Chapter 16 - Grand Adventure Online

Chapter 16

~

". . .I don't believe you. Lemme try." Jenna huffed and took Charlie's previous spot after he had recovered a bit, shooing him away as she sat down to face the girl. "C'mon girl, up with your arm." She gestured after placing her own elbow on the table.

"Jonah, count us down!"

"Fine, fine. 3, 2, 1, go." He voiced lazily.

...

"Hrnnngh!! Why are you not even moving!?" Jenna growled strainedly a couple of minutes later, having eventually climbed up on top of the table, her feet planted on it's edge with both her hands intertwined behind the girl's as she pulled using everything she had in an attempt to move the girl's unyielding arm.

"I told you, man. She ain't moving an inch." Charlie who stood behind her in case she fell, Jenna's whole body practically in the air as she tried pushing off of the table with her legs, spoke up as he watched on.

"Don't just stand there, help me out here!"

"Even if you say that. . . What do you even want me to do?"

Karl and Jonah spectated the two of them from the side.

"She's not moving anytime soon, is she?"

"Nope."

Jenna eventually gave up after she failed to so much as budge the inexpressive girl's arm even after enlisting Charlie's help.

The rest of the day was spent relaxing as the group leisurely made their way around the shops, occasionally entering to take a closer look when something caught one of their eye's. When the sky started darkening they went back to the gym and soon after parted ways with the three of them promising to attend one of Nana's sparring sessions sometime later.

After finding out that maybe Jonah wasn't just humoring the girl the three of them had gotten curious of how she'd fare in a ring. None of them were really super into fighting but when you became with Jonah, the topic was kind of inescapable.

Charlie had picked up watching a match or two once in a while as a hobby whilst Karl and Jenna remained fairly uninterested until the subject was brought up by someone else.

---

Time passed quickly and in the blink of an eye another year and a half had gone by, Nana now 16 years old. Not much had changed in terms of her daily routines, still immersed in training and growing stronger each and every day.

More notable events including Chang-hoon retiring from the pro-scene after slowly but surely finding himself void of both challengers and challenges. It had lost the previous thrill and excitement it first brought when he stepped inside the ring surrounded by a sea of people about to fuck someone up, not only for their entertainment but to further refine himself and make progress in his discipline.

Now? No one there could match him, no one could push him to break past his limits because they were already being constantly tested practically every day at the gym sparring with the monstrous girl who just didn't stop growing stronger.

A big reason for him deciding to go pro was the unceasing flow of opponents he'd have the chance to go up against, but at this point anything that wasn't the girl herself looked lackluster, weak, sloppy, inferior, too quick to tap out, unwilling to give it their all in a fight.

The girl might have slightly skewed his view of what an acceptable level of strength and skill was. . . but that wasn't his problem now was it?

On the other hand, Yama had made steady progress in his studies under Dai Hui. They had still not found anything regarding Nana's anomalies however, after a long period of observation they eventually determined that, at least for the moment, it wasn't anything actively harmful.

They also couldn't really operate on something of which they could not physically touch so further pursuing it was sort of a moot point.

Somchai and Jonah had similarly done their best to keep up with Nana's growth, unsurprisingly unable to match her but had still progressed far, far more than they would have without her presence serving as a constant reminder to keep pushing themselves to improve.

Nana had also made somewhat of a name for herself in the digital world, initially because of people connecting her to the winner of the [Gauntlet of the Underworld] and later because of people who she had met during the mountain of missions she took on, either with the team or solo, speaking of multiple frankly unbelievable feats.

Piercing through concrete and later steel with her bare hands, jumping incredibly heights vertically and even further horizontally, able to tank a hail of bullets and walk away with just light wounds, dodging hidden snipers like she had eyes in the back of her head, lifting a mind-boggling amount of weight with just a slight strain, running faster than a moving car, unable to feel pain, the list went on.

Of course, most people unsurprisingly scoffed at this, denouncing the rumors as a collaborative scheme at trying to scare them into lane, a made up deterrent meant to reign in unscrupulous people too deep rooted to realistically affect any other way.

Even with her performance in the [Gauntlet of the Underworld] being quite easy to access as long as you knew what to look for, no one in their right mind would think the rumors true.

Another big reason was that Nana never actively contacted others for work, relying on Kaya to send her jobs and later, after building up a fairly solid pool of contacts and proving her abilities as a mercenary she was simply never starved for work again since past clients would always contact her for something or another.

However, as more and more people, powerful well-known people at that, started speaking up confirming their authenticity, then people were eventually unable to continue thinking of it as the priorly mere urban legend it had become.

This was also supported by an increasing amount of video footage proving the outrageous claims to be true. Although there were still people that didn't believe it, calling the posters out for fabricating the videos and chasing fame for themselves, it still proved to solidify her presence in the minds of everyone else further.

Whether true or false, the rumors of the Taciturn Juggernaut had reached even the deepest darkest corners of the digital world.

---

"Little Nana~ One of the guests is being a bit naughty, be a dear and 'gently' escort him outside would you?" A flamboyant voice was heard.

Inside an exclusive VIP box sequestered away on the top floor of one of the biggest, most popular clubs, digital or not, a large figure partly obscured bathed in the dim atmospherical purple pink light was currently indulging in a veritable feast filled with indulgently rich dishes of all kinds meticulously laid out on the table in the middle of the room.

A quiet disgruntled noise was heard, the figure quickly stuffing as much of the remaining food that could fit into it's mouth and sending the rest a reluctant glance before slowly standing up with a peeved air, a haphazardly wiped hand idly swiping the communication device resembling a walkie talkie from the table as heavy steps towards the door resounded.

"Floor." A full mature voice, low and smoky, grunted out with traces of annoyance perceivably intertwined with the enchanting sound. Combined with an addictive husky raspiness, it was a voice capable of captivating and bewitching listeners into a spell-like trance.

...

"Again, 'sir'!" A professional female voice stressed irritatedly, the words laced with a barely suppressed hostility. "We do not provide such services here, if you truly are unable to restrain your urges please make you way to floor 7 instead of harassing our staff. You have already been flagged thrice and inebriation is no excuse. Our rules and the different types of establishments we are running are quite clearly displayed at each floor's entrance."

