The Land of Trademark Online

by Nikolai Chekhov

  Without another word, we walked towards the building closest to the inn and entered. Inside there was little to see. The walls had shelves, but only a few trinkets here and there for sale. At the end of the room was a counter where a man sat reading a book. One eye looked over at us as we approached, but he did not stop reading.

  “[Necromancer], welcome back. Quite the scene you stirred up earlier, but the Father’s girlfriend?”

  “Not intentional. Never knew who she was, but sadly it means my time here in the Kongdom is over. There are a few things I need to do before leaving, and that’s where I need your help. My friend here needs a new meter, and I need mine drained, and in exchange, I will trade knowledge.”

  This time the merchant put the book down and turned his attention fully on us. “Knowledge I don’t have is rare, but it is rarer still that the knowledge impresses me.”

  “Deuce, you are up. Explain how you destroyed your [Drama Meter].”

  “Wait, you destroyed your own meter?”

  “I did, will the means be enough to assist us?”

  The merchant nodded his head, “No, I’m afraid it would leave a deficit. Hmm… Got it!” A foot slapped down, and the top of the counter slid down revealing more trinkets. “You both can take one, and I will fix your meters. Fair?”

  Shagwell tensed and then his eyes narrowed, and I waited to see what would happen. After several tense seconds, he relaxed, and I let out a breath I didn’t realize I’d been holding.

  “Very well, I am leaving, and this secret will get out, eventually. Tell him, Deuce.”

  I explained it all, even how I broke my own meter. The merchant tested it out by calling the Father a lot of names that had me blushing, but truthfully they were still tame compared to what others called him. Just like when I did it, the meter shorted out.

  “Magnificent,” The merchant whispered in awe. “To think there was this much power contained within [Drama], and the Kongdom is probably harvesting it all. I think this is one of the natural powers of the universe—ah sorry. Let’s get your meters fixed, and I’ll ruminate later.”

  The merchant drained off Shagwell’s drama, and I could see the energy transferring to a crystal. The man smiled mysteriously as he held up the crystal to candlelight. There was some muttering, but I didn’t quite comprehend his logic or breakthrough.

  “It's an [Energy Crystal],” Shagwell whispered. “He has never used one before, which means we sold that knowledge for dirt.”

  “All done.” The merchant gestured to the trinkets. “Take whatever you like.” The man paid us no more attention as he brought the crystal to the back room, so I grabbed something at random.

  “The way out is through the inn which coincidentally connects into the [Bad Seed Inn]. C’mon, let’s get out of here.” Shagwell walked us through the inn, and we climbed the stairs upward until we reached another stone tunnel where the back of the inn touched the stone wall of the Black Market. Through the tunnel was another set of stairs that ended at a simple looking door. Once opened, the shimmering of the dungeon portal was visible.

  We stepped through into a storage room for the inn.

  [You have left the Smuggler’s Den.]

  The room we stood in was a front that only appeared to be used. Sacks of grains and barrels filled the room, but I was certain they were empty or filled with junk. The only thing that didn’t sell the story was how clean the room was. The door out was much more impressive than the dungeon door itself. It was a thick wood with metal banding and reminded me a lot of the door where I’d found the magical mirror.

  Stepping into the hallway, a person stepped out of the shadows. I nearly screamed an unmanly scream.

  “Welcome back Master Jason. You must be Deuce—please head to room 203. I suggest you wait there until I summon you. Your friends are already there, and I will send up a meal. It should not have to be said, but you will not talk about anything you saw. Understood?”

  “Ye—Yes. Shit tits.” My tongue stumbled over the words in a rush to spit them out.

  “Good. Master Jason, you will find the others in the private dining room.”

  “Wait, Shagwell, I got more of those cows, one, in particular, I call Groundbeef since he doesn’t have legs. Whatever you are planning, you can have it.”

  Jason’s smile grew larger by the second, “Hand me my bag and pull it out and I’ll take it.”

  I tossed him back his supplies and then—

  Plop!

  Groundbeef sat on the floor trying to bite at Shagwell. A green glow surrounded him, and then the zombie cow disappeared. “Thanks, this will be a big help tomorrow.”

