《Transcendance: Beyond Humanity》 Prologue Dear readers, I learned about the LN format a few months ago, reading the Legendary Moonlight Sculptor and Sword Art Online. I found the writing very entertaining as it "skins" most of what makes a novel into impactful, easy to read, fast stories. I take inspiration from the previous two stories but I am very much trying to build my own. I draw also a lot more from novels, essays, movies as I am a wannabe writer, film maker, and a university student; however if you know a thing or two about how the writing process gets done, then you will understand that these similarities aren''t deliberately put in but a result of all my previous readings, which helped me getting a take on the Fantasy/SF genre and the LN format. With that said, I hope you will like it and don''t forget to give me some feedback. Welcome to Transcendance !
Friday, October 16th 2020 - Chicago Steve was lying on his bed, waiting for one of his friends to text or call him. They were supposed to go to the pub this evening. Bip...Bip¡­ He reached his phone. ¡°Hey man it¡¯s Marv, I¡¯m sorry I can¡¯t make it tonight. Too lazy I guess ¡­ Up for a quick Outerfield session ? The others are totally in !" ¡°See you in a bit¡± He answered. They used to play this really cool cyberpunk mmo on PC called Outerfield. It was fun, you started as a party of 5 and the difficulty and the bosses¡¯ tactics evolved depending on which classes the players in the party were playing and their level, to ensure the difficulty of the challenge. It was a really good game. Steve hated it. They all started playing a week before him and when he finally got on it, his partycompelled him to play the battlefield-control type class which was definitely not the kind of class he would have picked, he would rather have played some kind of area-damage dealer or even a simple soldier. It took him months of work but he did turn into brilliant battle strategist as he couldn''t wreak havoc on the battlefield as much as he used to.Stolen novel; please report. He managed to become the head of their guild and got level 100 despite beingfar behind everyone in terms of dps (damage per second) and in terms of mana/health regeneration. The good times became the worst, as they made fun of him not being able to loot anything or kill any level 100 monsters. He was still the one running everything ¡°behind the scenes¡± which is something they forgot. They stopped thinking of him as the team leader and just considered him the burden they had to play with. He also started to be really tired of saving them from themselves every evening. Steve liked playing mmos even though he always had been a solo player. He always found the different tricks to beat the games alone, especially because his friends (and/or party) usually stopped playing with him each time they got their hands on a game he had a chance to master. Steve was not becoming too much of an ass to them or anything, they just did not like him leading them or something... Steve was never really sure and never asked them. Until this evening. After the session , he asked them. They were on their guild chat. ¡°It¡¯s not that we don¡¯t like playing with you Steve, you know,... It is more that you are, you are yourself and you are a nice guy, and a good person as well, you just don¡¯t belong with us.¡± said Sarah. ¡°yeah mate, you are one hell of a guy but we¡¯re just too different I think. Plus we don¡¯t like the same games or anything else.¡± George just added. Sarah used to be Steve¡¯s girlfriend a few months ago. He invited her into his group of friends and she never left the group, except him. She hooked up with George for a short period and was now supposedly dating a 40-something guy. Steve tried to get used to her but he couldn¡¯t, and slowly she started to push him out. At least she had been subtle and clever until this conversation. ¡°Okay, I get the message guys.¡± Steve was getting seriously angry behind his computer screen. ¡°But you can still hang out with us, we don¡¯t mind you being around at uniif you need friends¡± Marv said quickly, trying to repair the damage. He just made it worse. ¡°Fuck you all !¡± Steve shouted. He leftthe chatroom and the game. Chapter I: Four years later Saturday, April 16th 2024 Steve was watching news on TV. Two days to wait until the worldwide release of Transcendance. He had given serious thought in playing the game, considering he did participate in building it, and he hadn¡¯t made his mind yet. Selling his company to NExT seemed like a good idea at the time, but being freed from having a job ever had proven to be more boring than planned in the last two years. He grabbed his smartphone and opened his youtube app to find NExT¡¯s pre-launch keynote was starting in about 20 minutes, just enough time to take shower and change. He rose up and walked towards the bathroom, taking off his clothes. He saw himself in the mirror again. He took a deep breath and clenched his fists. ¡°You have to accept it and live with it, move on.¡± said the doctor, as well as the psychiatrist he was referred to afterwards. He could never forget what happened, the huge burn scar on his left shoulder and the hundred of smaller cuts on his back and his arms were an everlasting reminder of this night. He walked in the shower and turned the hot water on.
