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Chapter 2: A Smooth First Transaction
Chapter 2: A Smooth First Transaction
After a flash of blue light, Liam appeared on the street of a small town with his backpack. The street was mostly empty, and there were no Zombies in sight as he had imagined.
Liam curiously surveyed the town. The road was littered with various obstacles used as barricades. At the end of the street, in the town center, a house with a yard was clearly visible, and it seemed like there was some activity inside.
After checking the System, Liam quickly learned that the house was his destination. Taking a deep breath, he pulled out his entrenching tool from his backpack and started walking towards the house.
There were many obstacles on the road, but they were clearly designed to block the straight-moving Zombies. As an 11-year-old, Liam easily slipped through the gaps in the barricades, making his way steadily towards the center of town.
Near the barricades, and even on them, there were numerous decapitated Zombies. It seemed a battle had taken place here before. Fortunately, the scattered Zombies didn't block the path, and Liam managed to avoid them with little effort.
When Liam was about ten meters from his destination, he noticed that the last obstacle was partially blocked by a fallen Zombie. The other paths around it looked much longer.
Liam was about to move the Zombie when he realized that although it only had an upper body, its head was still attached. In the game, Zombies only counted as defeated when their heads were destroyed. Liam broke out in a cold sweat, grateful for his caution. This half-Zombie likely couldn't move without its lower body and was lying in wait. If he had moved it rashly, it might have turned his brain into breakfast.
Sensing something was off, Liam prepared himself. Fortunately, he had everything he needed in his backpack. He poured the fuel from his windproof lighter onto a bandage, then found a long, forked stick to wrap the bandage around and ignite it. Finally, he thrust the torch into the Zombie's head.
Sure enough, the Zombie, severely injured and lying in wait, started flailing its arms, trying to attack the person who had hurt it with the torch.
However, Liam had secured the forked stick into the ground, forming a sturdy triangle. Clearly, this legless half-Zombie had no chance of breaking free and harming Liam.
As time passed, the flames gradually diminished, and the Zombie's movements grew weaker. Eventually, the flames died out, and the Zombie stopped moving.
Liam poked the Zombie's head with the stick, and it fell off. The entire body then turned into a pile of black ash. Liam jumped in surprise, but then remembered that in the game, Zombies burned to ashes.
This must be the first monster I've killed, Liam thought. Unfortunately, the System wasn't based on killing monsters to level up. The Zombie left nothing behind except a pile of ash.
After passing through the barricade, Liam finally stood at the door of his destination. He raised his hand and pressed the doorbell, hearing a clattering noise from inside, as if someone had stumbled and knocked over several things.
The door opened, and a middle-aged man with a pot on his head stood there, holding a baseball bat.
"Did a Zombie ring the doorbell? Where are they, come out quickly."
"Sir, I'm human, and you need to look down."
The man looked down at Liam, and Liam noticed that his eyes were different sizes, giving him an unsettling, slightly unhinged appearance. This must be the game's plant scientist, Crazy Dave.
"Come in quickly, kid. The Zombies are always lurking in the dark, ready to eat our brains." Dave reached out and pulled Liam inside, then closed the door.
"I should have known a human would come knocking. If it were Zombies, my precious Plants would have reacted."
"Right." After leading Liam to the living room and having him sit down, Dave asked, "It's not safe for a child to be traveling alone these days. What brings you to my doorstep?"
Liam wasn't quite used to such a straightforward approach. After some thought, he decided to be honest. "I'm a shop owner. I heard you have magical Plants, so I want to trade with you."
"Even though that sounds completely unreasonable, my Plants tell me you're telling the truth." Dave, seated on the sofa, loosened the soil around a Sunflower in a pot as he spoke.
"However, my prices are astronomically high. What do you have to offer in exchange for my Plants?"
Liam reached into his backpack and pulled out some corn tortillas and hot sauce.
"I think these might be what you need. In this dire situation, it must be hard to find any processed food. And in the future, I might travel to many places and meet many people, possibly discovering new Plants that have never existed in this world. We can help each other."
Dave quickly snatched the tortillas and hot sauce. "Oh my God, corn tortillas and hot sauce. I haven't seen these in so long, ever since those damned Zombies surrounded the town. Unfortunately, these don't entirely meet my requirements, but they're better than eating Pea mush every day."
"Alright, kid." Dave put down the items and looked at Liam. "Your goods have piqued my interest, but you can only trade for three basic Plants. I'm giving you this deal because you're the first outsider to come here in a long time and because of your offer of future cooperation. Otherwise, I would only give you one Plant."
"Thank you, Mr. Dave." Liam glanced at the list of Plants Dave had given him and said, "I've made my decision. I'd like Sunflower, Peashooter, and Sun-shroom."
Dave listened to Liam's request, then handed him three bags and a key. "Ah, you're a smart one. You know that even the largest garden starts with the most basic Plants. This key is to the neighbor's house. He didn't listen to my advice and got his brain eaten by Zombies. Next time, you can use this to save yourself the trip."
As Liam took the items, a notification from the System rang in his head.
Ding!
Shop owner, you have completed your first trading task—
Acquired Mini Garden (neighbor's yard), capable of providing up to ten of each of three Plants per week—
Free access to the Plants vs. Zombies world, with a fixed portal at Dave's neighbor's house—
You may now return—
Liam said goodbye to Dave, walked through the back door of Dave's yard to the neighboring yard, and chose to return.
Dave watched through the keyhole as a blue light flashed and then vanished, taking Liam with it. He muttered to himself, "Indeed, Dave now has a unique customer. Perhaps the hope of ending the war with the Zombies lies with him. Well, Dave needs to prepare lunch now. Fresh corn tortillas, how wonderful."
(End of Chapter)
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