Arknights: I became an NPC in the online game

The players in Kendall Town soon discovered the dungeon crystal in the Pioneer's shop. To unlock it, they needed to complete five tasks issued by him—mostly material gathering missions, along with a few hunting assignments. Upon seeing how straightforward the unlocking conditions were, players excitedly set out in teams, eager to complete the objectives after gearing up.

Xiyiye spotted a Guard's Advanced Book, which would allow her to advance to Guard Apprentice, raising her level cap in the process. Delighted, she purchased it without hesitation. While browsing further, she came across a Liberator's Guard sub-class book. The name didn't ring a bell—she had no memory of this subclass being available in the Pioneer's shop before. Could it be a newly stocked item?

As a professional player, Xiyiye had a general roadmap for her class progression. After mulling it over, she decided to buy the book anyway. Even if she didn't train it immediately, she didn't want to miss out on something potentially powerful. Who knew? Maybe this sub-class would turn out to be incredible later on.

She approached Felix after completing her purchases.

"Mr. Pioneer, how long will you be staying in Kendall Town?" Xiyiye asked.

"I'll be stationed here for the next month," Felix replied. "But I'll have to return to the city occasionally to restock. There are too many adventurers here—my goods run out quickly."

Xiyiye did a quick mental calculation and made up her mind to discuss with Yan Fei after logging out. If possible, they should have the rest of the Iberian Yanyu Pavilion team relocate to Victoria as soon as possible to catch the Pioneer's store while it was still stocked.

But there was still one thing bothering her.

"Mr. Pioneer... do you have any suggestions for improving the Caster class's combat capability?"

Now, Felix himself didn't possess any advanced Caster knowledge, so it wasn't possible for him to cover everything. However, he knew that the country with the most developed Caster practices was Leithanien, where Originium arts were uniquely fused with music, creating a distinctive casting style. Kazdel also had Casters, but theirs lacked formal education. You could ask a Kazdel Caster to smash someone, but ask them to teach? Not a chance.

"As far as I know," Felix answered, "among all the nations in Terra, the only place truly suited for Casters is Leithanien. Casters are common there, and many people rely on them in battle. Perhaps you'll find your answer there."

"What do you personally think of Casters?" Xiyiye pressed further.

Felix glanced at her, instantly picking up on the hesitation in this professional player's eyes. Was she beginning to doubt the viability of the Caster class?

"Being too close to the center of the battlefield makes you an easy target for ambush," Felix replied calmly.

Xiyiye felt a twinge of disappointment. What the Pioneer said was true—and exactly the weakness she feared. While the monsters they had encountered so far were low-level with poor resistance to magic, she knew that wouldn't last. As the story progressed, enemies would grow stronger, with higher spiritual resistance. When that time came, Casters might not be effective at all.

Still, having already chosen her class, starting over with a new account felt like a waste.

Thankfully, there were only a few Casters in the team. If more than half of them had chosen this class, she wouldn't even know where to begin crying.

Meanwhile, thanks to the steady stream of income from the players, Felix finally breathed a sigh of relief—his next phase of reckless, gambling-fueled living could now begin again.

However, some of the materials Clever needed couldn't be purchased in Victoria. Felix had to wait until he returned to Columbia to get them. A few of those items were expensive and fragile—if they were damaged during transport, it would be a major hassle.

After dealing with the players, Felix returned to the car, only to find a pile of gifts stacked behind Degenbrecher. Among them were quest rewards, several iron swords, some desserts, and small accessories. Degenbrecher, clearly a little speechless, crossed her arms and shrugged as she glanced at him.

"The adventurers are too enthusiastic," she said.

"It's because you're so famous that I've become popular by association," Felix replied with a smile. "They're probably all your fans. Even though the name of the Black Knight disappeared less than a year ago, it clearly hasn't faded from people's hearts."

"That's not exactly good news for the Chamber of Commerce."

