Light slowly flooded Akari's vision.
A gentle breeze brushed against her face.
Then— the world of Evermount opened before her.
Massive stone walls stretched high into the sky while banners fluttered above crowded streets filled with players and NPCs.
The Town of Beginnings.
Akari stood silently at the center plaza near the massive teleport crystal.
Her silver hair swayed softly behind her while system panels floated before her eyes.
Welcome to Evermount.
Please select your role.
Akari quietly stared at the list.
Warrior.
Mage.
Assassin.
Priest.
Tamer.
Dozens of subclasses expanded beneath them.
Then her eyes stopped at one.
Slayer.
A newly added branch under the Swordsman class.
A role specialized in long swords, katanas, and powerful offensive swordsmanship.
Akari selected it immediately.
A black-and-silver katana materialized at her waist.
The blade was simple.
But elegant.
She slowly held the handle.
"…Cool."
Even Akari couldn't deny it.
Then suddenly—
"AKARIIIIIIIIIIIIII!!"
A pink blur crashed into her from behind.
Akari nearly got launched forward.
"…Memory."
Memory proudly posed beside her dramatically.
Unlike Akari's calm appearance—
Memory looked like pure chaos.
Bright pink twin-tail hair.
Red eyes sparkling with excitement.
And beside her floated…
…a tiny fluffy creature with tiny horns and glowing ears.
Akari blinked.
"…What is that?"
Memory froze.
Then immediately looked away.
"…Funny story."
Akari narrowed her eyes slightly.
"…What did you do?"
Memory pointed dramatically at her own class window.
Class: Sage Tamer
Akari stared.
"…You picked Tamer?"
"I DIDN'T MEAN TO."
Memory looked ready to cry.
"I THOUGHT IT SAID SAGE MAGE."
Akari stared silently.
"…How do you even misread that?"
"There were too many buttons!"
Memory dropped dramatically onto the ground.
"I wanted to shoot giant magic lasers!"
Akari sighed quietly.
"…Can't you restart?"
Memory slowly looked up.
"…I already customized my hair for forty minutes."
Akari nodded immediately.
"…Understandable."
"RIGHT?!"
Memory instantly recovered emotionally.
Then proudly pointed at the floating creature beside her.
"Anyway this little guy came with the class."
The creature made a tiny noise.
"Pyu."
Akari blinked slightly.
"…It's cute."
Memory gasped dramatically.
"YOU ADMITTED IT."
Akari immediately looked away.
"…I didn't."
"You totally did."
Akari ignored her and began walking through the plaza.
The town was filled with players everywhere.
Some rushed toward quests.
Others screamed while fighting beginner monsters.
Several merchants yelled advertisements loudly from stalls.
The atmosphere felt alive.
Memory happily walked beside Akari while rambling endlessly.
"So apparently Floor 2 and 3 just released."
"And there's already some super famous guild called Crowned Era."
"And somebody discovered hidden bosses already."
"And apparently there's this super scary assassin girl—"
Akari quietly listened while looking around.
"…This game really is popular."
Memory nodded repeatedly.
"Yup."
Then suddenly pointed ahead dramatically.
"LET'S GO FIGHT SOMETHING."
Akari blinked.
"…Already?"
"We need levels!"
Memory grabbed Akari's arm and dragged her outside the town gates.
The beginner plains stretched endlessly ahead.
Small monsters wandered peacefully through the grasslands.
Slimes.
Tiny wolves.
Forest rabbits.
Akari slowly placed a hand on her katana.
"…So we just attack them?"
Memory proudly nodded.
"I watched twelve tutorials."
"That somehow makes me less confident."
A small blue slime bounced toward them.
Memory immediately pointed at it dramatically.
"That one."
The slime blinked innocently.
"Pyu?"
Akari drew her katana slowly.
The blade reflected sunlight beautifully.
Then—
slash.
The slime split apart instantly.
Memory gasped.
"WOAH."
Akari blinked.
"…That was easier than expected."
Then suddenly—
a system notification appeared.
You have defeated Blue Slime.
EXP Gained.
The slime's body dissolved into blue particles.
But surprisingly—
a tiny glowing orb remained floating.
Memory blinked.
"…Huh?"
The orb suddenly transformed into another small slime.
"Pyu."
Memory's eyes widened.
"WAIT."
Her class window suddenly glowed.
Sage Tamer Ability Available.
Tame Nearby Creature?
Memory screamed immediately.
