Ch.3: Dimensional Chat Group
--<3rd PoV>--
Lushthorn City, Ray's Home.
The morning sun filtered gently through the white curtains, gilding the edges of the king-sized bed in a soft, honeyed glow. The room was quiet, save for the distant cooing of doves in the garden and the rhythmic rustling of leaves swaying in the breeze.
The faint fragrance of blooming orchids and wet grass drifted in from the open window, wrapping the room in a blanket of spring.
Ray stirred beneath the covers with a quiet grunt. His body ached in that pleasant, heavy way that follows deep sleep. He turned onto his side, eyes still closed, one arm draping lazily over the sheets—until he felt something warm yet soft in his arms, his palm landed on something warm.
Warm… and soft.
He froze, barely awake but suddenly hyper-aware of the texture beneath his fingertips.
His hand pressed slightly. The shape molded under his palm—plush, supple, round.
What the hell is—
He squeezed, almost reflexively.
The response was immediate.
"Aahn…~"
The breathy moan pierced the silence like a blade through still water.
Ray blinked.
That wasn't a pillow. That was a breast.
His fingers twitched in realization—and for some unknown reason, they decided to keep exploring. His hand slid lower, along the curve of a bare waist, the dip of smooth skin and the faint rise of hips. His fingertips trailed over warm thighs, the soft tremble beneath his touch unmistakable.
Another gasp. Then, a whimper."M-Mmn… Ray-sama… p-please don't tease Lilia like that first thing in the morning…"
Ray's eyes shot open.
There, lying next to him, was a girl. A naked girl!
She had beautiful silver hair and long ears which gave away her elven origin. Still it were her fiery red eyes which gave her a unique charm unlike the traditional elves have.
Not to mention she was a bit too mature for her to be believed to be an elf.
Her long silver hair, spread like a moonlit veil across his pillow. Flushed cheeks, half-lidded golden eyes glistening with emotion. Her lips parted slightly as she stared at him, as if caught mid-dream. Her chest rose and fell in ragged breaths, her body trembling under the sheets, barely covered.
In midst of that there were her blood red eyes stared at him, full of longing and desire in them.
Ray blinked, completely stunned."…Lilia?"
The girl's face reddened further, but she didn't turn away. Instead, she clutched the blanket to her chest and gave him the most pitiful, trembling expression imaginable.
"I-I… Lilia doesn't mind… if it's Ray-sama…" she whispered, voice so soft he almost didn't catch it. "If it's Ray-sama, then… then I'll give myself to you… completely…"
Ray just stared at her, blankly, brain stuttering through every frame of the last thirty seconds.
What the hell was this situation?
He didn't remember drinking. He didn't remember inviting anyone over. Hell, he didn't even let people into his bedroom without good reason.
And now this girl—a servant whom he had known just for a few weeks, Lilia—was clinging to him like they were about to start the honeymoon.
"…Wait. Did I—?"
"N-No!" she yelped suddenly, flailing her arms. "N-nothing happened! Lilia would never! I mean—unless Ray-sama wanted to, but nothing happened yet—! I-I just… I thought maybe if I slept beside you, you'd…!"
Ray raised an eyebrow, deadpan. "You thought I'd what? Magically roll over and start groping you in my sleep?"
Lilia's face turned crimson just like her eyes, as she replied, stutteringly. "I-It worked, didn't it…?"
Ray sighed, sitting up and rubbing his temples. His bed was a mess. Though the offer of the beautiful girl before him was tempting, he still had much to ponder about. His morning was ruined? And somehow, this was the most bizarre start to his day ever.
So what is the most logical thing to do now?
He moved his eyes, looking at the hopeful look in the eyes of the beautiful elf as she pressed her plum red lips together as if inviting him to have a taste of those juicy lips.
Watching her he made up his mind.
"Out," he said flatly. "Now. Before I toss you out the window."
"But Ray-sama…!"
He gave her a sharp look.
Lilia pouted, clutching the blanket tighter around herself, then slipped off the bed and hurriedly ran out of the room, silver hair bouncing behind her.
Ray stared at the opened door for a long moment, exhaled, and looked down at his still-warm palm.
"…The hell kind of development was that?" he muttered, wiping the sweat off his forehead.
Outside, the birds kept singing but slowly that too were getting faint, as if indicating that their task for the day had come to an end.
But Ray's day had just started!
...
It had been two days since Ray got his memories back.
Two whole days since the so-called "awakening." And honestly? He was still trying to wrap his head around it.
His past life… was weird.
Not weird in a bad way, just weird in the kind of way where you go, "Huh. That was real?" and then immediately question your entire existence.
Because the world he remembered now was one without magic, without swords or monsters or martial arts or awakenings… a world without Nobles or Kingdoms or Spirit Beasts.
But instead of mana and martial arts, it had something else.
Something equally terrifying.
Something called—
Science.
It sounded like a myth in this world. Maybe even a fairy tale. But in that other life, it was as normal as breathing.
That world didn't have enchanted armors or flying swords, but it had metal machines that flew across the skies called airplanes. It had glowing rectangles people carried around in their pockets that connected to an invisible web of information—smartphones and the internet. It had something called smart farming, where crops could grow faster using tiny machines and algorithms. They even had rockets—actual giant tubes that launched people into space to visit other planets. Planets, not just continents.
