Emrin opened his eyes in a dirty, wet alley wearing nothing but dirty rags. His back and feet felt cold against the smooth, rain-touched cobblestone. To his right, an old man sat by the road and giggled to himself as he rubbed burnthristle between his fingers. Whatever smoke escaped his nostrils joined the faint smog that lingered about the city streets. Emrin stood with a grunt and breathed in, feeling the ash and byproducts of burning tar tickle the back of his throat. Confused, he checked the system messages.
[Welcome to the world of Twilight! Would you like to play through the Tutorial?]
“Pfft.” Emrin waved the prompt away, and a new one popped up to take its place.
Shantalar is celebrating the birth of Felial, God of the Moon. All players who’ve visited Shantalar during the festival get several bonuses for the next three days:
+15% Experience to players under level 100.
+10% Crafting experience.
+8% Magic find.
Xua Yu had mentioned events that would help newer players catch up, but these were great buffs in general. Emrin followed the flickering orange reflected on the walls to the square, where a giant bonfire reached for the night sky. Around it, revellers followed the beat of drums and rhythm of lyres and danced in a haze. People of all ages in white religious garb sang and prayed and moved under the moonlight, hands moving in set patterns that made the fire dance. A group of kids wearing wolf masks almost bumped into him as they ran. Compared to the cities of light and their strict code, even during religious festivities, Shantalar felt alive and free.
Emrin stopped the nostalgia before it surfaced, focusing on what he had to do. He pulled up his status screen and checked the new effect.
Mizpix's touch.
Your luck will fluctuate wildly.
Mizpix, the Trickster God, has shown interest in you. Your affinity with Mizpix has slightly increased.
So it was a God after all! Not a major one, otherwise Emrin would have known the name, but a God nonetheless. In Twilight, those were not existences to be underestimated. Araesh’s touch alone was enough to deprive Vince of his character. On that note, he really needed to find a priestess and gain access to that option again. Just cause he’d been schemed against once, that didn’t mean he had to change his playstyle. Only how he judged characters. He checked Mizpix’s effect again.
“What the hell is even that?” he mumbled under his breath. It didn’t increase his luck, but made it fluctuate. Even after years of playing this game, he couldn’t decide if it was good or bad. Either way, he couldn’t waste too much time.
Normally, new players would take advantage of the buff and get to clearing the starting area of mobs. It wasn’t a bad plan. But Emrin had the game’s developer speaking into his ear. He pointed to the left and waited.
“I’m on it,” Xua Yu said. When sober, he proved weirdly dependable. It only took him two hours of sifting through all the data to find an irregularity they could potentially take advantage of. “Go back through the alley, then take a right and then a left.”
Emrin turned and walked, almost tripping on the now unconscious old man. Away from the bonfire and the music, the streets were almost lifeless. The city was only now starting to wake, the residents having slept through the harsh heat of day. Emrin had heard that Darkblessed societies had adapted to be nocturnal, but never witnessed it up close before. People passed him by, carrying firewood and masks and trays of food to the square. It seemed the celebration would only grow throughout the night. He had to remind himself that they weren’t real. Speaking of which…
If you disable your name tag and title you will be unable to distinguish between Player characters and NPCs, but other players will not be able to perceive your information either. You can still receive quests as normal. Are you sure you want to proceed?
Emrin selected ‘Yes.’ A new character running around town wasn’t anything unusual, but the less attention he drew, the better. He hastened on his way and followed Xua’s advice until he reached the outskirts of town.
“There, it’s the house by the wall.”
This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.
Emrin turned his gaze to the tiny, wooden house that was built next to the capital’s massive stone walls. Its windows were broken and the wood cracked and rotting, giving the entire two storey building a worrying tilt. Were it not for the stone it leaned on, perhaps it’d have already collapsed. Could this really be the place?
Emrin thought back to the player reports as he approached. Apparently, a small time thieves guild had been wiped when they attempted to raid the place, before complaining on the forums about it. Another user had claimed that there was a monster living there. One that would supposedly issue a quest if he was level 1. The replies in that thread accused him of trolling, and that was the end of it. The relatively strange incidents were buried under the hundreds of secrets discovered in Twilight each day.
