9 Knights.

[You Killed Adult Wild Boar!]

[40 XP Earned!]

[Adult Wild Boar Meat (Common) Acquired!]

[Level Up!]

[Level 4 -> Level 5]

[Name: Wraith]

[Level: 5]

[HP: 50/50]

[XP: 10/400]

[SP: 10]

[White Coins: 0]

[Title: None]

[Class: Marksman]

[Legacy: None]

[Legacy Rank: No Legacy]

[STR: 13]

[AGI: 25]

[VIT: 25]

[STA: 22]

[PRE: 35]

[CHA: 10]

[Map]

[Inventory]

[Help]

[Log Out]

Isaac smiled and waited for the cooldown on his pistol to finish. He reloaded the weapon before placing it in his inventory.

Since entering the forest, he'd managed to kill six of the Adult Wild Boars. Not only that, each of them had dropped a [Common] Meat, bringing the value of his drops to 300 White Coins.

It hadn't even been an hour, and he'd earned double what he'd made in the first two!

Isaac walked toward the exit of the forest, planning to sell the goods before logging off. After that, he planned to call it a day.

The mental fatigue was starting to take its toll.

Unexpectedly, he found his path blocked.

Three grinning figures stepped out from behind the trees, spreading out in front of him.

"Hello, miss," The player in the center smiled menacingly.

Isaac rolled his eyes, "I'm a guy."

"H-He's a trap?!" He looked at his companions and whispered, "Do you think he found a way to edit his avatar?"

Isaac scratched his head and coughed.

The player's shock died down, and he took a threatening step toward Isaac.

"It doesn't matter what you are. Give me all of your items, and I'll let you live," He demanded.

His two friends unsheathed a couple of shiny, iron swords.

This indicated that they weren't noobs, and Isaac glanced at the names hovering over them.

[KnightOfHoliness]

[Level 5]

[HP: 52/52]

[KnightOfProtection]

[Level 4]

[HP: 45/45]

[KnightOfCharming]

[Level 4]

[HP: 46/46]

Isaac managed a forced chuckle, ''You plan on robbing me? Your names are very misleading.''

KnightOfHoliness snorted, ''Give me your shit NOW! Otherwise, I'll force you to buy a new VR helmet!''

''What do you mean?'' Isaac raised an eyebrow.

"H-Huh?" The young man started laughing, "This noob really doesn't know! Kid, if you die before level 6, your account will be terminated! You have to purchase an entirely new helmet to make another account!"

Isaac's eyes widened in surprise, 'What a harsh punishment! Wait...'

He pictured the players that he'd already killed and grimaced. There was no way he hadn't earned enemies from that.

The leader took Isaac's facial expressions as a sign of worry.

''Give me your items, NOW!'' KnightOfHoliness roared— he had his Iron sword and wooden shield held in front of him. Isaac could tell that he was a veteran VR player.

'I can't die... VR helmets are fucking expensive! But... Losing my items would hurt as well...' Isaac scowled.

Losing his Flintlock and the meat he'd farmed would be the equivalent of losing 450 White Coins!

Though that was an issue, it was better than buying a new headset. Unless...

''Fine...'' Isaac sighed.

He threw down his two pouches and tossed his slingshot on the ground. He even pulled out the meats he'd farmed, smiling slightly when he noticed the greed in the Kights' eyes.

''6 Adult Wild Boar Meats?!'' KnightOfHoliness was delighted.

KnightOfCharming frowned and whispered, "Boss... Isn't it a little odd that a lone player can farm these?"

Their friend, KnightOfProtection, had already greedily approached the meats and reached out to grab them.

He didn't even notice the Flintlock Pistol that was suddenly aimed at his unprotected head.

*BANG!*

Isaac was cautious, and there was no need to reload. He'd simply placed the pre-loaded pistol in his inventory, and he was glad that he'd done so.

The bullet pierced KnightOfProtection's forehead, killing him instantly.

[-60 HP]

[You Killed KnightOfProtection!]

[40 XP Earned!]

