Last Egg: Reincarnated as a Dragon in a Game 1 Chapter 1

His consciousness flickered to life, or at least, that's how it felt, as an all-encompassing darkness surrounded him. An attempt to draw breath proved futile, prompting a frantic flailing of his seven limbs—or rather, he tried to flap them, as they remained unresponsive to his will. Moments of panic ensued until a startling realization dawned: he had no need for air.

Then, a cascade of questions hit him: 'Wait a minute, why do I have seven limbs? Even counting my primary limb, that only makes five... Where am I, and why can't I move?'

Flashes of blue and red lights danced across his mind's eye.

'Did I suffer an accident? Am I lying in a hospital bed, trapped in a coma?' Desperation clawed at him as he contemplated this grim possibility.

He attempted to calm his racing thoughts and recall his past, but this only amplified his panic. A horrifying discovery emerged: 'I can't remember who I am… My name, my family, it's all gone… Do I even have a family?' The sole memory that remained sharp and clear was of a game he used to play: Lorenia - Land of Miracles and Magic, or 'LOMM' as the player base affectionately called it. This massively popular full-dive virtual reality game had taken the world by storm upon its launch. It was the pioneering video game to seamlessly integrate all five senses into its simulation, offering players an unparalleled immersion into another world, further enhanced by its lifelike NPCs and seemingly boundless possibilities.

Instantly, all recollection of the game flooded his consciousness, triggering a blackout from the sheer intensity of the information overload. When the agonizing pain eventually subsided, he found himself with perfect recall of every detail he had ever absorbed about LOMM. Based on his knowledge, he knew he was more than just an average player, despite never reaching the top ranks. However, this wasn't due to a lack of skill, but rather the inherent difficulties of a solo player and his peculiar hobby. Yes, he was a build enthusiast… one who devoted most of his time to crafting exotic and unconventional character builds. Achieving this was remarkable in itself, as most of his creations demanded rare and potent items that were exceedingly difficult to acquire. He would often spend weeks farming a single boss just to obtain a crucial component for a build. While many of his builds were peculiar and somewhat mediocre, he occasionally succeeded in forging powerful and unique combinations, which he then sold to affluent players online. This was both his livelihood and his passion.

His musings were abruptly halted by the appearance of a semi-transparent interface box.

Ding!

//

Welcome to Lorenia!

Please create your character.

<Continue>

//

This welcome message was instantly recognizable to any LOMM player; it was the very first prompt encountered before initiating character creation.

'Hahaha, my brain must be malfunctioning from lack of oxygen! Well, if I'm going to die, I might as well have some fun. I'll at least go out amusing myself.'

Ding!

//

Please choose your race!

Option 1: True Dragon

//

He attempted to mentally scroll down, but his efforts yielded no results. 'Huh? There should be more options… and I'm certain one can't play as a True Dragon. There was a 'Dragon Kin' ultra-rare race, but… Why am I even thinking this way? This is all just a hallucination, so of course, it's different.'

He proceeded to confirm his obvious selection.

Ding!

//

Please choose your gender!

Option 1: Male - disabled (incompatible race)

Option 2: Female - disabled (incompatible race)

Option 3: Genderless

//

The dragons in LOMM deviated significantly from typical fantasy portrayals. They were inherently genderless and possessed the ability to lay eggs independently upon reaching maturity and achieving a stable environment, requiring no external partner.

With no further deliberation necessary, he moved on to the next stage of character creation.

Ding!

//

Please choose your character name!

//

He began to ponder, 'What would be a suitable name for a dragon… It needs to be long and carry an air of dominance.' Taking his time, as there was no urgency, he eventually devised a name after several minutes: 'The first part will be Vesuvius, like that volcano; the second, Dragor, like… well, like a dragon; the third, Ignatius, derived from the Latin word for fire; and finally, the last part, Cremator, reminiscent of a crematorium.'

//

Please spend your starting stat points.

Stat Points (SP): 10 base + 50 race bonus

Starting base stats for the true dragon race:

Vitality (VIT): 7

Intelligence (INT): 17

Strength (STR): 4

Agility (AGI): 3

Defence (DEF): 21

Endurance (END): 8

Magic (MAG): 41

//

Within the world of LOMM, every participant was allocated seven primary attributes. The first, vitality, directly influenced hit points and their rate of recovery. Next was intelligence, which dictated the extent of time dilation, essentially accelerating a player's cognitive processes. This attribute was also a prerequisite for mastering more potent spells, and it leveraged formidable game servers to enhance players' computational prowess. Following these were agility and strength. Agility governed the player's capacity for swift and precise reactions and movements, while strength determined the maximum force and momentum applicable to any given action. A defense statistic was also present. This wasn't an absolute value but served to amplify the efficacy of existing defenses, whether from armor, magical barriers, or natural attributes like hardened skin or an exoskeleton. Endurance managed the player's stamina reserves and their resilience against poisons and other detrimental agents affecting the body. Finally, magic served to increase one's mana pool and the potency of their spells. It's important to note that the majority of abilities within the game were predicated on one or more stats that augmented their effects.

Gazing upon his available options, Vesuvius allowed a subtle smile to grace his lips. 'Hehe, if the baseline of commonly known humans possesses all stats at 8, then true dragons can be considered an exploit.'

As a dedicated enthusiast of character builds, he devoted considerable time to strategizing his point allocation.

'True dragons ought to possess a formidable dragon breath ability and access to an exclusive magic school. Both of these should be amplified by magic. Let's allocate twenty points to it. Furthermore, they boast a potent innate defense through their scales, so I shall invest twenty points into defense to further enhance these effects. The remaining points will be distributed equally between vitality, strength, and agility, ensuring sufficient physical prowess for combat.'

Vesuvius finalized his selections, prompting another interface with further choices to materialize before him.