[First][Nothing is impossible!][Legend]
You are the incarnation of a miracle, having defeated monsters everyone deemed unkillable. Some may envy those who challenge the impossible and succeed, but none can hate them.
You are the first to win this title.
This title is only awarded to the first achiever.
[Hold Effect]
– Reputation with allied and neutral NPCs starts at the [Friendly] stage.
– Proficiency required to level up job skills is reduced by 30%.
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A 'Legendary' level title! Moreover, its effects were borderline fraudulent. Starting with a [Friendly] reputation with all non-hostile NPCs was immense, considering the grueling effort required to build reputation in his past life. That effect alone justified the term 'overpowered'.
But there was more: a 30% reduction in the proficiency needed to level job skills, plus three additional effects yet to be unlocked. It was unclear if his level was too low or if special conditions were required to reveal them, but they were undoubtedly formidable.
'With this… …'
This title alone could drastically accelerate his planned progression, and even allow him to revise the plan itself for greater advantage. Even Lokan, a veteran of The Lord, felt his heart race. But this was just the game's beginning; time was too precious to waste on celebration.
He immediately turned to the Unknown Boxes.
"Alright, let's do this quickly. Open, open, open, open!"
First, the iron chests. Each box vanished in a puff of smoke, leaving behind randomly generated items.
[Lost Money Bag] [Normal]
A pouch of money someone dropped. The amount is unknown.
[Hot Food Box] [Normal]
A box containing a hot meal. The contents are unknown.
[Advanced Training Ground Ticket] [Superior]
A certificate granting access to the advanced training grounds.
[Magic Scroll 'Curse of Weakness'] [Magic]
A scroll allowing the use of the 'Curse of Weakness' spell.
'Not bad.'
Two Normal, one Superior, and even a Magic-grade item. Although the scroll was a single-use consumable, it was the highest grade possible from these chests.
'Alright, why am I so anxious?'
After stashing the useful items, Lokan felt a wave of unease. In his past life, when luck was on his side, he'd get exactly what he needed, and this sudden fortune made him apprehensive. With a sense of foreboding, he finally opened the silver chest.
[Mass-Production Type Magic Map] [Magic]
A magic map mass-produced by the Magic Tower. By adding regional maps, it can be updated for continental-scale quests.
– Continental mapping is completed by adding maps from different regions.
– Displays the user's current location.
Another Magic-grade item! While its full value wouldn't be realized until he collected regional maps—a task for the future—the Magic Map was an essential item he would have needed to acquire eventually. Lokan judged this more valuable than mid-game equipment. While immediate-use gear would have been nice, for his long-term plan, early equipment was ultimately meaningless.
After checking all titles and items, Lokan left the starting plaza. New users who had skipped the tutorial continued to spawn, and the cacophony of players shouting to get quests from NPCs was deafening.
'So noisy.'
Unlike them, clueless about where to begin, Lokan knew the optimal quest route. The fastest way to level up was to accept the quest 'Take Care of the Squirrels!' from the general store. As the name suggested, it involved hunting a certain number of squirrels and collecting 'acorns'—a brutal introduction to the game.
Users initially laughed at the quest name, but soon discovered it was nearly impossible for Level 1 characters with child-like stats to catch the agile squirrels. The only viable method was to purchase a Hunting Trap Set for 30 Coppers from the weapon store. However, most users first bought a basic weapon like a wooden sword, believing its longer reach would allow them to hit or throw it at the squirrels. This illusion of competence led to swift despair.
By the time they returned to buy the trap, they were often broke. Even users who completed the tutorial started with little money. The only option then was a tedious grind: running small errands for villagers to earn pennies or food until they could afford the trap. These chores offered negligible experience and did not improve NPC relations.
Of course, Lokan had suffered through this very route in his past life. No, he had been worse—he'd saved money through errands only to arrogantly buy a weapon, convinced he was 'different,' which only delayed his progress further. Back then, escaping Pocket City felt like an immense struggle.
