Chapter 1: The System That Shouldn't Exist

Arc 1: System Initialization

Where a lazy genius meets a broken system — and the world starts to glitch.

“All I wanted was a nap… not a system update on my life.”

Li Yuhan’s life was perfectly ordinary — painfully, exhaustingly ordinary.

Classes from 9 to 4, part-time job at a bubble tea shop from 5 to 9, and then hours of gaming until his brain melted into digital goo.

If laziness were an Olympic sport, he would’ve won gold without standing up.

That night, though, his game didn’t load.

His laptop blinked twice, made a dying noise, and the screen went black.

> “...Great,” Yuhan muttered, tapping the power button like a caveman discovering technology. “Another crash. Why can’t I crash my life instead?”

Then — beep.

The screen flickered.

Static ran across the monitor like broken lightning.

> [Error: System Detected Outside Approved Dimensions]

[Attempting to connect to Host...]

He blinked.

“...What? Did Steam finally go insane?”

> [Connection established.]

[Binding Host: Li Yuhan]

[Warning: System... Not Found]

The words glitched, the edges of the text breaking apart as if reality itself couldn’t render them properly.

Then his phone buzzed. His smartwatch beeped. His smart fridge made a sound suspiciously like a scream.

Everything digital around him was flashing the same message:

> [Welcome, User.]

“Okay,” he said slowly, standing up. “Either I just got hacked, or I’m in the world’s dumbest prank show.”

He looked around his messy apartment — ramen cups, socks, and a mysterious bug flying in circles like it was paid to annoy him.

Definitely no prank crew.

Then a notification sound echoed inside his head.

Inside. His. Head.

> [Tutorial Initiated.]

[Quest 1: Get Out of Bed.]

[Reward: +1 Motivation.]

Yuhan stared at the glowing blue text floating midair.

He rubbed his eyes, reopened them — it was still there.

> “...Bro. Even my hallucinations are disappointed in me.”

When he didn’t move, the system buzzed louder.

> [Warning: Host inactivity detected.]

[Penalty: Mild Electroshock Therapy]

“Wait, what—”

BZZT!

“ARGHHHH! OKAY OKAY I’M UP!”

He jumped out of bed, hair standing like a dandelion on caffeine.

The blue text flickered happily.

> [Quest Complete!]

[Reward: +1 Motivation (Expired in 5 seconds)]

“…Five seconds?”

The text blinked out.

Silence.

Yuhan stood there, chest heaving, his brain screaming what just happened.

Then another window popped up.

> [Next Quest: Make a teacher laugh tomorrow.]

[Reward: 1 Stat Point]

[Hint: Your sense of humor is statistically tragic.]

“...Oh, it’s personal now,” Yuhan muttered, glaring at the holographic screen.

“Fine. Let’s see what this stupid system wants.”

He didn’t know it yet, but that was the moment life stopped being ordinary —

and the glitch began rewriting everything he thought was real.

Morning arrived too soon — like a bad sequel no one asked for.

Li Yuhan dragged himself toward college, yawning like a man who had wrestled with ghosts all night. His hair looked like it had gone to war and lost.

He’d barely slept after the whole “System in my head” incident. But a part of him kept hoping it was just a dream.

That hope died the moment he checked his phone.

> [Good morning, Host.]

[Reminder: Today’s Quest – Make a teacher laugh.]

[Penalty for failure: Social humiliation.]

“...What’s that supposed to mean?” he muttered, crossing the street. “You gonna trip me into a trash can or what?”

> [If necessary.]

He froze mid-step. “You can hear me?!”

> [Obviously. It’s called communication, Host. Try it sometime.]

“…Oh great, the glitch talks now.”

> [Correction: I am the System. Version unknown. Functionality... 38%. Sanity... debatable.]

“Debatable?!”

> [Debatable.]

Yuhan groaned. “Can I uninstall you?”

> [Attempting uninstall— Error: Host dependency detected. Removing system will result in Host’s death.]

He stopped walking. “...Death?!”

> [Just kidding. Or am I?]

“...I’m gonna throw myself into traffic.”

> [Not recommended. Your current level (0) is insufficient for isekai transition.]

“...”

This was going to be a long day.

By the time he reached class, he’d convinced himself to play along.

If this thing was real, maybe it was useful.

If it wasn’t, at least the voices in his head were entertaining.

The classroom was the usual chaos — half-asleep students, a tired professor, and that one overenthusiastic guy already asking questions no one cared about.

Yuhan slumped into his seat.

> [Quest Reminder: Make the teacher laugh.]

[Hint: Sarcasm works 0.02% of the time.]

He sighed. “Fine, let’s get this over with.”

The professor, Mr. Zhou, walked in with his usual energy of a dying Wi-Fi signal.

“Alright class, open your books to—”

“Sir!” Yuhan raised his hand dramatically.

Mr. Zhou blinked. “Yes, Li Yuhan?”

“I read the entire chapter last night, sir.”

A lie so bold even the air paused.

The professor looked shocked for a second — then smirked.

“Oh? Then you can explain it to the rest of the class.”

The system pinged.

> [Side Quest Generated: Survive your own stupidity.]

“...”

Yuhan stood up, smiled awkwardly, and said,

“Well, you see, sir… the author was clearly suffering when he wrote this part.”

The class burst into laughter.

Even Mr. Zhou chuckled, shaking his head.

“Sit down, Yuhan. You win today.”

> [Quest Complete!]

[Reward: 1 Stat Point.]

[Stat Unlocked: Luck +1.]

A faint shimmer passed through Yuhan’s eyes. He didn’t know what changed — but somehow, he felt lighter.

And just for a moment, the text on the holographic screen flickered strangely, glitching between languages.

> [System… link expanding.]

[New Data Incoming.]

[WARNING: Unregistered interference detected…]

Yuhan’s smile faded. “Wait, what—”

The lights in the classroom flickered. His phone buzzed again.

Outside the window, for just one second, he swore he saw the sky... tear.

To Be Continued → Chapter 2: “The Error That Talks Back”

> Where the System gets sassier, something else contacts Yuhan through the glitch,

and the first real danger appears behind his humor.

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