Steel and Sorrow: Rise of the Mercenary king - Chapter 49: Entering the city(3)

“Mana to breathe, mana to eat, mana to fucking live,”Inhale: -0.001 MP… oops! You're out of mana points.(Pay-to-breathe RPG.)Humanity's last walled stronghold._____In the world Elio lives, every gasp of air comes at a price.A floating indestructible book for every human, a magical system that turns survival into a pay-to-breathe RPG.Here, poverty isn't just being broke, it's choking.Surrounded by barren land and a sea of monsters on top of it (No water, just literal monsters), each day is a suffocating dance of survival, a balancing act between mana for air and mana for food.In this economy, holding your breath isn't just a game, it's a retirement plan.Driven by desperation (and the city's miserly rulers that don’t cut anyone a break), Elio dives into the Book System’s trials to save his family.Along the way, he unlocks powers he didn’t ask for and starts to figure out... Who he really is.Immerse yourself in an adventure where one young man's stubborn refusal to become a statistic could spark a revolution. Who knew being a pain in the system's rear could change the world?Because in Elio's world, breathing is just the beginning of the revolution and... he's gasping for change.But hey, who said saving the world had to be all doom and gloom? Join Elio as he kicks monster butt, uncovers ancient secrets, and maybe, just maybe, figures out how to grow a tree or two along the way.__________Warning:May contain traces of world domination, an unhealthy obsession with the periodic table, damage points, progression math, and yes, even a sprinkle of that old “power of friendship” magic. Because sometimes, you need a buddy to help you remember which element does what or even help you calculate those sweet, sweet stats.A quick heads-up:Despite what the cover might suggest, this isn’t a hack-and-slash adventure. Think more along the lines of a turn-based RPG, where strategy and choices matter as much as action. Get ready for a different kind of challenge!If you want to know more about the cover:Yep, that's our first FL crying and crossing the transparent barrier straight into a pixelated, indistinguishable sea of monsters. Because why not mix emotions with chaos? She's crazy like that! (Not really... or is she?)Discord to check the visuals: https://discord.gg/W3CjfC2cw4I’m still working on it in the little moments I find between writing, editing, making more character images, etc.Little by little, we’ll have a Poked... uh, a full SummonDex! Meanwhile, you can check out the ones on Fandom with their... funny descriptions? Or at least I hope so... orzWarning 2 (Privilege 4 and 5):I just wanted to stick to the novel’s level system, so I had to add those '0s'!!! Don’t be an elephant... unless you’re an enormous one... A whale! Seriously, nooooo!You’re going to make me die from the pressure, and I’ll feel terrible!! It’s just one chapter!!! You can wait... But if you’re dirty rich and really, Really, REALLY want to support, well... okay, though I’ll still feel bad!!! orz

Song Xi, the proprietress of the supermarket in the 21st century, wakes up and finds that she has come to a time when supplies are scarce and extremely difficult, and she has ‘married’ into a mountain valley where the conditions are extremely difficult.

Unexpectedly, the supermarket opened in a small town became her personal space, and the husband beside her was an excellent man who could hunt, fish and farm.

Song Xi felt that being a low-key rich man with a loving husband, two or three confidantes, endless fruits and vegetables, and living a small life was pretty good.

[Farming] + [Gourmet]

“I swear I will make them pay with everything I have. I will use my very own blood to sign the documents that will end them if I must!”To Champagne Gold, life was always like a fast-moving truck with no brakes and a drunk driver, one she couldn't avoid.At the age of five, she lost her parents in a helicopter crash. Life after that was one problem to another but she held on... until her grandfather passed away as well.With his death came the loss of her position of CEO and her hard-earned shares. As if that was not enough, she was served with divorce papers and the revelation of her husband's adultery with her cousin.Dealt with one too many blows, Champagne sought to end it all. Perhaps she could be reincarnated or whisked away to another world like the books she read before, but that was not to be. Instead, a mysterious man entered her life.“Rather than escape like a coward, I can give you the power and resources to carry out your revenge. I have but one condition―marry me.”Champagne held her lips between her teeth and took the offer.However, just when she believed her new life was going smoothly, she found out another painful secret. One more painful than any she had discovered before.She had undergone a uterus removal procedure and she didn't even know it.Now Champagne is more determined than ever to get revenge on everyone who wronged her. She would do and give everything to make them pay for taking away something so precious from her.

Earth, thousands of years after the apocalypse.

Countless technologies and advances had been lost to time as the Specters, horrifying beings with terrifying powers, arrived and destroyed the world.

Over the coming thousands of years, humanity had built itself up but always died again.

Nobody remembers the past.

Nobody remembers what humanity had once accomplished.

Now, everyone is living in a world where the Specters reign supreme.

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A boy with amnesia woke up in the middle of the Dregs, the worst part of Crimson Fungus City.

The boy grows up and manages to become strong enough to pass an exam for one of the most prestigious jobs in existence, a Zephyx Extractor, someone that can harvest the powers of Specters.

Sadly, he had already gained a power from a Specter in the past, which made him ineligible for the position.

But then, a mysterious man visits him.

And his luck finally turns around.

……………………………………………………………

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