Arknights: I became an NPC in the online game

Felix was soon invited to join the second team's trial battle—or rather, this was the moment he had planned for when he designed the mission in the first place.

A true leader needed not only words and vision but also strength. Especially here, on Terra, strength was the only law that truly mattered. Degenbrecher and Carnelian could provide him with security and reassurance, but he couldn't depend on them forever.

As the founder of Tomorrow's Development, carrying the title of "the Pioneer" itself, he couldn't keep hiding in the shadows. If the hammer is to strike true, it must be forged hard.

And what if one day he faced an enemy that even Degenbrecher and Carnelian together couldn't defeat? Would he just wait to die?

Waiting until he had the power to wield Helena's Sorrow before stepping onto the frontlines was never an option. He wouldn't allow himself that kind of cowardice. After all, he was still a player. The smooth years may have dulled his sense of adventure, but the spark was still there—his heart still burned with curiosity and hunger to explore this world.

This time, he was chosen by a group of foreign pro players. They weren't well-known, judging by the crowd's reaction. Felix didn't recognize their IDs either. His coat drifted lightly with each step as he walked forward.

"Let's begin."

With a shout, the foreign team lunged. The lesson from the earlier fight was clear—they couldn't let the Pioneer or Degenbrecher drag things out. A Caster and a sniper leveled their weapons at him, the sniper loosing a bolt instantly, while three others charged in with longswords, aiming to cut him down from three sides.

A textbook surround maneuver. It was the classic tactic players used when fighting higher-level NPCs: swarm and overwhelm. Effective against lone enemies—but when the opponent wasn't alone, its use dropped sharply.

And yet, before their blades could fall, three compact drones materialized beside Felix. They spun outward, covering him in a perfect 360-degree arc. Then came the roar of Artfire.

Tat-tat-tat-tat! Shell casings clattered to the ground as streaks of white light stitched across the battlefield. The five players were riddled instantly, chestplates sparking as they were driven backward, completely overwhelmed by the unrelenting barrage. Their weapons went flying, their gear durability plummeting.

Then one drone flickered, wrapped in arcs of blue lightning. A surge discharged—crack!—and all five collapsed, paralyzed, unable to move or cast.

"You did not pass the test."

Barely four seconds had passed. Their HP bars clung to a sliver of life, a sneeze away from exp penalties and respawn timers.

The five lay sprawled on the ground, stunned. They had been told by local players that this "NPC" was a support type, mainly relying on a Handgun. Nothing too special.

But one exchange was all it took. They had been nearly erased. They were pros—even if second-string—but still pros. And yet they were dismantled instantly.

There wasn't even any "fancy play" to witness—no mechanics, no tricks, just absolute suppression from the start. The Pioneer hadn't even moved a step. He stood there the whole time, coat swaying lightly, drones doing the work as if it were effortless.

"Wait… this is the mechanic's subclass? Production specs are this strong?"

"Support classes can buff mechanics, sure—but to fight like this? Without breaking a sweat? That's on another level."

"I didn't see him move at all. How the hell was he controlling the drones? No hand commands? Nothing?"

"We're screwed. Degenbrecher was unbeatable already, and now the Pioneer's just as bad."

Even though Degenbrecher now served under Felix, and had been given her title as "the Black Knight," players who had suffered through the Zero Night Raid dungeon still couldn't help but call her by her old name. The fear stuck too deep.

The debate could wait. For now, all eyes were fixed on the Pioneer's calm expression. Inside, though, every player felt like ten thousand wild horses were stampeding through their chest. Just how high was this guy's level? Was his stat sheet nothing but question marks?

Felix, seeing their reactions, was more than satisfied. At least now he wouldn't be written off as some weak, harmless support who couldn't even wring a chicken's neck.

Most players were already around level thirty. Like he had once said, in the starter towns they could swagger around unchecked, forming bounty hunter squads and chasing down wanted criminals with ease. But their skills and perks were still too few, and the stat growth from leveling wasn't enough. Losing to him was only natural.

Even the fastest players in the field looked ordinary when standing before him.

