Prologue: Nevestria MMORPG

Prologue: Nevestria MMORPG

[News Break! The most awaited Nevestria MMORPG is available now in all stores worldwide. Is this the start of a new era of advanced gaming? People all around the world have started playing. Get your own VR device today!]

“It’s very early in the morning and they're loud as hell,” the man said as he looked at the flickering object in front of him. It was a moldy, but still working, television.

An enthusiastic voice echoed from the screen, someone excited about something new. It only served to irritate his already weakened ears after a long night shift. It was exhausting to watch.

“Let me check the other channels. Maybe some kind of news other than this will appear.”

He switched the channel on the lagging television, but he was disappointed.

“Damn…”

Another report of the same kind hit him again.

“The same news.”

[Buzz! Buzz! Nevestria MMORPG? Is this the sign of a new world? What do you think, everyone? What can you do? Are you excited? Join now and get your own VR device to play the game. See you there, everyone!]

As usual, that so-called enthusiasm seeped back into his tingling brain. It was surreal.

He noticed these people. They were elated, almost as if they were intoxicated by this new phenomenon.

This kind of reporting had been happening continuously for the past couple of days.

“Is there any news aside from that game? I want to listen to those soft-spoken news anchors again. Not these loud ones.”

He changed the channel again.

[Breaking News! The famous Virtual Reality game, Nevestria MMORPG, is making shockwaves across gaming platforms all over the world. Get your own device now!]

“Fuck…”

He listened to the different advertisements recited by reporters through his broken-down television. He didn't have the money to replace it.

He had bought it when he was just entering his adult life. Now, years later, he still hadn't changed it—nor did he have the money to do so.

[Is this real? We are currently witnessing the birth of a new era of scientific exploration. This superb game—is it an imitation of a new world? Or is it the real world itself? What do you think?]

Still, those reporters talked about the exact same thing every day. It was tiring to listen to after returning home from a night shift.

Yet, he kept listening.

[A new world where we can do whatever we want? A paradise? Is it just a fake world? Or something we can call our new reality? Well, to find out... explore the world now!]

With those advertisements and massive hype from major broadcasting companies around the globe, widespread chaos erupted. It captivated avid gamers and ordinary people alike who wanted to experience something new in life.

But what was all this chaos about? Why did people have such a massive amount of hype built around it? What was this thing, exactly?

It was all about a game.

This game was known as Nevestria MMORPG.

It was a cutting-edge technological achievement that promised something so crazy that initially, people didn't believe it. They claimed this game was a true imitation of the real world.

It promised players various new experiences with complete freedom. They could have fun doing things in this world that they couldn't always do in reality.

Following those reviews and a massive advertising campaign, it became a global sensation. Countless players of various ages started playing after its release a couple of days ago.

Some players got lucky on their quests, while others tried hoarding in-game assets. Some offered gaming guides for beginners, even though everyone was still low-level. It was chaotic.

At the same time, it was incredible fun.

Lastly, some people felt that this was a way to turn their lives around. A chance to change who they were.

And of course, that included him.

“Shit… even if I'm tired, I still want to try it.”

**************

LadyOfLake TV Production Live

On the television screen, a massive crowd gathered outside the building of one of the most famous gaming guilds in the world: LadyOfLake.

It was a gaming guild that boasted a spot in the Top Ten Guilds of the World, a global ranking that determined the true strength of organized players. The members of this guild had conquered various games in this technologically advanced era.

“Please answer us!”

Due to technological advancements on Earth, rapid improvements have swept through the gaming industry over the last ten years. And finally, researchers had cracked the formula for a completely new type of game.

That formula resulted in the creation of Nevestria MMORPG, which managed to create a massive wave, almost a tsunami, after its announcement a few years ago.

“Are the rumors true? Is the game really an imitation of a new world?”

LadyOfLake was one of the guilds invited to the closed beta-test of Nevestria MMORPG and was said to have tested it immediately with its core members. Their official review was simple:

“Yes. It is definitely real. I assure you that we tried it. In my opinion, it is truly a new world for us to explore.”

The director herself had confirmed the authenticity of the game's promises.

A new world.

After that announcement, reporters waited for one of the most prominent gaming figures in the world: the Director of the LadyOfLake Guild, Charlotte Elyana Rodenfelm. As one of the most well-known figures in the industry, everyone wanted an exclusive interview.

That was why so many of them waited for hours, some arriving early in the morning, just for this coverage.

“Is this the birth of a new gaming society on Earth? What do you think, Ma'am Charlotte?”

One of the many newscasters outside the building asked nervously. He looked at her and couldn't help but swallow hard.

