56. Interlude: The Hei Family Rule

It was back when Hei QiYao was five.

The character used for his generation was Qi. There were two sons – the younger son, Hei QiYao, and the elder son, Hei QiXuan. QiXuan was fifteen years old.

Their parents would travel the world the whole year round. At first, they’d drag Hei QiYao, this third-wheeler, with them. Finally, they saw the light. They left QiYao in his brother’s care and drifted off into their own little romantic world.

The first day he transferred to his new kindergarten, tiny Hei QiYao caused an uproar. That’s not surprising. While he was still a teeny toddler who’d yet grown into a handsome man, his excellent genes showed themselves. A beautiful kid would have a great life no matter where they went.

All the boys and girls buzzed around him. QiYao got rather annoyed by them, but he did his best to hold his temper in as it was only the first day.

“Hey, pretty girl, be my girlfriend,” said a brash and arrogant voice.

“…” QiYao decided to ignore it. He walked around the great lump and his two little followers standing in front of him.

“Feisty. I like it. Be my girlfriend. I’ll protect you.” The lump grabbed QiYao’s hand. He wasn’t going to let the pretty girl run off that easily.

“…Let go!” Not only was he being pulled around by a pig, he’s also being mistaken for a girl. QiYao’s patience was near bottom.

“Hey, how dare you yell at our bro. Don’t…refuse the…the…cawwot for the pick.” The child still didn’t know what the idiom really was. ╮(╯▽╰)╭

“…” Hei QiYao threw a scornful side-eye glance at the kid. He harshly tugged his hand back from the grip, turned away and left.

Xiao Zheng didn’t think this tiny and thin “pretty girl” would be so strong. He stared down at his hand. Not willing to give up, he ran after QiYao once more. He was this kindergarten’s most handsome boy. Every kid in the area knew that. If others knew he got rejected, that’d be so humiliating.

“Hey, be my girlfriend.” Xiao Zheng ran ahead and struck a pose he thought was a good one right in front of QiYao.

“…How boring.”

“Hmph. One kiss and you’ll be my girlfriend.”

QiYao looked at the pouting mouth heading for his face. Finally, he snapped. He punched the other at his jaw.

“You hit me!” While Xiao Zheng was part of the older class and was more mature in all departments (so he thought), he wasn’t so mature as to not hit back when punched. His blood rushed up and he immediately charged in. Soon, the both of them were in a cloud of fists.

QiYao might be smaller than the other, but rich kids were all trained in all matters of self-defence since they could start walking. QiYao knew how to fight. On the other hand, the larger Xiao Zheng didn’t have much of an advantage. He was soon in tears.

“Y-You actually hit Zheng!” The two followers finally reacted. They rushed over to join the fight and the four of them tumbled into a lively, wrestling mess.

By the time the teachers split the kids apart, rainbows decorated every face. Not even Hei QiYao was left out. There was no helping it. With his physique, there’s no way he’d be uninjured when fighting three alone unless he had outside help. Compared to the three bawling boys, QiYao merely patted the dust off his clothes and left after throwing out, “I’m a boy!”

When QiYao got home that night, QiXuan was sitting on the couch with his legs crossed, watching television.

“You’re back,” QiXuan said as QiYao stepped into sight.

“Mn. Brother.” QiYao gave out a simple greeting. He just wanted to get back to his room now and change out of his dirty clothes.

“Hm? Wait. Xiao-Yao, come back.” QiXuan instantly noticed his brother’s weird look. He curled a finger in a beckoning gesture at QiYao.

QiYao hesitated. Still, he obediently walked over. QiXuan lifted his younger brother onto his lap and examined him from top to bottom: messy hair, bruise on face, new clothes that’d turned into a crumpled mess with a hole in it now. It was clear the boy had been in a fight.

“Heh. You were in a fight. And you lost?” teased QiXuan.

“…No. I just tripped.” QiYao twisted his head away. The tiny seed known as a man’s dignity, or rather rebellious spirit, popped up. Unwittingly, QiYao lied.

QiXuan squinted his eyes at the boy. With two fingers, he turned that stubborn face to look at him again.

The next moment, QiYao’s eyes went as wide as saucers and his mind blanked out. QiXuan was…kissing him.

That’s right. A mouth-to-mouth kiss. Bleurgh. There’s even tongue. The weird sensation freaked QiYao right down to his core. His mind snapped back to reality and he begun struggling with all his might. Unfortunately, the size difference was way too big. QiYao couldn’t move at all. He was at the mercy of the man.

“Are you a pervert?” QiYao shouted when his brother had enough of the kissing and released his lips. He forcefully scrubbed his mouth with the back of his hand. It was the first time he’d yelled at the brother he’d so revered.

“You hate it, don’t you?”

“Of course!”

“I too hate it when others lie to me, QiYao. Especially you, my younger brother.” QiXuan stopped his mocking and teasing manner. He looked at the boy in the eye and solemnly spoke.

“…I-I’m sorry.” The tiny Hei QiYao was a teensy bit scared of his big brother who suddenly got serious.

“Listen up. If you ever dare lie, you’d best be prepared for punishment.”

“Yes.” Lying meant punishment. This rule was set in stone within QiYao’s mind. The tiny seed of useless dignity scattered like a cloud of dust before the strange punishment of the Hei family’s eldest son.

“Now, go change.”

“Yes.” QiYao climbed off his brother’s lap and dutifully walked back to his room.

“Right, Xiao-Yao,” QiXuan called out just before QiYao walked into his room.

“What is it, Brother?”

“For the next punishment, which do you prefer? Kiss you until you faint or strip you down and spank you?” With a hand behind his head, QiXuan went back to how he was before – someone who desperately needed a beating.

“None. Of. It!” QiYao burst into a rage once more. He stomped his way into his room and slammed the door behind him.

“Hehehe…” The living room was filled with QiXuan’s laughter. “Xiao-Yao’s first kiss. I can even boast about it to his future girlfriends now…”

Translator’s Notes:

1. Carrot and pick: Translation of the typical “to refuse a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit” to the “carrot and stick” saying. Because the kid fumbled and used similar sounding words instead, it got replaced with “cawwot and pick”.

2. Xiao Zheng: No, not the character used for little. It’s a surname + first name.

3. Legs crossed: In Chinese, it’s called “二郎脚”. Named after Erlang Shen. According to legends/old poets/records, the original statue of the deity had him sitting down with his legs crossed. Years later, they renovated the shrine/temple and changed him into a standing pose. Actual recordings of whether this was true and how it looked was lost to the ages. So no one really knows that the original “Erlang feet” meant. Nowadays, it generally does mean crossed legs but it differs depending on context and reader/writer background. There’s the general crossed at knees with legs hanging down, a weird type that hooks the ankle behind the knee and the ankle-on-knee type. Either way, it means the person’s relaxed, but whether it’s in a negative light (e.g. lazy bum) or not is highly dependant on context and gender. Women are never said to be sitting with “二郎脚” negatively.

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55. Punishment for Lying

“I think I said too much…” HaoRan felt rather guilty as he stared at XiaoYu’s fading shadow. He was only ecstatic over meeting an old classmate in the game, so he wanted to keep chatting. He didn’t think he’d stumble and cause a mess.

“It’s fine,” I_Am_A_Poor_Man comforted, patting the other on the shoulder.

“But Xiao-Bai seems…angry.”

“Really?” Poor_Man thought back at their interactions with XiaoYu in the past. The younger man certainly didn’t show any signs of his temper before. Except for certain issues which he was quite stubborn about, XiaoYu had always accepted everyone’s suggestions, reminders and even teasing with a gentle demeanour.

“In my memory, Xiao-Bai has always been sitting quietly to a side.” Hong HaoRan summarised how the nicknames came about. “While some of the bored kids in the class would seize the chance to insult Xiao-Bai by calling him Little Moron (Xiao-BaiChi) or Boy Toy (Xiao-BaiLian). He would just politely smile at them. He’d never acknowledge it or argue. But just now…” It was his first time witnessing XiaoYu turn and leave. Was that a sign he was angry?

“Perhaps Xiao-Yu isn’t angry. Don’t think too much about it.”

“None of you know about his family issues?” HereticKing was surprised no one in such a large class knew of XiaoYu’s situation. They’d even spread false rumours during a class gathering. Anyone who’d spent an ounce of time with XiaoYu would know he’s not that kind of person who only focuses on power and benefits.

“XiaoYu doesn’t talk much to us. None of us are good friends of his, so we don’t really know what happened to him after graduation.” HaoRan scratched his head in shame. Even the fact XiaoYu got into University C was something he only knew through the school’s congratulatory notice.

HereticKing stared at the direction XiaoYu disappeared to in thought. He sort of understood why he could always spot the type of lonely gaze within XiaoYu’s eyes. The kind that spoke of attempts to hide it but could never succeed all the time.

Once DrunkBed dejectedly walked away, HereticKing messaged XiaoYu, “Come to the Portal at the East Gate.”

XiaoYu didn’t reply at once. He was afraid he’d be asked about his real life. He wasn’t ready to say it out yet. He didn’t even feel like telling anyone about it for the time being.

“XiaoYu, we’re leaving. You’re the only one left. Hurry back now,” HereticKing’s voice rang out again just as XiaoYu was hesitating. While the other’s voice was as steady as ever with no way of telling what the other was thinking, XiaoYu felt a sense of pressure coming from those words. There was no way XiaoYu could try pretending to be an ostrich now. Furthermore, XiaoYu was someone who kept his word. They all agreed to go to the Derelict Ruins. Sure, the current situation was a little awkward, but he can’t recklessly stand the rest up.

“I’ll be there soon.” XiaoYu decided to put aside his conflicted feelings for now. Perhaps everyone would be too busy grinding later to ask about his family.

XiaoYu swiftly traced back his steps only to see HereticKing alone. The other man was leaning against a lamp post with his arms crossed in front of him. While his face was expressionless, the overwhelming presence still attracted many a stray eye.

XiaoYu felt it strange that Poor_Man and Below_The_Moon weren’t anywhere to be seen at all. By the time he’d walked closer, the wax statue HereticKing sprang to life. He grasped XiaoYu by the arm and dragged him to the centre of the nearby Portal.

“Select Nebula,” HereticKing commanded.

Nebula was a tiny suburb within Prole. Thus, when XiaoYu and HereticKing stepped out of the portal, the street was so not a match for the bustling streets in the heart of the capital. The autumn breeze showered the ground with leaves. There was only one word that could aptly describe the scene – desolate.

HereticKing led XiaoYu into an empty alley. Then, HereticKing abruptly stopped before XiaoYu and turned to stare right into XiaoYu.

XiaoYu was already half a head shorter than the other man. Under direct eye contact, XiaoYu felt as if he’d shrunk even further. His instincts told him the other wanted to say something to him, but he was also afraid he’d be asked a question he didn’t want to answer. So he tried to shrink smaller and smaller.

HereticKing reached out and held XiaoYu’s cheeks.

In the blink of an eye, he pulled them apart. XiaoYu’s cute kitten face was instantly turned into flatbread.

“…Ouch.” XiaoYu didn’t know what’d happened at first as he never could’ve imagined HereticKing would pull such a childish prank.

