MMORPG: Rise of the Peerless Pumpkinmancer

Murmurs could be heard as tons of players stared at the training camp.

They had seen Jack leave with a panicked training instructor, only for the two of them to come back an hour later. The NPC was red in the face from excitement. What in the nine heavens had they been up to?

The curious bystanders sneakily lurked, trying to eavesdrop on what was happening in the camp, only for the NPC to glance at them before raising a hand.

That’s when a large golden screen rose and blocked their vision. It left them with a glimpse of Jack facing against an army of dummies.

“I wonder what they’re doing.”

“Maybe it’s a hidden training quest?”

“It must be given how the NPC reacted earlier!”

They were dying to know what was happening inside but could only wait patiently. A few minutes later, the golden barrier went down with them squinting their eyes to peer at the scene.

Sadly, they didn’t know how to interpret this situation. The training instructor was maniacally laughing while standing amid tons of broken dummies.

The players uttered in shock:

“What the heck happened here?!”

“The dummies here are so sturdy too!”

“Say, do you think that guy destroyed them all?”

“I don’t know, maybe? This was probably a test, and he probably passed it with flying colors.”

“No way! That’s way too much destruction. It had to be the instructor making a demonstration!”

“Either way, That guy is crazy strong. But, he’s gone, and we should probably get back to farming.”

The players couldn’t help but shiver as they pictured themselves suffering the same fate as those dummies for offending the one they called Demon King.

Many stepped forward excitedly, resolved to follow in the demon’s footsteps. They’d pester the NPC until he agreed to teach them his secret technique too!

Some were indifferent and returned to their business. They were so damn eager to level up and would let the others test the waters first.

Then there were the ones that looked at the scene with scorn. The Mighty Dragons stood on the side, heatedly discussing their current situation.

“There’s no other way to say this: we got fucked real hard.”

“Before, they were all eager to kill the guy, but now everyone is scared.”

“The randos don’t even want to join our guild anymore. They’re worried about trouble.

“Trouble? What fucking trouble? One lone guy? Are you freaking kidding me! What do they take us dragons for?!”

Their faces twitched with displeasure. They had gone from being the masters of this village to a guild that people avoided like the plague! All because of that one event! How had things turned this way?

What were they supposed to do now? But that’s when their leader intervened:

“Our current problem is that they see this one guy as a god, or close. Thanks to this little stunt of his, with the butchering and all, he has driven fear into their hearts. But, this is also his weakness.”

They glanced at one another. How was being revered a weakness? Not only did people fear him, but they were beginning to respect him too.

“We just need to show that he’s a simple mortal like everyone else. We’ll execute him publicly, and we’ll be on top once more. We’ve already defeated him before, and we’ll do it again!”

The arrogant dragon glanced at them all, making sure his subordinates were on board with his plan:

“Alright, here’s precisely how we’ll proceed.”

Thus started a very in-depth briefing, one that had them grinning and praising the wisdom of their leader.

It was time to take down the Demon King…

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Jack slowly awoke, his entire body trembling and his breathing laborious. His chest felt like it was on fire, drenched with sweat.

This was to be expected. That previous training had put so much strain on his mind that it had even affected his body. It was akin to having a terrible nightmare, leaving one with palpitations even if only an illusion.

The shortcuts in Infinite were often laden with traps. One had to prove worthy of the rewards. In this case, it had required resisting the corruption of a level 6 Boss as a level 2 character.

But, he had succeeded!

He used the same trick he had employed on the Nihility Dragon in another life: sheer fucking willpower! Thanks to it, he had received a new skill and had avoided having his account cursed.

Just as he was reveling in the happiness, he froze as something soft and warm began gently caressing him. Then there was the sensation of a cloth delicately rubbing against his skin, slowly wiping away the sweat. Finally, a tender whisper reached his ears:

“You’re truly giving it your all, aren’t you? I wonder what you’re seeing and feeling right now. Is it some terrifying monsters? Perhaps some dastardly PK players? Maybe you’re doing some harsh training…It seems so laborious.”

Jack selfishly kept his eyes closed as he slowly calmed his breathing, basking in the warmth. He truly was so damn lucky! What had he done to deserve such a caring and tender treatment? As if on cue, Lilly kept murmuring.

“You made it all seem so easy: how you dealt with the debt collectors, how you threw yourself into this new profession, and how you saved dad. It can’t be easy, yet you never complained, not once.”

He felt her concern, her gratefulness, but also a trace of self-blame. This wouldn’t do. He sneak-attacked her, gently grabbed her slender wrist, sensing her quiver in surprise.

“Ah! Since when were you awake?! Ahhh!” Lilly cried out as Jack wordlessly dragged her into a bear hug. She flailed for about a second before letting her body go soft. “I didn’t think you’d hear that.” She confided, embarrassed.

“There’s no need to worry one bit. In fact, I’m expressively forbidding worrying from now on, is that understood?” He uttered in a mock stern voice while lightly patting her head.

“What about school? Shouldn’t I worry about it?” She mischievously stuck her tongue out.

“Nope. Just do your best, that’s all. If worse comes to worst, I’ll hire you as an errand girl to get me the most delicious snacks from all over the city.”

“Really? That sounds quite pleasant. At this rate, my will to study will melt akin to chocolate in a volcano.” She teased.

“Oh, far from it, young lady. It is an unforgiving job with horrible work conditions, unpaid overtime, and an abominable slave-driver boss.” He exaggeratedly warned.

“Pffft— Yeah, right. As if I’d believe that!” She giggled.

“Anyway, I’m surprised that you’re already back. I must be losing my sense of time, for I would have sworn you’d still be at work.”

“Oh, yeah, the calibration machine exploded, so it ended earlier.” She nonchalantly replied.

“….What?!” Jack had never heard of the VR equipment having issues, ever.

“Not sure, but no one was hurt.” She shrugged. “Hey, on my way home, I stumbled upon a crazy Infinite story.”

“?”

“Apparently, all players are assigned to random starter villages. There’s one with a crazy player who’s already being called a Demon King. People say he’s a bloodthirsty, ruthless guy who used to work as a hitman IRL!”

“Oh?” Jack had no clue who she was talking about.

Was it that guy with the demon soul? No, it was too soon. A hitman? Usually, those guys became assassins in Infinite or something peaceful like fishermen or bakers. Then again, it didn’t really matter.

“It’s a guy from a place called New Leaf Village….”

That sure felt familiar…

Creator’s Thought

She didn’t know it, but between the two of us, Lilly was the strong one. I got all my resilience from years of hardships, of crawling my way to the top and fighting daily. Yet, she had always managed to remain herself no matter what this crazy world threw at us, from the very start.