"If you think you can deal with the dizziness from moving quickly then maybe a stabbing class would be great for you. But you should know, it's all about faster strikes and quick reflexes. Besides, if your enemy knows about your attacks, then you run." The martial arts trainer was explaining the basics of the different melee classes to Charlie.

"So, the sword is the one that needs the least effort to use?"

"Technically no, a mace would be the easiest but all weapons are hard. For an amateur, swords will do just fine. Besides, they are relatively cheaper since most people use them. You could use swords for a while and get used to the combat and then change if you think you can handle other weapons."

"Can I try mace?"

"Maces are mostly used by non magic users. It needs a lot of strength to get used to. You could hunt some small games with them and you probably won't ruin them in the process but it will get difficult once you get to a higher level."

"Can't I change the weapons."

"Yes."

"Alright, I'll buy a mace and a sword, beginner ones. I want to try them out."

"Alright. I'll go get them for you."

"Also a knife. I need it for skinning."

"You are not a Skinner. . ." The trainer looked at him. "You won't be able to wield a skinning knife if you aren't a Skinner."

"I can't touch it?"

"No it's hard to use those knives and if you don't know how to use them, you will cause more damage to your game. If you want to grab the assassin class then you can get the assassin's knife which can still be used for skinning."

"Ok, I'll take that one too then. Thank you."

Charlie walked out of the martial hall having spent all his money buying weapons. He picked a new class fighter, so he could equip all the weapons without its restrictions. Looking at the sword details, he was impressed by the detailing the company has done for the game.

Beginner Sword

A sword meant for training. The edges are sharp enough to cut smaller games but could chip fast if struck on metal.

Skill damage class bonus - 10%

With sword in hand, Charlie left the entrance of the city and walked out to level up. There weren't many players outside hunting, making him curious. The game had barely started and no one was out there hunting. Was everyone progressing too fast?

"Are you planning to kill mobs to level up?" A stout man asked him from the side, seeing him look around in confusion.

"Yes, where is everyone? Is it that easy to level up?" Charlie's confusion grew more.

"Did you not check the global chat? It's old news now." Confused, he looked through the chat window.

"You can't kill things to level up. Leveling doesn't work the same as in other rpg games here. Killing things will only increase the quality of the skills and maybe gain some raw materials." Seeing the confused look on Charlie, the man explained.

"How do I level up then?"

"The first level is easy. You need a base class or job that's level 5 and have 100 reputation points with any city. By the way, it's not necessary to level up. Leveling up only increases social standing. Right now we are all commoners of the human kingdom but we could become nobles and royals by increasing the levels."

"So no need to level then?"

"I wouldn't say that. Each level adds more bonuses to the rewards we get from quests. Like you could set up a shop in the city if you reach level 3."

"I don't have any coins on me now. I guess I'll catch some animals and sell them for coins then. Thank you for the help, sir."

"Don't catch too many rabbits. Also they only take 5 rabbits a day at the hotel from an adventurer and they need to be of prime quality. You could cook the low quality meat for yourself and eat as well. Anyway, good luck with the hunt. It's not as easy as it looks. Looks like my party is here. I won't keep you anymore."

After the enlightening chat with the stranger, Charlie went to the field to hunt some rabbits. But unlike what he expected, it wasn't that easy and soon he found out the rabbits were fast and did not enjoy being hunted or approached for that matter. Eventually, he had to use a mana Blast to catch it off guard but the body was too mangled for the game to recognise it as meat.

Since reputation was necessary for leveling up and the only way to get reputation was to complete quests issued by the respective guilds or town hall, he went directly to the town hall to check and see if there were any quests that he could do. Thankfully, the MMO World was filled with quests that ranged from stealing a candybar from a child to killing the demon overload. Being the morally upright person that Charlie was, he would never steal something from someone as long as it was illegal and so he skimmed through the selection and filtered down to the quests he could finish and found a reasonable quest that he could complete.

Quest: Monster hunting

A racoon caused damage at the warehouse of the food ration complex. Please capture or kill the racoon and stop the menace.

Objectives

Spot the racoon

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Disable the racoon

Accept the quest?

"Yes."

Quest added to log, please complete the quest in 3 hours.

Only after accepting the quest did Charlie think of something critical. If he couldn't kill a rabbit and had to blast a mana blast to kill one, how was he supposed to kill a group of racoons without damaging the warehouse? Sweating, he left to check out the warehouse hoping things would work out somehow.

Food ration warehouse complex,

The place was an utter mess. Surrounding the warehouse district was a massive sewer which attracted all sorts of rodents and racoons as well as snakes, flame birds and a few other nasties. As Charlie walked around the place, he soon found the warehouse for which the order was posted. It wasn't much of a warehouse but rather a godown for dumping all the trash with some semi usable furniture in the mix. Calling it a food ration complex was nothing short of a war crime. Either way, Charlie walked in looking for someone to confirm the issue with.

