[[The world is in chaos, more than a million people who played the new game that flooded the market a week ago, PROGRESS Online, are missing in their capsules. However, the government had strongly warned all those who had obtained the mysterious immersion capsules not to play. Scientists have rendered their verdicts by concluding that technology is a non-human invention after several analyses.]]
Luna was in her routine Schmoll in front of the TV while eating her popcorn. She, who was patiently waiting for her favorite series, had never expected it to be cut off by national information.
[[... What leads us to wonder why? Who are these people who launched this new technology in our world? How did they do without leaving traces? Are we invaded by aliens? Stay tuned and report all kinds of capsules you will see. You will be graciously rewarded by the government.]]
"Sigh, Kasel, even if you're super busy, is it normal that you haven't answered any of my messages for two weeks now?" Luna sighed alone with a nostalgic air in the large living room, in front of the TV that was her most faithful companion.
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Meanwhile, in the world of online progress, Kasel was training with a bow in a space reserved for training new players.
STATS||||||||||
[ Name: Cursed ]
[Lvl: 01] [XP: 47/50]
[HP: 30/30]
[Class: Not yet chosen]
[Title: The NPC confidant]
[HYD:-/-]
[STR: 15]
[AGI: 15]
[STA: 15]
[Skills: NPC(1) ]
--
[SP: 0]
[〒: 70]
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As you can see, he had not yet done anything except train to master the types of weapons existing in the world of progress.
"Say, you saw this NPC, he has been there since this morning shooting endless arrows. Maybe if we approach him, we can find hidden quests." A blonde girl with brown eyes and long braided hair pointed her finger at Kasel who was sweating under the burning heat.
It's been a week since he began his class quest, after obtaining his new title...
[The NPCs confidant]
[This title allows you to obtain the confidence of NPCs that are below level 50.]
Like his competence, this title looked like a unique but useless title.
"Chuut~, (Avery). Have you forgotten that in this game, NPCs are crueler than we players? I even heard that a man who had reached level ten had become the slave of an NPC after stealing a sword from his shop. There is also someone who had been killed all at once by the entrance guard when he tried to enter the village without paying the entrance fee." Her friend hurriedly placed her hand on the mouth of Avery who (did not know who Kasel was).
"What is the relationship with this NPC?" Avery asked with question marks floating above his head.
"Sigh, as this is your first time coming here, you don't know this NPC. Although he is a stranger, even the village chief considers him his nephew, the guard who had beheaded the player, his name is Harold. And this fierce old man who is a retired holy swordsman is in fact the master of this NPC. Yesterday, he even imprisoned the two players who wanted to disrupt the young man's training. You know like me that if a person is imprisoned, they will never be able to disconnect."
"Tsk, NPCs always have an advantage over us. If it wasn't because of my family that forces me to play this game, I would have already deleted it for a long time. Frankly, this is the worst game I've ever seen. Those who manage to raise levels so quickly by facing monsters are really insensitive to pain." Just after saying these words, Avery and her friend moved away from Kasel.
'This girl, even if we are in the game, I can know her among a million people. Her name is Gabriella Walker, the only princess of the Walker family; who became one of the most influential entrepreneurs in the world after the fall of (Blade Corp). From their discussions, it seems that his family is aware of something about this game.'
-Woosh!
He fired another arrow at the target that was 30 meters from him.
Congratulations, your level of mastery regarding projectile weapons has just reached the maximum level. |
You have mastered all types of weapons. |
Thanks to your prowess, you have acquired a new title: perfect warrior. |
This title allows you to handle all kinds of weapons without class or skill restrictions as long as the weapon does not exceed your level. |
'Huff~, I finally got there. The most complicated part of this class quest is to gather the titles that will be merged afterward to create a single class quest.' A satisfying smile appeared on his lips as he lay on the ground out of breath.
'Without having a good mastery of weapons in real life, acquiring this title would have taken me a decade of training. To believe that my parents knew what was going to happen to me when they forced me to practice all kinds of martial arts. I've been training with firearms for several years now, so it wasn't complicated to master the shoot weapons. The most complicated was the sword, I had to give more than a million blows to status to acquire this title. Frankly, this world is too exaggerated.'
After completing his complaints to the administrators, he got up on the ground and went to the instructor who was monitoring his training with a satisfying smile.
The instructor in question was none other than the old man with a ferocious face who had welcomed him at the entrance for the first time. His name was Harold Vandra, he was Kasel's famous master. The reason why players considered Kasel an NPC was because of his passive skill that activates automatically when a player tried to check his player status.
"So, kid, already tired?" Harold asked him in a mocking tone.
"Tsk, close it, old geezer."
