Victor left the wood cabin and made his way toward the northern wall. As he got closer, the more crowded the area became. Every player who spotted him would cease their tasks and offer respectful greetings, which was enough to make him smile in satisfaction.
As he approached the wall, the magnitude of their progress became even more apparent. The once flat forest ground had transformed into a rising, strong, and imposing earthen wall — a testament to the players’ hard work.
Thunder, who had been overseeing the project, quickly approached Victor as soon as he noticed him. “Esteemed Headmaster, how may I assist you?”
Victor asked, “What is the status of the wall’s construction?”
Thunder’s gaze drifted down as he replied, “I’m embarrassed that despite giving it our all and with over forty plus playe— I mean, people, it’s impossible to complete the entire earthen wall. Our best option is to extend it as far as we can and reinforce it further.”
To expedite the construction of the wall, the agricultural group temporarily disbanded and joined the construction group. After completing the mission “Farming Simulator 2.0,” as Victor expected, a continuation to it was unlocked. However, he had no intention of shuttling seeds back and forth any longer, so he put it aside for the time being.
“I know. Tell me more about what you mean by making further fortifications.”
“Gladly.” Thunder eagerly explained, “The lumberjack group is currently collaborating with us to craft wooden stakes from the logs they’ve felled. Additionally, we’re planning to create pitfalls and other wooden traps to impede the arachnid invasion should they come our way.”
“Good. Keep up the excellent work. I have high expectations for the final result.”
“Yes, thank you, Headmaster!”
“One more thing,” Victor continued, suppressing a wince as he uttered the trollish username, “I heard that Aphrodite96… has created a flammable substance. I’d like you to think about its applications against our enemy — the arachnid horde.”
Thunder fell into deep thought, mulling over the possibilities. “Its applications against our enemy…” he muttered.
“Mhm. I will leave it for you to figure out.” Victor gave him a nod. “Of course, I also suggest discussing it with the other acolytes and asking them if they have any good suggestions. Maybe there will be unexpected gains.”
Thunder nodded in understanding and determination. “I will, esteemed Headmaster. I will definitely come up with something.”
“All right, I won’t intrude on your work any further.”
Players were a genius bunch; they were also a bunch of workaholics who did labor for the sake of entertainment. There was no better option than leaving this problem to them.
When Victor left the scene, a holographic screen emerged from his Shadowlink Mark as Lizbeth contacted him.
“What is it now, Liz?”
“Master! Lumen! Lumen is…!” Lizbeth began, her face very close to the screen.
“Say it properly, will you?” Victor retorted impatiently.
“Lumen is glowing and getting larger by the second—!” Lizbeth was cut off as a blinding light appeared behind her and the call was interrupted.
“Lumen is what now?”
Victor thought that he had misheard for a second there, but Lizbeth’s panicky voice dispelled any notion of a joke. Without wasting another moment, he turned on his heel and sprinted back toward the main building, leaving the onlooking players bewildered in his wake. At full speed, Victor covered the distance of five hundred meters in just half a minute.
Bounding up the stairs and flinging open the door to his office, Victor was met with an astonishing sight. Before him, filling the entrance to the door, was the enormous face of a silver wolf; its eyes locked onto him with an intense focus. Stunned, Victor quickly slammed the door shut again as his mind raced to make sense of what he had just witnessed.
“What in the world did I just see?” Victor pressed a hand to his forehead, his back resting on the door as he contemplated deeply.
Lumen was, without a doubt, a wolf youngling. Even accounting for her exceptional nature as a magical beast, the idea of her growing from a small creature to something larger than a car in a single day was impossible. The only logical explanation was an innate ability, possibly likely to be “{Gigantification}.” As the name suggested, it was a power that allowed the user to enlarge their body — a trait not uncommon among extraordinary lifeforms.
You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.
Taking a deep breath to steady himself, Victor cautiously reopened the door, revealing the massive presence of the wolf that now occupied half the space of the room. There was a distinct moon mark on its forehead, which confirmed Victor’s suspicion.
“Lumen?” He inquired cautiously.
The gigantic wolf responded with an affirmative “Woof!” Her deep, intelligent eyes gazed at Victor as if they had all the knowledge in the world.
“So it’s really you… You little rascal.” Victor chuckled, reaching out to stroke Lumen’s massive forehead. She responded with unabashed happiness as her bushy tail wagged energetically. To his surprise, Lumen was giving off mana fluctuation comparable to that of a second-stage Initiate Attunement magical beast. Although magical beasts didn’t practice meditation techniques, they were able to manipulate and infuse mana naturally.
Now his immediate concern was Lizbeth's whereabouts. He squeezed inside and peered around the room, searching for any sign of the mischievous fairy, but she was nowhere to be seen. “Where’s Lizbeth?”
As soon as he asked that, a muffled voice seemed to emanate from within Lumen’s body. Did Lumen eat… Wait, no… it didn’t sound like it came from deep within her belly; it’s more like it’s coming from her back, so Lizbeth must be…
“Er, can you return to your original size?” Victor requested Lumen.
