5 The Bearth Online: Closed Beta Starts!

Dinner came, and as expected, Pedro was scolded by his father. Thanks to his mother, things didn't escalate too much. His father calmed down and they were able to finish their dinner.

"Young man, to your room! We'll talk!" His father pointed with a serious look. His mother nodded at him as if saying to just follow his dad and not to worry since she is there.

~~~~~~~

'I didn't think it would be this hard! Fortunately, I was able to make that last-minute presentation. I have to thank Glogol for the information. Hehe.' He shook his head as he went first to his room.

Minutes later, his father and mother entered his room. His father's glance was focused on the VR Box beside his bed as if he was a missile aiming for its target.

"Now. Explain this to us." His father pointed to the VR Box as both of his parents looks at him, waiting for his explanation.

"Uhm, Dad... I apologize for purchasing this without your consent." Pedro started smoothly.

"Good, you still have your manners. But, I am more interested to hear about your explanation!"

"Then... Please see this father." Pedro moved the mouse of his computer that activated its screen.

"This is called VR Box. It's that thing." Pedro pointed to the VR Box.

"It is a new technology developed, specifically for gaming. Based on the specifications, it required a huge amount of energy to operate."

"Why are you telling me this? What's this gotta do with you?" His father frowned as he thought that Pedro was just playing him around.

"Well... In the future, I would inherit our Energy company. And as the future inheritor, I must do everything I can to help it grow and succeed." Pedro answered in a straightforward but still respectful manner.

His father was astounded for a second. He was prepared to scold Pedro thinking that he bought this thing for his enjoyment.

To think that he did it for their company. His anger cooled down a bit.

"If that's the case..."

"According to XXXX Survey, There are approximately 2 Billion VR Helmet owners as of today. If... Just if father, If this VR Box replaces all VR Helmet in the future, wouldn't 2 Billion VR Boxes would be sold? If we are to supply the component that provides it efficient energy, then~"

At this moment, his father held his forehead and gestured at Pedro to stop.

"I get your point. Still... If this was your goal from the start, why didn't you approached me or your mom instead? Why buy this thing yourself without informing us?"

'Trully worthy of the title as the first boss that I face.' Pedro went speechless for a second. He sighed and smiled back at his father.

"The reason for that was because only closed beta phase players could acquire a VR Box."

"All right!" Mr. Jon Armaz went silent while rubbing his chin, "I'll take what you said into consideration. I'll let you off the hook this time. But remember this young man, If your grades fail... Don't blame me for being ruthless!"

His father gave up. Pedro's points are something that he can consider.

"Thanks, father! I will not let you down."

His father left his room. His mother followed his father and send Pedro a wave and a smile as if cheering him up.

~~~~~~~

Days passed, Pedro's excitement grow larger.

'I know that games are just for entertainment for other people. But for me... It is more than just that. The thrill, the excitement, and the glory that you feel were, for me, something precious.'

Determined and full of excitement, he comfortably lied down on the VR Box as he waits for the opening of the Closed Beta of Bearth.

[The Servers of "Bearth: Closed Beta Edition" is now open!]

[Start the game now? Yes or No?]

"YEEES!" Pedro shouted.

'Sh@t! That might have been too loud! Father might come and slap me!' Pedro feared that it might occur, so he prayed hard that it won't happen.

[Log in successful! Player welcome to Bearth!]

[Character creation Initializing! 3!]

2!

1!

[Appearance Editor Initializing! Note that only a few facial details can be changed and all real-life body specifications would be retained!]

This is a way so that players would be most comfortable when playing. It would give them ease in the movement and maneuverability of their characters.

...

[Say "confirm" if Appearance Editing is done!]

"Confirm!" Pedro said in a low voice.

'Now! The first part... The "IGN" selection!' he grinned.

[Character appearance successfully generated! Proceeding to Name Editor!]

[Enter your Name! ]

...

An interface pops out in front of Pedro. Here, he can freely change the name he wanted to use. The named editor was also designed to generate a random suggested name to assist players who often have a hard time deciding what name to choose.

After a week of waiting and analysis, He typed in the name he wanted to use.

...

[Say "confirm" if Name Editing is done!]

"Confirm!" He uttered as he waited for the system to give his first skill.

