ILIDRAN

"Existing user?" Aildrin thought.

He put on the helmet, but it suddenly locked itself on his head. Fear kicked in.

Aildrin's eyes forcibly closed when a surge of power passed through his body. It came from the console, flashing in red. He struggled to open them, but it was all for naught.

He stopped resisting when he found himself in an endless white plane. He was in the first-person view. His hands dangled before him, and they won't steady no matter how hard he willed them.

[Put your palms together to start the integration,] the angelic voice said. Her voice somehow soothed Aildrin's fears.

With a strange comfort in his heart, Aildrin tried it and struck his hands together. But there was a bit of resistance like he was pressing mud. Eventually, his palms connected.

[Player ready. Calibrating the virtual world to suit the user's senses. Please wait.]

[Integration complete.]

A black vortex from out of nowhere appeared in front of Aildrin. After a few seconds, his screen zoomed in, and the whirling mass of energy pulled him.

Aildrin surged through a tunnel full of vibrant colors arranged like a spectrum. The brightness made him squint until he reached the end. After a minute of fumbling through space, he found himself in an empty black plane.

All around him was an endless void. However, he could now swing his hands as much as he wanted. It was like he was in another world with his actual body.

[Welcome back, Ilidran.]

"Ilidran? Is that me?" Aildrin said.

A circular golden array glowed beneath him, and an oval mirror twice his size appeared out of nowhere before him.

His face was an exact copy of himself in actual life. The eyes were brown just like those of his dad and the hair was jet black just like those of his mom.

And the necklace, it was there too. His character wore the exact necklace that his dad gave him.

A little shook, he temporarily set aside the thought of the necklace and assessed his body.

Aildrin liked the firmness of his muscles. Also, his new height—six feet—which was taller by three inches compared to the actual.

He wore a slim-fit red leather armor on top matched with black leather greaves and boots below. But he carried no weapon with him.

"Hey, uh, whatever your name is. May I know who created this character?" Aildrin said.

[My name is Kerstein.]

[You're the one who created this character. You breathed life with it using your blood, Ilidran. You made a pact.]

"Blood Pact? Ilidran?" The necklace and his father, who loved anagram, immediately came into mind. Ilidran contained the same letters as his name. His heart swelled at the thought of his father's brilliance and the trail he left even when he's already gone.

"Dad made this account for me? Before they even released Wargrounds?" But Aildrin found it somewhat unbelievable. He needed evidence.

"And the Battle Station must have been sent by someone dear to him!" Aildrin then continued to test the rules of the virtual world.

"Can I create another pact and make a new character?"

[No. There can only be one battle pass for each battle station. And one character and pact for each person.]

Aildrin returned his attention to the necklace. "How about this necklace? Do all new players receive this one too?"

[No, you've customized that yourself.]

[You have previously skipped the God's Trial. Do you wish to resume it?]

"What's that?"

[The God's Trial will test your strength in terms of combat. If you're true gold, you'll fear no flame.]

"I fear no flame. Let's begin the trial!"

[The trials will begin after I reintroduce myself and the world that you're about to enter. My name is Kerstein, and I'm the caretaker of the empty throne for the Wargod.]

Aildrin's surroundings changed, and he floated over a vast and roughly circular continent wrought with destruction. Stormy black clouds surrounded the land.

[For thousands of years, ten races have vied for the empty throne, but no one has yet unlocked the secret of its whereabouts since it was last occupied. A seat that only the most powerful and cunning champion could occupy. It is a legendary symbol of power and dominion over the continent of Fitz.]

[Struggling and searching for power, the leaders of the races have banded together. The first one is the Alliance of Light, made up of the Human, Dwarf, Elf, Orc, and Divine races. Their archenemies are the group of the Undead, Goblin, Savage, Murloc, and Demon called the Concord of Darkness.]

[Ilidran, you human must find me and the empty throne so I could proclaim you as the Wargod, the supreme ruler of the Fitz.]