“Does it hurt?”

“Mn.”

“This is your punishment for lying.” HereticKing let go. One look at XiaoYu’s red cheeks and anyone would know HereticKing didn’t hold back at all.

“I’m sorry.” XiaoYu knew too he’d told a shoddy lie. It was so obvious that anyone with sense would instantly know it was fake. Since they agreed to meet up beforehand, he must’ve already finished organising his bag. Otherwise, all these weeks XiaoYu had been living with the guild would’ve been a waste.

“In the future, if you don’t want to tell anyone, just say no.”

“Mn.”

“You can even just stay silent. No one would force you to speak, but I don’t like you escaping via lying.”

“Yes. I know.”

“Does it still hurt?” XiaoYu was good at acknowledging his mistakes. At that, HereticKing gently rubbed at XiaoYu’s burning cheeks.

“Not anymore.” XiaoYu had lowered the in-game pain sensors to the minimum from the very beginning. Compared to the torture that was death, this was nothing.

“Then let’s go meet up with the others.” HereticKing won’t apologise for pinching XiaoYu’s cheeks. Telling a lie means accepting punishment. That was the rule his big brother set for him since he was a child. Hei QiYao had carved this rule deep into his heart and mind. He was basically raised (bullied?) by his big brother.

HereticKing led XiaoYu through Nebula by the hand. The Derelict Ruins of Natalis were still a few portals away. (Even if the portals were in the same city, they’re located in different areas and each of them have different ranges.)

The journey was silent. XiaoYu was still reflecting on his actions. He didn’t know how to read and decipher the air. He didn’t know if HereticKing was still angry or not based on that calm voice. But he did know he did something wrong today. He didn’t want to be hated by HereticKing, so he decided to sincerely apologise once more.

“Yao, I’m sorry. I won’t lie ever again,” XiaoYu said.

“Mn.” HereticKing nonchalantly hummed in response. After a pause, an idea seemed to have struck him. He curved his lips into a small smile and continued, “Tell a lie again and I’ll kiss you.”

“Hah?” XiaoYu instantly froze. He cannot compute.

Translator’s Notes:

Boy toy/Toy boy: American vs British. Take your pick. Boy toy is used here because I only ever heard the American version of it. For those wondering, it’s a synonym for gigolo. Google and some dictionaries seem to think it refers to a female edition of that meaning instead. Online forums seem to concur that their version is rather dated. Urban dictionary (the most unreliable dictionary on the internet) + memes show that most people don’t know boy toy might refer to a younger woman instead. Thanks, Madonna, for showing how “dated” you are. (jk. Don’t kill me. That’s what they said on the forums.)

◄Previous •Index• Next►

54. Classmate

Each Squad Leader needed to stay informed of the basic circumstances of players under them at all time. For example, if they were low level, then the leaders should arrange some team practices or carry them through grinding. But that didn’t mean the leaders needed to do all that themselves. As XiaoYu’s hidden Job was a secret few knew, I_Am_A_Poor_Man personally led the charge.

However, a certain someone also knew he was a certain Chief’s exclusive healer. If he didn’t notify the executive, what if he was summoned halfway through the grind? They’d have wasted a precious tool. Forget about how Sealed_Sword would strike him down in half. He himself would prepare a tiny knife for seppuku.

Truth be told, HereticKing heard the whole conversation between I_Am_A_Poor_Man and Sealed_Sword. His first reaction was also how he could bring XiaoYu to a high-level zone for experience. Thus, when I_Am_A_Poor_Man tried negotiating with him on taking XiaoYu to the Derelict Ruins of Natalis, HereticKing instantly agreed to Poor_Man’s request to not summon him for anything else for those five hours. Because HereticKing wanted to join in too.

I_Am_A_Poor_Man was always astonished at HereticKing’s attitude towards XiaoYu. It’s so rare to see Chief care so much about someone else. His mind thought of the bone-chilling winter dropping in from the north winds in reality. A saying popped into his mind: If Winter comes, can Spring be far behind?

He shook the saying out of his head. Poor_Man pondered on future plans. The year was coming to an end. The game would probably have plenty of events then. Why not take this chance to use up that XP Penalty Waiver? Otherwise, the night might drag on for too long. Too many dreams might come and go.

Two days later, I_Am_A_Poor_Man who’d been exploring the Derelict Ruins with a party received a message from Sealed_Sword. DrunkBed had logged on at noon the day after the meeting. He’d been told to send the XP Penalty Waiver over.

“Exams over?” Poor_Man seemed to recall DrunkBed was a university student studying fitness. He was truly amazing at sports. The job he picked, Assassin, had higher agility requirements than other jobs. It was the perfect class for him. While the base stats decided by the game were rather effective on deciding which job would be the best, each player’s reflex speed and ability to think on their feet was a type of hidden talent. They also effect whether the selected job was suitable for the player.

“Not that fast. He’s already called me to say he’ll be absent from the next treasure hunting session. I told him to log on tomorrow to lend his gear to another assassin for the time being.”

“I see.”

I_Am_A_Poor_Man then instantly started bothering XiaoYu over chat.

“Xiao-Yu, are you free tomorrow noon?” Poor_Man asked.

“Yes.”

“Then come to the East Gate of Prole. I’ll take you exploring.”

“Okay.”

“Not going to ask me where?”

“Mn. Because I believe in you. You wouldn’t sell me off.”

“Ah, you actually know how to crack a joke. I must still be asleep.”

“Hehe.” XiaoYu had been grinding at the Pyramids for the past few days with different healers. All those ladies kept chattering on about wanting to buy him so they can train it up. They’ll make sure everyone would love him then. Monsters would explode if they saw him. Drenched in such circumstances where the “selling” of a person was constantly talked about, he too could make similar jokes. This proved it’s very easy to lead someone astray.

But this was just some minor jokes thrown in during the boredom of grinding. They were all very caring of XiaoYu. Thus, they had a wonderful time together. Even the tiny cat learned to walk sedately through the stomping feet to pick up items. Occasionally, it’d accidentally blink its wide innocent eyes at the hungry wolves waiting to pounce on it, making them go crazy with how cute it was.

Time past swiftly and tomorrow was soon here. XiaoYu packed up his belongings and arrived ahead of time at the East Gate. Only he never would’ve thought someone else would be earlier than he was.

“Oh, Lil Lucky. Morning,” greeted Below_The_Moon.

 “Hello, Below_The_Moon.”

“Ah. Chief’s here so early. I hope we won’t meet any berserk monsters today.” Below_The_Moon was shocked at the familiar silhouette walking to them from around the corner of a building. While Chief wasn’t one to arrive fashionably late, he would always appear precisely one minute before they were supposed to meet up.

“How rare for me to hear your cursed mouth so early in the morning.” A gloomy face rang out from behind Below_The_Moon. I_Am_A_Poor_Man stared grudgingly at the other as if Poor_Man was a haunted and mad man. “I’m working hard on getting through the last stretch to Level 100. If we do meet any berserk monsters, I will chop you down and make soup out of your bones.”

“Tsk. You were the one who came early,” Below_The_Moon retorted.

“Hmph. Without me, this team wouldn’t be grinding later,” said I_Am_A_Poor_Man in an exhausted voice which came from a lack of sleep. He was still confirming the last member of their grind party today just now. As there was a chance they’d have to use XiaoYu’s special skills, any players who they weren’t particularly familiar with were all eliminated.

“Is everyone here?” HereticKing asked.

“You don’t need to worry about my work, Chief. They’re already grinding at our destination. We just need to head over and join in,” Poor_Man replied.

“Good.”

“Xiao-Yu, we’ll be grinding ghost mobs at the Derelict Ruins later. Remember to stay close to me,” Poor_Man said. The mobs over there were all Levels 100 to 110. Basically, a second was all it’d take to give XiaoYu a free ride back to Prole. Poor_Man didn’t want them to lose levels instead of gaining them. But as long as XiaoYu stuck close to him, he, plus another healer’s buffs, would definitely be enough to guarantee XiaoYu’s safety.

“Okay. Got it,” XiaoYu responded.

“Here are the ten or so Bibles the Treasure Squad found. Keep them safe. We might need you to use your skills later.” Poor_Man dragged the books straight into the Transfer tab. There were too many people coming and going on the street. Shoving a pile of thick books into another player’s arms was a sure way to attract attention. Even though with Chief’s blinding presence around them, they’d already attracted the eyes of many female players =_=.

“Okay.”

I_Am_A_Poor_Man received a message from DrunkBed. “Ah.  DrunkBed’s online. Once he sends over the item, we can head to the ruins,” he commented. He then proceeded to explain to XiaoYu what the item in question was.

A player could mail items to another player, but it’d take half an hour before the parcel arrived. Only letters could be immediately received. So, to avoid wasting time, DrunkBed had to personally meet up with them.

If one ignored the prices, travelling through Portals between each city was one of the fastest ways to travel. Within five minutes, DrunkBed’s body, along with its mysterious purple glow, appeared before their eyes.

“Thanks for coming all the way here, DrunkBed,” Poor_Man greeted.

“No, no. It’s no big deal,” the other replied.

Strangely enough, when this purple-clothed assassin replied to Poor_Man, he kept staring at XiaoYu’s face.

XiaoYu was wary at the gaze. This player didn’t look familiar. They shouldn’t know each other.

“You’re…Xiao-Bai?” DrunkBed asked.

XiaoYu stared at the assassin in shock. How did the other know of his nickname in high school?

“I’m Xiao-Hong…Ah, no. I’m Hong HaoRan. Remember me?”

“Ah. You’re in the Sports Committee.” The name Xiao-Hong sparked XiaoYu’s memory. Someone, no one remembered who, once mentioned there were a lot of surnames which sounded like the names of the colours in their class. Thus, the gossipy girls began to call them by coloured nicknames.

The student with the surname Huang was immediately known as Xiao-Huang or Yellow. Sometimes, it felt as if it was a dog’s name. Naturally, XiaoYu didn’t escape their demonic reach. Everyone called him Xiao-Bai for white. There were Xiao-Lan (Blue), Xiao-Cheng (Blue), Xiao-Lü (Green), and the most pitiful of them all – Hong HaoRan, the Sports Committee member. All because his name was the homonym for red, a 185cm tall boy was affectionately nicknamed Xiao-Hong or Little Red Riding Hood. He objected hard and long but gave up in the end.

“Hehe. It’s normal that you didn’t recognise me. I spent over an hour adjusting my appearance. You, on the other hand, didn’t change at all,” HaoRan commented.

“I didn’t adjust anything.” XiaoYu didn’t think he’d meet anyone he knew in the game. What a small world.

“Xiao-Bai?” HereticKing knew XiaoYu could be rather absent-minded at times, it’s not to the point where others would call him a noob or an idiot, right?

“Ah. That’s because his surname is Bai, as in white. That’s why we all call him that.”

“Pfft. It’s the direct opposite of Chief’s,” Poor_Man chuckled.

“?”

“Chief’s surname is Hei, as in black.”

“Eh? What a coincidence. Fortunately, Chief wasn’t in our class back then.” Otherwise, HereticKing would be called Xiao-Hei. The thought of it just made HaoRan feel like he’s going to burst out laughing.

