Chapter 49: Forty-Ninth Day of Being a Salted Fish

“Oh, there is a new person!”

“…Huh?”

Logging into the game, Zhu Rong had expected a novice tutorial like other games, or at least a login space. To her surprise, the game only let her choose her appearance before tossing her straight in.

…Even the appearance options were practically mandatory. A “Body Information Read Prompt” interface had popped up, asking if she was willing to authorize her data for the game.

At most, she could hide her facial features, but body data authorization was required. If she didn’t authorize it, she simply couldn’t enter the game.

Zhu Rong consulted Siming before finally confirming the authorization. Then, she entered a wasteland.

Because her body data had been read, her height, weight, and other physical aspects were almost identical to reality. She wore a default shirt and pants with no extra equipment, no mecha in sight, and no hidden buttons to open.

Zhu Rong tried chanting keywords like “Attribute Panel” to summon a system as one would in other games, but it failed. Looking around, she saw only a desolate, uninhabited plain. Occasionally, she spotted some vegetation, but it wasn’t lush.

Zhu Rong picked a random direction and started walking. Along the way, she reached out to touch the plants on the ground, only to find they were very… crude models. Visible, but intangible.

Zhu Rong blinked and continued forward.

After a long while, she finally noticed several mechas flying past. As if noticing her presence, one of the mechas that had already flown by suddenly circled back and landed in front of her. Four people stepped down from the machines one after another.

Zhu Rong initially thought these might be AIs providing key information to new players, but as soon as the first person spoke…

The sounds that came out were completely unintelligible.

From the Desolate Planet to the Sea Eagle Pirates, there might be differences in accents and tones, but honestly, the differences were minor. Almost everyone she had met spoke a language she could understand; there were no barriers to communication.

If Geshu Qing hadn’t mentioned back on the Desolate Planet that different creatures in the Desolate Planet’s memories had different languages, the concept of a “foreign language” would hardly have existed in Zhu Rong’s mind.

So, even for her, it took two seconds to react and realize this person might be speaking a different language.

When she played the virtual mecha game before, she had seen people from many star sectors of the Galactic Empire, and they all spoke the same way. These people, however, had a different language…

Were they from another galaxy?

The person opposite her seemed to see her confusion. From another blue mecha, a woman with short blue hair stepped down.

“She’s from the East, she doesn’t have a translator yet,” she said to the first person, then looked at Zhu Rong. “Saini.”

Zhu Rong looked at her, uncomprehending. However, after less than two seconds, the woman’s eyes suddenly widened: “From the Galaxy?”

…Suddenly, she could understand.

Zhu Rong nodded: “Yes, I am a resident of the Galactic Empire.”

“The Galaxy?” The other three also showed surprised expressions, which gradually turned complex. They looked Zhu Rong up and down, and the first person who had spoken asked, “What… is your name?”

The game hadn’t even asked for a username. Zhu Rong thought for a moment and decided not to give her real name—after all, she was still an unregistered citizen. Instead, she said, “Zhu Rong.”

“…Not surnamed Lu.” The group looked at each other.

Zhu Rong: “…”

Could it be people who knew Lu Yuan again? Had Lu Yuan left such a massive psychological shadow on the world…

There were so many people in the Galaxy; they shouldn’t be afraid that every person they met from there was related to Lu Yuan, right?

“But, just in case,” a black-haired young man said, “friend, do you have any relationship with Marshal Lu Yuan of your Galactic Empire?”

Zhu Rong: “…”

History was repeating itself.

“If having heard of or seen Marshal Lu Yuan’s public news doesn’t count,” Zhu Rong shook her head, “then no. We have no private contact.”

“Oh.” A young man with yellow hair¹ showed a slightly disappointed expression. “Then she’s about the same as me.”

He looked like the youngest of the group. Judging by their interactions, he likely was. Beside him, the man who had spoken first knocked him on the head.

Zhu Rong ignored that man and looked at the yellow-haired youth: “You know more.”

“…That’s true!” The yellow-haired youth’s eyes lit up, and he suddenly became smug. “At least you don’t know about the things he did here!”

“Mm.” Zhu Rong nodded.

She hoped the youth would follow the topic and talk about what Lu Yuan had done here, but the others clearly weren’t prepared to continue that conversation.

“Business first,” the blue-haired woman said. “This game is quite niche, especially in your Galactic Empire. I feel like I haven’t seen anyone from the Empire in nearly ten years.

“So I guess that even though you’ve entered, you probably won’t find any guides. We’ll give you a general introduction to the game’s situation.”

