by John Gold
Anyway, Lunar won’t be bothering me, and they’ll do as much as they can to keep me healthy. I can’t overload my head, otherwise I’ll start living at the hospital. But I have a plan for my future in the real world and a way to execute it. I need to put it into effect while the doctors are keeping an eye on me in the med capsule. I couldn’t ask for a better situation.
Over the next four hours, I collect everything I can find on space ship building, the legal issues that involves, and training manuals. I put together all the books I need and a plan for how to learn what I need to know. Next, I need to absorb as much as I can.
I log into the game and start dumping everything I have back into my bag. We’re less than an hour away from Sural, and I can already see the city’s towers.
Today is the beginning of everything I’ve planned for. I don’t want to just be a child or a dark mage and swordsman. I know how to push past my limits and strength, though it’s going to take a lot of work.
Sural is part of the Manay Caliphate, which runs along the entire coastline. On the other side, it’s bordered by the Hashan Desert, home to a spot where I’m going to be spending some time leveling myself up.
The locals consider the desert a rotten place, and all kinds of monsters come crawling out to confirm their suspicions. There aren’t any normal monsters, though the desert itself does continual mental and fire damage. Somewhere in the center is a dead area. People who have gotten too close say that the most terrifying creatures and spirits they’ve ever seen live there: banshees, basilisks, gigantic snakes, monsters that defy description. There’s also an endless river of souls that flows out of the sky into the very center of the area. Of particular interest are the legends about a sand person and a hole into the underworld that opens out of the very center of the desert. I’d like to see what that’s about.
My enemies are strong! I remember how helpless I felt on the altar, my gullibility, my stupidity, my weakness. I need to fix my mistakes before I meet my first serious opponent in this world. Being weak…sensing your helplessness and limitations is revolting. It’s much better to be a monster than to be helpless and a nobody.
There’s no logic to my thoughts, and my emotions are getting in the way of my thinking. At times like this, I do everything I can to find my way out of the situation. Ah, there we go!
The local monster-hunting guild clears the surrounding lands of the most dangerous beasts. They don’t just take out bunnies and foxes; they’re the best of the players in the area. Judging by the description, any monster that makes it onto their list has advanced intelligence and immense strength.
There are all kinds of associations in the world: killers, thieves, marauders, couriers, blacksmiths, warriors, and all the rest. The monster-hunting guilt is the most profitable and dangerous.
The enemy is always varied and unpredictable, strong and intriguing. It’s a path chosen by loners who want to test their strength, and also adrenaline junkies. For me, it will be my main source of income for the near future.
I get through customs without any problems, even though I was worried they’d search me and find my ring of omnipotence. Technically, I’m clean. They don’t have any suspicions about me, and they don’t have the right to search my possessions. There’s nothing dark on me. And I’m certainly not about to show anyone my attribute window, not even on my deathbed. Time to figure out where I’ll be sleeping. I know who will advise me of a good place to crash.
“Geriont, before you leave, could you tell me of a place where I could live or just spend the night?”
“The funniest part is that those places are in the slums. They’re managed by former bandits and convicts.”
“Yeah, that sounds lovely. Is there anything better?”
“Anji, you’re in a port city. Where do you think you’re going to find yourself a spare room, damn it? It’s all jungles and deserts. You’re a long way from the backwoods, like in Heron, kid.”
“I get it, I get it. Just mark on my map where there are places I can stay.” Geriont looks over my megamap, unable to believe his eyes. I don’t know how much I paid for it, though it was definitely worth it. I know where practically all the ships in the world sail. I know all the cities with ports, too.
Nobody stopped me or offered me anything. I’m just your usual village boy in beggarly clothing now, the kind of kid only port children and petty thieves pay attention to. And all they do is take my measure. Nobody remembers me, and that’s good. The clothes I’m wearing make me the least noticeable person in the city.
Sural is a big trading port. The buildings are much richer than in Imir or Heron, with well plastered walls, masonry on the fronts of houses, sturdy roads made from colorful stone, buildings with towers, and whole manors. Life goes by in a hurry, something that is awfully unusual for me. In fact, I have to adjust my settings to clip out all the voices around me. The traders in the harbor sell imported goods, and the piers all lead straight to where they all are. There’s also a big bazaar in the city where players and locals alike trade. There’s nothing for me there, however. I need the auction and a bank.
It’s funny how kids in Project Chrysalis can’t use banks, though auctions are fine. If I sell something in one auction house, I can pick the money up at another, at least.
I find the guest house I’m looking for pretty quickly and rent a room for a month. Then, I link to the room. Now, if I die, I’ll respawn here. The owner casts a sad look at me, pity and compassion in his eyes.
“Is something wrong?”
“No, it’s fine. Have a good stay.”