As for himself, Felix had already expanded his perk slots to eight, thanks to his Pioneer title's influence bonus. Reaching one hundred percent influence had granted him two extra slots, and ranking up to two stars unlocked another. If he kept pushing—earning new titles, raising his reputation, carving a place in NPC memory as a so-called "legend"—his perk capacity would only grow.

And it wasn't just levels. Gear was another huge gulf. Both he and Degenbrecher were equipped far beyond the competition. For Felix, only his mechanical weapons were green grade; everything else he wore was solid blue, each piece boosting his stats until he barely needed to exert himself to crush opponents.

By contrast, in late 1.0 even green gear was the dream of production players. Most players were still clad in yellows. Even the loot from the Zero Night Raid dungeon capped at yellow—so the gap was plain for all to see.

The pros' faces froze in disbelief, like they'd all bitten into something rotten. These weren't random casuals who had just been flattened—they were trained professional players. Sure, second-string, but still pros, leagues above both high-end casuals and ordinary players. Yet against the Pioneer, they had looked like nothing.

"Captain… what do we do now?" one finally muttered.

"What do we do? We do nothing!" Huang Tianhoutu snapped back.

Back in the early days, he had dug soil in Kazdel side by side with the Pioneer. Back then, his impression of Felix had been a support commander with a handgun. Strong, yes—but now, years later in Terra's time, he had become something far beyond.

The next wave of pros had clearly learned their lesson. They split into two groups—one to face the Pioneer, the other to test themselves against Degenbrecher. None dared attempt a frontal assault anymore. They knew victory was impossible. From the start, it had never been on the table. Their only chance now was to turtle up, stall, and pray they could survive the thirty-second trial.

Magic ZX, Yang Yan XF, and several other video-site streamers had already gone live. Not only were the players watching on-site laughing it up, but the viewers tuning into the streams were howling as well.

Normally, pro players were only seen in tournaments—facing each other on fairly even ground, trading blow for blow. Fun, sure, but rarely jaw-dropping. Today, though, the audience was getting their fill in a completely different way. When had anyone ever seen professional players get rolled this badly? Not just one of them—five at once. No matter how famous the pros were, against the Pioneer and Degenbrecher, all of them ended up hanging on by a thread.

That's when the crowd's attention shifted: to the Mechanist subclass, and to the production professions in general.

"Damn, so crafting classes are actually this busted? Just give them the right blueprints and they can shred pros like paper?"

Meanwhile, veteran crafters quickly pointed out that Felix's kit wasn't the work of a Mechanist alone. It showed touches of a blacksmith, tailor, engineer, even artisan. Some pieces, they noted, could only be made by combining two or three crafting professions at once. Their tone was almost reverent as they said it: Felix was the true beacon for production players.

If you wanted to play production, you had to train them all. Felix had just proven it with his strength and gear.

For the first time, the forums erupted with real hype around crafting. After all, crafting subclasses had no limits—anyone could take them up. A wave of players looking to strike it rich in-game were already itching to join the Pioneer's Tomorrow's Development after 2.0 and grind production. Especially after Magic ZX had leaked the shop price list earlier, showing a flood of craft-related books—the production community finally felt at home.

"Gotta join Tomorrow's Development."

That was the thought on every pro team coach's mind. Sure, their teams had production squads of their own, but none could compare to what the Pioneer offered. Inside Tomorrow's Development lay the gear advantage that could set them apart from rival teams. And they all knew—if the others were thinking the same thing, falling behind was not an option.

Felix hadn't meant to spark it, but his fight had triggered a frenzy of internal arms races among the teams.

On the field, Cabus lay on the ground gasping for breath, HP deep in the red. Around him, his four teammates clung to life at a sliver of health. Instead of despair, though, his chest swelled with joy.

"You've passed the test."

The Pioneer's voice fell on him like blessed rain. Cabus jolted up with a roll, hauling his companions to their feet. Together, the five bowed deeply to Felix.

"To join Tomorrow's Development—it's our honor."

