|Welcome to Euclex.|

It was unknown how long Midnight floated into the darkness, his brain painfully expanding and contracting inside his skull. In that state, he not only lost his sense of time, but even his sense of self was on the verge of collapse. The feeling resembled something or someone unceremoniously and one-sidedly stirring his brain in an attempt to grasp all of his secrets.

Plop

When the feeling of prying into his head disappeared, and he finally regained his bearings and senses, Midnight found himself slumped on the ground.

Hard rocks prodded his butt and a tumult of noises blanked his surroundings. A mixture of strange or familiar scents that wasn't particularly pleasant, closely followed by air with a refreshing quality atypical for a city, assaulted his nostrils. But above all, he felt the warmest sunlight shining on top of his head. It caressed and embraced him without a sign of rejection. It was kind, silent, and dreamy.

It is a day, but I am not sleepy. My thoughts are not interrupted and are organized in a logical way...This...I...

He felt something wet flow from his eyes, past his cheeks, and into his mouth. It was salty and hot.

Heh, so immature...

He hurriedly reached up to clear the blurriness in his eyes and noticed his hand. It was small. Much smaller than he remembered!

It's not just my hands. My legs are shorter and my body feels lighter. Indeed, I chose the race of a half-ling...Using his mutterings to escape the sudden bout of mixed feelings, Midnight lifted his head and swiped his gaze over the noisy vicinity.

|Welcome to Lesotte.

A small rural village in the Southern Regions of the Southern Empire.|

Conveniently the already familiar voice of the system gave him a prompt.

"Lessotte..." Midnight let the word slip out of his lips as if tasting it. "Lessotte." At the same time, he finally understood why the background was overflowing with sounds. He was right in the village's plaza. Countless people of different shapes, forms, and sizes - busy around.

Some were leisurely walking or chatting, some ran around in a hurry, while others stood stunned, unable to grasp their own situation.

By habit, Midnight's mind whirred and he analyzed what he was seeing, This seems to be the starting point of the game. Do we all start from this plaza? But the number doesn't feel right. I expect a couple of millions of players to join right off the bat with many more following after. Yes, players should be distributed at random throughout multiple villages. Maybe even multiple countries and continents too...

Intrigued by the different behavior shown by some people, Midnight touched his smooth chin. It lacked stubble and the skin was very soft and elastic. He soon made a guess. Is this the difference between experienced players and newbies?

Those in a hurry want to grasp the moment while the rest of us are still slow and grasp the chance of a headstart. Are they looking for Quests? Perhaps, they want to go out of Lesotte and hunt monsters...

With his close-to-zero understanding of games, just from the Monstrosity race and its simple description, Midnight made certain connections.

Euclex was definitely a world of magic and swords; A land overflowing with monsters. Therefore, it was logical to imagine that hunting those monsters would bring unknown benefits and possess certain allure. And it was likely that the NPC would provide various quests and give out rewards.

Yes, the players chatting in groups may have just met their acquaintances. I can't be certain just yet. Hmm, most of them lack the lost look of the newbies. Most of them are likely experienced too but their mindset differs from the others. They believe that when lacking intelligence, speed isn't the optimal tactic. First comes information gathering...I agree with this thought. Interacting with others, exploring the town, or using other ingenious methods...There are various ways to gather intelligence.

The third group is still comprehending the changes. They don't know where to start and how to tackle this world. Hehe, am I not in the same boat? Just sitting perched on the ground...

The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

Feeling enlightened, Midnight jumped up and brushed the dust away from his clothes. Then as if chased by a demon, he didn't look back and ran away from the plaza. His actions weren't a result of some sudden divine revelation, nor was he chased by an enemy. Instead, his inborn self-preservation was speaking.

Right now he looked like a child, and even the human players were towering from above. To stay in this headless crowd any longer was a sin of stupidity. He could be trampled to death!

If I may say this body is...quite inconvenient...

Ten minutes later, out of imminent danger and equally out of breath, he leaned on a wall.

In the short time he spent evading people and searching for a relatively secluded location, he noticed a glaring fact. His physical fitness was awful, perhaps even worse than the real him in the world outside.

I underestimated the Half-Lings...Midnight caressed his aching short legs and the bruise on his shoulder, a result of an unavoidable collision with a tall man with curved horns, and pulled a wooden crate to sit down. This crate was broken and likely discarded by a farmer living in one of the nearby houses.