“You were classmates?”

“Yes. Ever since first year of high school. Xiao-Bai, you weren’t there at the classmate gathering last time. Someone spread a rumour around about how you look down on us now that you got into University C. I don’t think you’re that type of person. Did you receive the invitation?” University C was one of the top universities in City S. Their rate of employment was near 100%. Thus, everyone wanted to get in.

Ah, so he unintentionally caused a misunderstanding. However, someone still believed in him. XiaoYu was touched. “I did…” he said. “But some issues with my family came up.” He was frustrated and frazzled over his parents’ funeral and the court case back then. XiaoYu had no time to think about some classmate gathering.

“I see. Right. I heard you got into University C. What are you studying?” HaoRan asked.

“…”

“Hm?” XiaoYu sudden silence made HaoRan curious.

“I…quit.”

“What? That’s such an awesome opportunity!” It wasn’t just HaoRan who was shocked. Even HereticKing and the others who’d just been standing to the side were shocked.

“…A lot happened in my family.” XiaoYu really didn’t want to continue on this topic.

“Ah. I’m sorry.” The sight of XiaoYu biting on his pale lips made HaoRan realise he shouldn’t be that nosy. He seemed to have stumbled upon a thorny topic for XiaoYu.

“It’s fine.”

“I’ll make sure to explain to the others on your behalf next time.”

“Thanks, but it doesn’t matter.” All he’d get in return would be a few brief comforting words. XiaoYu wasn’t close to anyone. He didn’t care much what they thought. “My inventory’s full. I’ll go clean it out,” he said.

Without waiting for a reply, XiaoYu left in the rudest exit he’d made in his entire life. The whole time, he was walking with his head drooped low. The mere thought of maybe seeing eyes filled with pity or sympathy gazing at him made his eyes stare resolutely down. He’d seen enough of the so-called sympathy when he was at the hospital and at the courthouse. He didn’t need a single shred of that at all.

Translator’s Notes:

1. If Winter comes, can Spring be far behind?: Ode to the West Wind by Percy Bysshe Shelley. As one might guess, this was the husband of Mary Shelley (Frankenstein). Percy was a good poet but a bad man. Here’s how his life went:

Expelled from Oxford for being atheist. Disowned because he was atheist. Eloped. Cheated on that wife with Mary (Shelley) who was the daughter of his friend. Eloped to Scotland with Mary. Returned with his new wife back to the house with his first wife and son because they ran out of money. Kept the one man, two wives household. Went on a holiday with Mary (leaving the first wife and two sons behind at home) where Frankenstein was created. First wife committed suicide just a year later. Officially married Mary. Lost custody of his sons by first wife. Travelled the world. Drowned trying to sail from one side of a bay to the other.

2. Night…too long…dreams…come and go: An idiom stating how the longer something is dragged out, the higher the chance of a harmful accident happening.

3. Colours and surnames: As explained in the text, the nicknames came about because the surnames were homonyms for the characters used for the different colours. However, some surnames used the exact same characters – like Bai and White.

4. Dog’s name: Xiao-Huang (Lil Yellow) was a common dog’s name as the average canine fur coat was a murky yellow-brown in Chinese cultures. In fact, names surrounding colours like Lil Black (Xiao-Hei) and Big Yellow (Da-Huang) are often used for pets. Hence why some Chinese gags like to go on about names and colours.

5. Xiao-Bai/Noob: Newbies are often called “Lil White”s as they were as blank as an empty page. This term was negative as it can imply the person in question is being called an idiot.

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53. There are Prerequisites for Gatherings…

With this meeting at the Pyramids, quite a few players in the Wolf Clan now know who XiaoYu was. With Chrysanthemum introducing XiaoYu to the all-day Mummy Extermination Squad from the Healers Alliance, XiaoYu had a safe network to rely on in Kemet region now.

After two whole days of freedom and relaxation, it was time for the Heretic Demon heads to gather around and strategize their next battle. However, the atmosphere wasn’t as serious as those big investors’ meetings. Everyone could freely discuss about the topic.

Sakura-3 and Prole-3 were now in the Heretic Demons’ control. From the lay of the land, it was much more beneficial to develop on in Prole-3. Rather than expanding the frontlines, why not just aim for Prole-5? However, that didn’t mean all grudges were forgiven after giving up Sakura-3. The enmity between them and I Die For Riches were rock solid. From now on, it’d be normal to find a fight breakout whenever their guild members bump into each other.

What was completely unexpected was how the other two number 3 fortresses weren’t conquered in the last event at all. While they didn’t know if it’s because the Wings and the Wolf Clan didn’t empty their nests out like the Heretic Demons did or because there were too many troublemakers, the battles in these two areas would be much fiercer just for that extraordinary reward.

Although the Heretic Demons must not let down their guard, there was much less pressure on them now. Thus, these elites started to get restless.

“Hey, Chief. Gathering.” Who knew when the conversation moved from the Guild Wars to this?

“That’s right. I want to take a selfie with Chief as a souvenir.”

“I want to make Chief drunk.”

“I just want an autograph.”

“I want a great big hug.”

“Hehe. It’s a revolt,” I_Am_A_Poor_Man laughed. It’s so fun to watch the fire burn.

“…” All eyes were gleaming brightly at HereticKing. The man, on the other hand, sat elegantly at the head of the table as usual. After long moments did he open his powerful mouth, “Sure.”

“Yay!”

“But…” All cheering screeched to a halt. Everyone looked at their leader nervously, afraid their chief would change his mind again.

“Take down the next Prole fortress first,” said HereticKing as he leisurely raised a finger. The prerequisite was set.

…

“Hmph. For the meetup, all those brats have better cling on tight. Overtime team training starting now.”

“I will force them to train every single day.”

“Looks like the Treasure Squad has more overtime work. Time to get a few more sets of gear.”

Since they had HereticKing’s approval, everyone began chattering about which of Prole-1, -2 or -5 were easier to conquer. Looking at the sight of everyone who began turning the conversation back to the battlefield because of the unusual soaring of emotions, I_Am_A_Poor_Man couldn’t stop himself from shaking his head. “What sophisticated measures,” he thought.

“Will LuckyCat come?” Below_The_Moon whispered to I_Am_A_Poor_Man. He’d seen Chief in real life before, so he’s not that passionate about the meetup. However, he was quite interested in that pure child.

“Probably not,” I_Am_A_Poor_Man said. If this meetup was successful, XiaoYu not being able to attend would be the greatest regret of their lives.

“Why? Does he live very far?”

“No. He can’t leave the house. As for why, don’t look at me. I don’t know,” Poor_Man responded.

“Really…” Below_The_Moon’s voice drifted off.

“It can’t be that darned detective urge of yours is acting up again, right?”

“No. I do have some basic professionalism.” While he was curious, Below_The_Moon knew the results won’t be positive or happy. Why not just maintain the current situation? If he’s meant to know, he will one day.

“Poor_Man, I recently found an interesting little item. You interested?” asked Sealed_Sword, one of the Treasure Squad leaders in Heretic Demons. He’s not really interested in the different strategies for all those fortresses. The random items that would drop whenever a monster dies made his heart pound more.

“Tell me about it.”

“XP Penalty Waiver. For 5 hours, the party can split all experience evenly regardless of the level penalties. The level difference within the party must be 10 or lower. Healers are harder to train, so I was wondering if your people need it.”

“You are such a bro. I most certainly need it. But where did you get something so great from?” This item’s appearance meant it would be easier to train up newbies. It meant players over Level 100 can carry other players.

“The game mentioned a secret boss update once, right? Ever since then, my team has been searching for the so-called hidden boss. In the end, we found a Level 105 Thousand-Year-Old Tree Spirit in one of the mountain ranges near Sakura. You would never have believed it. It actually spawned in the Level 50 Tree Spirit zone.” Sealed_Sword was so excited about it that he told Poor_Man every single detail about the search for the boss. They only thought of heading deep into a few of those mountains to test their luck. They didn’t think they’d bump into an ancient tree spirit, lazily sunbathing, in the Tree Spirit zone where no boss monster had ever spawned.

“Hehe…” I_Am_A_Poor_Man could only let out a dry chuckle at the story. Even the Level 40 Peco Peco zone had Level 90 and above elite monsters. What’s impossible?

“After we got familiar with its respawn rules, we camped it for days. We killed about 20 of them, then one dropped this charm. We didn’t know how to split it, so I thought to ask if you guys need it first. After all, we’re not like the Wolf Clan. We don’t have so many high-level healers.”

“Thank you, brother. If there’s anything you ever need, just say the word,” I_Am_A_Poor_Man promised.

“Hehe. There’s no need. It’s all for the guild. But that thing’s not with me right now. My Storage is full, so DrunkBed from my team has it. He’s preparing for his exams right now. I’ll get him to send it to you once he gets on.”

“Okay.” I_Am_A_Poor_Man started pondering on which high level zone would be best to train with XiaoYu. This item was so much rarer than the Bibles. They must squeeze everything that they can out of it.

“The Derelict Ruins of Natalis. The spirit mobs there are Undead.” Below_The_Moon had heard their whole conversation. He could guess that I_Am_A_Poor_Man was thinking of using the charm to help XiaoYu grind. After thinking back on all possible training grounds, Natalis was the most suitable. There were plenty of Undead monsters. Even if they encountered other players, they’ll think it’s just a healer carrying another to grind on Undead mobs. Nothing special or curious about it.

“Mn. That place is quite good. Huh? How do you know what I’m thinking?”

“With your heart on your sleeves, I could tell what you were thinking with just my toes.”

“Come. Tell me. Which toe thought of that? I’ll cut it off and pickle it in wine.”

“I won’t. What can you do to me?”

“Then, I’ll cut them all.”

Sealed_Sword let out a helpless smile at the two’s childish bantering. With a nod to HereticKing, he back with crowd discussing Prole’s fortresses. He’d rather listen to something more meaningful than some nonsensical argument. Chief had it so hard. Every time, he had to calmly sit there and listen to their squabbles.

Translator’s Notes:

1. Derelict Ruins of Natalis: Most likely Glast Heim in the original game.

Next week, back to the Good Child!

◄Previous •Index• Next►

52. Wolf Clan

The Pyramids were the most suitable training ground for most players currently. So it’s not hard to find a party to grind with. However, XiaoYu’s level was rather low. It was very hard for him to find any party he could share an equal EXP with.

Last night, I_Am_A_Poor_Man asked the she-devil of the Healers Alliance if there were any healers-only grinding parties in the group. This way, XiaoYu didn’t have to look at other players’ buffs and debuffs. He can just gain EXP with the rest of the party by killing monsters.

Chrysanthemum immediately replied it was not a problem with a fist to the chest. She will find a group for the wee lamb. Sweat rolled down I_Am_A_Poor_Man’s forehead at that. Was he sending XiaoYu to the wolves’ den?

“Xiao-Yu, you can go grind in the Pyramids from now on,” messaged the fully-rested I_Am_A_Poor_Man who’d just logged on. The days without meetings and overtime were just the best.

“Why?”

“The ranged attacks of those Jiangshi are so annoying. Head over early.”

