I logged in again after a quick breakfast, which was really just a microwaved egg sandwich, but do not underestimate the lure of egg sandwiches! I almost grabbed another one before I realized that I was really curious about what that free skill would be.

I hope it’s not some silly gag skill like [juggling]…

Upon my login, a window popped up.

Your skill will now be picked at random. Eeney Meeney Miney Mo…

Oy oy! That game is totally rigged, you shouldn’t use it if you were intending to be random, you know!

I was about to retort, but a ding sounded out as another blue window popped up.

Congratulations! You have been awarded a Unique skill: [Substitution] Use it wisely.

I tapped on the italics for ‘Unique’ and two sub-window opened up, explaining.

Unique skills are one of a kind. Once you possess a unique skill, no one else can learn it. Your luck must be very good to find one so early~ +1 Luck

Well, duh. Luck just so happens to be my highest stat. Not that I’m proud of that fact or anything…

I noticed a blinking upside-down triangle in the bottom right corner of the first window. Clicking on it, it scrolled down to an extra explanation.

As a possessor of a unique skill, you will have to complete a quest that only possessors of rare skills can take. Make sure you rank up before you attempt this quest okay~?

What is with this cheerful ‘happy-go-lucky-while-saying-something-ominous’ vibe here! I wanted to retort, but once again, the free luck stats were a good thing, right? If I have to put up with a gaming system’s weird way of saying things in order to get free stats, then I think that it’s a pretty fair, acceptable exchange.

Once I closed all the blue windows, one more popped up.

You will now be redirected to enter the game. Please wait a moment

My dark surroundings suddenly lit up, and I looked around.

I reappeared at the same place I was standing before being hit by the cabbage death trap. Good thing I am protected as a newbie, or I would have had my stats lowered by 25% for 24 hours in game time.

Immediately I checked my new skill out.

[Substitution]:

can switch two designated targets instantaneously. It can also supply for a missing ingredient in alchemy or cooking by using mana points. Range between the user and the objects in question will increase with levels. Don’t use this to steal, please.

What! I would never!...except from the people I don’t like, of course.

“Ahem!”

I jumped, and swiftly whirled around, ready to dance out of the way of any more swiftly approaching carts, before realizing that it was just Ryuu.

“It seems you are more misfortunate than I first thought. The great I may need to watch you more closely to make sure something like this doesn’t repeat.” Ryuu said.

What, am I embarrassing you now? That was completely out of my hands, you know!? Even the Powers that be have acknowledged it, you know!

I nodded, conserving my energy for later. Exploding at someone won’t get anything good accomplished, after all…But still…I looked away for a moment, conscious of a lot of players pointing at me and whispering

“… Are they laughing at me?” I wondered out loud.

“It seems that tragic accidents that happen to heroes-in-training can only be considered a joke, due to your unique circumstances.” Ryuu observed. At that moment, I felt a uniquely dark aura originating from behind me, but when I looked, it was only Ryuu, observing the surrounding area with a bored air.

Was it my imagination?...

When I turned back to return the looks of the gawkers, surprisingly, they all found they had somewhere else to go. I wonder why that was? Once again, I felt a dark aura behind me, and I turned around to see only Ryuu with the same bored expression.

But, that can’t be right? No one can see the other person’s AID, after all. Otherwise, Ryuu would be swarmed by girls vying for his attention.

Huh. It must have been my imagination then! I decided.

“Let’s go to…” I quickly checked the quest notification in the corner of my eyes. “..Mrs. Pearl, then.”

“Hmm…so it seems that master is bad with names, huh?” Ryuu muttered.

“What? No! I just momentarily forgot because I was preoccupied thinking about something else.” I replied, a bit too strongly, denying my incompetence.

“It’s all right. I’ll be sure to remember everyone’s names for you. After all, a perfect AID must be his master’s support.” He replied infuriatingly. I realized that at this point, I should just give up, otherwise this might go on all day.

“Do what you want.” I waved my hand. Ryu smirked.

“This King appreciates your cooperation.”

“???” I strongly wanted to ask him what the heck he was talking about, when I remembered that I also had received a free weapon from the system, earlier.