[Wednesday, June 21st 2022] Steve was working on his translation device for neural impulses to computer communication. He loved it as if it was his own child, too many hours had been put into it to make it work, he sacrificed so much to get where he was now, so close to a fully working prototype. Knock Knock¡­ Steve raised his head, no one should be at the lab past 3 am. This was strange. Maybe the cleaning guy ? He walked over to the door and opened it. Sarah was at the door, shaking and sweating. ¡°Steve ! You have to help me. Please¡­¡± she was crying. Steve took a step back. ¡°What the fuck are you doing here. And how do you know I was here.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not my fault I swear ¡­¡± ¡°Look, you can walk away right now.¡± Steve pushed the door back. She blocked it. ¡°Steve, you have to run.¡± ¡°What are you talking about ? You mad ?¡± ¡°I will tell it to you on the way.¡± She stared into his eyes, she was serious. ¡°Alright.¡± Steve caught his coat and left the lab with her. They walked out of the building and started heading out of the campus, into town. Sarah was talking all the way, he stayed silent. ¡°I am so sorry, you see, since you left, Marv realised we needed someone to fill in your position and he decided to take it. But we just lost the world championship, you know, the one we were preparing for with you¡­ be careful !¡± she grabbed his arm to stop him from walking on the road ¡° And he snapped, said it was your fault for not having the guts to come back. He said he was going to do stuff to you, like hardcore bad things,... I had to warn you, now we¡¯re going some place safe. He is fuckin serious about this.¡±This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. They just walked past a park when Steve stopped her. ¡°Alright, this is all a big joke isn¡¯t it ? You think I didn¡¯t get enough of your schemes and humiliations ?¡± ¡°I am really serious about this.¡± ¡°You come to me two years later, out of the blue, just to save me from an angry nerd ? We¡¯re talking about a VIDEOGAME. A GAME ! Don¡¯t you think he is a little more intelligent than that ? He was probably just ranting about losing.¡± A black van entered the street and stopped right next to them and its side door opened. Two arms caught his shoulders. He tried to turn to his aggressor but he couldn¡¯t. Sarah had dried her face and tears. ¡°You see, it¡¯s nothing but a game.¡± She pushed him in the car and jumped in. No one heard him scream.
Steve came back to the living room and sent the live stream on his tv. He sat in his couch and waited for the keynote to begin. The stage is all black, except for the NExT logo, shining in the background. A man appeared. Henry Lenscher, the CEO and ¡°brain¡± behind Transcendance. ¡°Evening, ladies, gentlemen, players¡­ As I have said before, there won¡¯t be any video footage of the game shown, as I and NExT want you to be completely surprised when you log in for the first time. This is the first step towards the next evolution of humanity as a species, and the peak of the video game entertainment as the human mind can conceive it. I would like to personally thank the thousands of dedicated engineers, artists, developers, executives, interns, administrators and fans who contributed to the creation of Transcendance. Now I thank you, players, for everything that you are about to do, Let¡¯s all go beyond humanity as we know it, and move forward into the Future !¡± He left the stage facing a standing ovation of 25000 people. A couple minutes later, an animator walked on the stage. ¡°Hello everyone, I am Malick Senjrassan, CEO of FlareGames, first partner of Transcendance, and I am honored to be here handling the rest of the keynote. Here, at NExt, and at FlareGames, we are all about the players, so please welcome SnoWhite, number one player of The Saviors, a guild with a long history and currently number one of the rankings on Fantasy dream and Outerfield: The Dark Dimension.¡± Someone Steve used to know very well made a remarkable entrance on stage, under thunderous claps from the public. Sarah. ¡°Thank you !! Before you ask,yes, the Saviors are coming to Transcendance and we are going to beat this game.¡± ¡°You seem very confident miss SnoWhite. Are you sure the Saviors are up for it ? We watched you lose your last siege battle on Fantasy Dream this week.¡± ¡°Please, everyone¡¯s mind is set on playing Transcendance since it was announced. Cut us some slack, despite being Pros and the number 1 Outerfield Guild on the planet, we are also people who love video games and obviously we did get excited about the first fully immersive VRMMO of all time¡± ¡°True indeed. Onto my next question, are all the saviors moving to Transcendence ? I heard you are 62 players now is that correct ?¡± ¡°So glad to hear you ask me this question ! Yes we are all coming !¡± ¡°Does that mean their is a possibility of seeing Grey Wolf coming back ?¡± ¡°Well of course not ! He was a real jerk anyway and we were all so happy to see him leave the guild. I heard he had an accident, and went through a complete mental breakdown. I think he threw himself under a bridge, but he was the worst. You know, he used to PK newbies just for fun back in the Sword and Wig days.¡± ¡°Such strong words, I hope this guy does not come to cause trouble in Transcendence as well. Thank you SnoWhite for being here with us today, I hope to see you and the Saviors get to the top of Transcendence as well. Now please give a warm welcome to the pro-gamer and international tv star...¡± Steve turned off the TV. How come was she allowed to say all those lies ? Especially during a keynoteheld by such a company ? He was boiling with anger. The only one who was sent to jail after the cops found his bathing in his own blood was the driver they hired. They all had clean, shining alibis and he was sent to a psychiatric yard for a couple month just because the authorities thought he had lost his mind considering all the pain he went through. The driver on the other hand didn¡¯t know anything. ¡°Alright, calm yourself Steve, what can you do ? Move on.¡± he muttered to himself ¡°move on, move on, move on, move on.¡± Out of pure rage, he lifted his couch and flipped it, throwing it at the TV. ¡°Fair enough, 62 players ? The big bad wolf is coming and he is going to destroy the Saviors. Alone.