"If you do not pay and leave within the next 2 minutes I will have you removed, whether you want to or not." A strict looking woman wearing a classy suit-style waitress uniform consisting of whites and blacks curtly stated matter of factly, her narrowed eyes glaring from behind a pair rectangular framed glasses.

"Oh, come ooon~ I ain' e-en do nofin yeh~" A man slurred drunkenly as he leaned back into the booth's couch with a beer in hand, face slack and eyes drifting. "Yoou can-eh jus' aguse me of anyfin jus' cuz you're a hot chick, bro! Tha's crazy!"

The woman's expression tightened as she continued trying to convince the unmoving man to comply, eventually having no choice but to send the matter up the chain as he wouldn't listen to anything she had to say.

Dismissively remaining in his seat whilst throwing out unreasonable arguments, calling his treatment unfair and demanding evidence of his deeds. Even after she brought up the camera footage clearly displaying his hand on multiple occasions snaking out to grope their waitresses he continued feigning ignorance and confusion, vehemently denying the accusation.

It was like trying to reason with a petulant child.

Fortunately, just as the woman felt her temper reach a boiling point she spotted a familiar imposing figure entering through the staff entrance behind the bar.

Exhaling a deep breath of relief and simultaneously dispelling some of her irritation she waved her hand, immediately catching the figure's attention.

As the frequent hire and friend of Julius' made her way over, the woman was still unable to completely squash the urge to shrink back despite getting mostly accustomed to the girl's presence during the time she had worked at the club.

When their boss had first introduced the girl as a 'flying guard' that would rotate between the floors when needed, most of the staff hadn't thought much of it. The then much shorter vacant looking girl though admittedly visibly muscular hadn't exactly filled them with confidence.

Not to mention that some of the staff were capable of handling unruly guests by themselves most of the time.

However, the girl had quickly subverted their expectations one night when a guest had arrived armed and after a few drinks started threatening waiters for incredibly inane reasons and perceived slights against his person.

Whilst the usual people in charge of taking care of it were unsurprisingly hesitant to approach, the girl didn't have any such inhibitions. Simply walking up and knocking him out with a swift strike like she didn't even register the gun at all.

Numerous such incidents kept occurring and although they were intially worried and completely beffudled by her behavior, the girl seemingly didn't care at all.

Even after getting shot she barely even reacted.

It was only after Julius himself had regaled them with some of the girl's deeds to placate a few especially concerned staff members that they realised who exactly they had been working alongside.

The massive shock they received back then still lingered unto this day.

It also put everyone on edge around her during the initial period after finding out, though they eventually mostly calmed down when they got to know the girl a bit more.

Recognizing that she wouldn't suddenly lash out for no reason, even being quite passive and docile until she was called.

However.

Compared to back then, the girl was almost unrecognizable in present day.

Hit with a growth spurt named leviathan the girl had quickly shot up in height, now towering over most standing at 213cm tall according to some of the staff girls that had taken to mothering the girl.

Currently hidden underneath a white dress shirt with it's sleeves rolled up and soft black pants was a body rippling with sharply cut muscles of steel, built like a tank with a physique more robust than strictly lean with clear definition lines covering her form, this on top of her height made the girl incredibly intimidating.

Especially with the neutral expression often plastered on her face making it hard for others to read her mood.

Her body had also filled out, gaining proportional curves in all the right places as if her body wanted to counteract the muscle and added a mature amazonian charm to match it.

Combined with the girl's entrancingly beautiful exotic eyes, the woman had, on multiple occasions, needed to explain to new staff that no, the girl wasn't working full time and she didn't know her ID and two, the girl wasn't even old enough to drink yet despite her appearance suggesting otherwise.

People unconsciously made way for the girl who grumpily lumbered towards the woman with a slight slump present in her posture.

The woman sternly clamped down on the urge to take a step back when the girl arrived and let out a questioning huff through her nose, feeling incredibly small in front of the giant who's body completely enveloped her in it's shadow even with the girl's lazy drooping stance.

Clearing her throat and inwardly berating herself for cowering in the presence of the girl looming over her who had been nothing but accomodating if a bit withdrawn, she adjusted her glasses with a finger. "Thank you for coming Nana, this gen- this guest here is quite stubborn and absolutely refuses to move from his seat."

"If you would." She gestured in request.

"H-H-Hey w-waaih a min-ed-!" The man immediately stuttered out as he wobbled up to his feet, slightly sobering upon seeing the titanic silhouette entering his blurry sight and hearing the woman's words.

He wasn't so far gone that he couldn't feel fear and even whilst sitting down, or maybe even more so because of it, the security they called in made him tremble in his boots. A pair of luminous green rings piercing into him from behind messy black bangs, the striking color further emphasized by the rather dim light level present in the club.

"T-Tae id easy man, I-I'll mo- Argh-!?"

His words fell on deaf ears faced with an uncaring and slightly grumpy Nana who simply reached out a hand and grabbed his head in an iron grip, easily lifting him up and trudged towards the exit.

"Fu- C-Chill ouh, bro!" The man's hands instantly shot up in an attempt to try the fingers painfully clamping down on his skull like an industrial press off but ultimately resulted in nothing, agonized whimpers echoed behind the two, the surrounding crowd parting like the red sea until they eventually disappeared from view leaving the those that saw it in stunned silence.

Nana returned about a minute or two later with a hand coated in red and a stack of credit chits in the other which she handed over to the woman who didn't even react to the blood, her attention attracted by multiple other discrepancies now that she had gotten a hold of herself again.

"Thank you Nana." She nodded in gratitude pocketing the 'payment' that might or might not have been more than what was owed before leveling the girl with a scrutinizing stare as she crossed her arms. "Now then, would you care to enlighten me where your jacket and tie might have disappeared to?"

"Lost."

The woman's eyes narrowed in suspicion and gestured down at the girl's conspicuously bare feet, both the black dress shoes and socks also apparently having mysteriously gone missing. "And your shoes?"

". . .Lost."

