Back home, Kael focused his thoughts and summoned the Status Panel.
[Kael]
Physique: 4
Strength: 3
Intelligence: 5
Agility: 3
Spirit: 10
(Normal human cap: 5)
Skills: None
Soul Shards: 0
Simulation: Insufficient Soul Shards
This… was his late-arriving advantage. A basic attribute panel.
He had no idea where it came from, yet using it felt as natural as breathing. The familiarity was unsettling, like a forgotten instinct suddenly awakened.
According to the information in his mind, Soul Shards were a special form of energy created when powerful beings died—their dissipating souls fused with lingering fate.
But what counted as "powerful"?
Was it someone objectively strong… or simply someone he perceived as strong?
On the way home, Kael had tested a theory. He tried convincing himself that insects and ants were "powerful beings," then crushed them one by one.
The result?
Soul Shards: 0.
Clearly, self-deception didn't work.
…
The night passed quietly.
Before long, morning arrived.
The school organized all students to enter the Gate.
Calling it a "gate" was generous—it was more like a massive frame, standing roughly eight meters tall and four meters wide. The interior shimmered with a dark crimson hue.
You could see straight through it to the other side.
Yet anyone who stepped inside… never came out the back.
Standing beside Kael, Milo looked unusually subdued. Yesterday's conversation with his parents clearly hadn't gone well.
He brushed his bangs aside with a dramatic sigh. "Kael… do I look like a melancholic protagonist right now?"
"No, no… still not brooding enough. How do I increase the aura? I feel like I'm not main-character material yet."
Even with memories from another life, Kael found it hard to understand this particular brand of teenage angst.
Still… some people hid their real thoughts behind jokes.
Kael placed a hand on Milo's shoulder. "Have you decided?"
Milo hesitated.
"…Yeah."
He opened his palm, then slowly clenched it into a fist.
"My parents want me to set realism to 0. Just grind safely to level 9. Survival first."
"I don't blame them. That's how they lived too."
"But…" He looked up, eyes sharper now. "I want to try."
"I don't want to end up like Mr. Grayson… full of regrets."
"And besides—if Aetherion loses a protagonist like me, wouldn't it get boring?"
Kael let out a quiet breath.
"Milo."
"If you're the protagonist… then the people around you can't be dead weight."
Milo froze—then grinned wide. "That's what I'm talking about! You're learning."
Soon, it was their class's turn.
Kael stepped through the Gate.
…
The world vanished.
He found himself in a blank, white space.
This was where first-time entrants loaded their Status Panels and underwent physical adaptation.
At least… that was how it worked for normal players.
For Kael, the moment he entered—
Everything went dark.
He couldn't see anything.
Couldn't feel anything.
Except—
The Status Panel.
It flickered violently in the void, like a malfunctioning interface.
At the same time, something was draining from him. Constantly. Relentlessly.
He didn't know what it was.
But he knew—
It was important.
Desperately important.
Yet he couldn't stop it.
Pain exploded through his body.
Then—
Blackout.
…
When Kael regained consciousness, light returned.
"…Status Panel."
The panel he relied on… had changed.
[Kael]
Class: None
Physique: 4 (Affects HP, armor, resistance)
Strength: 3 (Affects physical attack, carrying capacity)
Intelligence: 5 (Affects spell construction speed, elemental gathering)
Agility: 3 (Affects movement and attack speed)
Spirit: 10 (Affects mana and perception)
Talent: Fire Affinity
(Increases mastery of fire skills. Fire damage +10%)
Skills: /
Soul Shards: 0
Simulation: Insufficient Soul Shards
Recommended Class: Mage
The font appeared dimmer than before.
As if… it had clashed with Aetherion itself.
Something had interfered.
Something had lost—or won.
Kael frowned.
So his transmigration… wasn't an accident.
And after Aetherion's modification, his body felt… different.
"Boom—!"
"Boom—!"
The ground trembled.
Massive statues rose from nothingness.
Each one held a different weapon.
Each one represented a class.
Warrior. Mage. Cleric. Archer. Assassin.
Kael didn't hesitate.
When in doubt—trust the panel.