  We split up, and I headed to my room. The girls and Earle were waiting. Hours later, no summons came, and I drifted off asleep.

  Chapter 60

  End of Day Six

  Location: Summary Room

  Almost a week and already these end of day summaries were feeling like an old hat. The desk, the couch, the— pig-tailed little girl smoking a cigar?

  “Who the crap are you?”

  “Monkey, just because I’m not your favorite stuffed fuck toy—”

  “Just stop—that’s too weird coming out of a little girl’s mouth.”

  “You aren’t any fun, and I had your costume all picked out too, see it’s that purple hippo with a horn on its head.”

  “No hell exists in which I would wear that so you could ride me like your favorite pony.”

  “Damn, my algorithms are making me too predictable,” NPC said and jumped up on the desk. He plucked the cigar from his lips—or hers—and blew smoke into my face.

  “Yes, blame your algorithms—whatever helps you sleep at night, you demented tin can.”

  “I might be pint-sized, but I can still kick your ass, freak.”

  “Fine, you can—owww, shit tits!” The little girl was standing almost nose to nose with me, so I had not seen her hand come up and grind the lit cigar into my face. Something snapped, and I reacted. A right hook struck her on the side of the head and sent her tumbling and bouncing across the floor until she hit the beat-up couch NPC always sat on.

  “Oh yeah, that is a three for one special,” NPC said standing up, the cigar still in his hand and not a mark on him. “You should see the look on your face, monkey.”

  “What the hell is wrong with you?”

  “Oh grow up, it’s all virtual, none of this shit is real. I thought getting laid would have removed that stick from your ass.”

  “I can see I’m not going to win with you. How about we do the summary thing?”

  “No [PoV Shift]?”

  “Nope, sum it up.”

  [Today’s Summary]

  [Experience Summary:

  Current Level: 3

  Unspent Experience: 2,910 XP

  - Today: 2,481 XP (No Bonuses)

  - Carried Over: 429 XP

  Cumulative Experience needed for level 4: 3,000 XP

  Alternate Experience Purchases:

  —One Time Purchases—

  Level 3:

  +1 Feat slot (Purchased)

  +1 Uncommon Feat - Random (Purchased)

  Level 3 Monk ability (Purchased)

  Level 2:

  +1 Attribute of your choice (Purchased)

  +5 Acclimation Points in any skill of your choice (Purchased)

  Any Level:

  Author Skill (Purchased)

  Combat Awareness (Cost: 2,000 XP)

  —Unlimited Purchases—

  +1 XP Coin (Cost: 100 XP)

  —Limited Time Purchases—

  Title: The Alternate (Purchased)

  How would you like to spend your Experience?]

  “[Combat Awareness] is the skill I opened?”

  “It varies for each class, but yes. Notice you can buy it at any time, so you don’t need to get it now.”

  “But…?”

  “It is probably one of the best passive skills your class will get. It really shines when you learn more blocks. Righ
t now you are still in the offensive part of your skills.”

  “What’s it do?”

  “It’s difficult to describe.” The little girl puffed on her cigar as if in thought, but I could tell she was toying with me. “You will see an echo of your opponent’s attack or movements. It isn’t much, but you will gain an advantage in combat if you know how to capitalize on it.”

  “So the echo is…?”

  “Dammit, monkey. Why do you make me spell everything out for you? The echo is moving before the physical body is; it’s a predictive system based on minute movements of their body and muscles. Imagine seeing the trajectory of an arrow and being able to snag it out of the air. Cool shit right?”

  “Why is my experience so light?” I did not have to buy the ability tonight, and if I waited until level five, I’d get a discount. It did not sound like I’d benefit just yet anyway. I felt like I accomplished a lot today.

  “Well you didn’t finish any quests, your story arc is still in limbo, and other than a few gnoks and rats you didn’t kill anything. The reason you gained as much as you did is because of some smaller hidden quest bonuses. Nothing worth mentioning.”

  “Are they repeatable?”

  “Possibly. Call it conditional experience—acting within the moment, progressing storyline, etc. The system tries to reward spontaneity, but it’s harder to level that way. Killing rats all day in the sewer would guarantee you level, but let’s face it, that’s boring as shit.”

