Charlie entered the game world as soon as he could. The countdown was still going for the launch of the servers. Since Charlie has no other gaming avatars, he was forced into the avatar creation menu by the pods interface. It was possible to change the features of the avatar considerably apart from the gender and height of the person.

Charlie could see his mirror image staring right back at him. Sadly, the mirror image has a standard haircut rather than his uncombed style.

It is advised to change some of the features to make your appearance slightly unique.

As Charlie was about to click continue a prompt came up.

'Change something?' His fingers moved to the closest thing and slid the bar a little.

There wasn't much change apart from his hair changing from the short style to the long style and its colour gaining a slight shade of grey.

The server is up. Would you like to enter?

"Yes"

Charlie felt like he was walking up from a dream. He felt drowsiness as slowly his eyes focused on the young maid sitting by his side on the bed.

"Welcome back young man. We thought we would lose you."

Charlie kept staring at the maid with her perfect features. 'Are they using live actors?'

Seeing the confused look on his face, the maid gently touched his hands. "Are you ok? Would you like me to call a priest?"

'A priest?' Charlie was more confused.

"It looks like you are disoriented. Alright, let's see." The maid took out a clipboard and a charcoal pencil from thin air. "Before I can get you up to speed, I need some basic information. Let's start with a name so I can file your ID card."

"Charlie" She quickly noted it down on the paper and checked head, rattling his hair.

"Looks like a human to me. Male. Alright what exactly is it that you do for a living Mr Charlie?"

"I brew co.."

"Alrighty, an alchemist. That's soooo cool. We need more alchemists. It looks like you are all set to go. Please visit the town centre. Everyone who suffered from the bandit attracts recently are being rewarded with a care pack by the city Lord. Off you go." The maid quickly made him get up from the bed and out the room to the spacious main hall of the healing centre. The place was crowded and everyone was in a rush.

"Here is your card, make sure to visit the town centre soon. You wanna grab the gift before they run out. Now if there is nothing else please leave the healing hall. We have more injured coming over."

"Thanks for the help." Charlie quickly put his card in his pocket and heard out to check out the street. There was a majestic building across the street with words, town centre etched outside its entrance. A few small shops were peddling their goods. It looked like the streets were busy but sadly Charlie has no idea how money worked in this world. He walked across the street and entered the town hall.

Entering town hall. Weapons disabled.

"Welcome to the town hall, young warrior. Is not every day we see a survivor of the bandit attract. Sorry you had to endure that. Please accept this small gift from the Three Miles City Lord." A small box was handed over to Charlie and then the spokesperson left looking for the next newbie.

Received newbie gift pack. Tap the card to read the details.

Charlie found the id card was glowing and immediately tapped on it. A small interface opened up in front of his eyes with menus.

He quickly tapped 'inventory' and checked out the items. There wasn't much. Just another card and a few banknotes which looked similar to Federation notes counting to a total of 10 notes.

Federation notes

(Can be used IRL after linking a user account with a bank card.)

Random Talent token

(Can be used to gain a random Talent perk. Single use per person.)

"Would you like to enter a random draw?"

"Yes."

"3..2..1.. Ding Ding…"

"You have drawn Talent Perk: Double or Nothing"

Please check profile for details.

'I need a weapon, some armor and a place to level up my character.' Charlie recalled the advice that he received from the forums a out how to play a online game.

'Swords are easy to use. Daggers need extensive skill and quick reflexes, bows need good aiming. Mace is a friendly newbie weapon as well. I might have to ask someone.' He walked towards the weapon stall next door to pick something that could be of use to him.

"Hi, good morning, Sir." Charlie called out to the shopkeeper who was busy working on packing some goods for delivery.

"Yes, good morning adventurer. What weapon caught your fancy?" The rough sound of the shopkeeper conveyed his unwelcomeness.

"Sorry to bother you. I'm new at this place and was wondering what kind of weapon I should have to protect myself. To be honest, I have never used one before and considering the attacks I was hoping to get some training."

"To train, you would have to visit the martial arts hall or the mage association. I would recommend visiting the mage association first to check your affinity. The hall should have a few beginner weapons suitable for training. Most of the weapons here aren't suitable for training and could bring more harm if you aren't trained properly to use them."

"The mage's association? Where can I find that place." Charlie was intrigued. Most experts in the forum claimed it would be almost impossible to start magic early in the game but that didn't seem to be the case.

"To the south wall next to the auction house. Ask any guards on the way." The shopkeeper pointed him in the direction and Charlie walked to the building at the furthest from the city hall.

Outside it hung a board that shows the symbol of a witch's hat. The front was smaller in size compared to the surrounding buildings. The entrance magically moved as soon as Charlie was close enough.

Entering Mage Association. Weapons disabled.

"Welcome to the mage's association. Are you here to issue a request, receive guidance or buy artefacts?" A young girl politely welcomed Charlie with a curtsy.

"I wanted to check my affinity. I have never trained to fight before. I thought it would be a better idea to train a little, even if I'm a little late." Charlie politely explained.

