After hours of hard work mining nearly without rest, Artanis placed her mining pick against the mine's wall as her focus skill deactivated itself. The reason for it was an annoying constant ringing sound, which came along with a message window currently floating in front of her eyes.

Currently, [H 00: M 00: S 01] has passed: please log off and come back at more convenient time.

"Deactivate alarm clock," Artanis said, ‘I hope the food will be better this time.’ She thought while checking the other less sonorous system messages. In Royal Road, the choice to set a timed alarm within the game's menu was given to players, so those with real life compromises could still enjoy the game with not any risk of missing them. This alarm would surpass any status effect, allowing even someone who were blinded and deafened inside the game to see and hear such warning.

To Artanis who was currently in vacation such function did not seem important as she had nothing but free time, but the prospect of not having her skill deactivated by an interesting event and being forced to eat nothing but leftover rye bread inspired her about the uses of such function even if she did not plan on logging off.

Not that the rest of the food at the mine's dining hall were much better, it was one of the first times in her life, she had no pleasure in eating, doing so only to fend off hunger.

'Mining has been very rewarding so far.' Artanis though as she took a quick glance over the messages, which informed her that both strength and vitality had increased by two points each, her endurance had increased as well but just by a single point. What truly caught her attention was two messages about a new attribute that had been generated.

A new attribute has been generated: Perseverance

Perseverance:

A steady persistence in a course of action, despite difficulty or delay in achieving success, the higher one's perseverance is, the higher their tolerance and mental strength when facing obstacles or discouragement.

‘That does not sound very different from my focus skill’ Artanis thought comparing them for any possible differences, her train of thought however fell from its track thanks to a growl emitted by her stomach, reminding Artanis why she had stopped working.

Leaving the mine and entering the dining hall Artanis felt a strong sense of deja vu as the men inside stopped eating to stare at her, this time however something felt different and to confirm her suspicions her charm which so far had nearly served as a warning she were being watched by men had not increased a single point.

It didn't take long for her to understand the meaning behind the way they looked at her, pity. They had already heard about what had happened inside the mines, including the state she had been found by the rescue team.

Although Artanis had managed to defend herself, no one had saw exactly how she did so and attributed the fact she was still alive to sheer luck. Despite the fact, she was doing the exact same work as them; to the other miners she looked like a frail animal in need protection.

Trying to ignore the heavy, pity filled stares Artanis walked towards the dining hall’s chef who wore a similar expression on his face.

“What’s for dinner tonight?” She asked with a forced smile on her face, ‘Hopefully not curry.” Artanis thought as she remembered the odd taste of the curry she had eaten earlier.

“Its wolf meat soup,” The chef said as he handed Artanis a bowl of soup with many chunks of the most varied cuts of meat, “Would you mind coming inside the kitchen after you finish eating?” He asked while giving her a spoon.

“Okay, I will.” Answered Artanis, after thinking the chef was planning to lure her inside so he could kill her, but decided not to give in to paranoia.

With the bowl on her hands, Artanis sat on an empty chair and silently ate the surprisingly decent soup as fast as she could, desiring to leave the dining hall as soon she could. Done so, she walked towards the kitchen. On which the corpulent chef waited for her with a package on his hands, asking her to shut the door which she reluctantly did.

“Inside it, there were a few strips of dried meat, and a letter for the chef of a restaurant called Rock Soup in Rockheim, please deliver it to him.” The chef said as he handed her the package, smiling bitterly after pronouncing the restaurant’s name.

A Chef’s Letter

The untalented chef of the Ulta Mines dining hall has tasked you with delivering a letter, to the chef of a popular restaurant at his home city. Refusing the chef’s goodwill, will decrease the quality of the dining hall’s food during the next couple of days.

Quest Rank: E

Requisites:

Having the chef desire to help you.

Rewards:

Vary based on the mood of Rock Soup’s chef after he reads the letter’s contents, the minimum reward being a free meal.

“Okay,” Artanis answered since going back to Rock Soup was already part of her plans for when she left the mine.

Quest accepted.

“The meat is yours just don't tell it to that cheapskate Ornvand.” The chef said grinning.

“Okay,” Answered Artanis, before placing the package inside her backpack, “thank you.” She said, before leaving the dining hall, and walking towards the entrance of the mine. Before she could enter, however, Artanis noticed a small flashing icon on the corner of her eye, which immediately disappeared after she focused on it.

