Chapter 1 - New Beginnings

"Brother! Didn't I tell you not to buy that stupid expensive game!" The young girl said, bursting in the room, alarming the young man sitting at a desk. In her hand was the receipt the young man threw away, hoping she wouldn't notice. In hindsight, maybe he shouldn't have thrown the box in the trash too.

The young man was caught right before placing the helmet on his head. But Before he could defend himself, the girl continued to speak: "give me that thing, we're returning it today!"

Stumping towards her brother, she reached to grab the helmet away from him. "We don't have the funds for something like this!"

"Wait, wait, wait! I can explain! Let me explain," he said while holding out his one free hand, stopping her from her assault. "This game can make us a lot of money."

"Yeah, yeah, I've heard it all before, but we have more important things to worry about." She stepped back, clearly annoyed at her brother's foolish decision. "You can't continue doing this."

He places the helmet onto the desk, sighing before turning to confront his sister. "I understand our financial situation, but if you give me the chance... I can prove to you this can work."

There was a moment of silence before his sister spoke, "I'll give you one week, if you can't be a man of your word... we return the game."

Overjoyed with his sister's decision, he leapt towards her to give her a big hug. Instead of receiving a warm, love filled hug in return; he felt a sharp pain in his head.

"That's what you get! Keep your word... and clean up this room, yuck."

As soon as the door closed, he sprang for his gamer chair. Holding the helmet in his hands once more, he contemplated the promise he made with his sister. "I won't let her down."

He positions the helmet on his head, taking a deep breath while he places his finger on the 'on' button. "Let's do this!"

The young man's body fell into a state close to profound sleep within a few seconds after the button was pressed. He couldn't smell his room anymore, and he couldn't feel the heat. He was standing upright instead, but he also felt as if he was levitating. It gave him the sense of floating in space, as if there was no gravity.

He opened his eyes to total darkness, like the night sky but absent of stars. What stood out in the mist of this darkness was a long bar, similar to a loading screen.

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"I can see... and I can move... I feel super light."

The young man erupted in excitement; he didn't think he'll live to experience something like this.

When they both lost their parents, he was eleven and she was eighteen. They didn't have any close relatives who could take them in, so his sister chose to take care of them both. He was now eighteen, and he had been working on and off for the past five years to assist his sister. Even while the small money he did make helped, it wasn't enough to put them at ease.

However, for this young man who has spent a majority of his life being supported by her; He was able to continue living without despair because of his older sister, who supported him without any serious complaints.

"So this is the popular VR MMORPG with 100% immersion, huh."

When he first learned of the game from watching countless videos on vutube, he couldn't believe his eyes.

This was a game that could literally allow you to live another life, and all you needed was your mind. He wouldn't need to move one single limb while playing this game, unlike console games. Who would believe that such an advanced technological piece of equipment could exist? Noted that this advanced piece of technology isn't something someone could buy if they didn't blow their savings.

It was unbelievable at first, but having loaded into the game, somewhat, he could only believe it.

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The loading bar continued to progress as he played around, familiarizing the feeling of moving his limbs. In IRL, your body felt heavier, but in the game it was lighter.

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The black emptiness quickly brightened as the game's title emerged, transforming the entire space into a cottage-like chamber. Lights in the distance lit up one by one in front of the young man's eyes.

Whoosh. Whoosh. Whoosh...

The number of lights that flickered on in the distance was numerous, and they all eventually led to a dark area not far ahead of him. The dark place screamed

"There's a monster in there, don't go."

All of a sudden, the sound from the lighting flames died down, leaving only one candle lit, revealing a man sipping tea. The gentleman dutifully and elegantly placed his cup on the table.

"So..." the young man could only watch, confused, as the man who appeared from the darkness of the room stared him down from top to bottom with an intrigued expression on his otherworldly face.

His physique emanated confidence, dressed in an odd red and black striped suit. His features were symmetrical, crisp, and free of blemishes. At the end of the day, he didn't appear to be an ordinary man; nevertheless, given that this was a game, this could be the case. Though he seemed interested in the young man, he appeared to be on the verge of being bored.