“But my level…” Mummies were at least Level 70. Was there really no problem with such a large level difference?

“The devil would find you a healer party. You just need to kill monsters at your own pace then.”

“Oh.”

*********

“XiaoYu? XiaoYu?” HereticKing called out.

“Ah? Ah. I had a message,” XiaoYu replied.

“Notifying you about the team training?”

“No. Big Brother Poor told me to go grind in the Pyramids from now on.”

“That’s good too. You level faster when you fight above your level range.” Back then, HereticKing dragged quite a few along with him doing so. Fighting monsters way above their levels, bosses way above their levels. Those bunch of brats only got their reflexes and skill from that. How else would they be the elite pillars supporting the guild?

“Mn. True.” He’s not brave enough to attack monsters that were of too high a level when he’s alone. His reserved personality and the tiny cat’s uniqueness also stop him from actively seeking parties. Of course he wouldn’t miss out on a chance like this. He needed to work hard on making himself stronger. Only then would he not be bullied all the time.

“I’ll take you to the Pyramids to record down the map now.” (Maps would only show all markings and areas when the area had been explored once. If not, it’ll just show an empty space. The only exceptions were special maps like the Maze Forest.)

Rather than having the two humans and one cat sat on the large bed and stared at each other, why not do something meaningful before the afternoon team training starts.

HereticKing and I_Am_A_Poor_Man did bring XiaoYu along to grind in the Pyramids, but they ran straight for the nest for the underground Berserk Mummies. The spawn zones for normal Mummies were up from the entrance.

With consideration for HereticKing’s level, the two charged straight for the high-level Mummies at the top floor to grind after exploring the low-level Mummies spawn paints. As the monsters here were within 20 levels of HereticKing, he could earn some experience too. Of course, the mobs on this level had ranged attacks. However, their attacks were rather special. The Mummy will let out large amounts of white bandages in the area. When the players go all dizzy, it’ll wrap them up and petrify them. Then, it’ll walk over to beat them up in close-quarters combat.

Naturally, no matter how fast those bandages go, they’ll never be faster than an Agility-build Knight, especially any players after the Third Job Change. The game would dramatically increase all stats at that point. Thus, all they heard were bandages whooshing around then they’ll turn into a pile of ragged cloth on the floor. Then, the Mummy that’s nearly been stripped bare would be slowly tortured to death by XiaoYu’s healing spells.

The advantage of this floor was that the high-level Mummies weren’t as tanky as the underground Berserk Mummies (Elites). So each battle won’t be dragged out. It allowed HereticKing to protect XiaoYu at all times without I_Am_A_Poor_Man. The only downside was this was where the final boss of the Pyramids spawned – the Mummy King Osiris.

It was an unspoken truth acknowledged by everyone that XiaoYu’s luck for finding treasures skyrocket the moment he’s in a party. Due to his party members during boss fights being different every time, no one realised his luck at finding bosses were amazingly strong too.

Speak of the devil. They encountered the boss introduced just now, Osiris.

No need to worry though. This boss was rather popular. There just so happened to be a group of players beating it up right then. One of the mutually agreed upon rules of MMOs: Don’t just stand there and watch as people are fighting a boss. Leave or be suspected of trying to steal loot. You’d deserve it if you get killed by the boss-fighters.

Hence, when HereticKing noticed what was going on, he led XiaoYu away. Before leaving, XiaoYu took a close look at the purple Mummy in the middle of the crowd. So that’s Osiris.

They thought they’d be safe if they just stayed far away from the group of players fighting Osiris. They couldn’t have imagined that in just a few minutes, those players would be rapidly retreating towards HereticKing and XiaoYu. “Osiris is going berserk. Run!” they shouted.

When a boss monster at Level 70 or above had its health whittled down to 10%, there’s a chance they’ll go into a berserk rage. XiaoYu was lucky the few times before. He never encountered a berserk boss. It’s obvious this group of Osiris-fighters weren’t that lucky. Osiris was mad.

The purple shadow of Osiris rapidly expanded to triple its original size. Its bandages went from purple to red. Blood red. A berserk boss had double speed and attack power. Their health would be healed back to half-health and they’ll summon a bunch of the strongest minions in their species. For Osiris, it summoned dozens of Berserk Mummies.

The formation of this group of players quickly turned into a mess. The close-ranged combatants withdrew to re-strategize while reminding nearby players to be careful.

HereticKing pulled XiaoYu back behind him and swiftly moved aside. The two keeping a close eye on the Mummies never noticed how there was a gleaming gaze among the crowd of players who’d rushed over. (These players had been grinding on the other side. Their sight just so happened to be blocked by the boss and the close-ranged combatants. Because of that, they never saw HereticKing and XiaoYu being near them before.)

In the chaos, a few Berserk Mummies changed their targets to HereticKing and XiaoYu. Naturally, HereticKing threw out several Taunts to attract all the mobs’ attention. XiaoYu was behind him trying his best to attack the monsters with his healing spells.

Then, a pink glow enveloped HereticKing and a buff XiaoYu didn’t have yet showed up on his status effects list – Assumptio. This buffs all were renewed and were dramatically improved.

HereticKing paused. Soon, he knew why. The she-devil I_Am_A_Poor_Man kept mentioning was grinning and waving at him. He took another look at the familiar faces near her. Ah, the Wolf Clan was boss hunting.

The Heretic Demons and the Wolf Clan didn’t interact much, but they had a much better relationship than with the Wings. WolfKing, the guild leader of the Wolf Clan was a good and honest healer. Compared to HereticKing and GloryOfTheWorld, he lacked some of the tyrannical and dominating aura the other guild leaders had. The huge number of strong female players within the Wolf Clan was an undeniable part of their ability to be one of the big three guilds. Sometimes, WolfKing himself was confused as to why there were more female players in his guild than male players, and every one of them were tougher than he was.

Of course, as the guild leader, he joined in on the boss hunt this time too. When he saw HereticKing, he merely nodded in greeting. At the sight of his guild’s tiny Chrysanthemum buffing the other player, he felt so dejected. Fine. He’s a healer too. He’ll just feed himself.

The Wolf Clan members looked rather experienced with Osiris. While it went berserk, their formation only broke slightly. No one died. Soon, they were organised and back. Once the minions were vanquished, they kept beating up the pitiful Osiris.

Osiris had greatly increased attack power and attack speed, but the Wolf Clan was rich in healers. The Knight it just hit was healed back up already. It took a big bite out of the assassin who snuck up on it. That person was quickly healed too. As long as it can’t kill someone in one hit, all its attacks were useless. It’d even have to suffer being crushed by all sorts of Holy damage and healing spells.

If it didn’t go into a rage in silence, but it’d die in silence. Osiris had already gone berserk once. Unfortunately, these high-levelled players didn’t care. Thus, it can only die.

The tiny cat’s eyes were red from staring at the mountain of loot on the ground. Unfortunately, they were still being protected. It can’t touch them. It spun round and round XiaoYu and HereticKing. It wants to pick them up!

“Hi. Are you two here to grind?” As soon as Osiris collapsed, Chrysanthemum came strutting over to chat with HereticKing and XiaoYu.

“Yes. Hi, Chrysanthemum.”

“What a polite and good kid. I really want to kidnap you.”

=_=|||

“Thanks for just now.” Even if Chrysanthemum hadn’t buffed HereticKing, a few puny elite mobs wouldn’t have killed him. At most, he’d lose more health. However, his excellent upbringing still made HereticKing thank Chrysanthemum.

“You’re welcome. It’s our fault in the first place. If we made you lose a level, we’ll have to die in apology.”

“Hi, guys.” WolfKing who finally was free from work walked over to say hello too. “Sorry about just now. We missed a few.”

“It’s fine,” HereticKing replied.

“Grinding for a healer? Do you need help?” offered WolfKing. When he saw the little healer who didn’t look that high-levelled standing behind HereticKing, he thought of a way he could pay for the mistake his guild made just now, and also out of kindness to another fellow healer.

“There’s no need. Thank you. We’ll be off soon.”

“Alright, Wolfie. The couple’s out grinding. Why are you disrupting them? Let’s go split the loot.” Chrysanthemum dragged WolfKing by the back of his shirt away from the two. “Bye, LuckyCat. Train hard,” she said.

As to the occasional unexpected and rather astonishing terms that Chrysanthemum would spout, one just had to get used to it. XiaoYu didn’t want to debate with her about the issue with using “the couple” back there. He had no way of dealing with her.

When Chrysanthemum pulled WolfKing back to the guild party, the other girls who’d been watching the whole time started gathering around her. Secret whispers were had on some mysterious issue. Sometimes, they’d throw a strange look at HereticKing and XiaoYu.

“Chrysanthemum, is that Heretic’s lover?”

“Ahem. Unconfirmed yet. Observing.”

“Even you don’t know? But they look so perfect together. I’m drooling.”

“Ah, I thought Wolfie and Heretic was the perfect couple.”

“No way. When compared, Wolfie is clearly the inferior. That little healer is cuter and fresher.”

“Yes. I love cats.”

…

WolfKing who’d been stuck listening felt like howling at the sky. Everyone envied his guild for how many female players there were. Who’d know that he was always being discussed by a bunch of women on how to marry him off? O how can one endure this torment!

Translator’s Notes:

1. Osiris: Osiris is an actual boss (MVP) monster in the Ragnarok Online. I don’t have any fun facts for you guys, so have his card from the original game:

Osiris Card

2. Assumptio: A High Priest skill from RO where damage received is halved in PvE maps. In the new mobile RO game, it’s an Acolyte skill.

◄Previous •Index• Next►

51. It’s All Sleeping’s Fault…

Disgracefully, XiaoYu fell asleep. There was no helping it. His biological said it was time and it was a very comfortable hug. So, he slowly drifted off to the Sandman’s lullaby.

HereticKing felt a weight sinking into his embrace and looked down. He didn’t know if he should be laughing or crying. This was the third time XiaoYu had just let his guard down and fell asleep right by his side. While there’s no worry about getting kidnapped in the game, this child’s sense of vigilance was way too lacking.

I_Am_A_Poor_Man who led XiaoYu here had long since slipped away. Along the way, he notified everyone that there’ll be no meeting tonight. They can all celebrate as hard as they want. While HereticKing didn’t issue that order, Poor_Man knew his Chief would most likely not attend the meeting at the sight of the two clinging to each other. Just in time for him to sneakily give himself a day off.

HereticKing gestured for the tiny cat to climb onto his shoulder, then he picked the big kitten up in a bridal carry. HereticKing could only give into the fate of finding a resting place for XiaoYu.

******************

A beautiful Sunday morning. The sun was smiling. The birds were chirping…okay. The point is, XiaoYu was finally going to wake up.

What a soft bed. It really made him want to laze around a bit longer. XiaoYu snuggled against his pillow. While his mind’s awake, his eyes don’t want to open. The freshly-awakened fuzzy brain was still pondering on where such a comfortable bed belonged to. He must report it to Big Brother Poor. But he just couldn’t recall which hotel he went to last night…

Right. He headed over to Sakura-3 to meet up with HereticKing. Then…then…no “then”s! Where is he now?

