n

n

nAfter Ren finished his business with Hubert, he logged out of the game.

nIn an hour or so, they would start their raid. Ren wasn’t in a hurry and took his time to have an afternoon snack.

nHe also called his parents and told them that he had settled in the big city and that he was doing fine. Afterward, he washed his face and stretched his limbs in a light exercise.

nIf he wanted to maintain his health, he had to think of doing a run in the morning. Everyone could easily forget their health when inside the Pod. It was also why the Pod had an automatic warning response for players who stayed more than a day in real-time in the game.

nThe Pod was safe. It was just the irresponsible players who didn’t think of their physical health that was concerning.

nDiinNgG!

nHis doorbell rang, and Ren took a deep breath before opening the door.

n“Finally, you’re home!” Roni said the moment Ren opened the door.

n“You don’t know how many times I have been here ringing that doorbell. I thought that you had gone somewhere.”

nRen wanted to slam the door shut on his face, but Roni seemed to know his plan, and he hung a hand on the door frame so Ren wouldn’t be able to close the door.

n“I was sleeping,” said Ren without any emotion on his face and voice. “Do you need something?”

n“Oh, sorry.” Roni slapped his hands together in a gesture of an apology though his face wasn’t apologetic at all.

n“Anyway, you’re free, right? Do you know about COVENANT? It’s all everyone talk about. So I got curious and wanted to know what the hype was all about. They said it’s like a new world where you can do anything! So what I’m trying to say is, do you wanna’ play together at the nearest café?”

nNO. Ren was sure that Roni just wanted a free pass in the café. That was why he was asking him, just like what happened in the past. The only difference now was that he was playing, and he wouldn’t be lending him anything.

nRoni still hadn’t paid him that dinner last night and all his debt in the past.

n“I’m not interested in the game.” Ren lied. “Sorry, but I had to go back to sleep. Still tired from all the cleaning and organizing my things.” he didn’t clean, and he didn’t bring a lot of things to organize.

nHopefully, Roni got his drift that he didn’t want to associate with him.

nHowever, the guy was thick-skinned than Ren gave him credit for.

n“You sure? I heard that it’s like a new world where you can do magic and stuff! Fight monsters, party, and go to dungeons. Explore a new world. It’s so awesome that everyone wanted to enter it!”

nRen shook his head. “I’m not interested.” He lied with a straight face.

nRoni scratched his head and didn’t know what to do when he realized that he couldn’t entice Ren to go.

n“Alright. If you’re not interested then . . .” Roni shrugged and flashed a grin with both hands in prayer. “Can I borrow some money at least? My parents are late at sending me my allowance again. Just twenty dollars to try this game. I’ll pay you the soonest that my parents sent my money.”

nRoni was used to people looking down at him and giving him the stares. He didn’t care as long as he got the money and bought the things he wanted.

nBut right now, under Ren’s intimidating pair of silver eyes, it was like he didn’t have any worth from the way he looked down at him from the gap of his high nose.

nIt felt like an enormous presence was in front of him, and all he could do was lower his head and think of his worthless existence.

n“Is that so?” Ren thought about the things Roni owed him, and he hadn’t paid any of them. The interest was accumulating, reaching an all-time high.

nRen broke into a small smile, and Roni released a sigh in secret. The pressure on him was suddenly lifted, and he could breathe easy again.

n“Roni, why don’t you work your ass and stop asking for money from others and your parents? It’s time to grow up and stop blaming them for everything.”

nRoni’s mouth fell wide open.

nRen slammed the door shut on Roni’s astonished face and pressed the silent button on the monitor on the side of the door.

nOn the little screen, Roni was stomping his foot on the ground and seemed like he was saying something, and based on the rapid movement of his lips and the frustrated look on his face, he was probably cursing him at the top of his lungs.

nRen ignored him and went back to his room. After drinking enough water and doing his business in the toilet, he logged into the game once more.

nThe sun was about to rise in the game, and Silvia’s message rang in his notification right on cue.

nSilvia: I’ve finally managed to find a tank, and we’re assembling in Rocky Hills now.

nThere’s only one problem . . .

nRen didn’t know why but he suddenly had a bad feeling.

nRem: What is it?

n. . .

n. . .

nA minute passed, and Silvia still didn’t reply.

nRen got impatience as he awaited Silvia’s message. He decided to go to Erendia Town and grind first since he felt uncomfortable with spending 16 000 gil in one go. He needed to replenish that amount. Fast. That was the only way he could sleep at night.

nHe needed the EXP anyway.

nRen bought a simple Onigiri in the market for 10 gil before he went out of Erendia and took a detour at the fork presented on the road just before entering Maze Forest. He went into another field of meadows. In the center of the Meadow was an Apple Tree.

nRight there, Ren laid the Onigiri on the patches of small grass and waited for those delicious Pelkas once more.

nThese areas and the one in Euclid were among the accessible areas where Pelkas appeared.

nRen recounted the other locations, most of which were either in restricted territories or areas that were not yet accessible at his current ATP.

nAfter a minute, his first little piglet appeared and munched on his Onigiri. Not long after, a bunch of them started to wiggle towards the bait.

nRen was rather disappointed since, unlike the first time when there were ten of them, now it was only seven.

nBut nevertheless . . . A Pelka is a Pelka.

nA sinister smile stretched Ren’s lips, and the seven Pelkas trembled at the ominous presence.

nWith the skills in his Mind Palace Cunning Action and Multiattack, four Pelkas were down with just a whack of his staff.

nAnd those that sprinted away were not safe either when Ren threw Stones at them. His aiming was not perfect, so he had to throw multiple stones, hoping at least one would reach its target.

n-1

n-1

n-1

nUsed Stones x10

nRemaining number of Stones: 17

nACQUIRED:

n❶ Pelka Meat x114

n❷ 7 000 EXP

nEven though Ren only got 7 000 EXP, he was still feeling happy with the amount of Pelka Meat he had horde. Adding to his previous haul, he had now Pelka Meat x257!

nHe couldn’t wait for the in-game currency to be introduced so he could auction them. Even better if he waited for the rich ‘Tourist’ to appear in the game. By then, the prices of Pelka Meat would surely surge due to high demand and low supply.

nEither way, Ren was feeling secure. If he ever needed the money in the future.

nFor now, he needed to be prepared to face Vulcan’s Cave. Just because it was one of the easiest elemental dungeons didn’t mean he would be complacent.

nSince his INT was already high, Ren allocated all the EXP he earned to his ATP, emphasizing his MDF, HP, and MP.

n‖ R E N ‖

nHP: 165 400

nMP: 180 100

nSTRG: 3

nDEF: 64

nMDF: 14 70

nINT: 76

nAGL: 54

nLCK: 131

n‖ E N D ǁ

nA New Message from Silvia!

nRen pressed the notification on his screen.

nSilvia: That is . . . I won’t be the leader of the group. It’s handed to Robert

nRen frowned . . . Who?

n