When I opened my eyes, I could barely take it all in.

  I felt the world around me. It wasn't like the virtual reality of Valhalla, where you could obviously tell that, despite all the effort of the creators, the world around you was all artificial.

  You couldn't feel the wind on your skin, or smell the scents around you. This was different.

  If I didn't know I was inside a game, it would have been almost impossible to tell this wasn't real life.

  I was standing on a circular platform, about 30 meters in diameter. On the edge of the circle, multiple statues stood, about 4 meters tall, made of shiny bronze.

  The platform was made of marble-like blocks, reflecting the light even through the thick layer of dust covering it. The wind was blowing fiercely, almost as if the platform was... moving?

  When I looked down at the edge of the circle, I realized that we were, in fact, flying in the sky.

  As far as I could see, there were mountains, rivers, and forests in every direction beneath us, and I could see a deeper shade of blue right on the horizon: the ocean, most likely.

  I was wearing a matte white linen t-shirt and leather trousers, along with surprisingly comfortable boots, and once again I was amazed at how genuine everything felt.

  This was truly groundbreaking. A new era for Virtual Reality has finally arrived. Despite hesitating to try Godsrealm, I was already hooked.

  "You've awoken," a woman spoke to me.

  I turned back to the middle of the circle and looked for the source of the voice.

  The NPC was tall, with long white hair and blue skin; her eyes were glowing with a faint purple light. She was dressed in fine silk, probably, that went all the way down to her ankles.

  "Welcome to the world of Godsrealm! I will help you with your class choice. May I have your name, please?" the woman said.

  "Zephy... no, no..."

  "Zephynono is still available. Confirm?"

  "No!" I shouted, perhaps a little too loudly. "My name is..."

  I was trying to think of another alias, something that wouldn't instantly reveal my identity. Zephyr was a well-known name after all.

  "My name is... Avenger."

  It was fitting.

  I could get to the top and then get revenge against Ryder and the others from taking my legacy from me.

  "Avenger is already taken. Please, choose a new name."

  Of course, it would be taken. Almost two million players are choosing names right now, I thought.

  On the other hand, I realized that calling myself Avenger was exactly the sort of overly edgy decision my fourteen-year-old self would have made, so I quickly regained my composure.

  I needed something unique.

  I started going through my mental notes.

  Zephyr comes from Zephyrus, the Greek god of the west wind. I chose it because wind is often associated with archery.

  The other three wind gods were called Boreas, Eurus, and Notos, if I'm not mistaken, but those would be a little too obvious.

  Of course, I could have chosen a random name. Any name.

  With the way I altered my looks in the character creation screen, nobody would recognize me instantly. Although I could only change my appearance to a certain degree, I still think I did a good job.

  So why not xXDemonSlayer420Xx? Well, it might be a bit naive of me, but I did want a name that somehow connected to my legacy.

  I was browsing through my, sadly pretty limited, list of known mythological figures associated with either wind, archery or bows in general, and almost gave up when I remembered a myth I read once upon a time, about the greek goddess Artemis, and her partner in the wild, Orion, a giant that was as good with the bow as the lady of the hunt herself.

  I only remembered that the story of their partnership ended in a tragedy, something along the lines of her blinding him, and also something related to the constellation of Orion as well, but at this point, my knowledge about the topic ran out.

  "My name is Orion," I finally said, crossing my fingers, because if the name was not available, I might actually have to spend all day figuring out how to call myself.

  "Orion is still available. Confirm?"

  "Yes."

  I let out a deep breath, not even realizing I was holding it in.

  "Welcome to the world of Godsrealm, Orion! My name is Ava, and I will help you choose your starting class."

  "Starting class?" I asked, looking around and checking out all fifteen statues located at the edge of the circle. "Are there more classes other than these?"

  "Godsrealm is an ever-changing and evolving world with many secrets to discover."

  She avoided answering my question in a straight fashion, but still hinted at the possibilities of there being extra classes later. "Would you like to take a look at the classes?"