XiaoYu’s mind leapt. His eyes flash open. But he didn’t think he’d find someone lying beside him when he did so.

“Aah!” XiaoYu was frightened. He hurriedly sat up and shuffled to the edge of the bed.

“Mrrow!” “Ah!” “Bang!” “Ouch…!”

A serious of crashes and clangs rang out. Even a dead pig would be woken up. HereticKing’s eyes, framed by his furrowed brows, opened just in time to see a leisurely floating -1 hovering above the edge of the bed.

This was the Presidential Suite of Prole’s 7-star hotel. It was the safest of the safest. Why were there any signs of injury?

HereticKing swiftly sat up, tore the blanket away and peered at the scene of the crime. Everything would still be normal if he hadn’t looked. The mere sight banished all the bad mood he had from being woken up. “Hahaha…”

When XiaoYu retreated to the edge of the bed just now, he didn’t realise the small cat had been sleeping behind him. He accidentally pushed the little one off the bed and, because he moved so abruptly, he himself hung over thin air and fell off the bed. Thus, what HereticKing was were two cats, one big and one small, sprawled out on the floor. Upset colouring their faces.

“How can you both fall out of the bed at the same time just by sleeping?” HereticKing was rendered speechless at how synchronised the two kittens were.

“It hurts…” XiaoYu rubbed his palm at where he’d hit the floor, picking the tiny cat up and helping it soothe its bruises too. “Yao, why are you in my bed?”

“I was exhausted by the time I carried you here last night. So I laid down to sleep too. The bed’s big enough anyway,” said HereticKing in an assured tone. They slept in the same tent together before, didn’t they?

He’d thought it’d be a good way to reward XiaoYu’s har work. So, he splurged to book the most comfortable and luxurious suite in the city for him to rest in. In the end, the whole struggle to get XiaoYu to the extra-king size bed didn’t even disturb the sound asleep cat. His head even cuddled and snuggled in as if he was trying to find a comfortable position. More infuriatingly, the small kitten was also sleeping comfortably curled against his shoulders. Its tiny head even rubbed itself into his collarbone.

HereticKing plucked the little cat, which had turned into a floppy pile of fluff, and stuffed it by XiaoYu’s side. Then, he tenderly covered them with the blanket. A wave of fatigue unfurled within him. They fought a tough battle today. While it was very risky, his luck seemed to have gotten better by quite a bit ever since these two lucky cats started standing by his side.

Looking at the large empty spot on the other side of XiaoYu, HereticKing decided he’ll just sleep in the game tonight. He wasn’t so extravagant as to sleep in the top suite every day.

Who knew an impulsive action would stop XiaoYu from completely savouring the comfort of the bed and let him experience the taste of kissing the carpet?

“Oh…” XiaoYu scratched his head. He did recall sleeping in the same tent in the desert. Why’s he making such a big fuss now?

“Get up.” HereticKing held up a hand, wanting to pull XiaoYu up.

“Ouch…” Pain struck XiaoYu’s waist as he was about to stand up. Then, a series of -1 began appearing above his head.

“System notification: As you have overstrained your muscles, your health will decrease by 1 every second for 100 seconds.”

Okay. He even pulled a muscle on his waist.

“What is it?” HereticKing wondered why there was a never-ending series of -1 hovering above XiaoYu.

“I pulled my back…” XiaoYu whispered. How embarrassing.

“Hehe. Lie down. I’ll massage it out.”

“It’s fine. It’ll heal itself in 100 seconds.”

“If you don’t lie down, the game might think your back is still strained 100 seconds later.”

At that, XiaoYu obediently sprawled out on the bed and stopped moving. He didn’t want to keep losing health.

HereticKing put his hands on XiaoYu’s waist and started pushing and massaging. The tiny cat hopped onto the bed as well. It tilted its head. What’s Uncle doing? Is there someone on its owner’s body? Thus, the small cat reached a sneaky little paw to poke XiaoYu’s waist. And another poke.

XiaoYu can’t see it, but HereticKing could. Amazing. So not only does this kitten love imitating the big cat, it’d mimic anything it thought interesting.

“It doesn’t hurt anymore. Thanks.” 100 seconds pass by quick. When XiaoYu saw that he’d lost the “strained muscle” debuff, XiaoYu tentatively sat up and stretched. His body felt all fine now.

“What did you dream about last night? You actually fell off such a large bed over this.” A beautiful day starts from teasing the cat.

HereticKing remembered placing XiaoYu in the middle of the bed last night, yet the other actually rolled off the bed. That’s so unbelievable.

“No…I got a shock when I saw you sleeping beside me.”

“What’re you afraid of? I’m not going to eat you.” He couldn’t even if he wanted to. Only married couples in the game would do the hush-hush things. If any pervert tried to touch someone else’s sensitive parts, the game would notify the one being touched. If the other player selected the option to state they’re being sexually harassed, then the game overlord would strike the pervert down with lightning to make them feel how it felt to be zapped.

“Hehe. I’m just not that used to it.” XiaoYu ruffled the back of his head in embarrassment.

“I’m rather grateful I woke up first in the desert then, or else I might be the first player to be killed by a tent.” XiaoYu could fall of such a large king-sized bed. There wasn’t much room in that small tent for XiaoYu to retreat to. A sudden jerk might’ve collapsed the tent they worked so hard to set up.

>/////<. The older the ginger, the spicier it is. XiaoYu’s face turned into a tomato once more from the teasing. However, it took him longer to give in to the urge this time. That’s worth praising.

Translator’s Note:

Sandman: The “deity” used here is Zhou Gong, the Duke of Zhou. Use of the Duke to mean to sleep developed in several stages.

First, Confucius once said/wrote: “I’m too old to even visit the Duke of Zhou in my dreams now!”. The Duke was a very capable official and “regent”. Confucius used the inability to dream of a famed official to state how incapable he’d turned in his old age that he wasn’t able to seek advice from the Duke anymore. This then put visiting the Duke in your dreams a phrase for ambition/knowledge-seeking.

Some say this phrase turned straight into going to sleep when a teacher, who always fell asleep in class but forbidding any of their students to be the slightest sleepy, used “visiting the Duke” as an excuse for their sleepy tendencies. The next day, the students mimicked their teacher and said they were allowed to sleep because they were visiting the Duke too. Thus, the phrase has turned into a slight joke-y tone which meant going to sleep/nap instead of representing ambition or love for knowledge.

◄Previous •Index• Next►

50. Three in One Go

Never assume the emperor’s far off because the mountain’s so tall. He has ears everywhere. Thus, word of this not-major, not-minor scheming attempt eventually reached HereticKing’s ears without XiaoYu knowing about it. There’s no doubting it spread from Robin’s mouth. He only mentioned it in passing to his boss, Desireless, while on break at work. Desireless then quietly told Egg_Tart about the incident when the other came to understand how things were going with the new healer. Thus, when the higher-ups met before the Guild Wars. Naturally, Egg_Tart, who’d been told to take care of XiaoYu, did his duty and reported it.

“Glory’s not strict enough. Someone’s actually using such despicable methods?” While those players were from the Wings, I_Am_A_Poor_Man wasn’t dumb enough to think Glory sent them to do that. This was just a coincidence.

“Do you want me to investigate?” Below_The_Moon would never get tired of playing detective. His family did own a detective agency.

“There’s no need. It’s fine that we know they’re from the Wings,” calmly replied HereticKing as he wiped down his precious sword.

“That’s right. It’s all fine since we know it’s the Wings.” It was as if I_Am_A_Poor_Man shared the same brain as HereticKing. He knew what the other meant.

“???” Below_The_Moon didn’t get it.

“Moonie, finally there’s something you don’t know.” I_Am_A_Poor_Man was so proud of himself. “Chief and Glory are going to duel each other. I think Chief’s planning on chopping at Glory directly for this.”

“I see.” At the sight of I_Am_A_Poor_Man being so proud that his tail was going to point straight up into the sky, Below_The_Moon turned to Egg_Tart and said, “Egg_Tart, let’s find a time to kill him together.”

“Yes,” Egg_Tart said.

“Hey, what’s the meaning of this?” Poor_Man exclaimed.

“Just what those words mean. Just you wait. You’ll be a porcupine. Hahaha.”

“Are there any parties who grind at the Pyramids regularly?” HereticKing was used to the bantering duo. He sedately finished wiping down his blade, then a thought popped into his mind.

“Do you want Xiao-Yu to follow along and get some experience? I’ll have a look.” Jiangshi are the Serica region’s specialty and most of the Wings are stationed at Serica. The best way to get XiaoYu avoid all that trouble with the Wings was to get him to swap spots. After all, the Heretic Demons can’t have someone grinding at the Jiangshi Cave with XiaoYu at all times.

“Right. Pass on the notice. Tonight, we’ll do our best to take down Prole-3.”

“Roger.”

XiaoYu wasn’t the kind to brood over something. Hence, the incident at the Jiangshi Cave was quickly thrown to the back of his mind. He touched the tiny round hat on his head. This was the gear Robin and he found while grinding at the Rebellion Base. (White Little Hat: Defence +40. Int +10. Regen 3 MP every 5 seconds. 2 slots. Level Limit: 50. Job Limit: Acolyte, Magician.) It seemed like his luck kicked in whenever he was in a party. Robin also found a Rebellion Hunter card which increased shooting speed. The other was so happy he kept kissing the card. He nearly kissed the lucky cat.

Egg_Tart had assigned the mission for today in the guild chat. All might on conquering Prole-3. That’s why half of the piloting healers in the airport were missing. Those with higher levels were assigned to the battlefield. For those with lower levels, all Teleport spots, except for those who had Prole-3 marked down before, were switched to the five great battlefields of Prole.

The markings on the ground were updated too. There was a new section for backup flights to Prole. That meant if there were too many players trying to get through the original portals, they can go through the backup. That made sure everyone can get to where they needed to on time, especially Prole-3 which was right in the centre of everything.

XiaoYu had a mark on Prole-3’s West Gate, so he’ll have a heavy workload today. I_Am_A_Poor_Man had pre-warned him. He spent 20 crystals to upgrade his Inventory again. He now had a steel bracelet with 100 slots.

It was XiaoYu’s first time experiencing what it meant to be busy. Usually, when there weren’t as many people, he could open a few Portals and rest to recover his MP. Now, he’s chanting out one portal after another and still there’re a never-ending stream of players stepping onto his flight to Prole-3. Portal after portal. Even his blue potions were downed as soon as they were off cooldown. Otherwise, he’d have to face the awkwardness of running out.

This went on for half an hour before the situation finally improved. According to the bits of discussion he overheard from passing players, XiaoYu knew the main forces of the Heretic Demons had pushed through the gates where the guilds were bashing each other up in a mess. Some of them stayed behind to stall the other guilds. These players were constantly replenished to ensure they keep the fight at the gates.

“Congratulations, Guild I Die For Riches, on conquering Prole-4.”

At the announcement, everyone’s feet froze. They stared up at the floating text in disbelief. Prole-4. That’s the first fortress the Heretic Demons conquered. A lot of them call it home. But this home was now being taken over by someone else.

