The air inside the Gate didn't smell like the city. It was thick with the scent of damp earth, ancient pine, and a heavy, suffocating layer of Mana. As my boots hit the soil of the 'Ancient Labyrinthine Forest', the System chime echoed in my skull.
"[Welcome to the 1st Floor of the 'Tower of Trials'!]"
"[1st Floor: Ancient Labyrinthine Forest]"
"[Difficulty Level: C-Rank]"
"[Clear Condition: Navigate the forestry maze and defeat the Boss Monster.]"
"[Reward: +1,000 Coins, +2 Stat Points, Class-related weapon/skill (C-Rank)]"
"[Failure: Level-Break]"
"[Time Duration: 4 days 23 hours 59 minutes 50 seconds]"
About 37 of us had entered from this regional Gate. I stood at the back, a ghost among the crowd, and immediately narrowed my eyes.
"[Activating 'Red Demon's Eye' Lvl 1!]"
My vision flared crimson. I scanned the players, most were Levels 5 to 8. Among the 37 of us, 32 belonged to the 'White Tiger' Guild. They were well-organized: five C-Ranks, fourteen D-Ranks, seven E-Ranks, and six Unranked. The rest of us were unaffiliated "strays", three D-Ranks, one E-Rank, and me.
It was clear the governments and pro-gamers hadn't wasted those four days after the initial Tutorial chaos. They had already established a hierarchy.
My gaze locked onto the man leading the White Tiger pack.
"[Personal Information]"
- [Name: James Miller]
- [Age: 27 | Gender: Male | Sex: Experienced]
- [Class: Warrior - Berserker | Rank: C | Level: 10]
- [Stats: STR: 10 | AGI: 8 | VIT: 8 | HP: MAX | PER: 5 | Essence: Aura Lvl 6]
- [Guild: White Tiger (Promising Newbie)]
- [Skills: 'Taunt' Lvl 6, 'Tiger's Hide' Lvl 6, 'Tiger's Claw' Lvl 6, 'Jump' Lvl 5, 'Keen Sense' Lvl 5]
- [Exclusive Skill: 'Path of the Berserker' (Passive)]
- [Anatomical Stats: 7-inch thick and veiny hard dick. Gaping reddish-brown asshole.]
- [Copy Condition: James Miller is a man who highly values raw power. Overpower him using 'Magic' to copy one of his skills.]
"Overpower a Berserker with Magic?" I mused. That was a tall order for a Level 1, but the [Red Demon's Eye] was terrifyingly thorough. It didn't just see his stats; it saw his mindset. It was suspicious, how could a skill read a man's values and thoughts? The "System" was far more invasive than the VR version ever was.
"Move out!" James barked, his voice echoing through the massive, glowing trees.
We ventured deeper into the overgrown rainforest. We hadn't walked for ten minutes before the bushes rustled.
"[Notice: You have encountered D-Rank 'Grey-Wolves' Lvl 5!]"
A pack of oversized wolves with fur like sharpened wire lunged from the shadows. The White Tiger Guild moved with impressive coordination. James led from the front, his Aura flaring as he tore through a wolf's throat with his bare hands. They were subduing the floor with surgical precision.
But the confidence in the air didn't last.
As we pushed further into a clearing, the temperature seemed to drop. The vibrant green of the forest was suddenly replaced by a gruesome mosaic of red.
Corpses. Dozens of them.
Armor was shredded like paper, and blood was painted across the broad leaves. These weren't from our Gate; they were a team from another region whose floor had merged with ours. They hadn't just been killed, they had been annihilated.
James stopped, his hand hovering over his sword hilt. Even as a Level 10, he looked pale. The sheer violence of the scene suggested that whatever had done this was no mere C-Rank monster.
I looked at a severed arm nearby, then up at the canopy. My [Red Demon's Eye] twitched. The "Hidden Region" was close, but so was the thing that had turned this team into mincemeat.