Closing her eyes the woman reached up to pinch the bridge of her nose, a vexed sigh escaping her, already having a pretty good guess of how they got 'lost'.

Again.

What was made apparent pretty early on was that the girl held a stubborn dislike for their uniforms, finding them constricting and stuffy to wear which often ended up with her just chucking off pieces of clothing and leaving them scattered throughout the club.

At this point the woman didn't even know why they bothered but Julius had merely brushed it off, somehow finding the behavior amusing for a reason she herself could not understand considering that she and the staff were the ones that had to go on a 'treasure hunt' at the end of the day.

Julius had also provided the girl with a nigh unlimited supply of the uniforms and told her to always grab another set when she had the chance, which she actually did, it was unfortunate however, that they, just like many others, would promptly be added to the pool of 'missing' clothes soon after.

"Nana, I understand that you find the uniforms uncomfortable but could you pl-" The woman started, though when she re-opened her eyes the words' target had disappeared rendering her once again speechless at the girl's ability to move around so silently even with her towering stature.

She let out another sigh following a pause as she catalogued another jacket, tie and a pair of shoes to the list of missing items, some of which they still hadn't even found yet.

---

"Fuck! Hah. . . Hah. . . Goddamn. . . colossus. . ." Chang-Hoon breathlessly growled into the ring splayed out like a starfish and drenched in so much sweat it looked like he'd just left the pool, glaring up at his disciple who had pretty much already recovered from their most recent spar.

And even then, though it grated, it really really did, he knew that the only reason he could even remotely cause her exertion in the first place anymore was due to the phantom weights she'd chained herself with.

Entirely disregarding the disparity in technique and skill and despite his love for fighting, even he wouldn't want to face the girl unchained. The girl fucking dented thicker metal beams and directly punched through thinner sheets of the stuff.

Fuck to the hell to the no.

"You done getting stomped yet? Nana and I've gotta get going before the line gets too long." Jonah boredly called out leaning against the canvas, chin lazily propped up by a supportive hand with his foot impatiently tapping away as he waited for them to finish.

"Haah?~ Fuck you- hah. . . barking for!? Think you can do any better!? I'll have you on the floor in 10 seconds tops, if the girl went against you at the same level she does me you're eating shit faster than you can blink!"

"I know." Jonah shrugged nonchalantly. "I'm not the masochist running back for another beating each and every day though."

"I'm not a masochist, just not a pussy who's afraid of some pain!" Chang-hoon scoffed pushing himself upright, cracking his jaw as he assessed the damage.

Jonah let the jab slide off of him, he had already realized that catching up with Nana was just unrealistic. It hadn't been an easy pill to swallow at the time but he had eventually come to terms with it.

The girl just wasn't human.

That by no means meant that he was any less determined to get stronger and continue his martial arts journey, but it did help him snap out of the borderline destructive tendencies he'd gotten into trying to improve at her same rate of growth.

It had also done wonders for his mentality, having calmed down following his personal enlightenment.

They continued trading verbal blows until Nana came back from a quick shower, the two of them quickly taking off after fetching a pair of pre-prepared bags on the way out.

The long awaited first and only VRMMO to be created successfully, 'Grand Adventure Online', was launching in a couple of days and Jonah wasn't waiting even a second longer than he had to.

Nana had also been on board with the notion and tagged along after he showed her the game's trailer featuring multiple scenes of people fighting various monsters that instantly caught her eye.

...

"Come on, can't the time go any faster?" An older Jenna complained with an impatient whine sat in a beach chair with a blanket wrapped around her to shield against the chilly morning air.

"There's just-" Karl started and glanced down at his phone. "-some 30 minutes left now. Can't you wait just a little bit longer? You guys dragged me along on your 'brilliant' idea to camp for launch yesterday morning, this is basically nothing in comparison." He stated huffily tightening his jacket, unable to suppress a tired yawn.

"Couldn't you have just gotten me a copy? Why did I need to tag along. . ."

The group of 5 consisting of Nana, Jonah, Karl, Charlie and Jenna were currently sitting in a circle outside of the store waiting for the doors to open and subsequently get their hands on the game.

The company's decision to release the it in physical copies instead of just putting it up for download had been somewhat out of left field since most publishers had already switched over to the more convenient method, but at least the move generated some more interest.

Not that the game at all needed any further attention, this close to launch it was basically all everyone talked about.

"Your weakness. . . It disgusts me." She raspily hissed out, face pulled back in revulsion looking at him as if he'd just confessed he liked kicking dogs.

"Yeah yeah, I know." Karl drawled lazily, rolling his eyes.

"Oh, hey. By the way, have you guys already picked out a class? I was thinking of starting [Tank] and aiming for a [Paladin] or something! Or maybe [Paladin] would be a [Warrior] start? They didn't really reveal any class trees yet, right?" Charlie asked clad in his usual outfit, the extra padding now coming in handy, with a fur hat on his head.

"Not that I know of." Jenna instantly latched on to the topic and started rambling. "According to the most comprehensive knowledge to date there'll be 6 'Core' classes you can choose from. [Warrior], [Tank], [Mage], [Healer], [Rogue], and [Ranger] which can then branch out into more specialized classes like [Barbarian], [Heavy Shielder], [Fire Mage], [Priest], [Assassin] and [Sharpshooter] to name a few examples."

"I'm probably gonna try for something like [Martial Artist] or [Monk] if possible." Jonah mused out loud.

"Of course you are. We still don't have anything concrete on any advanced classes beyond the basic 6, though." She finished somewhat grumpily, with such a massive lack of information she was basically going in blind which was less than ideal for someone that liked to plan things out in detail when it came to character builds.

At this stage no one even knew how to promote from the basic classes.

"I don't really care about which class I choose, I'm more interested in the crafting system than anything else. I wonder if real life experience will transfer over well? I haven't done anything like it before but I could probably whip up a decent set of cloth armor if I had some time to puzzle it out." Karl hummed, ponderously tapping his cheek with a finger.

