Chapter 3 The First Steal

Axel started laughing maniacally. He had done it. The view was beautiful. A walled-off city with three layers, each gaining in height after the other. It was magical. He thought he would never see something as beautiful. It was a giant circular city, built onto jagged rocks. Three large towers in the shape of spears soared up above the rest of the buildings. The walls were built from rock and steel; green and blue flags hung off them.

“Yo, dude, you ok?” a young teenager asked him.

Axel stopped smiling and stood up to face him. “Fine, thanks.”

“You sure, you were laughing like the Joker.”

“Do me a favour and piss off,” Axel spat. “And ur, enjoy the good times you have in the game, cause you don’t know when life is gonna fuck you in the ass.”

Cautiously, the young teenager took a step back. He was trying to be nice to the drug addict, but that only blew up in his face. “You’re a real arsehole, old man.” He quickly scurried away.

“I’m 21 years old you little shit!” Axel bellowed ahead. “And I know I’m an arsehole, I thought that was quite clear!”

The teenager turned around and stuck up two middle fingers at him. Axel scrunched his face up as he tried to run after him. As soon as he stepped out from the shade of the tree, he was hit with the debuff. He started grumbling to himself again, kicking stones along the way.

Regardless of everything going on, he was very happy when he reached the city gates. Players were coming in droves. Axel had a lot of testing to do, money to make and people to scam.

“Right,” he said, hands on hips. “Test the NPCs.”

A guard was standing next to the gate in silver armour. There was a tag above their head, and they were standing there like a statue. Casually, Axel headed over to them. He put on a lovely fake smile as he approached.

“Good afternoon, traveller, what may I help you with?”

“You’re very polite,” he commented, smiling without his eyes. “There are a few things I was wondering. Can you see something floating above my head?”

“Um, no, no I cannot. Is this some sort of magic trickery?”

“No no,” Axel dismissed. “How do you know I am a traveller?”

“Your clothes,” the guard replied.

“Indeed I am. You’re very perceptive I have to say.”

The guard chuckled. “You humble me, traveller.”

This was very good for Axel. He could blend in with normal NPCs if he could hide his player tag. In his head, he rubbed his black and grey hands together. It was time to start the fun.

“What’s your name by the way?” Axel asked.

“Lenny Krav, Guard of Tresluna.”

“Ooo, a title, how impressive,” buttered Axel. “Well, Lenny, my name’s Ax—Hoarder. Call me Hoarder.” He hadn’t used that name in a long time; it felt good that he did.

“Strange name, but nice to meet you, Hoarder.” the guard said and stuck his hand out. Axel clasped it. He knew how to give the perfect handshake; firm, good connection, and a singular shake.

{You have befriended Lenny Krav, Guard of Tresluna}

{Your reputation rank with Lenny Krav, Guard of Tresluna, is Friendly}

{Lenny will now do a singular favour for you. In return, he may ask you for one}

“That’s handy,” Axel thought out loud.

“What is, Hoarder?” Lenny asked.

“Oh, nothing. If I see you around another time I’ll fetch you a drink or something, it must be hot in this weather.”

“Oh, Hoarder, you do not need to—”

“No no no, I don’t mind. You always have to look out for the guards since they look after you.” Axel was testing to see if it would go up. There was no reputation points, only the milestones. He liked the realism of it.

“That would be great, yes. Thank you, Hoarder.”

“No worries. Take it easy, Lenny,”

“Take it easy?”

Axel was already walking off, by turned around and walked backwards. “It means to not get involved with too much stress, it takes a toll on you.”

“I suppose that I will take it easy.”

“You got it, Lenny!”

Axel’s smile disappeared once he joined the crowd entering the city. In the game he played before, paying off the guards was done by every dark guild in the entire game. All you had to do was give them something valuable. He didn’t have anything valuable, except the fake smile he could effortlessly put on.

The entrance into the city was grand. There are carvings of the three tall towers on every stone brick. Ahead of him was a giant, bustling market, where there were yells and shouts of friends meeting each other. He had to admit, it was pretty cool.