Emrin stood in front of the small house now, and the first thing that reached him was the stench. It was like someone had left fish out in the sun to rot for days on end.
“They better be right about this…” Emrin cringed as he approached. The wooden steps creaked in pain under his feet, and he worried they’d crack and earn him an unpleasant taste of the mulch and dirt beneath them. Upon closer inspection, the house seemed in even worse condition than he’d thought. He knocked on the door, half expecting it to drop off the one hinge that still held it, and waited. And waited some more.
“Perhaps try a window?” Lana spoke in his head.
“I think I know what happened,” Emrin answered to himself. “The owner died and that smell is their corpse. Ugh.” He winced as his hands found the mulch that had gathered on the windowsill. Just what in the seven hells could cause this much moisture? He carefully pulled himself up, dodging the sharp glass that remained on the frame. Leaning his head back to fit through, he dropped onto the floor inside with a wet splash. Wait, a splash? He looked down to find swampy water and mud covering the walls and what little furniture still had form.
“What the fuck?” Xua Yu voiced his thoughts.
It was highly unusual. To Emrin, the place suddenly smelled like opportunity instead of fish. He didn’t have an eye for people it seemed, but chances would rarely slip past him. He walked further inside carefully. The torchlight barely reached here, and he was afraid he’d slip and fall in the water. As it turned out, it was something else entirely he should have been afraid of.
Cold, sharp metal pressed against his neck from behind. “Why not on moon festival with the rest? You after my treasure?” The voice was female, but also warped and almost croaky.
“N-No,” Emrin stammered, then paused. What was he here for? “I heard there was someone strong living here.”
A sharp chortle came from behind, like someone choking on a grape. “For you, maybe.” The dagger cut a little deeper into his skin, drawing blood. “And what if strong? What then?”
“I want to learn from you,” Emrin didn’t fight against her. He glanced downward and saw a webbed, green hand holding the hilt. “Please.”
“Hmm…” Some strength behind the grip vanished. Emrin felt something slimy and wrinkly on his shoulder and fought the urge to shiver. A sharp, quick breath next to his cheek filled his nostrils with more fish scent.
“No blood on your hands.” The dagger retreated. Emrin could hear the creature stepping back. “Why after strength?”
Emrin turned around to face her slowly. Her skin was covered in blue scales and her face was wrinkly, more than he’d imagined. She stood hunched on two legs, covered by only a few pieces of moldy, wet leather. The few players that’d seen Merfolks claimed they were creatures of unparalleled beauty and grace. Emrin found the opposite. He decided against asking her what she was doing here. Didn’t seem one that'd enjoy lengthy conversations. “I have to help my friend,” he settled. “And for that, I have to kill a certain man whose strength is leagues beyond my own.”
“Stupid!” The merfolk picked up some mud and threw it on his chest. “Kills for self. Not friend. Friend quickly enemy.”
“You’re not wrong.” Emrin clenched his fists. Shill found a way into his head again, the bastard. “I’ve already been stabbed in the back by people I thought were my friends. But this time, I am sure. She would never betray me.”
“Ho… Interesting. Faith in friend again always interesting.” The merfolk woman smiled at him, showing her sharp, warped teeth. “Fine! No blood on you yet, so strength maybe possible.”
Quest : Tsoya's Test Description: Tsoya wants to test your potential before sharing her strength with you. Difficulty : S-
Quest Clear Conditions :
Kill 100 creatures without being hit. (0/100)
Linked Quest:
Tsoya’s Hidden Technique (1)
Quest time limit :
3 days
Rewards :
Phantom Dagger. Affinity with Tsoya will increase.
“What?” Emrin blinked a few times. A hundred? Without being hit once? That bordered on impossible. The difficulty itself was proof of that. But the linked quest and the rewards hinted at something great… He had to try it.
“Difficult for you, yes.” Tsoya guessed his thoughts. “But only path to power you after.”
“Very well.” Emrin pulled the beginner’s dagger from his waist and spun it on his finger. “I’ll be right back.”