6 3. Gateway to Chaos
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You have defeated opponents in PvP!
Select Skills and Items to Inherit!
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No time to collect the rewards from the three dead mages...
The two remaining party members were charging at me at once.
I zipped away from them, retreating into the kitchen.
The blonde boy's [Retribution] attack smashed onto the ground, shattering the floor tiles. If I were hit by that, I probably would've been a goner, especially since I didn't invest any points into my defensive stats yet.
[Conqueror] is taking effect now, so I should be able to handle them. They're inflicted by the [Fear] status, which will restrict their movement and strength. However, one thing was still bugging me.
When players were allowed to transfer their data to Phase 2, they were allowed to transfer a portion of their Skills and Items. It looks like the stringy-haired dude transferred [Omni Boost] for his Skill, but even assuming he was only allowed to transfer one Skill and Item because of his Level, I don't know the Item he transferred yet.
I can't go in recklessly, because this is likely another Legend tier Item. It could be anything, and I know there are plenty of dangerous ones that could get me killed on the spot if I weren't careful.
"I'll kill you!" the blonde boy shouted, but his legs were shuddering as he was preparing to strike again. The [Fear] status also seems to affect their actual emotions as well...
He already used [Retribution], which is a Skill only usable after a party member's death. Unless the stringy-haired boy dies, he won't be able to use it again. Which means I'll have to take him out first.
[] Skill: [Dragoon Spin] activated! []
With the blonde boy's weakened stats and restricted movement, along with my stat buffs, I was able to strike right in the heart and break through his armor.
[] Critical Hit! []
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You have defeated an opponent in PvP!
Select Skills and Items to Inherit!
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No time! I need to take out the other one!
Speaking of which, where'd he go?
I looked around, but there was no sign of him. Where'd he go? Did he flee?
Just then, I felt a breeze behind me.
[] Skill: [Pinwheel Strike] activated by Unknown Player! []
Suddenly, I was struck in the back by an invisible... something.
I dropped to the floor. An HP bar showed up and showed that one hit shaved off over half my HP before disappearing again.
Quickly, I sat back up but was struck again in the face.
The HP bar reappeared and showed the hit reducing my health to orange, and this time, the bar stayed. I was running low, and had to be wary of my health.
"Come out, you coward! Face me like a man! You're just another freeloader recluse, aren't you? Taking advantage of those who care for you like a parasite! Makes sense that someone like you resorts to cowardly tactics! I know you played the original Orpheon, and got pretty far ahead. Maybe you thought you could become something once this game started. But here you are, a loser hiding away like he always had been!"
It's funny I'd say that, since just yesterday I was still a good-for-nothing NEET as well. But that also means I know how to rile up people like myself. This guy probably thinks this is his great opportunity to assert his dominance to the world, to recover his pride, just like me. Being called out like this right now would make him angry.
"SAY THAT AGAIN, I DARE YOU!"
The boy suddenly appeared in front of my face, and began to maniacally swing his quarterstaff at my face. He continued to scream at me.
"WHAT DO YOU KNOW? DON'T TALK LIKE YOU KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT ME! YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT I'VE BEEN THROUGH! BEING HUMILIATED, INSULTED, OSTRACIZED BY PEOPLE WHO THINK THEY'RE BETTER THAN ME JUST BECAUSE THEY'RE TALENTED AND PRIVILEGED ENOUGH TO FIT IN... YOU ARE NOTHING, YOU KNOW NOTHING!"
Now that I could see him, I could properly avoid his attacks again. I readied my weapon.
"You want to redeem yourself, you want to crawl out of that cave and finally face the world with your new powers. I don't have anything against that, it's the same for me. I'm not really one to talk. But the way you try to restore your pride by fighting and killing other people... that's low, even for people like us."
[] Skill: [Dragoon Spin] activated! []
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You have defeated an opponent in PvP!
Obtained 12,500 Cash!