It’s only after that he sweeps the money off the desk and into his pocket.
On my way back to the port, I wonder to myself why the guest house owner behaved the way he did, though nothing comes to mind. But that’s when I come across a kid looking like a bandit who might be exactly the right person to help me. I need someone who knows the rights kids have in this world as well as the loopholes in them.
“Hey, what do you need?” He’s sitting there looking at me with disgust, but that’s perfect for me. His answers will be closer to the truth.
“If I start a fight here, will the guards get involved?”
He jumped up instantly.
“What, you want a piece of this? Looking to take my spot?” I don’t really stop his fist; I just catch it after he hits me and tighten my grip until his health starts to drop.
“I didn’t touch you, so this is your fault if the guards show up. Answer the question. Do the guards get involved if a fight breaks out?”
“Yes.”
I relax my grip. He’s just a kid, and there’s no sense hurting him and giving him a debuff.
“They break up fistfights, and they lock you up for twenty-four hours if you have a weapon.”
“See?” I let his hand go. “I’m not trying to hurt you. I just want answers to my questions. You’re an orphan, right?”
“Yes.”
“You sell information about cargo and people?”
“Yes, I’m an information collector at the guild. Who sent you?”
“Nobody. Next question: what do adults get for hitting you?”
“If I’m the instigator and there are witnesses, then nothing. If it’s unreasonable aggression, they get a month in the mines for a simple hit. Six months for the second violation, character deleted for the third. There aren’t any psychopaths like that, though.”
“What if two guys are holding you, and I kill you?”
The boy crouched, about ready to run. He steps away from me. I need to get the situation under control.
“It’s just a question. That’s not going to happen.”
“You and your questions… They would delete the accounts of whoever was holding me since we’re just kids. You’d get a week of punishment, which is the worst you can get. They’ll make your parents take responsibility for your actions.”
“That’s all? But I killed you! All I’d get is a week in lockup?”
> Is that all Rachel got? For sending me to Hell?
“That’s only if there are witnesses or a god pays attention. The ones holding me would still get their accounts deleted, but you could get off scot-free. They give you the red mark of a murder for a week after the first time, a year after the tenth. Work that off, though, and you’re done.”
Animals! Nothing happened to her. I’m positive she wasn’t punished.
“Sorry for bothering you, and sorry for the questions.”
Even back when I was in Hell, I tried to get information about what was going on in the outside world. The only problem was that there were very few players and even less to be learned. The only system message I’d received the whole time had been on the first day I found myself there, and that was the one about the new god Leon appearing in the small pantheon. Rachel and that ritual had to have something to do with that, and Bernard, too. I’m not sure what he wanted out of it, though.
I was looking for ways to get out of Hell back then, and now I’m looking for a way to get back home and be prepared to hit back if there’s a threat. I’m never going to forgive what happened.
Everything was so simple. I started off looking to use Project Chrysalis to earn some pocket money, but then I’d gotten my family, father and mama. I had a home. Now, having been through Hell, I’m trying to get back there. There could be people there willing to kill me just for existing. Although, on the other hand, they all think I deleted my character and made a new one. It’s been a year and a half, after all. Conjecture isn’t enough; I want total advantage in a counterattack if there’s a problem.
This whole time, I’ve been sitting near the boy and thinking my own thoughts. I have another question.
“How do I find out if someone has forbidden skills?”
“I’m not a guard, and I don’t know everything. I guess, you can catch them red-handed or find witnesses.”
“Can you make anyone show you their attribute window?”
“No-o,” the boy replied with a wave of his hand. “Although, if you accuse someone falsely, they may show it to prove their innocence.”
“That’s so simple. What about the forbidden arts? I mean, necromancy and blood and all of that.”
“For that, you have to get the item yourself or have the owner show off its attributes.”
“So, there could be a necromancer with a staff walking around the city pretending he’s an ordinary mage?”
“Of course. You just can’t use skills like that on people.”
“What’s the punishment if you do?”
“Your reputation drops, and you’re kicked out of the city. There aren’t many of those, though. After a couple mistakes, their instructors always keep moving.”
The boy turned out to be nice enough and behaved the way an ordinary twelve-year-old would. Just like other orphans, he found a family in Project Chrysalis and softened considerably. The anger at the world and its injustice that he used to have disappeared. I get it, really, and I’m even jealous…
“Thanks. Good luck.”
There isn’t anything else he can tell me.
Sural is split up into five big regions: the port in the eastern side, the upper city in the north, the slums in the north-east, the market district in the center, and the crafting quarter in the west. My next job is to sign up for the monster-hunting guild which is near the western gate, the one leading into the jungle.