Lumen, with her intelligent eyes, nodded her head. A radiant glow enveloped her, and Victor watched in amazement as her massive form gradually shrank until she was the size of a medium-sized dog. It was only then that Lizbeth's familiar voice emerged.
"Phew! I thought I was a goner!"
Victor couldn’t help but roll his eyes. This useless fairy… She still has the time to joke around.
“Explain what happened here, Liz.”
Lizbeth fidgeted a bit before responding, “Well… I was just feeding Lumen like usual, but then she suddenly began glowing, and that’s when I contacted you…”
Victor raised an eyebrow. “That’s all?”
Lizbeth nodded vigorously like an earnest child. “That’s all, yup-yup!”
While Lizbeth had a history of lying to avoid punishment, Victor didn’t detect any signs of deception this time. Still, Lumen’s newfound innate ability had given Victor a brilliant idea, and he was eager to test it out.
***
On the southern edge of the academy grounds, the wind whispered through the trees as Victor strolled along, Lumen trotting by his side. He felt like a dog owner taking his loyal pet to the park, only that his was a magical wolf.
After a short walk, Victor stopped and turned to Lumen. “All right, Lumen. Can you show me your power?”
Lumen didn’t respond with words; instead, the moon-shaped mark on her forehead began to glow purple, and in an instant, she vanished and reappeared twenty meters away. The power was similar to the {Blink Step} spell that Victor possessed.
“Wow, that’s an impressive ability. What a good girl!”
“Woof!” Lumen barked in delight.
“Now then, for the main course of this test. Can you return to your previous large size?”
Lumen nodded, and the same radiant glow once again enveloped her, gradually enlarging her until she stood three meters tall. Her colossal size made it seem like she could easily accommodate several people on her back without affecting her balance and speed.
“Ooh! Is it, well… would you mind if I ride on your back?” Victor confessed his idea.
She answered by lowering herself onto her front paws. From her action alone, it was apparent that she was giving her consent.
“Don’t mind if I do.” Victor leaped onto her back, his hands and feet tickled by the soft fur as he settled into a comfortable position to maintain his balance. “Let’s go, Lumen! Take me deep into the forest and beyond!”
Lumen responded with a powerful howl and wind rushed against Victor’s face as she picked up speed. He even had to hunker down close to her fur and grip it tightly to avoid falling. Riding a giant wolf was an exhilarating experience unlike anything he could have ever imagined.
This was the magical mount he was talking about! The one and only!
She jumped boulders and passed trees, her agile movements turning the most treacherous terrain into flat ground. Without stopping, she carried Victor further into the uncharted depths of the forest, unafraid of anything that might come her way.
***
Rumors had been swirling around among the players about the strange phenomenon of their unconscious bodies getting up and engaging in activities. Some dismissed it as pure nonsense; others fervently believed it to be true, claiming they had witnessed it with their own eyes. William belonged to the latter group, a witness to this bizarre occurrence.
“With the magic setting of the game, what’s there to be confused about?” he muttered, sitting on the floor in a room that had essentially become a shared bedroom.
Even the official website had recently provided clarification about this, stating that this phenomenon served as a safety net, activated when players didn’t log in for an extended period. After all, there was no guarantee that real-life incidents wouldn’t happen. Given the game’s astonishing realism, players’ virtual bodies had to eat, sleep, and attend to bodily functions just like in the real world. It felt like the lines between virtual and reality continued to blur.
Nonetheless, William had no intention of delving into the mystery behind this phenomenon. Tonight, his focus lay elsewhere — he was on the verge of a significant breakthrough, on the cusp of becoming the game’s first true acolyte!
His excitement propelled him to cast aside all other thoughts, channeling his entire being into absorbing the information required to ascend to the coveted first-stage Initiate Attunement. In pursuit of this goal, he went to great lengths, even purchasing the essential body of knowledge named “First Breakthrough 101” from the virtual shop.
Prominence
HP: 100%
MP: 0/0
Power Rank: None
Elemental Affinity: Pyro (89%) | Electro (63%)
Mana Aptitude: Inferior bright grade
Meditation Technique: Myriad Elements Method (initial, 100%)
Status: Healthy
Strength: (7)
Agility: (6)
Vitality: (6)
Magical Power: (0)
Infused Mana (total): (0)
According to the headmaster, a first-stage Initiate Attunement is an acolyte who’s able to grasp the concept of mana infusion and can infuse mana in their body. At the same time, they are able to move energy particles and manipulate them to their will. Only at this level will someone be able to access a magic spell’s formula and cast a spell…
Once their body is accustomed to infusing mana, their stats will be strengthened according to how much mana they have infused. William had diligently practiced the Myriad Elements Method and done quite a lot of physical labor for the past ten days but had only seen a marginal increase in his stats so far. It appeared that the only way to get stronger right now was to promote to a true acolyte.