Chapter 3 Preparation

Maso still has plenty of time to utilize. In order to ensure the success of the wallet-snatching operation, he must be fully prepared. The most essential requirement for complete preparation is money. Virtual reality technology has been around for a century since its inception. From the first generation of virtual reality games, which were riddled with bugs, to the seventh generation of virtual reality games, it is no longer possible for any bugs to emerge that would allow players to exploit the system.

Players do not need any prerequisite skills to forge an item in the game. The rogue's "forgery" skill merely increases the player's success rate when forging. Maso, as a shaman, understands this entirely due to his curiosity—little cat people are inherently curious and eager to learn, both in the game and in reality, and this trait is absolutely unrelated to intelligence in the game.

Stepping out of the Adventurers' Guild, Masuo followed the stone-paved street to the courtyard of the Ernst family—Cyran Ernst, on the surface, was the largest merchant in Paronser City, but few knew that this seemingly kind half-elf elder had once roamed the seas in his youth, and Masuo was among that minority. Masuo had read extensively about the history of games in the library, and during that grim era of planar warfare, Cyran Ernst, as the captain of the warship "Snow Wind," had established countless achievements, including the legendary experience of single-handedly battling five ghost ships. Masuo was indeed among that minority.

Politeness is not a necessity, but facing the kind and neutral NPCs with humility and a smile often brings unexpected respect and courtesy. This human waiter immediately took out a stack of quest parchments from under the counter and handed them to the kitten, "Welcome to the Adventurers' Guild, these are all quests suitable for level 1 to 5 adventurers. A shaman as quick on their feet as you might find this task more suitable."

Maso hung it back on the leg of the carrier pigeon. As for the wound on the pigeon's wing, this was easily resolved—Maso used a minor healing spell along with a bottle of light healing potion to heal the wound on the pigeon's wing, and then released it.

Of course, these are all tangential matters

After several comparisons, Marceau looked at the wax-sealed letter tube in his hand with satisfaction. This forged wax seal was identical to the original wax seal in the screenshot—both the thickness of the wax seal and the depth of the imprint were completely consistent. Marceau believed that those few pickpockets would never suspect that the top-secret information from the carrier pigeons had become less secret.

"Yes, Mr. Ernst, I am Maso, Maso Su, paying my respects to you." Sitting on the high stool, Maso expressed his respect to the elder, as taught by his mother and grandfather

"Prove your authenticity and validity, welcome to Ernst Garden, young catfolk shaman, please come in. My master is waiting in the main garden for an outsider like you who has received a task." The Orderly Guardian pointed with the longsword sheathed in his hand at the lightweight warhammer at Maso's waist, "Before entering the garden, please surrender all weapons to me."

The enthusiastic human waiter extracted a piece of parchment and handed it to Maso with a smile, who glanced over the task description on it— the Ernst family in the harbor district requires young adventurers to produce divine berries

The balance skill of the Catfolk has a high bonus, thus Maso ran back to the top of the old lighthouse along the rope. As a result, he unlocked a balance achievement—running ten kilometers under the condition of needing to make a balance check. The ten kilometers of movement distance for this achievement can be accumulated, and upon completion, one can obtain a racial trait "Cliffwalker." When this racial trait is activated, the player's agility increases by 2, and the difficulty of balance checks is reduced by five. During balance checks, the player can still perform attacks, cast spells, and take defensive actions—including blocking and parrying. The ten kilometers of movement distance for this achievement can be accumulated, and upon completion, one can obtain a racial trait "Cliffwalker." When this racial trait is activated, the player's agility increases by 2, and the difficulty of balance checks is reduced by five. During balance checks, the player can still perform attacks, cast spells, and take defensive actions—including blocking and parrying.

Mason picked up a berry. His survival skills were only at 4 points, which did not allow him to effectively distinguish the scientific name of the berry. However, a kind-hearted elder of the good alignment would not possibly present poisonous fruits before their juniors. Therefore, Mason confidently swallowed two berries in one bite

Maso surrendered all his weapons, including the carving knife—when a player's stealth skill is high, they can smuggle certain small weapons, such as daggers, past the guards' inspection. Maso certainly did not wish to smuggle, as he came to seek peaceful prosperity, not to bring misfortune upon himself or others

... ...

"I come from the Adventurers' Guild. I heard that the Ernst family needs divine berries, so I am here to offer my assistance," said Maso cautiously while handing over the proof to the guard in front of him. As a level 1 Shaman, there is nothing inappropriate in showing respect and humility to an 80-level Lawful Guardian.