"I'm probably starting as a [Mage] myself. I thought about going [Rogue] or [Ranger] at first but magic's just too enticing to pass up on." Jenna said, mentally making some plans as she continued. "So, we have a [Tank]/[Warrior], a [Warrior], I guess Karl could go [Healer] since it's as good as anything. . . though maybe not since stats will probably have an effect on crafting, and myself as a [Mage]. . ."

". . .We need a [Healer]." She then concluded. "[Rouge] we could probably do without as long as there aren't that many traps if the devs decides to go that route, and [Ranger] is kind of whatever I guess, most likely just supplementary DPS."

Hearing her words, after a slight pause, the four of them turned to the last member of their group who was currently buried under an enormous blanket covering her figure only showing a shadowed face, light snores emerging from the opening.

Ever since Nana had broken through the AI remnants' control a few months ago she had not only gotten a bit more expressive with time. Well, relative to how she was before that is. She had also discovered that sleeping was no longer not just a necessary action in order to recharge, it was also something that she had started liking more and more.

That she could still operate in the confines of her own mind whilst asleep was also a big reason as to why she'd taken such a strong liking to it.

Although the AI remnants was still present in her mind, it was now under her control, no longer suppressing her but rather even actively aiding her growth.

One of the biggest improvements since her liberation had been the amount of instances she could have running simultaneously whilst still aware of the surroundings. Making a frankly insane leap up to a total of 15, tripling in number compared to the former 5 which she had previously been locked to since just after the tournament.

She had also further been made aware of that instinct resembling a sixth sense that occasionally pushed her to act in certain ways, whether that was in a fight dodging something she hadn't seen or even subtly guiding her in cooking elevating her dishes from excellent to out of this world.

It had also seemingly strengthened by a substantial margin just after she got rid of the AI remnants' control, another thing that what was apparently suppressed by it's grasp.

Nana had also strayed from the machine like behavior she often defaulted to before, though it was very hard to notice the changes outwardly since it was replaced by an impassive calmness that effectively wasn't much different.

Another thing was that her likes and dislikes had gotten alot more pronounced compared to the more 'going with the flow' attitude she generally operated on before, heavily disliking clothes she found restricting and mostly not seeing the point of wearing them in the first place.

She found the concept of modesty stupid and couldn't quite understand it no matter how much Yama had tried explaining it to her, it just didn't ever click inside her mind.

It wasn't that she didn't remember his lectures, she just. . . could not bring herself to care all that much for some reason. The same thing had happened with an increasing number of things everyone else seemed to find completely normal.

Her curiosity had also slightly shifted from the more martial arts oriented mindset to an overall curiosity regarding everything around her creating a contradictory mess, Nana essentially possessing the mature calm of a fully grown adult but with although extremely muted, newly unleashed childish tendencies and desires.

This lead to her mood mostly shifting between grumpiness for one reason or another, docile stoicity, or eager inquisitiveness.

The others at the gym had also noticed her very abrupt shift in behavior and after somewhat getting a grasp of the situation, and also being immensely confused by the suddenness of it all, had decided to always have someone accompany her in case something happened.

Thankfully nothing major had cropped up yet.

". . .No matter how I look at her she's a [Tank], right?"

"Yup!"

"I wonder if the amount of material required to make clothes and armors will depend on the person's size?"

"I think she's more of a [Warrior] to be honest, I don't think Nana would be content hanging back and protecting others instead of in the midst of battle."

...

"Don't forget to add us when you log in later, Nana."

Nana remembered Jonah's reminder as she laid down after scanning in the game into her old VR Visor which she hadn't yet parted with.

Since it was such an old model she'd had to get an additional attachment to make it work properly but that was quickly taken care of courtesy of Jonah.

After confirming her identity with her vocal lock Nana's vision was plunged into darkness for a few seconds before she reappeared standing on top of what looked like a floor made of water reflecting a beautiful cloudless blue sky as far as the eye could see.

Nana looked around curiously, prodding the weird floor with her foot to see if she'd sink but no matter how hard she stomped it didn't really seem to have any effect.

[Greetings, Adventurer.] A cold female voice void of any flunctuations rang out.

Surprised by the sudden words from someone she hadn't perceived the arrival of Nana's arm instinctively lashed out whilst she turned, seeing it travel through the person's body like she'd tried hitting a mirage.

The woman who somehow appeared at her side without her notice was about average in height with objectively beautiful features sporting a thin and slender build clad in what looked to be a white bodysuit with lines running across it's surface segmenting it into parts.

Voluminous white hair reaching her ankles and ghostly pale eyes peering at her without emotion, combined with her uncomfortably bleached skin the woman exuded a sense of subtle wrongness.

Nothing majorly stood out as one singular thing, but rather the accumulation of numerous minor discrepancies giving her an overall noticeable strangeness.

It was like someone who had never before met any actual humans had tried fashioning a doll in their likeliness.

[Adventurer, please first pick a name you wish to use in the world of Grand Terra.]

...

A few minutes later Nana glanced at the system window floating in front of her displaying her stats.

---

[Nana]

Lv.1

Rank: Tier 3

Title: [Titan Infant] (Ancient) Lv.1 - Adds STR to VIT stat when calculating HP and Increases HP by 100%

Race: Hybrid - (Human) - (Tecton Swamp Turtle) - (Rage Glutton Dragon)

Class: N/A

HP: 17 340/17 340

MP: 2520/2520

STR: 511 - (146 + 250%)

VIT: 356 - (178 + 100%)

AGI: 96

INT: 252

PER: 243

SP: 5

Skills: Earth Magic Lv.1, Water Magic Lv.1, Burrow Lv.1, Bite Lv.1,

Passives:

Tectonic Shell Lv.1 - Increases VIT, Earth Resistance, Water Resistance and Physical Resistance by 100%,

Draconic Might Lv.1 - Increases STR by 250%,

Ravenous Advancement Lv.1 - Gains SP through consumption and battle,

Rapid Regeneration Lv.1 - Regenerate 1% of total HP every 3 seconds,

Mental Attack Immunity Lv.Max - Immune to the Abnormal Status Conditions affecting the Mind,

---

The woman watched impassively as the adventurer was covered in a bright light before disappearing from the spot, off to one of the many designated beginner towns chosen at random.

