When Manho looked around, he found himself in the middle of a town square. The buildings around him looked like they were from medieval times—simple, yet old and worn. The square was swarming with both players and NPCs. Players were heading towards NPCs to get quests, while others were already making their way out of the town and into the forest to fight monsters.
Manho's character resembled his real self, with minor changes. He wore a sleek, minimalistic outfit designed for agility and stealth. His armor consisted of form-fitting leather in dark, muted tones—typically black, brown, or grey. The tight, sleeveless tunic allowed maximum range of motion, and reinforced leather bracers protected his forearms. His pants were made of the same supple leather, tailored to fit snugly without hindering movement. The outfit was lightweight, with minimal metal parts, ensuring he could move swiftly and silently. Simple, soft-soled leather boots completed the attire, allowing him to tread without a sound. A basic dagger rested in his hilt.
Suddenly, Manho said, "Stats window." A light window appeared in front of him, displaying his character stats:
**Character:** [Prince of Nothing]
**Starter Town:** [Startlight Town]
**Title:** None
**Job:** Thief
**Level:** 0
**HP:** 90/90
**Physical Attack Power:** 11
**Defense:** 3
**Attack Speed:** 4
**Movement Speed:** 5
**Attributes:**
- **Strength:** 4
- **Agility:** 5
- **Endurance:** 3
- **Intelligence:** 3
- **Vitality:** 2
**Free Attribute Points:** 6
**Weapon Mastery:**
- **Dagger Mastery:** +5 (Basic Rank - Increases Dagger Damage by 5%)
- **Short Sword Mastery:** +5 (Basic Rank - Increases Short Sword Damage by 5%)
**Free Mastery Points:** 0
**Job Talent:**
- **Thief Talent 1:** Stealth-related Mastery +5
- **Thief Talent 2:** Obtain 8 Free Mastery Points every 5 Levels
- **Thief Talent 3:** Stealth-related skills proficiency increased by 50%
**Skills:**
- **Backstab** (Active skill): Requirement: Dagger or Short Sword. Deals 10 additional damage when attacking from behind. Cooldown: 8 seconds. Skill Level: 1 (Proficiency 0/300)
- **Stealth** (Active skill): Become invisible to enemies for 20 seconds. Cooldown: 30 seconds. Skill Level: 1 (Proficiency 0/300)
**Equipment:**
- **[Thief's Leather Vest] (Basic)**
- Level 0
- Defense +2
- Durability 10/10
- **[Novice Dagger] (Basic, Dagger)**
- Level 0
- Equipment Requirement: Agility 3
- Attack Power +3
- Durability 15/15
Inside his bag were ten pieces of bread. Eating the bread would recover 10 HP per second, with the effect lasting ten seconds.
As Manho looked at the stats panel, he smiled, thinking about how to use his attribute points. In New Haven, each level up grants 2 attribute points that the player can use to increase their stats. Players who invest in strength increase their physical damage, which is suitable for melee weapon users like swordsmen and thieves. Mages typically focus on intelligence, while tanks focus on endurance to increase HP and vitality. Every player has a different playstyle for their class. As a thief, Manho knew that agility was everything. Thieves need to be as fast and stealthy as possible. He used 4 attribute points to increase his agility and 2 points to increase his strength.
After finishing his adjustments, Manho began walking in a certain direction. As he moved forward, he noticed players swarming NPCs, questioning and bothering them, thinking they would receive quests. However, this game was different; every NPC was like a real person, and players needed to engage with them meaningfully to receive quests. There were many basic quests in town, but only one special one that Manho was heading towards.
When Manho reached a place that resembled the slums he had once lived in, he realized that no matter where you are, there will always be slums in the world. He was heading to the location of a special quest that, in his previous life, had only been discovered a year after the game was launched. Suddenly, Manho stopped in his tracks and looked at an old man lying on the street. The man was skinny and in bad shape. Manho approached him and said, "Hey, Grandpa, do you need help?"