“Thank you.” Zhu Rong didn’t feel disappointed. She had plenty of time to play this game anyway. And what the people in front of her were saying was indeed more urgent.

“This is a mecha combat MMO. However, it doesn’t encourage player-versus-player combat. Instead, it encourages cooperation, which is why we’re willing to provide you with information.

“The place you’re in now is called the Wasteland. There are many wild monsters on the Wasteland, which are our main opponents. The game has many safe zones where no monsters appear. Safe zones are randomly distributed across the Wasteland. If you just pick a direction and walk, you’ll eventually find one.

“There, you’ll find a few NPCs. You can get information and items from them. For example, mechas, or translators.

“The reason we can talk to you now is through a translator—it translates my language into your Galactic language. In fact, we usually need to use translators when talking to people.”

“How long does it take to get to a safe zone?” Zhu Rong asked.

“…About…” The blue-haired woman recalled briefly. “It took me over thirty hours back then. I spent five days on it.”

“Is the time ratio one-to-one?”

“Yes.”

Zhu Rong nodded. No wonder this game had few players; the barrier to entry was simply too high.

She wondered what purpose the developers had in mind with such a design… it was quite mysterious.

“Some people make games hoping many people will play and have fun,” the black-haired young man said, as if reading her thoughts. “Others hope to express something from their hearts. I think the developer might want to tell us what war is really like.”

Zhu Rong nodded. “Then, by telling me these things, will I be missing a part of the game?”

“No.” The yellow-haired youth shook his head with a grin. “Even if you’ve met us, you still have to walk there yourself! Mechas can’t carry passengers!”

“…I see.” Zhu Rong nodded.

She wasn’t about to be ungrateful. Even though she would have continued playing the game Lu Yuan recommended even without these people, it was always good to have information in advance.

“Before you reach a safe zone for the first time, you’re in a novice protection period. You’ll encounter many wild monsters. You might be attacked or die, but you’ll respawn on the spot within ten minutes.” The blue-haired woman continued.

“So, this journey during the novice period is actually quite necessary. It allows you to understand the Wasteland.

“Once you reach a safe zone, the novice protection ends. Players who die in the Wasteland will respawn in the last safe zone they visited. Players don’t lose anything upon death, but damage sustained in battle will not be restored.

“Damage refers to mecha destruction and physical injuries. Upon entering a safe zone for the first time, a novice can claim a basic mecha and a small amount of supplies. After that, the game provides nothing for free. Whether it’s mecha repairs, replacements, or medical treatment, everything must be paid for using the energy cores of the Wasteland monsters.

“Because there are some monsters on the Wasteland that are very difficult to defeat alone, players usually form guilds and explore in teams. We are one such team.

“There’s strength in numbers. This game has very few players, and even fewer new ones. So every time we meet a new player, we have a chat. And…”

The woman smiled, appearing quite gentle. “Once you reach a safe zone, if you’re willing, you can join our guild. Our guild is called ‘Firefly.’ We have people in many safe zones. You can call me Connie.”

The other three men also introduced themselves.

The first man who spoke was Elton, the black-haired youth was Siv, and the yellow-haired youth was Jeremy.

“May I ask a few questions?” Zhu Rong asked, looking at Connie.

“Of course!” Connie agreed readily.

“Are you all from different places?” Zhu Rong inquired.

“I’m from the Wintermiller Galaxy²,” Connie replied. “It’s about twenty million light-years away from the Milky Way.”

“Siv and I are from the Barber Republic. We’re brothers,” Elton said. Both he and Siv had black hair, and they did indeed share a resemblance.

Jeremy added, “I’m actually quite close to you guys. You usually call our place the Greater Magellanic Empire³; it’s only about a hundred and sixty thousand light-years away. You should come visit if you have the time… but how did you tell we were from different galaxies?”

“Language,” Zhu Rong answered. “Even though I couldn’t understand the sentences Connie and Elton spoke earlier, their pronunciations felt completely different.

“Besides, you all seem to carry translators. If you were from the same nation, you wouldn’t need them.”

Jeremy thought about it. “True enough.”

“I have one more question,” Zhu Rong said, turning her gaze toward him. “I want to know, if Marshal Lu Yuan played this game back then, did he join a guild?”

“…” Silence.

Zhu Rong tilted her head, watching them curiously.

Jeremy exclaimed, “Marshal Lu Yuan didn’t need to join a guild! He was a guild all by himself!”

Translator’s Notes