Eldrin appeared in a vast grassland. The only things within sight were trees, flowers, and plants.
Eldrin ignored all of these. Although he loved flowers, this was not the place to admire them.
[Tutorial trial: Defeat the Hobgoblin]
In front of him, about 50 meters away, a being, barely 5 feet, began to flicker into existence. Its form appeared like a glitch in reality.
In less than 3 seconds, its form materialized fully, a green being with red spots on part of its body.
Its nose was long, about 3 inches.
Lying on its shoulder was a club, larger than itself, almost the height of Eldrin.
"Isn't this too much for a tutorial?" Eldrin wondered.
[This is the default difficulty: hell]
[Climbers have the privilege of reducing it if they want]
The system chimed in, clearing Eldrin's thoughts.
Eldrin's lips twitched. "You shouldn't have told me that," he said with a sigh.
He did not try to lower the difficulty even after he learned about it.
He was even more eager to go for it now.
"Can you see, transcendents? I am going for the most difficult one from the start," he said to thin air, believing the transcendents were hearing him.
[Tutorial Monster: Hobgoblin]
[Rank: E]
[Skills: Crushing strike, Fury]
As the message appeared in Eldrin's sight, the Hobgoblin moved, releasing a guttural roar that was fueled by rage.
Without even waiting for its opponent to get ready, it snapped forward, club raised high above Eldrin.
His eyes widened in surprise as the Hobgoblin covered the distance between them with each passing second.
His hand moved to the katana by his side, drawing it in a flash that sent sparks flying.
Their weapons clashed; steel kissed wood as the wind bellowed from the strain of the force.
A jolt was sent through Eldrin's arm, rattling his bones.
His fingers faltered on the hilt of his katana, almost slipping before he held it back.
The hobgoblin, however, did not give him time to recuperate.
It withdrew its club in an instant, swinging again in a full-powered vertical strike over Eldrin.
Eldrin's eyes widened as several options to maneuver his way through the assault flashed in his mind.
With a decisive, split second movement, he jumped to the side.
The club smashed into the ground, destroying both plants and earth alike.
A small crater formed in the place of impact, a testament to the raw strength that flowed through the goblin's body.
Eldrin's eyes twitched in shock as he saw the scale of destruction.
"I might have overestimated myself when I chose hell difficulty," he muttered.
But the goblin was not going to stay idle waiting for him to think.
Its club lashed again, swinging in a horizontal strike that threatened to break Eldrin's body into pieces if he did not act fast.
Eldrin's body tensed.
Instinctively, his body, honed by countless virtual reality games, ducked, dipping low enough to avoid the attack.
The club swung over him, carrying with it gusts of wind powerful enough to send even Eldrin flying.
Eldrin jumped back immediately after the club passed him, creating enough distance to ensure there was no surprise attack from his opponent.
"It does not even give me time to think," he muttered beneath his breath.
His grip on his katana tightened as he got ready to engage the hobgoblin for real.
[The crimson sunbreaker laughs at your futile attempt to block a hobgoblin with your frail body.]
The words flashed in Eldrin's sight, cold and unfiltered.
"What the hell do you expect me to do?" He fired back immediately, not even waiting for the message to leave.
[The crimson sunbreaker reminds you of your skill, aether strengthening]
Eldrin's eyes widened. "I forgot about that skill so soon," he said, letting out a mental sigh.
"Thank you," he said to no one in particular, but he believed the person he was talking to heard him.
He did not wait another minute. His body pulsed with energy as he gave a mental command.
Aether, colorless energy that filled his core, began to flow from his heart region, spreading evenly across every part of his body, from his legs and arms to his eyes and even his brain.
Nothing was left out.
[Your aether can only last for 10 minutes before exhausting]
The warning appeared in his sight.
"That's enough," Eldrin smirked as he felt the raw, untamed power coursing through him at this moment.
He felt he could take on 5 of the previous him, easily.
His head snapped towards the hobgoblin.
Without warning, he darted forward, the earth below him cracking slightly under the force of his push.
His katana flashed forward, aiming straight for the Hobgoblin's neck.
Blood sprayed, dyeing the plant in crimson.
Eldrin staggered backward as he regained his footing.
His hand moved in an attempt to stop the blood that flowed out of his shoulder.
At the last minute, the hobgoblin had twisted, avoiding the katana while reacting equally with a dagger hidden in its belt.
[The crimson sunbreaker mocks you for comparing reality to games]
[The sky dancer is shocked by your stupidity]
Various comments appeared in his view.
[The world listener has offered you a healing potion for 500 tower points]
"What are tower points?" He asked, his eyes narrowed.
[Tower point is the Tower's currency.]
"I don't have any now," he said back to the system.
[The world listener has offered to give it to you for an extra 100 points.]
Eldrin felt reluctant.
One reason was that he did not know the value of the tower points, and 600 might be an overpay.
Secondly, he did not know why the world listener was helping him.
He weighed his options internally. "I might die if I don't heal myself," he muttered.
Finally, he nodded.
[The world listener has initiated a trade, do you wish to accept 1 healing potion for 600 tower points later?]
"Yes," he nodded.
Instantly, a dim light flickered into his palm as if it were a glitch.
As the light died, in its place was a small transparent vial with a silver cork. Filling it was a red liquid.
Without hesitation, he opened the cork, releasing a sweet aroma into the atmosphere.
He downed it in a single gulp.
His hand, once punctured deeply with the dagger, began to glow with red light.
Mangled flesh began to mend and broken bones joined together, not leaving even the smallest splinters.
In It less than a second, his arm was restored.
Before he could reel in the moment, the hobgoblin was already above him, club coming down in a brutal, vertical strike.