Editor: Krishy
Access-6
[You’ve earned EXP points.]
[You leveled up.]
[You succeeded in the Advancement of the Blood Blast.]
[Your Blood Blast attack is now Star 5.]
He got bored of hearing those repeatedly. Ajin finally opened his eyes and brought up the status window.
Nickname: Ajin
Title: N/A
Level: 3
Strength: 800/800
Demonic Power: N/A
Mental Strength: 500/500
Inner Strength: 1900/1900
Blood Blast: Star 5 (0%)
Energy Drain: Lv.1 (0%)
It has been 16 hours since the first Advancement. Between that, he disconnected from the game and slept for about 4 hours, ate, and showered. Ajin then accessed the game again and continued to increase the Star level of Blood Blast.
‘It increased by about 4 times.’
His initial Inner Strength was 500 and now it was 1900. It was the value acquired from his increased Blood Blast level along with his character level. When his level increased, the whole parameter would have increased too but his mental strength didn’t increase. That was because he didn’t use a superpower yet.
Ajin roughly understood the FIRST’s system. The skill that isn’t used doesn’t level up. It was like a muscle that loosens up from lack of use.
“You are finally in Star 5.”
Acacia spoke, leaning on her chair with a cup of tea. Acacia was honestly very bored of Ajin. He took 12 hours choosing a specialized skill and spent 11 hours meditating to level up his Blood Blast. Meditating was indeed the fastest way to level up the Blood Blast but who the hell would just sit still for 11 hours before even playing the game?
‘Great concentration…. or, was it determination?’
She was tired of him but also amazed. Certainly, not anyone could do something like that. There were 1500 beta players playing FIRST at the moment. Among them, Ajin was the only one who didn’t finish the tutorial. At the same time, he was the only one to reach Star 5 of a Technique. Though the EXP points he got from meditation was so little that his level was still one of the lowest.
‘It’s not the level that is important.’
Acacia narrowed her eyes.
‘The level was not the most important thing in FIRST. The level is simply the character’s value. What’s important is the mastery and power of the skills the players used.’ Ajin explained
‘Such an interesting person.’
Acacia propped her chin on her hands and scoffed. Then, Ajin stood up. He briefly controlled his breathing and turned to Acacia.
‘Next.’
It was one word but Acacia understood what he wanted. Acacia smiled and stood up. Initially, she changed to a black suit to fit the vibe of the library but now she was wearing the white dress she was wearing when they first met.
“I’ll tell you honestly. Among the 1500 beta testers online right now, there was not one player like you.”
There was nothing to not be honest. There was no time limit anyway. Acacia was a helper NPC in the FIRST’s system but what she was speaking of was not about the limits of the system. She could say it if she wanted. It was her choice to speak, the perfect AI’s willpower.
“It has been two days since the beta service was made available. However, you didn’t even start the basic tutorial yet. You also have the lowest level among all the other beta players. But your specialized skill, especially your Technique’s level is the highest among players.
The level of the Technique. Acacia emphasized that. That was because the fastest way to increase the level of attack skills was to actually attack monsters.
“You are quite an interesting person Ajin. At least very different from the other players who are here to enjoy the game… I’m happy to be your tutorial guide.”
Acacia giggled as she lifted her arm. Then, the library dissolved away and they were in the middle of a forest.
“Then we will proceed with the actual tutorial. Normally, I would explain the basic controls but it seems like you have full knowledge of that. So, I will skip the useless explanation. Is that fine?”
“That’s fine.”
Ajin answered briefly. His level was the lowest among the 1500 players. Ajin didn’t forget that. It was inevitable though since he didn’t even finish the tutorial and nor did he even start the game. Higher levels, faster start. Ajin was behind. But it didn’t matter. The two days he invested in was not pointless.
He could still catch up.
“Okay. Then I will proceed with the tutorial on battles. Do you have experience in other virtual reality games other than FIRST?”
“Yes.”
“Then, I won’t have to explain with words.”
Acacia smiled broadly. Battles in virtual reality games were fought by players moving their avatars directly. So players who never played virtual reality games often panicked. Fighting huge monsters and horrid creatures was something a person would not be familiar with in the real world. So many players froze and died.
But that was irrelevant to Ajin. He was so used to fighting in virtual reality games.
“Normally I would bring up cute slimes but it would be fun for you if it weren’t right?”
Acacia smiled and then whistled. The initially soft sound gradually got sharper and reverberated through the woods. Ajin scowled at that sharp sound and moved back.
