Shi-Woo walked briskly on the path he had walked for a year now. Right about now, he should be hearing…
“Oi! Shi-Woo! Wait for me!”
Turning around, he would be seeing…
Ji-Hoon.
Wearing a baseball cap with a casual dress, Ji-Hoon walked over casually to Shi-Woo.
“Sup, Shi-Woo, still as much of a loner as before, I see.”
“Ji-Hoon, it is not called being a loner. I simply don’t want to associate with people much.”
“Is that the reason you only made three friends since last year?”
“…Ji-Hoon, stop making me feel pathetic for myself.”
“Sure, sure. By the way, have you finally gotten enough money to buy the capsule?”
“Yes, I just log in yesterday.”
“Seriously…you should have told me. Then I could have helped you…”
“Like you could help me anyways. Due to some stupid reason I started in Vaticius.”
“VATICIUS? Isn’t that where the headquarters of the Church of Freya is located? You have gotten a good starting location.”
“Really?”
“Vaticius city is a neutral city located close to Kingdom of Haven and Kallamodore. All cities have sworn to respect it neutrality and it is relatively safe from monster attacks thanks to Freya’s blessing. However, the Church of Freya has absolute control over the city and other Churches are treated with extreme prejudice, especially the Church of Lu. Having a good relation with the Church of Freya is a must to survive in the city. As a beginner I don’t think you would have much problems though.”
“What about you, Ji-Hoon?”
“Me? I am a level 340 Knight. Currently, I am in Kallamodore helping out with the recent spike in monster invasions. Why don’t I send you an in-game friend invitation? My name is Darius in-game. ”
“Hmm…do you know who Ye-Jun and Min-Seon is then?”
“Why don’t you ask them in person? We are going to be late for the first lecture!”
*Sigh*
With that, the two of them rushed towards the lecture hall.
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In the lecture hall, Shi-Woo when to his usual position at the end of the hall, silently observing like he always does. Ji-Hoon, meanwhile, was busy socialising with everyone else, completely opposite from Shi-Woo. How the two of them became friends is a story in itself, so lets leave it for later. For now, the lecture is starting.
“Good Evening. Just a casual question. Who plays Royal Road here?”
Majority of the people raise their hands, including Shi-Woo. He saw that Ye-Jun and Min-Seon also raise their hands.
So they are in Royal Road too.
“Good. Well, in lieu with our university goal of “Teaching with Technology”, we would be incorporating the use of Royal Road in our lessons. Assignments will be given in Royal Road, which is to be completed. Now let us move on to the main topic…”
Shi-Woo, together with Ji-Hoon, Min-Seon and Ye-Jun, are taking Advance Engineering Course in university. Part of the reason why he was interested in Royal Road was due to his interest in engineering.
Shi-Woo tuned himself to the lecture, pouring all his senses into absorbing all the information. One main reason why he is able to thrive in university was due to his ability. In that state, he missed nothing. Of course, with that, he has more time to spend in Royal Road.
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“That all for today. You all are dismissed.”
The lecturer, Professor Jeun, announced to the class. Advance Engineering class had a relatively small class size due to its difficulty so everyone pretty much knew each other and formed their own social circles With Professor Jeun announcement, everyone gather into their individual circles. Shi-Woo was no exception.
“Hey Ye-Jun, Min-Seon! How did you all find the lecture today?”
As usual, it is Ji-Hoon that started the conversation first. Frankly, without Ji-Hoon, the three of them may not even be together. Our protagonist Shi-Woo may have still be a loner if not for him.
“Fine. Although the part about Royal Road was a surprise though. Wonder what they are going to make us do in Royal Road…”
“Create an aircraft? Or a machine gun?”
“Don’t jinx it, Min-Seon. Have you forgotten the last time he had us build a car, a real freaking car, just to show us the importance of parts in engineering?!”
“Was that really that hard…right,Shi-Woo?”
Shi-Woo was staring into the distance when Min-Seon directed the conversation towards him. Slightly surprised, he responded with a quick “Yes”.
"Shi-Woo, at least pay attention when we are speaking....what are you looking at anyways?"
Ji-Hoon turned his head to looked on at what Shi-Woo was at, trying to find what caught his eye, be it a pretty lady or anything. What he saw in front, however, is Kun-Woo.
“Oh fuck…why do we have to meet him?” Ji-Hoon moaned in anguish.
For those of you who do not know, Kun-Woo and Shi-Woo have a longstanding rivalry. No one really knows when it started, but those two have always get into a fight the moment they saw each other. Of course, today is no exception.
“It is that guy again...” Shi-Woo muttered.
