Zarkrion remained motionless, his enormous reptilian eyes fixed on the floating screen in front of him. It was impossible to process what he was seeing.
For a moment, he thought it was a simple joke from the world, an illusion born from stress, or perhaps an absurd manifestation of his desperate hope… but no. The interface was still there: luminous, stable, floating as if it were part of the air itself.
Even though he had said it in a mocking tone minutes before, even though he never imagined something like this could happen, reality imposed itself before him:
A system… a real system had appeared.
And that could only mean one thing.
Without thinking, driven by the mixture of excitement and shock trembling in his claws, Zarkrion pressed the section that said:
[YES]
The simple touch, though clumsy with his gigantic scaly fingers, was enough to activate an explosion of notifications that appeared in a cascade in front of him.
Ding.
Ding.
Ding.
Dozens of pop-up windows unfolded in an arc, surrounding him with light.
Zarkrion froze for a few seconds, watching as each message explained with surgical precision the functioning of the newly acquired system.
His draconic chest swelled.
He wasn't dreaming.
He wasn't delirious.
He wasn't alone.
An excited, rough, deep laugh escaped his throat.
"Literally, I just acquired a system…" he murmured, looking at his notifications with an incredulous smile. "It's just like in web novels and fantasy video games…"
The dragon lifted his head toward the open sky of the black forest, letting out a burning exhalation.
"I'm going to liiiiiiiiive!" he roared, euphoric.
At that moment, a much larger screen appeared in front of him, bordered with a golden glow.
["Congratulations on acquiring the Appreciation System. It will be a pleasure to assist you and be of great support in whatever you need, Host."]
The voice was neutral, soft, almost polite. It had no tone, but it felt… present.
Then another window appeared with a tonal 'DING'.
["Now I will explain the functions I grant you. As the name indicates, I am the collector of the Appreciation you receive from others, being able to convert it into Appreciation Points."]
Another window unfolded immediately.
["Those points will be of great help to you: you will be able to level up, obtain skills, increase your stats… and most importantly, use the Infinite Shop to buy equipment, arsenals, enhancements, and useful abilities for your survival."]
Zarkrion narrowed his eyes, fascinated.
"Interesting…" he said in a low voice. "It's basically a game. Well, obviously I'm in the game world… but this makes it look even more like a game."
A spark of determination burned in his gaze.
"With this I'll be able to survive to the fullest… change my destiny… and maybe find a way back home."
He knew this kind of story.
After having read hundreds of web novels and webtoons, he knew perfectly well that a system like this wasn't a simple accessory: it was a monumental advantage.
A miracle.
But then something crossed his mind like an icy dart.
"Wait… if I possess a system, that means someone gave it to me… right?" his voice trembled slightly. "That means… I'm an anomaly in the story. Something outside the normal course of this world?"
Before he could continue, a notification exploded in his face:
["New Mission – APPRECIATION SYSTEM LEVEL 1!"]
[TUTORIAL MISSION]
[Mission 1]: "Survive in the Black Forest using your honorary profession and explore the area to create your dwelling.
Then cook 4 different abundant dishes for the guests."
Reward:
+80 AP (Appreciation Points).
+1000 EXP (EXPERIENCE)
Limit: 30 days
Punishment: If you fail the mission, you will permanently lose access to the Appreciation System and die of hunger in the Black Forest.
Zarkrion swallowed. Or tried to.
Because upon reading the punishment, his whole body trembled.
A gigantic drop of sweat fell down his reptilian face.
"Are you… sure this is just a tutorial mission?" he said trembling, almost squealing. "And why do you give me that kind of punishment? It's not fair! The mission you're asking for is too much for a simple tutorial!"
The system responded with impeccable calm:
["My mission as your support guide is to serve you with the necessary help to survive in this world. But to do so, I must evaluate your abilities and survival skills."]
["Therefore, this tutorial mission is necessary.
But do not worry, dear Host: the tutorial mission is only given to anomalies once.
After that, the punishments will be lighter and the system will remain with you permanently."]
Zarkrion sighed, releasing smoke through his nostrils.
"Well… at least that eases me a bit. But… the mission you give me is too much for my first time. Could you at least give me a different mission or something?"
The system responded instantly.
["Of course. You are free to choose a different mission to complete your tutorial.
For example, look at these two missions."]
