More Than A Game (Epic LitRPG adventure)

Chapter 3, in the big world part 4

I started to feel left out, as it was very clear I had no business in a place like that with empty pockets. And that meant I had to get out into the world and somehow make some money. I just had clothes—sort of—and a club, so I had nothing to lose and nothing to keep me there. I pulled up the map, found the city exit, and set off in that direction.

A forest began directly outside the city gates. Well, not so much a forest; more a grove of trees. Huh, I thought as I walked into the shadows. I wonder if cities in the Middle Ages had woods right outside them, too. From the movies and TV shows I've seen, they definitely didn't. When invaders (or liberators, depending on the plot) laid siege, they ran screaming across an open plain before the camera swept to their hordes scrambling up the walls and putting the city to fire and the sword. Well, or to free it from the clutches of a tyrant. I wouldn't think they made all that up just for the movies. They probably had some kind of villages right outside the walls and needed grazing land for all their cattle and horses. I guess nothing needs to graze in the game, and there's no point in making players walk forever, so they put the woods right next to the walls.

The forest was beautiful, both reminiscent of a real forest and, at the same time, different. It was similar in how picturesque it was, with all the grass and clean air. A great spot, and completely unrealistic. In a real forest, you trip over dead wood, mosquitos eat you alive, and there's litter everywhere. I found myself liking the virtual forest better—it was clean, neat, and cozy. And it was full of things I could use to get experience and money. A rabbit ran by with all its experience, fur, and meat. A hardworking badger rustled away while a wiggly snake slunk off. Well, fauna, meet Man, your destroyer. I felt bad for them, but I felt worse for myself. All I had was ragged pants, and I needed to level-up. Well, if Man is the king of nature, it is time for nature to pay its dues...or tribute, or whatever it is...

I valiantly ravaged the animal world for four hours or so, twice leveling-up. My bag was packed with all my dead trophies, though by the end, I was pickier about what I kept. At first, I harvested everything I could from my unlucky victims. During the last hour, I only kept the skin, which I knew I could sell. Badger meat wasn't exactly in high demand.

Once I leveled-up the second time, I decided to stop and spend the points.

Basic attributes:

Strength: 10

Intellect: 1

Agility: 2

Stamina: 7

Wisdom: 1

Available points: 10

I decided to go with the obvious. As long as I was going for a tank, I'd go for a tank. Six points for strength, three for stamina, and one for agility.

"Well, that was a nice little break. Time to get back to work," I said, pulling out my club and dashing off after a rabbit that ran by me. Having expected more from life than what I gave him, he moaned almost sadly and died.

I bent down to skin him and heard a villainous voice behind me, "That happened to be my pet rabbit. I remember when he was just a bunny—he even ate grass right out of my hands. And now you killed him. What to do, what to do..."

Not only was the voice villainous, but it also had a mocking undertone. I slowly straightened up and turned around. A few steps away stood three goblins. Not just your ordinary ruffians; these were honest-to-goodness goblins, although, judging by their demeanor, they were ruffians, too. They were nasty-looking, with ugly green faces and teeth that stuck out at odd angles.

Wait a second, maybe they were actually orcs? I wasn't really sure what the whole difference was, but that didn't matter. The first thing I noticed was their strange names ("Euiikh"...excuse me?) that glowed red above them. I had the unbelievable luck to meet people who killed other players, most often for fun and loot. That fact and their level (25-27) made it clear to me that there was no way I was getting out of the situation with what I had in my bag. And so it turned out that all I would get for the whole four hours I spent hunting was a little experience. How frustrating.

"Would you look at this, boys? He doesn't even care. But I think he should pay for killing my little fluffykins," the one with the green mug spat mockingly. "My little bunny."

"M-m-m...bestiality. Aren't you the little creeps?" I understood that my imminent death might be fairly unpleasant, as the orcs/goblins appeared to be looking for some fun. At least, I wouldn't feel pain in the game, and I wouldn't get any fountains of blood. Still, it wouldn't be an enjoyable experience. I needed to rile them up and get everything over with, so I could respawn and start over. Although as I thought about it, I had no idea where I'd respawn.

"I heard your kind..." I said with a contemptuous grin. "Wait, who are you? Orcs? Goblins? Either way, I heard all of you and your ugly green mugs are into that animal-loving. The good stuff. Although, wait a second, are you using the animals or are they using you? I guess it makes more sense if they're using you, just judging by your bulging eyes and the way your teeth stick out like that. Yeah, I can see how that could happen after some bison took a good run at you..."

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