I Don’t Want to Start a Story!

“Okay, when we get there, remember to smile and be polite. Let’s see your best smile… That’s the best you can do?” Cy chided as he fiddled with Max’s clothes beside the crossroad they stopped at. It had only been a couple of days since they parted from BB, Navy, and the crew of The Pillow Princess, but Cy was insisting they were there already. “Never mind, just be sure to say hello if someone speaks to you.”

Max was perplexed by Cy’s sudden change in behaviour. They had been walking normally along the road as carriages and wagons rode past them towards the capital, when he suddenly dropped the bags he was carrying onto the dusty road and began fussing over nothing. “What are you talking about? Are we nearly there?” He had been ignoring the prompt in his vision. There were a few hours to go before the prompt would be activated.

Story Name:

Crossroads Demon

Genre:

Thriller

Description:

Making a deal with a crossroads demon, the MC must decide what has true value in life.

Goal:

Escape the demon.

Difficulty:

★★★★☆

How to Start:

Stay at a crossroad while the sun sets!

“Mn.” Cy was like a mother hen as he tried to fix his hair, only to find it wasn’t willing to cooperate. “And there are people from all over the world, so there’s a wide range of names. The best thing to do is repeat their name when they tell you it. And later, if you can’t remember then you can ask me. I’ll probably know.”

“Probably?”

“Eh… People come and go.” Cy was beginning his war against Max’s cowlicks as he rummaged through his bags before pulling out a bottle of a mysterious liquid. He poured out a gooey, clear liquid with a foul odour and rubbed it between his hands. “Be forgiving towards the kids. They’ve all had to leave their families when they were young.”

Cy reached up to touch his hair. “Knock it off.” Max grabbed his wrists before he could touch him. “You’re not putting that shit in my hair.”

“Making a good first impression is important.” Cy argued back, still reaching for his hair. “Look, farm boy, you’re among city folk now. You need to blend in a bit if you want to make friends.”

“I’m good. Don’t you remember? Even back in the village, you told me I didn’t have any friends.”

Cy stopped for a second as he recalled saying something similar. “Okay, my bad. You had a few weird friends-”

“You’re freakier than all of them combined.”

The term seemed to have drained Cy of his energy. He wiped his hands on Max’s bag before he could protest. “That’s not true,” he said, while pouting. “Aldwin’s got to be freakier. I mean he chased me around the village while trying to shove human remains in my face. Who does that?”

Max was about to reply when a coach with covered windows stopped next to them. While waiting for the curtains to open and reveal whomever stopped the carriage, Max jumped when the coachman suddenly spoke in an uneven, eerie voice. “My, my, my, if it isn’t little Cyrus.” Cyrus? Max turned to look at Cy, who had retreated within his cloak. It was impossible to read his face for his emotions. “I didn’t expect you to come back so quickly… or at all really.”

Story Name:

Maxie and Charon

Genre:

Crime

Description:

A former farmhand and a coachman go on a killing spree.

Goal:

Get away with your crimes.

Difficulty:

★★★☆☆

How to Start:

Climb on to the coachman’s seat!

“Charon.” Cy’s voice was cold compared to normal. Since he knew the coachman’s name, they must know each other. Did they have a troubled relationship? It was rare for Cy to talk to someone so frigidly.

The middle-aged coachman stroked his greying beard as he stared down at Max. “So, who’s this then-”

“A friend!” Cy blurted a little too strongly. BB’s words and assumptions seemed to still be plaguing his mind because he came across aa defensive. Something about Charon was putting Cy on edge.

“A friend, eh?” The coachman was trying to infer if there were any hidden meaning behind his words. “What’s your name?”

“He doesn’t have to answer.”

“Hello, I’m Max. It’s nice to meet you, Charon.” Cy turned to Max, who only shrugged in his direction. “You said to say hello and to repeat their names,” he whispered. It was always fun to throw Cy’s words back in his face.

Charon gave a snort to show he acknowledged Max’s name. “I don’t suppose you two want a lift?” The atmosphere intrigued Max as he looked at the mysterious coach with thick, black curtains covering the glass.

“Of course, we do.” Cy’s tone was still defensive as he opened the door of the coach. It didn’t take Max long to figure out what was happening the moment he peeked inside. It was a teleporter. On the other side of the door were a few rustic cabins in the woods. Compared to the environment around them, which was battling with the dying summer, the other end of the portal was enjoying rich, autumn trees. “After you.”

Max held his breath as he stepped through the portal. He was pleased to find that there wasn’t the usual squeeze around his chest or pressure suddenly around his body. There was more to learn here. Even if his plan ended in failure, it had been a good choice to come with Cy.

Looking around the magic community, there was an enchanting feeling in the air. Each of the dinky buildings looked charming as they clustered together. Turning around, Max could see a larger stretch of levelled ground, presumably for training. Next to it was an extravagant, red bridge, which was too big for the little stream it tried to protect people from. Around them were tall mountains with significant sheer cliffs causing an isolated feeling. Without magic, it would’ve been difficult to enter the community even if there weren’t any other precautions in place. There was little doubt in Max’s mind that there was a protective shield or barrier covering the area and containing the unnatural weather around them. A picture-perfect Autumn.

“So, what do you think?” Cy seemed pleased as he watched Max carefully.

“It’s alright. The trees are nice… I thought it would be bigger.”

“… That’s it?” Cy raised his voice slightly. Behind him, Max could see people coming out of their cabins to see what the noise was about. “You’re one of the very few outsiders to enter here!”

Max took another look around. “I guess it’s cleaner than the village?”

“It’s more than just cleaner. The whole land is just teaming with magic.” Oh? “Like your precious trees, the buildings and land have a filter in place to keep up the ambiance. See? It’s special!”

