6. The Matter of Paying Back

When a player goes onto the forums while in-game, their avatar will act like they’re in a Body Double stall. They’d be stuck staring blankly at their surroundings, not moving a single inch at all.

As HereticKing was on his way to hand in his mission at the Mission Board, he discovered two cats, one large one small, sitting on the ground and staring up at the sky with their heads tilted. (When the tiny lucky cat found its owner ignoring it, it imitated its owner and daydreamed by his side.)

With one look, HereticKing recognised him – this was the boy he saw 2 days ago in the Newbie Village striking a silly pose with his pet.

Most players would never return to the village once they leave. There weren’t a lot of items sold there. The monsters were few and weak. Quest rewards were miniscule. There was really nothing that could entice them back.

HereticKing once accepted a hidden chain quest in that Newbie Village. After running around the whole game several times over, he finally completed this luck-based quest. He headed back to the village to hand the quest in to the NPC. Who knew that as soon as he stepped out of the portal, he’d find below a tree not far away a player who looked like a cat and a small black kitten neatly posing together and shouting something about being lucky cats and work hard at earning money.

HereticKing had laughed out loud on the spot. He had never seen a pair of owner and pet who grew so alike and so silly. But he seemed to have frightened that little newbie. When he’d finished laughing, he only saw the other’s back stumbling out of the village with ears flushed red from embarrassment.

What a coincidence that he’d meet the other again in this alley where people rarely walk through. Was this what they call fate?

He stopped, knelt before the two lucky cats and waved a hand before Bai XiaoYu’s eyes. “Out of it? Ah, so he’s looking through the forums.”

The big cat is on the forums but the little cat would surely react. Flipping through his bangle, HereticKing rejoiced that the grilled fish skewers cooked by I_Am_A_Poor_Man were still in his inventory since the last time he’d teamed up with the other to defeat a field boss.

He took the skewer out and waved it in front of the tiny lucky cat. With it he saw a kitten that was lifelessly staring at the sky turned into a imperious tiger (cat?) who’d eaten a stimulant. The kitten instantly pounced on the fish skewer and began munching at it.

HereticKing’s mouth twitched upwards. What an…interesting little cat. He might’ve even seen the kitten’s eyes turning into fish shapes as it pounced over as though it’d been starved for a few lifetimes. It couldn’t be the big cat forgot to feed the little cat, could it? He looked doubtfully at Bai XiaoYu but found the latter still in a daze.

After he’d finished feeding the little cat, HereticKing stood up, patted away some non-existent dust and prepared to head to the Mission Board. Once this mission was completed, his reputation should be enough to upgrade the guild. Tsk, he really can’t stand the nagging of both I_Am_A_Poor_Man and Shooting_Chang’e_From_Below_The_Moon. This was the one issue with being a guild leader. He had one additional stat compared to others – Prestige. It’s one of the markers for levelling up a guild.

Rather than Prestige missions, kill 100 of this low-level monster and 300 of that low-level monster, HereticKing preferred the challenging and difficult missions or bosses. However, the guild members’ contributions, buildings, finances etc had all reached the requirements for upgrading. It’s only the guild leader’s Prestige that was lacking. Hence, he could only force through it.

“Meow~~” He’d just taken one step when he heard the little black cat cry out from behind.

Curious, he looked down and was met with the black kitten’s sparkling big eyes.

1 second…2 seconds…1 minute…2 minutes.

Okay. He admitted it. He’s defeated. That pair of wide eyes filled with hope and yearning made one unable to ignore it. But he had no more fish skewers left.

“I’ll give you 1 gold coin. Ask your owner to buy some fish for you.” A newbie probably would not have the funds to buy good pet food for the little cat. Look at how he’d starved this little cat. If it wasn’t for the game’s restriction that pets cannot be more than 100 meters away from their owners, this kitten would’ve walked away by itself. He fished out a gold coin from his bangle.

“Mrrow~!” $v$. Staring down at the black kitten’s two eyes that’d turned into coins, HereticKing’s hand stuttered. The coin fell, bounced and rolled on the floor.

“Meow!” TinyLuckyCat’s movements were fast. It swiftly pounced on that gold coin and swept it into its grasp where the coin then disappeared.

Once again, HereticKing’s lips twitched a few times. What kind of pet cat is this? Gluttonous and money-loving. As he saw the little black cat raised its shimmering wide eyes at him again, he quickly looked away. Using his high dexterity, he left the alley. If he’d continue looking at those eyes, he can’t be certain he won’t pour out everything in his bangle.

When Bai XiaoYu left the forums and returned to the game, he saw the tiny lucky cat sitting in front of him with its tiny cat face held high – it’s smiling.

Strange. Before, when the tiny lucky cat got hungry, it’d act all pitiful with its big eyes blinking at him. Could it have been starved until it went crazy?

Pulling up the Pet tab, the tiny lucky cat’s Hunger was at 5/100. Bai XiaoYu was even more suspicious. If he remembered correctly, he’d specifically checked on its Hunger value before going onto the forums for fear it’d get hungry. It was also this number then. How could it not have changed the slightest after 2 hours of him reading forum posts? When did it become so good at resisting hunger? Even his own Hunger value has gone up by 20.

 He opened up its Inventory. Bai XiaoYu thought back to before. Flower sprites shouldn’t drop anything edible. It was all just a pile of flower pollen, branches, roots and what not.

“Eeeeeh?!” The number of items in the Pet Inventory was the same as before but the money counter below suddenly displayed 1 gold 3 silver 22 copper.

When did he have a gold coin? Could the tiny lucky cat have produced a gold coin by itself? But nothing in its skills said so…

XiaoYu looked at the kitten in shock. It was still smiling very happily. Could it be inviting him to praise it?

Subconsciously, he glanced down at his System notifications. In such a strange situation, there should be some indication.

“Player HereticKing has fed your pet grilled fish skewers. Hunger -20.”

“Your pet picked up 1 gold coin which was dropped by Player HereticKing.”

“Little cat!” He was angry. It’s okay if it’d just eaten other players’ food. The tiny lucky cat was really cute. It’s perfectly normal for people passing by to use some food to play with it. But how could it pick up money dropped by other people? Perhaps that player didn’t even know they’d dropped a gold coin or they might be looking everywhere for it! One should not be too greedy. It should’ve frantically pawed at him and ask him to give the coin back as soon as it saw him return to the game! (He did not even think why money would be randomly dropped. Storage spaces do not have holes =.=)

“Meow…” The tiny cat tilted its head. The owner didn’t seem happy.

