After school, Tanaka and Yoichi walked toward Yoichi's grandparents' house to retrieve the VR device. The air was crisp, and the late afternoon sun cast long shadows across the quiet streets. Tanaka felt a rare lightness in his chest. The school day had been straightforward enough.
Yoichi brought Tanaka to his room and, after rummaging through his cabinet for a while, pulled out a box and handed it to him.
"This is the extra VR device I have. It's been unused for months. It was supposed to be a gift for my sister, but she already has one, and I have one too. So instead of letting it gather dust, I'll just lend it to you."
Tanaka accepted the device carefully. "I'll handle it properly. Thanks, Yoichi."
The device itself was deceptively compact, sleek with subtle silver lines tracing its frame. Tanaka's fingers brushed over the smooth surface.
"By the way," Yoichi said casually, "I didn't try the game myself. I figured you'd enjoy it more than me anyway. Kekeke… just don't get addicted too fast."
Tanaka gave a small, calm smile. "I'll try it out first. Don't worry—I'll be careful."
After securing the device, Tanaka thanked Yoichi and headed home. Dinner was already laid out at the Yamada household, a warm spread that contrasted with the cool evening air.
"Finally, you're back," Yamada Yukina said, his calm, deep voice almost blending into the background. His frame was large and imposing, but his movements were careful and quiet, almost meditative.
Tanaka gave a polite nod. "Yeah. School went fine. Some unique introductions today."
Anna tilted her head, curiosity sparking in her eyes. "Unique? Like what?"
Tanaka shrugged lightly. "Hikigaya Hachiman. A classmate of mine. He introduced himself in a way that… dropped his social standing instantly. And yet he seemed satisfied with himself. Weird, but impressive."
Anna giggled softly. "I'd like to see him. Sounds hilarious."
Yukina, as always, remained silent but attentive, nodding slightly.
During dinner, the conversation flowed naturally, with gentle humor sprinkled in. Tanaka commented on the absurdity of some of his classmates' behavior, and Anna laughed at his subtle jokes, enjoying his calm, charismatic demeanor.
His interactions were smooth and measured, never over-the-top, but still engaging.
After clearing the dishes, Tanaka set the VR device on his desk. He carefully connected it to his setup, placing the sensors in precise positions around his room. The Yamada family watched from the doorway, curious but not intrusive.
"I'll be playing alone for now," Tanaka said calmly. "I'll just try it, so I don't know yet."
Anna leaned in closer, her eyes sparkling. "But you should livestream it! I've always wanted to see you play—ever since your basketball days!"
Tanaka froze briefly. "Wait… you knew I played basketball?"
Anna laughed, slightly embarrassed. "Of course! Everyone around here knew how good you were. And I wanted to see if you're as skilled in games as you were on the court."
Tanaka nodded lightly, a faint smile on his face. "Alright. I guess I can livestream. But let's start small."
He created his channel on StreamPaddy, a VR-focused streaming site. The temporary name he picked was Small Paddy Fields, the literal meaning of his name.
Title: First VR Game playing SLF
He then started his livestream, and as soon as he went live, someone joined and sent a message.
[YAnnaY: Your first Loyal Fan is here!]
"Thanks, Anna," Tanaka said softly, his calm tone reaching her clearly. "I'll try to keep it interesting."
He then began character creation.
His avatar's name: Light. He adjusted his appearance carefully—short white hair, purple eyes, slightly taller than average, and a normal build. Race: Human.
For clothing, he selected simple fabric attire: a white long-sleeved shirt, brown pants, and boots.
As for the free armor given at the start, Tanaka found he could sell it, so he did. He felt he could move better without armor, and this was also related to his playstyle.
He was the type to go all-in on damage. Even back when he played League, movement had been one of the key factors that made him better than others.
"I'll earn better gear later," he muttered calmly. "For now, simplicity is better."
Next was the Job, which determined bonus stats at the start. There were many choices, but one suddenly caught his attention—it was glowing gold.
'Hmm… seems like this level of divine power doesn't have any recoil,' Tanaka thought, noticing that even when his divine power unknowingly activated, he didn't feel any backlash.
[Job: Gambler]
Jobs didn't do much, but they did give slight boosts, and Gambler provided a small increase in luck.
Next was Origin. Tanaka chose Wanderer after noticing it glowed brighter than the other options.
It provided a huge boost to luck, but at the cost of being extremely squishy.
'Hmm… from the looks of it, luck is one of the most important parts of this game.'
Once he was done, Tanaka finalized his character.
"Oh, and Anna, call me Light on stream, alright? Don't use my real name," Tanaka warned his only viewer.
[YAnnaY: Understood! Salute.jpg]
Once ready, Tanaka proceeded into the prologue of SLF. The tutorial introduced the world—a vast open landscape filled with forests, towns, and dungeons. The story spoke of explorers discovering remnants of ancient civilizations and surviving monsters unknown to mankind.
Tanaka's vision went black after the prologue, and slowly, he regained his sight, blinking a few times to adjust to the sudden brightness.
Once he adapted, he looked around curiously. He was inside a forest, with clearings scattered around, trees towering above, and bushes everywhere.