¡± Chapter II: Getting started Monday, April 18th 2024 Steve got his VR helmet a day after the keynote through one of his contacts who was working for NExT, and waited for the game to launch while staring at it. This was the final product he contributed to, a metal and plastic helmet directly coming out of a SF movie. H - 2 hours. The helmet suddenly let out small noises and lights and the control tablet announced the opening of the character creation menu. ¡°Seems they made a killer job at making the components fit for mass producing.¡± He let out a small smile, so much hours spent on just a tiny module he thought was priceless and unique... he let out a long sigh and put the VR helmet on. It was a really weird first impression, too heavy to bear he had to lie down on the bed, but fairly comfortable. He turned the connectionon, closed his eyes, and smoothly faded into virtual reality. ¡°Holy Fuck !¡± he screamed in surprise as he was awakening in an environment with no gravity, no one, nothing, all blank¡­ except his nude self. He could feel the cold of being naked within this weird white place and was watching his hands when out of nowhere, awoman in her mid-20s wearing a black suit and a pair of sunglassesappeared in front of him. She looked very serious, and watching her float, moving so skillfully as if she was born here made Steve question the nature of his reality for a second. ¡°Hello, my name is Karina, I¡¯ll be assisting you through the character creation process.¡± ¡°Hi¡± he said. ¡°So, what is your name ?¡± she asked. ¡°My name is Grey Wolf.¡± ¡°Woaa that is a seriously cool name !! I am supposed to ask you to choose your race now. Here are your options.¡± She took off her glasses to reveal two beautiful green eyes. This IA seemed to be a complete nerd, her serious outfit was probably the result of a bug. A ''window'' unexpectedlypopped in front of him. This looked like an usual RPG quest/description window, except it wasn''t on a screen this time but literally in the middle of his vision field.
RaceDescription
HumansHumans are the most common race of the Central Continent. Despite not being the smartests, the most agile, or the strongests, they are the most adaptable ones. Bonus: +5% resistance to climate changes and +8 free stat points to start the adventure.
ElvesElves are known for their talent for magic arts and their amazing agility, especially in the woods. Bonus: +5% faster experience gain to all magic related skills and +10% agility in the woods.
DwarvesDwarves are the best craftsmen of the Central Continent, and the most cunning traders as well. Bonus: +5% faster experience gain to all craft related skills and +5% gold earned when selling items or establishing trade contracts.
BeastmenBeastmen are a mysterious race whose origin is still a mystery to all. They have always been fight for their independence and are natural fighters. Bonus: +5% faster experience gain to all fighting related skills and +1 stat point in strength, agility and endurance.
Since Steve''s plan was to single handedly crush 62 pro-gamers, he would need real firepower. Humans seemed to be the best for whoever wants to level up faster and build a strong foundation for his character, and the Elves'' agility boost in forests could also certainly make leveling easier. Last time he played an MMORPG, he had to give up the front lines, but he spent his youth playing area-DPS types, such as Paladins and Warlocks. This time, considering the rumored active skill generation system and his thirst for blood, the choice felt simple. ¡°I choose the Beastmen.¡± The outline of a smile appeared on her face as she let out a small laugh. ¡°Hehe I expected it with such a name of yours. Let¡¯s personalize your character now.¡± A copy of himself appeared in front of him. He was around 6ft tall and had relatively average physique. He had a week-oldbeard and messy blond-brown hair, his blue eyes were the exact same ones he had in reality, the irregular white storm pattern in his pupils was also there. He was quite handsome. The only - very - disturbing thing he could see was the pair of rabbit ears over his head. ¡°Can you change those ears to wolf ears ? And make them gray ?¡± he asked, trying to contain himself. ¡°Right away, this is what I call getting really deep into character¡± she was amused by his attempt to keep his seriousness. ¡°Can you make me a little more muscular as well ? And, you know, erase the less sexy scars.¡± Karina nodded and transformed the ears. The copy of hisbody slowly started changing, developingbroader shoulders, abs, and overall musculature. A relatively long queue appeared on his back too, though the best was to see his scars slowly fading away, being replaced by a little more body hair. He noticed his slightly bigger feet and hands, as well astheir nails who looked almost like claws.If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. "You satisfied ? I made a great job !" ¡°I¡¯m satisfied with my character¡± he said, with a very solemn tone. He suddenly fused with thee body standing before him and tripped on his left foot when the gravity kicked in. Karina couldn''t contain her laugh. He looked at her, laughing herself to death, and she realised how unprofessional she was being... after two good minutes. He rose up and moved his wrists and ankles,seems he would have to get used to be a Beastman. She took a deep breath, and asked him the following question: ¡°Now you have to make a choice, are you going to play Hardcore or Normal ?¡±
Hardcore Normal
The hardcore mode is reserved to adult players who want to experience the game in its entirety and to full capacity. Death is the end of your character and the pain ratio is upped to 80%. You can own land and you are given the chance to leave your mark in the world of Transcendence. However you do not possess an active combat HUD. In the normal mode, players can experience the game while not having to worry about death or pain, which is kept to a 10% Real-to-Virtual ratio. However they do not have access to S+ rank quests and can only own houses and guild castles. You are also provided an active HUD to help you monitoring your health, stamina, and mana during combat.
