A Legendary Thief

The gaming world and the real world were the opposite of each other. When it was daytime in the gaming world, it was nighttime in the real one. For someone who wanted to become a professional player, early morning was a good time to improve one's level.

But one had to find a teacher to learn some basic skills before taking on the profession itself.

"This teacher has hidden himself pretty well," Xiao Yu remarked to himself. He had looked for him all over the small town of Tabarka and finally found a shabby, old man in a dilapidated house. According to the system, this shabby, old man was none other than the thief teacher he was looking for.

The old man had a hunched back and wore a tattered conical hat. His was skinny, and his hands were as aged as an old tree branch, making onlookers think that he was a zombie who had just crawled out of its coffin. It was evident that his dazed, light blue eyes couldn't focus, and it was hard to imagine him being a thief teacher.

However, Xiao Yu didn't look down on this old man because his skinny hands were very much like a pair of eagle's claws. From a professional perspective, Xiao Yu could see that this man's slender hands and dexterous fingers could handle small weapons proficiently. It was evident that this man was far from simple.

"Hello, I'm a new thief. I came here to learn thief skills from you," Xiao Yu said courteously. He had learned some gaming knowledge online and knew that all the non-player characters had intelligence, which meant that he had to treat them with respect.

Xiao Yu's temperament was usually somewhat introverted. Yet, for some reason, he could interact with these non-player characters comfortably. It was something that surprised even Xiao Yu.

The old man shot a casual glance at Xiao Yu; a bright ray of light swept over Xiao Yu. "My name is Ode, a thief teacher for the small town Tabarka," he said. "You can learn the primary skills from me free of charge, and you can select any skills you want to learn from the skill book. However, I have to charge a standard fee if you wish to upgrade your skills."

"Thank you, Teacher," said Xiao Yu. He opened the skill book and took a look at the skills one could learn at this stage. A level-1 thief could learn seven primary skills—staggering punch, stealth travel, backstabbing, reversed backstabbing, kicking, sneak-attacking, and evisceration. All of these were the essential skills for a thief, all of which he could learn for free. Xiao Yu opted to learn them without hesitation.

Stealth travel was a skill that allowed a person to hide themselves, an important skill for thieves. Staggering punch and sneak-attacking were skills used to knock someone unconscious, and they were aided by stealth travel. The kick was meant to hinder the body's normal functions. Using the kick skill on players with a magic profession could hinder and prevent those players from casting spells. On the other hand, backstabbing, reversed backstabbing, and evisceration were all skills meant to inflict harm. Still, Xiao Yu was a bit baffled by the introduction. Reversed backstabbing and evisceration were finishing skills, while backstabbing was a skill for combo attacks. Xiao Yu wondered how finishing skills and a combo attack skill could be used together.

"I'd like to know…"

Thief Teacher Ode cut him off before Xiao Yu could ask him a question.

"I'm not going to explain how to use these skills. You have to understand all of them by yourself," said Ode lightly.

Hearing this, Xiao Yu held his tongue, figuring that he had no choice but to learn these skills on his own.

Another skill he needed to learn was how to use weapons. The weapons a thief could use were daggers, throwing weapons, swords, bows, crossbows, hammers, and boxing weapons. After some consideration, Xiao Yu decided to specialize in daggers and crossbows. Specializing in daggers could help him learn how to use short weapons proficiently. Even though the dagger had a short attack range and was not as effective as a sword, with it being a short weapon, it could attack repeatedly at a faster rate. This was why it was preferred by most thieves. As for the bow, crossbow, and throwing weapons, he chose to learn them since he could use them to attack from long range and draw the attention of the monsters.

"This is for you," said Ode while tossing a dagger to Xiao Yu.

Xiao Yu caught the dagger. It was a dark metal dagger, the blade of which was slightly damaged.

Dagger: attack 7-15

"Though it's rather damaged, it's better than nothing," Xiao Yu tried to convince himself. The moment Xiao Yu grabbed the dagger with his right hand, he felt a familiar sensation in his hand. Xiao Yu moved his five fingers, and the dagger flew up into the air, rotated once above his hand, then landed squarely in his palm. It was unclear why he had such confidence when he held the dagger.

"A thief," murmured Xiao Yu. This profession seemed to be a career just for him.

The rotating dagger above his hand looked like it was dancing between his fingers. Ode couldn't help but be surprised at the proficient skill demonstrated by Xiao Yu. The old man checked this young man out again. A few thieves had already come to learn thief skills, but none of them had caught his eye.

"Go now. May you have good luck, and may the ancestors be with you." After Ode had taught Xiao Yu the skills and gave the weapon to him, he closed his eyes to rest. Knowing that Ode expected him to leave, Xiao Yu bowed to him in reverence and headed outside the small town of Tabarka.

Outside of town was a barren desert. However, the once-sparse desert had come to life just a little, as a few players would come over from time to time. They were the players who had just entered the game and who were in a hurry to level up.

After taking a look at the Level Rankings List, Xiao Yu found that the highest-ranked individual for the Evil Federation was at level 2, which was quick fast.

After walking a few minutes into the desert, Xiao Yu had finally seen his first monster. It was an ugly sandworm with gray skin and white spikes all over its body, and its mouth sported two long, pointed beaks as sharp as scissors.

"This is it," he told himself. This was a level-1 monster in the vicinity of the small town and was something he could handle.

Stealth travel!

This was the first time Xiao Yu tried using stealth travel.

"Bend the body forward slightly and put your feet down lightly…" Xiao Yu kept reminding himself. He was strictly following the instructions about stealth travel, but he still felt a bit awkward.

"I'll get better when I'm used to it," thought Xiao Yu. He was approaching the sandworm slowly and with caution. His movements were very slow, and he moved his feet with a great deal of effort. He intended to go around the sandworm to its rear. However, he had just gotten in his hiding state and was not used to the reduced speed and slow movements yet. He accidentally kicked the sand under his feet.

"Sh*t!!" he cursed. Seeing the sandworm turn around, Xiao Yu knew that his stealth travel was a failure.

The sandworm's stomach convulsed as soon as it saw Xiao Yu's face, and it spewed out a greenish venom at him. Xiao Yu's whole body turned green after being covered in the venom, with -3 poison damage points popping up above his head.