Tutorial

The light that surrounded Felix slowly started fading away, as his eyes were still throbbing from it – though it wasn't anything unusual by now. As he rubbed them, everything around him started gaining more shape, and he could recognize the familiar sight of the Resting Grounds. Felix let out a small sigh of relief as his back slouched slightly, and he started rubbing the back of his neck in uneasiness and a bit of embarrassment. He noticed his head was heavier than usual, so he reached up and took off the heavy crown that rested on it.

Felix inspected it for a while, even though he already knew what it did. Such an overpowered item... and it was all his. Felix tightened his free fist and he couldn't help but crack a smirk, as he threw the crown safely into his inventory, where it was probably gonna remain up until he found a use for it... A use for the key part of it. But, as soon as the golden crown passed through his green window representing his inventory, a bunch of other Blanks started opening up all around him rapidly, covering his surroundings.

"What the fuuuck...?"

Felix glanced over the green windows for a bit, only reading the titles of them – titles like [Tutorial], [Aether], [Shop] and [Full Experience], but also something really interesting was amongst them... [Leaderboard]. He finally pulls one of the Blanks closer, and starts reading while getting a bit more serious.

[Congratulations on unlocking the Shop!While in the Resting Grounds, use your Aether to buy whatever your heart desires and become the Top Liner! Godspeed!]

"Aether... Aether? Doesn't that sound familiar?"

Felix searched through his mind for a bit, trying to remember what the term meant with a finger placed on his chin, before finally letting out a loud "Oh, yeah!" and nodding like crazy.

"The currency of The Line or whatever, wasn't it? I remember from that white void..."

And, even if just the thought of the false God – that shadow – annoyed him, he couldn't deny that the information he got back then was quite useful. He threw the [Shop] Blank aside and pulled another one closer, reading it with a vigorous look in his eyes.

[Congratulations on unlocking Aether!

Aether is what you can call (Money). It is the only currency of The Line and can be traded with the villagers and citizens of the Floors for goods, or it can be used in the Resting Grounds Shop. Godspeed!]

Felix nodded slightly as he read the Blank, while letting out a small sigh. Once he was finished, he pushed it aside. He scratched the back of his neck uncertain as he spoke, "Wait, so we can trade with the people from The Line? But, if the Shop and them share a currency, then... that's gonna be annoying to manage, isn't it...?"

He quickly pulled another Blank closer, as his eyes seemed to revive instantly, "Whatever, I'll figure it out! Next!"

[Congratulations, Liner. You have successfully completed the Tutorial of The Line.

May your choices and friends stand strong, and may your enemies kneel at just the mention of your name. Make it to the top and best them all, including me. Godspeed!]

While reading this one, Felix wasn't as lively anymore. This Blank... For some reason, it reminded him of that dream. Of the dream that, for some reason, made his Blanks green, and made them give him hints, and missions... He still didn't understand why he was chosen. Hell, he didn't even know if he was chosen or if everyone was going through something similar...!

But.

He was certain of one thing. Felix was gonna keep his promise.

"Make it to the top?" he asked annoyed, as he grabbed the Blank with an empty expression on his face. "Best you? Did you forget, you narcissistic god?"

Felix tightened his grip on the Blank and swung it at the floor as hard as he could, with it immediately shattering into a million shards. He stomped on the pieces of it, rubbing the sole of his foot against them, only for them to disappear before he was done. His expression was derogatory and pissed, and he stomped on the pieces once more, harder. 

"I told you, asshole. I'm gonna kick you down from your throne, like it or not."

Felix sighed and he hastily grabbed one of the only Blanks that remained, reading it without much interest. As he did, the Blank pieces on the floor started dissipating into nothingness and soon, no proof of them ever existing remained.

[You have unlocked the Full Experience of The Line. Keep in mind, your choices matter, and your actions have consequences. Don't make hasty decisions. Make choices you know you won't regret. Godspeed!]

Felix clicked his tongue as he read through it, and even if he didn't feel like understanding or agreeing with this false God, he knew what this meant. And, for lack of a better example, The Line was like...

"...A game, then? You make choices, the NPCs remember... and if you fuck up, it'll come back to bite you in the ass eventually? Oh, that's... just wonderful. Shit. I should've been nicer to the Queen..."