“Hmm…”

She was drop-dead gorgeous. Her golden hair cascaded down her shoulders, matching her golden eyelashes, eyebrows, and eyes as she stared at the reporter.

She wore an alluring red gown that accentuated her pale complexion and voluptuous, curvy figure. Around her neck hung a gold necklace paired with matching earrings.

She also wore golden gloves and silver heels that symbolized her wealthy background, looking like royalty.

She looked like a goddess.

“Yes, I think that we have finally managed to build a new world based entirely on our imagination. Based on our beta-test, it truly resembles a reality where the things we dream of finally come true. It was that beautiful.”

She added, “A new technological era that redefines reality for humanity may already be right in front of us.”

Then, the woman looked directly into the camera and smiled, her eyes flickering with awe and excitement.

“Fantastic! What message would you give to the people who want to try it?” the newscaster asked, his interest thoroughly piqued.

He had heard a lot about this game since its release a few days ago. According to various sources, it was superb, an imitation of the real world, which felt outrageous to him.

But that claim felt believable as he looked at the gorgeous woman standing before him.

She replied, still looking straight into the lens:

“Well, you might as well try it. It is the new reality. The new reality is Nevestria MMORPG.”

She then turned her gaze toward the surrounding reporters and smiled.

“Try it and see for yourself. We await your exploration. Good luck on your adventures.”

Flick! Flick! Flick!

Flashes went off continuously as cameras captured the stunning smile of LadyOfLake's director.

**************

“They really are excited, huh?”

The man lay on his tiny, worn-out bed after a day of tiring work, he whispered to himself.

“Well…”

Looking at his low-quality television screen. Newscasters everywhere shared the same hyped tone about the game, and even that famous woman, Charlotte Elyana Rodenfelm, had echoed it.

“It's understandable. After all, it promises a new world.”

Nevestria MMORPG was a game with so many features that it practically resembled a real world according to the media. A place where humans could live, despite it being virtual. It was even proclaimed as a realm where you could do whatever you wanted.

Because of those claims, the hype around the game had been astonishing for weeks. When it launched, massive crowds immediately dove in, including people who had never been interested in gaming before.

After all, a world where you could do whatever you wanted? Who wouldn't want that?

And besides…

Even he was excited about it.

“Hmm…”

He chuckled softly, his voice full of warmth and a trace of visible excitement in his eyes.

“After all those shitty jobs…”

He looked at the colorful box resting in his rough hands, clutching it gently.

“I finally got it...”

The box was covered in high-end graphics: a man in silver armor raising his sword high with a fierce expression; a woman in a fancy hat and cloak that highlighted her sleek figure; a green-skinned Orc shouting as if charging into battle; and a woman in a white cloak posing as if in prayer.

Embossed across the top in bold letters was the title: Nevestria MMORPG.

“I finally bought it, hehehe…”

He held the box as if he were the happiest man alive, placing it gently on the small table beside his bed. It was a wooden, broken-down table he had owned for years, barely standing due to termite damage.

He didn't have any spare money to replace it.

“After all my hard work…”

He remembered the heavy lifting and endless labor: working as a salesman, a shopkeeper, a construction worker, a street vendor, and taking on countless odd jobs just to save money for this exact moment.

The hardship and physical pain he had endured felt nostalgic now.

“It was all worth it…”

A single tear rolled down his cheek out of sheer happiness. He stretched his arms and legs, then sat up on his moldy mattress, preparing himself for today.

Knowing when the game would release, he had known that without saving every penny, he wouldn't be able to afford the gear. Luckily, after months of grueling work, he had scraped together enough.

“I bought the Virtual Reality device, too…”

He looked over at the VR Pod, an almost alien-looking piece of technology with an oval design meant for human bodies. It had a blue-tinted glass shell that opened up, allowing a player to lie down comfortably inside.

“Hmm, is this the main power connector?”

He located the thick cord meant to be plugged into a wall socket to power up the machine.

Carefully, like a kid handling a fragile new toy, he stepped toward the pod. He gazed in wonder at the sleek glass, the VR helmet, the soft white mattress inside, and the pristine white interior. He plugged the cord into the wall.

[Clack! VR Device Connected.]

A mechanical voice echoed from the unit. Hearing the confirmation, he opened the game box and pulled out a plastic-wrapped disc featuring the same art as the cover.

“Is this... it?”

The game's name was printed clearly on the disc.

[Nevestria MMORPG]

“Yes, this is it…”

This was the disc needed to run Nevestria MMORPG.

He carefully inserted the disc into the designated pod slot.

[Nevestria MMORPG Connected! Please put on your VR Helmet.]

