Buying My Way Through the Multiverse

You know those fanfics where the protagonist wakes up in another world with some overpowered cheat or plot armor? Yeah, Gray thought those were just stories until he opened his eyes in the middle of a forest, dressed in nothing but his everyday clothes, clutching a single note.

The note read:

”Mr. Gray, it appears you have passed away due to your poor life choices. However, here at [Second Chance Enterprises], we offer individuals like you a second chance at life. Of course, this opportunity is not free. You signed a contract for this chance, and we provided you with a ’cheat,’ as you refer to it, as an additional service. For security reasons, we had to erase your memories of our headquarters and everything else you observed up here. But don’t worry! To activate this cheat, simply say ’system’ out loud once.

Without further ado, please enjoy your new life and make the most of it.

P.S. You only need to say ’system’ out loud the first time; after that, it’s not necessary.”

P.S.S. We left your memories intact. Now go out and have some fun.”

Gray stared at the note in disbelief. ”Wait, so I died in my sleep?” According to the message, he had signed a contract, but they had erased his memory of it. ”Did I get scammed?” He cursed under his breath. Then he remembered the mention of a system. ”Please don’t let it be one of those sentient systems that are cringe and say random nonsense... please, please...”

”System?” he called out hesitantly.

Ding![Welcome to the Universal Farming System]

”Universal Farming System?” he muttered. Did this mean he was going to be some farmer? Would he gain experience by farming crops? A small interface appeared at the corner of his vision, resembling a game HUD. Gray smirked. ”Okay, I like this. Guess I’ll need shades so people won’t think I’m crazy when I start moving my eyes around like a weirdo.”

The system displayed four options:

[Status Info]

[Upgrade Info]

[Store]

[Inventory]

’Alright, let’s check my status first,’ he thought.

[Status Info]

Name: Gray Ashwood

Age: 23 years old

Race: Human

Gold: 0

Gold per hour: 0

Gold Multiplier: 1.00x

Not much information, just his name, age, and the currency the system used. Moving on, he opened the Upgrade Info.

[Upgrade Info]

(free) 1 Gold/Hour

(10 Gold) 2 Gold/Hour

(30 Gold) 5 Gold/Hour

(50 Gold) 10 Gold/Hour

Gray grinned. ”Not bad. I can earn money just by waiting.”

He immediately grabbed the free upgrade to start generating gold. At the bottom, another tab caught his attention.

{Gold Multiplier}

(200 Gold) 0.05x

(550 Gold) 0.05x

(1150 Gold) 0.05x

”Even better,” he said. The system allowed him to earn more gold in less time. He moved to the Inventory next, not expecting much.

[Inventory]

{Empty}

”As expected,” he muttered. ”No starter pack or goodie bag.” Curious, he tried placing a branch into the inventory.

[Inventory]

{Wooden Branch}

[Please buy more inventory space]

”One slot? Seriously? And I have to buy more? Did I sign a contract with EA?” he groaned. Despite the scammy vibe, he couldn’t complain too much after all, he was earning money passively.

Finally, he opened the Store.

The store interface required him to type what he wanted. He tried ”inventory space.”

{Inventory Space} (100 Gold) Warning: Price doubles every time you buy this.

Gray clicked his tongue. ”Figures.” He began walking through the forest, still fiddling with the system. He searched for food next.

{Pizza} (8 Gold)

At least he wouldn’t starve. Still, the forest was eerily quiet. He wanted protection. ”What about guns?” he thought.

{Glock19} (1200 Gold)

Perfect. Food and weapons were available. Then he searched for skills.

{Basic Survival Skills} (500 Gold)

{Intermediate Survival Skills} (2000 Gold)

{Advanced Survival Skills} (10000 Gold)

Gray smirked. ”With survival skills, I can build a shelter and survive no matter what. The longer I stay alive, the more gold I’ll earn.” He decided to search for something crazier.

{Kamehameha} (100000000 Gold) Warning: Ki required

Gray’s jaw dropped. ”Even anime powers are purchasable? This is going to be insane. But that also means this world isn’t normal...” exhaling, he muttered.

”Well, shit”