MMORPG: Rise of the Peerless Pumpkinmancer

A lone man was happily playing with a wolf pup, seemingly not noticing the army surrounding them….a distance away.

"How is he so calm? There's something wrong with him!"

"He's obviously bluffing. The minute we leave, he'll sneak out for sure."

"Should we fake a retreat to trick him? We could then collapse on the guy at full power!"

"No, it won't work. Think about it. There are so many players currently with us. Information leaks about our movements will definitely happen."

"Makes sense….so we'll just wait until he dies from old age or something? I'm just itching to fight! You know what? I'll kill a few wolves to vent. Be right back."

Discussions similar to this were happening all around the clearing. At this point, everyone wanted to kill Jack, if only to get in the good graces of the Mighty Dragons. But, they would never dare to intrude upon the clearing.

That's how Jack kept scratching his new pet behind the ears as they played together. Its fur was so soft, and its tiny tail wagging from side to side so cute. But he had priorities! He was actually training it!

"Give paw."

"Roll over."

"Play Dead!"

"Quick attack!"

"360 no scope!"

"Menacing Howl!"

"Kameha-me-hahaha!"

"Total score: 5/7. A good start, but don't get cocky just yet. It will take a lot of effort for you to obtain your true wolf hunter license. Keep working hard!" Jack advised the young wolf.

It nodded in agreement, eager to become an apex predator like its dad or even better like its master.

But, its current appearance could only be called cute. Its maw was so tiny that biting a humanoid-sized target would be hard. As for its short claws? Perhaps it could use them to cut down a sandwich at best.

It had become smaller upon becoming Jack's pet, but that was expected. Most pets had a travel form (more compact) and a battle form. As for this wolf's battle form, it was amazingly….nonexistent.

This obstacle wouldn't discourage them: #Weak to Strong #Road to Glory #Serious Training #Lots of Players Lurking #Popular

Many players couldn't help but gawk at the duo while commenting:

"Is it me, or is the wolf improving at a visible pace?"

"Yep, at this rate, it will soon be more coordinated than half of us here."

"Never before have I been so offended by something I 100% agree with."

"What the heck are you guys doing just standing there? Are you all playing with your dicks?! Come hunt wolves with us!"

Like that, all the players would inevitably end up hunting wolves. The dying howls of the forest creatures echoed in the forest. It was a complete massacre! Bloodied players would wander all over the place.

But, even with their dreadful appearance and their success in war, they had little to show for their efforts. Sure, the XP for killing wolves was really high, but they shared it with so many that it rendered it worthless.

As for the loot itself? Well, they would beat the corpses even after their enemy had been defeated and waste it all in their excitement. It didn't help that no one knew how to gather pelts or meat and that they were still on the chicken quest with the mayor.

But they didn't give a fuck. For them, this was an entirely new world that they were happy to explore. It wasn't about profit at all, only having fun— Oh and potentially killing Jack! They would even taunt him;

"Coward! While you hide in there, we're playing Infinite!"

"Look at him stay there with fear in his heart! A true man would Leeroy it!"

"It's impossible for him to reach the village. Why is he even clinging to life?"

"Tch— Can you believe how arrogant he is? He should be begging for mercy."

"Does he think the Mighty Wolves will send reinforcements or something? That's a pipe dream!"

But, as the insults kept raining, so did the dying howls of the wolves. With each, Jack's smile would become more derisive. He only kept playing with the pup as he waited.

He waited until the forest turned red from wolf blood, he waited until an aura of despair fell unto the entire forest, he waited until the wolves all began whimpering as they begged for help.

Jack gave the players one very meaningful and "concerned" glance:

"You guys sure have a bad memory. Wait, could you all have Alzheimer's?! You should see a doctor right now just to be safe. It's like you've all forgotten what happened with the chickens." Jack sighed as he shook his head.

The reactions to this statement were diverse:

"Wait, don't tell me…oh god no!"

"No, he's only trying to frighten us!"

"Why are you guys uneasy? What is he talking about?"

"You've joined a few hours after the launch, eh? He means Chicken-ageddon!"

Most of the players had simply forgotten about it all in their excitement. As for the Mighty Dragons, they had heard about it but hadn't lived it. They couldn't help but ask.

"Chicken-ageddon? What do you all mean?!"

"What's the link with the Chicken Onslaught and our situation?"

That's when Jack began cackling loudly. His incredibly heartfelt laughter resonated in the forest, making the players unconscionably shiver.

"Easy, when you gang up on monsters, they reply in kind. Are you all ready to get fucked?" Jack gave them a bright smirk.

"Don't listen to him. He's just trying to—" But the wannabe dragon never got to finish his sentence.

— HOWL!!!—

The boss chose this timing to reappear. At first, the players didn't even twitch since they knew it wouldn't leave its clearing anyway. Oh boy, were they wrong!

