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“Ahhmm…”

She took out a singular fry from the paper cup, and let it dangle in front of her eyes for a bit before putting it inside her mouth. First the crispy exterior cracked with a satisfying snap, while the inside was soft and fluffy, the earthy taste of potatoes filling her mouth with a hint of salt.

She relished the familiar taste of fried potatoes.

“Mm…!”

Being able to taste junk food after so long made her body shiver. Eating one was nowhere enough to satisfy her, so she quickly ate more in quick succession, filling her with more happiness.

That made her stand out again, but she was in so much bliss she no longer cared.

She had refused to eat any type of meat from the people housing her until now, explaining to them that she could not eat it. Instead she would buy dry bread from the market, and drink some water. That was all she had survived on, since at least it filled her stomach.

She was almost moved to tears tasting good food again when…

“Hey, hey you there?”

Someone suddenly calls out to her from behind. She turns around, a long fried potato baton hanging from her lips, and tilts her head in question. A young man wearing full metallic armor was standing behind her.

Ohhh, he’s already wearing full armor. I guess he’s been grinding for a bit too.

According to what she had seen, 70 Armor Skill Points were needed to wear armor with plates, and a full set required at least 90 Points. Such armor also cost a considerable amount, and if he had only visited the areas around the city, then he had clearly been playing for many hours to buy it.

The game had come online just a few days before, so either he had allocated most of his initial points to that specific Skill, or he was simply a no-lifer who had been grinding the game with barely any rest.

Crim’s hands continued carrying fries into her mouth as she observed the man, carefully inspecting and evaluating him… and then in an exaggerated manner, the man knelt in front of her like a knight.

“I see you’re still wearing your starting garments, so I took the liberty of assuming you’re a new player. Would you like me to show you around and teach you how to play?”

…Oh. He’s just trying to pick up girls.

She could tell why someone would be attracted to her current appearance, but explaining who she really was could get annoying, and Crim did not feel like playing along either.

“No, I’ll look around on my own.”

Crim instantly lost interest in him, saying that she stood up and prepared to leave. But then…

“No… wait!”

That was enough for the man to drop his gentleman mask, as he desperately tried to stop Crim and grabbed her hand and…

“…Hot?!”

She accidentally let go of the paper cup with fries, which still had a third left.

The moment the man grabbed her hand, there was a sizzling sound as her skin was burnt, while the touch and pain systems recreated a sharp sting on her hand. The man also pulled his hand back in surprise and looked at it. Glistening on one of his fingers was a silver ring, one of Crim’s weaknesses.

“I-I’m sorry, I didn’t…”

The man was still in shock from Crim’s violent rejection of his advances. She turned around, trying to just say goodbye and leave, but giving him more time was a mistake on her part.

“Wait!”
“Ow..?!”

The man reaches out and grabs Crim’s arm before she can leave, whose starting clothes did not cover her arms fully. Crim’s face contorted in pain again, feeling that burning sensation on her arm, but the man was too excited to notice.

“Could it be that you’re a Vampire?!”
“L-let go, why are you..!”

She was getting annoyed, being asked personal questions like that in a public place where everyone could hear. But that just gives the man time to look at her teeth, which makes him get even more excited.

“Those fangs! I knew it! That’s such a rare species! I’m actually looking for members for my guild, why don’t you-”
“No, I don’t want to join anything..!”

Crim knew all the man wanted was a token ‘rare species’ member in his guild. But he was too enthralled by the possibility that he did not realize his silver ring was hurting her, and that she did not look comfortable talking about such things in public.

She had absolutely no intention of wanting to hang around such a person. For a moment she debated on pressing the ‘Report Inappropriate Contact’ button, but that would bring even more attention to her, so she managed to hold back.

“Though wait, if I remember correctly Vampires can only pick red hair in this game… Could you actually be something even rarer..?”
“Enough, I already told you I don’t want to!!”

Shouting angrily, she shook herself free and then ran to a nearby handrail, jumping over it to escape. Many of the people on the floor below screamed as she landed amongst them, but since she had put many Skill Points into Fall Resistance, she was able to get off without really suffering damage, even though she was not wearing any shoes.

Then she kept repeating the same until she was on the lowest floor, where she ran to the teleporter to get away from all the curious stares that were gathering on her.

In the end, she was able to get the cloak she wanted, but she was only able to do half the things she wanted there before having to go back.

“Urghh, I really wanted to look around a bit more. I also wanted to try joining a few duels…” She grumbled to herself after returning to Nebel.

“…Hm?” But then something else caught her attention, the city seemed to be in an uproar. Many of the townsfolk were clumsily picking up spears or axes before rushing somewhere.

She followed them all the way to the entrance of Schwarzwald, where all the men had gathered with grim faces.

“Ahh, you’re here too Crim!”
“Ludger, what caused all this fuss…”
“Juna’s condition worsened all of a sudden… and so George decided to go into the Black Forest all on his own to get the ingredients for her medicine!”

As soon as he said that, a floating message visible only to Crim saying [Quest Updated] appeared in her peripheral vision.