Owl Shop

Just then, new text popped up in the game.

[At the spot where the fugitive left, you discover something resembling a branch. You pick it up and find that it is an Old Wand!]

[Old Wand: A junk Magic Wand made from the cheapest red oak branch, with no bonus attributes whatsoever. The worn marks on its surface indicate that it has been in use for many years and could give out at any moment. If you have a choice, you would be better off replacing it.]

An unexpected bonus?

Mu You's eyes lit up, and he tapped the word "wand."

A crooked branch quietly appeared in his hand.

It was about thirty centimeters long, with signs of rot already showing in several places. It was so rough that it looked like a branch casually snapped off a dead tree.

"This is a Magic Wand?"

Mu You fiddled with the branch for a while, then tried waving it forward a few times. Nothing happened.

He could only turn back to the game's text.

[A Magic Wand is an essential tool for a wizard to cast magic, but to cast a spell, you must first learn at least one incantation.]

"So I do need an incantation..."

Mu You sighed. Clearly, the Magic Wand was only a tool; the magic incantations were what really mattered. By itself, this Magic Wand was completely useless to him.

"An incantation, an incantation. I need an incantation! Just give me one! Anything will do!"

Muttering under his breath, Mu You continued playing.

[You have obtained your very first Magic Wand! This gives you tremendous encouragement. Although you do not yet know any magic, you have taken your first solid step on the path to becoming a great wizard!]

[Confidence sprouts in your heart, and ambition begins to swell in your chest. Brimming with heroic spirit, you stride down the middle path like a king expanding his domain!]

[A venomous snake suddenly darts out of the grass ahead.]

[The venomous snake bites you to death!]

[You have died! Lifespan -1. Remaining lifespan: 57 years.]

"Fuck!"

Mu You stared in disbelief. Another sudden death!

But wasn't something wrong here...?

-Where the hell were the options!?

He had not even used his pocket watch yet. How had he suddenly been bitten to death?

Just moments ago, Mu You had been thinking that with the pocket watch in hand, there was no way he could die in this game. He had immediately been proven wrong.

So there were deaths that did not even give him a choice... That was just plain dirty!

Against this kind of death, even his pocket watch was useless. Even if he rewound time, he could not make any other choice in the game. He could only keep walking forward and repeat the same death all over again.

Mu You swore up a storm, but even as he cursed, all he could do was keep playing.

Although he had lost a year of his life, he had already obtained an outrageously powerful pocket watch and a Magic Wand. He really could not bring himself to quit now.

[Under the rules of the Star Spirit World, death is not the end. Every creature in this world loses one year of lifespan each time it dies, then revives at the nearest spawn point.]

[Only when your lifespan falls below zero will you disappear from this world forever!]

The game first displayed an explanation.

Just as he had suspected, every death in this game really did cost him a year of lifespan.

And his current lifespan was fifty-seven years. In other words, he still had fifty-seven lives to mess around with...

"It's fine. I only lost one life. I've got plenty more!"

Mu You comforted himself and set off again.

[After the agony of death passes, you revive at the previous crossroads.]

[You set off once more, strolling through the snow-covered forest.]

[You see a little white rabbit nibbling grass beside the road. Its adorable appearance inevitably reminds you of the taste of spicy rabbit head, and you cannot resist approaching it.]

[The little white rabbit notices you. The little white rabbit uses 'Brutal Charge' on you.]

[The little white rabbit rams you to death!]

[You have died! Lifespan -1. Current lifespan: 56 years.]

WTF?

Mu You nearly smashed his phone on the spot.

This game really was screwed up!

Who said I wanted spicy rabbit head? I wanted to stay alive, okay? Couldn't you dodge a little better?

Two instant deaths in a row left Mu You's heart bleeding.

He finally felt the game's sheer malice toward its players. He had barely taken a few steps, and it had already cheated him out of two lives. Who knew how it would toy with him later?

Unfortunately, the game did not give him much time to complain. New text had already appeared.

[Amid the howling wind, you revive at the crossroads once again.]

[The experience of dying again finally makes you realize your own insignificance. In this bizarre, dark world of magic, you, a Fool, are the lowest and most insignificant of beings. Even a rabbit by the roadside is beyond your ability to handle!]

Reading that infuriatingly smug text, Mu You barely restrained the urge to start cursing.

He was actually quite curious about what sort of state his counterpart in that world was in. Being unable to beat bats and venomous snakes was one thing, but being unable to beat even a rabbit? Just how pathetically weak was he?

[After resting, you set off again on your search for a village. This time, you will be more cautious.]

[You return to the same path as before. Seeing the harmless-looking little white rabbit ahead, you choose to give it a wide berth.]

[The rabbit soon disappears from view. You breathe a sigh of relief and continue forward. Suddenly, you see a wooden shop standing incongruously at the crossroads ahead. An owl-shaped sign hangs at the top of the building, bearing the words 'Owl Shop.']

[The owner of the roadside shop is a person with an owl's face. The owner notices you and calls out, "Hello, adventurer! Everything I sell here is a genuine treasure. Since you're passing by, don't miss out!"]

[Enter the 'Owl Shop'?]

A little shop resembling a roadside stall seemed to have appeared ahead, but its owner was a bizarre owl person. He had no idea whether this would be another trap.

Now wary of being tricked, Mu You selected [Enter the shop], while gripping the pocket watch tightly in his right hand, ready to rewind the instant anything went wrong.

Fortunately, his imagined scenario of being pecked to death by a huge flock of owls the moment he entered did not happen. This really did seem to be somewhere he could trade safely.

[You enter the shop and see three items displayed in its window.]

[Burn-Burn Scroll: A scroll containing a magical incantation. Using it allows you to learn the low-level fire spell 'Flaming Blaze.' Price: 100 years of lifespan.]

[Invisibility Cloak: Just as its name suggests, wearing it makes you invisible, but the cloak cannot conceal your sounds or scent. Price: 55 years of lifespan.]

[Charged Wand: A special Magic Wand. Whenever someone nearby casts magic, it absorbs the stray magical energy and gains one charge. Once all five charges are filled, it can unleash a powerful electric spell at no cost, consuming all its charges. Price: 70 years of lifespan.]

"These are all great!"

Mu You was practically drooling with desire. Unfortunately, he could not afford a single one...

Even the cheapest item, the Invisibility Cloak, cost fifty-five years of lifespan, and he only had fifty-six years in total. Buying it would leave him hanging on by a thread; one swipe from a random monster by the roadside would kill him. Even with ten times the courage, he would never dare gamble that much!