He peered at him with his dark golden eyes that overflowed with a sense of dominance. His aura radiated with a dictatorial power that the young man couldn't understand.

"Listen well, I am the representative who will be introducing you to your status." He continued, "we will make this transaction quick, I do have more important matters to attend to."

Waving his hand from left to right from in front of him, particles began to generate in between them. Then, bursting out of the particles, a stone tablet appeared, riddled with cracks and ancient text.

"What is your species called again? Humans? Place your hand on this." He spoke with a tone befitting a ruler, yet the young man felt strangely annoyed.

'What's with this guy, what's wrong with the NPC's?' He thought.

"I just put my hand here," he continued. He obeyed his order and placed a hand on the tablet, believing what the NPC told him. 'It's cold,' he thought to himself instinctively. The tablet shimmered with a faint light before the words lifted from the tablet, floating in the air around him.

What the young man interpreted as a menu, appears in front of him, showing multiple labels.

Name: ???

Bloodline: ???

Legacy: ???

Inheritance: Monarch

Benefaction: ???

Physique: average

Physical strength: average

Mental strength: average

Physical defense: average

Dominion: 3,000

Natura: 100/100

Etc...

"!!!" The man's face twisted in delight upon seeing the information from the tablet, his eyes were filled with disbelief.

"HAHAHA, this should be celebrated!" His hands trembled with what appeared to be anticipation. "Not to mention that his dominion is at the rank of 'lord and master' - no, that is nothing compared to his inheritance!"

It's been a long time since he's seen someone with the class of monarch, his class could make things a whole lot more interesting.

"You've been twitching over there, and spouting stuff, you good dude?" The young man asked out of genuine concern.

He focused his golden eyes back on the boy standing in front of him, thinking to himself: "I can't let this opportunity escape my grasp, the others can't have him."

"Speak your name." He asked with a serious expression.

The boy put much thought into his answer, "Hmm... you can call me 'touch me'.

The room went completely silent again, as the Man stared baffled at what he had heard, "Amusing and Interesting!" He clapped, though it didn't feel genuine. "give me a real name before I kill you."

"Ahh, I thought this was a username thing... you can call me Nefeli."

"Listen carefully, human. The menu you see in front of you is your stats and attributes, you'll learn more about it after you leave here, so I won't go into needless detail."

Using a similar motion he used to summon the tablet that floated in front of Nefeli, a circular pedant appeared in his hand.

"Take this pendant and keep it on you until we meet again. I would like to be your benefactor." The man said, as he tossed the item towards Nefeli. "The pendant I gave you is very valuable, and it would trouble me so if you lost it, so don't."

He continued, "Human, you have a skill I'm interested in, but we're running out of time, let's meet again."

"Wait...Wait...Wait... I have-" before Nefeli could question the man further, the lights began to blow out, masking the man and Nefeli in darkness once again.

"What a weird old man, what was up with all the killing nonsense?" He glanced around the empty space.

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As soon as the timer reached one, Nefeli's sight twisted leaving him with a slight headache. Opening his eyes, after blinking multiple times, he found himself in a very large grand courtyard with a beautiful large tree in its center. He wasn't the only one witnessing this magnificent spectacle, around him stood other's who were wearing the exact same light body armor as him.

"So I finally made it, huh? Unbelievable." It met every expectation he had of how it would look in game. From the floating mountains, strange bird like silhouettes in the sky, and strange small critters running amongst the court. He was in a different world.

"Greetings, young adventurers! You will come to know me as Philander, angel, and overseer of the distant lands. I am here to ensure that you are all prepared for the MASSIVE adventure you'll have. So, what will you all set your mind to, I wonder?" An old man, that almost appeared Nordic, suddenly greeted everybody with a resonant voice. This made everyone in the courtyard instinctually look up to locate the sound.

"We can fly in this game! And what's that he's standing on, a bird?" Said the people exclaiming the obvious but with understood intentions.