The Lawful Guardians do not necessarily require a Lawful alignment; the only alignment they are prohibited from is Evil. They are a branch of the heavy-armored warrior class of the Ashubi, wielding two-handed swords or sword and shield, and like the Paladins of Good, they are an important military force of the Ashubi Kingdom

Maso's smile prompted the old man to push a basket of berries in front of him, saying, "These are the fruits grown by the old man. Eat a couple, and then begin to cast the Divine Berry spell."

This is a good choice, and Masuo accepted the task with a smile. In the game, the shaman's spell slots are replaced by MP values, and there are two methods to restore MP: drinking potions or meditating. With Masuo's perception value, 50 MP can be fully replenished through meditation within an hour. The task states that for every two divine berries produced, one silver coin can be obtained. If the number is odd, half a silver coin will be awarded, which is equivalent to five copper coins.

At last, there are young outsiders willing to accompany this old man again. The old elf, who had a few wrinkles, smiled at Maso and gestured for him to sit on the high stool at the table. "What a delightful little kitten you are, you must have come to make me some divine berries, haven't you"

Well, you are a child who can endure loneliness, so if you like my garden and have some free time, remember to come and sit for a while on the seventh day of each week. The old man smiled as he handed a string of wooden oak ornaments to Maso, saying, "Child, show this to my guards, and they will let you in."

Player Maso Dan consumes a high-level strength berry, gaining a temporary +2 strength. This effect can be stacked once more and lasts for 24 hours. This effect remains even after the player is resurrected

As night fell upon the easternmost edge of this continent, Masuo stood outside the garden gate. Having received a tip of two gold coins, he bowed his head to Cuilan Ernst and said, "I must take my leave now."

As he passed through the city gate, Maso threw the dead pigeon in his hand to a guard dog by the roadside, which looked at Maso with confusion. At that moment, a stray dog rushed over and snatched the dead pigeon, thus a war among the dogs broke out without hesitation

Thank you, elder. Looking at the Buff effects on himself, Masuo lowered his head reverently in front of the old man who was using a bunch of high-level power berries to feed the Thunder Eagle. This elder seemed to have not abandoned his Druid profession; who among those capable of cultivating high-level berries is not a legendary figure among Druids

"Yes, I shall take my leave first." Masuo bowed his head and withdrew

And the root cause of all this walked into the Adventurers' Guild along the street. Since the time ratio between the game and reality is 3:1, three hours in the game equals one hour in reality. Currently, the time in the game is exactly nine o'clock in the morning. This means there are still a full fifteen game hours and five real hours until midnight.

Watching the pigeon flap its wings and fly towards the slums, Maso took out a rope from his spatial bag, tied it to the top of the lighthouse, and then securely fastened the other end to the flagpole in front of Pier No. 6

Entering the garden, Maso's gaze fell upon an abundance of naturally growing flowers, which perfectly aligned with the elves' understanding and aesthetics of nature. This also corresponded to the identity of Trilan Ernst— a level 40 archdruid and level 100 guerrilla knight, a super NPC following the planar wars. Although Trilan Ernst's druidic life in his youth was brief, it profoundly shaped his definition of aesthetics. This also corresponded to the identity of Trilan Ernst— a level 40 archdruid and level 100 guerrilla knight, a super NPC following the planar wars. Although Trilan Ernst's druidic life in his youth was brief, it profoundly shaped his definition of aesthetics

Maso approached an empty counter. The Adventurers' Guild is the initial location in the game for obtaining quests and * maps *. As a level 1 Shaman, Maso was no exception, so he could only watch as the human attendant behind the counter gave a slight bow. "Good morning, I am Maso, a foreign adventurer. May I ask what quests in the guild would be suitable for a Shaman like me"

"It's alright, this world needs children like you who can endure loneliness. An old friend of mine once said that only by learning to persevere can one achieve great things... I look forward to your performance." The old man smiled and patted Maso's head, "Go to the Adventurers' Guild to report your mission; they will pay you a commission."

It was not until this moment that Maso picked up another dead pigeon. After examining it and confirming that it was merely a wild pigeon, he carefully plucked its long feathers one by one, then removed the arrow, and ran down the old lighthouse along the rope.

The younger generation truly feels at a loss in the face of the elder's kindness, "Maso said with some surprise

Of course, he is more aware of a saying that circulated during that era—"As long as the Yukikaze is in battle, regardless of the situation, all will perish except for it." This is also why, during the final phase of the war, the Yukikaze could only undertake solo or dual ship missions, as the vast majority of friendly ship captains refused to operate alongside this cursed miracle ship

Player Maso Dan has consumed a high-level strength berry, gaining a temporary +4 strength. This effect has reached its maximum stack and lasts for 24 hours. This effect remains even after the player is resurrected

With these two coins and the commission, Masuo felt that tonight's operation would surely be a success

In the main garden, on a long bench, Marso encountered the half-elf elder, who was feeding a nest of chicks on the table with fresh berries