Chapter 76- Old man Joins the Game.
Within the fencing salle...
The training hall was already alive with the usual morning rhythm—the scrape of wooden swords across the floorboards, the controlled breathing of students moving through forms, the low murmur of instruction.
Master Rook stood at the edge of the mats, arms folded, watching. His eyes moved from one disciple to the next, but his mind was elsewhere, turning over Leo’s words from the night before.
They also must have joined the game as well. Many of them have shown a sudden, sharp growth. Is it because of that thing?
Master Rook thought to himself as he watched his students. He saw young Kael, who used to telegraph every thrust, now executing the movement cleanly.
And Mira, whose stiff footwork Master Rook had complained about for months without any real improvement, was now moving with elegant, measured steps that left him impressed. Her footwork felt refined, as if it had been practiced thousands of times.
Even the senior disciples who had already been skilled were moving better still, as though they had passed through several life-and-death encounters.
The more he watched, the more curious he became. He could no longer contain it. He called several of the senior and junior disciples over.
"How many of you are playing Myth Online? And how is it?"
The group froze....
Unease flickered across their faces.
They knew their master’s opinion of games—time wasted that could have been spent on honest practice.
Glances passed between them. Shoulders stiffened.
No one spoke...
Master Rook saw it all. He sighed, the sound soft but heavy with age.
"Don’t worry. I’m not against it. I only heard it was effective for training. I was thinking of joining myself."
The words did not relax them.
If anything, the suspicion deepened.
They thought he was testing them—trying to learn who had been slipping into the virtual world instead of remaining in the real one. Their eyes grew wary.
Master Rook saw it all and didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
"Sigh..." He had given up on getting any answer.
But...
One of the braver students raised a hand.
Master Rook happily nodded.
The disciple spoke carefully, describing the combat system in detail, the near-zero latency, the startlingly real feedback of a clean block or a mistimed strike, the way sparring against skilled players and sophisticated NPCs forced faster adaptation to any situations.
Real combat experience without the risk of broken bones or worse, death.
Master Rook continued to listen to the disciples’ explanations without interrupting. He even began to nod at a few of their points.
Seeing the easy interaction, the disciples began to relax. They started speaking more actively, sharing what they had learned and how the game had helped them. A few of the braver ones even went so far as to recommend that their master join as well and create a guild in the game to represent the salle.
By the time the conversation ended, Master Rook had what he needed. A general understanding of Myth Online.
He dismissed them with a brief word of acknowledgment and remained alone in the center of the hall for a long moment.
"Alright," he murmured. "I will have to see it for myself."
He returned to his private quarters, settled into a plain wooden chair, and closed his eyes.
"CONNECT."
Golden light flared. When it faded he stood once more in the white room that had previously left him frustrated—too many gates, no clear choice.
Six monumental gates rose before him:
[Iron Gate – The Mortal Path]
[Frostfang Gate]
[Eternal Nile Gate]
[Celestial Dragon Gate]
[Shadow Veil Gate]
[Hero’s Gate]
Master Rook studied them again.
Most of my disciples, including that brat Leo, chose the Iron Gate. It seems I should do the same.
He stepped closer to the first gate. Its surface was cold iron.
[Iron Gate – The Mortal Path]
The path of common heroes and self-made legends. No pantheon shall claim you. You walk alone, forging your own destiny with blood, sweat, and steel.
Compatibility: 80%
"Well...Its good enough I guess" he muttered. He placed both hands against the gate and pushed.
The world dissolved.
He stood on a broad grassy plain beneath a clear blue sky. A dirt road stretched ahead toward a small town whose rooftops and low walls were just visible in the distance. A soft system voice spoke in his mind.
[Welcome to Myth Online.]
[You have entered the Common World.]
[Region: The Verdant Valley]
[Settlement: Ironhaven (ahead)]
[Current Status: Classless]
[Speak to the Town Registrar to choose your starting class.]
Master Rook dismissed the notifications with a thought and began testing his body. He jumped. He dropped into push-ups. He flexed his hands and felt the strength in his arms.
There was no jarring of bones, no occasional knee pain when he moved. It was as if he were young again.
He no longer felt old.
