, rogue.” He smiled. “So what’s next?”

[Compiling choices. Do you agree with this path: Shade Dragon Rogue?]

“That sounds like money.”

[Creating a great adventurer profile for Joey Eclipse.

Preparing for the beginner challenge realm.]

The lights dimmed. Darkness surrounded Joey. Fear and excitement gripped him equally. Then he noticed a new light somewhere in the distance. Like the light at the end of a tunnel.

Before he could take a step, a new message appeared.

[Congrats, Joey Eclipse. You’ve chosen the path of a great adventurer. You are on your way to becoming a Shade Dragon Rogue. But heed this message’s words before heading to your beginner challenge.

If you happen to die in the beginner challenge realm, do not worry. Your first death will be covered by divine mercy, and you will be revived. However, you will fall from the path of a great adventurer.

And you will become a commoner.

With that said, you are allowed this one moment to back out of the path. You can become a steady adventurer instead.

Your elemental aspect and spirit creature choices will be removed. You will only be allowed a class choice. But you can die and retry in the beginner challenge realm as many times as you like without risking an instant reset into commoner.

Would you like to reverse your choices and go steady or continue being great? Or would you prefer to back out all the way and become a commoner now? As a Commoner, you would receive a role, a decent way to live, and be at the mercy of those with greater powers than you.]

Joey shook his head at the longest system message he’d received. “Don’t even play with me. I’ve already lived as a commoner, and that stinks. Steady won’t be enough for me. I have to go for greatness all the way.”

In most situations, Joey wouldn’t care. He’d be happy with average. But this excited him more than most things in life. More than free running or playing video games. Even if this was all fake, he was invested.

And Shade Dragon Rogue sounds too good to let go.

[Please walk forward Shade Dragon Rogue.]

Joey did as instructed. With every step, he felt strange tingles inside and outside of him. It was as if he was being transformed.

[Initializing … ]

Joey stumbled slightly as bigger changes passed through his body. But he kept moving forward.

[Initialization complete.]

Joey reached the light.

[Welcome to Multiverse Z.]