Steve was startled. He did not expect this, but the game was suddenly getting more interesting. Knowing how his old friends and new ennemies, it seemed obvious that they would all go for the Hardcore mode. Plus, a little bit of difficulty never killed anyone...yet, and he loved it. ¡°I choose the Hardcore mode, if I am to beat this game, I will do it the hard way.¡± ¡°I like your spirit !¡± said Karina, she was starting to really like this newcomer. ¡°Thank you, you are very kind¡± said Steve, smiling at her, hoping to grasp some good points with the IA. ¡°You¡¯re too nice, it¡¯s just my job¡± She was blushing. ¡°So you are not an IA ?¡± he asked, suddenly . ¡°I am an IA, and a very smart one.¡± ¡°No you¡¯re not.¡± ¡°Yes, I am.¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Okay I am not. I am here because of our Welcoming IA had some issue with the huge amount of new players connecting even though the game opens in only 2 hours. You got me¡± She admitted. ¡°Well it was nice to meet you and don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll keep this between us.¡± Steve admired her dedication to work, considering going through thousands of character creation must be what hell feels like for MMO players. Atable appeared between then and a set of two dices. ¡°Your score will determine your startingstats, you can allocate them as you wishafter you throw the dices.¡± She explained. ¡°You and all players are giventhe following stats to begin with, you might earn or develop new ones on your journey.¡± Another window appeared in front of him.
STATS Description
Strength (STR) Strength determines the damage you deal with weapons or bare-handed. It also affects your ability to interact with your environment (crushing objects, unlocking old levers,...)
Agility (AGI) Agility determines the speed of your attacks as well as their accuracy. It also affects your ability to interact with your environment (jumping, climbing,...)
Endurance (END) Endurance determines your maximum health and your maximum stamina. It also affects their regeneration rate and the maximum weight you can carry.
Intelligence (INT) Intelligence determines the damage you deal with magic, and your maximum mana. It also affects your ability to learn skills and gain experience during your journey.
Wisdon (WIS) Wisdom determines your mana regeneration rate as well as your casting speed. It also affects your capacity to create elaborate strategies and to understand the mysteries of Altherea.
¡°I got it.¡± First throw ¡­. 10. ¡°Let¡¯s put that in intelligence.¡± Second throw ¡­. 12. ¡°Good, this one goes into wisdom¡± ¡°Wait, why are you doing this ? You seem to have chosen a warrior archetype by creating a beastman. Why wisdom ?¡± Karina asked. He made his most serious face before starting to talk. ¡°Well, I have no idea how to raise my stats in game so I am grabbing the maximum I can in the stats that might end up being secondary to me though I don¡¯t know why you would think I want to make a warrior. I want to be a priest.¡± ¡°Whaaaat ?¡± She did not expect this. ¡°Just kiddin¡¯ !¡± Steve was laughing ¡°I don¡¯t want to be a priest.¡± Karina¡¯s face was red. ¡°You got me, I¡¯ll admit I did believe you for a second.¡± Third throw ¡­. 8 ¡°Goes in Agility !¡± Fourth throw¡­. 10 ¡°Endurance¡± Fifth throw ¡­ 12 ¡°Strength¡± ¡°You are a seriously lucky guy. You¡¯re the first player I met who scored two 12.¡± ¡°That was unexpected¡± Steve was really happy about his debutstats. ¡°So now you¡¯ll have to wait for the game to open, I think you have a little less than an hour to wait.¡± she said. ¡°Would you mind waiting with me ?¡± he asked. ¡°Well I would love to but I gotta keep working, Before I leave, I have a little gift for you because I like you.¡± Karina approached him and kissed him on the cheek. Hewas the one to blush this time. Then she disappeared into thin air and Steve was now waiting in front of a big digital countdown. He decided to log out to grab something to eat before playing. Chapter III: Enter Transcendance Monday, April 18th 2024 Steve opened his eyes, and found himself on his bed with the helmet on, nothing unusual seemed to have happened and he looked perfect healthy. He went through a series of psychomotor tests and safety checks to make sure he was all back in one piece and completely safe. Everything was fine. NExT''s VR technology was a thousand miles away from anything he could ever imagine. He promised himself to do a full examination of the headset as soon as possible. He left it on the bed and walked up to the kitchen for a quick sandwich. Once he was finished, he logged into his account on Transcendance¡¯s website to learn about the lore. Finally, they updated it. First was a 1 minute hyper realistic video shot in game. Which he skipped, to find a small paragraph on Altherea''s history. The world of Altherea, as it seems to be called, is composed