Kyoukai Senjou no Horizon - Volume 8B, Chapter 44: Imaginer on the Rejection Stage

Warning This fiction contains:

Graphic Violence Profanity Sensitive Content

Summary – Level 1:

Delve is an isekai litrpg that follows an average guy who just happened to wake up in a forest one day. He wasn’t summoned to defeat the demon lord or to save the world or anything like that, at least as far as he can tell. The only creature there to greet him was a regular old squirrel.

Soon enough, he meets other people, only to discover that he can’t speak the language, and that not everybody immediately trusts random pajama-wearing strangers they met in the middle of the wilderness. Things generally go downhill from there, at least until the blue boxes start appearing.

Delve is a story about finding your way in a new, strange, and dangerous world. It’s about avoiding death, figuring out what the heck is going on, and trying to make some friends along the way. It’s not about getting home, so much as finding a new one.

Did I mention that there will be math?

Summary – Level 2:

Okay, but what are you in for, really?

Well, this story is supposed to be realistic, or at least, as realistic as a fantasy litrpg can be. The main character doesn’t instantly become an all-powerful god and murder-hobo his way across the universe. Delve is, at its heart, a progression fantasy, but that progression is meant to feel earned. The numbers in this story actually mean something. Everything is calculated, and if you find a rounding error, I expect you to tell me about it. That said, if math isn’t your cup of tea, there is plenty more that the story has to offer. Characters are meant to feel real, and progression isn’t only about personal power; it’s also about allies, connections, and above all, knowledge. Figuring out how the system works is a significant theme.

...

What, you want more details? Okay, fine, but this is going to get a bit spoiler-y. Are you sure?

Yes!

Really sure? I mean, this summary is practically half as long as the first chap–

Now!

Okay, okay!

The main character becomes a magic user, but he takes a route that is not very popular in adventurer culture, namely that of a support. There is a full magic system with various spells, skills, and abilities, but our MC decides that aura magic is the way to go, and that the only stat worth investing in is mana regeneration. Most people at the Adventurer’s Guild think that this makes him a bit of a dumbass, but he’s playing the long game. We’ll see how that works out for him, won’t we?

Because of his build, the MC levels up fast, at least compared to normal people. There are no cheats, though, and he is limited in other ways. There are some clear and pretty obvious downsides to his build. That’s what makes it fun, no?

Morals? Our MC has them. Again, we’ll see how that works out for him. Realism, remember? Would you be okay with killing someone and looting their body? I sure hope not.

POV? The focus is on the main character, but there will be occasional varying perspectives from people around him, or involved in the events related to the main plot. It isn’t going to jump all over the place.

Tech is standard medieval stasis. No smartphones, but the MC does have a technical background. Computers and their programming might be involved. There might even be a bit of uplifting down the road, who knows? Anyway, it isn’t the focus. He isn’t going to invent the gun in chapter 1 and change the face of warfare.

Romance is not a major focus. Friendships are more the name of the game, though there will be some characters in romantic relationships.

There is exploration, though not as much of the geographical nature as you might expect. It is more about exploration of the system and the culture.

The pace is slow and detailed, sometimes verging on slice-of-life. The action is meant to be realistic and grounded in the numbers, and it is intended to have meaning beyond simply punching things until they stop moving.

The general tone of the story is grey, and some parts can get quite dark. People die. Sometimes, people with names, but not anywhere near GoT level. There is plenty of light, too, though, to balance the darkness. The world is dangerous, but overcoming that danger is why we’re all here, isn’t it?

Anyway, if you’ve made it this far through the summary, you clearly like words. I hope you enjoy the story!

After the battle, the beautiful senior sister shyly raised her face in front of you and slowly closed her eyes. At this time, you…

Eh? The choice this time was too simple. Of course, it was four.

Jiang Tong was a person who had no tomorrow. She was stuck in an endless loop, repeating the same day, 4th April of the year 2022. From the initial excitement up until despair, Jiang Tong had tried everything to escape. She killed herself countless times, using different methods, but she would always wake up on the day of 4th April 2022. To pass her unlimited time, she learned more than a thousand and three hundred skills. From languages, to shooting skills, culinary skills, performing arts, etc. Jiang Tong learned everything imaginable. She enjoyed the excitement and hotblooded fights brought about by wrestling; she enjoyed the speed and thrill brought about by car racing; the pleasure of seducing and tasting all kinds of handsome men; the therapeutic sensations of playing various instruments.

No matter how much trouble she got into, when it got to four in the morning, she would suddenly fall asleep and wake up on the morning of 4th April. Until… After countless trials and errors, she finally managed to bed Z City’s most dignified but also the weakest young master, Ji Lanzhou. Ji Lanzhou was the Ji family’s youngest young master. Due to his frail body, he was the apple of the Ji family’s eye. No one in Z City dared to mess with him. But Jiang Tong didn’t care because she would have to relive this day again tomorrow. Yet… When dawn came, Jiang Tong was shocked to find Ji Lanzhou sleeping on her bed when she opened her eyes. The man even looked pale from having overexerted himself. Jiang Tong was delighted! She looked at her phone, and the date showed 5th April, 2022! After five hundred years, more than a hundred and eighty days, she was finally out of the loop! Ji Lanzhou woke up to see Jiang Tong laughing and crying like a mad woman. He pursed his pale lips and said, “Liar.” Jiang Tong raised an eyebrow. “It was an accident, Sweetie. So now I have to run for my life.” Ji Lanzhou was baffled.

Skyfire Avenue is a street that is 2048 meters long. There are 168 stores here, and each of the store owners is an extremely powerful adept. The Avenue does not permit any vehicles or any robots to pass through it, much less mecha. Even the patrolling police must move about on foot. This is because this is a street for pedestrians, a lane for nobles, hidden away within this high technology world. Lan Jue, the greatest of the mercenaries, code-named ‘Zeus’, has secluded himself here in Skyfire Avenue after the death of his wife. The name of his shop is “Zeus’ Jewelry Store”, and here in Skyfire Avenue, he has been given the title, Jewel Master.