"AKARI LOOK."
Akari turned.
"…What did you do now?"
Memory pressed YES instantly.
The small slime glowed blue.
Then bounced happily into Memory's arms.
"PYUU."
Memory stared at it with sparkling eyes.
"…I have a slime."
Akari looked at the tiny creature.
"…You named it already didn't you?"
Memory proudly lifted it upward.
"His name is Bubble."
Bubble bounced proudly.
"Pyu."
Akari quietly smiled.
"…It fits."
Memory immediately pointed dramatically again.
"WE SHALL CONQUER EVERMOUNT TOGETHER."
Bubble copied her dramatically.
"Pyu!"
Akari sighed softly.
"…This is going to be exhausting."
Hours passed.
The two wandered around the beginner fields together.
Memory accidentally fell into rivers twice.
Bubble somehow ate a mushroom and turned purple briefly.
Akari quietly carried most of the combat.
But surprisingly—
she didn't dislike it.
For the first time in a while—
she was simply having fun.
Eventually—
the sun slowly began setting.
Golden light covered the plains beautifully.
Then suddenly—
two notifications appeared simultaneously.
Level Up.
You have reached Level 2.
Memory gasped.
"WE DID IT."
Akari blinked as another system panel appeared before her.
Unique Skill Unlocked.
[Narukami Tenri]
The moment the words appeared—
electricity crackled faintly around Akari's blade.
Her eyes widened slightly.
"…Thunder?"
A description panel appeared.
[Unique Skill: Narukami Tenri]
A unique skill belonging to the Thunder God.
Converts sword attacks into lightning-based strikes.
Grants enhanced speed, precision, and thunder resonance during combat.
Akari stared silently.
Even she could tell immediately.
This skill was abnormal.
Memory's system panel suddenly appeared too.
Then she froze completely.
"…Eh?"
Akari looked at her.
"What happened?"
Memory slowly turned her screen toward Akari.
Unique Skill Unlocked.
[Monster Dominion]
Akari read quietly.
Allows the user to tame monsters they defeat.
Higher compatibility increases success rate.
Grants partial synchronization with monster abilities.
Silence.
Then both girls slowly looked at each other.
Memory blinked once.
"…That sounds broken."
Akari nodded calmly.
"…Very."
Bubble proudly bounced between them.
"Pyu!"
The beginner plains had grown quieter as evening slowly settled over the Town of Beginnings.
Orange light stretched across the fields while distant players continued hunting monsters near the forest edges.
Akari stood alone beneath a tree.
A glowing system window floated before her eyes.
Unique Skill Acquired:
[Narukami Tenri]
The skill icon pulsed faintly with purple lightning.
Akari quietly stared at the description again.
Narukami Tenri
A unique skill belonging to the Thunder God.
Grants access to the exclusive weapon:
[Narukami Tenrai]
Warning:
The user becomes permanently synchronized with the weapon class.
Weapon switching restrictions will apply.
Akari blinked slightly.
"…Permanently?"
Memory leaned over her shoulder dramatically.
"THAT SOUNDS SUPER COOL."
Akari ignored her and pressed confirm.
The moment she accepted—
purple lightning exploded around her.
CRACK.
Wind burst outward violently.
Memory screamed.
"AKARI IS ASCENDING."
Bubble bounced behind her in panic.
"PYU?!"
The electricity condensed slowly into Akari's hands.
Then—
a katana appeared.
The sheath was black with glowing violet markings running along its surface.
The blade itself—
wasn't fully metal.
It looked like condensed lightning forged into sword form.
Electricity crackled constantly along the edge.
The weapon hummed softly.
Akari slowly held it.
Her silver hair fluttered gently from the static energy surrounding her.
Memory stared with sparkling eyes.
"…That is the coolest thing I've ever seen."
Bubble looked absolutely terrified.
The slime hid behind Memory immediately.
"Pyu…"
Akari slowly drew the blade slightly.
Purple electricity danced across the air.
Even she looked surprised.
"…It's light."
Memory pointed dramatically.
"TRY SWINGING IT."
Akari nodded slightly.
Then turned toward a nearby tree.
She slowly adjusted her stance.
One hand on the sheath.
One on the blade.
The lightning around the weapon intensified faintly.
Akari narrowed her eyes.
Then—
slash.
BOOM.
A burst of lightning exploded outward.
The attack completely missed the tree.
Instead—
three innocent birds peacefully eating nearby suddenly got struck by lightning.
