by A Uscila
Leadership increased by 5.
Charisma increased by 1.
Luck increased by 1.
Intimacy with the bandit group slightly increased.
Now that the bandits joined his party, Wail would be getting reduced experience, which was quite a shock. But! His new colleagues were the same or even of a higher level than Wail. Which in turn meant that the speed at which creatures full of delicious experience could be hunted would increase. A lot. Hopefully.
Thus while on the way to the dungeon, Wail made sure to thoroughly clean up the neighborhood.
High intimacy, 16 Leadership and similar levels - Wail could order around his new lackeys with barely a single dissatisfied grunt thrown at his direction. Especially when vague promises of increased chance of success and profit were thrown about. Due to all that – new opportunities opened-up. Larger wolf packs. Spider nests. Groups of your generic killable monsters.
Spider nests were particularly fun to attack for Wail, since he simply set it on fire and watched the spreading inferno. Previously - when he tried something like that, the escaping spiders almost overwhelmed poor Wail and he barely escaped alive. Now? His beloved meat-shields successfully managed to hold off any escaping spiders. Though how the situation didn’t turn into a large forest-fire was beyond Wail. By now, he speculated that the game had some sort of an environment protection program initiated. Just so that the players wouldn’t destroy the whole continent. Power was a hard thing to manage after all. Especially to frustrated, awkward people who could not or would not fit in with their peers or the world in general. Of course, that sounded absolutely nothing like Wail.
As a well-placed distraction from possibly erroneous trails of thought, a few pop-up shot up.
Due to constantly tormenting your foes with wide-area fires, you have learned a new skill!
Inferno – Beginner level 1 (0.00%)
Description: Sets fire to a large area, dealing fire-damage and lowering the morale of anyone caught in its’ blazing fury.
Base area damage – 25-40
Damage over time – 10 damage/sec
Mana cost – 70
Casting time – 5 seconds.
Cooldown – 15 seconds.
*Damage increased by 3% due to Wisdom.
*Mana cost reduced by 4% due to Intellect.
*Casting time reduced by 4% due to Intellect.
Again, Wail’s hard worked paid off. He got a new skill without spending a single dime. Not only that, but quite a useful one as well. In addition, his “Fire Mastery” and “Fireball” finally reached intermediate level – both spells receiving instant bonuses that seemed almost too hard to believe. First of all – Fire Mastery got an increase in damage by 10% and a reduction in mana cost by 5%. Fireball on the other hand got quite a chunk of bonus damage, with reduced casting time, increased over-time effect. Only good things seemed to be happening after joining the bandits.
The terrain slowly shifted into an upwards slope, soft ground and grass replaced by patches of hard rock with ever increasing frequency and size. Encountered enemies saw a similar level of change – small groups of goblins popping up every now and again. Ugly little things - green skin, bloodlust beady eyes, disgusting bald mugs for heads. They were short creatures - only half the size of Wail. Usually with no armor and crudely made weapons – mostly made out of stone and wood. Though every now and then they carried around weapons of much greater sophistication, yet clear signs of neglect – as rust dotted the metal tools that were no doubt stolen from humans or other players. Surely, if they knew how to use those weapons properly, they might prove quite dangerous.
Though some would say that little green creatures, running about half-naked was already something to be classified as dangerous in a completely different way. Cases of temporary blindness have been documented.
It was local knowledge, that goblins only posed a real threat when in large numbers. Groups of three-four level 42 goblins barely slowed Wail down.
By now, the average level of the group was 45. Wail was level 48 already, with Bob just one number behind. Things were going really well. Too well. The fearless leader was starting to feel uncomfortable.
“This is the place, the entrance should be somewhere around here” – Bob suddenly said, as he ran to a cliff-side, carefully feeling the rock in an almost sensual manner. Of course and unsurprisingly, Bob found what he’s been looking for – a hole.
“Here, found the keyhole. We’re a few steps away from being rich!” – He continued, while taking out a small silver key.
