The Rucksack

After again telling himself that he did not start yet, Foo was even more firm in his resolve. He should show the system that he was capable of being low-key and do thing properly.

After that, he would petition for the system to at least rename the titles like `Cheater`. Having it become something like `Creative thinker` would be better.

After promising himself that he should act like a normal person, and not go overboard anymore, he quickly scanned his surroundings, making sure that he did not accidentally breath in and devouring a spirit king, or somehow bringing down a demon lord or two.

It was hard work to be low-key and `normal`. You had to watch your every step and action. If one was just a tiny bit carless, one might accidentally end up conquering the world.

Although that idea was quite neat in itself, Foo felt that he should play it properly first. He had to give it a try. The evil system should not get the satisfaction of pinning him to be a cheater.

Finally turning his attention back to the thing he tried to ignore, he saw that the rucksack still had a firm hold on the stick. Not wanting to bother about it anymore, he then let go of the stick.

The rucksack then quickly slurped the stick back inside.

"How evil can one be? Trying to steal my only item after having stolen everything I got! Including my life!"

Well, if it put it like that... Foo could let it keep the stick. With the huge size inside, the place it wasted was like a drop in the ocean.

Foo had felt a bit bad about what had happened, but now that he had properly compensated it, there was nothing left to be depressed about.

"Why am I still alive? I could swear that I died! Yes, you definitely killed me! And why is my body so stiff? Well, not stiff. It is quite elastic, but why is it so hard to move?"

The rucksack seemed quite talkative, it would probably not stop pestering him if he did not answer. As such, Foo decided to summarize the events.

"Ah, you kind of... died. And the magnamious me thought it to be such a sorrow that I decided to revive you. Of course, a proper not-evil revival have some limitations. Including your current inability to move."

"What the heck do you mean with `kind of died`? You killed me! And what do you mean with inability to move? It was a long time since I was able to move. Err... Because I had to guard my precious items from thieves such as you! Not that I was too heavy to move! Not at all!"

It seemed as if... the beaver had been too greedy and eaten too much, resulting in being to heavy to move around... Just because he had a huge stomach, he did not have to try to put the whole world inside, did he?

Ignoring the suspicious gaze of Foo, the rucksack then tried to change the topic.

"Anyway, what are these straps on my back for?"

"Err... It is for carrying you."

"Huh? Carrying me? What do you mean?"

"Well, let me show you."

Thinking it was easier to show it, Foo then wore the rucksack on his back. Because of the ingenious design, it was really comfortable to carry. The firm straps helped secure the rucksack, making sure that it was held firm during any activity.

It was also durable, resisting wear and tear, fire, water and other things that would easily destroy normal backpacks. It was also cute to look at, surely popular with the girls!

It was easy to use, stable and durable. If you call now, you will also get the bag tag for free. You heard it correctly! You get the bag tag for free! So hurry and order now! Just call... Err... Wait. Nevermind.

After a moment of silence, the rucksack grasped the functionality of the straps.

"How genius! Such a clever invention! To enable me to move without moving! This is a blessing from the gods! I have always wanted to explore the world! To find new and exciting things to collect! But alas, I was getting to heavy... err... heavily concerned about thieves."

Foo was almost a bit jealous; to be carried around... He had to find a mount soon. But it had to be majestic. And at the same time, it had to be something that normal people used. Low-key was key.

But the problem at hand was that the rucksack seemed a bit... possessive. Was he to put stuff inside it, it was not sure that he would ever get it back. Just look at the stick for example.

"Look here. I will carry you around to see the world, and even give you exotic stuff to manage, but I will have to use them from time to time—"

"NO! Mine! Do not try to steal my things again! I would love some nice things, but do not even dream of taking them back!"

Feeling a headache approaching, Foo then tried to reason with it.

"Let's look at it this way; You are mine, the stuff put inside you would be yours, and by extension mine too. Also, sometimes you have to use items to gain more items. See of it as an investment. The greatest treasures in this world can't be gained without giving anything up!"

As the rucksack seemingly wanted to interject, Foo then beat it to it, "As I defeated you, you are obvious mine. And then again, I brought you back from the dead, giving you life again. As such, I could even be called your creator, or parent. The fact of you being mine is indisputable."

As the rucksack was seemingly reluctantly agreeing, Foo then continued to strike when the iron was hot, "The last time you managed your items yourself, it ended up with you unable to move. As such, you was stuck here, unable to explore the world in hunt of interesting artifacts. Why did you even need all that wood?"

"It was important! In case I get hungry, or want to build a house. They have infinite uses! It is always good to have at hand!"

Shaking his head, Foo then tried to explain, "In this world, money will help with that. Money can buy almost anything, and it does not encumber you. Although it is good to be prepared, you must not go overboard. I will carry you and find stuff for you to hold, but you have to let me use the stuff. As I said before, one must do investments. Just trust me on this."

Still feeling the resistance from the rucksack, Foo then added, "You really should believe in me! Also, you should check out your new body. I fixed it up a bit. Now you will not need food nor oxygen, enabling you to place your whole focus on guarding the items. And your body should be almost indestructible to the most common threats!"

Checking it out a bit, the rucksack then exclaimed, "It is true! And it feels much more comfortable now! In fact, it feels so comfortable that I just have the desire to doze off... And it does really feel more secure than before... It seems like you know your stuff... Maybe I could try to trust you..."

His ears perking at the mention at dozing off, Foo hoped that it meant that it might not talk that much in the future...

"Of course you can trust me! And you could look at it this way, you only have a stick right now, even if it was wrong to trust me, as long as you hold on to the stick, you would always have more or equal the amount of items you have right now!"

"You mean that I can keep the stick?!"

"Of course! And I will put back the items you had before too! Although, we should not pack all that wood. Just a bit would suffice..."

If he did only take little of the wood, the weight would be more reasonable. The previous weight was way too unreasonable.

At Foo's reassurement, the rucksack then gave in. It was currently in Foo's mercy. Even though Foo was acting quite nicely, where he to refuse, Foo might throw it away, or even kill it on the spot. It that case, it would never gain any items. It was much better to agree to Foo's terms.

As Foo said, if he just hold on to the stick that he currently had, he could not get less items by doing as Foo said. The concept of investing items was foreign to it. It just hold on to all items that it could, as hard as it could.

But there was something behind Foo's words that was convincing. Maybe it really could get better items by investing.

After getting back the majority of its items, except the majority of the wood, the rucksack was in a much better mood.

Together, they then continued on their journey, and Foo finally felt the approaching headache disappearing. There was only the sligh feeling that he might have forgotten something.

``Oh well, it is probably not that important...``