《Player Killer》


 Beautiful, Broken World

    The fires around the village grew larger and larger, as if growing in proportion to each civilian killed. The smoke from the broken huts and smouldering corpses congregated in the sky like a dark storm waiting to unleash the forces of nature on the land.


    As the wind blew, the stormy smoke shifted positions, and the crackling of the fires died down.


    Circling above even the highest wisp of smoke was a murder of crows, waiting to feast on the charcoal flesh on the ground. They were only waiting for the perpetrators of the massacre to leave first.


    Through the haze of the fires, vague silhouettes could be made out. They had surrounded the remaining few villagers and were closing in, laughing among themselves, making idle chatter, and occasionally saying things that the villagers could not understand.


    With a smirk on his face, one of the men in fine armour swung his sword, severing the head of a mother protecting her children. The head fell to the ground with a thump, and before the children had even realised what was happening, a warm, red rain started to pour on them.


    A moment later, a great weight pushed down on them, knocking them to the ground. When they crawled out from under their mother''s corpse, they saw her head on the floor, and with wails of agony, they put two and two together.


    "Why¡­ why are you doing this?" asked an older gentleman among the crowd whose only hair on his head was a long, white beard. "We are all fellow humans. Surely there is some way we can settle this. If we have offended you¡­"


    Alas, no matter how much the old man pled, the surrounding attackers acted as if they had not heard it and continued going about their business, leisurely slaughtering the village.


    ¡­


    In a dingy, tribal village, orcs were feasting on roast pork over the corpses of their dinner''s children. Beneath the piles of pig-like human bodies, the few survivors trembled silently, gagging at the stench of their roasted kin''s flesh, swallowing back the vomit that threatened to spew from their mouths lest they attracted the monsters'' attention.Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.


    With fear in their eyes, those orcs on death''s door could only wait for death¡ªeither the monsters from their own race would kill them and eat them, or they would die from their wounds. Given that the tribe''s shaman had been one of the first to die, there truly was no chance for those shivering orcs to survive. Yet, perhaps due to the frequency of such atrocities, the survivors did not give in to madness and hung on to the hope of survival, the hope of living for those they had lost.


    Alas, that simple hope was worthless in the face of overwhelming power and brutality. When the pile of corpses was reduced, the survivors were discovered and quickly turned into pork chops like the rest of their clan.


    ¡­


    From the sandy shore of a summer resort, residents and tourists alike crowded to view the spectacular battle at sea.


    With every strike from the gargantuan sea serpent, huge waves would be sent towards its adversary, the spray from which formed beautiful rainbows in the gorgeous blue skies.


    As though it were holiday entertainment, the crowds began applauding, cheering on the hero who was battling such a ferocious beast.


    His flowing blonde locks dazzled in the sunlight, and even from such a distance, the crowd could tell that his eyes were as deep and mysterious and the ocean itself.


    Swirling his gold trident, the hero yelled, "Hydro-uppercut: Ocean''s Wrath!"


    Although it sounded like a load of nonsense, the crowd still cheered because as he said that, a whirlpool had formed around the sea serpent. Before the sea serpent even realised what was happening, the whirlpool seemed to reverse itself, shooting huge volumes of water into the sky along with the serpent.


    With a dazzling smile on his lips, the hero leapt into the sky to launch a barrage of attacks at the serpent before landing delicately on the surface of the ocean.


    As the serpent''s blood mixed with sea water showered down on the man, he stood motionless, as if in a daze.


    A moment later, someone among the crowd noticed something and asked, "Eh? What''s going to happen when that massive beast hits the ocean?"


    It took less than two seconds before all hell broke loose in the crowd.


    "This is it, we''re doomed!"


    "It''ll cause a tsunami, won''t it? We have to run!"


    "Don''t worry, that hero will stop it," a young boy shouted, brimming with confidence in the hero.


    Alas, the hero turned his back on the helpless civilians. As the serpent''s body crashed into the ocean, a colossal tidal wave soared up into the sky and rushed toward the shore. As if worried that the tidal wave would not reach those civilians quick enough, the ''hero'' launched himself off the ocean and into the sky, resulting in a blast of air that sped the tidal wave up.

 A Village

    In a quaint little village at the foot of a mountain, the NPC villagers were milling about. Peddlers were hawking their goods at stalls in the village square, the local baker brought out a fresh batch of bread, and the sound of hammering could be heard from the blacksmiths at the edge of the village.


    Two players, a gnome and a cyrmex, stood on a hill to the western side of the village.


    "Why are we here again?" Pu55yDestr0y3r typed, the text appearing above his character''s head.


    Pu55yDestr0y3r''s words appeared about about head height for his friend. The cyrmex, a species of ice cyborgs, answered, "I want to try a challenge I saw a streamer try the other day."


    "What challenge? This had better get me a tonne of XP."


    "Na, bro. It''s not like that. It''s just something streamers have been doing to test their skill."


    "Eeehhhhh?" The gnome sent an unamused emoji. "What''s the point then?"


    "Trust me, it''ll be fun. At worst, we''ll waste about five minutes."


    The gnome pointed at the cyrmex threateningly before moving the finger across his throat. "I swear¡­ This better not be a waste of time, I have dinner soon."


    Seeing the reluctant acceptance, the cyrmex player tapped on his keyboard as he explained the challenge. "The challenge is called ''A Village''¡­"


    In essence, the challenge was to kill an entire village of NPCs as fast as possible. That was a simple task for moderately skilled players; what made it challenging was that they could not wear any equipment or heal themselves. Additionally, they could only use pre-advancement skills and spells.


    Furthermore, the village had to at least be tier two so that the NPCs fought back, rather than simply cowering and waiting to be slaughtered.


    "Ehh? Sounds dumb."


    At this point, the cyrmex seemed to have had enough. "Go do something else then. It''s not like I''m your only friend in New Dawn."


    "¡­ I''ll just watch. Be quick though. I wanna farm black unicorn horns before dinner."


    After reading the response, the cyrmex sent an angry emoji and walked toward the village, removing each piece of his equipment as he moved.


    Even without his equipment, the cyrmex looked intimidating. Apart from the pale skin on his head, neck, and hands, the surface of the character was coated in a black, flexible metal with a haze of frost.


    Possibly to himself, his gnome friend, or his stream''s ten viewers, the cyrmex said, "The stream I watched did it in four minutes. I''m not that good, but I hope to at least do it in five."


    After saying that the cyrmex picked up his pace, galloping into the village.


    With the press of a button, the character swung his fist at a nearby villager, thus beginning the battle.


    The villager reeled backward with the damage, but a moment later, she stood up straight and started swinging at the player. The surrounding NPCs just watched the commotion.


    Although the villager was weak, by the time the cyrmex killed her with his bare hands, she had taken off 1% of his health.


    Looking at his screen, the player frowned. ''A normal village has around a hundred villagers¡­ This could be close.''


    He pushed up his glasses on his nose and got to work, his fingers moving faster than ever. This was perhaps the most exercise this nerd had done in quite some time.


    To the side, Pu55yDestr0y3r was keeping track of the progress.


    "30 seconds, 11 dead."


    The cyrmex lashed out with his foot, landing on a tall child''s temple, killing him instantly.


    "1m15s, 26 dead."


    His fist lashed out, crumbling the skull of another small boy.This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    "3 minutes, 68 dead."


    With each update from Pu55yDestr0y3r, the cyrmex''s health decreased.


    ''14% health with approximately 15 left¡­''


    The more NPCs a player killed, the higher their aggro would become, inducing NPCs to attack him without direct provocation. This put the cyrmex under even greater pressure.


    "¡­ 95 dead."


    ''5% health¡­''


    What looked like one of those children''s fathers rushed toward the cyrmex with a sword in hand, but the cyrmex''s racial ability [Frost Field] aided him in quickly dispatching this trickier foe.


    "¡­ 98 dead."


    ''2% health¡­''


    "100 dead! In 4:38! You smashed it!" Pu55yDestr0y3r spammed the applause emoji.


    ''0.2% health¡­''


    A grin broke out of the cyrmex player''s face as he leaned back in his chair. Then he spammed, "YYYYEEEEEAAAAAHHHHH!"


    The ''yeah'' was so big that it did not all fit on the screen.


    However, as he span around in his chair in celebration, he did not notice that one remaining NPC was coming toward him.


    "Boohoo!" appeared above the child''s head, the sound of tears.


    The child steadily advanced, holding up a wooden sword.


    "Mother! Father!"


    With those two words lingering in the air, the child lunged toward the cyrmex''s neck.


    ¡­


    Swinging their toy swords, three young boys were running through the streets of that little mountain village.


    "Wilbert, you''re the demon! You''ve got to let us kill you."


    "Yeah, Willy, you''ve got to die. That''s how this game works."


    The smallest of the three looked downcast. "I wanna be the hero for once."


    With a chuckle, the tallest of the other two said, "Do you think you could beat us? It wouldn''t work if you were the hero. Now just die already."


    The two boys lunged at Wilbert with their wooden swords, knocking Wilbert to the ground.


    "Fine, I quit!" With that, Wilbert stormed off back home.


    The two boys sneered before going to look for another kid to play the demon.


    With a grimace on his face, the boy stormed off in the opposite direction, intending to find someone else to play with or perhaps nip home for lunch.


    However, before he even turned onto the main street, the clanging of hammers in the forge stopped, and the hawkers'' cries turned from advertisement to pain.


    A strange, sickly scent filled the air, and Wilbert and the other villagers instantly noticed that something was amiss. While the villagers were standing around with confused looks on their faces, Wilbert quickly ran to hide behind one of the huts, peeking around the side to observe the situation.


    With every minute that passed, screams of despair tore through the usually peaceful village before being silenced not long after. Each scream pierced through Wilbert''s will, making him inch further behind the hunt until he could barely see the main street.


    Eventually, after what felt like hours, Wilbert saw it, the monster that was going through their village, killing each person one by one.


    The monster did not discriminate¡ªage, sex, race, none of that seemed to matter. With each blow from this monster, a person would suffer.


    The perpetrator seemed to be human dressed in black at first glance, but when Wilbert peeked further around to get a better look, he realised that it was not human at all! The black, metal surface was not armour or clothing but its body.


    The usually pure white dusting of ice on its body was now red, dyed by the blood of Wilbert''s friends and kin. In the black joints of its fingers, chunks of human flesh were stuck. Perhaps when this monster finished killing them all, they would reunite in his knuckles.


    Quickly hiding back behind the wall, Wilbert shivered in fear. Some monster was killing everyone he knew, but he was powerless.


    At that moment, Wilbert heard a shriek that sounded vaguely familiar. After taking a moment to catch his breath, he peeked around the wall to see the monster stomping on a woman''s head.


    ''Mother!''


    Tears flooded down the boy''s dirty, snot-covered face as the boot descended on his mother''s head, sending blood and brain matter alike spraying into the air.


    "You bastard!"


    From a side street, a middle-aged man covered in soot charged at the monster. With a sword in hand, he sought to kill the monster that had slain his wife so cruelly.


    ''Father, no!'' Too afraid to even breath loudly, Wilbert could only scream internally.


    When Wilbert''s father was a metre away from the murderer, a cloud of ice dispersed from the monster, slowing down the movements of all around him.


    Like a pig waiting to be slaughtered, Wilbert''s father could only watch as the incarnation of evil sent two punches to his face, thus ending his life.


    Pain, horror, anger, confusion, grief¡­ a plethora of emotions pervaded Wilbert''s soul as he collapsed to the ground, no longer bothering to hide.


    As the question of whether to run or join his parents entered his mind, the monster completely broke character. Until now, it had been silent, merely murdering, slaughtering, butchering. Out of nowhere, the first sound to come out of its mouth was a large cheer. The bastard''s cheering filled the town, and to the traumatised Wilbert, it felt like it would never end.


    ''This bastard killed everyone, and he has the audacity to cheer?''


    Staggering to his feet, Wilbert slowly but steadily walked toward the monster.


    Although it was anger that had prompted him to take the first step, it was grief and a longing to reunite with his family that made him keep walking.


    Following it''s bizarre cheer, the monster had not moved. Like the solidest oak tree, it stood firmly in the middle of the street.


    Wilbert approached from behind and gripped his wooden sword. If he could leave even a bruise on this bastard, it was better than nothing.


    Slash.


    The monster fell to the ground.


    [You have killed OldestAndWisest - Cyrmex (Level 33).]


    "Huh? What the¡­"


    [Non-combat villager killed moderate level player.]


    [Impossible event.]


    [Error log updated.]


    [Rebooting NPC instance.]


    Wilbert collapsed onto the corpse of the murderer, his head spinning, and his heart bursting.


    After a moment, the corpse underneath him vanished, and his body dropped to the ground, lying in the pooling blood of his parents, writhing in agony.

 I Need Help

    With a splitting headache, Wilbert slowly stirred from his sleep. Probably due to the emotional trauma, he body was racked with weariness and a dull ache.


    As he opened his eyes, he heard people on the street around him. ''The local militia?''


    He surveyed the surroundings, and to his surprise, the bodies and corpses were gone. Instead of the gut-churning, gruesome scene that he expected, instead of the soldiers clearing the corpses¡­ the street looked almost exactly as it had done before the attack!


    The ground was perfectly clean; the stalls were all open; the hawkers were shouting for people to come to their stalls; the blacksmiths were hammering; the children were running through the streets playing their games.


    Everything was just as it was before, except¡­


    ''Why don''t I recognise anyone? Who are these people?''


    Everyone in the village looked like they belonged there, like they had lived there all their life. However, none of them were people Wilbert knew. The villagers walked up to purchase goods from the hawkers as if they were old friends, the dashed through the stalls and through the crowds like they grown up there, and foreign faces filled the familiar family stores.


    While Wilbert sat there in a daze, not sure if this was all a dream, if he had died already, or if this was just a prank.


    ¡­


    "Thanks for coming over, bro. I need someone to keep track of my progress now that Oldest has gone offline."


    At that moment, a gnome and a human were descending the hill, heading toward the village.


    "No problem. Why are we both coming down? I thought it''s a solo challenge," the human replied with a thinking emoji.


    "I just want to survey the area, check for any hidden danger. Don''t want to end up dead like Oldest." The Pu55yDestr0y3r stopped to perform the [Rolling on the Floor Laughing] emote.


    "Where''d he find out about this?" the human asked. "And can I have a go after you?"


    "Yes, of course, but we''ll have to wait five minutes for the village to reset. And he heard about it on YouTube. You know how he''s an amateur streamer¡ªhe likes to keep up with this sort of thing."


    "Oh, yeah, he''s a streamer. So how did he die? Aren''t streamers supposed to be good?"


    The gnome sent yet another laughing face. "He was celebrating and missed a child. The child landed a critical hit with a wooden sword."


    "¡­" That was too ridiculous, but after a moment''s thought, the human typed, "Did he record that? That kind of dumb mistake has the potential to go viral."


    "I don''t know. He probably did, but I doubt he''d want to get famous from something so dumb."If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.


    By this point, the duo was in the centre of the village. From looking at their map, which covered the whole town, they could see that there were no strong enemies.