“Oh, finally someone actually came.” Out of nowhere a gentleman in a military outfit came introducing himself as a warehouse guard. Apparently, the area is in fact a food warehouse block but due to the rampant rodent infection, it is no good for storing food crates. To make it worse racoons started showing up when they tried placing traps for the rodents which became too difficult for the military personnel to deal with as the situation required expert attention.

Charlie soon understood that the food complex was only reinstated thanks to the increased appearance of people from the surrounding villages which stretched the already strained supply line to become non-existent.

“Are there any important items that need to be moved before I can start catching the raccoons? I'm a mage, so killing them directly could result in splash damage to the items nearby.”

“That won't be an issue. We have already moved anything relevant to a secure warehouse. Everything in the place is soon to be torched. We can't have rodent infested items in a food complex building.”

Having received the go ahead from the military personnel, Charlie started searching for the raccoons that have caused his employers trouble. Soon, he met one of them and identified the issue.

Poison Raccoon

Race: City Mammal

Born and raced in the sewers of the cities, these raccoons have a high resistance to poison and heat. Their claws are poisonous and they release a musk into the air that creates rot in the surrounding. Approach with caution.

Level: 0

Strength: 2

Defense: 0

Skills: Sharp Claw(Passive)

Even though the level of the raccoon was nothing, the atmosphere around it was toxic making it difficult for the typical guards to approach. To any melee players these raccoons would be a nightmare. Even for the ranged archers, the speed of the raccoons would make it difficult to approach. Charlie being a mage, should have an easier handle as his mana blast had a decent area effect with it.

You have discovered the raccoons.

The quest updated itself as soon as Charlie saw the raccoon. Without waiting around, Charlie decided to destroy the creature with a mana blast. The raccoon wasn't able to dodge the bomb that detonated right at its foot damaging it to a considerable degree. Charlie was easily able to plunge the creature's head in as it was no longer able to move or attack.

You have killed the raccoon. You have completed the quest and received the notification. Please receive the commendation from the warehouse guard and return to the quest hall for recognition.

“Thank you, sir. I didn't expect you could kill the bastard creature so quickly. Please wait a second as I sign the commendation.'' The guy took out a letter from his pouch and signed it in some illegible language before handing over the paper to Charlie.

You have received a commendation letter. Please produce the letter to the quest hall.

Returning to the quest hall wasn't hard. He already knew the spot and there weren't any trouble seekers on the way. The commendation letter was returned and he received his rewards immediately.

Rewards: Federation notes: 1, Adventure rank points: 10.

Talent activated: Federation notes: -1, Adventure rank points: 10.

Charlie, Male, Human.

Level: 0/60

Adventurer: Rank F (20/500)

Please continue to help the city and earn better rewards.

"Hello." As if on queue, a short teen girl approached him with a new request. "Did you kill the raccoon? It was quite hard and I couldn't even approach it." She gripped the handle of her sword. "I'm a mage. Not powerful but enough to blast a mana sphere in its face. I think I caught it off guard." Charlie, not wanting to brag and avoid her in the future, gave a quick answer and decided to return to the quest board.

"It's not easy to get good quests. Most of the quests give fewer rewards and from what I heard, it's better to go run a dungeon than completing quests. You do need money and quite a few if you want to progress faster."

Charlie stared at the girl. "What's the rush?"

"You don't look like an RPer. If you want, we can form a party. We are short of a few DPS. I'm Charlie by the way."

"Charlie? Good name. I wasn't planning to leave the place anytime soon. I want to see what the city can offer for me. Maybe I'll find some hidden quests. Who knows?"

"Alright then, add me to friends and let me know if you decide to venture out." Charlie quickly sent a friend request which made the girl stare.

"Your name's Charlie too?"

"Quite a good name, wouldn't you say."

Saying their bye, the girl returned to the hall looking for another partner as Charlie went through the quest board.

There were multiple fetch quests but the vast majority of them paid pennies making Charlie skim through them. The initial quests have a much higher payout but as more and more players join questing, the pool starts to get diluted with the low level quests becoming worthless. This considerably lowered Charlie's options to adventuring or warfront support roles.

Before he could make a decision, he received a call from outside informing him that his sister is already out. Without hesitating, Charlie logged out only to see an eager girl curiously eyeing his pod.

"Did you have fun? The young girl asked Charlie, revolving around him.

"It would be more fun if you joined me." He picked the girl and walked out to grab some water. "Did you eat?" Since both his parents were busy, it was often Charlie who fed her breakfast and dressed her to school.

"Yes, mom made breakfast before she left."

"She left without letting me know?" Charlie had a little panic but soon relaxed seeing his father walk out of his office.

"Don't worry she wasn't alone. Besides, she's eight next week, she should learn to handle herself."

"Don't you have work today?"

"I do. I was waiting for you to get out. It looked like you slept through the night."

"Yeah, I was too engrossed to notice the time. I'll set an alarm next time."

"Bro, help me with my hair. My bus comes in an hour."

"Let's get you ready."

"I'm heading out. Mom cooked some food for you in the fridge. Just make sure you eat on time."

***

//5000 words