Alex had left Malle and was back home at his desk. He read articles about the tutorial. Someone claimed that two gigantic wolves came after the two orcs on the first floor. Alex found it hard to believe that somebody managed to kill two armed orcs but maybe someone with actual fighting abilities made the impossible possible. The post described wolves as big and muscular as tigers.
Many more countries other than Norway acknowledged the existence of the tutorial but times were crazy. Who knows how many people have disappeared without a trace never to be seen again. Alex got queasy. Hopefully, this didn't happen to his parents or Malle that dense bloke.
Alex kept on reading. In the quagmire of articles and comments, many asked for tips or tricks. Alex wanted to know too. After not finding anything useful he stopped.
Later on, his parents got home and he convinced them to practice. Additionally, he called Malle, so he came to. Letting the muscles learn the hard way was still useful.
They chose a quiet part of the forest as a training location. There was no time to waste. Alex gave everyone a long stick so they could practice. First, they struck and thrust for the first 15 minutes. Afterward, his mother was exhausted.
Then they took a break and Alex told them about his experiences with the monsters. Everybody listened. Hearing these things firsthand made them even more terrifying.
Afterward, Alex sparred with them. Letting his mother rest some more. Alex soon realized that their attacks were slow and aimless. They simply lagged something that Alex couldn´t put into words. That surprised him, especially as he faced his father, who was fit and stronger than Alex himself. Alex could easily parry or avoid them.
Every time his father attacked, Alex would in turn hit his wrists, chest, or something else. Then he struck the head. They stopped for a moment. His father put his hand to the wound. He could feel blood. His gaze turned icy. “What were you thinking? Stop the madness you damn brat.”
But Alex didn't feel like that was a problem. “You will love me for my mercilessness once you´ve been on the first floor.” He walked up to his father. His father backed off in turn. Both were slightly puzzled at his reaction but in the end, Alex healed him.
Alex decided to slowly increase the intensity. Maybe but just maybe did he overdo it. His feelings were a mess after all and being constantly under death threat might have played a role. However, he wanted to show them the powers that were at play. So he summoned his glaive. He concentrated shortly. The time needed getting shorter each time and then he chopped up a small tree very nearby. The stump was nonetheless the size of a thigh and neatly cut. His father and the others watched in silence.
“The tutorial is a dangerous place but a place that gives certain powers,” said Alex.
They continued to train for just under half an hour. Everyone except Alex had received a few bruises. But Alex was very happy. The foundation for everybody’s survival was laid.
Then everybody went home. For the rest of the evening, Alex watched videos about spear and staff fighting and anything else that might help him improve on his own. Soon he had to turn on his lamp as the daylight vanished.
The next day came and another boring day at school tortured Alex. Maybe he should take a break. Today another seat was empty and the others had not returned, nor had anybody heard of them. Panic swept through the school that day. The threat of the tutorial becoming real in everybody’s minds.
After school, he went to his room and then the tutorial. He paused briefly in front of the large stone circle. His glaive was with him. He took his time and practiced the movements he saw online. Some felt smooth and some didn't. Then he took a deep breath and walked through the crystalline wall. The insect greeted him again. Every injury had healed or disappeared for whatever reason.
His concentration was at his peak. Alex was ready to use his power. Initially, he blocked a few attacks of the monster with quick movements of his glaive until he used his power at a favorable moment. He severed an arm.
Following that up with a minuscule movement of his arms he cut the second arm on the beast's left side. Now the insect was vulnerable on one side but he couldn´t slack off. He knew that the beast was just about to become serious.
Just as he had suspected. The follow-up attack was fiercer. It looked like a messenger of death with its blood-red shell. Alex barely managed to block its attacks.
Up until now, they had some distance between themselves but the beast closed in. Alex had to react. He committed and put everything on the line. He raced to the armless side. They got into a constant struggle for position.
The beast shamelessly took advantage of its higher weight and attempted to ram Alex. Alex could only jump to the side. He stood up and chopped in the same movement. He was surprised by himself at how graceful he did that. Yet the unreinforced blade of the glaive could not penetrate. It made a small scratch on the forelegs of the insect. The force of the clash was so great that the blade bounced off. It almost pushed the glaive out of Alex's hand, set the hold tight. His arms were trembling and numb.
Then, out of the blue, Alex saw a sudden opening in the insect's defenses. It was an inspiration, a feeling. He put everything he had into the next move. Without thinking his weapon started to glow. He concentrated all his strength into the attack against the upper body of the insect. His blade went through the hard shell, then through the soft interior, and finally through the whole body.
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Only a tiny scrap held the insect's body in place. Alex already cheered internally but the insect's blades struck again. At that moment he made a huge mistake. He jumped away and dropped his weapon. Then the insect ran in his direction and chased him. The insect wobbled on its feet and ran slower than before.
Alex was able to outrun the insect and grabbed his glaive. He then faced the insect again. He could feel his power draining as his mentality and the shock hampered his fighting spirit but he was still going.
