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Book 1 - Chapter 1 - Part 3
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When Alexandros opens his eyes, he is relieved to see he is still in the alleyway and no one has come to bother him. He stands up and stretches, feeling incredibly sore from sleeping on the ground all night. Once he rubs the sleep from his eyes, Alexandros returns to the inn, where Dahlia is standing behind the table, writing furiously in her notebook. “Good to see you came today, kid,” she says, still looking down at the counter as she writes.
“Am I late?” he asks. “I mean, I came here as soon as I woke up, but you look like you’ve already been here for hours.”
Dahlia laughs. “When you run your business, you work through many long days and even longer nights. That being said, I could never picture myself doing anything else.” She looks up from what she is doing and gestures for him to follow. “Anyway, I suppose we should get you set up to do some work.”
Alexandros follows behind her, taking in his surroundings as he goes. Multiple paintings hung on the walls, each showing a different person with the background of the orange sunset. Decorative plants and vases are placed on tables throughout the hallway, making the dimly lit area seem less spooky. “What kind of work do you want me to do?”
“There is an old library here, and I would like your help cleaning it up. I will show you what to do once we get there. Do you have any experience with things like this?”
He nods. “Yes. I used to help my parents with the daily chores, which always included cleaning.” Hearing himself speak about his parents in the past tense makes his heart burn with loss. They had always been there for him, so he feels lost now that they are gone.
“Good. Now, while you are working, there is a chance you will go up a level or two depending on the experience you gain. Certain tasks will become much easier to complete when you go up in level. I will reward you if you can finish this by the time I return.”
Quest Bonus Available: Finish the cleaning before Dahlia returns to check your progress.
Requirements: The library must be completely spotless before Dahlia returns.
Failure Penalty: No penalty.
Reward: If you can clean the library before Dahlia returns, she will give you some new armor and a short sword. You will also receive an additional 10 XP.
Accept? Yes/No
Alexandros reads through the quest bonus and presses yes. He can tell by the inches of thick dust and faded books that the library hasn’t been touched for a long time, and it only makes him want to know more about this woman. Something about her sends shivers up and down his spine, though he can’t quite figure out what it is. “When do you think you will be back?” he asks as he glances back at her.
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Dahlia shrugs. “Not sure. It could be an hour, or it could be four. It depends on how things go. I have plenty of things to do today, but depending on your cooperation, it may take longer. That being said, do what you can.” She pats him on the shoulder. “There should be some things for you to clean within the closet on the other side of the room.”
Before he can respond to her, she is already making her way out of the room. He returns his attention to the library and begins to regret his decisions. The library is massive, with shelves that reach the ceiling all along the walls. A few tables and chairs are scattered about, and several more shelves fill every bit of space, each one filled with books.
Trying not to put too much thought into it, Alexandros walks across the room to the closet. His eyes widen when he opens the door, and he falls back, screaming. As he hits the floor, Alexandros stares at the massive creature above him. It has rows of teeth and long sharp claws that hang from what he assumes used to be its hands. The humanoid shape towers over him as he picks himself off the ground and draws his rusted sword.
The moment his sword is free, the creature lunges at him, attempting to wrap its massive jaws around his throat. Alexandros thrusts his sword forward to keep a good distance between them, causing the creature to cry out in pain as the sword pierces its belly. A red bar appears above the creature’s head, and Alexandros can see that he made a small dent, which is more than he expected.
Alexandros jumps back and swings his sword again, slashing the creature across the chest. An ear-shattering screech rips through the air as the health bar shrinks. Before he can strike again, the creature launches itself toward him, attempting to slash open his face with its claws. While he manages to avoid tearing his face open, searing pain shoots through his arm as his flesh is torn open when he spins out of the way. He cries out in pain as he jumps back to create some distance and glances at his health bar to see it drop.
-25 HP
Since he is only level one, he knows he needs to make his next attack count. While fighting the fear that threatens to consume him, Alexandros raises his sword and charges toward the creature. When it throws up its arms to counter his attack, Alexandros drops to the ground and pops back up behind the creature just in time to plunge his sword into its back. The creature lets out a loud gasp before falling to the ground and disappearing. Alexandros drops to his knees as a chest appears in front of him with a new notification.
Congratulations! You have reached Level 2!
Health/Mana/Stamina have been replenished.
You have received +50 XP
You have received ten stat points. (Each point can be assigned to any stat)
You have received a small bag of 50 gold.
He stares at it for a moment, and before he can fully soak in what he sees, it’s gone and replaced by another notification.
Congratulations! {New skill gained!}
Inventory Realm Skill (Unique) Tier 1 Level 1—Gives the user unlimited space. This skill will improve with each tier and level.
Alexandros looks at the stat points he’s been given and decides to save them for when he next levels up. He turns to the notification before him and carefully reads over his new skill. A slight smile appears on the corners of his lips. Having never gained a skill before, his chest swells with accomplishment. “Father would be proud,” he whispers as the information fades away from his vision.