[Error. Adventurer surpassing the estimated limit of 10 in stats for all foreign humans discovered, scan for possible issues immediately.]

[. . .]

[Traces of designation [Native Human], [Testudines Tektonikos Titanus] and [Gula Draco Titanus] found.]

[Searching for cause. . .]

[. . .]

[Cause unable to be determined, unprecedented incident, requesting further orders.]

...

"Hmm?" A feminine ethereal voice originating from an inconcievably colossal figure obscured by a coat of shadows, even slightly dwarfing the plane it was hovering above in size echoed out through the aether. Remaining completely unseen by the inhabitants' eyes despite the seeming impossibility of going unnoticed.

"Oho, how interesting~ Though I do wonder how you've managed to acquire the essence of my children in such a way, little one. Very mysterious indeed. Or perhaps that may be the wrong question to ask? Rather, how you ended up in such a distant world may be an even more interesting enigma."

"Hmmm~ I have a hunch you may have been born in this little world of mine, however, no one being has grown powerful enough to perform a displacement on such a scale yet, and possibly won't ever do so. . . Either way, welcome back, I suppose. I look forward to seeing what you get up to, little one."

"Maybe I should re-adjust those skills she got? They were meant for 'Bosses' after all. . . Mmmm- meh. I'll let her keep them, why not. I'm also curious of how powerful that [Ravenous Advancement] will eventually make her."

An amused chuckle followed as the being spectated the plane with rapt attention.

---

"Gotta hurry, gotta hurry, gotta hurry. . . Before anyone else get their hands on that item, I've gotta get it this time! Please still be there! Just my luck that I'd overslept and got stuck at the back of the queue at the store, damn it!"

As everyone else who arrived, including those who were still quickly appearing at the large circular town square of a medieval town straight out of a fantasy world with one story buildings and stalls lining the perimeter walked around in excitement at finally playing an actual VRMMO, one person in particular stood out from the crowd, the man swiftly leaving said crowd with hurried footsteps whilst trying not to draw any attention.

"Come on, come on! Don't fail now, you've prepared too long for this!" He muttered gravely, reaching up to drag his fingers through the spiky crimson locks of red he'd colored his hair the day he resolved himself to get stronger than anyone else and bathe in the blood of his enemies, resolved himself to take revenge on his former guild who had ran him like a slave for years after convincing him to sign a contract that basically sold away his rights as a human being.

"You better watch out for me Knights of Radiance, I will eradicate not only your guild. I will tear apart your reputation, I will steal everything you should have acquired, I will hunt your Players until you're all too scared to even leave the safe zones, I will crush you all. . . I will become your worst nightmare."

If he couldn't get the quest now it wouldn't be all over for him since he knew of alot more secrets yet undiscovered thanks to his previous life's experience working in information trading before his sudden rebirth, however, it would majorly impact how much he could take advantage of the early game.

At the moment none of the top Players he knew would eventually rise to fame had aquired their hidden classes and although he didn't think he could match them, if he could snowball into the late game by gaining strength early and grabbing opportunities before anyone else then he was sure that he could at the least become a force to be reckoned with, possibly even standing at the very top.

He had already lived one life in mediocrity, gathering scraps of the top guilds to gain measly slivers of strength whilst everyone else advanced at the speed of a rocket in comparison.

He wasn't going to waste his second chance, luckily his knowledge had come along with him as well meaning he now had a very real chance to climb to the top this time!

---

[Abaddon]

Lv.1

Rank: Tier 1

Title: N/A

Race: Human

Class: N/A

HP: 60/60

MP: 100/100

STR: 4

VIT: 6

AGI: 8

INT: 10

PER: 10

SP: 5

Skills: N/A

Passives: N/A

---

Abbadon.

The name he had chosen, for he would be the destroyer of his enemies.

Adding his free Stat Points into AGI to bring it up to 13 he immediately felt the difference, his body getting lighter and more nimble making him feel like he might just get carried away by the wind any second now.

"Don't worry Mina. Your brother won't fail you this time, I promise." His expression firmed up with an unusual intensity, a ruthless edge ghosting past his eyes as the image of a bubbly girl beaming a smile at him flashed through his mind.

Shaking off his thoughts he quickly continued towards his destination, unable to detect a certain someone tracking him by jumping along the rooftops.

Currently in a curious mood, the 'figure' had gotten interested after seeing him so resolutely breaking off from the rest of the Players, with a very firm direction in mind based on his confident steps.

---

"It must be here somewhere around here. . ." Abaddon muttered, sharp narrowed eyes searching as he made his way towards the town's outskirts, the cobble tiled paths slowly turning to a wide, well travelled to dirt road with verdant shrubbery to the left and right of him which turned into an actual forest further down the road.

He truly got lucky with his start spawning in what was debatably one of the most recognizable and famous beginner locations. Said to have been where the 6th Ranker, Laughing Shadow known for his terrifying stealth and iconic cackle, acquired the first quest of a longer chain which eventually rewarded him with the [Traceless Echo] class.

"Where is it. . . Tsk, couldn't that idiot have said something more specific than just, 'One of the trees, like, outside the town'. I have to be quick since I still have to go get a foundation class and start focusing on getting leveled up before I can even progress the quest, but I also can't risk having someone else finding it and snatching it from me."

A few minutes later Abaddon started getting irritated with his so far futile search, brows tightening as he suppressed the urge to leave it for later, feeling like he was just wasting valuable time that could be spent grinding exp.

It was only when he'd almost convinced himself to come back after getting a foundation class and some levels that his eyes suddenly lit up, catching the silhouette of something on the corner of his vision.

Hastily walking over, a satisfied smirk spread across his face as he crouched and picked up the old tattered looking dagger, handle frought with wear and tear from both the sands of times wearing it down and from cuts with the blade completely covered in rust but somehow still intact.

Turning it over he brushed some dirt and grass from the pommel's bottom revealing the intials engraved into it, J.S, which he knew stood for Jackson Spade. A hugely infamous thief who mostly operated in the human territories carrying out heists on nobles, said to be untrackable by even the sharpest of men sent to hunt him down.

