Chapter Summaries

Lin Yuan left the Town of Beginnings at night and rescued two young boys from a pack of gray wolves. He refused to escort them north, leaving them to return to town and survive on their own.

• Lin Yuan headed north after leaving the Town of Beginnings, passing two boys who set out to level up despite warnings about nighttime wolves.
• Lin Yuan found the boys surrounded by four gray wolves and stepped in to fight.
• Lin Yuan used his sword and physical attacks to help the boys defeat the wolves, though he received no reward.
• The boy with the sword invited Lin Yuan to join them on the journey north, but Lin Yuan warned them to return to town and prepare.
• Lin Yuan refused to take responsibility for keeping the boys safe, and they headed back toward the Town of Beginnings.

Lin Yuan entered an abandoned orchard and fought six gray wolves and their black leader to test how monsters behaved in combat. He defeated them all, claimed a black shortsword, and realized the system’s attacks followed fixed paths that could be read and exploited.

• Lin Yuan found six gray wolves and a black wolf in an abandoned orchard, then discovered that his killing intent did not frighten them.
• Lin Yuan studied the gray wolves’ repeated attack patterns and maneuvered two into colliding before killing them with his cracked sword.
• Lin Yuan discarded his broken sword and used his hands to defeat the remaining gray wolves.
• The black wolf charged with a sudden burst of speed, but Lin Yuan let its fixed-path attack pass close and drove his broken blade through its head.
• Lin Yuan claimed a black shortsword and concluded that the system’s attacks could not change course once committed.

Lin Yuan studied players’ glowing weapon skills and adapted their movements into sword techniques he could perform without system assistance. After using his improvised techniques to kill three gray wolves, he decided to keep practicing.

• Lin Yuan found drinkable water and edible fruit near the orchard, then followed the river north toward the next village.
• Lin Yuan watched a party fight gray wolves and noticed how system-guided attacks used specific stances, footwork, and force.
• Lin Yuan practiced a swordsman’s horizontal slash and refined the movement without the system’s blue light or imposed pause.
• Lin Yuan observed seven kinds of glowing attacks and selected the movements he could adapt to a shortsword.
• Lin Yuan killed three gray wolves in quick succession using adapted sword techniques and told himself to practice again.

Lin Yuan explored an abandoned outpost and studied the sword techniques of its skeleton guards. After defeating all four, he headed north along the old road, thinking about how he could learn from stronger enemies.

• Lin Yuan followed fresh footprints into an abandoned outpost and watched two players retreat from its sword-wielding skeletons.
• Lin Yuan fought the first skeleton, testing its changing combinations and studying how it used footwork and balance to adjust its strikes.
• Lin Yuan read the skeleton’s movements, countered its attacks, and nearly struck its blue core before three more skeletons arrived.
• Lin Yuan used the first skeleton to block the others, then destroyed all four with rapid strikes to their cores.
• Lin Yuan left the outpost as the two players returned, then headed along the old road while reviewing the sword techniques he had learned.

After reaching the tower, Lin Yuan fought through its labyrinth alone and found a sealed stairway that would not open. He learned that the real door was higher up and searched for another route.

• Lin Yuan reached the tower after a month of honing his swordsmanship and entered its first-floor labyrinth.
• He avoided a group fighting outside and later defeated four guards in a hidden room.
• Lin Yuan took a separate route through the tower rather than joining an unfamiliar party.
• He found a sealed stairway and discovered it could not be opened from his side.
• After overhearing players say the upper levels were still being scouted, Lin Yuan found a dusty side passage and entered it.

Lin Yuan found the first floor’s boss room and chose to watch a raid team fight the guard before confronting it himself. As the players entered, he waited outside the doors to study the boss’s sword techniques.