Phew

He inhaled deeply, then slowly exhaled. After repeating the process, his heartbeat was slowly restored, and he could finally study himself.

My height is around 145cm. That fits the average height of a boy in his early teens, or maybe a bit younger. I already saw 'myself' in that white room, but since I was sitting I couldn't judge accurately...

The players I saw were all wearing simple linen clothes and I am not an exception. Is a shirt and long pants the standard outfit for everyone? The clothes and the small leather bag strapped to my waist should be the log-in reward from the system...

Midnight stretched his loose clothes to inspect the material and a translucent window emerged.

|Simple Linen Shirt

A cheap beige shirt made by an elderly seamstress. Don't expect quality, for the poor woman's hands shake.

Type: Cloth

Grade: Common

Note: Free Newbie Article, Untradeable

Protection + 0.2|

|Simple Linen Pair of Pants

They are a set with the shirt!

Type: Cloth

Grade: Common

Note: Free Newbie Article, Untraiteable

Protection +0.1|

Flabbergastered, Midnight exposed a wry smile, "Isn't that too much of a joke?"

"Cluck?"

In his exasperation he spoke his thoughts loud, scaring an innocent chicken busy pecking small stones from the ground.

Midnight suppressed the twitch of his lips and looked at the bag. Unsurprisingly a window appeared again.

|Tiny Inventory Bag

Trendy, but not very useful.

Type: Accessory

Grade: Common

Note: Free Newbie Article, Untradeable

Weight reduction x1.5

Available Space 4L

Occupied Space: 1.7L

Weight: 690g|

With his prior experience, he wasn't expecting a lot, thus the sense of disappointment was lesser.

He didn't harp on the details, opened the bag, and overturned it onto the ground. The information in the transparent window undoubtedly betrayed the existence of items inside.

Let's see how generous the AI could be. Heh, I won't be surprised no matter what pops up, Midnight laughed drily.

Cling Clang Clang

Unsurprisingly, a small pile was formed at his feet; A few coins rolled away and attracted the chicken's attention. It looked at them curiously and attempted to peck.

With a wave of his hand, Midnight shooed the chicken away and stooped down. He reached out, collected the items, and according to his prior experience scrutinized them in silence.

Ten coins of the same denomination. They are tiny, round, and a bit reddish in color. The so-called coppers? For the time being, I have no idea how much is their purchasing power. Later, I should visit a shop and inquire...

He pocketed the coins carefully in his pants without an expression.

There is a skin-billows of water. It contains 0.5l. Two apples. Not very ripe. And a dagger?

The blade of the short metal weapon looked chipped, dull, and rusty. The design of the handle was ugly and its bumps chafed at his hand.

|Rusty Old Dirk

It belonged to Grandpa Grog, but unfortunately, after his passing, his son gave it away.

Friendly reminder: Grandpa Grog was killed by a Mad Frog. He was very mistaken to think that this dirk could cut the frog's skin.

Type: Weapon (Probably)

Grade: Common

Note: Free Newbie Article, Untradeable

Strength +0.2

Agility -0.1

Dexterity -0.1|

Bang

Midnight couldn't tolerate the mockery any longer and threw the dagger away; His temporal artery was visibly palpitating under his skin.

This is beyond the scope of a joke! This is not even a piece of equipment that fits the magic-inclined half-lings. No, that's not even the problem. Even the system isn't sure if this item can be judged as a weapon, adding a pair of brackets behind! Oh no, I need to calm down! The anger will trigger my illness!

With a sudden strange urgency, Midnight threw himself onto the ground and forcefully suppressed his emotions. He shut his eyes closed, and curled up into a fetal position, ready for the weakness to follow.

1 second, 2 seconds, 3 seconds.

Nothing is happening? I got lucky this time?... Awashed by confusion, Midnight opened his eyes and looked at the chicken.

"Cluck?"

The chicken looked back.

"..."

"Cluck???"

For unknown reasons, he felt like this chicken was judging him, and the tips of his ears turned red.

"...You too think that I am an idiot, right? This is just a virtual world..."

Pursing his lips, he stood up and acted oblivious. As if his prior behavior was just an imagination, Midnight silently collected his 'gifts' back in the bag. He did his best to ignore the gaze of the chicken.

Cluck Cluck

When the last item was put away in the bag, Midnight sat on the crate and cupped his face in his hands. Thankfully there is just a chicken around. That was so fucking embarrassing! Sigh, it's too difficult to change the old habits...

For a while, he couldn't muster the strength to do anything.