Taking a deep breath, he continued: "questions will be heard and answered later, first you will learn of the world you are now a part of — the world of massive."

"As I said before, we are currently in the distance lands, grand court district 12. Before you were transported here, you all met one of the members of the parliament who are in charge of each of your evaluations. They introduced you to your statuses; it tells you all about yourself."

"Now, let's start with the basics. In this world, you will encounter monsters and other players who power accumulate into a source called natura that allows them to exert supernatural abilities. Generally, we call them adepts and the more skilled you are, the stronger you will be in the world. Such things as bloodlines and legacy is a feature you can come across later, if you're lucky. As for every other basic characteristics, such as strength and natura, everyone has a variant."

With a quick snap of his finger, tons of small birds that looked to be made of energy began to fly pass him towards the people.

"Allow them to rest on your fingers, and think of an activation."

Following his directions, the crowd resounded soon afterwards.

"Something popped in a menu saying I have a fire aligned energy! Does that mean I have fire power?"

Philander looked towards the first young man to exclaimed his affinity, elaborating on his question, "the elements are the basic alignments that your energy can take, though basic, you are indeed an adept.

Many roared until one stood out from the rest, "it says I have an elemental alignment?"

"Ah, a rarity out of the bunch... count yourself lucky girl, you would be cauterized in the group that's a step above the rest. You are capable of using all the basic elements."

"In this world there are three tiers of alignments: tier one is elements spells, tier two is the Magic's, and ruler class that is advance.

"Philander, can you explain what concept and ruler aliments mean? And what's the difference between the ranks?"

Philander took a moment to think, before speaking with a grin, "if someone has a tier above you, then they are more skilled. They are capable of doing more spells than someone at tier one. Naturally, the more skilled you are, the easier it is for you to be an adept!"

Those who were considered rarity's in the bunch, face's sunk as they learned that they weren't special.

"Is it easy to reach the next tier?" Suddenly asked by someone in the crowd.

"Your tier can be changed, though it will be a tough and long process, but most are capable of breaking into their two, however, tier three is only there for those who are determined."

The whole crowd sighed in relief, learning that they could make it to the second tier with enough effort.

'Why is my element white?'

"Does anyone here attain anything out of the ordinary from what was described?" Philander said, glancing through the crowd, making sure he wouldn't miss anyone if someone did. However, when no one in the crowd reacted, the glee in his eyes dimmed like the setting sun.

He had not covered the BLIB system, only because no one here should have them. However, he would still check as it has happened before.

"The chances of someone receiving a BLIB from the start is extremely low, the path to fame would be easily opened to them, so it isn't surprising that such a prodigy wouldn't appear amongst a small number of adepts" He shook his head inwardly.

"Philander, what if someone had two?" An individual suddenly spoke out loud, causing everyone there to look towards him."

"Hoh... if that were the case, very few would be able to match you. Money and fame would all be yours, though it will come with its own... challenges. Why do you ask such a question... do you have such luck?"

Moments before he said anything, he remembered what the strange man told him, 'keep it a secret'. He didn't know the reason why, but it has to do with the challenges he spoke of. Nefeli wanted money, but having to work hard for it is something he would rather avoid.

"Oh... I uh...never-mind, I was only curious, that's all."

Philander squinted his eyes towards the young man, taking another moment to think, "what is your name?"

"Nefeli."

"Hmm, Nefeli... Peculiar."

"Never-mind him, philander, I am in possession of a BLIB given to me by one of the parliament members" an individual shouted out loud to gain his attention.

"Hoh? To have beat the odds and received a BLIB, You are a very fortunate one, State your name."

"My name is Nedaj" replied the muscular young man.

"Nedaj? Isn't he the son of that big CEO who owns a small part of Massive?"

Some people recognized the muscular young man, whose body appeared the same as it did IRL. Though, for a majority of them, it wasn't his face that they remembered.

"Did you receive something from the representative who assessed you?" Philander asked with great interest.

