Chapter 6: Game Goes on Sale
William excitedly teleported from the bathroom back to his bed, turning the entire room into his personal laboratory. He teleported to the table, then to the wardrobe. Only after opening more than a dozen portals did he feel a wave of mental fatigue and decide to stop.
Sitting back on his bed to meditate, he was surprised to find his mental strength recovered in just a minute. The thought that he might be a magical genius crossed his mind.
If he were to fight someone in the future, he could open a portal right next to his enemy and spray them with machine-gun fire.
If he ran out of magic while being bombarded, he could just step back through the portal, wait a few seconds, and then teleport back to the fight. He could keep this up indefinitely.
And once he learned some defensive spells, not even a high-powered sniper rifle could break them, let alone a handgun. William felt a thrill just thinking about it.
He also saw spells for fire, ice, and nature. He even saw magic from the light system, like healing and… resurrection?
Wait, William was startled. Resurrection? A spell like that actually existed?
He practiced the fire and ice spells again. Their system had the advantage of no fixed spell patterns. As long as he was skilled enough and had sufficient mental power, he could shape the magic to his will.
He could change ice magic into a puck of ice or dozens of ice needles. The ice magic constantly changed in his hands: ice needles, ice spears, ice pucks, even ice roses.
Although fire and electricity spells couldn't become solid, they could still form various shapes in his palms.
He suffered no magical backlash, only mental exhaustion. He also noted that practicing space magic from the system continuously improved his physical fitness.
He realized he needed to go outside. The dormitory was too small to practice many spells, and the mix of people made it inconvenient.
After a quick wash, he went to sleep. He hadn't slept well these past few days. Modern society was relatively safe, and staying at the university was even safer.
Besides, this was England, not the United States, where it seemed campus shootings happened all the time and teachers and students carried guns.
He drifted off to sleep with peace of mind, unaware that someone else was having a sleepless night.
Alexander Hammer was a sophomore in the marketing department at the University of London. At noon, he had collected 200 game discs from William and hurried back home.
His family lived in a middle-class community in London's Zone 2, with tens of thousands of residents nearby. Alexander grabbed a quick meal, told his mother he was heading out, and went to the community basketball court.
The dozen or so courts at the community basketball park were full of people playing. Although there were some middle-aged people, over ninety percent of the players were teenagers.
Alexander, having grown up in this community, knew many people. He came prepared with his laptop and twenty game discs. He planned to find some people he knew at the court and let them try out the game to see how they would react.
As soon as he entered the basketball park, he greeted several people he knew. After scanning the courts, he finally spotted some of his best friends.
"Hey, what are you doing back here today? I thought you were staying at school."
Alexander happily greeted his friend, "Rick, I've got a new game here. It was developed by an alumnus from our university. I tried it and thought it was great, so I came back to see if you guys would like it. The discs are only six pounds each."
"Wow, Alexander, already starting a business in your sophomore year? Man, I support you. If it's as fun as you say, I'll buy a copy from you directly."
He led Rick and the others to the rest area by the court. After Alexander started up his laptop and launched the game, Rick began to play.
At first, the friends trying the game in the rest area were quiet, still unfamiliar with the gameplay. But not half an hour later, after some explanation from Alexander, the guys started arguing over the best plant placements.
Their voices grew louder and louder, soon attracting the attention of others they knew.
After watching the game on the laptop, many more people joined the debate.
"Rick, you idiot, you just don't listen to me! It's my turn, you've been playing for ages!" The group had started to quarrel over whose turn it was to play.
Alexander saw that their argument was attracting everyone around, and he was inwardly delighted. When several of them started yelling at Rick, Alexander hurriedly interjected, "Hey, guys, I have game discs here. Why not buy one and play at home? Then you don't have to fight with Rick for the laptop."
Several of them thought about it and agreed. It was infuriating watching Rick hog the computer and make bad plays.
"Okay, I want one copy."
"I want one too. I can't stand watching Rick for another minute, he's driving me crazy."
One by one, they asked for a copy, and in a short while, all twenty game discs Alexander had brought were sold out. Many people who hadn't gotten a copy were still asking for one.
Alexander had to promise he would come back tomorrow afternoon after his classes with more discs to placate the crowd.
Many people paid him for the discs on the spot. Some who were annoyed that they didn't have cash on them quickly borrowed from their friends.
Alexander told them he would be back at the rest area at 4 p.m. the next day and that it would be first come, first served. The timing was perfect, as the local middle school students would be out of school by then and have time to buy a copy.
At this time, Rick, who had been occupying the laptop, saw that everyone had left. He stood up and said to Alexander, "Hey, man, how did I perform?"
"Ha, I deliberately ignored their advice just to piss them off. If you want to play right, you have to buy your own copy."
Alexander looked at Rick in surprise and said, "My God, Rick, you were pretending just now? When did your acting become so good? Even I was fooled by you."
"So, man, doesn't that deserve a meal? I sacrificed my reputation to help you out," Rick said with a sly grin.
"No problem. Let's go, man, I'll treat you to a big meal." Alexander rubbed Rick's shoulders, and the two of them went off to eat, talking and laughing.
The "big meal" was at a community restaurant known for being cheap and serving large portions. He, Rick, and their friends often came to this restaurant to celebrate. Everyone in their group of friends knew each other's families, so it was a comfortable spot.
After dropping off a well-fed Rick, Alexander returned home happily. When he saw his mother, he shouted, "Mom, guess how much money I made today!"
However, he didn't get the reaction he expected. Instead of praising him, his mother asked anxiously, "Where did you get that money? And how?"
Alexander looked at his mother's worried expression, slapped his forehead, and said in exasperation, "Hey, Mom, I'm a top student at the University of London. Would I really do something illegal? I'm not an idiot who'd throw away a bright future."
"But how could you make so much money in the short time you've been home?" his mother asked, still confused.
"Haha, Mom, you have no idea. Today was my lucky day! I sold 200 game discs in less than three hours at the community basketball court and earned 400 pounds."
Alexander grinned at his mother's surprised expression, happy that he could help relieve his family's financial pressure.
"What game can make you earn 400 pounds?" His father's voice came from the door.
Seeing his father, Alexander explained happily, "Dad, the game was developed by an alumnus of my university. A lot of my classmates think it's great. I bought the discs from him for four pounds each."
"Today at the basketball court, I sold them to people from the community for six pounds each."
"Based on the reaction today, I think I could sell thousands of discs in our community and the surrounding ones. Dad, I'll be able to make my own money soon, so you and Mom won't have to work so hard."
His parents were relieved and happy to hear that Alexander had found a legitimate way to earn money and was being so sensible.