Chapter 3: Welcome to the Tutorial
The silence following the world’s transformation lasted only a few seconds.
The System spoke again.
A massive screen reappeared above the billions of humans suspended in the white void.
This time, everyone paid attention.
Nobody was brave enough to ignore cosmic patch notes twice.
—-------
➤ [FIRST GENERATION PLAYER NOTICE]
➤ [Tutorial Initialization Beginning.]
➤ [All First Generation Players shall be transported to Tutorial Zones.]
➤ [Players will be assigned to groups, consisting of ten pairs.]
—-------
The crowd immediately became restless.
Pairs?
Groups?
That sounded significantly more dangerous. Group projects had a habit of ending badly.
Damien crossed his arms.
’Nothing good had ever begun with the phrase "you have been assigned a group project."’
—------
➤ [Pair Assignment Rule]
➤ [Each Player shall be paired with a familiar individual from their previous world.]
➤ [Pairing selection is based on familiarity, compatibility, and projected survival probability.]
➤ [The System has determined that individuals perform more efficiently alongside familiar companions.]
—-------
That actually sounded reasonable.
Which immediately made Damien suspicious because he never had any good or hearty talk with any neighbour. They all avoided him for some reason. Maybe it was the strange incident and the rumours that followed, or his late-night talks they heard through his walls, but whatever the cause, Damien had gotten used to being left out.
—-------
➤ [Players may cooperate as a Pair, Group, or Individual.]
➤ [No cooperation method is mandatory.]
➤ [Survival is the primary objective.]
—-------
A man nearby raised his hand.
The System ignored him.
Apparently, cosmic entities didn’t take questions.
—-------
➤ [Player Evaluation Parameters]
➤ [Your Tutorial performance shall be evaluated according to:]
➤ [Achievements]
➤ [Combat Performance]
➤ [Decision-Making Ability]
➤ [Behavior]
➤ [Mentality]
➤ [Character]
➤ [Physical Condition]
➤ [Additional Hidden Metrics]
—-------
The phrase Hidden Metrics worried everyone.
Whenever someone used the word hidden, it usually meant they intended to judge you without explaining the rules.
Damien’s college professors had done the same thing.
—-------
➤ [Only First Generation Players shall receive this opportunity.]
➤ [Based on your final evaluation, you may receive multiple Class Options upon Tutorial completion.]
—-------
The crowd erupted.
Multiple classes?
Choices?
Now people were interested.
Humans loved choices, especially when those choices involved magical powers.
—-------
➤ [Second Generation Players shall receive Classes assigned directly by the System.]
➤ [No selection privileges will be granted.]
—-------
"Oh, shit." Damien nodded. "So, we’re beta testers."
That sounded significantly less exciting.
The next screen appeared; this one was much larger.
—-------
➤ [TUTORIAL COMPLETION PATHS]
➤ [Option One]
➤ [Reach Level 10.]
➤ [Select a Class.]
➤ [Return to Earth.]
➤ [Standard Evaluation.]
—-------
A lot of people were visibly relaxed.
Level ten sounded manageable.
Maybe they can reach Level 10
It was possible; their morale soared high.
Assuming the monsters wouldn’t be dragons.
—-------
➤ [Option Two]
➤ [Clear all 20 Tutorial Levels.]
➤ [Receive Enhanced Evaluation.]
➤ [Unlock Higher-Ranked Class Possibilities.]
➤ [Return to Earth with Superior Rewards.]
—-------
The crowd became excited again.
Humans were predictable.
Offer them safety, and they will seek glory.
Offer them glory, and they assume they’ll survive.
—-------
➤ [CLASS RANKS]
➤ [Common]
➤ [Rare]
➤ [Elite]
➤ [Legendary]
—-------
Several people cheered at the sight of Legendary.
Damien personally felt people were getting ahead of themselves.
They hadn’t even faced anything.
—-------
➤ [SPECIAL CATEGORIES]
➤ [Unique: Granted to individuals who display extraordinary specialization within a particular field.]
➤ [Mythical: Granted only to Players who fulfill all conditions of a Mythical Achievement.]
—-------
➤ [POWER EQUIVALENCIES]
➤ [Unique ≈ Elite]
➤ [Mythical > Legendary]
—-------
That immediately captured everyone’s attention.
Especially the final line.
Something stronger than Legendary existed.
The crowd exploded into discussion.
Damien rubbed his chin.
He wondered whether he could cure his insomnia by getting a legendary class.
’Well, being unable to sleep for your entire life felt pretty legendary itself.’
A new message appeared.
—-------
➤ [Tutorial Transportation Beginning.]
➤ [10...]
The crowd froze.
➤ [9...]
A white-collar corporate employee started praying.
➤ [8...]
An old woman started crying.
➤ [7...]
Damien was thinking about his possible companion; he was recalling every strong person he knew.
