《My Clones Are A Bit Broken》 A New World In the streets of New York City, a golden-haired young man walked along the sidewalk, his green eyes shining with delight as he listened to music on his headphones. "4 rings before 40, he''s still pushing, that''s why he''s the goat," Alex sang to his favorite remix out loud, attracting the bystanders with his melodious (horrific) voice. Noticing all the weird looks he was getting, he lowered his head and started speed walking ''I did it again," he thought. Soon, he reached a moderately sized apartment complex; stepping inside, he walked through the hallways and entered the elevator. "4th Floor" he politely informed the grumpy elevator man on which floor he wanted to go to. One awkwardly silent elevator ride later, he reached the 4th floor, pulled out his keys, and walked towards the room at the end of the hall, 403. The door spun open, a nauseating draft assaulting his nose; looking at the lumps of trash and garments all over the apartment, his face contorted. "Why me? Why couldn''t I just have a pretty maid to clean all this up for me!" He lamented his fate of being born into a middle-class family with no cute maid in sight. He took off his headphones, putting them on his desk, sinking into his gaming chair, imported from IKEA. "What''s new? This damned update is just changing the mob skins! Rip off," he groaned, looking at his favorite open-world game releasing such a worthless update. Closing the games tab, he started going through his social media. ''No replies today either.'' Jobs are a precious commodity nowadays; it seems that even being a janitor requires three years of job experience; why do I need the experience to mop? Closing his social media, he instead put on some YouTube videos, wondering if there were any new videos he''d be interested in. Nope, another dud. Everything was so plain nowadays; it got so bad sometimes he''d wonder if there was even a point in trying to experience anything new anymore. He shut off his PC, genuinely bored out of his mind. Nothing, nothing to do, not even a job he could work overtime for or someone he could talk to; after all, his family was old-fashioned and didn''t use technology aside from him. As for relationships, even though he was pretty handsome, the culture nowadays disgusted him, so that was a no-go too. In truth, life was a dull mess, and though he had the conviction to change, there weren''t chances, not for someone like him. If only he could get isekai''d, a magical world full of monsters and dungeons, a land he''d conquer with a sword in hand. Oh! The delight that would have been. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. [Transport Arranged, No 7389.] [Talent, Approved. Welcome, Mortal.] Alex felt his eyes grow heavy, and not because of his usual all-nighters. A glimpse of the strange text floating in front of him was caught by him; what arrogant troll was this? Mortal? Is he an Immortal? 8th grade syndrome I swear- A burst of light filled the apartment room, Alex''s visage disappearing entirely, along with many others in different parts of the globe. Alex felt his mind go blank, and a second later, he was in a vast field, the majestic sunlight falling on him; a quick spin would tell you that he wasn''t the only one in this field. There were many others, presumably thousands, possibly more. "What the hell is this? I was on the toilet damnit" A grumpy old man complained A woman''s scream was heard, her clothes messy and her hair falling off, revealing a sliver of her bald scalp. It seemed she had been caught mid-dressing up. In another group of people, a small child was crying as he held onto a dinosaur plushie. Similarly, many other situations were taking place throughout the vast expanse of grassland. Some are more awkward for those involved than others. [SILENCE] A giant blue screen popped up above grassy plains, everyone turning their heads towards it simultaneously. [THIS WILL ONLY BE SAID ONCE.] [YOU HAVE BEEN CHOSEN TO REPOPULATE THIS WORLD. YOU ALL HAVE TALENTS THAT MAY BE OF USE TO YOU; DO NOT OFFEND THE 7 TEMPLES; ASIDE FROM THAT, DO AS YOU WISH.] With the disappearance of the blue screen of text, a wave of confusion and anger shot out. "Hey, I''ve gotta head to work soon; let me out! I''ll get fired if I''m late again." "Yeah! Let us out! Stop wasting our time!" "Yeah-" But as time passed, the sun began dimming, signaling night''s eventual arrival. Alex, as a certified keyboard warrior, knew exactly what this situation was. A classic Isekai, you have talents from what that screen thingy said, and you grow stronger and beat some boss-type monster, like a demon king. "Status" he called out confidently. (.........) "Inventory!" Worry crept into