Yelena took a little longer to get online and log into her VR account. During that time, Bolt accepted Zen’s invitation and was waiting in his VR room.
“The information cards for all the candidates are here,” Bolt passed a virtual notebook to Zen, who quickly compared his gathered data.
There was some missing information from Bolt’s list, but Zen was thrilled to know more about the candidates he had no access to.
“Is this allowed?” he asked cautiously. “Isn’t this considered cheating?”
Bolt raised a brow. “Are there rules saying that a candidate cannot ask an invigilator for information?”
Zen shook his head. The school rules didn’t mention anything about working with invigilators. It only said that invigilators shouldn’t be harmed. Was this a loophole? If anyone else knew about this, there would be a riot!
Yelena was angry. It was evident from how she gave Bo
As lunch rolled by, Zen pushed the cart he borrowed from the storage to deliver the boxed lunches he prepared for his guild members. He couldn’t help but yawn as he approached Akiko’s room. His body felt rested, but his mind was exhausted.Yelena and Bolt’s enthusiasm last night kept him up till four in the morning when they discovered that he could learn at an incredible speed. The young commando changed her tune when Zen showed promise as a strategist. They discussed his strategy and contingency plans in more detail to fine-tune them. Thanks to them, Zen was feeling more confident about the strategy he would present today.Knock! Knock!“Come in,” Akiko said, and Zen entered using his back to push the door open so that he could pull in the cart with their boxed meals and drinks.The smell reached the tired guild members faster than Zen could tell them he brought food. Liu Feng was already standing behind him with an o
“Sorry I’m late! Did you wait long?”Although it was virtual reality, Liu Feng could tell that it was Zen. In fact, nobody else would have this much guts to run up to him without stating their business. Zen did sound a little out of breath, and the Seer wondered if the feeble boy was able to clear the first stage of the dungeon without anyone’s help. He was simply too weak.With a frown Liu Feng jumped off the tree he was sitting in and blew the slimes chasing Zen with a powerful whirlwind kick. The poor monsters flew away with high pitched cries, mimicking the sound of kittens whining, and Zen felt his heart clench in pity. They might be monsters, but Zen thought they were rather adorable when they weren’t hellbent on chasing him.Seeing how the immediate danger was over now that his protector was here, Zen collapsed onto the ground breathlessly. Who would have thought that the slimes would start chasing him the moment he left the
“Fifth time’s the charm,” Zen told himself and eyed the slimes gathered near the red fir tree.He didn’t know what slimes these were, but they were orange and made strange clinking noises when they bounced. Honestly, Zen only chose to test the different effects of herbs he gathered around the orange slimes because they bounced the slowest. It didn’t make the experience less terrifying, but Zen reassured himself that this was his highest chance at success.Zen tested the buttercup-looking flower, the white three-petaled flower and the droopy blue flower’s effects earlier. None of those worked, and he moved on to grass types. Thanks to his excellent observation skills, Zen gathered a total of thirteen plant types from that meadow.The long grass did nothing, so Zen decided to try the dewy grass. The grass fibre felt sticky in his hand, and Zen didn’t know what sort of effect this grass had. It should be a medicinal g
Zen blinked. Party Raid? Would that make the boss stronger or weaker?His question was soon answered when Liu Feng and Akiko struck the orange slime boss simultaneously. Sasha mirrored Zen’s shocked expression, full of disbelief as the orange blob exploded.“Isn’t this cheating?” Zen asked himself and watched as orange goo rained down upon him. Standing above everything were the two most powerful members of his party and guild.[Armoured Slime Boss has been defeated by Party “Godly Food”. Calculating contribution rates to distribute Area Boss rewards.]“Are you ok?” Akiko walked up to Zen, and Liu Feng touched the orange goo that fell onto his hair in curiosity.Zen felt embarrassed that he had to be helped up by a lady even though he was a man. Even Sasha ran over to them like she didn’t just almost die, and Zen wondered if the mafia heirs were incapable of feeling fear. None of his party membe
For everything that happened, there was a reason behind it. For the longest time, Zen wondered about the intention of the Godfather. Why did the Godfather summon five hundred candidates for a battle royale tournament? If this was truly a battle royale, why did they have the option to become the Godfather by clearing the game? Shouldn't it be a simple slaughter-fest like what Johan wanted to do?No, it wasn't that straightforward. He didn't know if anyone else understood the Godfather's intentions, but Zen had an inkling the Godfather wasn't just looking for a strong candidate.Several things made Zen think that the arrangement was odd. While there were several candidates with unawakened blood, Zen didn't know why the Godfather would arrange a slaughter-fest on the first day with four hundred candidates eliminated. The only plausible conclusion was how there was a need to build a certain mindset into candidates before the selection.After meeting Bolt and Yelena,
