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Chapter 139: Entering the Game
Battera kept all his Greed Island consoles in a dedicated server room. The moment Ronin inserted his memory card into the slot and shrouded the console in his Nen, his body vanished with a whoosh.
Ronin felt everything in front of him shift in a split second. The real-world server room had morphed into a highly futuristic environment. He stepped forward, and an automatic door slid open, revealing an NPC girl waiting for him inside.
The girl had large, exceptionally bright eyes. With the specialized headset she wore and the futuristic console in front of her, she looked like an anime character that had leapt straight into the three-dimensional world.
Ronin knew this girl was one of the game's creators. There was another girl identical to her; one handled players logging in, while the other managed players logging out.
The game's premise was straightforward: every player received a Binder. If they could fill all 100 Designated Slots with specific cards, they would clear the game. Additionally, each Binder possessed 45 Free Slots. These could store spell cards used for attack or defense, excess designated cards, or miscellaneous items that didn't belong in the fixed slots. Any item obtained within the game could be transformed into a card and stored in the Binder. These obtainable items encompassed almost everything except the players themselves, though the players had to discover them on their own.
There were several intricate rules governing how items were transformed into cards. After patiently listening to the explanation, Ronin walked down the stairs. This signaled his official entry into the game.
As Ronin descended, Neon also successfully logged in and began going through the exact same orientation.
Ronin reached the bottom of the stairs to find a vast, sweeping grassland. The very second he appeared outside the starting tower, he felt eyes lock onto him. He leaned against the wall and waited patiently.
A short while later, Neon trotted down from above. Ronin gave her a brief nod, then casually strolled in the direction where he had sensed the prying eyes. According to his knowledge of the original plotline, the nearest city should be Antokiba, the City of Prizes. However, that was just the city Gon and Killua ended up in after picking a direction via Rock-Paper-Scissors. In reality, Antokiba wasn't the only city near the starting point.
As they walked, Neon summoned her Binder. She was utterly fascinated by the Binder, which felt remarkably similar to a Conjuration ability.
"It doesn't feel like I'm in a game at all," she said, marveling at the empty Binder.
She actually quite liked these kinds of collection-based games.
"Is it possible we're actually still in the real world? Like, we just triggered someone's ability and got teleported to a specific location?" Ronin casually dropped the truth.
Greed Island was, in fact, a real island that existed in the physical world. It had merely been developed by Ging and his companions into a specialized game targeting Nen users.
Ronin rubbed the ring on his finger. The ring was inscribed with special divine script, and he wondered if such mysterious elements had also played a role in constructing the game's mechanics.
"Huh?" Neon was stunned. That had never even crossed her mind.
"To create a game this massive and keep the Nen sustaining it running for years... what an unimaginably colossal undertaking!" The more Neon learned about Nen, the more Ronin's theory sounded like a complete fairy tale.
"Yeah," Ronin sighed in agreement. According to his intel, the team behind this game consisted of fewer than ten people. Ten people building a game this gargantuan was nothing short of miraculous. The fact that they had kept it running flawlessly for over a decade was even more mind-blowing.
While the two were busy marveling, a beam of light wrapped in Nen aura plummeted toward their location.
Thud! With a soft impact, a delinquent-looking, blond teenager materialized just a short distance away from them.
A Binder hovered in front of him. When he noticed that Ronin had instantly summoned his own Binder, the brief flash of disdain in the teen's eyes faded slightly.
Judging by the location, they had to be near the starting area, but Ronin didn't carry himself like a rookie. Rookie or not, the newcomer instantly whipped out a card.
[Peeping]: View the Free Slots of a target player. (Only applicable to players you have met in-game).
The ability activated, and two names instantly populated his Binder: Ronin and Neon. Seeing that they hadn't taken any defensive measures in response to his spell card, the fleeting caution the teen had felt mostly evaporated.
Acting like veterans but lacking defensive tools? Definitely rookies. Perhaps they just had cautious personalities, which explained why they summoned their Binders immediately. Ignoring Ronin's presence entirely, the teen manipulated his Binder and confirmed that Ronin's Free Slots were completely empty.
That cemented his theory. As another spell card materialized in his hand, he figured that hitting these total newbies with [Trace] would be more than enough! With that thought, he opened his mouth to activate the spell. But in the next fraction of a second, his vision blurred. The card in his hand vanished.
It was Ronin. Ronin had a pretty good idea of what spell the kid was about to use. While getting marked or tracked wouldn't actually affect him, snatching the card straight out of the brat's hand was significantly more profitable.
It was [Trace]: Allows you to constantly monitor the current location of a target player. (Effect lasts until the target player leaves the game).
A highly practical card. Casually slotting it into his own Binder's Free Slots, Ronin turned his gaze back to the teenager.
The teen's eyes narrowed. Instinctively, he reached for another spell card in his Binder. But Ronin's voice cut through the air.
"If you're thinking of running, I'll rip your head off before you can even trigger that card."
The teen froze stiff. Ronin flashed him a demonic smile.
"So right now, I talk, and you answer."
Seeing the teen paralyzed with fear, Ronin frowned slightly.
"Did you hear me?"
"Y-Yes!" the teen stammered, trembling.
Ronin nodded in satisfaction.
"Excellent. First, hand over all your cards. Then, answer my question."
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