The first time I died in Shadow Online, it was to a chicken.
Not a dragon, not a demon lord, not some cyberpunk hacker boss—nope. A chicken.
Granted, it was a giant chicken, feathers puffed out like it had just been injected with steroids and rage, but still. My legacy as the first player in the world's first true full-dive VRMMORPG had begun with an obituary reading: "Newbie slain by poultry."
If you're wondering how it happened, congratulations. You think I planned it. Truth is, I was standing in the middle of the starter village, trying to figure out why my Assassin character had literally zero armor and a dagger that looked like it came out of a kindergarten craft set, when this oversized chicken ran across the path. Naturally, my gamer instincts kicked in: free XP.
Except the chicken kicked back. Hard.
Logging In
But let's rewind a bit, because that wasn't supposed to be my grand entrance.
When Shadow Online released, it broke the world. Forget console wars. Forget eSports. This wasn't a game—it was an economy, an experiment, and maybe a religion depending on how many forums you read. The VR rigs cost more than used cars, but I was lucky—or cursed—enough to snag one after selling the last remnants of my failed attempt at college furniture. RIP beanbag chair.
Setup was easy: lie down, slap on the neural mesh, pray my brain didn't fry. A glowing login screen lit up in my head. My entire body felt like I'd fallen through warm water, weightless and buzzing. Then the tutorial voice spoke, soft and smooth, like Siri had gone to acting school.
"Welcome to Shadow Online. Please select your starting class."
Now, this is where any sane human picks Warrior, Knight, or Mage. Big swords. Fireballs. Cool armor. I, however, am not sane.
The Assassin class sat in the corner of the screen like a neglected stepchild. Low stats. Weak starting gear. Reviews from beta players called it "garbage-tier" and "good if you like roleplaying sewer rats." Perfect.
"Assassin," I said.
The system hesitated, like even it didn't approve. "Confirmed. Assassin chosen."
My avatar materialized in a mirror: lean, hooded, shadows licking at the edges like the graphics card was flexing. I grinned. "Let's be honest. Nobody remembers the hundredth fireball. They remember the first guy who stabs a king."
The world of Shadow Online slammed into me like IMAX in 12K. The village square bustled with players and NPCs, but you couldn't tell who was real at first glance. AI villagers hawked bread, hammered iron, or shouted about rat infestations. Actual players tripped over themselves shouting things like, "Where's the blacksmith quest?" or "Trade 10 copper for PayPal!"
I checked my stats. They were… sad.
Level 1 AssassinHP: 50Stamina: 50Strength: 3Dexterity: 5Intelligence: 2Luck: … 1
One. One luck. Even the game was mocking me.
The dagger at my side was more of a butter knife. My armor was leather so thin it could double as tissue paper. The tutorial quest log blinked in front of me.
Tutorial: Slay 5 Chickens. Reward: 10 XP, 5 Copper.
Simple. Clean. Impossible to screw up.
The first three chickens went down easy. Peck, stab, feather shower. I felt like a predator. Like a shadow in the dark. Like—
The fourth chicken looked at me funny.
It clucked, stretched its wings, and hit me in the face with a peck that registered as Critical Damage: -45 HP. My health bar screamed red. I screamed out loud. Then it kicked me square in the chest and my vision went grayscale.
Respawn in 10…9…
Somewhere, a player walked by and muttered, "Dude just got wrecked by poultry."
Respawning in Shadow Online wasn't free. You lost durability on your gear, which in my case meant my already flimsy dagger now looked like it belonged in a museum exhibit titled Tools of Depression. My coin pouch went negative somehow, which I didn't know was possible. And worst of all, my death was publicly broadcast in the village kill feed.
[System]: Player "Shade" has been slain by Chicken.
Yes, I picked "Shade" as my username. Cool. Edgy. Assassin vibes. And now the entire village knew "Shade" was chicken chow.
"Perfect start," I muttered. "Legendary beginnings."
While sulking at the fountain, I noticed three armored idiots swaggering around. Warriors, obviously. The kind of people who pick "Chad" as a username. One of them, IronWill99, laughed so hard he almost dropped his sword.
"Bro, you're that guy who died to the chicken!"
The others cackled like hyenas.
I could have ignored them. Logged off. Accepted my fate as meme fodder. Instead, I leaned back on the fountain edge, smirked, and said, "Yeah, I'm testing the AI. Turns out chickens are coded with boss-tier aggression. You'd know if you had the brains to try."
