VRMMORPG [Brink]: For The Money

The old wise man from somewhere once said: "you can't take your revenge when you're hungry nor when you're dead, so take care of your body so you can savor the sweetness of revenge longer." After all said, I still, somehow, get distracted by it.

Focus is the way. Focus will take me to my goal faster. Focus… and why the heck is that bird ain't dead yet? It's already past the previous time of trashing before its predecessor, after twice and half it finally died.

"Hmm… that's interesting. Maybe there is something that we pass. Umu-umu. Kid come here. Mar heal me."

Jogging to their place I notice that Old Bar body glowing for a second and he looks imposing after the light recedes. Maybe it's just my imagination but his eyes glittering as well.

"I'm curious about those skill of yours is it works differently than before because of a different weapon or is there more factor I don't know about. Show me your 2 weapons. This bone dagger of yours is only 25s cm with 10 cm hilt, while the stiletto body is 5 cm longer but it takes twice as much time it takes to kill. Okay then show me the skill. Start with the dagger first."

Holding the dagger I show him how I do it but he shakes his head and said: "you need to do it for real." Doing what he said, I do a stabbing motion with my left hand and hit the haft with Impact skill makes me almost lost grip of the weapon on my hand. Spinning almost 360 degrees I kiss the ground with its sharp point almost inject itself into my right b.u.t.t. Standing up I feel a sharp pain on my left shoulder and bicep plus my nose from the ground diving act.

"Ouch! That's hurt and I can't move my left hand freely now."

『Impaired condition removed!』

『You've fully recovered!』

I get showered by a white light it's neither blinding nor is it dim. It is warm and the pain I felt on my arm totally gone. Looking at old Bar expression that telling me to keep going and what are you waiting for is kind of get on my nerve. Sighing I keep doing what I previously did but this time with another weapon and a different stance. I hold the stiletto with my right hand and hit it with my left hand. Voila! The same thing happened again in another direction even though I prepared myself it's just out of my control.

Checking on the durability left somehow my dagger durability only down by one and none for the stiletto. Is it because I don't hit anything with it that it doesn't decrease by much? That's probably its.

"Well, that was funny. Another lesson, never ever lose your balance and if you lose it, it was by your own choice. By the way is there a reason for you to change hands with a different weapon?"

"The first one is because I attack from the front while the other one is from behind because I activated the stealth skill." Now that I think about it I shouldn't be able to cast two of my skill with my previous aether pool. Opening my status I can't spot any fault or difference, is it because I get healed by old Mar? Or-

"Heck what kind of reason is that? Are you ambidextrous or something? Anyway, we'll proceed to the next experiment."

Old Bar hold my bone dagger with his index finger, middle finger, and thumb. A doubtful expression shows up without me knowing and he told me to try to snatch it away from him. Grabbing the hilt with both of my hands and I try to pull it towards me, even after I put my weight on it. It doesn't even budge. Knitting my eyebrows I look at him grinning.

I don't know why but when I try to hold the bone dagger I unconsciously hold it with my left hand. Is it a thing? Maybe it is a thing. I took a few breaths to calm my nerves and what do what I did before. With my now forty-two aether, I can cast 6 Impact continuously so if there is another experiment I can still pull it off without a break.

After I'm done with the second said experiment I notice an extremely noticeable crack on my bone dagger, even checking its durability left me speechless. This second experiment really took a toil on my dagger if there is another experiment I don't think I can make it with my weapon in this condition. Old Bar noticed my dazed look then look at the dagger.

"Well I guess your old weapon won't hold and I think I know the reason why your first kill died faster. It's the vibration. The stiletto with its pointy build doesn't give much vibration almost to none. You should store that dagger of your lest it breaks."

Tapping my shoulder old Mar look into my dagger as well and said "is this dagger anything special to you? You look like a… um--"

"Yeah, it looks like it will break if I swing it at stone or something. No, it is not. Don't worry about it old Mar." I look at the worried face old Mar make and feel like he is as kind as my deceased grandpa. Grandpa may you rest in peace.

"How many times can you do that skill of yours? 2? Then what are you waiting for go kill those chicken for me. I need to send it tomorrow morning you know. Wait, tie this on your weapon hilt." Receiving the black thin wire I tie it into the hilt of the stiletto and the rest on my right arm. I let it loose so when I ran it won't hinder me and I can pull it from a safe distance.

Doing what I did before, I start searching for a lone chicken that I can target. With the sun has gone in the horizon leaving only a little trail of light the birds start grouping together only leaving a few that have been strayed too far.