"Yes I did." Nedaj did not hesitate to expose the fact, and told him everything. "She gave me this pendent."

'He received a pendant too?" Nefeli thought to himself, clutching his pocket.

"Very interesting...the pendant that you hold in your hand is definite proof of your invitation into a collective. If you so happen to meet the person who gave it to you, they might even recruit you as a disciple. For now, you can consider them a benefactor. However, it isn't a Blib."

"Is a collective a another form of guild? And what is a benefactor?"

"A guild is a system created and shared amongst the adepts who travel to this world. Collectives are similar, but controlled by the gods of this world. Those who they show interest in are capable of being nurtured by them. Added that the pendant would give you special privileges if you were accepted."

He clears his throat, "as for a benefactor, think of a parent doting on their child or a teacher helping a student, you'll learn more about that as you travel."

"Are there any more questions? Does anyone else harbor such an item?"

After a moment of silence, philander shook his head and thought to himself, 'what a pity that there was only one person out of thousands that is worth investing in. At least this group has some notable stand-outs. We can't steal him without upsetting someone powerful, I'll inform my higher of the others.'

"One last thing before I release you all from my care... what do you all desire to achieve in this world? Strength? Influence? Wealth? Handsome men or beautiful women? Announce your dreams, adepts!"

"I want power!"

"I want women!"

"I want wealth, like a lot of wealth!"

"I want fame!"

Philander nodded upon hearing their desires. "Listen to me, if you want to survive in this world, you will need the courage to fight! In this world and all worlds, the strong control the weak! Fame, glory, wealth, it will all come with strength. People will naturally flock to you if you're strong! Heed me well, mortals — this world swallows the weak and the inferior, it only respects the powerful! To have strength is to have everything!"

"Who has the most power in this world?" Philander peered down onto the masses, sending a chill down their spines.

"Adepts! We, adepts, signify power, wealth, and fame — We are the law of this world!"

"Is an adept some sort of class every one shares?" The mass pondered.

"Philander, how do we become adepts?"

All he could do was laugh. "It's simple, really." He suddenly snaps his finger, and thousands of shinny orbs appeared all around them. Everyone watched in amazement as the shiny spheres gather around them. Eventually, every shiny sphere around them formed into a huge ball that burst and collected inside them.

"Adepts are what you all are, it is not a class. I have given you the ability to now express those abilities. It is now up to you how you use them, become a true adept or live in the shadows of those who are great."

Philander, with another snap, forms five portals in front of the group. "Each portal represents a continent. In this world there are five, where we are standing is outside those. Within each continent are districts, districts watched over by angels such as myself. Once you step inside one of these portals, it will take you to a city within one of these five continents. It will be random, and even I won't know where you have gone, so it's up to your luck."

"Now get out of here, I'm tired of your new faces. You'll learn all you need to know the more you traverse the world. Though, I could tell you all, I don't feel like it."

With a flick of his wrist, every soul there was seemly pulled towards the portals.

"Ahhhhhhh! What the hell is happening!"

Screams could be heard for miles, for those who crossed through the portal would soon appear in this massive and unknown world at random.

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After being tossed through the portal like a rag doll, Nefeli felt the dizziness he felt before. Before he was aware, he was sent to the middle of a forest.

"Where the hell am I? Did he at least give us a map?"

Suddenly a notification popped into his field of vision, a button he instinctually pressed.

A large map materialized in front of him. Five continents separated by oceans and mountains were in clear view.

"Northern continent?" That all the information he could gather from what he saw, everything else was blacked out. It must be areas that he must explore to eventually see.

Nefeli lean back onto his arms, looking to the sky and sighed. "I didn't get to ask that strange man what a monarch was, plus he told me to keep it a secret. Added that... philander... said I could face potential challenges for having this... class?"

In his pocket he held a pendant, and Somehow in his hand a coin with a crystal and note: "a present for the idiot."

"Hmm, well anyways... It's TIME TO MAKE SOME MONEY!"