Boom!
The earth shook and the mountains swayed!
Lying on the execution block, Wayne's eyes involuntarily followed the thunderous sound toward the sky.
Just as the executioner's great axe was about to fall on his neck, a massive black dragon descended from the heavens, landing atop the central watchtower of this small town called "Helgen"!
The massive impact knocked everyone standing nearby to the ground. The executioner lost his footing and tumbled backward; the axe, in the end, did not fall.
However, the problem had shifted from surviving the executioner to surviving the dragon's assault.
The black dragon let out a world-shaking roar. This wasn't like the bestial cries of dragons in Monster Hunter—this was a "Dragon Shout" infused with the Draconic tongue. Instantly, the clear blue sky turned crimson. The clouds vanished, replaced by a massive vortex of energy that blotted out the sun, while burning meteors rained down upon the town.
The roar left everyone dazed and dizzy. Wayne staggered to his feet. Ralof, who had arrived on the same prisoner cart, immediately shouted at him: "Run! The gods won't give us a second chance!"
The two of them sprinted toward another watchtower and slammed the door shut.
Ulfric, the leader of the Stormcloaks, was already inside. With the help of his men, his hands were untied and his gag removed.
Ralof couldn't help but ask the man who knew the Dragon Shouts: "Jarl, is it true? Are the legends true?!"
Ulfric replied with a sneer: "Legends don't burn down villages. Get moving!"
Wayne ran toward the top of the tower. Halfway up, the dragon's claws suddenly smashed through the wall. Wayne nearly fell. Then, the dragon's head breathed a torrent of flames into the tower before flying off to another target.
With fire everywhere, Wayne jumped through the hole in the wall onto the roof of a nearby inn that had been partially destroyed by the tremors.
At that moment, the Imperial clerk Hadvar ran over with his sword drawn. He wasn't there to kill; he wanted to lead the survivors out through the dungeon tunnels beneath the barracks.
Wayne followed him through a series of twists and turns. He discovered that this virtual reality enhanced version of Skyrim was far larger than the original game. Helgen truly felt like a mid-sized town. What should have been a quick dash to the barracks was a several-minute sprint with Hadvar.
Along the way, brave Imperial guards fired arrows at the dragon. However, the arrows were either scattered by the wind from its wings or bounced off its scales. There wasn't even a scratch, let alone a wound.
The guards were terrified, shouting that it was "impossible to kill."
More guards and civilians were turned into charred remains under the dragon's fire and claws, and the entire town became a sea of flames.
Finally, Wayne followed Hadvar to the barracks, a fortress built of massive stone bricks. Ralof, who had taken a different route, arrived at the same time.
Hadvar knew Wayne wasn't on the execution list and was wrongly accused, so he was willing to save him. But Ralof was a confirmed Stormcloak rebel. The two men had no time to duel under the dragon's shadow. At this moment, Wayne faced his first choice: who to follow.
The crowd watching outside immediately began to debate:
"Follow the guy in red, obviously! If not for him, Wayne wouldn't have even made it this far."
"No, no. Wayne was almost beheaded by the Empire. That guy saving him just settles the score. He should go with the guy in blue."
"He's a rebel! How can you side with a rebel?"
"The Empire kills innocent people. What's wrong with being a rebel? They should revolt and overthrow them sooner rather than later!"
"Watch your tongue! Mind your words!"
The person who spoke of revolt was reminded of the Defias Brotherhood. He quickly slapped his own mouth and didn't dare say another word.
...
On the screen, Wayne didn't follow either of them. He charged directly into the fortress himself. He had experienced this place and this opening several times. Once inside, he "skilfully" looted an Imperial guard's standard set and an Imperial longbow from a storage chest.
"Boss! There are more and more people outside!"
Tess looked out the window. At least sixty or seventy people had gathered in a semi-circle to watch.
Wayne could see the scene outside through the cameras connected to the screen, but the size of the crowd clearly hadn't met his expectations yet.
However, it was still early—only 10:00 AM. He was prepared to stream for over 12 hours today.
Darkmoon Faire!!
"Thrills and excitement like you've never experienced before!"
Raymond, who had been busy all night, acted like those advertisers in Wayne's old world. He shouted along the way, pulling flyers from his satchel and sticking them on trees, walls, and even the backsides of cows...
He did all of this with his left hand. His right hand was ruined after writing hundreds of flyers overnight; he couldn't even lift it.
His dear master had given him another task: post advertisements and deliver flyers all the way to the Darkmoon Faire campsite.
As soon as he reached the camp, he started shouting at the top of his lungs.
"Hey!"
"Beat it!"
Before he could shout more than a few times, a deep, booming voice erupted from behind him—and from high above his head.
He turned around and instinctively took a few steps back.
A massive ogre, over three meters tall, was baring its teeth and glaring at Raymond.
Raymond recognized him. This was...
"This place..."
"Faire..."
"You..."
"Cannot..."
"Beat it!"
Burrows issued another warning to Raymond. The problem was that the guy clearly wasn't good at speaking. Aside from the word "Faire," he could only say two words at a time.
Raymond was stunned: "Hey, big guy, what are you saying? Cannot 'beat it'? So do I leave, or do I stay?"
A ray of sunlight hit the single horn atop Burrows' ogre head, creating a sharp reflection. He opened his mouth and shouted at Raymond in anger again:
"Cannot..." (He pointed to the flyers in Raymond's hand)
"Beat it!"
Raymond hadn't slept all night and was feeling exhausted. He was fueled purely by his overflowing admiration for Wayne and the massive incentive of free gaming time.
His reactions were a bit slow, so he didn't notice Burrows was pointing at the flyers; he thought the ogre was talking about him.
He smiled and said, "Big guy, you're quite humorous. Is this your way of welcoming me?"
He turned back and continued waving the flyers with his left hand, shouting: "Step right up, don't miss—Yowch!"
Burrows reached out, hoisted Raymond onto his shoulder, and walked toward the edge of the camp, preparing to throw him out.
"Burrows! Stop!"
A shout rang out. Burrows stopped instantly, as if a switch had been flipped, and turned toward the source of the voice.
A gnome about one meter tall walked over. An elegant top hat added slightly to his perceived height. He held a short, curved cane that didn't touch the ground, serving more as a symbol of a gentleman.
Raymond immediately shouted to the gnome, "Boss Silas, make him put me down!"
Silas smiled and said to Burrows, "Put him down. Oh, thank you. Good work, Burrows. You'll get an extra meal tonight."
Raymond saw the snarling face of Burrows instantly transform into a terrifying grin. To him, the ogre's smile looked more like it was preparing to eat someone...