    "So it really was just bad luck, huh? Well, I guess it''s about time for me to start."


    As he typed that, he turned his character around to pick the perfect person to start with. Suddenly, his eyes gleamed as he spotted a boy sitting dumbly on the floor.


    "Look, it''s the kid who killed Oldest. It seems like fate¡ªI shall start with him to avenge Oldest."


    ¡­


    ''Village reset? YouTube? Streamers? What the hell is he talking about?''


    On the floor, Wilbert was busy processing what he had overheard from those two strange beings. Naturally, when he noticed them walking into the village while talking extremely loudly, he had paid close attention to them in case a similar tragedy happened again. What he would do if something did happen, even he did not know.


    ''They mention me killing that monster, so they should know him. I''ll need to move lest they start looking for trouble.''


    The human and gnome walked down the main street at a constant pace. Not once did they reply to the greetings of the hawkers or passers-by, nor did they even glance at the stalls. As if ever being in the village was beneath them, they simply walked while talking to each other, ignoring all else.


    Suddenly, the gnome turned his way. A frightening aura exploded out of him as he sneered, "My, look who it is, the mere child who raised his sword against Oldest. Fate must have brought you before me¡ªI shall sacrifice you first then send the rest of this village to their graves in memory of my comrade!"


    The gnome''s words boomed throughout the village, but other than a hint of fear in their eyes, none of the villages moved.


    Coming to his senses, Wilbert yelled, "What are you waiting for? Run!"


    But the villagers ignored his warning too, continuing with their business as if a dreadful being had not just sentenced them all to death.


    Wilbert looked around frenziedly, but there was nothing he could do¡ªall these people would die.


    As the gnome drew closer, Wilbert realised he would have to run away himself, but before he could even turn around, the gnome''s companion¡ªa human with an even more frightful aura¡ªsaid imposingly, "Mom''s calling us for dinner. We need to go now."


    Annoyance flashed across the gnome''s face as he turned to his companion. "Do I have time to try this? It shouldn''t even take five minutes."


    "I wouldn''t," the human replied in a deep, authoritative voice. His tone was almost regal, demanding those who heard it to follow his command. "She''s angry we haven''t done any homework tonight. Just do this later."


    "Ergh¡­ fine."


    And with that, the two bizarre, monstrous beings disappeared into thin air.


    ''What just¡­ Where did they go?''


    Looking around him, it seemed that no one else was surprised by the duo''s disappearance. In fact, it was as if they had not noticed it.


    "Watch out!" Seeing that a young woman was about to walk through where the gnome had just stood, afraid that the gnome might just be hiding, Wilbert rushed forward to push the woman out of the way.


    "The fuck do you think you''re doing?" the woman snarled.


    Noticing the commotion and the boy''s weird actions, the villagers crowded around him.


    "Just leave the young girl alone, will ya?"


    "You''ve been sitting on the ground like the village idiot all day, and the first thing you do is attack someone?"


    "We should call the guards. This is assault!"


    The crowd hurled insults and angry comments at the young man, who simply took it silently.


    Once the crowd''s yells diminished slightly, he looked up and asked, "Did none of you see what just happened? A man threatened everyone here and just vanished!"


    "Are you dumb, boy?" The crowd was clearly having none of it. "The only one threatening people here is you!"


    Their reaction threw doubts into Wilbert''s mind. Ignoring the crowd, he forlornly wandered down the street toward the village entrance.


    "Have I gone crazy?" he muttered. "Has the trauma made me hallucinate, or is there something else going on?


    "I need help¡­"


    [Help Centre]


    [Welcome to the New Dawn help centre. Check out our FAQs below, and if you can''t find what you''re looking for, ask your question in the input field.]

 Help Centre

    ''Help centre?''


    Standing at the entrance to the village, Wilbert shook his head, trying to get rid of the strange square filled with text in the middle of his vision. The square had a little red box in the top right, a long rectangle online the right-hand side, and large chunks of text everywhere else.


    A panicked expression appeared on Wilbert''s face as the box still had not disappeared. ''I really am going mad!''


    His arms flailing madly in front of him, he tried to make the box disperse as one would a cloud of smoke.


    One of his fingers passed through a blue, underlined word, and the content of the box changed.


    ''So I interact by touching it? How do I get rid of it?''


    Seeing as he could not get rid of the box by ignoring it, Wilbert decided to play this little box''s game and read the updated contents of the screen.


    [New Player Introduction]


    [Welcome to New Dawn, the world''s largest MMO due to our innovative approach and the freedom granted to players.]


    [There are fifteen main races in the world of New Dawn. Players will start in the village of their race, and your starting stats will be affected by your choice, but the limitations do not go beyond that. Click here for more information.]


    [There are nine main starting classes. Your race will not limit the class that you wish to choose, but if you choose a race that does not compliment your chosen class, you may find the game tougher in the beginning. Click here for more information.]


    ''That term again¡ªplayers. Classes? MMO? Stats? What are all these terms?''


    Wilbert stood there in a daze for quite some time before dismissing those thoughts.


    "Just what the hell is this box?" he muttered under his breath.


    [Searching for ''Just what the hell is this box''¡­]


    ''Huh? It heard what I said?''


    [User Interface]


    [The user interface in New Dawn has been designed to be as intuitive as possible¡ªsimple where it can be and detailed where it needs to be.]


    [By default, the user interface will be enabled. This can be turned off from the UI settings window.]


    [Along the bottom-right of the screen, you will find your quest menu, friends list, and inventory among other panels. At the bottom-left is the chat window to direct message friends. The top-left shows information as your mouse hovers over an object. The top-right shows the mini-map and button to view your discovered world map. The world map will show more information the more you explore.]If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.


    [To further customise your menus¡­]


    ''I don''t understand much of this¡­ Well, if my understanding is correct, I just have to change something in another box.''


    With that thought in mind, Wilbert muttered, "UI settings."


    Immediately, another box appeared.


    [UI Settings]


    [ ¡­ ]


    [Visible User Interface (   )]


    ''Ah, there it is!'' Wilbert grinned. He had no idea what was happening, but it seemed like he was about to get rid of these damn boxes. He extended his hand and tapped [Visible User Interface].


    The boxes disappeared, but as soon as they did, a sharp pain assaulted Wilbert''s mind as an influx of new information poured in. His vision flickered, and words appeared in his eyes.


    [NPC has activated player interface.]


    [Impossible event.]


    [Error log updated.]


    [Rebooting NPC instance.]


    Wilbert staggered forward across the road and into some woods, eventually collapsing on the ground against a tree. He forcefully bore with the pain and prevented himself from passing out as his vision flickered, splitting and merging, distorting and straightening, like a drunk man''s sight after a bar fight.


    When his eyes eventually fluttered open, he immediately clamped them shut, overwhelmed by what he saw.


    After taking a deep breath to calm himself, Wilbert opened his eyes.


    ''Fuck! Still there?!''


    Instead of the huge boxes in the middles of his vision, there were now small icons all around the edges of his sight. If he looked straight ahead, he could not exactly see them, but they were obvious enough that they were distracting and immediately noticeable.


    As described in the [Help Centre], there was a small circular map in the top right of his vision, icons like a backpack and heart in the bottom right, and a small speech bubble in the bottom left.


    Coming to the conclusion that he could no longer get rid of this, Wilbert tried tapping on one of the icons¡ªthe heart.


    [Stats]


    A new window popped up, and when Wilbert read through it, he was astonished. The window contained information about him, but it was broken down in a truly bizarre way.


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª


    Name: Wilbert


    Age: 14


    Race: Human


    Class: Villager


    Attributes: 1 STR, 1 DEF, 2 DEX, 1 (2) INT, 1 (2) WIS, 2 LUK


    Abnormal Statuses:


    - [Bug]: The developers have been told of your changes.


    - [Shock]: After a traumatic event, you still have not processed what has happened. -1 INT


    - [Slight Madness]: Tragedy has warped your mind. -1 WIS


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª


    "Hahaha!" Consumed by the ridiculousness of the situation, Wilbert burst into manic laughter. "What the fuck is this? Everyone dies, but then they''re replaced, and these new people act like nothing happened. Now I see some imaginary pictures and boxes? Fuck off!"


    [Stats Window Closed]


    "Hahaha!" This announcement from the system induced another bout of hysterical laughter. "Of course that worked¡­"


    When he recovered, Wilbert''s eyes glimmered with a steely determination. ''I don''t know what''s happened to me, nor do I know what any of this is, but I want to find out. I''m sure that the massacre earlier has something to do with all these changes.''


    He was about to go investigate the village and see how his changes would affect his interactions with the villagers when a familiar, obnoxiously loud voice interrupted his thoughts.


    "Finally allowed back online!"


    He looked up, and standing on the exact spots that they had disappeared from stood the short, ill-tempered gnome and quiet, almost subservient human.


    "Where is that child? He shall be the first to taste my wrathful fist as I bring vengeance to this village!"

 A Village Again

    After wolfing down their dinner and rushing their homework, the two brothers had run straight to their rooms to log back into New Dawn.


    When the familiar scene appeared, Pu55yDestr0y3r and his brother''s character, Alfatar, looked around. With the game''s gorgeous graphics, the village was so vibrant that it almost looked real at a glance.


    "Alf, can you see that kid anywhere? It would be somewhat poetic to start the challenge with him."


    Naturally, this was an online game, so the NPCs would not stay in position until the two logged back on. Thus, the duo looked around the village. However, after a few minutes, they had not found him.


    "Hmm, maybe he despawned?" Alfatar suggested. "You said he was part of the first instance, so he probably only stayed around because you were still in the area. Once you left, the game likely removed him."


    "Yeah, maybe¡­" While performing the [Shrug] emote, Pu55yDestr0y3r said, "I guess I''ll start with some random NPC."


    Pu55yDestr0y3r took off all of his items and surveyed the area. "I''ll start at the west side of the village and zigzag through the streets toward the east side. Don''t want to miss one and die like Oldest."


    In response, Alfatar sent a laughing emoticon. "Ok, I''ll go up the hill to track your progress."


    "Thanks."


    ¡­


    Hearing that the gnome was looking for him, Wilbert cowered behind a tree at the fringe of the forest. He peeked round the tree and observed¡ªthe similarity between this situation and the previous massacre was not lost on him.


    ''Another monster''s here, and I''m still hiding¡­ It''s not even worth trying to warn the villagers; they''ll just ignore me or call me crazy again.''


    At that moment, with a vicious expression on his face, the gnome made his move.


    ''Ah, it''s too late¡­''


    At the west of the village, a little girl was playing with a skipping rope. One end was tied to a pipe, and her mother was swinging the other for her.


    When the gnome approached them, the mother noticed and moved to shield her daughter from the stranger.


    But she was a step too late.


    The moment that the gnome''s fist made contact with the girl''s head, it snapped back. Blood spurted from her nostrils and onto her mother''s pale, flowery dress. The girl''s matching dress soon turned a dark crimson as a seemingly never-ending stream of blood poured out of her head. The light-brown skipping rope that she collapsed onto was soon dyed the same colour as her dress, and the wet crimson spread out to the far ends of the rope.Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.


    With another flash of the gnome''s fist, the mother collapsed onto her daughter, suffering the same fate, her dress turning the same colour.


    Wilbert held back the urge to vomit as the gnome dashed down a side-street temporarily disappearing from view.  However, while the gnome was out of sight, the terror-filled screams still filled Wilbert''s ears.


    Raw rage clouded Wilbert''s mind. He wanted to rush out and kill these bastards who seemed to be slaughtering people for sport, but the fear in his heart stopped him.


    Yes, he had rushed out, hoping to die, before, but that was in the heat of the moment. These strangers dying, whilst sad, were just that¡ªstrangers.


    Caught between those two emotions, Wilbert could only remain crouched behind the tree, rocking slightly back and forth.


    "You bastard!"


    A man charged out from God knew where with a sword, running straight for the gnome. However, the man''s skills were clearly not up to scratch as the gnome adeptly side-stepped his attack and finished him off with a powerful blow to the neck.


    Those two words¡ªyou bastard¡ªseemed to trigger Wilbert''s memories of the previous massacre, causing the anger within him to surge, instantly overpowering the fear in his heart.


    That fear was replaced by grief. A certain melancholy filled his face as he gripped the wooden sword in his belt.


    Like before, without putting much thought into it, he saw red. He scurried out of the woods, straight towards the gnome.


    When he neared the gnome, he draw the wooden sword and raised it high.


    However¡ª


    "Ha! You think I''m as dumb as Oldest? A mere kid like you thinks you can sneak up on me? There''s no way I would let down my guard at the last moment."


    The gnome turned around, his fist already flying for Wilbert.


    As the small but horrendously powerful fist flew to Wilbert''s face, he panicked. In his tizz, he messed up his footing and tripped. His head narrowly missed the incoming fist. Without even trying to protect his body, Wilbert extended his arm with the sword and¡­


    Hit the man''s crotch!


    [Critical hit.]


    [You have killed Pu55yDestr0y3r - Gnome (Level 35).]


    [You have gained 20,335 XP.]


    [Congratulations, you have levelled up.]


    [Congratulations, you have levelled up.]


    ¡­


    [Congratulations, you have levelled up.]


    [Congratulations, you have gained two new titles.]


    In a daze, Wilbert ignored the scrapes on his arms and legs as he looked at Pu55yDestr0y3r''s pained, dead body. The gnome''s final expression was a mixture of confusion and pain, and he legs were bent inwardly as if trying to suppress the indescribable agony he had experienced just moments before his demise.


    He stood up, and thinking of those messages, he tapped on the heart icon in the bottom-right of his vision. A box appeared in Wilbert''s vision, which he was weirdly getting used to, with a few changes.


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª


    Name: Wilbert


    Level: 18


    Race: Human


    Class: Villager


    Attributes: 1 STR, 1 DEF, 2 DEX, 1 (2) INT, 1 (2) WIS, 2 LUK


    Unassigned Attribute Points: 22


    Abnormal Status(es):


    - [Bug]: The developers have been told of your changes.


    - [Shock]: After a traumatic event, you still have not processed what has happened. -1 INT


    - [Slight Madness]: Tragedy has warped your mind. -1 WIS


    Title(s):


    - [First Blood]: Killed your first player. +50% Damage to Players.


    - [Crown Jewels Collector]: Dealt grievous damage to a man''s crown jewels. +50% Damage to ''That'' Critical Spot.


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

 Still Alive

    ''Crown jewels¡­''


    Wilbert shook his head and muttered, "Close", successfully closing the status screen.


    Glancing around at the lifeless corpses of an entire village, Wilbert turned around and ran back to the forest. He did not want to see much more of that horrifying scene, and he planned to observe what happened next¡ªto see if these villagers would be replaced too.


    As he crouched in the bushes, the anger coursing through his veins was still there. It seemed killing that little gnome had not helped ease his pain.


    ''I''ve killed both bastards involved in my parents'' deaths, but why don''t I feel better?''


    ¡­


    A few minutes later, the gnome respawned at the top of the hill next to Alfatar, who was spamming the [Rolling on the Floor Laughing] emote.


