inspire-indiana Chapter 1: 5 Systems
Chapter 1: 5 Systems
In the world of swords and magic, on the continent of Ekenia, at the Royal Palace of the Kingdom of Grant:
Li Ang excitedly sat on the golden throne, his heart filled with countless emotions: "It's truly been an incredibly difficult journey! After enduring court intrigues and attacks from rebel forces, I have finally ascended to the throne of this otherworldly king and become the ruler of humanity!"
Beneath the throne, civil and military officials stood on either side, their respectful shouts surging like a tide: "Long live the King! Long live His Majesty Le Ang!"
Li Ang smiled with delight. After working so hard for so many years, he could finally enjoy himself.
Suddenly, Li Ang's sea of consciousness was invaded by the soul storm of the subspace.
Only Li Ang could see a series of glittering keyword prompts appear one after another:
"Ding! Congratulations, host, on ascending the throne! The [Make Trouble and Get Stronger System] awaits your selection!"
"Ding! Congratulations, host, on ascending the throne! The [Enjoyment and Ascendance System] awaits your selection!"
"Ding! Congratulations, host, on ascending the throne! The [Invincible System for Slaying Enemies] awaits your selection!"
"Ding! Congratulations, host, on ascending the throne! The [Compassionate Ascension System] awaits your selection!"
Without any hesitation, Li Ang directly refused, saying, "The system may be good, but I refuse! I've fought half my life, and now I just want to enjoy a king-level life in peace. Why should I be bound to a system?"
Just as Li Ang rejected four options, a cheerful voice rang in his ears: "You have rejected the temptation of the evil god, achieving the hidden achievement—The Tyrant's Blessing!"
Li Ang waved his hands repeatedly: "No, no! I don't want this option either!"
However, the notification tone in my ear still echoed clearly:
"Golden Faith Godhood System, loading, current progress: 1%.........10%.....100%!"
"System loading complete!"
"Please select the job you wish to change to within 100 seconds!"
Option 1: Psionicist!
Option Two: The Legendary Knight!
Option Three: The Silent Nun!
Option Four: The Royal Guard!
Option Five: The Mechanical Priest!
Option Six: Punish the Judge!
Then, Li Ang saw a "clock" that only he could see, which was counting down.
As a seasoned gamer on Earth, Li Ang suddenly realized something: "Holy crap, could it be that weasels are recruiting soldiers?! This damn Golden Faith Godhood System—I went through so much trouble to become king, I don't want to be reassigned to these weird and strange professions!"
The countdown is ticking away, second by second.
"Your Majesty, what's wrong?"
Edmund, a military officer standing nearby, sensed something amiss and quietly stepped forward, calling out in a low voice.
Li Ang glanced at Edmund, and at that moment a string of data appeared:
Name: Edmund
Identity: Commander of the Royal Capital Garrison
Rank: Peak Great Warrior
Loyalty: 90
Note: We can undertake career transformation and train soldiers for specific military branches.
Immediately afterward, the countdown ended, and the system issued a notification: "Special host soul essence detected (origin: Earth), automatically exempt from mandatory initial job selection. This can be transferred to another eligible person!"
Li Ang made a decision in an instant, thinking to himself, "I'm sorry, Edmund, my right-hand man. In this urgent situation, I'll have to take the lead. I'm afraid you'll have to shoulder this 'opportunity' for now."
Leon chose the cool "Legendary Knight" class for Edmund as his specific unit.
Without Edmund's knowledge, a gray "Knight's Longsword" design was quietly engraved on his chest.
"I'm fine, you may leave."
Li Ang surveyed the assembled officials in the hall, his voice steady: "Perhaps the future King of Humanity's Chosen Knights will be born here."
Although Edmund was completely confused, he still bowed respectfully and returned to his place in the column.
Then, Foreign Minister Tester reported a major event: "Your Majesty, the Green-skinned Monsters have sent an envoy to congratulate you on your ascension to the throne. They are already waiting outside the palace."
Li Ang waved his hand: "Since they're here to offer their congratulations, let them in!"
In the continent of Eknia, where swords and magic reign supreme, humans are not the only intelligent race.
Dragons soar through the skies, elves dwell in the forests, Titans roam the mountains, and other exotic races such as orcs, undead, vampires, druids, grey dwarves, and green-skinned monsters coexist.
