[Congratulations, you can now use the Training Facility. Come back to learn your Weapon Mastery Skill after you have chosen a Weapon.]
That's it? That was my only reward?
I was baffled as it was the only notification I received after talking to Goku.
Shouldn't there be more rewards? What about the rewards for completing the near-impossible condition of defeating Goku?
I cried in my heart, but Goku did not speak anymore. He silently stared at me with a fiery gaze.
From what I knew of VR games, these NPCs were highly intelligent beings. If he did not issue my new rewards immediately, it meant I had not yet fulfilled some hidden condition or worse there was no hidden condition.
I ignored the gnawing feeling in my heart for the time being and focused on my primary purpose behind coming to the training grounds - Trying out the variety of weapons and choosing one that suited me the best.
I went for the sword first. As soon as I wielded it to strike the dummy, I knew it was not the weapon for me.
My swings were all over the place, and my balance was way off. Not a single one of my swings dealt any damage to the dummies.
In all the previous VR games where I used the VR Helmet or VR Capsule, I had always played as a ranged class, either as a Mage or a Summoner.
What a wise decision it was!
As it seemed, Swordsmanship was clearly not my cup of tea. I could even see Goku snickering on the side as he looked at my clumsy swings.
Then, I swapped the sword for this hefty double-bladed ax. It almost made me fall on the very first swing!
I had to use the ax itself for support to avoid plopping down on my face. Looking at the weapon with chagrin, I thought, 'What the hell! Is an Ax supposed to be this heavy?'
I put it down and looked at the enormous maces and hammers. Immediately, I shook my head and looked the other way.
What a joke! I could not even handle an Ax; How was I supposed to wield a Mace or a Hammer that was even more heavier than the Ax?
I turned my gaze away from the heavy weaponry section and looked toward daggers and choppers. I grabbed one dagger with a good feel and started slashing it through the air like I knew what I was doing.
"Big Brother, that is a dagger, not a kitchen knife."
Goku approached, barely concealing his smirk.
Upon hearing his words, I realized that I was gripping the dagger like I would hold a kitchen knife when chopping onions.
I quickly corrected the grip with a straight face, but knowing the correct grip alone did not turn me into a qualified Assassin. My footwork was still crap, and my reflexes were even crappier.
Goku came to a stop in front of me and plucked the weapon from my hand.
"Brother, it is clear you have no experience using melee weapons. Don't go for what everyone else is choosing, and stick to what suits you the best."
I turned my gaze to the Archery Range.
In Kailan, the last VR Game I played 5 years ago, I was a Summoner, and my auxiliary weapon was a Longbow.
Back then, I used to solo the Bosses much higher than my level, just depending on my five summons and my Bow. So, I was confident that my Archery skills would not embarrass me.
I grabbed a suitable bow and quiver full of arrows and stood before one of the circular targets placed in the Archery Range.
Each circular target had three concentric circles painted on it. The core area of the target was red while the central circle was yellow, the inner circle was blue, and the outermost circle was black.
Goku and Trainer Basak observed my every move with hawkish eyes as I lifted the wooden Bow and notched an arrow on it. Using all 8 of my Strength points, I pulled at the bowstring while aiming at the Bull's eye on the target.
Before I could launch the arrow, a notification popped up in front of me.
[Would you like to turn on the Projectile Guidance System?]
The PGS was a common game mechanic in every modern VR Game. It assisted in aiming of magic spells, arrows or any other projectile weapons.
As the level of Player and the tier of his class increased, it became less and less relevant unless you had specific skills like Aim, Lock On or Homing Arrows that increased the effectiveness of PGS.
The test of any good Ranged Class Player was how well they could aim without the PGS and I wanted to see if I had any future as an Archer.
I quickly chose 'No' and launched my arrow.
Swoosh!
The arrow zoomed toward the target and swerved mid-air due to the strong wind. Despite the deviation, the arrow hit the blue ring on the target, causing Goku and Trainer Basak to gasp in surprise.
After all, I had achieved this feat without any assistance from the Projectile Guidance System!
Usually when newbies tried to use a Bow and Arrow, their arrows would hit everywhere but the target with their PGS turned off. Only when they turned it back on and gained some experience could they replicate my feat.
This proved that my basic archery skills stood head and shoulders above the rest. Even Goku and Trainer Basak, who were watching me from the side, had a glimmer of admiration in their eyes.
