Now that Theo was healed and he knew for a fact that this wasn't just something he was imagining but real, he started to experiment again, albeit with a lot more caution.
He fiddled around with the menu but that didn't really help. And the quests menu was empty, so he couldn't do anything with that either. He tried licking various things, even the floor, but this time while making sure nobody was just going to randomly turn up.
The exp gain was all over the place, from just single digits to up to high-end double digits but none gave him the same amount of exp he got from Sharon. Whenever he did gain some exp, he felt a little better, or rather more vitalized? And stuff that gave him excess exp also tasted great! But he soon ran out of stuff to lick.
'So, licking living things would get me a more exp?'
But what was the point of the exp?
What was the point of leveling up?
And more importantly, why licking of all things?
Granted, he felt a lot more powerful after the level up, but what if there really was a chip embedded in his brain and that was just providing a dopamine boost? And everything was just an illusion?
It was certainly plausible.
In the past there was a time when augmented reality was mainstream and people got so sick of wearing thick goggles, they started to embed chips in their heads. It started as a simple thing and gradually got more and more complicated. There were certain risks but that wasn't the issue. The real problem was the rewards function. And a certain game really exploited this system pretty badly.
Whenever a player won or completed a quest, this game rewarded the player with dopamine surges. That was fine and all but people got addicted and started to spend large amounts of cash on the game so they could win more and more; after all, everyone wanted to feel good. And it didn't take long before many went bankrupt, some committed suicide, others became terrorists.
The withdrawal symptoms were worse than Heron and Kokan combined.
But that wasn't all. It wasn't just one game, many more emerged, and eventually, chip embedding was banned.
But what if, someone did it? What if there was a chip in Theo's brain? It wasn't implausible to think such a thing couldn't be done. The thought command technology might have been a bit advanced but with modern technology, it could very well have been possible. At least from Theodore's perspective.
Status (locked lv5)
Quests (0)
Equipment (locked lv5)
Magic(locked lv10)
Refinement (locked lv15)
Abilities (locked lv15)
Journal(locked lv5)
Enchantment(locked lv50)
Turbo(locked lv5)
??? (locked lv100)
He again, took a good look at the menu, and as expected almost everything was locked. He didn't know how much exp he needed to level up and not many things were netting him much exp here anyway. And he didn't get another quest either.
So, he did the most logical thing to do.
Leave.
***
"As expected. You were marvelous." The hooded man spoke.
There was no one in the immediate vicinity apart from two men.
"Well, it was a hard job. I should charge you extra but I'll settle for just a little bonus and maybe getting it by the time I reach my room," John grinned.
In fact, calling it just a hard job was an understatement. John had to overwhelm someone stronger than him along with the spectators.
The man laughed hard. "You never cease to amaze me. Very well." His laughter stopped. "How fares the Black?"
John furrowed his brows. "I'd advise not getting him involved." His attitude was anything but hostile.
"I wouldn't dare. I'd rather not mess with the Blacks. Just a little curious, that is all." The man raised his hands up.
"He'll be fine. A bit traumatized but fine."
"You seem to like this lad quite well. Perhaps-" The hooded man's lips curled up to form a grin.
"Say one more word and I'll rip your guts out. "John glared, his voice slow and calm. He had a grin but he certainly wasn't smiling.
"Expect the payment by tomorrow." The hooded man started walking. 'One of these days.' His lips curled up a bit more in a disgusting smile as the creases of his face stretched. He didn't look back.
Meanwhile, John was more than just pissed. It took a lot to control that rage of his, and he was an expert too. Expert at exploding that is. 'Fucking bastard.'
But he needed the money.
***
There was no one else in the hallway, so Theo just walked alone. For the first time, he really was alone. He didn't know his way around but strangely, he didn't feel that bad.
He wasn't nervous, he wasn't scared either. Everything just felt natural. Though his white t-shirt and pants didn't.
He wanted to get back to his room and get changed but there was just one small problem.
Where was his room, again?
He sure didn't know.
But since it felt nice to just walk around, he didn't complain too much and walked. It was uncharacteristic for him to not complain too much, but, perhaps something really did change in him.
He walked past several halls, turns here, turns there, turns everywhere.
But everything looked similar. The person who'd designed this place must have been pretty evil- according to Theo.
After spending almost fifteen minutes just wandering around, Theo finally found a room.
"Finally-" He was almost on the verge of turning back. But finally, fate had shined upon him.
He touched the door, it opened automatically, and amazingly, he was back where he started.
'Perfect.'
A vein on his forehead throbbed and he smiled.
Perfect indeed.