Haru: Apprentice 7/Acolyte 3
Optifex: Legionnaire 7/Initiate 3
Haru got good at timing her heals with the absurd number of times the Milkies would bombard Opti with Fire I. Each time they leveled, it grew less nerve-wracking when the puffball would suddenly go on a casting rampage, but the fear of getting devastated never went away entirely. After clearing the meadow of Milkies, they finally achieved their goal.
Haru reached level 10!
Optifex reached level 10!
“Now comes the hard part,” Haru looked at the legionnaire, “getting back to Fairbank.”
Opti shrugged. “The dungeon should adjust its difficulty based on how many players are in the party.”
“If the demon hasn’t tampered with it.” Haru sighed.
Opti shook his head. “If that gryphon was indicative of his handiwork, I doubt there will be much to worry about. That dungeon had a lot of work put into getting it right. And there’s a lot of different guards included to prevent excessive difficulty.” He beamed. “We tried really hard to make sure that dungeon was completable by even someone solo.”
Haru worried that the demon might have made it overwhelmingly hard, as a means to create a maximum amount of frustration, but trusted Opti’s judgement.
“Let’s get back to Fairbank, maybe the others will be waiting for us by the time we return.” Opti motioned toward the road.
The two departed down the hill, passing by the pond on the side of the road, and with a careful bypassing of the Gogo camp, they arrived at the intersection at the base of the mountain. Opti stopped in the center and stared into the deadwood, its perimeter not very far away from the crossroad. It was quiet, where when they first went to farm Milkies, the sounds of battle echoed out deep within the woods.
“Seems like they beat it.” Opti nodded, smiling.
“What if they wiped?” Haru wondered out loud.
“Look in General chat. It’s quiet. If the group died, they’d be yelling about it there.” Opti pointed in the direction of where the gryphon would have been.
Haru blinked, scratching her head. “I suppose, but what if they already returned?”
“Not my players. They wouldn’t be taken down by such a poorly designed mob.” Opti crossed his arms.
Haru’s eyes widened. “What do you mean ‘your players’…?”
Opti craned his neck and looked over his shoulder at her. “They’re my players because it’s my game. I made it. I designed this world and programmed the prototype.”
Haru touched her face in shock. “So you’re one of the devs?”
Opti lowered his arms and lowered his head. A mild frown formed on his face. “Was. I was one of the developers.”
“Is that why you can’t log out?” Haru mustered to speak, worried.
Opti took a deep breath. “No, me being on the team has nothing to do with logging in and out.” He turned and looked up the mountain, toward the peak. “Something happened to me in real life. I still can’t remember what, but the hazy memory of one moment where I was going about my daily life, then the next I was here.”
Haru scratched her head. “You got transported here, into your own game?”
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“Something like that. I still don’t know why though.” Opti shook his head with a pained expression. “It feels like…” He looked to the ground, nudging a rock with his toe. “I don’t think the demon showing up at almost the same time is a coincidence.”
Haru nodded in the hopes of encouraging Opti.
“I still don’t remember what much of my life was before coming here,” Opti said. “It’s just hazy figures in my mind’s eye. Words spoken are just dull murmurs. Faces and people just silhouettes.” He shuffled with his shoulders raised. “And though the memories are only shapes in an infinitely thick fog, I get the feeling I did something wrong. That’s why I’m here.”
“W—what could you have done wrong?” Haru clasped her hands.
Opti shook his head and sighed. “I don’t know. Perhaps I’m just a bad person, condemned to be tormented by the demons I unleashed on others in life.” He turned and shuffled away, toward the dungeon, with his head hung low.
Haru shook her head and stared at him for a while. “That can’t be true.” She shouted at Opti, who was many paces away from her.
The legionnaire stopped and turned back toward her.
“You can’t be a bad person,” Haru kept her voice raised, “you’re courageous, never back down. You’re a good friend.”
Opti recoiled from her words, his somber expression exchanged for shock.
She searched for more to say, as there was more to be said. What Oracle spoke about, the visions of the City of Gold. Somehow this was all connected, but Haru couldn’t make sense of it. Maybe Opti was right, that the demon was far more connected to him that either Oracle or Haru could have anticipated.
“And maybe the demon is after you,” Haru continued, “that just proves my point. If you were bad, you would be helping him.”
Opti tilted his head, as if to be considering her words. “You’re right. But that doesn’t change the feeling I get about what happened in the past. It seems like I’m here because of what I did back then. I just don’t know what that was.”
“Then we can figure it out together.” Haru balled her hands. “We’ll make things right.”
Opti scratched his head. “Haru.”
She tilted her head and eased open her fists. “Yeah?”
“Thanks for being here with me through this. I don’t know if I could have done it by myself.” He turned and started walking toward the dungeon. “And for being my friend.” He called out over his shoulder, then he returned to hanging his head low.
Haru was confused by his actions. It seemed like he felt he was going through all of this alone. She wanted to know more, to get to the bottom of this situation, but it seemed like the more she pried, the worse it made Opti feel. In that moment, it seemed she truly understood how he felt. They were both trapped, being guided along by the situation they found themselves in, but unable to get resolution because of the circumstance.
After watching him walk away, Haru decided to run and catch up. The two traveled to the dungeon entrance in silence. There, a huge group of players, dozens upon dozens, were sitting around in silence, the air solemn.
Opti seemed to pep up at the sight of the group. He looked around, sizing up the situation.
“What’s going on?” Haru looked around at the loitering players.
One of the players sitting on the ground looked up at her. “It’s too hard.”
Opti shook his head. “What level are you lot?”
The group called out levels ranging as low as 7, all the way up to 10.
“Why is it so hard then? You’re all in range to finish the dungeon together.” Opti crossed his arms.
“We don’t know what to do.” One of the players called out. “We tried to go to the boss but there’s a door we can’t get past.”
Opti shrugged. “You need the three keys, and you get those from beating the bosses.”
“But those bosses are way harder than even the Gogos.” The outspoken player retorted. Other players around him nodded and agreed. “But we can’t level up anymore without the job orb, and you can’t get the orb unless you beat this dungeon.”
“Then you need to team up.” Opti pointed broadly. “You have a better chance if you work together. This dungeon takes skill, not levels. That’s the whole point.” He beckoned to the outspoken player. “Stand up.”
The outspoken player stood.
“What job are you?” Opti tilted his head.
“Legionnaire.” The player said.
“Who here is a mage… a—an Apprentice?” Opti looked around.
Haru raised her hand. Following her lead, others also raised their hands.
“Okay, good.” Opti pointed at one of those sitting players raising their hand. “You.” And then he pointed to another. “And you.” Then Opti turned to the legionnaire. “Start a party and invite them.”
The outspoken player nodded and did so.
“Any acolytes?” Opti called out.
A few hands raised.
“Alright then, invite just him.” Opti pointed.
The outspoke player did so.
Then Opti cradled his chin and hummed. “Any Initiates or Footpads?”
Hands went up. Opti pointed and the outspoken player filled the rest of his party.
“Now, your job,” Opti pointed at the acolyte, “is to stay out of the fray and make sure no one dies. Use your heal and watch your mana.” He turned to the mage, “And you stay with him, but instead of healing you blow up the mob.” He looked at the rest of the party. “And you all beat up on the mob, make sure to spam your skills. Spam them a lot.”
Then he ushered them into the entrance. “Go on, I know you can do it.”
Haru felt a waft of calming warmth coming from her menu. She opened the key items to find the Mark of Patentia almost blinding her. It seemed that it responded not only to her own actions, perhaps.