• Lin Yuan watched a group of players discover the boss doors and retreat to gather allies rather than open them unprepared.
• After the players left, Lin Yuan felt something enormous moving behind the doors but decided not to enter alone.
• Lin Yuan found a ledge overlooking the hall and prepared his shortsword while planning to observe a raid.
• The next day, a blue-haired young man led groups of players into the boss room after checking their formation and equipment.
• Lin Yuan approached the open doorway and watched the players raise shields against the first floor’s guard, waiting to study its attacks.

Lin Yuan entered a raid battle and defeated the first-floor guardian alone after rescuing Diabel from its attack. The players discovered that Lin Yuan had no level or health bar.

• Lin Yuan watched the raid team fight the giant kobold guardian and noticed how its footwork extended the reach of its attacks.
• When the guardian changed weapons and caught Diabel off guard, Lin Yuan pulled him clear and knocked the nodachi aside.
• Lin Yuan dodged the guardian's attacks, wounded it, disarmed it, and used its own nodachi to finish the fight.
• Diabel asked Lin Yuan what level he was, and Lin Yuan said he did not have one.
• The black-haired swordsman noticed that Lin Yuan had no identifying marker or health bar above his head.

After the first-floor boss fell, Lin Yuan refused Diabel’s invitation to join the next assault party and headed upstairs. Kibaou accused him and the other suspected beta testers of hiding information, turning the crowd’s attention toward the solo players.

• Lin Yuan received no experience, reward, or final-blow notification after the boss disappeared and the stairs opened.
• Diabel thanked Lin Yuan for saving him, and Lin Yuan told him that he had charged too early.
• Kirito asked how Lin Yuan copied the boss’s move, and Lin Yuan said he had borrowed its footwork rather than used a sword skill.
• Diabel organized the injured and invited Lin Yuan to join the next floor’s assault, but Lin Yuan declined and said not to count him in.
• Kibaou accused Lin Yuan of being a beta tester who had hidden information and the last attack bonus, prompting the crowd to look toward other suspected solo players.

After the first-floor boss fight, the party argued over beta testers, the changed boss weapon, and the missing last-attack reward. Kirito took the blame by accepting the label “Beater,” while Lin Yuan left the hall without resolving the accusations against him.

• Kibaou challenged Lin Yuan for not warning the party about the boss’s changed weapon, and Lin Yuan said he had only noticed it during the fight.
• Diabel accepted responsibility for misjudging the boss’s weapon and distance, but the party continued questioning Lin Yuan and the missing reward.
• Kirito admitted he was a beta tester and explained that old information could be unreliable, then urged the crowd to blame him for the advantage he had gained.
• The crowd coined “Beater” for Kirito, who became its focus as Lin Yuan recognized that he had taken the accusations upon himself.
• Diabel promised to check the battle records, while Lin Yuan denied having the reward and left the hall; he and Kirito exchanged a silent glance on the stairs.

Lin Yuan reached Urbus on the second floor but could not buy a longsword because the shop system did not recognize his items or offer him a purchase window. Kirito discovered he could not select Lin Yuan as a trade target and concluded that the system could not find him.

• Lin Yuan entered Urbus and tried to buy a longsword, but the shopkeeper's system did not register his payment or shortsword.
• Kirito entered the shop and found that he could open a purchase window, while Lin Yuan could not see it.
• Kirito tried to send Lin Yuan a trade request but could not select him as a target.
• Kirito gave Lin Yuan bread directly and confirmed that items could be handed over even though trading did not work.
• Kirito asked how Lin Yuan had avoided having a level, and Lin Yuan said he did not know.
• Kirito looked at the empty space above Lin Yuan and said that the system could not find him.

Kirito discovered that Lin Yuan had no player profile, menu, health bar, or logout button, and asked where he came from. Lin Yuan explained that he had been swept through a rift from another world into the Town of Beginnings, leaving Kirito to accept that he had never logged in.