Or:
[MISSION 2]
["Kill 200 adventurers by destroying different guilds outside the Black Forest, and collect their corpses to increase experience and level."]
Reward:
• +45,000 AP
• +90,000 EXP
Punishment: If you fail, your reputation will worsen and the fury of the world will fall upon you, ending your miserable existence.
Or:
[MISSION 3]
["Defeat the level 890 boss, Dullahan, in close combat or with a sword… using only your human form."]
Reward:
• +20,000 AP
• +65,000 EXP
Punishment: If you fail, you will be killed by Dullahan, and he will use your remains to make chairs, clothes, outfits, and potions that he will sell on the black market.
... ...
Zarkrion froze…
Then screamed with all the strength of his lungs.
"WHAT KIND OF MISSIONS ARE THESE?!!! THEY DON'T EVEN LOOK LIKE TUTORIALS, THEY'RE PURE SUICIDE!!!"
The system responded:
["But I do what I can to help you."]
"Help me!?" Zarkrion roared. "I should give you a dictionary so you can learn what the word HELP means! You just want to get rid of me!!"
He exhaled.
He shrank.
He got depressed.
"Fine… I have no choice but to do the first mission…"
With a defeated sigh, he pressed [ACCEPT] on mission 1.
A gigantic countdown appeared above him:
[30:00:00:03. Remaining]
Zarkrion swallowed again.
"And now… what am I supposed to do? How do I start?"
The system answered coldly:
["I cannot interfere with the missions assigned to you.
I only serve as a general survival guide."]
"Wow… so you're useless."
The system responded, offended:
["There is no need to be rude.
Do not forget that the one who depends more on the other here is you.
Without me, you wouldn't survive even a single night, so I recommend you don't call me useless."]
Zarkrion frowned.
Even though he didn't want to admit it… it had a point.
The system continued:
["I can give you a piece of advice so you can take initiative."]
"Initiative? What do you mean?"
["You possess the Appreciation System, don't you?
As an anomaly, you must know the basic functions: reading events, analyzing scenes, obtaining information about the area and levels of living beings."]
["Use it to your advantage. With that, you can gather materials, build your dwelling, and start cooking."]
Zarkrion opened his eyes wide.
"…You're right. Sorry for calling you useless. You're the best guide I've ever had."
The system responded with disdain:
["What a hypocritical host I've obtained."]
Then added:
["But before you begin… don't you think your dragon form will limit your tasks?
I recommend using your human form to make exploration easier and avoid drawing too much attention."]
"My human form? And how am I supposed to use it? I'm not even used to this body…"
The system explained:
["It is normal for mythical creatures like you to adopt a human form.
Generally, it is a skill obtained at advanced ages.
You are 500 years old, therefore you have fulfilled the requirements for a long time."]
["If you don't know how to activate it magically, use the Transformations section."]
Zarkrion blinked.
"Did I really have that section?"
["You'll be surprised later. Hurry up and transform."]
Zarkrion opened the interface.
A panel appeared with two illustrations:
[TRANSFORMATIONS – FORMS]
[DRAGON / HUMAN]
Below, a message:
["Do you wish to switch from Dragon form to Human form?"]
[PRESS – ACCEPT]
Without thinking, he pressed Accept.
Immediately, a tremor ran through his entire body.
His muscles contracted violently.
His bones began to vibrate.
A blinding glow enveloped him, illuminating the entire black forest.
The dragon Zarkrion Volcanius began to
shrink…
bend…
change…
The air vibrated.
The ground shook.
Smoke.
Steam.
Sparks of mana.
One last notification appeared in front of him:
[Dragon → Human Transformation COMPLETE]
And right there…
in the middle of the steam, the trembling, and the light…
Zarkrion Volcanius stood there, with a defined face and completely human in appearance: normal skin, two dragon horns protruding from his forehead, and red wings extending from his back. His dragon legs and limbs had changed to those of a common human, although he retained a thick, long red tail.
His long reddish crimson hair, with semi-orange tones, fell to the sides, and his bright orange-red eyes reflected pure surprise.
Although he now possessed a more humanized form, he still retained several traits of his draconic nature. Even so, his size had been reduced to that of a normal human; he could see the giant trees rising above him, making him feel tiny in comparison.
[SEMI-HUMAN APPEARANCE – SUCCESSFULLY ACQUIRED]
"Am I really a human?" Zarkrion expressed, touching his warm face.