My footsteps thudded against the cloth floor covering as I pulled aside the curtain of the temporary interrogation tent. The smell of damp earth and the faint aroma of sedative herbs filled the dim room.
In the middle of the room sat a man with his hands bound by Mana-suppressing chains. His build resembled that of a bookish man in his late thirties. A monocle sat crookedly on his nose, while his golden-orange hair was neatly tied into a ponytail at the nape of his neck.
The man lowered his head casually. There was no panic, trembling, or fear—the usual reactions of a military prisoner. It was precisely his excessive calm that set off warning signals in my instincts.
"Doctor, Priest, give me your complete examination report now."
I issued the firm order without wasting time, staring directly at the two specialists in the corner of the room.
The bloodline specialist and the Appraisal priest immediately stepped forward. The priest handed me a sheet of magic-stamped parchment containing the combined examination data they had collected earlier.
I accepted the paper and began scanning the data line by line:
[Identity & Physical Scan Results]
Bloodline Examination (Doctor):
Race: Human
Gender: Male
Biological Age: 68 years
Appraisal Examination (Priest):
Name: Ang'ais
Ability Level: Awakened (Mana fluctuations detected)
Danger Detection: No traces of curses or illusion magic detected.
Energy Fluctuation: Very low-level dark-energy residue, 0% holy energy.
My eyes narrowed sharply as I read the results. My gaze quickly shifted from the parchment to the man in front of me.
These results... made absolutely no sense.
The bloodline specialist had confirmed that he was sixty-eight years old, yet his outer appearance was perfectly intact, like a man in his late thirties. Meanwhile, the priest had confirmed from the ripples in his Mana that the man was Awakened.
Even without the parchment, my instincts could sense the dense wave of hidden power inside him. This man was incredibly strong—his abilities were clearly at a high level, comparable to those of the Legion captains, or perhaps only slightly below the Legion Commander himself.
If he was that powerful, how could a patrol team of ordinary soldiers have subdued him within a two-hundred-meter radius of the monster lair?
There was only one answer: he had deliberately allowed himself to be captured. He had pretended to be weak and helpless so he could be dragged into our headquarters.
"You're far too calm for an Awakened who was captured."
My voice turned cold as I stared straight at the monocled man.
"What are you really after, going so far as to pretend to surrender to a squad of ordinary soldiers, you impostor?"
The man slowly raised his head, carving a faint, enigmatic smile across his face.
"Hup, huff...."
I drew a long breath as I closed the final video curtain inside the Sanctuary of Players. Dozens of video windows from the perspective of past TFP players faded away, leaving a blue-shadowed void surrounding my consciousness.
This was exhausting...
Analyzing thousands of lines of data, reconstructing the players' life paths, and mapping the interactions between native inhabitants and players was no easy task. However, if I wanted to formulate the most logical survival plan in a world without the Respawn feature, I had no other choice.
"Whew..."
I withdrew my consciousness from the Sanctuary and opened my eyes again in the real world. The darkness of the recovery tent greeted me. The day had ended, and my new body was begging to be allowed to rest.
As I lay on my back, staring at the tent ceiling, my thoughts drifted toward one primary goal: How could I become stronger as quickly as possible?
The basic options immediately began circling through my head:
Perform regular physical training.
Increase my Level through combat.
Hunt for artifacts, magic scrolls, strengthening potions, or rare consumable materials capable of multiplying my body's attributes.
However, what troubled me most was how to increase the Mana capacity inside my body.
Back in the game world, there was a special technique for absorbing and harmonizing with natural Mana without having to sit cross-legged in rigid meditation.
This technique—usually called [Aether Respiration], or Mana Breath Alignment—could be performed flexibly: simply stand upright in an open space with fresh air in the morning, or sit quietly and calm your mind before going to sleep.
The problem was that Mana-enhancement training like this was extremely risky for a beginner like me. Without an experienced guide or a special Skill already inscribed on my status panel, training alone could trigger Mana overload.
I needed a Stabilizing Potion to prevent Mana leakage or the absorption of harmful energy that could damage the body's magical channels.
"Forget about increasing my Mana for now. The only safe option at the moment is to master this child's body through standard physical training first."
With that decision made, I closed my eyes and let my consciousness drift into sleep.