    "Oh, Alf, knock it off. It''s not that funny."


    [Rolling on the Floor Laughing] continued.


    "Alf, stop it!"


    [Rolling on the Floor Laughing]. [Rolling on the Floor Laughing].


    "I''ll tell Mom."


    [Rolling on the Floor Laughing].


    "Fine, I''m going to tell her."


    "No, please don''t. I''ve stopped."


    "Humph! Good. Did you see what happened, or were you just laughing at my death?"


    "I saw. To be honest, I didn''t know NPCs could do that. I''ve never seen one trip before."


    "Is that what happened?" Pu55yDestr0y3r replied. "I didn''t exactly see how he avoided my attack. I wasn''t really watching for anything like that."


    Alfatar sent a sniggering emoticon. "Did you start spinning in your chair like Oldest?"


    "N-no! I was just looking at a bird out the window."


    After a little more teasing, Alfatar commented, "It''s quite interesting actually. After the kid killed you, he stood on the spot before running back to the woods."


    "What?" Pu55yDestr0y3r seemed annoyed about one part of that comment. "What do you mean he ran back? You didn''t avenge me?"


    "Eh? It''s just some small fry. You wouldn''t bother with him if not for this challenge."Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.


    "Yeah, but he made me lose XP. How can I sleep knowing that kid''s still out there?"


    "It''s just some XP. Better than if you''d died to a player. Anyway, he''s probably despawned already¡­" Halfway through his words, Alfatar paused to think for a moment before continuing, "Actually, why didn''t he despawn before? He should have been inactive long enough, and his instance should have refreshed. Interesting¡­"


    Looking at the pondering emoticon above Alfatar''s head, Pu55yDestr0y3r asked, "What are you thinking?"


    "I''m thinking, what if the devs have added a hidden boss to this challenge?"


    "What do you mean?" Pu55yDestr0y3r did not get it. A boss, especially a hidden one, should be a high level, capable of dispatching all but the best players. No matter how he looked at it, the kid did not meet that criteria.


    "What if the devs have added a weak NPC that only comes out when a player wearing no equipment wipes out a village in a short period of time?"


    "A hidden boss just for this challenge¡­"


    "Exactly. The village should reset in a few minutes. I''ll have a go at the challenge and see if it triggers a similar enemy."


    "We should ask on the forums too."


    "Yeah, I have the recording of your attempt. Do you have Oldest''s?"


    "He was streaming it, so we should be able to find a copy."


    "Cool. Record my attempt, and we''ll post about it after."


    After saying that, Alfatar began to strip down. While he was doing that, Pu55yDestr0y3r put his equipment back on. Glancing at the system log, he noticed he had a system message.


    [Congratulations, you have gained one new title.]


    "Huh? A new title? I wonder if they''ve added some secret title for the Village challenge¡­''


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª


    [Lost Jewels]: Your crown jewels were violently stolen. You no longer have ''That'' Critical Spot.


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª


    "Crown jewels? Violently stolen? Alf, you don''t think¡­"


    "I didn''t even know you could get hit there¡­"


    ¡­


    While hiding in the trees, in the space of an hour, Wilbert''s world view was shattered.


    The bodies that lined the streets, the blood that coloured the ground like a red carpet, the claw marks in the dirt from where the villagers had tried to escape¡ªall of that disappeared almost instantly. As if the ground was quicksand, the villagers'' bodies and blood were swallowed by the earth, and the gouges were filled up like sand pouring into a hole at the beach.


    Once the village was ''clean'' again, while Wilbert was still reeling from the shock, the doors to all of the houses opened, and a hundred or so villagers poured out onto the streets. They greeted each other like they had known everyone for years and went about their business. Soon, there were blacksmiths hammering, bakers baking, and hawkers hawking, all where corpses of the previous residents had been just moments earlier.


    ''What¡­ Where did they¡­ Why didn''t they¡­'' Filled with questions he could not answer, Wilbert could only gawk at them. Before he even had chance to process what he had just witnessed, another massacre began.


    Stupefied, Wilbert stared at the scene blankly, having the most bizarre sense of deja vu. This time, it was that human bastard who had been with the gnome before the last attack. He used his fists, feet, knees, elbows¡­ basically any body part that could harm someone. In just a few minutes, almost everyone in the village was dead again. It was clear that this human was far more skilled than the previous two.


    ''Wait¡­ skilled? He''s more skilled at killing villagers¡­ Just what am I thinking? Have I become numb to this?''


    Lost in thought, Wilbert did not even notice the scream of "You bastard!" as a man rushed at the human wielding a sword.


    He only returned from his thoughts when he heard two people conversing.


    "It looks like that ignorant mortal will not appear before us."


    "Perhaps you did not perform the ritual correctly. He''s struck down two of our kind twice before, so there must be a way to lure him out."


    "We should depart for now. I shall activate the teleportation."


    ''Stuck down two of them? It sounds like they''re talking about me¡­'' Wilbert looked up and saw the human talking to the gnome that he had killed earlier.


    ''What? That bastard''s still alive?


    ''Does this mean that other bastard''s still alive?!''

 Fluebridge

    "You bastards! How are you still alive? Where''s the other one?"


    The rage that had been suppressed bubbled up, consuming Wilbert''s rationality. He charged out of the woods and toward the two monsters wreathed in a blue glow. They seemed to notice him shouting as they turned around toward him.


    However, before he even entered the village again, the blue glow surrounding the men abruptly brightened, and with a flash, the players disappeared.


    ''Was that¡­ teleportation?''


    While Wilbert did not know what those murderers were, as a resident of that world, he at least had a rudimentary understanding of magic and some of the more famous spells and abilities.


    ''They could be court magicians, so why are they doing this?''


    Caught in the throws of despair, Wilbert started laughing manically again.


    A few minutes later, however, his laughing was interrupted by the slamming of doors¡ªmore villagers had emerged from the surrounding buildings.


    Having taken one blow after another, Wilbert finally, completely snapped. He dropped to the floor, sitting in the middle of the street, hugged his knees up to his chest, and started rocking back and forth.


    [Slight Madness has progressed to Moderate Madness.]


    During his episode, a kind village draped a blanket over him, and another left him half a loaf of bread¡ªit seemed they thought he was some sort of beggar or war orphan. But it was a shame¡ªtheir kindness went unnoticed by Wilbert.


    ¡­


    "Was that that NPC?"


    "Yeah, I wonder why it appeared so late?"


    "Maybe I was too fast."


    "Could be that. You are a far higher level after all."


    "I guess the devs are still tweaking it. This is the first hidden boss of its kind."


    "We should report this on the forums, right?"


    "I think we ought to. I''ll post it tomorrow after school."


    ¡­


    When Wilbert awoke from his slumber, it was night, but it seemed dawn was not far away.If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.


    ''Looks like I passed out¡­''


    As he sat up, he realised that he had moved to one of the stalls, which offered him some protection from the elements. After getting to his feet, he neatly folded up the blanket and placed it on the stall before gobbling down the bread.


    "What should I do now?" Wilbert mumbled to himself. As he said that, that oh so familiar box appeared in his vision. He was of half a mind to close it immediately when he read the heading.


    [Beginning Your Adventure]


    [''What should I do now?'' is a common question for beginners who skip the tutorial. The starting villages should give you a grasp of the game''s mechanics, but you won''t find any quests there. It is recommended that players head to their nearest low-tier city. There you will find beginner quests and beginner class missions.]


    [Note: Low-tier does not mean worse; it''s merely meant as an indicator for the minimum level required for access.]


    [The low-tier cities include: Babybel, Fluebridge, Uxloam¡­]


    [If you wish to replay the tutorial, click here.]


    [For more information on quests, click here.]


    [¡­]


    ''A game? This dumb box thinks this is all a game? He.'' Wilbert did not even have the energy to laugh anymore, just putting the ridiculousness of the situation aside for the time being. ''The strange terms and wording aside, it seems this wants me to go to one of those cities.


    ''I don''t recognise many of them, but I know Fluebridge¡ªit''s only a day''s walk from here. I''ve visited the market there with Mom and Dad¡­''


    A wave of melancholy washed over him, but the next second a glint flashed in his eyes.


    ''Now''s not the time to be sad. I''ve been sad long enough. There''s a chance their murder is still out there, so I should be focusing on that.''


    After finishing off the bread, he patted off the dry dirt covering his clothes and headed straight for the village entrance, a steely determination emanating from his stern expression.


    ''I''ll go to Fluebridge for now. Whether these boxes are real or just figments of my imagination, heading to Fluebridge is as good a place as any.''


    The previous time that he''d travelled to Fluebridge, he had been with his parents. They had set off at daybreak and reach the city at dusk, and that was including breaks for rests and lunch. They had camped just outside the city and then attended the market the following day¡ªnot an uncommon practice for residents of the surrounding villages as accommodation was so expensive in the city.


    However, when Wilbert went this time, he did not need to stop for breaks, and he arrived before lunch.


    ''Was the city always this close? I know I left earlier, but still¡­''


    With a confused look on his face, Wilbert entered the city under the watchful eye of the guards.


    The colossal, white stone walls towered high above Wilbert. The finish on the pristine stone blocks alone was smooth, evidence that they were the work a master craftsman. Either side of the gate fluttered a blue flag with the coat of arms of the ruling family embroidered in gold.


    The south gate, which Wilbert had entered through, fed into the lower market. Similar to his village at home, there were hawkers trying to sell their goods, but the level here was vastly different. The scents of the street food assaulted anyone who passed, as if tempting them to just have a little nibble. The clothing on sale fluttered gently where they hung, like soft little clouds; one could tell in an instant how comfortable they would be to wear.


    However, as if impervious to such stimuli, Wilbert marched straight through the market, heading for centre of city¡ªCentral Square. The choice of destination was for no particular reason other than it was in the middle. He planned to decide where to go from there.


    ''Now what am I supposed to do? The box said something about quests and classes¡ªare those things that those bastards will come here for? Maybe if I listen out for those words, I can stake out certain areas and look for them.''

 Recruitment

    Unfortunately, like most plans in this world, it did not go as he hoped.


    After half a day of lurking in the square, Wilbert did not hear any mention of quests, classes, or players. However, he did hear that the training grounds and the market stalls nearby were much busier, so he decided to go and check it out before finding something for supper.


    ''Oh wait, I didn''t bring any money¡­ but I recall seeing lots of juniper bushes on the way here, so I should be able to scavenge something for dinner.''


    Since he would be sleeping rough outside the castle walls, scavenging for food would not exactly be more of an inconvenience; it would at least give him something to do.


    When he arrived at the market again, the assault on his senses did have more of an effect this time as he was paying attention to the details. When he smelled the roast chicken at one of the stalls, his stomach could not help but grumble.


    Unfortunately, with no money and nothing to trade, he could only swallow his saliva and try to ignore the dull ache in the pit of his stomach.


    He spent some time milling about in the market''s crowds, but he had no luck. In the end, he had no choice but to move onto the training grounds.


    Once he emerged from the market crowd, the training grounds came into view. The vast field was filled with brawny men bashing into each other, wrestling on the ground, and attacking what looked like scarecrows.


    The men were covered in sweat and mud, and they would occasionally jog over to the side to gulp some water and quench their thirst before rushing straight back out to continue training. As he watched them, Wilbert was filled with awe at their diligence; these men did not stop for a rest at all other than the very occasional water break.


    Wilbert then turned his head to survey the rest of the fields, and he was even more impressed by the people training further away. On the one side, there were soldiers equipped with bows and arrows firing at targets quite some distance away. Wilbert was not sure if he could even throw a stone that far, let alone hit the targets so accurately. On the other side of the warriors were people hurling orbs of fire and water and dummies.


    Mages!


    Wilbert had only ever heard about them in his bedtime stories when he was younger, so to see them in person took his breath away. The long dark robes, the cool pointy hats, the indifferent expressions¡ªWilbert was impressed by their appearance alone.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.


    At the entrance to the grounds stood a rugged man in thick plate armour. His neatly cropped blond hair was almost as long as the dusty beard that covered his jaw.


    Seeing as the man was at the entrance, Wilbert knew that he could not just enter the grounds to gather information. Thus, he decided that the best course of action would be to simply ask the man either for entry, or if that was denied, ask the man if he had heard of the terms ''player'' and attributes'' and so on.


    However, as he approached, before he could even say anything, the man turned toward him and started speaking in a booming voice, not dissimilar to a clap of thunder.


    "Hello adventurer, welcome to Fluebridge. We are a humble city on the border, prone to beast attacks. We are in need of your assistance. Would you be interested in temporarily joining our¡­ Wait a minute, you''re not like them."


    The rugged man frowned. The young man before him seemed to give off the same feeling as those adventurers, but looking at him once more, he realised that it was just some village boy.


    "Not like them?" Wilbert had no clue what was going on. He had simply been wandering through the area when this man ran up to him out of nowhere. "Who''s ''them''?"


    "Huh, you really are like them." The rugged man looked at the ground for a moment before returning Wilbert''s curious gaze. "Where are you from?"


    "A village a few miles south."


    The rugged man frowned, leaned closer, and inspected Wilbert. "You''re definitely not one of them. From the looks of it, you''re quite a good sprog. How''d you feel about joining the local military?"


    The man''s rambling had left Wilbert stupefied. "I¡­ er¡­ Who are you?"


    "You''re lucky you came today, kid. I rarely ever come down here for the recruitment. I''m Bairn, captain of the guard here in Fluebridge."


    "Capt¡­ captain of the guard?! I apologise for not recognising you sooner, sir."


    "Ah, don''t worry about it. Most fresh recruits and adventurers are like that, so I''m used to it. It''s not like I''m some famed warrior whom everyone should know."


    "Nonetheless¡­"


    "Anyway," the captain interrupted, "I know it''s a lot to take in, but it looks to me like you might have a talent for fighting. Since you''re here, why don''t you have a look around the training grounds?"


    "Talent for fighting? How can you tell just after meeting me?"


    The captain smiled. "I have a sixth sense for this sort of thing."


    After saying that, the captain turned around and headed into the training ground, and Wilbert followed behind obediently.


    After the two left, the reaction of those in the area could be split in two. The first set of reactions seemed to expect the captain to leave, as if him being there to recruit people personally was a waste of his time anyway.


    The second type was¡­


    "The captain of the guard moved? I''ve never seen him move before, and I''ve been playing for four years now."


    "Four years? The games not even been out that long."


    "Is this some event? Which of those NPCs will trigger the quest, the captain or the kid?"


    "Probably the captain. If this is an event, the kid might come back into it later on."

 Training Grounds

    "Our training grounds are split in three. First is our warrior division¡­ Actually, while we''re here, why don''t you have a go at their basic training?"


    Having been swept along by the captain''s impressive aura, Wilbert simply nodded.


    The captain shoved a dull sword with a blue handle along with a dented, rusty shield into Wilbert''s arms. "Take these training weapons. They won''t be useful against strong enemies, but against weak enemies and training dummies, they work just fine. Now, join behind those troops over there and follow the drill sergeant''s instructions."