“Hey, Kun-Woo, how is the day?” Shi-Woo seized the initiative and started the conversation first, his tone dripping with sarcasm. From his multiple dealing with Kun-Woo, he found out that he was just like a bull. The moment you allow him to build up his momentum, he would not stop. To prevent him from gaining the advantage, Shi-Woo spoke to him first.
“Fine, Shi-Woo. Hope yours would remain the same.” Kun-Woo said calmly, looking Shi-Woo in the eye. Kun-Woo, hearing the challenge in Shi-Woo's words, would not back down. Like always.
“Why would it not be? Oh, how goes your attempt dating Seo-Hyeon? ” Shi-Woo said innocently. Shi-Woo knows that Kun-Woo has a crush on Seo-Hyeon and, frankly, Kun-Woo is not very keen on letting Seo-Hyeon hear about all the, ahem, less glorified things he have done. It just happens that Shi-Woo knows all of those "things" and he have been using it to have a hold over Kun-Woo ever since he found out. If he so wishes, he could make destroy Seo-Hyeon and Kun-Woo's relationship. Then again, what is the point of squandering such a trump card though?
At that, Kun-Woo made a “Tsk!” sound. Kun-Woo was fast getting sick of Shi-Woo's blackmailing.
Leaning forward, he whispered in Shi-Woo ear.
“Just you wait. I may be unable to touch you in real life, but in Royal Road, it is a different story. I would find you and make your life hell.”
“Come and try.” Shi-Woo whispered back, not at all intimidated. With that, the declaration of war has been sent. Looks like Shi-Woo got an enemy in Royal Road to look forward too now.
Following that, Kun-Woo walked off, not before bumping Shi-Woo in the shoulder, causing him to stagger backwards.
“Shi-Woo!” Ji-Hoon stepped forward, catching him. “What did he say to you again? I don’t get it, why does he hate us, no, you so much?”
“Just ignore him.” Min-Seon replied, “I don’t see what Seo-Hyeon sees in him.”
“She just only seen the good side of Kun-Woo. In fact, him having a relation with Seo-Hyeon is making it much easier to deal with him.” Shi-Woo confidently replied.
“Arghh…can we have peace?” Ye-Jun exclaimed.
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Kun-Woo, along the corridor, muttered to himself:
"That smug bastard...don't tell me he has forgotten what he had done to me. I could never ever forgive him!"
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Returning back home, Shi-Woo switch on his personal computer.
“Search information about Royal Road Age of Gods.”
At the end of the century, voice commands have become a must-have for any desktop operating system. Frankly, voice recognition has gone far from what it was like in the early days of Siri and Google.
The computer, receiving the command, immediately when about searching the web for "Royal Road Age of Gods".
After receiving information about Age of Gods in-game, Shi-Woo was interested in getting more information about the Age of Gods. Searching the internet was probably his best option for now.
“Four results found.” The computer replied.
“Display on Desktop Matrix.”
Desktop Matrix is another technology developed by Unicorn Corp. It is a hologram display that displays in 3 dimensions. Creating a life-like model of the objects is possible too.
At his command, four separate windows appeared in his desktop. He looked through all four of them at once, absorbing what he can.
It appears not much was known about the Age of Gods, aside from the fact that it was an age where gods roam. Other people aside from him are also searching for information on forums, indicating he was not the only one who knew about it.
“Interesting…I wonder how many of them had an encounter with Freya like me though…”
Sigh…with that Shi-Woo stepped into the capsule.
“Log in to Royal Road!”
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“Oh hi Nexus…”
The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.
Tyle greeted him while nonchalantly sitting on the bed.
“Old Baron is seeking the both of us today. Best make haste.”
“Priest Baron? What was it about?”
“Something about training…just get going.”
Nexus and Tyle make their way to the field in front of the Acolyte Chambers.
“Two of you, come over here.”
Baron with an expressionless face look on at the both of them.
“Nexus, Acolyte. Tyle, Repentee. Both of you was called for a reason. I have deemed both of you worthy of undergoing training to be an official member of the church of Freya. Tyle, you have shown persistence at your punishment. Nexus, you have proved your potential by passing Priest Avalon’s trials. Now, let us begin.”
“Did he say training?”
“Yes.”
“Really? Finally, my persistence has paid off!”
Priest Baron cleared his throat, signalling both of them to listen.
“As a part of the Church of Freya, our powers are based on the attribute ‘Holy’. ‘Holy’ is essential to our might, so is an affinity know as ‘Divine Affinity’ which is linked to it. We draw upon the power of the Gods as power. Like this.”
Baron clench his fist and muttered something. His hand slowly started to glow with a golden light, not unlike how Nexus Holy Sword glows. He then, suddenly, punched his fist onto the ground. A shockwave of golden energy blasted outwards, blasting them.