“Don’t dawdle. Once we take down Prole-3, we can take Prole-4 back!” In all guild chats, the bright red text from the Guild Leader woke everyone up. Yes. They gave up on defences to attack Prole-3 with their full force. If they don’t get Prole-3, how could they face the home they lost? They want to make the Heretic Demons homeless? No freaking way!

In the world chat, some of the players with nothing to do were already mocking the Heretic Demons for losing Prole-4. They’re going to become stay ghosts with nowhere to go, they joked. However, that couldn’t affect the Heretic Demons at all. Unfortunately for them, each party leader ordered their members to shut off the world chat before battle. All so they won’t be affected by the outside world.

“Congratulations, Guild Heretic Demons, on conquering Prole-3.”

“Guild Heretic Demons has been awarded an additional reward: Guild Reputation +10,000.”

“The worst of the Four Great Seals of the battlefield has been unsealed. Keep it up, brave players!”

When the minute hand hit 9, the three subsequent announcements silenced every player on the server. For a few short seconds, all chat channels were silent. Once the impact was over, the world chat exploded. The amount of comments scrolling by was so much more than when the first Level 100 player appeared.

So the additional reward for the conquering the number 3 fortresses differ according to difficulty! The reason the Heretic Demons sacrificed their own fortress was to overcome the hardest seal! A series of praise, mockery and envy painted the world chat. Of course, the happiest of them all would probably be the game itself because, don’t forget, it costs money to talk in world chat  ╮(╯▽╰)╭.

“All members of Suicide Squad to Prole-4 now.”

“I repeat. All members of Suicide Squad to Prole-4 now.”

Egg_Tart typed out in the guild chat. The event wasn’t over yet. They didn’t have time to celebrate Prole-3’s victory. Remember. They still had a home that was taken away.

“Hi. Are you LuckyCat? The Healer Squad Leader would like you to replenish supplies at the shop. I’ll take over this spot for now,” a female healer who suddenly popped up beside XiaoYu said to him in a sweet voice.

XiaoYu thought it very strange. He still had plenty of potions and gems. He could be doubtful all he wanted, but he still obeyed. He didn’t know that he’d be rushed through the back door of the shop the moment he stepped into the building by I_Am_A_Poor_Man.

“I feel like a thief every time we do this. Huff…” Over ten Bibles clattered into XiaoYu’s arms from I_Am_A_Poor_Man’s inventory.

“Here. Aah…” Like clockwork, Below_The_Moon took out a pill and stuffed it into XiaoYu’s mouth.

“Sacrificial Chant!” casted a high-levelled male healer XiaoYu had never seen.

Sacrificial Chant: A Third Job healer skill. It reduces 50% chant time of the next 3 skills used by the targeted player. Consequentially, the chant time for the caster will be 100% longer for the next 10 minutes. Cooldown time: 10 minutes.

“Please, Xiao-Yu. One set each.” Poor_Man gestured to the ten players squeezed in the alleyway. These were the squad leaders and elites of the primary guild. Of course, they were all trustworthy members.

“Okay.” XiaoYu nodded and spoke no more. He chanted skill after skill. The alley was silent. Only XiaoYu’s clear voice rang out.

After getting buffed, the players disappeared into I_Am_A_Poor_Man’s Portal. One by one, they headed into the battlefield to reunite with their squads. They were getting ready to do something extremely dangerous.

HereticKing realised XiaoYu had a new headgear. It somewhat blocked his ability to pat the other on the head, so he moved his hand downwards and held that tiny cat face of XiaoYu’s.

“Thank you,” sincerely thanked HereticKing as he warmly looked into XiaoYu’s eyes. A 10% increase of all stats was more effective the higher one’s level was. Let’s say, for example, HereticKing. His health was raised by over 1,000. He could act as a tank for a few seconds while still being an agile knight.

“I-It’s fine.” XiaoYu’s cheeks blushed. He wasn’t used to being thank in such close distance.

“We’re off to do something evil, Xiao-Yu,” chuckled I_Am_A_Poor_Man. He was still as goofy as ever, but as soon as he stepped through the portal, he turned into a completely different person. Serious as can be. What they were going to do next was very risky. Even if all the leaders and elites of the guild charged in, they might not succeed.

XiaoYu didn’t know what they were going to do, but his intuition told him it’d be very dangerous.

Time slowly ticked by. There was five minutes left to the end of the event.

“Congratulations, Guild Heretic Demons: Suicide Squad, on conquering Prole-4.” The first subsidiary guild had succeeded. They’d snatched back their home on behalf of the main guild.

“Congratulations, Guild Heretic Demons, on conquering Sakura-3.”

If one called the first announcement plausible, expected even, then the following announcement blew everyone’s mind. The parent guild actually went for…revenge.

Soon, the game announced the end of the event and a cheer rose through Zhang Village. Quite a few players started tearing up in excitement. Three fortresses. This was something they could never have imagined happening after losing Prole-4.

XiaoYu was affected by the emotions in the air too. His eyes stung and glazed over. What a pity that he was dragged over to an isolated corner by I_Am_A_Poor_Man before his tears could well up.

The other opened up a portal and gestured XiaoYu in, “Chief wants to see you.”

Past the Portal was a huge lavish Japanese castle. This was likely Sakura-3.

There were no other players on the grounds when XiaoYu stepped foot in the building. After the Heretic Demons took control of the fortress, all non-guild members were forced out by the game. The only members left were in the Crystal Room.

It was a very spacious room. Completely bare except for a stone pedestal in the centre of the room, a large yellow crystal floating on it. Sitting right by the crystal and resting his eyes was HereticKing.

Most of the blood in the room had been wiped away. The only red left was a large puddle spanning from around the pedestal and on the Crystal.

XiaoYu softly walked up to the stone pedestal and stood before HereticKing.

The other opened his eyes as sounds of another being reached his ears. When he saw it was XiaoYu, he silently stood up and held the other tight in his arms.

XiaoYu didn’t know of the vicious battle that happened here between the avenging elite squad and the large forces of the guild I Die For Riches. He also didn’t know that when the elites were killed off one by one, it was HereticKing who shattered the Crystal with the last shreds of his health. When the Protection Crystal crumbled into dust, he had less than 100 HP.

This was indeed a very risky move, but they had to do it for the guild’s reputation.

XiaoYu didn’t need to know all that, but HereticKing knew that without XiaoYu’s special skills, he wouldn’t be able to hold on to the last second. When the Crystal was destroyed, all HereticKing could think of was just how grateful he was to the gods that XiaoYu was brought to his side.

“Thank you.”

XiaoYu, who was still being hugged very tightly, could feel just how emotional HereticKing was. He thought the forever calm HereticKing could never be so moved by excitement. As expected, war can make a man’s blood pump.

He closed his eyes and hugged HereticKing back. XiaoYu was feeling rather emotional too. Might as well keep this going until they’ve both calmed down.

Author’s note:

XiaoYu would only brood when it comes to his parents. As for his own matters? What’s past is in the past. He’ll just continue living his life out the next day. Thus, it’s not in him to squabble, fight, complain and enact revenge for every single thing. I can’t help it if you don’t like that personality. That’s what he was planned to be.

A saint? Impossible. He’s just being very calm and rational. He knows he can’t out-debate those sly people who like to twist words. If it’s someone of a higher level, then whatever. He’ll just focus hard on training and out-level them. If they dare come back to bully him again, he’ll be able to strike back then.

Weak? He now has no right to be strong. His levels aren’t as high as theirs. His equipment isn’t better. He’s still working on his technique. It can’t be just because he’s got a big guild backing him up, right? An adult (author says man here, but let’s not go into that territory) should solve their own problems. If a moment of tolerance is shown as weak, then it seems I’ve failed at portraying it. Please question my writing and not attack the character. Being called weak is his true sorrow.

◄Previous •Index• Next►

49. Conflict

XiaoYu certainly didn’t go far. This map was so big, he thought. If he gradually headed to the opposite direction, killing mobs as he went, surely he won’t encounter them again.

When he heard a stampede of Jiangshi hopping about, he was worried for a moment that he’d stumbled upon a boss. XiaoYu turned around and saw the assassin who was assessing him before running back to him with over ten Jiangshi right behind him. The naive XiaoYu didn’t think it’d be a trap. He thought the party of three might’ve met a berserk mob and only the assassin was fast enough to escape.

XiaoYu, filled with the professional ethics of a healer, threw a Haste at Nightmare-Demon. He even casted a Heal on the other, only to see Nightmare-Demon run even faster towards his direction.

“Lucky, you idiot! Run!” a voice shouted.

Before XiaoYu even had time to see who was telling him to run, Nightmare-Demon was running by his eyes. The other gave an evil grin and vanished. At first, the Jiangshi just stood there, stunned. Then, as if they found a new target, they unanimously spat poisonous gas at XiaoYu while hopping over to hit him.

“Arrow Rain! Lucky, don’t space out! Heal yourself!” A storm of silver arrows swooshed right into the Jiangshi. The hurt mobs turned their attentions to the new target and leaped towards the person who shot those arrows.

After being simultaneously attacked by numerous bursts of poison, XiaoYu’s health was near empty. If his necklace’s poison resistance dramatically reducing the damage he received while poisoned and for how long the poison lasted, XiaoYu would’ve been flat out on the floor by now.

With a swift heal, an AoE heal and a potion, XiaoYu was able to recover from the dizzy effects of low health. He looked to his saviour and his gut clenched. It was Robin, the archer he partied with during team training. Robin had summoned his eagle, a pet that’s not suited for flying in the cave, to help with attacking. Robin himself kept withdrawing and dodging while casting Arrow Rain. This was an AoE skill which cost a lot of MP and arrows, yet it wasn’t as damaging as just a single arrow being shot one by one.

Robin’s lips were turning blue. He was clearly poisoned yet he busy chugging potions while barely dodging the physical attacks. XiaoYu quickly threw heals, Haste, Saint’s Seal and cured Robin’s poison. As only players could only see the health bar of their party, XiaoYu kept curing and healing Robin. If he ran out of MP, he’ll down some potions. He didn’t have time to wait for his MP to slowly regenerate by itself. The only thing in his mind right now was he cannot let Robin die.

The two kept throwing out skills as if that’s all that mattered. As XiaoYu was able to react in time to buff Robin, the other was able to stop chugging potion bottles and focus on dealing with the crowd of Jiangshi before him.

As Robin’s eagle had attracted quite a few Jiangshi’s attention, the current circumstance was favouring XiaoYu’s side. Finally, the entire group of monsters laid dead on the floor. Unfortunately, the eagle Robin’s raised for so long died with them.

“Damn it! What’s going on with you, assassin? Were you trying to kill him?” Robin shouted at where the assassin had hidden himself. His sharp eyes allowed him to see the shady expression on the assassin’s face as he ran towards LuckyCat. To Robin’s surprise, not only did LuckyCat not shy away from the other, he even buffed that bastard. Luckily, LuckyCat wasn’t shocked silly and was able to heal himself and help Robin in time. Otherwise, it wouldn’t just be his eagle dying.

“Tch. What made you think I’m trying to kill him? Where’s your proof?” Nightmare-Demon cancelled his Cloaking and revealed himself. He knew the urgent situation back then meant this archer didn’t have time to record it all down, so he had nothing to fear. He thought of attacking the two players when they were busy with the monsters but starting PvP mode will force his name to pop out. He didn’t want to leave evidence behind.

