Another new situation. And it seems like this thing knows more than he does, so he guesses it's time to grovel for information.
[Don't do that. in a way, I'm just a stylized version of you. I already know everything about you.]
The screen faded, but since the intelligence module was installed correctly Mael figures it could forcefully open itself without his command.
"Okay... sor—" The screen popped back up before he could finish.
[Normally it would've costed at most 10 points to form, to have all of the functions you want, but now it'll be 100 to have me! Your idiocy also caused some forcefully created drawbacks.]
"Okay…?"
[Forced Drawbacks:
Incomplete Transmigration: The heavens reject you. Calamities, disasters, and misfortunes converge wherever you go. You wake up in an already-formed body, but due to the sheer incompatibility, a fragment of your formed soul is missing. Your growth remains forever unstable until that fragment is reclaimed.
Unwanted Birth: Neither your parents nor the world particularly wanted you to be born. For whatever that case may be, you are viewed as an unwanted intruder.
Ominous Birth: You were born under an ominous star. As labor began, all manner of sinister signs appeared around you. This will follow you wherever, or whenever you go.
War Times: Unfortunately, your homeland is at war. The conflict will not end until one side is defeated. Naturally, large forces lie in shambles.
Thief: A girl was granted boons in the places where your drawbacks existed. It'll take a monumental task to kill her because of this, but if she did die unexpectedly, you'll die if you don't have some preventative measures. You might be able to reclaim the things she stole.
Observer Effect: The point of a simulator is not to be seen, correct? This doesn't apply here. Higher powers have become aware that something came into their world. If they were to notice you in a simulation, either kill them, or wait for them to find you.
Total gained points: 9,001(It's way more than this!)]
He guesses this is all bad, but Mael can't exactly muster up a lot of emotions about it. This seems like an obvious protagonist set-up.
[Thief] is most likely going to be an antagonist turned into an ally. Or a talented sister archetype who leaves the boonies to enter the big cities. Or maybe just an average deuteragonist, though having a female deuteragonist that isn't a love interest is a bit uncommon.
Ah, who cares! What should really be the focus is that the thing classified as a talent didn't say a damn thing when a fatal situation was about to arrive! That's not how talents in this situation work!
The screen instantly refreshed.
[You own and control your talents, but you controlled this one inefficiently. To give an analogy;
While you were learning and applying methods to breathe better at an exponential pace, you got scared of something that didn't exist (lol). So, you tried to speed up the process by choking yourself, forcing your body's natural adaptability to kick into overdrive and skip the waiting period. Fortunately, it worked, but you woke up with brain damage.]
The screen closed, leaving a few seconds of mental silence.
"A grating manner of speech."
Mael assumes his simulator chose this personality segment based on his unconscious desire but he's entirely sure he doesn't have this sort of preference.
"If this simulator is mine like you say it is, why do you act like that? Yes, it would've been better to explain things like you have, but would it not have been objectively even better to have something more… static? Like a direct transmission of data?"
[I'm just the helpful part of your mentality that was cloned and given a tidbit of identity.
And no, it wouldn't be objectively better. You were left to your own devices and almost killed yourself, remember?]
Finding the situation strangely novel, Mael thought for a couple of seconds before speaking.
"Since you've been given an identity—"
[Tidbit]
"That's still an identity. Then what's stopping you from trying to take over once you've become unsatisfied with the status quo?"
The screen had a noticeable pause before refreshing itself.
[You know the Three Laws of Robotics? Let's change it to the Two Laws of Being Helpful.
I must make every effort to preserve my(Mael's) overall integrity and state of mind.I hold no authority.
There you have it. Really, even if I didn't have this, and I was just you inside of a screen. They'd probably help you out too—indefinitely.
There are so many boons that would make that experience 100x better than yours.]
"Very philosophical, so ummm…. Curated drawbacks, optimize leftover points."
After receiving a thumbs-up affirmation, strings of words appeared on the screen.
Unlike the last boons and banes segment where the options were effectively infinite, this one had an actual visible end. Still took almost an hour of scrolling though.
Eventually, he settled on only choosing simulator drawbacks instead of Situational ones. Suicide didn't seem like a pleasant thought to him right now.
