Chapter 479.1: Let's Make A Deal

Chen Yutong didn’t react much and began pondering seriously, while the young man sitting next to her blushed uncontrollably.

“Talking about the girl I like? Why are we talking about this?!”

Old White teased with a grin. “It’s nothing. If you’re shy, we can talk about something else.”

𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

Zhao Xiao remained silent for a moment, seemingly unwilling to admit he was embarrassed, then opened up. “I... come from Town No.13.”

“What’s that?”

“A special administrative zone managed by the Scientific Committee. Each district has a different system. Some are tribal, some are kingdoms. Ours is the former, with about 1,000 to 2,000 households,” he explained.

Old White nodded. “That’s pretty big.”

Most survivor settlements only had a couple hundred households at most, some even fewer than twenty. It seemed the Wandering Swamp wasn’t as desolate as he’d imagined.

“Yes,” Zhao Xiao thought for a moment before continuing. “Every December, the Scientific Committee conducts a 30 day assessment to recruit qualified apprentices aged 12 and above from each district.”

Old White considered it before frowning slightly. “So... Apprentices are like interns?”

“Interns?” Zhao Xiao hesitated, then nodded. “I guess... Each district usually has one or two selected. Once accepted, you get to enter the Academy, escape the hardships of swamp life, and your family receives a sum of money.”

“Then you must be the cream of the crop among thousands...”

Zhao Xiao looked a little smug at the praise and scratched his nose with his index finger. “It’s okay... But once I got into the Academy, it wasn’t as perfect as I’d imagined. The living conditions were much better than in the swamp, sure, but to cooperate with Researchers on dangerous topics, only about 73% of apprentices survive to advance to G-class each year. Only then are they considered official Academy members.”

“That's a tough selection process.”

“Yeah...” Zhao Xiao sighed. “Sometimes I think it’s a miracle I made it to the E-class.”

“Was it for someone you liked?” Old White asked.

“Partly. We were selected in the same batch. I promised her I’d become a Researcher... and then bring both our parents into the Academy.”

Old White asked curiously, “Aren’t you already a Researcher?”

Zhao Xiao gave a bitter smile. “No way. I’m just a Prospector... To be a researcher, you need to be at least D-class. To get there, you must master at least one professional skill, pass an exam, and get a recommendation from a mentor. But honestly, one skill isn’t enough. With so many apprentices advancing each year, most mentors expect mastery in at least three.”

Old White joked, Looks like inflation exists even when it comes to skills...”

Zhao Xiao nodded and sighed, “Yeah... And being a Prospector means working on the front lines. It’s hard to find time to study at all.”

Old White asked, “Why not consider moving somewhere else? This wasteland’s big, isn’t it?”

Zhao Xiao pouted. “It’s the same everywhere. And don’t be fooled by all my complaints... I think the Academy’s pretty great. Like you said, at least there I can find meaning in surviving, instead of aimlessly wasting away like other survivors, degenerating in the ruins.”

With an unnatural expression, Old White asked, “Why are you so sure other survivors are degenerating in the wasteland?”

“What else? Do you think the Enterprise and the Army have a future?” Zhao Xiao glanced at a nearby corporate pilot snoring like a pig and scoffed without hesitation. “One’s a pleasure-addicted fool, the other a warmongering lunatic. If the future ends up in their hands, that’s when we’re truly doomed!”

As he spoke, he clenched the spoon in his hand.

“One day... We’ll reclaim every last ruin before the relics of the old world have been squandered. Then we won’t need to cling to the past. We’ll write a new history and explore worlds beyond, venturing into mysteries our predecessors never even imagined.”

Old White raised an eyebrow. What the hell kind of plan was that?

It didn’t sound like something Zhao Xiao came up with himself.

But maybe it was youth that allowed him to speak so freely. What truly surprised Old White, though, was the Academy.

Initially, he’d thought they was just a technocratic regime. He didn’t expect such a profound spiritual doctrine behind it.

Seeing Zhao Xiao getting carried away, Chen Yutong coughed lightly and interrupted him. “Dr. Conclusion’s theory does go something like that... But I never thought that far. I just happened to pass the assessment when I was 12 and got into the Academy. Honestly, I think your way is better. Without our strict ranking system, life has more paths. You don’t have to be a Researcher or Prospector to live well.”

