Lord Of The Lost

As Cat Car stood there eagerly waiting for William to share the forum URL, ready to jot it down, William opened his mouth to speak. But before he could say a word, his figure suddenly shimmered and vanished into a ray of light, leaving Cat Car staring blankly at the empty spot where William had just stood.

---

In the real world, William blinked his eyes open, feeling the weight of reality settle back onto his shoulders. He chuckled quietly to himself, imagining the confusion and frustration on Cat Car's face. It wasn't intentional; his online time had simply run out.

Stretching his limbs, he stood up, his joints cracking with satisfying pops. After a long session in the game, William felt the familiar tension release from his muscles. He crossed the room and sat at his computer, quickly logging into the game's forum to catch up on any new developments.

The moment he logged in, a red notification dot blinked in the upper right corner of the screen. Someone had tagged him. Curious, William clicked on the notification and was taken to a forum post.

"This is Big Brother, he's very powerful!"

The username "Captain" was attached to the post, with an obvious tag for William: '@TheBreezeBlowsAcrossTheHills'.

William sighed, his lips quirking into a half-smile. 'What is this?' he thought. It was clearly a fluff post, a "water sticker" as they called it, a throwaway post meant to flood the forum with comments. Still, he scrolled down.

At first, the comments were filled with admiration and disbelief from other players.

"Wow, Big Brother's amazing!"

"Is this for real? How strong is he?"

But by the time William reached the sixth comment, someone had simply written, "Hello, Big Brother!" And from there, it spiraled out of control. Dozens of comments followed, all of them repeating the same phrase in perfect unison.

"Hello, Big Brother!"

William imagined a row of sharp-suited gangsters, lined up in two neat rows, all bowing and greeting him in chorus. The image made him laugh out loud. Shaking his head, he quickly closed the post.

Back in the forum, he noticed that there were more players than usual active today. The place was buzzing with energy as newcomers flooded in, making it more lively than before. William skimmed through the various posts, looking for any useful intelligence that might help him on his next in-game venture.

One post caught his attention:

"A group of thieves has appeared in the Swamp of Desire. Players from Numa Village and Daze Village should avoid the swamp. Several of our brothers were killed by them. The thieves are high-level, at least level 5 or 6."

Another player added:

"Thieves have shown up in Wheatfield Village too. The village chief and guards are trying to figure out how to deal with them."

Then another:

"Hunters from Darken Village have gone missing. The village chief says it might be linked to werewolves."

The posts were packed with warnings, but the details were vague, and the information was limited. Nothing seemed particularly valuable; at least, nothing that could help him directly. William frowned slightly, feeling like most of the intel here was incomplete or unverified.

Thinking for a moment, William decided to post something of his own. He opened a new thread and typed out a simple question: "What talents do you have?"

The response was immediate, and, as expected, confusion filled the replies.

"Talent? What talent?"

"Is this something we're missing? Has the boss come across something we haven't figured out yet?"

"I heard another player mention talent once before… but no one explained what it was."

"Wait, am I the only one totally in the dark here?"

William sat back, unsurprised. Most players hadn't encountered or discovered their talents yet, if they even had one. 'Talent must be rare,' he thought to himself. 'If everyone had one, this would've been common knowledge by now.' He didn't worry too much about the responses; he had what he needed.

Smiling to himself, William logged off, already planning his next move. With the rare knowledge he had, the game's world felt wide open with possibilities.

William watched the forum intently, eager to see if any talented players would step forward. After a few moments, someone finally broke the silence.

"My talent is called Steel Bones," a user posted. "It lets me block a certain amount of damage during battles."

William nodded, intrigued. Just then, another user chimed in.

"I've always loved planting flowers since I was a kid," they wrote. "Now that I'm a Player, I've obtained the Heart of Nature. It speeds up plant growth; does that count as a strong talent?"

Surprise rippled through the comments.

"Wait, there's a talent system in this game?" one player exclaimed.

Not long after, another thread appeared.

"I was gravely injured while fighting wild monsters, and at the brink of death, I awakened my talent: Rage. It boosts my physical abilities when I'm angry."

William felt a flicker of disappointment. 'Iron Bones, Heart of Nature, and Rage, none of these seemed as potent as my Killing to Prove the Way or Cat Car's Resurrection from the Dead.'

Players were buzzing with excitement in the comments.

"So you can gain a talent during battle or in desperate situations?" one asked.

"I died once, but I didn't get any prompts for awakening talents," another replied.

Then a user with some apparent inside knowledge spoke up.

"Metatron: Awakening a talent depends on individual accomplishments. Combat-oriented players can awaken talents in battle, while others may need different conditions."

Curious, William leaned closer to the screen.

"You seem well-informed about talents," he typed.

