Alex never expected that someday, he would wake up to see himself in the future far past his own but since it happened, just like he expected, he had a perfect night sleep in his bedroom.
The next morning, it was a familiar voice that woke him up.
Knock! Knock!
It took a couple of knocks before Alex's eyes were able to open groggily. Once he asked who was at the door, the familiar female voice answered.
'Amelia!' His eyes lit up as he sprang up to his feet.
Wearing casual pajamas, an attire he was surprised to see still in use in the future, Alex went to the sitting room where he stared at the wall.
On the wall, there was a projection of a virtual clock, it read…
{6:05am}
Alex was stunned. 'What the f*ck!'
'It's this early and she's already waking me up? This is so weird', He had a bad premonition about this. 'Don't tell me that my second trial race will start now?'
'Is there even a second trial race?'
His eyes widened as his brain moved to the worst-case scenario. 'Don't tell me the real races start today? But that blue guy didn't indicate that!'
Despite his racing thoughts, he still rushed to the door as he noted that someone was there waiting for him.
He got there to meet a frown on her face.
Seeing that look on her face, Alex gulped.
Amelia, his supervisor stared at him. "What took you so long?"
"Oh, umm, I was getting dressed".
She looked at the pajamas on him before looking away. "Go get dressed in your running suit, it's time to go for training".
Alex was stumped. He simply stood, staring at her. "Training?"
"Yes," Amelia nodded. Seeing the confused look on his face still, she sighed, she forgot to tell him about this yesterday.
She took a deep breath. "Runners; Survival and Glory is currently the biggest source of entertainment for the Arcadians in this age".
"It is the creator's role to make sure that the game stays competitive and exciting to attract more viewers to it".
"This is the reason for the trial race in the first place".
"This is why the runners are also put through rigorous training".
"During the finals, even the Emperor makes an appearance to watch the best runners in the universe compete in the biggest and most lethal stage of all".
"This is why Magedon does everything possible to keep his runners competitive. He has to make sure that you people don't lose your edge".
"Huh?" Alex was overwhelmed by all the information that was just dumped to him.
Amelia conveniently ignored the expression on his face. "Originally, I didn't care but after you survived the trial race, you truly became my responsibility".
"As a supervisor, I'm paid and it is my job to make sure that you're in tip top condition for every competitive race".
"Of course, you can refuse my assistance but you know the penalty for failing". She looked at him. "Surely, you've not forgotten the annihilating flame so quickly, so I'd say you go wear your running suit now".
Alex gulped, nodded and went inside his house to get set.
As soon as he entered, Amelia followed him in.
Alex paused and she shrugged. "I already saw you naked once, what are you scared of? Besides, you can't wear the running suit yourself".
"You need someone to strap you in".
"Uhh, ok".
This time, of course Alex refused to be naked. Wearing only boxers and a singlet, his supervisor strapped the running suit in.
***
{You have equipped the standard Runners suit!}
{Welcome to Runners; Survival and Glory!}
{Click on this link to open the guide to the hyper realistic game, Runners; Survival and Glory:}
{Player: Runner 87}
…
{Runner attributes: Runner 87}
{Race Attributes:}
{Speed: 4/15}
{Acceleration: 5/12}
{Strength: 5/18}
{Intelligence: 11/15}
…
{Life Attributes:}
{Health points: 50/50}
{Stamina: 13/13}
***
Amelia continued explaining. "There's a general training for all runners scheduled for 8:00am every day that is overseen by Coach Andrew, the head coach of Sky Dome Stadium".
"Before that, I want to take you through some attribute training".
She presented a paper to him. Taking the paper skeptically, Alex looked through it and his eyes lit up in understanding.
{Daily Personal Attribute Training:}
>Endurance Training: Jog 1500 meters<
>Endurance Training: Run 800 meters<
>Speed Training: 200-meter sprint<
>Acceleration Training: 30-meter dash with waist weights attached<
>Intelligence Training: Nil<
Despite understanding the contents of this paper, Alex still raised his head to look at his supervisor, question marks all over his face. If it was just training, was this not just…, unrealistic?
"I know what you're thinking".
"I heard that you came from the 21st century. If you want to survive Runners; Survival and Glory, you need to stop thinking like a human from the 21st century and start thinking like a survivor of the Age of the Arcadian Empire".
"This training may be over the board and even impossible back in your era but with the game suit, this is possible".
"You just need to master some minute details".
At that moment, Alex interjected. "Also, if I remember correctly, I think two of my attributes increased after yesterday's race".
Amelia nodded. "That's because you leveled up, but don't rely on that".
"Level ups don't come every day. If you don't want to die, you need to rely on the game system less and rely more on your own efforts".
"Apart from health points, every other attribute that you have, you can improve it if you diligently train and run".
Hearing that, Alex's eyes gleamed.
This concern had always been at the back of his mind. Having raced the Tiger and faced against overwhelming superior speed and acceleration, despite the fact that he won, it was still a major concern to him.
Suddenly knowing that he could take his fate back into his own hand and improve his physical attributes, he no longer hesitated.
That was all the motivation that he needed.
Alex grinned. "Let's start my first day in training".