Jack was overwhelmed at first, but after experimenting for a bit he finally calmed down. From what he could tell so far, everything felt pretty close to reality. In fact, he couldn’t find any differences at first.

Only after jumping around and doing some meaningless exercises could he tell that something was off. It felt like a thin membrane covered everything, it was hard for him to describe it. The best way to put it was that it felt like a dream, one of those super realistic ones.

“Well, I guess I’ll discover the nuances with time.”

Jack was standing inside a circular cavern that was unnaturally illuminated. The only thing around him was a single entrance that was covered with a barrier of light. He approached the entrance with steady steps.

“Guess I’ll be traversing the white light… just hope there isn’t a boss on the other side. God wouldn’t really do that, would he?”

Despite saying that, Jack crossed the barrier without hesitation. He found himself outside, the glaring sun blinding him temporarily. The cave he came out from was situated atop a small mountain, with large stone steps leading to it.

Without another option, Jack followed the steps down until he reached a small plateau. He was surprised to find houses and other constructions there. The place looked like a monastery and he could see some old men walking here and there. One of them spotted him and came forward.

“Greetings noob, I’m monk NPC18,” said the old monk.

“What did you call me? Wait, your name is NPC18?”

“It’s all according to the holy texts and traditions. Those that come from the cave are called noobs or newbies until they leave the mountain. As for my name, I had a different one before, but every monk becomes an NPC after joining the order and is given a number based on seniority.”

“Uh, do you even know what NPC means?”

“Yes, it’s short for no pecarás cabrón. It means you shall not sin in a distant, long lost language.”

Jack wasn’t ready for this one. He opened and closed his mouth for a few moments, lost for words. The old monk looked at his reaction and scratched his wrinkled cheeks.

“All noobs ask this question and they mostly have the same reaction. I don’t understand, is it so strange for our names to be our vows? It’s almost like you all thought that NPC meant something different.”

Jack was about to say something but stopped. He looked into the monk’s aged eyes that were filled with sincerity and pondered. Everything felt real, including this old man in front of him. In the end, he couldn’t say what was on his mind.

“No… it’s just that… your devotion is surprising, that’s all,” said Jack weakly.

“Thanks. Now, follow me. If you want to leave the mountain you have to pass through a ceremony first, otherwise you’ll be stuck here.”

“Ceremony? What kind of ceremony?”

“It’s called The Tutorial. Don’t worry, it’s very simple. You’ll only have to recite some ancient words after me and you’re done. Most newbies tend to zone out during the ceremony or have wild reactions, but none failed so far.”

The monk led Jack to a secluded building in the center of the monastery. Along the way all the other monks he passed by greeted him, calling him noob or newbie every single time. Jack knew he shouldn’t mind it, but it annoyed him all the same.

Stop calling me noob! You’re all called NPC! he screamed internally.

The monk guided Jack inside the building and into a great hall. The hall was spacious, but it was mostly empty. The only things of note were two large cushions at the center of the room and the frescos on the wall.

The murals depicted all kind of races, monsters and other fantastical things. To Jack it looked like a giant banner for a fantasy game, only the style of painting and the marks of time gave the art a deep sense of history and solemnness.

Waiting for Jack to take the sights in, the monk moved to the middle of the room, seating on one of the two cushions there. It took Jack a whole minute to recover. He then followed the monk’s lead and sat at the other cushion.

“Do you like the frescos?”

“They’re really well done. What are they called?”

“This work’s title is: Our World.”

“A fitting title. Should I expect to stumble upon all of that when I leave?”

“Well, that’s hard to say. Many of the things depicted are common, while others haven’t been seen for some time in the continent. It’ll depend on your luck, or lack thereof.”

Hearing that, Jack smiled. The whimsical mistress, Lady Luck. Jack was looking forward to seeing what results investing all his starter points into Luck would bring.

“Are you ready? Repeat after me. Menu.”

“Menu.”

A wheel with many options suddenly appeared floating in front of Jack. It looked like a hologram from one of those futuristic movies he often watched. Some of the options were white, while others were greyed out. Status, inventory, equipment, skills, and many other options one would expect to find in an RPG were all present.

Jack was expecting this after hearing the word menu leave the old man’s mouth, but the result still surprised him. Even though he was taking things in stride, he couldn’t just instantly digest everything that was happening.

“You’re doing great. You didn’t shout or laugh maniacally. Now, say inventory.”

The old man’s voice brought Jack’s attention back to the room. Behind NPC18 were now standing a few other monks, each carrying a different weapon on their hands. The weapons were extremely simple and since the monks were just holding them and not posturing, Jack didn’t feel afraid.

“Inventory.”

A new screen appeared in front of Jack. It was a window with ten slots.

“Now you can choose one of the weapons behind me as a gift. Your goal is to make it disappear.”

So those are my options of starter weapons. Making it disappear must mean to put it inside my inventory. It looks like he doesn’t understand how this works. Do the natives not have access to the menu, inventory and other systems?

Jack carefully eyed the weapons. The options were a bow, a crossbow, a sword and shield, a spear and a two-handed axe. He was inclined to take the bow or crossbow, this way he could deal with enemies before they got close, but what if he got ambushed? Or if he missed the shot and they managed to get close anyway?

In the end he opted for the spear. This way he could fight while retreating, always keeping his foe some distance away. He grabbed the spear and shoved it in the inventory, taking up one of the ten slots.

“Now, for the final word. Log out.”

Jack immediately tensed up.

Log out? What would happen to me after logging out?

“Everyone’s afraid of this one. Don’t worry, no harm will come to you,” said the monk with a smile.

Jack took a deep breath and said the word log out. His body completely vanished from the room in a flash of white light. NPC18 slowly got up from the cushion and patted his clothes. He looked at the other cushion for a moment.

“Good luck out there, noob.”