A short haired dude strolled along the quiet road earbuds tucked snugly in his ears, swaying slightly to the rhythms.
His footsteps slow and relaxed soft breezes rustling his short hair's, but he barely noticed. He was lost in this romantic song.
Then
BOOOONKKK!
A deafening horn exploded from his left, cutting through the music like a blade. Sound didn't just interrupt it invaded, blasting into his ears through his headphones. His whole body starteled like someone had fired a gun next to his ear.
"What the hell?!" he gasped his heart almost in his throat.
He yanked the earbuds out, eyes wide, head snapping to the side.
Startled. Confused. Adrenaline kicking in.
A cold chill ran up his spine.
Then he saw it.
Charging toward him down the road was massive, red and blue coloured truck, engine snarling like a beast. But this wasn't any truck. This thing had a freaking face. A twisted, metal ugly grin carved across its front grill, headlights narrowed like eyes full of mockery. Worse two enormous metallic arms had erupted from its sides, pistons flexing fists clenched and cocked back like it was about to throw a punch.
It wasn't just coming at him it was aiming for him.
Max's breath caught.
He swore he saw a smirk.
And then BAM!
"ISEKAI, BITCH!" the truck bellowed in a robotic, almost gleeful voice right before its iron fist smashed into his face.
Blackness. Silence.
Then
GASP!
Max bolted upright in bed, heart pounding like he died. Sweat soaked his shirt. He looked around scared.
"That fucking ugly shit..no wait".
This wasn't his room.
Above him, a vaulted ceiling of carved oak loomed, dripping in chandeliers and old-world charm. Stone walls, rich drapes, a fireplace he blinked hard. It looked like a noble's bedroom from some medieval fantasy novel. A breeze drifted in through the open window, carrying the scent of don't know what and cold air.
"What the…? Where am I?" he muttered, voice rough and disoriented.
He rubbed his face. "Wait did that truck… did it talk? Did it say ISEKAI? And… bitch?"
He paused.
"That… was real?"
The luxurious room offered no answers. It was too refined, ancient and definitely not his dingy apartment. He swung his legs off the bed, planting his feet on a plush rug.
Then sudden pain.
A piercing headache exploded behind his eyes. Max groaned, clutching his skull, staggering as memories not his own flashed in his mind like lightning.
People he didn't recognize.
A Empire.
A Princess.
A Proposal.
A Rejection.
And Concequences.
A name that wasn't hisbbut felt like it had always been.
He collapsed back onto the bed, gasping.
Time passed in fragments minutes maybe.
Then, finally, the pain ebbed.
Max sat up, trembling, sweat slick on his forehead. He exhaled, staring at the foreign room around him.
"What the fuck just happened?" he whispered.
Max sat on the edge of the grand, unfamiliar bed, hand pressed to his forehead, eyes shut tight.
"Just how stupid was this guy?" he muttered, digesting memories into his mind like a crashing tide.
The name came first.
Alex Boneblade.
Eldest son of the powerful Boneblade family one of the five great Duke houses of the Glaciera Empire. A family of immense status, wealth, and influence… but with an embarrassment of an heir.
Low talent. Weak constitution. No affinity for mana. No strategic mind.
A royal grade loser in noble clothing ofcourse.
Max felt his stomach twist as he sifted through Alex's life. His family had tolerated him barely. Behind the not so polite smiles, he was a stain on their legacy. A noble failure. His mother, ever the political tactician, finally found the perfect excuse to exile him: make him the official prince of a border city.
A far off, frozen wasteland at the edge of Empire... well Outside the Empire boarders actually.
Fortress City.
Once a military stronghold, this city known simply as the Fortress City sits on the border of the Forest of Dread. Long ago, it was the first line of defense against the mindless monsters that poured from the forest's depths.
Now Tens of thousands live here now, though it's still considered a remote outpost rather than a prosperous center.
A thousand years ago, during the reign of the Glacieran Empire, the emperor struck a secret treaty with a powerful entity within the forest. In exchange for peace, the Someone or something agreed never to attack the empire. Since then, no large scale monster raids have threatened the city, and the fortress was gradually converted into a livable living zone.
Life here is tough but cheap. While it's under imperial protection, the occasional monster attacks still happen usually weak, mindless beasts that slip past the forest's deeper boundaries. This, however, turned out to be a blessing. Adventurers, hunters, and even locals harvest beast cores from the fallen creatures, selling them for good profit. The city's economy thrives not on trade or culture, but on monster remains.
But three days ago, Alex in this idIot made his biggest mistake.
He went to the royal capital.
And there, in front of half the court, he proposed to the Imperial Princess.
Max groaned, dragging his palm down his face. "Are you kidding me?"
Rejected, obviously. Brutally ~Yes ofcourse.
The emperor's wrath was silent but precise.
He couldn't directly attack the son of a Duke family. That would risk political disaster.
