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Legacy of the Starforger – Chapter 1: The Echo in the Void
Real World Date: October 15th, 2042 | Time: 22:17
The apartment smelled of dust and solitude. The air conditioner whispered a monotonous hum, failing to mask the oppressive silence that filled the empty rooms.
Klaus Schmidt squinted at the terminal screen before him. The bluish glow reflected off his tired face and the stubble that had grown unchecked for days.
His fingers, once quick on a keyboard or steady around a gamepad, now drummed an anxious rhythm on the metal desk.
He was on the login portal for Eternal Cycle.
Two years.
Seven hundred and thirty days since he had last logged out.
Since the accident.
Since Elara was gone.
His younger sister had always been the true prodigy of the family. While Klaus had been a respected solo ranker—a known name in the e-sports circuit—she was something else entirely. She saw poetry in algorithms, beauty in lines of code. Eternal Cycle had been her masterpiece, the doctoral project that became a global phenomenon.
And she had left him a gift.
A legacy locked inside the game.
A single message, programmed to be delivered two years after her death, blinked on his private screen:
> "Klaus, the world didn't stop turning—and neither did mine.
There's a key to something I built, something only you can find.
It's waiting for you in Aethelgard.
Use our old code.
Please… don't let our story be erased."
Aethelgard. The floating capital of the first kingdom in Eternal Cycle. The place where everything had begun.
With a sigh that seemed to carry the weight of two years, Klaus lowered the Neural Dive Helmet onto his head. The device was cold against his skin, a sharp contrast to the heat of anxiety burning in his chest.
The electrodes adjusted automatically, locking in with a faint click.
> "Neural Interface established.
Welcome back, Klaus Schmidt.
Initializing immersion sequence for Eternal Cycle…"
The world went black—then burst into a whirlpool of light and color.
Virtual sensations flooded his body: the tingling on his skin, the metallic-clean scent of digital ether, the electric taste of static on his tongue. It was like diving into an ocean of data.
And then—he was there.
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In-Game Date: 3rd Cycle, Year 512, Harvest Season | Time: 08:34
Sound came first.
The distant cries of three-winged raptors, the wind whispering between white quartz towers, and the constant murmur of a living city.
The air smelled of wet stone, sweet lunar flowers, and the earthy aroma of freshly baked bread.
Klaus stood in The Plaza of Rebirth, the central spawn point for returning players. His clothes were the standard returner's set: a plain linen tunic and wool trousers, offering no defense whatsoever.
He raised his hands—they were his, but younger, free of the scars and calluses of the real world. The cold marble beneath his bare feet felt too real.
He opened his status window. His heart pounded.
Name: Ouroboros
Race: Human
Level: 1 (Progress to next level: 0%)
Title: None
Class: [UNDEFINED]
Reputation: Neutral
Attributes:
Strength: 10
Agility: 10
Intellect: 10
Vitality: 10
Proficiency: 10
Free Attribute Points: 0
Skills:
[Inspect] (Basic Level)
[Common Tongue] (Fluent)
A naked character. A zero.
But a zero with a mission.
"Elara," he whispered, his own voice sounding strange in these virtual ears. "Where did you hide it?"
He remembered the "old code."
It had been their secret—an old childhood sequence they used to communicate in games when voice chat wasn't an option:
Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, then a full circle in place.
Klaus looked around. The plaza was vast, dominated by silver fountains and statues of the Architects, cosmic entities said to have forged the universe of the game. At the center stood a massive sphere of pulsing energy—the Cosmic Core—projecting holographic guild ads, global event banners, and ranking boards.
He approached the statue of the Architect of the Forge, a towering figure holding a hammer in one hand and a broken sword in the other. Elara's tribute to him—the blacksmith and swordsman. He knew it.
Closing his eyes, Klaus executed the sequence. Two steps forward, two back, one left, one right, then a full spin.
Nothing happened.
Disappointment cut sharp and deep. He'd been foolish to think—
ZAP.
A faint crackle of energy. A tiny glyph glimmered for a fraction of a second on the statue's forehead—an Ouroboros, the serpent devouring its own tail.
A mission notification appeared—its golden frame ornate and unlike any regular quest.
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[! HIDDEN QUEST: THE ARCHITECT'S LEGACY !]
Type: Unique (Saga)
Description: The echo of a forbidden creation still resounds through Aethelgard's forgotten halls. Follow the path only blood and memory can unveil. The Hammer of the First Flame awaits its true heir.