"Knock knock!"
Seven or eight green-skinned monsters, each several meters tall, swaggered into the palace, carrying huge iron hammers.
The one-eyed green-skinned monster at the head of the group gave a perfunctory bow: "Congratulations on His Majesty Li Ang's ascension to the throne!"
Li Ang frowned. This green-skinned monster looked arrogant and spoke in a frivolous tone, showing no sign of congratulations whatsoever.
As expected, the one-eyed green-skinned monster then produced a contract: "In the ninth millennium of the Fire Age, former King Gudroni, due to his disastrous defeat in the Battle of the Agate River, signed a treaty with our race! The Kingdom of Grant must pay five million gold coins in reparations and cede ten towns in the Agate River basin within twenty years!"
"It is now the year 9020 of the Fire of Life calendar. Your Majesty Li Ang, please pay the indemnity as soon as possible and send officials to handle the cession of territory."
Li Ang's expression hardened. The former king, Gudroni, was his uncle. During his reign, he launched many wars against alien creatures on the continent, but given the weakness of humanity, he was defeated.
The Kingdom of Grant was always defeated in battle and signed a series of unequal treaties.
Many of the people were plunged into misery because of the indemnity payments and territorial cessions.
"Your Excellency, it has been twenty years. If I am not mistaken, the kingdom has paid three million gold coins in interest during this period. Moreover, the five most fertile towns in the Agate River basin were effectively ceded in the year the treaty was signed."
"The benefits you Greenskins have gained far exceed what you gained in the war."
Li Ang said angrily.
The one-eyed green-skinned monster, however, remained unconvinced: "Your Majesty, the interest on the three million gold coins and the additional five towns are not part of the treaty; they were gifts made free of charge by the former King Gudroni twenty years ago. I am now discussing the treaty with Your Majesty! Please do not renege on your promise, and certainly do not confuse the two!"
Having just ascended the throne, Li Ang was well aware of the empty treasury and the presence of rebel forces within the kingdom.
If I were to satisfy the greedy demands of the Green-skinned Monsters right after ascending the throne, it might very well incite an even greater popular uprising.
"Haha, Your Excellency the Envoy! The treaty was signed by Gudroni, not by me, Leon! If you want reparations and towns, go find Gudroni!"
Li Ang sneered.
The one-eyed green-skinned monster flew into a rage: "Your Majesty Leon, you've brought this upon yourself! We green-skinned monsters are a superior race, with seven or eight hundred thousand warriors! If this news reaches our tribe, the green-skinned army will sweep across the Kingdom of Grant!"
Foreign Minister Tester immediately trembled with fear and hurriedly advised, "Your Majesty, please reconsider! If there aren't enough gold coins, or if you don't want to cede towns, we can negotiate with the envoys. For example, we could offer some able-bodied young slaves and fertile women from within the kingdom to the Greenskins?"
Seeing Foreign Minister Tester's cowardly appearance, Li Ang became angry and immediately shouted coldly, "Shut your mouth!"
Li Ang immediately glanced at the one-eyed green-skinned monster: "Your Excellency, if I remember correctly, the green-skinned race has a tradition called the 'War of Warriors'! If our human side wins the 'War of Warriors,' can the reparations and ceded towns under the unequal treaty be wiped clean?"
The one-eyed green-skinned monster burst into laughter: "The Battle of Warriors is a tradition of our race! Winning the Battle of Warriors means achieving the supreme glory of our race! Naturally, this can be wiped clean!"
"However, throughout history, no human has ever won the War of Warriors! On the contrary, Your Majesty Leon, if you lose the competition, all the reparations and ceded towns will need to be tripled!"
Even the usually prudent Minister of Ceremonies, Andrew, advised, "Your Majesty, please be extremely cautious! Triple compensation could shake the very foundations of the nation!"
The pressure came like a mountain.
Li Ang's gaze involuntarily drifted into the depths of his consciousness—to a small system sprite that emitted a faint golden light and resembled a weasel.
It was this strange existence that gave Li Ang his final confidence.
I took a deep breath, suppressing all my hesitation.
Li Ang abruptly rose from the golden throne, his voice resolute and clear, echoing in the ears of every human minister and greenskin messenger:
"Green-skinned messengers, listen up! I, the King, hereby officially initiate—the War of Warriors! I urge you to accept the challenge!"