When Ranz opened his eyes, the familiar room greeted him.
While waiting for his stamina to return, he thought of logging out first to use the free time to study things about the game.
Although he wanted to take a walk and appreciate the beauty of the world of Nova Terra, he didn't have time to do that because of his situation. Especially now that the Red Phantom Guild has imposed a bounty on him.
He didn't know whether to feel sorry or laugh at himself because of the incomprehensible incident to him. He hadn't even had a day in the game, but too much had happened already.
"It was a hell of a first dive…" he whimpered after retracting the Neural Helmet from his head.
He feels mixed feelings at these times.
His eyes rolled around the room and he saw the digital clock on top of his fully loaded desk just in front.
"It looks like I was in the game for almost three hours…" He whispered when he saw the time was almost 3 PM.
"As far as I know, there is no difference between the time in the World War Online and in reality. So the time I spent in the game was the same time I spent lying in the Calibrator Chair. "
Before standing up, Ranz first felt himself. When he learned that he did not feel any pain or numbness, he simply took a deep breath.
"It seems true that this thing is not just a chair, bed, or backrest, it also keeps the body in good condition."
Before getting up from the Calibrator Chair, his stomach rumbled.
*Groowwwl!*
"Ngh, no matter how high-tech this device is, it still can't stop my stomach from getting hungry," Ranz groaned slightly.
He immediately went to the kitchen to get some food. When he returned to the room, he was carrying a bowl of noodles with eggs and a plate of rice.
Ranz immediately laid them down on the table, right next to his keyboard.
He pressed the [on] button of the laptop before munching on food. He gulped down food several times while waiting for the monitor to come to life.
When his monitor finally came to life, he immediately searched about the game, specifically about his big question. If a player with Peace status could kill a player in the world of Nova Terra.
After pressing the [search] button, the results appeared immediately. Fortunately, there were diligent game streamers who tirelessly upload tips, tricks, and information regarding the game.
After reading some of them, Ranz finally understood.
"My initial deduction seems to be correct. You can indirectly kill and be killed even with a Peace status," Ranz frowned at what he read.
From what he found out, Ranz realized that even though he still has Peace status, he mustn't lower his guard.
"Indirect killing, huh. That makes sense…" he whispered. "One example is what happened to me when two worthless players lured the vultures at me."
He continued reading and he found out that in addition to luring monsters, there were other ways to kill and be killed by players with Peace status. One of those was the use of poisonous items.
"Poison, huh…" Ranz suddenly thought. He suddenly remembered the bug that happened to him. The bug that almost killed him. He had a poison ailment even though there was no reason for him to have it—
He suddenly stopped when a sudden realization entered his brain. Ranz blocked his hand to his mouth while the side of his index finger was pressed to the tip of his nose.
"Wait… Poison? Ah ?! What if… Could it be... Is it possible that there is a player hidden in that thing…?" Ranz's eyes widened at his suspicion.
Although it was only still a suspicion, there was no denying that there was a strong possibility that this could happen.
"….."
However, even assuming he was right and everything was just an accident, still nothing would change in his situation because he had no idea how to explain the truth without putting himself in danger.
Human temperament is very hard to predict.
Ranz feared that when his identity would be exposed, they would easily hunt him down. He had not yet known those people's temperament, so it was too risky for him to appear in front of them.
"First, I'd better become stronger." Ranz sighed after thinking about it. "Strong enough to protect myself."
Ranz also searched on the internet about something else, all regarding the game. He spent more than an hour in front of the monitor before he stretched his arms upwards.
UMMMMP!
"Hmm… according to this, if you are a newbie, you first need to talk to the mayor of the town to get access to the main missions available from the NPCs of the town."
"Ah I see, so that's why when I tried to talk to the NPCs in Lightwood Village, none of them gave me a quest. The reason is that."
Ranz turned off the monitor and took a deep breath.
"Looks like I need to travel to town if I want to gain access to quests. However, there is a big problem. There are many powerful monsters along the way that I can encounter. "
He saw his smartphone lying on the bed. He immediately picked it up and activated the screen.
When the screen came on, the message from NightBee immediately popped up.
>>NightBee: [FC! Don't forget to choose the server 20 Starless Night, okay? Good luck with your first dive. Let's meet in the game soon.]
When he read this, Ranz immediately tapped on his forehead.
He looked at the time when the message was sent.
"11:32 AM?"
"Wait! This is the exact time before I dove into the game! Oh my god. NightBee's message… I did not check it."
Ranz quickly typed a reply.
< Sent!
He waited for her reply. But even after an hour, Ranz didn't receive a reply. Perhaps she was in the game right at the moment.
He wanted to play along with her, however, there was nothing he could do about it. He couldn't revert the time.
Ranz returned to the game. This time his goal was to reach the Town and gain more levels.