"Kah, should I consider that I am the one who wins the bet, once again? Kaka, we had to expect it. Tonight, you will still pay for my tour without fail." The reason he had bet with Harold and pretended to lose from the beginning was for his long-term investment.
'Even with my passive skill that allows me to see NPC statistics, I still can't see Harold's level.'
-Status-
Harold Vandra
Title: Retired holy knight.
Level: ???
Legend: he is a former royal knight who had fought countless battles alongside the emperor of the blessed empire of the goddess. Even if he seems harmless, he is a crouching dragon who is bored of the life
__
'A dragon crouched eh...' Kasel murmured in his thoughts.
Knowing what was going to happen in a week and six days, he had tried to see NPCs as living people to facilitate his task.
"Very good, a winner is a winner. Naturally, I will honor my deal, even if my scholarship has already issued you several curses." Kasel continued his knight role without precipitation. He was always a level one. The reason for his experience bar that continues to grow is the solely because of the titles he had obtained.
"Haha, he just has to keep cursing me as long as he vomits the sparkling pieces he swallowed." He tapped Kasel's shoulder with a smile that went from one ear to another.
Even if Kasel could be his son, given their age differences, the two had no problem maintaining their friendly relations as two brothers in arms who had gone through countless bloody wars together.
"Hah~ you, I wonder what to do to make you give up. In short, it's sold. What if not if we went to the tiger grandmother's tavern? I have to celebrate the anniversary of the death of my father who was an honest slave merchant." (False)
'I know that my father had always been a businessman. Even if he had never sold a slave or things approaching him, he had always told me not to back down during a negotiation. Father, your son applies your advice perfectly.' He raised his thumb to heaven as if he were addressing a spirit.
"Haha, then it's worth sinking alcohol. As the saying goes: a warrior must always shed blood, and if he is not on the forehead, then he must shed alcohol to honor his warrior oath to divinity...
"Excuse me, gentlemen." Suddenly, a distant voice resounded behind Kasel who was in a sympathetic and strategic conversation with Harold.
He frowned and looked behind him to see the person who interrupting his discussion with his future personal bodyguard.
But to his surprise, it was the same girl who was obsessed with looking for a quest from him, Avery. Now that Kasel was looking at her closely, this girl had a perfect hourglass silhouette, her immaculate face was accompanied by a seductive smile on her pink lips. She seemed to be the same age as Kasel but in reality, she had already reached twenty years old six months ago.
She cautiously approached Kasel and Harold with an artificial smile. "Can I accompany you for a moment? Hearing you talk about drinking, my throat suddenly dried up."
'Ho~? Is this girl trying to interact with NPCs? Could it be that she is looking to have the same class as me?' Kasel wondered, raising his eyebrows. But he soon shook his head. If this girl had the same information as him, Harold will not be so suspicious of her.
"Young lady, you were never told that it was rude to spy on people?" Harold replied coldly making the surrounding atmosphere unbearable for the two youngsters who were with him.
"Ugh! I had just heard your conversation inadvertently. It's impossible for...
"Stop lying! Do you think I couldn't feel your presence with my disciple since the end of his training? You were practically stuck to him with your camouflage spell." Harold replied to these words by making Kasel dazed.
'She already masters a Tier five skill? This girl... as I thought, she knows things about this world. But more importantly, I myself am surprised to be able to notice the presence of a mage who had launched a level five camouflage spell when I don't even have perception points. Is it because of my friendly fights against Harold?' Having this conclusion, Kasel waved his hand to Harold who immediately calmed down.
"Hehe, master, if you drive out all the beautiful ladies who will approach your disciple, I am afraid to end up single like you. I don't remember seeing this clause in our contract." When Kasel said these words, Harold had a glow in his eyes as if he had just understood something that had escaped him.
"Hohoho~ sorry little girl for misunderstanding your bold act."
"What?! No, that's not what you think. It is...
Harold didn't let her finish her sentence anymore. "You don't have to be ashamed of that, females have always loved powerful males. Even if my disciple is even frail than the wind, he still has a more advanced development potential than anyone in this village."
"No, you understood everything wrong." Avery's cheeks were tomato red when she heard Harold's unhealthy words. As an over-protected girl, and who is considered a princess; she was not used to hearing these kinds of words.
Kasel had a manic smile on his lips, he should be the only person who could have such audacity.
"Dear instructor, go ahead, I prefer a hundred times to be in the company of such a beauty that has fallen under my spell than to be with an old man who thinks only of alcohol. I pity you, you who have not discovered the tastes of heavenly fruits."
"!!!." Avery had her jaw on the ground. Even in her wildest dreams, she would never have thought she would meet this kind of NPC in a virtual game.
