There was more than rent money in the account. There was tuition money. Hope.
Ryan quickly created a new Paladin character, skipped all the tutorials, and logged out.
He pulled off the headset, and sure enough—his sisters were curled up beside him on the floor, whispering back and forth in voices so full of doubt it broke him.
"Alright, alright! No more gloom," Ryan said, scooping them both up in his arms like kids again and spinning them around the tiny room. "Give me a few days. Just a few. The future's gonna look a whole lot brighter!"
And for the first time—he believed it. Yes. A better future was coming.
—-
Loud music blasted through his headphones as Ryan clicked over and over on the Kingdom Forge icon, dead set on being the first one in.
The servers were supposed to go live on August 1st, but the devs hadn't said a word about the exact time. Ryan had a good hunch it would open at 6:20 AM—but he wasn't about to risk being wrong by even a minute.
It was just after six. His two younger sisters were already awake, hovering by the doorway, watching him with concern. His eyes were bloodshot, and his hands were trembling—not from fear, but pure anticipation. The guy had barely blinked all night.
Then it happened. A soft click echoed from his speakers.
6:20 on the dot.
The heavy gates in-game creaked open at last, and Ryan's Paladin marched forward in full stride, stepping into the digital world like it was destiny.
A flash of pure white light enveloped him, then gently faded—revealing a quiet, half-forgotten village nestled in the hills.
"First one in," Ryan muttered, a little surprised to see the place so dead. Aside from a few NPC patrols, the village felt empty.
Above him, clusters of glowing orbs began descending one by one. New players were arriving.
He pulled up his character sheet.
Name: Featherlight
Race: Human
Class: Paladin
Level: 1
HP: 80
MP: 60
Divine Power: 0/9
Strength: 18
Stamina: 15
Agility: 16
Intellect: 12
Spirit: 14
Arcane Resist: 0
Fire Resist: 0
Frost Resist: 0
Shadow Resist: 0
Nature Resist: 0
Ryan gave it a quick glance. Everything still looked familiar.
Level 1 Human Paladins were absurdly balanced—which ironically made them unpopular. Most early players ditched Humans entirely and flocked to the Dwarves instead. Higher Strength right out the gate? Sold.
But what they didn't get was this: Humans might lag slightly on base stats, but when it came to racial perks, they were unmatched.
Swordplay – Humans saw swords as a symbol of nobility and grace. Nobles spent years perfecting the art, and it showed. Passive: +1% hit chance with one-handed and two-handed swords.
Paranoia – Humans were suspicious by nature, always alert to their surroundings. Because of that, they were ambushed far less often than other races. Active: Temporarily boosts stealth detection. Duration: 20 seconds. Cooldown: 5 minutes.
Diplomacy – Silver tongues, natural charm—Humans knew how to work a room. Passive: +10% reputation gain.
Faith – Among all the races, Humans were the most devout. Their willpower? Practically iron. Passive: +5% to total Spirit.
For Paladins, Humans weren't just a decent choice—they were ideal. Every single racial perk had a use.
Swordplay made gear scaling easier, especially for those running Retribution or Protection builds. With even a slight bump to hit chance, players could shift stat priorities elsewhere—essentially gaining bonus attributes in disguise.
Paranoia? That was PvP gold. Rogues and Druids hated running into Human players. Human Rogues were even nicknamed "sniffers" in some circles—they could uncloak enemy stealth units like hounds. It made them kings in mirror matches.
Diplomacy had every other race drooling. An extra 10% to rep gains saved literal days of grinding—huge when nearly everything in the game was tied to faction standing.
And Faith? For healers, that bonus to Spirit was everything. More Spirit meant faster mana regen. Later in endgame raids, it became a non-negotiable asset for any support build worth their salt.
Ryan opened his spellbook mid-jog, only to find… nothing. Not a single skill.
He blinked.
"Right. Early game," he muttered, slowing down. "You've gotta visit your class trainer first to unlock spells."
It had slipped his mind—this was one of those launch quirks. Back in beta, you started with two basic skills automatically. But here in live servers, it was stripped back. A quiet little Easter egg for the old-school grinders.
Ryan stopped just shy of the village gate and started scanning the area.
After a few moments of wandering, his eyes lit up. Tucked into a corner off the main road was the guardhouse. The Paladin trainer stood beside the Warrior trainer—chatting like two old college roommates.
Ryan approached the Paladin trainer and triggered the dialogue. Two quests popped up.
---
Path of Wrath:
Trainer Harnel seems unconvinced by your strength. Prove yourself by retrieving his old longsword from outside the village.
Objective: Harnel's Longsword 0/1
Reward: Fist of Light (Skill), 200 EXP, 50 copper
Path of Grace
Trainer Harnel doubts your faith. Head to the village chapel, say a prayer, and speak with Priestess Talia.
Objective: Prayer 0/1; Speak with Talia 0/1
Reward: Radiant Light (Skill), 200 EXP, 30 copper
---
Accepting both, Ryan chuckled and made a beeline for the chapel. Better to knock out the easy one first—no point running around before grabbing the low-hanging fruit.
The place was dead quiet when he arrived, just as he expected. Only a single NPC stood inside—a woman in white robes kneeling before a massive statue, deep in prayer.
No players yet. Most had likely rushed out to grind on level one critters bare-knuckled.
"Good morning, honored Priestess Talia."
With those words, the quest triggered, pulling Ryan's character next to her in a smooth animation. He bowed respectfully.
"Ah, Featherlight. The newly anointed Paladin," Talia said with a warm smile.
Half the quest completed right there.
He joined her in silent prayer for a few minutes. When the sequence ended, the second half ticked off.
"My dear Featherlight, your devotion moves me. I'll vouch for your faith without question."
Another short dialogue later, the quest was marked complete.
You have learned: Radiant Light.
+200 EXP
+30 copper
Radiant Light – Heals yourself or an ally for a moderate amount. Costs mana. 3-second cast time.
Ryan cast it on himself a few times, watching the healing numbers float up. The first hit restored 78 HP—massive overkill at his level. And the mana cost? Just six.
Yeah, this was going to work. He was confident now—this was his first step toward making bank.
Instead of heading straight for Harnel's sword, though, Ryan veered off the path. There was a hidden NPC somewhere nearby. If he found the right one, he'd unlock a timed side quest—not part of the mainline, and easy to miss.
'Got it.'
He stepped into an unmarked shack with the door slightly ajar. Inside, a wounded NPC slumped against the wall, breathing heavily.
Wounded Jimmy
Level: 5
HP: 200
Race: Human
Ryan fired off Radiant Light a couple of times. After the second cast, the NPC's name changed.
Survivor Jimmy
A golden exclamation point popped above his head.
Side quest unlocked.
Ryan grinned, cracked his knuckles, accepted the quest, and jogged toward the edge of the village—ready to grind.