➤ [3...]
➤ [2...]
➤ [1...]
➤ [Good Luck, Players.]
—-------
Darkness swallowed everything.
—-------
Damien opened his eyes; he saw a forest.
That was the first thing he noticed.
A dense, damp scent hung in the forest air. The trees bent at strange angles, their bark gnarled, with faint blue light leaking from between peeling layers. Shadows writhed among tangled undergrowth, and the earth felt unsteady beneath Damien’s feet.
Some were barely taller than bushes, and others towered hundreds of feet into the air.
Damien’s attention was caught by a tree; it was growing sideways.
After staring for a few seconds, Damien decided not to think more about it.
Fantasy forests probably had different standards.
The second thing he noticed was the people.
There were lots of them.
Men, women, teenagers, and even old people of various ethnicities.
Various languages, various levels of panic.
Nineteen people in total, one missing from the System’s promised number.
Damien immediately searched for his assigned partner.
The person he supposedly knew, the familiar companion, intended to increase his likelihood of survival, but remained absent, intensifying Damien’s acute sense of isolation and prompting a hollow anxiety that gnawed at him as he scanned the unfamiliar faces.
He found nobody he recognized, not even one.
’Damn,’ His shoulders slumped.
"Even the System can’t find people willing to hang out with me."
Nearby, two men were hugging.
One carried a Pakistani flag chain wore around his neck.
The other wore an Indian cricket jersey.
The two looked genuinely happy to have found each other.
Damien stared with widened eyes.
’Weren’t these two countries always wanting to destroy each other?’
The world had literally ended.
The existence of aliens had been revealed.
Reality had become a game.
And somehow, ignoring all that, humanity was achieving diplomatic breakthroughs.
"Hypocrites," he muttered.
The pair looked offended.
Damien ignored them.
A transparent screen suddenly appeared before every participant.
—-------
➤ [Starter Equipment Selection]
➤ [Please choose one Beginner Weapon.]
—-------
Weapons appeared in a list.
Swords
Spears.
Axes.
Daggers.
Bows.
Shields.
Maces.
More weapons than Damien had ever seen outside video games.
He immediately searched for pistols, but there were none.
He searched for Rifles and Shotguns and still found nothing.
The System apparently preferred medieval violence; it was disappointing. Damien frowned, wondering why guns and modern weapons were missing. Was it a safety thing? Did it just have a thing for swords and spears? Maybe the System wanted to keep things ’fair’ or maybe it thought people were too dangerous if given anything with bullets.
It felt almost like a setup, and Damien wasn’t the only one thinking it.
Nearby, someone muttered, "Why not just give us assault rifles?" No answer came, as usual, leaving everyone to silently theorize about the rules of their new, bizarre reality.
After a few moments, Damien selected a sword.
The weapon materialized in his hand.
It felt surprisingly real. Heavy, sharp, and dangerous.
Exactly the sort of thing he probably shouldn’t be trusted with.
As he tested its weight, another notification appeared.
—-------
➤ [Tutorial Level 1 Initializing.]
—-------
The forest grew silent.
Every conversation stopped.
Players stopped moving; even the wind seemed to disappear.
—-------
➤ [Level Objective:]
➤ [Kill.]
➤ [Plan.]
➤ [Survive.]
➤ [Demonstrate your potential.]
—-------
"Kill!?" Damien stared with his mouth agape.
’I’m a pacifist; my idols are Gandhi and Martin Luther. I haven’t even killed an ant.’
But the system didn’t care; it was simple and terrifying. Very System-like.
Another countdown appeared.
—-------
➤ [First Wave Begins In:]
➤ [10...]
The atmosphere instantly changed.
People gripped their weapons.
Some looked determined, others looked terrified.
A few looked like they were about to faint.
➤ [9...]
—-------
Damien swallowed.
For the first time since this entire nightmare had begun.
Fear finally arrived; a dragon trying to eat him had been one thing.
This was different; he thought his fate was sealed. It all happened at once.
This was real; he was prepared for death; there would be no running.
And now, he had hope. Hope always kills people; they jump into it in the hope of becoming heroes and end up dying as nobodies.
The sword suddenly felt much heavier in his hands.
—-------
➤ [8...]
Damien tightened his grip.
His heart pounded, his palms sweated.
A thousand thoughts raced through his exhausted mind.
How strong were the monsters?
Could he actually fight?
What would happen if he died?
Where was his partner?
Most importantly.
Why was the countdown skipping numbers?
The System had gone from ten to eight, twice.
That seemed deeply unprofessional.
And for some reason, that bothered Damien more than the incoming monsters.
He was already hallucinating.
Then the bushes ahead began to rustle.
Something was coming.
And Damien suddenly realized he was about to fight for his life with approximately zero combat experience and one hundred percent confidence issues.
This was going to be a disaster.