The VR helmet was a specialized piece of hardware required to project the user's consciousness into the virtual world. It was essential, and buying it had put a massive strain on his remaining savings, but he had managed it.

“Now I see how it works…”

He inspected the helmet connected to the main unit.

[Chime! VR Helmet Connected!]

“Time to put it on...”

Looking at the sleek helmet, he felt deep down that this was an opportunity to turn his life around.

A fresh start.

He lay down on the white mattress and carefully placed the helmet over his head.

“Here goes nothing… my new world.”

He slowly closed his eyes.

When he opened his eyes, he found himself standing in a bluish-white room set against a vast cosmic background. Countless stars glittered all around him. It felt as though he were floating in deep space, accompanied by a subtle, cool breeze.

Nearby sat a white marble chair, a small table, and a sleek cabinet.

“Why is there a table here?”

Before he could process his surroundings, a holographic panel popped up in his vision. It displayed strange symbols, though he recognized a question mark at the end of the line.

[Initiating... Universal Language Activated!]

Suddenly, a flood of information rushed into his mind, feeling as if his head might burst from the sudden surge.

Thump!

He stumbled and fell hard onto the floor, wincing at the embarrassing landing. He quickly looked back up at the floating panel and noticed the text had changed.

“Woah!”

He could understand it now. He stared at the words in excitement.

[Name?]

It was simply asking for his character name.

“A name, huh?”

He thought back to all the cool usernames he had pondered while working his grueling jobs—names like Darkness, Enlightenment, or ThePoorGuy. But as those options crossed his mind, one specific name stood out above the rest.

“Why not just use my real name?”

He wanted to represent his true self in this new world. Not a fake persona. Despite his terrible living conditions back on Earth, he wanted to succeed as himself. In the end, his own identity was all he truly owned.

“Keizen. That’s my name.”

He carefully typed the name using the virtual keyboard.

[Keizen… Accepted!]

A mechanical voice echoed directly in his mind.

“Whoa! That scared me. So this is the hyper-advanced tech they were talking about, huh?”

If even the character creation screen felt this real, the game itself was going to far exceed his expectations.

[Next: Customise your appearance.]

The system voice continued inside his head.

“Appearance, right?”

Even though he was poor, his natural looks had always been his best asset. It was the main reason he was always able to land service jobs. Employers naturally preferred hiring people with pleasant, clean appearances.

He had dark hair, dark eyes, defined eyebrows, a straight nose, pale skin, a subtle mustache line, and a sharp jawline.

It was his one natural advantage.

“Still, I don't want to look exactly like my real self. It'd be too easy for people to recognize me...”

He adjusted his hair color to a striking silver-white, altering his eyelashes and eyebrows to match. He increased his character's height, added a subtle mole near his cheek, and changed his eyes to a vivid crimson like a vampire noble of the night.

“This character customization is out of this world…”

He chuckled softly, examining his reflection in the virtual panel. He looked completely different from his real-world self.

“Though... there's still one thing this face has in common with mine.”

He smiled at his reflection.

“It's handsome.”

He looked like a character straight out of a vampire movie, wearing a noble cloak, looking mysterious in the dark, with the kind of pale, attractive features moviegoers loved. He was satisfied with the result.

[Are you satisfied with this appearance?]

[Yes / No]

He tapped 'Yes'.

Tap! Tap! Tap! Tap!

Tap! Tap! Tap! Tap!

He froze. A sound echoed through the space… a sound that shouldn't exist here.

Tap! Tap! Tap! Tap!

It was the distinct clicking of high heels against a hard floor coming from right behind him.

“Is someone... behind me?”

Startled, he wondered if it was some kind of glitch or ghost. He slowly turned around to see who or what was walking toward him.

“Keizen, correct?”

A woman… no, an angel… was walking gracefully toward him. He watched in silence as she glided past and took a seat on the white marble chair.

“What…?”

He had read countless beginner guides and strategies before logging in, even with the game only being out for a few days. Yet, not a single player had mentioned being greeted by anyone during character creation.

Especially not someone this breathtaking.

Her long, light-orange hair flowed gracefully down her back, perfectly matching the color of her eyes, eyebrows, and eyelashes. She had a refined nose, lava-red lips, a soft oval face, and pale skin similar to his o

wn.

It was almost terrifying how beautiful she was.

The very definition of otherworldly perfection.

“Yes... I'm Keizen,” he answered slowly, staring into her light-orange eyes.

Then, the angel spoke again… and her next words sent a cold, terrifying chill running straight down his spine:

“Keizen... you are, in fact, already dead.”