He walked through the market, paying close attention to everything. He wanted to test the limits of their awareness. He knew that the game wanted to mimic realism, so hopefully stealing something would be easy. Stealing was great in the short team, however, it just increased his chances of getting caught each time. Axel was never the type to steal, he always thought it was wrong. But fortunately, his morals got lost a long time ago, and he was raring for the opportunity to steal in a video game.

He knew that his character was small and that he was below everyone’s shoulders. He could easily access his inventory discretely. Although he was small, his black and grey head stuck out like a sore thumb. The only thing he had on him was some cloth clothes and the sword he was given by the fairy. He turned around a corner to disappear around an alley. As soon he was there, he pulled out the sword from his waist and examined it.

Iron Sword

Description: The Starter Sword

Tier: Crude

Damage: 5

Condition: New

Enchantments: None

“What cheap crap,” he commented. Still, he started cutting away at the bottom of his trousers, trying to make a hood from the cloth. Eventually, he had two weird-looking scarfs that he wrapped around his black and grey spotty head. It covered him well to hide his race but didn’t block the sunlight from taking the fatigue effect.

Axel rolled his shoulders as he prepared himself. He had a plan to steal some stuff already. All he needed was a distraction. He had seen it done before on Oxford street. There were simpler ways. You could send in a stereotypical thief, one of the dumb kids; when they were caught, you’d walk out with ten thousand pounds worth of items.

The solo way, the way he was going to do it, was to create a big enough distraction to take everyone’s attention away. He had already seen a creaking stall a dozen metres away from the one he was going to steal from. The stall he had in mind to steal from was selling weapons. Mainly cheap swords so that pay-to-win players could gain an advantage over the poorer ones.

Big plans were brewing in his twisted mind and he loved it. His sense of morality had stooped so low since the last time he played a VR game. He was going to sell the wares to players outside of the games. He was going to set up a stall where the three paths converge to the main city road and sell the players their extremely overpriced items.

Of course, if he was a player, people would be suspicious. However, if he was an NPC, his word was a good as gold. Not all NPCs were good, even his younger self knew that. At the start of almost all VR games, you run into kind-hearted NPCs. The problem he had was getting rid of the player tag above his head. But he already had some devious plan to get rid of it.

“Right,” Axel said, getting back to the task at hand. He commanded his inventory open, and a grid showed itself to him. He grabbed his sword and pushed it through the screen. Sure enough, a small sword showed up. To just test it, he grabbed a few pieces of cobblestone and put them inside too. The icon showed up of them with how many were inside. In the corner of the grid, there was a small percentage number. It meant there weren’t slots, rather volumetric space.

“Nice upgrades,” he thought out loud.

With his makeshift hood and new shorts, he disappeared into the crowded market. His heart was beating fast. He had never truly done anything like this before. He was fairly sheltered by his mother as a child. He did things by the book. He grew out of that fast since his family went into debt, but he never went out of his way to do something illegal. But as there were no real consequences in the game, he felt giddy at the chance of doing something terrible.

He calmed his excitement as he approached the stall he was going to steal from. There were a lot of people around it, many of them looked to be wealthy players. It meant he could easily squeeze in between them amidst the commotion. The person occupying the stall was a half-orc, and an NPC he wouldn’t mess with. He needed to be quick and then blend in with the crowd.

He strolled past the stall and then headed towards one with weak support on the side. What was better, the stall had metal trinkets that would cause a larger noise, drawing more eyes. It was perfect. Axel was confident, he remained focused, but his heart was beating out of his chest.

He calmly walked around the side of the stall, where the weakened support was. Just as a poor soul walked by it, Axel’s shoulder barged them into it. Without checking to see what happened, he already disappeared back into the crowd. His small stature went unnoticed.

He was only a few metres away from the weapons stall when he heard wood bending in on itself. A loud clatter of metal followed shortly after, and the half-orcs attention was diverted. Within a split second later, he bent over the table and scooped up every dagger and short sword he could. They all fell into his inventory, and he spun around quickly to make it seem like one of the other players could do it.

He vanished into the crowd, keeping his head low.

“Hey!” the half-orc shouted. “Who took my weapons!”

