NOVEL NEXT Ch. 2
Chapter 2: [Cecilia]
"Who would send me something this expensive?"
Chen Zixuan fiddled with the helmet in the box, confirming that this was indeed a high-value VR headset.
Moreover, the recipient's section on the box clearly listed his name and address, which meant there was no chance it had been delivered by mistake.
This helmet was intended specifically for him.
"Weird. There's not a bomb in here, is there... Could it be that Gu Yanxi sent this to me?"
Chen Zixuan muttered under his breath.
Still, despite what he said, he casually switched on the helmet.
A row of green lights lit up in sequence—no issues at all.
Remaining cautious, Chen Zixuan took out his domestic-brand smartphone, opened a search engine, and typed in "VR helmet".
Five minutes later, after watching a demonstration video on the official website, Chen Zixuan was nearly certain that this headset was for the soon-to-launch game, 《Legend of Kaloran》—a dedicated helmet for that exact title.
However, since the game wouldn't officially open for another six hours or so, it couldn't be used just yet.
Already accustomed to working night shifts, Chen Zixuan wasn't sleepy at all.
With plenty of time until launch, he searched for information about 《Legend of Kaloran》 on his phone and began reading intently at his desk.
Two hours passed. As the sun gradually rose outside, Chen Zixuan finally familiarized himself with the game.
《Legend of Kaloran》: a joint investment by dozens of countries, produced by the world's largest gaming company, and the latest masterpiece from the Warlord of Loren. It claimed to be a one-hundred-percent recreation of reality, and thanks to its unique gameplay, had caused a global sensation before its release.
The game's background story was simple: a classic western fantasy world where players could choose from seven classes—Warrior, mage, priest, paladin, assassin, ranger, and Warlock. This setup was somewhat reminiscent of World of Warcraft, and Chen Zixuan quickly understood the strengths and weaknesses of each class.
So now, only one question remained: should he play the game or not?
If he didn't play, an untouched VR headset for an unregistered game account could fetch him at least 25,000 yuan.
For Chen Zixuan at this moment, that wasn't a small sum—enough for a worry-free high school life in terms of food and clothing.
But, if he sold the helmet now, he would feel a bit regretful, especially since he was currently facing unemployment.
Finding a summer part-time job wasn't easy, but if he kept the helmet, he might earn money by selling game currency and items in the game—a practice known as 'gold farming'.
While it wasn't much, with consistent effort and without having to leave home, it might be a decent deal.
"Anyway, the servers open at noon. Even if I try to sell the helmet now, I might not find a buyer right away. I'll just try it out first."
Soon, Chen Zixuan convinced himself.
Time ticked by, but Chen Zixuan never felt sleepy. Every now and then, he checked the time on his phone. After several hours, noon arrived.
At 12:00 PM on July 6th, 2021, the much-anticipated 《Legend of Kaloran》 officially launched its servers worldwide!
Having waited long enough, Chen Zixuan lay down on his bed, put on the helmet, and entered the game right on time.
His vision was enveloped by dazzling, colorful light, and the four characters for "Warlord of Loren" floated before his eyes.
Chen Zixuan closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, a magnificent new world appeared before him!
It was probably the game's opening CG animation. His perspective was atop a tall, gray wall; within the walls were countless tower-like structures, and outside lay a vast expanse of land—mountains, rivers, forests, villages—the visuals were so realistic he couldn't tell if it was a game or reality.
"So this is virtual reality simulation technology?"
Chen Zixuan clicked his tongue, feeling the wind on his face.
No wonder the game was priced at fifty thousand yuan; the immersion was absolutely unmatched.
Just then, a female narrator's voice suddenly sounded in his ear, briefly introducing the story's background:
The four archangels who served before the throne of the deity—Uriel, Raphael, Gabriel, and Michael—rebelled. They also created countless monsters in an attempt to destroy the world. The protagonist, that is, the players, would play as adventurers to save this world—this was the main storyline.
All in all, it was a world where swords and magic coexisted!
The demonstration ended, and Chen Zixuan's vision suddenly went blank.
After two seconds, he realized he had entered a completely white space.
"Adventurer, welcome to the continent of Kaloran!"
The female narrator's voice sounded in Chen Zixuan's ear again, noble and elegant, as if speaking with ants on the ground, carrying a feeling of aloof scorn.
"Now please create your game character. Note: each person only gets one chance to create a character and choose a class, so please choose your class carefully."
"So it's just like the website said?"