• Kirito took Lin Yuan outside Urbus to investigate why the system could not find him.
• Kirito tested Lin Yuan's access to the menu and learned that Lin Yuan could not see its text or use it.
• Lin Yuan killed a horned beast with his shortsword, and Kirito saw that the wound on his hand bled without a health bar or kill notification.
• Kirito asked whether Lin Yuan was an NPC, hidden character, or tester, and Lin Yuan denied each possibility.
• Lin Yuan told Kirito that he came from another world, where a rift had swept him away from his companions and into the Town of Beginnings.
• Kirito realized Lin Yuan had no logout button, and Lin Yuan told him he had never logged in.

Kirito tested whether Lin Yuan registered as a player and confirmed that the game’s systems could not recognize him, while Lin Yuan explained that his magic remained unusable. After Kirito warned him that others might exploit his unusual abilities, Lin Yuan set out to find a blacksmith who could make a sword suited to him.

• Kirito tried inviting Lin Yuan to a party and transferring bandages, discovering that Lin Yuan could hold physical objects but was not registered by the game.
• Lin Yuan showed that he could not use magic, and Kirito realized his swordsmanship came from his own abilities rather than player stats or skills.
• Kirito asked Lin Yuan not to tell Kibaou about his status, warning that other players might pressure him to face dangers for them.
• Kirito suggested finding a blacksmith to make Lin Yuan a sword, and Lin Yuan headed toward the hammer-marked intersection.
• Kirito introduced himself again, and Lin Yuan replied with his name.

Lin Yuan searched Urbus for a blacksmith who could forge a sword to fit his grip and found Nezha, a player willing to try. Nezha began preparing a rough blank, while Lin Yuan set out to fetch the hard iron ore needed for the finished sword.

• Lin Yuan rejected two system shops because they offered only standard swords and enhancements.
• Kirito led Lin Yuan to Nezha’s player-run stall, where Lin Yuan described the longer, thicker one-handed sword he wanted to wield with either one or two hands.
• Nezha watched Lin Yuan swing his shortsword and identified how the blade’s balance and grip should be adjusted.
• Kirito paid Nezha a deposit, and Nezha told Lin Yuan to collect hard iron ore from the stone gully west of Urbus.
• A cloaked rapier wielder brought Kirito a route to the west, while Lin Yuan memorized the stone gully’s location and decided to fetch the ore himself.

Lin Yuan retrieved black iron ore from a gully guarded by rock bulls and delivered it to Nezha through Kirito. At Nezha's stall, a player accused the blacksmith of losing his sword, leaving Lin Yuan waiting for his own weapon until the dispute was resolved.

• Lin Yuan defeated two rock bulls and extracted a piece of black iron ore from the gully wall.
• Lin Yuan carried the ore to the city gate, where Kirito confirmed it could be stored in his inventory but was not recognized as Lin Yuan's property.
• Lin Yuan and Kirito found a player arguing with Nezha over a sword that had disappeared after an enhancement.
• Kirito and the rapier wielder questioned the complainant about the events surrounding the enhancement while Lin Yuan delivered the ore to Nezha.
• Nezha said he had made Lin Yuan's rough sword blank, but Lin Yuan chose to wait until the dispute was settled before taking it.

Lin Yuan tested and received the custom longsword Nezha forged for him, while Kirito paid Nezha for the work using the ore Lin Yuan had collected. When a new route deeper into the labyrinth was reported, Lin Yuan prepared to continue climbing.

• Lin Yuan brought more ore to Nezha and tested the unfinished sword, adjusting his movements until Nezha identified where its hilt needed extra weight.
• Asuna told Nezha that investigators had found inconsistencies in the accusation against him, though they had not reached a conclusion.
• Kirito paid Nezha the labor cost after Lin Yuan gave him the extra ore to sell.
• Nezha finished the longsword, and Lin Yuan accepted it while keeping his worn shortsword for his off hand.
• A runner reported that the clearing team had found a new route deeper into the labyrinth, and Kirito, Asuna, and Lin Yuan prepared to move on.

Lin Yuan navigated the labyrinth alone and reached the first-floor Boss room ahead of the clearing party. He entered despite a scout's warning, determined to fight the Boss by himself.