That shut them up for half a second. Then IronWill snorted. "Brains? We're level three already. You're negative coin balance, chicken-killer."
He shoved me. Yes, you can shove players in Shadow Online. Yes, it hurt.
System prompts popped up:
IronWill99 has challenged you to a duel. Accept?
Now, most people in my position—undergeared, underleveled, humiliated—would decline. But I remembered one thing the beta forums whispered about Assassins: low damage, but stupid mobility.
I accepted.
The square cleared. NPCs leaned on stalls to watch. Actual players cheered like they'd just gotten front-row seats at a gladiator match.
IronWill grinned, sword gleaming. "Don't worry, Shade. I'll make it quick."
I didn't answer. Instead, I activated my first skill.
Skill: Shadow Step (Rank 1).Effect: Instantly dash behind a target within 3 meters.
The world blurred. One moment I was in front of him, the next behind. His sword whooshed through empty air. I jabbed my dagger at his back. Damage numbers popped up: -4. -3. -5.
Pathetic.
But the crowd roared. Nobody had seen the skill yet. Nobody expected the chicken victim to suddenly teleport like a ninja.
IronWill spun, slashing wild. I dodged, ducked, stabbed again. My hits barely tickled his HP bar, but the humiliation factor skyrocketed.
Finally, his frustration boiled over. He charged, screaming. I Shadow Stepped again—straight into his blind spot—and kicked his leg. He tripped. Sword clattered. My dagger tapped his neck.
Victory! Player "Shade" has defeated IronWill99.Reward: +10 XP. +5 Copper. Reputation: Infamous +1.
The square exploded. Laughter. Cheers. Someone shouted, "Chicken Slayer's got moves!"
IronWill respawned at the fountain, red-faced. His friends glared, but nobody challenged me. Not after that stunt.
Here's the thing about Shadow Online: reputation matters. Every duel, every kill, every insult—it sticks. NPCs remember. Players spread rumors. And thanks to one chicken and one duel, I now had a reputation as the crazy Assassin who lost to a bird but humiliated a warrior in front of half the server.
Not exactly legendary. But it was a start.
My log pinged. A hidden quest flashed.
Quest Unlocked: Whisper in the Shadows.A mysterious figure has taken notice of your antics. Meet them in the alley behind the tavern at midnight. Reward unknown.
I blinked. Hidden quests weren't supposed to show up in the tutorial village. This was the kind of thing beta players drooled over.
"Guess chickens really are overpowered," I muttered, grinning.
Logging out later, the VR rig released me back into my tiny apartment. My stomach growled like the chicken's revenge spirit had followed me. I checked my phone—already buzzing with group chats. Clips of my duel had gone viral on the newbie boards.
ChickenSlayer.jpgShade.exe has stopped workingAssassins OP? Nerf incoming?
And the kicker: my account wallet showed 50 cents. Real money. Apparently, someone had bet on me in the duel, and I got a cut.
Fifty cents isn't much. But it was proof. Proof that this game wasn't just entertainment. It was an economy. And if people were already paying to watch a guy get humiliated by poultry…
Well. Imagine what they'd pay when I actually got good.
Midnight Meeting
Back in the game, I waited behind the tavern at midnight. The sky was pixel-perfect, stars sharp as diamonds. Shadows pooled in the alley. And then—movement.
A hooded NPC stepped out, face hidden. His voice was gravel and smoke.
"You. Assassin. You amuse me."
I resisted the urge to ask if he'd heard about the chicken.
"You have potential," he continued. "Not in brute strength. Not in glory. But in shadows. If you wish to walk the path unseen, take this."
A dagger appeared in his hand. Black steel, humming with faint purple light.
Item Acquired: Rusted Shadowfang (Uncommon).Attack +3. Hidden stat: Evolves with wielder.
"Wait," I said. "Evolves?"
The NPC chuckled. "Shadows grow. If you survive." Then he melted into the darkness like he was programmed by Batman himself.
My quest log updated.
New Objective: Complete 10 Assassinations.Reward: Unknown.
The word assassinations glowed like forbidden candy. This wasn't tutorial fodder. This was the first breadcrumb on a path nobody else had touched.
I looked at my new dagger, its blade drinking the moonlight. From chicken victim to hidden quest holder in one day. Not bad.
Assassins write history in the dark.