Zhao Xiao dismissed that. “Such a survivor settlement doesn’t exist. Wherever there are people, there are hierarchies. They’re just more subtle about it. I think it’s better to lay it all out, clearly define the ranks and promotion paths, let everyone rely on their own abilities to improve their life.”

Old White chuckled. “You’ve got a point. It’s like a game. As long as the server keeps running, there’ll always be veterans and newbies. Hierarchies don’t disappear just because we ignore them.”

“Server?” Zhao Xiao asked curiously.

Old White cleared his throat. “I mean, even in the New Alliance, there are ranks. For example, contribution levels... It’s roughly similar to your ranks, G, F, E-class Researchers correspond to the three citizen levels. Above that, we have knights and more.”

Zhao Xiao looked smugly at Chen Yutong. She didn’t respond, but her expression hinted at disappointment. That moment of admiration had apparently just been a fleeting misunderstanding.

Old White paused, then continued, “But we don’t look down on others just because our contribution level is higher.”

“That’s impossible. Anyone can boast,” Zhao Xiao sneered bluntly, clearly unconvinced.

Chen Yutong looked down at her meal tray and, unlike Zhao Xiao, didn’t reflexively question it. Instead, she asked, “Why?”

That was a tough one.

Old White fell silent as he started to think of how to phrase his thoughts.

From a practical standpoint, it was just a game to him.

Sure, there were games that deliberately created player conflict to provoke competitive spending. But Wasteland Online clearly wasn’t like that. It didn’t even have a way for players to cash in the game to grow stronger infinitely, and it was still in the closed Beta stage. Even if such issues existed, they weren’t common.

Most veteran players were happy to guide newcomers. Even when newbies acted clueless, veterans remembered being in their shoes and were generally understanding.

As for relationships between players and NPCs, they were fairly harmonious. NPCs didn’t care whether someone was a citizen or knight, and those titles didn’t give residents any privilege to act superior.

Even a decorated player like Mosquito could get thrown in jail for breaking the rules.

Old White had always felt it. Those titles weren’t about status, they were honors, or recognition by everyone in the New Alliance.

“Subjective questions don’t have objective answers,” he said. “Everyone sees it differently. One day, you’ll get to see for yourselves what kind of place the New Alliance really is.”

He packed up his meal tray and smiled. “By the way, there’s good news. Looks like your teammates haven’t given up on you. They’re trailing us, just five kilometers away.”

That was news he got from Gale before he logged out.

Chen Yutong looked at him nervously, while Zhao Xiao smirked with pride. “Of course! I told you, the Academy would never abandon us!”

Old White grinned. “Do you want to make a bet?”

Zhao Xiao asked, “What are we betting on?”

Old White said casually, “That before we cross these mountains into the desert, the Academy won’t come to rescue you.”

“They’re already here,” Zhao Xiao argued.

“Following behind us doesn’t count,” Old White chuckled. “To someone who doesn’t know better, it looks like your guys are just sending us off.”

Zhao Xiao stared at him for a good while before he asked, “What’s the wager?”

He didn’t naively believe that just because the Academy showed up, the man before him would let his prisoners go. Like their sniper said, they still needed him as a human shield.

But to his surprise, Old White just shrugged. “If they attack us, I’ll let you go.”

Based on his experience, if both sides refused to acknowledge the conflict, then denying casualties and prisoners would be par for the course.

If they hadn’t run into the Academy yet, chances were they wouldn’t. And if he was wrong, there would be no big deal. He would let one prisoner go and capture two more.

Zhao Xiao stared at him, astonished. Seeing that he wasn’t joking, Zhao’s expression grew serious. “Then what do you want from me?”

“What do I want from you?” Old White laughed. After thinking for a moment, he chuckled, “If I win, just buy me a beer.”

Zhao Xiao froze, his face turning red.

The sheer casualness of it made him feel a bit humiliated. But he knew better than to provoke trouble, so he gritted his teeth and nodded. “Deal... But you’d better keep your word.”

“Don’t worry,” Old White said calmly. “I told you, I don’t need to lie to you.”

...