    Meekly nodding, Wilbert did as he was told.


    The drill sergeant, a short, rotund man who did not seem to fit in with the environment, was pacing up and down the line of trainees. "And one and two and three and four. Set. And one and two and three and four. Set¡­"


    When Wilbert joined the line, the man did not even spare him a glance or explain anything; he just continued shouting his orders, and the other trainees seemed to understand what that meant. Each number signified a certain movement, and the set was for the trainees to reset their position to start again.


    After observing the others for a few minutes, Wilbert soon joined in.


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª


    [Basic Slash] discovered. Unlock progress: 1/100


    [Basic Jab] discovered. Unlock progress: 1/100


    [Basic Block] discovered. Unlock progress: 1/100


    [Basic Shield Bash] discovered. Unlock progress: 1/100


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª


    After completing his first set, the system sent a series of messages. Not really knowing what it meant, Wilbert ignored it and carried on with the exercise. After completing his second set, the progress of each move increased by one.


    ''I have to repeat each move to unlock it? What will unlocking it do?''


    Wilbert dutifully continued with the training, and Bairn, the captain, stood at the side observing. He had to take a break every ten sets or so to get some water, which showed his endurance was far worse than that of the other trainees. However, given that he was not yet an adult, let alone a professional soldier, that was to be expected.


    When he finally completed his hundredth set, a warm glow coursed through his body and headed toward his mind. As if the muscle memory from those one hundred sets had been imprinted into his mind, he completely understood those basic movements. Turning to observe his fellow trainees, his eyes filled with derision.This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work.


    ''What is this sloppy technique? His elbow is too far out, and his feet aren''t positioned properly. That guy''s not even holding the shield correctly. And he¡­ no, I literally can''t even.''


    As if sensing that Wilbert was done training there, the captain walked over and said, "Now that you''ve learnt the basics of swordplay, shall I introduce you to archery?"


    Having realised that he could easily learn new techniques, Wilbert nodded eagerly. "Yes sir, that would be great!"


    "I like your enthusiasm." The captain smiled and made his way over to the east side of the grounds.


    The archery field had several targets lined up, and the soldiers were constantly firing at them with surprisingly high accuracy. As Wilbert and Bairn approached the field, two soldiers who had nocked their arrows gently released the bowstring, placed their equipment to the side, and entered a small hut to the side.


    The hut looked like a small sports clubhouse or changing room. Against the side of the hut, in the shadow of the building, leant a man chewing on some straw with his hood up.


    "Abel, come see this kid, potential recruit."


    The man in the shadows spat out and removed his hood before walking over to them.


    With soft, flowing hair, perfectly smooth skin, and pointy ears, the man flashed a confident smile at Wilbert. "Welcome. Take these training weapons. They won''t be useful against strong enemies, but against weak enemies and practice targets, they work just fine. Now, join those troops over there."


    Following which, the man shoved a blue bow and a quiver full of arrows with blue shafts to Wilbert.


    Too busy thinking about what had happened before, Wilbert did not pay attention to the man''s race. He approached one of the vacant lanes and held the bow in his left hand. He observed the other soldiers, adjusted his grip, nocked an arrow, and released the bowstring.


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª


    [Quick Shot] discovered. Unlock progress: 1/100


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª


    Although the shot did not even reach the target, landing approximately ten metres short, the unlock progress still appeared. With a smirk on his face, Wilbert continued firing arrows like someone would take them away if he did not use them all quick enough. Whenever it looked like the arrows in his quiver were about to run out, the pretty elf would rush over to silently top them up.


    Soon¡­


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª


    [Quick Shot] discovered. Unlock progress: 100/100


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª


    The warm glow from before coursed through his body again, although this time, it was not as strong as before, probably because he had only learnt one skill, not four in a short period.


    While completing the unlock mission, Wilbert had noticed that the soldiers were using slightly different techniques. With the perfected [Quick Shot] in mind alongside his observations, he attempted another two types of shot.


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª


    [Balanced Shot] discovered. Unlock progress: 1/100


    [Long Shot] discovered. Unlock progress: 1/100


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª


    In approximately half an hour, Wilbert completed both of those new missions, and once more, as soon as he did, Bairn approached him alongside Abel and said, "Now that you''ve learnt the basics of archery, shall I introduce you to magic?"


    Again, as soon as he said that, he started walking over to the west side of the field, the mage training area. There were various training dummies spread out over the field, and mages were hurling spells at the dummies.


    With the captain''s introduction, a woman soon proffered a blue staff with a white orb on the end to Wilbert.


    "Welcome. Take this training staff. It won''t be useful against strong enemies, but against weak enemies and practice targets¡­"


    However, Wilbert did not accept the staff, nor did he hear her words. Instead, he was staring blankly at her.


    The black, metal skin, the frost exterior, the exposed face¡ªshe was a cyrmex.


    ''She''s like him, the bastard who killed my parents!''

 One of Them and One of Us

    The woman in front of him was the same species as the bastard who killed his parents.


    Naturally, Wilbert knew that they were different people, but that did not make it any easier when the memories of someone who looked like this woman standing over his parent''s warm corpses surfaced in his mind.


    Although he wanted to accept the staff and just move along, he simply could not move. He clenched his fists and gritted his teeth to stop himself from saying something that he might later regret.


    After a minute of silence, and despite Bairn''s urging, Wilbert did not move. The cyrmex noticed the twisted expression on the boy''s face.


    "Wilbert, is it? Is there something the matter?"


    "I¡­" After beginning to speak, Wilbert clamped his mouth shut. Honestly, he just did not know what he would say and did not want to get into trouble with this high ranking officials.


    Noticing his reaction, the female cyrmex smiled. "Feel free to say what you want to say. We won''t hold it against you."


    Abel and Bairn quickly agreed with her, so Wilbert slowly replied in a dark, rage-filled tone, "One of your people killed my family, my entire village."


    "I see." The woman did not seem offended by what he said. "Judging from your reaction, that should''ve happened fairly recently. I will not apologise on behalf of someone I''ve never met or for something I have not done, but as one of the soldiers who should have protected you, I, Geada, do apologise."


    After saying that, Geada lowered her head toward Wilbert.


    Seeing that someone so high up was lowering their head to him, Wilbert became flustered. "There''s no need. It''s not your fault but the fault of the man who did this."


    An embarrassed expression appeared on Wilbert''s face. "I know it''s not your fault, and my reaction was very childish, but as you said¡­ it happened just yesterday."


    ''Yesterday¡­'' As Wilbert said that, he realised just how much had happened in one day. ''They say time flies when you''re having fun, but I wouldn''t call this fun¡­''


    "I''m sorry for your loss." The three officers expressed their condolences before Bairn asked, "What do you plan to do, seek revenge? I should warn you, cyrmexes are naturally adept at magic, and their tough exterior makes them formidable warriors. I won''t try to stop you from seeking revenge, but you should hear the risks beforehand."This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    Wilbert smiled in appreciation. "Thank you, but I know the gap between me and that man better than anyone. Today is the first time that I''ve touched a real sword, and that man was clearly an experienced slaughterer."


    At which point, he turned to look at Geada. "Where do cyrmexes come from? I think I should at least have somewhere to aim for."


    "Hmm." The cyrmex touched her chin. The cold metal touching the soft, warm flesh would have frozen anyone else, but such a sensation did not seem to affect her, "Like most races in the world, we are spread everywhere. However, if I had to name a place that has a high cyrmex concentration, it would be the Frost Gale Republic in the north due to the naturally cool weather."


    Nodding, Wilbert replied, "The Frost Gale Republic¡­ Thank you, That''s very helpful."


    "No problem. Now then, will you give the basic mage training a go?"


    ¡­


    Half an hour later, Wilbert left the training grounds under the impressed gazes of the three instructors and with three more skills under his belt.


    [Wind Barrier], [Wind Cutter], and [Basic Thwack]¡ªtwo spells of the lowest tier and a staff attack. However, that was not to say that wind was the lowest tier element. The reason all the spells were wind was because the training staff was a wind staff.


    After asking Geada several questions, Wilbert had learned that each spell would require runes to cast, and runes were split into various elements. The basic elements were earth, wind, fire, and water. Staffs imbued with the power of an element could negate the need of runes of that element when equipped. Thus, the trainees had no need to waste expensive runes on learning such basic new spells.


    As he exited through the gates of the training ground, Wilbert was no longer thinking about the same things as when he had entered. Before, he had been concerned about the terms introduced by the weird boxes, but after, he was thinking about testing his new skills, learning what else the strange interface could do, and how best he should use his skills to slowly torture that cyrmex if he ever saw him again.


    ¡­


    "Who really was that kid? Why did you personally show him around?"


    The captain turned to Abel and replied, "He''s both one of us and one of them?"


    There was a confused look on Geada''s face when he said that. "I don''t understand. One of us? One of them? Who exactly?"


    With a smile, the captain explained, "As you know, I can vaguely detect when a strong adventurer passes, which is why I keep an eye on the crowds when I have time. When I saw that lad, I got that same feeling. But when I spoke to him, it became apparent that he isn''t one of them."


    "How is he different?" Neither of the vice captains really understood what he had said.


    "His mouth moved when he spoke."


    "His mouth moved?"


    "I don''t think I''ve ever seen someone speak without moving their mouth, except for some performers."


    The captain''s answer confused his vice captains even more.


    "Ah, I suppose you wouldn''t have noticed it. Perhaps it''s illusion magic, or maybe only some can see it, but those strong ones don''t need to move their lips to talk."


    Seeing as the two still did not really know what he was talking about, Bairn sighed. "Come with me to the gate. When one of them approaches, I''ll point it out to you. If you''re able to perceive it will be down to you thought."

 Another Function

    As Wilbert left the grounds, he could not help but feel that the weapons were a little much for him to carry. It was not that he was ungrateful, but for an untrained youth, carrying a sword, a shield, a bow, a quiver of arrows, and a magic staff was unfeasible.


    Planning to take off all of the equipment and reorganise it into a more comfortable arrangement, Wilbert moved to the side of the road and placed everything on the ground.


    However, just as he was removing the quiver from over his shoulder, he noticed another strap. He turned around to take a proper look and saw¡­ a backpack?


    ''I just put on the quiver a moment ago. When the hell did this appear?''


    With a frown, Wilbert tried to remove the strange backpack but found that it was seemingly stuck to his shirt. No matter how he tried to remove it, after removing one of the straps, the second strap would not budge.


    Having no other option, Wilbert removed his shirt. Yet, as if it had suddenly turned ethereal, the shirt passed right through it, and the backpack stayed where it was.


    Ignoring the odd looks from the other people on the street, Wilbert put his shirt back on and sat next to his pile of equipment, deep in thought.


    ''I don''t understand¡­''


    As that thought was floating in his mind, he noticed that the system chat icon in the bottom left of his vision was flashing. He tapped it and saw a message.


    [Congratulations, you have completed your basic training. You have gained access to the backpack function.]


    The backpack function, a staple in all modern video games, needed no explanation for the players. However, Wilbert¡ªsomeone who had not even heard of electricity, let alone a video game¡ªdid not understand it. However, the appearance of the backpack did remind him of something else¡ªthe backpack icon in the bottom right of his vision.


    He tapped the icon, which appeared to be brighter and more vibrant than before, and an empty box appeared above the icon. The box was large, but it was completely blank, containing no words, gridlines, or graphics.


    ''This¡­'' An idea suddenly came to him. ''What if¡­''


    Wilbert picked up the smallest item from his pile of equipment¡ªsurprisingly, the sword¡ªand attempted to put it in the backpack. Logically, the sword would not fit, but due to his hunch, the fact that his bag appeared as if by magic, and him not actually wanted the backpack, Wilbert decided to test his mad theory.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.


    ''If this works, with something tangible given by an external party, this will prove that this interface and those boxes are real, that I''m not mad.''


    As he slide his sword into the hole, his heart thumped with trepidation.


    The sword kept sliding, and it met with no resistance, meaning that it had not yet cut the bag. When the sword was fully in the back, it disappeared from his grip, and a small mosaic-like image of it appeared in the blank box.


    "It worked! I''m not mad!" Wilbert leapt to his feet, cheering, once more attracting the attention of passers-by.


    He sheepishly sat back on the grass and placed all of his equipment in the backpack.


    The sunlight beaming down on him felt invigorating, and he sat there, soaking up the sun, thinking about this interface.


    ''There are two confirmed benefits outside of the help centre. One¡ªI can easily store items. Two¡ªI can learn skills faster. I will need to test it further, but there''s a chance that it is not limited to combat skills.


    ''Once I get my revenge, perhaps I can use it to master a trade and earn an honest living.''


    Wilbert smiled at the thought. There was nothing honest about killing, and he was sure his parents would not want that for him. Heck, he did not want that for himself. However, sometimes, one had to do something they did not want to do.


    ¡­


    After dropping by a local adventurer tavern to enquire about the directions to the Frost Gale Republic. As it turned out, the Frost Gale Republic was one of the largest countries on the continent, covering most of the continent''s northern shore.


    Since Fluebridge was located toward the south of the central region, Wilbert had quite a distance to travel. Thus, he decided to head off immediately.


    ''The place where the largest population of cyrmexes live¡­ Even if I cannot find him, I should be able to track down his family, right? There can''t be that many members of their race who are so powerful.''


    When Wilbert arrived at the northern gate, he checked his belongings, particularly his camping gear since he would be sleeping rough, and set off.


    He did not need to take many provisions as he could forage for food if need be, and he did not need a map or compass due to the geography of the Frost Gale Republic.


    Apart from the time that it would take to travel there, Wilbert did not foresee any major difficulties, so he was relatively relaxed.


    However, just as he was passing through one of the villages in the periphery of the castle, Wilbert overheard something that he could not ignore.


    ¡­


    "Ok, so we''ve finished the basic training. Since this is your first MMORPG, I''ve made this smurf account to help guide you through the not so obvious stuff."


    The man speaking was an average-looking human. His height, weight, face¡­ everything about him was average.


    Conversely, next to him was an incredibly attractive young man. He was slightly taller than his companion, and one could see his toned muscles through his shirt and the patches in his armour.


    The attractive man sent an embarrassed emoticon. "Thank you again for this. You really didn''t need to."


    "Nonsense, its a bit of fun and a welcome distraction. Anyway, where was I?"


    "You mentioned the not so obvious stuff."


    "Oh yeah. You have access to your backpack, skills, and weapons. Now you need to know what happens when you die and some of the intricacies of farming XP."

 Atrocity

    "XP and dying?" The dashing noob was confused. "I kill monsters to get XP, and when I die, I respawn. What else is there?"


    The plain-looking man smiled. "This is what I mean by the not so obvious stuff. New Dawn is a great game, don''t get me wrong, but their tutorial skips over a lot of stuff. To full understand it, you either need to be an experienced player of this kind of game or spend hours reading through the help centre."


    The dashing noob nodded. Although he did not fully understand what his friend was on about, he could tell that the important explanation was about to come.


