I Don't Need To Log Out

I couldn't believe what was happening. If someone had asked me in my past timeline what my biggest wish was, I would have said, 'being able to log in 24/7,' ten times out of ten. It seems my wish has been granted for some reason.

"I shouldn't get ahead of myself, though. Even if it's not a bug since this isn't exactly a game, maybe this ability to stay logged in will only last for today."

It must be some kind of perk related to regressing; otherwise, I can't think of any other explanation. Maybe EVR wanted to give me a head start by letting me stay logged in all day today. But honestly, I'd rather be able to stay logged in forever than just get an early start. I hope this isn't a one-time thing.

I shouldn't waste this extra time, though. In 'EVR,' leveling up is fairly easy in the early game since we're starting later than the Keldars. First, I checked my status screen:

***

Status Window

Name: Arlon

Race: Human

Class: Warrior

Level: 1

HP: 350

MP: 200

VIT: 23

STR: 22 (+2)

INT: 13

AGI: 8

Skills: {None}

Title: Unfair Regressor

***

My eyes widened when I saw my title. Titles are rare perks that boost your stats or skills in various ways. In my previous timeline, I had a title suited to a warrior, but I had to complete a chain quest to earn it. I never saw anyone with more than one title, and since we only knew of one title quest, I'm not sure if it's even possible to get another.

But now I already have a title, and I don't know if I can get a second one by completing that quest. Hoping this title isn't bad, I checked its details.

Unfair Regressor

"The one who regressed and doesn't need to follow the fair play rules of Zeno.

Endless Ascent: The longer you stay logged in, the stronger you become!

**** (Locked)

**** (Locked)

**** (Locked)"

What! This is a total cheat. I can't believe I get to regress, play 24/7, and have these perks! I must have used up all my luck with my wish for balance.

I don't know exactly what the 'fair play rules' are, but I think it must have something to do with log-out times. Maybe I'll learn more about it later. I also don't know in what way I get stronger, but I believe I will learn it soon since I won't be logging out. But the more important thing is it seems like the not logging out perk wasn't a one-time thing.

It seems like there are also some locked perks. I believe they will be unlocked when I level up or certain conditions are met.

I also checked my stats, but they were the same as the last time. These were the stats of a warrior. +2 STR came from the starting sword given to everyone. I'd hoped that maybe my stats would be boosted because of my regression, but honestly, I already have more than enough.

---

On Trion, there are no humans. It's a planet of Beastmen, Elves, Dwarves, and other fantasy creatures. And I know that they aren't just game elements; they're real, living beings.

'It is easier to call them NPCs, though.'

Since they're real and know we players are coming, they've been getting ready for the game's launch. I can see a lot of NPCs bustling around town. They know the times we can't log in and use those hours to prepare for events. So they shouldn't be expecting any players today.

I think I should hide the fact that I don't need to log out. Even though I don't know much about what happened on Earth in the last timeline, I do know the game has a real-life impact. People buy and sell coins, companies that have guilds in the game fight, and some even resort to violence over in-game conflicts. Of course, most of this was when people thought this was a game.

Still, If anyone finds out I can stay logged in, they might try something drastic. Who wouldn't want someone who can level up faster on their side? I'll need to hide my level and perks. And that also means keeping it from the NPCs since they might spread the word. Not all NPCs are loyal—some might even betray their planet for the right price.

With this in mind, I walked into a store: Istarra's beginner alchemy shop. An old man with a long beard was sitting on his chair, pipe in his mouth. This was Charon, the 'beginner' alchemist. Actually, this guy was no beginner. He might even be the best alchemist in all of Trion. I should definitely get on his good side!

"Hi! Is the store open? I'd like to buy some potions." I said.

Everyone starts with 100 coins—enough to get by for a week if you're careful. But that's not what I will be doing. I can always get money if I need to since I know the future events and most of the hidden secrets.

"Who are you? I haven't seen you in this town before. There shouldn't be any players coming today either." Charon looked angry while saying this. I don't know what that is about.

"My name is Arlon, and I'm not a player. I'll be serving as a field guide to help players get stronger faster. I just wanted to stock up on some potions before I get started."

"You look human. There aren't any humans on Trion." When Charon said this, I realized I wasn't as prepared with my cover story as I thought. Luckily, I came up with a quick explanation, though I didn't love lying to the NPCs.

"Yes, I'm using an appearance-changing device to better assist the human players."

