Chapter 29: The fresh air of the Real world
Today the chapter is being posted at the normal time.
You didn't read wrong, the real world! It's been a while!
We aren't going to stay long in it.
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/Half an hour later…/
"Time to log off…" Said Dale as he lay on a creaky bed
He was currently resting in the room given to him by Illia, the sole inn owner of the village.
'This place is really falling apart… But I can see the history behind it.'
'This room was actually far from what I expected from a countryside room, but it's still very dusty…'
'A relic from a time when Resko was a bustling town filled with activity, most of the old furniture is still intact, although dusty and in heavy need of repairs.'
Illia, the Inn owner, made sure to keep everything in good condition, within human limits.
She could only check everything once per month or so, as doing it every day in such a big Inn when she already had so much to do would otherwise make her fall ill.
Dale wasn't particularly comfortable, but he wasn't offended by this nor did it matter as he wasn't going to be sleeping here.
"A bed to lay on is good already since I need to give my character periodic rest otherwise I'll get those pesky debuffs." Said Dale as he remembered his time testing things in the Beta with his friend
"Speaking of him… I'll send him a message once I log off, see what he's doing, perhaps I can help him?" He said as he closed his eyes and enjoyed the faint breeze of air from the broken window
Dale was lucky Illia waited for him to arrive, otherwise, he would've had to sleep in the Church's floor.
He even felt touched by her actions…
"I'll pay her back… And I hope she has a good night's sleep…"
'This village, I will make it rise again, I don't need a quest to encourage me as I already had plans to settle in this place in the Early to Midterm. Can't say about the distant future though.'
[Log off?]
And like that, Dale left the game, but his body remained there, sleeping soundly.
…
/At the same time in the real world…/
Back at Dale's house, in the room his pod machine is currently located in, his body could be seen floating in blue liquid…
It looked fairly alien...
/Beeep!/
[User has disconnected, initiating log out procedures] Said the mechanical voice of the pod
[Quick System Check: All systems nominal]
[Current body condition: Perfectly fine]
[It's safe to continue]
When the AI finished talking, the blue liquid immediately started to be drained away while several lights started to flash.
In under half a minute, the entire blue liquid had been drained and Dale's body was now suspended by a mechanical arm tied to his waist.
/Beep!/
"!!"
Inside the translucent helmet, Dale's eyes suddenly darted open as he drew in a quick breath.
As he recovered his senses, the mechanical arm gently dropped him onto the ground as the AI said:
[Welcome back Dale, breath slowly and…]
But Dale ignored the machine, and instead, he looked at his arms, moving them around the place in surprise.
"Technology sure is convenient."
'Previously, after logging off from an extensive session, you have to wait for a minute or two and sometimes more for your brain to readjust.'
'It's similar to sleep paralysis. Many pods have the technology to prevent this or help your brain adjust faster, but my older pod was just a standard version I got on my 18th birthday, and that was already very expensive mind you.'
"But this bad boy comes with everything in it… If it wasn't for the massive discount… Sheesh. Freaking rich people saying money doesn't buy happiness…"
[Your body has recovered all normal functions] Said the machine, interrupting Dale
/Shua!/
The doors of the pod opened, making the air from outside rush into the pod.
[You are free to remove your helmet at any time Dale]
/Click!/
Dale removed his helmet and breathed in the 'fresh' air of the room.
"Phew… What a day…"
{Information transferring… Complete}
"This is?..."
'The green box?'
{Accessing… Re-adjusting configuration based on in set parameters}
"... Wait a…"
'This happened before didn't it?…'
{Biological Core has been processed}
/ZOLT!/
"URG!" Exclaimed Dale in pain
/Bam!/
Pain suddenly hit all parts of his body like a thunderbolt, making Dale stumble forward as he left the machine.
But just as the pain came, it disappeared in the blink of an eye, leaving only massive soreness behind.
"Haa… Fuck…"
Dale sweated bullets as he got up from the ground, his body was so hot it was releasing steam. But it may be due to how cold the room was in the first place.
With his legs trembling, Dale got up once more and noticed the green box in the corner of his eyes.
"I almost forgot about it…"
'The few hours I spent in the game made me forget about this thing…'
"Perhaps I will get some insight into what happened if I check my current condition there…"
It's better than speculating...