    "For starters, XP can be gained from anything¡ªnot just monsters. Monsters, NPCs, and players all provided XP. The XP systems for monster and NPCs is complicated, so I won''t go into it, but the XP provided for killing a player is relatively simple to calculate¡ªthe total XP is 20% of their total experience. For example, at level 40, a player will have earned at least 145,700 XP. So, the player or party that kills the player will earn a total of 29,140 XP. Then the XP is split between one more than the number of people in the party, with the extra portion being a last-hit bonus."


    The dashing noob chuckled and scratched his head. "That''s a lot of maths. Is this really necessary?"


    "You can enjoy the game without knowing all this, but if you want to actually get good at the game, numbers will become more important."


    "That makes sense, I guess. What did you want to say about dying?"


    "There was more to say about the XP system, but¡­" The man sighed. "I want to explain the respawn system. It has sparked some controversy, but the respawn system in this game is possibly the simplest in this genre¡ªyou respawn where you last logged in.


    "There are limitations to this. For instance, you cannot login in boss rooms, so you can''t get stuck in a respawn loop there. As for getting stuck in high level areas or repeatedly getting PKed (killed by a player), the devs seem to think it''s not an issue. Their official stance is that mobs move about randomly and likely won''t be there the following day, and players will eventually get bored. Unofficially, one dev said, ''Just don''t play the game for a few hours while players and mobs leave. Go outside, you fucking virgins.''"


    That comment had lead to the developer''s immediate firing. It''s a simple rule¡ªdon''t insult the people you''re trying to sell to.Stolen novel; please report.


    "Wow, that''s a little blunt." The dashing noob, while knowing it was rude, could not help but feel that perhaps some of these players could do with being away from the computer more. He sent a thinking emoji. "Is it really that simple?"


    "Yeah, watch." The player logged out and then logged straight back in. "Quick, kill me. I''ll respawn here in a minute."


    The noob killed his friend as he was told, and a minute later, his friend reappeared, just like when he was logging in.


    "That is convenient. It''s annoying in other games when you die and have to run across the whole map to get back."


    "Yeah, a pain. Oh look, now, it''s not as pronounced here as we''re low levels at the moment, but I lost some XP."


    "Ah, I''m sorry, I didn''t know."


    "Haha, don''t worry. It was just a couple of XP¡ªI''ll make it back in seconds. No, what I wanted to warn you about is level drops. When you die, you''ll lose some XP, but if you reach 0 XP progress on your current level and die, you''ll drop a level. This doesn''t often happen, but it''s worth keeping in mind."


    "Yes, I wouldn''t want to get careless. So, I basically always need XP in my gauge? I can just kill any old thing to gain 1 XP."


    "No, you can''t. That brings me onto my last tip. XP gain is dependant on level, at least when it comes to monsters and NPCs. If you defeat something a much higher level than you, you will gain a tremendous amount of XP. However, if you defeat something that is too much weaker, you won''t gain any XP."


    The plain-looking man looked around and saw a woman walking down the street with her baby. "Ah, follow me."


    He jogged over to the woman with his noob friend following behind. "This woman is level 2, which means that we will probably get about 10 XP."


    The man punched the woman in the head. She disappeared with a ''poof!'' and her baby dropped to the floor.


    [You have killed a villager (Level 2).]


    [You have gained 9 XP.]


    The same message appeared on both of their screens as they were in the same party.


    "Now," the experienced player continued, "if you kill that baby, we won''t gain anything as it''s too low levelled."


    The noob clicked on the baby. And with another ''poof!'' it disappeared as well.


    [You have killed a villager - baby (Level 0).]


    [You have gained 0 XP.]


    ¡­


    "Just kill that baby even though we gain nothing from it. This lower life form means nothing to us!"


    Wilbert had been listening to the pair''s conversation since he heard mention of skills and XP, but he had not looked towards them as he did not want to draw their attention.


    However, when he heard such shocking words, he instinctively turned his head, and he was just in time to see the man''s foot land on the baby''s head.


    The baby, still lying on its mother''s warm corpse, was instantly murdered. Under the force of the muscular guy in thick boots, the baby''s head popped like a watermelon in an industrial press. It''s grey brain matter, laced with streams of red blood, exploded everywhere. It covered the mother, who even after dying was holding onto her baby as if trying to protect it. The gooey mess even covered the two men, but they did not seem to care.

 Hidden Quest

    The snotty, smiling face was nowhere to be seen on the baby. In fact, its head was nowhere to be seen.


    Looking at the mangled, headless corpse of the baby and its mother, Wilbert felt that familiar rage course through his body.


    ''This fury is becoming more and more common, but that''s because I''ve seen so many of such scenes recently. Besides, this rage is a good thing¡ªit shows I''m definitely not completely mad. The day I don''t feel such anger in this kind of situation is the day I''m no longer human.''


    The bright red blood of the mother and baby that seeped into the earth seemed to have made its way into Wilbert''s eyes.


    He charged up to the two players and demanded, "Why would you do that? What did that mother ever do to you? What did her newborn baby ever do to you?! Psychos, complete psychos!"


    Stopping about five metres away from them, he shouted, "You, and the rest of your kind, are sick in the head. I don''t know who you all are or why you''re like this, but know that not everyone will stand by and let you act like this. The people will rise up and stop such atrocities!"


    ¡­


    "Oh, a hidden quest¡­ I''ve not heard of this one before."


    "A hidden quest?" The noob player was living up to name of being a noob.


    "A kind of story that arises when you meet certain hidden conditions. It seems killing a child before this NPC is the trigger. Huh, I''ve never heard of this one before." Even the noob''s experienced friend had not heard of such a quest.


    "Killing a baby is the trigger? The devs sure are twisted."


    "Yeah, they''ve made a lot of questionable choices and comments."


    The duo chatted, completely ignoring the words flying above the NPC''s head about his backstory, waiting for him to finish so that they could get on with the quest.


    ¡­


    "¡­ so I cannot not let you live. Until I find my parent''s killer, I will not let any of you live. Even if such a reckless attitude gets me killed, it''s something I cannot compromise on."


    As he said that, he tapped on the backpack on the interface and selected the shield and sword. The two items appeared in his hands, and he took up the stance that he had learned. He held his shield low and his sword high, pointed at the bland man.The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.


    ''He seemed to know what he was talking about earlier, so he should be the better fighter.''


    Contrary to Wilbert''s expectations, the two men did not react to the weapons in his hands nor his aggressive stance. Instead, they stood where they were and continued their conversation.


    "He should just be another weakling of a local village. These peasants mean nothing, and none of them are strong enough to challenge us."


    "Sir, prudence may be wise¡­"


    "Silence, I have been in this world far longer than you. Believe me when I say that he won''t be able to harm us."


    Perhaps their words were meant to taunt him or perhaps they truly were that arrogant, but Wilbert paid their words no heed.


    Reviewing the combat information in his mind, he imagined each stroke he planned to make.


    ''I will lead with [Basic Slash]. If I angle it correctly, they will be have to move to avoid it. Then when they move back, I will target the weaker one with a [Basic Jab], targeting his vitals. With one eliminated, I can focus on the more experienced fighter.


    ''Then comes the issue of what they call "respawning". I''ll need to remain wary in case they really do return. I don''t know how it works, but it''s a fact that I''ve seen two people walking about after they died.''


    With a plan in mind, Wilbert charged forward. He did not know any footwork techniques, nor was he particularly quick at running, but he was fast enough to close the distance.


    The moment he moved forward, the bland man summoned a weapon out of thin air and adopted an attacking stance. The man said something, and the good-looking man followed suit.


    ''As I expected, he''s the one I need to be careful of.''


    The two men stood facing Wilbert with their swords and shields in attacking stances, ready to make a move as soon as the boy was in range. However, Wilbert had other plans.


    When he was within a metre of them, he instantly activated [Basic Slash]. Wilbert''s muscles seemed to remember how to execute the attack perfectly, and without much thought, he performed the steps of the attack flawlessly.


    Since it was an extremely basic attack, his sword was not swift nor was it complex¡ªmost fighters would be able to predict and follow the move.


    So, it went without saying that the two¡­


    Why were they just standing there, doing nothing?


    ¡­


    "It''s just some villager. In these parts, none of them will be able to deal much damage."


    "Are you sure?"


    "Yeah, given all play time, you can trust me on this."


    The man playing on the smurf account and his noob friend were fairly relaxed as the villager charged toward them.


    Even when he activated an attack, it was only the most basic¡ªthey themselves had just learnt that very attack.


    "Let''s both use jab."


    "Not block?"


    "Nah, he won''t deal much damage."


    The two clicked on the attack command almost simultaneously. The character animation began, but before it thrust forward, their screens went blank.


    "What the¡­"


    "Lag?"


    A message appeared on the screen.


    [You have been killed by Wilbert - Villager (Level 18).]


    "Fuck off he killed us!"


    "How did a villager one hit us?"


    The two players were flabbergasted. They soon respawned and continued discussing what happened.


    "It seems we angers someone really strong."


    "Yeah, it must be a higher-level quest. We can just come back to it¡ª"


    The screen went blank again.


    [You have been killed by Wilbert - Villager (Level 18).]

 A Perfect Summers Day

    [You have killed ajskbdnks - Human (Level 2).]


    [You have gained 45 XP.]


    [You have killed DastardlyDashing - Human (Level 2).]


    [You have gained 45 XP.]


    After killing the duo with one slash, Wilbert had immediately jumped back to ready himself for their counter, but the expected counter never came.


    Instead, two lifeless corpses rested on the ground. A neat red line cut across their chests, out of which blood was seeping.


    ''I just killed two people¡­'' That thought lingered in Wilbert''s mind more a few seconds before he shook his head. ''No, not people, monsters. Only monsters could kill a mother and her newborn child and show no remorse.''


    Knowing that it was ridiculous to feel guilty about killing two heinous criminals, Wilbert instead turned his attention to what would come next. ''They did not even try to block or defend, as if they do not fear death in the slightest¡­ I suppose that''s a side effect of this "respawning".


    ''Anyway, they should be coming soon.''


    Wilbert retreated several metres away and got into a defensive stance. He did not know where they would appear exactly or if they were able to vary where they respawned, so he decided that it was best to remain cautious.


    Negligence after a small victory would be a terrible way to die.


    Soon, the enemy appeared again. However, it was only the one¡ªthe bland-looking man named ajskbdnks.


    ''It seems because the other man didn''t use that "login" spell or skill.''


    Without giving his opponent chance to think, Wilbert charged forward and activated [Basic Jab], aiming for the man''s head.


    [Critical hit.]


    [You have killed ajskbdnks - Human (Level 2).]


    [You have gained 45 XP.]


    ¡­


    [You have killed ajskbdnks - Human (Level 2).]


    [You have gained 45 XP.]


    ¡­


    After killing the man three times, Wilbert could not help but feel a real sense of fear building up in his heart. ''What kind of monsters can come back to life endlessly? Surely, there must be a limit!''


    As he thought that, he sent a sword slashing once more.The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.


    [You have killed ajskbdnks - Human (Level 1).]


    [You have gained 20 XP.]


    ''Oh? His level is different now. Do they perhaps have to pay for their respawns with spells? What happens if it reaches zero?''


    Upon noticing the difference in the man''s level, Wilbert quickly came up with a reasonable theory that was not far from the truth.


    ''That reminds me, that box with my information said something about a level.''


    "Stats," he muttered, and the familiar box opened up in front of his eyes.


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª


    Name: Wilbert


    Level: 18


    Race: Human


    Class: Villager


    Attributes: 1 STR, 1 DEF, 2 DEX, 2 INT, 0 (2) WIS, 2 LUK


    Unassigned Attribute Points: 22


    Abnormal Statuses:


    - [Bug]: The developers have been told of your changes.


    - [Moderate Madness]: Tragedy has warped your mind. -2 WIS


    Titles:


    - [First Blood]: Killed your first player. +50% Damage to Players.


    - [Crown Jewels Collector]: Dealt grievous damage to a man''s crown jewels. +50% Damage to ''That'' Critical Spot.


    Skills:


    - Melee: [Basic Slash], [Basic Jab], [Basic Block], [Basic Shield Bash], [Basic Thwack]


    - Range: [Quick Shot], [Balanced Shot], [Long Shot]


    - Magic: [Wind Barrier], [Wind Cutter]


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª


    After glancing at the box, he thought, ''I''m level 18. Is that why these two can''t put up a fight? But that can''t be. A person''s life and death are not decided by some number.''


    Annoyed that he had thought of something that made the lives of humans feel meaningless in his mind, Wilbert closed the box.


    ''Oh¡­ he''s running away.''


    While Wilbert had been looking at his stats, ajskbdnks had respawned and started running away.


    ''Well, no matter.'' He dropped his sword and shield to the floor before clicking on the backpack icon and selecting the bow and quiver.


    With a deep breath, Wilbert drew the bowstring as his muscles remembered and launched a [Long Shot].


    [You have killed ajskbdnks - Human (Level 1).]


    [You have gained 20 XP.]


    ¡­


    "Fuck this! Some villager is actually spawn trapping me!"


    Since they were in different locations, ajskbdnks and DastardlyDashing had slid into the direct messaging channel.


    "He''s still there? How many times have you died now?"


    "I don''t know. I''ve lost count. It should be more than five times."


    "And the NPC still hasn''t left? Do you think this is a bug?"


    "Yeah, it must be." ajskbdnks rubbed his weary eyes as he looked out the window. He took a sip of water from the bottle beside his computer before continuing. "NPCs should lose their aggro¡ªaggro''s basically their anger toward a player and how much they want to attack said player¡ªwhen a player dies."


    ajskbdnks sighed. "This really is annoying. I think I''ll head off for now. If you want, I can switch onto my main or make another account."


    "No, don''t worry. I think I''ll go off for a bit as well. Want to try again tomorrow?"


    "Yeah, I''ll try after work. Hopefully we''ll be able to start a real quest or something."


    "I look forward to it. Thanks for your help so far."


    "No prob. See ya."


    ¡­


    ''Hmm¡­ it seems they''re not truly invincible. He''s stopped coming back after six deaths.''


    With a frown, Wilbert sat on the grass next to his equipment as he stared at the spot that the player had came appearing from.


    ''Although, I don''t know if the rate at which he kept dying or other factors affected that. Well, it doesn''t matter. I will find out if six deaths is the limit of all of these bastards when I encounter my next one¡ªmaybe that will be OldestAndWisest, maybe that will be someone else. But all I know is that I have eliminated one of them.


    ''Killing is wrong, but on this occasion, the world is a better place for it.''


    Feeling pleased with himself, Wilbert lay in the warm, dazzling sunlight. The clean grass surrounding him, the bees buzzing around the flowers that peppered the area, the white, fluffy clouds that floated gently through the sky above him¡ªit felt like the perfect summer''s day to Wilbert.


    The surroundings showed absolutely no evidence that he had just killed the same man six times in a row.

 Jante Rainforest

    Seven days later¡­


    The thick undergrowth of the forest was almost impossible to pass through, despite a clear path on the ground passing through the area. Countless wild flora grew in abundance, making it impossible to pass through without scraping against several of the plants at any one moment.


