When Ekant logged out, it was around 3:40 p.m.
He slowly got off the pod, went to the washroom, washed his hands, and returned. After that, he ate a few light sweets— soft enough that they didn't require much effort to chew— and drank a full glass of water.
His recovery was steady, but far from complete.
So he lay back down on the bed.
His younger brother, Tiyan, was already there.
He had been waiting patiently for Ekant to freshen up.
Tiyan wanted to ask him a thousand questions —but he knew better.
Ekant was only allowed to speak a few words per day, and even that had to be done carefully to avoid pain.
So Tiyan did what he always did.
He thought.
Hard.
After carefully rephrasing his question into something that could be answered with a simple yes or no, he finally asked,
"Big brother… are you still in the Beginner's Forest?"
Ekant responded in an extremely low voice —so quiet that Tiyan had to read his lips.
"Yes."
Tiyan's eyes narrowed slightly as he calculated.
'Top players usually spend five to seven hours in the Beginner's Forest.
Average players leave in two to four.'
'...And my brother… has been playing for over fifteen hours.'
He did not say it out loud.
Instead, he asked another carefully chosen question.
"Were there any hidden quests?"
Ekant nodded slowly— careful not to move too much.
That was enough.
'Since there has not been any announcement,' Tiyan thought,
'big brother still has not left the Beginner's Forest.'
He decided not to pry further.
Instead, he casually began talking about his day.
"Oh, by the way," Tiyan said lightly,
"when you finally leave the Beginner's Forest, an announcement appears in the sky— if you have achieved something noteworthy."
"It's only visible to players related to the Beginner's Forest, though."
Ekant's eyes widened slightly.
He had never heard of such a feature.
Then Tiyan dropped another bomb.
"Also," he added,
"the longest recorded stay in the Beginner's Forest is seven hours and five minutes."
"…"
Ekant was utterly speechless.
Not that he could speak anyway.
Tiyan chuckled softly.
"But do not worry," he reassured him.
"Your identity is still hidden."
That helped.
Ekant felt a wave of relief— though his mind remained restless.
'I really treated this game like any other…
But Eternal Arcana of Magic is on a different level.'
After that, Tiyan told him what had happened at school.
How Nalanda Institute— the largest educational institution in the country— was buzzing with discussions about Eternal Arcana of Magic.
Nalanda Institute had branches in nearly every educational field, including Nalanda University, where Ekant studied, and the middle school Tiyan attended.
"You should know," Tiyan said seriously,
"since no announcement has appeared yet, people are saying either you died… or you didn't achieve anything."
"That's why I asked you earlier."
Finally, Tiyan talked about his classes, homework, and teachers —normal things.
Then he stood up.
"I'll go do my homework now," he said.
And quietly left the room.
Ekant lay there, staring at the ceiling.
---
Ekant logged in again at 5:00 p.m.
His consciousness faded, and a moment later, he reappeared inside the Beginner's Forest.
The surroundings were familiar.
But the Tree of Life, Bargaj, was nowhere to be seen.
'That was expected.'
Ekant had already achieved everything he needed here.
Still, he knew one thing clearly—
The ancient tree was watching.
So he spoke aloud.
"Sir Bargaj… I am ready to leave."
A calm voice echoed directly inside his mind.
"You may move in any direction. After one hundred meters, you will reach the nearest city connected to the Beginner's Forest."
With that, the forest fell completely silent.
Ekant nodded and began walking in a random direction.
Exactly one hundred meters later, the forest ended—abruptly, unnaturally.
'Huh…'
'I was deep inside the forest just moments ago.'
'And yet…'
Ekant understood immediately.
'So this is the authority of the supreme existence, the power of a supreme being, of the Beginner's Forest.'
'He altered my location without me even realizing it.'
Technically, Ekant was still within forest territory— but now he stood on an open grassland.
Roughly three hundred meters ahead, a massive stone wall rose from the ground, with a towering gate embedded at its center.
"So… this is the nearest city," Ekant murmured.
He instinctively looked up at the sky.
No announcement.
"…Still counted as the Beginner's Forest," he concluded.
Just as he was about to move—
A sudden notification appeared.
〈Clock of Time has activated〉
〈Choose a nickname〉
〈You will be unable to perform any action until this is completed〉
A floating keyboard materialized before him.
Ekant froze for a moment.
"…Now?" he muttered.
He quickly understood.
'This must be a condition to activate—or stabilize— the Clock of Time.'
He thought carefully.
Then typed.
Click.
〈Nickname "Yuchen Jun" has been successfully uploaded〉
〈Clock of Time has deactivated〉
Ekant exhaled slowly.
Then he resumed walking toward the massive gate.
After several minutes, he reached it.
A long line had formed in front of the entrance.
Guards stood nearby, allowing people to pass one by one.
From a distance, it looked like a security inspection— meant to prevent troublemakers from entering the city.
Ekant had seen this kind of setup in other games.
So he calmly joined the line.
After waiting for several minutes, it was his turn.
He entered through the gate and found himself before a middle-aged man standing behind a table.
On the table sat a globe-like artifact, supported by a hollow wooden frame. Three guards stood nearby, clearly on high alert.
The man spoke calmly.
"Young man, please proceed to touch The Supreme Truth."
He gestured toward the glowing globe.
"While touching it, think about your personal details."
"The Supreme Truth will examine your memories and thoughts. If you lie, you will be immediately teleported back to the forest and permanently banned from entering the city."
"Do not worry," he added.
"No one will learn your secrets."
"This artifact exists solely to detect truth. It cannot be bypassed."
Ekant nodded without hesitation.
He placed his hand on the artifact.
Light rippled across its surface.
Information appeared above it.
〈Name: Yuchen Jun〉
〈Age: 18〉
〈Cultivation: Tempering Realm〉
〈Criminal Records: None〉
The middle-aged man glanced at the result and nodded.
"You may enter the city."
He gestured toward the open doorway beyond the table.
Ekant nodded once more.
And stepped forward—
Entering the city for the first time.
___