The Daily Life of the Late Bloomer Tamer

Chapter 1: Long prologue

"I won!"

　I, Yuta Sasaki, couldn't help but scream as I checked my PC screen. I was looking at an email in my mail folder.

Subject: To the winners of Law of Justice Online

　The content: Thank you for applying for the first shipment of Law of Justice Online. You've won. Congratulations!　

That's what it said in a very stiff sentence. And then there are the instructions on how to pay the software and warnings not to resell it.

Law of Justice Online is also known as LJO.

　3 years ago, VR game consoles were finally commercialized. This title is attracting attention in Japan and all over the world as the first Japanese online RPG.

　Initially, the title was called VRMMORPG. However, it has now been changed to VRWCORPG (Virtual World Connecting Online RPG).

　The LJO is using a new interface, the VR game console, which are different from traditional MMOs in so many ways that it cannot be described as an MMO. It's a new game genre that connects you to a new world, the LJO.

　But it seems the real reason is that the name "VRMMO" has already been registered as a trademark in many countries and could not be used. Well, as long as it's fun, I don't care if it's MMO or WCO.

　Several games based on other worlds and magic had been released, but this is the first RPG with a world so well-made and so vast. When I saw the extremely realistic screenshots, I was honestly impressed to see how good the game graphics is finally become. Although it sounds cliché, the catchphrase "It's like another world" is probably not an exaggeration. It's a cliché, though.

　The beta test was held for two weeks. The map was vast and almost as large as a normal VR game world, but it's well known among gamers that it was only 1/100 of the real size.

　Even though the game is only released in Japan, the selling price and the monthly fee are more than twice as high as regular game titles. Still, over 20 million applications were received for the first shipment of 50,000 units.

　It is said that the price is set at a high level to compensate for the fact that there are very few in-game charges, so the majority of users have no choice but to accept it. By the way, it is said that few costs that are there are only related to the appearance and the home interior. It is impossible to get enhanced items or limited strong equipment by paying. This means that the amount of money you pay is not directly related to your power.

"Good! Good!"

I never thought I could win. The odds of winning were one in 400, so I applied without expecting much. I even applied for the second shipment just in case.

"Then, it was decided."

What's decided?　The marathon gameplay.

Today is July 15th. The game's official launch date is August 1st. I still have summer vacation. My company has a slightly long summer vacation, 15 days in total. If I use my paid leave, I can take 25 days off.

"My rotten boss did the same thing last year. I won't let him complain."

The next day, I started to work vigorously. Perhaps this is the first time since the entrance exam that I pushed myself so hard for one thing.

The first thing I did was to apply for summer vacation and paid vacations at the company. Yeah, my boss didn't look too happy. But you're the one who's been pushing me to use my paid leave!　So I'm taking a vacation!

All that remains is food, clothing, and shelter.

Clothing. I'm not going outside anyway!　So I stocked up on many underwears, shirts, and shorts from hundred-yen stores that I wouldn't mind throwing in the trash without washing. I'll never wear the same clothes twice, just like a celebrity.

　Next is food. I bought a lot of frozen foods, instant foods, cup noodles, and chilled foods. I'll also buy rice. Ah, I should also purchase some supplements. The most important thing when playing the game is good health. If I break down, I won't be able to play as long as I want to. So, supplements are very important. What else should I do? I think I'll buy a lot of instant drinks. Coffee, tea, and green tea will be good. I've also bought a dishwasher. I don't want to spend too much time washing dishes.

The last one is shelter. My room is in a mansion building. It is fully air-conditioned, so the summer heat is not a problem. I made sure I had enough money in my account to pay the rent and utility bills. If the electricity is cut off, I'll be in trouble.

The bathtub can be pre-set and will start preparing the hot water on its own, so I can take a bath every day. It's a shiny coating type that doesn't need to be cleaned.

　As for cleaning the room...... It can't be helped but I have do it less frequently. In the meantime, I've decided to install a cleaning robot and an air purifier. I'll throw out the garbage once a week. I guess there's no other way.