“Wait!” – Wail suddenly stopped Bob – “Surely, before entering such a dangerous place, we must first rest up. After all, big challenges should best be taken while in top condition, don’t you agree?” – He asked the group, eyeing everyone with absolutely honest concern. Straining his acting abilities to the maximum.
Suspicion took hold, as the bandits exchanged a few unsteady glances. Luckily, the high intimacy and bond of trust Wail managed to build-up prevailed.
“Dang, you’re right. Let’s build a bonfire and rest up. You better share some of that bread with us again!” – Bob replied with a laugh, followed by the positive mumbling of his fellow criminal.
Success!
The truth of the matter was – Wail needed to get some sleep. He’s been online for at least 8 hours real-time, now. If the dungeon is indeed unexplored as he guessed, staying online for another 42 hours, to reap as much benefit as possible - would be simply insane. Even he didn’t have that in him. Thus with great regret - he decided to log off after bitterly giving his fellow outlaws one loaf of bread each.
Wail didn’t mind sharing his food, but if he squandered his fortune like air, he’d be broke before the day was over. One loaf might cost just 2 coppers, but he already gave away 5 loafs. That’s 10 coppers. Until now – that wasn’t an issue. But! He was forced to give away another 5. That’s 20 copper coins overall – the loss was pilling up. Wail was walking on thin ice. Its’ small transactions like these that would almost unnoticeably build up into astronomical sums.
With these thoughts in mind, he disappeared from Alternative Reality and came back to his small, dark apartment. Preparations were needed. Luke almost felt excited.
Chapter 6
Luke left the capsule late at night and went straight to bed. Can’t say he felt tired or anything, but still managed to sleep for 8 straight hours. Which was how much a human being should normally sleep. Satisfied with the humble accomplishment he took a shower, shaved and even took care of his sociopath-like hairstyle. Since your appearance did not affect the in-game appearance anymore, the sudden concern for his own appearance indicated intentions unrelated to diving back into the capsule any-time soon.
Indeed. Luke decided to make a few stops outside. As any other high-level quest or adventure with high casualty rate and demand for time, he needed to get ready before it starts.
If we take a standard working weekday, using busy Luke as an example, his day would consist of – Sleep, eat, work, eat, work, sleep. Simply taking away all the sleep was not an option at all. Thus he decided to combine the two remaining parts of that back-breakingly busy life of his. Like a two-for-one sale. Luke smiled at himself in the mirror – no doubt excessively satisfied with the surprisingly average idea. Features soon twisted into a frown and the suddenly grumpy fellow walked off and wrote down a note to remind himself to never do that again. For the sake of his own mental health.
Moving on, today’s schedule would involve - eat, annoy innocent hard-working individuals and finish his weekly quota. Maybe barely escape with his teeth intact. A busy day before an exciting event. Considering that if things go well, he won’t be free for at least two straight days, Luke needed to free up that schedule of his.
He dressed casually. Blue skinny jeans, a white long-sleeve shirt – buttoned up only half way. And a black t-shirt underneath. Amazing sense of style – thought nobody ever. Except Luke, of course, judging by that confid
ent gait of his. It wasn’t often that he could “dress-up” like that either and today the weather seemed just perfect for the occasion. Warm enough for there to be no need for a jacked and cool enough for two layers of clothing.
Destination? Downtown - at least 6 blocks away from his apartment. Considering that he visited quite a few spots over the course of his employment – Luke had to travel far. There was no need to take the risk and end up with any unwelcome and “unexpected” injuries or accidents.
A neat little out-door café. Not too costly, calm. Mostly female personnel – a lesser chance of getting his legs broken or anything of the sort. Time for action.
Luke awkwardly ordered a cup of green tea, 6 different buns and todays’ breakfast – bacon and eggs. Original. He decided to make sure he’s not in some American neighborhood later.
This needy customer made sure that his tea, together with the buns - would be brought in after his main course of bacon and eggs was finished.
