The Revival System Made Me A God - Harem

006

Eren's eyelids felt heavy, glued together by the metallic crust of dried blood or at least, that was the memory his brain was clinging to. When he finally forced them open, the blinding, harsh sun of the field was gone. Instead, he was staring at the familiar, cracked wooden ceiling of the Omega quarters.

He sat up with a jolt, his breath hitching in his throat. He waited for the agony to rip through his chest, for the sensation of his ribs grinding against each other, but nothing came. He raised his hands, turning them over in the dim light. There were no bruises. No cuts. No dirt under his fingernails. His skin was as smooth as if he had spent the day resting.

"I thought I died," he whispered, his voice raspy but clear. "I could swear I wasn't dreaming. I felt the boots. I felt the blood."

He looked around the small, cramped room, wondering how he had even gotten back here. That was when he noticed it. Floating directly in his line of sight was a glowing cyan screen. It hovered in the air, shimmering with a low hum.

"Where did Lala get this new design from?" he muttered, reaching out to touch the glowing light. His hand passed right through the glow as if it were smoke. "It's a hologram?"

The moment his fingers moved through the light, the screen flickered and shifted, text beginning to crawl across the display.

[System Initialization: The King]

[User Identification]

Name: Eren McPherson

Class: Omega (Lower Academy)

Condition: Critical Recovery (Blunt Force Trauma / Internal Hemorrhaging)

Location: Primary Residence

"What the fuck is wrong with me?" Eren blinked rapidly, rubbing his eyes until they turned red, but the screen stayed glued to his vision. It moved when he moved. "This is real. This is actually happening."

The display shifted again, the cyan glow turning a deeper shade of blue as a new prompt appeared.

[Evolutionary Choice Required]

Select your path to dominance:

1. The Path of Power: Physical evolution through combat and bloodshed. The user will gain massive physical strength through conflict. The more you fight, the more you evolve.

2. The Path of Wealth: Rule through assets, influence, and the bonds of desire. The user will grow in riches by completing tasks, unlocking charisma, popularity, and the absolute loyalty of others.

[Warning: Selection is permanent.]

Note: Wealth growth is tied to the loyalty and desire of those bound to you.

[Awaiting User Input...]

Eren stared at the words, a bitter smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. "Great. Every day I figure out something new and insane about myself. First, I'm a punching bag, now I'm a video game character." He rolled his eyes and looked away, trying to ignore the glowing box. He wasn't in the mood for jokes or hallucinations.

The door to the hut creaked open, hitting the wall with a sharp bang. Lala and his mother rushed inside, their faces pale and eyes swollen from crying.

"Eren! Don't ever do this to us again!" his mother cried, throwing herself onto the bed and pulling him into a hug so tight he could barely breathe. "Why would you try to kill yourself? Why would you go to that bridge?"

Eren stiffened. Kill myself? The confusion swirled in his head. "Tried to kill myself? What are you talking about?" He looked at Lala, searching for the truth. "I was being bullied. Zion and the others, they..."

"I knew something was fishy when you said you'd handle the delivery yourself," Lala interrupted, wiping her eyes. "I know you too well. You always take too much on. I'm just glad you're okay now. I'm so glad you're back."

Eren looked from his mother to his sister. They were acting as if he had attempted suicide, not as if he had been beaten to death by the school's elite. But more importantly, neither of them was acknowledging the glowing cyan box floating inches from his nose.

"Lala, are you seeing this?" Eren asked, pointing directly at the screen.

Lala looked at the empty air in front of his face and then followed his finger to the door. "Oh, that? I recently bought that new hanger to put on the door, but if it bothers you, I can remove it."

"No, not the hanger! The screen! The blue light!"

They both looked at him with pitying eyes, thinking he was still delirious. The screen suddenly flashed a violent red, a siren-like pulse vibrating in his skull.

[System Detects Irresponsibility: FOR EVERY IGNORED TASK, YOU WILL RETURN TO THE MOMENT OF YOUR DEATH. YOU WILL FEEL THE PAIN AGAIN AND AGAIN.]

Eren scoffed. "Yeah, right. Scaring me now?" He turned his head away, determined to ignore the mental breakdown he assumed he was having.

As the countdown on the screen hit zero, the floor beneath the bed seemed to vanish. Eren felt a sickening drop in his stomach, the sensation of falling from a great height. He screamed, but no sound came out.

Suddenly, he slammed into the hard, dry dirt. The smell of grass and copper hit him instantly. He was back on the field. The bullies were gone, the sun was lower, and the silence was broken only by the sound of wings flapping.

The pain returned like a tidal wave. His ribs snapped back into their broken states; his lungs filled with fluid. He looked up and saw a vulture landing on his chest, its sharp beak ripping into his shoulder.

"What the fuck! What the fuck is happening!" he screamed, but his voice was a wet gurgle. He felt every tear of the flesh, every peck at his skin. The agony was even worse the second time because he knew it was real. "Please! Whatever you are, stop this! Please!"

He died in agony, the world fading to black as the birds picked at his eyes.

Then, he gasped.

He was back in the bed. He was clutching his chest, his hands frantically feeling his skin for the holes the birds had made. He was sweating, his heart hammering against his ribs like a drum.

"I'm alive. Fuck. I am back," he panted, his eyes darting around the room.

The cyan screen appeared instantly, hovering with a cold, mechanical indifference.

[SYSTEM DETECT: REVIVAL]

You have 30 seconds to choose. If you do not choose, the cycle repeats.

[30]

[29]

[28]

The Path of Power or the Path of Wealth. Eren looked at the timer, his body still shaking from the ghost of the pain he had just felt. He couldn't go back to the field. He couldn't die again.

The timer ticked down, the blue light reflecting in his desperate, wide eyes. He had to decide now.

[20]

[19]

"I choose..."