My eyes blinked, staring at the screen. Once. Then again.

It gave off a faint hum while some tired mechanism inside ground itself to dust. Each flicker cut the room into brief shards of light and shadow. The image never settled. It twitched, warped at the edges, glitched into a smear of static before snapping back again. For a moment it held steady, gathering its breath. Then the surface rippled again and the whole thing sagged inward, collapsing under its own memory.

Then the System spoke.

“For health and mana,” it began, “all players will start with the same base values. These increased depending on the subclass chosen prior to entering the Tutorial, and through distribution of stat points earned during gameplay.”

The screen shifted again. More symbols. New menus. I tuned back in just as the System continued.

“Distributing points to strength and dexterity improved your health pool. Intelligence affected your mana pool. Gear ranked Rare and above, including Epic, Legendary, and Mythic, would also boost stats whether acquired through combat or acquisition.”

I managed a small nod.

Strength and dexterity for survivability. Intelligence for spellcasting fuel. It made enough sense on paper. But in this place, nothing stayed simple for long.

I moved nearer. My eyes tracked the floating numbers, tracing lines from one stat to the next.

Six main attributes. None of them looked optional.

________________________________________

MAIN STATS:

STRENGTH (STR)

The embodiment of physical power and muscle. High STR allows players to wield heavier weapons. Each swing carries the potential to deal devastating damage in melee combat. It promises the ability to perform tasks that require brute force. The two elements, Power and Vitality, offer the allure of becoming a stalwart protector, capable of absorbing blows while standing tall.

DEXTERITY (DEX)

A dance of agility, reflexes, and coordination. Dexterity offers a different type of prowess. Characters blessed with high DEX are nimble and quick, their movements fluid as they dart through the battlefield. They excel in ranged combat, raining projectiles upon their enemies from afar. DEX contains two elements—Agility and Speed—promising the thrill of outmaneuvering foes, evading attacks, and striking with pinpoint accuracy.

INTELLIGENCE (INT)

The realm of the mind, Intelligence, beckons with its aptitude for mental acuity, reasoning, and an insatiable thirst for knowledge. Characters with high INT become adept in the arcane arts, their spells capable of bending reality itself. They excel at solving puzzles and deciphering ancient texts, their minds sharp and ready for challenges. With three elements—Magic Affinity, Problem-solving Proficiency, and Craftsmanship—INT offers a path of wisdom and creativity, a chance to manipulate the world through intellect and understanding.

WISDOM (WIS)

Intuition, perception, and common sense flow through the veins of those who wield wisdom. High WIS characters possess keen senses, allowing them to see beyond the surface and granting insight into human nature and the motivations of others. They’re resilient against mental manipulation, their minds fortified against deception. With elements like Perception and Foresight, WIS offers a path of clarity, enabling players to navigate the complexities of the world with understanding and insight.

CHARISMA (CHA)

The essence of charm, persuasiveness, and leadership encapsulates charisma. Characters endowed with high CHA are natural leaders, skilled negotiators capable of influencing others with a mere word or gesture. They inspire loyalty and rally allies to their cause, their presence magnetic. With Leadership and Influence as its two elements, CHA presents the opportunity to sway the course of events, forging bonds and creating alliances in a world where trust is a valuable commodity.

LUCK (LCK)

The force of fortune, fate, and random chance. LCK influences favorable outcomes in uncertain situations, tipping the scales in moments of dire need. With its elements—Serendipity and Providence—Luck offers a tempting gamble, where fortune favors the bold and unexpected opportunities.

________________________________________

I straightened up. It was a small lie told with my spine.

My hands hovered near the screen, close enough to claim intent and far enough to retreat if the thing buckled again.

Each stat held its own influence.

Strength swelled with raw nerve. It promised brute survival in a world that planned to swallow me before the day was done.

Dexterity moved in my thoughts with quicksilver footwork. Motion waited at the edge of every decision.

Intelligence murmured through the air, a current of quiet calculation. It had answers lined up before I even named the questions.

Wisdom rested in a still pool. Nothing reached outward. Everything settled into place.

Charisma leaned in with a smooth pull that worked on the mind without asking permission. Every choice felt easier in its presence.

Luck lingered apart from the others. No plea. No shimmer. A patient coin on a table, ready for a fingertip or ready to remain untouched.

Then the list slid in.

________________________________________

1) TANKER

2) MAGE

3) BLADEMASTER

4) SUPPORT

5) MARKSMAN

________________________________________

Each one of the class gave its own spark.

Tanker sounded like a challenge to pain itself.

Mage sang with flash and flair, rewriting physics as a party trick.

Blademaster radiated main-character energy, pure and intense.

Support was quiet brilliance, the kind everyone forgot until they were bleeding out and begging for backup.

But something about that last one caught me—

Marksman.

It landed differently. Nothing flashy. No sales pitch. Just clean focus.

Precision, distance and impact. A role built on patience, timing, and a rare clarity most people only gained when it was already too late.

I did not know if I had earned a class like that. But the moment I saw it, something inside said yes.

I pressed it.

A fresh set of text appeared, unfolding as a page from a book that had waited for my eyes.

