White Online

''Ahh... You must be Wraith...'' An old man with hunched back entered through the open door with his aged face having a gentle smile. His short grey hair had bangs going over his eyes, which made his eyes slightly obscure, but it wasn't too difficult to see his fiery red eyes, screaming ferocity and strength.

''Yes... Who are you?'' Isaac asked and tried to see the old man's nametag, but for some reason, it wasn't visible.

''Hehe...'' The old man chuckled innocently and waved his hand, ''I am not NPC.''

''What?!'' Isaac screamed in shock.

''Yes...'' The old man, with the help of his wooden cane, moved closer to the leather couch and slowly, but surely, sat down.

He gently tapped the seat next to him and uttered with his aged tone, ''Sit down, young man.''

Isaac nodded slightly and sat down next to him, his head full of questions.

''Questions... I can answer them.'' The old man said with a small smile, ''We have time...''

''Are you a player?'' Was Isaac's first question.

The old man smiled mysteriously and patted his kneecap with feeble strength, ''Player, huh... You don't think I am a player?'' He asked with an amused smile and being truly curious.

''I can't see your nametag... If you aren't a player or NPC... What are you?'' Isaac felt like the identity of the old man was far from simple and might even be shocking enough to destroy his understanding of reality.

''Well... First of all, should we do proper introductions first?'' The old man asked and pointed at himself with his wrinkly hand, ''My name is Ian, what is yours?''

Isaac looked at Ian's red eyes, which looked calm, ferocious, powerful, and trustworthy.

He took a deep breath and revealed his identity, ''Isaac...''

Ian nodded gently and continued his talk, ''Are you sure I am not a player?''

Isaac shook his head, ''I mean... You must be a player— how else you could be here?''

''Right, how else.'' Ian chuckled and asked a surprising question, ''How is the Mythical Helmet working for you?''

''What?!'' Isaac almost jumped up on his feet, but Ian put his hand on his leg, which made him almost paralyzed.

It was like he was trying to move a mountain while trying to stand.

''No need to be surprised...'' Ian sighed and looked at the painting above the fireplace; his eyes showed pain for a split second before he continued, ''I am a player, but being a Village Chief gives me certain kinds of benefits...''

Isaac sighed and thought that he was once again being silly. Of course, he is a player; what else would he be?

Ian slightly smiled after seeing the white-haired young man believing him so soon. It isn't strange; after all, what would his reaction be if he revealed the truth? Not many would believe, and some wouldn't want to believe it.

Isaac turned around to see a painting and saw a beautiful middle-aged woman with shoulder-length brown hair. Her body stature was one of mature and dangerous beauty.

She was holding a hand of a little girl with innocent facial features and a shy look on her adorable face. Her hair which was styled in pigtails, was in the color of black, with her chubby cheeks having pimples and her pointy nose scrunched into laughter.

''How did you become Village Chief as Player?'' Isaac asked, wanting to know more about identity of the mysterious old man.

''Every village has a special quest— I was lucky enough to complete it, nothing special,'' Ian replied, which earned a nod from Isaac.

''Enough of this old man's ramblings... You must be curious about your quest?'' Ian shifted his body slightly to see Isaac's face better.

Isaac nodded, ''Marksman Class Quest.''

''Yes...'' Ian, with his aged hand, tapped something in the air, and a holographic screen appeared in front of Isaac.

[You have completed Marksman Class Quest!]

[Do you accept rewards?]

[Accept/Reject]

''W-Wait, what?'' Isaac frowned and instantly thought that it was another trick like with Untrustworthy Swordsman.

He was instantly about to press Reject, but then Ian used the wooden cane to slap his hand away.

''Oww...'' Isaac rubbed his painful palm, which surprisingly hurt more than the shot in the leg.

''Don't be so hasty young man...'' Ian chuckled, ''Patience is key... It is not a scam— this is the Quest... Your journey should have been filled with difficulty if you had used ordinary means of arriving there... But Teleportation Pearl made it easy for you, but it's fine.''

''Oh.'' Isaac scratched his head with awkwardness and was about to press Accept, but again, Ian slapped his hand away.

This time, Isaac frowned and asked, ''Why do you keep slapping my hand away?''

''Again, patience is key...'' Ian said with a small smile and stood up to start walking towards the fireplace, with dangerously hot flames.

''You haven't chosen your skill yet, right?'' He asked suddenly.

''Yes, how did you know that?'' Isaac felt like Ian was not exactly an ordinary Village Chief.

''Choose Icy Shot,'' Ian said, and under Isaac's shocked eyes, he touched the flames with his face still calm as ever.

''What are you doing?!'' Isaac jumped up and was about to stop whatever he was doing, but then.

Ian turned around, and surprisingly, he was holding a ball made of fire in his hands.

''Choose Icy Shot.'' Ian used his index finger to touch the fireball, making it spin.

''Why? No offense, but I don't know you, and I don't think Icy Shot is the best decision.'' Isaac said with his brows furrowed. His curiosity about the identity of the old man kept increasing.

''Trust me, you won't regret it.'' Ian grabbed the fireball and threw it back to the fireplace, ''If you decide to trust me... Choose your skill first before accepting your rewards.'' With the help of his wooden cane, he slowly walked out of the room, leaving confused Isaac alone.

*Crkkk*

The fireball landed in the middle of the fireplace, making the intense fire increase in ferocity.

''Weird old man...'' Isaac opened his Interface and put the skills in front of him, he felt tempted to choose either Explosive Shot or Sniper of Flames, but now he has a third option.

Icy Shot!