*>Name: Miniature Lush Dingo*
*>Level: 5*
*Huh?*
After almost 10 minutes of running full at full sprint, Jisha spotted a cute dog. But it wasn't like any of the other mobs she had encountered so far. Normally, any mobs she ran by would acknowledge her presence. Some would even start chasing her before realizing they were far too slow. However, this one was running away from her in some seemingly random direction.
*Bingo!*
Why? There was only one logical answer. The Miniature Lush Dingo was locked on to a player; she'd found her target!
Being faster than all mobs in the area, Jisha easily caught up to this cute Dingo. She loaded a pellet in her Golden Slingshot and fired at its weak spot!
*-172*
"Huh?"
And as soon as the mob died, a questioning noise left a man's mouth.
*Found you!*
"Hello, big boss~" Jisha said in a playful manner.
"Sh*t!"
Jisha absorbed the XP the mob had dropped. On the other side of the mist, a man with dark blonde hair and a sour expression on his face laid on the ground.
*Haha, show me more of that face.*
For several seconds, neither of them moved.
"Aren't you glad to see me?" Jisha said, breaking the silence.
"Tch..."
Lujen quickly attempted to get up from the ground. But as he was about to get up...
*-7*
"Ugh...!"
... Jisha kicked him back down mercilessly.
Lujen glared at her, but looks from a level 3 player couldn't kill!
"... Coward," he said under his breath.
"What was that?" Jisha asked as she cupped a hand to her ear.
Her Tier 9 awareness didn't miss this insult, but she pretended otherwise.
Lujen continued glaring at her and slowly attempted to back away. Jisha crossed her arms and simply watched.
Once he assumed he was at a safe distance, Lujen got up as fast as his body would allow him and booked it towards the Village.
"Haah... What kind of man runs from a girl as pretty as me?" Jisha said in an fake exasperated manner.
She began walking in the same direction as Lujen's sprint. At this speed, she couldn't catch up, but she didn't need to yet. The Village was still some distance away. Jisha had a couple of minutes to toy with!
---
*... Did I seriously catch her off guard?*
Though Luden didn't fully believe this, he was still surprised. He didn't forget the massive damage numbers that befell his subordinates and the wolf-like monster.
*Maybe she's only good at close range?*
Strange thoughts began to appear in his head as he tried to rationalize what just happened. But it didn't matter what he thought. He ran as fast as he could. And when he looked back, she was gone.
*Holy sht, did I actually get away?*
A strange sensation of relief began to assuage him.
*But just to be safe...*
He continued running in the same direction as fast as his legs could take him.
*Just a bit farther now!*
Inkling Village was just up ahead. He remembered this landmark from the beta. It was a rolling hill that was slightly bigger than the rest, and on top were several trees that were larger than the rest. It was basically a sign that said "the terrain from here on out only gets more difficult".
But he knew that on the other side of these trees was a massive clearing. And this clearing was the home of Inkling Village!
50 metron...
40 metron...
30 metron...
Luden sped towards the clearing he knew was on the other side.
There was an obnoxious noise that was coming from somewhere in front of him and above him, but now wasn't the time to focus on such things!
20 metron...
10 metron...
When he reached this distance from the top of the hill, he caught a glimpse of the clearing. But a creepy and unnatural noise sounded from above.
It was too unsettling to ignore. Luden had to look up. And when he did...
*???*
A branch that was thicker than his leg was falling from the sky.
Luden felt his stomach drop as he realized he was helpless.
He saw the branch falling and tried to correct his course, but it was too late.
He didn't know what to feel as he caught one last glimpse of Inkling Village before the branch fell on him and the world turned black and white.
---
*-57*
The player called Lujen exploded into white.
"What?" Jisha couldn't help muttering. "That actually killed him?"
She wasn't expecting him to have such little HP remaining!
But how did he die?
The "obnoxious noise" Lujen had heard earlier was the sound of pellets hitting a tree. Jisha saw Lujen's trajectory and began to fire pellets at the base of a branch that was far above him. These pellet shots weakened the branch's connection to the tree. And right as he was about to cross over the hill, the base was whittled enough to the point where it snapped!
Calculating where a target would be well in advance. Hitting a branch from far away. Hitting the same spots over and over in order to weaken a specific point. Knowing how many shots it would take to destroy the branch. And timing the last shot perfectly, leading to a kinematics estimation!
These were all the factors Jisha instantaneously considered in order to pull off this stunt. But she miscalculated one aspect: how much HP Lujen had remaining!
*Oops.*
She wanted to toy with him for a bit longer, but after some consideration, she concluded that this was probably for the best. Early-game time was precious.
*But I wanna have some fun... Isn't that allowed? Oh well, there'll be other ways.*
Jisha leisurely walked up to the condensed white mist that was sitting on the ground. Since she hadn't directly killed Lujen, the system determined his death as one from a "natural cause", and Jisha didn't automatically claim the XP that Lujen lost.
*But this works out for me.*
She could collect the XP and Lujen's dropped item at once. Her avatar absorbed the mist, moving her XP bar to over 90% of level 7. And with the mist out of the way, she could clearly see the item he dropped.
*Is he dumb?*
The dagger she had sold was laying on the ground right in front of her feet. In the wild, if your death was "normal", you'd lose one level, half the coins in your pouch, and one item.