    The tall trees blocked out most of the sun, and the thick fog filled the rainforest, further reducing what one could see. The air was so thick and humid that Wilbert felt as if he could drink it directly.


    After dispatching those two players, Wilbert had continued his journey north to the Frost Gale Republic.


    Although Wilbert was able to travel faster than before he first saw the boxes, he found that he tired almost as quickly. Previously, the path to Fluebridge had been well paved, and the journey had not been long. Thus, he had been able to make it in less than half a day without taking a rest.


    However, the path north was not as smooth. He had heard some travellers mention the Jante Rainforest, but he had not expected it to be so vast and its terrain so complex. Thus, after smoothly reaching the edge of the forest in just five days, his two days in the rainforest had been the polar opposite¡ªhard work with next to no progress.


    The Jante Rainforest was the true heartland of the continent; it was the centre of the central region, and even though it was not much further north than Fluebridge, the weather was drastically different.


    Inside the natural greenhouse, Wilbert could feel his damp shirt sticking to his skin.


    ''I was reckless. What the hell was I thinking?'' Wilbert berated himself as he fought his way through the bushes. ''Travel to some distant kingdom after some military officials taught me a few moves? Am I an idiot?''


    With every branch that he brushed aside, at least one small insect would crawl onto his arms. At first he would slap them or flick them off, but after spending several hours in the forest, he had quickly given up.


    As he wafted a particularly annoying fly away from his nose, he muttered, "What am I even doing? I can''t go back. Even if I wanted to, I don''t know how¡ªwithout a clear view of the sky, finding my way out is impossible.


    "I can only keep moving forward and hope for the best."


    A shimmer of determination appeared in his eyes. ''Yes, I can only keep moving forward and hope for the best.''This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.


    Those were the same words, but to Wilbert, they had a completely different meaning. ''I don''t know what I''m doing, nor do I know where I''m going, but I know what I have to do¡ªI will find the bastard who killed my parents and make him pay.''


    Thinking of that bastard, Wilbert remembered something, and a frown emerged on his forehead.


    ''When I killed OldestAndWisest, I seem to remember seeing a level by his name¡ªit was thirty-something. Now, I don''t know for sure what a person''s level signifies, but, as much as I hate to admit it, there''s a possibility that it is proportional to each person''s strength. That man is probably double my level, so if I faced him now, would I be able to kill him?''


    Wilbert''s level was only 18, so if that really was the case, he would stand no chance in the face of that monster. Thinking back to how easily he had killed those two bastards recently, he could not help but imagine himself in their situation.


    ''I cannot end up like that. I need to be stronger.'' Knowing no other way of getting stronger, Wilbert found a spot with slightly sparser greenery to sit down before muttering, "Stats."


    The familiar box opened up in his eyes, showing the same information as the last time he had looked.


    He studied the box, looking for anything that could be used. ''Hmm. Unassigned attribute points could be useful¡ªunassigned means that I can use them somehow. That''s certainly one to look into.


    ''With these abnormal statuses, I don''t understand what [Bug] is or what these developers are, and I can''t exactly go back and stop the tragedy, so I don''t see [Moderate Madness] going any time soon. Thus, it''s safe to say that I will forever be ''-2 WIS'', whatever that means.


    ''Titles seem to improve my attacks under certain conditions, but it doesn''t seem like it''s something I can improve. Then there are skills. I know from experience how powerful these skills are, but I have a feeling that I can''t just practice any random movement and make it a skill. I''ll have to try testing that one.''


    Of the information on the stats box, Wilbert could only try strengthening himself by finding more skills, possibly by levelling up, or by using his attribute points.


    "Help, what are attribute points?" Wilbert muttered. He felt stupid talking to himself, but that was the only way he knew to control the boxes.


    The moment he finished speaking, the help centre opened up again.


    [Attribute Points]


    [Attribute points are gained from levelling up. Each level up will grant a player at least one attribute point. Up to four more attribute points will be granted to a player with each level up depending on their skill.]


    [For more information on attributes, click here.]


    [For more information on levelling, click here.]


    ¡­


    While he was absorbed in looking through the information in the help centre, the fog dispersed, and what little sun made it through the canopy was constantly decreasing. It was late.


    Going from one extreme to another, the chilly nights in the rainforest were a stark contrast to the blistering, humid days.


    As he shivered, Wilbert noticed the changes around him.


    ''It seems I''ve been reading through all this for quite some time. I need to find somewhere to spend the night. I have a lot to process, and I don''t want to have to search for a solid spot when it gets much darker.''


    Remembering what he had learnt in his village and his experiences the night before, Wilbert looked for a firm, thick tree and started to climb it.

 Treasure Hunt

    When he woke up, Wilbert rubbed his bleary eyes. The sweat that had accumulated on his skin over the past few days had solidified over night and made his whole body feel stiff.


    After checking the vine was still tightly fastened around his waist, Wilbert wipes the dew off the branch and carefully stood up to stretch.


    The previous night, he had climbed a sturdy tree with branches that ran parallel to the earth to sleep on. In the tree, he would be safer from large predators. The vine around his waist was to ensure that he did not plummet right down to the ground if he rolled over in his sleep. Fortunately, his worries had been unfounded, and he had slept peacefully.


    Although sleeping in the tree was primarily to avoid large predators, large predators did not just include animals¡ªWilbert had seen players in the forest.


    Well, he had not spoken to them, so he could not be sure, but they certainly seemed like players from how they interacted.


    Furthermore, the way they moved through the forest was unusual. Wilbert had to fight his way through the bushes, and it was not like was weak¡ªhe had lived in a small village his whole life. However, the players moved through the undergrowth with ease. It was as if the plants that they walked through were made of clouds and moved out of the players'' way of their own accord.


    The presence of players in the rainforest added further pressure to Wilbert, who was already scared of danger jumping out at him. He knew that he should not just a group of people by one or two bad apples, but those were some really bad apples. Plus, Wilbert felt that they all seemed to give off a weird vibe.


    After stretching, snacking on some breakfast that he had foraged, and descending the tree, Wilbert set off the what he assumed was toward the north.


    Unbeknownst to Wilbert, standing in the bushes behind him was red-haired man holding a spear.


    "What''s an NPC doing here?" he muttered to himself.


    ¡­


    "Players, welcome to the Jante Forest event. The recommended level for this event is 20 to 30. If you are not in this range, please try again after the next recent."


    The chat window popped up with a long announcement message.


    "This week''s event will be a treasure hunt. If you find the treasure within twenty-four hours (in-game time), you will certainly jump leaps and bounds past your peers."This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    Those gathered within Jante Glade, a clearing at the very heart of the rainforest, started discussing the announcement in excitement.


    "I thought I''d be behind my friends because I started so much later than them, but if I participate in events like this, I should catch up in no time."


    "That''s only if you find the treasure."


    "Anyone done this before? What''s the treasure?"


    "I''ve not heard of this event before, sorry."


    "Me neither."


    The players gathered were all relatively a low level compared to many of the regular players in the game. In order to make sure that players could join the game at any time and be able to catch up to the top players, beginner events like this and similar events for various levels were held regularly in game, and the lower the level of the mission, the more frequently it would be held.


    Amid the discussions, a timer appeared on their screens, counting down.


    [23:59:59]


    [23:59:58]


    The discussions quickly stopped, and the players made to disperse in all directions.


    "Wait!" one player called out. He made his character flick his red hair to the side. "For those of you who have participated in such events before, don''t you think this event feels different? I might have some useful information."


    ¡­


    After leaving his tree, Wilbert had come across a couple of brown wolves. He had intended to leave them be and quietly pass by, but the wolves had seen him and begun to chase him. Left with no choice, Wilbert had summoned his sword and shield, and by stunning one with [Basic Shield Bash], he had dealt with the one at a time with a well placed [Basic Jab].


    [You have killed a Jante Vicious Brown Wolf (Level 12).]


    [You have gained 245 XP.]


    [You have killed a Jante Vicious Brown Wolf (Level 12).]


    [You have gained 245 XP.]


    [Congratulations, you have levelled up.]


    ''Hmm¡­ that felt easier than before, the movements and attacks. Is it because I assigned those attribute points? Surely numbers can''t actually affect the real world¡­ I should just stop getting surprised by stuff like this.''


    However, that was not the end of his troubles. Just as he was about to assign his two new attribute points, he heard rustling from the bush behind him.


    "Fuck off," he muttered to get rid of the box in his sight as he turned around.


    It was another brown wolf. Apparently the pack had noticed two missing members, so this wolf was tracking them down.


    The moment that Wilbert noticed the brown wolf, the brown wolf saw Wilbert, his bloodied sword, and the two wolf corpses.


    "Hooowwwwlllll!"


    It craned its neck up to the sky and howled like crazy. Before it had even finished its call, dozens more howls reverberated in the surroundings as if answering the call to battle.


    ''This is bad.''


    Wilbert briefly thought about silencing the wolf, but he shook his head and simply started running. In his mind, he had two options¡ªfight the wolves or escape the wolves. Naturally, although he had killed two wolves with relative ease earlier, he was still new to combat and was not confident in his skills. Besides, he did not want to fight if he could avoid it anyway. He, more than most, understood the pain that came with every death.


    ''Maybe I should try to find another tree to climb.''


    Alas, as he thought that, a wolf jumped out of the bush in front of him. He veered to the right, but there was another wolf. Every turn he made led to another wolf.


    He was surrounded!

 Bad Luck

    Surrounded by the snarling brown wolves, Wilbert was momentarily at a loss as to what to do. His grip on the sword and shield tightened as the wolves inched closer to him, tightening the circle, drooling dripping from their mouths.


    ''If I attack one of the wolves, I''ll leave my back exposed to the rest. I may be an amateur, but even I know that''s not good. Yet, if I don''t attack one, there''ll be no escape.''


    While he was thinking, another few wolves approached and joined the encirclement. It seemed the dozen or so wolves around him were far from all of the pack.


    Caught in such a predicament, Wilbert could only hurriedly formulate a rash plan.


    After surveying the group of wolves, he identified the brown wolf that was most isolated and charged at it.


    "[Basic Shield Bash]!"


    Caught up in the moment, Wilbert could not help shouting the name of the skill, perhaps to boost his state of mind, or maybe to jog the muscle memory and ensure it executed properly.


    The Jante Vicious Brown Wolf was stunned, but instead of attacking, Wilbert simply ran past it. As he ran, he returned the sword and shield to his bag before withdrawing the training staff.


    ''While I''m running, this should be the easiest to attack with.''


    He glanced over his should and saw the pack of wolves. ''What the¡­ There''s at least double what there was before!''


    The pack of wolves, which was more like a surging tidal wave, were hot on his heels.


    While still running, Wilbert looked over his shoulder, aimed the staff, and quickly activated a skill.


    "[Wind Cutter]!"


    Having gotten a taste for it, Wilbert shouted out the name of his skill once more.


    The skill seemed to summon a strong wind, which congregated at the tip of his magic staff, absorbing the energy within, before shooting towards a wolf at the front of the pack.


    "Yelp!" cried the brown wolf as the sharp wind connected with its nose. The wind blade seemed to slice straight through its nose, drawing copious amounts of blood. With a whimper, the wolf fell to the ground.


    However, that was just one of many. The other wolves merely leapt over it or ran round it¡ªthe loss of one more of the kin seemed barely an inconvenience, although the anger in their eyes seemed to somewhat intensify.Stolen story; please report.


    ''Hmm?'' After glancing to confirm that the spell had hit the wolf, Wilbert felt confused. ''I definitely hit it, but I didn''t hear the message. Did I not kill it?''


    Since there had been no kill notification, that meant the Jante Vicious Brown Wolf was still alive.


    ''Was that wolf just stronger, or is this skill not as powerful as the others?''


    On the verge of panicking, Wilbert tried his utmost to remain calm and think the situation through. The issue was that he did not know if that wolf was just stronger than the others or the skill was too weak. Thus, the simplest solution was to use the skill again.


    "[Wind Cutter]!"


    Once more, the wind congregated into a sharp blade and shot towards a wolf near the front. With another yelp of pain, blood gushed from the wolf''s nose as it collapsed to the ground, causing the eyes of the rest of the pack the glimmer with fury.


    Unfortunately, the kill message did not appear. To add insult to injury, when he looked back, he spotted a wolf with a large gash on its nose.


    The first wolf had got back up and rejoined the chase!


    "Dammit!" Wilbert could not help but curse out loud. He almost threw the staff aside, but he held onto it and simply returned it to his backpack before drawing the bow and quiver.


    ''The sword and shield will simply get me swarmed by the wolves, and the staff doesn''t even take them out for long.''


    With shaking hands, Wilbert tried to nock an arrow on his bow, but while running under such pressure, he simply could not accomplish this first step.


    In his annoyance, he hurled the arrow behind him at the pack and stowed his bow back into the backpack.


    With nothing in his hands, he focused on running. He avoided running through vegetation that he could not pass through easily and just about managed to maintain his lead.


    However, he was only human, and he had never trained his body before. Yes, he had helped around the village, but that had not trained his long-distance running.


    Before long, Wilbert started to notice that the pack was gradually gaining. At the rate it was going, if he did not find a solution soon, the pack would catch up to him within twenty minutes.


    ''Roughly twenty minutes, huh? And that''s if I can even keep this pace up¡­''


    It really seemed Wilbert''s luck was not with him that day. His thought was interrupted by the end of his path.


    A wall.


    A natural wall from a cliff face rose up before him, blocking the way forward. Wilbert turned around in a panic, but it was too late. The wolves had caught up and blocked off all paths of escape.


    Turning his sight back to quickly survey the cliff face, Wilbert realised that it was completely smooth¡ªhe could not scale it to escape.


    With no other choice, Wilbert turned to face the wolves, who were inching ever closer to him as if savouring their revenge.


    ''No choice but to fight. Although it doesn''t kill them, I''ll launch a [Wind Cutter] to slow down some of the wolves before drawing my sword and shield. If I aim it right, I should be able to knock several out for a minute or two.''


    As the blue staff materialised in his hand again, Wilbert went over the plan once more. ''If only I could use more powerful magic¡­''


    Alas, magic was not something so easily controlled. When the magic power circulated around one''s body, it was not unlike blood circulating. Could a person urge their blood to pump quicker? Magic power was similar. Running fast would make someone''s heart beat faster, but that was not exactly a conscious decision.


    ''I can only try.''


    Although he visualised the same circulation route in his body, this time, Wilbert imagined it rampaging through his body, the magic power like a flood of blood fracturing all the veins and arteries in his system.


    "[Wind Cutter]!"

 [Wind Cleaver]

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª


    Congratulations, you have discovered [Wind Cleaver].


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª


    Once more, the wind gathered. However, instead of the strong wind that he summoned before, a gale force wind seemed to come stampeding down the cliff face.


    When it reached Wilbert, it did not congregate around his staff like before but just carried on. Although, Wilbert did seem to sense that the wind narrowed when it passed him, sharpening its edge.


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª


    There were not enough runes in your inventory.