The guild turns out to be an interesting place. To get in, you have to pick up any order and complete it for free, after which you get access to all the quests in the region. There’s a ranking system that goes from one to ten. After getting in, I’ll be at that tenth rank, which means I’ll only be able to move up to the ninth after I’ve completed five contracts. The higher your rank, the better your reward and the more difficult the quests.
The walls in the guild building are plastered with posters about quests. It turns out that the caliphs have plenty of problems with monsters.
A girl is sitting at the administrator’s desk, and her green robe embroidered with leaves and flowers tell me she’s probably a life mage. That’s pretty typical. Even her staff has leaves sprouting from it.
“Hello there. I’d like to join the guild.”
“The rules are standard: pick any quest and complete it. Bring us proof that you did, and you’re in,” the girl replies without paying me the least bit of attention.
“I’m aware of that. How will I know what kind of opponent I’ll be facing?”
“Around here, we have monsters between Level 100 and Level 250. For tenth-rank hunters, there are monsters between Level 150 and Level 165. The pay depends on how difficult the quest is within the context of that rank.” It’s only then that she looks up at me. “Although, you really don’t have any business being here.”
“I’m not breaking any rules, am I?” I ask with a triumphant smile as I go pick out my first contract.
Ten kilometers outside the city, there’s a giant snake which patrols have seen twice by the road. That’s what I have to kill, and I need to bring back its tail or scales as proof that it’s dead.
The girl from the guild forgot to tell me that it’s a local boss like all the other monsters.
I notice the snake before it notices me, again, thanks to my boosted perception. As soon as I stop, it charges.
Monster, Heartbreaker Snake, Level 160
Just a second into the battle, I’ve picked up all kinds of information. For example, the beast is immune to stunning and has a very tough skin. One blow from its tail sends me flying into the bushes, and it’s from there that I send a fatal shot at it. The boulder I send smashing into it takes off all its health and leaves it flopping in the weeds. No matter how good its resistance is, it didn’t have a chance of surviving 25000 damage. Although, it turns out to be a shapeshifter—after death, it turns into a human. Where am I supposed to get the tail? Do I just stick the body in my bag and take the whole thing?
Another of the reptiles, a copy of the one I just killed, comes flying out of the bushes. Hell taught me a lot, including how never to relax. Thanks to that, I’m not taken unawares. My imp eye already told me where the enemy was, and my experience working in pitch darkness in the mine told which way it was going. I hit it with fire. The whole body burns, along with the scales, though this one isn’t a shapeshifter. The tail is in with the loot. There’s a bow, along with gauntlets, two rings, and forty-five gold, and all the items are rare. Hunting could turn out very well for me.
When I bring the meter-long tail back to the guild, I find out that monsters often come with a retinue.
“Am I in, miss?”
Reputation with the Manay Caliphate: +1
Current reputation: Neutral (999 until respect)
Reputation in Sural: +10
Current reputation: Neutral (999 until respect)
You joined the monster-hunting guild.
You’re a tenth-rank monster hunter.
∞ ∞ ∞
“Hela. You can call me Miss Hela, and yes, you’re in. Give me your name, and I’ll add it to the registry.”
“Sagie.”
“You are hereby a monster hunter. This is very unusual. Children never join the guild!”
“You never know, Miss Hela. You’re a mage, yes?”
“Yep. You want to be a mage, too?” She’s young and beautiful, and her girlish hat and staff, which I didn’t have the chance to really inspect last time, go well with her. I’m pretty sure she’s a druid, although I have no idea what they call themselves in Project Chrysalis.
“I would, Miss Hela. Is there anywhere around here where I can buy books on magic? I mean, books with spell seals for mages of all specialties and levels.”
“Well, isn’t that something! No, you couldn’t earn that much in a year.”
“I’m a hard worker. Could you just tell me where I can find them?”
“There’s a mage shop in the center next to the market stalls, and that’s the
only place in the city where they sell books. Are you sure that’s what you need?”
Women really do all love to pry. They always want to know everything.
“I need spell seals and a general idea of what my enemy might use. Also, I want to learn how to quickly make them.”
“You don’t have an inscription skill, so you’ll have to make them manually. You won’t be able to make them automatically with the skill.”
“I know, Miss Hela. Okay, I’m going to take one more quest. What was the reward for that one, by the way?”
“A hundred gold. They ate a traveler, so the reward was a little higher. In those cases, there’s a mark on the announcement telling you that it’s unusually dangerous: a red check for each ordinary person killed and a circle for each hunter.”
After taking a quest for a lich and his retinue, I go looking for the bookstore. It’s easy to find. There’s an enormous sign in the shape of a book, and the picture of an eye means that they sell things there. The shop’s owner is called Gerome. My question surprises him, and it takes him ten minutes to pull out the books and agree on a price.
“With a discount for an order of this size, two hundred and thirty thousand gold.”
