Alejander headed for them, shouldering the saddlebags to make it easier to climb them. Hera followed, keeping heel with him but not getting in the way. The first level was the auction room, and though Alejander figured he needed to stop here first, he wanted to get his Urbane Bank open. The third level – the regular bank – was wide open and led to another staircase, gold banisters and marble steps. Alejander headed for the desk on the third level, where a human was currently counting some coin.
“Excuse me?”
The human, a man with a young face, looked up and smiled. “Is there anything in particular you want?”
Alejander gestured behind him. “I reached level 10 a few days ago.”
“Ah,” the human interrupted, and slid the coins back under the desk. “Do you have your bank credit? I need to update it to let you access the Urbane floor.”
Alejander leaned the saddlebags against the desk and rooted through his satchel for the credit. While Alejander was waiting, he looked back toward the staircase. It curved back so there wasn’t much to see from his angle.
“Here you go.” The human smiled and pushed the credit back across the desk. As soon as Alejander had it in hand, the human turned back to counting.
Raising his eyebrows, Alejander picked up the saddlebags and gestured for Hera to follow. It wasn’t that he found the human rude – he had been nice enough finding out what Alejander was after – but there was an abruptness there that galled him. Matthew was much the same way, so Alejander felt the irony in him thinking that.
He wasn’t exactly sure how he was supposed to get up to the next level, but as soon as he approached, the gate keeping people back seemed to shimmer and disappear.
“Wow,” Alejander muttered, looking back over his shoulder. When both he and Hera were on the steps, the gate shimmered back into existence. “Clever.”
His heart pounding once again, Alejander followed the staircase round and could see the stretch of the fourth floor before him. It was mostly empty, a couple of players over to the left, but the rows of vaults on the wall this time were lined with gold and each had a plaque hanging on the wall above it.
Most were blank, but the players who were currently rooting through their vaults had names above that Alejander assumed belonged to them. The assumption was verified when he approached the closest vault and ALEJANDER appeared on the plaque.
“Well,” he said, looking down at Hera. “Let’s see how this works, shall we?”
WELCOME ALEJANDER. YOUR BANK DETAILS HAVE BEEN ADDED PREVIOUSLY. THINGS PLACED IN THIS VAULT WILL AUTOMATICALLY BE CASHED IN FOR MONEY.
Alejander’s cheeks hurt with how much he was grinning. The items he’d been hoarding in his satchel, aside from the pelts and the meat, and the scrolls, were plunged immediately into the vault. With every added item – and Alejander was aware he was leaving himself with precious little, if a little money to replenish supplies – he could see the interface tallying up the amount of real-world currency that was being applied to his bank account.
It was the moment he had been waiting for since he had arrived in game. Being able to live outside of prison without having to spend the rest of his life in a lousy motel. Being able to eat and go about the city as he pleased without having to look for a job. The potential was there for the game to be his main source of income, especially with Matthew aging and being unable to resume his previous occupation.
This, Alejander thought with joy, was everything he had been aiming for.
The rest of the items in the saddlebags wouldn’t be able to become real currency, but he could still use the in-game coin to go out and get more items. Hera was flopped on the floor beside the vault, tail thumping against the wall, and her eyes trained on the other players on the floor.
Alejander closed up the saddlebags. “One more stop,” he told Hera, whose ears pricked up at his voice, “then we’ll go find somewhere to sleep.”
Downstairs, Alejander approached his normal bank vault and decided to pull out the Paladin and Stablemaster scrolls and the lockbox he hadn’t been able to open before. Now that he had improved his lockpicking skill, he hoped it would make it easier.
Settling down on the floor next to his vault, Hera sat this time, head nestled on his shoulder, Alejander started to unpick the box.
It was a lot easier this time around, though it still took about fifteen minutes to get into.
You have opened a lockbox!
You have acquired: Antiphan Herb
Quality: Great
You have acquired: 2 diamonds
Quality: Excellent
You have acquired: Coin
Inventory: 30 silver, 50 gold
Total Currency: 120 copper, 68 silver, 104 gold, 8 electrum
You have acquired: Scroll of Healing Hand {Tradable} {Rare}
Teaches the Cleric ability: Healing Hands
Level: Level 15 Cleric only
Description: Once during a fight you have the opportunity to heal yourself and/or a friend for up to 50HP cumulatively. If you wish to heal more than one person, the 50HP is shared between all.
Cast Time: 10 seconds.
Cooldown: 3 Hours.
You have acquired: Scroll of Double Jab {Non-Tradable} {Uncommon}
Teaches the Rogue/Fighter ability: Double Jab
Level: Level 10 Rogue only
Description: Once every fight, you have the opportunity to cause double damage with your fists or one-handed weapons.
Cast time: 2 second
Cooldown: After every fight
Alejander was glad one of the scrolls was something he could use immediately. He decided to unlock both scrolls now that he was level 10 and could use both.
You have acquired a new ABILITY!
Utilizing the Scroll of Double Jab, you can cause twice as much damage on one blow!
You have acquired a new ABILITY!