Felix gave a small nod. Cabus bowed again, then shot a sidelong, taunting glance at his old rival Huang Tianhoutu. The latter's face darkened instantly, snorting coldly. Nearby, Cheng nearly laughed at the scene, but after one glance at Huang's expression, his instinct for survival won out and he held it in.

---

That night.

After a full day of testing, Felix and Degenbrecher finally called it and found lodging in the starter town. The results weren't bad: over fifty players had passed and joined Tomorrow's Development.

Magic ZX, Qiu Muyu, and Xiao Xuegao—the three who had joined ahead of the crowd—were treated like VIPs. Nearly a thousand players gathered in the plaza, hanging on their every word as they animatedly described life inside Tomorrow's Development: its task system, mission assignments, and their own speculations on what future quests might look like.

The players partied; Felix, however, kept out of it. He glanced at Degenbrecher, who stood by the window, half-smiling as she gazed outside.

"Hard day," he said softly.

"Hard? Not at all," Degenbrecher replied with a faint laugh. "Today's battles were the most fun I've had in a while."

Degenbrecher shot Felix a sidelong glance, the corner of her lips curving into a playful arc.

"But I'll admit, these adventurers did surprise me. Compared to the last time we crossed paths, they've grown stronger."

"Next time, they'll be stronger still."

Arms crossed, Degenbrecher gave him a teasing look.

"So this is what they call the boss's grand foresight?"

"You could stand to flatter me a little more, you know."

"I'll save the rest for when Mostima or Muelsyse show up."

Felix froze for a moment. Degenbrecher chuckled, waving lightly as she turned away.

"I'm off to rest. Boss, you should too—don't overwork yourself."

"Alright."

Felix lingered at the desk, scrolling through the forums. Clips of his battle were already circulating, re-uploaded by different streamers chasing traffic. Reading the flood of comments, he couldn't help but grin. Betting big at the tail end of 1.0 and the dawn of 2.0 had been the right call. With the world championship not yet underway, trending now meant no risk of being buried beneath tournament hype.

And when the championship did arrive, Felix was confident he'd make the hot searches again.

Meanwhile, after Magic ZX wrapped up his talk, the plaza dispersed. Players returned to the inn—those who passed the test celebrated with drinks or logged off to share the news, while those who failed wore grim faces, huddling together to strategize.

Inside Yanfei's room, members of Yanyu Pavilion and Blue Rain gathered. The two guilds had little to do with each other normally, rarely cooperating in joint activities, but their pro players were at least familiar enough to sit together.

"I say we pick the Pioneer, not Degenbrecher."

Dandao Dantart shuddered at the memory of Degenbrecher's "training" and pressed on.

"Most of the ones who cleared her test had top-tier reflexes. Nearly all of them were Vanguards. That doesn't fit a lineup like ours…"

Neither Yanyu Pavilion nor Blue Rain were melee-focused teams.

Yanfei gave a slight nod, about to speak—when a knock sounded at the door.

At this hour? Another team paying a visit? Closest to the door, Xi yiye pulled it open.

Felix stepped in with his usual clean, easy smile. The players, perched on beds and chairs, shot to their feet, curiosity written across their faces. Only Dandao looked near tears, while Yanfei's eyes lit with anticipation.

"My two friends—and your companions," Felix said evenly, "would you like to join Tomorrow's Development?"

So this was the perk of triggering a hidden storyline: no test required, the Pioneer himself offering an invitation. And he'd even called them friends!

Dandao's eyes welled up. How long had it been since he'd felt Pioneer's care? The last time… was the last time. Voice breaking, he choked out:

"I do."

Yanfei let out a delighted laugh. She stepped forward and gave the Pioneer a friendly hug.

"Thank you, Pioneer brother!"

A few seconds later—her figure flickered and vanished.

Felix blinked.

"…Where did that friend of yours go?"

"Ahaha… I just saw her step away from your side, looked like she was heading to the restroom," Xi yiye stammered, mopping cold sweat from her brow.

That woman… she'd gotten carried away hugging Mr. Pioneer and got force-disconnected, huh?