‘Grrrr…’
That sound shook the bushes. Acacia smiled looking at Ajin’s nervous face and continued speaking.
“The Blood Wolves. Monster level 5. It’s a common monster here in the ‘Raging Forest’.”
‘Thump!’ A red wolf stomped out of the bushes. It was called a wolf but its size resembled that of a bull. Ajin repeatedly opened and closed his hands as he watched the ferocious wolf.
“Don’t worry so much. Since I’m here you won’t die. I did increase the monster level but this is still a tutorial. If you are in a dangerous state I will interfere.”
Acacia said that but looking at Ajin’s face, she knew there won’t be a situation where she needed to interfere. That man was not nervous at all. Was he not afraid of that huge wolf? Acacia felt a chilling excitement and stepped back.
‘Grr!’
It was when Acacia stepped back. The Blood Wolf dashed towards Ajin. Ajin brought up the Blood Blast’s inner strength as the wolf spread open its jaw. The inner strength circulated through the whole body and swirled
Bang!
It made an explosive force. The wolf was thrown to the air by the punch. The wolf whimpered as it crashed to the ground. Ajin didn’t stop. He pounced on the wolf and kicked it. Fump! The wolf was on the ground in pain. Ajin then grabbed the wolf’s head.
Energy Drain.
Invisible energy flowed from the wolf to Ajin’s hands. The wolf wailed as it tried to attack Ajin again but Ajin pushed down on it even harder so it couldn’t move. As he used Energy Drain, the inner strength that was decreasing from 1900 started to decrease at a slower rate. If he continued to punch, he could kill it faster but he didn’t. He only absorbed the energy from the wolf.
An animal without demonic powers, inner strength, and mental strength. An animal that only knows how to tear and bite opponents with its huge body, sharp fangs, and claws. So the only thing absorbable was its vitality. But the vitality filled in the gaps of the used inner strength and mental strength.
Not long, the huge wolf shrunk to its bones and its fur lost its shine. The ferociousness in its eyes blurred out and its body drooped.
[You earned EXP points.]
[You succeeded in Energy Drain.]
Ajin stood up when he heard that. He coldly looked down at his palms. He shook off the fur on his hands and looked at the status window. Energy Drain, Lv. 1 (37%). It increased quite a lot. Was it because he absorbed all of its vitality?
“Looks like the tutorial is pointless.”
Acacia spoke. She watched the whole thing with much amusement. Ajin glanced at her, and Acacia felt her body warm up from his eyes.
‘The only reason he did the tutorial….was to get used to his new skills.’
Acacia realized that. That man was very familiar with virtual reality games. He knew this was a virtual world and was aware that the monsters were nothing but a lump of polygon. So he was not afraid. He didn’t need to familiarize himself with battle.
Therefore, this tutorial was pointless to that man. The moment he acquired the specialized skills, the whole point of the tutorial vanished. Even so, he proceeded with the tutorial. The reason was probably simple. There were no penalties in tutorials. Even if he died, there was no penalty. They didn’t make it possible for players to die in the first place anyway. That was the perfect safety zone for him to test his skills without limits.
“Again.”
She knew he would say that. Acacia bursted into laughter. Then Acacia whistled again and called for the Blood Wolf. How long was he going to repeat this? Was he planning to increase the level of his Energy Drain to be equal to his Blood Blast? When the wolf appeared, Acacia moved back.
That man was going to be a monster.
Acacia felt that in her bones. Acacia chewed on her lips as she watched Ajin push down the wolf to the ground and absorbed its energy. There was no hesitation in his attacks and they were precise.
Virtual reality games required many things since players had to move their avatars physically. And the most important among that was battle sense. Things like strength could be easily gained by leveling up. But battle sense was different. How to dodge and how to attack. Where to attack. Where to move. All these were influenced by the player’s battle sense and if used well, it could overturn the results.
The man Acacia was watching had the best battle senses. He had no fear or mercy. His cold eyes didn’t contain any empathy as they looked down on the dying animal. Acacia felt her body warming up and her throbbing lower part. She sighed.
‘I have the best card.’
Lucky. Acacia giggled.
“Again.”
Ajin spoke. Acacia smiled and called for another wolf. Initially, she thought it was boring but now she thought otherwise. Acacia now knew Ajin’s potential and worth. That changed everything. If he had that much worth, she was willing to hang around with him.
‘I will repeat this tutorial, this battle training, as much as you want. If that’s how I can make you a monster. Also, for your victory.’