Chapter 565 Recruitment Phase (I)
Everyone on the site was startled by the action of someone since he suddenly just appeared and didn't even make a great first impression. Right now, he is holding the Pioneer Token that belongs to Harmless Sparrow.
"Hey! Give that back!"
"I got this thing, it is now my thing. You can't be too careless with it and since you lost it now, it is now mine."
"You just stole something that is not supposed to be yours! Give that back!" Sigma assumed the offensive stance.
"Ha! Do you think I would give this back? Just by reading the info about this thing, I can easily tell this is a very good thing to have especially since this thing is even specified by the announcement earlier. Having this might even allow me to guarantee my position in this event."
I quickly take a look at this guy from head to toe to make sure I know who this guy is. He seems like a generic-looking guy and quickly remembered him in the past timeline who caused a scene in the recruitment phase of the Luminous expedition. He was punished and as a result, I don't have any idea about him anymore after that incident so I didn't expect him to also appear here. I think he is one of those guys who were riding those tamed wyverns.
When some of the pioneers also heard that this guy stole the Pioneer token that Harmless Sparrow owned, they didn't just watch.
"Hey, thief! Give that back to her. You are more audacious for doing something like that out in the open!" one of the gunslingers that I remembered to be part of the previous expedition intervened and pulled out his gun.
"And what? You wanna shoot me? Do you think I am afraid of being shot? Haha! You guys don't need to get real serious, this thing is just a little copper coin that has some markings unique to a coin emblazoned on its surface. Just because you own it doesn't mean I can't have it!"
"F*cking thief..." Sigma pulled out her greatsword, ready to attack. Even Mr. Teddy who does not say anything readies his knuckles out, clearly pissed.
The others in the surroundings seem to enjoy the chaos while most of the Pioneers are also pissed as they don't like someone who is also a pioneer getting her token stolen. They can sympathize too as they also own these tokens. What if they were the ones who get their tokens stolen instead?
With all of the players gathered around him, he didn't hesitate to go on stealth and escape.
"Guys, don't chase him. Sparrow, I know you are upset your token is stolen but you don't need to think too much about it at the moment."
"But..."
"Don't worry. You will see the spectacle later on."
Since I said so, everyone who is opposed to the guy decided that they will also stop chasing him even though I can see in their faces the confusion as to why I stopped them from doing so. Around an hour later, the sky starts to glow brightly and Queen Titania appeared and descended from the sky.
"Greetings to all adventurers and prospective pioneers who have gathered today. Hmm, let's see... wow, I thought we would be getting fewer prospective applicants but you guys exceeded my expectations!"
She happily walked around with the players as she looked at them one by one until she stopped at the guy who had just stolen Harmless Sparrow's token. She stopped at him and frowned. As she looked at him from head to toe.
"Hmmm, it seems you are different compared to everyone around here. I can't pinpoint why but you are very different."
"Oh, goddess. It seems you have finally noticed my appeal and prowess! Indeed. I am different here because I am the superior player here that ever existed. Look, I even have the token of proof that I am a participant of the previous expedition!" he then proceeded to pull out the token that he stole from Harmless Sparrow and shamelessly compliment himself.
"Oh, really? You participated?" Queen Titania smiled and approached him. He proudly show it to her like he was the real owner of it.
"No wonder I smell something from you... It's the smell of a thief."
The calm demeanor of Queen Titania suddenly turned sour and a menacing reaction suddenly engulf the air. The guy who was shamelessly showing the stolen token started sweating the moment he saw how Queen Titania immediately found out.
He tried running but roots below the ground appeared and bind his feet, preventing him from running away and causing him to fall to the ground face flat.
"There is one thing that I hate the most and those are the liars and thieves. They always ruin my mood, especially whenever I feel happy."
Queen Titania snaps her fingers and the token that is currently on his fingers started to get hotter.
"Huh? HUH?!" he panicked the moment he felt the heat increasing in his hands. He felt that it was no longer just feeling warm, it is burning hot. He tried to release the token away from his hands but he realized that it cannot even get away from him as if it was attached to his fingers after it got pasted with super glue.
"AAAAAAAHHHHHHHH! GET THIS OFF! F*CCCCCKKKK IT'S SO HOT! NOOOOO!"
He shook his hands a little bit and before he knew it, his hands holding the token started to ignite in flames, causing him to panic even more.
"NO! NO! PLEASE FORGIVE ME! FORGIVE ME!"
The flames engulfed him without anyone helping him out he begs for everyone to help him but no one did and it took a few more minutes before he died as his whole body was burned to dust.
Queen Titania pulled out the token from the ashes of the player and ordered it.
"Return to your owner."
She toss it in the air, and it landed right back into Harmless Sparrow's palm. She quickly put her finger on the surface whether it still felt hot but based on her reaction, it was either still warm or it doesn't have any warmth left on it.
"May that lesson be something you guys will be able to learn for. Stealing items from others is not good. And I think I made those tokens something I have not considered but seeing it happening before my eyes, I think it is time to add a function from it so that it won't get exploited."
Queen Titania snaps her fingers once again and those who have the token have their inventories start glowing. I opened my inventory, checked on the token, and read the description. I also realized that the token is also named differently now.
[Pioneer Token]
How to receive: Participate in any Expedition
Info: An item that proves you are part of the expedition team that help solves problems that exist on other continents. A proof that you have endured and fought in wars that normally never exists outside the normal lives of people. Having one of these would give you the respect that you deserve.
Cannot be dropped. Cannot be sold, cannot be traded. Bound to the original owner.
Owner: Bladeheart
Oh, before, it doesn't have the bound option, but now, It is bound to the user who owns it, which means everyone can keep the token without the risk of being stolen. It will remain in the hands of the owner and cannot be transferred its ownership to others though unless it is being done by the creator which in this case would be Queen Titania herself.
"Now then. With the troublesome stuff done, I think it is time to begin the recruitment process. Unlike before when we dealt with others and eliminate each other, this time around, we are here to recruit the best of the best and the ones who can easily survive the dangers of the world. That's what I am looking forward to the pioneers that are going to be born here. Now, reveal me the results."
SNAP!
Snapping her fingers, numbers started to appear above our heads. Harmless Sparrow, Mr.Teddy, and Sigma all got 1000 on top of their heads. The others also have numbers though some had lower numbers most of us have either 1000 or below that won't dive very deep below 700. But the majority in here have zero marks on their heads.
"Hey, guys, what is my number above my head?" I pointed above mine.
"You are the highest, Bladeheart. You have 2000."
2000? That's very high. What do these numbers mean?
"I see, I can see some in here decided to do the easy way. However, I am looking for hard workers who know how to do teamwork. Anyways, please go back home for those who have zero numbers on their heads. We don't need anyone who took the easy job instead of suffering for a bit to survive and reach here."