his words (.........) "Shop?" Disbelief plagued his speech... People began to look at him strangely; everyone landed safely,, didn''t they? So why did this guy seem to have a screw or two loose? "He''s not crazy, guys; I tried it just now; try thinking "Talent" really hard." A black-haired young man stepped forward, he flashed a smile, ruined only by the fact that his clothing choice was....illegal. The parents, who had luckily been transported with their children, quickly covered their little one''s eyes and moved away. ''Weirdo, I didn''t know people still wore shirts with anime girls on them.'' Alex thought as a blue screen appeared in front of him after he followed the questionable man''s advice. Name: Alex Edward Age: 19 Talent: Cloning [F] [Growth Talent] Level: 1 Exp: 0/100 Class: Not Selected Hp: 100/100 Hp Recovery: 4/M Attack: 10 Defense: 0 Mana: 7 Mana Recovery: 0.01/S Stamina: 4 "Eh? It''s not that bad; the stats are seemingly decent. Talent is an F Rank but a Growth Talent, I''m obviously the protagonist in this situation." Alex smirked at his status "Oohhhh I''m S rank!" The black-haired young man shouted triumphantly. "Move aside, you side characters. It''s my turn to shine." He mocked as he pushed through the crowd, charging into the forest confidently. A few minutes passed, and the young man had yet to return. But an old guest did make an appearance. [GO TO THE VILLAGE, EAST OF WHERE YOU ARE.] It didn''t take a genius to realize why that extra little bit of help was sent down, so violently. The crowd, nervously looking at the setting sun seemed to finally catch air of the seriousness of this predicament. Naturally, they began walking towards the east, aiming for the village. As for how they figured out which way was east, they just had to look at the Sun to find out. Alex followed behind the pack, albeit a bit sluggishly, as he was furiously staring at his Talent Panel, trying to understand how this broken thing was rated F Rank. [Cloning Talent] Level 1:- Grants the ability to summon a clone at the cost of 5 mana; the clone is identical to the player, and any items or weapons will be duplicated and received by the clone. This is only possible once per unique item. XP is also transferred to the host. (Author Note: By unique item, it means any object; they can be two similar items like a health potion, but they will still be unique compared to one another. Example: if he has 10 potions, each potion counts as a unique item, thus there will be 10 duplicated potions for the clone) Cooldown:- None. I mean, he had 7 mana so it meant he could already summon a clone. Add on the item-sharing feature, which seemed like a potentially exploitable bug. Not to mention! This was the [F] version of his talent, what about S? Like that weird idiot who died in the forest? What if it surpasses even that?? He let out a relieved breath "Things are finally getting interesting for me." Starter Pack Night fell as the moon stood high in the sky, shining majestically. A large group of people seemed to be running in a frenzy at this moment, afraid of what night had in store for them. Little did they know, there was no predator nearby, confident or brain-dead enough to attack a colossal force of thousands of prey. "We''re close, I see the light!" A grumpy old man screamed out joyfully "Finally, we''ve been going for so long. I want to go back home!" A woman dressed in office attire remarked, her exhaustion obvious to the naked eye. Perhaps wearing heels to work was the reason for her downfall? ''What if the village can even hold so many people; what if there''s a Hunger Games-type scene to pick out the lucky residents?'' he thought to himself However, soon he found himself proven wrong. They reached the "village," and honestly, he couldn''t understand what part of this beautiful city was a village. Although no skyscrapers were present, thick stone walls were going around the village; looking into the village from the open gate, numerous houses were spread out, and even shops! Before the group could regain their calm or move forward, a figure appeared, dawning chainmail armor covering it from head to toe. A sharp silver spear in its hand. "ATTENTION! Esteemed Travelers! Please form four lines: one for men, another for women, a third for the elderly, and lastly, one for children! Please cooperate as night has fallen and it is dangerous to be out!" A manly voice commanded from under the helmet. To the soldier''s dismay, such a large group of people would hardly be able to form such a disciplined system. This began a riot of sorts, the old and elderly being pushed to the ground, the children being separated from their parents if they luckily met them. The young and strong men pushed through the pack, trying to enter the city first. Suddenly, a torrent of screams rang out. Looking to the front, one would be astounded to see a bear-like man on his knees as blood spilled out from his chest. "Was I not clear?" A cold line from the armed guard, the visage of a guide disappearing replaced by a soldier forged by war. Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon. "GET IN YOUR LINES" he screamed for order, a group of similarly dressed guards stepping ahead and surrounding the messy group. Naturally, in front of such a display, everyone became docile. Alex ended up near the front of his line. ''These guys are 2D NPC''s, they can kill us. They''re just following orders it seems, but that doesn''t mean we can disrespect them as if they''re mindless zombies.'' he thought "Next!" A guard stationed at the very front of his line announced, Alex stepped forward. "Please state your name, age, and Talent Rank," the guard said as he sized Alex up. "Alex Edwards, 19, F Rank" Alex confidently said, not mentioning the growing potential his talent possessed. "You are assigned to house 468; you will receive food and water that will last you a week; you may live in the residence for a week before you have to pay for it if you choose to remain there." The guard said, waving for Alex to head inside. "Does that mean I can change my residence?" Alex inquired as he stepped past the guard "Yes, you can move to the populated side of the city for 1 silver a day." The guard responded without looking back, shouting out for the next person to come forward a second later. ''So it''s all about money here too, huh?'' Alex understood that wealth was a universal requirement for an enjoyable life, and in this world, he would definitely need it. Stepping into the city, without heading to his assigned residence, he ran up to one of the merchants setting up a stall near the city center; why? Well, because of the glorious sign "Starter Pack Available," that caught his eye. The merchant''s eyes glowed as Alex approached the stall. "Hello, good sir! Might I interest you in any of my exceptional goods?" Seeing the collection of goods, Alex shook his head. "No, thank you! Please give me a Starter Pack." Hearing his words the merchant rolled his eyes, handing him a little ring without so much as a word. "Thank you!" Alex smiled at the man and walked away, towards the back end of the city. House 468. "Not so much of a house is it? More like one of those dirt shacks I used to build in my favorite open-world game." Alex said looking at the humble stone shack Inside, a simple wool bed and a medieval-style toilet were present. Regardless, Alex sat down on his rather comfortable bed, wearing the ring the merchant had given him. Inventory:- Space: 3/32 Items: Stone Sword, Health Potion x3, Mana Potion x1. A blue screen appeared in front of him, this time displaying rows of empty blue boxes, with three filled with the mentioned items. He pulled out all the items, spreading them on his bed. The conditions seemed to be right; he now tried to feel his Talent, thinking about using its ability. In a second, he felt like he had lost something, as a light membrane appeared before him, and out of the membrane came..him. Well, a clone of him, to be exact. Now came the time for testing how this Talent worked. First, he tried moving his hand, but the clone''s hand didn''t move. Next, he thought about the clone moving its hand; it did work. Okay, so it was a spilt screen experience, it seemed. He wondered if commanding it worked. "Do a push-up." In response, the clone got on the ground, performing a clean push-up. So that worked too? This means he could potentially use his clones for automation as well. Now onto the most exciting aspect of his talent, he picked up his stone sword in his right hand, looking at the clone in anticipation. A light membrane appeared near the clone''s right hand, spitting out a stone sword from it. "I''m rich!" Alex triumphantly roared; he and the clone simultaneously put down their swords, and Alex picked up all the potions he had gotten joyfully. Soon, looking at the 3 green and 1 blue potion in the Clone''s hand, Alex couldn''t stop himself from breaking out into an evil smirk; this was his time to shine! He felt the urge to pick up his swords and head toward monsters with his trusty clone! Nonetheless, looking at the pitch-black night outside, the thought of going into the forest quickly left his mind. "You, guard the door." He commanded his clone, as he placed the potions on the ground and nestled into his wool bed. ''Tonight marks the arrival of the protagonist! From tomorrow I begin my conquest of this realm!'' He thought as his mind wandered till he fell asleep.