Always meticulous with his operations he'd never left any traces of his deeds behind, people only discovering his vists after seeing what was stolen leaving only bewildered and enraged victims in his wake.

Some called him a ghost, some an illusion. Shadow, mirage, and what have you. Almost like a phantom haunting the living.

Like an echo of a time long since past.

Pocketing the dagger in his beginner pants and lamenting his current lack of storage methods. Very much missing the convenience of a space pouch and inwardly cursing the devs for not simply implementing an inventory feature, he turned around whilst deep in thought.

"Alright. Now that I've secured the dagger I'll have to be extremely careful not to lose it by getting too reckless chasing progress before I get my hands on a space pouch, bag or sack, though a pouch will do for a start. I'll also need to get my hands on the [Appraise] skill, preferably as quickly as possible which means I need money. . ." Feeling some tension leaving him now that the first step was completed successfully he continued planning his next course of action.

"First get a class, take a hunting quest which won't be too hard for my current self and farm both money and exp until I can afford the skillbook from the library. I'll have to hurry though, if they run out of stock before I can buy one for myself it'll be annoying to get my hands on another one until the auction houses opens up."

Taking a deep breath, he inwardly pumped himself up and prepared to rush towards the training grounds.

"Alright. Let's do thi-" His words were abruptly cut short, body stiffening in surprise and eyes shooting wide open when, upon returning emerging from his thoughts, he registered someone else standing right next to him.

A coldness originating from the soles of his feet flushed through him as his mind spun a million miles a minute.

Discreetly peeking in his peripherals he didn't know whether to be slightly relieved or even more alarmed seeing the person donning the same beginner outfit as him consisting of a simple white t-shirt, brown leather pants and a pair of sandals he idly noted were missing.

He inwardly cursed up a storm, encountering such a dire predicament so soon after he'd just taken his first step towards his path to strength was just so typical, wasn't it.

Although he wasn't a genius in combat most Top Players were, he was confident that he could at least take care of an actual newbie relying on his experience from his past life.

The problem with that, was that they would just respawn even if he managed to kill them, not only would that effectively achieve nothing to help his situation, but it would only further encourage the person to spread the information about him and paint a target on his back, on top of that, he really did not need the downsides that came with being branded a PKer right now.

Gritting his teeth, he eventually came to the conclusion that trying to draw the player to his side and convince them to keep quiet about his secret in exchange for some information regarding other opportunities would be the most optimal outcome.

Not only would he remain under the radar until he was strong enough to stand tall regardless of others' opinions and ploys, but he could also acquire a potential ally.

He wasn't delusional enough to think that he alone could clear any content that was actually worth clearing completely solo, but he hadn't yet thought of a solution other than trying to temporarily team up with others.

Maybe the idea of building up a personal pool of Players he could call on had some merit? It wasn't like everything he knew would even benefit the Assassin style of play he had decided to focus on and anything that he didn't personally need he could just delegate to others to one, make sure they didn't fall so far behind him that they wouldn't be able to help him and two, hook them long enough with benefits until they could build up some trust between each other at which point them getting stronger was just helping himself in the long run.

Yes, that's what he'd do. Get himself a small but elite team of Players he could rely on.

Though with that said, he wouldn't settle for anyone he didn't personally think had what it took to rise into the ranks of the Top Players, anything less was basically useless to him during the endgame either way.

Now that he thought about it, couldn't he just recruit future Top Players he knew before they actually acquired their strength?

. . .This idea was just looking better and better.

With that said, it looks like he'd just have to roll the dice on his first recruit. Even if this Player was the worst Player he'd ever seen he'd still have to entice them with enough benefits to at least shut their mouth.

Hopefully he could get away from his extremely dumb blunder with not too big of a loss.

Pulling his best attempt at an amiable smile he took a step back and spoke up in a friendly voice. "Oh, wow. You really surprised me there, I didn't notice you at all! Your stealth is really good. Are you aiming for a [Rogue]. . . [R-[Rogue]. . . build. . ."

Abaddon's words slowly tapered off, unconsciously retreating another step with his features gradually morphing into shock as he ended up having to crane his neck to eventually find a pair of exotic eyes lethargically peering down at him shadowed by the verdant forest canopies filtering the sunlight and a messy curtain of soft black hair.

Suppressing his instinctive reaction to blurt out something like 'Holy shit, you're fucking huge' which could in more ways than one be taken the wrong way, something he'd obviously rather avoid considering it'd most likely make convincing the girl. . . woman? Whatever, to not blab about him much harder.

Although he knew that body proportions could reach frankly unrealistic extents in Grand Terra's inhabitants the average height were just about the same as in reality, making her stature even more surprising when taking into account that Players were unable to alter their appearances at all.

"Sorry about that, I tend to get absentminded pretty easily." He forced a cough. "Name's Abaddon by the way, what's yours?"

Extending a hand in greetings, an awkward air settled when even after what must've been half a minute she didn't reach out to reciprocate.

Inwardly cursing his less than stellar social skills as a result of basically only interacting with information and similar tidbits for what in his mind accounted to the last 5 years, not that he was very social to begin with, he was just about to try something else to break the stale atmosphere when her heard her speak up.

"How." She curiously tilted her head.

Ignoring the way her low and smoky voice teasingly scratched at his suddenly parched throat, he raised a confused eyebrow in response.

"How, what?"

"How. You knew." She 'elaborated', Abaddon's heart jumping out of his chest accompanied by a sensation of arctic water dousing him in an ice-cold chill when she slowly raised her hand to point at the pocket containing the dagger.

"Ahahaha. . . What do you mean? I don't quite follow I'm afraid." He tried playing it off as best he could, fishing the dagger out and holding it up for her to see. He'd already guessed that she had already seen the dagger so there was no point trying to conceal it now. "I wanted to get a head start on everyone else and went straight out of the town looking for some monsters to kill when I happened to find this. Pretty cool, right?"

Abaddon felt cold sweat soaking the back of his shirt due to nervousness, feeling like her eyes were sharply scanning him whilst he spoke as if she could see right through him.

"Mm." She blinked. "Lie." And stated bluntly.

