"I can tell that most of you are confused, but fear not for I have the most amazing advice for you all. Don't question it!" she boomed with glee, a grin plastered across her face. "Throw out whatever old logic you used to have and get used to life inside the barrier."
She had a point. He just had to adapt to this new life, adapt just like he was always forced to do. But still, screens and huge monsters aside, being handed a wooden sword felt so insulting. His trusty iron blade had gutted many an animal on his journey here, and would surely be more useful in killing those rats than a piece of wood. Right?
"I can tell by the looks on all your faces that you think this must be a joke, right? Giving out wooden tools. I already got my own weapon with me might as well just toss this into the campfire. But think again and remember what I told you. Don't question it. Those ‘useless’ weapons will do more damage than whatever you have on hand. Actually..." she paused. "I'm pretty sure your hands will do more damage than whatever you brought along with you too."
Wood is supposed to be better than iron? Axel looked at the sword in his hand. My hand is supposed to be better than iron?
"You guys definitely don't trust me. I can see it on your faces. So, call out [Equipment] and notice the difference between whatever you chose from that little gift and whatever weapon you brought along with you. Now 3 2 1!" She waved her hands like a conductor.
"Come out, come out [Equipment]," the group said.
A second screen popped up, now with the words [Equipment] written above. Depicted on the screen were the clothes he was wearing, his bag, and the two swords he had: [Wooden Training Sword] and [Trusty Iron Sword].
"Good job. Now I want you to tell me the difference between your weapons."
The difference between the weapons? You mean other than the fact that one is a hunk of junk and one is actually useful? It's got to be more than that, right?
"Hmmm... How about you." She pointed at a young man with white hair, who looked roughly the same age as Axel.
"Is it because what we brought inside the barrier has an [Attack] value of 0, while the ones that were given to us have a value of 1?" he replied.
"Exactly!"
Axel looked at the [Equipment] page again. The guy was right, his [Wooden Training Sword] had an [Attack] value of 1, while his [Trusty Iron Sword] was 0. How could he have missed something so obvious? Axel shook his head in frustration.
"Anyway, I've got a few more things to tell you guys before I let you go and have some fun. Remember when I was killing those Dig Rats earlier, and how they all got zapped with electricity? Actually, I'm pretty sure little Davy must have demonstrated some skills earlier, he's the only one I know who likes to bring in monsters and scare you newcomers. The guy likes to show off. So am I right?"
Axel and the rest responded with a nod.
"What was it this time?"
"A Frost Cobra," a lady from the crowd answered.
"How fun. Anyway, would you all be so kind as to open up your [Skill] page? Just do the same as always." She grinned and gave a thumbs-up.
"Come out, come out [Skill]," the group said in unison.
A third screen popped up with [Skill] at the top, crowding his field of view. Axel could see his class, [Classless], exactly as Dave mentioned. Under it was only one skill [Basic Sword Proficiency - Rank D]
"You all should have maybe one or two skills. Most likely related to whatever weapon you're used to swinging about. Then next to it, there should be a rank. Long story short, you train your skill, then letter goes up, and effects become greater, once it hits A rank it may upgrade or combine with another skill or just remain like that. Once you rank up to [Recruit] you should get a prompt to choose your class, and to rank up you’ve got to kill monsters or complete quests, or both. Any questions?"
"Which class is the best class?" a woman asked from the crowd.
"If you find out, let me know too. Anyway, one last thing because frankly, I'm kinda getting tired of talking and plus you all aren't that fun to mess around with. So, no need to worry about monsters running out, cause they never stop showing up. And, that about does it. So good luck, have fun, and try not to die." She paused for a brief moment before adding, "Oh, wait, this is truly the last one. Normally, there's a crystal in the center of a zone—that's what we call the places connected by portals. Since there are so many of you and only so much space, you can use the crystal to basically shift between worlds. It's like being in the same area with the same monsters but in a different universe. Then, taking the portal will bring you back to the main world. Normally the crystal is in the center of the zone, but normalcy is overrated here, so the deeper you head inside the barrier, the more weird things become. And that's it, so bye-bye." With a wave, she bid them farewell.