of a single huge continent, with a couple archipelagos on its west coast, and a lake in its centre. This world is relatively unknown as the sailing technology, and what is referred as the ''Grand Shield'', never enabled any one of the four races to send expeditions at sea. Thethree main races that are the elves, the humans and the dwarves. They managed to live alongside each other for hundreds of years before crossing path and even thoughthey each jealously keep their history to themselves, it is known that the Elves are said to originate from beyond the Western Sea; the Dwarves are proud to be born in the eastern mountain chain, known as the Stonehold Massif; and on the other hand, the Humans, who first appeared on the continent, mostly believe themselves to be descendant from the God Odin despite their finest researchers and scholars claiming that man also comes from somewhere far away. The youngest race of this brand new world is the Beastmen race, which has emerged around five hundred years ago, during the First Great Race War, but every bit of knowledge about them has disappeared. The world of Altherea is thought to be around 10 000 years old. The current geopolitical situation at the start of the game is described as fairly stable and peaceful. The Elves are united under one Emperor called Eladin who has reigned for over 90 years. The Humans however, are scattered around the continent in different realms and societies, perpetually quarelling between each other. No one really knowshow the Dwarves are organised as they only leave the mountains to trade with other nations and quickly go home. The Beastmen are nomads moving around the continent, grouping themselves into caravans and offering their swords to the highest bidders. A sound came from his room.''Launch time !'' Steve shouted, before rushing back in. He put on the helmet and logged in.
Grey Wolf woke up, lying on the grass under a huge oak tree. The grass looked like grass, smelled like grass, felt like grass. He could also feel the wind and the sun on his face. He burst into laughter, rolling in the grass. It felt amazing. It took him five good minutes to calm down and to try getting up. He rose up on his feet, and fell. After going through a series of physical exercises to get his mind used to his new body, he tried rising up again. He was standing perfectly still. A window, similar to the ones he saw during the character creation, popped in front of him.
Welcome to Transcendance ! The developer team wishes you all the very best in your coming adventures. You are the 2nd player to stand up.
A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. "The second player to rise up, this is awesome !" Grey Wolfstarted to walk and looked around him. He was wearing a white tunic, brown pants, leather sandals.He was on a small hill, in the middle of ... what seemed to be nowhere, until hesaw something looking like huge walls, about 200 meters from where he spawned. Before heading there, he opened his Status window, instinctively thinking about it.
Status Window
Name Grey Wolf Class N/A
Level 1 Title N/A
Character Stats
STR 13 INT 10
AGI 9 WIS 12
END 11 LUK 10
Skills
N/A
¡°So she decided to wish me luck ¡± Grey Wolf was smiling. He hoped he would get to see the beautiful IT girl again someday. He started walking towards the city, a walk that quickly turned into a run through which he discovered with surprise that he was quite fast. Beastmen really were made for fighting. He arrived at the gates, which were open, with no one guarding them, and walked inside the town.
You entered the city of Landis. Population: 10 001 Ruler: Lord Fendridge Average NPC level: 15
He found the training grounds right behind the doors. It was abig sand arena where some training dolls were standing. He grabbed a training sword from the weapons racks on the side. ¡°Open item information¡± he said while focusing on it.
Training Iron Sword
DMG 4-6 Durability 50/50
A common training one-handed sword. Can get sharpened by a blacksmith.
¡°Cool, a free sword.¡± He went up to a training dummy and tried hitting it. The force return of the hit was 100% real. Just like hitting something in real life. Again, it felt amazing, and insane. So Transcendance''s combat system was relying on people''s inclination to use violence and fight. He decided to stop trying to intellectualize it and go with the flow for once. He had read lots of fantasy books and played sword with his friends as a kid, but never actually wielded a real one. He started hitting the dummy again and again, trying different positions, angles, movements. He quickly realised how tough a real fight would be, but also how good it would feel. He slowly fell into something close to dancing, and despite his clumsy look, you could see the shade of a rythmic hit-back step-hit-back step-hit pattern emerging. He went on for about two hours until a new window showed up.
