It's crazy how early jobs paid a few coppers at best. How many of them did it take to afford a single potion at a discount?

Now the contract will reward curing Mustache Man with it fivefold.

And considering where this vial comes from, using it on the NPC should clear the bad karma.

And yes, it's easy to remember which one came from the ganking and which from the bandits.

That thing has burned these pockets ever since.

It felt better to nibble on the food to speed up recovery rather than using that remedy.

So how do you bring this up with Mr. Straw Hat? The quick answer: you don't.

The villager doesn't have an issue with it and takes the medicine before saying anything.

After trying to keep me away, he chugs it down like nobody's business and a moment later he's fine.

[Quest: Rat Ravaged Home. Importance: Medium. Difficulty: Average. Progress: 1/37. Reward: 5 Silver and 500 Exp. Plague Rats infested a villager's house, infecting him too. Cure the villager and kill the rats. The rats are in the basement, kitchen, and attic (6/6 hours left).]

"Okay, that was easy."

The progress is one, meaning the old man is healthy, and so on to the rodents.

Unlike in the previous missions, he won't give a guided tour, standing there with the empty vial. The arrow on the minimap points at his house.

That average difficulty is a concern.

Apart from the fed's main quest and the bandit one, all others were easy or easiest.

The sponsored mission is anything but average, and the other seemed scary too.

Well, the NPCs did a short work of it, so what about this one?

The previous job had a single plague rat which didn't seem special.

It gave loads of Exp which is always good, and went down as easy as the rest.

It would be good to know whether the old man was ill from the start or he caught the disease.

Is the critter's bite contagious or is it airborne?

At the very least, the potion cured him, and there are still two more in stock.

The description confirmed it too, he is healthy. So is he immune, or would he get sick again if he went inside?

Antidotes might've been better. There must be a reason why the Pharmacy sells them.

Well, the avatar only has green vials.

The sword will be useless against these tiny fuckers so it can take its place in the ready-to-use slot.

The clock is ticking, and while the first three tasks were a breeze, the archer mishap was quite a long setback.

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"Fine, fuck it, let's go in."

Even with the subtle alterations in the layout, you can't get lost in these small homes.

Attic, kitchen, and basement, whichever comes first.

The interior looks different though, and the air is stale from a heavy fog with an unnatural green color.

It's a reminder to ventilate the big red container after the Exp hunting.

Until then, there's no question about it, the rats infested his house.

The UI shows no status effects though, not like it has to.

The tutorial warned that the avatar won't know if he's poisoned without medical skills.

The next contract comes from the Pharmacy anyway.

Since they offer free treatment, finish this fast and have them check if the avatar has a hidden debuff.

Let's hope the pharmacist girl meant sickness too, not only bruises.

The quicker these little fuckers die the better.

The two ladders to the basement and the attic are side by side at the kitchen's entrance.

Very practical, let's start with the kitchen then. It has twelve critters waiting to die like always.

The only difference is the visibility, it's worse thanks to the ominous atmosphere.

They still don't put up much of a fight, and drop like flies from the trusty dagger.

[You killed a Plague Rat +50 Exp.]

"Hell yeah." This will be a field day if they all give fifty points.

So far nothing feels off, and they don't act smart like the skeleton warrior either.

They drop no loot, but the fog starts to thin out once they're gone.

Nice, on to the attic then. The same scene awaits.

Twelve rodents in a thick soup, their red eyes glowing in the dark, helping to aim the strikes.

The smell is awful, and as the critters turn into pixels, they leave behind the scent of disease and rot.

It's getting to the head, and climbing down the ladder, the footing becomes shaky.

"Oh boy, this is not good."

The HP bar still has all the little hearts, so what gives?

They are throbbing a little, like when something causes pain, and aren't the usual red.

They tend to stay still and sport a bright color but are getting darker and less saturated by the minute.

Okay, twelve more in the basement, and the air is not as dense anymore.

"Deep breath, Arnim, finish this like a pro. You'll see a doctor right after this. Urk, there's no shame in throwing up either. Shit."

While it's clearer in the house, the head gets foggier.

It's only a few steps on a ladder.

No good. The hands slip, and BAM! The avatar lies on the floor with the world dancing around to an uneven rhythm.

Okay, the immersion is too scary, it's like when I was ill as a kid. Will the character hallucinate too?

Mom was still alive and stayed home all day, changing the wet towels and humming a calming melody.

Dad was busy with work if you can call fixing everyone's junk that. He had to buy meds and kept fuming about how expensive they were.

Mom yelled at him, outside the container so I wouldn't hear, but she was too loud.

She did so much back then, would it be the same if she was still alive?

Or would she say, fuck off Arnim, you're an adult, sort out your problems alone?

The thought almost makes me cry, and there's a prick on the fingers.

It feels distant because the pain was set to ten percent in the game menu.

It's only enough to act as a reminder about the basement.

"Fuck. The potion, idiot." Quick, before they chew off the avatar's face.

Unlike with the skeletons, there's no reason to stand up too fast.

They surround to attack, and lying on the ground makes it easier to hit them.

Fucking critters, apologize for the black death and all the nasty crap you caused.

[You killed a Plague Rat +50 Exp.]

The potion kicks in, even if it's slower than expected.

Anger replaces the feeling of sickness as the fog lifts. How the fuck can this game simulate this in such a scary way?

This was unreal, and the rodents must bear the consequences. Stomp them, kick them, stab them.

I'm not even mad at them because of the disease, rather, it's the game's fault to induce such a flashback.

Fucking developers playing with these memories, they are lucky to be out of reach.

The rats will face the consequences. And no, I'm not crying, you're crying.