“I’m going to return the money to him.” When he saw the cat lower its head, XiaoYu thought it was reflecting on its behaviour. His heart softened and gently patted its head. After all, one cannot ask the tiny lucky cat to act as a human would. He was a little too harsh just then.

He summoned the private message channel. In the name text box he entered “HereticKing”, and began typing. Because they weren’t friends, he could not use voice chat.

“Ding.” HereticKing, who’d been consoling himself in the game’s cafe after upgrading the guild, heard the chime for private messages and chose to display it.

“From LuckyCat: Good day, Mr HereticKing. Thank you for taking care of my pet cat.”

“Pfft~” He’d nearly wasted a cup of coffee. So that boy’s name was LuckyCat. Thinking back on that feline face and that money-loving greedy pet cat, this name really suited him.

“You’re welcome.” He’s in a good mood so took this rare opportunity to reply to a stranger’s message.

“Mr HereticKing, may I know where you are? My pet cat picked up a gold coin you had dropped. I would like to return it.”

“HereticKing. Also, don’t use formal language.” It’s annoying enough to hear formal language everywhere he went in reality. But was this child too polite and well-mannered or just used to interacting with others at a distance?

Bai XiaoYu’s typing fingers paused. He wasn’t good at interacting with strangers in the first place. So he would either avoid them or be very respectful. So the other person disliked formal language. Did that mean the reason he couldn’t make friends before was his overly-respectful manner which made everyone avoid him?

“Then can you tell me your coordinates?”

“There’s no need to return it.” It’s just a gold coin. Even 1 crystal was a small number to HereticKing. To this new player, 1 gold coin was probably a lot of money.

“…” XiaoYu didn’t know what to say anymore. Indeed, to an old player 1 gold coin was not worth much. Most items on the market used gold, or even crystals, as standard currency, not to mention the prices of some rare items would have who knew how many 0s when counted in gold coins.

But it wasn’t his. All the same, XiaoYu still felt a little awkward. Even though the other said he didn’t need to return the money, it could also be because the other didn’t want to reveal their coordinates just for a little bit of money. Every person has a right to privacy.

After some consideration, XiaoYu decided to mail it. He already knew the other’s name. He could mail it to the other person, though there’s a possibility they’d reject it.

However, one letter required 5 silver. XiaoYu was depressed for a moment. A new player really can’t use anything. Time to earn some more cash.

He changed his original direction and headed east of Prole. He’d first kill some lizards.

Lizards are about the same level as flower sprites but they are larger than the little cat. So it’s up to him alone to slowly poke and grind away at them.

As he attacked, he pulled up the Pet tab. He’d thought of a question.

As expected, the money acquired from HereticKing didn’t count in the tiny cat’s experience. Otherwise he could just find a friend to easily level up the tiny cat. Friend throws money -> Tiny cat collects money -> Return money to friend -> Friend throws again -> ad infinitum.

Probably only money obtained from corpses would count as experience. The game is such a trickster. While XiaoYu looked at the game in contempt for a few seconds, he still ended up rejoicing this bug he’d imagined was not viable. Otherwise, he’d be unable to resist messaging the GM to report about the bug.

Poke and rest. Poke and rest. After 3 hours of poking and resting, he’d finally killed 100 lizards. He glanced at the sky and decided to find the cheapest inn for the night before killing flower sprites the next day.

He moved everything in TinyLuckyCat’s inventory to the storage box, then took out 10 silver coins. He bought a Return Scroll, mailed 1 gold coin to HereticKing, repaired his equipment and bought the cheapest potions and food there were. In the end, he had 1 silver left – just enough to get through the night.

Once all was done, Bai XiaoYu peacefully slept in the inn’s simplest wooden bed. Just before he sunk deep into slumber, the last thought to pass through his head was: It seemed like he’d use up all his money every single day. How long would it be before there’s excess?

◄Previous •Index• Next►

5. The Lucky Cat Stirs Up Trouble

Upon exiting the West gate of Prole, players would spot flower sprites constantly hopping around on the grass fields as though they were afraid that players didn’t know they were monsters. Further away from the gate there were 2 players who were also killing some flower sprites, a male and a female. Bai XiaoYu chose to avoid them and began slashing at the flower sprites in an isolated corner, one stroke at a time.

-8, -9, -4, -17 (Boom!)… A flower sprite had approximately 70 health. That meant he needed to attack around 8 times before he could kill it. There’s nothing he could do about it. Who asked that he left his Strength at a mere 5 points? While the kitten would stretch out a paw to help out once in a while, its threat level was near nil. Not only that, but it was also mainly busy with collecting the loot dropped by the flower sprites.

XiaoYu who was focused on killing flower sprites didn’t notice that the 2 players who were supposedly far away from him had slowly moved towards his direction. To be fair, they had accidentally begun moving closer to him as they killed one flower sprite after another. But when that female player spotted the tiny lucky cat relentlessly pouncing on loot by his feet, her eyes sparkled.

There was a wide range of pets in AO. There were cute pets that could only be admired at. They cannot level up nor do they have possess any skills. Instead, they could be dressed up with a cute little butterfly ribbon and so on. There were pets who could pick up items. They cannot level up and their sole skill was collecting items. Items collected would be automatically sent into the owner’s inventory. The owner could then focus all their time on killing monsters. There were pets who could attack. They can level up and have their own skills. Their job was to help their owner in defeating monsters. Defensive pets…and so on and so forth. There were all sorts of pets waiting to be discovered by players.

Thus a pet with multiple uses such as this little kitten that was rare and cute (who knows if it could be dressed up) and would collect items and could even attack monsters, how could a female player’s heart not beat excitedly?

She pushed her partner and whispered to him. That male player could not withstand the cutesy tone of her voice and walked towards Bai XiaoYu.

“How much for your cat?”

“Huh?” XiaoYu hadn’t realised those 2 players had already gotten so close to him. He was slightly startled but quickly recognised they were hoping to buy the tiny lucky cat. “Sorry, I’m not selling.”

“Name a price. Any is fine.” The guy was already losing his patience because his partner kept whispering at him from behind.

“It’s true…I can’t sell. It’s account-bound.”