Tanaka stretched his body a bit and warmed up slightly to familiarize himself.
"The feeling is quite good, no? My body feels light and full of power," Tanaka said.
[YAnnaY: It's a fantasy setting, so your body is quite strong! Also, don't forget to allocate your stat points!]
"Understandable. Then for my stats, I have 10 free points to allocate."
Tanaka opened his status.
Player Name: Light
Level: 1
Race: Human
Job: Gambler
Origin: Wanderer
Title: None
HP: 20
MP: 10
Base Stats:
STM: 0 → 15
STR: 0 → 10
AGI: 0 → 25
VIT: 0 → 2
DEX: 0 → 10
TEC: 0 → 10
LUK: 0 → 25 (30)
Free Points: 100 → 0
(Note: I don't really know how the base stat worked in the anime, so I just turned everything to zero and gave him a free 100 points, also description about the stats at the end)
After finishing his distribution, Tanaka gave a light smile and looked at the livestream chat.
[YAnnaY: Ooh, interesting stats]
[YAnnaY: What is this, stop! You are randomly putting your points!]
[YAnnaY: Why are you not putting anything into vitality? You will get one-shot by the wind!]
[YAnnaY: This is not how you play the game!]
[YAnnaY: …]
"Well, believe me on this one, Anna," Tanaka said with a smile and a wink.
[YAnnaY: Okay.]
She clearly didn't believe him, but there was a reason for this distribution—and it would be shown soon.
Rustle~
The bushes behind Tanaka started to shake loudly. A few moments later, two small, ugly humanoid creatures emerged.
Goblins.
The typical weakest monsters in every game.
The moment they saw Tanaka, they became enraged, as if they had spotted their greatest enemy, and charged toward him.
"Goblins, huh? As expected of a fantasy setting world," Tanaka said as he pulled out a small dagger from his inventory.
He twirled it briefly before gripping it firmly, his eyes fixed on the charging goblins.
[YAnnaY: Goblins! With your HP, a single hit from them will instantly kill you!]
Anna spoke with worry as she watched the monsters. They looked ferocious—most new players would freeze upon seeing even one, let alone two.
But Tanaka saw them differently.
His eyes glowed faintly as his divine power activated.
From his perspective, everything changed.
The goblins' movements slowed, becoming clear and predictable. Golden spots appeared across their bodies.
Tanaka stepped forward.
He moved toward one of the glowing points, and as he reached it, a golden line appeared.
He swung his dagger along that path—
[Critical!]
The blade pierced straight through the goblin's throat.
It shrieked before dissolving into light particles.
But Tanaka didn't stop.
More golden spots appeared.
More lines.
Without hesitation, his body moved on its own, following the nearest path.
In a single motion—
Slash—
[Critical!]
The second goblin didn't even get the chance to scream before it turned into light.
Silence returned to the forest.
And then—
[Level Up > 2]
[Learned New Skill > Vital Strike]
[Vital Strike – Launch a stab that hits an opponent's vital point, dealing 200% critical damage]
[Cost: 5 Stamina Points]
[Cooldown: 15 seconds]
"Oh, I have some new skills," Tanaka said with a smile as he saw the notifications
[YAnnaY: What just happened!?]
[Devilwithagun Joined the stream!]
[Devilwithagun: Yo! I came to join the fun!]
__________________________________
Note: Stats are actually not that game changing in SLF, compared to other games, a high level player with high stats can still be defeated by a low stat skilled player with ease.
It is also one of the reasons despite Sunraku being low leveled, He was already considered a very strong player because of his skills.
This is why I will emphasize more about the skills rather than stats and also Tanaka's divine power.
But here is some explanation about the stats and this was given by chatgpt because lots of the explanations in the internet are rather incomplete but I will change this explanation if some good lovable person gives me the complete proper one.
Cya!
Core Stats Explanation
STR (Strength)
Determines physical attack power.
Increases damage dealt by melee weapons
Affects ability to stagger enemies
Useful for heavy weapon users
AGI (Agility)
Controls speed, reflexes, and mobility.
Increases movement speed and attack speed
Improves dodge timing and evasion
Essential for fast-paced combat styles
VIT (Vitality)
Represents durability and survivability.
Increases maximum HP
Reduces incoming damage
Improves resistance to physical attacks
DEX (Dexterity)
Affects precision and control.
Improves accuracy of attacks
Increases critical hit consistency
Enhances weapon handling
TEC (Technique)
Represents skill execution, control, and efficiency.
Improves skill accuracy and execution timing
Reduces stamina cost of techniques
Enhances combo efficiency and chaining attacks
Allows smoother and more precise movements
LUK (Luck)
A stat tied to probability.
Increases critical hit chance
Improves drop rates and item quality
Raises chances of triggering hidden events
Influences rare encounters and outcomes
STM (Stamina)
Controls endurance and sustained actions.
Determines how long you can fight, run, or dodge
Consumed when using skills, sprinting, or chaining attacks
Higher stamina allows longer combat without exhaustion
Critical for agility-based and continuous combat builds