We decided to get some eggs, with the ten thousand gold we had quickly disappearing as though it never existed. To replenish our funds, we headed to the Adventurer’s Guild to take on some quests. Our targets were kobolds in the surrounding area. They weren’t much stronger than goblins but were more likely to be in packs. Kobolds are still F-rank monsters—the weakest tier—and took some herb-gathering tasks why we were at it, typical F-rank quests.

  Higher-ranked quests, such as A-rank, were far beyond our current abilities. While we could respawn after death, the punishment was a 24-hour lockout—essentially the death penalty in this game. We continued hunting kobolds, and upon reaching level 40, I noticed that the restriction on magic had been lifted. Casting spells felt different now, as though our level had intentionally limited magic usage to make leveling up more challenging.

  I had already read through the basic light magic book I purchased with our starting gold. Meanwhile, we poured a significant amount of mana into the eggs each day, eagerly awaiting their hatching. These eggs would grant us better weapons, enabling us to hunt E-rank monsters. Preparation was essential. Between hunts, we rented rooms to rest, as mental fatigue was still a limiting factor. Thirteen couldn’t keep up with our pace, so while Queen and I reached level 45, Thirteen lagged at level 40.

  After about a month, the eggs finally hatched. My egg transformed into a magical staff—a golden staff with a red crystal orb at the end. Queen’s became a silver bow, intricately detailed. Thirteen’s egg produced a katana, which complemented his lightning magic affinity. It made sense, given his close-quarters fighting style. His weapon allowed him to combine high-speed attacks with lightning magic for devastating damage.

  With these weapons, we could finally hunt E-rank monsters and get promoted. We logged out to switch out the nutrient solution in our capsules and set them to auto-clean mode, a process that took two hours. I decided to grab some lunch while waiting for the pods to finish.

  After logging back in, 13 was naturally envious of our virtual reality pods.

  "You guys can stay in the game as long as you want," he said.

  "Well, not really," I replied. "After about a month, we have to swap out the nutrient fluid and let the pod clean itself, which takes a whole two hours. Plus, even though we can spend nearly a full month in the pod, we still need sleep. Online fatigue is real. If you try to play 24/7, your mind will burn out quickly. There's still a significant amount of mental fatigue."

  Fortunately, the latest VR pods use electrical stimulation to maintain muscle tone, so we don’t have to worry about physical deterioration from lying down for so long.

  "Still," 13 said, "only someone like you and queen can afford that."

  This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

  I shrugged. "With gold being at such a high exchange rate—fixed at one gold coin equals one dollar to prevent market manipulation—it's not surprising. Most wealthy people are buying up tons of gold and likely trying to establish businesses inside the game. That’s why I picked this country. Elves have long lifespans, so it’s only natural their kingdom would have markets focused on long-term profitability.

  "Human businesses might eventually succeed, but they’d inevitably fail in the elven kingdom. Of course, this kingdom isn’t exclusively elven; it includes multiple races. Even so, the large elven population—and the presence of dwarves, who also outlive humans—makes it tough for humans to compete. In fact, the only humans here are either foreign diplomats or slaves. This country doesn’t like humans very much."

  Hunting higher-ranked monsters solo was a shortcut to rapid promotion. For instance, defeating a B-rank monster alone could propel even an F-rank adventurer to B-rank. However, in a party, the promotion was shared, and the group would only advance to E-rank. This system discouraged group promotions and encouraged solo achievements.

  Reaching B-rank granted a title of nobility—a Knight. However, this title was more ceremonial than practical. True nobility began at the rank of Baron. The kingdom had many knights, which diluted the title’s value.

  I used the money earned from monster hunts to buy more magic books, focusing on light and non-elemental magic. Non-elemental spells required precise rules and restrictions, making them rigid compared to elemental magic.

  For instance, you could turn a fire spell into an explosion, but non-elemental spells lacked such flexibility. Still, I managed to master a powerful technique: the Sword Beam. By combining purification magic with a laser spell, I created a disintegration beam, far more efficient than a standard laser.

  One day, we encountered a powerful ogre, a B-rank monster. Its slow mobility was offset by its tank-like defense and overwhelming strength. A single hit could kill me, so I kept my distance, launching a purification-infused laser beam. The attack scorched its skin, smoke rising from the wounds. Queen was stunned, exclaiming, "That shouldn’t be so powerful with so little mana!" I smiled and explained the fusion of purification and laser magic. The result was a devastating disintegration beam that vaporized anything it touched.

  After defeating the ogre, the guild promoted me to B-rank. I was summoned to the royal palace, where I met the council comprising the Demon Queen, Dwarf King, Elf King, and Demi-Beast King. They governed the nation collectively, ensuring representation for all races. Humans weren’t typically allowed in the kingdom of Alfheim due to its high mana environment, which required special magical items for survival at least for humans that had very little magic casters.

  At the palace, I was presented to the Elf King, who officially granted me the title of Viscount, shocking everyone present. Typically, adventurers promoted to B-rank received only the title of Knight. The king explained that my innovative use of magic—combining purification, laser, and non-elemental spells—demonstrated exceptional potential. He revealed that he had been monitoring my progress, impressed by my unique approach to magic.

  I wanted to learn life magic spells, but books on life magic were rare. It was an exceedingly rare element and one of the more difficult ones to control, similar to space, time, and even life-and-death magic. These were among the most challenging types of spells to master. The hard magic was soul magic even gods had hard with them.