Utilizing the Scroll of Elusive Step, you can evade some of the attacks coming your way!
Climbing to his feet, Alejander gathered the rest of the items in the vault and stowed them in the saddlebags. Before he left the bank, he’d throw most of the remaining items into the Urbane vault and then head back for the stables. He had a couple of things to give out before he headed for his next destination – wherever that might be.
Chapter Twenty
The stable was busy when Alejander returned, but he decided to wait especially given the money he had yet to pay. While he was sat against the stable wall, Hera at his feet and rooting through his satchel, he decided to send Sardonya a message.
[HAVE SOMETHING FOR YOU. LET ME KNOW WHERE YOU ARE, AND I’LL COME MEET YOU.]
Taking the time to watch everyone else around the city, Alejander pulled out some more of the meat towards the end of the evening and Hera happily snatched it up, tearing into it.
“Alejander,” Naki said, when Alejander was just about to find somewhere to stay and return the next morning. “Sorry for the wait.”
“No problem,” Alejander said, pushing himself to his feet. Before they could start talking about money and what he owed her, Alejander tugged the Scroll of Raceline Breeding from his satchel and handed it over. “I got this in a dungeon and thought you should have it.”
Naki frowned at Alejander, and took the scroll, unfurling it slowly. When she saw what it was, her eyebrows shot up, and she looked up at Alejander in surprise. “You can’t just give this to me!”
“Why not?” Alejander said, rocking back on his heels. Sure, it wasn’t wise to give something to her when it was probably worth good money, but he was sure that giving a present would come back in the long run to help and not hinder him. “It’s mine to offer up.”
“Alejander,” Naki started, and then stopped, swallowing hard. “What do you want for this? This is gonna be so helpful.”
“Whenever I need to train Greta…” Alejander offered, not finishing the thought, but he didn’t need to.
Naki immediate
ly slipped the scroll into her pocket and held out a hand. “You’re on.”
Nodding decisively, Alejander clapped his hands together. If Greta was trained, he hoped her own stats would improve and, alongside his riding skill, they’d be able to tackle more intense terrain and Greta would be smoother on her feet. “So, what do I owe you?”
“After this?” Naki said, shaking her head. “As long as you don’t stay a month, consider Greta’s stay paid for.”
Already paying dividends. “Thanks. I’ll be back for her either tomorrow or the day after.”
Naki threw her arms around him, startling him, and gave him a quick hug before stepping back. “See you around, Alejander.”
Alejander watched her go and dropped his gaze to Hera, who seemed to be staring at him carefully. “Shut up.”
Hera’s tongue lolled out and she gamboled away, thankfully deeper into the city. Alejander needed to find somewhere for them to stay, and the better taverns would be in the city center. The people had thinned out a bit, most of them sleeping in their own beds, and Alejander couldn’t wait to sleep on a real mattress and be warm thanks to internal heating instead of a camp fire.
There were a couple of taverns on the left and one on the right. Alejander had avoided the better one of them all this time, to be safe. But now he wasn’t concerned about his belongings anymore, not with them locked in the vault.
The tavern’s maid, a young-looking orc with a kind smile – despite her tusks – bartered him a room and promised she would be up with food if he wished to get ready for bed. She barely batted an eye at Hera as they passed her going up the stairs, and as Alejander sat on the edge of the bed, he rubbed at his face and stared out of the window.
[MESSAGE FROM SARDONYA: I’M HEADED BACK TO KLISTER. I’VE OFFERED TO HELP OUT AGAIN. MEET ME THERE IN TWO WEEKS AND WE CAN TALK ABOUT OUR NEXT MOVE.]
There was something to be said about mutual respect and aid. Perhaps tackling a few beasts with Hera, Greta and Sardonya wouldn’t be too bad. First, he’d have to head back to KLISTER, where everything started. He had come full circle, it seemed, and Alejander couldn’t wait.
As he dropped back on his bed, resolved to have a nap before his food arrived, he closed his eyes and breathed out a sigh of relief.
...LOGGING OFF]
Matthew pulled off the headset and fumbled for his phone on the bed beside him. He didn’t doubt that the transfer had gone through okay, but it wasn’t until he was staring at his bank records, at the amount he was informed was in there, that he sagged against the pillows and let out a laugh and a cheer.
He had enough money to pay off the rest of his hotel bill and get him another two weeks. Plenty of time to gather more wares – including sell the pelts and skins he still retained in-game – and search for somewhere more permanent.
Remembering the messages Ralph had sent him months ago, Matthew brought up his text chat and pondered what to write back. Ralph was a guy who loved to keep it simple and cryptic, so Matthew answered him in kind.
Figured out what FEDERATION FUED is all about. Bank account definitely agrees with me. Team up out of the question?
It used to go against everything Matthew believed in to work with other people, especially after landing in prison. If there was one thing that he was certain of now, it was that having friends around you – both real and in-game – could never be a detriment.
For now, Matthew had a meal to make and drinks to gather, and then he could settle in for another gaming session, and hopefully another leap toward having a place of his own, and a life of his own choosing.
Rogue Games Page 25