“What! Bound? Who do you think you’re cheating? Everyone knows pets can be traded without restrictions.” The male player’s tone became worse and worse. While he himself had only entered the game a few months ago, he was already over Level 40. He definitely knew the game better than this newbie did. If it wasn’t because his girlfriend kept going on about wanting the flower crown dropped by flower sprites, he wouldn’t even come to a low-level area to kill monsters. The repetitive labour with no experience or rewards was annoying enough. It’s fine if the player with newbie equipment in front of him wasn’t willing to sell, but he dared to try and cheat him.

“I’m not lying. It’s really bound by the game system.” XiaoYu couldn’t understand which part of his tiny lucky cat they looked well upon. There were so many pets way cuter than it to be found on the city streets just then. Pets were also very common.

“Stop trying to f*cking lie to me. Even if you don’t want to sell today, you will! Or I’ll kill you!”

The rules of Player Killing in AO are as follows; if a player with a white nametag made the first move and attacked a player with white or yellow nametag, their nametag will turn grey. Within the next 10 minutes, all players could kill them without any repercussions. If they did not kill anyone, their nametag will revert back to white 10 minutes after their last attack. If they killed 1 person, their nametag will turn yellow. If they killed 2, it will turn red. Upon killing more than 20 players, their nametag will turn black. Those with red and black names will be chased and killed by the NPC city guards. After being killed, they would be teleported to the Hell map where they must complete quests to wash their nametags until the nametags turn yellow. Only then could they exit Hell. Players with yellow nametags can regain their white nametag status after staying online for an hour. For those who had red and black nametags, the rate of turning back to white depends on the number of people murdered and the crime level (the game can determine whether the kill was done with evil intentions or not). The detailed rate of recovery and loot drop rate could be found by asking the PK Officer in each city.

This also meant it was alright if you had a yellow nametag. If someone else killed you, they’d have a yellow nametag as well. It would turn back after hiding in a city for an hour (the big cities do not allow PK within city limits). While the loot drop rate was higher than a white nametag’s, it was decisively lower than those with red or black nametags. This was to prevent players who had accidentally killed someone from being mobbed, but this had also given quite a number of people the chance to kill someone once in a while for fun.

“…” XiaoYu had just been on the game’s forums last night (players could still access the forums while in-game) and had roughly understood the PK rules of AO. He didn’t believe that this player would be so bored to the point of killing him wherever he went. Anyway even if he died, he wouldn’t drop anything. (To protect new players, players at Level 10 or below would not drop experience or items upon death. Those above Level 10 would drop by one level and there was a definitive chance they’d drop some items until they were killed back down to Level 10.) At most, all he’d feel was the pain.

But having just tasted death once yesterday, he did not want to experience it again nor did he wish to explain again that TinyLuckyCat was a gift from the game’s system and could not be traded. The other party would probably not even listen. Once he dropped out of Combat mode, he immediately shattered the Return Scroll to arrive back within Prole’s city limits.

“D*mn it! I forgot to make sure he was still in Combat mode. From now on, I’ll kill him every time I see him!” With the newbie in front of him disappearing before his eyes back to the city and the woman behind him chitter-chattering non-stop on how useless he was, the male player’s stomach full of rage and fire spewed out aimlessly.

At this moment, Bai XiaoYu was aching over the 5 silver coins he’d wasted. Prole was just nearby yet he’d used a Return Scroll. The money he and the little kitten had left wasn’t enough to buy another one.

Ugh, as he’d thought the more people there were, the more problems there were. He really missed the empty Newbie Village. He didn’t even have the mood to continue working on his job change quest. Instead, he found a desolate little alley, sat down and began browsing the forums.

◄Previous •Index• Next►

4. The Capital Prole

So that he could reach Level 10 as fast as possible, on the second day Bai XiaoYu decided to have a look around the village and complete some quests. Thus the tiny lucky cat dejectedly became a pretty corpse sunbathing over his shoulders because quest rewards were all transferred straight into the players’ hands. It couldn’t even pick anything up. It just showcased its passive skill being triggered. All quests he completed had an additional 10% to 50% gold reward.

With a few small dried fish he’d bought from the game system’s pet shop, he teased the kitten from time to time. He walked through the village looking for kill quests, something to make it a little more energetic.

Whether it was because his luck was just too strong or terrible, most of the quests were just errand quests like delivering lunch and letters. He found a few fetch quests that required him to gather items from the monsters near the village, but due to the hours he’d spent battling yesterday and the tiny lucky cat’s inventory has yet to be cleared of non-equipment items, all requests were fulfilled as soon as he received the quest. He’d instantly obtain the quests’ rewards.

After looping round and round the village for half a day, he finally found a kill quest that afternoon: kill 30 of the small grey wolves that have been harassing the villagers. Location: the Nameless Mountain.

XiaoYu looked behind him. It was probably referring to the mountain just behind the village. He bought some food and potions, and headed off for the mountain.

The game called it a mountain but it’s just a slightly taller mound of dirt than usual. Ignoring a bunch of wild rabbits, it was halfway up the mountain before he found Level 7 to 9 tiny grey wolves lounging around.

They really are tiny…grey wolves. They weren’t just a tiny bit lacking compared to the tall fierce wolves Bai XiaoYu had imagined. They were just a smidge larger than the tiny lucky cat. True, what new player would have the strength to kill large wolves. The most they could do is torment the wolves’ children. He’d much rather believe it was the villagers harassing the wolves than these itsy-bitsy wolves harassing the villagers.

But a quest is a quest. After over an hour of slaughter by himself (the tiny lucky cat was observe-and-collect-money-ing), he finally killed 30 small grey wolves. With a lazy stretch, he began heading back to the village. Just as he did so, an earthshaking howl echoed through the mountain.

Shoot. Could it be the big grey wolf had come seeking vengeance because he’d killed too many of its children? He turned around to find a great big grey wolf as tall as a man, with red eyes, sharp teeth and the words “Great Grey Wolf, Boss, Level 15” shimmering above its head, running straight at him.

Bai XiaoYu didn’t pause for a single moment and dashed right down the mountain with TinyLuckyCat in his arms. Is this a joke? He’s only at Level 9. To boost the power of his skills after becoming an Acolyte, he’d spent all his points on Intelligence. There was not a single chance he could go against this boss.

However, it’s a pity that he himself forgot about his pitiful 5 Dexterity. He can’t even run away from the raging boss. When he transformed into a ray of bright white light, the only thought in his mind was: next time, he must not forget to buy Return Scrolls.