Before even the alarm rang, someone was knocking on his door.Zen woke up with a groan. Sleep deprivation might kill him faster than Johan could at this rate."Who is it?" he stumbled across his room and opened the door."A delivery has arrived for you," the invigilator lady growled, and Zen nodded, thanking her for the package.At once, his mind cleared when he saw that it was the Egg Encyclopaedia with a letter to explain more about today's Egg Hunt Event.Zen quickly logged online to check if anyone else received their deliveries and a letter about the Egg Hunt Event.As expected, the early birds already knew about it. In fact, Zen was surprised at how many early birds there were. Did the people in the mafia not need sleep? Then again, Zen logged out much later than they did.[Akiko "Death Princess" Kanzaki sends you a message. "Please come to my room once you have woken up. The rest of the Guild will be waiting for you. The items
According to Zen's Egg Encyclopaedia, the eggs are prone to spawning in only a few locations based on their descriptions.===[Red Egg]Points: 1Abilities: Runs very fast.Other Information: Can be found in open areas.[Blue Egg]Points: 2Abilities: Poisonous shell.Other Information: Hides in long grass.[Green Egg]Points: 3Abilities: Camouflage.Other Information: Loves food.[Yellow Egg]Points: 4Abilities: Extra Fragile.Other Information: Loves to swim.[White Egg]Points: 10Abilities: Flight.Other Information: Perches on high places.[Black Egg]Points: 50Abilities: Countdown.Other Information: Hates crowding.===While some were obvious, others were questionable."For now, secure the garden, kitchen, swimming pool and rooftops. It is easy to farm points in these areas. Oriol
While everyone else busied away to prepare for the event that could happen at any moment, Zen logged into his virtual world. There was something he had to confirm.Ever since he found out how virtual reality games were a cheating way to bridge the ability gaps between reality and games, Zen had something he wanted to do. He might not be able to match any of these crazy mafia heirs and heiresses in combat. Zen was just an ordinary teenage boy who did not undergo any of their crazy training. He was poison resistant, had the power to set someone in flames or steal people's luck. However, he would like to think that he was more knowledgeable than anyone else about games and their loopholes.There were safe zones in the Egg Hunt arena. Zen memorised everything he could about the school that the first event will be hosted based off. However, what he lacked was the ability to escape his safe zone if it was compromised.Sure, Zen trusted his party members to come to his
After listening to Gabrielle’s story about her encounter with the stalker, Zen realised how Mai was growling. Her wolf instincts were boiling with uncontrollable rage, even in her human hybrid form, when she recalled her daughter’s distress.Holding onto her mother’s hand, Gabrielle did her best to calm her mother down while the adventurers thought about her story. Zen found it strange that the silver walker did not attack this stalker who had been bothering them in their territory. He was not the only one who found the situation odd. Although many things in Gabrielle’s story match what Han informed them, they wonder why the mother and daughter did not seek any help from Han or live with Laura instead.According to the teenager, she saw a glimpse of a very hairy creature with thick fur-like hair covering the entirety of its arm, chest and even face. However, it was very late, and the curtain was in the way when she saw the stalker. Gabrielle could o
Knocking on the door politely, Sasha waited for Zen to catch up to them. Apparently, the Seer had also sensed something off about the “safe zone”. The constant feeling of being watched made her unable to relax. There was nothing safe about this place.After a while, a beautiful teenager with curly matt gold locks opened the door. She bore no resemblance to Han. However, seeing a lady with wolf ears appear from behind her was more shocking. The lady with wolf ears shared the same forest-green eyes as the teenage girl. Zen knew at once they were mother and daughter.“Hello, who are you?” asked the timid girl.Smiling, Zen applied his priestly etiquette so as not to alarm the peaceful duo.“I’m Zen, a priest in an adventuring party. We were attacked by a large pack of wolves after sundown and managed to shake them off when we ran in this direction. By any chance, would you be kind enough to let us wait the night out?”N
Mentally exhausted and depressed, Damian fell silent after the first hour. His knowledge of jokes was severely lacking. No matter what he did, the cyborg could not meet his party members’ standards. It was too difficult to be a clown.“It’s in the delivery,” Zen chuckled, patting Damian on the back. “Sometimes people find others funny when they aren’t intentionally trying to be. Just be yourself.”The solid advice lifted Damian’s mood a little, and the two nerds chatted, exchanging what they knew to update the gamer guide while travelling to Red Hood’s house.Before they knew it, it was dark. The forest was full of shadows, and everyone remained on their guard as the sound of howling wolves came from every direction. Zen stood in the middle of the party formation, as Akiko suggested, while Sasha took to the skies to scout. However, the dense canopy of leaves made it difficult to spot any wolves until they wer
