The NPC Got A System

6. Meeting With The Thugs

A tingling sensation approached Nash’s pale cheeks, making them flush a dim red under the cast of warm sunlight even though it had entered the late autumn season in Terraria. Some of the sun light rays shone upon Nash closed eyelids, making it twitch a little. The eyeballs inside it move from side to side at a fast pace, as if they experienced a bad dream.

Snap!

Suddenly the eyes were opened and showed both jade pupils that grew wider from shock and fear.

(What is it? Am I … really getting back to this world?)

He could see a clear azure sky unfolded above him, with some hazy and pearl-white clouds painted on it.

Nash tried to blink several times and looked closely at the sky, but the scenery remained the same.

He did come back to life, even after his lungs got pierced by his own ribs and died alone because of blood loss underneath Gressida’s house ruins.

Oh, right! Gressida! Chisato!

Nash quickly got up and found that he was lying on the grass in the middle of the forest. Where was this place? Did he get teleported randomly?

However, Nash knew he did not return here with zero intention. Aside from the quest given, he still needed to find both of them and make sure they were safe. Either Chisato or Gressida was like a family to him, and Nash could not let them suffer when knowing what would happen after this.

That was right. The shadow he met earlier in his consciousness gave Nash a vision about the current state inside Heaven of Terraria after the resurrection mode was activated and the logout button removed, which trapped all the players inside.

It had been two weeks after the resurrection mode, but chaos happened everywhere, even though it was not on a mass scale. With the awakening of NPC, the player that was bound by the strict rule which could not touch NPC life and affair in the game now broke all the rules and caused turmoil. Those players with high rank and status could easily solidify their place among other mid-players and dominate them in order to finish all the remaining beast towers, then called the Yggdrasil tower.

Of course, many of them refused to be their subordinate. Some of them chose to act as an independent player, but there were many who created small groups that did criminal things to collect money, such as killing other players and robbing their inventories.

With all this chaos, there was no way Nash would let Chisato and Gressida wander in this dangerous place without protection. If what that shadow showed him was true, it meant Chi and Gressida were now in the neighbour kingdom, Valvaroa. Camden Village was located on the border between the Iskandarien Kingdom and Valvaroa Kingdom. Both kingdoms were parts of the Seven Great Kingdom of Terraria which ruled under the emperor in Albagard, the central kingdom and the fixed place where the Yggdrasil tower would appear.

That was the place Nash would head to after finding Chisato and Gressida and raising his level as a player.

Shhhrrrrkkk—

Nash turned his head fast toward the bushes near his current position.

Two people with thug faces came from behind the bushes and looked dumbfounded when they found someone was there. One was chewing a piece of grass while the other was bringing a box full of jewelry.

“Who’re you two?” Nash stood up and cleaned the back of his body. It was pretty clear they were thieves, but Nash had no idea if they were players or common people. If they were common people, it was a great relief for him. But if things turned out to be the opposite, he did not want to make trouble because he was currently so weak and had no skills.

The chewing-grass thug frowned. He folded his arms and answered with a sarcastic tone. “Huh? Shouldn’t it be us that ask you? Who’re you, and what’re you doing in the middle of this forest, alone?”

“Hum, hum.” The other nodded vigorously and made the jewel shake inside the wooden box.

Nash scanned both of them thoroughly from head to toe. They wore commoner clothes made from low-quality cotton, and not one of them was wearing game equipment such as a shining sword, thick armor, or any other lavish accessories that could easily differ a player among a bunch of NPCs.

(Huh, what’s that?)

He fixed his gaze on the small blue hologram window floating above those man’s heads.

[Non-player character]

[Non-player character]

(Holy shit, I can see their status? But why?)

Nash was about to wonder when he remembered the shadow’s words that mentioned something about a unique gift before they parted from each other.

“Even though I seem cold and cruel, I do care about all my belongings, including you. I’ll give you a unique gift because I feel bad forcing you to join this game without enough preparation or knowledge. Use the gift wise, Boy.”

He heaved a dejected sigh. It was indeed a good skill to know about others’ information, but wasn’t it the same with cheating? Was it allowed to do such a frivolous thing like that here? Nash wondered about human’s weird concept of right and wrong.

“B-Brother, look! He got such a beautiful ring on his hand!” The thug that ran out of grass to chew pointed his finger toward the butterfly ring on Nash’s palm.

“You’re right! It must be hella expensive, we need to steal them, Bro.” At the same time, the other’s eyes were sparkling with greed over money.

Nash shifted his gaze to the ring and stared at it for a while before slowly closing his palm and pressing it firmly. “I’ll find them and make sure they’re safe. So, please wait for me a little longer, Chi, Grandma.”

“Hey, Little Kid, I like your ring. Do you want to give it to me?” One of the thugs approached him and put his arm around Nash’s shoulder.

But, Nash did not give a fuck to his words and just walked past them with an ignorant face. Well, he did not have much time to deal with fries like them. “Just leave this place. Don’t bother me.”

“What?”

“Ohoho, it looks like we need to use a brute way to get that ring, Bro.” Both thugs blocked Nash’s way and looked at him with a belittling face.

“Don’t get too cocky, Child. Don’t you know us? The Duo Scary Wolves, we had been beating so many arrogant teenagers like you until they almost died and sobbing to beg for their life.”

“Or the old lady, and the old man too.”

“Don’t forget about the mom and her cute kids we sold to Black Market yesterday.”

“Hahaha, I remember that too. We got quite a large sum from them, that’s a big catch.”

Nash heaved a sigh again when hearing their trash conversation. “Huh, I don’t understand why people like you always aim for innocent people. Do you guys have no shame? Or maybe your man’s area had been cut off and it also erased your rationality?”

They were surprised at Nash’s unexpected answer.

“Y-You arrogant scoundrel bast—”

BUAGH!

“Brotheeeer!”

“Ouch! That’s hurt!”

[You get 10 exp from landing a punch!]

“What?” Nash stopped punching in midair when seeing the notification. What was that? Did he get a point just from landing a single punch on a thug?

Enough Exp = Level up

So, it meant he could get more points and became stronger if he landed more punches on them, right?

A hideous grin appeared on Nash’s face as he clenched both his hands into fists and faced those poor thugs who lay on the ground with teary eyes, hoping that the Goddess of Life still lingered around them.

(Well, that was so unfortunate of them. I’m gonna beat them up until I reach level 10.)

“Get prepared, you two.”

“NOOOOOOO!”

“SOMEONE, PLEASE HELP US FROM THIS DEVIL!”

“AAAAAAAAARGH!”

[You get 10 exp from landing a punch!]

[You get 10 exp from landing a punch!]

[You get 10 exp from landing a punch!]

[You get 20 exp from landing a kick!]

[You get 20 exp from landing a kick!]

[You get 20 exp from landing a kick!]

[Congratulation, your level has raised from 1 > 2]

[You got a new skill, ‘Blow Punch’]

[You got a new skill, ‘Blow Kick’]