Depressed, the big and small lucky cats sat beside the Revival Point in the Newbie Village and sighed for the nth time. Although he’d reduced the Pain Sensory setting to 10%, the sting of death would always break one’s heart.

Looking on at his torn-up clothes and the near leafless wreathe on his head, he reminded himself once more. He must always carry Return Scrolls with him! Before he was reluctant to get one due to it being 5 silver coins each. The net worth of the two lucky cats were just a little over 6 silver coins. Buying one equals to going broke. Now he’s not going to bother saving that tiny bit of cash. All gold lost will return. Once his level increases, money would slowly come back.

When XiaoYu handed in the quest, he finally reached Level 10. But after buying a Return Scroll and repairing his equipment, there were barely over 10 copper coins left in his pockets. It wasn’t even enough for the teleportation fee. Eventually, after completing a few more errand quests, he had earned enough money, and just before the sky turned dark. He decided to leave the village on the next day and head towards the nearest city, Prole.

Upon arriving at Prole, the first thing he thought was: huge, and not in an average sort of way. The second thought that went through his mind was: there were too many people.

As one of the main 4 cities, Prole was definitely big. At the same time, as the City of Merchants, its streets and alleyways were filled with stalls on both sides. The voices of those who were loudly advertising their wares and those of haggling rose and fell in waves. There were also sellers who seemed as if they were paralysed, stuck in front of their stalls with nary a movement.

These were the two modes of stalls AO offers. The first was the Original mode. Players could buy a stall sign from the game’s shop for 5 silver coins and they could set up a stall in an open spot by a street with no time limit. However, the player cannot leave the stall during this time. The other was the Body Double mode. Players would need the special stall sign which costs 10 silvers each. They can then set up a stall for 12 hours (once the stall expires, all items and money go straight into the player’s storage), but the players can choose to leave their stalls. The game will save the last pose the player was in prior to leaving their stall.

On the surface, while the latter option was slightly more expensive and the time was limited, it was convenient. Players could freely move about and deal with other matters. Logically most people would choose this mode, and indeed the other cities’ markets were more calm with a vast majority of stall owners using body doubles.

But Prole was different. Its name as the City of Merchants wasn’t blindly given. It was because amongst the 4 main cities, Prole had the best scenery with a wide variety of NPC shops and the largest Teleportation Sector. As such, it was nicknamed by the players as the capital of AO.

Most players chose to set their revival point at Prole. The more players passed by, the more merchants were attracted to it. The more merchants came by, the stronger the competition became. You want to make your product stand out from the sea of stalls? Then cry out and boast about it. You want to buy something you’ve been eyeing at a low price? Then haggle. This was something a Body Double stall could never do. Hence when players set up their stalls here, they prefer to look after the stall themselves and call out for passing players to come have a look at their wares. Similarly, players passing by also preferred to head for Owner-mode stalls as they could haggle.

Bai XiaoYu carefully walked through the wide streets of Prole. He watched as players around him rushed about and haggled. No one paid attention to him. Slowly his courage grew and he began walking down the streets with a straight back, browsing at the prices of items in AO.

Occasionally a few players would notice the black kitten on his shoulders. Even then, they only gave him a brief glance before turning away. After all, in-game pets have been released for quite some time now. With all sorts of cutesy blobs, rabbits, puppies and kittens to be had, the range of pets to be found were near endless. While this little cat was very cute, when thrown among a street filled to the brim with cute pets it wasn’t as eye-catching.

XiaoYu leisurely strolled down one lane after another. Whenever he encountered an energetic merchant waving him over, he’d hide to the side. He roughly understood the basic situation of AO’s economy. As expected, cards and equipment with low drop rates were the popular items. All items, as long as they aren’t the white-grade equipment sold by NPCs, could be sold in the market. Even the small grass wreathe on top of his head was being sold. But was only worth 1 silver. There were even rocks used to refine armours, potions, food, quest items etc.

He considered the notion of setting up his own stall for a moment. There was probably quite a while left before he would be able to set it up. Disregarding the expensive stall sign, there weren’t a lot of items on him that were worth anything. He couldn’t even reach the maximum stall limit of 20 items (One stall sign only allows 20 items to be sold at a time but the owner could replenish the stall as soon as an item is sold).

As such the current mission was still to go for a job change. But before he headed towards the place he could do so, he first found a storage NPC to apply for a free small storage box which could store 50 items (Every time he accessed the storage box, he’d pay a 1-copper fee. Expanding the box by 1 slot required 1 crystal with a maximum of 250 slots to be had.) and stored all the items in his and the tiny lucky cat’s inventories.

He then entered the Job Change Hall, found the NPC in Acolyte robes, and accepted the quest to kill 100 flowers sprites and 100 lizards in the areas surrounding Prole.

Translator’s Notes:

Observe-and-collect-money-ing: Purposely made to not be grammatically correct as it reflects one of the many Asian styles in online text or to act cute – [verb]ING.

◄Previous •Index• Next►

3. The Magical Tiny Lucky Cat

“Hahahahahaha!” A man’s laughter came roaring by from a place not far from Bai XiaoYu. In an instant, his face was flushed red. He’d thought there’d be no one around. XiaoYu hurriedly packed up his bag and ran away with the kitten in his arms. He didn’t even dare to look at where the laughter came from in fear that he’ll say something that’d agitate his frail sense of dignity.

With a head full of gloomy thoughts, he rushed out of the village and blindly ran for quite a while. Finally, he stopped to catch his breath. After a series of harsh pants followed by chugging a whole bottle of Milk in one go, Bai XiaoYu’s breathing calmed down. Being a newbie is no fun at all. If you want agility, they have none. If you want strength, they have none. He’s already panting from running such a short distance. His Hunger even shot up!

Looking around, XiaoYu found that he’d run into a small forest with the village completely out of sight. When he summoned the map, it was labelled “Outskirts of Newbie Village”. Fortunately, he didn’t continue running. Apart from those around the Newbie Villages, the monsters are all aggressive. With how little health he had, he would most likely be sent back to the revival point in one bite.

Bai XiaoYu was not inclined to head back to the village for now. He had food and potions anyway. What if that person was still there? He’d rather kill some monsters first. He laid down the kitten and began hunting for monsters with his newly-equipped knife.

