The ferry sliced through the water.
It was nice weather. The seas had calmed down. The passengers didn’t have to worry about the choppy waves anymore.
Devon leaned against the railing, enjoying the gentle breeze and sunshine on his face.
It had been about 25 hours since he left his apartment.
They took the flight straight to Holy York, and they stayed at a hotel overnight—then took the ferry first thing in the morning.
They had been a few hours on a ferry already.
"Ugh... I hate the sea. I always get seasick. What about you, Devon?"
A young man walked over, rubbing his stomach like a pregnant woman, and then leaned over the railing, his arms dangling over the edge.
His name was Joshua, and he was also one of the selected participants of the draft—they took the same ferry.
Unlike Devon, Joshua only arrived at Holy York this morning and managed to catch the ferry before it left.
So it had been non-stop traveling for him.
They were apparently the last participants to arrive at the location.
"This is my first time at sea. It’s not bad. It is quite peaceful."
Devon said.
"You’ve never been in the sea? Not even in Innerworld?"
Joshua asked.
"I’ve never played Innerworld."
"No way!"
Joshua gasped.
He was seventeen years old, and since Devon was a year older than he was, he thought he must’ve played Innerworld.
Everyone was playing Innerworld, and those who hadn’t played it even once were as rare as a unicorn!
"You’re in a little bit of disadvantage then. However, I am sure that everyone has to start from fresh-new accounts.
"It’s a little shame, since I’ve already reached level 30 at my main account, but for the fairness sake, I guess it’s better for everyone to start from scratch."
Joshua said.
Devon nodded.
However, even though he hadn’t played Innerworld, it wasn’t like he was a complete newbie when it came to the game.
He had done his research and watched plenty of gameplay videos and streams from various professional players.
And he always watched the World Tournament.
"But since you were chosen, I am sure you will pick it up quickly. What game did you play to get chosen?"
Joshua asked curiously.
’I don’t know whether he is just curious or whether he is trying to learn more about one of his opponents.’
Devon thought to himself.
In the end, while they could be friends, they were eventually opponents, and all of them were trying to win the whole thing.
To become the next superstar that New America was seeking.
"Lords of the Mythic Legends."
Devon said.
"Ah, yes, yes. It used to be the world’s best-selling video game before Innerworld—during the Era of PC gaming."
Joshua said.
Lords of the Mythic Legends was a game that was 120 years old, and despite its age, it never lost its popularity.
Until Innerworld arrived.
Slowly, everyone shifted from Lords of the Mythic Legends to Innerworld, and the game slowly died.
Devon was playing it till the last day—till the servers were finally shutdown—even though he was all alone by then.
All of his friends from Einherjar had already moved to Innerworld by then.
"We’re about to arrive."
In that moment, Collin came from inside and looked towards the direction where the ferry was heading.
Devon and Joshua moved to the front of the ferry, and they could see an island finally coming into view.
"What’s that?"
Joshua pulled out his phone, opened the camera app, and then started zooming in to get a better look at the island.
Devon also looked through his phone.
The island, honestly, wasn’t that big.
Its edges were of rock. But it was the structure at the center that caught their attention. A blue box building.
It was a smooth, windowless, and box-shaped building. It was one of the simplest architectural designs they had ever seen.
However.
The building was tall, and it was basically the entire island—a small island, that’s why—but outside the building, there were some garden walkways andsmall benches for people to sit and enjoy the view of the ocean.
There were street lamps beside the walkways—street lamps were just black poles with a lantern on top—the metal of the black poles was spiraling around them, giving the appearance of a twisted rope.
’I am sure when those street lamps are lighted up at night, it will be very ambient to walk outside at night. I am not sure whether we are even allowed outside.
’Surely we are.’
Devon thought.
"That place will be where we stay the next couple of years. It will be our home. Let’s have some fun!"
Joshua excitedly pocketed his phone.
The ferry stopped at the island’s dock—it was just a small wooden dock—and then they lowered the ramp.
Devon and Joshua picked up their stuff—Collin, Emily, and the two men that Joshua came with made sure that they didn’t leave anything behind.
In that moment, they stepped down the ramp and, at last, touched the wooden dock with relief.
"Finally!"
Joshua took some deep breaths.
"The orientation should start soon, so let’s not waste any time, so follow me, the two of you."
Collin said and started leading the two young men up rock steps that seemed to have been carved straight from the rock and then continued up the garden walkway.
It led straight to the front steps of the building—there was just a pair of glass doors—and Collin twisted a key in the lock.
After the doors opened, they stepped inside and were greeted by a sight of a beautiful, modern-looking lounge.
It honestly resembled one of those art museums with plain white walls and paintings adorning the walls.
"They all must already be in the classroom. Follow me."
Collin took them through the hallway filled with doors on each side, and then they arrived at the stairs and followed it all the way to the third floor.
They then walked down another hallway and arrived at a crossroad of sorts, with the door placed diagonally against the corner wall.
The corner was pushed towards them, so it stood out from the rest of the wall.
"This is as far as I take the two of you. Good luck with the orientation."
Colln patted Devon’s shoulders and then headed out and soon disappeared out into the distance.
"Let’s do this!"
Joshua opened the door and stepped through, and at that moment, hundreds of students inside turned their heads at the same time.
They looked at them—they studied them—and they assessed.