[Welcome to Bearth, Player "Death"!]

~~~~~~~

Pedro decided to go for the safer choice.

He chose the name "Death" to gain a skill that allows him to avoid death for an instance and give him a chance to be able to escape such predicaments.

His decision was also brought by his experiences in his past life, especially when they were killed instantly by the dragon.

More importantly, his goal in this Closed beta phase of the game was to gain information that he wasn't able to come across during the official launch in his past life. This includes quests that were gained by other players before him.

Also, he needed to familiarize himself with the new path he wanted to take.

[Congratulations Player for choosing "Death" as your name! The god of Death was pleased with your actions and granted you a legendary skill ~Undying~. The God of Death hopes that you would put this name into glory around the whole Bearth!]

A bright light appeared bellow Pedro's feet as he was teleported to the teleportation platform in the middle of the Newbie Village. Other players started to appear near Pedro as he regained his vision.

[Congratulations on being the first player to gain a legendary-rate skill! Would you like to announce your name to the world? Yes or No?]

"No" The risks are too high from announcing your names in such achievement. Fame is a double-edged sword. You would get supporters, but you would also get haters. Hence, saying 'No' was the ideal choice.

[Sever Announcement!]

[Congratulations Player @@@@@@, for gaining the first legendary skill in the game!

Your rewards are:

+5 Luck attribute points

+5 Random attribute points

100% boost on village reputation points gained.. 1 day ]

The players, except Pedro, went into an uproar. The Closed beta phase has just opened.

Players were still being teleported after their character creation when the system announced that someone has already got a skill, Legendary-rated on top of that!

"Fvck! How did he get it?"

"Is this some kind of bug? Quick! Quick! Report this to the devs."

Unlike the other players who were in an uproar, some professional players sneakily left the teleportation platform and roam around the village to find quests.

Looking at the system announcement, Pedro's excitement rose to another level.

He also left the teleportation platform and went to an isolated area to safely check his skill and the rewards he gained.

He opened the interface and checked the information on the skill he got.

Skill: ~Undying~

Rating: Legendary-rated

Skill Type: Passive

Special Effect: Instead of dying, the Player will gain 1HP instead. It only works once until the cooldown condition was met.

Cooldown [Special]: The skill resets only when the player's HP returned to its 100%.

[A blessing from the god of Death!]

"OP, as expected! But I need to find a solution to solve the cooldown condition of this skill and maximize its use!" Pedro pondered for a bit and decided to view his overall stats.

Name: Death

Level: 1

HP: 50

MP: 50

Attack Damage: 1

Magic Damage: 1

Attributes

Str +1

Int +1

Vit +1

Dex +1

Crit +1

Agi +1

Special Attributes

Luck +6

Charisma +6

Instinct +1

The additional 5 Random Attributes that he got was allotted to his special attribute, Charisma.

Special attributes can't be increased by the free attribute points that can be gained from leveling up. It can only be increased if the player got specific attribute points from equipment, or by chance, from random attribute points from rewards.

"I should do some labor quest and gain more skills. Any skill would do."

He walked to the village chief's office.

Having no combat skills yet. Accepting hunt quests would simply be suicide.

In his past life, a group of arrogant players accepted a hunt quest on a Level 1 Wild Wolf right after their character creation.

The Result??

Complete annihilation.

This incident became a sensation and it emphasized the importance of having a bronze-rated offensive skill, at least, before accepting such quests.

[100% boost on village reputation points Activated! Duration: 0 days 23 hours 59 minutes]

"Oh?" Pedro smirked while walking towards the entrance of the village chief's office.

Bag!

The door was slammed just before he was about to enter. A villager in a bronze armor came out and scanned him from head to toe.

"Tch!"

The villager frowned and left the area with haste.

'What's with that villager? I need to be careful! It seems like something bad is going to happen.'

Pedro became more vigilant after encountering that villager. When the figure of that villager disappeared, he entered the village chief's office.

"Who are you?"

A middle-aged man spoke. He was seated in a chair, located behind a table filled with papers. A nameplate was located at the center of the table. 'Village Chief'

"I am Death." Pedro respectfully bowed as a sign of respect.

"Excuse me?!" The man stared at Pedro with a frown.

'Did I do something wrong? Oh!' Pedro realizes that his introduction was disturbing.

'Wha~What can I do? It's my IGN?' He can't help but force out a smile.

"My apologies! I am an adventurer named Death. Regardless of my name, I came with good intentions. In fact, I am here to ask if the respected village chief has any work to offer to this humble adventurer?"

Pedro explained his intentions for coming with sincerity.

'Man, years of playing VR games really come in handy on such unprecedented situations.'

"Oh? Is that the case, young man. It's not your fault if your father had been drunk when you were born!" The village chief consoled, "You were looking for a work, right? Please have a seat. You came at the perfect time!"