Select Skills and Items to Inherit.
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The battle was finally over.
Around me lied a desolate scene - a crumbling WcDonald's full of destroyed tables and tiles with corpses lying around.
I didn't think I'd have to end up killing so many people right after learning about PvP mode, but... it is what it is. There's nothing to feel bad about. If I didn't stop them here, they probably would've went to kill more people.
Anyway, for the rewards! Finally!
Looks like I get the Cash possessed by defeated players, too, which was never mentioned. A ton of Cash Shop items are busted, so once people figure this out, I think a lot more players will be out hunting original Orpheon players. I need to get stronger before that happens.
For now, I'll definitely want [Omni Boost]. The [Retribution] skill was strong, but the activation condition is the death of a party member and I don't play with parties. Or go to them, either. I think the stringy-haired boy also used some kind of Polearm skill, which could be useful with my Ascalon since it's a spear. Maybe one of the mages will also have it, since they all use staffs as well.
As for Items, these guys still have mostly Common and Rare items. One thing that caught my eye while sorting through their inventory, though...
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[Shard of Transportation]
Consumable
Transports user to 1 area that the user has visited before. The specific location of transportation is a random Checkpoint present in that area.
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Looks like the devs placed Checkpoints around the world map. Kind of like Ingress, I guess. Does anyone even know that game? It's like Pokémon GO. I never played it, of course, since you need to go outside to do so. Anyway, the Shard is a Cash Shop Item, so I'm assuming that stringy-haired boy bought one for each party member in case they had to retreat. Should've used them while they could. These seem to be what I'll need most from them. I'll pick up one from each player.
For the stringy-haired fella, he has that one Legendary item he transferred, though, so I'll be taking that.
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Inherited [Omni Boost], [Magic Bounce], [Solo Flare], [Pinwheel Strike], and [DEF Break]!
Obtained [Shard of Transportation] (x4) and [Ring of Gyges] !
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Now, I can get back to my house. I might look around this area for a bit before that, though.
I went to the WcDonald's kitchen to grab some more food. I heated up some cold fries and packed some of them in a paper bag.
After stepping out of the restaurant, I summoned Pseud the pseudodragon and started walking down the highway. There were occasionally some empty cars, but nothing particularly notable.
After a few hours, I finally stumbled upon what seemed like a large barrier. It looked like I could just pass through it, and once I did, a notification appeared in front of me.
[] Exited the PvP zone! []
Finally. I imagine I probably got the message for entering the PvP zone as well, but didn't see it because I was busy panicking as the Peryton was taking me to its nest.
Once the notification disappeared, another message showed up.
[] A Dungeon is nearby! (<500m) []
A Dungeon already? I might as well check it out. I probably can't clear it yet, but I can check where it is come back to it later.
The screen became smaller and stayed in the corner, showing how much closer I was to the Dungeon as I moved.
Following the guide, I continued to walk along the highway, until I finally spotted something strange in the distance in the middle of the road. It seemed like a giant gate of some sort just sitting there.
Once I got closer, I was confronting a gargantuan stone gate. It didn't look like it led anywhere; behind it, the highway went on. It reminded me of the Gate that leads to the Truth in FMA.
"A dungeon gate! Let's see what we have here!"
I put my hand on the gate, which then opened up to reveal what looked like a swirling night sky.
A blue screen popped up in front of my face.
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Would you like to enter the Dungeon of Castor?
Dungeon Rank: B
Recommended Lv: 50
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I'm still quite a ways below Level 50. I could technically go in right now, since there is no actual requirement to enter, but I'm not trying to risk my life again after everything I went through today.
It doesn't seem like a lot of people come around here, either. Could it be that the party I fought was also looking for this? It's not totally impossible, considering the fact they had an original Orpheon player among them.
For now, I left the Gate. I decided to go back home first.
[] Used Item: Shard of Transportation! []
[] Transporting to Auburn... []