Ignoring my exchange with Ryuu, I opened up my inventory, and sure enough, a mysterious jade box rested in the first of the thirty spaces within the inventory. Selecting the jade box, it suddenly appeared in a puff of smoke and landed in my outstretched hand.

Surprisingly, it fit into the palm of my hand. This is a weapon? Oh, I know. I’ll open it and whatever is inside will suddenly grow larger upon taking it out, right? I took a deep breath and opened the jade box.

“…Eh?” I stared at the item in the box. “This is…”

“A hairpin?” Ryuu had glanced over at the item in the box and was able to identify it at once. “Ah, the system’s random weapon that was granted you earlier. Perfect. Allow this king to show his knowledge on popular hairstyles.” Saying that, he took the hairpin out and twisted my hair up onto my head, securing it there with the hairpin. Then he took out a mirror to showcase the hairstyle.

I stared blankly at my face in the mirror. Well, in all fairness the style looked quite complex, despite only taking a few moments to complete. I quite liked it, in fact-No no no! That’s not it! I pulled myself away from admiring the hairstyle.

“But, I thought I was to be given a weapon? Why did the system grant me a piece of jewelry?” I said, puzzled.

Ryuu raised an eyebrow. “Technically speaking, it is still a weapon. Did you not check its stats with your appraisal skill?”

How would I be able to do that if it wasn’t in my sights for more than five seconds? A vein throbbed in my head as I held back my desire to kill him. “I was negligent in my surprise. And it’s such a shame to take it out of the hairstyle that you so skillfully put together. Perhaps you could share its stats with me?”

Ryuu’s mouth curved upwards into a smirk. “Then, allow this king to show you just what kind of weapon this hairpin is.”

A blue box opened up in front of me.

Named Weapon:

Hairpin of the Legendary Phantom Thief, Azure Mist

Type:

Hidden weapon

Attack:

+5-+10

Special Effect:

Upon the first strike with this weapon, it has a 2% chance of inflicting instant death. Percentage increases with level. Good luck~

Key action to initiate attack:

Take hairpin out of hair.

Cooldown 10 seconds.

The writing style was as frivolous as always. I focused on the words ‘hidden weapon’. “What makes a hidden weapon different from regular weapons?” I asked Ryuu.

“You really are clueless, aren’t you?” He chuckled. “It is because it is a hidden weapon that it is special. Since it is disguised as a hairpin, this hidden weapon can be equipped as jewelry, instead of as a weapon. Think of it as having an extra weapon slot instead of a headdress.” Ryuu explained.

“…I see…” Was all I could say for the time being. Well, it would be good in a pinch, I suppose. But that 2%...Could it be improved with the addition of poisons or striking at vital areas? Otherwise, increasing proficiency would get progressively more and more difficult in later levels. I decided to test it out at the earliest opportunity.

“Now, if we’re quite finished, shall we be off to Mrs. Pearl’s?” Ryuu finally said. “I’ve already notified her of our intentions to visit today.”

Oh, that’s right! Mrs. Pearl. Got it. I nodded, and he snapped his fingers.

In the upper right-hand corner of my vision, the map icon became a miniature map of the Southern part of Tanpopo Village. A yellow arrow in the center of the map displayed my current position. Looking at the map, I noticed that it pulled back and displayed a golden flag in a spot all the way across the sprawling village on the northern side, which was near the forest.

“I have marked on the map where Mrs. Pearl’s residence is, so that you do not get lost on your way. But, since I know that people can still get lost even with a map, this King shall also accompany you on your way there.”

“Mmn.” I responded noncommittally as I mentally brushed off his insult to my intelligence. Aside from the near constant insults, as he was somewhat helpful, I had decided to categorize him as ‘tollerable’.

This time, instead of Ryuu walking ahead of me, he walked slightly behind me to my right. Huh. Wait…Is he treating me like one of those preschoolers that can’t walk to school without a guardian!? I felt like my heart was crying. I’m really fine. You really don’t need to be watching me like I’ll just get into trouble wherever I go. That last case was an accident! An Accident!

I managed to keep up my poker face all the way to Mrs. Pearl’s house, even though I really felt like crying at that time.