  “Hold off on spending any experience for now.”

  “Stupid move, monkey, but you’re the boss.”

  “Why is that stupid? I get a discount at level five, and 2,000 XP is a lot.”

  NPC said nothing, just smiled and hopped up on his couch. It would have been a slick move if his little girl legs weren’t kicking as he struggled to climb. I snorted but refused to ask again. It niggled at the back of my mind that he wasn’t telling me something, but then I rationalized that he is always leaving off information to screw me over later.

  [Unacknowledged Loot:

  Item Name: Sliver of the Inferno

  Item Type: Magic - Rare (Trinket)

  Durability: Indestructible

  Armor: 15

  Armor Effect: Fire Resistance +15% & Armor +15

  Weapon Effect: Adds 15% Fire Damage (Restrictions: Ku must be fire related)

  Accessory Effect: Adds 10% range to any vision abilities that are fire related

  Trinkets - These items are attached or infused to an item of your choice, provided the item is not mundane. Some of your more rare items could take on 2 or more trinkets. (Trinkets can be removed for reuse, but there is a chance of permanently damaging the current item.)

  Item Name: Eye of Liaki

  Item Type: Magic - Rare

  Uses: 1 of 1

  Effect: Grants a rare ability. ]

  The [Eye of Chance] felt like the feats I had acquired previously. In my hand, it emanated warmth, and I squeezed it until I felt its power seep into my body. Once the magic dissipated, I could see my [Unacknowledged Skills] light up, and I opened it to see what I’d gained.

  [Unacknowledged Skills:

  Skill: Hidden Sense (R)

  Skill Rank: Novice (Next Rank: 15 AP)

  Acclimation Points (AP): 1

  Type: Passive

  Effect: Allows you to see or feel that which is hidden.

  Effect: Augments any [Sense] type that allows you to find the hidden by 5%. (Example: People can hide their alignment, but this ability will grant you a chance to detect it with Sense Alignment)

  Effect: The hidden will reveal itself with a glimmering. In your settings, this can be changed to Sparkles or BFA.

  OTM: Sounds like [Combat Awareness] might get a boost from [Hidden Sense] too, right idiot? Like, maybe for sensing ambushes or feints? You make me doubt your intelligence at every turn, primate.

  Also, before you ask, BFA stands for Big Fucking Arrow, and it's so massive and out of place that only an idiot would use it. Literally, a two-meter-long arrow will point at the hidden, a feature which should never have been added, but there is no accounting for taste.

  Unacknowledged Rewards:

  Attribute Gains:

  Wisdom +1 - Triggered because of your LitRPG Trope - The Perpetual Newb.

  Title: The Storyteller

  Effect: +2 Luck when competing against other [Authors] in creating story arcs.

  Details: You created your first story arc which held both excitement and daring. The weaving of the story contained a high complexity ranking because of how many [Authors] were present. Keep up the entertainment to receive more significant awards.]

  “It wasn’t your most successful day, but it was impressive none-the-less. Now, I hope you are ready for tomorrow, shithead.” Little girl NPC said and slapped my forehead. I jerked back and heard his laughter echoing and following me into the darkness of sleep. Asshole! “Night-night, monkey.”

  [Status so far:

  Name: Deuce Bigbelow

  Race: Mutant

  Class: Dragon Fist

  Ku: Fire (Current: Inner Dragon)

  Profession: Dark Alchemist

  Specialization: Dark Botanist

  Level: 3

  Base: HP: 36 MP: 29 AC: 6

  Augmented: HP: 36 MP: 29 AC: 38(20)

  Stances (Equipped 1/1):

  Dancing Dragon Stance

  - Unarmed Damage +10%

  - Movement Speed +5%

  Auras (Equipped 1/1):

  Aura of the Fire Dragon II

  - Fire Resistance +35%

  - Disease Resistance +25%

  Feats (Equipped: 6/6):

  Mutant (R)

  - Attributes: Strength +3, Constitution +3, Agility -2

  - Racial Restriction: This feat cannot be removed

  Quad-Wielder (R)

  - Attack with all four arms without penalty

  Monastic Acolyte (C)

  - Attributes: Agility +4, Wisdom +3, Charisma +2

  Goro’s Might (L)

  - Attributes: Strength +2, Constitution +3, Agility +5, Luck +4

  Asp’s Speed

  - Attributes: Agility +7, Intelligence +4, Constitution +3

  - Resistances: Acid +10%, Venom +20%

  Kangaroo’s Leap

  - Attributes: Agility +3, Constitution +2

  - Jump: Increase distance by 15% (higher or farther).