"Not everyone can be a mage. It involves countless hours of training and reading. To be a successful mage one must be patient. Beyond all that, he should have the recognition of the elements. Becoming a mage is rare. One in a few hundred thousand. And it's expensive. Six notes per test. Are you sure you want to spend the money? It would be easier to simply join the martial hall and train."

Six notes was a lot but considering the novelty of being a magic user, Charlie chose to go ahead with it. "Yes please. I would like to test my affinity."

The girl took Charlie to a middle aged woman sitting on a chair by the side. She had a crystal ball on the circular table.

"Madam Seattle. This young man would like to test his affinity."

"Did the young man pay?"

Charlie took out his card and looked at the girl who took the card and sword it on the one she carried. "Yes, Madam Seattle."

"Please ask the young man to place his hand on the orb."

Charlie walked ahead to the table and extended his hand over the magic orb. The moment his fingers touched the orb, it glowed white.

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

"Impressive, such quick reaction from the elements. Good. Your affinity is definitely high, qualified to become a mage." Madam Seattle have her assessment, making the young girl twitch.

"Congratulations, Mr Charlie. I'm Lily. Would you like to register with the mage's association? Dinner you don't know any casting, it would be better to stay for a few days and learn the basics. Once you become a class 1 mage, you can choose how you want to proceed. With your talent, it shouldn't take long." The girl was more respectful to Charlie than when he walked in.

"Thank you." Becoming a mage was something that countless people in this world dreams about. Becoming a mage as soon as entering the game world meant one thing. Players had a higher chance of success in everything. Charlie didn't know how to proceed.

Lily walked Charlie to the entrance.

"The association welcome all mages as long as they haven't committed any crimes. The association will provide for your expenses is you are willing to join as. Here."

Lily took out a card from her pockets and handed it over to Charlie. "There is a basic fire spell model in it along with instructions on how to cast one. Once you succeed come back. We can provide you with the class token." With that Lily returned back to her seat at the entrance.

Received Mage apprentice class(temp). Tap the card to read the details.

Spell model: Elemental Flame

(A basic fire spell model requiring low affinity.)

Model Construction Manual

(Beginner Mage Instruction Manual)

Add Mage Apprentice to your class? (Max level: 1)

"Yes."

The card slowly dissolved placing the two items into the inventory. The profile on the identity card changed to reflect the new class.

Name: Charlie(M)

Race: Human

Level: 0/60

Talent Rank: A

Adventurer Rank: F

Job: 1/1

Alchemist (Level 0/5)

Class: 1/20

Mage Apprentice (Level 0/1)

Status Points

Available: 0

Strength: 0 (+1)

Defence: 0

Mana: 0 (+1)

"Hey kid. What are you doing blocking the door to the association?" A guardsman approached Charlie as he continued to check the identification card issues from the hall.

"Sorry, I spaced out checking the id card. I will move right away."

"It's alright. You look happy. Did something good happen? Did you get your mage class?" The guard looked enthusiastic approaching him.

"No sir. I just came to check out my affinity." Looking at the expectant look on the guards face, Charlie continued. "I just became a mage apprentice."

"Direct apprentice with no quest? Impressive. You must have a good affinity with mana. I wish you all the success to develop faster and become a mage. We are in urgent need of mages to strengthen our troops. With the demon army going rampant across the northern border, we are losing to many souls. High mages' from the capital are all busy at the forefront."

"I'll try my best sir. I still need to complete the spell structure that I received. So far there doesn't seem to be any changes." Charlie looked at the card a little disappointed. With the new class, Charlie expected to receive a few spells so that he could go level his avatar but that doesn't seem to be the case in the game.

"I could show you how to construct a spell model. Well the one I created for my lifestyle magic. It's not perfect but you should be able to get the idea." The guard was happy to show off his talent in front of the newbie.

"That would help me a lot to understand what I must do. Thank you very much." A lifestyle spell wasn't much but it could help him understand how to create a spell model. Getting a free demonstration was better than starting from nothing.

"Alright. This spell is the basic cleanse spell. A minor version since I only have 6 mana." The guard scratched his head in embarrassment. "Of course, it would still be a lot more than what you currently have but compared to an actual mage, that's just a tiny drop." He continued to draw something in thin air and slowly mana became visible with light blue colour lines appearing along his finger tip.

"My cleanse is a water based spell. I made it specifically to clean my sword after battle. So it can't be used for anything else. Since it only works on my sword, it also only requires 5 mana. Now this 5 mana I use to draw this spell structure to give it characteristics like how it should act and which direction it should flow. I need the water to form and concentrate to get it into a big drop, then it needs to rotate constantly like a whirlpool. It shouldn't break the form when I put a sword in and eject all that blood and dirt out once I take it out through it."

The guard took his sword and pressed it through the face of the mana circle formed. Taking it out in another second, the blade was clean and there was no water on the surface.

