The week passed in a blur of unfortunate levels of consumption and sort-of controlled chaos.
One thing Ah'Ming discovered was that having ample amounts of both money and time in the Hub was dangerous.
Day One: He found a street market that sold dimensional storage containers. Spent two hours buying stackable food preservation boxes. His inventory became a mobile pantry.
Day Two: A clothing district that catered to broadcasters. He bought everything that looked comfortable and/or cool. Hoodies. Tactical pants with too many pockets. A jacket that was supposedly "slash-resistant" (he tested it; it was). Shoes that adjusted to any terrain. His wardrobe expanded from "whatever he woke up in" to "actually prepared." (His human friends snickered at him and his post-apocalyptic wear, but the netizens on his broadcast watch said he looked good. Most of them were mom fans or battle junkies though.)
Day Three: A fidget toy shop run by an elderly NPC who swore their products "increased focus during high-stress scenarios." Ah'Ming bought seventeen different types of fidget cubes, spinners, and squeeze toys. The shopkeeper blessed him and told him to "stay safe out there, young man."
Apparently, if you had enough points, you could pay to extend your stay in the hub without entering instances. The problem was that the further you extended, the harder your next instance would be. This meant most people who extended indefinitely would likely never enter an instance again, at least if they could help it.
Day Four: He met up with the Shadowbladeblade(?) guild.
"It's Darklance," Huipao insisted for the forty-seventh time. "DARK. LANCE."
"I literally don't care," Ah'Ming replied, mouth full of street noodles.
They were at the guild's headquarters, which was a surprisingly modest building in the mid-tier district. Inside was organized chaos: training rooms, a small armory, a common area with mismatched furniture, and what looked like a very sophisticated mission board.
Bianheng was maintenance-polishing his daggers. Zhaoying was reading a medical journal about "creative applications of healing magic." Huipao was trying to convince Ah'Ming to join.
Some other members mingled about, with the enviornment clearly one of trust. They seemed friendly, but Ah'Ming still looked at them funny. One person was shiny blue.
Very blue.
"We could use someone with your... enthusiasm for destruction," Bianheng said diplomatically.
"You mean someone stupid enough to charge bosses head-on," Zhaoying translated.
"I'm not stupid," Ah'Ming protested.
"You punched through three floors to solve a puzzle."
"It worked."
"That's not the point---"
They had this argument three times a day.
But by Day Five, something shifted.
"Okay, look," Valen (The guild leader who had been introduced to Ah'Ming around five minutes earlier) said, sitting Ah'Ming down in the common room. "You're clearly not going to join officially. We get it. You're a solo player."
"I'm not trying to be difficult—"
"No, no, it's fine!" Valen grinned. "We talked to Guild Leader, and he approved making you an honorary member!"
"A what?"
Bianheng stepped forward, holding a small box. "Honorary members aren't bound by guild rules or obligations. But they get certain benefits."
He opened the box.
Inside was a bracelet—simple black cord with a small silver charm shaped like a lance. But when Ah'Ming touched it, he felt a pulse of energy.
|ITEM: DARKLANCE HONORARY MEMBER BADGE
|TYPE: Accessory |EFFECT: +15% Movement Speed
|SPECIAL: Identifies wearer as Darklance Guild Affiliate
|CREATOR: Guild Leader (Master Craftsman)
"Fifteen percent?!" Ah'Ming's eyes widened. "That's insane for an accessory!"
"Guild Leader is a Master Craftsman," Zhaoying explained. "One of the best in the Hub. He makes all our equipment."
"We wanted to give you something useful," Huipao added. "Since you keep, uh, helping us accidentally."
"And breaking things," Bianheng added.
"And stealing architectural features," Zhaoying said.
"Okay, one time—"
"You stole the floors from two instances."
"...Two times."
Ah'Ming took the bracelet, oddly touched. "Thank you. This is... really nice, actually."
"Don't get emotional," Zhaoying warned. "We're not that kind of guild."
"Too late, I'm crying."
"You're not crying."
"I'm crying on the inside."
"That's just indigestion from eating sixteen street tacos."
"Maybe."
He put the bracelet on. It adjusted automatically to fit his wrist, the silver charm catching the light.
+15% movement speed. That was significant. Most accessories gave 3-5% at best.
The rest of Day Five and Six were spent hanging out with the guild. Training in their practice rooms (Ah'Ming destroyed two training dummies and a wall). Eating at their favorite spots (Ah'Ming got banned from three restaurants for "excessive consumption" He didn't know why. He was paying for the food! And promoting the place online through BroadcastWatch! Apparently, he had driven the chefs to tears from overwork, but he gave them bonuses so who cares.). Learning about the Hub's various districts and dangers.
