Kaleidoscope

0000 The Broken World

Qi Sying can't remember anything. 

He knows he had never been in an accident before, nor experienced anything fatal enough to activate the so-called 「SYSTEM」 that was given to him by a person who was clad in white clothes. 

His mind is blank. No events pertaining to his former self remained in his mind. Though, he is most clear to his body's disposition. He is human and the place he was in not a place where humans should exist. A voice is telling him from the deepest part of his soul, saying, 'You should not be here'. 

He did not belong here. 

However, there are still a few things that Qi Sying can remember. He knows his name by chance, that he is already twenty years old, and his appearance is very average. His image is something one would forget after three seconds of meeting. 

These were the facts that were usually embedded deep in the mind that not even the external force can erase from the memories. It is more permanent than the names of his friends and faces of his parents. 

「Host, please take good care of the kaleidoscope. It is your only ticket to get out of this place.」

An electronic voice resounded inside his head. Qi Sying was no longer surprised by the sudden intrusion of the foreign mechanism that owned a unique frosty voice. It was called 「SYSTEM」,a heaven-defying device that could help him finish tasks by jumping into worlds. 

Taking the words the system said, Qi Sying raised the object in his hand. Qi Sying was in a white room with six corners. Everything inside this room was so white that no shadow could touch the bleakness.

His clothes were also the same color, matching his already pale complexion. Maybe the only thing that made him visible was his dark black hair and two black irises. The next one that has a color was the kaleidoscope on his hands. 

The kaleidoscope has the shape of a cylinder with the outer covering made up of brass. It resembled a telescope, though the only difference is that the length can't be extended and the top part has a rotating mechanism that allows whatever was inside to move.

Qi Sying traced the brass cover, praising the complex, intricate carvings. He did not have any memories but he was sure such design will be praised by many people. He raised the object up above his right eye and peered over the little eye on the other end. The white room seemed to possess a light source since it was able to illuminate the top part of the kaleidoscope which reflected the colorful mechanism inside. 

Though it still carried the myriad of geometric shapes, Qi Sying could see a few parts missing, rendering the object broken. That person, that man with an obscure face in white clothes, gave him a mission and that was to fix this kaleidoscope. 

As the system says, it is his only ticket to get out of this white place. 

"System, how is it done?" Qi Sying asked. "Will I be transported somewhere? Uh, in different worlds then look for the missing shards?"

The system in his mind made a short whirring sound. A cold voice replied.

「Yes, the host will travel to different worlds. Your soul will occupy the body of a certain character. The idea of your travel will be based on the character owning the highest regret points on that world.」

"Regret points?" Qi Sying muttered. "What is that?"

「Regret points was the amount of regret a person has. It is the same with merit points, revenge points, and many more - it is a mechanism used in every world to keep the dimension running.」

"That's interesting," Qi Sying subconsciously scratched the kaleidoscope. "I guess I will be working on these regret points?"

「Host is correct. The world needs a lot of energy to continue running. It is supplied by these energies. But there are instances where a certain energy source exceeds the requirement disturbing the balance. Most of the time, these sudden shifts of energy causes the world's destruction.」

The mission of the systems was to maintain the balance in these worlds. But the system could not possess a body so they look for souls to do the job in exchange of something. 

「The Host's mission is to replace the soul of the character in that world and alter the events that will cause the surge of regret without totally changing the outline. Once the main mission was done, the shard can be collected.」

"Main Mission? There are different kinds of mission?"

「You're right, host. There are three types of missions: the main missions, side missions, and extra missions. The Main Mission would be the main objective of the host traveling to that world. 」

「Unable to finish 75% of the main mission will be marked as a failure and the host will have to personally search for the shard. The default accounting was one world, one shard.」

「But there are instances where three or more shards can be collected. It is possible in worlds where there is a certain difficulty or if the missions are not easy to complete. The compensation will always account to the world's difficulty.」

「Second　－ the side missions. This one will come after the main mission, though it is not necessary to complete. The host will be given the choice to do it or not. It will not affect the main mission, however, could give incentives in certain situations.」

「Side missions give extra points that can be used to buy things in the shop. Host, remember that the items in the shops are very expensive since the items can be used even after finishing in that world.」

「Lastly　－extra missions. These missions will only appear if the host reaches a certain event that requires an immediate action. Like side missions, the purpose of extra missions is to give the host additional points.」

「But since this one is an extra, this mission will give more points than side missions, or might actually get higher points than the main missions could give. The host will also receive 'cheat tickets' that will be useful in the future.」

The words were carved into Qi Sying's mind. In order for him to fix this broken object, he has to travel into different worlds to collect the missing shards.

To get the missing shards, he has to finish doing tasks. Unable to finish the main tasks will give him consequences that might have him lose a shard. And, by default, one world means one shard. 

"If I am unable to finish the said main missions and lose the shard, how can I recover?" He asked.

「One world has one shard, but there are chances that a host will not be able to collect a shard on consecutive worlds since there are difficulties on the missions. Host, keep in mind that the only thing that you need to do is fix the kaleidoscope. 」

「As long as you can collect the number of shards needed, then you don't have to worry over missed shards. However, being unable to finish missions will result in punishments. It might double the next world's difficulty or the host will be put into restriction.」

"So I really only needed to collect the shards, huh..."

Qi Sying raised the object up and tried to sneak a peek inside by closing his one eye. He counted the missing colors inside the tube, marking the shards that he needed to get. 

"After getting the shard, how am I going to place it inside?"

「The shard will automatically place itself inside the kaleidoscope.」

"Hmmm," Qi Sying said, nodding. "Somehow, I can feel a strange connection to this thing. I don't know, but I feel like they are important pieces of me."

The system did not reply. It only waited for Qi Sying to finish counting before speaking again. 

「Would the host want to proceed?」

"En. I already accepted this job anyway," or else, according to that white clothed man, his soul will be eliminated if he rejected the offer. 

He did not know what being eliminated meant, but he had a hunch that it wouldn't be good. He'd rather go to different worlds than to be erased forever. 

「Then, since this is the host's first time, the management made the first world your free trial. Don't worry; this is just the beginner's package that will help newbies to adapt.」

「The difficulty of the mission will be neglected while the points will double their original value. Once this world is done, the setting will be back to normal and the point systems will also revert back.」

"Very accommodating," Qi Sying commented.

「If the host has any questions, you can just ask me. I might not be able to give a hand physically, but it is my duty to guide the host and keep track of the progress of the missions.」

「If the host wants to buy something from the shop, just tell me so I can purchase it for you. However, my services are only limited to small wishes. Requests that might affect the storyline will be rejected.」

"I understand."

The system prepared for the departure. Qi Sying can hear the electronic voice initializing commands in his mind. When the system started the countdown, he suddenly felt sleepy.

He made his way to the couch in the corner and reclined in a relaxed position. He closed his eyes as the darkness of sight engulfed him. Flashes of colors rained on his vision as his consciousness shifted until nothing could be felt.

Only the cold voice of the system reminded him of his existence, and the unusual warmth coming from the kaleidoscope on his hand. 

「Completing transfer... 3...2...1...」