Objective: Find the Abandoned Forge of Architect Elara in the Quartzite Catacombs.
Reward: Unique Class – [Starforger]. Experience. Items.
Warning: This quest will permanently alter your progression. Failure results in character deletion.
---
Klaus's breath caught. Architect Elara.
She had written herself into the game's lore as a divine creator—and left behind a class.
The class.
Without hesitation, he accepted.
A golden waypoint shimmered on his map, deep within the city's lower sectors—an area marked "Sealed – High Danger (Low-Level Access Forbidden)".
"Typical Elara," he muttered, a dry laugh escaping him. "Nothing was ever easy."
---
The streets of Aethelgard were a sensory overload. NPCs—"Cycle People," as the lore called them—lived with unsettling realism.
A muscular blacksmith hammered rhythmically at a glowing blade, his breath syncing with each strike.
Klaus used [Inspect].
Borin Deepiron – NPC (Green)
Not a quest-giver. A craftsman with his own life.
"You there, newbie!" Borin barked. "Need gear? Those returner rags won't protect you from the breeze!"
The AI's depth was uncanny.
"I'm fine," Klaus replied.
"Your funeral," the blacksmith grunted. "The Twilight Wolves in the catacombs won't be as polite."
A hint? Or just impressive environmental scripting?
He followed the waypoint into a shadowy alley.
At its end—an arched, gothic entrance guarded by two city soldiers.
"Halt, adventurer," one said, lowering his spear. "These catacombs aren't for novices. Corrupted beasts of the Stagnant Flux dwell below. Recommended level: 20."
Klaus didn't have time to grind.
He thought fast—remembering an old patch note: Aethelgard's guards respected those who knew the city's lore.
"I seek no loot, guardian," Klaus said steadily. "Only knowledge—of Architect Elara. It's said her early experiments began here."
The guards exchanged startled looks.
"The Architect… that name hasn't been spoken in many seasons. Are you a scholar?"
"An admirer," Klaus corrected. "Let me prove my worth. If I don't return, the fault is mine alone."
After a tense pause, the guard nodded. "The stubbornness of mortals is both their gift and their curse. So be it. But don't expect rescue."
The gate opened. Klaus nodded his thanks and descended the damp steps into darkness.
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The air changed instantly—thick with mold, decay, and the metallic scent of corrupted ether. Blue fungus glowed faintly along the walls.
[New Area Discovered: Quartzite Catacombs]
[Warning: High-Danger Zone – Level 15–25]
Every drop of water echoed like thunder.
Every torn cobweb cracked like a whip.
Then—he heard it.
A low, guttural growl. Two pairs of sickly amber eyes glimmered in the dark.
[Twilight Wolf (Corrupted) – Level 16]
They were massive, fur like smoke and shadow, claws sparking faint blue against the quartzite floor.
Klaus had no armor. No weapon. Level one.
The first wolf lunged—a blur of fangs.
His old instincts kicked in, raw and electric.
He dodged left—the jaws snapped inches from his face.
His bare feet slipped on the damp stone, but he stayed upright, heart hammering.
"Real-time combat. No turns. Just movement, timing, instinct."
Lesson number one—learned with Elara.
The second wolf slashed from the side. Klaus dropped to his knees, the claw cutting the air above him.
He was defenseless. He needed a weapon—anything.
There—an old iron bar, half-buried among debris.
He rolled forward, not back, snatching it up just as the wolf lunged again.
[Item Acquired: Rusted Iron Bar]
Type: Trash / Improvised Weapon
Damage: 1–3
Durability: 3/20
Pathetic. But better than nothing.
The wolf leaped. Klaus raised the bar horizontally, catching its jaws mid-bite.
The impact rattled his arms; his health bar flickered.
With a roar, he shoved back. The bar snapped.
The beast staggered.
Klaus thrust the jagged half into its exposed throat.
A brutal, desperate strike. Not skill—instinct.
The wolf let out a strangled screech before collapsing in a heap.
[You have defeated Twilight Wolf (Corrupted) – Lv.16!]
[EXP Gained: 320 (Overlevel Bonus: 越级杀怪 – Slaying Higher-Level Enemy)]
Light burst around him.
[Ding!] Level Up – 2!
[Ding!] Level Up – 3!
...
[Ding!] Level Up – 8!
