Two cards, one on the left and one on the right, now floated in front of Lince's computer desk.
Lince stared at the two cards, which were emitting a faint white glow. First, he was stunned, but then a look of delight spread across his face.
Without hesitating, Lince reached out and pinched a corner of the card on the right.
Instantly, a stream of information flowed into his mind.
[Servant Card]
[Knight York]
[Star Level: ★☆]
[Equivalent Tier: Tier One Perfection]
[Attribute: Wind]
[Skills: 1. Basic Breathing Technique; 2. Basic Physique (Entry Tier); 3. Gale Swordsmanship (Entry Tier)]
[Permission Holder: Player Lince]
(Note: This Character Card is only visible to the permission holder and its wielder.)
[Instructions for Use:
1. This Servant Card can only be used once per day. Current duration: 30 minutes.
2. After equipping this Servant Card, the wielder gains 5% of the servant's base power. If the wielder is also a member of the Human Race, they gain an additional 5% of the base power.
3. Ultimate ownership of this Servant Card belongs to Player 'Lince'. It cannot be dropped but can be transferred to others. However, the ultimate owner can reclaim this Servant Card at any time.]
In an instant, Lince had processed the information on the Servant Card.
At the same time, York's Servant Card dissipated into particles of light, and the other card automatically fell into Lince's hand.
[Magic Pet Card]
[Giant-toothed Rat King]
[Star Level: ★]
[Equivalent Tier: Edge of Entry Tier]
[Attribute: Earth]
[Skills: 1. Drilling Ground; 2. Biting]
[Permission Holder: Player Lince]
(Note: This Character Card is only visible to the permission holder and its wielder.)
[Instructions for Use:
1. This Magic Pet Card can only be used once per day. Current duration: 30 minutes.
2. This Magic Pet Card can only be used on rodents. The affected rodent gains 5% of the Magic Pet's base power.
3. Ultimate ownership of this Magic Pet Card belongs to Player 'Lince'. It cannot be dropped but can be transferred.]
(Note: When this card is used, the Player is in complete control. It can be used directly on any nearby rodent, which will then be able to follow the Player's simple commands.)
[Player-Exclusive Card Slot Unlocked]
[Card Slot: 1/1 (Rock Dragon Giant Lizard);]
(Unequipped: Knight York, Giant-toothed Rat King)
After quickly processing the information on the Magic Pet Card, Lince's face was already beaming with delight.
"This is going to be fun."
'With the Servant Card, it's like I have two types of Extraordinary Power at my disposal.'
'The Rock Dragon Giant Lizard for half an hour, and Knight York for half an hour. That means I can use Extraordinary Power for a total of one hour every day.'
Now *this* was a surprise!
A pleasant surprise, indeed!
Moreover, the appearance of the Giant-toothed Rat King Magic Pet Card also gave Lince a decent combat ally.
'Looks like I'll have to get a pet rodent!'
'Maybe I'll get a few hamsters?'
The Magic Pet Card had to be used on a rodent, so it didn't matter what kind of rodent Lince chose as his assistant.
Hamsters might look small and weak,
but Lince wasn't concerned with the hamster's actual power. All that mattered was the power granted by the Magic Pet Card, so any rodent would do.
Hamsters were small, docile, and cute. They wouldn't easily arouse anyone's suspicion.
Plus, he could just carry one in his pocket when he went out. It couldn't be more convenient.
Was there a better choice for a Pet Card assistant than a hamster?
Even if there was, Lince didn't care. He liked the idea, and that was enough.
As for where to buy one?
Lince certainly wasn't going to order one online; that would take at least two or three days.
So, he decided to just buy one from a nearby pet store.
Before that, however, Lince needed to check the latest version update for the True Game.
Lince immediately navigated to the game platform's official homepage.
He scrolled down the page, and the new version's update notes soon appeared.
[Version 1.0 Update Notes:
One: Based on closed beta Player feedback, characters' actions during the 100-day deduction did not align with their players' personalities. The game has now repaired the role-playing immersion system. The original personalities of Player-controlled characters will be destroyed and replaced with a copy of the Player's personality. This will allow the unified, offline deduction to proceed in a manner that best fits the Player's personality. A video compilation of Player deductions will be released promptly at dawn the following day.
Two: Based on closed beta Player feedback, the game-over penalty was not fair to Players who contributed to the test. Therefore, after this update, Players who fail will receive compensation. This compensation will be limited to a portion of the Abilities from the character the failed Player portrayed.
Three: The in-game deduction period will now be updated based on the highest Equivalent Tier achieved by any Player. The current 100-day deduction will now become a 300-day deduction. (System: The duration is based on the highest Tier achieved by a Player in the first closed beta. For example, if a Player reaches Tier Four, the deduction will be 400 days, and so on...).
Four: As the game has now gained public awareness, we are making the following announcement: When the total number of online Players from the first closed beta drops below 1%, a second round of closed beta slots will be released (quantity to be determined). Additionally, an exclusive game forum will be opened. Only active Players may enter this exclusive forum to post, discuss, and so on.]
Just four update notes.
But in those four short points, every single one was critically important and would have a massive impact on the real world.
'What did they mean, "destroying the original personalities of Player-controlled characters"?'
'And "replaced with a copy of the Player's personality"?'
The first point seemed beneficial for the Players, but it was incredibly cruel to the characters within the game.
Players were basically Outer Heaven Demons possessing the bodies of the game world's natives.
Still, that point wasn't so bad. After all, it only affected the world inside the game, not reality.
But the second point—compensation for failed Players—was what would truly disrupt the Order of the real world.
Take the thirty thousand-plus current Players, for example. Even if Players were continuously eliminated, this compensation meant that over thirty thousand new Extraordinary Beings would eventually appear in the society of the Human Federation Blue Star.
Regardless of their individual power levels, the impact on reality would be immense.
Not to mention, the game had also announced a second round of closed beta slots.
However, those slots would only open up when fewer than 1% of the first-round beta Players remained.
That meant that by the time the second round of the game started, one thousand High-End Players with Extraordinary Power would exist in the real world.
At the same time, the deduction period had leaped from one hundred to three hundred days. Lince was certain that when the videos were released at dawn, a huge number of the remaining Players would be eliminated.
He pitied the nearly seventy percent of Players who had been eliminated on the very first day. They wouldn't be getting any of this compensation!
He could just imagine them furiously cursing this new game update.
The opening of the exclusive game forum, on the other hand, was a genuinely good thing for the Players.
It was simple: it meant that Players could finally band together for mutual support, both in the game and for those who intended to keep their identities hidden in the real world.
However, as he thought over the four updates, the one that unnerved him the most was the third point.
'What the hell? How did I end up as one of the top players?'
'A 300-day deduction... that means the highest-tiered Player in the game right now is Tier Three. So does that also mean that I and the other Tier Three Players are going to be put under intense scrutiny and investigation by the Human Alliance?!'
"..."