Coming from different directions, the party finally gathered at Han’s hut. Akiko and Liu Feng had already scouted the forest with the hunter’s help and memorised the paths to Red Hood’s house and the herbalist grandmother’s house. With all six members of the vanguard party present, even Han could not hold back his surprise at the party’s diversity.“Is this Red Hood’s uncle?” Zen asked when he arrived. Thanks to the squad’s merciless travel speed, he had to push his limits and gained two additional speed points.Studying the shortest kid in the lot who looked like he would not hurt a fly, Han wondered what he was doing in a party full of fierce fighters and psychopaths. The kid did not seem to wield any weapons and was dressed in a robe that resembled the clergyman. Could he be their healer?Introducing themselves briefly, Han confirmed that none of this party’s members were sane, not even the most innocent-l
Travelling with Damian and Oritha at a more comfortable pace, Zen read the constant updates from Akiko. Han, the hunter, is quite an interesting character. If Zen had been there, he would have asked much more about the Silver Walkers. Yet, the information they uncovered was enough for Zen to understand the hidden pieces of this strange stage. The story writers were introducing players to new elements in preparation for future stages. Nothing was ever as it seemed. Even the Shady Merchant was no longer a reliable guide as he started to fade into a side character instead of a main pillar of the questing system.Targets and objectives were now self-defined, something Zen had never really experienced as a gamer. The idea was unique and mimicked the many roads a person could take in life. Perhaps this was part of the Godfather’s intentions. When a person was given free will, what would they choose to do with it? If everyone in the world were given all the paint they could poss
The middle-aged bachelor wasn’t the most domestic person. He was the polar opposite of what Zen was when he was still a civilian, not that Liu Feng or Akiko knew. However, the one thing they did know about this peculiar NPC was his vivid backstory and tendency to talk about many other things non-quest related.From his rambles, dad jokes, and cackles, they learned that the hunter had previously lived with Red Hood’s grandmother in the middle of the forest. She was his mother, and he had a brother who was Red Hood’s father. The mother was someone completely different from what they thought she was.“They call themselves the Silver Walkers,” Han grumbled. “Pretty little things when they are human but only on a full moon’s night. During the day, they are actual animals. When the moon rises, they regain part of their sanity but not completely.”After sharing the new information with Zen, Akiko wondered what he had to say abo
The night in the game on this stage lasted shorter than other stages. However, the mind reacted weirdly to seeing daylight, and Akiko began to lose track of time in reality. Her circadian rhythm told her she had been awake for almost a week now in the game when it had only been a few hours in reality. Glancing over to Liu Feng, who lived in a perpetual world of darkness, he did not seem to have any issues adapting to the different flows of time.“Is it day now?” the Seer asked his new companion after sensing lesser night hounds in the area.Akiko nodded. “Sasha delivered the letter. The main quest giver has changed. I think they will start completing the new main quest. Have you explored this forest to confirm the myth?”Shaking his head and flipping his long hair over his shoulder, Liu Feng wondered if he should braid his hair to make movement easier. Although he appreciated his long locks, a testament to his loyalty, the Seer found it i
Even with the howling of night hounds surrounding them, neither of the assassins broke a sweat. If Zen were around to see their unspoken teamwork, he would be utterly floored since he was incredibly amazed by the strange communication they used when defeating the orc general.Generally, assassins worked alone for missions. It was more effective to send a single assassin with the right skills for the mission. Sending more than one assassin would only increase the risk of an operation complication and alert people of multiple presences. Additionally, most families treated assassins as disposable tools. If an assassin failed a mission, they were ordered to take their lives or killed on the spot by the watcher of the famiglia if they attempted to run. Hence, raised weapons like the Death Princess seldom worked with others. If not for joining the academy and meeting Zen, she would likely forge ahead on a path alone to complete her mission.However, she was not the only kingmake
“Now?” Sasha’s jaw dropped in disbelief. “But it’s dark out!”Hooting with laughter, Oritha shrugged. “You have wings. As long as your legs don’t touch the ground and the wolves don’t grow twenty meters tall, you’ll reach the village safely. Besides, you fly faster than Zen runs. You could probably deliver it by daybreak.”Looking at Oritha with disbelief, Sasha narrowed her eyes.“When have you been good at English?”Glancing back from the oven, Zen noticed Damian slowly trying to duck under the table when Oritha grabbed him by the back of his shirt. Knowing them, it was likely Damian’s idea. Oritha was a quick learner whenever it came to non-academic studies.“I repeated what he said,” she dragged the flailing cyborg back up the table with a wide grin. “Maybe you should go now. We have round two of dinner to start.”…Maybe all the A