Chapter 22: System
Perspective: Velkaris
"Alright, System," I said aloud, arms crossed inside the void.
"Show me the Beginner's Gift."
A ding echoed in the space, cheerful and cruel at once.
A glowing interface unfolded before me like a blooming mechanical flower.
[BEGINNER GIFT PACKAGE OPENED]
1-Month Divine Pass
50% Shop Discount Coupon
500 Faith Points
I stared, blinking.
"…Explain."
[GIFT DETAILS]
1. 1-Month Divine Pass
A temporary status that allows your body, mind, and soul to resist the corrosive effects of divinity — including your own.
During this time, you can think, feel, and act as if you were human again.
Side effects: existential awareness, phantom guilt, cravings for identity, temporary autonomy.
2. 50% Shop Discount Coupon
Allows you to purchase any one item from the System Shop at half the normal price.
Valid for 30 days. Cannot be stacked. Cannot be used to purchase "truth."
3. 500 Faith Points
You gain a one-time gift of 500 Faith Points, enough to purchase a small reality adjustment or minor divine artifact.
Warning: These are not System Points. Cannot be traded for tasks.
I whistled. "Wow. These are actually… great."
I didn't know whether to laugh or be suspicious.
But I was already reaching.
"System, use Divine Pass. Right now."
[DING! Activating 1-Month Divine Pass…]
The moment it activated, the world tilted.
For a second, I could breathe again — not as a god, not as a lie, but as someone real. My senses weren't divine filters or symbolic impressions. They were… mine.
The void felt warm.
My skin itched.
I had a heartbeat.
And then a thought — sudden and alien — filled my mind:
"I feel alive."
Not divine.
Not conceptual.
Just… alive.
But before I could savor it, another panel opened.
[SYSTEM STRUCTURE EXPLANATION]
The System is divided into three primary functions:
1. Payment / Price
This category is not optional.
You will receive compulsory tasks or sacrifices.
Failure results in punishment. No reward is granted.
2. Quests
These are optional narrative tasks.
You may fail or refuse up to 3 quests per year.
Success grants System Points, access to hidden lore, and sometimes divine permissions.
3. System Shop
You can purchase items, truths, distortions, and concepts.
Currency types accepted:
[ACCEPTED CURRENCIES:]
System Points — standard reward currency.
Faith Points — acquired through belief in your existence.
➤ Conversion rate: 1 Faith Point = 10 System Points
Lie Faith Points — rare, unstable energy of belief in falsehoods.
➤ Conversion rate: 1 Lie Faith Point = 0.01 System Points
➤ Warning: May cause distortion in divine narrative flow.
"…Wait, what the hell is a Lie Faith Point?"
[DING: EXPLANATION LOADING…]
Lies do not exist anywhere... and yet they exist everywhere.
Whenever one person lies to another, and the recipient half-believes it —
A Lie Faith Point is generated.
Note: The recipient doesn't fully believe. They just entertain the illusion.
I stared at the screen.
"Wait… so you're telling me…"
I grinned.
"This world runs on lies?"
[DING: CORRECTION — MOST WORLDS DO]
I laughed out loud. A bitter, delighted, divine laugh.
"Every human is a liar."
"Every god lies to stay sane."
"And every prayer is a wish the believer only hopes is true."
In my words?
Overpowered.
Because this meant even if no one worshipped me honestly,
Even if I was forgotten,
As long as people lied — I would remain.
Not believed in.
Not feared.
Just… entertained.
"System," I whispered, smiling into the mirror.
"You really want me to entertain you, don't you?"
[DING: WE'RE COUNTING ON IT.]
End of Chapter 22