When the old man heard him, he suddenly opened his eyes and said, "Alice, is that you...?" But when he looked closer, he realized it wasn't who he thought it was. His face grew sadder as he said, "Hello, adventurer. What brings you to me?"
Manho knew that to get the quest from this old man, he needed to call him grandpa and use a strong word in his dialogue. Manho said, "Grandpa, I saw that you were in bad shape, so I wanted to ask if you need help."
When the old man heard this, his face gained some color, and he said, "Indeed, I am in dire need of help, but I need someone strong and who can act quickly."
Manho smiled and said, "Grandpa, I'm quite strong. Just tell me what you need help with."
The old man smiled, his face full of wrinkles, and said, "This town is in a dangerous area. The monsters are killing people left and right when they go into the forest. My dear granddaughter disappeared last night, and I can't find her. The last place she was seen was playing near the forest. I told her never to go there, but she didn't listen."
When the old man finished speaking, tears rolled down his face. Manho said, "Don't worry, I will help you get your granddaughter back."
Suddenly, a light panel appeared in front of Manho.
**System:** Special Quest [Rescue]
**Quest Details:** Help old Gandalf find his granddaughter.
Manho immediately turned back and headed toward the forest. As he entered the forest, he noticed a lot of players fighting slimes—simple monsters that gave little to no experience points. Seeing this, Manho increased his speed. One of the players noticed him and shouted, "Hey, friend! Don't go there; the monsters are too strong!"
Manho didn't even turn back and continued sprinting. The player sighed, "Another stupid player thinking he's good."
As Manho sprinted toward his destination, he encountered a pack of three wolves, all at level 3. He used "Inspect" on one of them and saw the following:
**Monster:** Wolf
**Level:** 3
**HP:** 150/150
**Physical Attack Power:** 18
**Defense:** 6
**Attack Speed:** 2
**Movement Speed:** 5
**Attributes:**
- **Strength:** 7
- **Agility:** 6
- **Endurance:** 4
- **Intelligence:** 1
- **Vitality:** 5
**Skills:**
- **Bite:** A basic attack that deals 10 additional points of damage.
When Manho saw their stats, he didn't panic. He had played the game for 15 years; if he couldn't even kill some basic wolves, he might as well quit the game. He suddenly used Stealth and approached one of the wolves that was slightly separated from the pack. Coming from behind, he struck the wolf in the neck with his dagger.
**-50 Critical Hit**
Seeing the damage, Manho smiled. In New Haven, hitting a vital part of a monster or player deals extra damage. The wolf, realizing there was a human behind it, raged and lunged to bite Manho's neck. Manho quickly dashed to the left, easily dodging the attack and retreating slowly. The wolf followed him, but when it was far enough from the pack, Manho dashed at it again, striking its body with his dagger.
**-10 HP**
Dodging the wolf's attacks, Manho moved behind it and used Backstab, striking its neck.
**-100 Critical Hit**
**[System Notification]**
- **You have killed a Level 3 Wolf.**
- **Gained 95 EXP (XP is doubled).**
- **Loot:**
- **Wolf Pelt (Gray, Trash) x1**
- **Wolf Claw (Gray, Trash) x1**
- **Raw Meat x1**
- **Silver Coins x2**
Manho continued the same strategy for the other two wolves, and by the time they were defeated, he had reached level 1 with his XP bar at 70% to level 2. He continued his journey, mostly using Stealth to navigate through the forest to avoid being killed by other monsters. It took him an hour to find a cave. Upon entering, a foul smell hit him, but he ignored it, accustomed to bad smells. He walked deeper into the cave until he found skulls and skeletons of children. Further in, he discovered three unconscious kids lying on the ground and a large centipede that appeared to be sleeping in front of a wall that seemed to mark the end of the cave. Manho used Inspect on it and found:
**Monster:** Huge Stipade
**Level:** 5
**HP:** 500/500
**Physical Attack Power:** 35
**Defense:** 20
**Attack Speed:** 2
**Movement Speed:** 3
**Attributes:**
- **Strength:** 12
- **Agility:** 3
- **Endurance:** 15
- **Intelligence:** 2
- **Vitality:** 12
**Skills:**
- **Crushing Blow:** Active skill. Deals 50 points of damage with a chance to stun the target for 2 seconds. Cooldown: 15 seconds.