“You…!” It was true. Robin didn’t have time to record anything. He was forced dead on his tracks.

“Nightmare-gege~” called Snow as IndomitableBattle and she ran over. When snow saw that XiaoYu was still alive and well, her face showed how upset she was. “Tch. You’re not dead.”

“And you still say you’re not trying to kill him.” One look at that woman’s face and Robin knew this was all her fault. While he didn’t know what LuckyCat did to trigger them, he knew it must be the other party who’s at fault.

“If you can’t show any proof, then shut your yap,” said Nightmare-Demon, looking exactly like a hooligan.

“Hmph. Serves him right. Even monsters can’t stand him and want to beat him up. Why don’t you ask him on what he did?” Snow was really upset. Both times, someone had to come and save this LuckyCat.

The impulsive urge to just charge right up and say something was still strong in Robin, but he was stopped by a tug on his sleeve.

“It’s fine, Robin,” Whispered XiaoYu as he pulled Robin back by his sleeve. After that mess of a battle, both of their MP bars were near empty. Robin’s eagle was dead. If a PvP fight broke out now, the two of them wouldn’t be able to handle these three players.

“I don’t know what you’re angry at him for and I can’t show any proof. But you all know deep down whether what happened was truly a murder attempt. You three must be in the same party, right? Then, there’s no need to question this healer’s character. We all know through the buffs and debuffs on this assassin now. He thought you were being chased by a mob of monsters, so he threw a Haste at you. It should still be there. If he was a bad person, why would he help you?” Robin had calmed down. LuckyCat and he were ranged attackers. They’re not suited to battle in such close quarters. Everyone’s cooldowns were still ticking. Perhaps he can dig out something about the other side, especially that despicable masked assassin.

“How would I know why he’d help me? Maybe he was shocked,” Nightmare-Demon retorted.

“Tch. Stop pretending to be a good guy. You just want to look good before the healer.” Snow hated healers. So what? Why should everyone be kind and bow down before him?

Robin coldly stared at the wizard with squinted eyes.

“W-What do you want? A fight?” Shivers ran down Snow’s spine from Robin’s gaze. “Hmph. I’m warning you. Don’t even think about concocting some sort of scheme or you’ll never be able to step foot on Serica’s lands.”

“Oh? I’m really curious. Just what powers do you have to stop me from stepping foot near Serica?” Robin found this woman’s immaturity laughable. She’s not a GM. What right did she have to restrict his movements? Even if she was a GM, he can just complain to the game company.

“Don’t you know which guild they belong to? Let me tell you. They’re part of Angel Wings. Cross the Wings and the only fate awaiting you is getting killed all the way back down to Level 1,” Snow boasted. Serica was the Angel Wings’ base. This was an open secret after so many Guild Wars. After all, Serica-1 and Serica-2 were conquered by the Wings. However, IndomitableBattle and Nightmare-Demon were part of the subsidiary guild. Their levels weren’t high enough to enter the parent guild.

IndomitableBattle frowned. He didn’t like people using the Wings’ name to suppress other players.

“Oh, I’m really scared.” Robin didn’t get angry like Snow expected. Instead, he laughed. So this assassin was part of the Wings. While they’re a major guild, he wasn’t scared at all. The Heretic Demons who had his back weren’t a guild to be trifled with either, though he had no plans of letting these ignoramuses know that.

“Afraid, aren’t you? Then, scram.”

“Let’s head back to the city and leave these puffed up foxes to their own devices,” Robin said to XiaoYu who then nodded back.

“You…!” Before Snow could throw a fit again, two bright beams flashed by. With no one to yell at, she stomped her feet in anger.

IndomitableBattle never said a word throughout the whole exchange. From the unexpected Haste buff on Nightmare-Demon, he knew this healer was definitely not the selfish and cocky person Snow described. There must’ve been a misunderstanding.

“I’m sorry. Your eagle…” As soon as they were back in the city, XiaoYu began apologising to Robin.

“It’s fine. I’ll just go buy another,” Robin replied.

“I’ll pay.”

“There’s no need. It doesn’t cost much.”

“No way. If you hadn’t saved me, your eagle wouldn’t have…I’ll pay,” XiaoYu insisted.

“Ugh…okay.” Robin was surprised at how stubborn XiaoYu could be. He thought this kid would always be gentle, meek and slightly weak.

The two went to the Hunters Hall and bought an eagle. Then, they were lost on what they should do next.

“Are you going to keep grinding, Lucky? Let’s party up and grind at the Rebellion Base.” It was rare that he had free time. He was going to try his luck at the Jiangshi Cave. The high-level Jiangshi drop a Health Increase charm. Since there were annoying people blocking the way, why not change spots?

“Okay.” XiaoYu immediately agreed at the thought of his lucky charm effect when in a party. It’d be great if he could get some amazing drops to thank Robin for rescuing him.

◄Previous •Index• Next►

48. Enemies are Bound to Meet Again

The two men who went to Japan eventually came online. The moment they did, they summoned all of Heretic Demons’ relevant department to discuss the upcoming Guild Wars. Sakura-3 had been conquered. The Four Great Seals were mentioned. In the next event, everyone’s target will be the other three fortresses’ seals. If they still couldn’t take down Prole-3 this coming week and if any of the other two fortresses were conquered, the situation in the week after would be very serious.

However, all of this didn’t have much to do with XiaoYu. He just needed to follow the rules, grind up his levels and earn his money. But ever since the team training, XiaoYu realised he’d been ignoring too many of his skills. Nowadays, XiaoYu’s UI would be shimmering and shining whenever he’s training. Even if the buff was useless to a healer, he’d be constantly casting buffs on himself as long as he had enough MP and the skill didn’t require special items. All of that so he can raise his skills’ Proficiency levels.

The grind in the Jiangshi Cave went on. He essentially needed to be Level 60 before he could try challenging the Pyramids. XiaoYu still had a ways to go before he reached that goal.

“With Battle-gege and Nightmare-gege here, I’m safe,” said a cutesy, sweet voice from behind. XiaoYu didn’t pay any heed to her though. While there had been quite a few players passing by, they all had healers in their party. No one would be willing to enter the lower levels and risk being poisoned otherwise. Thus, no one disturbed the solo XiaoYu. He too enjoyed the peace of being ignored.

“Ah. There seems to be a solo healer ahead.” From the tone of the guy’s voice, it sounded as if that party didn’t have a healer. XiaoYu paused.

“I hate healers. They all look down on everyone else just because the Healers Alliance would back them up,” replied the female voice.

“Who’d be so rude as to look down on our cute Snow?”

“That guy’s called LuckyCat or something. He’s got an insolent pet who’d pick up everything, even the drops that don’t belong to…Ah, that’s him!”

A bad feeling had already begun unfurling in XiaoYu’s gut the moment he heard the name Snow. As expected, the following sentences pointed the spearhead at him.

“Let me see. Tsk. So brash merely after Second Job change. He’ll be unbearable once he hits higher levels,” said an assassin as he strutted over to XiaoYu and looked him up and down.

The wizard, Snow, wasn’t with the other wizard and archer from before this time. That’s because they felt afraid internally after the whole incident. LuckyCat was in their party. He knew their names. While the archer wasn’t in the party, he did introduce himself. If LuckyCat told the higher levelled lady healer about what happened, it’d be very commonplace for a group of healers to abruptly gang up on them one day on the road to somewhere.

Thus, they both suggested Snow apologised to LuckyCat via private messaging. Then, take a screenshot as prove and everything would be deescalated. But how could the proud Snow apologise to LuckyCat? So, the group argued and split.

This time, she found a knight and an assassin to carry her. With her skills at acting cute, she can still find new friends. Even if she parted from her old friends in anger.

XiaoYu was still in combat. He just stood there and silently waited as the party looked him from top to toe. Would he be killed again? XiaoYu wasn’t entirely sure. His hands slowly clenched into fists.

“Nightmare, no PvP. Be careful. He might record it.” The knight called Battle-gege Whispered to the assassin.

“I know,” the other replied.

“Hmph. You again. Don’t think you can be that cursed lucky to drop good equipment all the time,” Snow said.

XiaoYu remained silent. What’s the point of explaining things to someone so self-centred? What’s the point of retorting? Better off just saving his strength. Worse come to worse, he’ll waste a Return Scroll.

“Alright, Snow. Don’t be angry. Look at him. You can tell no one wants to party with him. He’s all alone. Why else would a healer, a class which has it the best in the game, be ignored?” the assassin commented.

“We’ll grind on our own. Leave him be. Let’s go,” IndomitableBattle shot a glance at Nightmare-Demon as he led Snow away with a smile. They had already made the little healer wary of them. While straight-out killing the other would bring them a moment of joy, it might mean their photos and names, popping out grey, would be sent to the Healers Alliance.

XiaoYu let out a sigh of relief as he watched the three players leave without causing any trouble. Not everyone would kill other players at the drop of a hat. He was finally released from combat and XiaoYu looked down at the Return Scroll in his hands. He looked back at where the three disappeared off to. In the end, he decided to put it away. It was still early. He wouldn’t know what to do if he left grinding so early.

“Battle-gege, Nightmare-gege, you’re just going to let him go?” Snow pouted, an upset whine to her voice. She thought Nightmare-gege would stab the other with his assassin’s knives for her.

“There’s no grudge between us and him, Snow,” IndomitableBattle patiently explained.

“But he was so mean before!”

“How mean was he? Tell me. I’ll help you think of a way,” Nightmare said.

Snow wouldn’t be that foolish as to tell them what really happened. She embellished the tale and merely complained about how XiaoYu had the lowest level then. He mainly relied on her and her two friends to carry him, but because he was a healer, he refused to split any good loot he found. It was only after she beat him down through logic that he handed the gear out. Even then, he just threw it before her in disgust as if she was a beggar.

“That’s way overboard!” Nightmare-Demon exclaimed.

IndomitableBattle kept silent. He didn’t witness what had happened with his own eyes. He only had Snow’s one-sided description. Somehow, he felt that something wasn’t right. From his observation on the healer before, the other’s gaze didn’t hold any hints of disdain or superiority Snow mentioned. In fact, he found it strange how clear and calm they were.

“So, Nightmare-gege, you must help me out,” Snow pleaded with her hands tugging at Nightmare-Demon’s clothes. Upon seeing hesitation in IndomitableBattle’s eyes, she smartly chose to plead with the slightly emotional Nightmare-Demon.

“Okay. I’ll help you teach him a lesson.”

“You’re the best,” Snow said.

“Nightmare, if you just kill a healer…”

“I know.” Nightmare-Demon interrupted IndomitableBattle. “Did you forget what job I am?”

If one described the Knight’s Taunt as a faux-bug which could make players be stuck in combat mode indefinitely, then the Assassin’s Cloaking was the skill for scheming while invisible.

When used, Cloaking makes the assassin invisible for a certain length of time according to Proficiency. It was meant to be a way for the frail assassin to save themselves when faced against a strong monster. The only drawback was they can’t do anything when invisible or they’ll be visible again. If one wanted to be like LittleZhuGe who could stalk other players while invisible, then one had to max out Cloaking’s Proficiency and get past the Third Job Change. Only then could they learn how to do that.