"I see. The name's Charon. Tell me what potions you need."

"Thank you! I need two minor health potions and one poison enchantment potion." I'd calculated the total; it should come to 93 coins.

"Isn't it a bit early for the poison enchantment potions? They're expensive, and the players shouldn't need them at this level. Anyway, you're the guide, and it's none of my business. That'll be 73 gold," Charon said gruffly.

I was shocked. The total should be 93 gold; I was sure of it. Minor health potions are 5 gold each, and the poison enchantment is 83 gold. Has Charon given me a discount, selling the poison enchantment potion for 63 gold? But why? We're hardly close—I don't even think he likes me yet. I wanted to ask, but I wasn't supposed to know the prices yet.

So I thanked him, bought the potions, and left the store. My next destination was outside town: the forest where Wild Wolves roam in packs. They're level 10 monsters, which means the area isn't suited for a level 1 player to explore freely. But I had a plan!

When I arrived at the forest, I applied the poison enchantment potion to my only weapon, the Rusty Sword given to every warrior. I don't even need to check the stats of this sword. It is enough that I know it can penetrate a Wild Wolve's skin. Now, anyone scratched by my sword would be poisoned. Unlike a low-level poison potion, this enchantment is potent enough to affect monsters up to level 20, which is why it's so expensive. Against level 10 monsters, it's practically lethal.

Of course, a level 10 monster's claws are just as lethal to me. That's one reason this game had such an impact on Earth—it's not like traditional turn-based games or MMORPGs where skills guarantee a hit. Since it's real or thought of as fully immersive, if you're strong enough to hurt something and fast enough to dodge, you can theoretically kill a level 100 monster at level 1. Hardly anyone knew this in the early days, and I planned to use it to my advantage.

The first thing I did was locate the caves where the Wild Wolves hid. I already knew the general area, so finding them was easy. Wild Wolves tend to stay in their caves during the daytime, making this the perfect opportunity. In 'EVR', experience points are awarded after the fight ends, and the more monsters one kills in a single fight, the more XP they receive overall. This means that killing multiple monsters at once gives exponentially more XP, which is far more efficient than killing them one by one.

Since Wild Wolves lacked intelligence, they acted purely on instinct. I gathered some stones, threw one into a cave, and then moved on to the next, repeating the process. Soon, one wolf after another emerged from the caves, scanning their surroundings until their eyes landed on me. They started howling, calling their packmates. There were around 30 caves, but I only threw stones into 10 of them. Each cave likely held 3 to 5 wolves, which was more than enough for now. Eventually, all the wolves from those 10 caves emerged and were focused on me. I immediately ran to the nearest tree and climbed it.

The wolves, driven by instinct, followed me, but they merely waited under the tree, watching for me to come down.

Of course, I wasn't an idiot, so I didn't come down. Instead, I gripped my Rusty Sword and slashed at them one by one. The feeling of cutting into living flesh might disturb many, but I was used to it since this wasn't my first time. In fact, this was the second biggest reason many players left the game once they realized it was real. The biggest reason was players who sacrificed NPCs to complete their quests, or those who killed them and then realized the consequences were real—not just part of a game—and decided to quit.

The tree wasn't large enough for my sword to reach more than three wolves at once. But since the wolves weren't intelligent, they didn't realize they were being poisoned. As a result, the wounded wolves fell back, while fresh ones took their place under the tree. I continued slashing at them for about five minutes. There were a total of 41 wolves, and soon, all of them were poisoned—just as the enchantment wore off. The Wild Wolves had around 2000 HP, and the poison from the enchantment potion dealt 20 damage every 5 seconds for 10 minutes. With their natural recovery speed, the first wolf should die in about a minute.

After waiting for a minute, the first Wild Wolf dropped dead. Realizing their packmate had fallen, the others recognized the danger and started to flee. This was part of my plan. Wild Wolves instinctively run back to their caves when threatened, and that's exactly what they did. I didn't jump down from the tree, though, in case they returned, and instead waited. Since they were poisoned, no matter how far they ran, they would die eventually. After five more minutes, I cautiously approached the caves.

I remembered which caves I had thrown the rocks into and waited for three more minutes. Soon, I began receiving a lot of notifications while my body started to glow.

'You have leveled up X6. You earned 18 CP.'

'You are the first to level up five times in a single fight. You earned the title "The First One to Level Up."'

What? Another title?