Back in the present time.
Almost a day has passed since Isaac's strange encounter in the Snow Forest.
The Downtime was only minutes away from being over, and the servers of White Online would be back online.
The world awaited its return. Stores had shut their doors, and streets seemed dreary.
The streets were littered with old newspapers, and there were no cars on the roads.
VR Helmets were neatly placed around the heads of people in most homes while they lay on their beds, listening to the silence.
Life was still thriving at the Whitelock Residence.
Cleaners kept the yards clean, and bodyguards patrolled the streets.
Maxwell and Isabella were conversing in the living room.
Mark was playing with a handheld console in his room. He was still sulking about not being old enough to wear the VR Helmet.
Having already entered his own room, Marvin was getting ready to get onto White Online. The helmet was carefully placed around his head as he talked on the phone.
"Yes, yes, I'll be online shortly." He muttered as he awkwardly removed his necklace.
Sophia was studying in her room with several school books on the desk. The glasses on her face, which gave her an intellectual appearance, moved gently as she studied.
Unexpectedly, Alice was already lying on the bed, the VR helmet firmly affixed to her head. Neither of her eyes showed emotion, nor did her body move.
Isaac ran on the treadmill in the private gym while everyone else was doing their own thing.
The sweat landed on the treadmill but soon dried up. Isaac's sneakers landed on the treadmill with a powerful thud, which echoed throughout the gym.
There was little activity in the gym, most of the bodyguards having already exercised.
Brr!
After running on the treadmill for a while, Isaac stopped. Pulling out his phone, he checked the time. Downtime would end in little more than a minute.
"Already time..." He slipped the phone into his pocket, wiped his sweat, and disappeared into his room.
Isaac took out his Mythical VR Headset and plopped down on the bed without a second thought. He softly placed the headband around his head and pressed the button on the side.
He felt his consciousness slowly slipping away as his body was enveloped by the skinsuit.
[Connecting...]
[Welcome to White Online!]
[Good Luck, White Death!]
[Game: White Online - Status: Outstanding!]
[Welcome to the World of Legacies!]
[World of White Welcomes You, Legacy Carrier!]
…
The streets of Stronglord were packed with excited-looking Players. This time, some older people were also there. Their faces exhibited more curiosity than excitement.
Often, friends gathered together and started a loud discussion.
A variety of older people were playing board games in the yard of various stores, ranging from Chess to ordinary card games.
Today was a beautiful and sunny day. There were children running through the streets, as well as handsome nobles in light clothing, who attracted a lot of attention from the opposite sex.
Isaac walked casually in the streets while weaving his way through the crowd. With more than a month of experience living in Stronglord, he knew the area well.
In no time, Isaac arrived at the Stronglord Gates, where the Carriage Drivers spend most of their time.
Isaac was definitely taken aback by what he saw.
The Carriage Drivers looked humbled at everyone who walked past them. However, those who were spoken to by them looked at them with disgust and walked away quickly.
It had been a week since the Carriage Drivers had received any money. Realm Portal became more convenient than renting carriages after it became easier to earn money, and no one needed to rent carriages anymore.
Their method of saving money was almost comical. Within the last week alone, they spent 90% of the money they earned, and now they were as poor as before the Players.
Arrogance, money, and status all vanished within an instant. Despite their best efforts, they were unable to rent their carriages to Players and NPCs since they had mistreated them.
"Hah..." Isaac was forced to cover his mouth. Otherwise, his lungs would have been forced to exhale laughter.
Isaac accelerated his pace, leaving the area around the gates before the Carriage Drivers noticed him. Having improved his mood significantly, he continued to hum as he casually strolled through busy streets.
"Oh, what's that?" Isaac's feet, however, stopped abruptly. In front of a fancy-looking building, he saw a crowd gathered.
Its entrance was made up of columns shaped into a wide door. A number of square-shaped windows brought light into the building.
A triangular roof topped the building, which was quite large. Despite only having one floor, it appeared to have a large basement.
There were golden and silver colors in the lounge and along the stone staircase leading to the entrance. Pictures were framed in golden frames with a silver lining, and the walls were painted gold.
In addition to a reception desk, there were two doors leading to the ground floor and to the interior.
An auction house sign adorned the building's top.
The word auction got Isaac's attention. After that, he joined the crowd and learned there would be an auction tonight with items from other realms.
Supposedly, legendarily powerful weapons, rare ingredients, and unbreakable armor were being sold.
Isaac ambled through the crowd and entered the auction house. Each framed picture displayed an item with a price tag beneath it. They were all previously sold items, and the price tags indicated how much they sold for.
As Isaac looked at the prices, his eyes almost burst out of their sockets. There were some with over 1 million, and the highest was nearly 5 million!
"Excuse me, may I be of assistance?" The woman sitting behind the reception desk glanced at him as he wandered aimlessly and approached him.
"Do you have a catalog of tonight's auction items ready?" Isaac asked and received nod from the receptionist. She returned to her desk and soon returned with her hands holding a thick book she picked up from the desk.
Gratitude radiated from his face as he browsed through the pages of the book. When he reached page 56, he stopped after flipping through half the book.
The moment he returned to those pages, he was as if his mind exploded. On that page, an ingredient that he desperately needed was for sale in tonight's auction.
[Oil of Dreams]