“So Cheonjiwang, can you tell me more about that Artanis chick?” Asked Morgond, who had been chatting with Cheonjiwang, inside the guild's chat channel.

“Who are you, and why are you asking about me? Or there's another Artanis on this guild I am not aware of?” Said Artanis, surprising everyone who had been listening to the chat channel, as they had been talking a great deal about her, behind her back, ever since she stopped responding to any message directed to her.

“Eh, uh… Hello, Artanis how are you, and when did you arrive?” Said Cheonjiwang mumbling, embarrassed with the possibility that she had been listening to them this entire time.

“Aside from nearly dying on the hands of a crazy dwarf, eating nothing but bad food, sleeping on a hard stone floor,” Said Artanis with a pause for added effect, “I am fine, thanks for asking.” She said with her voice filled with so much sarcasm, that it would not be surprising if she received some sort of mocking skill for it.

“Which dwarf? Where are you?” Asked Cheonjiwang, wondering if she had been jailed, thanks to how she had described her situation.

“So, why and what were you hoping to learn about me?” Artanis said to the rude sounding man, which had been asking about her.

“Nothing much, I was just trying to find more. About the bimbo, who seduced the guild vice leader, to join before even getting a class.” Spoke Morgond with a mocking tone of voice, expecting to draw an amusing reaction from Artanis.

“Cheonjiwang, I am working inside a mine, and unlike some people I am too busy for idle chat. So don’t be surprised if I don’t answer any messages.” Said Artanis, imagining how the rude man would react to her words. Thinking that perhaps it would be better to leave the guild, but not before the ruin’s exploration, as there was no reason, not to be rewarded for what she did on the library.

‘If on the first couple of days, they are already acting like that, I can already imagine the kind of drama that will happen later.’ Thought Artanis as she entered the mine, heading to the same place she had always works at.

There she takes the pickaxe off her backpack and within her hands activate the repair skill once before doing the same with her focus skill and starting her ceaseless strikes against the stone wall before her.

Back to his room at Rockheim’s magic guild, Edward were sitting on the floor with his legs closed as he breathed deeply, his eyes closed as to block the existence of everything else around him, focusing solely on the flow of mana permeating him, as he meditated to recover enough mana to a second attempt on his latest endeavor.

Done so, he opened his eyes and stood, taking eight candles from the top of a nearby table, which he placed around him forming a circle, and lighting them with a simple fire spell.

‘These barrier candles sure are useful, way better than trying this spell out in the open, and risking having some smart-ass copy it.’ Thought Edward as he read a parchment lay on top of his table.

This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

“Here I go.” Mumbled Edward before coughing to clear his throat, “Cold wind howls, where frost giants growls, ice and frost, all warmth lost, before me, present thyself, long and sharp, my enemies thou shalt rip apart, blade of Niflheim!” The moment such words came from Edward’s mouth, he could feel his mana being drained away from his body at an impressive rate, soon taking away all his mana, leaving him lightheaded, nearly causing him to fall on the ground.

However, it didn't end at that, soon the dizziness were replaced by pain, making Edward feel as if something were trying to burst out off his skull. Blood started dripping from his nose, and all his efforts to stop the hemorrhage were futile, suddenly he fell to his knees, no longer being able to support his own weight. His vision slowly fading away, until a familiar message window appeared before his eyes, becoming the last thing he saw before being forcefully logged out.

You have died! [H 23: M 59: S 59] until you may login again.

Now back to the real world, Edward immediately left his capsule. Slightly dizzy from his latest experience, and pissed off about not being able to log in the next twenty-four hours, but what truly annoyed him, was the four-in game worth of jokes he would have to listen when he logged back in, as his brother would surely check his capsule’s video log to find the reason for his death.

'That's what I get for trying to learn an ancient spell.' Thought Edward reminding himself about the language he had learned after the time he had spent with Artanis on the library, and the tome he had found on the magic's guild achieve.

"I wonder how she is." He mumbled while envisioning a real world version of Artanis. No matter what his brother Edmund said, he could not fathom the possibility of her being completely different from her avatar's appearance, nor that she could be a fat man called Antonio, the possibility that the girl he had a crush on was different from what he imagined scared him.

