Nyxfall 7: The Veilbreakers

Kai observed everything inside the hut carefully. The game had begun, and many had likely already started playing. But while it was just a game for others, for Kai, it was the foundation of the character he would use if he ever decided to take on the real thing one day.

The hut contained nothing beyond the simple belongings one might expect from a hunter in a bygone era—animal pelts hanging from the walls, a worn-out bow and a quiver of arrows resting in the corner, clay pots and wooden bowls stacked on a small shelf, a stone hearth with faint embers still glowing, a crude bed made of straw and animal hides on which Kai was seated, a hunting knife embedded in a chopping block, bundles of dried herbs tied together with twine, and a water jug with a ladle placed near the entrance.

Kai stood up, took the knife, and tucked it inside his simple villager's clothes. Then, he picked up the bow and quiver. Deimos Emporium had hard, blackened skin and shiny scales, and Kai had expected his character's appearance to change based on his chosen path. But he was relieved to see that wasn't the case—he was still very much human. There was no reflective surface to see himself in full, but from what he could tell, there were no alien features on him.

Before stepping outside, Kai searched the hut again, this time more thoroughly. He knocked on surfaces, listened closely with his ear to the ground, and checked for hidden compartments. His efforts were rewarded—a hidden wooden sword lay inside one of the jars. It was small, like a child's toy, but in this game, appearances were often deceiving.

As soon as Kai picked up the wooden sword, a window popped up:

[Hidden Item Discovered!]

Name: Worn Wooden Sword

Type: ???

Durability: 15/15

Effect: Unknown

Description: A simple wooden sword, roughly carved and small enough for a child to wield. However, something about it feels... off.

Just as Kai was about to dismiss the window, another one appeared immediately after:

[Hidden Quest Unlocked!]

Quest Name: Echoes of the First Blade

Difficulty: ???

Objective: ???

Reward: ???

A smile broke across Kai's lips. They might have changed the game, but the knowledge he had gained from playing the previous version based on the same technology couldn't be taken from him.

At its core, the Nyxfall series was a game of choice—stunning visuals, beautiful, movie-level storytelling. But unlike old retro games that only presented two or three predetermined options, Nyxfall had evolved. The earlier entries, Nyxfall 1 to 3, followed that limited format, but the fourth installment, released on holos, introduced more choices—still restricted, but far broader.

The major shift in Nyxfall 4 had divided the community, bringing in new players while alienating some old ones. The fifth game was more of an extension of the fourth, introducing new mechanics, but Nyxfall 6—that was the true culmination of everything before it. It brought both old and new fans together in a single, breathtaking conclusion. With its incredible VR visuals, it was a near-perfect game.

Kai hadn't looked too deeply into this timeline's version of the sixth installment, but in the one he had played, the rigid text-based choices were removed entirely. Every action a player took became a choice in itself. The main story remained the same for everyone, but the subtle decisions players made had huge, often unexpected, results in their character build. The game gathered data in real-time, implementing changes instantly. Back then, everyone had been in awe of how fast the developers worked, but now Kai knew the truth—it wasn't the developers at all. 

It was the Beyonders, ever-hungry for entertainment, never missing an opportunity to create it for themselves. Some main events in the game were the same for everyone, but occasionally, an unexpected choice would unveil crucial information, a powerful weapon, a rare relic, or an item of such immense value that a single player could become a greater threat than any monster in the game.

He recalled one of his friends who had played the game half-heartedly, just for his fans, making all the worst possible choices. By sheer chance, he had unlocked a unique quest that granted him one of the most distinctive character builds on the server. As a reward, he had received a magical giant pet frog—an absurd but powerful companion that later became the symbol of his guild's banner.

Had he kept the discovery to himself, he would have been the only owner of that pet. But after sharing his gameplay online, players who came after him could follow in his footsteps and unlock the same quest. However, since the story progressed in real time, older players who had already moved past that part of the game couldn't go back and do the same.

For the first time in the Nyxfall series, MMO elements had been introduced. In Nyxfall 6, players could access the multiplayer area only after completing their initial storylines, reaching level 50, and completing a class heritage quest. Only then could they leave their beginner regions and enter the main hub where all players gathered.

Kai wondered if Nyxfall 7 followed the same structure.

One thing was certain—he couldn't take anything lightly in this game. If he wanted a solid character build, he had to play to the very best of his abilities.

Storing the small wooden sword in his inventory, Kai finally stepped out of the hut.

And instantly, he was hit by a wave of mind-blowingly stunning visuals.

The hut he emerged from was connected to a larger one beside it, situated on a slight elevation above the rest of the village. Below, a beautiful settlement spread out before him, filled with huts and wooden buildings of various shapes and sizes.

A soft mist blanketed the village, the early morning haze lending an enchanting serenity to the scene. Few villagers moved about their business in the distance, their figures shifting through the fog. The settlement looked like an ordinary rural village, nestled in a sparse forest with an average-sized river running through it.

The village occupied one side of a hill, while the other side was packed with dense woods. In the far distance, massive green mountains with white-peaked summits loomed over the horizon.

"Come on now! We need to hurry…" the man waiting for him urged again.

A thought crossed Kai's mind—he could wander around the village for a bit, but the story seemed to be pushing him into another scenario. If he stayed behind or chose not to follow, it would count as one of his choices, causing the story to diverge slightly right from the start. Based on his previous experience, Kai knew better than to skip the tutorial-like beginning of the story. If Nyxfall 7 had any new features, he would miss them if he made the wrong choice here.

Kai quickly opened the game settings and switched the voice option from manual to neural thought projection.

One of the biggest reasons he had been so hyped for the VR version of this game in the past was its neural technology. For someone like him, who had never been able to speak in the real world, this world—so eerily similar to reality—actually gave him a voice.

It wasn't easy to control one's thoughts; players had to train themselves not to accidentally broadcast their first impulsive idea. But Kai had mastered the process long ago. He was probably the only true expert in neural thought projection on Earth's server. Some telepathic alien species might be better at it, but they didn't have nearly the same vocabulary as Earth's chatty, social creatures.

Kai formed a thought, and his avatar spoke aloud:

"Is this really so important, Uncle Liam?"

The NPC's face twisted in exasperation, his expression as lifelike as any real person's.

"Wasn't it you who begged me to take you hunting so you could train for your upcoming Slenshalan?"

"What is Slenshalan?" Kai asked, trying to gather as much information about his situation as possible.

The man gave him a bewildered look. "Is this some kind of joke, Renatus_Kai?" Then, shaking his head, he added, "It's the coming-of-age ritual for kids reaching manhood—the same one you've been nagging your family about for the past five years. This is finally the year you'll participate and make a name for yourself, so you can get a good job."

Then, squinting at Kai, Uncle Liam added with a teasing smirk, "Seeing you acting like such a brat, cracking jokes about it… Maybe you're not as ready as your aunt says you are."

Were NPCs always this sassy?

His first playthrough had been so long ago that Kai barely remembered how conversations with them usually played out. For now, he needed to come up with an excuse.

"Of course, I know that, Uncle. I was asking what it means for our people—you know, the deeper meaning and all that…" Kai tried spinning it into some philosophical nonsense.

The NPC smiled, patted his shoulder, and started dragging him along toward the forest in the distance.

"Oh! It's like that! Why didn't you say so earlier? It all started hundreds of years ago when…"