"Who cares what the Chamber of Commerce thinks?" Felix scoffed. "Only Kazimierz gives a damn about them. To other nations, they're just another business alliance."

"But they're not ordinary."

"I'll admit that," Felix said. "But their claws can't reach Kazimierz, and the Armorless Union's assassins won't show up in Victoria to kill us... The Commercial Federation is still made up of merchants, and merchants need to keep their promises."

Degenbrecher chuckled and patted Felix's shoulder. "My bad for bringing them up. Boss, you really look your best when you smile."

Felix shook his head at Degenbrecher's teasing older-sister demeanor. He then noticed that the players had given Senomi a lot of snacks. He had already made a rule with her: no snacking before meals, or it would affect her growth. As always, Senomi had nodded seriously in agreement and obediently followed the rule.

Lately, she had been thinking about Mandragora. Although Mandragora was a blunt little girl with some strange ideas about her master, after spending more than ten days together, Senomi had grown used to having her around as a playmate.

Back to the players—the news that the Pioneer had appeared in Kendall Town, Victoria, was once again posted to the forums, and players rushed to the location in droves.

During this time, Xiyiye and Yan Fei, both offline, met with Coach Baimi in the conference room. Baimi didn't give an immediate response to Xiyiye's proposal to form a team headed for Leithanien. Although he was also playing the game, he wasn't playing every profession. In the early stages of the game, coaching teams were the busiest—they had to gather intelligence, optimize class builds, develop strategies, and dig up equipment data. Taking on too much would be a mistake.

Still, they came to one clear conclusion: there was nothing left in Iberia worth exploring for the main team of Yanyu Pavilion. They had initially wanted to check out the coastal areas for potential singularities but were blocked en route. The people stopping them wore black and pink outfits and carried guns and swords—they refused to let anyone pass, no matter what was said. It left the team with some regrets.

But now that the Pioneer had already arrived in Victoria and would remain there for another month, if they hurried, they might still be able to catch up by hitching a ride to Victoria.

The professional players of Yanyu Pavilion soon caught wind of the situation, and those still in Iberia quickly packed up and made their way toward Victoria.

---

The day when Felix would establish his own company didn't seem far off. He now had a temporary foothold in Terra, but the number of companions around him was still too small. Senomi and Mandragora, the ones he wanted to bring along, were both elementary school students. The only one truly capable of getting things done was Degenbrecher… but Degenbrecher clearly wasn't suited for clerical work. It was giving him a bit of a headache. Where could he find single NPCs in recent years who didn't already have their own worries?

Felix rubbed his temples. This was a real headache.

Hmm… he thought of another Operator he remembered from Rhodes Island Pharmaceuticals. Why always Rhodes Island? Because that's where he had spent the most time slacking off.

What he was trying to do now was simple: intercept people before they settled elsewhere, win them over if possible, offer benefits to those willing to listen, and ensure that their first impression of the Pioneer was a positive one.

Speaking of that Operator… he seemed to be living in northern Victoria now. When Felix headed north, he'd also be going toward Leithania. The players there were practically crying and begging for him to come. If this kept up, Felix feared they might spiral into some kind of failed Austrian art movement.

Having made up his mind, Felix decided to stay in the town for a few more days. During that time, he bought a large quantity of tea leaves from the mayor. He had already entered his "health preservation" stage. Even though the average lifespan in Terra was long, if he wanted to live to the age of that legendary mercenary who founded Blacksteel, he'd need to start drinking more wolfberry tea now.

In the future, thoughts like these might put him at odds with the notary office in Laterano. It wouldn't even be surprising if he ended up drawing his gun and firing, just like Cliff did. When the Sankta engaged in gunfights, it wasn't just about bullets—it was a clash of ideologies. The muzzles they pointed at each other represented opposing beliefs, and the bullets that flew stood for sharp, unyielding opinions.

Empathy could never erase the diversity of human thought, and the isolated Sankta made this all the more apparent.