'Long time no see.'
Recalling those memories, Lokan arrived at his destination: the training grounds. This place would become a popular spot for power-leveling, but only after the 'squirrel quest' chaos.
A muscular man was loudly recruiting. "Hey! You wanna be strong? Then use this place! You'll become strong like me!" Many players, accustomed to training grounds from other games, assumed The Lord was the same and bought tickets. Already, a fair number were inside, pounding scarecrows with their fists.
'They'll be gone soon, though.'
The training ground boom was short-lived. The experience gained per hour from beating scarecrows was pitifully low, even worse than running NPC errands. Initially, with no frame of reference, people stayed, but once word spread about faster leveling methods elsewhere, everyone left. Errands at least provided money or food; the training ground only drained funds for tickets and sustenance. Most players couldn't afford to stay long after consuming their initial tutorial bread and coins.
"I want to use the training ground."
"Oh, you seem to have the makings of greatness! You're not like the future lumber over there. Alright, for you, only 20 Coppers!"
The ticket vendor grinned widely as he took Lokan's money.
'Is this the title effect? It was 30 Coppers before…'
He'd received a discount. The [Friendly] reputation from the 'Nothing is Impossible!' title was already working.
'Thank me later.'
It was a good thing, as Lokan planned to stay here for a very long time. He snatched the ticket and immediately stood before an empty scarecrow. His gaze intensified as he stared it down.
"Haab!"
Thwack!
A heavy impact reverberated through his fist upon hitting the scarecrow, accompanied by a sharp jolt of pain. Without protective gear, his hands suffered minor damage with each strike. After a few hits, he could see his health bar dip slightly. He'd have to sit and regenerate after a training session.
This was why he had dismissed scarecrow training as stupid in his past life, abandoning it after two days.
However, Lokan had come here for one specific reason: to raise his base stats.
The scarecrow's sole advantage was the potential for stat gains.
'You can raise additional stats here, up to a limit.'
By striking the scarecrow—or more precisely, by exerting oneself beyond one's current level—related stats could increase, much like building muscle through exercise. A similar effect could be achieved through normal combat, but the scarecrow offered a slightly better rate for stat growth.
'Probably because it gives such pitiful experience.'
Lokan theorized the low EXP was a trade-off for the stat增益. At higher levels and stats, more intense activity was required for improvement, but here at the beginning, it was efficient.
Thwack! Thwack! Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!
"Hey, look at that guy. Is he a boxer?"
"No, look, he's using his feet now. Maybe Muay Thai?"
"Why is he hitting with his shoulder? He's not just blindly pounding away."
As Lokan began his serious training, the grounds grew noisy. His movements, treating the scarecrow like a real enemy in combat, were foreign to others. While players had some experience from other VR games, they hadn't yet adapted to The Lord's realism. To them, Lokan's actions seemed merely odd; no one recognized the bloody combat sense infused within them.
[Strength has been increased by 1.]
After a sustained session, a notification appeared. Just +1 Strength. Compared to the 5 stat points gained per level, it seemed insignificant. But Lokan looked at it with excitement. He knew how massive a difference these small increments could make. It was only +1 now, but if it became +5, then +50…
Not only Strength, but Agility, Stamina, and other stats could also be raised here. A gain of +10 in each would be equivalent to the stat increase from 8 levels. While level 8 might seem trivial later on, achieving that stat boost now would create a monumental gap, especially since reaching level 1 could take days or weeks for many.
This was precisely why Lokan had forgone several potential "First" titles. If he rushed from the start, leveraging his knowledge, he could undoubtedly snag many firsts. But he chose not to. Being 'first' was great, but speed alone was meaningless. No individual could be first in everything, and those who focused solely on title collection would soon be caught.
His strategy was to build a foundation for achieving 'impossible' level 'firsts' later. He was certain this current grind would become the bedrock of his future strength.
"Alright then, shall we go again?"
Lokan, after a short break to regenerate his health, resumed his relentless assault on the scarecrow.