I bought a new bed. It's a state-of-the-art bed for VR. In addition to the reclining function, the bed has a vibration and a weak electric current to stimulate the muscles and prevent muscle fatigue. It even has a massage function to avoid bedsores.

　Oops, I mustn't forget to upgrade the internet connection. I called the internet company, and they said their technician would be here in three days. I'm glad I could make it in time. I told my relatives and acquaintances that I would be out of town for a while. Well, I'm going to another world, so it's not a lie, right? I'll be free from the troublesome human relations. It's perfect. Now I can be a shut-in for a month.

"My shut-in castle is complete!"

I can't wait for the game service to start!

Then, time flew so fast. Tomorrow is finally the first day of the game service. I was so excited about the game that I made many mistakes at work, but I don't care. I'll be living in a virtual world from tomorrow anyway. I would only get scolded 25 days later. I'm sure my boss's anger will wear off by then. I hope so...

For the past week, I've been trying to gather information. I've been reading the official website, getting information on the beta test, and reading about the game system. I don't wish to be at the top rank, but I also don't want to be at the bottom. Since I'm going to play it, I want to start dash (early & fast start) and make a big difference compared to the second shipment players.

However, it would be boring if I knew too much information beforehand. It would lose its freshness. It's difficult to find the right balance.

That's why I focused on three things: official information, the professions I'm aiming for, and the general worldview. On the other hand, I don't know much about other jobs or information about the strategy in the game beta version. But that doesn't mean I don't know everything.

One of the most important pieces of information I gathered was that time moves four times faster in the game. I won't go into the details, as it's a complicated technology that involves electrical signals to the brain, but anyway, time in the game is four times faster than in reality. If you spend four days on the other side of the world, only one day will pass here.

There are also restrictions on the amount of time you can log in continuously and how long your character can sleep. I'm sure I can manage those because I don't have a real-time limit.

And most importantly, PK is not allowed in LJO. Pickpocketing and other forms of stealing are also not permitted in LJO.

Probably because they are aiming to create an environment where women and children can play at ease. It's all about having a good time in a different world. The TV commercials highlighting GM's quick response to calls clearly emphasize this point. There seem to be many controversies, with the netizens calling it "too warm" or "too peaceful", but I support the concept.

I don't get the appeal of PK or anything like that. As a solo player, I'm glad that I don't have to worry about PK. I'd like to say that it would be nice if we could all play together and get along.

They are also trying to reduce the competition for resources as much as possible to attract casual players. The items and monster drops will be adjusted to avoid strong players monopolizing the hunting grounds. I think one of the reasons for this is that there are not many in-game charges, so there is no need to incite players' competitive spirit.

There is a rumor that they are considering releasing additional packs for races (species) and items with additional in-game charges. So maybe that's their way to appeal to hardcore players.

"For now, I'll just pre-register."

And then the time for the service to start arrived. I've waited so long!

"5, 4, 3, 2, 1, start!"

I quickly logged in as soon as the service started.

I had already entered my user information beforehand. All I had to do was enter my character's name and start creating my character.

"Please enter your character name."

With the help of a support navigator who looks like a fairy, I proceed to make my character.

"The character's name is 'Yuto'."

I've been using this name for my game characters since I was a kid, so this time I'll use this name too.

"The avatar will be created. Would you like to use automatic support?"

"Yes, please."

"We will now create the avatar based on Yuto-sama's modeling data."

The avatar that floated in front of me is a rather good-looking male avatar. It worked. LJO's avatar creation engine, which some people call a God, did the job. It's based on me, so the face looks slightly like mine. The only difference is that it has silver hair and has been 200% beautified.

When the support AI told me that it was based on a user's face, I thought, "Oh well, it's fine. It's too troublesome to modify it". Even if people make fun of me for using a beautiful avatar, I can just say, "It's the default. I didn't modify it".

Yeah. Everyone wants to play with a nice-looking avatar. But If I spend a lot of time making it beautiful, maybe people would mock me and says things like, "Hey, He's putting so much effort into his avatar, isn't he?". No way, that's just too embarrassing.

