On the next day we eat lunch a little early. Why early? It’s because the game starts at noon, and Akina said she wants to eat before that
“Ah, Onee-chan, when the game starts, check whether the sexual guard is enabled in options.”
“The ‘Sexual Guard’?”
“It’s a function for protecting against molesters. There are several presets for it, so make sure to check it. If you turn it on, you won’t feel anyone touch you, and other people will be prevented from touching you by invisible wall.”
“I see. It is a full dive VR after all.”
“Yup. It’s a must-have for you, Onee-chan. Also, set me to exceptions!”
“So there is a setting for exceptions...”
“There is a setting that removes it for people who are both friends AND exceptions. With that said, even if the other person does not have sexual guard on, you can still get in trouble if you go too far!”
“Of course you can.”
“You can change values by at most 5cm in character creator, and characters are slightly 2D-fied.”
“Heeh...”
“Onee-chan, it’s starting!”
“Yes, yes.”
After seeing Akina off as she ran upstairs, I leisurely headed to my room to prepare. I already registered my little sister as a friend; it was possible to do so when I logged in to the official site.
I put on the VR device, lay down on my bed and look for a good posture before I turn it on.
『“Good morning. What will you do today?”』
Start FLFO.
『“Performing a check before starting FLFO… confirmed the device and the user’s safe posture. Initializing FLFO.”』
I didn't feel any discomfort in particular, the game started smoothly. Then the game’s title was displayed, but also displayed on top of it was an extremely self-asserting countdown.
It starts jumping… it’s jumping on top of the title...
It started to add rotations to its jumps… It has no intention of showing the title at all, does it? This countdown.
When it reached 10 seconds remaining, it turned rainbow-colored and increased the speed at which it jumps. It’s having the time of its life, isn’t it. It speeds up with each second of the countdown, then starts expanding when there is 5 seconds left.
And when it reaches 0...
*BOOM!*
Even though I knew it will happen, I still flinch. The extremely self-asserting… overly self-asserting countdown is gone; let’s begin.
When I proceed beyond the title screen, the scenery changes to an open space inside a forest. It’s a very calming and wondrous place with sunlight spilling from behind large trees.
But it wasn’t too fantastical.
『“Welcome to Free Life Fantasy Online and the world of FLFO. To begin with, let’s create your alter ego; your character. This time you are capable of using the premium creator.”』
A voice sounded directly in my head...this voice...it speaks directly to my brain…! Well, it’s VR, so that’s only natural.
In front of me there was my alter ego, the basic data that was collected by the VR device during the initial setup was displayed in front of me along with numerous options.
I try tweaking them, but all I manage to do was make it look worse. Let’s return everything to default and only change colors. I have been taking good care of my body with Mom’s guidance, so I have some confidence in it...
And if I screw up, I might create some kind of monster.
...I guess twintails are more suitable for younger kids, aren’t they? A ponytail wouldn’t be too bad. In real my hairstyle is semi-long and reaches my shoulders, but here I can try things. Afro… nope. Yeah, it looks so bad that it’s funny. There’s also a mohican and princess-style with long hair and straight bangs…Mmm. It is not to my liking.
I should go for simple long hair here. Growing my hair any longer than my shoulders makes it problematic to clean it and hair gets stuck in things, so I don’t want to have long hair in real, but there should be no problem with that in a game? Length...to back...to waist...ohhh, even to the ground… it will be stepped on, won’t it.
『“The hairstyle can be changed by tying or cutting it, but hair cannot be grown.”』
Oh, is that so.
In that case… let’s go all out and have straight long hair reaching down to my calves. No special tweaks to bangs. Sideburns on the long side… there. Extra options… lezzgo glossy.
Make the hair black, eyes a light purple color. Purple… this is difficult. Purplish red… purplish blue… let’s have it be closer to blue.
I quickly review and save it.
『“Select your race. Your current character will receive a visual adjustment based on the selected race.”』
Umm...
Human:
A very average race.
When in doubt, pick this.
Beastman:
Wolf, Rabbit, Bear, Fox, Cat.
These specialize in different areas depending on the type.
Wolf: Strength, Rabbit: Dexterity, Bear: Vitality, Fox: Intelligence, Cat: Agility
Dwarf:
They are strong and dexterous, but short-legged.
Recommended for crafters.
Elf:
Intelligent and dexterous, but fragile.
Recommended for ranged combat.
Giant:
Strong and durable, but clumsy.
Machinery:
Also known as “The Armored".
They have high stats overall, but are overwhelmingly bad at magic.
Yup, it looks like there is no difference from the beta version’s information I saw on the net. Beastmen can choose from the types that only has protruding ears and a tail, to ones that look like animals standing on two legs. It was written that kemoners were in ecstasy over this.
Kemoner talk aside, all beastmen except for foxes seem to have low intelligence, but in exchange have great sense of smell and hearing.
