Under Arthur's complicated gaze, Leo hummed a little tune and completed the mission with the ease of a Boy Scout collecting bottles in his backyard. He dragged a pile of rusty metal scraps in front of Arthur and dropped them on the ground like a prized offering.
Ding.
A notification popped up simultaneously on Arthur's command interface and Leo's game screen.
[Quest Complete: Scavenger][Reward Issued: +5 Supplies]
Arthur watched his resources tick up from 1300 to 1305, and a ridiculous sense of satisfaction washed over him. It felt like watching his drones bring back the first load of minerals in a strategy game.
Leo, on the other hand, was excitedly looking at his 0.5 game credit balance and the small bump in his experience bar. "Cool! This game has a progression system!" he thought gleefully. "The rewards are a bit stingy, but it's a tutorial quest, so that's understandable."
Having confirmed that the "summon-quest-reward" loop was effective, Arthur no longer hesitated. He was desperately short on manpower; one "player" was clearly not enough. He still had one recruitment voucher and the 10 "alpha tester" slots granted by the system.
He had to summon all of these uncontrollable yet fearless "units" as quickly as possible.
Arthur opened the recruitment interface, took a deep breath, and pressed the [Recruit] button nine consecutive times.
[Recruitment Voucher Consumed x1][Alpha Tester Slots Consumed x8]
The heavy metal door of the Barracks hissed once more and slid open again and again.
Berlin, Germany, 2025.
Klaus von Stein, a top student at Humboldt University's Faculty of Engineering, was meticulously adjusting the pupillary distance of his VR helmet. As a man of German precision, he couldn't tolerate any error greater than 0.1 millimeters.
When he finally reached the spartan login screen, he frowned. "This UI design... it's too crude. Completely unergonomic." He entered his ID, "BuildMaster," and clicked enter.
When he stepped out of the Barracks, the first thing he saw was not the chaotic battlefield, but the exterior wall of the Barracks itself. He instinctively reached out, knocked on the concrete wall with his knuckles, and listened to the echo.
"Hmm... the concrete grade is wrong, and the structural integrity seems questionable. Did the devs cut corners on the construction physics engine?" he muttered to himself, adjusting his non-existent glasses with a serious expression.
Texas, USA, 2025.
A burly man with a full beard sat in his home garage, surrounded by military memorabilia. His name was White, a retired Marine Corps sergeant.
A buddy from his unit had sent him the link to Warfront Online on Discord, saying it might be the "hardcore simulation game" they'd been waiting for.
He logged in to give it a try. His ID was simple: "Sgt_White".
The moment he stepped out of the Barracks, smelled the familiar scent of gunpowder in the air, and heard the distinctive "buzzsaw" sound of a distant MG42, the relaxed expression on his face vanished.
He didn't shout like Leo. Instead, he executed a combat roll and took cover behind a fortification with standard tactical form. He peeked out, his sharp eyes scanning the battlefield, his brain instantly analyzing the tactical situation, enemy fire positions, and potential threats.
"This... this isn't a game..." he murmured, his voice filled with shock. "This recoil, the ballistics... My God, this feels too real..."
Shanghai, China, 2025.
Li Han, a gaming streamer with millions of followers on Bilibili, was speaking into his camera with his signature charismatic voice.
"Alright, everyone! Today we're testing a mysterious VR game that claims to be 100% realistic! I've managed to get one of only 10 alpha test slots in the world! The ID is our old friend, 'VidBlogger_lee'! No more talk, let's dive right in!"
Amid a flood of "666" and "POG" comments in the chat, he entered the game.
When he emerged from the Barracks and saw the epic, hellish panorama of Dunkirk, his professional instincts kicked in immediately.
The first thing he did was not look for a weapon or cover, but raise his hands, framing a shot with his fingers, and start searching for the best camera angle.
"Oh my god! This lighting! These particle effects! Everyone, every single frame is a cinematic masterpiece! I have to start recording. I've already got the title for this video—[I Paid $800 to Experience Christopher Nolan's 'Dunkirk' in a VR Game!]!"
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, 2025.
In a room that resembled a palace, a young man in a white thobe was lying bored on a golden sofa. He was Salim, a prince with no concept of money.
He entered the game purely because he could buy a test slot. His ID was "Whale_King".
When he stepped out of the Barracks and saw the chaos, he wasn't the least bit nervous. He elegantly dusted off his pristine new uniform, then walked straight towards Arthur, who looked like the "head NPC".
"Hello," he asked in fluent English, a hint of condescension in his voice. "Excuse me, where is the cash shop in this game? I'd like to buy a golden AK-47, or perhaps a tank. Name your price."
Arthur knelt behind the sandbags, watching dumbfounded as this bizarre squad of "divine soldiers" materialized before him.
An American was excitedly arguing with a German he'd just met about whether the M1 Garand was better than the Mauser 98k. A retired soldier was trying to drag the Chinese streamer, who was only focused on finding good camera angles, into cover. And a Middle Eastern tycoon was sincerely asking him if he could trade a Rolex for a rocket launcher.
Arthur could feel a throbbing in his temples again.
His legion... had assembled. But looking at this group of 'players' from all over the world, each with their own unique style, he had only one thought:
"This war... can it even be fought?"