Chapter 7
「Heave-ho!」
Isamu sits down on the bench while uttering this old man-like phrase.
(Now then, what should I do?)
With evening approaching in the real world, there are more people around compared to earlier in the day.
Thanks to that, there are a fair number of solo players to be seen as well.
However, most of those who are playing alone don’t look like they have a very fulfilling real life, to put it nicely.
Isamu’s goal is to vent the frustration that the 「normies」 always make him feel.
Therefore, his targets need to be those normies.
The hunchbacked guy over there muttering to himself as he walks won’t do.
(My comrade. I pray for your success.)
Praying is all he does – not trying to interact is very Isamu-like.
After scoping out potential prey for a while,
「Excuse me, is this seat taken?」
A voice calls out from the side.
Glancing over, it’s a middle-aged man who appears slightly older than Isamu.
With a tall, slender build and a sharp-featured face.
The neatly groomed goatee suits him perfectly – he’s the very image of a dandy gentleman.
No, he’s not just an old man, but a distinguished older gentleman.
「…No, go ahead.」
There are other empty benches, so just go sit there.
While thinking this internally, there’s no way the timid Isamu can actually say it. He consents and scoots over.
「Well then, pardon me.」
And so, two old guys end up sitting side by side on one bench.
One is an unremarkable, average-built middle-aged man wearing iron armor that does little to improve his dullness.
The other is a cool older gentleman who surely must have lived an impressive life and wants for nothing.
Feeling uncomfortable with the stark contrast, Isamu starts to lift himself up to move elsewhere.
At that moment—
「Say, might I have a bit of your time?」
The cool gentleman speaks to him.
「Wh-what is it?」
「Judging by your equipment, you seem to be quite a high-level player. I take it you’re very knowledgeable about this game?」
Looking around, there are still only a few players as well-geared as Isamu.
Therefore, it’s only natural for the gentleman to assume Isamu is an advanced player.
「W-well, I suppose I know a fair bit…」
「I see! In that case, I know this is terribly rude of me, but if it’s not too much trouble, could I ask you to show me the ropes? I’d be most grateful!」
The gentleman stands in front of Isamu and bows deeply.
「…Huh?」
Isamu is baffled by the sudden request.
Still bowing, the gentleman continues.
「Of course, I’ll compensate you! So please, I beg of you! I implore you!」
「Um, well…」
The word 「compensation」 briefly catches Isamu’s interest, but there’s something else on his mind.
Namely――
「If I may ask, why are you so…?」
Why this cool gentleman is being so desperate.
In the first place, he doesn’t seem at all like the type to play VRMMOs.
「Ah, well the truth is, I promised to play together with my son this evening. He’s still young, so I wanted to start early to learn the ropes and teach him, but it’s proving quite difficult. After all, I don’t usually play games at all.」
Hearing this, Isamu understands.
Desperation for the sake of a beloved son is something he can sympathize with.
「…I see, that makes sense. If that’s the case, then sure, I can help.」
「R-really? Thank you so much! You can expect generous compensation. I’m counting on you!」
Isamu decides to accede to the gentleman’s request.
The promise of compensation is part of it, but more than that, hearing the reason for his desperation made it impossible for Isamu to refuse.
「Okay. Well then, um… Pardon me, but may I ask your player name?」
「Oh my, how rude of me! I’m Takashi. And you are?」
「Mr. Takashi, is it? I’m Sieg. Alright, I’ll start explaining things, so could you open your menu window?」
「Ah, sure,」 Takashi replies as he swipes two fingers downward.
A translucent panel appears in front of him.
(That’s a relief, looks like he paid attention to the tutorial at least.)
As expected of a diligent adult, he seems to have listened to the explanations without skipping.
「So, have you already allocated your skill points?」
「No, I didn’t really understand that skill stuff. The tutorial mentioned something similar too.」
Takashi said earlier that he rarely plays games.
For someone like that, the tutorial may indeed be a bit difficult to grasp.
「Well, skills are――」
With that in mind, Isamu begins explaining in an easy-to-understand way.
Takashi nods along, listening intently.
「I see, so there are all sorts of skills. But which ones should I choose…?」
「Um, do you have any idea what your son might pick?」
「Right, he’ll probably go with a sword, I imagine.」
「Is that so? In that case, Mr. Takashi, light magic might be good for you. That way you can heal your son.」
「Is that how it works? Alright then, I think I’ll go with that light magic!」
Following Isamu’s uncharacteristically kind advice, Takashi allocates his points into light magic.
After that, Isamu teaches him how to equip gear, then gives a lecture on activating recovery magic – Heal – just like he did for Emi.
He also explains various aspects of the game like teleport circles and leveling.
「Well, I think that about covers it. You’ll figure out the rest as you play.」
「I see! Thanks so much, you really helped me out. I’m truly grateful!」
「No, don’t mention it!」
「Sieg, I really appreciate it! Now, about the compensation I promised, what would you like? If you give me your bank account number, I can transfer the money.」
「Sure! The account number is――」
Just as Isamu is about to provide his memorized account number, he realizes something.
(Wait. Is this okay in terms of the user agreement?)
In Dream Fantasy, real money trading is prohibited by the terms of service.
Accepting money as compensation here, even if it’s just for information, might be problematic.
That doubt crosses Isamu’s mind.
If it violates the rules, his account would naturally get banned.
Him getting banned is one thing, but if it happened to Takashi, it would ruin the gaming time with his son that he was looking forward to.
Isamu turns away for a moment, lets out a small sigh, then tells Takashi:
「Mr. Takashi, the compensation won’t be necessary. This game prohibits RMT, real money trading for goods or services.」
「O-oh, is that so? But then you’d be working for free…」
「No, that’s totally fine. I really just rephrased what the tutorial says, after all.」
「…I understand. Sieg, you’ve been a tremendous help. In that case, if I come across any rare items in the game, I’ll be sure to give them to you.」
That wouldn’t cause any issues.
Frankly, Isamu doubts Takashi will obtain any rare items, but framing it that way will avoid making him feel obligated.
「Got it, let’s do that then!」
「Very well, it’s a promise. I think I’ll log out for now and wait for my son to get home.」
「Alright. Thanks for your hard work today.」
「You too, Sieg. I’m truly thankful for your help. See you around.」
With those parting words, Takashi returns from the world of Dream Fantasy to reality.
(Today went way off schedule, huh… Well, this kind of thing isn’t so bad once in a while.)
Feeling refreshed after his uncharacteristic act of kindness, Isamu wants to bask in that afterglow for now.
With that sentiment, he gives up hunting normies for the day. After clearing a few quests, he calls it a session.
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