Thus with no hurry in sight, he ate away with little worry, observing the waitresses and the guests. Slowly, yet unnoticeably sinking into melancholy. He still felt uncomfortable outside of his quiet little sanctuary. Like he was somehow out of place, like he didn’t belong. As if he was in some giant scheme, with everyone being in it and him being the target. Everyone but him - in their own little world, behind some glass, while Luke was left on the other side. Observing, alone. Sometimes they’d look back at him – more often with disdain than curiosity. Classifying him as the strange one instead of themselves. A natural train of thought.
This seemed like a nice little place though. Everyone was lost in their own little thing, busy in that hectic life of theirs. Until they needed to order. Seemingly, the staff also looked like an “ok” bunch of people. Feigned interest and politeness, sure. But it was much worse in other places. This almost made him feel bad about causing trouble. A job was a job though. Nothing personal as his classmates used to say while stuffing his things into a garbage can. Seemed quite personal to Luke, though, considering that only his belongings would receive such attention.
With the breakfast course finished, Luke waited for the remainder of his order while looking at the mobile phone. 10 minutes. That’s how long he had to wait until it arrived. Not too long, normally he wouldn’t care. He was working now though, thus he was forced to be picky. Forced, that’s the excuse he enjoyed using. Circumstances forced his hand, with him having barely anything to do with it. A liberating thought.
During his younger days, Luke experienced an overabundance of attention directed at him and grew up with a strange habit. A habit of putting on a show like everyone was watching him, as if he was constantly under scrutiny or at the very least – paid attention to. It would prove somewhat useful in this particular situation. Though in most cases it just received the “weird eye”, quite reasonably so. It was quite hard to say if Luke was just used to acting like he was at the center of attention, or simply always tried to end up there without even realizing it, to fill up the void. Or satisfy an out of control ego.
And the show was on. Luke lifted the teacup to his lips. Took a sip. Stopped, and with furrowed brows glared at the poor inanimate object. Obviously, he was dissatisfied with something. Luke placed the teacup back from whence it came – directed his attention at the buns instead. Moved them around. Once, twice. Thrice for good measure. Furrowed his brows again.
Luckily, by now the waitress noticed his act and walked right into it. Today was Luke’s lucky day. It was almost heartwarming to find out that someone was actually paying attention to him, even if they got paid for it.
“Excuse me, is something wrong?” – She asked politely, giving Luke a reproachful look.
Over the years Luke realized that he’s only comfortable with other people, when the feeling of superiority is present. When he finds himself in a better position or is somehow leading the conversation. Since Luke was socially awkward, he could only feel so while being angry, mean or simply rude with the barest of justification for it. Of course, it’s not like he actually felt superior in any way. More like he forgot the inferiority complex of his. Luke simply forgets his awkwardness when he’s in the “cold-blooded, rude bastard” mindset.
“Yes, there is” – He shifted the teacup towards the waitress – “What is this?”
She raised one eyebrow – “A cup of green tea sir”
Funny. Guess it will turn into a battle of wits. The t-shirt worn underneath clung to his suddenly sweaty back.
“Yes, but I ordered black tea” – Luke replied curtly, while continuously staring at the poor victim.
“Sir, I’m positively sure you asked for green tea” – The waitress replied after a few seconds of fidgeting, shaken by such an insignificant issue.
Good, the conversation was going into a cliché argument, one which Luke practiced quite a bit. Inside his head, mostly. At least a hundred times. He felt prepared for this.
“No, I always order black tea. I doubt this was an exception. But if only it were the tea, I wouldn’t have bothered. Look here” – Luke continued, tapping his finger near the plate of buns – “I also ordered 2 cinnamon buns, two with strawberry filling, one with caramel and one with raspberry. Do you see any buns with raspberry filling?” – A barely visible smirk. He got her.
The waitress looked at the plate, at her notebook, at the plate again. She was lost.
“B-but sir, I don’t see it written down in my notebook…the raspberry bun I mean” – She fidgeted.