A new skill has been created
¡®Instinctive Swordsmanship¡¯ Unlike the taught ¡®Formal Swordsmanship¡¯ or any other taught style, the ¡®Instinctive Swordsmanship¡¯ is a self-made skill which is left for the player to develop. +5% damage with swords +5% speed with swords
For spending two hours hitting the training doll and creating your first skill, you are awarded +2 STR, +2 AGI, and +5 INT.
¡°That was fast, I might just keep on hitting those wooden dolls for a bit.¡± Grey Wolf was ecstatic. This skill-creation system was amazing. He decided he would keep this on for as much time as he could, and so, he hit the target again. Chapter IV: The Fortunate Encounter Monday, April 18th 2024 ¡°Please Sir, can you leave the training ground ?¡± Grey Wolf was so focused on hitting the dummy that he forgot his surroundings. He grinded 8 more strength and agility points, and raised his Endurance by 2. It seemed that quite some time had passed since he entered the training ground and he was now surrounded with players fighting in pairs or against other training dummies. The voice came from a man standing behind him. He stopped and turned to him, discovering a giant individual wearing a guard uniform and holding a spear in his right hand. ¡°Why ?¡± ¡°You are not a warrior apprentice, you ain¡¯t no city guard as well, you have no right to be here.¡± the guard stated, looking at him with a severe expression. ¡°Isn¡¯t it open to everyone ? Are all these people around ... Fuck, how long has it been ?¡± Getting his mind back on track was harsh, but the slap in the face he received from the guard was harsher. ¡°No it is not, animal scum." The guard was getting angry. For a really short moment, he did consider leaving, but he would potentially be loosing the occasion to earn a massive amount of stat points. He also upped his ¡®Instinctive Swordsmanship¡¯ to beginner level 2, but he knew this one would need moving targets to be trained.However, he did not anticipate the slap from the racist guard. He smiled and asked: ¡°You area swordsman. If I beat you, can I stay ?¡± The guard, desperately trying not to laugh, decided to go along with him. ¡°Alright, but if you lose, you¡¯re never setting foot here again. First blood.¡± He walked inside the barracks close to the sand arena and came back with two swords. He took off his chainmail and his helmet. A few players gathered around them as they were facing each other. Grey Wolf was betting on the surprise of his first attack to win the bet. They slowly started to pace, in circle. The guard wasn''t making any movement. He wasn''t looking him in the eyes, focusing his attention on his feet. Grey Wolf kicked some sand at the guard''s face and went for a thrust at his stomach. The guarddeviated his attack with a slash of his sword, swiftly changed his grip on it, grabbing it by the blade, and knocked down Grey Wolf using the iron pommel. He barely saw it happening before his vision faded to black. A window appeared in front of him.
You have been knocked out. Due to the adrenaline, you didn''t feel the blow before being knocked out. You will however suffer from its effects once you wake up. 10 minutes before return to full consciousness.
He used the 10 minutes to think back about the fight and his own stupidity. Of course the guard wouldn''t have fallen for a cheap trick.
[Thursday, June 22nd 2022] Kevin Brady wasn''t a good police officer. Not even a standard police officer. 15 years in the job and he never got promoted past detective. He was walking in the office as usual, with his morning coffee and a cookie when he received the call that turned what was going to be another boring day making card castles into the most painful day of his life. He shoudn''t have been the one answering.The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. "Hello... Police ?" "Yes." "I found... I found a body." He put his drink on the desk and got one of the interns to record the conversation and track the call. "Where ?" "In the hangar where we store our furnitures. Please come as fast as possible. I can hear him breathe." "Alright, tell him to hang tight." The intern gave him the address, he called the rescue team, and he went down to his car, accompanied by 10 other agents. It took them 15 minutes to get there. They arrived at the storage facility, established a perimeter, and walked in. This was where he found the boy, lying on his back, in a pool of his own blood. The caller was there, trying to pull him out of it, she looked like a normal housewife, 0 chances she was crazy enough to do it, though cheating on her husband might be in the realm of possibilites. "Please, step away from the victim, the rescue team here will take care of him." he said. He approached himself from the boy and looked at him. His arms were cut, methodically, every centimeter. On his torso was a huge burn, probably handmade, by a blowtorch. And his back... Kevin walked away and threw up in a nearby bin. Some of the cops there had a quick laugh, until they saw the young man being carried by the nurses into the ambulance. Who could have done such a thing ? And why ?
