They stepped out of the elder's house and into the snow-covered village once more, the chill air brushing against their faces like an old friend returning to greet them. Their boots crunched softly as they walked, steam curling from their mouths in the cold. For a moment, the three of them didn't speak. There was something… off.
The village was still.
No wind. No distant voices. No flickering lanterns.
It felt like they were the only ones here—just them and the footprints they left behind.
Adrian slowed as they neared the center of the village, his eyes sweeping left to right. "Still feels… weirdly empty, doesn't it?"
Sarah crossed her arms and frowned, spinning slowly in place. "Yeah. Where are all the NPCs? Like, shopkeepers, guards, even background filler?"
Alice looked up toward the distant rooftops, then back to the wooden path they stood on. "There were only like… five buildings with interiors, right?"
Adrian nodded slowly, expression tightening. "And no signs. No glowing icons. Nothing."
Then, without warning, a low chime echoed through the air.
Not in their ears.
Above them.
Like the sky itself had just struck a bell.
A second later, text flared into existence midair, large and gleaming gold, floating as if etched into the very clouds above them.
〘 WORLD SYNCHRONIZATION COMPLETE 〙
Welcome, Pioneers.
You now walk the true path.
The First Breath has been taken.
Your story begins.
— Let the world remember your name —
Then a shimmering sound filled the air—like wind chimes spinning fast—and they watched as flickers of light appeared all around them. One after another. A small number. Then multiple.
People.
Players.
One by one, they blinked into the world, dressed in the same basic starting clothes as them—linen tunics, leather belts, brown boots. Confused expressions marked most of their faces, some turning around in circles, others staring down at their hands in disbelief.
The snow seemed to sparkle brighter. Lanterns flickered on where they hadn't before. Smoke began rising from unseen chimneys. And then—
The village breathed.
From the buildings they'd just passed, doors creaked open.
People stepped out.
Not players.
Villagers.
A young woman carrying a basket of bread humming softly. An older man muttering to himself as he swept the porch. Children dashing past with wild grins, tossing snow at each other as they yelled about "gear quests" and "that spooky mountain cave."
Sarah blinked. "Were they… always there?"
"No," Alice said softly, a tinge of awe in her voice. "They weren't."
Even the elder's house behind them had changed. Smoke now curled from its chimney, and through the slightly cracked door, the glow of the hearth danced brighter.
Adrian turned in a slow circle, taking it in. The cold still bit at his skin. The scent of woodsmoke and pine was thick in the air. The way villagers moved—their voices, expressions, the way one of them laughed and leaned on a walking stick—it was all real.
Not animated. Not coded to loop.
Real.
"…It's like the world wasn't ready until now," he murmured.
Sarah gave a low whistle. "This is next-level immersion."
"No, this is…" Adrian hesitated, then said what they were all thinking. "Crazy stuff."
The plaza was alive now—players calling out, organizing, some shouting for party invites. A few people sprinted off to what looked like an armory that hadn't existed just minutes ago. Even a town board had appeared against a stone wall, filled with parchment notes fluttering in the breeze.
They stood there a while, letting it all sink in.
Alice was the first to speak again. "I… feel like we were ahead of the curve."
Sarah smirked. "Hell yeah. We got the elder quest before the spawn wave. That's like, hidden bonus content level."
Adrian glanced at both of them, then back at the village pulsing with new life. And despite all the questions bubbling in the back of his mind—about the book, about the orbs, about how this world was functioning—he couldn't help but smile a little.
They weren't lost anymore.
The world had caught up.
"Guess it's time," he said, adjusting his pack. "We're officially in the game."
"About time," Sarah said, cracking her knuckles. "Now let's find some gear. I want to hit something with this big-ass sword already."
Alice chuckled. "Let's not forget food. We haven't eaten since before that mountain climb."
Adrian turned, leading them toward the now-bustling market area that had materialized near the center fountain. It was framed with stalls bearing fruits, tools, small weapons, and even what looked like training scrolls. The once-empty village now buzzed with purpose, and everywhere players moved like they had a goal.
Above them, the golden message faded.
But it had done its job.
The game had begun.
And this time, they were starting together.
The village square buzzed with energy as players flooded toward the newly appeared shops. Dozens of voices filled the crisp air, shouting prices, organizing parties, laughing, even arguing over what class to pursue.