“How am I supposed to know? I can’t use magic.” Max’s voice was flat even though it was obvious Cy’s words were true.

“Little Cyrus?”

“I think it is! He survived?”

“I didn’t think he would come back.”

“Let’s make sure. Is that you little Cyrus?”

"Shh. We should wait for the Elders to speak first.”

Cy kept a strong hold of his hood in an effort to not show an inch of his face. “We gotta go.” He whispered even though there was a building, gossiping crowd in front of the cabins. A magical community and a small village in the middle of the countryside weren’t too different after all. Gossip made these kinds of places alive.

“Aren’t I supposed to say ‘hi’?” Max asked while grinning, slightly amused by the situation. He gave a slight wave, which was ignored by the growing mass of people. Usually, the intrigued stares from all sorts of folks would put him slightly on edge as he tried to figure out what the system wanted him to do. But there were no prompts so far, heavily suggesting there must be a fair few of them embedded within the community. So much for the mayor’s assumption that they were banned from entering. Maybe this will be more like a vacation until something extreme happens, like when the leviathan showed up to attack BB’s ship.

Two members of the community made their way to the front of the crowd. They stood there in silence as they stared at them. The others continued to gossip.

One of them was a man with pale skin. His shaved, blond hair was marred by three scars reaching from his right cheek to the back of his skull, like he was scratched by a bear. Compared to the others, his clothing was light and flowy. His expression was stern as he held a large axe in his left hand. The glean of the axe suggested it had embedded magical properties.

To his right was a woman with rich, dark skin. Her hair was tightly braided and partially hidden behind an elegant head tie. Her clothing didn’t suggest she was ready for combat as her puffed blouse and two wrappers were tight and a bright yellow. It also contrasted strongly with the various blue, glass-beaded necklaces and bracelets. Her face seemed softer compared to the man, but her expression showed more caution towards them.

“Little Cyrus.” A whispery voice broke through the crowd making everyone stop talking. An older, Asian man made his way through the crowd and between the man and woman upfront. Slightly hunched over and wearing extravagant but heavy looking purple robes, he made his way forward in a slow stride. There was clearly a level of respect the others had for him as they moved out of the way to shorten his path towards Cy. Despite the physical restrictions on his body, he walked with grace and elegance as he hobbled along. It was the complete opposite of the mayor. The old man had substantial power, both socially and magically. The hobble only stopped a metre away from them. “We didn’t expect you to come back so soon. Who’s your friend?” He gave a nod towards Max to acknowledge his existence. “Is he a tool to help your magic grow? Or is he one of us that managed to avoid being detected? Or is this someone… troublesome?”

The term put Max on edge. Of all the words, he picked that one. Did the troublesome law apply even here? Cy said nothing, but he didn’t move either. Max wasn’t too sure whether he should speak up and answer the question for him.

“CYRUS!” Another voice cried out as a middle-aged man made his way through the crowd. The man’s stature was big, powerful looking, and with hair as far as the eye could see. The hair on his head was tied in a messy bun. His beard had been suspiciously well groomed. Chest hair was peeking out from his v-neck shirt and threatened to erupt if his clothes were pulled. Even his arms were covered with thick, dark hair that looked like it could serve as armour. “Where have you been? Get your ass over here.”

Story Name:

Don’t Get Caught

Genre:

War

Description:

Don’t let Darius learn more about the system and how it operates.

Goal:

Kill Darius and erase his presence from history.

Difficulty:

★★★★★

How to Start:

Acknowledge the existence of the system or your past lives in front of Darius!

Oh? There were no rambling or encrypted messages this time. Just a clear warning about an individual, who mustn’t be one of them based on the description. Something about this man was putting the system on edge. It was interesting.

The older, Asian man stepped out of the way for them to pass by easily. “I think you better go along to your father, little Cyrus. We can talk about your friend later.”

Father… Father? There was no way in heaven or hell that that man was Cy’s father. Nothing about each other was alike. Not in looks, stature, posture, or even the way they spoke. They were in no way related. And what was with this ‘family’ being connected to five-stars stories?

Cy let out a sigh. “Come on,” he said to Max, as he began to lead them through the crowd.

Cy’s ‘father’ turned as he saw them approaching and opened up a door to one of the dainty cabins. Even from afar, Max could tell there was another teleporter. Their layout was clever. The community’s homes must be scattered across the mountains surrounding the capital. If a threat came, they could cut off or use various teleports as needed. It just added to the mounting reasons why people struggled to reach Tsujuma without an invitation.

Max followed Cy into a large entrance way, which was clearly too large for a little cabin to hold. Surrounding them were stone walls, lit orbs floating in the air to illuminate the place, and a stained-glass door at the end of the entrance. Below them was a crudely made welcome mat with the word HOME sloppily painted on.

The second Cy’s ‘father’ closed the door, the beefcake picked up Cy, as if he were a twig, for a bone-cracking hug. “I didn’t think you’d be back so quickly.” He put Cy down before giving him a hefty pat on his shoulder, almost causing Cy to lose his balance. “You’re lucky to have met Max when you did. Or should I call him Ren? Or Richard? Vilja?”

How?

“Stop, he’s not used to your weirdness yet. Just call him Max.” Cy tried to brush off the sudden signs of affections, but Max could tell from his lowered hood he was feeling comfortable here. He gave Max a little grin, as if to say: See? I told you I’m not that weird. “Speaking of which, can he stay here until he gets approval from the Elder Council?”

Stay here? It would be a good experience to see more about what had got the system so worked up about, but it also meant risking the beginning of a five-stars story.

“Of course.” He let out a loud and slightly disturbing snort. “We can’t have him spending all that money he got from Bessie and that mayor.” … “You're going to need it later!”