The blinding light faded, and Min-jun felt solid ground under his feet again. But it wasn't the soft cloud from before. This felt like real dirt and grass.
He opened his eyes slowly and gasped.
He was standing in the middle of a vast green meadow. Rolling hills stretched as far as he could see in every direction. Wildflowers dotted the landscape in bright colors - red, yellow, purple, blue. A gentle breeze carried the smell of fresh grass and clean air.
Above him, the sky was the most beautiful blue he had ever seen. Two suns hung in the sky, one larger and golden, the other smaller and slightly silver. Fluffy white clouds drifted lazily overhead.
"This is incredible," Min-jun whispered. "It's just like the starting area in Eternal Realms Online, but real."
He recognized this place. It was the Meadow of New Beginnings, where all new players started their journey in the game. But now he could feel the warm grass under his feet, smell the flowers, hear birds singing in the distance. Everything was so much more vivid and alive than the game version.
Suddenly, his system interface appeared in front of him with a cheerful chime sound.
[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]
Welcome to Aetheria!
Special Message from Admin:"Sorry again about the whole car thing! As an apology, I'm giving you a special gift!"
ALL SKILLS UNLOCKED!
You now have access to every skill tree in the system! Magic, combat, crafting, survival - everything is available to learn immediately!
Additional Message:"There is no chaos in this world! No demon lords threatening everyone, no world-ending disasters, no evil gods trying to destroy everything! Live freely and level up as you like! Have fun!"
- Your Friendly Neighborhood Admin
Min-jun stared at the message in amazement. In the game, players had to choose a class at the beginning, which limited what skills they could learn. Mages could only use magic skills. Warriors could only use combat skills. Rogues were stuck with stealth and dagger skills.
But now he had access to everything? He could learn sword fighting AND magic? He could be a warrior-mage-rogue-crafter all at the same time?
"This is insane," he said. "I'm basically starting the game with cheat codes enabled."
He opened his skills menu and scrolled through the options. There were hundreds of different skills available:
Combat Skills:
Sword Mastery Bow Mastery Shield Defense Berserker Rage Dual Wielding
Magic Skills:
Fire Magic Water Magic Earth Magic Air Magic Healing Magic Dark Magic Light Magic Space Magic Time Magic
Crafting Skills:
Blacksmithing Alchemy Cooking Tailoring Enchanting Jewelry Making
Survival Skills:
Monster Taming Tracking Stealth Lock Picking Trap Detection Language Translation
And many more. In the game, it would take years to unlock even half of these skills. Now he could learn any of them whenever he wanted, as long as he had enough skill points.
"I need to find some monsters to fight," Min-jun said. "Time to start leveling up."
He looked around the peaceful meadow. In the game, this area usually had some weak monsters for new players to practice on. Slimes, rabbits, maybe a few goblins. But he didn't see anything dangerous.
Actually, he didn't see anything dangerous at all. Just butterflies, birds, and some cute rabbits hopping around in the distance. The rabbits looked completely normal and harmless, not like the Giant Killer Rabbits from the game.
Min-jun walked over to examine one of the rabbits. It was small, fluffy, and adorable. When it saw him approaching, it didn't run away. Instead, it hopped closer and sniffed his hand curiously.
"Well, you're definitely not a monster," Min-jun said. He petted the rabbit's soft fur. It made a happy purring sound. "Admin wasn't kidding when he said there's no chaos in this world."
This was different from the game. Even the starting area in Eternal Realms Online had some danger. Players needed to be careful not to wander too far or they might encounter monsters that were too strong for them.
But this world seemed completely peaceful. Safe. Almost like a paradise.
Min-jun opened his map interface to get a better idea of where he was. The map showed a large green area labeled "Peaceful Meadows" with several points of interest marked nearby:
Beginners Village (2 km north) Crystal Lake (5 km east) Friendly Forest (3 km west) Flower Hill (1 km south)
All the location names sounded pleasant and non-threatening. No "Dungeon of Death" or "Cursed Swamplands" like in the game.
"I guess I should head to the village first," Min-jun decided. "Maybe there are people there who can explain how this world works."
He started walking north through the meadow. The grass was soft under his feet and the two suns warmed his skin pleasantly. As he walked, he experimented with his new system interface.
He tried casting a basic fire magic spell. A small flame appeared in his palm, warm and controlled. He had never been able to use magic in the game because he always played warrior classes, but now it felt natural and easy.
Next he tried a healing spell on a small cut on his finger from earlier. Golden light surrounded his hand and the cut disappeared instantly.
"This is amazing," he said. "Magic actually works here."
He spent the walk to the village testing different skills. He learned Basic Sword Mastery by picking up a sturdy stick and swinging it around. He learned Basic Cooking by thinking about how to prepare food. He even learned Basic Monster Taming by successfully befriending three more rabbits that started following him.
By the time he reached the village, Min-jun had already gained several levels and learned fifteen different skills. His new rabbit companions hopped alongside him like fluffy bodyguards.
The village was exactly like he remembered from the game, but more detailed and lively. Small wooden houses with thatched roofs lined cobblestone streets. Gardens full of vegetables and flowers surrounded each home. Smoke rose from chimneys, carrying the smell of cooking food.