Chen Zixuan thought to himself.
By these rules, the first class you picked was vitally important. If you chose poorly, the rest of your gaming experience would probably suffer.
Fortunately, he had done his homework beforehand, so he didn't need to agonize over which class to pick. For non-paying players wanting to avoid being crushed, warrior or Mage were the best options.
The other classes weren't weak, of course—after leveling up, each was strong in its own right—but they required too much spending.
Warriors had high attack and strong defenses early on, impressive skills, and, most importantly, didn't rely heavily on gear—perfect for pioneering players.
Mages were powerful in the late-game but had a long growth period at first; since Chen Zixuan planned to farm for money in 《Legend of Kaloran》, he couldn't choose Mage.
"System, I pick Warrior."
Chen Zixuan cleared his throat and said calmly.
"Your selection is invalid. Please try another class."
The system lady's voice remained ice-cold, but perhaps it was his imagination—this time, Chen Zixuan heard a hint of teasing in her response.
"How could this be... Is it a bug?"
Chen Zixuan was helpless; it seemed he could only pick Mage.
"Then I'll choose Mage."
"Your selection is invalid. As a user-friendly feature, this system has automatically chosen the class most suitable for you," the system lady answered, to Chen Zixuan's surprise.
As she finished speaking, a panel appeared in the air before Chen Zixuan, with just one button in the center reading 'Confirm'.
"The most suitable class for me... This game even has such a function?"
Chen Zixuan pondered for a moment, then reached out and pressed Confirm on the panel. Since the system had chosen for him, it saved him the trouble.
Anyway, entering the game quickly was the most important thing. At server launch, the in-game currency was most valuable—who knew how quickly it would depreciate later.
"Notice: This class is extremely rare. There is only one on all servers worldwide. Players may not buy, sell, or transfer it. Please be advised."
The system lady spoke again.
"Only one in the whole world?"
Chen Zixuan was stunned. Wasn't his luck a bit too outrageous?
He had gotten a VR headset for free, and now drew a one-of-a-kind class.
Even the dullest person would sense something fishy. How many windfalls dropped from the sky like this? It was probably all pre-arranged by someone.
This game wasn't worth playing!
"I want to log out,"
Chen Zixuan said expressionlessly, his tone icy.
"Please enter your game name, 2 to 15 characters long. Once confirmed, it cannot be changed."
However, the system lady acted as if she hadn't heard him, automatically jumping to the next step.
"Where's the logout button? I want to quit the game,"
Chen Zixuan frowned, repeating in a low voice. But the system never responded; only the name entry screen awaited him.
A minute passed...
Three minutes...
Five...
Just as Chen Zixuan was about to break, a name slowly appeared on the screen:
————[Cecilia].
Then, as if an invisible finger pressed the Confirm button, before Chen Zixuan's eyes of icy determination, his game ID was forcibly set to Cecilia.
From now on, that would be his in-game name.
Looking back, Chen Zixuan felt as if an unseen black hand had been manipulating him ever since he received the mysterious package, pushing him, little by little, to create this character named Cecilia and enter this game.
But, Cecilia... that was probably a girl's name, right...?
Did it mean that from now on, he'd have to play this game with a female name?
No. Chen Zixuan made up his mind: once he managed to log out, he'd throw away the VR helmet instantly—he would never touch this game ever again for the rest of his life.
After setting his name, it was time to create his character's appearance—a step present in many games, usually called "character creation".
Incidentally, 《Legend of Kaloran》's character creation was extremely thorough, allowing players to create avatars indistinguishable from real people.
Indistinguishable included everything—even unique, individual anatomical features.
Maybe that was part of what made this game so popular, but presumably for this reason, there were quite a few restrictions on character creation.
First: No creating cross-gender characters. That is, male players could not create female avatars. Similarly, female players could not create male avatars.
This rule naturally put limits on 'internet cross-dressers', 'traps', and "tea-selling girls," maintaining trust among people in the online world.
Second: The avatar's appearance couldn't differ too much from the player's real face—only small facial adjustments allowed, and age difference couldn't exceed five years.
So if you encountered a truly beautiful nine-out-of-ten girl in 《Legend of Kaloran》, you could be sure she was the real deal, and her real-life appearance couldn't be far off.
This ensured that female players in the game would be even more popular than in any other game.
So, system, is that why you want me to create a female account?
-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=
Born a man, forced to be a woman...
Sometimes, it takes a man to be the best girl...
【ദ്ദി(⩌ᴗ⩌)】