Attempts at finding an excuse, an escape. Luke was familiar with that mindset. He got an easier mark. She was obviously new, not used to the job. Not used to troublesome, frustrated and always unhappy customers like Luke. He won.
It went down quite easily after that, the shift manager came over. After a brief discussion, the waitress apologized to Luke and he got his second part of the meal for free. Didn’t make him feel like a better person. On the contrary. Situations like this usually served as ignition, starting a never-ending self-pity marathon inside his head.
But the usual thought-process was interrupted by a sudden disturbance. Didn’t this happen before, somewhere?
Quite randomly, a girl sat down on the opposite side of the table and Luke froze up with his mouth wide open, a bun held merely an inch away from it. Though he wasn’t frozen due to her beauty, which nobody would have held against him. In fact, it was due to the completely unexpected turn of events. When things didn’t go as planned, Luke always felt lost and was slow to react.
Don’t get him wrong though, she was beautiful. Medium length dark hair, light make-up, delicate features. Probably in her twenties. She had a knack at stylish clothing as well, but these days it wasn’t an uncommon feature. Everyone liked to be “stylish and modern”. Everyone wanted to attract attention. And nobody wanted to be excluded from social circles because of a poor impression.
Something seemed off though. There were plenty types of beautiful. Refined beauty, cold beauty and a number of others. Frankly - Luke wasn’t too knowledgeable on that topic, nor did it occupy much of his thinking time. He was pretty sure though, that this particular girl could and would be considered as an insane beauty. Not that her beauty itself was insane - or how eye-catching and alluring it seemed. Oh no - she herself seemed slightly insane. A weird glimmer in the eye that somehow signaled every nerve in Luke’s body to stay away. Dangerous. Especially since she was quite to his liking. Just his type to say the least. Slim, dark and a little gloomy. Just enough to steer those thoughts towards more relatable topics.
All in all, the whole situation made him feel terribly uncomfortable. So much that he slightly shifted in his chair, without closing his mouth or moving the bun out of the way. Might have something to do with a combined effect of never having intimate relations with females and rarely conversing with people he didn’t know. And rarely was putting it mildly, considering Luke’s extra narrow social-circle.
“What the fuck?” – She finally said,
after a short pause. Arms crossed, an angry, cold even, glare. That and quite a strange way to start a conversation. This won’t go well.
Surprisingly - Luke could feel himself getting more and more confused and lost as how to react in this particular development. He never had a conversation like this before. Everything was crumbling around him. At the very least, he managed to close his mouth – though the bun? He forgot about it.
“You think I haven’t noticed you following me around? First that bakery across the street. Then the mall. The shoe store. And now even here? 6 blocks away?” – She continued, steadily flaring up, leaning closer towards Luke. This was getting out of hand, multiple unfriendly stares were directed towards him. Unpleasant memories rising.
“How much more fucking obvious can you get? Grow some balls already! Can’t even say hi to a neighbor, but stalking me all over the city doesn’t seem as hard? Seriously!?” – The monologue was getting way out of hand.
Neighbor? Luke suddenly looked more closely at this over-bearing female. Sure, she wasn’t dressed all in black this time, but it was surely her. This loud-mouthed, one-sided decision making torturer. His neighbor, with whom he never even exchanged a greeting. Maybe a short glance at each other, sure. Nothing beyond that, though. It’s true that they usually left their apartments at the same times, but it was all a strange coincidence. Yet it turned into a huge misunderstanding and was blown out of all proportions.
Also, Luke noticed that he was still holding the bun. Thus he finally placed it down on the table. About damn time.
“If I find you following me around again, I swear, I’ll call the cops on you. Creep!” - With a shout, she finally ended the monologue. Got up, gave him another angry glance and stormed off.
Luke was reminded of a song he liked, thus decided to listen to it once back home. Considering how everyone else glared at him now, as if looking at some sort of a stalker, maybe even public enemy number or something. Leaving as soon as possible seemed like a great idea.