The insect came but its strange movements lacked coordination and strength. Alex stabbed towards the almost severed spot but his normal attack had a bad angle and ricocheted off. However, he yanked the glaive back and put all his body weight into his movement. He saw the arms of the insect cutting towards him. Before the blades cut Alex in half, he sliced the insect in half. Its body slumped lifeless to the ground. All Alex had to do was tuck under its falling blades. He then fell to the ground. Exhausted.
“Congratulations you have defeated the champion, the sword ant.
As a reward, you will receive a fireball ring (low).”
Another bronze ring appeared on his fingers. The sides of the ring were narrow and thickened into a circle in the center.
That was it. That was the second floor. Alex was excited. More power poured into his body. Then he simply left the tutorial. He felt great about the win but a tired smile lay on his lips.
Alex dropped into his bed. He rested and scrolled through his cell phone. Today's news was littered with new thoughts about the imminent crisis that the tutorial was. Some wanted to open combat schools. Furthermore, it was tested whether weapons and armor can be brought into the tutorial. The thought behind that was that clothing remained on the body.
Alex hadn't thought of something like that, but the idea was good, for the first floor. The result, modern firearms couldn´t get in but worn armor. Some enthusiasts have already gone in with a medieval chain and plate armor.
As soon as Alex had the strength to, he went out and bought thick biker clothes. Even though it was getting late, he felt ready for the next floor. He needed a single thought and he was teleported away. An open meadow with a large pond in the middle greeted him. The water sparkled turquoise. Alex wondered if there was such a thing as a vacation in the tutorial because that just looked like on.
“You have proven yourself capable. On the third floor, you have the chance to prepare yourself for the rest of the floors. In the first step, you have to endure at least 30 minutes in the lake. Note, that this is not a test, but a reward.”
The wording was strange. What did it mean by enduring? The clear water did not seem dangerous or anything special but deep down Alex knew that something was up. The tutorial wasn't a nice place up until now and it wouldn´t change even though it looked like a vacation resort.
Alex was about to take up the new challenge but before that, he wanted to try out his new ring. The ring tapped directly into his power on its own. He hadn´t noticed it before but now he was more experienced. The rings were made in such a way that they were incredibly easy to activate.
Energy and heat gathered in the palm of his hand. It blasted forwards with a mere thought. A fireball the size of a human head shot forwards. It flew dozens of meters with constant speed until it exploded in the air. A small inferno incinerated the very air. Alex watched the blaze of dying flames spellbound.
Afterward he went to the water. It was truly clear and beautiful with occasional light orbs dancing inside. They were just there without any rhythm in their movements or certain goal. Alex could see them even at the bottom of the lake but the lake missed one thing live. There were no fish, no plants, just a sandy bottom.
Alex took off his shoes, tipping his big toe into the water. Nothing happened. It was just plain water. Then he undressed and went into the water.
He felled relieved but then the first small light orb touched him. It vanished in his foot. Alex winced. His whole body tensed up. It was painful and there was something he couldn't put into words.
Alex stopped moving, shocked and unsure. Now he was monitoring the lights. The nearest one seemed to be swim directly at him. It hit him. The contact was painful. Alex wished he could stop but noticed that the time wasn't ticking yet. His consciousness told him that he still had to be here for 30 minutes.
He had a bad premonition and fought against the pain while going in deeper. When he was covered up to his navel in water it confirmed itself. Time started ticking but an unfathomable number of lights tormented him. The pain made him go mad. He screamed in agony. Alex tried his hardest to stay inside. He wanted, he needed to succeed. He did not want to lose, never. He could win. After a moment of thought, he concentrated on his breathing. The power inside him seemed to get stimulated every time a light orb touched him. In the end, feeling his power made his mind calm down.
Ten minutes had passed and Alex had found out he could actively fight against the pain. All he had to was concentrate his power near the point of impact and it would lessen. Over time he noticed that the effectiveness of that technique increased.
It got tougher as more lights dove into him at the same time. He tried to protect against them all but his attempt failed. He had a hard time hanging in there.
At the twenty-minute mark, time stopped ticking and Alex cursed the tutorial. He had to go deeper into the water. He went quickly. When everything but his head was covered, the time started ticking again. But Alex couldn't stand the bombardment of light orbs. He had gone too fast. After letting out a painful scream, he went back into shallow water. He took a breather. This time he would go step by step and get a feel for it. He didn´t know how long he was in there but finally, he made it all the way. His sense of pain had gotten numb.
It felt like eternal torture. He shined like a Christmas tree with all the orbs around him. He could not believe it when he heard the voice of the tutorial.
“You have the opportunity to move on to the next step on the third floor. Note that you cannot return to the lake.”
It was nearly funny. Why would a sane person want to stay here? Well, apparently he was no longer sane, as he decided to stay. The control of his power made him exhilarated. He would now chop up the sword ant into the finest pieces.
He spent more time here, just as the tutorial wanted. In the end, he swam farther into the lake. The lights enveloped him, not leaving an inch of skin untouched.
He fought the pain while trying to stay above the surface of the water and concentrating on his strength. That was too much. The intense strain cramped his muscles. He sank towards the bottom of the lake, losing his mind. Finally, only one thought was in his mind. “Too the next step of the tutorial.”
A bright light enveloped him.