"Followed you. Too confident. Clear destination. Specifically searched. Multiple minutes." She pointed out matter of factly.

"Why. How."

Abbadon froze at the quick-fire accusations, mind entering hyperdrive as he desperately thought about what to do. Continue playing dumb? He didn't think that would work, although her speech seemed broken he got the feeling it was more due to something akin to laziness than actual lack of vocabulary or any sort of impediment.

He also didn't favor his odds trying to convince her otherwise. He was in no way proficient nor savvy enough to even know where to begin so that too was out.

Not only because of how sure of herself she seemed, and not even mentioning her presumably tailing him all the way from the town's square based on her words, but from what he'd gathered of her so far, he had a feeling it would take a metaphorically disapproving meteor smashing her in the face before she'd even think about changing her mind regarding something she'd decided was right.

Tell her the truth. . . ?

Absolutely not.

He didn't even entertain the idea for a second. His knowledge was his most precious resource which unfortunately could be used by people other than himself, divulging it's source without knowing if she would keep it to herself was just asking for every major power hunting him to the ends of the world.

And it wasn't only because he knew that the game would be an incredibly lucrative in a business sense, only being a matter of time before some big companies also entered wanting a piece of the pie, it was also because of something he regarded as one of the most important pieces of information he could ever have brought back.

It was a goddamn good motivator and one of the reasons that he vowed to rise to the top and acquire as much strength as possible after he had sorted out his confusion following his rebirth.

The attributes of Players' game characters would eventually start appearing in the real world.

...

Now, for the million dollar question. How the fuck was he going to get out of this situation.

Just run? He couldn't, he still had to convince her to stay silent.

Kill her? That option was even worse, not to mention. . . peeking at the girl towering over him, the crappy beginner outfit unable to hide a well-muscled body radiating power underneath. He suddenly wasn't so confident he could take her in a fight anymore.

He couldn't come up with anything else other than trying to tie her to his side. Only, now with a boatload of additional urgency chucked into the mix. Even though she would probably never be able to guess her way to the correct answer, just her knowing that something was odd about him was extremely uncomfortable.

Luckily for him, she seemed more curious than actually malicious.

Small mercies.

"I- I. . . I'll tell you later." Before she could speak up he quickly continued in an attempt to distract her. "Anyhow, do you want to go get our core classes? I happen to know where and I'd wager some has already gotten their and is now rushing around looking for monsters to kill. We're wasting time and falling behind at this stage would be pretty bad."

Hesitantly taking a step, he stiffy continued with one after another and shortly after breathed out a sigh of relief when he looked back to see her docilely lumbering after him. How eerily quiet she was however, he was decidedly much less a fan of.

---

A few minutes later at the town's garrison, though more importantly the training grounds it featured, Abaddon watched on with empty eyes as the notoriously hard to impress instructors argued loudly.

"Are you losing what's left of your mind, Clovis!? The girl was clearly born to be a [Tank]! Just look at her, she's even taller than me!" A big and burly man sporting a mighty horseshoe moustache with tough jaw and the body of a bear visibly getting on in his years thundered boomingly. Clad in heavy armor leggings and greaves, his hairy barrel-chested torso sporting numerous scars left bare for everyone to see.

"Hmph, size does not force you into any one role Alexander. You know as well as I that most Dwarven [Tank]s are a cut above the rest, they've accrued a feared reputation throughout history as the best of the best despite their shorter statures." An older gentleman with sharp aristocratic features, gray hair gathered back into a meticulous ponytail, calmly lectured with the air of an experienced teacher.

"That don't matter." Alexander huffed. "It's their inborn Strength and Vitality that helps them close that gap, you can't tell me that if one of them were the size of a human they wouldn't be a more difficult opponent."

"Point." Clovis readily admitted before continuing. "Though there are also a number of advantages to their smaller builds."

"On the other hand there are also example of very capable [Warrior]s being gifted in height. Whilst not quite famed specifically for that trait himself, Sir Roland from what I've heard is an incredibly imposing man."

"Bah, no need to preach to me. Especially not about him, I hear enough about that prissy prick as it is."

"Disregarding your disrespect alot of people would have you executed for, I think the girl would make a mighty fine [Warrior]."

"And I say she'd make an even better [Tank]!"

Zoning out the following argument Abaddon deeply pondered if he had heard anything like this happening in his previous life.

These two instructors were in actuality recently retired generals from the kingdom closest to this town, the Crisa Kingdom.

Practically known by the entire population and even beyond it as staunch protectors of their people and frightening beings to their enemies.

Not only that, they were also known by the Players as the Hidden Gem Duo. The reason being that if you impressed them enough it would trigger a hidden quest that would eventually allow you to both make contact with some very powerful NPC's and gain access to a Dungeon containing skillbook granting you a skill that bordered on cheating.

However even after sifting through everything he'd ever heard about the Hidden Gem Duo, granted he probably didn't remember absolutely everything, he found nothing even remotely mentioning the girl anywhere.

Which was weird considering he didn't think anyone could really miss her. . . her being able to sneak up on him before was just a coincidence.

"Well. Seeing as we cannot come to an agreement, how about we ask the girl? It won't do to coerce her onto a path she herself would not have chosen without our intervention." Clovis eventually proposed when it became apparent that the two of them wouldn't be able to reach a consensus.

"Good." Alexander nodded confidently, turning to face her. "Alright girl. Would you rather be a [Tank], growing big and strong. Laughing as the attacks of your enemies bounces off your shield and shrugging off damage like a curtain of rain futilely trying to wear down a castle wall, or would you rather wave around a pointy stick."

"I wouldn't describe the [Warrior] class, or more specifically, the [Silver Fencer] class which I possess that the boisterous doofus is childishly attempting to belittle. However, the [Warrior] class does not only consist of 'pointy stick' wielders, but also of the sturdy [Monk], the striking [Martial Artist], the unyielding [Barbarian], even the illusive [Spellsword] and many more. It is a class offering a wide array of options to advance into later on." Clovis supplied succintly.

"So, feel free to take your pick and try not to be influenced by us old things.""Choose one!"

The two instructors exclaimed simultaneously, peeking at the girl as they waited for her decision Abaddon himself was also a bit curious of what she would choose.

