Leaving the Duel Hall, Xue Lang started searching the whole city overnight for friends to log in and play cards with.
Since the task was issued by an NPC, it definitely couldn't mean grabbing a random passerby off the street. Instead, he needed to recruit other players to activate the team-up function and find the NPC together.
However, this was not easy.
As mentioned before, the total number of beta testers was only in the three digits, and scattering such a small number into Tongye City made it unlikely to stumble upon companions.
Xue Lang hadn't encountered any other players while wandering.
The night grew deeper, and the bustling district gradually became quiet. The number of pedestrians decreased, and most local NPCs had gone home to sleep.
Thus, the streets of Tongye City were left to a few types of people: drunkards, hooligans, people with malicious intents... and players.
Yes, players naturally do not need to sleep in the game, and new players don't really have a place to rest in this world.
So, late at night, players either log off, stay in a Duel Hall (the Duel Halls operate 24/7), or just wander the streets.
As a result, the chance of encountering other players slightly increased.
Sure enough, after roaming for half the night, Xue Lang finally found someone with an ID above their head like him.
Xue Lang quickly approached, only to see the name above that person's head was "Blame My Chest for Being Too Small."
Wow, it's a girl. Lucky!
Xue Lang hurriedly ran up excitedly: "Wow, is it a lady?"
The girl turned her head, with long hair, big beautiful eyes, and quite cute.
"Are you a player?"
"Yes, yes, I've been wandering for ages and only just met someone else. Made me feel like I was playing a single-player game."
"Haha, yeah, there are few people now." The girl laughed.
"Wanna play together? I just got a quest..."
At this moment, a rough male voice cut in: "What's up, what's going on?"
Xue Lang followed the sound and saw a male player appear from around the corner.
The player's head was topped with the ID "Blame My Squeezing for Being Sparse."
Xue Lang: "..."
Dang!
Turns out they're a darn couple!
The girl turned to explain, "Oh, like this, this brother..."
"...Just passing by." Xue Lang chuckled and waved at them, "Haha, you guys enjoy yourselves, I have a quest, so I'm off!"
Without waiting for a reply, he quickly made his escape.
Just kidding, why should I watch a couple flaunt themselves while I'm playing a game?
Does being single mean I'm not worthy even in a game?
Fuming, Xue Lang continued on his way.
The streetlights kept going out, the bright city lights dwindled, and the streets gradually plunged into darkness.
Xue Lang couldn't help but shiver, marveling once again at the game's realism, which even recreated the uncomfortable feeling of walking alone at night in a city—truly incredibly realistic.
He wandered aimlessly in the city for who knows how long before finally encountering the next companion.
This time, he met a male player. The character he created had a round face, was nearing bald with a buzz cut, had black-rimmed glasses perched on his nose, and was physically robust.
Xue Lang focused on the ID above the player's head, which seemed to be... "Difficult to Escape Destiny"?
Even the word "destiny" in the phrase was misspelled. How scary it is to be uneducated, Xue Lang thought.
But none of this mattered.
Xue Lang quickly approached, warmly greeting: "Brother, interested in doing a quest together?"
The player turned: "Huh? What quest?"
"A special NPC issued it, seems to be a sequential quest," Xue Lang said. "The NPC wants me to find another player to team up and meet them at dawn."
"Oh? A sequential quest?" The player's eyes lit up behind the lenses.
During the newbie phase, the quest opportunities are rather limited. The best way to level up seems to be playing cards at the Duel Hall. The more you play, the higher your level, making it easier to receive other quests.
Running into a sequential quest at this stage is indeed rare.
The player leaned in: "What's the quest reward, can I check it out?"
"The previous quest had me give the NPC a Fusion Magic Card that I redeemed with a Newbie Coupon. The reward was a few hundred experience points."
The player was taken aback, though he didn't speak, his expression clearly said—That's it?
Redeeming with a Newbie Coupon for a Fusion Magic Card, only for a few hundred experience points reward?
Feels like this NPC is a trap...
The player coughed, patted Xue Lang's shoulder: "Brother, I feel this NPC might have issues. You might be unaware as you're newer to the game, but some game designers just love mischievous orchestrating tasks that are complicated to complete, with meager rewards from those annoying NPCs..."
"But the NPC is named Youyu," Xue Lang said, "And their Card Deck uses Elemental Heroes."
"Huh, named You-whatever doesn't matte... Hang on, what did you say they're using!?" The player's eyes brightened, pushing up his glasses tactically, with a hungry look on his face.
"Uh... Elemental Heroes," Xue Lang said, "I personally saw them summon 'Elemental Hero Nova Master,' a Fusion Monster never seen in the animation."
"Hidden storyline, definitely hidden storyline!" The player exclaimed excitedly, "Most likely connected to the game's later GX storyline unfolding hidden storylines!"
He patted Xue Lang's shoulder meaningfully, staring at him warmly from behind his glasses: "I owe you for this, we're brothers now. If you need help, just shout! I'll assist whenever I can."
"No problem, Brother Jie!"
"Too awkward to call me that." The player waved his hand, "Just call me Brother Jie."
"Got it, Brother Jie!"
Seems like he's a loyal good buddy, quite a decent person. Xue Lang thought.
The first acquaintance made in Linked World is such a nice friend, Xue Lang felt his future Duelist career was bright.
...
The next morning.
Youyu woke up exceptionally early today, yawning as he came downstairs before daylight.
Unexpectedly, though he woke this early, he could still hear Ito Chinai busy preparing breakfast in the kitchen.
Ever since he came to this shop, it seemed like every day was this way—no matter how early he woke up, Chinai was always already up. Often, when he finished freshening up and came out of the bathroom, the steaming breakfast was already on the table.
Which made him wonder if Chinai might actually be a robot, one who doesn't need to sleep at night.
After freshening up, he came to the table and started eating breakfast, glancing out the window.
Although he scheduled the meeting for seven in the morning, it's not yet time. However, there's a chance Xue Lang might actively arrive early to submit the quest.
Who knows what kind of player Xue Lang would bring along.
"Waiting for someone today?" Chinai quickly noticed his unusual behavior.
"Yes, sort of." Youyu nodded.
Sure enough, just past six thirty, Xue Lang appeared excitedly outside the shop door, as agreed, bringing a new player.
Youyu glanced at the new player through the window, feeling the round face, round buzz hairstyle, black-frame glasses, along with the vivid sly expression... seemed eerily familiar.
Then he noticed the ID above the player's head...
...Difficult to Escape Destiny???