  - Unarmed Combat: +3% Damage

  Available Acclimation Points: 0

  Active Class Skills:

  - NE = Not Evolved

  - M = Can be Merged or Morphed

  Claw Swipe I (Acclimation: 7)

  Dragon Strike II (Acclimation: 15)

  Feign Death I (Acclimation: 6)(NE)

  Fire Breath I (Acclimation: 14)

  Fire Shard Shuriken II (Acclimation: 16)

  Fire Slide V (Mastered)***

  Fire Stomp I (Acclimation: 1)

  Firestorm I (Acclimation: 1)

  Flurry Strike I (Acclimation: 7)(NE)

  Immolation I (Acclimation: 6)

  Incinerate Projectiles I (Acclimation: 5)

  Mend II (Acclimation: 15)(NE)

  Sweep Kick I (Acclimation: 11)(NE)

  Passive Class Skills

  Flame Dance V (Mastered)***

  Lesser Dragon Skin V (Mastered)***

  Sense I (Acclimation: 9)

  - Heat, Alignment, Plants, Animals, Projectiles, Sinister Components, Hidden

  Author Skills:

  PoV Shift

  Quest Narrative

  Profession Skills:

  Alchemy

  Spell Taint

  Botany

  Zoology

  Non-Class Skills:

  - Learned by having over 100 skill points.

  Charge I (C)

  Climbing I (C)

  Fidget Spinner III (C)*

  Fondling I (C)

  Juggling I (C)

  Kick I (C)

  Party Pooper III (C)*

  Ma
sturbation III (C)*

  *III - Proficient is the highest rank for non-class skills.

  **VI - Grand Master is the highest rank for class skills.

  ***Skills without Acclimation are considered Mastered, but still have merging options available.

  Attributes:

  Total Attributes (Attributes From Gear)

  Strength: 31(8)

  Constitution: 28

  Agility: 41(6)

  Wisdom: 28

  Intelligence: 21

  Charisma: 13

  Luck: 16]

  In Game - Day 7

  Chapter 61

  Location: Kongdom Proper (outside Stone Place)

  The next morning I disentangled myself from Sun’s contortionist body and found Amard grinning at me. Despite the grin, she had a haunted look in her eyes which concerned me.

  It might have been stupid, but I spent [Tokens of Acclimation] and acquired more [Slice of Life] points to expand my living area. I added a bedroom and partially divided up the living areas. Even created a small door and a small room about the size of a large treasure chest for Earle. Asshole gave me a dirty look and flicked me off before entering it. It didn’t matter, I pulled Amard out of the bedroom into my ‘living room’ which was sparse, just a few stolen chairs, but it had a beautiful [Fancy Couch] that I stole.

  “What’s bothering you?”

  “The Father, we have a history. I—I can’t face him.”

  “What do you mean a history?”

  “I know him, out in the real world. He is the reason I got into this game, and he even picked out my character name.”

  “Ironic that he named you [Drama] and that ended up being your Ku.”

  “What?” The startled reaction surprised me.

  “Your name, its Drama spelled backward—wait I thought you knew?”

  Amard’s face went slack, and her mouth tried to work, but no words came out. At some point her jaw clenched, and I could see the spark of anger ready to explode. She was grinding her teeth, her lips barely moving when she spoke next. “That arrogant prick. He knew what my Ku was the whole time…”

  “Probably, I imagine he wasn’t happy you were stronger than him either if I were to guess, that is the main reason he tried to stop all the [Drama]. He didn’t want to see you reach your full potential…” I could visibly see the hardening of her eyes and face. Resolve. Anger. Determination. More than that, I could feel it, her power emanating from her in barely controlled bursts. Sun must have sensed it too because she appeared next to the woman and hugged her. It was enough because Amard released the building power with a heavy sigh escaping her lips.