Jimmy slowly opened his eyes. All he could see was an unfamiliar forceiling above him. He realised he was lying down on the floor of a cottage, resting. The last thing he could remember was that he was fighting with some boys . Where was he? Was he dead? Jimmy slowly recovered his senses. He had been out cold for a few hours now. Damn that was a hell of a fight. But why was his attack so weak and easily blocked? He was the one of the most feared player in the game. What just happened?
"Congratulations kid. You passed the first test", suddenly an old man said. Jimmy immediately got up and saw the same old man who was being bullied by the boys a few hours ago. He was as fit as ever. The last time Jimmy saw him, he was limping. How was he still alive? Did the boys let him go? Jimmy was confused. He had countless questions in mind. Just as he was about to ask one, the man interrupted him swiftly, as if he could read his mind
"Yes. This was nothing but your test. The WOLWizard Tournament is full of tests. You have proved that you are courageous and brave. You jumped into the fight even though you knew you were no match for the boys.", said the old man as he lightly patted Jimmy's head.
"Wait...what? Those boys, were they...?", Jimmy's head was spinning. Was this also a part of the game?
"Yes they were computerised. They weren't real people. In fact no one is real in this world except for you five participants . Everything is computerised.", said the old man.
Jimmy could not believe his ears. This tournament was full of surprises!
"Since you have passed your first test, here is your reward.", said the man as he handed Jimmy a golden egg. The egg was made purely out of gold and shining brightly. Jimmy could not believe his eyes and tapped the egg several times just to make sure it was real and not computerised. it was cut from the middle. Yet the two parts were joined together.
Jimmy could not understand what was going on. He already had enough game currency. Why would the old man give him this golden egg?
The old man, noticing the confused expression on Jimmy's face continued: "This isn't an ordinary egg. This is perhaps the most important and valuable thing in the WOL world."
"How is it valuable?", asked Jimmy, carefully inspecting the egg. He was still feeling dizzy.
"This egg is the only thing that can lead you to the treasure. There are several eggs scattered around the WOL world. Each egg gives you hints about where the next egg would be. The final egg would lead you to the treasure." said the man excitedly.
Jimmy showed no sign of excitement. How will this piece of gold guide him to the treasure?
Before Jimmy could ask further questions, the old man spoke : "As the caretaker of Green Empire entrance, I must guide you to this game. Firstly, your abilities are reset to level 1. You are now as weak as a newbie. This is only for the tournament. Your actual level will not be affected. To win this tournament, you must level up fast to overpower your opponents",
Jimmy was stunned. His level was reset? This explained why he wasn't able to defeat hose boys and they defeated him so easily! Jimmy breathed a sigh of relief. He thought he had lost his skills. However, how will he level up now?
"The game will last for 1 year. If u are unable to find the treasure in this 1 year, you will lose."
What?
"The game lasts for 1 year?" Jimmy gasped in astonishment. He thought it would take maximum few hours to complete the game. How could he waste an entire year just to complete this game? And that too with zero guarantee to win?
"Don't worry. 1 year in the WOL world equals 1 hour in real life. Means you will be playing this game only for an hour", Said the old man
Jimmy breathed a sigh of relief. He thought he had bounded himself for a year! However he was now more encouraged to win this tournament!
"Alright, I have done my job. You now know the basics of this game. If you wish to forfeit the tournament at any moment, just kill yourself and you will respawn at your home. But if you lose or forfeit, your game level will reset to zero and you will have to level up again.", Said the old man as he disappeared suddenly
Damn, this tournament was exciting! Jimmy could not wait to find the treasure . He glanced at the golden egg again which was given to him. How can this guide him to the next egg?