The floor under Yi's character moved down into a vast sealed room. A figure then flashes in front of him.

'What is this? This guy looked exactly like me!' Yi thought

The clone said, "Hey. If you're wondering why I look like you, that's because I'm a mimic. Your next tutorial."

'Damn it! How am I supposed to fight in this condition?'

"Shall we begin?" his mimic said.

'Guess I'll have to rely on the jets.' Yi took a stance.

"Perfect answer!" The mimic burst forward and punched.

Boom!

It was blocked but Yi staggered and fell with a shocked expression. 'Is that really me?'

The mimic burst in again with a kick, Yi boosted backward and the mimic said, "I'm impressed. It seems you already got a hang of your weapon."

He then jumped toward Yi. "But let's see how well you can fight!"

Yi rolled but his opponent used a Fire Jet to spin and landed an elbow on his chest and coughed out blood.

A knee was struck on the mimic's spine and followed by a kick to the side which sent him rolling.

Yi rubbed his chest and thought, 'What is wrong with this game! My chest didn't feel pain but I can feel it was struck by some kind of force. But never mind that.'

The mimic tried to get up but its back snapped and it groaned.

'He's open! Let's try this!'

"Fire Jet, Maximum!!!" Yi lunges in with blue infernos.

Mimic smiles, fist thrusting into its face with a strong force blasting it into a wall.

System's voice echoed in the room. "Combat Tutorial, Completed. The System Tutorial will begin at 60. 59. 58."

The mimic pushed himself out in its true form, unharmed. He was a muscular shirtless man with long red hair and eyes. "Congrats, kid, you beat me."

"No, I noticed you didn't try to defend my last blow. Why?"

Mimic shrugged. "My task is to force players to master the basics of combat while beating them up. Surprisingly, you use Jet Fire very well. Most people will fly around like a ragdoll, you should see it. Ahahaha!"

Yi made a weak laugh.

"Well, time is almost up. Good luck on your journey. You're the first person who uses Fire Jet to its maximum here, I see great potential in you."

"Thank you."

"Heh, go punch some faces, kid," Mimic said with his fist raised forward.

Yi nodded and waited for the timer.

"3. 2. 1. Teleporting to System Room.

He flashed and stood in the middle of a small room with a gate in front.

System went in his visor and said, "This is your final tutorial. I will be your guide."

"What should I do?" Yi said.

"First, call my name and say Status."

"Okay. System, status."

Texts then appeared in his vision from left and right.

Vit: F

Def: F

Str: F

AgiI: F

Foc: B

End:F

Weapon Mastery: C

"Hmm? System, what is Foc?"

"The abbreviation of Focus, an important stat that affects the use of abilities, skills, powers, and control."

"I see. What's next?"

"Take these items."

A briefcase was raised from the floor, storing three wrist-sized glass containers, inside there are liquids of different colors each.

"Please store them inside this dimensional bag. For convenience, push the button on your right arm, to open the bag when putting it on."

A pole was raised, hanging a box-shaped titanium backpack.

Yi put it on and pressed the button on his forearm and the bag's lid opened on top then he tossed the containers inside.

"You may now cross the gate."

Walking out, a cannon raised from below and shot a missile into his chest. "Ack!"

He was blasted back into his room as bits of flesh near his chest were exposed and his vision turned crimson.

"You're injured, take a recovery container (RC) by long pressing the inventory button."

"Ough…! You didn't tell me about that cannon on purpose, did you…"

"I'm not allowed to answer that question."

"Yeah… Of course…" Yi pressed it until a screen was visible on his forearm.

The screen showed a digital form of containers he stored, tapping one, his right hand moved by itself and a red container flashed into his grip.

"Now, insert it on your left arm," System said.

He looked at his arm and a slot was slid open. Yi slammed the container inside and his vision went clear again as his flesh patched itself.

'Well, that feels like a movie. I can see why Arnold was excited about this game. But I'm not here to play!"

"What's ne-"

The gate shuts again. Gas is released from all sides.

Yi's chest is burning and his throat is tightening, vision went blurry.

This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

"It's poison! Sys- tem… What should I.. ahak!... do..?"

She didn't respond.

"Damn it!" His eyes focused on the screen in his arm. He tapped it then a green container went into his hand and he slammed it in him.

The gate opened and gas was sucked back in as the poison effect wore off.

"I swear, this is not a tutorial!"

"Congratulations on completing your second task without my assistants. Please use your last container and proceed to your final task."

Yi pushed in a yellow container and his body was lighter.

"Why… I feel… different?"

"Please check your status. Remember, the system command is not limited."

"Hmm. System, status."

Vit: F+

End: F+

Foc: B+

Str: F+

Def: F+

Agi: F+

Weapon Mastery: C+

Minor Boost (All)

Duration: (10min)

"My stats increased? System, what is Minor Boost?"

"Minor Boost, 10% increase in status, there are multiple categories for this buff in terms of, appliance, effectiveness, and duration."

'I have a bad feeling about this last task…' Yi thought.

"Ah System, what is DPS?"

"An abbreviation for Damage Per Second which translates to continuous damage or dealing the most damage in a short time."

"I see… Arnold never taught me about this. He was probably saving it until I started playing a game."

"Alright! No time to waste!" Yi lay with his front body on the floor and burst ahead.

…..

Yi stopped inside a vast room, getting up.

His armor dispersed and the right top corner of his vision sent a warning text. When he moved his eyes there, new ones appeared in front of him.