And now, the last Blank. Felix threw aside the one he just finished reading and pulled the only one remaining closer – after all, he was saving the best for last. The [Leaderboard] Blank.

[Congratulations on reaching Top 600 of The Liners, {Felix Fox}! Out of (598) remaining alive Liners, you placed on the (598)th spot. Godspeed!]

"What."

Felix couldn't believe his eyes. Wouldn't believe his eyes. He was about to laugh from how stupid this all sounded in the first place. He, who managed to defeat the Aratashi in a one-on-one, who was the only one to hold King Arthur's crown... Felix was at the very bottom of the Leaderboard? The worst Liner?

"You're... kidding...?"

Felix was worthless?

He took a step closer to the Blank and re-read it, over and over and over again. This wasn't right. This couldn't be right. It didn't make any sense. In his despair and anger, he muttered "Leaderboards..." as his eyes started sliding across the full Leaderboard. Obviously, the top three were to be expected.

[|Leaderboard|

1. Haruko Aratashi

2. Kim Jaehyun

3. Adam White

4. Henjo Bulbri

5. Omaka Madokka

6. Zoey Kang

...]

The list obviously kept going, but frankly... he didn't really care. Of course, those three were at the top, while he... Felix was at the very bottom. He stared at the Blank for a bit, but he knew it wasn't gonna just straight up lie to him. He grabbed it in anger, wanting to smash it up on the floor. But right before he destroyed it... he paused. Felix glanced at the Blank once more, repeating that word. Lie.

"Lie... Would God... lie...?"

Felix stopped completely. He once again brought it closer to his face then let go, as it idly floated in the air. He sighed heavily then ran his hands through his hair, messing it up even more than it usually was. He did it out of annoyance, but he was also thinking, taking deep breaths.

"I'm not smart enough for this bullshit, damn it... Out of all the plot twists I've ever drawn, they... don't even hold a candle to this..."

Felix stomped his foot on the ground as he threw his little tantrum, but suddenly, his hands stopped running through his hair. His eyes swung open, and he spoke so quietly it wasn't even a whisper, as barely any air was coming out of his mouth.

"{Stat Gamble...?}"

There was a slight pause, then the sound of plastic could be heard hitting wood, then spinning around. Yes. Yes!

[Rolling dice. Godspeed!]

"C'mon... Be above a ten... Be above a ten, damn it!"

Felix was already used to the sound of the die rolling around in his head, but that didn't mean he wasn't a bit nervous as it started losing momentum, and landing on a...

[Twelve. Congratulations!

According to the user's needs, temporarily increasing Arcana by two Stat Points.]

"Nice... is what I would say, but... how's Arcana gonna help me if I don't even know what it is in the first place?! Blank!"

As Felix started reading his own Stats, his finger landed on ACN. That must've been Arcana. It was still sitting at just a four – or, a six, thanks to the buff – since he didn't bother upgrading it because he didn't know what it did... but maybe it acted like intelligence? Since there was no INT on there...

"...That must be it? And I'm guessing it's also related to my mana, but... I suppose I don't have that problem, do I."

Felix said this in a monotone voice as he glanced at his {Sponge} skill, then he closed the Blank completely. He sat down on the cold, hard floor, and he started racking his brains as much as possible. He wasn't just trying to figure out some small scale stuff. Because, after all...

...He was trying to figure out why God would lie about his ranking.

His Arcana might've been low to start off, but Felix was in no way stupid. He knew he already bested the Top Three, even if just by luck. He should be up there, somewhere, anywhere, but he wasn't – he was on the very last place. Felix sighed, and he fell on his back, now staring at the ceiling. He couldn't make sense of it, so, he decided not to think about it. He raised his hand out as he yelled out, more in annoyance than necessity, "Store! Or, uh, shop or whatever!"

Then, right by his fingertips, a Blank opened up, just as green as the rest. The shop. Felix let out a small "Nice!" as he sat upwards on his ass alongside the Blank, and he started scrolling through it. It wasn't exactly anything interesting, just some potions and bad weapons... He was expecting to find some super good item that everyone just so happened to overlook, like in manhwas and mangas, but he didn't have any sort of luck. Instead, he found...

"Cabbages, potatoes, and... rusty swords. This shop's a scam! Ugh!"

Felix waved the Blank off, only to be met by another one popping open right in his face. This one, titled [Inventory Explanation], didn't have a close button, meaning... it must've been important, right?