Let’s see what being a Marksman really meant.

________________________________________

MARKSMAN SUBCLASSES:

·       SNIPER

Elite marksmen who excel at taking out targets from extreme distances.

·       GUNNER

Masters of firearms who wield guns with deadly accuracy, raining down destruction upon their foes from afar.

·       HAWKEYE

Legends of archery whose shots never miss their mark.

·       DEADEYE

Merciless assassins who pick off their targets with cold efficiency.

·       TRICKSHOT

Experts in unconventional marksmanship, using trick arrows, throwing knives, or unique weapons to confound and defeat enemies.

________________________________________

Jackpot.

The Gunner subclass lit up. The screen giving an unmistakable nod of approval. A glint traced across the display, and something clicked in my chest.

All those hours at Komei’s Games were not wasted. Every twitch reflex I trained back then lined up now, ready to cash in.

I could already see it.

Me, vaulting off some rooftop in low gravity, twin handguns flaring in sync, each shot landing before the enemy even saw me.

Style points were optional. Regret was compulsory.

“Please select your class and subclass, Player Akira,” the System chimed in the same overly polite tone, offering tea instead of a life-defining path.

I lifted my hand but paused as my eyes flicked toward the glowing player status. Something nagged at me.

“Hold on a second,” I said. “I’ve got questions.”

“You may proceed,” the System replied, ever the butler clinging to the last thread of professionalism.

I pointed. “What’s this ‘Title’ thing?”

“Title is an honorary designation based on your prior life activity and in-game performance. It reflects your current standing and evolves as you progress.”

“Right,” I nodded. So, a name tag to show how impressive or unimpressive I was. The flashier I lived, the shinier my résumé looked.

“Explain more about prestige?” I asked.

“Prestige drives your influence and social value within the game. It opens doors. Builds reputation. Higher prestige leads to larger quests, greater authority, and rarer opportunities. Losing it, however, may brand you as hostile. Akai players, considered criminals, suffer severe restrictions and are hunted by others.”

“Ah,” I muttered, scratching my cheek. “So I probably shouldn’t randomly stab shopkeepers. Got it.”

No reaction from the System.

“And I can’t switch my class after the Tutorial, right?”

“That is correct. This is a one-time selection.”

“No pressure,” I muttered. “Okay, what about loot? How do I rack up rewards and shiny things?”

“By eliminating monsters, completing quests or scenarios, or purchasing them in the Online Store using gold earned.”

“Speaking of gold… how do I earn that?” I pressed further.

“By eradicating monsters or fulfilling quests.”

I leaned in closer. “Is there a limit on how much I can hoard?”

There was a pause. An actual awkward pause.

Then—

“COUGH! COUGH! COUGH! Due to your persistent questioning, I have spat out blood.”

I blinked. “Did you just—”

“SO SHUT YOUR TRAP AND SELECT YOUR CLASS!” the System snapped. The voice, usually flat and monotone, lurched into tired rage, two seconds from a breakdown in some office boardroom meeting.

My jaw tensed while I imagined its voice with a face. Then I pictured slapping that face. Not to hurt. Just to make a point.

“AHEM,” it coughed again, this time sliding smoothly back into polite mode. “Please select your class, Player Akira.”

Still grumbling, I jabbed the Marksman button and locked in Gunner. It felt final, the last choice in a rigged contest where every contestant had already met a bad end.

“You have selected your class and subclass and cannot revert,” the System confirmed. “The game will calculate your default points based on your innate ability and the class you choose. Your player status will be updated after you are teleported to the tutorial phase area.”

It paused again, as if waiting for me to tear up or second-guess my life choices.

“Good luck, Player Akira, with your Tutorial.”

“Yeah,” I muttered, cracking my knuckles. “If you really wanted to wish me luck, you’d max out my luck stat, you passive-aggressive toaster.”

“Please speak louder, Player Akira. I could not hear your request.”

“Oh, nothing!” I chirped, voice jumping half an octave. “Just feeling very heard right now.”

“Understood,” it said, and I swore I could hear the eye-roll.

“Prepare for teleportation to the tutorial zone.”

Then, the floor vanished.

Not in a cinematic fall. Not some zero-gravity swirl. It felt like every atom in my body had been yanked out of sync and dumped into a blender.

My breath caught.

And then—

Sunlight. The real kind. Not artificial lighting or LED simulation. This was soft and golden, heavy with the smell of wet leaves. It poured through the trees overhead, pooling on the forest floor in scattered patches of spilled treasure. The ground remained damp from rain, and the air strummed with the fresh, electric stillness that followed a storm.

Birdsong fluttered somewhere in the canopy. Leaves swayed, their rustling just subtle enough to make me think the woods were alive, watching, maybe whispering.

I took a breath. Deep. Let it all in.

And for just a second, everything was calm. No UI. No stats. No choices.

Just breathe. Ground. Sky.

Peace.

You ever get that feeling like you’ve just walked into something way above your pay grade? Yeah. That’s me right now. Let’s see what kind of mess I just signed up for.

I rolled my neck and stepped forward.