He couldn’t but grin as a shouting match ensued. He gave a final glance behind him to make sure no one was following him; the coast was clear, and he disappeared into a back alley. He saw a group of guards pass by and his breath was halted. They didn’t notice him, and he exhaled loudly. He moved further down the alleyway and examined all the weapons he had just gotten.

Steel Dagger

Description: A dagger made of steel. Its curved blade causes extra slashing damage.

Tier: Common

Damage: 11

Condition: New

Enchantments: None

+10% slashing damage

Fae Iron Short Sword

Description: A short sword made of fae iron. Fae iron is known for its durableness and damage against dark type monsters.

Tier: Common

Damage: 13

Condition: New

Enchantments: None

+25% increased durability

+10% damage against dark type monsters

Iron Short Sword

Description: A short sword made of iron.

Tier: Common

Damage: 14

Condition: New

Enchantments: None

Sharpened Iron Dusters

Description: sharpened knuckles dusters made of iron.

Tier: Common

Damage 19

Condition: Worn

Enchantments: Pierce I

+5% armour piercing

It was a good haul, and Axel was proud. His heart was still erratic, but at least he felt euphoric. He didn’t check the prices of them, so he was going to have to get them appraised somewhere else. The weapons didn’t have a level either which made him wonder if the late-game.

{You have stolen 4 items}

+189 Experience

{You have earned the title: Thief}

{Congratulations! You have levelled up. You are now level 2}

+1 Attribute Point

+1 Skill Point

“You get experience of stealing things?” he questioned out loud. “Damn, this game is fucking good.” Axel wondered what the deal was with skill points. He commanded the page to his HUD to look at it. There were all types of skills he could put a point into. The skills ranged from 1-5 skill points. There were also spells there, but he was not aiming for a damaging class. The first thing he did was look at the Loot Goblin subcategory; race skills were always handy no matter what.

Skills/Race Skills/Loot Goblin Skills:

Rain Gold (Active) (3 Skill Points to acquire) I See Coins (Passive) (1 Skill Points to acquire) Dweller In The Dark (Passive) (5 Skill Points to acquire) Tax For Thee But Not For Me (Active) (3 Skill Points to acquire) Unlock after level 10 🔒 Unlock after level 10🔒 Unlock after level 15🔒 Unlock after level 20🔒 Unlock after level 25 🔒 Unknown Unknown Unknown

There were many skills for his race. However, the only one he could use as of now, was the one called I See Coins. He clicked on it.

I See Coins (Passive)

Skill description: This allowsItsyou to always see the true value of an item. This will depend on the city/town/settlement you are in. Upon seeing an items description box, you will see the true value of an item.

Lore: I See Coins is a staple skill for any Loot Goblin. They hate spending money, and hate being swindled out of it even more. With this skill, you can catch out a scammer before they rob you of your coin.

It was perfect; just what he needed. Without looking at the others, he pressed on it. A moment later, a coin appeared in front of him. It was gold, and swirling around in the air. It suddenly then flew at him, striking him in the forehead.

“Ah, what the fuck?” he cursed, grabbing his head.

{You have acquired I See Coins (Passive)}

{You can now see any items worth up to 1 Gold}

“You didn’t need to throw something at me!” he yelled at no one. Axel would have liked some cool mist to surround him. But no, he got a coin bolted at his head. Nevertheless, he brought out all the weapons and examined them again.

Steel Dagger

Description: a dagger made of steel. Its curved blade causes extra slashing damage.

Tier: Common

Damage: 11

Condition: New

Enchantments: None

+10% slashing damage

I See Coins: 4 Silver 3 Copper

Fae Iron Short Sword

Description: a short sword made of fae iron. Fae iron is known for its durableness and damage against dark type monsters.

Tier: Common

Damage: 13

Condition: New

Enchantments: None

+25% increased durability

+10% damage against dark type monsters

I See Coins: 5 Silver 4 Copper

Iron Short Sword

Description: a short swtheord made of iron.

Tier: Common

Damage: 14

Condition: New

Enchantments: None

I See Coins: 3 Silver 9 Copper

Sharpened Iron Dusters

Description: sharpened knuckles dusters made of iron.