He walked straight to the statue holding a staff and placed his hand on it.
The others vanished instantly.
The Mage statue lit up.
A torrent of information flooded his mind.
Firebolt.
Basic Meditation.
At the same time, both skills appeared on his Status Panel.
[Firebolt]
Mana Cost: 10
Summons a fireball that deals 100% magic attack damage.
[Basic Meditation]
Mana Cost: 0
Regenerate 5 MP per minute while out of combat.
A surge of energy formed within him.
This wasn't something a novice mage should have.
He had skipped the entire apprenticeship phase—
And directly obtained mana.
In a sense…
He was no longer an ordinary human.
Finally—
The realism setting.
Kael didn't hesitate.
He dragged it all the way to the maximum.
100%.
Real body entry.
That was his choice.
Even if his "cheat" had malfunctioned…
Even if something had gone wrong…
He still chose this path.
He remembered Mr. Grayson's words.
Without madness, there is no breakthrough.
If you wanted to surpass people who weren't even standing on the same starting line—
You had to risk everything.
And besides…
Now that he could actually throw a fireball—
Why would he settle for virtual reality?
The moment he confirmed his choice, dizziness overtook him.
…
When he opened his eyes again—
He was no longer alone.
Players filled the area.
"These are the Gates? It feels just like reality."
"Anyone else set realism to 50%? I'm starting to regret it…"
"Looking for one more! Four-man team, need a frontline warrior!"
"Hey, wanna party? We need a mage for backline DPS!"
They were young.
Excited.
Treating this like a game.
Because here—
It was safe.
This was a Safe Zone. Combat was disabled.
This… was the version of Aetherion the world advertised.
If not for Mr. Grayson's warning—
Kael might have been just like them.
Thinking this was a game.
Believing players lived glamorous lives.
Before long, someone approached him with a party invitation.
Kael declined.
"I want to explore on my own."
The beginner village ID: 1022931.
He had heard that beginner villages were duplicated programs—but seeing it firsthand still felt strange.
The village was small.
Only five NPCs.
Aunt May, who sold food.
Mark, the potion merchant.
Rowan, the weaponsmith.
Flora, the innkeeper.
And the village chief.
They repeated the same lines in cycles, occasionally handing out identical quests.
Kael tested them deliberately.
No hidden dialogue.
No secret triggers.
No special quests.
So… even Aetherion had its lazy side.
Eventually, after running a few errands, he obtained a staff.
Then accepted the only available quest.
[Quest: Aunt May needs 5 Rabbit Legs]
[Reward: EXP, Copper Coins]
He headed toward the Rabbit Plains west of the village.
[Roughwood Staff] (World-Limited)
Quality: Gray
Physical Attack: 2–3
Magic Attack: 2–5
Description: Slightly better than a random stick. Barely.
After equipping it, his stats updated.
Physical Attack: 3.2 – 4.8
Magic Attack: 4 – 10
HP: 100% (Physical body cannot be fully digitized)
MP: 100 (Spirit ×10)
He didn't understand what "World-Limited" meant.
But holding a weapon—
Made him feel grounded.
As Mr. Grayson had said—
With real body entry, there were no Revival Tokens.
Walking into an unknown world unarmed?
That would shake anyone.
Outside the village, Kael took a breath.
Time to test a skill.
He refused to say "Firebolt" out loud. Some things were better left unspoken.
Instead, he followed the knowledge in his mind.
Constructing the spell.
It took ten full seconds.
A flickering fireball formed in front of him.
It wasn't stable.
The structure was imperfect.
"Go!"
He thrust his hand forward.
The fireball shot out and slammed into the ground.
Boom!
A charred mark spread across the earth.
Kael stood still.
Firebolt was harder than expected.
But that wasn't what held his attention.
It was the fire.
The flames.
For a long moment, he said nothing.
Only the light in his eyes flickered—revealing the storm within.
No one knew how many thoughts crossed his mind in that instant.
After a long while, he finally exhaled and calmed himself.
Then—
A question surfaced.
Why…
Had the school never taught them how to fight?
Why were they only taught language, history, mathematics—
Things that had nothing to do with survival here?