Out of habit, Kael reached to his side for his staff—
But grasped nothing.
He paused, then opened his Status Panel.
The beginner village staff… had been reclaimed.
Kael felt a trace of regret.
Its stats had been terrible, but the fact that it didn't degrade meant it could have served as a top-tier shield.
…Forget it.
If he needed one, he could always buy another.
More importantly—
Time to test his new skills.
"Blink."
The structure formed instantly in his mind.
Kael's body vanished.
The next moment, he reappeared one meter behind his original position.
"100 MP…"
The cost was heavy.
"Is the cooldown because my body can't handle spatial distortion… or because space itself needs time to stabilize?"
He moved on to test the rest.
Spell Analysis—
No effect.
He simply lacked the foundational knowledge. There was nothing to analyze.
When he tried to break apart Firebolt's structure, the components felt familiar—
But he didn't understand them.
He could see them.
He just didn't know what they meant.
Then—
Stillwater Meditation.
This was different.
It wasn't something given directly by Aetherion.
It was something he had formed himself.
In that water—
Countless incomprehensible fragments of knowledge had poured into his mind. Spell structures shifted and merged until they settled into something usable.
A method he didn't fully understand—
But could use.
Instead of storing mana in his mind, it now flowed continuously through his body.
That was why—
His recovery speed had increased.
And as it flowed—
It also nourished his body.
…
After testing his skills, Kael turned to the newly unlocked functions.
He opened his inventory.
[Inventory]
Slots: 20
Stacking: Enabled
Weight Limit: 50 kg
Copper Coins: 1952
Revival Token: 1
Copper Coins weren't physical currency.
They were an Aetherion medium.
No weight.
No limit.
The Revival Token—
His safety.
This one had been granted by Aetherion.
For players who entered with their real body, the cost of buying additional Revival Tokens was far higher than for others.
And it increased exponentially as they grew stronger.
Even now—
Weak as he was—
A single Revival Token cost 7000 Copper Coins.
For other players at the same level?
It looked like everyone had room for error.
But in reality—
Real-body players only had one life.
Spending everything to buy another token was just a slower death.
Because the game would only get harder.
Kael checked the shop.
The Revival Token option was grayed out.
Already owned one.
Cannot purchase.
…
He opened the chat.
Messages flooded in.
Just like a real online game.
BigJack LV25 (Gentleman's Club): Buying blue-quality rifles. Price negotiable.
ZeroLoss LV7 (Solo): Why do we only get 1 free stat point after level 5? And how do we change class?
KFC_3_Set LV50 (Dynasty): If I enhance again, I'm a dog! I swear! Three times! I heard this enhancer was used by that damn Kelly—next time I enter the Dungeon World, I'm blowing myself up with her!
…
Kael waved it away.
After familiarizing himself with the functions, his attention landed on the final reward.
Random Skill Selection ×1.
"…Random."
Just seeing that word made his chest tighten.
A bad feeling.
He licked his dry lips.
"Don't overthink it. My bad luck wasn't real… the beginner village just had low drop rates."
For some reason—
He recalled the moment his Status Panel had clashed with Aetherion.
That feeling of losing something important.
Kael forced the thought away.
He also conveniently ignored the fact that most level 5 players he had seen were fully equipped.
"Use."
[System Notification]
Select Skill Affinity
"Fire."
[System Notification]
Drawing skills...
[System Notification]
Select one:
① Grand Fire Annihilation
Forms hand seals, gathers mana, and releases a fireball from the mouth.
Damage: 120%–300% Magic Attack
Range: 2–50 meters
Cooldown: 90s
② Demon Scorch
A fusion of martial arts and flame.
Each attack deals 110% Physical Attack + 150% Magic Attack
Cooldown: 30 minutes
③ Ignite
Applies a burning effect to a single target.
Deals 10 to ??? True Damage over 5 seconds, scaling with fire mastery.
Reduces healing effects.
Cooldown: 300s
This roll…
Was actually good.
First, eliminate option two.
He had trained in melee, but that wasn't his path.
Option one—
A strong early-game ultimate.
Useful for clearing and bosses.
So—
Kael chose Ignite.
No one rejects true damage.
[System Notification]
Player Kael cannot learn Ignite
His heart dropped.
[System Notification]
Seed Program Priority Override Applied
Granting Ignite
—
Fire.
Endless fire.
Kael found himself surrounded by it.
Flames coiled like serpents, devouring everything.
Heat.
Pain.
Burning.
His body was destroyed—
Then restored—
Then burned again.
Over and over.
To understand fire—
There was no better way than to experience it.
…
When Kael returned—
His mind felt unsteady.
[System Notification]
All rewards granted
First official game begins in 3 days
He was placed in a room.
His room.
A protected zone within the city.
Absolute safety—
At least until Aetherion itself fell.
…
Kael exited Aetherion.
Wearing new clothes, he stepped out of the Gate unsteadily.
The flames had burned away everything—
His clothes.
His shoes.
Including the boots he had worked so hard to obtain.
Fortunately—
Even in Aetherion, delivery services existed.
Otherwise—
He might have made headlines:
"Man Enters Aetherion Naked—Moral Collapse or Human Degeneracy?"
…
In the real world, player attributes were heavily suppressed.
This was intentional.
Some believed it was to maintain a stable rear base—
A constant supply of players.
Kael pushed open the worn door of his home.
This visit was simple.
To see if there was anything worth taking.
After this—
He would rarely leave Aetherion again.
Creak—
The door made an unpleasant sound.
It had only been twenty days.
Yet the place felt abandoned for half a year.
Dust covered the floor.
A few letters lay scattered.
Only one person would leave him messages.
Kael picked one up.
"Kael, still not out yet? I was gonna show off my Black Iron Sword! It's white-quality—pretty high-end, right? Bet you're jealous. It gives +25 attack. Yeah, you should be dying of envy right now…"
Kael smiled.
Looks like Milo was doing well.
He picked up the next letter.
"Still didn't see you. Some people say you're dead, but I don't believe it. I set my realism to 90%, and there were times I really thought I'd die—but I still crawled back to the village. So no way you'd go out like that."
"I'm the protagonist, after all. My sidekick isn't dying that easily."
"The next game is about to start and you're still not back. What, did you go on a date in the beginner village?"
"Whatever. I'll carry you when you get back."
"Oh, right—my in-game name is ZeroLoss. I wanted 'Invincible,' but someone took it. Almost pissed me off to death…"