This time was different as there were replies….

— HOWL!!!—

— Howl! —

— Howl! —

— Howl! —

The ones who had lived the Chicken Onslaught became livid. This was the exact same freaking pattern the Chicken boss had used. First was a war cry to regroup the troops, and then was the charge.

"We're fucked!"

"Run!! Get the fuck away from this forest!"

The most perceptive ones began fleeing as quickly as they could. But it was already too late. Running away from ressentful wolves? What a joke!

— HOWL!!!—

— Howl! —

— Howl! —

— Howl! —

That's when it all began, the nightmare.

Wolves began swarming over the place at an incredible rate. The clearing soon became filled with the monsters— and a man giving them a devilish smile.

As they saw the look in Jack's eyes, they couldn't help but gulp and tremble. Had it been his plan all along?! He had remained close to immobile in there to bore them so they'd hunt wolves.

"Who the fuck said that we outnumber him?! Let's have a talk!"

"Say, mister expert, can you spare us? We'll behave in the future."

"Suddenly, I wonder which one is scarier between the Dragons and this guy!"

But all Jack did was sigh loudly as he gently encouraged them. He truly was well-intentioned. Yet, with every sentence, they began grimacing and shivering more.

"So what if there are hundreds of wolves? You are there to stop them!"

"Stay strong. As long as you each kill two or three wolves, you will be victorious!"

"Don't just let fear creep in your hearts. Think about how true men would Leeroy it!"

"Don't worry. As your avatars get violently torn to pieces, remember that a wolf is finding you delicious. #All Meat Matters"

At this point, the players had given up all hope. Stop them? How?! Two wolves each? They needed 50 players to kill one! Leeroy it? They would similarly wipe. All Meat Matters?! Were they really nothing but food?! Yes, the answer was yes.

— HOWL!!!—

— Howl! —

— Howl! —

— Howl! —

With one last howl, the wolves began the hunt. The little wolf even joined in. It sat on Jack's head as it "menacingly" howled in its high-pitched voice.

"Now, shall we begin." Jack had been waiting for this moment all along.

Amidst the crazed players, Jack began navigating the forest unimpeded. As the wolves soon noticed how weak the players were, they began playing with their food. They trapped them completely!

That's when many noticed Jack, who was leisurely walking amidst the bloodthirsty monsters. He slowly approached them with a smile. Would he help? Probably not, but they were grasping at straws.

"Please help me, I — ouch!"

In Jack's hand, there was a butchering knife. He had just pricked the player with it. But why?!

-1

One damage is all he did. He then moved toward the next player before repeating the same. The players couldn't help but gawk in confusion. Was he going around giving paper cuts to people?! This scene was so strange!

"Hey man, what the hell are you— ouch!"

"Can we talk for a sec— ouch!"

"You asshole, say something!"

"What do you want?!"

But all he did was hum a happy tune about…cooking? It talked about meat was all they knew.

-1

-1

-1

-1

-1

-1

Everyone stared in confusion, even the wolves. They couldn't understand what was going on. Was this human on their side? It had the wolf heir on his head after all…so maybe?

But, what was he doing? Was it some kind of advanced torture? They weren't sure, but the bad humans really seemed to hate it. The wolves watched as they tried to figure it out. Meanwhile, the little wolf was happily wagging its tail with every new victim.

But, there was only so long that the creatures would wait. Jack had to give them a reason not to kill the humans themselves.

"Now, let's do this, shall we?" He approached a player with his bloodstained butcher knife and a large smile. Somehow, it made the target recoil back in fear— or try with the wolves barring its way.

"S-stay away!"

"Don't worry. It will be over soon." Jack reassured.

None would ever forget the scene that followed. At this moment, many regretted not having set up their VR capsule with a PG13 setting.

In front of them, Jack began to dissect his target alive (0_0). Infinite indeed was Infinite. If one could butcher animals, why couldn't they do the same to humans? The screaming player soon found himself immobilized by a nearby wolf as Jack kept going.

"Stop it already! Stop!"

"I hate this game!"

"Let me go!"

"Noooo!"

Jack magnanimously appeased the guy:

"What are you talking about? The game turns the pain setting real low for this. Just imagine that it's someone else's skin getting ripped from their body, and you'll be fine."

Yet, strangely, this didn't make it better as he screamed even more. He kept flailing around until the end of the process, disappearing in a flash of blue light.

Behind there remained human skin and human meat. Now, Jack had to pay his helper. He sent a bit of flesh toward a wolf who happily began to gobble it. The other wolves witnessed this and became excited.

The players now felt sick. They finally understood his #All Meat Matters mantra. Was the wolf army a nightmare? Hell no! This man was infinitely worse! He was the devil incarnate, he was—

That's when Jack turned his gaze toward them…

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[A/N] We do not discriminate here. #All Meat Matters ^_^v