People were going about their daily lives - hanging laundry, tending gardens, chatting with neighbors. They all looked happy and peaceful. When they saw Min-jun approaching, they waved and smiled instead of giving him quests or asking for help with monster problems.
"Hello there, stranger!" called out a middle-aged woman watering her flower garden. "Are you new to our village?"
"Yes, I just arrived," Min-jun replied. "I'm Min-jun."
"Welcome! I'm Martha. We don't get many visitors, but you're very welcome here. Are you hungry? I just baked some fresh bread."
Min-jun realized he was actually hungry. When was the last time he had eaten? Before he got hit by the car, which felt like it happened yesterday but was probably longer ago than that.
"That would be wonderful, thank you."
Martha invited him into her cozy kitchen and served him warm bread with butter and honey. It was the most delicious thing Min-jun had ever tasted. In his old life, he mostly ate instant ramen and convenience store food. This homemade bread was like eating a cloud made of happiness.
"So tell me," Martha said as she poured him a cup of tea, "what brings you to our little village?"
"I'm... traveling," Min-jun said. He couldn't exactly explain about being hit by a car and meeting a god. "I'm looking for adventure and trying to improve my skills."
"Oh, an adventurer! How exciting!" Martha's eyes lit up. "We don't see many of those anymore. Most young people are happy to stay in their villages and live peaceful lives."
"What do you mean?"
"Well, there's no real need for adventuring these days," Martha explained. "No monsters threatening villages, no dark lords plotting evil schemes, no ancient curses to break. The world has been peaceful for as long as anyone can remember."
This confirmed what Admin had told him. This version of Aetheria was completely different from the game world. Instead of constant danger and epic quests to save the world, it was just a pleasant place where people lived normal, happy lives.
"But surely there must be some challenges?" Min-jun asked. "Some way for people to grow stronger and level up?"
"Oh, people still level up," Martha said. "Farmers gain levels by growing better crops. Blacksmiths level up by making finer tools. Bakers like me level up by creating more delicious recipes. But it's all very peaceful and safe."
Min-jun nodded, but inside he was a bit disappointed. He had been looking forward to fighting dragons and exploring dangerous dungeons. This world sounded nice, but maybe a little boring for someone who was used to constant action and excitement.
After finishing his meal, Min-jun thanked Martha and continued exploring the village. He met the blacksmith, a cheerful dwarf named Thorin who was happy to teach him basic metalworking. He visited the village mage, an elderly elf named Elara who showed him how to improve his spell control.
Everyone was friendly and helpful. They all seemed genuinely happy and content with their peaceful lives. No one complained about monster attacks or begged him to complete dangerous quests.
As the day went on, Min-jun gained more levels and learned more skills just by talking to people and trying new things. His rabbit companions had grown to a group of seven, all following him around like devoted pets.
[LEVEL UP!]Level 1 → Level 5New Skills Learned: 23HP: 100/100 → 300/300MP: 50/50 → 200/200
The leveling system worked just like in the game, but much faster thanks to his special bonuses from Admin. In the game, it would take hours of grinding to reach level 5. Here, he had done it in one afternoon just by learning and exploring.
As evening approached, Martha invited him to stay at her house for the night. She had a spare room that was simple but comfortable, with a soft bed and a window overlooking her flower garden.
Min-jun lay down on the bed and looked up at the ceiling. Through his window, he could see the two moons of Aetheria rising in the star-filled sky. They cast a gentle silver light over the peaceful village.
"This is nice," he said to himself. "Really nice. But..."
He opened his quest log interface, hoping to find some kind of adventure or challenge. The log was completely empty. No urgent missions to save princesses. No ancient evils stirring. No mysterious dungeons that needed exploring.
Just peace and quiet.
Min-jun had spent years dreaming of living in a fantasy world full of magic and adventure. And now he was here, but it was almost too perfect. Too safe. Too easy.
"Maybe I need to explore more," he decided. "There has to be something interesting out there. Some challenge or mystery to solve."
He opened his map again and looked at the larger world beyond the village. There were cities, forests, mountains, and oceans to explore. Maybe the peaceful village was just the starting area, and more exciting things waited further out.
One location on the map caught his attention: "Ancient Library of All Knowledge" located about fifty kilometers to the east. In the game, libraries usually contained rare spells and important information about the world's history.
"That sounds promising," Min-jun said. "Tomorrow I'll head there and see what I can learn."
As he drifted off to sleep, Min-jun felt a mix of excitement and uncertainty. This world was everything he had ever wanted - magic was real, he had incredible powers, and he could go anywhere and do anything.
But it was also nothing like he had expected. Instead of constant danger and epic battles, everything was peaceful and safe. Instead of being a hero who saved the world, he was just a visitor in paradise.
"I guess I'll figure it out as I go," he murmured as sleep took him. "At least the food is amazing."
Outside his window, his seven rabbit companions settled down in Martha's garden to keep watch. Even in a world without danger, they wanted to protect their new friend.
The two moons continued their journey across the star-filled sky, and the village of Beginners Rest slept peacefully through another quiet night in the most tranquil world that had ever existed.