DADH Chapter 36

[“What? Your initial favorability points are 50?!”]

When they heard that Uncle Pipilu had an initial favorability of 50 towards Jing Nian, players who had gathered around to seek advice or force out strategy methods were shocked.

You see, Uncle Pipilu has been the top NPC in the holographic online gaming world since the game’s launch. Although it’s not clear yet what benefits there are in trying to win over this NPC in the newbie village.

But he’s handsome, has a proud temperament, and is hard to win over!

Throughout history, there has never been a shortage of players who enjoy challenging high-difficulty content. Because of the difficulty in winning over Uncle Pipilu, trying to conquer him has become a hot topic on StarBo¹I decided to just keep it as StarBo.

So now on StarBo, there are more statistical data tables about Uncle Pipilu’s favorability than game strategies. Based on the data collected across the entire network, a favorability of 20 is already considered peak performance.

Now, suddenly, a child claimed that Uncle Pipilu’s initial favorability was 50!

And judging by what they had just seen, it was highly likely that what this child said was true!

The three teammates, who had been lazy until now, were also shocked by this favorability value. Facing a group of players who were half-believing and suspicious, they stood up for Jing Nian. Together with the thief Gordon, they protected Jing Nian in the middle.

Inside the Dragon Soul Space.

The little dragon was discussing with Jing Nian.

It wanted to go and see the man from before, Uncle Pipilu.

Jing Nian also remembered the special treatment he received from Uncle Pipilu and his skilled dragon-stroking technique. Curiosity appeared in his eyes, and he asked the little dragon, “Do you know that man?”

However, to his surprise, the little dragon also had a curious expression. It looked back at Jing Nian with its cute big eyes and tilted its little head, unable to provide an answer for a moment.

Jing Nian: “Huh?”

Little dragon: “Huh?”

Jing Nian: “…So if you don’t know him, why do you want to go see that man?”

The little dragon tilted its head, furrowed its brow slightly, and couldn’t find a specific way to express its thoughts. So, it hugged Jing Nian’s arm, rubbed its small dragon horn against his hand, and then blinked its big eyes at Jing Nian.

With the combination of the little dragon’s actions and its shared consciousness, Jing Nian understood what the little dragon meant.

It felt that the man was very familiar, but it didn’t understand why. The feeling of closeness when it saw him was like instinct.

Jing Nian was surprised. He remembered that even after the little dragon hatched, it didn’t have a natural affinity for other dragons, not even the larger ones. In the beginning, it was only close to the few dragons that took care of it, and it took a lot of effort to win the favor for the other dragons.

After agreeing with the little dragon to visit the man again later, Jing Nian shifted his attention to deal with the suddenly encircling group of players.

Faced with the skeptical gazes of the players around him, Jing Nian glanced at the levels displayed above their heads. Judging by his recent progress in learning, he could easily break through this encirclement. However, he hadn’t contacted reliable people in the real world yet and didn’t want to reveal his abnormal abilities too soon.

So, after some thought, Jing Nian decided to play along with the identity of a child. He used a sweet and innocent tone and said, “Of course, it’s because Uncle Pipilu likes this young master!”

A tiny figure just a bit taller than an adult’s knee stood there, earnestly placing their hands on their hips and speaking proudly. Their small hands nervously gripped the black cloak that covered their entire petite body, revealing a pair of innocent, round, and wide eyes.

It was like a little kitten pretending to be a fierce tiger when it felt pressured.

Immediately, the group of approaching adult player characters felt as if they had transformed into bullies picking on a child.

Moreover, the child’s exaggerated display of bravado seemed… rather cute.

Perhaps the NPC’s high favorability was indeed because they liked young creatures.

Jing Nian, who was pretending to be a child and even planned to act like a mischievous kid, felt a bit awkward as he clutched his cloak and tail. Faced with the increasingly curious gazes of the players, he took a half-step back, ready to make a quick escape.

He cleared his throat and, with an act of discontent, glanced at the gazes that were all directed down at him. Holding his tail, he jumped a bit, then surveyed everyone in the vicinity before fixing his gaze on Gordon. With an air of superiority, he said, “You there, come over and carry this young master on your back. Payment: 50 gold coins.”

100 copper coins = 1 silver coin, 10 silver coins = 1 gold coin.

The 50 gold coins were carefully considered by Jing Nian, taking into account the rewards from beginner village quests and the prices in the in-game store.

It was enough to surprise people, but not overly extravagant, further solidifying his identity as “a slightly wealthy brat.”

Sure enough, the players around, upon hearing this, looked at Jing Nian with gazes that seemed to say they were seeing a little spendthrift.

It’s worth noting that the total copper coin rewards for all the beginner village quests combined were roughly equivalent to just one gold coin. If you wanted to level up, that wouldn’t be nearly enough. To make money, you’d either have to painstakingly farm low-level monsters outside the village to collect equipment and exchange them for copper coins or resort to spending real money.

Moreover, even though the ratio between gold, silver, and copper was a thousand to one, due to the cursed inflation, the value of an equivalent amount of gold coins was even higher than that of silver and copper coins.

For beginners, grinding low-level monsters for copper coins wasn’t as profitable as exchanging real money for gold coins.

Fifty gold coins weren’t much; it was just 500 star coins.