{Initiating}
{Dale Houston (19-year-old)
Body condition: Healthy-8; Tired-2; Sore-3; Satisfied-4
Lineology: Mixed race -> North America, South America, European.
Physical Data
-Body: 84(99)
-Cognitive: 59(74)
-Fucking 0: 34(49)
Meaningful Abilities: Maintain Emotions 2.5-Star; Spear Technique 2-Star; Exercise 2-Star; Willpower 2-Star; Close quarters Combat 1.5-Star; Gaming 1.5-Star; Analysis 1-Star; Study 1-Star; Spacial Awareness 0.5-Star; Knife Technique 0-Star
Overall, comprehensive Analysis: A young Human male who has successfully broken the limits of his own body, achieving a Superhuman physique despite all odds.
Still inexperienced, he can barely utilize his own body effectively, making his very achievement a miracle.
Arrogant and confident of his own achievements, he needs someone to put him in his place.
Score: 7 out of 10
}
{Recalculating…}
{New Score: 1.3 out of 10, there is a lot to do. A body that holds so much potential and yet he can barely make use of it.
Flimsy spearmanship and combat sense with his sole redeeming factor being his will to improve.
The classic description of someone less capable than what they believe to be.
}
"??? What?"
Many questions started to fill Dale's mind.
'Why did the green box change? And why is it using the game's Skill classification system now?'
Frowning, Dale massaged his temples in search of an answer.
'It seems everything is connected way deeper than I thought… What is this game, truly?'
'And what is this green box? It keeps evaluating my current physical body, and now it is doing it based on the presets of the game...'
'Is it affecting reality or is it merely an illusion created to hide some sort of conspiracy in the real world? And what role am I playing in it all?'
"... Dammit it all…"
'What happened to my body right now… It's similar to what happened when the green box first appeared and my life changed.'
'My body transformed due to the game once more… And I hope it's positive,'
'Besides… What is this awful description of me… Less capable than I think I am? Confident and Arrogant?...'
"Sigh… It's frustrating how accurate it is... I need to change my way of thinking fast."
'But I can tell one thing, it is hiding something from me… Or at the very least, it is simply not displaying everything.'
"I'm getting a fucking headache… But I did get some answers I didn't expect to see so soon…"
'My objective became very clear now, playing the game increases my real-world strength... It seems crazy but it is how it is...'
'Now I know what that last value meant… It was supposed to be the Status linked to my Mana, whatever that means… So I'll change it to that for now.'
"However... If the two statuses are linked... Are other things linked as well?"
'One life in real life and one life in the game... If I die there, will I also...'
Dale started to tense, but as time went on he shook his head and decided to think about it later.
As he recovered his bearings, Dale started to fantasize again…
'Hum… If I have mana… Can I use magic?'
'In real life?'
'And what about my Skills? Would they work?'
'... Just a shame I have none of my items available and my Skills aren't really incredible… Perhaps I should look for a magic Skill.'
"But then again, Miasma Immunity didn't pass to this Status… I wonder why."
/ZIP!/
Unzipping his suit, Dale stepped out of the room to take a shower and eat, he spent 14 hours in-game, and under the time difference, that is equivalent to over 4 and a half hours of time in real-world time.
He needed to eat something and prepare since he was sure he was going to spend a looong time gaming the next time he entered that Pod.
…
But as Dale stepped out of his room, he realized there was no one home.
"Where's everybody?"
/Beep!/
[Miss Houston left 14 Minutes ago to buy groceries while Mr Houston is currently inside his Virtual Reality Pod, your younger brother is also currently inside his VR pod] Replied the house AI
"I see… Please, make me an energetic meal as I am going to stay in the pod for a few more hours… Also, heat up the water for me." Said Dale as he made his way to the bathroom
[Understood Dale, I'll make you a delicious curry, and I already set the water temperature in the bathroom from the moment I saw you stepping out of the pod, get in anytime]
"You saw that?... Of course, she saw…"
'I forgot the AI records many things that happen around the house… In that case.'
"Delete everything you saw in the pod room from the past 5 minutes, it also includes this request of mine."
'The rest isn't really meaningful, but I will take a closer look later.'
[Understood, please provide the…]
"Mulberries Snaff Opens 9+10*..." He said in embarrassment
[Password has been confirmed, video recording N… Has been deleted]
"..."
'I hate this password…'
Without saying anything else, Dale entered the bathroom and started taking a shower…
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Notes
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone