"I'd like to sell some loot," Jisha said as she pulled the random garbage from her inventory.
"Alright, here's 23 Copper for 14 Slimeballs, 7 Lesser Insect Wings, and 1 Clay." Leyla nonchalantly said.
As they heard this, the three players became intrigued.
"Thank you!"
*>Inventory*
*>Adroit Ranged Pellet: 68*
*>Cinnamon Bun: 2*
*>Golden Slingshot: 1*
*>Melee Starter Stick: 26*
*>Ranged Starter Pellet: 797*
*>Shard of Corruption: 1*
*>Small Wooden Dagger: 1*
*>Wooden Slingshot: 1*
*>Coin Pouch*
*>Silverium: 2*
*>Copper: 435*
With her inventory slightly emptier and her coin pouch slightly bulkier, Jisha left to exit the shop. Unfortunately, though she looked around, there weren't any items in this particular shop that caught her eye.
As she was about to leave...
"Young lass, how about you work with us Ravaging Crows? Looks like you've already gone outside to hunt. You seem capable," the player whose name read "Jiel" said.
*Oh? They're perceptive.*
Jisha was pleased when she heard this offer. Not because it was a good one, but because they recognized what she had done based on the loot she sold.
"Unfortunately, I'll have to decline the offer... Oh. Do you have any business in this upcoming auction or with Shock Collar?"
"..."
When they heard that name, there was a pin-drop silence.
The three Ravaging Crows players looked at each other hesitantly.
"Let's talk about this somewhere else," Jiel said.
"Sure," Jisha agreed. "I've got some allies waiting on the border of the hamlet. Hopefully we can discuss it with them as well."
"... If they're your allies, it should be fine. Brusse, Declan, let's go."
---
"... Who are they?" Dharr skeptically asked.
"New friends!" Jisha enthusiastically said.
The Ravaging Crows' faces clearly said that wasn't the case.
"They seem quite suspicious of us," Brookie noted.
*Obviously.*
Jisha instantly pinpointed the issue.
"Relax, guys. We're not affiliated with Shock Collar or any powerful organization here," she said.
When he heard this, Jiel let out a resigned sigh.
"That's a relief... Shock Collar has monopolized almost everything in this starter hamlet. All the quests that give money have been taken by them. It's impossible for us to gain any ground. Right now, Omni Industrial is putting up a small fight, but anyone with half a brain can understand they don't have enough manpower to do anything significant... At this rate, we'll have to give up on the auction that's coming up soon."
*Well... Doesn't look like these guys are *that* smart. I could have easily been lying about my affiliation.*
Though she was internally chastising them, Jisha knew this man could be trusted a bit since he was talking so much.
"We might not have to," Brookie said. "We can work something out."
*He's got blind faith in me. I haven't even told him anything yet...*
"... What org are you affiliated with?" Jiel asked.
"None," Jisha responded before Brookie or Dharr could. She looked at the two of them and continued. "We're *independent* and not affiliated at the moment."
Brookie and Dharr looked at each other for a moment before silently agreeing to play along.
This answer left Jiel flabbergasted, but after a bit more discussion, the two parties agreed that they could trust each other.
"It's kind of crazy that you guys are trying to take on Shock Collar as independent players. What's your plan?"
"Plan, huh..."
There was one thing that had bothered Jisha since she arrived in Covan.
Independent players still formed at least 50% of the hamlet's population.
*If someone was competent, they would have been able to take the lead, form a truce, and work together to take out Shock Collar. Especially if the situation's mutually terrible for everyone.*
A truce and/or alliance would be much more effective if all parties had a specific goal in mind. The primary reason why the group of individual players failed so badly when attacking Jisha in the War Zone was because their goal wasn't a strong one.
In that example, sure, the goal was to kill Fae Sol. But why was that necessary? That's why Jisha had been surprised that someone had managed to rally that group in the first place. Killing Fae Sol wouldn't really benefit anyone.
*Commando12... I'd have invited him to the Sun Dragons, but I've never heard of him. I'll keep his name in mind, though.*
However, in Covan, the situation was the same for everyone. Shock Collar was limiting everyone's rights to essential starting materials and items. With a strong enough commanding voice, it would have been simple to rally them together for a single cause. Jisha could easily assume the role of this commander if she wanted. But there wouldn't be much in it for her. Instead, she had another idea.
"Yeah, I've got a plan, but I haven't told my friends here about it yet. When's the auction start, exactly?"
"It's at the top of the next hour, so that would be in 30 minutes."
"Perfect. So here's what we'll do..."
Brookie was dumbfounded when he heard what Jisha said. The reactions of Dharr and the Ravaging Crows weren't much different.
*>Dharr: What the f*ck? This is highway robbery!*
*>Brookie: Yeah... But we want items from that auction, don't we?*
*>Dharr: ...*
The player called Jiel visibly gritted his teeth.
"Fine!" he said. "But you better promise your end of the deal!"
"You should worry about what would happen if you were to betray me instead," Jisha said with an evil glint in her eyes.
Jiel shuddered when he saw that expression, and Brookie was reminded once again why he was following this angel of death.
*>Brookie: Let's do it. You said Copper isn't even worth that much after a while, right?*
*>Dharr: Well... That's true...*
Once they accepted the plan, there was no backing out. Otherwise, it would be suicide!
"Yep, count us in too," Brookie said.
After everyone agreed, all of the money from all 5 players' accounts vanished.
"By the way, I'm Fae Sol. It's good to be working with you," the angel said.
Jiel smiled bitterly as the two shook hands.
"Likewise."
*>+12 Copper*
*>+13 Copper*
*>+12 Copper*
*>+10 Copper*
*>+10 Copper*
Jisha smiled as she witnessed 5 deposits into her Coin Pouch.
"Alright, let's begin the show, shall we?"