Status Window!

[You will now enter the tutorial]

Golden lights started to integrate as they formed feet, knees, until enough time was wasted and they were molded into a full human, revealing a figure of Alab.

Alab wiped his teary eyes as he swore that he would never cry again with his parents as a reason. This time, he would maneuver his life purely on climbing the tower. 

"New chapter, new life", he muttered. 

After tears no longer blocked his vision, green wilderness greeted his eyes as far as he could see.

In front of him was a crowd of players with familiar faces. He saw the boy who shouted earlier being in the forefront of the bunch. 

Behind him were golden lights that gradually formed a human silhouette. 

Realizing that the trial was yet to start, he scanned his surroundings to familiarize himself. 

It was a wilderness covered by lush greenery. Unfamiliar trees stood firm with a great height of 50 meters. Their excessive roots protruding out of the ground with large density. 

Alab spotted a familiar plant. Its leaf was identical to a clover on Earth, only that it was at the same height as Alab which made it odd. 

From one look, it could be said that a giant lives here. Alab also surmised that if there were monsters here, they would be gigantic. 

'If things turned south, it would be best to use these trees as bolthole', he pondered.

Before he knew it, a total of 460 players including himself had already arrived. A system announcement then rang, marking the start of the tutorial. 

[Welcome players! You are now on the tutorial floor.]

[Tutorial is an auxiliary floor to equip the players with knowledge and common sense of the tower.]

[You have to clear the tutorial and obtain your reward]

[Before the tutorial begins, players will be given their starter title.]

Alab then heard exclusive announcements ring in his mind. 

[Generating title based on the host's past experience…]

[The Tower has responded to your misery. The Tower hopes you will achieve your goal.]

[A corresponding title has been given based on your past experience]

[You have gained a title]

[Generating your second title based on your future endeavor…]

[The Tower is now looking at your future...]

[The Tower is alarmed by what lies ahead of you.]

[You will be given another title based on your future endeavor.]

[You have gained another title.]

[Please check your titles by thinking of the word, "Status"]

The Earth had already briefed them about the tutorial. It was common knowledge that a player would awaken a Status and it could be obtained on this starting floor. 

Without wasting any more time, Alab spoke the word he had been wanting to say for ages now. 

"Status!", Alab said. His excitement reached its all-time best. 

—-

13 minutes ago. In Washington, D.C., U.S.A.

A girl clad in a tight shirt and pants walked in front of a large door. From a look alone, one could mistake her for a boy as she embodied the very definition of a flat board. Still, no one could deny her beauty. Her blonde hair danced with the air as solemnity flashed on her quivering soft lips. Her skin paler than snow seemed to reject all the sufferings she had endured for years. 

Living on the streets made everyday life a struggle, much more for an orphan like herself. She fought her way to survival under the lustful and greedy eyes of almost every man she met. It could be said that her bewitching beauty was a curse in a sheep's coat. 

Though, unlike Alab, she didn't condemn her parents. It was clear to her that her father wanted nothing but her body. She even remembered being in festive at his death. 

She never met her mother. But her father constantly nagged her that she was a top beauty in the tower. But that was a thing of the past. She was dead… killed by a fellow player. 

Back to the present. Her blue eyes longed for hope as she touched the door of the Tower. With tears flowing down her pale cheeks for the last time, she swore to live a different and new life on the Tower. 

"New chapter, New Life", she muttered as her body disintegrated into golden lights. A new chapter of her life unfolded inside the Tower.

—-

Thirteen minutes before the tutorial started, in Amsterdam, Netherlands. 

A knife was being confiscated by a man clad in enchanted armor. The 18-year-old boy hesitantly handed the knife. 

"Finally, you listened! How many times do I have to tell you that it is only possible to take an item out of the tower? You can never bring an item inside!"

The man was clearly soaked in madness. It took them a full quarter-hour to confiscate the item from the stubborn kid. The arrival of the new players had been delayed for too long. 

The kid was about to retort when another voice of a boy intercepted him. 

"Stop with your childish act, you have wasted much of our time. Senior, let me go first before him.", a boy wearing an eyeglass uttered. 

If Alab and this boy would stand close to each other, one could finally discern the difference between heaven and earth. 

The young boy was a living emblem of beauty. He was akin to a wingless angel who descended on Earth. His red lips enchanted others, making them gulp in thirst. His black eyes seemed to reflect an endless universe of tales. With just one gaze, one could hear a story being narrated deep in their souls. 

Not to mention his defined jawline that would make any man crawl in inferiority. 

With eyeglasses on, the girls suffered a 180° change and began their nerd-liking obsession. 

Amidst the cheering of girls, the young boy remained unfazed as he fixed his glass and handed his wooden sword to the man in armor. With a nod from him, the boy walked towards the massive door. 

Evidence of misery seemed to flash in his eyes in a split second. Onlookers felt nothing out of usual as they saw the young boy place his hand before the door. 

Young girls finally fell limped on the ground as they watched a spectacular scenery of an angelic boy submerged in golden lights. 

He then merged with the tower. A single thought lingered on his mind. 

'New chapter, new life', he thought as a tear finally escaped his somber eyes. He was in pain and no one realized that. 

—-

Back to the present. Alab wasted no time as shortly after the announcements, he spoke. 

"Status!" 

A translucent blue screen containing his status was then unfolded in his very eyes.