Chapter 4

    Gaining Knowledge (Finally)

    Upon opening the door, the first thing Pun saw was a 6 x 6 meter room. In the middle was a desk with a computer and two chairs. In one corner was a set of light blue sofa chairs. The rest of the room was adorned with bank brochures inviting financial transactions at this bank and neatly arranged white documents.

    Pun stood at the center of the desk, contemplating which box to open first.

    Hmm... The legendary level box seemed like it could fetch a high price. Plus, it would be a waste if he opened it and found something disappointing. It's better to save it for selling and use something of a medium level.

    But wouldn't having a lot of money be better? In that case, opening the ??? boxes first seemed like a good idea.

    Deciding thus, Pun asked the beautiful bank clerk to bring him three ??? boxes.

    Once the clerk brought the three boxes, Pun noticed that each box was 4 x 16 inches, with a question mark symbol on the lid.

    “Oh lord!!~ Let it be something good!!~”

    Pun closed his eyes tightly before slowly opening the lid of the lucky draw box, with the pretty bank clerk cheering him on.

    “Puff!!~~” “Wow!!” Pun exclaimed when he saw what appeared. It looked like a small, somewhat worn red pouch from its shape.

    But that was how it appeared to others, not to Pun.

    “This is...this is a charmed pouch. Wow...this is awesome,” Pun exclaimed excitedly, thrilled to use something akin to his idol's.

    “Mr. Pun, it's just an old pouch, why are you so happy? I've seen people open ??? boxes and get cars worth 30 million and they weren't as happy as you. Eh!!~ Is it worth more than 30 million or does it have some amazing properties?” the bank clerk asked, puzzled.

    “Well... it's hard to explain why I'm so happy... Some might see it as just a tattered pouch, but to me, it's very important. So, how do I check its properties?” Pun tried to dodge the question. How could he explain that his excitement was because it resembled something from a novel he read?

    “Eh!!~ You don't know how to check its properties? How did you even leave the starter building? I guess I need to ask the NPC there why they neglected a new player like this.”

    “Don't blame them. I came to the bank first because I remembered I won these items from a lucky draw outside. So, I stopped by the bank first.

    Does this mean I should have gone to the starter building first and then come back to the bank?”

    Pun felt guilty. He shouldn't have trusted Arat so easily.

    “Oh!~ It's okay. If you haven't been to the starter building, we can explain the game system to you here. But the starter items you'll receive are only a watch from the system. Would you like to receive your starter items here, or go back to the starter building?”

    The clerk hoped he would choose to go to the starter building, but she figured Pun wouldn't, considering the massive number of items he already had.

    “Sigh!~~ Or the secret mission of the bank is going to be assigned this time?.”

    “It's okay. I'll take the items here.” Why would he go back? That would be too greedy. He already had plenty, so a slight disadvantage wouldn't matter.

    “Please wait a moment.”

    The clerk went to the computer, typed something, and a box appeared. She brought it over to Pun.

    Pun opened “Puff! ~~” A silver digital watch.

    “Since you haven't received information from the starter building system, you've been given a bank quest instead. The reward will be one question you really want to know the answer to. We'll provide an answer that satisfies you.” After accepting her fate, she informed the head office about the unusual bank quest reward. She was initially unaware of what the reward would be, but after the manager explained, she felt sorry for this player. She resolved to thoroughly explain the game's system to him.

    “Hmm...that's interesting. I didn't expect to get a quest. But, can I know more about the game first? My question might overlap with what you're about to explain.”

    Getting one free question was a bonus. What should he ask? Maybe he should listen to the game explanation first to avoid redundancy.

    “The game system of 'Dream Come True' starts with the currency. The game uses 'bead' as currency. 1 million beads equal one 'orb,' and 1,000 beads can be exchanged for 5 baht in real money. The money is stored in a card, which comes in three types,” the clerk explained and summoned a board from somewhere, listing the following information:

    Credit Limit | Transfer Fee | Price

    - Glass Card: Half an orb or 500,000 beads | 10% | 1,000 beads

    - Mirror Card: 1 orb or 1 million beads | 5% | 250,000 beads

    - Crystal Card: 10 orbs or 10 million beads | 2% | 1 orb

    "Now you understand the benefits and drawbacks of each card type," the bank clerk explained. "Next, when you defeat monsters, they will drop items, which can be sold at NPC shops or traded with other players. Items dropped can be stored in a bag, a system-provided item for new players with a capacity of 100 slots. However, since you came to the bank before the starting building, you couldn't receive the bag, but you can buy one. I think you should look for a bag with a larger capacity. To view an item's properties, simply hold the item and say 'Properties.' Why not try it with the bag you received?" She tried to cram as much useful information as possible without breaking any rules.