“You attacked Caterpillar. -2.” Huh? He clearly hasn’t even found a single monster yet. How could he have damaged something?

“Caterpillar attacked you. -1.” A faint something could be felt coming from his feet. As he looked down, he found that he had stepped on a tiny green fuzzy caterpillar. Now the caterpillar is angrily gnawing on his foot. It felt rather disgusting…If he wasn’t wearing a pair of sandals, how great that’d be. With a pair of leather shoes, he could kick it around like a ball!

“You attacked Caterpillar. -5.” He quickly shuffled his feet back before the caterpillar continued tormenting his toes, knelt down and stabbed at it with his knife. A weapon’s attack is not the same as being stepped upon. Look, it dealt double the damage.

“Your pet attacked Caterpillar. -2.” The cat most likely realised this caterpillar was smaller than it. Happily, it rushed in smack the caterpillar with its paw. On the other hand, he was feeling quite dejected. The threat of being stepped on by him was the same as the kitten’s tiny paw lightly smacking at it.

“You attacked Caterpillar. -4. You defeated Caterpillar. EXP +1.” The caterpillar’s corpse turned transparent and was swept away by the game within 2 seconds. All that’s left on the ground was a copper coin and a puddle of sticky mucus. Before XiaoYu could even reach out his hand, the tiny lucky cat had already pounced on them and pulled them towards itself. And so the copper coin and sticky mucus vanished.

XiaoYu stared blankly down at the spot where they had been. He called out his Inventory tab only to discover that it still displayed 0 copper with nary a shadow of the sticky mucus. Shocked, he snatched up the kitten and started shaking it back and forth, “The money? The item? Where are they? You, spit them out now!”

He’d originally thought that whatever Tiny Lucky Cat picked up would be automatically stored in his bag. He didn’t think that there’d be nothing. Is this a joke? Wouldn’t he gain nothing but experience in the future when he kills a monster? It really is snatching money.

“Meow?” The kitten looked up at its owner in confusion. It didn’t seem to understand why its owner would suddenly treat it so unkindly. It’s being shaken so hard that its tiny head felt really, really dizzy @.@

Realising that his method of communication was useless, Bai XiaoYu could only put the little cat down with a heavy heart and took out a bottle of Milk to comfort it. Watching on as the cat drank the milk with tiny gulps, he half-heartedly summoned the Pet tab to have a look at it. “Heeey!”

The Level display on the tab was still 1 but the words in the brackets had actually changed: (97 coppers left to be picked up to next level up). This change was within his expectations. However what surprised him was on the last line of the tab. An option “Do you wish to open pet storage space? (Items may only be taken out and not deposited.)” had appeared.

Thank the gods. The items did not disappear but were placed in the tiny lucky cat’s storage space. Doesn’t that also mean he now had an extra storage space? He saw that it can only store 20 types of items, and will expand as it levels up. His grin stretched from ear to ear. Although if he takes out the items now, would the tiny lucky cat’s experience drop back to 1 silver?

After a moment of deliberation, he decided to test it out. After taking out the items, his inventory now had an additional 2 coppers and 1 puddle of sticky mucus. (It doesn’t matter how much money is dropped, the game will show 1 coin. It’s only when the coin is picked up will the players know how many coins were dropped. The sticky mucus’s NPC vending price is 1 copper coin.) The kitten’s experience also did not change.

“That’s awesome! Little cat, I love you!” Bai XiaoYu excitedly hugged the kitten and gave it a kiss. Not only would he get more money but he’d also have an extra storage space. According to information online, pets will not drop any items upon death. Therefore, from now on, all items he found would be safeguarded by TinyLuckyCat. If he needed anything, he can take it out whenever. If he didn’t need it then, no one else can take it. Hahahaha…

And so the motivated and optimistic Bai XiaoYu, along with his tiny lucky cat, began killing and killing and killing in the small forest. Though the experience gained from killing monsters weren’t a lot and AO contained a large collection of quests and missions, but for the tiny lucky cat’s experience levels plus happiness (He found that when picking up items, the tiny lucky cat’s meows were exceptionally happy. Don’t ask him how he knew that. He just knew!). This little bit of hard labour wasn’t much to him.

After a busy day, the sky began to darken. (Time in AO and in reality flowed at the same speed. It’s split into day and night, though night time just meant it’s a little bit darker than usual. To allow those who work or study to be able to play at night, the sky only becomes fully dark between midnight and 5 a.m.) XiaoYu’s stock of Apples and Milk were nearly depleted. The man who laughed at him in the Newbie Village should have left by now. Thus he decided to head back to the village and rearrange his items in the meantime.

AO’s cheapskate nature was not just limited to the low amount of money that could be grinded out, but also in the drop rate of equipment and monster cards. Monster cards are akin to what some games call attribute gems which could be inlaid into equipment. AO’s rules are that each equipment could have 0 to 4 slots. Cards can be inlaid to increase the equipment’s stats. (Once inlaid, cards cannot be taken out, excluding the use of special items.) However other players cannot see the effects and would not affect the equipment’s appearance, nor would it leak out what sort of cards the player had inlaid.

Bai XiaoYu levelled up by 2 while TinyLuckCat’s level rose by 1. Its storage space also increased by 1 tile. Naturally, no cards were dropped and the only equipment he found were a pitiful Average Knife (Attack +3. Level Limit: 5) and a Coarse Grass Wreathe (Headgear. Def +1. No level limit.).These too can probably be considered alright. Even though he felt that it was a bit weird to have a guy wear a wreath, it’s better to add a bit more defence. XiaoYu considered and reconsidered and thought it all over again before deciding that once he reached level 10, he would become an Acolyte. He’d first need to increase his Intelligence to raise his MP and the effects of his healing skills. That way he can save on red potions and even buff himself and the kitten.

While it wouldn’t be hard to find a group to level with as a healer, it’s not like he can’t go solo because the healing spells of an Acolyte can damage undead monsters. Furthermore, due to the game’s realistic monsters, most players are not willing to enter gloomy and ghastly places like the Zombie Cave and the Spirit Grotto. If he went to those places to train, he could even avoid interacting or arguing with a lot of the other players.

He’s not afraid of horrifying things like ghosts and monsters anyway. After seeing the corpses of his parents which were smashed until blood and flesh blended together, nothing else could make him feel fear again. Except for automated vehicles = =.

