StarTie Simulation: Aren’t you NPCs?

Time goes back fifteen minutes.

Wu Xuan, who had just finished his meal in the space station dormitory, began to think about what he had not done well in the last game. After all, the game rating and the completion of the task might affect the reward he would eventually receive.

So he took out a small notebook from his drawer and began to sort out the events and corresponding problems that occurred in the last game.

"First of all... the first event should be the troublemaker "Iron Fist" Ariel in the "Tavern". If I pick up the mechanical arm that I cut off in the next simulation and sell it to K... can I get more powerful weapons and equipment?"

"But... there weren't any extra options for me to choose from last time? Maybe I need to pick up the mechanical prosthesis to see other options?"

Regarding this, Wu Xuan pondered for a moment, and finally wrote a sentence in the small notebook: Remember to pick up the mechanical prosthesis next time, and see if there are any devices like night vision goggles.

Then he thought about the final cg, where the previously kind-looking Andrew turned into another elite monster... Was there something wrong with the way he interrogated the woman? Or...did he ask too few questions?

Thinking of this, Wu Xuan added one more thing to his notes: Next time, try the newly appeared fixed free input mode to see if it can help.

Recalling this, Wu Xuan felt that in the last game... he really couldn't think of any other problems.

"Never mind, no matter how I think about it, it's all just talk. Only practice and actual combat can prove the problem. Anyway... unless I complete the main storyline of "Punk Lord", my game will remain stagnant here, and I don't have to worry about those rewards disappearing."

As Wu Xuan thought about this, he leaned against the head of the bed. Looking at the familiar four big words "Start Game", he clicked on it without hesitation.

Perhaps because his talents had been fixed, he did not see the familiar "Talent Selection Interface" this time, but instead saw the "Task Bar".

When the taskbar UI appeared, Wu Xuan wanted to directly click the "X" in the upper right corner to skip this stage. After all, these tasks can be viewed in real time in the game.

But he saw that the number of his task pages changed from "1/4" to "1/5", which made Wu Xuan a little surprised.

He immediately stopped the finger that was about to click the "X" and instead pulled the task leaflet in the light screen downwards. A new task appeared in his task list.

[Additional Task: New Companion]

[Description: Conquer any character and make him your life partner (i.e. the favorability exceeds the threshold)]

[Rewards: "Exciting Reward" x1, "Unforgettable Memories" x1]

"Hmm...? Another "exciting reward"? And what exactly is that "unforgettable memory"? "

"But... this doesn't seem to be the point, right? Shouldn't the point be that the rewards for this mission are directly displayed? I remember... there were no such things before I entered the game last time?"

Wu Xuan muttered to himself in confusion as he pulled the progress bar upwards. Some details that he had not noticed just now all appeared during this browsing.

[Main Mission: Guide]

[Description: Help Silver Wolf join the "Star Core Hunters". This is Silver Wolf's predetermined fate, and this is also the ending you will face.]

[Rewards: "Shadow of Punk Lord" Wu Xuan (complete) x1, "Unimaginable Opportunity" x1]

[Side Quest 1: New Legend]

[Description: Break the rules and step into the universe. This is the first step to becoming a legend. ]

[Rewards: "Ether Cassette" (Special) x1, Purple Weapon x1]

[Note: The weapons mentioned in this mission reward are purple weapons created/owned by players in the game]

[Side Quest 2: Bonding]

[Description: The favorability with any character reaches 120 (never separate)]

[Rewards: "Unexpected Reward" x1, "Token" x1]

[Special Mission: Martyr]

[Description: She is your Tao, your everything, and you have made a great contribution to her growth. ]

[Reward: Unknown]

[Note: This mission requires meeting the special condition of "death" and completing other main and side missions. After completing this mission, you will receive "heart-warming rewards"]

After reading it over and over again, Wu Xuan discovered that this time the mission not only reflected the rewards, but also clarified the scope of certain rewards. However...

"Why are all these rewards so ambiguous? Like some kind of Riddler-spread memetic contamination..."

To be honest, Wu Xuan doesn't really like being a riddle teller. After all, this way of speaking is completely embarrassing and disgusting, but...it's good enough that people are giving you a reward now, what else do you have to blame?

In fact, from the very beginning when Wu Xuan came into contact with this game, he was a little... nervous? After all, he bet his chance to change his fate on the real rewards that this game could bring him.

But what if he was not rewarded? What should he do? Stay in the space station for the rest of his life? Even if he didn't want to waste his time and years, he wanted to become an "unknown guest", but would the train crew accept him?

These are all question marks.

This is why Wu Xuan did not comply with the game's requirement to take a full three-day vacation at the beginning. Wu Xuan tried his best to minimize his losses.

Of course, it turns out...the game is real.

Although he didn't know who this came from, the memory and ability of "Sword Mastery" were real. This was enough for Wu Xuan to change his chance of changing his destiny from being promoted to a senior position in the space station to playing the "Virtual Life Game".

Looking at the "Start Game" button in front of him, Wu Xuan hesitated a little. His finger hovered over the button. His deep black eyes looked thoughtfully at the vast sea of ​​stars outside the window. A trace of sadness appeared on his handsome face. The boy couldn't help but mutter:

"Any gift from fate... has a price tag on it. Although I don't know what the price of this "gift" is,... that's a matter for the future."

Wu Xuan then laughed at himself and continued as if he was talking to himself: "I used to think that Qingque's lifestyle was a bit... too Buddhist, but when I think about it carefully... why not let tomorrow's affairs be left to tomorrow's self to worry about?"

As if he suddenly understood something, Wu Xuan's expression gradually became calm. The originally worried expression became very calm at this moment, and then he gently clicked the "Start Game" button in front of him.

Wu Xuan didn't know that many years later when he thought about the decision he made back then... he would be extremely grateful to Wu Xuan for leaving the future matters to his future self to worry about.

Of course, this is a story.

---------

There should be about two chapters left today. I have fed Kafka's AI in the past few days. The Silver Wolf volume is expected to be around 120,000 to 150,000 words. I am still considering who to write for the second volume. Otherwise, should I just write a post at the end and ask for opinions?