BZZZT.
The birds froze completely.
Then collapsed onto the grass smoking.
Silence.
Memory slowly lowered her jaw.
"…You killed them."
Akari stared silently.
"…I missed."
Bubble looked traumatized.
"Pyu…"
Akari frowned slightly.
Then tried again.
Slash.
CRACK.
This time the lightning flew upward and exploded against a rock.
The rock flew into the air hitting another bird while it was flying
Akari narrowed her eyes more.
Again.
Slash.
BOOM.
Another bird exploded into particles.
Memory covered Bubble's eyes.
"THE BIRDS ARE YOUR TRUE ENEMIES."
Akari looked genuinely frustrated now.
"…Why is this so hard?"
She attempted the attack again.
And again.
And again.
Each strike released powerful lightning.
Each strike completely failed to hit the actual target.
At one point—
she accidentally split a boulder in half.
Another attack struck a pond and electrocuted several fish.
Memory laughed so hard she nearly fell over.
Akari pouted visibly.
"…Stop laughing."
"I CAN'T."
"YOU LOOK SO COOL UNTIL THE ATTACK MISSES."
Akari turned away slightly in embarrassment.
"…This weapon is weird."
Memory wiped tears from her eyes.
"Maybe you should ask your sister for help."
Akari immediately froze.
"…No."
Memory blinked.
"Why not?"
"She literally plays this game professionally at this point."
Akari crossed her arms quietly.
"…It would feel like cheating."
Memory tilted her head.
"…Cheating?"
Akari nodded slowly.
"She's already way ahead of me."
"She knows hidden dungeons."
"Secret mechanics."
"Rare equipment."
"If I ask her for help now…"
"…then it won't really feel like my progress."
Memory quietly listened.
Akari looked down at Narukami Tenrai resting in her hands.
Purple lightning reflected softly in her eyes.
"…My pride won't allow it."
Memory stared at her for a second.
Then suddenly laughed softly.
"…You really are stubborn sisters."
Akari pouted immediately.
"…I'm not that stubborn."
"You absolutely are."
Akari quietly sat beneath the tree while resting the glowing katana beside her.
The weapon crackled faintly against the grass.
Memory sat nearby while Bubble bounced happily between them.
For a while—
the atmosphere simply felt peaceful.
Then Memory looked at her curiously.
"So."
"When are you gonna meet your sister in-game?"
Akari was silent briefly.
"…Not yet."
Memory blinked.
"Still?"
Akari nodded.
"I want to become stronger first."
"…At least strong enough that I can stand beside her normally."
Memory tilted her head.
"You know your sister probably wouldn't care."
Akari smiled faintly.
"…I know."
"But I care."
She looked toward the distant horizon where the Town of Beginnings walls could barely be seen.
"I don't want shortcuts."
"I don't want special treatment."
"I want to walk my own path."
The wind blew softly through the fields.
Akari quietly gripped the handle of Narukami Tenrai again.
"…A path similar to the one she walked."
Memory looked at her silently.
Then smiled warmly.
"…That's kinda cool actually."
Akari looked embarrassed.
"…Don't say it like that."
Memory grinned mischievously.
"So dramatic."
Akari ignored her again.
Then quietly looked toward the sky.
Somewhere in this massive world—
Rio and Ryota were exploring unknown places far beyond Floor 1.
Fighting monsters.
Discovering secrets.
Building a guild.
Akari slowly looked down at the glowing lightning blade in her hand.
Then quietly smiled.
"…So this is the game you two were playing."
The purple lightning flickered softly.
And for the first time since entering Evermount—
Akari genuinely understood it.
The freedom.
The adventure.
The excitement.
The feeling of slowly becoming stronger with your own hands.
A small smile formed on her face.
"…It's actually fun."
Far away—
inside the deserts of Floor 2—
Rio suddenly sneezed again.
Ryota looked at her.
"…Again?"
Rio rubbed her nose suspiciously.
"…Someone definitely keeps talking about me."
Sayanaki casually walked ahead with Fenrir's Fang resting on her shoulder.
"Maybe you finally became famous."
Rio looked horrified.
"…That sounds terrible."
Ryota laughed loudly.
Meanwhile—
back on Floor 1—
Akari stood up once more.
Purple lightning crackled around Narukami Tenrai.
Then quietly—
she took her stance again.
"…One more time."
Memory immediately grabbed Bubble and backed away.
"THE BIRDS AREN'T SAFE."