The [Inventory], [Skill], and [Equipment] screens were intuitive enough to use, one just had to tap about with their finger, but he still didn't get how it worked. And how could there be a never-ending supply of monsters? Where did they come from? Plus there was a crystal that could apparently teleport them to a whole new parallel world.
This was all so confusing. Maybe he had actually died on his journey to Pavhorn and these were his last hallucinatory moments as he descended into hell and delirium. Axel was still trying to absorb everything, having so much strange and new information bombarding him, turning whatever he thought he knew into a wasteland of uselessness. He scrolled through the various displays trying to find anything obvious that he had missed out.
"Only I can stay in the main world so chop chop and move along." The knight clapped her hands again.
Axel looked up, his concentration shattered just like his understanding of reality. Some had already got a move on, walking towards the center of the zone. Most, however, were like Axel either fiddling around with the assortment of screens before them or lost in thought.
He stored the [Wooden Training Sword] inside his [Inventory], plunging the sword into from whence it came. Taking a last quick glance at the knight, who was nonchalantly whistling away, he set off towards the crystal at the center of the zone, following the trail of people that had started their journey before him.
At the center of the zone, void of any trees, lay a crystal as promised. The sapphire blue brilliance of the crystal created a stark contrast to the lush greenery of the surrounding forest. Hovering and rotating just above the ground, the diamond-shaped crystal loomed as large as a door.
Those who were already near the crystal suddenly vanished after interacting with the screen that appeared, eliciting a gasp from Axel. He walked up to the crystal and laid a hand on it, following the actions of his predecessors and another pop-up appeared before him.
The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.
[World Browser]
Current World:
Main World (Crowded)
Filtering by user's default selection (Least crowded)
Sub-World Options:
Sub-World 12 (Sparse)
Sub-World 15 (Sparse)
Sub-World 04 (Lightly Crowded)
Sub-World 08 (Lightly Crowded)
Sub-World 10 (Lightly Crowded)
I guess I'll choose the first one? Axel tapped the screen, and his surroundings suddenly shifted.
Glancing around, he was still at the center of the zone, evident by the large humming crystal floating a mere touch away. The only difference was that he was in a slightly different spot. The surroundings looked the same, a landscape of trees and bushes dotting the terrain. Then again, his power of observation was not so astute that he could detect the difference between one tree and another with any form of precision.
None of this makes sense, he groaned in his mind.
"Come out, come out [Inventory]," he announced, following the teachings of his latest master.
The [Inventory] screen appeared, and outcame his [Wooden Training Sword], exactly as how he left it minutes ago. Swinging it about, it felt lighter than what he was used to, but it would have to make do.
Axel began to wander around the area, intentionally traveling in a direction opposite from where sounds were emanating from, sounds that he surmised were from others also on the same quest as him.
He pressed on until he came face to face with his target, a Dig Rat. This marked his very first encounter inside the barrier, a moment that he would surely reminisce on in the future. The white rat gave a deep menacing squeak before lunging at Axel, spade-like teeth first. Despite having the [Wooden Training Sword] in hand, he instinctively drew his [Trusty Iron Sword] and parried its attack, a clash of teeth and iron ensued.
Axel knocked the rat away, and with it off-balance he swung his blade against it, landing a decisive blow that would surely decapitate his foe, but to his dismay it was unaffected. He definitely felt the attack connect, so the white fur of the Big Rat should definitely have been dyed a crimson red as it lay in a pool of its own fluids, but here it stood unscathed and red with anger.
Axel swung again and again, one hundred percent sure that his sword connected with his monster, as he felt the impact of every blow. The monster recoiled backward after every hit, another testament to the fact that he was hitting his mark. Yet, the Dig Rat lay completely unhurt, its fur as pristine as snow.
Axel glanced at his left hand, clutching the [Wooden Training Sword], and remembered the lady knight's words, "Don't question it."
He brought down the wooden weapon onto the monster, and for the first time, the rat actually took damage, emitting a squeal of pain. With momentum on his side, he kept swinging his sword at the Big Rat, never letting it have a chance to fight back. Finally, it dropped dead, fur now dyed red. To Axel’s surprise, its body vanished, even though he had already seen it happen earlier. What was left in its place was a gold coin and some white fur.