    Pun looked at the small bag with immense satisfaction. No matter the contents, just having this bag was enough for him. Then he said, "Properties."

    Ancient Cloth Bag | Rarity: RareRareRare

    Properties: Can hold up to 5,000 items, lightweight, can be used as an accessory.

    Special Skill: Due to the bag being made from ancient amulet cloth, it contains a spell.

    Pun wondered about the spell but decided it didn't matter. With this bag, he no longer had to worry about where to store his items. Then he decided to open two more boxes.

    "Pop!"

    "Properties."

    Flawless Rope | Level 8

    Properties: The rope's length adjusts to the owner's command. Its maximum length is unknown, and it cannot break unless instructed by the owner. The broken parts return to the owner and can be rejoined by saying "Join."

    Special Skill: If the rope contacts the owner's blood, it enters a frenzy state, attacking everything except the owner.

    Note: Personal item, cannot be sold, traded, or discarded.

    Divine Steel Cutting Knife | Level 8

    Properties: Can cut through anything except paper.

    Special Skill: Elemental charge.

    Pun looked at the two types of items that could be opened. The rope had a shape like a silver coil. Pun was very curious about its properties, so he decided to test it. When his hand touched the rope, Pun felt its fine and soft texture.

    "Perfect rope, 3 meters long." "Swoosh~~"

    Amazed by the rope extending, he then said,

    "Break." The rope broke into small pieces before a light appeared in front of Pun. "Join." The fragments in front of him transformed back into the original silver coil. Pun could only stare in awe at the miraculous phenomenon. This was indeed the rope of dreams.

    Pun then turned his gaze to the iron knife. The iron knife had sharp tips on both ends, black as obsidian, with a handle that looked silver like mercury. He remembered placing it on the table, but now it was nowhere to be seen. Only a faint straight line could be observed on the table. Pun reached out to touch it.

    “Whoa...” “Scream!” Pun and the assistant’s exclamation sounded with shock as the table Pun was touching was cut into two. The black blade knife with a silver handle was on the white paper.

    “Well, you should be careful with it. Did you just put the blade toward the table? It looks like this knife actually did not cut through the paper. I suggest that you could find some shop and have this knife a paper scabbard.” She could not hold herself from laughing. This knife was so sharp that she was surprised, yet it could not cut papers. This was embarrassing. She looked at Pun to see how he would feel.

    With her astonishment, what was on his face was neither upset nor humorous but impression. This guy was indeed interesting.

    Pun, pleased with his finds, realized the clerk hadn't finished explaining. "Is there anything else I need to know?"

    "Now that you know how to view properties, next is how to view skills. There are two types of skills: Active and Passive. Active skills often have various conditions such as cooldown periods or specific requirements, while Passive skills are always active, like a health regeneration skill that constantly heals until health is full and restarts when health decreases. To equip items on your body, just hold the item and say 'Equip.'"

    Pun listened, bewildered by the complexity of it all.

    "The last thing you need to understand is the division of continents in the 'Dreams Come True' game. Simply put, there are Starting Continents and Main Continents, or Kings' Continents. The Starting Continent is divided into five major Starting Continents: Asia, Europe, America, Australia, and the Not-listed Starting Continent, with you currently in the Asia Starting Continent. The reason for having several Starting Continents like this is because the game has only one server, accessible galaxy-wide. The Main or Kings' Continent is where players who have either leveled up enough to leave the Starting Continent or have enough money for travel begin their true adventures. Whoever becomes a legend in 'Dreams Come True’ must prove themselves. But aren't you interested in becoming a legend too? After all, you have four legendary items."

    She couldn't help but tease him a bit, seeing him so confused with the basic information.

    Hearing this, Pun said, "I'm not interested in becoming a legend. I have my own reasons for entering this game. Wouldn't it be better to use these legendary items as capital? What do you think?"

Although he admired his idol and wanted to be strong, Pun didn’t aspire to be just another player seeking greatness or power. He believed that seeking power changes a person, making those who think they possess power truly powerless, and those who chased after power were no different than moths drawn to flames…