- **Toxic Spit:** Active skill. Spits a toxic substance that deals 20 points of damage over 10 seconds and reduces the target's movement speed by 30%. Cooldown: 20 seconds.
When Manho saw that, he smiled. 'The player from my past life didn't lie. There is actually a huge centipede here. Let's hope he's right about the rest as well.' In his previous life, the player who completed the quest talked about it in detail, even explaining how to kill the centipede.
Manho activated Stealth and moved as quickly as he could. When he reached 5 meters from the centipede, he slowed down and carefully continued until he reached a wall. It wasn't very tall, so he climbed it quickly. At the top, he found a huge rock. Suddenly, Manho smiled and started pushing the rock until it fell on the centipede. The force of the blow crushed the beast beneath it. Dust and debris filled the air, obscuring the scene as Manho descended to confirm the defeat of the creature. The centipede still didn't die. 'Damn, this centipede is really strong,' he thought. The centipede was already on the verge of dying, with only 2 HP left in its bar. Manho used his dagger on the centipede's eye, killing it.
**[System Notification]**
- **You have killed a Level 5 Centipede.**
- **Gained 700 XP (XP is tripled).**
- **Loot:**
- **[Stipade Fang (Basic Quality) x1]**
- **[Stipade Carapace (Basic Quality) x1]**
- **[Level 5 Poison Dagger (Bronze Quality)]**
Manho leveled up three times and was now Level 4, with his XP bar at 70% to Level 5. He had 8 attribute points available. When he looked at the loot, he got excited because of the dagger. He quickly inspected it.
**[Level 5 Poison Dagger (Bronze Quality)]:**
- **Weapon Type:** Dagger
- **Level Requirement:** 5
- **Attack Power:** +12
- **Poison Effect:** Inflicts 15 damage over 5 seconds with each hit. Poison effect stacks up to 3 times.
- **Durability:** 25/25
- **Description:** A finely crafted bronze dagger with a potent poison effect. Ideal for stealthy attacks and applying continuous damage to enemies.
Manho thought, 'This is a nice dagger...' He began walking away from the centipede and stood in front of the three kids—one was a girl, likely Gandalf's daughter, and the other two were probably from the town. Gently, Manho approached them, his footsteps light to avoid waking them abruptly. He knelt beside them, softly whispering, "It's time to wake up. You're safe now." As the children stirred, he carefully gathered them into his arms, the youngest cradled securely, and the older two clinging to his sides. With tender words of comfort and reassurance, Manho guided them out of the cave. When he returned to the town, he left the two boys to find their parents and carried the young girl to her grandpa.
When Gandalf saw his granddaughter, he started crying and hugging her. He said, "Thank you so much, adventurer. I don't have any money to give you, but I have a treasure map that has been treasured by my family for a long time. I hope you accept it."
**[System Notification]**
- **Quest Completed: Rescue**
- **Experience Points:** 500 EXP
- **Treasure Map**
Manho suddenly leveled up to Level 5. When he heard the reward, he smiled because the map was very important. He equipped the Poison Dagger since he was already Level 5. Manho was now Level 5, while most players weren't even Level 2. He suddenly tried to inspect the treasure.
**[System Notification]**
- **Item : Mysterious Map of ????**
Manho got so excited that he started dancing in front of the old man and his granddaughter. When the girl saw that, she started laughing innocently. Manho thought, 'I struck gold! I will be the strongest player in the game, ahahaha!' Manho thanked the old man and started walking out of the slums to another location.