I really like how this engine solves that problem. I'm going to keep my beautiful avatar without doing any modification.

"Would you like to be billed?"

In this LJO, the only thing you can pay for in the game is to change your character's appearance, but actually, there is one place where you can spend a lot. That is this first character makeup screen.

LJO allocates bonus points at the beginning to create a character, but you can buy these bonus points with money. There are pros and cons to this, but it's a nice service for working people who can't log in for long periods but don't want to lag behind other players.

"For now, I'll just charge Max."

There are people like me who are working, but there are who are not. I'm going to be charged 60,000 yen, with a maximum of 100 points. Well, there are a lot of traps in this billing service.

The first trap is the two-hour time limit. They claimed it was to reduce the server load, but I think it's just a way to try to make people spend more. I'll explain the reason later.

Once paid, you get bonus points. These are randomly given points to each character from the beginning and are different from the points earned through paying. You can redo this as many times as you like. The bonus points are random and range from 30 to 100, but if you get more than 60, you're lucky.

Next is the job selection screen. This is the second trap. There are over 50 lower-level jobs to choose from, and you are presented with 5 of them to choose from. So if you can't find the job you are looking for, you have to start over.......

If you redo your career choice at this point, you'll have to start from the beginning, from which you get bonus points. If you want to get the best results in both bonus points and jobs, you need a lot of luck. If you read the information beforehand and tried to get a rare job, then there is a high possibility that 2 hours won't be enough.

However, after two hours, you will be logged in with a randomly determined character. This is announced at the beginning of the character creation process, and it is also clearly stated in the contract. It is possible to redo the character creation, but you will have to pay again to get the bonus points. What a trap. Some of us will be paying several times to get started. Damn the management!

So, I have to make a compromise. I'll be happy if I get more than 150 bonus points, including the bought points.

There are two jobs I'm aiming for. Summoner and Tamer. Both of these professions are good for soloing. To be honest, I'm not very good at group activities, and I plan to play solo. I don't want to get involved with other people inside the game.

Summoner is a profession that uses magic to summon magical beasts to fight. It's like the Summoner in #inal #antasy. Of course, it is possible to keep the summoned magical beast as a party member for a long time, but it consumes a lot of MP.

A tamer is a Poke### trainer-like job. They can take up to five monsters with them. They can't use as many monsters as Summoner, but they don't consume as much MP since they are not summoned by magic. This makes it a more suitable job for solo players.

"Okay, here's where the real game starts."

The first bonus I got was 66 points. That's not bad.

"Please select a job."

"Eeto, ....... Well, the 1st try is a miss."

I got Swordsman, Soldier, Alchemist, Cleric, and Farmer.

"Let's start over."

"You will receive bonus points."

53. Well, that's right at my compromise line.

"Please select a job."

Woodcutter, Carpenter, Pharmacist, Angler, Crafter. It's all production jobs. I'll have to start over.

After that, I repeated the profession selection about 15 times, but the job I want didn't show up.

"Time limit, 30 minutes left."

This is bad. This is bad. Should I lower my compromise line?　At any rate, I'll keep trying until I have 15 minutes left.

And the time passed. 16 minutes left. I have 86 bonus points. And on the display were Archer, Lancer, Mage, Farmer, and Tamer.

"Tamer!"

I got it. I immediately chose the tamer. I checked the list of initial bonuses announced on the official website, and my Simulation was perfect. I've already exceeded the expected value of 150, so I have a lot of room to spare.

Tamer is a profession that allows you to use magical beasts. Although the tamer is avoided by party players who want to get more experience, the tamer is considered to be very strong as a solo player.

"Please allocate the bonus."

First, I spent 10 points and changed my race from the default human to a halfling.

My appearance is almost the same. A little shorter, maybe? This race has increased agility and intelligence, with a slight decrease in strength and stamina. They have extra bonuses for growth and natural skill. This is the best race for rear guard tamers. 176 points left.

