Caution puked yellow bile. Even in the early morning, he still lingered about the empty alleyway. His feet numbed from crouching in an awkward goblin-like stance.
"Eugh." He retched again, the convulsion forcing him to his knees. No liquid came out this time. A question popped up in his mind alongside a vivid image of Reuben's deceased body.
Knocking someone out and murdering another human being are two different things. Can you really bloody your hands?
Caution combed a hand through his purple hair. He tried to recognise some kind of significant connection with the boy but there was none, making his demise all the more crushing. He barely knew the poor kid. Dreams, home town, hobbies, passions, likes, dislikes, favourite food... no specific details came to mind.
"You were courageous," Caution muttered eventually. He rose to his feet, ignoring a rat running into the drain. "And I was naive. Careless. Stupid."
A series of kill notifications appeared.
VIDAL GATLIN HAS KILLED KAY EYDIS!
VIDAL GATLIN HAS KILLED JULIUS INKA
**DOUBLE KILL!**
VIDAL GATLIN HAS KILLED ONANGWATGO HAGNE
**TRIPLE KILL!**
VIDAL GATLIN HAS KILLED ESBEN ALENA
**QUADRUPLE KILL!**
VIDAL GATLIN HAS KILLED JANNAH KRISTINA
**PENTAKILL!**
VIDAL GATLIN WAS AWARDED THE TITLE... RUTHLESS
Caution quickly opened up the leaderboard. He stared, fists clenched.
Rank Contestant Points Kills 1 Vidal Gatlin 5000 5 2 Albert Thompson 3000 3 3 Kira Kaufman 0 0 4 Zavier Evans 0 0 5 Garin Conroy 0 0 6 Naya Hines 0 0 7 Jobe Blevins 0 0 8 Xander Penn 0 0 9 Amelia-Mae Field 0 0 10 Elaine Powers 0 0
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Vidal Gatlin... Another contestant had made a move, eliminating five other players and taking the top spot off Albert. As a result, every surviving contestant had risen five places. Caution doubted the kills were announced in real time because it seemed unlikely that both Albert and Vidal got their kill streaks in quick succession. There had to be a delay.
Looking at the changing leaderboard ignited something inside Caution. Sorrow and guilt dissipated.
His eyes narrowed.
----------------------------------------
Sitting opposite Astel, Caution sat in the Magic Library. His eyes darted left to right
In his previous life, he never had much interest in history books but after talking with Senni, he became more intrigued about the Death Zones.
He was reading a chilling autobiography called, "Saving Ignia" which was about a famous adventurer's quest to save two victims from a Death Zone in Continent Black. The story read more like a fiction and was structured into action-packed scenes. It was about Carola, an experienced adventurer, who unknowingly wandered off towards the edge of a death zone with her younger sister Ignia. The two were kidnapped, tortured by a monster tribe, and given the nearly impossible task to survive as long as possible in the lawless region in the hopes that an adventurer squad found them.
"Can I ask you something?" Astel asked.
Caution turned a page. "Yes."
"Why haven't you allocated any of your free points yet? You're level 15 now."
Caution was tempted to say None of your business but changed his mind. "I don't know. I'm still thinking about it." He hadn't checked his profile since the Adventurer Dungeon incident. It was mainly because of Reuben's death but the numbers were starting to overwhelm him. Why couldn't he just train every day and focus on his weaknesses?
"I can assist you if you want," Astel said.
Caution looked up and gave a suspicious stare, eyes squinted. "Why?"
"Why not? It's part of the truce."
"Don't forget we're opponents. Helping me with stats isn't going to help you in the long run. "
Astel raised an eyebrow. "Actually, it will. When we explore floor two of the Adventurer Dungeon, I don't want you to get us all killed by accident. What you did was beyond stupid by the way."
"I know," Caution said in a monotone voice.
"Well..." Astel hesitated, seemingly withholding a snarky comment. "At least you're self-aware. Alright, let's have a look here... Level 15... no new skills... I'm assuming you're going to use the crimson cube more in the future, right?"
"Of course."
"Then I suggest allocating most of the points into magic. You need to be able to take in as much mana as possible to control that thing." Astel gestured towards the crimson cube hovering by Caution's shoulder. "Plus, if you're careful about it, you'll still be able to integrate your elemental magic into your fighting like you usually do."
"That makes sense, but I can't just ignore my strength, stamina and agility."
"That's why I said most of your points."
Caution sighed, scratching his neck. "I'm growing sick of these stats. I have 15 life points but what the fuck does that even mean? How do you measure one life point exactly? And what about other characteristics like hand-eye coordination, intelligence, willpower and reflexes? There are tons of traits that contribute to someone's ability to win the game.
"Great questions. I didn't think you had it in you."
"Huh?"
"I'm as clueless as you," Astel said. However, I do have one theory. There's no evidence for it but..."
"Go on."
"I believe there are hundreds of hidden stats that the creators don't want us to see and some of these come under the stats we can see. For example, arm speed for the agility stat or cardiovascular ability for stamina."
"You think there are stats behind stats?"
"Precisely."
Caution scratched his forehead. "So many numbers... Why would they hide the stats?"
"Because it's not fun if you make a game too complex. It also makes things more interesting because two contestants who have the same level of strength or agility or magic aren't necessarily equal in all aspects related to the stat."
"I see..."
"It's only a theory. I asked the creator about it using Contestant Support and they refused to answer."
Caution read Saving Ignia for twenty more minutes until an announcement in bold white suddenly appeared in the air.
Update: Due to certain requirements having been met, The Half-Dead Game shop is now open. Check the dashboard to find out more...
Caution and Astel shared a look of surprise.
"I wonder if they have gauntlets," Caution said.