Chương 4

[Welcome to Satisfy-Beta.] A cold, melodious voice echoed directly inside his head. Rudra flinched, twisting around so fast he nearly tripped over his own boots. He had spent the entire last month carefully guarding broken ribs and a shattered arm. Moving freely without agonizing pain felt completely alien. Right, Rudra thought, patting his chest. Virtual reality. I'm not broken here. [Proceeding to Character Creation.] A massive holographic mirror materialized in the air.

It displayed a life-sized, digital copy of his real body. [Users may adjust minor physical characteristics.] Rudra immediately tried to add five inches to his height. The system flatly rejected him. You couldn't fundamentally change your body mass or disguise yourself completely.

"Fine," he muttered. He kept his actual height and weight—187 centimeters and 82 kilograms. He did tweak a few things, though. He sharpened his jawline slightly because why wouldn't he? He let his black hair grow out to his neck. Finally, he changed his eye color to a bloodish red. If he was going to be stuck in a fantasy world, he was absolutely getting fantasy eyes. [Please enter your character name.] Rudra. Simple. Done. The mirror shattered into pixels.

A cinematic video instantly replaced it, showcasing heavily armored warriors shattering mountains and mages splitting oceans. [Welcome to the Western Continent, where One Empire and 16 Kingdoms vie for supremacy.] Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. [Please choose your starting location.] A massive map unfolded in the air. Hundreds of glowing dots blinked across the continent. Capitals, fortresses, merchant hubs. Rudra's eyes drifted across the options.

Suddenly, his gaze locked onto a small, unassuming dot on the coast of the Murray Kingdom. Seabreak Town. A weird, instinctual tug pulled at his chest. It was the exact same bizarre, lingering feeling he got when that foreign soul had shattered in his mind on the asphalt.

"Seabreak it is," Rudra decided.

"If it sucks, I'll just pick somewhere else when the beta wipes anyway." He tapped the glowing dot. The world vanished. When his vision cleared, the first thing that hit him was the smell. Sharp, salty ocean air. He stood on a cobblestone street. Bustling NPCs walked past carrying crates of fish and woven baskets. A few of them cast cautious, curious glances at the sudden influx of strange people appearing out of thin air. Rudra ignored them for a second, testing his own body.

He clenched his fists and flexed his shoulders. The muscle memory from his real-world gym sessions translated perfectly. His quiet self-evaluation was ruined by the chaos erupting around him.

"Whoa! Chairman Lim Cheolho wasn't lying! I can smell the fish!" a guy yelled at the top of his lungs.

"Look at the NPCs! They look so real!" another player pointed rudely.

"Hey, pretty girl! Wanna team up and grind some slimes?" a greasy-looking player said.

"I have a boyfriend, creep!" Rudra physically cringed. The local NPCs were staring at the players like they were an invasive species of loud, incredibly stupid animals. The second-hand embarrassment was lethal. He immediately turned his back on the crowd, ducking into a quiet corner between two stone buildings. He didn't want to be associated with those idiots.

"Status window," Rudra whispered. A clean, translucent screen popped up in his vision. [Name: Rudra] [Level: 1] [Class: None] [Title: None] [Health: 100/100 | Mana: 30/30] [Strength: 10 | Stamina: 10 | Agility: 10 | Intelligence: 10] [Stat Points: 0] Rudra stared at the pathetic base stats of a Level 1 player and sighed softly.

But as his mind flashed back to the overwhelming power in the cinematic trailer—and the fragmented memories of the blacksmith and the dragon—a wide, thrilled grin slowly spread across his face.