Isekai Yururi Kikou ~Raising Children While Being an Adventurer~ - Chapter 1

...[Inside an underground basement]“You are going to die for nothing, hahahaha,” the old man's voice thundered through the room, sending chills down my spine.Step.With a swift and ruthless motion, he lunged forward, his sword slicing through the air and slashing my throat, crimson droplets staining the darkness.“We'll see,” I whispered defiantly, my final words escaping as a mere breath against the impending darkness.Slowly, inexorably, my consciousness slipped away, and I descended into a deep, unfathomable slumber.“Huh!?” My eyes fluttered open, and I found myself seated in a bustling tavern, the air thick with laughter and the clinking of glasses.In front of me stood a captivating lady, her beauty juxtaposed with an angry furrow upon her brow, threatening to shatter the harmony of the jovial scene.“Don't follow me around!” Her words pierced the air like shards of ice, the intensity of her emotions palpable as she cast a resentful glare in my direction, before swiftly departing from the tavern....Am I trapped within the confines of a game? The fragments of my shattered common sense scattered before me, leaving me to question the very fabric of my reality.

Qi Condensation. Foundation Establishment. Core Formation. In the current world, only these three realms are known to be achievable. Nascent Soul is but a legend and the realms above it lost to the the long river of time. The modern era is known as Cultivation Civilization, a balance of power and civility, excess and moderation. While cultivation remains a secret practice, it has long since exposed itself to the mundane world, quietly intertwined with each facet of society. While the world appears to be at peace, what lies underneath is a conflict between human, cultivator, and demon, brewing for ages and waiting to implode. Yet in the wake of humanity’s rapid industrialization, qi—and consequently cultivation—is dying.

Nagi Travers, a 20-year-old shut-in and former gaming champion, lives a miserable and isolated existence after being tormented by bullies throughout his life. Fired from his last job and grieving the loss of his parents, Nagi now survives by playing video games and barely ventures outside. His world spirals further into despair when he encounters Jake and Mary, his former high school bullies, who humiliate him and steal his money.Broken by the return of his tormentors and the weight of his past, Nagi contemplates suicide as his only escape. Just as he’s about to take his life, a small girl’s ball rolls into the street, with a speeding truck barreling towards her. In a moment of selflessness, Nagi rushes out and saves the girl, sacrificing himself in the process. Fatally injured, he reflects on the idea that it's better to die doing good than bad.Nagi awakens in a surreal, white world, where he is greeted by an angelic figure who offers him two choices: remain in eternal peace, free from suffering, or be reborn in a different world where he could seek redemption and a second chance at life. Nagi faces a life-altering decision—rest forever or attempt to find meaning and fulfillment in another world.

In a world where cruelty reigns and only the ruthless survive, Arthur—a boy born in the gutters of a city ruled by monsters—knows only one truth: power decides fate. Shackled by the past, driven by vengeance, and desperate to carve his own path, he plunges into a brutal struggle for dominance. But as blood stains his hands and the lines between man and beast blur, Arthur stumbles upon something far more dangerous than war—fragments of a life he was never meant to have. A name. A home. A reason to fight beyond survival.But is survival enough, or will he become the very thing he swore to destroy?