[Weapon Overheat!]

CD: (5min)

[Body Armor Damaged!]

[Note: Death will not reset CD and broken gears but will reset buffs and debuffs]

His entrance was sealed off. A huge robot was teleported into the middle of the room. It had large fists. Humanoid body layered with reinforced sheets of armor, red sharp eyes locking on Yi.

'This is bad!'

The robot warrior charged in, throwing a punch but Yi ran under it.

'If I knew the last task was another fight, I wouldn't have used the jet like this!'

"System, will I get my container back if I die?"

"No."

'Damn it! I don't think I can win without this boost even with Fire Jet. But I can't stall for five minutes either!'

"Ack!" Yi was kicked on the back and smashed into a wall.

[You Died]

[Retry?]

"No!!!" He slammed his fists to the ground.

"There goes my chance of winning."

"What would you do in this situation…"

,,,,,

Yi just finished his lunch while Arnold shouted at his phone on their table. "Alright! It's time to fight the boss!"

Yi spat a mouthful of water. "Are you crazy! You'll get fired!"

"Hah? No. I meant bosses in games. They are the strongest opponents, separate from the ones you usually meet."

"Oh… I see." Yi slowly nodded.

"Wanna see me fight it?" Arnold grinned.

"Sure." Yi drank large gulps of water and headed behind Arnold, peeking through the shoulder.

"Let's go!" Arnold's character dash through a room, locked inside.

Metallic sludges formed as a creature, larger than three trucks combined.

Arnold said in a disappointed tone, "A metallic sludge monster… Is this a joke?"

"Why? Is it weak?"

"Not really… But I was expecting a badass looking boss… Oh well, at least I get lots of money!"

Arnold's character, RedTarget, shot a couple of bullets at the sludge with his pistol. Bullets penetrate its body but it patched back up again.

"It didn't work! How can you beat something like that?" Yi said.

Arnold smirked. "Every enemy has a weakness, bro. Watch and learn."

RedTarget said, "Greater Speed Boost."

His body was charged with lightning, and he and collided his pistols together, fusing into a cannon.

His weapon is charging. The sludge monster extended multiple thick sharp threads toward him.

He dodged away. The threads couldn't catch up with his speed.

It soon made a huge leap and splashed on the floor, creating a large tsunami.

"You can't dodge that!" Yi said.

"Ya sure?" A round metal ball appeared in RedTarget's hand and he tossed it below him, a powerful force then pushed him up high.

Yi placed a hand on Arnold's shoulder with his face closer to the screen. "How the hell did you do that?"

Arnold raised the corner of his lips. "Gravity bomb, my best escape item."

Threads then shot out of the remaining waves.

"Heh, tricky one, are you?" A blaster was taken out. He pulled the trigger, releasing a strong wind, blowing him away, and rolling to the ground with his cannon still in hand.

Threads came from all sides, but he dodged them all. The sludge reattached itself with RedTarget in front, raising his cannon.

"Sayonara, sucka." Trigger was pulled, blasting a large beam, disintegrating the monster to ashes.

….

[Boss Defeated!]

[Rewards:]

[10,000C]

[Jar of Metallic Liquid]

Arnold raised his fist and said, "Victory! What do ya think?"

Yi was staring with his mouth agape. "Unreal… So many possibilities."

"Welcome to the world of gaming, friend." Arnold grinned.

"I won't be playing anytime soon, though."

"Well, I'll be waiting for you if you ever wanna play."

"You don't have to."

Arnold wrapped his arms around Yi's neck and said, "What chu talkin' about, bro? I'll always wait for you."

"Ha… fine. I'll play when I have the opportunity."

"Dat's what I'm talking about, you better invite me when you start."

"Will do."

They then bumped their fist.

,,,,,

Yi is sitting on the dark room's floor, cross-legged with fingers on his chin.

"I can still find a way to win." He hit yes and was teleported from the entrance.

The robot charges at him. His eyes were scanning its body and his face lit up. "The orb on its chest!"

A fist was smashed into his head, sending him back into the death room.

Yi sat down with his arms crossed. "I thought that was a decoration at first, but that must be its weakness. That thing took eight seconds to reach me. I'm still tired. I'll use this chance to take a rest."

"Alright, come and crush me, big guy!" He hit yes again, he just sat there as the robot kicked him into pixels.

[You Died]

[Retry?]

"Yes."

Yi was crushed, slammed, stepped on, and tossed away until his thirty-fourth death, and his head felt lighter.

"Yes. And.. System! Weapon Status!"

(Close Combat Set)

(Overheat)

CD: (6s)

"Thank you, System." He stood up and leaned his fists back.

The robot raised its hands and swung them like a hammer.

"Fire Jet, Maximum!!!" He burst toward its chest and swung an uppercut at the crystal orb.

It cracked and shattered. The robot's eyes turned dark and fell back with Yi kneeling on top of it. "I did it…"

…..

"Congratulations! You have completed your tutorial. We will repair your armor and teleport you to your starting area."

"Hmph, this is obviously not a tutorial. Glad I'm finally leaving this place."

"Good luck on your journey, BXSkeleton."

He was teleported to the middle of a street, surrounded by shops and other buildings. Dozens of people with flourishing armor and weapons he has never seen yet roam around.

"Yi?" said a voice behind him.

Tears welled up in his eyes as he turned around wearing a huge smile. "...Arnold!"