Chapter 17: The Frog is Angry, and My Wallet Hurts!

Back home, Alan started his workout routine. After a series of exercises, his body was drenched in sweat.

Even just a few days of this regimen had already defined the muscles on his body.

Looking at himself in the full-length mirror, Alan nodded with satisfaction.

The effects of his training were evident. He couldn't tell if this was a benefit of transmigrating or due to some special trait as the summoner of the Emperor Armor.

Whatever the reason, it was definitely a good thing.

Alan then headed to the fridge and began preparing dinner. Compared to Western food, he still preferred the Asian meals he cooked himself.

At the same time, Alan checked his laptop for the latest news about Tony Stark.

Stark Industries was in complete chaos now, and online rumors of Tony's death were rampant, causing the company's stock to plummet.

However, Alan knew it wasn't the right time to invest. He had to wait until Tony made a particular announcement before making his move.

That would be the optimal moment.

Just as Alan was keeping an eye on the news, a familiar sound chimed in his mind.

"Your little frog is back!"

"The little frog has brought you a souvenir! Go check it out!"

Alan immediately stopped following Tony's situation and opened the game. He cleared away some trivial notifications and focused on what he cared about most—the souvenir.

This time, the souvenir's icon resembled a book. The cover featured an image of a gun. When he clicked on the icon, information appeared:

[Book of Firearms]: A souvenir from the world of Resident Evil. It contains all the firearm knowledge of the protagonist, Alice. Once used, you will inherit her skills.

Alan's face lit up with excitement. "Even other people's skills can be brought back as souvenirs?" he thought.

The saying 'the more skills, the better' rang true. Who would complain about having more survival tools? Besides, in this era where firearms were legal, not knowing how to handle a gun would feel a bit lowbrow.

Before Alan could inherit the [Book of Firearms], another notification sounded:

"Ding! It seems that your little frog is in a bad mood. It may have encountered something unpleasant."

"It is recommended that you help your little frog resolve this, to avoid negative impacts on its future journeys."

Alan was puzzled. "The little frog is upset?" he thought. "It actually has emotions?"

In the original game, this feature wasn't there, was it?

Alan closed the souvenir screen and looked at the game interface. The little frog wasn't outside the house but was sitting indoors.

At the table, the little frog had its arms crossed over its chest, with its mouth puffed out in a pout.

A small white thought bubble hovered above its head, containing a red anger symbol.

It looked... adorable!

"How do I even deal with this?" Alan was at a loss.

Should I try to comfort the frog?

Alan was good at many things, but comforting others wasn't one of them.

"The host can directly ask the frog what happened, then try to help it resolve the issue," the system suggested.

Following this advice, Alan tentatively asked the frog, "Little frog, what happened? Who upset you? Let's go teach them a lesson!"

The frog, sitting at the table, seemed to hear Alan. Its tiny hands started waving quickly, a mix of comical and cute, as if it were complaining about something.

As the frog's little arms flailed, the angry symbol above its head transformed into a smiling frog face with crescent moon eyes, signaling happiness.

Behind the smiling frog face was a small backpack.

Then, two small icons flashed a few times and changed again. The smiling frog face's backpack turned into a terrifying zombie head, and the frog's expression shifted from happy to shocked, complete with an exclamation mark.

The two icons alternated regularly.

Alan quickly understood what the frog was trying to convey.

It had gone off on its journey with the luggage Alan had packed, happily setting out, only to end up in the world of Resident Evil, where it was chased by zombies.

The frog was recounting its experience in that world to Alan.

Paying close attention, Alan realized that the frog's anger stemmed from this particular journey.

Soon, a third icon appeared: a blonde girl's face.

"This is… Alice!" Alan instantly recognized the image as Alice, the protagonist of Resident Evil.

After Alice appeared, the frog and Alice switched positions. Then, the zombie icon got a red "X" over it, leaving just the frog and Alice in the thought bubble.

Both of them turned into smiling faces.

Alan suddenly recalled the photo the frog had sent back earlier—a picture with Alice, with a pile of zombie corpses in the background.

"So that's it, Alice saved you!"

The frog nodded happily, its eyes curving.

But in the next moment, its expression shifted from happy to angry. The icons of Alice and the frog suddenly had a new one between them: a man wearing sunglasses and slicked-back blonde hair.

"That guy is… the main villain of the Resident Evil series." Alan's eyes narrowed as he immediately recognized the man—Albert Wesker, the superhuman antagonist who injected himself with the T-virus, just like Alice.

The Alice icon flashed and positioned itself between Wesker and the frog, with Alice and Wesker's icons repeatedly colliding.

After several clashes, Alice's icon was forcefully knocked back, sending the frog flying out of the bubble. Now, only the frog remained in the bubble.

Alan suddenly realized: "You're angry because that big bad guy bullied you and your friend? And you couldn't help, so Alice sent you back?"

The frog nodded vigorously.

Alan rubbed his chin thoughtfully, then opened the game's shop.

In the store, alongside travel supplies, there were a variety of items designed to enhance the frog's strength—ensuring it had enough power to protect itself during its interdimensional journeys.

Scrolling through the wide selection of items, Alan saw all kinds of skill books and body enhancement items.

Some were one-time use, while others were permanent.

But they all had one thing in common: they were expensive!

Each one cost at least a few hundred clovers. The problem was that Alan only had a little over 400 clovers left… not enough to buy anything substantial.

Alan's mouth twitched.

He asked, "Are there any other ways I can get more clovers?"

"Yes, the host can obtain clovers through in-game purchases!" the system responded enthusiastically.

"Ten thousand dollars for one clover!"

"Hahh…" Alan sucked in a sharp breath. "This is what you call in-game purchases? This is straight-up daylight robbery!"

However, seeing the frog's face change from anger to pitiful sadness, Alan considered his current finances and his plans to invest in Stark Industries stock.

Gritting his teeth, he made a painful decision.

"I'll recharge… five million…"

...