  "Yes."

  "There are fifteen starting classes in the world of Godsrealm. Five specialize in the Art of Might, five in the Art of Magic, and five in the Art of Finesse."

  As she talked, the statues grew up in groups of five.

  Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  "Let's see the Art of Might first!"

  We walked to the first group of statues. As I was standing beneath them, I realized that they were a lot bigger than I first thought.

  "The first class: Swordsman. Swordsmen are staples on every battlefield. Wielding short- or longswords, they move quickly, capable of taking on frontline fights or threataning the back row of the enemy alike. They are fast, though not the fastest, and strong, though not the strongest. A jack of all trades, and--"

  "A master of none?" I tried finishing her sentence.

  "That depends on the user," she smiled."

  "The second is the Spearfighter. They fill a similar role as the Swordsmen, but are more explosive and strike quicker. In turn, they don't hold the line as well and are less sturdy. They are like a viper, striking fast and hard before retreating behind the frontline."

  "The third class is the Guardian. Masters of the Shield, moving walls of the group, indomitable knights holding the very centers of the frontlines. They are fierce fighters capable of dealing damage in sustained fights and are even better at mitigating the enemy's power. Their lack of speed and burst damage leaves them in need of their allies in some situations, but with the right composition, the Guardian might be the most devastating opponent."

  "The next is the Berserker. The calamities of the battlefield. Few can match the Berserker's damage output, but beware! Sometimes it might be hard to handle it even for themselves. They break enemies and infrastructure alike, and their rage is felt from miles away."

  "The last class in the Art of Might is the glorious Paladin. Similarly to Guardians, they excel at holding the frontline, and while they might fall off in the art of shieldfighting, they make up for it with the use of holy magic to heal allies or hurt foes, especially the undead."

  All of the statues of the Might classes looked glorious. Sure, the classes were your clear-cut fantasy classes, but since Ava's mention of them being "starter classes", I wasn't too worried about creativity. NWE had probably designed hundreds of other classes and specifications for them.

  I had no doubt in my mind that just by looks alone, these five classes were probably going to lure in the most players. Who wouldn't want to be fighting close up, wielding mighty swords and shields in the most breathtaking VR game? I would have lied if I said I didn't feel drawn to some of these choices.

  "Next up are the classes of Magic," Ava said.

  "Magic is abundant in the world of Godsrealm, and both continents, Cindaar and Yaetra, rely on their talented magicians to hold up the balance of the world," she continued.

  "The first class in the art of Magic is the Arcanist. They are the battlemages of war, wielding arcane and elemental magic to destroy their foes. Their damage output is their biggest strength, but they can easily control the battlefield from afar, and talented Arcanists can even change the layout of it using devastating magic."

  "The next class is the Conjurer. Conjurers often enter contracts with spirits from other planes of existence, and they are capable of summoning these familiars to aid them in battle. They never stand alone, and strong Conjurers can summon more and stronger allies to do their deeds."

  "The third class in the Art of Magic is the Cleric. They are blessed with holy magic and use it to heal wounds and destroy foes alike. Often associated with one or more gods of their respective regions, they are often part of religious orders, but some choose different paths and are more like wandering doctors or priests who ward against evil."

  "The fourth class is the Druid, keepers of the grove, guardians of nature itself. Their wild natural magic is just as versatile as the environment itself. It can be used to heal, to protect, or to destroy – a choice made by the wielder themselves."

  "Last but not least, there's the Acolyte. Mages that chose to delve into the dark arts, they use spells that are often associated with sinful things, although they are not evil by nature. They manipulate the battlefield, deal damage, or cause harm in other ways."

  These classes were looking even more fun than the previous ones. Who knew what kind of powers one could wield by choosing the Art of Magic? I couldn't wait to see fellow players cast spells and see all the effects in action.

  "We've arrived at the last Art. The Art of Finesse," Ava said.

  "First up is the agent of shadows, the Rogue. Rogues are thieves and assassins, using blades and daggers to quickly end the lives of foes, striking from behind before anyone could get a glimpse of them, and disappearing just as fast."