Considering he didn't remember her from his previous life then she probably wasn't good enough with whatever class she did choose, and since that was the case he would prefer if she picked [Tank], as she could then at least soak up some damage before she died.

He'd do his best to beef her up with what he could, but in the later stages mechanics reigned supreme. It didn't matter how much HP you had if you couldn't dodge an attack that ate through 80% of it at a time.

Debating on throwing a suggestion to skew the odds in his favor he was just about to speak up when the girl let out a hum and walked up to the two instructors who watched on in anticipation.

"Strong hand." She requested flatly.

Abaddon could see the moment their faces turned confused, holding a quiet conversation with their eyes before apparently deciding to follow along.

Clovis and Alexander raised their left and right hands respectively inwardly wondering what she wanted to do.

They shortly after received half an answer when the girl reached out to grab the both of them in a firm handshake.

"Uh, girl? You can't have two classes. You know that, right? Trust me, I've tried."

"Hm, hm." Clovis chuckled softly. "The ambition of youth is a wonderful thing indeed. However, this I'm afraid is one of the rare occasions the one to my left is correct."

When they were about to speak up again, seeing as the girl didn't let go, Abaddon saw them startle for a second before their eyes shot wide open. His own following soon after, harshly choking on air as the two instinctively exclaimed in surprise.

""Tier 3 Strength!?""

Abaddon felt his mind blank as he processed their words, how in the world did she already have that much STR? It should be actually impossible for anyone to have reached 250 in any stat already, the game literally started not even an hour ago, what the hell?

The Tier system in Grand Adventure Online was fairly simple it ranked you purely by stat total, people in his previous life having already figured out the threshhold of each Tier based on the data gathered by the strongest Player at the time.

0-499 - Tier 1

500-1249 - Tier 2

1250-2499 - Tier 3

2500-4999 - Tier 4

5000-9999 - Tier 5

10 000-14 999 - Tier 6

15 000-24 999 - Tier 7

25 000-37 499? - Tier 8

37 500?-49 999? - Tier 9

50 000? - ? - Tier 10

? - ? - ?

Apparently it theoretically went up to Tier 10, however, no one had progressed far enough to check where Tier 8 ended and Tier 9 begun. The reason they had tentatively mapped out Tier 9 and 10 already was because previous Tiers followed a pattern, the highest singular stat +1 times 5.

On the other hand, singular stats could also be graded.

0-99 - Tier 1

100-249 - Tier 2

250-499 - Tier 3

500-999 - Tier 4

1000-1999 - Tier 5

2000-2999 - Tier 6

3000-4999 - Tier 7

5000-7499 - Tier 8

7500-9999 - Tier 9

10 000 - ? - Tier 10

Single stat Tiers were obviously easier to reach considering you didn't really have to max out all stats to advance a Tier, the strongest Player having reached somewhere around 14 000 in AGI thanks to a hidden class.

A frankly insane number he couldn't even begin to imagine at the current stage of the game, however, that was far into the future.

The reason he was so shocked was, first of all. No one had started with anything higher than 10 in any one stat, with the free 5 you started out added on top it was very possible to get to 15 with just the press of a button.

Tier 3 however, and probably quite a bit above the minimum considering they sounded the two sounded fairly sure in their judgement, so somewhere around 350, maybe?

Should have, if you already started with 10 strength which was already rare in itself and picked a STR focused class like [Warrior] and stuck to it, taken first getting to level 25 and advancing the class at which point you should have 288 if you dedicated every 10 SP you got each level into STR followed by another 5 levels still putting everything into STR.

All the core classes and their most common class line gave two stats a +2 and the rest a +1 which respectively turned to +3 and +2 and continued that pattern after advancing your class every 25 levels.

Granted, it would take less than that if you got some passives but those were extremely hard to come by. Actually useful active skills were already rare enough, passives were a step above even that.

He actually couldn't even begin to wrap his head around how someone had already progressed into late early game just after launch, even with his treasury of information, he had absolutely no idea how that was even remotely possible.

As he was on the verge of entering a catatonic state from the shock, he received another blow to the gut in the form of Alexander, who along with Clovis were both strong Tier 4s, continuing to mutter assessingly.

"No, strong Tier 3. Extremely strong at that. Very close to Tier 4 or even possibly just past it."

On the other hand, Clovis currently had perspiration dripping down his brows. His flushed face set in a painful grimace with a vein pulsing on his temple, his body slightly trembling in place as he did his best not to tear his arm away.

He breathed out a large sigh of relief when his hand was released the moment his bones started to creak dangerously.

In contrast to Alexander who had the [Stalwart Defender] class and focused on both STR and VIT, Clovis' class required AGI, a bit of PER and the rest in STR. Of course he didn't completely neglect his VIT and INT, however, at the moment his VIT was around 300.

Which shouldn't have been possible, however, native humans didn't really have a leveling system to help them magically grow in strength and had to progress the good old hard way. The [Tank] class for this reason was the most gruelling one in terms of training since it focused so heavily on VIT.

Alexander who was still being gauged, he'd noticed what she was doing by now especially after she lost interest in Clovis once it got too much for him to bear, and started squeezing back wanting to test her mettle.

He might've been boisterously clabbering for her to become a [Tank] but he knew very well that it required more than just a big body, if you caved at the first sign of pain then you were effectively useless.

As a [Tank] you were meant to take the heat off your allies, to be an immovable wall separating and shielding them from the worst of it.

You needed the grit to push through the pain both in battle and in training, you needed the awareness to recognize when taking a hit was just unnecessary and the speed to then dodge to put as little load on your healer as possible.

You needed to draw enemies towards you and keep an eye on your allies at all times, needed the strength to lug around a shield and armor, needed the endurance and stamina to potentially keep active for long periods of time, needed the ability to foresee dangers and be able to act in the blink of an eye.

. . .It wasn't an easy job but he loved it all the same.

After all.

He got to be the very thing standing in front of the harm, pain and suffering directed towards his family, his home, his friends, his comrades and his kingdom.

If that wasn't an honor of the highest degree then he didn't know what was.