Chapter 4

  [You have entered the Starter Village]

  Ben appeared in the middle of a bustling village. The sun shone brightly over the town, and NPCs moved from place to place. Numerous stalls lined the streets, each with NPCs shouting to advertise their wares.

  Ben immediately noticed how few players were walking around. Some admired the scenery, others spoke with various NPCs, and a few appeared suddenly in the town square in flashes of light.

  It felt nostalgic. It had been years since he had last entered the Starter Village. Without wasting a second, he broke into a full sprint toward the village exit. His hurried pace drew attention from several players.

  “Where is that guy going in such a hurry?” one shouted.

  “Did he even pick up a skill from the class NPCs? He has no armor. What is the rush?” another asked.

  “Don’t mind him. He is clearly a noob. He is going to get himself killed, then get booted from the game for an hour. He’ll learn,” a third said.

  Ben ignored them. It was true that he had no real armor, weapons, or skills. To get any of those, he would have had to speak with the training NPCs, who provided equipment after completing training sessions. He did not have time for that. He left the town and ran straight into the forest.

  While running, Ben opened his system window. He inspected his inventory. He had only basic training equipment: a training sword, a training mace, and a training bow with a few arrows. None of it dealt much damage.

  Next, he checked his skills. As a faith-based class, he started with two simple spells: a basic ranged holy fire skill and a weak healing spell. Both were inefficient and barely worth the mana. He could have learned more powerful spells from the Faith trainer, but he did not have time for that.

  He had no health or mana potions. If he were injured, he would either have to use mana to heal himself or risk dying in one or two hits. Without armor to mitigate damage, he was extremely vulnerable.

  Despite the danger, Ben was not worried. He opened the system settings and made an adjustment.

  [You are choosing to increase the Pain Setting to maximum. This will simulate real-world pain sensitivity. Are you sure you want to change this setting? Once changed, it cannot be altered for 1 hour.]

  “Accept,” Ben said.

  He immediately felt the difference. The setting enhanced all of his senses. As he ran through the forest, he could feel the leaves and branches brushing against his skin, hear birds calling in the trees, and smell the forest in a way far more vivid than before. The change was subtle, but significant. Most players would never notice how dulled their senses were. Ben tried not to dwell on how the technology could accomplish such a thing. Those thoughts were interesting, but they were a distraction from his goal.

  Finally, Ben checked his class skills. As a summoner, he had access to multiple types of creatures to summon. He could not summon them all at once and would need to choose based on the situation. Summons were expensive in terms of mana, and with his current reserve, he could summon only one at a time.

  While inspecting his class options, a scent reached his nose, accompanied by a faint but familiar sound. His senses made it obvious that his prey was near. He smiled.

  “Yes,” he whispered, barely able to contain his excitement.

  He changed direction and continued sprinting.

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  Approaching the main road leading out of the village, he noticed a few players engaged in combat with a pack of wolves. He analyzed them.

  [Level 2 Forest Wolf]

  A party of four had the wolves surrounded. Their coordination and gear were excellent. The front line was a giant of a man acting as the tank, wearing shining armor and wielding a shield and mace. Behind him, a woman in a flowing white robe carried a two-handed ornate staff, clearly the healer. A female archer launched arrows with precision, and a man with a lance positioned himself behind the tank.

  Ben recognized them as Beta players. He knew by their names and gear that they were part of a prominent guild of early testers. All of them had “Alpha” before their names. They were level 2, far ahead of what a new player could accomplish.

  He realized the Beta players had a huge head start. Even though he had logged in and sprinted immediately, they had already traveled far from the village while farming wolves. Their early advantage came from being among the first players in the game.

  Ben did not dwell on it. He glanced at them only long enough to note their levels and gear, then moved deeper into the forest.

  He avoided the main road. At this early stage, competing with highly skilled players would be inefficient. He needed a safe, secluded area to start his farming.

  Ben soon reached a lake in the forest. Two bipedal lizard creatures patrolled its edge. He could see only two, but he knew there were more nearby.

  [Level 3 Lizardman Scout]

  Level 3 creatures. One level higher than the wolves. A single hit could likely kill a level 1 player. Two hits would be fatal.

  Ben grinned.

  “Alright, let’s see what this class can do,” he said.

  He raised his hand, which glowed with a shining white light. Two more lights appeared behind him, and two tiny angelic figures stepped into the air.

  [Level 1 Cherub Warrior]

  The creatures looked like toddlers with wings. They were covered in plate mail, including helmets with open visors through which their fiery expressions could be seen. Each held a shield and a sword almost as large as its body. They hovered silently, waiting for commands.

  “Cute,” Ben thought.

  He was surprised that he had summoned two at once. One summon spell had consumed eighty percent of his mana, and summons lasted until they died or were resummoned.

  “Two?” Ben asked.

  That was unusual. Normally, summoners did not gain a second summon until level five. Ben checked the summoning count.

  [1 out of 2 summons currently under your control]

  The system only acknowledged one summon, even though Ben had clearly summoned two. His class started with two summoning slots. He had effectively received a God-tier ability.

  “Well… okay then,” Ben said.

  He gave a mental command, and the cherubs immediately charged. Ben marveled at how the system understood his directions.

  The cherubs moved with shocking speed and silence. They did not flap their wings; magic propelled them. They coordinated seamlessly and attacked a lizardman before it could react.

  “Gwag!”

  Two swords pierced the first lizardman’s neck and chest. Despite their appearance, the cherubs were deadly. The creature collapsed immediately.

  Ben glanced at his system notifications.

  [Level 1 Cherub Warrior attacks level 3 Lizardman with a basic short sword. Level 3 Lizardman is unaware. Bonus Sneak Damage is applied]

  The message appeared twice. Although the cherubs did not have the Sneak Attack skill, the system still applied bonus damage for attacking an unaware enemy.

  The second lizardman reacted. It screeched and charged with a short spear. Ben ran forward, unsure how long the cherubs would survive.

  The first thrust of the spear was dodged as the cherub somersaulted into the air and countered with a precise slash across the chest. The lizardman lost twenty percent of its health. It recovered and attacked the other cherub, only for the same outcome. Another twenty percent of health was gone.

  The two cherubs flanked the lizardman, dodging wildly and countering swiftly. Their movements reminded Ben of how he imagined Yoda might fight, if Yoda could fly. The motions were flashy but effective.

  Ben held a training bow but did not need to fire. The cherubs defeated the lizardman before he could contribute.

  A golden light surrounded him. A translucent blue screen appeared.

  [Congratulations. You have leveled up. You are now level 2]

  Ben blinked in surprise.

  “Woah.”