◄Previous •Index• Next►

2. Another Lucky Cat?!

Bai XiaoYu was now standing in the middle of the Novice Training Camp’s castle. An NPC approached him, “Welcome, LuckyCat, to Asgard Online. I am in charge of guiding new players, NPC1. Would you like to start the tutorial?”

“Sure.”

“Tutorial Lesson 1: Summoning the Menu. When you wish to check your equipment, look up Character Information via the System Menu and so on, please recite in your mind ‘System’. Then, select what you wish to look up using the tab that materialised. Please summon the System Menu now, LuckyCat.”

XiaoYu mentally recited ‘System’ and a transparent dialogue box appeared in front of his eyes. The options listed at the very top were ‘Equipment’, ‘Stats’, ‘System Settings’, ‘Real-Life Notification Settings’, and more. He thought for a while and selected ‘Equipment’ first.

A miniature Bai XiaoYu immediately popped into existence. There were only three pitiful items in the Equipped boxes: Top – Newbie’s T-Shirt, Def +1; Bag – Newbie’s Cute Little Knapsack, Bag Space 20; Bottom – Newbie’s Cute Little Suspender Shorts, Def +1. XiaoYu’s eye twitched. What’s with this name…It seemed like the first equipment to be changed would be these pants. Although it’s slightly stronger than the white underwear the System forces on players after taking the bottoms off, the name is just dreadful. No way. He must get them changed as soon as possible.

Bai XiaoYu tapped into ‘Stats’. Other than Luck and Charm which were hidden, his stats were all at 5 with his Hunger at 20/100. Stats in AO are increased by levels. The game would give 5 points per level to be allocated as the player wished. As such though two players’ levels, classes, and equipment are the same, their health and attack power may not be the same. This increased playability, and also increased the number of guides and arguments in the forums.

The Hunger stat is for realism. To prevent any “Daredevil Third Brothers” from appearing, the game created this stat. When Hunger is 100, the player will die – from starvation. When Hunger is at -100, players will have a “Stuffed” status. Under this debuff, they cannot move quickly or eat any other food.

Within ‘System Settings’, the most important are the few related to the game’s settings. For example, the Pain Sensory can be set from 10% to 50% with a default of 20% – Bai XiaoYu promptly changed it to 10%. Are they joking? He’s here to experience a different life, not to be tortured – Volume settings, Skill Effects settings, Log Off settings etc.

‘Real-Life Notification Settings’ provide the ability to check the player’s bank balance, notifications when the phone rings or when the doorbell rings, and so on. But these have little to do with him.

“Congratulations on completing the quest ‘Summoning the Menu’, LuckyCat. EXP +10, Milk +1.” After he looked at a few other options in the System Menu, NPC1 finally opened their mouth. “Tutorial Lesson 2: Check Inventory. When you wish to look at your inventory, please recite in your mind ‘Inventory’ while tapping on storage equipment like knapsacks, waist bags, storage bracelets, storage rings etc. You can then access your inventory via the tab that materialised. Please summon the Inventory tab now, LuckyCat.”

Bai XiaoYu examined himself up and down before realising the equipment he had on at the moment should be the little knapsack on his back. He stretched his arm behind and recited ‘Inventory’ while touching the bag. A space made up of tiles popped out before his eyes. The lower right corner displayed the bag’s storage space and how much money he had at the moment. Looking at the great big “0 coppers”, XiaoYu faintly felt like supporting his forehead with a hand. Never mind. He’ll have money in the future T-T The 2/20 indicated the bag could hold at most 20 types of items, two of which had already been taken up.

He raised his head to look at those two tiles. One was the Milk (HP +50. Hunger -5. Cannot use while in combat.) he’d gotten from the Menu quest. The other tile was a small little gift box. It’s probably the random gift the game mentioned when he registered. Gift Box: Greeting gift for the cute newbie. Please double-tap to test your “character”. Ohohohoho~ What type of item description is this…This time, Bai XiaoYu actually lifted his hand to help support his head. Was he wrong to have chosen this game? The developers are so wretched. They’re really asking to be beaten up.

Just as he wanted to tap open the Gift Box and have a look at what he’d gotten, NPC1 suddenly spoke. XiaoYu was so frightened that the finger that was aiming for the Gift Box shrunk back like a thief who was spotted.

“Congratulations on completing the quest ‘Check Inventory’, LuckyCat. EXP +20, Apple +1.”

Alright. Just because there’s now an apple, XiaoYu will look at the description before opening up that damned box. Apple: HP +60. Hunger -5. Cannot use while in combat. From what he can observe it’s most likely these food-looking items all can’t be used while in combat, other than medicine. Now that he thought of it, that’d be the best. The possibility of witnessing a player stabbing at the Boss with a sword while munching on a roast chicken drumstick is just too weird = =.

“Tutorial Lesson 3: Use an Item. Not only can food replenish your HP and MP, they can also decrease your Hunger. The way to use an item is, upon summoning the Inventory tab, use your hand to take out the item then eat. Please eat an apple now, LuckyCat.”

So in this day and age, eating is also a quest. Bai XiaoYu took out the apple and bit into it, then he saw the game’s System notifications display “HP +60, Hunger -5”. Eating when his health is full is such a waste. His heart is bleeding.

“Congratulations on completing the quest ‘Use an Item’, LuckyCat. EXP +20, Apple +1.” The apple came back. It wasn’t lost. He didn’t lose it…

…

NPC1 then taught Bai XiaoYu how to drink potions, pick up items, change chat channels, look up his quest list and so on and so forth. Just before he’s rendered dizzy by NPC1’s lessons on basic gameplay, the Tutorial quests were finally finished.

The last quest is to walk into the portal behind the NPC to be teleported to a random Newbie Village and begin the true game experience. XiaoYu’s vision spiraled round and round like a mosquito coil. He wobbled over to the portal, mumbling, “I wonder what would happen if I chose not to start the Tutorial quests from the start…”

When he finally stepped into the portal, Bai XiaoYu heard NPC1’s voice for the very last time. “Players who chose not to accept the Tutorial quests will be instantly awarded 10 silvers and teleported to a random Newbie Village.”

orz – this was Bai XiaoYu’s first action when he was teleported to the Newbie Village. Though the series of quests had raised his level by two and he’d gotten some items,  he did not get a single copper. 10 silvers = 1000 coppers! :depressed: If only he knew that starting the game directly would get him some money. After all, anything can be bought. It nearly made him cry. T-T

After letting go of his grief, he sat down under a tall and sturdy tree, he began investigating his bag’s contents. There is one advantage for having a bag. Rather than summoning the Inventory tab, he could also open it up and have a look himself. However, the items are merely miniaturised versions of themselves. Equipment like storage bracelets and rings can only be accessed via the Inventory tab, but bags only provide so little space.