    Training Staff (Wind) hidden skill has been used¡ª[Overdrive].


    [Overdrive] Uses Remaining: 2


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª


    The gale blew past Wilbert and collided with the encirclement of wolves. Instantly, the front two rows were hurled into the air, dead before they hit the ground.


    The back row was also knocked back, but like those wolves that had been hit by [Wind Cutter], they were only slightly injured.


    Those wolves glanced at each other and their dead comrades before turning back to Wilbert and snarling, the saliva on their sharp teeth spraying towards Wilbert as they did so.


    Having no time to pay any attention to the notifications that were being announced in his mind, Wilbert attempted to summon another [Wind Cleaver].


    He sensed the same magic pathways as before, felt the blood-like circulation in his body, and imagined it coursing stronger than ever.


    "[Wind Cleaver]!"


    Like a majestic high wizard, Wilbert waved his staff along with his shout.


    He did manage to summon wind, but¡­


    Parrp!


    Rather than a gale, it was just the trapped wind from one of the dead wolves.


    [Skill on cooldown¡ª14:21]


    Sensing that nothing had happened, Wilbert paid attention to this notification.


    "Well fuck me¡­ Guess that means I can''t use this spell for some time," he muttered beneath his breath, feeling bizarrely embarrassed by his previous failure.This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    After glancing at the remaining wolves and seeing that there were only about half a dozen, Wilbert immediately drew the bow and quiver. Given that there were about thirty metres between the two parties due to his [Wind Cleaver], Wilbert made the snap judgement that he could fire some arrows off quickly before engaging in close combat.


    "[Quick Shot], [Quick Shot], [Quick Shot]!"


    Wilbert fired several shots in quick succession. The first shot hit a wolf in the eye, finishing it off. The second narrowly missed its target, as did the third.


    Given that [Quick Shot] prioritised speed over accuracy, along with the current, high-pressure situation, the fact that he had fired one so accurately was impressive.


    Two of the wolves on the edge had reached within ten metres of Wilbert, so he threw those weapons aside and summoned his sword and shield.


    As the melee weapons appeared in his hands the wolf on the right lunged at him. Wilbert could only pull his shield to the side to block the attack forcefully. The collision caused a small ache in his arm, but it was not as bad as he had expected.


    [Jante Vicious Brown Wolf (Level 12) has dealt 2 Damage to you.]


    ''2 Damage¡­ is that a lot?'' Wilbert did not even have time to think of a plausible answer before he had to deal with the second wolf, which had lunged, as well as the first wolf, which was already back on its feet.


    Now that he had his weapons in his hands, Wilbert managed to deal with those two as he had done with the previous wolves. He executed [Basic Shield Bash] on the second lunging wolf and then used [Basic Jab] to finish the first wolf before it had time to attack again. Once the one wolf was down, he killed the stunned second wolf.


    Just as he prepared himself to face the remaining four wolves, Wilbert looked up and realised that the wolves were already dead, with arrows lodged in their corpses.


    ¡­


    "What''s so unusual about an NPC being here?"


    "Yeah, there are elven tribes here. That''s nothing strange."


    "He''s probably delaying us so that his companions can find the treasure."


    The crowd did not seem to be convinced by the red-haired spearman''s words. Some started berating him, whereas others ''saw through'' his ploy and ran to search for the treasure.


    "Please listen to me. He''s a normal villager NPC; he shouldn''t be here. I believe he might have the treasure on him."


    "A villager? Are you sure it wasn''t an elf?" one of the players nearest the spearman asked.


    "Certain. While I was on my way here, I saw him battling two wolves. He used the basic sword and shield skills taught in low-tier cities; elf NPCs are either rangers or mages, right?"


    "That really doesn''t mean much. Why am I wasting my time listening to you?" typed an angry player, whose avatar was bulky and hairy.


    "WhY aM I WasTIng MY tImE LiStEniNg to YoU?" mocked another player. "Kid, listen to the guy. He might have found something, which will save us some time. If he hasn''t, we''ll waste a couple of minutes listening to him, and I doubt any can find the treasure that quickly since we have twenty-four hours. It''s not going to be a simple find and fetch task."


    The red-haired spearman used the [Applause] emote. "Exactly. Now, normally, I would have dismissed this as well. However, I happened to watch a video a while back where a streamer tried to feed a villager to the wolves in the forest. He managed to lure the NPC to the edge of the forest, but the NPC couldn''t enter.


    "It seems the devs made the vegetation here solid for the NPCs but not for us. This means, if an NPC is in this forest, it''s either a resident or part of some hidden task. Since he''s not a resident, he must be part of the treasure hunt."


    These details seemed to have won the spearman the crowd''s favour.


    "That makes sense."


    "I remember watching a video like that, so he should be saying the truth."


    "But why would you tell us all this?"


    With a smiling emoticon appearing next to his head, the spearman replied, "It''s just a game. I only hope that whoever finds the treasure will share what happened with me. I''m more interested in the story than becoming the strongest."

 Hes Definitely Special

    Following the red-haired spearman''s explanation, the crowd agreed to tell him what happened in exchange for the information given. Most of them only wanted the treasure at the end, and there was sure to be a video of the event online anyway¡ªbeginner events like this were as common as blades of grass in a field.


    The crowd dispersed, looking for the boy described by the spearman. The red-haired spearman''s party were the only ones who remained in Jante Clearing. The other two players with him were a ranger and a mage.


    The mage, a tall, skinny character, looked around and asked, "Which way shall we go?"


    "I can use tracking on him if you show me where you found him," the ranger added. The ranger was a short, cute girl. Small in stature and bust, freckles and dimples adorned her face. "You marked where you found him, right?"


    When he read that, the spearman player smiled and pushed his glasses up before replying, "Of course I did. Who do you take me for? Only an idiot would¡­"


    He paused for a moment before turning around and walking. "Ahem. Let''s try this way. I have a good feeling."


    The other two looked at each other and performed the [Facepalm] emote.


    "He''s always like this."


    "Yet he''s so lucky when it comes to random events."


    Having played together for so long, the spearman''s companions had long gotten used to his dopiness.


    The three-man party travelled through the thick, incorporeal undergrowth, looking everywhere they could think of. Since the spearman had seen the NPC climbing down a tree earlier, they made sure to look up at the trees, especially thick ones that could support a human.


    Whenever they saw other players, they would move away from them¡ªpartly because they did not want them to follow them, and partly because they trusted the players to not have missed any obvious spots. If that NPC was hiding in a less obvious spot, he would probably still be there if they were went back later.


    After about ten minutes of searching, when they were thinking of changing the direction of their search, they heard a commotion.


    As per their well-developed gamer habits, they ran straight to the source of the sound, and when they arrived, they saw a pack of wolves facing a cliff.This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it


    "Look at the back, that''s him."


    The other two looked where the spearman was pointing.


    The target of the wolves'' snarls seemed to be an unarmed NPC. He looked shorter and scrawnier than normal villagers¡ªas the red-haired spearman had said, he was just a kid. Although the game did not normally show an NPC''s expression, the players could see a hint of fear and dread on the kid''s face. Well, as well as they could see, given that they were quite far away, so the NPC was quite pixelated.


    "Should we kill the wolves?" the mage and ranger asked.


    The spearman performed the [Thinking] emote before replying, "Let''s wait a moment. He shouldn''t die straight away, and there might be more story if we wait."


    As the trio watched from the bushes, the wolves drew near. Suddenly, a blue staff appeared in his hand.


    "A villager with a training staff?"


    "I didn''t even know villagers could use magic¡­"


    From the side the three were commenting on the proceedings.


    "Oh, he used [Wind Cleaver]. That''s a pretty low-level spell. Not the lowest, though."


    "I didn''t know the villager class could use magic."


    As the majority of the wolf pack was wiped out, the players saw the NPC try to execute the same spell again.


    "Is this NPC an idiot? Does it not know about cooldowns?"


    "He''s really weird. He keeps shouting the skill names."


    Unlike the other two, the red-haired spearman was getting excited by this. "That means he''s a unique instance. He''s either got the treasure, or he''s part of a quest."


    Seeing as the NPC had failed to cast the spell, the trio assumed that he was in trouble, but contrary to their expectations, the NPC cast aside his staff and summon a bow and quiver.


    "A bow as well?"


    "And how come he''s summoning his weapons like that?"


    As usual, it fell upon the red-haired spearman to come up with a theory. "He''s a villager, so basic bow skills aren''t uncommon. As for that weapon summoning, could it be a unique ability, or could he have¡­ no, never mind, it''s probably a unique ability."


    Again, the trio assumed the NPC was in trouble. A bow was only useful at long range¡ªif the wolves got close, he would be done for. So, the ranger began attacking the wolves at the back with the basic [Long Shot] auto-attack.


    However, after only killing three of the wolves, the ranger glanced at the NPC and stopped firing. "Why is he using a sword and shield now? Wait, he''s only got one wolf left. Am I seeing things right?"


    "Once you started firing, he summoned more weapons, throwing aside the bow."


    The NPC soon finished off the remaining wolves. He looked up at where the other wolves had been, and there was visible confusion on his face.


    "Okay, I think we should approach him now," the red-haired spearman said.


    "I hope it''s a hidden quest."


    "Ergh, please have the treasure. I already have too much to do."


    ¡­


    Seeing the arrows lodge in the wolves'' corpses, Wilbert looked into the distance and saw three people running towards him. They seemed an unusual mix. There was a tall, thin chap with a staff, a red-haired spearman, and¡­ a really pretty girl.


    Although he was stunned at first, an observation immediately sobered him up.


    ''They seem like them, the players.''


    While holding his shield back up to defend against any surprise attacks, Wilber analysed what he knew. ''They killed the wolves with their arrows but didn''t attack me. So, it seems they''re not quite the same as the others, or maybe they want something from me. But¡­ what would they want with me?''

 Resist

    A gentle breeze blew down the cliff face, causing Wilbert''s hair to softly flutter. The sensation was a sharp contrast to when he had invoked [Wind Cleaver]. In the trees above, the chirping of birds could be heard, and through the heavy stench of wolf blood, he could smell the rainforest''s vibrant flowers.


    The setting was truly peaceful.


    Yet, his blood was boiling.


    The players who took what they want and killed when they wanted were monsters who deserved no compassion. They should be killed on sight, not given a chance to take from anyone else¡­


    ''No!'' Wilbert shouted in his mind. ''As I''ve already decided, I should listen to what they have to say; they could be different. I cannot be like those monsters from before and slaughter mindlessly.''


    As the players  continued to walk closer, a little voice at the back of his mind had been urging him to attack the players. Although he had almost succumbed to it, in the end, Wilbert had managed to resist the nagging.


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª


    [Moderate Madness] resisted.


    Your Madness has reduced to [Slight Madness].


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª


    With his hands full analysing the players'' movement and dealing with the aftermath of the voice at the back of his head, Wilbert paid the notification no heed.


    Warm beads of sweat were dripping down his brow, and the damp hair of his was cooled by the breeze.


    When the players were within ten meters of him, the red-haired spearman raised his hand and waved at Wilbert.


    "Greetings. We hoped to assist you in dealing with the forest vermin, but you dealt with them before we could do much."


    While the spearman seemed friendly, his two companions were staring at Wilbert with cold, expressionless gazes.


    Not expecting such a greeting, Wilbert was momentarily taken aback before he returned the greeting. "Hello, and thanks. I could have been in a difficult situation if not for your aid."


    As he spoke, he narrowed his eyes, looking at the trio with suspicion.


    However, under his scrutiny, the trio did not say anything; they did not even move. Wilbert became warier of them due to their strange non-reaction, and raised his shield a little higher.This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    Another gentle breeze blew past them, whistling in their ears.


    But still, the silence between them remained unbroken.


    Wilbert adjusted the grip on his sword, which had slipped slightly due to his sweaty palms.


    Deep into the forest, the forlorn howl of a wolf, or possibly wolves, could be heard, as if somehow knowing of and grieving the loss of their kin.


    But still, neither side spoke.


    It was not until several minutes later, when the awkward silence between them became unbearable, that Wilbert coldly asked, "What do you want?"


    The red-hair spearman immediately grinned, and it looked like he was about to talk when someone else beat him to it.


    "We''re looking for the treasure," the tall, skinny man perfunctorily replied, his gaze nonchalant.


    "I''m sorry, but I can''t help you. I don''t know about any treasure." He eyed the trio for a minute longer, but they did not move. ''Are they braindead? If they''re after treasure, why come to me?''


    Coming to the conclusion that there was something wrong with their heads, in a different way to the other players, Wilbert slowly edged away from them, keeping his shield raised and his body faced towards them.


    But still, the three players remained silent, in the exact same positions as before.


    After putting roughly thirty metres between them, just as Wilbert was about to turn around, he heard a shout from the forest.


    "Fuck, there he is! Get him, men!"


    Five young men emerged from the forest and immediately charged towards Wilbert.


    Seeing their instant aggression, he knew that they were the same as the players he had met before. ''Shit! More of these players, and so many of them at once!''


    Shooting a venomous glance at the trio who had approached him, Wilbert immediately decided to run. ''That trio probably lured those others over here. They were merely buying time for their comrades!''


    Briefly glancing over his shoulder, he saw a pack of players chasing him, but he did not have chance to count how many there were.


    ''It was the right decision to run. Who knows how many more of them were on their way?''


    As Wilbert sprinted through the rainforest, he found that the players were constantly gaining on him, and the rate at which they were closing in was even faster than the wolves previously.


    ''How are they¡­''


    With another glance, he saw why they were drawing ever closer, and he was completely shocked.


    ''How come the plants seem to move aside for them?''


    Rather than the plants moving aside, it was more like the plants weighed nothing at all, so the players could just run through freely. However, when Wilbert was running through the vegetation, he had to angle himself or sweep the branches aside. Just what kind of being were these players?


    ''I think it''s safe to assume that none of them are humans, if that was ever even a possibility.''


    With the players drawing closer, Wilbert decided that he could only face them. Since he would have to fight them eventually, he might as well do so sooner while he had the energy.


    "It''s now or never," Wilbert muttered through gritted teeth.


    After passing through a deep patch of bushes, through which the players almost certainly could not see him, Wilbert dodged to the side and readied himself to launch an ambush.


    However, unlike how he had expected, the players ran through the bush and straight towards him.


    "What in the¡­"


    With his plan in tatters and no time to lose, Wilbert launched [Basic Shield Bash] on the player at the front, immediately following up with a [Basic Jab].


    [You have killed GenericName1 - Human (Level 12).]


    [You have gained 1,406 XP.]


    ''Huh? That was quicker than I expected.'' The well-placed attack from Wilbert had instantly killed the player, but his four companions were still very much alive, and they had used the opening that their friend had brought with his life to surround Wilbert.

 How Not to Use a Potion

    Glancing over the surrounding players, Wilbert quickly evaluated the situation.


    ''There''s enough room for me to stun one, but I''ll only have time to make one attack.''


    Naturally, when surrounded and only having one opportunity to attack, Wilbert''s mind immediately went to the newly discovered [Wind Cleaver].