While waiting for my fourth victim drop dead I move my previous killed one to a warehouse with big name Cold House on top. Opening the metal door it feels like I open a death door for myself, because of DOT and slow damage it gives makes me shiver physically. I need to move faster if I don't want to end up dead here. The damage itself is not that high but the slow debuff would result in me not being able to move after 5 minutes while my health gets chipped slowly until it reaches zero.

---

Meanwhile, the two old man and one girl discussing the fledgling assassin with enthusiast. They talked about how he got the talent for killing and hunting his target, his mistakes and so on.

While they talk merrily a lady in apron walk to their place with a frown on her face and scold the girl for not doing what she told her to do. "Moon didn't I tell you to set up the table and what are you doing now sitting there without doing your chores. Did you give the wolves their food yet? Now set up the table I'll take the food from the kitchen."

---

When I arrived, I saw a set of table with food on it illuminated by orbs of light that fluttering around. It is a long wood table with a new person sitting in a chair beside old Bar, supposedly his daughter old Mar said to me before. She is a beauty with a long straight green hair, I guess she followed after her mother.

"Come, join us lil' Vain dinners' ready and wash your hands over there." Old Mar shouted and waving his hand telling me to come over. I guess they're really close even old Mar looks so relaxed and easy going while Betty is placing food in the table.

"Okay, but I'll move that chicken first into the warehouse."

"It's named and it's Cold House. A warehouse doesn't have a magic formation integrated."

The inventory in this game use a unit as their base and player can change the visual as they like. A level one character had a 10 unit and increase by one for each level. Any items had a different value of unit for example; a bone dagger unit is 1.5 and 0.1 unit for a potion, while the bird had a unit of 10-12.

Which means I can only store one bird with my 13 unit of storage. The remains are for the potion I got before from the bank. After I moved the chicken I wash my hands and take a sit at the end of the table.

We sit and talk for hours, we talk about almost anything from embarrassing stuff to heavy stuff. Apparently Moon, Bar daughter wants to be an artist, her dream is to draw a picture of the world and make herself known for her art but the reality is harsh, she can't draw.

Even the past of those 3 a.d.u.l.ts isn't nice either, old Bar and old Mar was raised in the orphanage in the slum which means their life, hard wasn't enough to describe it then in a snowy day they get beaten up really bad because of trying to get leftover drop in the ground, no one even tried to help two helpless little boy.

They know that would be their end, it is ending, the suffering they received, even breathing is hard but living is harder. Seeing the two don't even try to resist anymore those a.d.u.l.ts don't stop even hold their power but becoming more brutal in their attack. Some even take a block of wood as their tool of brutality. When they want to let go of their life a giant ask them questions "did you want power?" they can't answer him but somehow the giant knows what they want to tell and ask them again "don't you want to live? What about revenge? If you have the power you can help those unfortunate like you. Tell me your wish!"…

While Betty, in the age of 4 abandon and left to die in the forest full of magical beast, fiend, and the monster that would gladly eat her for a snack. She, as a child doesn't even know how to defend herself can only cry in sadness while hugging her knees. Beasts, fiends, gather because of her cry of helplessness but they didn't come to comfort the child rather they come for an evening snack. Luckily a bear who lord over the forest come and help the child and take her to 'her' nest. The bear raises her with her cubs.

Decades later, she took over her mother's reign in the forest and become the forest queen. Years after years she reign, she eventually learns the language of her neighbors, elves. They called her forest witch as she command plants, beasts, and other elements. When there is happiness there come sadness, that phrase would be the most befitting word for her at that night. The peaceful dark night, turn into a blazing red sky with the ground on fire burning life to ashes. The one responsible for burning her home is the troop of humans because of their conflict with the elves. She fights them with all of her power. She tried to kill them but it was all for naught, her power can't even reach them before it gets canceled.

She retreats for she knows that her brethren is at stake and she can't make any rash decision. She commanded them to go deeper into the forest where stronger beast lurks. But with her as their queen, they will strive and get stronger so in the future their home won't be taken from them. Few years after they settle in, she chooses the stronger beast to take the reign as the lord of the forest, while the search for the one who responsible for burning her home. Months after months she finally found the true culprit, it was the human's greed and the elves arrogance.

---

Regardless of the world. Reality is hard but giving up isn't an option either. There is light at the end of the tunnel. Somehow the world looks bleak, bleaker than my past, maybe it means I'm in the middle of the tunnel and my road, the end of the tunnel would be a bit closer, the light and the life. I think my view of life changes a bit. I live for the sake of living, without a dream, without a goal, but now I will live for the sake of my future not for tomorrow but for the future,