"This is really mysterious," he said quietly. "It’s like I’ve stepped into another world."
Master Rook had never played a game before, so the very idea still felt foreign. Yet what surrounded him felt no different from the real world. The grass bent under his boots, a light breeze stirred the air, and the scent of flowers drifted past. Everything felt too real to call a game.
He started walking toward the town.
The road was quiet. Occasional travelers passed—farmers, merchants, a few who looked like adventurers. None paid him any particular attention.
Soon the town gates of Ironhaven came into view. He entered through the gates without any hesitation.
Timber and stone buildings lined the streets. Signs hung above doorways advertising blacksmiths, inns, provisioners, and training yards. Near the central square stood a sturdy stone building marked with the official crest of the town registrar.
Master Rook stepped inside.
The interior was simple, almost archaic. A middle-aged, somewhat heavyset fat man sat behind a ledger.
"Welcome to Ironhaven, traveler. What are you looking for?"
Master Rook met his gaze evenly.
"I want to get a class."
"Of course. Please, have a seat. We’ll begin with a few questions about your background and preferences."
Master Rook sat in the chair the registrar indicated. The man himself sorted through a few documents, then took up a pen and paper.
A moment later he waved a hand, and a translucent window of class options bloomed in the air between them.
Master Rook’s eyes moved across the list—Mage, Warrior, Assassin... His hand almost selected Warrior on instinct. The description was deeply attractive to anyone who practiced martial arts. The old pull was still there: pure strength, direct confrontation, the path he had walked his entire life.
Then he remembered what his disciples had told him. He scrolled further and found the one he wanted.
Swordsman.
"This is it."
He selected it at once, without reading further details.
The registrar nodded.
"Alright. Please give me your name."
Master Rook almost spoke his real name. Then his granddaughter’s exact words rose in his mind, sharp and exasperated:
Grandpa, when you pick a class, use some made-up name. Don’t use your real name like an idiot.
He almost smiled.
"My name is Sword Master."
The registrar recorded it without comment.
"Alright, you’re done."
The moment the class selection was confirmed, a new panel bloomed in front of him.
[Class Selected]
[Swordsman]
Rank: Common
+3 STR, +2 DEX, +1 VIT
[Skill Unlocked]
[Active Skills]
Sword Slash (Novice)
Stab (Novice)
Parry (Novice)
[Passive Skills]
Basic Swordsmanship
[Class Description]
A class specializing in the blade. Every strike is a line drawn between intent and result—your body and your sword grow as one, sharpened through repetition.
Knowledge flooded him—an alien sensation, yet strangely precise. The techniques settled into his muscles as if he had practiced them for years.
Even with his disciplined lifestyle on Earth, the information and experience that surged through him opened possibilities he had never considered before.
Before he could fully absorb it, something stirred deeper within his body. A warm current spread through his limbs, through his bones, through the marrow itself.
A new notification appeared.
[Talent detected...]
[Calculating Synergy with the awakened class....]
[99.99% Synergy detected]
[Awakening Started...]
[Awakening successful...]
[Talent: Sword-Soul Edge]
[Rank: SS]
A soul-based sword talent that reads souls, cuts through flesh and armor to wound the soul itself, suppresses Spiritual Integrity, and stacks marks on enemies to track and bind them. Nine perks total.
[Perk 1...]
...
[Perk 2...]
...
There were nine perks in total for the soul talent—more than Leo had received at the beginning.
Master Rook had only begun to read when another panel slammed across his vision.
Damn these flickering screens. I haven’t even finished the last one.
[Ding!]
[Detected special body physique]
[Scanning the body...]
[Scanning completed]
[Vajra Sword Body has been awakened.]
[Physique: Vajra Sword Body]
[Rank: S]
A supreme physique born for those who walk the path of both Body and Sword. The body of its possessor is naturally tempered by Vajra energy, granting bones harder than refined steel and flesh capable of enduring tremendous force.
The holder of this physique shall possess an extraordinary affinity with both body and sword cultivation.
Their bones hold the potential to become as strong as divine materials and as sharp as a sword. When properly tempered, sword intent will flow through the body as freely as blood through the veins.
[Hidden Potential: Unknown]