Chapter 1: That Morning

Ked hated cutscenes,especially those long ones at the beginning that you couldn't skip. They may seem cool and appealing, but overall each of them were the same. Introductions to the game. He hated those beginner's walkthrough and tutorials since they were so troublesome for multiboxers such as he.

This year, he received hundreds of mails from colleges. They weren't acceptance letters but mere advertisements. He knew that he had 0 chance of getting into any of the elite colleges that many of his classmates were applying to. On that morning, the mail arrived again.

"12 dollars left on my bank account," Ked muttered. It costed him almost all his New Years and birthday savings to afford the most popular game based on its predecessor, Loktus. He would not have been able to afford a year's worth if he hadn't been given a discounted at the convention. He still felt disdain toward Crafter's Inc for taking over Loktus, using its database to create a VR version. It forced people like him to pay more than necessary for this proxy version called [The VRP].

Dressed in his sweats and shorts, he logged into the VR machine for the first time. Of course the thing he hated most about games was the character customization. Selecting looks was awfully time-consuming, yet oftentimes you cannot change appearance again later.

"Give me the default look!" he said. Ked looked at himself. Slight changes on the body to allow better movement but there were no big changes. His hair was trimmed and styled and he no longer needed his glasses. HIs sweat shirt was now the typical dress shirt, and he wore a slim fit jean.

"Change the clothing," Ked ordered. He never liked dressing in these types of clothing. He was more comfortable with sweat pants, sweatshirts, and t-shirts.

A message appeared: "Please accept the available matches. We provide the best customization and aesthetic choices, each pool unique to match individual tastes."

Ked wanted to curse out at the system. He wanted to play the game already so he quickly confirmed the rest of the default accessories and facial details. Who the hell knows what's the perfect jaw size, he thought.

"You are now entering the the world," Ked heard as the background shifts into a bedroom.

Immediately he skipped the cutscene and landed straight on top of a plain single sized bed. The room wasn't big and there was only one staircase leading downward.

Ten steps down the staircase and he walked out the house. Thousands of players crowded right outside. Everyone had the same starting point and given the same task!

"Speak to the old man? Where is the old man? With this many people here, it is impossible to make out where he is."

In the midst of the crowd, the recuperating Harrog pushed the players out of the way. He wore a business suit similar to what he wears as a self-employed technician.

End of Chapter 1: That Morning