Re: Chapter 1

Darknesss snapped out of his thoughts and began moving deeper into the forest. This time, his goal was to find a Field Boss or Dungeon Boss, if any existed.

For two hours, he traveled, slaying countless monsters while searching for a boss. His level rose from 1 to 15. However, fate had other plans.

Suddenly, a Field Boss appeared nearby!

[Goblin Rider King – Lv 50]

Just before its name vanished from sight, Darknesss realized one thing: this boss could see him even in his mist form!

"Damn it!" Darknesss immediately turned and ran as fast as he could. The level difference was too vast.

His original intention was to find a boss below level 30, but luck had twisted into misfortune. Darknesss was self-aware—he wasn't some overpowered character who could defeat enemies far stronger than him.

He was just a slightly insane human.

Darknesss kept running until he escaped the Field Boss's territory. Now, he stood outside the forest, near Starter City No. 11. His breath was ragged, cold sweat dripping down his forehead.

Even though this was just a game, the fear he felt was all too real. His experiences of life and death on the battlefield had left deep trauma within him.

"Damn… I need to heal this trauma." Darknesss gritted his teeth. "Otherwise, I won't be able to fight properly whenever I face opponents stronger than me…"

With trembling hands, he decided to log out and return to the real world.

In the Real World

Aragami Hito opened his eyes in the real world. After playing The Verse for 10 hours straight, he immediately headed to the bathroom to wash his face.

Staring at his reflection in the mirror, he saw a slightly disheveled face with hollow eyes.

"So, it's been a day since The Verse launched…" he thought to himself.

Most pro players were likely busy grinding their levels right now. There was also a chance that some of them had already obtained EX-Rank Items, though the odds were only 0.111%.

Now, he understood just how lucky he was to have obtained two EX-Rank Items at once.

After freshening up, Aragami cooked a simple meal for himself.

Today, he decided to leave the house and clear his mind.

At the City Park

Aragami walked toward the city park. The atmosphere was peaceful—people chatting, laughing, exercising.

It was a stark contrast to the chaos of war.

Peace and destruction were polar opposites.

Aragami sat on an empty park bench, lost in thought.

"I must have been insane to survive the war…" he mused.

"It's been two years since I last experienced the battlefield, yet the fear still lingers. What if war breaks out again? Will I still be able to survive?"

"Hah… it's exhausting to worry about something that hasn't even happened yet…"

Unbeknownst to him, someone had been sitting beside him for a while.

When Aragami finally snapped out of his thoughts, a soft voice greeted him.

"Hello, nice to meet you. My name is Ayunda Riska—just call me Ayunda."

Aragami turned his head. A beautiful woman with fair skin, shoulder-length black hair, and a well-proportioned figure was smiling at him.

Ayunda was slightly intrigued by Aragami—a long-haired, somewhat messy-looking man with an athletic but not overly bulky build.

"Nice to meet you too. I'm Aragami Hito," he replied.

Aragami and Ayunda sat on the park bench, engrossed in a conversation about The Verse, the world's most popular VRMMORPG. They discussed its uniqueness compared to pre-VR games. Their chat lasted quite a while until Ayunda's phone suddenly rang.

"Ah… sorry, I need to take this call real quick," Ayunda said as she stood up and stepped away.

Aragami nodded silently, letting her answer the call. A few minutes later, Ayunda returned with a slightly hurried expression.

"Aragami, I have to go now. There's something I need to take care of," she said. "Can I get your contact number? I'd love to talk again sometime."

"Oh, sure," Aragami replied, pulling out his phone.

He displayed his contact barcode, which Ayunda quickly scanned. In an instant, his number was saved in her phone.

"Thanks! See you again," Ayunda said with a smile before walking away.

"See you, Ayunda," Aragami responded.

Once Ayunda was out of sight, Aragami decided to head home.

In Aragami's Room

As soon as he got home, Aragami strapped on his Animusphere II—his high-end VR device. When the system activated, a transparent blue screen appeared in the darkness, displaying The Verse's logo. A robotic female voice echoed in his mind.

[Welcome back, Mr. Darknesss.]

[Enjoy your adventure.]

Darknesss, Aragami's in-game avatar, spawned in Spawn City No. 11. A virtual breeze brushed past him as he looked around. Many new players had also just respawned.

Before doing anything else, Darknesss opened his status menu:

[ Name: Darknesss

Level: 15

Job: -

Title:

-Manipulator

-Dominator

Stats:

| STR: 100 (+50)

| INT: 100 (+100)

| VIT: 100 (+50)

| DEX: 100 (+50)

| AGI: 100 (+50)

Stat Points: 75

(Numbers in parentheses are title effects.)