Seven levels in one kill. Unreal.
But no time to celebrate—the second wolf lunged, enraged.
Too fast.
Too close.
Then—steel clashed.
A flash of silver intercepted the blow.
A man stood between Klaus and death, sword drawn.
He wore simple yet pristine silver armor, dark hair tied back, and cold gray eyes that burned with calm focus.
"Stay behind me," the man ordered—voice steady, commanding.
Not an NPC.
Kaelon—his name glowed blue above his head.
Kaelon didn't wait. His movements blurred, sword arcing like liquid light.
"Phantom Slash!"
Three strikes landed in less than a heartbeat.
Damage numbers flared crimson: –147, –162, –189.
The wolf dropped, lifeless.
Klaus stared, stunned. That precision—that control.
He was elite. A top-tier player.
Kaelon cleaned his blade and sheathed it, his gray eyes scanning Klaus—from his tattered clothes to the bloodied iron shard.
"Killing a level-16 beast with trash gear at level one…" Kaelon said evenly. "That's stupid. But impressive. Most would've logged out in panic."
Klaus caught his breath. "I didn't have a choice."
"There's always a choice," Kaelon replied. "Quitting is one of them. So what's a newbie doing this deep? Looking for trouble?"
"I'm on a quest," Klaus said cautiously.
Kaelon studied him. "A golden waypoint on your map… hidden class quest, right?"
Klaus stiffened. How could he know?
"Relax," Kaelon said, smirking faintly. "I've got a rare passive—[Sense the Current]. Lets me detect high-tier quest signals nearby. I was hunting Alpha Wolves, but your stunt was… more interesting."
He bent down and picked up a shimmering pelt.
"Here. You landed the kill. You earned it."
[Item Acquired: Twilight Pelt (Rarity: Rare)]
"Thanks," Klaus said sincerely.
"Don't thank me," Kaelon replied, turning to leave. "Just survive. The path ahead only gets worse. And, Ouroboros—"
He paused, glancing over his shoulder.
"That name carries weight. Don't disgrace it."
And then he was gone—swallowed by the dark.
Klaus stood alone again, breathing hard.
He distributed his newly earned points quickly, favoring a balanced physical build.
Strength: 10 → 20
Agility: 10 → 25
Intellect: 10
Vitality: 10 → 15
Proficiency: 10
Power surged through him. He felt stronger, faster—more alive.
He followed the golden waypoint deeper, past bone-lined tunnels and ruins etched with forgotten runes.
At last, he reached a massive stone gate carved with intricate sigils.
At its center—a hammer-shaped indentation.
The waypoint ended here.
The Abandoned Forge of Architect Elara.
He touched the cold stone.
A faint vibration pulsed beneath his palm—an echo of heat and creation.
"Elara," he whispered. "I'm here."
No locks. No levers. Just the hammer symbol.
A test.
He closed his eyes, imagining the weight of a cosmic hammer—the sound it would make upon striking the anvil of reality.
He raised his right hand, gripping the invisible handle—and brought it down.
Silence.
Then—a golden ripple burst outward, filling the sigils with light.
The gate groaned open, revealing a chamber bathed in orange glow.
The air was dry and hot, thick with ozone and molten metal.
At the center—an anvil that burned from within, radiating the light of a caged sun.
Above it floated a hammer—simple, dark metal etched with constellations, its head pulsing with celestial energy.
[Hammer of the First Flame]
Then—a voice, soft and painfully familiar.
> "I knew you'd come, big brother.
The Cycle always brings us back together."
A spectral projection of Elara appeared beside the anvil, smiling through tears of light.
> "This place is my legacy to you.
A class not born merely from code, but from the very essence of Eternal Cycle.
A fusion of creation and destruction. Of smith and warrior.
It isn't just overgeared… it's worldforging."
She extended her hand toward the hammer.
> "But understand the cost.
You won't just be a player—you'll become a pillar of this world.
Your actions, your creations, your choices… they'll echo through every Cycle.
You won't forge items—you'll forge destiny."
Her eyes met his—glowing, fading.
> "Are you ready to bear the fire of the first forge, Klaus?
Are you ready to become… the Starforger?"
Klaus looked at her. At the hammer. At everything that had led him here.
His story of grief, redemption, and rebirth began now.
He reached out—grasping the hammer's hilt.
The world erupted in golden light.
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End of Chapter 1
Word Count: ~2,149
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