"Metatron: There's an old saying: 'Throwing a brick to attract jade.'"

William furrowed his brow, contemplating the saying. 'Who was the brick, and who was the jade in this conversation?'

Just then, a player known as the Forum Master interjected.

"The sooner a talent is awakened, the better. Those who discover their talents right after becoming players are often gifted individuals in real life."

William raised an eyebrow. 'What's this about?'

"Metatron: The gifted ones are those who are born different; stronger physiques, better memories, that sort of thing. They're more likely to awaken talents once they enter the game."

Another player, Yo-yo, seemed hesitant to speak. He watched quietly, clearly unimpressed by the boss's grandstanding.

A user named Gambler added, "It's also about willpower. The stronger your will, the higher your chance of awakening a talent."

Metatron then turned to the user with the Heart of Nature talent. "You might consider becoming a druid in the future. It aligns well with your abilities, though the job change requirements are quite strict."

William observed these exchanges, realizing that each of these players had unique skills and experiences. It was fascinating to see how many had awakened their talents almost immediately upon entering the game. He leaned back in his chair, contemplating what his next move should be in this evolving landscape of talents and abilities.

William sat back, watching the forum with interest. He had posted a simple inquiry, allowing talented players to share their abilities if they wanted to. He knew it might take a while, so he waited. A few minutes passed, and finally, the first response came in.

"My talent is Steel Bones," someone wrote. "It lets me block a certain amount of damage during combat."

William raised an eyebrow. 'Interesting, defensive talents.' Before he could think much further, another player chimed in.

"I've always loved growing plants," a second post read. "After becoming a Sequence Player, I gained the Heart of Nature. It speeds up plant growth. Is that a strong talent?"

There was a ripple of surprise throughout the forum. Players began to respond with excitement.

"Wait, there's a talent system in this game?" one user asked, clearly confused.

Soon, another post appeared, this time carrying a more dramatic tale.

"I was seriously injured in a fight with wild monsters, and just as I was on the verge of death, my talent awakened. The system told me I'd unlocked Rage, which boosts my physical abilities when I'm angry."

William skimmed through the responses and thought for a moment. 'Steel Bones, Heart of Nature, Rage...' While these talents were certainly useful, none of them seemed to hold the same power as his own 'Killing to Prove the Way' or Cat Car's 'Resurrection from the Dead'. He shook his head, unimpressed.

But the discussions in the forum grew more intense.

"Can you gain talents in the middle of battle?" someone asked, clearly intrigued by the story of the player who awakened their talent on the brink of death.

"I've died before, but nothing like that ever happened to me," another replied, disappointment in their tone.

Finally, a player with some inside knowledge, Metatron; jumped into the conversation.

"Awakening talents depends on individual accomplishments," Metatron explained. "Combat-oriented players will likely unlock theirs during battles, but others might need different conditions to trigger their talents."

William, curious about this player's knowledge, replied: "You seem to know a lot about talents."

"There's an old saying," Metatron answered cryptically. "'Throwing a brick to attract jade.'"

William leaned back in his chair, resting his chin in his hand. 'Throwing a brick to attract jade?' He mulled over the phrase. It seemed to have multiple layers of meaning. Was Metatron implying that some players had to offer something first before discovering their true talents? Or was he talking about the potential hidden within certain actions?

William wasn't sure who the "brick" was in this analogy or who the "jade" was.

That's when another user, going by the name Forum Master, added to the conversation.

"The sooner you awaken your talent, the better," Forum Master wrote confidently. "People who unlock their talents as soon as they enter the game are often those who are already exceptional in real life."

William's interest was piqued. "Exceptional how?" he wondered aloud.

Metatron quickly responded. "The people Forum Master is talking about are born with certain advantages, like great physical strength or excellent memory. These advantages give them a higher chance of awakening their talents once they start playing."

Another player, yo-yo, seemed like they wanted to say something, but in the end, stayed quiet, watching the conversation unfold without comment.

Then a user named Gambler offered a different perspective.

"It's not just about natural gifts," Gambler said. "It's also about willpower. The stronger your will, the more likely you are to awaken a talent."

Metatron returned to the player with the Heart of Nature talent and offered some advice.

"You should consider becoming a druid. Your talent aligns perfectly with that class, but be warned, the requirements to change jobs are pretty strict."

William continued reading through the posts, intrigued by the variety of talents emerging in the player base. Many of them seemed to awaken their talents the moment they entered the game, which suggested that there was something more than just random chance at play.

'These players aren't just ordinary,' William realized. Each of them had something special, something that made them stand out. But even as he reflected on this, he couldn't help but feel that there was still so much more to learn about the mysterious talent system and the untapped potential that lay within it.