So he did something worse.
He cut Fortress City off from the Empire.
Stripped it of all imperial protection. Declared it independent.
And with that, the treaty with the Forest of Dread shattered. Monsters that once respected the Empire's boundaries were now free to roam. Free to attack.
Free to destroy.
Max swallowed hard.
Thousands of innocent people lived here. Merchants. Farmers. Soldiers. Children. And now, because of Alex's stupidity, they were all going to die.
Tomorrow.
The first wave of the beast horde was expected to hit at dawn.
And he, Max Alex now was the reason.
He leaned forward, elbows on knees, head in his hands.
"Jesus Christ. What kind of moron fucked this hard…? You're a Duke's son, and you managed to screw up so bad you doomed an entire city. How is that even possible?"
He sat like that for minutes. Ten? Maybe more. Just breathing. Processing. Trying to make sense of a royal disaster handed to him like a flaming sword.
Finally, he straightened, jaw clenched.
So let's take stock:
He's still technically the prince of this doomed city.
The people hate him.
He has no power.
He can't run.
Even if the people didn't block him in out of spite (and they absolutely would) there was nowhere to run. The roads out were buried under ice and crawling with predators. The outer forests were deathtraps. No sane person would travel without an army, or a beast mount that could fly.
And him?
He had neither.
And in one day, this place becomes a slaughterhouse.
He sat in silence, jaw clenched, chest rising and falling with short, uneven breaths. The kind you get when you're trying to think but your brain just keeps screaming we're fucked, we're fucked, we're so fucked.
Max exhaled, slow and bitter. "So this is it. I get isekai'd by a talking truck, and I wake up as the final boss of a tragedy."
What now?
The hopelessness wrapped around his chest like a chain.
Then
DING!!
A clear chime rang out in his mind. Not in the room. Inside his thoughts. Like a notification from a video game.
Max blinked. "Wait. What was that?"
A glowing interface shimmered into view in front of his eyes, translucent and blue.
[SYSTEM ONLINE]
Host Identity: Alex Boneblade / Max Carter
Adaptive Survival Protocol Activated
Initializing…
Max stared, wide eyed.
"No fucking way."
But suddenly.
A soft blue glow shimmered to life in front of his eyes floating, transparent, strange. It was like a hologram from a sci-fi film, only far too real.
"What the hell?!" he yelped, instinctively flinching backward.
He tripped over the edge of the rug and fell flat on the bed with a muffled thud, eyes wide and breath caught in his throat.
The screen was still there, hovering in midair like it owned the room.
Heart pounding, Alex sat up slowly, a mix of panic and excitement battling in his chest. "Wait… wait wait wait… is this?"
He squinted at the glowing text.
Then his expression lit up.
"A system?!"
He let out a stunned laugh, half-disbelieving, half-giddy. "No way. No way! Am I seriously getting a system?!"
His voice cracked with exhilaration.
He stood up on the bed now, grinning like a maniac, arms raised like he'd just won the lottery. "Holy hell, am I the protagonist of this world?! I knew that truck did me a favor!"
He could already picture it people back in his old world reading his story, watching him rise. Their jealous, burning asses wishing they got isekai'd too.
He wiped an imaginary tear and lifted his chin proudly.
"Damn… I feel main character energy already."
Then he turned his attention back to the screen, now gently pulsing with light.
The design was sleek and elegant. Flowing script, clean lines. Easy to read. Soothing on the eyes. It didn't feel like a machinebit felt alive.
"Okay, System," he said, clearing his throat. "What's your deal? You got powers? Can you help me not die tomorrow?"
A gentle ding sounded, soft like wind chimes.
Then the interface began to shift and animate.
[System has detected that Host is the Prince of a Border City.]
[Searching for a compatible ability tailored to Host's survival and status…]
A soft hum filled the room.
Intricate glowing rings spun slowly across the screen, patterns aligning like ancient magic circuits.
Scanning…
…
…
[Match found!]
[Congratulations, Host! You have been granted a world-unique system: The Ultimate Tower Defense & Dominion System.]
[Your territory has now been bound to the system. You are its defender and its ruler.]
[Build. Upgrade. Defend. Conquer.]
Alex stared, mouth open.
"Tower defense…? Wait, like the game?! i swear i was on 12th max tow..."
The interface continued, unfolding like a scroll of destiny.
---
[System Interface – Activated]
System Name: Ultimate Tower Defense & Dominion System
Type: Unique, World-Class
Host: Alex Boneblade – Prince of the Borderlands
System Status: Bound and Operational
Territory Linked: Outer Province – Fortress City
[System Overview]
[Congratulations, Host.You have awakened the Ultimate Tower Defense & Dominion System, a world-exclusive, strategic survival interface designed to empower, expand, and protect your domain. You are now the sovereign of your territory. All defensive structures, troop formations, and upgrades shall be directed through you.]
---