A notification popped up.
[Dig Rat - White was slain. Gained 5 points]
5 points? Is that a lot? My head hurts way too much.
Axel was spooked out of his thoughts by another squeal, nearly jumping out of his tunic. This time, it was two Dig Rats—one brown, one gray— both brandishing their pearly white incisors. He did not even have the chance to pick up the spoils from his earlier kill yet.
Axel swapped the weapons in his hands, equipping the [Wooden Training Sword] in his dominant right hand. He charged at them using the [Wooden Training Sword] to attack, and the [Trusty Iron Sword] to defend. Luckily, their attacks were well-telegraphed, either charging in a straight line or winding up for a big nice chomp of his flesh. Each chomp was met by his impenetrable iron blade, and each charge was also met by his impenetrable iron blade, as he blocked their charge. The sound of metal vibrating resounded through the air, it was only a shame the rat did not sustain a concussion from bashing its head against his sword.
With each block, Axel countered with a swipe of his blade, and each attack made the rat recoil in pain. The brown rat was the first to go down, after having endured multitudes of attacks by the wooden weapon. It felt more like he was bashing a wooden club, rather than swinging a sword, but it did the job. Now, all that was left was the greatly weakened gray rat, with streaks of blood decorating its fur. Two more slash-like bashes with his sword and the monster was slain. Two gold coins and a tuft of gray and brown fur were the only evidence left of their existence.
[Dig Rat - Brown was slain. Gained 5 points]
[Dig Rat - Gray was slain. Gained 5 points]
When he went to pick up the fur and coins another notification popped up.
[Would you like to set 'Send Item Pick Ups to Inventory' as default?]
[Yes] [No]
Axel selected yes, unsure what the message actually meant.
The moment his option was selected, the gold coins and fur vanished from his hand. Taking a clue from the earlier prompt, he opened up his [Inventory] using the same phrase he was taught, and a sigh of relief escaped his lips. The coins and furs were there. To confirm his suspicions, he went to pick the coin and fur that the first Big Rat dropped. The moment he bent down and barely even touched it, the coins and fur vanished and appeared in his [Inventory].
Well, that's convenient, was all he could think.
Axel was slowly getting used to the absurdity of the situation he was in, although his mind still struggled to wrap around the fact that monsters drop coins and just disappear upon death. Where did the coins come from? Was it just inside their stomachs or something? It would be pretty gross if it was.
Putting thoughts about the inner workings of monsters aside, he had more important things to take care of, like dodging the Dig Rat that had just lunged at him. Axel barely managed to dodge to the side at the last second, the monster's claws ripping a small hole in his sleeve.
This time Axel was prepared for another attack, with his balance restored, he blocked the next bite with his [Trusty Iron Sword] and attacked with his [Wooden Training Sword]. Like the past few rats, it didn't take long for this one to fall to his sword, leaving behind a gold coin and to his surprise no fur.
[Dig Rat - Brown was slain. Gained 5 points]
Maybe sometimes they don't drop their fur, was the only way he could rationalize the situation. That did not deter him in the slightest, but he did wonder what was the use of some rat fur anyway. He would just have to ask the lady knight from before. Maybe he should have gotten her name.
Axel decided to save the thinking for later and let his swords do the talking. The process was fairly simple, either sneak up or get sneaked up on by a Dig Rat, kill the Dig Rat, and then collect whatever it dropped while simultaneously getting annoyed by the system’s incessant notifications of his points earned.
Axel kept at it, wandering around the zone, trying his best to keep an eye out for those Dig Rats so that they would not get the jump on him. But, alas, the rats were feisty and crafty, and most importantly tunneling under him. They would emerge out of the ground, launching straight at him. Most of the time, Axel could react in time, the sound of the ground groaning was a dead giveaway to the horrors that lurked below.
After an hour or so of wondering, attacking, collecting, and the occasional breather. He received a notification.
[Exterminate: Big Rat - Completed]
[Gained 50 points]
[New Quest revealed in Quest - Starting Out]
Axel breathed a sigh of relief, hunting was tiring, both mentally and physically, having to always be on the lookout for any ambushes. He opened the [Quest] screen, curious about what new monster he had to slay.