The next step is to upgrade the basic equipment: for 20 points, I added the Beast master's Armor to the basic equipment. It's tamer-only equipment, and it gives bonuses to your Servant magic and taming skills. Well, the defense is only 1 point.

Now I need to spend 10 points to change the robe to "Silver Thread Robe" and 5 points to change the staff to "Ebony Staff". These should be quite good equipment for the early stages. I have 141 points left.

Let's increase the skills. The most important skill for a tamer to develop is the Servant magic. It takes 4 points to increase 1 level, but I'm going to use 16 points to get to level 5, which is the maximum I can get in bonuses. The higher this skill is, the more bonuses it will give to the monster's abilities, and it will also affect the success rate of the taming. 125 points left.

And the most important thing is to strengthen the initial monster. Tamers, Summoners, Necromancers, and similar jobs are given one random Servant monster at the beginning. You can strengthen it with bonus points.

First, I need to spend 20 points and choose an advanced tamer. This is a bonus that changes the possibility of the random mons you get initially. Normally, one of the monsters in the first area will be chosen, but it will select a monster from the second area if you take this option. Also, +1 to the monster's initial level. That's great.

Next, spend another 25 to get a special monster. This is a  bonus that makes the initial monster unique. Unique monsters are monsters that have been named from the start and have slightly stronger abilities and skills. It seems that many of them are boss monsters. This also has the effect of raising the monster's initial level by 1.

The monster enhancement isn't over yet. Use 20 points and select the extra skill. The initial monster gets a bonus for having a special skill from the start. Special skills are different from normal level-up bonuses; these skills can only be learned by completing special quests. This also has an initial level +1.

The next step is to spend 15 points to choose a Bloodline skill. This is a bonus where you get a random rare skill that you cannot learn by leveling up but can only be inherited from the parents. The scary part is that you never know what you're going to get. Oh well, I'll just pick one! I have 45 points left.

The last enhancement is equipment for monster. Apparently, this varies depending on the initial mons. I'm going to spend 15 points which is the maximum on this too. I have 30 left.

Let's use 15 points to change the initial capital from 500G to 3000G. 15 points left.

I also want to get the initial skills. You can get up to 8 initial skills. I currently have five skills: follower magic, employing, taming, wand, and cooking. I acquired the skills of harvesting, compounding, and alchemy. They cost me 5 points each.

The plan is to collect materials and use them effectively by blending them into potions.

Alchemy is a skill that is useful for production, and for tamers, it is essential from the middle of the game onward, so I acquired it. I heard that if a player has an item called "Squire's Pearl" made by alchemy, he can summon monsters like a Summoner. So, I'm thinking of raising this skill from the beginning.

I was interested in magic as well. But there was advice on the forums that suggested checking the initial monster first, then acquire magic compatible with it, so I decided to skip it this time.

By the way, the appraisal skill is given to all players as a basic ability for free, so there is no need to choose it.

I've used up all my points. Perfect. I even increased my initial capital. Fufufu. Let's start dash!

"Would you like a tutorial?"

"Hmm. Is it possible to take it later?"

"Yes, the tutorial is available in the help section. Also, the tutorial does not give you any benefit such as items or skills."

Some games give you money or items when you go through the tutorial, but I heard LJO is different. But I guess tutorials are important.......

"I'll take it."

" Roger that. The tutorial will now begin."

The tutorial was extremely simple. It was just a quick lesson on how to use your arts, skills, and production.

Well, now I won't have any trouble in the LJO.

"Welcome to the world of LJO. Please enjoy the unknown world."

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Translator note:

Halfling

Halflings are a fictional race found in some fantasy novels and games. They are often depicted as similar to humans except about half as tall and are not quite as stocky as the similarly-sized dwarves. Similar to the depiction of hobbits in the works of J. R. R. Tolkien, which are sometimes called halflings, they have slightly pointed ears, their feet are covered with curly hair with leathery soles, and they tend to be portrayed as stealthy and lucky.