After finishing the intro and conversing with the viewers, Max and Lily proceeded to the tutorial zone. They didn't need to explain what kind of game it was because most viewers already knew about it.
Survival to the End was a sensational game 2 years ago, reaching a monumental Punch's 1 Million concurrent views in its first week. Most viewers already knew the gameplay. For those who didn't know, the tutorial was said to explain the game to them.
In summary, the goal of the players was to escape this facility where they found themselves without much information. Many maps would be unlocked when they managed to escape, continuing to the end.
The tutorial was pretty simple for a VR game. It only taught the players how to solve puzzles, loot weapons, and unlock a crate that was apparently filled with useful things, such as healing items and antidotes for poison, and was spread across the map.
Not only that, the tutorial zone also explained the importance of teamwork. Two people were one. They weren't separate entities.
Max managed to finish the tutorial with Lily in a short time. The climbing tree tutorial, which was the difficult part for other players, was pretty easy for them. They cleared it in a breeze.
Firstly, Max climbed the tree by jumping twice, reaching the thick branch where he hung himself down. Then, using his hands as a swing, he helped Lily get up.
— We need to nerf them
— Breeze aside, LilyPixel has a crazy movement, too. That's why she's in the top 30 in the SR ranking.
— Find something they do badly! I want to believe that they're not perfect!
— ^^ Easy. Breeze is a money grubber lol. No normal human loves money more than him
— True true, I can attest to that. This noble me has lost more than 5K to him
— That's just your fault, BloodySuckery.
"Indeed, we're by no means perfect humans, guys. What are you talking about?" Max retorted to the chat as he exited the tutorial center.
Just as he exited, he noticed that some people stared at them. Some of them had a hologram screen in front of them, clearly watching their livestream.
While Max didn't mind giving a fanservice, he was worried that Lily would be uncomfortable with them. So, he walked into the forest with Lily to get away from all the stare people gave them.
"That tutorial was fun and all, but how about we go into the real game now?"
"Un. Let's go."
[Match found!]
Starting the matchmaking was easy. It was similar to other games: open the game screen, press start, and the players would be transferred into a truck where they had to wait for the others.
Max stood next to Lily. Their clothes had changed from plain black clothes into camo clothes. There was a number written in front of them, showing 18/20. The game only needed two more pairs before it started.
"It's just as the tutorial explained earlier. We will be dropped off in a random location, and we need to find 5 slates with the corresponding images of lion, snake, eagle, elephant, and chicken to open the door to the next map."
Thinking about it alone was scary.
'I don't want to get cursed, damn it. I hope these guys aren't serious.' He prayed sincerely.
[All players have gathered. Deploying to the survival zone.]
Just as he was lost in thoughts, two pairs entered the matchmaking, and it started. The truck they were in shook slightly before it stopped completely. Following that, light seeped out from the gap that appeared from the door.
Looking at each other, Max nodded at Lily and pushed the door open. He stepped out of the small space and looked around.
They were in a jungle full of large trees and bushes. Some animal trails could be seen, and bird cries could be heard from above, along with the shouts from monkeys. Based on the vegetation and the wet dirt, it looked like they were in a rainforest.
"Ma– Breeze. Doesn't the tutorial say we will get starting equipment?" Lily asked curiously, patting her chest because she was just so close to calling his real name. She took a breath and continued, "I checked my body, and there is not even a GPS in my pocket."
"That's right. We should at least get two survival knives and a GPS based on what the tutorial said." He answered and looked around before finally finding something. "Oh, isn't that the equipment?"
A backpack was hung on the crate the truck used to transfer them to this forest. He took it and checked inside. True to what the tutorial told him, there were two survival knives and a handheld GPS inside. He handed one knife to Lily and she strapped it behind her back while he put it on his chest strap.
After getting ready, Max looked at the GPS and found many marks on it, with two blue triangles showing their location in the middle of the screen. The mark ranged from two swords crossed against each other, a lion head, a black circle, a mushroom, and a golden lightning.
He looked at Lily and showed her the GPS. There was no point in a multiplayer game if he made the decision by himself.
"Which one did you want to visit first?"
Lily peeked at the screen and put her index finger on her lips, humming softly. The sonar beeped every second, showing how close they were to the location where the marks were.
After thinking for a second, she pointed at a certain mark.
"I want to visit this."
Her decision was caught on camera and shown in both of their livestream, inviting the chat's reaction.
— Oh?
— Good decision
— This would be fun
— No backsies. Go there and follow your GF, Breeze!
— *Deep voice* THERE WILL BE HELL!
Somehow, Max got a bad feeling about this.