Dwarves have short legs, so even when one puts everything into AGI, the increase is smaller than that of other races, as such it is said that their stat adjustment for it is low. It’s unknown how it will be for the official release, and currently it’s just a theory for the time being(......).
Two players who should have had the same AGI stats lined up and ran together, but their speed turned out to be different. That is what the theory was based on.
Elves are weak against attacks… it is said that they have lower HP adjustment compared to other races.
Giants are just the opposite, and their HP adjustment is really high.
And since they ARE giants, their height ranges from two to three meters. Two meters being the limit for humans.
In general, it possible to tweak the size by 5cm, but there is also a limit for each race! Apparently. Although, people who are over two meters tall in real, can be human characters who are over two meters tall.
This was officially stated by the management.
Machinery have early stats overwhelmingly higher than other races, but their MP adjustment is hopeless. It isn’t zero, but might as well be.
They’re machines so they’re smart! Their intelligence is high, but they have no MP. It says.
Also, in this game you can select non-human races. And they are numerous.
『“You have selected inhuman races. These are intended for less sane people.”』
Most fantastic races are called Inhuman or Monster Races. Their stats are high, and can be very extreme in both directions. However, there are downsides to them since they are not human. You can choose to become a slime, but at first it might be difficult to learn how to even move.
However, they grow at a faster rate than humans and are capable of evolving - a concept non-existent for human races. When they undergo a big change, they can use it as an opportunity to change their Skills (rebuild).
They are varied and numerous, but so are their downsides...
To say it flat out, we don’t care if you’re having a hard time even moving - you are the one who chose it… is the developers’ stance. These races can take Monster Skills, so strong players are strong with them… we hope. They are races for people with a dream.
During beta, the inhuman board was apparently full of agonizing cries, making it reminiscent of hell. The conclusion was, that they thought it would be nice if even 10% of players chose inhuman races.
There is a marker above everyone, so one can tell they are players, but... “Hey, you’re a monster, right? It’s not PK’ing!” is the heartless treatment toward them from some players.
Still, this is an online game. Management thinks of these things… and they made an announcement saying “There are ways for you to normally enter towns, so don’t worry. If you are a race that can speak, that is.”. The last part resulted in a retort of “That’s really important though?!”.
So although there is no problem in talking between players, in case of the locals… the NPCs, that might not be the case. However, this is still a game, so if a player is killed in a malicious manner they can report it to the management who will deal with the issue.
I feel somewhat attracted to inhuman races. What should I pick?
Slime, is kind of bad until it evolves… Goblin are a no. No thanks. A wolf… is kind of okay? A real deal wolf on four legs. Apparently they are fairly strong. A horse… snake… spider…
But all of these, they cannot speak, can they? When they evolve to become Centaurs, Echidnas and Arachne; they gain human body parts and apparently can speak. Still, even though they level up faster than humans, you never know how long it will take to reach that point.
Oh, but apparently Goblins and Skeletons can speak. Voice cords… what about them…? Let’s not think too deeply about this.
Oh, there is a Mini-Golem race. Will it grow bigger when it evolves? ...Turning into an obstacle.
Ghost… how would it even move?
Hmm… mmm...
Zombie!
『“Immortal: Zombie has been selected. Immortals have a chance of losing limbs. In such a case, it is necessary to use an in-game item to recover your limb.”』
A chance to receive limb loss... one of the reasons why Immortal-types were unpopular. During beta testing, characters below level 10 did not lose limbs, and apparently they did not feel pain either. However, it was still inconvenient and troublesome.
Name:
Race: Zombie Woman
Element: Dark
Genus: Low Immortal
Family: Zombie
Monster Skills:
«Physical Resistance Lv1» «Automatic HP Recovery Lv1» «Low Immortal» «Decomposing Body»
«Physical Resistance»
Physical Damage taken is decreased by an amount based on the Skill level.
«Automatic HP Recovery Lv1»
HP automatically recovers at a rate based on the Skill level.
«Low Immortal»
Receives Continuous Damage when exposed to sunlight. Decreases in shadow.
Light, Holy Damage Taken: Received Light, Holy Element damage: ×4.
Bonus to All Stats When Exposed to Moonlight: Small
Dark Element Enhancement: Small
Dark Element Resistance: Small
Critical Hit Resistance: Small
Automatic HP Recovery-type Skill Effectiveness Increase: Small
Nightvision.
Nullifies Body and Mind-type Status Ailments.
No food or sleep required.
«Decomposing Body»
Functionality of five senses is decreased.
Also, continues to release a savory fragrance akin to that of sludge.
It’s ‘nuff to say that it stinks real bad.
Causes people in the surroundings to vomit.
Fire Element Damage Taken: ×2.
I have nothing to say about «Physical Resistance» and «Automatic HP Recovery».
«Low Immortal» is… quite strong. Status Ailments are meaningless against a dead body, and thus have no effect. The problem is damage dealt by Mr. Sun, but I guess that when «Automatic HP Recovery» levels up, it should be able to overheal it? If this is Low-tier, then it means that there must be Mid-tier and High-tier as well, I am really looking forward to it.