Skills:

– Can Change To Anything

– All Resistance

– Immune To Physical Damage

– Immune To Magic Damage

– Mind Control

– Cruel Fanatic

Inventory:

-Symbol of Anti Spiral

-Random Box x20

-Dagger x10

-Sword x10

-Bow x10

-Wolf Claw x20

-Wolf Head x1

-Wolf's Fur x20

-Flower Herb x50

-Iron Plate Goblin x3 ]

"Hmm… Has the Trade to Real Money (TRM) feature opened yet? I also haven't opened my Random Boxes," Darknesss muttered.

Before that, he reshaped his avatar's appearance. Not into his real face, but a new form—fair skin, golden eyes, and short golden hair. With his new look, he headed toward the trading market.

The marketplace was bustling with players and NPCs trading. Darknesss weaved through the crowd until he reached a building with a sign that read: "TRM Exchange."

Upon entering, he was greeted by a receptionist NPC.

"Welcome! How may I assist you?" the receptionist asked politely.

"I want to sell some items," Darknesss replied curtly.

"Please use this panel," the receptionist said, handing him a trade plate—a transparent screen for easy transactions.

Darknesss sold all his monster drops at standard prices.

"Alright, your total earnings are 5 gold coins and 1 silver," the receptionist announced after the transaction.

Without wasting time, Darknesss left the building and headed into a secluded alley. He reactivated Wind Mode to avoid detection, then opened 5 out of his 20 Random Boxes simultaneously.

[Congratulations! You obtained Eye Of Controller .]

[Congratulations! You obtained Excalibur: Wind Form .]

[Congratulations! You obtained Mid Vampire Blood .]

[Congratulations! You obtained Symbol Of King Hassan .]

[Congratulations! You obtained Skill Plasma Blaster .]

[Congratulations! You obtained Dragon Skin .]

[Eye of Controller]

(Body Item – The eye of a creature capable of controlling others' bodies.

INT +20

Skill: Attack Prediction (Rare))

[Excalibur: Wind Form]

(Item - Job Item – King Arthur's sword, infused with wind energy.

Critical Rate +30%

STR +60, AGI +70

Skills: Wind Slasher (Uncommon), Wind Blaster (Super Rare)

Can be used as a weapon or to change Job to King Arthur Incarnation.)

[Mid Vampire Blood]

(Body Item – Mid-tier Vampire blood.

All Stats +30

Grants Vampire Bloodline if consumed.)

[Symbol of King Hassan]

(Job item – Contains the life force of the Assassin King, making the wielder his successor.)

[Plasma Blaster]

(Skill – Fires a devastating attack using atomic energy.

Deals 100% damage based on INT.)

[Dragon Skin]

(Item - Body item – Scales of a dragon that died in battle.

DEF +40

Can be used to turn the player's skin into dragon hide or as crafting material.)

Seeing the results, Darknesss smirked in satisfaction. [Mid Vampire Blood] and [Eye of Controller] were perfect for strengthening the Evil Mode he was designing.

"With these, my Evil Mode will grow even stronger… Hahaha," he chuckled.

However, he ignored [Excalibur: Wind Form]. Job-specific items weren't his priority unless they were EX-Rank.

Without hesitation, Darknesss immediately used [Mid Vampire Blood] and [Eye of Controller]. As their effects took hold, his body surged with immense energy. But an unexpected side effect occurred—he lost balance mid-air and crashed into a giant tree in the forest.

"Damn it…" Darknesss grumbled before realizing something.

"Wait… I'm in Wind Mode. How did I hit a tree? Or is this just comedic timing?" he muttered, puzzled.

As he stood up, the scenery around him caught his attention.

"Huh? Why is such a beautiful place hidden in a monster-infested forest?"

Amidst the flower-covered grass, a large, glowing flower stood out. When Darknesss touched it, a blue screen appeared.

[You have discovered Heavenly Flower.]

[Heavenly Flower]

(A celestial flower planted by a divine messenger.

Blooms once every 100 years.

Can be used to add a New Job Slot for any race.)

Darknesss burst into laughter.

"Hahahahaha! Did the luck of war victims transfer to me? With this, I'll become even stronger!"

A + icon appeared in his Job menu. And he wondered: "Can I give random items to my subordinates?"

Darknesss immediately summoned GoMu, his subordinate. Moments later, a pitch-black humanoid figure arrived and knelt before him.

[ Name: GoMu

Lv: 20

Job: Goblin Swordsman

Title:

-Blessing Spiral Power

Stats:

| STR: 50

| INT: 20

| VIT: 20

| DEX: 50

| AGI: 40

Stat Points: 50

Skills:

–Sword Slash

–Dash

–Piercing Sword

–Spiral Berserk ]

"Good, you've arrived… Seems like you've evolved," Darknesss remarked.

"You also gain 5 stat points per level in your Goblin Swordsman job, unlike your previous Sword Goblin job, which only gave 3."

Seeing GoMu's improved stats, Darknesss smiled in satisfaction.

He then handed [Dragon Skin] and [Symbol of King Hassan] to GoMu—the first step in strengthening his army.