The last gift box

After equipping everything, Kaden then shifted his attention to the last gift box that was still remaining. The reward from the second one was already so amazing, he couldn't wait to see what the Deluxe Welcome Package would give him.

His hand nervously clicked on the third and last box that had the golden glow.

However, unexpectedly not many notifications flashed in front of him this time. In fact, there were only two notifications but Kaden was staring at these two with his jaw dropped on the ground.

[Ding. You have been awarded 20 free stat points]

[Ding. You have been awarded 5 free skill points]

"20 stat points? 5… 5 skill points?" Kaden couldn't believe his eyes. He now had 20 extra points to distribute on top of his starting stats.

Even an Olympic swimmer wouldn't have this much edge at the beginning of the game!

This was more than enough to give him a huge head start in the game, that too, right from the get-go! More than any item or armor, this was the ultimate boost any level 0 could ask for!

"Ok. This means that I need to change my plans. I don't have to finish any of the time-consuming quests to increase my level. I should already be strong enough for that quest." Kaden thought as he recollected a specific quest in his mind.

While he was mentally calculating a few things, a couple of chubby teenagers swaggered over to him, giving him peculiar glances.

This made Kaden realize that his clothes alone were different and he also had gear to boot, making him stand out among the few players who were only just now arriving at the starting village.

Not many players had yet entered the game since many go through the video and check out the beginner's dungeon. However, there were still some who skipped these things just to first check out the main game world. 

"I can't afford to stand around and waste my time talking to others."

Kaden made a quick decision, rushed off into an alleyway and took a couple of turns, losing his new friends in a second. "Cloverleaf village. Ah. It's good to be back." He chuckled, turning around and confirming that he really was alone.

In reality, there was nothing special about this village. The only thing it was famous for was the nasty grueling starter quests that gave very few experience points for a lot of effort.

A normal player had to spend about one to two weeks in this damned village, depending on how much time they spent inside the game.

However, Kaden had no such plans. Others might not know it, but he knew very well that there was a ticking time bomb over everyone's head. They all had one year!

Exactly only one year, and then everything was going to change. In one year, there were only 52 weeks, so how could he afford to waste two weeks here?

A minute spent here was the same as a minute spent in the outside world. Time flowed the same both inside the game and outside the game.

Even if he spent all of his time playing here without eating or sleeping, he would still not have enough time to do everything he wanted.

Kaden clenched his fists as a weird excitement coursed through him. He felt both excited and nervous at the same time.

With a big grin plastered on his face, he continued walking through the alleyways paying no attention to any of the village NPCs crossing him, all of them with several quests to offer.

He only stopped at the border of the village, where he turned to glance at a couple of eager players scurrying away to finish some quests.

They were simply catching some runaway chicken, but there were wide smiles on their face since they had gotten here faster than the others.

Walking past them, Kaden silently exited the village and headed towards the dense forests that surrounded the newbie village on all sides.

"You there! It's not advisable for a youngster like you to venture alone in the forests." One of the guards warned him, giving him a stern once over. There was even a notification.

[Ding! You are now leaving the safety of the novice village!]

However, Kaden continued to walk into the forests because he knew what he was doing. Well, sort of.

His plan was to head into the forest even if he was still at Level 0, and his final target destination was the city that lay beyond it.

Sure, it was risky but if he played his cards right, it would be worth it!

After entering the lush forest, Kaden walked for a few seconds and then turned around to check and make sure that he was really alone in the forest. Not that he needed to.

The game had only barely begun. Most people should still be stuck listening to the introduction or messing around with the beginner's dungeon tutorial.

Even if they somehow decided to ignore both of those, they still should only be loitering around in the newbie village.

No one would be crazy enough to venture into the unknown forest without gaining a single level, well, nobody except for him.

In all honesty, even Kaden would not have dared to venture into the forest if not for his troll hide items and his bonus stat points.

He had already equipped the troll hide items but as for the bonus stat points, he did not allocate them just yet. He had a solid start so he wanted to be prudent here and prepare for the future. After all, Kaden had some knowledge about the future.

And he was not aiming for the normal player route. If possible, he wanted to grab the impossible.

In 'Apocalypse Online', there were many hidden and powerful legacies that granted unique skills and classes. Naturally, he was not entirely aware of full details regarding such legacies but he did have some clues.

Depending on which path he pursued, these extra stat points might come in handy to help him out. So he did not want to invest them in the wrong attribute by jumping the gun.

For example, if he was going to select a mage-related path, investing these points in strength would be a mistake.

Even though later on he might be able to balance out his stat distribution, he did not want to start on the wrong foot. Besides, if there was really an urgent need for it, he could always invest them whenever he wanted in whatever was required.

Kaden checked his attire one more time, and he then headed right into the thick of the forest, crossing the boundary of the outskirts. His real challenge was going to start now!