'Wakeup package, my sovereign ass!'

  Bitterness burned at him as he struggled to break free. But the bindings were relentless, the pain blinding. These vicious vines were not playing around!

  With both hands and feet bound, Aurel had only one way out, and that was to look within. But there was a problem. The foreign energy that had invaded his system made it difficult for his essence to circulate.

  It was as though he was dragging his feet through tar.

  Gritting his teeth, he focused on circulating his essence along a defined, sophisticated path, activating a technique that could help him break free. But then, another vine came out of nowhere and wrapped around his head, breaking his concentration.

  The grip strained against his head and body, his skin breaking against the overwhelming pressure. Aurel's heart raced with anxiety, his breathing coming out in heavy pants.

  'Damn it!'

  Time was running out. His essence circulation was restrained, and his concentration was broken. Soon, he would have difficulty breathing. He needed to do something, and fast!

  More than half his body had already been buried in the ground, stripping him of all physical movements.

  'Come on, think!'

  Aurel's mind raced with possibilities. That essence that was disrupting his circulation of essence felt dreadfully cold. Twisted. Partial. The Landheart Vine thrived in essence-rich environments with limited light.

  'Light!'

  The answer came to him in an instant. Spectral essence abhorred the essence of light. He had a few techniques that could push out the dreadful spectral essence. Aurel wasted no time recalling the technique. He forced down his rising anxiety and focused.

  Soon, he felt his sluggish essence move accordingly. But it was frustratingly slow, nearly driving him insane. Failing to circulate his essence properly would render the technique ineffective.

  'Fuck!'

  Panic finally set in. He was running out of time and out of breath! Pain relentlessly shot through him like a vice. His muscles and bones screamed in protest, begging for sweet relief.

  'No. No. No. I can't die like this! I just woke up!' Aurel internally screamed, his panic rising to the limit. He cursed his damn arrogance. If only he had been careful. If only he had moved cautiously.

  The signs had been there, but he was too blind to see them, too self-absorbed to think much of the eerie aura the jungle gave! Here he was, about to die from stupid vines that should have been just vines!

  Aurel was wholly swallowed by the ground, pulled in by the very vines that should have helped him in restoring his regressed power. Just how had the world gotten this bad?!

  His chest burned from the lack of air, his muscles ached under the strain, and his bones cracked. As panic and fear consumed him, regret and bitterness rippled through his existence.

  A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

  At death's door, he began questioning his life choices. How had he ended up this miserable? He was a sovereign, an extremely powerful one at that. How had one failure reduced him to this helpless state?

  Aurel could not understand. How many times had he faced death and walked away nearly unscathed? He did not particularly fear death. He feared dying like an insignificant insect.

  His enemies had reduced him to a pitiful state, and now, vines would finish the job. He had envisioned many things in his life. Dying like this had never crossed his mind.

  'W-What a joke.'

  Had he known he would end up like this, he would have chosen to go by the rulers' death canon. Perhaps this was karma for how he treated his people, for how he ruled with an iron fist.

  He had a mission to fulfil, a mission known only to him. He was chosen for a grand purpose. But did that warrant the way he treated the world? Did that excuse how he pushed the world to despise him the way they did?

  Maybe. Maybe not.

  Perhaps things would have been different if he ruled differently. Perhaps things would have been different if he had let things flow naturally, if he had let people be people. There would always be someone displeased, but at the very least, it wouldn't be as bad as it was.

  But second chances rarely ever came. He had just gotten it, and now, he was about to lose it. Aurel's consciousness began slipping as excruciating pain consumed his senses. Several bones had already been broken, his muscles torn.

  'Se-bastian…' Aurel weakly called the one person he trusted the most. 'I-I've failed you again. I failed to complete my mission. I've failed the world. My arrogance has truly led to my downfall. I-I'm sor…'

  Before he could succumb to the darkness, a prompt flashed in the darkness. Barely clinging on to his consciousness, Aurel managed to read the first few lines that lay before his vision. The interface glitched intermittently, but the words remained clear.

  [System Override]

  [Host Preservation Protocol Activated]

  [...]

  Aurel barely caught the rest of the text when darkness covered his vision. He quickly understood the meaning behind those texts, giving him hope for survival. He had no idea he had something like this. Regardless, he was saved.

  Aurel swore not to waste this chance.

  ***

  Abruptly, Aurel opened his eyes and jumped to his feet, cautiously looking around. He let out a heavy sigh when he looked around and realised he was back at the ruins. The sun was still up, but most of the day had already gone by.

  Realising the system protocol had returned him to his 'starting' point, his tensed shoulders visibly relaxed. Aurel fell to his knees and thanked his lucky stars. He was alive.

  Suddenly aware of the dangers the surrounding jungle posed to him, Aurel shuddered. No wonder those intruders wasted no time trying to harvest those precious herbs and vines. It was a death trap.

  "What a rude awakening…"

  Aurel muttered under his breath, sitting down on the stone floor. He closed his eyes for a moment and recalled his close brush with death. Had it not been for that preservation protocol, he would have been a goner.

  With a thought, he brought up the interface. To his surprise, the usual bright red interface had turned dark. It no longer glitched, but it was clearly dysfunctional. More so when the text flashing before his eyes hinted at it.

  [System Reboot Recommended]

  [Main System Functions and Library Temporarily Unavailable]

  [Available Function: Dimensional Space]

  Aurel clenched his fists while reading the texts flashing before his eyes. The familiar and powerful interface he had taken for granted was no longer available. Fortunately for him, the [Dimensional Space] stayed functional.

  When he accessed the storage space to retrieve an item, Aurel let out a disappointed sigh. The item he retrieved was not what he intended. He might be able to access the dimensional space, but what he retrieved was a matter of chance.

  "Looks like I'll have to find my way back…"