The next morning, the medical team performed another routine examination on me. The results were positive—the body's miraculous regeneration process was declared complete, and I had fully recovered, though blood samples would still need to be taken periodically over the next two days for monitoring.
Once the entire series of tests was finished, I was left alone in this recovery room. With nothing to think about this morning, I decided to leave the recovery tent.
*Screeech
When I pulled aside the tent curtain, my eyes were immediately treated to a breathtaking sight—a panorama I could never have witnessed in my former modern world.
Spread out before me were the Serpentspire Legion's makeshift military barracks. Massive gray command tents stood proudly among rows of neatly arranged soldiers' tents.
The chilly morning was brought to life by the activities of military personnel from various disciplines.
In the central field, the physical soldiers in their copper-colored armor were practicing formation movements. The clanging of their iron armor colliding rang out alongside the uniform rhythm of their footsteps.
Not far away, a fantastic sight unfolded: a group of blue-robed mages hovered a few inches above the ground, arms outstretched as faint magic circles slowly rotated in the air—a morning exercise in Mana sensitivity.
In another, quieter corner, white-robed priests could be seen chanting holy prayers to bless the water supplies, while the military Herbalists busily arranged and spread rare roots and magical leaves across wooden racks to dry in the morning sun. The fresh herbal scent mingled with the chill of the mountain air.
I stood frozen for a moment, marveling at the reality of the fantasy world that had now become my home.
"This is incredible..."
Once my amazement faded, I stretched out both arms, rolled my shoulders, and positioned my body.
It was time to start getting used to this thirteen-year-old body.
I took a deep breath, then began jogging around the outside of the barracks.
The cold morning air refreshed my lungs as my legs swung rhythmically, carrying me along the path around the outer perimeter of the military barracks.
"Hey, kid! Don't push yourself too hard!"
The shout came from a burly soldier sharpening his sword beside the path.
"Your body just recovered!"
A battle mage passing nearby flashed a faint smile.
"He's right, kid. Rest if your chest starts feeling tight."
"Thanks, uncles! I'm just doing some light stretching!"
I replied cheerfully while giving them an innocent wave.
These little interactions helped me build the image of a friendly, harmless village boy in their eyes.
As I continued jogging casually, my eyes never stopped observing the Legion's training activities.
In one corner of the barracks, a group of infantry soldiers was practicing precise weapon swings and footwork. I recognized every step they performed. It was the foundation of the basic movements for the Enforcer and Vanguard classes I had often seen in the game Tales From Players.
However, the sight in another corner made my inner brow furrow.
There, the battle mages stood in orderly lines. They repeatedly cast a certain type of magic toward wooden targets outdoors, practicing the same spell over and over on a regular basis.
They used this method in hopes of training their Mana sensitivity, expanding their Mana Pool, and speeding up their Spellcasting—the speed at which they recited incantations and manipulated Mana.
The method... was far too archaic and inefficient.
This was the kind of training method that every TFP player would have avoided.
Gamers played games for fun and efficiency, not to endure suffering or exhausting routines like those in the real world.
In this world, such conventional methods would only produce extraordinary results for people who were naturally gifted and born geniuses.
For those with nothing but average talent, monotonous training had to be repeated for years just to achieve a small but satisfying increase in ability.
From one of the large, specially marked tents, Knight Serenity pulled aside the curtain and stepped outside. Her face looked somewhat tense, carrying faint traces of the fatigue that came with beginning the day, even though it was still morning.
I changed the direction of my run and approached her with the most natural expression I could manage.
"Good morning, Knight Serenity."
I greeted her politely once I stood a few steps in front of her.
Serenity was slightly surprised, but her stern expression gradually softened when she saw me. Her eyes instinctively swept over my appearance from head to toe.
"Good morning, Efren. How are you feeling? Is your body doing better?"
"Much better,"
I answered with a faint smile.
"The medical team said my recovery went very smoothly, too."
I lowered my head for a moment, putting on a slightly hesitant, sorrowful expression before looking into her eyes again.
"Knight Serenity... if I may ask..."
I spoke while lowering my voice, allowing the emotional tone of a child who had lost his family to emerge naturally.
"Would I be allowed to visit my parents' graves... and the graves of the other villagers?"