"Don't go to the Lower Districts alone," Bianheng warned. "That's where most of the illegal trading happens."
"What kind of illegal trading?"
"The kind that involves selling broadcaster parts to viewers."
"Oh. Yeah. I met those guys already."
"YOU WHAT—"
Not like the players who did the harvesting, but the people (or things) that bought them. Same, same, anyways.
Day Seven arrived too fast.
Ah'Ming spent the morning doing final preparations. Checking his inventory (full of food, clothes, and fidget toys). Testing his equipment (gauntlets worked perfectly). Saying goodbye to the receptionist at his building (she made him promise to "stay safe and eat well").
He video-called Aliya.
"BE SAFE!!" The rat-girl yelled through the screen. "And if you need ANYTHING exploded, you call me!!"
"I will!"
"I'm working on a ROCKET LAUNCHER UPGRADE!!"
"I'm scared to ask—"
"IT SHOOTS SMALLER ROCKET LAUNCHERS!!"
"That's amazing and terrifying!"
"I KNOW RIGHT?!"
By evening, Ah'Ming was back in his penthouse, lying on his absurdly comfortable bed, watching the countdown tick down.
[00:47:23]
His BroadcastWatch account had hit 500,000 followers. People were already speculating about his next instance.
"I hope he gets something combat-heavy"
"Nah, give him another puzzle instance. Watching him brute-force solutions is PEAK content"
"Someone check if he's streaming this time"
"MUKBANG KING RETURNS"
Huipao had sent him a message:
[Huipao]: Good luck! Don't die!
[Huipao]: If you DO die, can I have your penthouse?
[Ah'Ming]: I'm not dying
[Ah'Ming]: But no you can't have my penthouse
[Huipao]: Worth a shot
Bianheng's message was more practical:
[Bianheng]: Remember—survival first, completion second. Don't let your grade obsession get you killed.
[Ah'Ming]: I'm not obsessed with grades
[Bianheng]: You stole instance architecture to increase your completion percentage.
To be fair, Ah'Ming hadn't taken it for completion percentage. He'd taken it because it looked cool. But, Ah'Ming was smart, so he'd pretend to listen and agree to the smart person.
[Ah'Ming]: ...That's different
[Bianheng]: It's really not.
Even Zhaoying sent something:
[Zhaoying]: Try not to get your organs rearranged. I don't want to have to heal you when you get back.
[Zhaoying]: Actually, if you DO get interesting injuries, let me study them first. Me and Sahui found an interesting book from world-line 334 about using holy dirt to cure poison-based maladies.
[Ah'Ming]: You're terrifying
[Zhaoying]: Thank you <3
Ah'Ming set his phone down and stared at the ceiling. Sahui was basically Zhaoying's little apprentice, but the two were so close that they were definitively best friends. That's what best friends do, right? Kiss and hug?
The countdown continued:
[00:23:47]
His system was unusually quiet.
"Hey, Steve?"
|Yes?
"You nervous?"
|System does not experience nervousness
|System experiences... concern |Mild concern
|For broadcaster's continued existence
"That's basically nervousness."
|System maintains its dignity
|Unlike broadcaster
"There's the Steve I know."
|System hopes broadcaster is prepared
"As prepared as I can be."
|System doubts that
|But appreciates broadcaster's confidence
|However misplaced
The countdown ticked lower:
[00:05:00]
Ah'Ming closed his eyes, trying to relax.
His mind wandered to the dream—the one with the original System. The warnings about being "challenging."
He checked his equipment one more time, filled with a sort of excited anxiety:
Gauntlets with flamethrower and phone functions: Check
Inventory full of food and supplies: Check
Darklance bracelet: Check
Fidget cube (currently in his hand): Check
Will to live: ....
Maybe check?
[00:01:00]
"Steve?"
|Yes?
"Thanks. For everything."
|...Broadcaster is being sentimental
|System does not appreciate sentimentality
"Shut up, you love me."
|System tolerates broadcaster due to profession alone.
|There is a difference
"Sure there is."
[00:00:30]
The room began to shimmer. Or maybe that was just him. He'd accidentally eaten strange mushrooms when hiking once for five dollars. It felt like that moment.
[00:00:15]
Reality started to fold at the edges.
[00:00:05]
It felt like that moment when you're strapped in on a roller coaster, with it about to take off. A pit in your stomach and a stupid grin on your face.
"See you on the other side, Steve."
|System will be there
|...
|Unfortunately
[00:00:00]
The world dissolved into white light.