''Y-YOU BASTARD!'' KnightOfHoliness roared angrily and rushed forward, his sword pointed toward Isaac.

Isaac touched all of the items on the ground, including KnightOfProtection's Iron sword.

The items disappeared into his inventory, and Isaac didn't waste time making himself scarce. He turned and darted off between the trees.

''COME BACK HERE, YOU BASTARD!!!''

He heard the roar of the furious man behind him, but he just laughed and kept running. Since he was carrying nothing but the pistol, he was much faster than the two melee classes.

They each held iron swords and wooden shields, and it didn't seem like they had the sense to put them in their inventory so that they could run faster.

'Strange. I guess carrying items doesn't affect movement speed in other VR games?' Isaac wondered.

He'd already surmised that they weren't new to playing these games. Maybe there was more to White Online than he thought.

What Isaac didn't know was that most of the Beta Testers knew this information, but they hadn't shared it with the rest of the world.

[4...]

[3...]

[2...]

[1...]

Isaac's thoughts shifted to the task at hand as the counter hit 0. He snatched a bullet from the pouch on his waist, ducking behind a tree and sliding it into the chamber.

He controlled his breathing and waited patiently for the two Knights to arrive.

KnightOfHoliness and KnightOfCharming finally caught up to him with heaving breaths.

''You're dead!'' KnightOfHoliness roared.

''Be careful. He might have reloaded his gun already.'' KnightOfCharming reminded.

KnightOfHoliness snorted, ''There's no way it's that quick! That gun is ancient. I heard other players moaning about how long they took to reload.''

KnightOfCharming thought his friend's words made sense, but he wasn't as careless as this guy.

Seeing that they were being cautious, Isaac decided to adjust his strategy.

He placed the already loaded pistol in his inventory and pulled out the slingshot and the pouch of stones.

He stepped out from behind the tree, making sure that they saw him aiming the primitive weapon.

''I TOLD YOU! LET'S KILL HIM!'' KnightOfHoliness shouted. He once again ran toward Isaac, sword at the ready.

Isaac took an extra second to aim and shot the stone toward KnightOfHoliness.

KnightOfHoliness placed his shield in front of him, blocking the incoming projectile.

He closed the gap and swung his sword toward Isaac!

Isaac sidestepped, but he didn't account for the man's experience. The sword's trajectory shifted, grazing Isaac's shoulder!

[You Lost 11 HP!]

He grimaced but didn't have time to focus on the message.

KnightOfCharming had also already appeared next to Isaac, and a second sword swung toward him.

Isaac stepped backward, narrowly avoiding a fatal blow as the blade cur into his chest.

[You Lost 12 HP!]

[HP: 27/50]

Isaac skipped backward, releasing two rocks from the primal weapon. The knights skillfully blocked the shots with their wooden shields.

''DIEE!'' KnightOfHoliness shouted, dashing forward to deliver a final blow.

Isaac threw the slingshot to the inventory and rolled into the attack.

KnightOfHoliness' sword narrowly missed his head.

Isaac took the pistol from his inventory and placed it under the man's chin, flashing a menacing smile.

''Goodbye,'' Isaac teased.

The man didn't have time to respond before Isaac pulled the trigger.

KnightOfHoliness' eyes widened in horror.

*BANG*

[You Killed KnightOfHoliness!]

[50 XP Earned!]

Isaac snatched the items from the ground and faced the very serious KnightOfCharming.

'I shouldn't push my luck...' Isaac thought.

He feigned an attack on the Knight, forcing him to flinch behind his shield. Then, Isaac turned and fled.

KnightOfCharming blushed with embarrassment and took off after the wily marksman.

''COWARD, COME BACK!''

Isaac swiftly left the lumbering knight in the dust and circled around to leave the level 6 area. It didn't take long for him to make it back to the edge of the woods.

Though his lungs were burning, he didn't stop running until he entered the village.

He leaned over, drawing deep breaths until a message appeared in front of him.

[You have been unharmed for 10 minutes!]

[Your wounds have been healed!]

[27/50 -> 50/50]