The fact that the one item that Lujen happened to drop was the dagger he had purchased in the first place meant one of two things: that he was unlucky or it was the only item he was carrying! The second option was more likely, and if it were true, Jisha couldn't believe he'd leave for a Village without any other items with him.
*I guess it was why he was so low in the first place.*
Jisha picked up the dagger and looked at its stats.
*>Name: Small Wooden Dagger*
*>...*
*Hm...*
The flavor text had been changed. This item would truly be worth a fortune in the future. Not because it was useful but because of its novelty. And the fact that Lujen was the one who had originally purchased it in Covan meant that news about her reclaiming the dagger wouldn't leak.
Even if it did, the only thing people had to go on was "an anonymous rich girl". Lujen didn't know her name, so it would be very difficult for him to find her identity.
*And even if they find me somehow... I'll just have to deal with it then.*
Jisha would only continue to get stronger. The more time passed, the more difficult it would be for a small group to hurt her.
She stashed the Dagger in her inventory and picked up the last of what Lujen had dropped: his Coins.
*>+...*
*Huh. Filthy rich bastard.*
Even though Lujen had used a significant amount of manpower to gather this much, Jisha was still surprised at his ability to earn money.
*But the dagger, and now this... Is he a gambler?*
The antithesis of the saying "don't put all your eggs in one basket" was showcased by Lujen here. Not only did he drop the Dagger upon death, but he dropped what could only be considered (half) Shock Collar's entire net worth. If he had distributed the Coins among his org members, the loss would have been greatly mitigated.
*Guess he doesn't trust his underlings with money or something. Well, I'm not complaining!*
Her enemy's mistakes only made her happier. After all, she was directly benefiting from every one of them.
Jisha walked to the top of the hill.
*Ha, what a shame.*
Lujen was so close to seeing Inkling Village in its full glory, but of course he had died right before he reached the crest.
Atop this hill, Jisha had a clear view of the entirety of the Village. It was located in a valley-like area among the rolling hills that only continued to grow larger past it. And though it was called a "Village", its territory most likely approached 1 square kilometron.
The circular shaped Village highly resembled some cities from ancient times in other parts of the world. The simplicity of the circular village allowed its residents to navigate it easily as well as transport goods through the roads, as well as evenly distribute water throughout the territory. Though the roads were poorly developed, the design of the layout prevented any problems with traffic.
Yes, there was traffic! Though from atop the hill, some of the Village residents looked almost like ants, some tamed monsters could be seen dragging carts through the streets. The outdated transportation technology combined with the almost modern civil engineering structures looked a bit strange.
But this was the nature of a virtual world. Since it wasn't real, all sorts of strange things could be seen within it; this was just the beginning. Physics-defying buildings, supermassive structures, unnaturally imposing landmarks... These were all waiting in the future.
But getting there was a matter of progression. One had to pass through the more mundane areas first! And though this Village was one of the "mundane" areas, there were some important things to do here. The Village gates awaited her at the bottom.
Jisha ran, hopped, and somersaulted down the large hill. Even a professional gymnast couldn't compete with her.
*The freedom of movement with no Stamina drain is too exciting. If I don't stop, I will definitely get addicted to this feeling...*
Jisha observed the Village in more detailed as she drew closer. The wall surrounding the Village was several metron high, which meant it was impossible to scale for current players. And though some sections of the wall were weaker than others, this gate that directly faced the Covan Hamlet appeared quite sturdy. It was even being guarded by several NPCs.
"Halt!"
Jisha slid to a stop roughly 5 metron away from the gates. The NPC guards drew their weapons on her. One was wielding a basic sword while the other was wielding a basic spear.
When she saw those weapons being drawn on her, the nonsensical thought of killing the guards flashed through her mind. She shook her head; killing these guards would be the pinnacle of stupidity!
"Can you grant me access to Inkling Village?" she asked. She had to get in legally.
"The entry fee is currently 2 Bronzium," the sword-wielding guard said.
Hearing this, Jisha would have raised an eyebrow.
"That's a bit steep, isn't it?" she asked. It was only a Village; the cost to merely enter should have been a bit lower.
"Indeed, it is a bit pricey. However, there has been an influx of unusual migrants. It was the Village Elder's order, nothing we can do about it right now," the guard replied.
"Hmm... Alright."
*>-2 Bronzium*
Jisha paid the entry fee. She wanted to ask for a discount, but 2 Bronzium to her wasn't much.
*And these unusual migrants are probably just players. The NPCs here must have gotten quite spooked when players first appeared.*
Since the NPCs behaved pretty much like humans, policies enacted within settlements had a "human" element. Raising the entry fee after a new wave of people tried to enter the city was only logical. Only when the NPCs recognized players as a normal occurrence would things go back to normal... for the most part.
"Young lady, what's your name? We need to issue you a visitor's pass."
"Ah."
The guard reminded her that her name couldn't currently be seen, so she undid one of the effects of the Nightwalker.
"Hmm... That's a fancy name concealment method you've got there. Well, here's your visa, miss Fae Sol. You can stay a maximum of 7 days inside."
*>+1 Visa (Inkling Village)*
"Enjoy your stay, young lady. Our streets are pretty safe, but make sure to find a place to stay once it gets dark."
*They're kind, aren't they?*
Jisha smiled warmly at the guards.
"Thank you, kind sirs. I will definitely enjoy my time here."
"Open the gates!" the guards simultaneously said.
The several-metron-tall gates slowly and creakily opened from the inside.
And with a kind wave at the guards, Jisha strolled inside.
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