Hollywood: Lights, Ink, Entertainment! - Chapter 24: Auditions

In the year 2100, global warming has long since made the Earth's natural surface uninhabitable with a new ice age. Humanity takes refuge in huge, closed cities, but life is difficult. Video games are the opium of the people, letting them escape the chaos of life in immense metropolises.

In 2100, the first fully immersive VRMMORPG, "Horus," was released, and the world changed! Entirely coded by an independent AI, "Horus" made all other games look meaningless by comparison.

Megacorporations quickly monopolized on the wealth "Horus" allowed its players to amass, and soon people like Alexander were spending their lives slaving away to make money for the companies who employed them.

But on the day Alexander died of exhaustion, collapsing in his gaming booth...

...He woke up, alive, nine years earlier.

One day before "Horus's" launch.

"This time, I'll do it right! I know everything that's going to happen! I'll become the strongest, and no one will take advantage of me again!"


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///This work takes place in an MMORPG whose main goal is the exploration and conquest of space.///

///my two main inspirations are: The Reincarnation of the Strongest Sword God and the Legendary Mechanic.///

///I care about the coherence of the story, even if the theme of overpowering is present, it is thanks to the reflexive and opportunistic choices of the MC and not a chance to come out of nowhere. ////

The Apocalypse descended as the world turned into a game. And while everyone panicked, I couldn’t help but wonder if there was something wrong with my eyes.[Logging into the Game Master’s Account!]And my ‘oh-so-average’ destiny, changed into ‘is this a cheat life?’ Kind of destiny.[Would you like to Create a Skill? GM Points will be consumed!]While others struggled to kill a single goblin, I was searching for stronger monsters. While they were happy with getting even a random weak skill, I was customizing what kind of skills I needed.Even my Talents and Gifts can be customised. The only limit was my imagination.Heck, even the hidden quests that people would trigger randomly were present in front of me even before the scenario began.It wasn’t fair by any means. But isn’t that how life is already?[Would you like to make changes to the quests in the next scenario? GM Points will be consumed!]Is this how an apocalypse is supposed to be? I don’t know. I just tried following the script in front of everyone while trying out my cheat in hindsight. Don't get me wrong with the ‘pig eating tiger’ kind of thing. I just don’t like attention. I would rather stay with two trusted friends than with 10 fake ones.[Would you like to Initiate a Custom quest for the Players? GM Points will be consumed!]And for the players who were bullying the ‘weak’ me. One may even wonder how they ended up losing half of their stats and skills in a randomly triggered impossible type of quest.Fate can be truly scary, you know?One must always be careful of it.

At level 2, most people unlocked their first talent; those who didn’t were considered fortunate, as they had the potential to unlock rarer talents requiring higher levels. The world’s most rare and powerful talents were revealed at level 5. But what if someone didn’t obtain a talent? Luck quickly turned to misfortune as they were labeled talentless, with no hope of gaining a talent. Sol was one such person who was unable to unlock his talent, but he refused to give up. He persistently fought and trained every day, slowly increasing his level despite the disadvantage in skills. He held onto the hope that, one day, he would be bestowed with a talent like everyone else. As years passed, his determination began to wane until one fateful day. You have leveled up! +5 Free stats. Talent Unlocked - [Siphoner]! This event marked the beginning of his story.

Weary reader, it is an honor for you to choose this book in this heavy, dark library room.

Somewhat sadly, the book is sick.

Your fingers should be able to feel the raised growths on the surface of the book cover,

The words written in the old days are like parasites rooted in the pages of the book, hoping that someone can observe their wriggling,

To feel, to analyze, to touch the story of the disease.

If you insist on borrowing this book, be sure to check your physical condition regularly.

- Description from novelbuddy