71 Chapter 71 - Endless Robbery (1/2)

”Are you there?” Gu Fei asked Fleeting Smile.

”...” was Fleeting Smile's reply.

”?” Gu Fei answered that with a question mark.

”One doesn't visit a temple without a cause. What's your problem this time?” Fleeting Smile asked.

”Sword Aptitude, Spell Aptitude, and Spell Mastery… I found these additional traits on my equipment. What do they do?” Gu Fei asked.

”This…” Fleeting Smile hesitated.

”You can't say?” Gu Fei asked.

”No, it's not that. I just never expected anyone to encounter these item traits so soon,” Fleeting Smile explained.

”Tell me about them, then,” Gu Fei requested.

”You know that there's no job-class restriction on the weapons in Parallel World. That essentially means that anyone can equip any equipment,” Fleeting Smile began.

”Mhm,” Gu Fei replied.

”But that's not entirely accurate,” Fleeting Smile continued, ”Traits on low-grade weapons don't factor much, so we decided not to put those traits on such weapons. But it's different for higher-grade weapons; they have something called 'Aptitude', which decides how eligible players are to unleash the weapons' full potential. 'Spell Aptitude' and 'Sword Aptitude' belong to that category.”

”How's Aptitude calculated?” Gu Fei asked.

”A character's Aptitude depends on its stat point distribution. Each of the job classes has an innate Aptitude bonus for the different in-game weapons. For example, Mages have higher Spell Aptitude, Thieves have higher Dagger Aptitude, Archers have higher Bow Aptitude, and Warriors have high Aptitude for every weapon except for magic weapons. Of course, each weapon has different Aptitude requirement. In short, if a player's character lacks the necessary Aptitude for a respective high-grade weapon, it will be impossible to unleash the weapon's full potential,” Fleeting Smile mentioned a lot of details, so he inquired at the end, ”Did you understand all that?”

”I see,” Gu Fei realized something. When he had used Moonlit Nightfalls to attack back then, he could feel that it did not deal the maximum damage possible. Since he had always been using his kung fu to achieve maximum damage, Gu Fei just thought that his lackluster moves resulted into reduced damage. As it turned out, it was the weapon's Sword Aptitude requirement that had caused it. In this sense, Sword Aptitude and Spell Aptitude were not traits that strengthened him but requirements set for the equipment's use instead.

Fleeting Smile continued explaining, ”As for the relation between stat point distribution and a character's Aptitude, it's related to the job classes. There's no way I can explain that complex connection in one sitting. To sum all up, the players will be fine as long as they allocate stat points according to their respective job classes' specialty. As for the other stats, they'll just have to resolve them through other means.”

”Wait. Based on this method of calculation, even if someone has the suitable job class, he or she still needs to reach a very high level just to to be able to wield a weapon with high Aptitude requirement, right? The players' Aptitude will never reach the Aptitude requirement of the weapons if their stats are insufficient, then!” Gu Fei surmised.

”It's not that a player can't wield it… but more like the weapon's full potential can't be unleashed,” Fleeting Smile clarified.

”Isn't that the same thing? It's just a different form of level or stat requirement for a weapon,” Gu Fei said.

”That's not right either. It's more like a player's Aptitude decides how much of a weapon's traits he or she can tap. So a player can still wield a weapon despite not reaching its Aptitude requirement. Let's say a sword's Aptitude requirement is 200%, while your character's Sword Aptitude is only at 180%. With that 20% gap, it'll be as if the weapon only has 80% of the attack power listed on its traits window. The difference between lacking just 10% and about 20% is significant, you know? With 20% less of the required Aptitude, you can visibly feel the weapon's reduced damage. And if your Sword Aptitude reaches 199%, you won't even notice the damage reduction, since the damage that you can cause is almost the same as when you've fully reached the sword's Aptitude requirement.”

”So how do I calculate my character's Aptitude?” Gu Fei asked.

”That's not something we plan to announce. We want the players to research and find that out on their own,” Fleeting Smile replied.

Gu Fei was speechless for a moment.

”Are you doing fine in Yueye City?” Honestly, it was rare for Fleeting Smile to engage in small talk with Gu Fei.

”Why would I be fine here?! The way things are in Yueye City is horrible. Players ambush me without a word even when I'm just walking down the street. Where's the justice in that? Shouldn't you guys be keeping an eye on all these?” Gu Fei complained.

”If we're going to start keeping an eye on things, we'll probably start with you first. You're the most wanted player in the entire gaming server, and yet you can walk around freely. Where's the justice in that? Is anyone keeping an eye on you?” Fleeting Smile countered.

Gu Fei was momentarily speechless once more. After a bit, he replied, ”Still, players shouldn't go around cutting people with no rhyme or reason!”

”You're a fugitive, so everyone can rightfully kill you…” Fleeting Smile remarked.

”Don't I even have the right to defend myself if others attack me?” Gu Fei already noticed the issue.

”Originally, you have. But not anymore,” Fleeting Smile pretended to hedge.

”Why's that?”

”Because you're a fugitive; everyone can rightfully kill you…” Fleeting Smile replied matter-of-factly.

Gu Fei was speechless once again.

”Stay safe out there!”

”I protest! I'm also a player. I shouldn't be discriminated just because of my PK value,” Gu Fei appealed loudly.

”What do you want us to do? Reward your actions for taking a player's life eight times in a single day?” Fleeting Smile retorted.

”At least… Give me a chance to atone…” Gu Fei said helplessly.

”You can! Stay in jail to atone,” Fleeting Smile said.

”Besides jail time?”

”The only option left is to resolve your crimes through meritorious service. Accept a new 'Bounty Mission' and chase after people with PK value. While players will normally be rewarded with coins and experience points, you'll be rewarded with PK value reduction. Your targets' PK value will be the amount deducted from yours,” Fleeting Smile explained.

Gu Fei laughed, ”Stopping killings with killings, are we?”