Chapter 4: The Backpack Expansion Quest

"Hey? You're still buying this junk?"
Seeing Lu Kuan pull a bright green piece of gear from the mailbox, Old Lazy was quite surprised. "Why bother with this garbage?"
Lu Kuan held a plain chainmail with a distinct spiral pattern decorating its surface, signifying an added attribute: Mana Regeneration, which increased the rate at which mana recovered.
In the game, aside from warriors and rangers, all other classes depended on mana as their combat resource, yet "Mana Regeneration" was universally considered a worthless stat.
Given the battles players faced now, it was far more efficient to simply retreat and eat bread or drink water when mana ran out. Gear attributes like "Hit Rate" or "Spell Damage" yielded much greater benefits than mana recovery.
Thus, equipment with such properties was priced far below others of the same level, which was why Old Lazy questioned him.
"It's cheap—just a few copper coins apiece," Lu Kuan grinned, flashing his teeth as he stuffed the item into his backpack.
Old Lazy didn't press further, but glanced around before leaning in, speaking in a hushed, mysterious tone, "By the way, I want to discuss something with you. Lately, I've been pooling funds with a few friends to buy goods in bulk. Interested in joining us?"
"You're not planning to acquire armor cards, are you?" Lu Kuan raised an eyebrow.
Sloth was startled by the question, though he quickly masked his surprise. Deep down, he was genuinely shaken.
Armor cards, formally known as "Tome of Armor Enhancement," could add armor value to special gear like necklaces and rings.
For the past few days, Old Lazy and his friends had been quietly buying up armor cards in the marketplace using various accounts, wary of rivals catching on. They were waiting for the last portion of funds before sweeping the auction house in earnest.
How did this kid know?
Lu Kuan had of course guessed. He frequented the auction house daily, noticing odd fluctuations in the quantity and price of armor cards.
Moreover, rumor had it among players that the level 10 group instance "Black Desert" demanded extremely high armor for tank classes. Lu Kuan was seventy percent certain someone was hoarding armor cards, and now his guess had hit the mark.
Seeing the other’s expression, Lu Kuan knew he was right and smiled, "I'm not optimistic about the outlook for armor cards, so I'll pass on this venture. That's just my personal opinion, of course. Don't worry, I’ll keep your business confidential."

With that, Lu Kuan waved goodbye and turned away. Sloth watched Lu Kuan’s retreating figure, furrowing his brow.
What now—should we go on?
He couldn’t halt the acquisition over a single remark; if word got out, they'd be a laughingstock. But pressing ahead left him uneasy, for this fellow's judgment was razor-sharp.
Sloth scratched his bald head, torn with indecision.
...
Lu Kuan followed the main road west, soon arriving at the commercial district of the Lava Fortress, where he was to deliver the quest he’d completed in the distant Black Forest.
The morning market was bustling; shops overflowed with goods from across the Green Basin—everything from pearls and gems to rare pets, all imaginable wares. It was still early, so the marketplace remained calm.
Only the corner fish stall was lively, lit by torchlight. There, a ragged NPC crouched on the ground, surrounded by five or six players with unfriendly expressions. From the look of it, the conversation was far from pleasant.
Lu Kuan couldn’t help but smirk—this Will, how many people had he offended with his twisted quest?
Lu Kuan had spent several days in the Black Forest tackling Will’s backpack quest, the hardships and dangers of which were beyond description.
"Good morning, Mr. Will," Lu Kuan greeted the NPC as he approached.
Before Will could reply, a bald human warrior player cut in, frowning at Lu Kuan, "Hey, man, are you new? You need to queue for quests—learn the rules."
"Oh, I'm here to turn in a quest,"
Lu Kuan replied cheerfully. At once, the group beside Will all turned their gaze on him, including the warrior, staring at Lu Kuan as if he were some oddity.
Lu Kuan shrugged indifferently, pulled a pitch-black object from his pack, and handed it to Will with a grin: "Dear Mr. Will, I ran over a hundred miles along the Emerald Coast for this. Isn’t it time you wrote me a letter of recommendation?"
Will, clad in a tattered shirt and curled hair of indeterminate color, huddled in the corner.
Despite his unimpressive appearance, this NPC was famous in Lava Fortress for offering the only backpack expansion quest, which increased a player’s starting inventory from fourteen to sixteen slots.

In any game, there can never be too many backpack slots; drop rates for such items are always low, and adventurers often find themselves with no space for loot.
The pack’s capacity also determined how far players could venture, as more medicines and food allowed deeper exploration into uncharted wilderness.
Thanks to the difficulty, most players cursed the quest. Lu Kuan had relied on experience from his previous life to locate a little-known village in the wild forest, barely completing the task before his supplies ran out.
Will took the item from Lu Kuan, examining it with delight.
Only when Lu Kuan impatiently coughed twice did Will seem to recall something, pulling a grubby envelope from his dirty shirt and handing it lazily to Lu Kuan: "Take this to Mitchell at the tailor shop. She’ll upgrade your backpack."
"You've obtained 'Will's Letter of Recommendation.' Quest 'Will's Request (Difficulty B)' completed. You gain 20 experience points."
"Bring the letter to Mitchell at the Lava Fortress tailor shop to claim your reward."
As Lu Kuan received the envelope, the system prompt flashed across his view, prompting a sigh of relief—those days spent hiding in the forest were finally worthwhile.
Nearby, the other players’ eyes lit up, fixing on the envelope in Lu Kuan’s hand.
This was the legendary backpack expansion item, fetching a sky-high price of ten gold coins in the auction house. Even so, any that appeared were snapped up instantly.
To complete this quest—this guy was impressive.
"Hey, buddy, wait up,"
The bald warrior hurried to catch Lu Kuan, smiling, "Hello, I’m from the Morningstar Guild. Are you selling that letter? The price is negotiable."
Lu Kuan smiled and shook his head, declining politely. The bald warrior was about to press further when he caught sight of the longbow on Lu Kuan’s back, a sudden spark in his mind.
He’s a ranger?