"The 5 mana is necessary for me to give the property to the mana and the last mana helps me to activate the spell. So you can make a magic circle with just one mana. But you will never be able to use it, if you don't have another mana to activate it." The guard fixed his sword to his belt with a happy smile.

"Once you can create a mana structure, the one required to form a spell circle, you could return and get your mage class. Then you won't have to worry about the mana restrictions you have now. Alright then, I need to get back to my post. Remember my name, kid. It's George."

"Thank you." Charlie already understood how it worked. He could feel the mana within him as soon as he tried to replicate the feeling he had when the association tested his affinity. Once George left, Charlie looked for a quiet corner and tried to replicate the spell model.

Spell model: Elemental Flame failed.

Every time he tried to trigger it, it kept failing. Trying to form a spree of fire kept failing so eventually he had to give up. With just one mana, he understood he wouldn't be able to create a mana sphere and then convert it to fire affinity. After multiple fact checking, Charlie decided to just try and create a mana sphere. Without the fire affinity.

The first two attempts failed but eventually the sphere became tangible.

Spell model: Mana Sphere Learned.

Class Mage Apprentice level: +1

You have reached the maximum level for this class. You have learned to create a spell model and qualified to become a mage. Please visit the mage association to upgrade class.

"Finally. I wonder if I can still qualify to become a mage." The spell model Lily gave him to learn was that of fire type. Sadly, sure to a lack of mana, he was only able to create a mana sphere. 'I'll figure out a way to increase my mana pool later. Let's head back in.' Charlie walked back in to the mage association to find the place slowly becoming crowded. Seeing Charlie enter, Lily immediately approached him ignoring the crowd.

"What happened? Do you need some help?" She was worried as to why this potential high mage has returned so fast. Did some one cause trouble for him? Even as an apprentice mage, he should be well respected in the city.

"I was able to create a spell model but sadly I don't have enough mana to change the nature of the mana sphere." He explained what had happened to Lily, with a worried expression.

"So your mana count is too low? I didn't expect that to be an issue. You shouldn't have been able to create a mana sphere on the first day. It's supposed to take some time to figure it out. Playing abound with the mana should have also helped you increase your mana reserve."

"Do I have to return and try learning the spell model?" Charlie was a lot more relaxed, understanding he simply skipped some steps and there wasn't much of an issue.

"No need. It wouldn't be possible even if you try. Your class has grown to it's maximum potential. You lost out on the ability to stretch your mana pool so I'm afraid you will hit bottlenecks soon. Wait a second, let me get a mage token for you." Lily returned to her post and pulled out a document that she had filled out for Charlie and pressed a confirmed seal on it before returning it to the pile of documents after which she went inside for a few seconds and came out with a genuine class token for mages.

"You can change to any mage class with the token but I would pick the one that the token recommends. Forcefully going against the recommendation would only create more bottlenecks for you. Especially since your mana reserve is low. George had indirectly hindered your progress rather than helping you." There was disappointment in her eyes as she handed him the class token.

"Well, I'll try my best. Thank you for everything." Charlie unlike Lily wasn't as bothered with what had occurred. He was just testing out the mage class. There was no reason for him to be bothered if he couldn't become a mage. He was confident he could find another class that should be comfortable to use. To Lily, it was her life. But to Charlie, all this was just a game. Merely entertainment.

Received Mage Class token. Tap to view details.

Class: Apprentice Mage removed.

Available Mage Classes:

Arcane Mage Max Level 5 (65%)

Fire Mage Max Level 10 (15%)

Water Mage Max Level 10 (12%)

(Tap for more)

Arcane Mage Class

(Mages of the arcane use pure mana for their spells. The basic tier of mages and the father of all mages. Volatile but deadly to all other elements if mastered)

Stats boost: Mana +20

Contains: Spell model: Mana Blast

(A basic spell model requiring low affinity.)

Add Arcane Mage to your class? (Max level: 5)

"Yes"

Name: Charlie(M)

Race: Human

Level 0/60

Talent Rank: A

Adventurer Rank: F

Status Points

Available: 0

Strength: 0 (+1)

Defense: 0

Mana: 20 (+1)

Job: 1/1

Alchemist (Level 0/5)

Class: 1/20

Arcane Mage (Level 0/5)

Skills (0/10)

Spells (1/10)

Mana Blast (0/10)

Mana Blast

Type: Arcane

(Blast your enemy by exploding a sphere of pure mana next to them. Can cause self harm if direction is not controlled. Ignore armor and elemental resistance. Strength and range depends on mana channeled for activation.)

Mana sphere(1/10)

Mana direction control(0/10)

Minimum mana required for activation: 1

Maximum Damage: 50

Maximum Range: 15m

The only spell he had was decent enough for a low grade one. From Charlie's understanding of games, he knew that monsters would be strong and had to kill at the start. So, before testing out how strong an arcane Mage was, Charlie decided to pick up another class as well, this time to help him with close combat. After all mages were considered weak against physical attacks. So, he went straight towards the martial hall to pick up some melee attacks before joining the rest of the world, hunting monsters.