5 Apples, 10 bottles of Milk, 10 Small Red Pots, 10 Small Blue Pots, a Gift Box, 1 Newbie Knife, and a pair of Average Slippers. His harvest was quite good, except for that pitiful 0 coppers indication. With a pair of slippers, he wouldn’t need to walk around barefoot anymore. He drank a bottle of Milk and took out the Gift Box sent by the game. He’s decided to have a look at what present did the almighty RNG god prepared for him.

As he opened the box, a blinding white light shone from it. He blinked open eyes that he didn’t realise he’d closed to find that there was only an egg left in his hands. The game notified him: Received Unknown Pet Egg +1. Unknown Pet Egg: Drip a drop of blood to set Owner. Account-bound.

He took out his Newbie Knife and broke the skin on his fingertip. System: Player self-harm, HP -1. Bai XiaoYu was speechless. If it wasn’t for this pet egg, he wouldn’t even harm himself…

The egg with a speck of blood on it rocked from side to side. Then, with a loud snap, a crack began to appear from the top. XiaoYu looked on expectantly as the crack grew larger and larger until the egg split open with a crash. The egg revealed the pet contained within it – a tiny black kitten.

So cute! Girls are not the only ones who are defenseless against cute things. Guys are the same. XiaoYu stared down at the newborn kitten. It demurely sat on his palm. Its big round eyes looked around blearily before finally settling on XiaoYu’s face. “Meow~~”, along with a smiling cat’s face, Bai XiaoYu instantly struck down by its cuteness. Pink blossoms bloomed behind them.

When he called out the Pet tab, he was rendered speechless with mirth.

Pet (Account-bound; Untradeable)

Name: TBD, editable

Level: 1 (1 silver left to be picked up to next level up)

Species: Lucky Cat

Skills:

(Passive) Beckon Fortune: Gain an extra 10%-50% more gold when killing monsters or receiving rewards. Cannot level up.

(Active) Snatch $ to Level: Help the owner to pick up items. Items other than coins will be calculated according to NPC vending price.

(Active) Smackity-smack-smack!: When encountering a monster smaller than itself, it can assist its owner in combat. Attack power is 50% of the owner’s stats. Can level up. Maximum attack power is 100%

Hunger: 1/100

Intimacy: 100/100

It couldn’t be that the pet is a lucky cat because he called himself LuckyCat, right? It even snatches money. It’d just be snatching the money I grind out. Other players’ items are all protected by the game for a period of time T-T. Although it has an attack skill, it’s obvious that the number of monsters smaller than this kitten is so few that I don’t even need to expect it to help me in combat at all. All right. For the sake of being able to increase gold gained, I’ll bear with it.

Bai XioYu thought for a moment as he pulled out a keyboard from the kitten’s Name text box. He’s decided. The kitten will be called “TinyLuckyCat”.

“From now on, the both of us lucky cats must work hard together to earn more money!” To encourage himself, he put the kitten down, stood up and vowed with one hand at his waist and the other punching up towards the sky.

“Mroww~~” Upon hearing the kitten seemingly calling out loud just like him, Bai XiaoYu was about to say “You’re thinking the same as I am, right?” when the sight down below made him reel. The kitten’s tiny body was standing upright on its wobbly hind legs. One front paw at the hip and the other facing the sky as though it was imitating him. It really is true. Like owner, like pet.

Translator’s Notes:

Daredevil Third Brother: Reference to Shi Xiu of Water Margins (Shui Hu Zhuan).

◄Previous •Index• Next►

1. A Lucky Cat is Born

“Ding! Player Bai XiaoYu’s iris and fingerprint IDs are set. Full-body scan complete. Bank of Earth bank account bound. Do you wish to continue to Character Customisation now?”

“Yes.” Bai XiaoYu lightly tapped on the “Yes” button in the dialogue box before him. He only saw that everything around him whirled into a blur. When he adjusted his vision, a huge mirror was standing right in front of him. The him in the mirror looked exactly like him in reality except he would definitely not wear the novice equipment he’s wearing now – a white t-shirt with suspender shorts.

“Please adjust your appearance and height, with a difference of up to 50% either way.” The cold voice of the server rang out once more. Beside his reflection in the mirror, there appeared a whole bunch of plus and minus symbols. Bai XiaoYu thought, these are probably used to adjust his appearance. However with the many buttons for adjusting his appearance all tightly packed together, Bai XiaoYu was so overwhelmed that his vision blurred. If he really wanted to adjust each and every minute detail, he’d probably spend more than an hour.

“Do not adjust.” He who hated troubling himself promptly chose not to adjust anything. He had essentially zero friends in real life anyway. Even if someone has seen his real appearance before, no one would even come forward and talk to him.

“Please enter your game ID.” In the blink of an eye, the mirror disappeared. A blank text box and a transparent keyboard materialised in front of him.

Bai XiaoYu didn’t pause for a single moment and instantly entered the username he had chosen before entering the game, “LuckyCat”.

“ID: LuckyCat. The name is available. Confirm?”

“Confirm.”

“Player Bai XiaoYu. Game ID: LuckyCat. Account created. Do you wish to enter the game?”

“Yes.”

“Welcome, LuckyCat,to Asgard Online. The system will send you a random gift. Please check your mailbox. As LuckyCat is using a smart game pod, 800 Earth Dollars will be automatically deducted from the player’s bound bank account every 30 days. When the account’s balance is insufficient, the system will kick the player out of the game. Players can look up their bank balance through the System Menu. Happy gaming!” (Since smart game pods require nutritional solution, the monthly fee is 800 ED. The monthly bill for gaming beds are 300 ED. )

A series of strong and blinding white rays flashed by. Bai XiaoYu had to shut his eyes. When he opened them once more, he found himself standing in the middle of a meadow. To be exact, he stood on a floating oval piece of land that is roughly as large as a football field with only a 10 metres-long bridge leading to a castle on another similar floating island. This should be the Novice Training Camp mentioned in the introduction.