3...2...1... Grey Wolf opened his eyes. He was lying in a ditch on the side of a road, about 50 meters from the city. His body was hurting all over, but the worst were the head concussion and the jaw pain. Seems he earned a beating post duel as well. He painfully rose up and started walking away. He left the banishment note on the floor. Less than 12 hours in-game and he already couldn''t set foot in the beginner city and its vicinity. He found a forest, about 25 kilometers east of the city, and decided to stop there. He managed to stumble upon a small stream, where washed himself and his clothes. This place seemed like a great hunting ground, and he was in serious need of a meal to replenish his hp and stamina. Some heat would also do him good. He started walking around, trying to spot some rabbits. It took him half an hour but he managed to find two healthy rabbits and sneak up near them. He would have to be quick. He focused on one of them and prepared himself to jump. He was almost going to when this particular rabbit received an arrow in his face. Grey Wolf turned to the arrow''s origin point to watch a guy coming down from a tree. He looked like a player, already wearing leather equipment (Hood, Tunic, Pants, Boots) and was holding on a really shitty bow. ¡°Hi !¡± Not much choice in this situation,considering the second rabbit ran away. ¡°Hi¡± he answered, with a very calm voice. ¡°This was my prey." He stated. The mysterious archer put his bow down and took out some rope. "Well I killed it, so it is mine, but you look like you could use a meal, so I''d be happy to share this one with you." He was harboring a shining, warm smile under the massive hood covering his face. "I just got beaten up by racist npc guards and banned me from the city, for pretty much no reason.¡± He said, trying to look as friendly as possible, extending his hand. His benefactor grabbed his hand and turned to him, his smile was gone. ¡°How can I trust you ? You might be PK or a bait, already met two of them and the game has barely been out for half a day.¡± ¡°I swear I am not, plus I''m in pretty bad shape too so you have more chances to kill me than I you.¡± ¡°Fair enough¡± Another warm smile appeared on the player¡¯s face ¡° My name is The Hood, I am a human Hunter, level 6.¡± ¡°Grey Wolf, Beastman nothing, level 1¡± he answered. ¡°Well come on, let¡¯s eat¡± Hood offered. Chapter IV (2): A little Kindness Monday, April 18th 2024 They walked to his campsite and he started to skin the rabbit. Grey Wolf borrowed one of his knives and found himself a long oak branch. He started to craft himself a staff while his new friend was cooking. ¡°So, even if you do not have the skill, you can actually do things and generate the corresponding skill ?¡± Hood asked. ¡°I think so, already picked up some kind of sword fighting skill, and that¡¯s why I am trying my best to craft this staff.¡± he answered. An hour later, he finished the staff. It was 5.5ft long and thick enough to use in a fight. And he earned 2 agility points. ¡°Open object information¡±
Robust Oak Staff (fine)
DMG 10-15 Durability 125/125
A fine quality weapon made by Grey Wolf, an extremely lucky first try. Could look better.
A new skill has been created ¡®Woodworking¡¯ Thanks to your own talent, you now possess the ability to craft all kind of objects, weapons and art with wood. +5% AGI when crafting +5% affinity with nature
YES ! He just made a kickass staff and got himself a crafting skill. ¡°This makes up for the city thing¡± he muttered. ¡°Hood, look at this staff ! I just got a new crafting skill as well.¡±Stolen novel; please report. ¡°This is really cool dude, do you think you can make a bow ?¡± he asked ¡° I have some spare strings in my bag so if you make one for me, I¡¯ll give you one too so that you can make one for yourself. And you can keep the knife anyway.¡± ¡°Sure¡± They searched around the campsite until they found another oak with fitting branches and cut 4 of it. Grey Wolf spent the night working on the bow and when the sun rays breached through the trees, he was finished with it. His Woodworking skill had reached beginner level 7 and he won 5 more agility points. But he used all the wood just to make a single one, meaning he would have to find himself another branch to make his. The Hood came back from his hunt with a deer on his back. He gutted it, skinned it, cut the edible parts and then opened a box containing something that smelled awful. He worked on the deer pelt for a couple hours and then came to sit in front of Grey (author : Yeah I figured it would be easier for me and you would not mind me just calling our main character Grey). ¡°So here is your bow¡± he said, handing him the weapon.
Robust Oak Hunting Bow (fine)
DMG 14-16 Durability 125/125
Range 25 meters + STR/2
A fine quality ranged weapon made by Grey Wolf. He screwed up 3 times before making such a good bow, give this poor thing some applause.
¡°What the fuck with this description man ! The system seems mad at you, though you kept your end of the bargain and made me something good. Here are my gifts as well.¡± He gave Grey a messenger bag smelling like fresh leather and blood.