    ''But¡­'' He glanced at the announcements in the bottom left of his vision. ''I can''t guarantee that it''ll work.''


    With a grit of his teeth, Wilbert muttered, "I can''t take the risk¡­"


    Unlike players, Wilbert would not come back to life when he died¡ªthe memory of his parents'' warm corpses was enough to remind him of that.


    ''Fine, I can only hope the weaker version will work.''


    A vicious glint flashed across his eyes as he steeled his resolve.


    Roaring, Wilbert dashed towards the player who looked the weakest. This player had scrawny arms, patchy armour, and a rusty sword. Although the other players had lacking equipment as well, this one had the weediest body.


    [Shield Bash]!


    The moment [Shield Bash] was executed, Wilbert stabbed his sword into the ground and selected the training staff. It instantly materialised in his empty hand, and he cast [Wind Slash].


    Two of the players were relatively close together after closing in on Wilbert, so they were both caught by the attack. Neither was killed, but they were knocked back, losing their momentum and delaying them for a few seconds.


    As Wilbert cast aside his staff and picked his sword back up, he remaining player moved close to Wilbert and activated his skill. The man with the hammer swung from above his head, seemingly aiming to crush Wilbert''s head like a tomato. The speed at which the heavy hammer was descending was fast enough frighten a fully armed knight, let alone some small village boy without any armour.


    However, Wilbert had not neglected him and activated [Wind Barrier]. The skill would not completely negate an attack, but it would reduce its speed and power. Thus, although he did not have time to properly activate [Basic Block], the attack was weak enough that he could resist it without properly bracing himself.


    The expression of the brute with the hammer did not change, but Wilbert got the feeling that he was confused by his combination of skills. He took advantage of this momentary confusion to launch [Basic Jab], his skill of choice when attacking one enemy.


    Unfortunately, that attack did not instantly kill him.Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.


    With a frown, Wilbert thought, ''That attack didn''t feel as good as the previous ones. Did I not execute it correctly, or is there something else I''m missing?''


    As Wilbert was preparing to launch a follow-up attack, the brute before him pulled out a glass vial filled with a red liquid from behind him.


    ''A potion!''


    Having only heard about such magical medication from the elders in his village, Wilbert was shocked to see this player in possession of one.


    Before he could send the second attack to finish off the man, the brute raised his hand towards his face and¡­ smashed the vial against his face!


    ''Eh?'' Almost forgetting the situation he was in, Wilbert was flabbergasted. ''I''m pretty sure¡­ that''s not how you use a potion.''


    To think that such a valuable medication would be squandered by a moron!


    Shaking his head to rid the useless thoughts from his mind, Wilbert launched his attack on the player.


    [You have killed GenericName69 - Human (Level 12).]


    [You have gained 1,406 XP.]


    Despite using a potion, it seemed that it was not as effective as Wilbert had imagined.


    By now, the man who had been stunned by [Basic Shield Bash] had come to and was rushing at Wilbert with his sword raised, and the two who had been knocked back by his magic attack had also started running towards him.


    Wilbert chose to quickly attack the single enemy so that he would only have to worry about enemies on one front.


    With a low stance, he scurried up to the man.


    The man swung his sword down at his head, but Wilbert stepped to the side while nudging the sword with his shield. He steadied his footing and sent a [Basic Jab] at the man''s neck.


    [You have killed GenericName33 - Human (Level 11).]


    [You have gained 1,155 XP.]


    With three of the original five having been dispatched, Wilbert eyed up the last two. There seemed to be a moment of hesitation before they charged forward, still with their expressionless faces.


    ''Even after seeing the state of their companions, they''re insisting on attacking, and it doesn''t look like there''s a hint of fear in their eyes. Does death not scare them? Do they not care for their lives? Even if they come back to life, a sword cutting their flesh will still hurt, right?''


    He tutted at the stupidity of these monsters as he separated his feet, adopting a mid-stance. As soon as the two ''stupid'' players were within range, he executed [Basic Slash].


    Given that they had already been wounded by his earlier magic attack, the players instantly dropped dead.


    [You have killed GenericName25 - Human (Level 11).]


    [You have gained 1,155 XP.]


    [You have killed GenericName96 - Human (Level 12).]


    [You have gained 1,406 XP.]


    A deep sigh escaped Wilbert''s lips as his shoulders sagged. He glanced over the dead bodies that littered the ground, and he felt sickened. Rather than feeling remorse for killing these people, it was more that he was sickened that such fools existed in the world.


    ''Just how many people have suffered like I have because of them, and how many more people will suffer because of them?''


    After waiting a few more minutes, it became apparent that the players were not going to respawn there.


    ''It seems they didn''t use "login", or perhaps they''ve lived all their lives. I wonder, is it six deaths for all of them, or was does it vary?''


    At that moment, he remembered the trio of players who had acted as bait and kept him busy while others came to their position. He immediately raised his guard and scoured the bushes with his gaze, expecting an ambush. He moved to a safer position against a thick tree, keeping his shield raised all the while.


    However, after several minutes of heightened alert, there was no sign of any players.


    ''I should go and deal with those bastards. If not for them, I wouldn''t have had to kill again.''


    When he was about to make his way away from the area, he heard a rustle in the bushes to his right.

 Furball

    The thick, green leaves shivered as a white furball shot of the bushes and charged straight at the guarded Wilbert.


    ''A Jante wolf cub?''


    With a snarl, that very furball jumped up at Wilbert, its fangs bared. Although the wolves were brown as adults, as young cubs, they had white, snow-like fur, which would darken as they grew up.


    Faced with a vicious monster that meant him harm, Wilbert instinctively activated [Basic Shield Bash] to stun it.


    [You have killed a Jante Vicious Brown Wolf cub (Level 0).]


    [You have gained 0 XP.]


    ''Eh?'' Shocked by the system announcement, Wilbert looked at the dead cub on the floor.


    On the tip of its dark, wet nose was a coating of blood, which had splattered onto the short fur nearby. Clearly, it had been tracking the blood of its pack, searching for the killer.


    Wilbert glanced down at the wolf blood that had seeped into his clothing. The basic, tattered garments had already become crusty from days of sweat and blood, but they were now soft again, dampened by the wolf blood.


    Realising what happened, Wilbert looked back at the cub. Perhaps it was his imagination, but he could have sworn that there were tears in the cubs eyes. Those eyes that were like little marbles and dark like the night sky were glistening with sorrow. The cub''s head seemed to be looked toward the direction Wilbert had run from, like it was hoping to see even the corpses of its kin one last time before it died.


    ¡­


    As the last member of his party respawned in Dampstead Village, GenericName1 hammered through his keyboard, "How did some villager wipe out the whole of our guild? GenericClan is better than that!"


    He followed up that outburst with an angry emoticon.


    "That villager wasn''t normal though. There''s no way an NPC can fight like that unless they''re special somehow. And even then, they should follow the normal aggro rules," one clan member, GenericName25, pointed out.


    "Now that you mention it, 25, you''re right," GenericName1 replied. "He ran and attacked without normal provocation. Plus, normally, an NPC will either run or fight; they don''t do both."If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.


    After sending a thinking emoticon, GenericName1 asked, "What happened after I died exactly?"


    "He dicked on us¡­" GenericName96 commented bitterly.


    "What 96 meant was¡­ he knocked the two of us back, then he stunned 33 before quickly killing 69, even after he used a potion. After than, he finished off 33, and then he killed me and 96," GenericName25 explained.


    "It''s curious," GenericName69 could not help but add, "before he used his magic attack, he stabbed the sword into the ground as if he would need to use it quickly after, but then he materialised his staff from thin air.


    "So, putting aside the unique mechanic of placing the sword in the ground, does that mean he only make some weapons appear instantly? Isn''t that a weird feature for the devs to have added?"


    "What are you saying, 69?" GenericName1 asked.


    "I''m saying¡­ the devs clearly put a lot of work into this NPC." He had his avatar perform the [Drumroll] emote. "I think we may have stumbled upon a hidden boss."


    Behind his screen, GenericName1 leaned back in his chair in thought before sitting forward. He pushed his glasses firmly to his face, the lenses becoming two small mirrors reflecting the little light in the room.


    "That makes sense. Unique mechanics, too powerful for that area, unassuming appearance¡ªall features of a hidden boss."


    "What should we do, 1? Our fledgling guild can''t handle this; we''re the strongest so far. We our classmates play a bit more, we might be able to defeat the boss, but what if someone else defeats it before us?"


    "We can''t risk someone else defeating the boss. We checked the wikia before, and I''ve checked since¡ªthis are no articles about a hidden boss in the Jante Rainforest. This could very well be the first sighting of the boss."


    Coming to a decision, GenericName1 typed, "We''ll go back and look for the hidden boss. If we find it again, I''ll contact one of my brother''s friends. He''s in a big guild. I''m sure he''ll be able to help us defeat it."


    ¡­


    While the GenericClan''s members were discussing Wilbert, the boy in question was wandering aimlessly through the rainforest.


    After killing the cub, the guilt that had washed over him had removed any thought of hunting down the players.


    ''I keep wanting to kill them all, but then¡­ how would I be any different from them?''


    With such a thought in mind, Wilbert had turned around and left the scene. Naturally, the death of one wolf cub would not stop him wanting to avenge his parents, but it once more reminded him of the pain and finality that came with death. He would kill when he needed to but on no other occasion.


    As he passed through the undergrowth, a drop of dew landed on his head. He went to wipe it off his hair, but the feeling of grease and coagulated blood was too disgusting.


    ''I need to clean, sleep in a bed, eat a proper meal¡­'' thought Wilbert as he glanced at his surroundings. ''But where am I going to find all that in the middle of the rainforest? Plus, after two chases, I have no idea which way I should be going. I can''t get a good enough view of the sun''s position to gauge a direction, so I can only walk in one direction and hope I''m heading north.''


    With a sigh, Wilbert kicked a stone on the ground. However, he seemed to put more force into it than he realised. The stone flew into a tree and then bounced back into him.


    "Ouch!" The force of the stone was surprisingly strong, and it hurt more than he expected.


    With a mirthless chuckle, he muttered. "That''s just great! First this, then that¡­ What a great day. Simply class!"


    [Did you mean: Simple Class Introduction?]

 Simple Class Introduction

    ''Simple Class Introduction?''


    As Wilbert thought about it, he remembered the class that was on his status box.


    Since the class was listed on his status, and his status seemed to affect his strength, Wilbert muttered, "Yes."


    A new box immediately appeared in the centre of his vision, and the thick block of text momentarily overwhelmed Wilbert.


    [Simple Class Introduction]


    [This is a simple introduction. For more in-depth details, please visit the user manual on our website.]


    [The class system in New Dawn differs greatly from other games. To allow players to try different classes and not be tied down to one class, levels and classes are not necessarily tied to classes.]


    [When you gain XP, the same amount of XP goes into your character level and your class. Your character level determines your basic strength (i.e. your attributes and hidden stats), whereas your class determines your skills.]


    [At level 50, a class will be eligible for a rank up, half the level required to rank up a character.]


    [Certain quests are tied to certain classes, so to complete those quests, players will have to obtain the required classes.]


    [Players are not limited to a number of classes, but having too many classes is not recommended. As you level up, the requirements on your skills will become harsher, and you can only gain better skills by levelling up your classes. Thus, in order to participate in high-level events, most players focus on one class.]


    [Other than the three starting classes¡ªWarrior, Ranger, and Mage¡ªwhich can be obtained by completing their respective beginner quests in any settlement ranked low-tier or higher, classes require finding a suitable instructor and winning their favour.]


    [The common advanced classes include rogue classes such as Assassin and Thief, fighter classes such as Barbarian and Knight, and magic classes such as Priest and Sorcerer.]


    [These are but a few of the common classes, and naturally, there are many more for you players to discover and unlock. As well as advanced classes, of which you can find a full list on our website, there are hidden and unique classes that you will need to work extra hard to discover.]


    After struggling through the huge amount of text, Wilbert eventually dismissed the box and concluded, ''Useless, what a useless box! It doesn''t even explain what a class is, nor does it tell me what it does, other than affect skills somehow.''You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.


    Wilbert quickly checked his status, and the frown on his forehead deepened. ''My class is apparently Villager, but that wasn''t mentioned in that introduction. Does that make the Villager class a secret or unique one?''


    However, Wilbert quickly dismissed that thought. ''I''ve never done anything that would give me this, right? So, it should be something that everyone else in my village would have, right?''


    As if convincing himself, Wilbert kept going over the logic. ''If everyone had the class, it should be common¡­ ah, but those were only some examples. It could also be that the Villager class isn''t common among players¡ªevents so far have proven that they''re not the peaceful type.''


    Frustrated, Wilbert scratched his head. ''Ah¡­ no point worrying about this. The box didn''t give enough information, so there''s nothing I can do about this for now.''


    Wilbert committed that new information to memory before putting it aside and closing the box.


    ''Now then, I''d better get moving. I''m not going to get out of this rainforest just standing here.''


    Having calmed down somewhat, Wilbert had realised that charging northward without a proper plan for revenge was just plain stupid. There was still a lot to uncover about the players, the strange boxes, and the levels, but first he needed to find a way out of the rainforest to recuperate.


    After wandering for some time, the Jante rainforest began to darken, so Wilbert climbed a tree to get some rest.


    ¡­


    The players had been searching for the out-of-place NPC for quite some time, but it was to no avail. Some players had got bored and gone to find other activities to fill their time, but others were still searching.


    There were rumours circulating among the remaining players about NPC sightings. Some said that the NPC had been spotted passing through a mysterious waterfall, others said that the NPC had wiped out a whole clan, and yet others were suggesting that the NPC had dug his way into the ground.


    Due to the variety and ridiculousness of the rumours, most players did not believe anything they heard regarding the NPC or treasure hunt, believing the rumours to be distractions from the other players.


    "That was quite intense."


    "Yes, do either of you know who those players were?"


    "No idea. Do you know if they caught him?"


    "Well, I can''t be certain, but a friend said that they saw five players being killed by an NPC, so that could''ve been them?"


    "Sounds like it. That means the NPC is stronger than we thought. Was the battle with the wolves meant to mislead us, or did those players attacking him trigger the system''s protection?"


    "Does it matter? We''ve lost track of the kid." The tall, skinny mage activated the [Impatient] emote.


    Before those words had disappeared from above the mage''s head, the female ranger started walking off in a specific direction. "They went this way, right? Better searching that just standing around, coming up with random theories."


    The red haired spearman used the [Nod] emote as he jogged after the ranger. "Yes, yes. We can come up with theories while we walk, anyway."


    The trio began marching westward.


    "Are we seriously just going to keep walking in one direction?" the thin mage asked.


    "Yeah!" red-haired spearman replied. "I have a good feeling."


    The mage rolled his eyes and typed, "So, on the off chance that this NPC has really kept going this way, what is there in our path?"


    "Hmm¡­" The ranger quickly looked it up. "Not much. Just some small village, a rest stop before entering the rainforest."


    "What''s it called?"


    "Dampstead Village."


    "Huh¡­ don''t think I''ve heard of it."