A cool breeze blew around him. XiaoYu shivered. It’s probably because he’s standing in the middle of the sky while wearing such light clothes. The emptiness all around him felt exceedingly eerie and desolate.

It’s not an unusual sight. The game has already been launched for over a year. Other than those who commit suicide to start over again or those who’d just come of age and be legally permitted to play online games, there shouldn’t be any more new players. Naturally, it’s rather improbable for people to appear on this floating Novice Training Camp. It’s not that the other players don’t want to come here, rather they can’t. Once a player completes the Tutorial Quests, they would be immediately teleported to the Newbie Village – only there would the game actually begin – but there are no portals that lead back to here from the village.

Bai XiaoYu rubbed at the non-existent goose bumps on his body –it’s just his mind running wild – then pumped himself up and began walking on the only bridge towards the Novice Training Camp. From today onwards, he must start to learn how to be a professional gamer. He had got to work hard.

In the technologically advanced 23rd century, virtual reality games are something nearly every household and every home has set up. The average white-collar worker might not afford an expensive smart game pod but they are still able to buy a gaming bed. Those with a higher could choose the more comfortable smart game pod. The game company would send professionals to connect the plumbing for nutritional solution. This way, the company can ensure the players’ bodies are not be affected in any way even if they don’t log off for a long time. Due to how expensive the pods are, they’re not very popular.

And our protagonist, Bai XiaoYu, actually shouldn’t be able to afford a game pod.

First, the Bai family can only be considered an ordinary household. In a car accident one year ago, Bai XiaoYu’s parents passed away. In the modern period where smart cars are everywhere vehicle accidents ought to be very rare, unless an A.I. malfunction occurred. It just so happened that that accident occurred because the driver did not send the car’s A.I. in for maintenance on time. It resulted in a malfunction in the system and crashed into the Bai couple who were crossing the road at the time, leaving their only son Bai XiaoYu who’d just entered university.

Even though the court case was won in half a year with XiaoYu being paid a large sum as compensation, he was already exhausted through and through. He chose to quit and stayed at home. A very important reason being that tragedy left an emotional scar in him. As soon as he saw an automated vehicle on the road, he’d be terrified that it’d get out of control and crash into him. He also had no living relatives left, and his inherent introverted nature did not make any close friends. Thus there was no one around to counsel and console him. This scar can be considered to be deeply rooted in his heart.

Supermarkets these days all have an online shop. You can just buy any food or necessity you want online and it will be sent straight to your door. And so Bai XiaoYu would not leave the house, not even a single step out the door. Day in, day out he’d be nested in his home playing online games or reading. After all with that compensation money, plus his inheritance from his parents and the government’s monthly allowance of 600 ED, he’d have no issues if he lived frugally.

The of age Bai XiaoYu could already play virtual reality games.  When Asgard Online first launched, he thought of buying a gaming bed. At that time, he’d just become an adult legally and was admitted into university. This game felt like it was maturing with him. How could he not be excited?

It’s a pity that the above chain of events happened before he bought one. This led to the days of virtual reality games being pushed back indefinitely.

By now the game has been online for a year. Going in as a new player would burn not only 300 ED monthly, but the cost of buying a gaming bed and the game itself would also be a rather large initial cost. To Bai XiaoYu who planned on huddling in his home for his whole life, wherever he can save he will. Even now with the bank interest and the government’s allowance, he could just about balance out the month’s bills. It’s not possible for him to go to work. At the sight of streets full of automated vehicles, his legs turn into goo. Don’t even bother to mention sitting down. If he accidentally spend too much, it’d lead to his later years having as much food as a mountain after a year of drought. He really wouldn’t know how he should continue living then.

It was the day when he’d head online to buy some food and essentials again. As the reserved XiaoYu disliked interacting too many times with other people, he would buy a month’s supplies in one go. That way, the courier would only come to his door once a month.

Upon opening the webpage, a large bright red banner filled his vision and advertised some sort of celebratory event going on. Bai XiaoYu wasted some time browsing through it. It turned out to be a celebration for the online shop’s 100th anniversary. Those who spend over 100 ED will stand a chance to enter a lucky draw. The prizes had everything from a packet of facial tissues to the grand prize of a smart game pod.

He laughed apathetically. This type of lucky draw had happened before but it seemed like this time the company had put in more capital. They’re actually giving out a smart game pod worth over a few hundred thousand dollars. Just a mere glance would tell you that the chances of winning that were lower than the chances of being hit by a meteorite. To say nothing of Bai XiaoYu whose character has not a single drop of luck. He’d never won anything in the past, not even a packet of tissues.

After he purchased a whole heap of products, he’d been rewarded a few chances to draw from the pot. Of course. He was indifferent about it as well. He simply clicked a few times at the wheel to spin it. As expected, he drew nothing again, not even the packet of tissues. As such, when the wheel stopped for the last time, he had planned to close the webpage as soon as possible and wait for his package. Congratulatory fireworks suddenly burst out and filled the entire page, throwing him into a panic. For a moment, he thought his computer had a virus. It’s only when he calmed down and took a closer look did he feel as though he was just dreaming. The pointer was pointing directly at the grand prize ­– one (1) smart game pod.

After the workers had left after setting up the game pod and its plumbing, he was still in a daze. This is a beautiful dream, he thought. So when the workers asked him which game’s data did he want installed, he reflexively uttered Asgard Online.

He pinched himself hard. Having proven to himself that it’s not a dream, he carefully caressed the lit up pod with a goofy smile =v=

Though the game pod was expensive, it’s also one of those with a huge investment at the start but negates quite a number of real life expenses while in the pod. After some calculations, a mere 800 ED a month is quite a deal. A gaming bed still requires the player to log off to eat, shower, go to the bathroom etc.

And so Bai XiaoYu decided on the spot to live his life within the game from then on. Other than the 800 ED, he’d have no other expenditures. It’d be roughly the same as before. Not only that, AO had even opened up currency exchange between in-game currency and ED. Who knows? He might even earn money while in the game! (100 coppers = 1 silver, 100 silvers = 1 gold, 100 gold = 1 crystal = 1 ED)

The most important of all was there were no modern automated vehicles in Asgard Online. Bai XiaoYu can freely play anywhere he liked. After all, it’s not an actual solution for him to hide in his house like so for his entire life.

Translator’s Notes:
Earth Dollars (ED): While the proper translation is World Dollars, Bank of Earth sounds better than Bank of World.

•Index• Next►