The three of them weaved through the crowd until they reached a wooden stall lined with weapon racks. Behind it stood a middle-aged woman with arms like tree trunks and a scar across her cheek.
Sarah leaned forward first, grinning. "Alright, let's see what we've got."
The weapons were crude but serviceable—starter tier, by the looks of it. A few rusty swords, a short spear, a small round shield, and a heavy training axe with a chipped edge. Everything had a faint glow when hovered over with their interface, listing basic stats.
Adrian blinked as a light chime echoed infront of him.
[Currency Gained: 10 Copper Coins]
Sarah and Alice both made a small sound of surprise.
"Looks like we got a starting allowance," Alice said, already thumbing through the menu. "Ten coppers each. Not a lot."
"Yeah… not nearly enough," Adrian muttered.
Sure enough, each of the weapons was priced almost exactly at ten copper. One weapon per person. No armor. No accessories. No refunds.
Sarah pointed at the greatsword displayed vertically behind the stall. "That's mine. Iron Vanguard, remember? Big sword or nothing."
Alice rolled her eyes, then pointed at a longsword with a polished hilt. "I'll take this one. Light but strong. Good balance."
Adrian hesitated.
The only weapon that stood out to him was a short dagger, mostly because it looked the cheapest and least attention-grabbing. But even as he considered it, something inside him resisted.
He didn't want to waste his only chance.
He stepped away from the stall. "You two go ahead. I'll grab something later."
"You sure?" Sarah asked. "I mean, I know you don't like standing out, but you're gonna need something."
He smiled faintly. "I've got a different idea."
They gave him puzzled looks, but didn't press.
As the girls exchanged their coins for weapons and tested the weight in their hands, Adrian walked to the edge of the square, beneath a quiet overhang, and pulled the book from his inventory. It materialized in a muted flash of white light—no title on the cover, only the soft texture of worn leather and a metallic clasp sealing it shut.
He unhooked it.
The pages were thick, old, yet somehow unweathered. He turned the first one slowly, expecting system text or clear instructions.
What he found was something entirely different.
The ink wasn't black. It shimmered in deep violet, like oil on water.
Each page was handwritten, in a clean but archaic script. And what it said… wasn't simple. Not at all.
"Physique is the core. It is not just the shape of the body, but the harmony between breath, blood, strength, and thought. What you call 'Strength' is only the physical aspect. 'Endurance' is your resistance to force, but without breath, it crumbles. 'Agility' is not speed—it is the softness of your tendons and the command of intention."
"To build physique is to unify the self. To walk the path of strength is to know pain without fear, to breathe when others fall, to perceive movement as structure."
"This manual does not teach techniques. It shows you how to see."
Adrian's brow furrowed as he read.
There were diagrams too—of bones, muscles, internal flows. Not medical. Something else. Arcs that described motion. Circles drawn over silhouettes, lines between limbs and spine and ground.
System stats visualized as bodily potential.
And yet… nothing was concrete. No button to press. No shortcut.
This wasn't a skill tree. It was philosophy.
A system deeper than the system.
He turned another page.
"You will not gain power by picking. You will not advance by number. You must feel it."
"Test the body. Anchor the breath. The seed lies hidden. Comprehend, and you will awaken your foundation."
Adrian slowly shut the book, mind buzzing. No immediate reward. No shiny class. No confirmation ping.
Just the promise of something more—if he could understand it.
He looked down at his hands.
Thin, pale fingers. No calluses. The body of a software dev, not a warrior. And yet, he felt it—something whispering at the edge of his thoughts. Like the book was showing him how to connect what the system displayed to what was real.
If he could pull it off, he might not need a class like the others.
He could forge something different.
"Hey!" Sarah called, waving the massive sword she'd picked. "You get anything?"
He nodded and tucked the book under his arm. "Something to study. I'll catch up."
"You always say that when you're about to do something weird," Alice said with a knowing smirk.
"Yeah, and it usually works," Adrian shot back.
They laughed, then turned back toward the newly posted quest board, the weight of their new weapons clear in their stance.
Adrian followed behind them, heart calmer now.
He didn't have a blade. He didn't have a class.
But he had something rare: knowledge in the making.