The High-Quality Human Player
In countless newbie villages, while the vast majority of players were still wracking their brains over how to defeat a slime, Jack was already feeling like success was just around the corner.
"I hope you'll teach me everything you know!" Jack said, trying his best to keep a straight face so as not to give himself away.
"Fine." After a brief pause, the newbie village soldier—Kailo—nodded in agreement.
"Ding!"
System Prompt: You have received training from [Newbie Village Soldier Kailo] and learned [Basic Swordsmanship] (D-Rank)!
"Ding!"
System Prompt: You have received training from [Newbie Village Soldier Kailo] and learned [Basic Combo Attack] (C-Rank)!
Though these skills sounded about as basic as toast without butter, Jack couldn't help but feel a surge of excitement. With these two new tricks up his sleeve, he was ready to take on those pesky slimes again. At least now, he had a fighting chance—literally.
[Basic Swordsmanship] (Passive) (D-Rank) Description: Master the fundamentals of swordplay to pave the way for greater mastery. Effect: +5 Attack! Restriction: Fully effective with swords; only 50% effectiveness with other weapons.
[Basic Combo Attack] (Active) (C-Rank) Description: A simple two-hit combo—don't get your hopes too high. Effect: Deals two rapid hits based on your attack power. First hit deals 75% damage, second hit deals 80% damage! Cooldown: 20 seconds.
Kailo exhaled deeply, looking visibly drained but keeping his eyes locked onto Jack. "I've taught you all I can. Now it's time for us to seal the deal."
"Sure thing," Jack replied smoothly, nodding. This wasn't the moment to rock the boat—not yet, anyway.
"Ding!"
System Prompt: You have made a contract with **[Newbie Village Soldier Kailo]**. Within one week, you must pay him ONE GOLD COIN as repayment for his teachings. If you break this contract, the entire village will hunt you down until the end of days—or at least until you delete your account.
Jack frowned. "Why one week? That's cutting it close."
Truth be told, he didn't plan on breaking the contract—he'd suggested it himself, after all—but asking for payment within a week felt like squeezing water from a stone.
"One week. No gold, no leaving the village," Kailo said with a sly grin, his eyes gleaming with warning.
Smart NPC, huh? Jack thought bitterly but kept his poker face intact. "Alright, but you're hooking me up with some gear and armor. Deal?"
"Why should I?" Kailo crossed his arms skeptically.
"For ten thousand gold coins, you think handing over two basic skills is enough? Come on, man!" Jack shot back, his tone icy.
Kailo shrugged, feigning innocence. "I gave you everything I've got."
"Add another ten thousand gold coins to the deal!" Jack held up two fingers, his voice calm despite the storm brewing inside.
Oh, you wanna play hardball? Fine. Bring it on.
The whole village hunting me down? Please. I'm not afraid of a little drama. If we're going full throttle, let's make it count.
"Alright, alright. You've convinced me," Kailo relented, rummaging through his bag before pulling out a tattered leather jerkin and a rusted iron sword. He handed them over to Jack.
[Soldier's Leather Armor] (White Grade) Defense: 2-2 Description: Standard-issue uniform for newbie village soldiers.
[Soldier's Iron Sword] (White Grade) Attack: 3-3 Description: Standard-issue weapon for newbie village soldiers.
White grade—the lowest tier of equipment imaginable. According to official lore, gear in Tianheng Continent ranged from White, Bronze, Silver, Gold, Dark Gold, Spirit, Earth, Sky… and beyond. What lay beyond Sky-grade remained a mystery, left for players to uncover.
Ignoring the system notifications, Jack quickly equipped the items, giving his stats a much-needed boost.
[Jack Shui] Level: 1 Health: 100 Attack: 9-9 Defense: 3-3 Reputation: 0 Luck: 0
"Catch you later!"
With his mission accomplished, Jack wasted no time. Turning on his heel, he marched straight out of the village, ready to settle the score with those bouncy blobs of doom.
"Big brother, take me with you! Let's team up!"
A young female player with delicate features latched onto him, batting her eyelashes.
No way. Who brings a porcelain doll into battle?
As a high-quality human player, Jack shot her down without hesitation. "Sorry, ma'am. I'm an emotionless slime-slaying machine."
Watching Jack walk away, the other players who'd witnessed his transaction with Kailo began swarming around the soldier, hoping to sweeten him up with similar offers. But Kailo's next words crushed their dreams faster than a toddler stomping on a sandcastle.
"Villagers can only teach adventurers once per week. And trust me, I don't have spare uniforms lying around."
Outside the village, Jack wasted no time. Spotting a blue slime bouncing nearby, he lunged forward, delivering a swift slash with his rusty sword.
-21!
Finally, a double-digit damage number floated above the slime's head. Not bad.
But the slime wasn't happy about it. It leapt toward Jack like a caffeinated kangaroo, aiming straight for his chest. However, Jack sidestepped with lightning reflexes, countering with a quick stab—no, scratch that, TWO stabs.
Basic Combo Attack!
-32! -38!
Big numbers popped up, and to Jack's delight, one of them was a critical hit. The slime's health bar visibly dropped by a third.
From there, it was a breeze. Three slashes later, the slime exploded into gooey bits, marking Jack's first-ever monster kill in the game—and completing the old man's quest.
"Ding!"
System Prompt: Congratulations! You've defeated a [Blue Slime] and earned 10 experience points.
Onward!
Instead of heading back to the village, Jack immediately sought out his next victim.
Let's be real—it was hard to believe that a few well-placed fibs and a hefty bribe had put him leagues ahead of the competition. But hey, if life hands you lemons, why not squeeze them into everyone else's eyes?
Over the next five minutes, Jack slaughtered more than ten slimes, his movements growing sharper with each kill. Suddenly, a warm glow enveloped him as golden light rained down—a level-up animation.
Level 2 achieved!
Checking his stats, Jack noticed no free attribute points to allocate. The only benefits of leveling were a modest increase of +1 to both attack and defense, along with an additional 100 HP.
Huh…
Not bad.
At least killing slimes would be slightly less painful now.
"The designers of this game are absolute geniuses," Jack muttered under his breath, glancing back at the sea of frustrated players stuck in the village.
He'd never seen such a bizarre setup in any game. Without bribing Kailo, he'd probably still be stuck inside the village, scratching his head alongside everyone else.
Two hours later, Jack reached Level 3, his strength climbing even higher. Sure, slaying slimes wasn't exactly rocket science, but the lack of resources made things trickier. With no money or potions in his inventory, he often had to sit and wait for his HP to regenerate naturally when things got dicey.
Hmm…
Something felt off. After mulling it over, Jack realized the problem:
"Holy crap, I've been grinding these slimes for over two hours, and they haven't dropped a single copper coin!"
No coins, no loot. Nothing.
"This game starts you off with a stick and expects you to conquer the world? Seriously?" Jack looked down at his rusty sword, which looked like it belonged in a scrapyard rather than a hero's hand. Yet here he was, miles ahead of the pack.
Damn it. I'm speechless.