The new players had logged in just as the old players were reaching the end of their allotted playtime for the day. As a result, neither Happy Stick nor Niu Niu could spend much time "leveling up" with their buddies and older sister.
All they could do was tell the newbies as much as possible about the hardcore game's various rules and mechanics before logging off, and warn them over and over not to go looking for a fight.
The death penalty in this game really was a little harsh.
But seeing the newbies clutch their battered weapons, wearing their equally battered follower armor, eager to leap into action, the veteran players felt a sense of foreboding rise in their hearts.
Perhaps Bionic Snail's earlier "tragedy" was about to repeat itself.
"Don't worry about it, Stick."
Before logging off, Meow Brother tried to comfort the anxious Happy Stick.
"You can't figure this game out until you die at least once. They're still approaching it like an ordinary game, so something's bound to go wrong. Even if you explain everything, all kinds of accidents can happen in such a hardcore, realistic environment.
Just look at Lumina. She's so sharp, and she still died because she slipped.
There's no stopping it!
Relax. It's only three days. We'll still make it in time for the tail end of the Cadman City event. Besides, your crew needs time to level up too. I got some blood vials from Lord Murphy. Want to run the secret vault dungeon together tomorrow?"
"Sure. Let's set a time to log in tomorrow."
Happy Stick sighed.
He'd brought in so many people this time that he was starting to realize he couldn't keep track of them all. He felt he might have made a mistake, but soon something clicked.