  "The second class is the Ranger, masters of the bow."

  I held my breath.

  "These archers strike at their targets from afar. They have the highest range, and are able to remain unseen as long as they need to be, waiting for their prey to enter their deadly line of sight."

  "Next up is the Swashbuckler. They excel at dueling their opponents. Few can match their speed and precision in a one-on-one encounter. Using their rapiers they can quickly strike vital spots similar to rogues, but they prefer to stay engaged in a honorable fight."

  "The fourth Finesse class is the Brawler. Their muscles are like iron, and using Fists and claws, they excel at close-quarter combat. Each of their punches is like a cannon, their kicks sound like thunder, and their fighting spirit is unmatched. They move swiftly, strike even faster."

  "And we've arrived at the last starter class of Godsrealm: the Bard."

  Ava took a theatrical break after saying those words.

  "The Bard is a unique class that is not fit for everyone. It can use plenty of weapons, though not necessarily to their full extent. What the Bard does best is give support to their allies through the magic that is sound itself. With sonnets and scherzos, the Bard aids their comrades in the midst of battle, granting bonuses, healing wounds, and disorienting foes in a quick fashion."

  She ended her monologue.

  "These are your choices, Adventurer. Take your time. You will spawn in the Kingdom of Ravenloft, at a randomly selected starter village in 27 minutes and 32 seconds."

  I pondered for about five minutes, checking all the statues, considering my options, but from the first moment on I knew that I didn't really have options.

  "Alright. I've made my choice. I would like to be a Ranger."

  "Your chosen class is: Ranger. Confirm?"

  I looked at all the statues one last time. Every class was unique and useful; they all had pros and cons, and I could see myself having a ton of fun with any of them; however, my love for archery and the fact that it was what I excelled at left no room for second-guessing.

  "Yes."

  "Good choice, Adventurer. You still have 22 minutes and 56 seconds left."

  "So what's the max level of the game? And can you tell me anything about the world itself?"

  "I'm incapable of answering questions regarding game mechanics, advanced world lore, and outside information. However, I can show you an introduction video about your chosen kingdom. Would you like to proceed to watching the video?"

  "Proceed."

  The video was about 10 minutes long, and it gave me a brief overview of the Kingdom of Ravenloft.

  As one of the twelve kingdoms of Cindaar, Ravenloft was located on the northern side of the continent.

  All kingdoms were roughly the same size, with comparable military and political influence.

  However, as of now, there was no way for the kingdoms to trade with each other, because a hundred years ago, the joined mages from the kingdoms put up the Veil, a magical, unbreakable wall between kingdoms, in order to stop all the wars ravaging the land.

  The video had no further info on this, but I assumed the players were going to learn more about it in-game.

  Ravenloft was ruled by King Seraf Ravensdale, and House Ravensdale has been in power for almost three hundred years.

  The kingdom itself was divided into 6 different regions, with each having it's own regional capital:

  Each province was ruled by a Duke, except Ravencrown, which was the seat of House Ravensdale and under the direct control of the King.

  When the video ended, I still had about ten minutes left. I started browsing the game menu that I could access just by thinking about it. Windows like the inventory or status windows were not yet accessible, so there wasn't much to do. I quickly checked for a logout button, having seen multiple anime about people getting stuck in game worlds, but the button was, in fact, there.

  I closed the menu and walked to the edge of the platform. We were hundreds, if not thousands, of meters in the air, moving slowly but steadily.

  Looking around, I could see silhouettes of towns and cities, huge, dark forests, and open fields, with rivers breaking their unity here and there.

  The mountains looked awe-inspiring and gigantic, and the valleys were just as picturesque. Everything looked real, but even prettier: it was as if there was a very subtle beautifying filter on the real world. I felt like I was in a fantasy movie.

  "Spawning starts in 60 seconds," Ava said, breaking the tranquil moment. I walked back to the middle and patiently waited.

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