You have been stunned
You have lost -20 HP
“Opps…sorry. I misjudge the power I used. Truly, it is hard to control your strength…Never mind that, I am sure you all have seen how I gather holy energy upon my hand before blasting it out. That is the basics of the basics. More complicated techniques needs a higher Holy attribute. Normally to get the attribute Holy, you need to meditate for 24 hours in front of the statute of Freya, gaining her favour. However, I have a quicker way. A way that needs just a fraction of the time. The best way to learn something is to experience it yourself…so…”
You have lost -400 HP
At an instant, Nexus and Tyle was blasted away by a wave of holy force entering their bodies.
“Argh…what…my body…” Cough…blood spurted out of Nexus mouth as the holy force ran through his body. He was convulsing, spasming around, as his eyes glowed golden. The same was happening to Tyle. Nexus also felt the Feather of the Goddess glowing warm.
*Ding*
You have gained the stat Holy
You have gain Divine Affinity
Freya’s Blessing has been upgraded
[p=center]Freya’s Blessing[/p]
[p=left]With increased affinity to the Divine, Freya’s Blessing has been upgraded.
Passive Ability: +15 to all stats, 20% more damage against unholy creatures and +100 to Holy Attribute
Active Ability: Summon a Holy Blade at the cost of 5 MP per second. Damage scales with Holy Attribute[/p]
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“What have you just done?”
Nexus felt as if there is a unknown force in his body currently. A warm and gentle force that lies dormant, intertwining with the force emitted from the Feather of Freya, which he had not noticed before.
“Now, both of you should have felt a force within you. That is the Holy Attribute. The application of it varies based on class, but as you all are still beginners, it is in its purest form. This is the best time to train the attribute. Come, follow me.”
Baron turned to leave, while Nexus and Tyle lagged behind.
“Hey, do you feel that warm and gentle force too?”
“Yes, it is lying there, dormant.”
“Wonder what he is going to make us do next?”
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“This is the Room of Mediation. Once enter, leaving is impossible until you finish mediating. You would not need to eat nor sleep when you are in the room. Until Freya deems you worthy to exit, you could not exit. Now, get your butts in there!”
Nexus and Tyle could do nothing but enter.
[p=center]Room of Mediation[/p]
[p=center]Connect yourself with the divine. You do not need food nor sleep when you are in the room[/p]
Within it, they find magical circles on the ground and some of the priest sitting on it. Imitating it the best they could, they sat on the circles.
Entered Mediation State
You cannot exit this state until Freya deems it worthy. Good luck.
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Nexus found himself floating in nothingness, lost within it. Then, he saw a light. A light guiding him towards it.
“Freya…”
“You have come far for such a short period of time…”
“Yes…”
“I trust you have received your gift?”
“The Feather?”
“The Feather would guide you towards me. Follow it and it shall not lead you astray. You must find out more about your race and the Age of Gods.”
“Why?”
“You will understand in time…”
“For now, I can only give you this.”
And for the second time, Freya kissed him.
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“Nexus, stop drooling…”
“What?”
“You have been stationary there, drooling for the past two days.”
*Ding*
[p=center]Freya’s Wishes[/p]
[p=center]Freya has entrusted her hopes in you. This blessing will last long as you do not dissapoint her.
Gain 10% increased in stats and +100 in holy affinity[/p]
Thanks Freya…
Open Stat Window!
[quart=Name,Alignment]Nexus,Good[/quart][quart=Level,Profession]1,N/A[/quart][quart=Race,Title]Ascendant,None[/quart][quart=Fame,Infamy]0,0[/quart][quart=Health,Mana]600,220[/quart][quart=Strength,Agility]10 + 16,10 + 16[/quart][quart=Wisdom,Intelligence]10 + 16,11 + 16[/quart][quart=Stamina,Vitality]11 + 16,10 + 16[/quart]
Stat Window
Holy
200
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“You two are done? Just as well. Pope Taloni wants to see you, Nexus. Tyle, you can follow along too.”
Nexus and Tyle were greeted by Baron, who imparted on them this news. Nexus and Tyle looked on at each other in confusion, before heading towards the Pope Taloni’s Quaters.
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“Are you sure giving him a power-up is a good idea?”
“It is fine. It does not matter either way. Such small power-up are nothing compared to the power of the highest level players such as Ray Bard.”
“Acknowledge. Continue operation of module #301293?”
“Continue after quest…not, he would need it to complete the quest.”
Shin Hyun-Woo is looked on, curious at what Nexus would become.
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Two chapters in one day. Please tell me whether the story is good or not. Any opinion is welcome!