I'm on the side of the road, so it was impossible to bump on me again. I continued walking and did not pay him any more attention.
"It's not bad," I said after I sharpened the end of the woodblock. I tested it out by thrusting it in the air and I could hear my flimsy limbs trembling from the effort alone.
It just happened that mister spiky head passed by at this moment, and with some twisted fate, both of our eyes met. He tried slowing down, causing himself to skid forward and jump a few times to shift his momentum.
He then turned to me and said, "Give me that sharpened pole."
Why is he asking for my things? Is he robbing me? Ohh, that's why they said be careful of other players instead of monsters.
Mhmm... what to do?
I can give him the spear but I would become defenseless... besides, I don't like him. Why should I help him?
"I don't know what you're thinking, but what I meant is that I am willing to buy that stick from you."
I frowned upon hearing what he said. Did this guy found a way to earn money already? Or did he already finish a quest and earned some gold?
I know that hunting missions require more risk and deserve more pay, but is this guy really that rich?
Let's test his pockets for now.
"I'll sell it for 50 gold." I offered.
Now, do you have the money or not? If you really finished a mission, you should at least have 200 gold by now, right?
"I think we're not on the same page here. What I meant is that I want to buy that using real money. I'll pay you around 100 credits. That's already a good amount for a flimsy stick, don't you think so?"
"Oh, do you know a way to log out?"
"What do you mean? Are you new to gaming? You just need to open the menu and click the log out button..." Spiky head waved his hand in the air and summoned the menu. Afterward, his face became flushed until the remaining color disappeared.
It seems like he wasn't even aware of it. Well, it's understandable though. The logout button was still clickable and wasn't shaded out. It creates the feeling that there was nothing wrong happening.
"What the heck is this!? What's happening? Do you know anything?"
"No, I don't. I'm actually curious as well as to what was happening, but I could only observe and suspect in the meantime."
"What do you think this is?"
"Most probably a bug or something. The admins were probably doing their best to fix the problem, so we could only wait. Besides, aren't you strong? Why are you even scared?"
I watched Mister Spiky head contemplating about things, then glanced at me strangely.
"That's right, I'm quite strong. I have 10 points in strength and I know you're weak. I feel generous today, so if you hand over the stick willingly, I'll save you the trouble of getting beaten up."
"You already died, which means your stats were reset. I think we have the same power with a small difference in endurance and speed, which doesn't really matter this early in the game. Furthermore, I have a weapon in hand and you're barehanded." I raised the spear and pointed forward. "So, try me if you want."
Spikyhead scoffed and shook his head. "Did you not learn anything at school? Stats aren't the only thing that matters in battle; skills too!"
He dashed forward and I timed my movements with him. Our rhythms were the same and so do our steps.
With me poking with the spear every time he tried to get closer, I expended more stamina than usual. I think he noticed my exhaustion, which caused him to attack much fiercer, but that didn't make me lose hope. In actuality, I felt more focused the more we clashed together.
"Ohoo? You're not actually weak like how I thought you were. Hahaha! I actually judged someone based on their looks. If Father learns of this, I'll get scolded again. My name is Aaron. I'm studying at the Northern Luzon Academy. Which school are you from?"
"I did not attend school, but I heard of the Northern Academy. The academy is situated inside the Copper Squirrel Forest and specializes in spears and bows. The academy was built inside the forest to control the population of the Copper Squirrel species. There are around 5,000 students and—"
"Stop, stop, stop! I don't need to hear details about my academy. Can you please just give it to me? I know you're exhausted already and it's just a matter of time until I get my hands on it."
That confident? Well, it's true that he's physically stronger than me, but I think I use my head better. I swiped my hand in the air and called for the inventory, then shoved the spear into a random slot.
I then raised my head and looked at him while grinning. If it was pettiness, I learned from someone who was really petty when I was young.
When the spear got sucked into the inventory, Aaron appeared shocked. He sighed deeply and his shoulders started to droop down. "Haa... I give up. Can you just sell it to me? Let's just consider it that I owe you one this time. The academy thought us hand-to-hand combat, but you know that I'm better with a spear, right?"
"To be honest, that only makes me disadvantaged and there's no guarantee that you won't kill me. However, my father once told me, it's better to trust someone and be betrayed than never trust at all."
I relaxed my posture and stood tall. It was true that I never attended school but it was also true that I was tutored at home. Swords, spears, shields, bows, crossbows, old generation guns, energy guns, and energy control. I just find physical labor taxing and boring, since I prefer researching random things. My father also supports my decision and does not meddle with my affairs.
I reversed the spear and handed the handle to Aaron. "I can give it to you, but I have a condition. I want you to help me with my mission."
"What mission?"
"I need to gather fifty kilos of enchanted wood. It just means I need freshly harvested woods, either branches or whole trunk."
"Sure, sure," Aaron said then grabbed the handle of the spear. I let go of the other end once I felt him firmly holding the handle.
After receiving the spear, he took a few steps backward and performed several swings, causing the air to split a few times. It was gorgeous but it also made him exhausted.
While breathing roughly, he swung the spear in a full circle around him and pointed it at my face. We stared at one another as if sizing up each other's guts.
Then he smiled.
"You're father, I think he's a great man," he said with his smile getting wider. He then performed fancy hand movements and retrieved the spear into a relaxed position. "I accept your condition."
For the first time since playing the game, I genuinely smiled. Not because of happiness or because I managed to contract someone into helping me with my mission. It's just that, I share the same opinion with him. I also think that my father was a great man.
Aaron said. "This spear is good for now, but can you make a longer one? It's shorter than what I'm used to and I feel a bit strange about it."
"Sure, if you find a long one I will craft you one. However, if you can't wait, you should just finish your mission and buy something in the marketplace."
"Well, that's true. But I have some things to do first. Follow me."
Aaron marched forward valiantly.
I stared at his receding back dumbfoundedly. "What about my wood?"
—
We found the players who killed Aaron, and he got his revenge due to his surprise attack. The spear also helped since it extended his attack range and made fighting many players at once a lot easier.
The three spot-stealers died but promised to come back, so I urged Aaron that we move to a different area. Their bodies didn't have much loot and only had pebbles used to attract zombies from a distance. I heard it deals 1 damage and is a good but cumbersome strategy to level up.
The three players died because they have no designated roles. Usually, even outside of the game, schools teach that there must be designated main attacker, a defender, and support in a team. That team were all attackers and only kept pelting stones at Aaron but died a swift death with the spear.
The roles were vague and everyone could switch around depending on the situation. An archer could act as an attacker and support by only providing cover fire to allies that were surrounded. If they want to switch to a pure damage dealer, they could just focus on the enemies and ignore providing cover fires.
After traveling for several minutes, we were able to level up by hunting zombies along the way. I reached level 2 and reserved my stats for a later time when I needed it, then chose to learn the skill I needed the most.
I gathered energy on my fingertip and created a small orb. I focused and willed the energy ball to compress and sharpen.
Skill requirement reached! Wits - 10
Skill [Energy - Sharpen] learned!