Second World Online

The next day, virtual sunlight once again greeted Silvergrass Village. The morning air that was usually cool and carried the scent of pine was now slightly stained by the smell of sulfur and damp earth in the back room of the "Waterwheel" shop.

I had logged in since dawn. As had become my recent routine, I sat in front of the alchemy work table, mixing explosive ingredients. Before logging out last night, on the way home from the Valley of the Forgotten, I had taken the time to stop by the Murkwater Swamp area. Using my already enhanced movement speed, I successfully harvested a large pile of raw peat soil without having to fight the swamp monsters.

My focus this morning was mass production. Dozens of clay casings and tree resin had been prepared. I mixed the commercial version of the Mud Bomb. Unlike the lethal bombs I used myself, the ones I would sell purely relied on explosive power and temporary blinding mud effects. I deliberately did not put the deadly poison extract into them. The high-level corrosive poison from yesterday's spider boss was my secret weapon, not for public consumption.

After two hours wrestling with gunpowder and peat soil, my work table was filled with dozens of bombs of various sizes. Virtual sweat decorated my forehead, yet a satisfied smile was carved on my lips.

"Perfect. Time to open the shop and harvest gold coins," I muttered while transferring those items into my inventory.

I walked toward the front room. The empty glass display case was once again filled with arrangements of mud bombs. After ensuring everything was neat, I stepped toward the main wooden door, turned the key, and pushed it wide open.

At first, I thought I would be greeted by a crowd of random players elbowing each other and shouting while competing for goods like yesterday. However, the scene that presented itself in front of my shop made my steps stop instantly.

The small square of Silvergrass Village was indeed filled with players, but they were not ordinary customers.

In front of my shop stood a line of players wearing uniform steel plate armor bearing a black wolf emblem. They held large shields, long spears, and already glowing magic staffs. Their formation was tight, blocking the entire path leading to my shop. They did not look like people who wanted to shop; they looked like troops ready to trigger a war.

I could only exhale softly from behind my Gargoyle's Visage mask. Why was there always some idiot who felt they could oppress a crafter in this game?

From the middle of that line, a Spear User player with the most conspicuous golden armor stepped forward. His face was filled with high-level arrogance. The name above his head read: [WolfKing – Lv 28].

"You're the one named Syl, right? That viral bomb maker," WolfKing said in a contemptuous tone. He tapped the butt of his spear against the rocky ground. "That mask can't fool our Guild intelligence. We know you're hiding in this wooden shack."

I did not answer immediately. My eyes quickly glanced in several directions toward the rooftop on the left, toward the narrow alley on the right searching for the most optimal escape route. I could simply throw a bomb at them right now and escape using Wind Walk.

However, there was one major problem: the Law System.

In Second World Online, beginner villages and cities had different security systems. In major cities like StoneBrook, the safe zone was absolute; players could not attack each other. But in remote villages like Silvergrass, PvP attacks could still be carried out, although they would trigger the anger of the NPC guards.

If I attacked them first, the system would record me as the initiator of the attack. My name would turn red (PK – Player Killer). If that happened, I would be chased by the village NPC guards, unable to trade with any NPC, and if killed, I would drop most of the items in my inventory. Becoming a wanted criminal was the last thing I wanted.

I crossed my arms in front of my chest and looked at him flatly. "If you didn't come to buy the goods on the display, please leave. You're blocking my other customers."

WolfKing laughed loudly, followed by the chuckles of his subordinates. "Customers? Listen, Elf. We didn't come here to buy your retail bombs. The Black Wolf Guild doesn't like depending on lone crafters. We want the recipe for that mud bomb. Hand the recipe over to us right now, and we'll let you play in peace."

He leaned his body forward, pointing the tip of his spear toward my face. "But if you refuse… we will station our members at every respawn point. We will hunt you, kill you over and over until your level returns to 10, and make you beg to delete your character from this game."

The threat was so classic, typical of major Guild players accustomed to oppressing solo players.

I did not budge. Instead of feeling intimidated, my brain finished processing the best scenario. If I let them attack me first, the [Self-Defense] system would activate. I would be free to kill them all without receiving the slightest PK status.

"My alchemy recipe is not for sale. Not even to street dogs," I replied coldly, deliberately provoking him to the maximum limit.

WolfKing's face turned red with anger. The veins in his neck bulged. "Arrogant Elf! Die!"

As I had expected, his arrogance overcame his common sense. He immediately charged forward, thrusting a spear wrapped in wind magic toward my chest at high speed.