‘Maybe I should try to find her after I log back in, how many large breasted elven smiths could Rockheim have?’ Edward thought as he reached for a book on his bookshelf and grabbed it, deciding to waste some time reading one of his favorite novels, Salaryman Reincarnation - Working My Ass Off On Another World.

Back at the Ulta Mountains mines, north of the city of Rockheim, at the kingdom of Norton, a certain elven miner ceased to work. Laying her pickaxe to rest against the mine’s rock wall, kneeling beside it at the floor as she inspected the result of her efforts.

Perseverance has permanently been increased by 1

Strength has permanently been increased by 1

You have obtained a small fire agate.

Luck has permanently been increased by 1

Mining skill level increased to basic level 5

Prospecting skill level increased to basic level 3

‘Not bad, just a few more days here and I will leave with a handful of ore and both skills at intermediate level.’ Artanis thought as she reached for the sleeping bag inside her backpack, also grabbing one piece for the dried meat sticks chef had given her, which she ate before going to sleep.

Her resting however was cut short as a few hours later she suddenly woke up gasping for breath. In her dream, the dwarven guardsmen had easily dodged her surprise dagger attack, and after ripping the weapon out of her hands, gave her a sinister smile before stabbing her multiple times, in the exact same why she had done to him.

Breathing deeply as she tried to calm herself, reminding herself of her infancy, when she had nightmares after watching horror movies at night, before going to sleep.

‘This is pathetic, this is just a game, if he had really managed to kill me, all that would truly happen is the loss of a level and skill experience, one day later I could come back here as if nothing had happened.’ She thought, trying to convince herself that there was no reason for fearing him.

In the end, she gave up on sleeping, deciding to distract herself with work. Grabbing her pickaxe and once again activating her repair skill, Artanis took a long and deep breath, as she positioned herself on the front of the stone wall, raised her pickaxe and swung it, activating her focus skill soon after.

Swing after swing, the stonewall before her crumbled, leaving around her a pile of rubble, consisted of the most varied minerals, from base metals such as copper, iron and silver, to a few, yet slightly valuable gems, such as fire agates and obsidians, which had increased her luck by three points.

which seemed to had taken effect nearly immediately, as before her, according to the signals given by her prospecting skill, and the more obvious signs such as the change at the wall’s color, she was standing before the largest mineral vein Artanis had ever seen inside Royal Road.

‘It might just be a large copper vein, but it’s still a good find.’ Artanis thought, who now full of enthusiasm, carefully dug the stone before her, trying not to damage whatever ore was inside it.

As the rock wall slowly fell apart, Artanis saw that her decision to extract it carefully, trying to avoid damaging it and decreasing its price, had unexpectedly saved her life.

You have obtained a giant crystallized fire gem.

Luck has permanently been increased by 5

You have earned the title: Lucky Miner.

Luck has permanently been increased by 5.

Perseverance has permanently been increased by 5.

During mining operations, the effects of luck are increased by 25%

Letting go of her pickaxe, Artanis stared at the large, bright reddish orange gem, which she immediately recognized as the same one she had used to ignite Wystan’s portable furnace. A fragile gem, which when cracked burst into flames. The only difference laid on its size, the one she had used before was no more than a small pebble, forcing Artanis to imagine exactly how big the flame produced by the child-sized crystal would been if she had struck her pickaxe at the wrong place.

‘There’s no way I am trying to move that by myself.’ Artanis thought while looking at the large and most likely heavy gem before her imagining the results of letting it slip and fall from her hands by accident.

Deciding to acquire help, Artanis left the mine and walked towards Ornvand’s cabin, and inside it she found the detestable man sleeping, and snoring with his head laid on top a pile of papers at his table.

“Wake up!” Screamed Artanis, as she slammed her hand at his table, “I've found something you must see.” Artanis said while ignoring Ornvand’s hateful stare after waking up.

“Couldn’t ya wait till everyone woke up; don’t ya know that anyone normal would be asleep now?” Ornvand said before laying his head at the table, trying to go back to sleep.

“No!” Artanis said as she slammed the table once again, “Else someone else will claim to have found it and you would believe so, wouldn't you? After all, this damn elf’s words has no value compared to the rest of the miners.” She said, nearly spitting venom along with her words, she had no reason to wear a fake smile while dealing with him, as not only she hated him, but she also knew how advantageous her status as Wystan’s apprentice was.

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