Tier: Common

Damage 19

Condition: Worn

Enchantments: Pierce I

+5% armour piercing

I See Coins: 7 Silver 1 Copper

Axel nodded his approval of the skill. It was perfect. Now he needed to sell them for his other idea he had going. Before he set off, he put his point attribute into Greed and then brought up his profile

User: TH3 HOARD3R

Race: Loot Goblin

Level: 2

Experience: 209/410

Titles: Thief,

Status:

Attribute Points:

Health:

30

Constitution:

3

Charisma:

3(-1)

Coin Increase Rate: 1.11

Mana:

100

Intelligence:

10

Luck:

10

Stamina:

20

Endurance:

2

Greed:

11(+1)

Skills:

Wallet: 3 Silver

I See Coins (Passive) Rank 1 Upgrade Cost: 1 Skill Point

1 Active Quest

Axel rubbed his chin, thinking about the Greed stat. He had yet to see it come in useful. There were many ways in how it could be broken. He kept thinking about buying and selling things. He would receive the flat 1.11 times increase from selling an item. If he then bought it back, then sold it, he could create an infinite loop of income. Axel knew that wouldn’t work, but was still hopeful for it to be useful.

He brought out the starter sword he was given and started swinging his sword. He needed to complete the quest to test out his greed stat. He emerged from the other end of the alleyway, and headed over to another stall.

“Hi,” Axel said cheerfully. “I was wondering if there’s a lower economic area?”

“The slums?” the seller questioned.

“Yes. Exactly.”

“It’s on the other side of the city. The jagged rocks cover the site of it from the royal keep.”

“Oh wonderful,” Axel said, clapping his hands together. “How do I get there?”

“Follow the main street towards the noble quarters, follow the wall all the way around until you see huge rocks jutting out. Underneath there are the slums. But be warned traveller, crime is rampant in those places. Even the kids there will pick your pockets.”

“Brilliant, just what I was hoping for,” Axel said, giving the seller a genuine smile. “Have a good day.”

The seller looked confused as Axel hurried towards the main street while swinging his sword. He arrived at an enormous cobblestone pathway. It connected onto the market he was just at, and lead directly to another wall far away into the city.

He took off in a brisk walk while still swinging the sword. Axel had to admit, he loved the city. In the last game he played, the cities always felt empty, plagued by poor design. But in Tresluna, he felt this place was absolutely real. There were dozens of NPCs on the street, all talking to one another; they all had completely separate lives.

As he continued walking through, he took in the beautiful architecture of the city. It was mediaeval, but without the faeces covering the streets. It was bright and vibrant, which briefly disregarded the hate he felt towards everything.

“Too fucking perfect,” Axel spat.

{Quest Complete}

{Swing your sword 100 times}

{Rewards}

2 Silver (2Sx1.11= 2 Silver, 2 Copper)

20 Experience

“Interesting,” he noted. He received the increase from quests. He was now about to try it from selling, he just wanted to find the dodgy part of Tresluna. Selling the weapons back into the market he was just at, or into a stall, could cause him to be caught. He wanted a place that didn’t care if he was a murderer or a samaritan.

Eventually, he arrived at a giant wall. Four guards were surrounding a large arched gate. One of the guards was processing a rich NPC. Curiously, Axel approached. He was immediately halted before he even got close.

“Fuck off, goblin,” the guard spat.

“Now, now, that’s not very nice. Why won’t you let me through?”

“You’re poor, traveller. You’ll need to earn some coins before we let you through here.”

Axel smiled with his teeth. “My apologies. If you want, you can see my goblin cock for a few silver?”

The guard scowled. “Just piss off, goblin.”

“Oh, don’t be closeted,” Axel joked. “I’m progressive.”

The guard tightened their grip on a spear. That was Axel’s cue to leave. He grinned, saluted, and started walking around the wall. It was probably a late-game area. He was wondering if it was to do with the main storyline or just in general your armour/weapons. Some areas in the game before were wealth locked. Either way, there seemed to be prime opportunities inside; he was going to explore it one way or another.