Chapter 4: Differences

Amidst the prolific field of white berries whose flowers bloomed and its time coming soon stood a gentlewoman in her pink sundress with a straw hat on her head. Through her pristine fingers, she ran through the soft yellowish petals of the plants as she carefully gaited on the gaps between white berries.

[Kristen]

[Calling: Farmer]

[Chosen Difficulty: Impassible]

Dan Kirsten Sophia longed for that serene tapestry of the province's life. All her life she had been confined in the sultry air-polluted streets of the city with highrise buildings that overshadowed the beauty of the sky and sun along with its glory.

"This is the life I wish to have," she whispered to herself as she pulled herself back to the reality that only when she retires will she be able to get the life she seeks in the countryside. "Soon..."

For now, she let herself indulge in the fresh breeze of the fields as her straw hat got swept up in the air. But instead of running after it, she just happily watches as it flies further from where she is.

While Entrants from different difficulties were struggling to survive against the chaotic hands of fate, Kristen was living in the moment, basking in the serenity of life and her solitude.

"If only I could live here forever..."

[System notice!]

Peace exists within our minds. Our thoughts disrupt the said peace when we are at war with ourselves. Let yourself be at peace and see how tranquil life can get.

***

On the other side of the world, death and destruction prevails. Monsters kill Entrants and the latter does the same. But there are circumstances when an Entrant must kill a fellow player. And the same applies to monsters.

All for the sake of survival.

Everything was done to keep themselves alive without either losing their valuables or their minds.

The same goes for Maverick. For the past 12 hours of playing the early version of Ethereal, he had been consecutively slaughtered, mangled, and torn apart by the wolves, which were being controlled by the Dark Froozbear.

He wanted to quit so badly. His insides feel sick, wanting to vomit all the time as he bathes in his own blood all the time.

"I--I can't... No more of this!"

The system brought up the menu and the "quit" button was now available.

[Auto saving Entrant Maverick's progress.]

[Do you wish to leave?]

"YES! FUCKING YES!"

Trembling in the subtle aching of his body, remembering the damage done to him all throughout his game time, Maverick finally left and immediately took off his Vortex X.

Deep heaving and bullets of sweat are expressed in the mentally drained Maverick. He sat there on his bed, gawking at his own hands as the stench of his own blood faintly trickled up his nostrils. It was vile—gut-wrenching and he could not constantly breathe.

"AHHH!"

He was suffering... silently, in his own head. His skin tearing up, his neck getting bitten, all of his limbs were being torn apart, all of it hurt, and he could still feel the wounds he endured.

Suddenly, his stomach growled. He glanced at the table clock he had beside his small bed in a white blank sheet.

"It's already morning..."

Maverick surged, collecting his thoughts together and staggering on his first few steps. Dizziness delivered him away from the kitchen but to the bathroom.

*Bleugh!*

After vomiting most of what was left in his stomach—mostly water—Maverick clutched onto the sink and gargled to clean his mouth that reeked of vile.

"I'm depleted of my energy."

He went for a cup of water and got himself bread to satiate his hunger. However, his body rejected the food and water he consumed, thus throwing up once again. This time, not in the bathroom but in the kitchen.

"Haa... Fuck! I made a mess..."

Now he had to clean up, but he was too tired to do so, so he just sat down on the floor and curled up before he realized that he ought to wipe his puke, otherwise, it would cause an unendurable smell.

With a clean cloth and a small bucket of water, Maverick began weakly wiping the floor and squeezing it out onto the bucket.

"It will take time to recover..."

***

A four-hour sleep proved to be insufficient for a deep sleeper like Maverick. Bags were vague under his eyes while looking all weak and meek.

As soon as he reached his classroom for the first subject at 8 am in the morning, he sank down his seat and rested his face on the desk of his chair. His actions instantly caught the attention of his classmates who helped him understand the game, rushing to his side.

"Hey, Maverick! How did that game you played go?"

With a weak response, the two asked him again.

"Did it go well?"

He raised his head and they saw how horrendous he looked.

"Dude?! You look pale and lifeless! Are you sure you're okay?"

"You said it yourself, Lim. I look pale and lifeless, of course, I am not okay..." He answered and then rested his face back at his desk once again.

"Tell us what happened, Maverick," Moruel brushed Maverick's back as he waited for his classmate's story. "Surely, it was not that bad, no?"

Abruptly raising his head with a frown on his face, Maverick spoke: "Not that bad?! I had to endure death more than 20 times! I was constantly ripped apart with my neck and vocal cords torn off. I was drowning in my own blood and it hurt so much until I could not resist anymore... After I respawned, I just accepted my fate."

"What the hell?! Monsters were spawned camping you?! That's an advanced-level monster!"

"It was not that painful?! I played the same game and it was bearable."

"It felt like my skin was slowly getting peeled and my brain being bashed without a stop! It hurts. It fuc—"

"You could have just lowered the pain receptors in the settings, Maverick, y'know?"

Maverick froze, processing what he just heard from Lim.

"Repeat yourself again, Lim. I couldn't quite hear it the first time."

"The pain receptors can be lowered in the settings, so it won't hurt as much as it does in real life."

"Are you fucking kidding me?" He cursed not Lim but the game itself. "All those 12 hours that I was under immense pain, I could have just lowered the pain receptors?!"

"Yeah, but that only applies to easy-to-expert mode. Impossible level has its own rules and regulations."

A sigh of relief came about Maverick when he learned that he could not do anything about it, otherwise he'd be regretful of his actions.

"Wait, what the hell am I even relieved for?!" He muttered to himself, then went back to his two classmates.

Maverick regained some of his energy when he had someone to dump his unfortunate experience inside the game. He began storytelling with his journey through the piling snow. Lim and Moruel were amazed and worried at the same time, considering Maverick's decision to play in "Impossible" mode, which most do not opt for.

"That's tough but stupid at the same time. I mean, why would you choose the hardest level when you have zero experience in gaming?! A full-dive VR game at that!"

Maverick just lazily shrugged his shoulders, "for the fun of it? Well, I'm done with it. I can't risk my mental health with it, plus there's the curse of the Dark Froozbear, which allowed it to force my respawn point. I don't want to deal with that again."

"No," Lim shook Maverick ever so lightly. "Moruel and I will help you with it! Let's all play together and defeat that bastard Dark Froozbear!"

"Really? You guys are the best!"

"Hey! I didn't agree! Why am I getting dragged into this?! Didn't you hear his story, Lim? He's surrounded by wolves twice his size and we can't lower our pain receptors in impossible mode!"

As usual, the classroom was busy with each student going about their own business. It was full of chatter while the hallway resonated with the echoes of footsteps from passing students and professors.

"Later tonight we can hop on the game and help Maverick earn some EXP."

Moruel was still reluctant to lend a helping hand while Lim was all for it. The two have been together since elementary. They have formed an unyielding bond throughout their childhood. Lim and Moruel are partners in crimes— they have each other's back.

***

Deep within the trenches of the sea lies the slumbering apex predators who are feared by most ocean creatures. Astounding and differently powerful, these sea monsters lay dormant. In the span of 200 years, the peace and serenity in "Neptune" has never waned and been disturbed. All thanks to the "Oceaneroes", which basically portray the "Heroes of the Ocean".

Due to their diligence and hard work, plus their remarkable and unmatched skills, they were able to seal the "Apex Threats" of the sea. But it was no easy work, for the Oceaneroes lost almost all of their forces. Only two lucky survivors had lived to tell the greatest tale of their lives.

However, all of the peace and serenity that they had brought forth is about to collapse as the impending tempestuous storm of the ocean current is about to turn the tide.

~