Chapter 1 – "Awakening in the Arena"
I woke up face-first on the ground. Literally. And, seriously, my room never had giant stone towers or an invisible audience staring at me like I was the main act at some medieval circus.
"Okay… deep breath, Alex. Just another weird dream… or… not?" I thought, slowly standing up and trying not to trip over what looked like a huge rock.
In my vision, a floating blue screen blinked, like those game tutorials I'd only ever seen on Twitch. Now it was right there, in my actual life, staring at me.
Name: Alex
Class: Novice
Strength: 5
Agility: 5
Intelligence: 5
"Seriously, system? Five of everything? Perfect start. I feel like a superhero…" I muttered to myself, trying to sound confident, but my tone betrayed my nerves.
Then came the footsteps. Not just normal footsteps: fast, calculated, like someone who had clearly killed goblins before breakfast.
And then she appeared. Lyra.
Tall, hair messily perfect like she didn't care about style, battle clothes that looked like they'd survived five wars, and a smile that made you think: "Okay, maybe I won't die today."
She pulled me to the side, dodging a tiny monster I hadn't even noticed.
"Uh… thanks…" I said, trying to sound casual, but probably came off as a total idiot.
She shrugged like, "No big deal, newbie. Just try not to die in front of me."
Before I could react, the system flashed again:
"First Optional Quest: Train alone or follow Lyra?"
"Follow Lyra? Train alone? Look, if I train alone, I'll be monster food in three seconds. So… follow the mysterious girl, Alex," I thought.
No sooner had I decided, a huge monster appeared in the arena. Seriously, bigger than anything I'd ever seen in RPGs. It looked at me like, "You're my dinner."
Lyra gave me that look, the one that basically said "let's go," and well, I had no choice: either I ran or tried not to die instantly.
"Great. First day and I'm already about to die. Just perfect…" I muttered, trying to keep calm.
We ran together, dodging attacks and tossing improvised spells. Each movement made me more aware that the system was giving me real stats: strength, agility, intelligence… and the fact that all of this was way too real to be a dream.
After the monster finally backed off (or maybe just got bored of me), Lyra sighed:
"You really need to learn to focus… and stop talking to yourself."
"Talking to myself? I wasn't talking to myself, I was commenting on the situation! Everyone talks to themselves internally, isn't that normal?" I thought, but just shook my head. Better not to question too much.
She smiled, something that made me dumbstruck for a few seconds – and yes, that's dangerous in combat.
"Come on, there are more monsters waiting. If you don't train now, you'll die tomorrow."
As we walked through the arena, I realized something was different about this world: it wasn't just battles, it was real interaction. The system gave me choices, but Lyra, with every word and action, showed that my decisions also mattered socially.
"Okay, so… maybe this isn't just a game. Maybe I have to learn how to handle people too. Fantastic," I muttered internally, bracing myself for another attack.
The system blinked again with a new message:
"Alex, choose your starting skill: Attack, Defense, or Charm."
"Charm? Really, system? First a giant monster, now this…" I murmured. But I couldn't ignore the option. Lyra would probably be surprised if I picked Charm.
I chose Defense. Better survive before winning hearts.
And then, another monster appeared. Bigger, faster, scarier.
"Of course. Because the first lesson in life here is: never feel safe," I thought.
Lyra looked at me again, and I realized: this wasn't just a skill test, it was a trust test. And maybe… just maybe, I was starting to enjoy the idea of fighting alongside her.
As we prepared to face the monster, I realized one thing: this isn't any ordinary game. And somehow, Lyra is at the center of everything I need to learn.
The monster charged, and Lyra calmly said:
"Hold my hand if you want to survive."
And there I was, Alex, starting my journey, with no idea what was really coming… but my heart was racing as fast as my stats were rising.