The path to the first town was as generic as they come. A well-trodden dirt road, winding through the woods and fields I had just turned into my personal grinding zone. After a few hours of walking, I saw it: a wooden palisade, a gate, and the tops of a few buildings. The town of Megiddo. It had the distinct look of a place built for function, not for tourists.
Walking through the gate was like stepping into the starting area of any low-budget MMO. The streets were a mix of mud and cobblestones. The buildings were timber and plaster, leaning against each other for support. The air smelled of woodsmoke, livestock, and unwashed bodies. People milled about, merchants hawked their wares, and a blacksmithâs hammer rang out with a steady, monotonous rhythm. They were all just NPCs going about their daily loops.
I had one goal: find the Adventurer's Guild. It wasnât hard. It was the biggest, loudest building on the main street, a two-story tavern with a gaudy wooden sign depicting a sword and a shield. I pushed open the heavy oak doors and was hit with a wall of noise and the smell of stale beer.
The inside was a cliché made real. Rough-hewn tables were filled with men and women in various states of leather and steel armor. They were drinking, laughing, and boasting. A quest board, littered with pieces of parchment, was nailed to one wall. At the far end of the room was a long counter, and behind it, a young woman was diligently stamping papers. The quest-giver.
I navigated through the crowd, ignoring the few curious glances my clean, new-looking clothes attracted. The woman at the counter looked up as I approached. She had warm, brown eyes and dark hair tied back in a practical braid. She offered a tired but professional smile.
"Welcome to the Megiddo Adventurer's Guild. Are you here to post a request or register?" she asked, her voice pleasant.
"Register," I said flatly.
"Of course. My name is Talia. I'll just need you to place your hand on the Assessment Crystal. It will read your base-level and class aptitude, and then we can issue you a guild plate." She gestured to a polished black crystal sphere sitting on the counter. It was about the size of a bowling ball.
This was standard procedure. Iâd seen it in a hundred different stories. I placed my hand on the cool, smooth surface.
For a second, nothing happened. Then, the crystal began to glow. It started as a soft white light, but it quickly intensified, growing brighter and brighter until Talia had to shield her eyes. A low noise filled the air, and murmurs broke out across the guild hall as people turned to see what the commotion was about.
The light flared, becoming almost blinding. Then I heard a sharp ping, like a pebble hitting a windshield. The light died instantly, plunging the counter back into the tavern's dim lighting.
I took my hand away. A thin, spiderweb crack had formed on the surface of the perfect black sphere.
Talia stared at it, her mouth slightly agape. "It's... it's never done that before," she whispered, a hint of panic in her voice. She looked at a small slate next to the crystal that was now displaying glowing runes. "Level... Error," she read, her brow furrowed in confusion. "Class: Novice."
"Looks like the new kid broke the toy," a loud, booming voice cut through the silence.
I turned. A large man built like a brick wall was swaggering towards the counter, two equally large cronies flanking him. He was decked out in gleaming steel plate armor that was probably worth more than my entire life back on Earth. A smug, condescending smirk was plastered on his face.
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"Don't worry, Talia," he said, leaning an armored elbow on the counter. "Probably just a bug. This skinny whelp's mana is so weak it must have short-circuited the crystal." He looked me up and down with disdain. "A bugged Novice. That's a new one."
His friends chuckled like the mindless henchmen they were. I just stared back at him, my expression blank. This trope. I was really living this trope. The arrogant, high-level bully who feels the need to put the new guy down. His name was probably Chad or something equally punchable.
"There's no need for that, Gideon," Talia said, though she lacked any real authority in her tone.
"I'm just saying," Gideon continued, ignoring her and focusing on me. "We can't have broken equipment, and we can't have bugged, useless members bringing down the Guild's reputation. How about a little 'test' to see if you can even swing a sword, kid?"
He was challenging me to a fight. In the middle of the guild hall. The predictability of it all was almost comforting.
"You want to spar?" I asked, my voice flat.
"That's the idea," he sneered. "We'll clear a space. Don't worry, I'll go easy on you. Wouldn't want to break you like you broke the crystal."
The other adventurers, smelling a bit of free entertainment, started pulling tables back to create a circle in the middle of the room. This was stupid. A waste of time. But turning him down would just lead to more problems. The fastest way to deal with an annoying pop-up is to click 'OK' and get it over with.
I walked to the center of the cleared space. Gideon unslung a massive greatsword from his back, planting the tip on the floorboards with a heavy thud. He looked at me, then at my empty hands.
"No weapon? I guess a bugged Novice wouldn't even have a starter dagger," he laughed. The crowd laughed with him.
I didn't say anything. I just waited.
Gideon finally hefted his sword. "Alright, lesson's starting, kid!"
He charged. For a man his size, he was surprisingly fast. He raised the greatsword in a wide, overhead arc, a classic power attack designed to intimidate and overwhelm. To everyone else in the room, it was probably a blur of steel. To me, with my Agility stat that was likely double or triple his, it looked like it was moving through molasses. It was the most telegraphed, easily-countered opening move I had ever seen.
I didn't even bother to dodge dramatically. I just took one casual step to my left. The massive sword crashed down where I'd been standing, splintering the floorboards.
The laughter in the room died. Gideon stared at the hole in the floor, then at me, his smirk replaced by a flicker of disbelief.
"Lucky move," he growled, swinging again. This time it was a horizontal slash aimed at my waist. I leaned back slightly, the wind from the blade ruffling my shirt. He followed up with a clumsy thrust. I tilted my head. The tip of the sword passed a hair's breadth from my ear.
He was a high-level player spamming his basic attacks, and I was lagging the game on purpose to watch his animations.
"Stand still!" he roared, his face turning red with frustration.
I was getting bored. Time to end the tutorial.
As he lunged forward for another attack, I decided to meet him halfway. I closed the distance in a single step. He hadn't even registered my movement when I was already inside his guard. I focused, pulling the now-familiar energy into my right hand. My fist lit up with a pale blue glow.
I delivered a single, simple punch to his chest plate. Not a haymaker, just a short, efficient jab. [Mana Strike].
The clang was deafening.
Gideonâs eyes went wide with shock. The steel breastplate, which had looked so impressive moments before, now had a perfect, fist-sized dent in it. The force of the blow lifted him off his feet. He flew backward, landed in a heap, and didn't move. Unconscious.
The entire guild hall was dead silent. The only sound was the crackle of the hearth fire. Everyone stared, first at Gideon's crumpled form, then at my still-glowing fist, and finally at my face.
I let the mana dissipate and flexed my fingers. I looked over at the counter, at the still-shocked Talia.
"So," I said, my voice cutting through the silence. "Am I registered now?"
Talia just stared at me, her brown eyes wide. The professional, tired look was gone, replaced by something else. Awe. There were stars in her eyes.