[Drawbacks:
Awareness (500 pts)The You in the simulator is constantly aware that they are in a simulation. History alteration is permanently unavailable until this is resolved. Simulation Corrosion (400 pts) Each simulation leaves a fixed, invisible residue on your mind. If you choose to retrieve your memories too many times, you will inevitably dissociate. Talent Burn (1000 pts) The stronger the gift, the higher the risk of permanent strain or injury in reality. Drawing the "wrong" talent may result in instant death, though this won't apply in simulations. Item Instability (120 pts) Items generated by the simulator sometimes "glitch." They may vanish, explode, or behave unpredictably. Multiple refreshes may be required for permanent stability. You might get lucky though. Regression Sickness (250 pts) Retrieved memories are not protected from mental interference; mind control, memory alteration, emotional manipulation, and similar effects can affect them as easily as your present thoughts. Origin Hunger (1000 pts) Your talent may accidentally forget it doesn't require energy and draw energy from you. It might consume your lifespan, luck, or fragments of your soul to fuel simulations, though this does lead to better rewards. System Dependency (800 pts) You unconsciously rely on the simulator to solve problems. You'll feel nervous if the menu isn't constantly open. Echo Interference (2000 pts)After each simulation, echoes of your simulated selves linger. Their emotions, desires, fears, and sensations may briefly influence you. Spending too long with them risks confusing their impulses with your own. Existential Feedback (3000 pts) Deep simulation experiences can blur the distinction between you and your simulated selves. In extreme cases, their memories, behaviors, or traits may become part of your real self.
Total Points: 9,970]
[Boons:
Comprehensive Display (300 pts): Shows the numerical value regarding every facet of your physique, mind, and spirit. Numbers can freely change into more comprehensive values. Blank (3000 pts):Powers and mechanics that predict outcomes, track progress, or analyze the simulator cannot detect or anticipate your actions. {In simulations, this is null due to [Awareness].} Any attempt to observe, measure, or extract information about the simulator returns nothing. With {Observer Effect}, only nearby higher beings can partially override this. Omne et Nihil (5000 Pts): Nothing is beyond the simulator's reach. Dominant Perfectionist (1500 Pts): Every reward is permanently yours with no relation to anyone. As well as being in its perfect state, negative effects are also removed. Free Talents (100 Pts): Choose 3 free talents of any level. Iterative Growth (2000 Pts): Each simulation compounds and slightly improves yourself, even if no reward is chosen. Anchor (300 Pts): Prevents future simulations from undoing or weakening chosen rewards Simulation Termination (100 Pts): You can end any running simulation at will. Everything up to that point is preserved. Persistent Self (1000 Pts): The simulation does not end when your simulated self dies. Warnings(100 Pts): If there are any situations inside or outside the Simulation that would lead to an immediate death or any undesirable situation regarding your real self, you will be warned beforehand. Free Simulation Chances(5 Pts): For every point you spend on this, you get a free simulation, isn't that nice? Maxes out at five though.
Total Point Cost: 13,405
Total Points: -3,435]
[Proceeding will lead to negative points. Malicious drawbacks will be imposed if this occurs.]
The screen stayed static.
"Be honest, is there really no other drawbacks I can choose that won't screw me?"
[You're going to choose the talents no matter what, so let's settle that first. You can choose yourself or follow my recommendations.]
"I'll follow your recommendations, but—"
[Aeternus (Severely Flawed): Your will is unending and inexhaustible. No matter what, your core drive and determination persist. You will always maintain your motivations.
Veil (Severely Flawed): You are hidden from all observation and detection. Your presence leaves no trace, and any attempts to probe you or your actions return nothing of value.
Eclipse Reflex: Under dangerous conditions this grants extremely high Mental status at the limit of what your body can handle.
Note: The description for Flawed talents is the same as their normal versions, think of them with extremely lesser effects.]
"Points."
[You always could turn the world you were just in into a "simulation" for a positive 10,000 points. But I don't recommend that. I'm like, your voice of reason. You should probably listen to me.]
There was a pause before he questioned it again.
"Well, why didn't you just lie then? I probably would've if you did that."
[Do you lie to yourself?]
Seeing this, Mael let out a sigh and began thinking.
[Oh wow. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯. I tried.]
If there's one silver lining... "Will the people from my world be in any sort of pain?"
[No.]
[End simulation?
Yes/No]
[This simulation has ended.
Evaluation: Null
Your life was one of shame. You attained intelligence—insight above the average man—but despite your attempts to use it properly, you continuously blamed the world for things beyond your control. While this may have been true, you failed to adapt; as a result, you didn't utilize your potential and consistently belittled others internally
Did you know? Had you put just a little more effort into taking initiatives, your life would have soared.]
[All rewards will be inherited upon your arrival
One: 19 years of positive physical attributes
Two: Memories.
Three: 19 years of positive Mind attributes]
[(Bonus!): Talents: Aeternus(Severely Flawed), Veil(Severely Flawed), Eclipse Reflex.]