That thrust could actually have been easily avoided using my agility. However, I needed the system to record his attack. I deliberately tilted my body only a few centimeters, allowing the tip of the spear to tear the shoulder of my gray cloak.

JLEB!

A stinging pain instantly spread through my shoulder.

[-45 Physical Damage!]

My eyes widened for a moment. Damn it! My HP bar, which only had a maximum of 90 points, immediately plummeted to exactly half just from a grazing attack! If I had not had the reflex to dodge and had let that spear hit a vital point, my Glass Cannon build would definitely have been destroyed instantly and sent me straight to the respawn point.

However, the sacrifice of 45 HP was worth it. In the corner of my vision, a golden shield icon lit up brightly.

[System Warning: You have been attacked by player [WolfKing]. [Self-Defense] status active for 10 minutes!]

"Damn, your blood is so thin! Just surrender…"

WolfKing's words were cut off. He did not have time to pull his spear back.

"Your turn is over," I whispered, cold as ice.

With hand speed that pierced extreme numbers thanks to my Dexterity stat, my hand shot into the belt compartment. I did not take an ordinary mud bomb. I took a steel ball, and a glass tube I had mixed last night containing the thick green liquid from the [Noxious Venom Gland].

I smashed the poison glass tube right onto the [Frag-Grenade: The Iron Maiden], coating it with corrosive acid, lit its fuse in the blink of an eye, and threw it precisely into the middle of the tight formation of the Black Wolf Guild.

"Fall back!" WolfKing shouted when he realized the object flying toward his troops.

Too late.

I activated Wind Walk, shot backward into my shop, and closed the wooden door exactly at the second the bomb exploded.

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!

The sound of the explosion produced was not only ear-splitting, but also shook the entire foundation of the village. My display glass nearly cracked holding back its shockwave.

From outside came extremely terrifying screams. The Frag-Grenade explosion not only scattered hundreds of steel fragments that pierced their plate armor, but those fragments carried Noxious Miasma poison.

I kicked my shop door open again. The scene in the square was exactly like a simulation of hell.

Thick green mist enveloped the troops. WolfKing's prized golden armor melted like hot wax. Their HP bars that numbered in the thousands evaporated within seconds due to the Heavy Bleeding effect from the metal fragments combined with the corrosive effect of the boss-level poison.

Because their formation was too tight while surrounding my shop, not a single one of the twenty players could escape the range of the explosion area.

Without mercy, my hands continued to move, throwing dozens of ordinary medium and small mud bombs toward those still thrashing inside the poisonous mist.

BOM! BOM! BOM!

The consecutive explosions provided Stun effects and additional physical damage, ensuring that not a single one could use healing potions or cast protection magic.

In less than fifteen seconds, the square of Silvergrass Village returned to silence. The green mist was slowly swept away by the wind, leaving twenty glowing virtual tombstones on the rocky ground. The entire members of the Black Wolf Guild who had surrounded my shop died on the spot.

The system notifications on my screen continued blinking, displaying rows of self-defense PvP victories without receiving a single Karma penalty or PK status.

I stood on the threshold of the door, staring at those tombstones with slightly ragged breathing. "I'm a little surprised myself that my weapon is this strong against fellow players," I muttered to myself. "But considering I threw one epic bomb coated in deadly poison and dozens of standard bombs at once… it's not strange that this area was cleaned instantly."

Suddenly, the sound of heavy footsteps was heard. A group of Village Guard NPCs ran toward the scene with spears drawn.

One of the guards checked the tombstones, then looked at me standing with a wounded shoulder.

"Miss Syl! Are you injured?" the Guard Captain asked in a panicked and highly sympathetic tone.

I was stunned for a moment. Usually, NPCs would be extremely suspicious if an explosion occurred in their village. However, the Fame and Affinity systems I possessed in Silvergrass were extremely high. Shopping for materials every day, speaking politely, and perhaps… the effect of my Albinism Trait that made my character look extremely pale, fragile, and pitiful in the eyes of the AI, made these NPCs regard me as a fragile citizen who must be protected.

"They… they suddenly attacked me, Captain. They wanted to rob my shop," I answered, making my voice sound a little trembling while holding my shoulder that was dripping pixel blood.

"Barbarians! How dare they attack a weak and kind-hearted fairy like you in our village!" the Captain growled in anger. He looked at the battle log in the air. "Black Wolf Guild… I will report this to the Village Head. Their fame in this region will be lowered to minus! They will never be able to set foot in Silvergrass or trade with us again!"