No matter how much I think about it, the real problem is «Decomposing Body»… Hmm… well, it is a zombie? It's not a strange Skill for a zombie...
«Decomposing Body» is full of problems, but I guess it will possibly disappear with evolution? People who picked zombies seemed to have had it so hard that they discarded their characters early on.
Apparently their hearts broke when they saw that the next evolution was High Zombie. They are human-shaped so they can speak, but they kept getting trashed by Beastmen who have a great sense of smell.
Animal-types like Horses and Snakes, aside from the fact that they could not speak with NPCs, were having quite a good experience. Horse players had a great time letting players ride on them and riding around plains. And they could always have a friend buy items for them.
It was also possible to become a chicken called Cock-a-Doo, which is said to eventually evolve into Cockatrice.
Well, all of this is conjecture based on fantasy knowledge and it was impossible for beta players to reach that level to confirm it, so it was not certain. Monster Races are full of dreams.
...Should I go with one of the top unpopulars, a Zombie? Is there a Dragon Zombie? A Bone Dragon… is probably in Skeleton’s route?
Well, I am the type to do things quietly by myself, so I might as well try a Zombie. ...At worst, I will delete it and make a new character. Although, in such case there will be few days worth of penalty before you I can remake a character.
I’m sorry, Akina… Onee-chan is going to become a ZOMBIE. If you are brave enough to cling to me, you're welcome!
The problem is, is there a meaning in character creator for this? …Zombie’s adjustments are real heavy. My hair feels lonely… and my tawawas are nowhere to be found.
Well, fine. Hair issue aside, not having breasts will be a fresh experience . Mine are completely ripe, after all.
『“Select ten initial Skills. It is possible to select the Skills in-game, so you can ignore it at this stage. Ten of the initial Skills will be available to you free of cost.”』
Hmm… let’s do this one in-game while I play, I guess? Well, let just take these three for the time being.
«Strength Increase» «Vitality Increase» «Identification»
All hail passives. «Identification» is a must have. As for the rest, I will pick them up as I play. I might corner myself if I don’t take Skills matching the Zombie race.
『“Since you have not selected ten initial Skills, a new "Initial Skills" category has been added to your Skill acquisition tab. In case you acquire Skills from outside the Initial Skills category, the Skill’s normal cost will be consumed. Monster Skills are an exception.”』
Hmm-mm… Initial Skill tab is added and Skills taken from there do not cost anything. Skills outside of it have normal cost...
It must be to prevent players from reaching higher-tier Skills and picking them up for no cost… Initial Skills are the same for all players.
『“Input a name.”』
Nnn… It is fantasy setting, so I guess I will go with Western name? As a half, I do have a Western name, but… isn’t using my real name a bad idea? No, wait, it might work…? It is a Japanese game, so maybe it will work? There is no way anyone will realize I'm using my real name; it’s quite common too, so it might work. By the way, beta players apparently use their old names.
『“Anastasia… checking for duplicate names… no duplicates. Name available for use.”』
Oh, it worked. Let’s go with that. Being called by the full name “Anastasia” feels quite fresh. It should be fine.
『“Final confirmation. Are you sure you want to use these Skills and this appearance?”』
Name: Anastasia
Race: Zombie Woman Lv1
Element: Dark
Genus: Low Tier Immortal
Family: Zombie
Skills:
«Physical Increase Lv1» «Vitality Increase Lv1» «Identification Lv1»
Inactive:
Monster Skills:
«Physical Resistance Lv1» «Automatic HP Recovery Lv1» «Low Tier Immortal» «Decomposing Body»
Next to the status window stood the zombie me. Honestly speaking, this appearance is not too nice, but it cannot be helped, it’s all because of race adjustment...
No problem.
『“You have selected an inhuman race. It is possible to select a starting point. Where will you start?”』
- The Starting Town
Normal starting point. Same as humans.
- Racial Start
A starting point matching your race. You are thrown out into the field.
Recommended for the crazy you, to let you enjoy your inhuman race even more.
Hmm… if I started in the Starting Town it would soon be filled with cries of agony… Mainly that of Beastmen players who would suffer from «Decomposing Body»’s smell. I have no intention of giving people a bad impression, so let’s pick the Racial Start.
Also, I strongly deny being crazy. Just a little curious.
『“You have selected Racial Start. Character creation is complete. Connecting to the main server…"』
*TH-THMP* *TH-THMP*...
『“In this world, your curiosity will be the key to everything. An unknown world, battles against unknown creatures, unknown Skills, and… a new life. Be led by your desire to learn all that you have yet to know. I pray for your second life to be a lucky one.”』
When the system voice ended, a change suddenly occurred.
In the surroundings, there was a town built stone. I could feel a warm wind on my skin… NOPE. Around me, my comrades were wailing “UuUUuuuh” as they tottered; the surroundings were walls of dirt.
No matter how you look this, these are catacombs. Thank you very much.