However, just for carrying him for a short while, this kid who casually threw out 500 star coins made them feel sorry for him.

At the same time, they were more inclined to believe the reason Jing Nian had given earlier. This proud and wealthy brat didn’t seem very clever, and they doubted he would bother lying.

Either what he said was true, or he didn’t even know the real reason himself.

So, some of the quick-thinking players around them immediately had the idea of making friends. Even if they couldn’t extract any strategy information, teaming up with this rich little devil could still bring them significant benefits.

However, as a thief who cherished money above all else, Gordon disappeared the moment he heard Jing Nian speak. When everyone saw his figure again, his eyes were gleaming, and he was already carrying Jing Nian on his back.

Even Jing Nian hadn’t expected him to move so quickly. He was momentarily speechless.

Although he was inwardly speechless, Jing Nian decided to carry the act through to the end. He looked around with an “arrogant” expression and muttered under his breath, “What’s the big deal? Didn’t they say this game was really difficult? It doesn’t seem that way to me. I’m not playing anymore.”

The childish and irritating words left everyone speechless: ‘With your favorability at 50, of course, it’s not difficult for you. But for us, it’s like hell mode.’

After Jing Nian finished speaking, he quickly pressed the invisibility key.

Instantly, his figure disappeared as if he had logged out right there.

Of course, it was only in the eyes of the players around them. In the eyes of Jing Nian’s three teammates and Gordon, he was still there.

Due to the information being blocked, Gordon, who couldn’t fully understand the current situation, was bewildered at first. He looked back as if “trying to recall what had just happened,” and then, “without noticing anything unusual,” he left the scene with brisk steps.

Another player, who had also realized that the cross-dressed male was an NPC, suddenly chimed in, “How about you carry him, and I’ll give you 50 gold coins too?”

The Dragon Slayer game was remarkably realistic, with NPCs appearing just like real people. What made it even more realistic was that currency was universally accepted in this game world.

So, apart from Uncle Pipilu, many NPCs could be influenced by money.

Therefore, when everyone saw Jing Nian commanding an NPC with money, they weren’t surprised. After all, it wasn’t Uncle Pipilu.

This player, who was also not short on money, suddenly decided to play a prank on his good friend. Before knowing that Gordon was a cross-dressed male and an NPC, he had even praised “her” figure and wanted to flirt.

So, he decided to help his good friend out.

The good friend being pointed at: “…Get lost!”

Overwhelmed by the desire for money, Gordon’s footsteps moved further away.

Jing Nian on his back: “…” He had underestimated this guy’s greed.

Before Jing Nian could say anything, the money-hungry Gordon gritted his teeth and negotiated, “Half of the commission!”

Jing Nian originally intended to refuse, but there was a “little money-lover” in the Dragon Soul Space.

The little dragon didn’t have a concept of money, but it was very greedy. When it heard the word “gold coins,” its eyes lit up. Sensing Jing Nian’s refusal, the little dragon pouted, tilted its head cutely, and looked at Jing Nian with a pleading expression. It even extended its little tail and hugged Jing Nian’s arm while shaking it.

“Gold, pretty please~”

Jing Nian sighed, “Fine.”

So, the “good friend” who had a face full of refusal was carried away by Gordon without any resistance. Gordon moved so quickly that he circled around everyone in the blink of an eye and then placed his “good friend” in front of the player who was offering money.

The player, who had been trash-talking, didn’t expect Gordon to act so swiftly. Although he had money, 50 gold coins still pinched a bit.

The moment he noticed the player’s reluctance to pay, Gordon, who had been appearing harmless and not posing any threat, narrowed his eyes.

“You want to dodge your debt?”

Instantly, the players around them watched as the name of this NPC, who appeared quite weak, turned red. Not wanting to default on the payment but slowed down due to the pain of parting with the money, one of the players was suddenly picked up and subjected to a severe beating by the NPC with the red name.

Not only did he have no chance to resist, but when this player, unable to bear it any longer, was about to log out, the system issued a warning.

[Logging out with outstanding debts may lead to NPC pursuit mode upon the next login. Do you still want to log out?]

The player with a battered face: “…”

In the end, he reluctantly paid 60²the author really wrote 60, I didn’t make a typo gold coins.

Gordon, with a satisfied grin, divided the 60 gold coins into two portions right in front of him. His red name above his head dispersed, and he returned to the harmless and ordinary NPC mode, even giving the player a smile.

At the same time, the player’s interface displayed a message.

[Completed one transaction with [Thief Gordon]. Gordon’s favorability +1!]

With his coins safely stashed away, Gordon glanced at the dumbfounded players around him. He kept looking until each player averted their gaze during his intense stare, and then he regretfully withdrew his gaze and left the scene.

Players: “…” What’s going on? Hasn’t this terrifying NPC had enough fun yet!?

Sensing Gordon’s thoughts, Jing Nian sighed.

Just as he finished his sigh and shifted his gaze back, he noticed a similar disappointed look in the eyes of the little dragon.

He had a feeling that Gordon, despite not having malicious intentions, might be a bad influence on his little dragon!

See! The little dragon, who used to own mountains of gold and silver, has now become a simple-minded money-lover who eagerly eyes just 30 gold coins!!!

• 1
  I decided to just keep it as StarBo
• 2
  the author really wrote 60, I didn’t make a typo