And then there was Artificial Intelligence.
People built thinking machines.
Not golems powered by magic cores, but logic-based systems that could learn and predict and adapt. He remembered spending late nights tweaking neural networks and optimizing data pipelines. He used to be an engineer… more specifically, an AI Engineer.
A desk worker in a tidy office. Good pay. Quiet life. Predictable future.
And then—bam. Dead. Reincarnated. Noble family. Magic. Mana circuits. And the rest is story.
All of that felt like a fever dream now.
And what really messed with his head?
"…I wasn't a noble."
The thought hit again, and Ray slumped further into the couch.
"I was a regular dude. A total commoner."
He said it out loud this time, unconsciously even his way of speaking was being affected by his newly acquired knowledge.
"Born among commoners. Lived like one. Worked for others like some… background NPC."He placed a hand over his face, sighing.
"I even… obeyed deadlines."
That last one hurt.
"I was normal."
He tilted his head back, staring at the wooden ceiling of his room. "Damn. That's rough, buddy."
The funny part? Even with all the magic and status this world offered, the science of his past life was way more advanced than anything this world had. People here thought sticking a rune on a stick was peak innovation. In his last life, he'd helped build programs that taught themselves how to diagnose diseases.
Magic engineering? Cool.
But programmable machine learning with scalable APIs?
Chef's kiss.
Still, there was one problem.
"I was really out here walking around like I was someone big," Ray muttered, dragging a hand through his hair. "Noble this, Virelios that… pfft."
He leaned forward with a groan. His mana circuits were still fried, but at least the new skill—Super Recovery—was doing a good job keeping his body from collapsing under the weight of his daily existential crises.
"Guess I was a bit… dramatic."Just a bit.
Ray sighed again and let the thoughts drift. Despite the disbelief, a part of him was already accepting the truth. The noble pride was still there—it would always be there—but now, it came with a side dish of awareness. He wasn't better than people because he had a family name. Hell, he wasn't even considered valuable anymore because of that family name. The reset button had been pressed hard.
Still, deep down, he knew something had changed—subtly, quietly.
That simple acknowledgment of being a commoner in his past life...It cracked something inside him. Not enough to change him overnight, no. Ray was still Ray—cynical, prideful, sharp-tongued, and a bit of a smartass. But now, maybe… maybe he could start seeing other people as more than background extras in his personal story.
One step at a time.
That was when the corner of his vision flickered.
A familiar series of translucent boxes hovered into view, text glowing faintly against the air.
[It has been detected that the individual Ray Virelios is a reincarnated individual.]
[First condition satisfied.]
[It has been detected that the individual Ray Virelios possesses Appraisal ability.]
[Second condition satisfied.]
[Congratulations to individual Ray Virelios for achieving all conditions.]
[You have met the requirements to become the Administrator of the Dimensional Chat Group.]
[You have received Dimensional Chat Group Membership invitation.]
[Do you accept?]
[Y/N]
"Oh right… this thing."
The message had been there for two days—ever since he evolved his skill into SuperStack. He'd seen it when he first woke up after passing out from unlocking his memories, and then promptly ignored it.
Because, honestly, he didn't trust floating messages offering admin roles. That's how horror movies started.
But now…?
Ray tapped the air lazily with his finger, watching the message pulse slightly.
"If it's what I think it is… then there's a pretty damn high chance this thing can help me."
Especially with that.
His mana circuits.
Still broken. Still ruined. Still unusable. Though his trait will be able to help him with that in time. But what's the use if the golden age of cultivation has passed by then?
But this thing, it could help him fix them. That alone was enough to take the offer seriously.
Ray leaned back and crossed his arms, running through the logic.
"Okay. Let's be real about what I want."
Goal 1: Fix my mana circuits.
Goal 2: Get stupidly strong. And stupidly rich.
Goal 3: Kill a group of people.
Goal 4: World domination—optional, but not off the table.
Goal 5: Build a harem. Maybe. If time allows.
"All of this for glory, fame, and whatever other shiny things life has to offer. Y'know, the usual ego-stroking stuff."
He gave a short chuckle. "So basically… for fun."
There was something freeing about saying it out loud.
He wasn't some noble hero on a grand mission to save the world. He wasn't cursed with a tragic destiny or a long-lost prince trying to reclaim his throne. He was just… a guy with memories of two lives, a broken body, and enough ambition to fill a library.
And maybe, just maybe, this was the beginning of something exciting.
Ray exhaled and let his hand hover over the YES option.
"…So. Why not?"
He clicked it.
And just like that, the window vanished with a soft chime, leaving behind a faint shimmer in the air.
Ray blinked.
Then grinned.
Whatever came next, he was ready for it.
"Well," he muttered, cracking his neck and stretching. "Let's see how deep this rabbit hole goes."
The sun had risen fully outside, bathing the room in gold.
Somewhere in the garden, Lilia sneezed.
Ray leaned back into the couch, still shirtless, and closed his eyes for just a moment.
This world was about to get a lot more interesting.
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To Be Continued:
[Word Count: 1980]