Cheating From The Start

OneKill.

It was a name both envied and feared in Exodia Quest. An Assassin who worked as a mercenary for anyone. OneKill did not discriminate against his employers or the missions they gave him. Any guild with enough money could hire him.

Unlike many Assassins who played the class more like a fast-moving Warrior, OneKill was an Assassin in the truest sense of the word. The mission that made him one of the most famous characters in Exodia Quest was the attack on one of the bases of Aurora Dawn, one of the ten most powerful guilds in the game.

Until then, the bases of the strongest guilds were considered impenetrable fortresses. But that all changed with the assassination of several high-ranking Aurora Dawn officers. Although OneKill did not escape with his life, his mission was considered a success by everyone.

After that, Aurora Dawn faced a combined attack from many guilds just as strong as them, knocking them down dozens of spots in the rankings. It was rumored that OneKill had received tens of millions of dollars for the assassination, which was certainly a very high figure, but all the guild leaders said they were willing to pay if that was the result.

The only reason Markos' character was only in the Top 500 Assassins was that other players were two years ahead of him. OneKill was the right person to carry out well-planned surprise attacks, but his performance on the battlefield left much to be desired due to the difference in attributes and equipment.

While the best assassins in the game were the biggest headaches in major wars, constantly sneaking up behind the enemy, OneKill could only attack isolated targets.

Thinking about his former character, Markos could not help but feel bittersweet. However, all the regrets from his past life could be settled in this life.

[Player OneKill, we have detected that you are currently on the Old Continent server. Do you want to keep it and continue with the class selection?]

"Yes," Markos answered firmly. After several conflicts and peace treaties, the political division into countries was abolished and the continents were united. They were currently called The Empire (American Continent), Ancient Continent (Europe), Wild Continent (Africa & Oceania), and Mysterious Continent (Asia).

In the early days of Exodia Quest, each continent had its dedicated server for players who were physically present on that continent. Although switching servers was allowed, the experience was like playing with hundreds of kilograms of bricks attached to each limb.

Although there was much speculation about Scarlet Corporation's inability to deliver a worldwide gaming experience, Markos knew that in a little over a year, the 'Imperial Kingdom' update would arrive and unlock the central area of the Exodia Continent.

The Exodia Continent was divided into five major regions. To the north was the Old Continent, to the south was the Wild Continent, to the west was The Empire, and to the east was the Mysterious Continent. Scarlet Corporation had decided to split the players to make it easier to optimize the game and at the same time allow them to enjoy the special features of each region, making it more appealing to the players.

Old Continent players had better access to hidden quests about the past of Exodia Continent, Wild Continent players were known for controlling the resources market, Empire players had access to the best equipment, and Mysterious Continent players had the most sophisticated and strange abilities.

Although the differences between the players of the different continents were not too great four years after the server merger, these differences were successful in arousing the players' curiosity in the early stages of the game.

[Player OneKill, Old Continent has been successfully selected as your server. You will be presented with the ten available classes and a brief description of each. Please choose one.]

> Knight: Master of defense, the fundamental piece of any battle.

> Magician: Controller of the mysterious energy that fills Exodia Continent.

> Archer: Specialized in ranged attacks. Capable of wiping out an army without being touched.

> Warrior: Jack of all trades, master of none. In charge of bringing balance to the battlefield.

> Healer: Respected all over the world. Capable of curing any disease.

These were the five most played classes in any MMORPG, and Exodia Quest was no exception. These were classes with no major mysteries that could be seen anywhere.

> Martial Artists: Experts in combat and giving headaches to their opponents.

> Creation Master: Capable of bringing anything to life. Imagination is the limit.

> Beastmaster: Able to defeat an army with either a dragon or a rabbit.

> Summoner: Master of the forbidden arts.

> Assassin: Brings chaos to the battlefield. No one is safe from him.

The last five classes were the most peculiar of all, designed for players with different tastes.

Martial Artist was the most popular of them all, especially in the Mysterious Continent. It was perhaps the class that offered the most freedom in combat, as it was impossible to learn the patterns of its strange attacks.

Creation Master was designed for players who enjoyed life and avoided confrontation. Despite this, they were perhaps the richest class of all. Their ranks included blacksmiths, alchemists, engineers, and architects.

Beastmaster and Summoner were originally Magician's class specializations, but Scarlet Corporation eventually decided to add them independently to bring more depth to the gameplay.

Markos did not even think about it, his decision was very simple. Without batting an eye, he chose the Assassin class.

[Congratulations, player OneKill, you have chosen the Assassin class. Please adjust your appearance to complete your registration. If you do not wish to make any changes, simply continue.]

A 3D model of Markos' body appeared in front of him. It was the body of a boy, 187 centimeters tall, slightly underweight for his height due to poor nutrition. His dark blond hair was short, and his dark eyes seemed to intimidate anyone approaching him.

Although Markos was no supermodel, he could be considered above average. Were it not for his troubled personality, he would have no problem getting a girlfriend or two.

As his 3D model was projected, Markos entered the customization tab. Although body modifications were taboo, aesthetic changes did not affect synchronization.

Markos skillfully changed his eye color to purple with small bronze sparkles and added a huge tattoo of a cheetah on his leg. The tattoo ran from his knee to his ankle, with the cheetah's head resting on his knee. With nothing more to add, he confirmed OneKill's appearance.

[Congratulations player OneKill, your character is now ready to enter Exodia Quest once the servers are online. We hope you enjoy the game and reach the top of the world.]

Instead of returning him to the main page of the VR Headset interface, two new messages appeared after a few seconds.

[Congratulations to player OneKill for completing the secret mission 'Eyes That Shine'. As a reward, you will receive the passive skill <Hunter's Eyes>.]

[Congratulations to player OneKill for completing the secret mission 'Scary Speed'. As a reward, you will receive the active skill <Ankle Breaker>.]

Markos had no interest in becoming more handsome by changing his eye color or looking more intimidating by getting a tattoo. He simply wanted to take advantage of the hidden quests in character creation.

Each class had two hidden quests that awarded a passive skill and an active skill for performing a specific aesthetic change. Only 200 players were eligible to receive them. In total, between 2000 and 4000 players could start with an advantage over the rest.

This secret mission only came to light a few days after launch, so Markos took the opportunity to make his path a little easier. This was the advantage of coming back to life, you could cheat from the start.