CHAPTER 40: CHAPTER 40 "LOG OFF"

"Hey, you’re such a lucky guy, aren’t you?"

Ray heard someone calling him from behind. He turned to look at the young man who also just teleported out of the mini-game, just like him.

Ray had an indifferent expression, thinking what the man wanted from him.

However, the man couldn’t stop saying, "You’re such a lucky bastard!"

"How did you pull that off?" he said, confusing Ray more about what he was talking about.

Ray, on the other hand, finally decided to speak, or this guy might not stop yapping, "Sorry, but what are you even talking about?"

"Huh! Why are you making such a face? Aren’t you the guy who was playing with that white-shirted old man?" he asked Ray, who shook his head but was still confused.

"I was, but what does that mean?" Ray asked.

The young man smirked, "Oh, so you’re one of those who didn’t know about the rich old guy."

He continued, "That white-shirt guy has been inside this mini-game for a very long time, maybe from the beginning of this game."

Ray was about to ask when the young man continued, "That guy seems to love playing the card so much that he always first wins the game, and when anyone from his table shows good game, he lets them win so he won’t have to leave this place."

’Is he talking about Mr. Owen?’ Ray thought, knowing the only white-shirted old man was Mr. Owen, whom he was playing with the other two.

"You’re so lucky to join him. You know, anyone who plays on that table will always win, and many wished to join that table, but only lucky ones were invited to that table."

Ray heard this and connected his win in the last round with the young man’s words, then he asked, "And why is that? Why does he let others win?"

The young man laughed, "You finally realize that your win must also be related to him, as if he let you win deliberately. As for why? I have no idea."

"Some say he just loves playing cards, while others say that he is so rich that he likes spending here, but who knows why?" Saying this, the young man patted Ray’s shoulders and left.

"Wish I had the same luck, otherwise I wouldn’t have had to spend 3 days to leave that place."

As he left, his voice filled with a sigh of relief and the sadness of losing some hard-earned coins for three days straight.

Ray thought about all of it but couldn’t think of the reason why Mr. Owen would do that, except the reason that he really loves playing the card game so much.

He also thought about the familiar voice and face of Mr. Owen, but even after thinking twice, he couldn’t place him, so he let it go and looked at his stats.

...

[Player: Ray]

[Level: 9]

[Health: 100/100]

[Mana: 100/100]

[Skill: Scavenger One]

[Passive skill]

-Pocket Dimension

-Restore

-Modification

-Search

-Lucky one

...

[Balance: Seven million, two hundred seventy-two thousand, eight hundred (7,272,800)]

He had a satisfied smile on his face. "I’m one step from level 10, and after that, I can finally enter the league of players."

From levels 1 to 9 were more about letting players grow with ease; also, it was on the lower end, which restricted players’ movement.

Only those at level 10 can think of stepping foot out of the ruined city.

Not that the ruined city is totally safe, but the level of difference and opportunities in the ruined city was low in comparison to the outskirts or any other places outside the ruined city.

Many players wish to cross level 10 and begin moving out, but even after that, hardly anyone could do that, and the only known player who returned after venturing the outskirts was Thompson Harry and his team, making him the top surviving player in the game.

"Let’s go and look for a nice and comfy place."

[You have logged off]

Ray logged off and found himself back in his old apartment, his stomach growling with hunger.

"I know the game can stimulate the mind so we can play for longer without getting hungry, but I think I’ve reached my limit," Ray thought, feeling a slight weakness in his body.

He quickly got up to open his refrigerator to find something to eat that could satiate his hunger for the time being.

But except for a bottle of milk and a small water container, the fridge was empty.

"How can I be so forgetful!"

He remembered that he had initially thought of going out for food after his first log-in, but the momentum of the game made him forget.

Especially since he was inside the game and didn’t feel hunger because of the mana, he had now gone without food for a week.

"I can feel a slight weakness in my body, but not much, even after a week of going without food?" This amazed him; he couldn’t fathom how the developer of the game made it happen.

Then his stomach growled once again.

"Let’s wash and go. I can eat while looking at the properties." He entered the bathroom.

After finishing everything he needed to do, Ray went out, first for filling his empty stomach and second, to find a new place for him.

As he exited his building, he saw the last remaining family moving out of the apartment.

Upon seeing him, the woman felt surprised, "You’re the guy from the top floor, right? I thought we were the only ones left to vacate the house."

She thought that everyone had already left the property and only her family was left alone.

She even believed that Ray also left because he hadn’t been seen for a week, but seeing Ray now surprised her.

"Hello," Ray greeted her, while her son and husband were loading the heavy furniture with the help of movers into the truck.

"Are you also moving today?" she asked.

Ray denied, "No, not today, but soon. I’m right now looking for a new place."

Grrrrowl!

Seeing this, the lady sighed, "We have packed everything, if not, I could have given you something to eat."

"No thanks, I’ll just go to Pemma’s kitchen to have some," Ray answered.

The woman shook her head, "Unfortunately, her business also closed. This whole locality has been pushed out of their homes and small businesses, and Pemma has closed her kitchen too."

"What!"

Seeing his surprised look, the lady spoke, "Seems you are unaware of what’s going lately. After our landlord, the other land and shop owners were also..." she spoke in a low tone, like she didn’t want others to hear.

"They were also forced to sell their properties. This even made huge ruckus a few days ago, but then everything was suppressed by some unknown people."

She had weary expressions in her eyes, "Those are very powerful people, that when our landlord tried to save this apartment with legal procedures, I don’t know how, but they forced him to back down within a few days."

"You might not know this, but make sure not to speak about this, okay?" She warned him not to speak to anyone about this matter or their might be some consequences.