After the previous disdain I faced, this admiration felt like a breath of fresh air!
Pleased with my performance, I took out another arrow and shot it, this time taking the flow of wind into account. The arrow swerved and still missed the core red area by a couple of inches, but I was much closer to the center now.
I was fired up, and I set a small goal for myself. I wanted to hit the Bull's eye before my quiver was empty.
With this goal, I adjusted my posture, my aim, and my strength with every arrow. I shot the 4th arrow at the target and missed the red area again.
Another arrow! Missed by a little again.
One more!...
I kept on repeating my actions until only 2 out of the 10 arrows were left in my quiver.
I took a deep breath and focused entirely on the red area of the target. I stopped trying to calculate the flow of wind and other such factors and relied solely on my instincts.
When I lifted the Bow again, the world around me had turned black and white for me. The only color I could see was the red of the target.
As I pulled the notched arrow back with the bowstring, I inhaled a deep and steady breath.
Hush!
Just like the arrow shooting from my Bow, air rushed out from my lungs in one short but powerful exhalation.
I then watched the arrow zoom towards the target with bated breath and saw it pierce the core red area of the target.
"Yesss!"
I could not suppress my grin when I finally managed to hit the center of the target without any skill or correctional guidance from the system!
This was not an easy feat. Even the Professional Archers had trouble adjusting to the environment of the game. They would need several quivers worth of arrows before they would manage to hit the core of the target!
Yet, I, a noob who only had a basic understanding of Archery, had done it on my 9th arrow itself!
The game also recognized my achievements, and two notifications chimed one after another in my ears. A quick glance was all I needed to double my joy.
[Unlocked Hidden Stat - Dexterity]
[Dexterity +1]
Dexterity was an essential stat for all the professions that depended on swift and nimble finger movements.
The success rate of an item creation for Life professions was dependent on the Dexterity of the Player. Higher Dexterity could even improve the grade of the item.
For combat classes like Archers, Dexterity increased attack speed per second. The higher the Dexterity, the higher the number of arrows shot in a second.
So, unlocking this stat so early in the game, when I didn't even have a weapon, was a huge blessing.
I looked at the Bow in my hands. It just felt right in my hands, like I was born to wield it. It felt even better than the staff I held when playing as a Mage or a Summoner.
It was at this moment I decided to become the best possible Archer in the Dreamverse VR.
Since I still had one more arrow left in the quiver, I decided to try and replicate my Bull's eye shot again.
I did everything correctly and pulled the bowstring, but the arrow missed. In fact, it did not even travel to the target and instead ended its flight halfway between.
I looked at the Bow in my hands with confusion, as if expecting it to answer why the arrow fell short of the target.
Though the Bow could not talk, Goku stepped forward to answer my question.
"Brother Samar, you have overexerted yourself. Your stamina is not enough to use any weapon efficiently."
I looked at my status window but could not find any such stamina option in game, but in reality, I was indeed feeling fatigued.
This was my first time exercising for so long, after all!
Goku did not stop there. He had more to say.
"Brother, how about this? I will help you improve your strength and stamina. In exchange, you teach me Yoga to improve my flexibility."
So, this was why this brat was being so helpful! He truly cannot digest a loss.
I was enlightened to Goku's motives as another quest notification appeared before my eyes.
[Train with Goku]
[Daily Quest (Min 7 days)]
[Quest Clear Conditions: Train with Goku for an hour every morning]
[Possible Rewards: +100 Exp, Random Bonus Stat Points, Skills, Favorability with Goku.]
[If you miss the training even a single day during the first 7 days, you will receive the following Quest Penalty:
-3 Random Stat Points, Favorability with Goku will drop to zero, and the Daily Quest will be canceled.]
[Do you want to accept the quest?]
[Y / N]
As I read the quest description, I was speechless. The rewards were truly lucrative, while the penalty was horrific too.
Most importantly, it forced me to do everything my Mother would nag me to do every day since I was young!
Wake up early in the morning - Check!
Exercise Systematically - Check!
Do Yoga - Check!
Even though it went against the very fabric of my being, the rewards of Bonus Stats and Skills were too good to pass up on.
I clicked Yes and, after a short chat with Goku, exited the Training Grounds.
On the way out, I could not help but wonder: Did my Mom bribe the developers?