Look at the Pioneer walking the earth, and then look at Agenir clashing with Lady Sicily—the Sankta men, isolated as they were, were all tough guys.

Felix saw new photos posted by the Sarkaz players in Kazdel. Though the landscape in the images looked bleak and harsh, a stone-built city stood tall on that miserable land.

Somehow, they hadn't encountered any natural disasters during its construction. Was this some kind of luck bonus granted to all players? It was almost too unbelievable.

In the thread, players enthusiastically described the city's public facilities—there was a night market where players could trade, a task collection zone, a central meeting area, and a residential district. Then they introduced the NPCs. Apparently, several characters from Scar Market had temporarily moved into the city. Talking to them would grant many quests, and some could even teach career skill books, which made things very convenient for players.

They then talked about their deputy city lord, Ulšulah, and attached a few photos. Everyone was smitten with her stunning appearance, flooding the comments with, "I'm ready!"

"This content was also featured in the Magic ZX's latest video. Ulšulah was brought in by the Pioneers."

After seeing that comment on the forum, Felix suddenly remembered—he had forgotten to watch the third story video by the Magic ZX.

Clicking on the link titled "The Pioneer" the video opened with Magic ZX's familiar fast-paced, jingle-like narration.

"Following the Pioneers, we've arrived in the land of Kazdel. This land is scorched and blackened. We've heard from the Pioneers that Kazdel is currently embroiled in a civil war, and tensions are running high. Natural disasters are rampant here, with Originium storms potentially appearing in any region. Because of that, we need a mercenary familiar with local climate patterns to guide us."

The camera followed the Pioneer, capturing his interactions with the Scar Market mercenaries. The moment when Degenbrecher stepped forward to take on three enemies at once to protect the Pioneer left a strong impression—many players commented that having such a big sister to rely on would be amazing.

A woman with long pink hair and a mercenary uniform appeared on screen. Players noticed she looked very young—like a high schooler. The chat barrage lit up instantly.

"This mercenary uniform must be so smelly, all wrapped up like that!"

"FP, beautiful girls always smell good. Don't even try to mislead me."

"Any weirdos here who believe beautiful girls smell nice? Type Ark Foot Emoji in the comment!"

What else can be said? They're Ark players, through and through—perfectly in line with Ark etiquette.

"We've now arrived at the heart of the players' battlefield. What more can be said? The Pioneer lives up to his name. Players from both factions have noticed his presence, stopped fighting, and are now flocking to trade with him."

The audience burst into laughter as players from both sides rushed at the Pioneer like ravenous wolves—just to grab some gear before the others.

"Of course, we also encountered Yang YanXF from the Sarkaz tribe, along with a group of professional players from the Dynasty Team."

On screen, Yang YanXF smiled and waved, and a number of pro players, including Huangtian Houtu from Dynasty, greeted the camera with polite nods.

Magic ZX then began seriously discussing the Pioneers' plan to rebuild a town in this chaotic region. The Sarkaz players were full of enthusiasm—some were clearing land, some were hunting. The tone of the video suddenly shifted to something like a survival or city-building game. Watching the players draw lines from one part of the map to another, step by step, as they developed facilities from scratch—this gave the audience a strange but moving feeling.

Perhaps this was the true charm of pioneering—building a city from nothing, a city where players themselves could live.

"But in the end, the Pioneer left," Magic ZX said with emotion. "As a Sankta, he did everything he could. As a Sankta, he built a city for the Sarkaz on their own land… I give my highest respect to the Pioneer. In the face of racial conflict in Terra, he doesn't care. He acts out of compassion. Perhaps, he truly is… an angel."

"But now the Pioneer—our benevolent Fate God—has gone to Lungmen, in Yan Country. We players will continue to follow him after the land reclamation is complete. If any of you have information about the Pioneer, please leave a comment on the forum. We'll bring you more stories about him."

"Partings are always sorrowful, but i hope we can meet again someday."

"Thank you, everyone!"