As for how to scheme and hurt others? Simple. The assassin could use their high Agility to attract the attention of a bunch of monsters, also known as pulling a train. If they suddenly Cloaked while next to the one they want to hurt, then the monsters who’d just lost their target would switch their attentions to the closest player.

The game doesn’t consider it as killed by a player. Plus, assassins had their special masks. The one who was schemed against could only swallow down the bitter pill they’ve been dealt with nowhere to complain. All because they couldn’t see the assassin’s face or name.

“You’re amazing, Nightmare-gege.” When Nightmare-Demon explained the plan to Snow who wasn’t familiar with Cloaking, he was immediately praised. Before IndomitableBattle could say anything, Nightmare-Demon was already rushing off to pull aggro.

Still, all of the high-level Jiangshi on this level had ranged attacks. While Nightmare-Demon was fast enough to leave them far behind him, he was still losing health from the poisonous smog being spat at him. As he counted the monsters he had trailing behind him, Nightmare-Demon downed his potions. He was only Level 62. If he pulled too many, he might kill himself before he could harm anyone.

When the number of mobs chasing after Nightmare-Demon was about right, he moved towards where they’d bumped into XiaoYu with ten Jiangshi right behind him. He hoped that foolish little healer hadn’t wandered far.

Translator’s Notes:

Gege: Suffix for brother. As this suffix is being used in context of “oppa”/”nii-san” etc (aka meant to slightly insinuate sexual relations due to brother/sister complex being a thing), this will remain a suffix. Translating it to Brother XXX just feels as if I should be talking about monasteries and boarding schools instead.

◄Previous •Index• Next►

47. Rejection

The next day, XiaoYu who had no party to grind with was back at the lowest levels of the Jiangshi Cave alone, grinding. The monsters with ranged attacks were the most troublesome. While his necklace increased his poison resistance, that didn’t mean he couldn’t get poisoned. It just lowered the unsavoury effects of being poisoned.

24 hours after increasing others’ strength came the 24 hours of magical backlash. Increasing one’s stats by 5% didn’t feel much at the moment. Naturally, decreasing them by 3% felt like nothing too.

In the evening, XiaoYu returned to Serica. After the peak dinner rush, the restaurants weren’t crowded by packs of human bodies. Perhaps it was the cheap and delicious home-cooking which made such a great impression on XiaoYu. He chose to dine at Yang Yue’s once more.

He didn’t have to sit in a remote corner anymore. This time, the server led XiaoYu to sit by the fence with a view opening up to the streets. But after a day of constantly being poisoned, he wasn’t interested in the night view at all. He ordered, then immediately sprawled down on the table to relax. No one knew him anyway. He didn’t mind being seen in such a mildly disgraceful posture.

“It really is LuckyCat.” XiaoYu raised his head and saw GloryOfTheWorld standing beside his table with a jug of alcohol.

“Hello,” XiaoYu replied.

“Do you mind if I sit?”

“No. Please.”

“You’ve joined the Heretic Demons?”

“Mn.”

“I recall the main Heretic Demons guild’s entry requirement being Level 85.”

“Really? I joined a subsidiary guild.” XiaoYu had yet to take a close look at the guild rules. He only heard about the important ones from HereticKing on their holiday.

“What a pity. I was going to invite you to join Angel Wings’ main guild. How about it?”

“No. I’m sorry. Everyone in Heretic Demons has been great to me.” XiaoYu wasn’t used to rejecting others, so he hid his awkwardness by sipping tea.

“But why didn’t HereticKing let you enter the main guild? Aren’t you lovers?”

“Pffft-!” Right. This cup of tea’s wasted. “N-No. Yao and I are only friends.”

“Yao?”

“HereticKing.”

“That’s his name?”

“Yes.”

“Hehe. I thought you were calling my name. Yao’s in my name too. My real name, that is.”

“Ah. What a coincidence.”

“Since you’re not lovers, does that mean I stand a chance?”

“Hah?” XiaoYu must’ve overworked himself today. His brain was on strike. Why else could he not understand what GloryOfTheWorld was saying?

“Don’t get what I mean?”

“Are you…drunk?” XiaoYu timidly asked. His eyes sneakily darting to the jug Glory had absentmindedly placed on the table.

“Hahaha…” XiaoYu’s bumbling and skittish act didn’t escape Glory’s eyes. “You’ve got a very special way of rejecting others.”

XiaoYu felt so awkward he wished he could just burrow himself under the table. The scene felt as if the one who was rejected wasn’t the guffawing GloryOfTheWorld but him.

“It’s a joke. Looks like I really am tipsy. You don’t mind chatting with a drunkard like me, do you?” GloryOfTheWorld laughed.

“Oh. Okay.” The Bai family wasn’t much for liquor. In XiaoYu’s memories, if alcohol wasn’t used for cooking, it was used for brooding and sulking. Instinctively, he thought the other might’ve encountered something troubling. ZhuGe who was always by GloryOfTheWorld’s side was missing. The other just so happened to spot him and so wandered over for a chat. What XiaoYu wasn’t able to rationalise was why do the two big Guild Leaders love to vent to him. The only difference between the two was their methods. Yao would silently hug him, and GloryOfTheWorld would chatter on about strange topics.

“Do you know HereticKing in real life?” the other man asked.

“No, just in the game,” XiaoYu replied.

“Ah. And he actually told you his name.”

“I only know one character. I don’t know his full name.”

“I see. Since we’re friends, why don’t we exchange names?”

“Of course.”

“But I won’t be that petty as to just tell you one character. My name is Lan MinYao.” GloryOfTheWorld dripped some alcohol on the table and wrote his name out with the liquid.

“I’m Bai XiaoYu.” In a polite exchange, XiaoYu wrote his name out on the table too with tea.

“XiaoYu? It’s really such a shame you’re not in Angel Wings. It’s the same character. You can be our mascot.”

“Hehe…” He nearly accepted the title of “Lucky Charm of the Guild” last time. Now, he nearly became a guild’s mascot. Just when was he so popular?

“And we are rather bound by destiny, aren’t we? We belong to the families of colours.”

Colours…Something popped up in XiaoYu’s head which made his eyes squint with glee. He remembered a period of time in high school when his classmates loved to joke around with that punchline.

“What is it?” XiaoYu started grinning and beaming out of the blue. GloryOfTheWorld was curious just which part of his comment tickled XiaoYu’s funny bone. Even so, that smile was feeling as if it was tickling his instinct to call the other cute.

“Nothing.” That story was quite complicated. It’d take some effort to explain it all.

“To avoid getting mixed up with HereticKing, you can call me Min. Can I call you XiaoYu?”

“Sure.”

“Well, XiaoYu, if the Heretic Demons ever treat you badly, you’re welcome to throw yourself into my embrace.”

“Heh…heh…” XiaoYu really thought the alcohol was getting to GloryOfTheWorld. The only reaction he could think of was a goofy smile.

“Mrrow!” The tiny cat that was playing dead on the table suddenly leaped up. Its gleaming eyes stared right behind the two men. The server was finally here with the food. It was about to starve to death. Of course, its beloved owner was starving too. It couldn’t bear the thought of lowering its Intimacy.

“Your kitten’s A.I. is very sophisticated.” GloryOfTheWorld had thought it strange since the last time they’d eaten together. From the moment he sat down, he’d been observing this small cat. It was actually sprawled out on the table into a kitten pancake as if it was dead tired. The pets he had seen all sat obediently by their owners’ feet. No matter how high the Intimacy levels were, the most the animals would do was perform a few simple actions according to the owner’s orders. It was impossible for them to have such high intelligence.

“Mn.” XiaoYu had never had a pet before. He had nothing to compare the little cat to. However, Glory wasn’t the first to say it had sophisticated A.I. It was highly likely it’s extremely sophisticated. Sometimes, he himself would be astonished at the tiny one’s intelligence.

“This would be very dangerous.” Glory wanted XiaoYu to understand the danger of harbouring treasures.

“I know.” He’d paid for it already.

“You can put it away in areas where there are many eyes and mouths around,” Glory suggested.

“No need. I don’t want to lock it up in the Pet Space.” XiaoYu stroked the tiny cat as he watched its cute face chow down on delicious food. How could he bear to lock it up in some unknown dimension called Pet Space?

“Ugh. You’re always saying no to me.” Glory had been rejected three times in the past few minutes. It seemed like he’s not as charming as he used to be.

“I…I didn’t mean that. I understand your kind intentions. But it is my first friend. I can’t bear to put it away.” At GloryOfTheWorld’s heavy sigh, XiaoYu rushed to explain. His hands dancing about in panic. He didn’t want an unintentional act to be harmful.

“You place so much importance on even a mere kitten. You must really cherish every one of your friends.” Even a pet can be his friend. Needless to say, someone with a large social circle like GloryOfTheWorld could never comprehend that mindset.

“Yes.” That statement hit the nail on the head. As long as the other person treated XiaoYu with even the tiniest kindness in the world, he’d treasure that friend.

“Then, I am honoured to be your friend. Ah, I wonder if there’s anyone in the world who’s had it worse than I have? I was rejected to so many times in a single day.”

“Um…I…I’m sorry.”

“Haha. I’m joking. I’m not that small-minded.” It was the sight of XiaoYu’s indecisive and upset face that made GloryOfTheWorld realise just how interesting it can be to tease this naive little guy. It can’t be HereticKing noticed this too, right?

“Eat up. The food will get cold.” Glory knew when to hold himself back. He knew that even the gentlest of cats would bite if the teasing stepped over the boundaries.

It wasn’t convenient or polite to talk to XiaoYu as the other was eating. GloryOfTheWorld who only came to the table with liquor was bored. When he saw the tiny cat had already licked clean its portion of the food, he thought of playing with the small cat.

Unfortunately, he didn’t know of the little cat’s weakness. Be it fingers or an unknown blade of grass from his pockets, the kitten only looked at them. After a long while, it let out a burp, signifying it was not interested in GloryOfTheWorld.

“I still overestimated a pet’s intelligence,” GloryOfTheWorld mockingly thought to himself. After numerous rejections from XaioYu and failing again at getting what he wanted, he was feeling rather down.

Thankfully, he’d never seen the tiny cat’s playful side as it meowed, twined and rolled around HereticKing. If he’d seen how the little one actively be all cutesy to the other man, Glory might just puke blood.

Translator’s Notes:

1. Yao: It’s a homonym reference. One of the characters for GloryOfTheWorld’s in-game name is pronounced “yao”. This is not the same “yao” as HereticKing’s. However, they are very similar. The only difference is in the radical. Glory’s uses the “light” radical. HereticKing uses the “sun” radical (same as XiaoYu’s “xiao”).
2. Lan MinYao: Lan = blue (蓝); Min = sky/autumn sky (旻); Yao = glory/pride/shimmering (耀). It’s too bad the other characters aren’t named after colours or we’ll have a rainbow by now.
3. Wings/Yu: XiaoYu’s “yu” is the same as the character for “wings”. This “yu” can also mean feather.

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