[Next is an Inventory Explanation. Please, pay close attention – it might save your life.

On The Line, everything you carry around in your inventory doesn't just disappear, and as such, and it can't simply reappear at will. Everything is minimized to its maximum limits, stored inside your consciousness, then redeployed through the Blanks you summon.]

"Ah, the hell, so the whole time I was reaching into my soul? Creepy..."

[Additionally, while everything is stored inside of your essence, its weight cannot just not exist. That's why, during the time something is in your inventory, half of its weight is put on your person, while half is hidden completely. Think of it like wearing a backpack.

In other words, your Inventory Size depends on your strength to carry everything around. Please keep this in mind and be mindful of what you carry and when you carry it. Godspeed!]

Felix grunted as he rubbed the bridge of his nose, and the Blank finally closed on its own once he was done reading it. This whole thing was way more complicated than it needed to be. Who the hell came up with it, anyways? Either way, mad or not, Felix couldn't do anything but shrug his shoulders and live with it – it wasn't like he was gonna be free of this system, not anytime soon.

He scratched the back of his neck as he was thinking, eyes closed. He wasn't sure what to even do anymore. The Arcana buff probably wore off by now anyway, and he was back to being... little old Felix. And little old Felix was, as usual, in the very last place. Just like he was used to being. And how he was going to be... forever and always.

"Man, I... I wanna go home... so bad..."

Felix waited for a moment. And waited. And waited even more, but it was in vain. Felix knew God heard him, but he also knew they weren't gonna respond anytime soon.

"Shitty fuckin' clown... If I knew it would've ended like this, I wouldn't have ever bothered going to church..."

Just as he was about to turn around and throw himself on anything soft there might have been in the Training Grounds, a sound echoed behind him. A small 'Ding!' followed by a shallow green light. Felix slowly looked back, an annoyed and disgusted look on his face. But he couldn't help himself from chuckling.

[Do you despise me, Creation?]

"...Hah, fuck me. I never thought you'd talk to me directly."

[I've always been present. It is as I have told you, your eyes cannot fathom the realm I am in as of now.]

"Not even {Clear Vision}, then?"

[Especially not Clear Vision.]

"...So. God. Are you... God?"

[I am the one you all pray to, if that's what your question is.]

"I've never exactly been... the most religious person on the planet."

[I know.]

Felix covered his face, laughing as he read the Blank, "Hahahah, of course you'd know..."

[Speak your mind, Creation. Why do you seek my audience?]

"Well... I..."

A million things were rushing through Felix's head, and double the questions. He had one shot at this. One shot at clearing things up, at learning more about this world, The Line. Why was he scored so low? Why were his Blanks green? Why was he dragged in here? Felix wasn't sure what to ask first... Hell, he wasn't sure how many questions he got before God left.

But... at that time, just for Felix's peace of mind, and nothing else... he had just one question he needed answering.

"Say... Do you have a throne, God?"

[Not entirely. But I do have something similar.]

Felix chuckled, getting up and bringing the Blank up with him as he did. He dusted himself off, set the Blank in front of him, and pointed at it while smirking.

"Good. Keep it nice and warm for me, you asshole. I'm on my way."

The Blank went silent for a few seconds, staying stationary and unchanging. Finally, it flickered as the text changed.

[Heh. I see why she chose you, Felix Fox.]

"Huh? She...?"

[Godspeed.]

Afterwards, the Blank flickered in and out of existence, then soon faded away completely, leaving Felix even more confused than before. He grunted as he rubbed his eyes. True, he might've wasted his question on something useless, but for some reason... he didn't regret it whatsoever. Felix let out a small sigh as he sat back down, looking up at the ceiling as he decided whether to lie down on the hard floor or not. Talking with God was way tenser than he imagined... Well, he never thought he would have a casual conversation with God in the first place. Felix then fell backwards, lying down on the hard floor, though he hardly cared anymore.

"Phew... Man, that was fucked... Ugh, whatever. Kim! So, tell me, should we buy anything from the sho—"

Felix punched the floor as he got up to talk to Kim, but, he soon realized... that Kim never came with him to the Resting Grounds in the first place, did he. How'd he not notice earlier...? The whole room was abandoned, and their wooden swords still sat on the floor, motionless and seemingly brand new. Yet, obviously, this raised the question...

...Where is Kim Jaehyun?