• Lin Yuan defeated three minotaurs with his new sword and continued deeper into the labyrinth alone.
• Lin Yuan passed resting scouts, learned which path led upward, and ignored their request to wait for help.
• Lin Yuan avoided a pitfall and crossed a mechanical crossbow trap before reaching a giant carved door.
• Lin Yuan listened to the powerful creature inside and felt an instinctive confidence that he could defeat it.
• Lin Yuan opened the door and entered the Boss room despite the scout's warning, and the door closed behind him.

Lin Yuan defeated the second floor’s gatekeepers and giant beast boss through careful observation and precise swordplay. The floor was cleared, but no reward or record appeared for him, and he headed toward the open passage to the upper floor as the clearing party approached.

• Lin Yuan defeated the shield bearer and iron hammer wielder by exploiting their openings and turning the hammer against its owner.
• Lin Yuan killed the armored guard captain by striking a seam in its armor with the hilt of his sword, revealing the true boss.
• Lin Yuan learned the giant beast’s hammer patterns and dodged its shock waves by moving into its blind spots.
• Lin Yuan split the giant beast’s crown and pierced its throat, defeating the second-floor boss.
• Lin Yuan received no experience or recognition for clearing the floor, wiped his cheek, and looked toward the passage upstairs as the clearing party approached.

Lin Yuan defeated the second-floor boss alone before Diabel’s party could enter, leaving the group to investigate the empty hall and the missing last-attack bonus. He shared a warning about the boss’s attacks, then headed for the third floor while the others began scouting.

• Diabel and his party entered the boss room and found the boss defeated, the third-floor doors open, and Lin Yuan tending his wounds.
• Diabel questioned Lin Yuan about entering alone, and Lin Yuan said he had judged he could win and that entering was his decision.
• Kibaou challenged Lin Yuan about the missing last-attack bonus, while Kirito cautioned him not to treat guesses as records and Asuna urged the party to document the evidence.
• Kirito asked Lin Yuan about the fight, and Lin Yuan described facing three guard generals and a crowned beast that spread red patterns across the floor with a hammer strike.
• Diabel sent teams to scout the third-floor route, while Lin Yuan headed toward the stairs.

Lin Yuan explored Aincrad’s third-floor forest, practiced a new sword technique, and searched for a way back to Fairy Tail beyond simply clearing the game. He left the assault team to scout independently and set out to watch for cracks or other irregularities in the world.

• Lin Yuan reached the third floor, passed two players who recognized him, and wondered what would happen to him after the game was cleared.
• Lin Yuan avoided two groups of elves and killed a vine-like monster, then repeatedly practiced turning an enemy’s momentum against it.
• Diabel organized the assault team’s scouts, rejected Kibaou’s suggestion to follow Lin Yuan, and assigned routes to map the forest and its supplies.
• Asuna marked where the two elf factions had appeared, while Kirito recorded changes to weapons and warned the scouts not to rely on the beta map.
• Lin Yuan climbed a cliff, found that his magic remained blocked, and decided to search for a breach in the world rather than focus only on the stairs.
• Lin Yuan left the assault team’s camp and continued through the forest, watching for places that did not fit the world.

Lin Yuan searched the third floor for the strange stone steps and trained alone while Diabel’s teams explored and prepared for the Boss. After joining the Boss raid as a reserve, Lin Yuan left to make his own way up to the fourth floor.

• Lin Yuan found concealed stone steps beneath the third-floor forest, but the characters that appeared when he touched them scattered before he could read them.
• Lin Yuan rescued two scouting players from a vine-armed monster and pointed them toward a ditch leading out of the looping forest paths.
• Diabel’s teams found the old road, while Lin Yuan practiced the monster’s turning movement and studied new creatures in the labyrinth.
• Lin Yuan agreed to join the Boss raid but stayed by the door as Diabel’s party fought and defeated the Boss.
• Lin Yuan told Diabel he would go his own way and climbed the stairs to the fourth floor.