[RAIDS ONLINE: LUCENT @ RAIDS - Channel.]
...I guess that wasn't bad for my first Raid. Right, Selene?...
KCID@EID: Look at this guy acting sentimental with the delusion that Selene is watching over him.
MOONSHINE@SELENE: Of course, Selene is watching over everyone wishing the best for all of us.
UR@DUDE: Seems like another delusional dude like you.
MOONSHINE@SELENE: Selene is a true Goddess. FAQ U Selene haters.
UR@DUDE: FAQ YOU!!!
RING@FORCE: FAQ those players like this guy who got a 47 percent starting Link Force.
SILVER@SHOELACE: My faqing Link Force is at 5 percent when I start playing RAIDS ONLINE.
RING@FORCE: Suck to be you... HAHAHA!!!...
RAIDS@CURSE: Either way, this Lucent guy will soon suffer from the curse of high-starting Link Force.
RING@FORCE: Can't wait to see another noob getting trampled over and over again.
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Luel logs out after his first Raid against the Rank D Ragnarok Beast Red Hound and gets back to sleep in the middle of the night.
The next morning, Luel saw that the video of his first Raid livestream got some attention from the official RAIDS ONLINE Channel, earning a total of 1000+ views, along with some harsh comments about how cringe he was acting as if he was talking to Selene.
"JEEZ!..."
With a heavy sigh of embracement, Luel feels like wanting to crawl into a hole in the ground and bury himself after reading the comments section of his video.
"I feel like a total idiot... Why did I ever think of live streaming anyway?..."
As Luel buried his face under his pillow while lying down on his bed, voices like laughter started to ring within his mind, reminding him of the days when he thinks how everyone else at his past jobs was laughing behind his back due to his failures.
"ARGHHH!..."
Luel screamed as he abruptly got up from his bed.
"Enough of those depressing flashbacks!... I need to do something to change my mood!"
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Buns, Hotdogs, and Eggs, that what Luel decided for his breakfast, along with a cup of brewed coffee. It was supposed to be a relaxing morning, but the harsh comments about his first Raid remained in Luel's mind while eating his breakfast on the balcony and looking at the grassy garden of his house.
Even though Luel wanted to immediately log back to RAIDS ONLINE to do his second Raid and try to do something amazing or cool to redeem himself, that option is set aside for the fact that the RAIDS ONLINE Server is only open at night.
It's one of the perks that differentiate the RAIDS ONLINE from other VRMMORPG, for its Server is only open at night, around 6 of the afternoon until 6 of the morning. Or more accurately to say, from sunset to sunrise.
This condition gives the RAIDS ONLINE players the time to live a normal life in the morning and being able to continue living a game life as a Devour in the evening while their body is resting and sleeping.
Scientific research has shown that the human mind continues to be active while the body is resting asleep, so while not use that time to immerse oneself in a virtual reality. Or so Luel thought while staring blankly at the ceiling of the balcony because of his boredom.
To fight his boredom, Luel starts walking around the house until he arrives at the garage. Then he suddenly remembers his younger brother Nedd saying that the car is inside.
Luel opened the door of the garage and saw the old, small, yet still dignified convertible that his parents had left in their care while both of them are traveling abroad.
While Luel is looking at the black and white convertible Mini Copper, his eyes are led to the inside of the car, and a sudden flashback comes to his mind. A memory of the fateful day when his life has been turned upside down. Both literally and figuratively speaking.
Luel gives a solemn smile after remembering that day. Yet, within his mind, that memory is and always will be a horrifying nightmare.
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"Huff!... Huff!... Damnit, why the heck do I feel so tired!... Isn't this just a game? Why do I need to feel like I'm actually running in real life?!"
A day has passed, and the RAIDS ONLINE Server has started receiving players who are eager to log back into the game. Of course, one of them is Luel, who is determined to redeem himself as he continues to livestream his second Raid.
At a random location within Area CC+63, Luel encounter his second Ragnarok Beast or, more accurately, a swarm of Ragnarok Beasts.
[Rank E Ragnarok Beast, Code Name: Mutated Rabies.]
At first, what Luel encounters is only a single Mutated Rabies. A 1-meter large dog with six extra limbs growing at its back along with a four cross-sectional mouth filled with a ridiculous amount of sharp teeth that could swallow an entire human head.
The body of the dog is actually just a lifeless host, and the real Ragnarok Beast is the parasite inside the body, which is connected to the six extra limbs and gruesome mouth.
It's one of the weakest among the ranks of Ragnarok Beast and Luel easily defeated it with a single strike of his Charge Skill. And even though Luel feels disgusted by the gruesome appearance of the Mutated Rabies, he resolves himself to Devour it with his Orion's Fangs Skill.
Luel continues to encounter more Mutated Rabies as he explores the location of Area CC+63, his current in. From 1-meter large dogs to half-meter large cats and rats infected by Mutated Rabies, Luel continues to defeat and Devour all of them without realizing that his actions might bring more harsh comments to his video.
Luel continues to fight and Devour all the Ragnarok Beast that he encounters until the current situation where he is now being chased by a swarm of Mutated Rabies for unknowingly entering their territory.
"What the heck is this?... Is this what they mean by high starting Link Force curse?!"
The higher the Link Force of the players are the stronger they become. But the stronger they are, the more high-ranking Ragnarok Beast will come to hunt them.
It's the meaning of the high-starting Link Force curse, and it's definitely not what Luel is experiencing by being chased by the swarm of Mutated Rabies.
Yet the answer to the unthoughtful remark that he just said is about to arrive chasing him.
...BOOOMMMMM!!!...
A loud sound of explosion, along with the destructive shockwave of its impact, came from behind Luel in the direction of Mutated Rabies that was chasing him.
The sound makes his ears feel pressured and pain as the shockwave knocks him down to the ground, meters away from where he's supposed to be standing.
It felt like something big had fallen high from the sky. When Luel turns around to see what has arrived, what he saw gives him a horrifying feeling like the nightmare he always sees in his dream. A feeling that someone won't be able to escape and that their life will be claimed by death.
After all, what is standing in front of Luel is one of the few Rank A Ragnarok Beast.
[Rank A Ragnarok Beast, Code Name: Cerberus.]