Exactly before the spirits of those players were sent back to the Respawn point in the city, I could hear their intermittent voice communications shouting in panic because of the system notification that they had become faction enemies in this region. They had just dug their own reputation graves.

After the guards ensured my condition was safe and left to patrol, I entered the shop again and locked the door tightly.

I walked weakly and threw my body onto the wooden chair in front of the work table. The tension had only just truly subsided. I opened my inventory. Cold sweat dripped when I saw the remaining stock of bombs that I had painstakingly made since this morning.

"Only half left…" I exhaled a long breath and massaged my temples. "PvP battles truly burn resources unreasonably."

Realizing that opening a physical shop right now was too risky and would only invite other Guild thugs, I made a quick decision. I opened the Auction House terminal from my system menu. I threw all the remaining ordinary mud bombs of various sizes into the anonymous auction. Let the system handle the sales; I did not care if the price was cut by tax, the important thing was that my safety was guaranteed.

While sitting relaxed in the chair, allowing the healing potion to slowly close the wound on my shoulder, I realized one thing. My level had soared far since the swamp monster massacre last night.

I opened my character status panel that I had not paid detailed attention to for a long time. When the holographic screen appeared, my eyes widened seeing the pile of points and skill levels blinking demanding attention.

========== STATUS ==========

Name : Syl

Gender : Female

Race : Elf

Trait : Albinism (Permanent)

Level : 28

EXP : (3000/11000)

Health : 90 / 90

MP : 2000 / 2000

Stamina : 100 / 100

========== ATTRIBUTES ==========

STR : 6(+1,5) (+10)

INT : 58(+3)

DEX : 58(+10) (+3)

AGI : 3

VIT : 2

Attribute Points : 15

========== TRAIT ==========

Albinism (Permanent)

- Stamina Consumption x2

- STR & AGI -50%

- INT & DEX stats from forest/wood equipment are doubled

========== SKILLS ==========

Slow Walking Lv.30

├─ Stealth Lv.10

└─ Stamina Regeneration Lv.20

Bow Mastery Lv.30

├─ Vital Shoot Lv.10

└─ Power Shot Lv.20

Wind Element Lv.15

├─ Piercing Gale Arrow Lv.10

└─ Wind Walk Lv.7

Water Element Lv.4

└─ Water Ball Lv.4

Eagle Eye Lv6

Carpenter Lv16

Alchemy Lv.16

Blacksmith Lv.10

Skill Points : 57

========== TITLES ==========

Pioneer of Explosives

Storm Breaker

========== EQUIPMENT ==========

[Titan's Ironbark Compound Bow] (Epic – Evolving)

[Gargoyle's Visage] (Rare) – Hidden Identity + Chameleon's Wind

[Spellweaver's Dirk] (Rare)

[Dwarven Apprentice Hammer] (Rare)|

[Glade Walker's Bracer] (Epic)

[Ogre's Bone Earring] (Rare)

Wild Boar Leather Armor Set (Common)

Oak Ring of Strength

Pine Beaded Bracelet

========== AMMUNITION & EXTRA WEAPONS ==========

[Zephyr's Judgment Arrow] ×12 (Epic)

[Steel Bodkin Arrowhead] (Rare)

[Corrosion-Resistant Blood Oak Arrow] (Rare)

[Frag-Grenade: The Iron Maiden] (Epic)

[Toxic Mud Bomb] (Rare)

[Crude Black Powder] (Uncommon)

========== INVENTORY / FINANCES ==========

Balance : ~140+ Koin Emas

Loot: [Gargoyle's Core], [Wind-sculpted Stone], [Refined Steel Ingot], etc.

I stared at those rows of numbers with held breath.

As many as 15 Attribute Points (AP) were idle, and 57 Skill Points (SP) had not been used! And most urgently, my Slow Walking and Bow Mastery had already reached level 30 the maximum limit for the basic stage. The indicators beside those skill names were blinking, demanding that I perform a Limit Break so that their derivative skills could continue to evolve.

"My god, I've been so busy modifying the bow and making explosives that I forgot to strengthen the foundation of my own character," I muttered while smiling a little.

Fortunately I did not die ridiculously from that spear earlier. With this pile of points, the first evolution stage of my character would begin soon. It was time for a Glass Cannon to truly transform into an untouchable artillery.