"Hmm, so is that how it is? You look more and more like my brother in arms who said that the world is led by two deities. Alcohol and Women. Maybe I should also think about finding a woman. In short, enjoy your youth, instructor advice. And you too, little mage." As soon as Harold finished these words, and made a nod to Avery, he continued his way to the tavern.
"What?! No, no, stop making movies. I would never be interested in an NPC, even if he is handsome." Unfortunately for her, her protest seemed to fall into the ear of a deaf person. Harold hadn't even turned around to take another look. Maybe he already had the certainty that this girl will not be able to harm Kasel even if she wanted to.
"Well, now that the ruse has worked and he is gone... what do you want me, stranger?" Even if he mocked his phrase, he wanted at all costs to prevent this girl from suspecting him.
Hearing these words from Kasel, Avery dropped his crisis against them. After all, they were NPCs. 'If I remember what my father told me, in this remote village, there is an NPC with intelligence that equals that of humans. I was confused at first since all the NPCs who are here are as intelligent as humans, but now I know what he was talking about. It is this perverse NPC who will be able to give me the quest for the legendary class!'
"I want to know, do you have a quest?" She grip her magic stick with a solemn air and asked Kasel this question.
Does she already have a magic stick? She must be at least one level 10 mage. She is really talented to reach this level in such a short time. Finally, if I play my cards well, I would be able to overcome an obstacle that I had not planned to face now.' He says to himself in his thoughts.
"A quest? What prompted you to come and ask me for a quest when I am as young as you and stronger than you? Why would I need you for my quests?" Kasel asked with a mocking smile.
"...It's..." she no longer knew what to say about this NPC which is more difficult than she would have imagined. Even if she was bored by the sarcastic words of this NPC, she could only bite her soft lips with irritation and helplessness. She, who had attended one of Kasel's duels against Harold, knew full well that she had no chance against this NPC. Even if Kasel was constantly like an ant who seemed to struggle against an elephant during his duel against Harold, Avery could not follow his agile movements; despite being a level one.
The reason why she is convinced that Kasel was an NPC different from others was not only due to his intelligence but also to his behavior and background. Contrary to what the other players said, she had well-informed about Kasel. The relevant information she had discovered about this NPC was that he was an adventurous NPC who had come to this village almost at the same time as the players. But he did not do a quest, instead, he had focused on improving his relationship with other NPCs and had even made this irreproachable instructor, his friend who had assisted him in his sword handling learning and the few fighting skills he knew by completely neglecting other players.
NPCs who acted as players were not uncommon in this game, but a player NPC who neglects his role as an adventurer is unprecedented.
She had her suspicions at first about Kasel's identity as an NPC but, after seeing Kasel's actions and his interaction with all NPCs, she came to the next conclusion. It is a unique NPC that does not give any classic quest. But the most important thing was the blue arrow above Kasel's head that proved his NPC identity.
But what she had not planned was the unpredictable behavior of this NPC. 'What?! Since when have NPCs become so stingy? This game is definitely more shitty than I would have imagined. But at least, I now know that this NPC is the NPC I was looking for.' She says to herself in a confident mood.
Meanwhile, Kasel frowned when he saw the notification on his game interface.
More important...
Everything became grayish around him and a scarlet red interface appeared in front of him.
Player N•1 is out of the game scenario. |
Seeing these words, his heart began to beat in his chest like a drum of war. Time is frozen around him, the NPC, the players, the birds and animals lurking around the area, and the whole village was frozen like a mirror of memories. Among all these anomalies, only one person was able to move and think as he wanted, and this person was... Kasel Blade, known as [Cursed].
Alert, the Pl%*r has come out of the scenario. |
Alert, the Pl%*r h#s co@e o₣t of the scenario. |
Alert, the Pl%*r has come out of the scenario. |
Alert, the Pl%*r has come out of the sce#Rio. |
Alert, the Pl%*r has come out of the scenario. |
... |
Alert, t*e Pl%*r h+s %^} }[{}] of *%+ ;:?! ;. |
'So I was not mistaken, why does this book contain information on the most sought-after classes? I reached to locate some clues that led to a hidden class that is higher than the legendary class, The only progressive class that is only mentioned twice in the book. According to my conclusions, this class has no level limits or restrictions on skills. The more this class increases, the stronger it becomes.'
'The first time, the class is mentioned as a progressive class and the second time, it is mentioned as the only divine class that can only be possessed by the deities! I thought it was only a legend, after all, how a banal class could have so many cheats? But now, everything has become clear, this class with a banal appearance of which I know almost nothing about its subject is the class I would choose. There will be no turning back after my choice. But I would accept all the punishments if my choice ever leads to my failure.'
?? D# U WANT TO B€COM A RESIDENT OF THÉ PROGRESS WORLD? |
"YES!"