Author’s Note: Second chapter of the day, already working on the third. Enjoy, and if you spot mistakes/anything wrong please write.
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Guess what? You want a weapon in the forest? You got to make yourself one. Or kill a bloody goblin. Which gives you pointed stick. And here I was, expecting bronze dagger and village chief asking to kill chickens. No. I am stranded in this big damned forest, no signs of civilization whatsoever, with no spare clothes, no food and a stone and a stick for a weapon.
Oh, and did I mention they made this game realistic? Yes. I even have to exercise toilet needs. First I thought I needed to do it in real, so I quickly logged out where I was standing. But when I opened my eyes, there was nothing, no urge, no need. So I logged back again. And there it was. But thanks to that, I realized another thing, which was very disturbing. When I relogged, I was lying in the grass, face down. That meant, that my character just fell asleep, or lost consciousness when I logged out. And it meant, I could die in game, while logged out. Not good. Especially considering warning about not being able to revive. I needed to find temple, real quick. I didn’t want to check what the message about not reviving after level 10 meant.
First, food. When I was walking before, I noticed that some bushes had fruits similar to strawberries, there were also mushrooms lying. I risked getting poisoned, but starving to death was bad option as well so I decided to risk fruits, as they seemed more edible. And they were! Taste was similar to peach, a little more sour, but they didn’t have bad taste and any instant detrimental effect. I didn’t have any means to take them with me, but I have seen them all around so they must have been common around. That was first base need taken care of.
Next was shelter. Until I found civilization, I had no protection from weather conditions or hostile creatures. So I had couple of choices now. To continue walking around in search of other people or to find some kind of cave. Anyway, I wouldn’t build a makeshift tent, I didn’t know how to. Cave would very possibly be inhabited by something, and I was in the forest, so finding a cave was also unlikely. So no other way but to resume search in hope of finding village.
After 2 hours (yes, BLOODY 2 HOURS OF RANDOMLY WALKING FORWARD) i finally saw hope. And specifically road. It was simple packed dirt, but clearly it was made by sentient beings. With renewed vigor I started to follow it, and after another 30 minutes I left the forest and saw smoke in the distance. Finally! When I ran and was about to enter village my way was blocked by tall, sturdy man in leather armor who went out of first house upon seeing me run. With REAL spear pointed at me.
“Stop right there, dwarf. State your name and business here. And to seven hells, whose blood is it on you! No funny moves, if I even see you saying anything suspicious this” he shook spear “goes into your heart.”
After catching my breath I was able to respond.
“Yes, hi, I mean hello, my name is Rob King (I didn’t change my name, never had any fantasy naming sense), I was lost in the forest and was searching for nearest village to find some information about where I was. And blood is from green ugly creature which attacked me.”
“Ok, Rob, my name is Vars and I am this village’s chief protector. If you have some proof of killing goblin I could give you 3 coppers as reward, but clearly you have none. Can’t say I trust you, too many bandits around these parts, but since you don’t seem to carry any weapon and your clothes are shabby at most, I will allow you to go to the village. It’s called Lumber and most of people here are woodcutters. You can get more information from our mayor, he lives in the big brick house down this road. Oh, and before you go, one last thing. If you cause any kind of trouble you will be instantly kicked out or worse. We don’t tolerate any mischief around here.”
Even though Vars wasn’t very likeable character, he seemed honest and straightforward. Besides, I finally was in a village!!! There were people around me! No more trees, bushes and green killers! I could already imagine getting quests and slaying dragons ahead of me. But before that, I needed more information about this world, and a temple to be at ease. Walking towards mayors house, I noticed curious looks. Also I noticed that I really stood out. Grown-ups in vicinity were all six feet and taller, almost all with bulky builds and blonde hair.
Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
After I knocked on mayors door I was momentarily greeted by small girl, probably 5-7 years old, with adorable twin tails and adorable everything really.
“Hello mister, you want papa?”
“Is your papa a mayor?”
“Yes, papa is very important person. He…”
“Lidi, come here! Sorry for my daughter, she always somehow answers the door before I can get to them. I am mayor of Lumber, Cordel, what can I help you with?’
The man who spoke was a little overweight, cheerful fellow. He had blue eyes like his daughter, was as tall as everyone in this village, but his eyes were not cautious like Vars I met before.
“Ah, hi, my name is Rob King, I wanted some information and Vars told me I could ask you.”
“Ehhh, Vars has all information I have, you must have done something to make him think you troublesome.”
I could feel my cheeks burning when I remembered running like a madman while laughing and crying. Yes, that could have been a disturbing sight. Mayor just laughed on seeing this, and invited me inside.
“We don’t get a lot of new faces around these parts, mostly new bands of thieves, so unless you are one, you are welcome to stay in my house temporarily, until you find yourself a place. We have no inn in our village, but few houses are empty. But to live there you must first rent or buy them from me so…”
He looked at my dirty clothes with criticizing eyes. While he was talking he led me to a living room with cosy fireplace, dining table and chairs made out of engraved wood. We sat down on the opposite sides with his daughter taking chair and sitting near her dad, looking all over my figure with sparkling eyes. I must have been the first time she saw someone with posture of a dwarf.
“Now, onto the business. What kind of information can I provide you with?”
“I need some kind of temple, as well as map and means to survive around here. Job or quest would be nice, also I will take your offer to stay in the house for now, thank you for that.”
“Temple? Quest? Oh my… you came from the forest? You were… No, no I can’t. Nevermind. Don’t mind me.”
After hearing what I said he lost his composure for a while, mumbling under his nose with grim look on his face. I was starting to wonder if I said something wrong when his cheerful look returned to him, maybe a littles less than before.
“Okay, Rob. There are 2 minor shrines in village, one of God of nature, other of crafters. I suppose as dwarf it would be better to be sworn to the crafters God, his name is Regbet, you need to just say that you want to commit all your work in his name and it should do it. As for map, I can sell you one for 10 silver, it extends from here to other 3 villages nearby. As for jobs. Hmmm. If you went to the village of Plenty, there are forge masters who would be happy to get a dwarf apprentice.”
Forge masters? Not blacksmiths? It sounded awesome. As if they made weapons out of legends. And I could become one!!! I was already beaming with anticipation but his next words cooled down my enthusiasm.
“For now I won’t ask for money, but if you continue to stay with us I will want reimbursement. I don’t provide charity, each day will cost you 10 coppers. And as an apprentice you will be probably be gaining 30 to 50 coppers a day, based on your performance and master. Also, I see you have no spare clothes and weapon to defend yourself with, so for clothes I will rent you my spares, and as for weapon, I suggest you just make it for yourself when you become apprentice. Of course you will have to pay for the materials. Last thing, as I said before, bandits are infesting these region, so I suggest the first time you move to plenty go with others. Tomorrow morning at dawn, people interested in travelling there are leaving. Is there anything else?”
I shook my head and thanked him. He smiled with wide grin.
“Everything costs, so don’t thank me yet. I am not doing this out of good heart, each additional member of community must work here to improve our lifestyle. So, with business concluded I will make something to eat. Oh, and welcome to our village, and a happy new life!”
What was with with all these people wishing me happy new life? Was it some kind of company slogan? Never mind. It was dusk already when we finished dinner comprising of meat from horned deer, apparently best creature to hunt in forest, bread and some vegetables. After saying bye to the mayor and his daughter I decided it was time to log out and check on the forums what other people experiences were.