Free Web NovelChapter 24: Friend Request
[Island Management]
• Controls
• Members (6)
• Infrastructure
• Resources
• Map
The last time they had checked, the [Forums] feature was only available at Level 5 and above, and none of them were at that level after the Silver Wolf battle.
Now, they were all at Level 12—including Liz, who wasn’t present—because the party feature was automatically set to distribute EXP equally among members. However, they could change that now if they wanted to, using the [Island Management] feature.
Felix and Joan were the only ones navigating through it, checking out their island, its resources, and the bunker listed under infrastructure.
Joan was more interested in the map, which indicated the position of everything on the island: resources, infrastructure, and members.
She could see the five blue dots huddled together that indicated their current location, and a sixth blue dot chilling in the bunker.
She paused to stare at the unmoving blue dot, then navigated to the [Members] tab, where everyone’s info was on display alongside their tags as [Admin].
Everyone’s level and Talent were visible, except for the last name on the list.
[Arc Sinclair | Hidden]
(This member has opted to hide their info as an Admin)
Joan didn’t know how to react to this. They had just discovered the [Island Management] feature, and Arc had already learned how to hide his info. Which was strange, because for that to be possible, he had to be at least Level 12 like the rest of them. Individually, that is—because Arc wasn’t in a party with them. It was displayed in the member list that every other person was in a party, except for the member listed as [Arc Sinclair].
It had taken them two fierce battles, with near-death encounters, to level up to their current Level 12 as a party. Yet somehow, the only person who was exempted from both battles and didn’t freeload any EXP from the party had somehow reached their level, or perhaps even surpassed them.
At that moment, the memory of Arc suddenly leaping out of the forest to take out the Silver Wolf cub with a staff, and the memory of him walking out of the Crimson Goblin island all battered and bloody—looking like he had survived a fierce battle, completely unharmed and unbothered—resurfaced in her mind.
And now that she thought about it, the staff he had used the first time didn’t look random at all; it was meticulously crafted. She hadn’t gotten a better look at it, but she could remember that much. The second time, he wasn’t even carrying a weapon after surviving a gruesome battle.
Joan didn’t realize she had started biting her lower lip until she raised her head to stare at the red-haired girl, who was almost mirroring her reaction—fidgeting and biting her thumbnail as if she were hesitant about something.
Unlike Felix and Joan, the rest of the party had jumped onto the [Forums] and [Trade Market], absorbing information from other players’ encounters on their own islands, which told them they weren’t alone in this. The entire Earth had likely been transmigrated with them—which was weirdly comforting information.
Liz had been a step ahead. She realized everyone could create a profile to engage with the forum community, and there was also a live-streaming feature locked behind a Level 20 requirement. So far, there were no streams in the Server—Earth—Forums. However, there were terabytes of them on the Global Forums, where she saw races unknown to mankind, thriving nations on populated islands, and battle streams that didn’t make any sense—like one-shotting a colossal dragon out of the sky.
But she understood one thing: they were currently in the beginner stages and would only be exposed to more opportunities and dangers the further they sailed.
That was when she finally made use of the search bar, inputting the name: Arc Sinclair.
Multiple accounts showed up, but it wasn’t long before she found the one she was looking for.
It was unedited, using his first name and random digits for a username. Zero posts. Zero uploads. It had to be him.
She didn’t know the exact reason why she had searched his name, but ever since earlier, the events of the day kept replaying in her head. She just wanted to find more information about the guy she had always crashed out on and insulted, calling him classless trash.
What she had witnessed today proved otherwise. Now she finally understood that feeling of immense danger she’d felt right before Arc took out the unassuming Silver Wolf cub. He was also responsible for the Silver Wolf graveyard she had come across, the Crimson Goblins turning against each other, and definitely the death of the large goblin she had found.
She knew now that Arc was either hiding his class, or simply didn’t need one to perform such feats.
She didn’t know why her hand was hovering over the [Friend Request] tab on his profile. She deliberated whether she should add him to her friend list or if she should just pretend everything that happened earlier never occurred.
She wanted to tell him that she hadn’t told anyone about his abilities, and that his secret was safe with her. But at the same time, she didn’t know if it was best to just mind her own business and move on like nothing happened... though something really had happened.
Without realizing it, her hand accidentally hit the tab, and it turned gray, indicating the request had been forwarded to the other party.
Her heart dropped and she immediately panicked. She tried to undo the command by tapping the tab multiple times. But—
[Friend Request sent]
[Friend Request sent]
[Friend Request sent]
...
"Shit," she blurted as the prompts filled her vision.
Did she just spam him with multiple friend requests at once?
Liz felt like burying herself in the ground. She wanted to run and jump off the island’s edge to just end her life right at that moment, as she didn’t know if she could ever face him again.
[Friend Request accepted]
"..."
Liz stared dumbfoundedly at the notification that suddenly spawned in her vision. She didn’t know how to react to it. ƒгeewebnovёl.com
He had actually accepted her friend request. And it wasn’t a bug, because now she could see the indicator showing he was online. But that disappeared almost immediately—like he had only logged on just to accept her request.
Liz opened their empty chat, staring at the text box, before she quickly exited and shut down her entire system interface. She rubbed her palms against her thighs and looked around the forest to see if he was watching her from a distance, before realizing just how stupid that thought was as her face flushed.
She turned her attention to the other party members, who were busying themselves with their own systems, which were visible and accessible to them alone. She caught Joan’s gaze and paused, returning the look fearlessly. Then—
[GLOBAL ANNOUNCEMENT]:
[A PLAYER HAS CRAFTED A STARLIGHT-TIER WEAPON: SWORD OF THE HOLY EMPEROR]
[SERVER ANNOUNCEMENT]:
[A PLAYER HAS CRAFTED A STARLIGHT-TIER WEAPON: SWORD OF THE HOLY EMPEROR]
"A-Again?" Rose blurted in shock.
They all knew by now that when there was only a global announcement, it was an event outside their race and planet. But if that Global Announcement was followed closely by a Server Announcement, it meant the event was triggered by a player from Earth.
It was the third time in a row now. And the game had only begun the previous day.