The surroundings changed into a white plane. In front of Aildrin, a colorless ball materialized out of thin air. At least a hundred types of weapons appeared too, floating behind it. Each one emitted a faint white light.

[Put your both hands on the ball. This divine object will assess what weapon will suit you based on your temperament. The weapon that turns green is yours to take.]

Aildrin followed. A golden life force seeped from his hands. His hair rose, and one by one, all weapons illuminated in green.

[Interesting. You belong to a rare kind. However, you'll only get to pick one weapon.]

Aildrin's heart throbbed, and so did his necklace. The result and the life-force coming from the accessory on his neck surprised him.

He swore that he could hear the weapons' voices. All of them called out to him. But the one that darted to his hand was the weapon he has used the most back then. Aildrin gripped it with his right hand. The memories of dancing in the frontline of battle made his blood boil.

[You have chosen a flamberge, a weapon choice for swordsmen. Remember that everything you need in war relies on your weapon.]

The weaponry and the magic ball vanished like smoke. Then two wooden mannequins wielding a one-handed sword appeared from ahead.

[Eliminate the enemies.]

The two wooden mannequins creaked towards Aildrin. They seemed harmless with their turtle speed.

Aildrin sighed a deep breath. He held the flamberge with his right hand and executed some slashes in the air as a warm-up. It has been two long years since he had given his muscles some good workout.

Aildrin missed the thrill. He threw the flamberge like a spear and ran after it. The blade struck one of the mannequin's head, and before the latter could fall, Aildrin jumped on its shoulders and yanked his weapon.

While still in midair, Aildrin slashed horizontally. The first wooden figure slumped on the white floor with a missing head.

The remaining mannequin was unmoved by Aildrin's execution. It came towards him with a downward slash at an unprecedented speed.

Aildrin barely dodged in time. He rolled to the side instead of parrying. Then he slashed off the exposed limbs of the mannequin and cut it into two. It helplessly fell on the floor.

He tightened his grip of the sword and stared at his bare hand before clenching it into a fist. However, before he could further ruminate on what happened, another four wooden mannequins appeared around him. Each one had four arms that held a katana.

[You have survived the first wave by relying on basic attacks. This time, I'll grant you a skill. Remember that each skill consumes both mana and stamina. Use them wisely.]

A green notification popped up on Aildrin's screen. He almost forgot that he was in a game. [You learned the skill, Sword Dance.]

He waited for its description, but none appeared. "How do I use this?" Aildrin said.

[Just say the name of the skill, and it will integrate into your muscle memory. As you become proficient in using it, you can use it to your bidding and style. Begin.]

The four wooden mannequins circled Aildrin. They then lunged simultaneously.

"Sword Dance!" Aildrin said.

The image of a black figure holding a sword with both hands surged in his mind. It danced around enemies on the battlefield like a trail of light. Blood sprayed and bodies fell wherever it passed.

The flamberge in Aildrin's hand then bursted into flames.

When the four mannequins arrived at Aildrin's position, they slashed on nothing but a blur. Fiery orange sword light gracefully danced around them, slicing off each of their arms.

Aildrin then reappeared outside their encirclement. The mannequins slumped on the floor, headless and charred.

The boy's breathing became irregular. His eyes opened wide while surveying the mannequins he had just destroyed with his own hands and power.

"Don't we have life bars in here? Damage statistics or the like?" Aildrin said.

[No. The virtual world emulates real-life battle scenarios. One has to integrate with his body to assess his status fully.]

Aildrin internalized the implication of what Kerstein had just said.

[You have survived the second wave. Prepare for the next challenge.]

[You learned the skill, Defensive Blade.]

He could barely catch his breath when eight figures with flesh appeared. They wore chainmail and wielded different weapons: two spearmen, two swordsmen, two archers, and two mages.

Before he could make a noise, two fireballs roared, and two arrows swooshed towards him.