You received a gift from The Hood. ¡°Dear hide and leather Messenger Bag¡± You can now carry 20 more items but you might want to wash it first. This bag contains : 1x ¡°Hunting bow string¡± 5x ¡°Deer Jerky¡± 1x ¡°Flint¡± 1x ¡°Bear Pelt¡± 1x ¡°Hunting knife¡±
¡°You shouldn¡¯t have Hood, this is way too much¡± Grey had no idea how to react to such kindness ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°Well it seems fair considering you got banned from the city and still need to get ready for your journey. It is not much but a good man like you is not someone you meet often. Plus you made me a kickass bow¡± He said, bursting in laughter. Grey started laughing uncontrollably. He was thinking of the best way to repay such kindness when the idea hit him. He added The Hood to his friend list. He received the request and agreed. ¡°We might not cross path for a moment but if you need me to come and give you a hand someday, I¡¯ll gladly do it, Friend¡± Grey extended his arm to him. Hood took his arm and looked him in the eyes. ¡°I will, take care my friend.¡± Grey put on his bag, caught his staff and walked away. Chapter V: A sweaty Gentleman Steve logged out to eat and check his agenda. Hopefully he had some time on his hands with the summer holidays that started a week before Transcendence came out. He looked at the clock and realised that an hour IRL equals four hours in-game which meant he had a lot of time on his hands. He called one of his friends, Matthew but he did not answer. Steve went back to his room and logged in.
Grey was right where he left off, sitting next to a tree at the northern border of the forest. He ate one stick of jerky and headed north. He decided to keep running to enhance his endurance, which payed off really fast. He earned 6 points and the the passive skill ¡°Running¡± in 8 hours. This skill had the effect of reducing his stamina consumption when he was running and improved his average speed on foot. ¡°Open Status window¡±
Status Window
Name Grey Wolf Class N/A
Level 1 Title N/A
Stats
STR 25 INT 16
AGI 28 WIS 13
END 21 LUK 10
Affinities
NatureStolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. +5%
¡°Open Skills Window¡±
Skills Overview
Passive Skills
Running - Beginner lvl 6
Woodworking - Beginner lvl 7
Instinctive Swordsmanship - Beginner lvl 4
Active
-
¡°So now I need a class, actual skills and some more stat points.¡± He stated with determination. He could see a small village close to his position. But was it a good idea to walk in ? There may be more racist people in this countryside village. He put on the bear pelt to hide his ears and tail before walking inside the village. This small village was called Green Hamlet. And seemed like a really poor place. Grey went to the blacksmith, a 70-years-old-something man. ¡°Hello I am Grey. I happen to have been robbed by bandits on my way here. do you know where I can get a map ?¡± ¡°Hello young man. I am not sure where you can find it but you might want to talk to Cynthia, she is an herbalist and the guardian of this village small library.¡± ¡°Thank you Sir. Mind if I ask you if you need some help with the furnace ? I am no blacksmith and probably never will be but I am a strong and hard-working man who seeks a place to sleep for a few days.¡±
+5% intimacy with Green Hamlet¡¯s blacksmith Leon
For your lasting impression on Leon, you earned the new stat ¡®Charism¡¯
+5 CHA
¡°Young man, you are a real gentleman. My name is Leon and I would gladly hire you to assist me for 8 hours per day and pay you 1 silver each day. It should be enough for you to get yourself a bed and a meal at the inn, you might even be able to save some.¡± Leon said smiling. Grey did not like the turn of these events, he was 90% sure this blacksmith was a creep. ¡°You have yourself a deal, Sir¡± he said ¡°Can I start now ?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± He looked inside one of his boxes and threw him a pair of quilted gloves and a leather apron. ¡°Put these on, not over your current clothes. It is gonna be so hot in here !¡± He shouted, bursting out in a sadistic laugh. ¡°What the fuck ?!!!!!!!¡± 8 hours later, he understood the blacksmith¡¯s nakedness. Nothing weird happened. It was just so hot once he started to work in the furnace. He was in charge of the bellows and had to keep the fire going. Nothing weird happened guys ! He did manage to use his tunic as a bandana to hide his ears and hid his tail in his pants. Grey also found out that this exercise was a great strength building exercise. He earned around +2 STR and +1 END per hour. If he kept this going for a week, he would win 112 STR and 56 END. Once he got his clothes back on, he walked out of the blacksmith¡¯s shop and instantaneously fell in the dirt.
You are out of Stamina. Your HP are going to be gradually diminished before you eat and sleep.
He could feel all of his muscles being in pain. He could also feel the hunger and the sleepiness. He crawled towards the inn and used the door to stand up, swiped the dirt off his shirt and walked in. ¡°Welcome to Green Hamlet inn, how can I help you ?¡± A girl¡¯s voice had spoken. ¡°Fooooooooooooood¡± he said, but his stomach growling seemed to be enough to make the kitchen light itself up. And he fell. Again. On something soft. On something that smelled nice. ¡°Oh what a nice floor !¡± he thought to himself. The girl he fell on screamed and hit him on the head.