Emrin dodged out of the boar’s charge and narrowly avoided the tusks of another from piercing into his back. He flipped in the air and landed on his feet awkwardly, before plunging his dagger into its chest. The other mob never stopped its charge, disappearing into the forest.
[You have killed a Wild Boar. Gained 13 character experience.]
[Tsoya’s Test quest progress (37/100)]
Emrin looked around, before letting himself lean back against the tree to rest. Not even a fourth of the way through, and he’d had some close calls already. It was hard getting used to his new stats, not to mention fighting without armor on. His every move felt sluggish and like it carried no weight, but he had a much wider range of motion.
“Is there really no easier way to do this?” Emrin mumbled as he dropped to his knees in front of the carcass. A more experienced carver would be able to skin the animal for a small fee, but Emrin couldn’t carry more than two hogs back at once. To save some time, he only sawed off the tusks.
[Wild Boar Tusk x2 has been added to the inventory.]
[6 Carving skill experience gained.]
Emrin wiped most of the blood on his dagger on the beast’s fur and then stood. It was a waste, sure, but the other forest creatures would make good use of it. He sheathed the weapon and hoisted up the two largest hogs he’d caught as he made his way back to Shantalar. The city’s massive stone walls were visible even in the dead of night above the foliage and the trees.
“You’re back.” Xua Yu’s voice filled his ear once he crossed the gate and Emrin groaned. At least outside the city he could enjoy the game in peace. The contract he signed had a clause that said he would be able to grow his character however he wanted, but that wasn’t the impression he got so far. Still, he reminded himself this wasn’t about him. It was about Sophia. Emrin gave another thumbs up to himself.
“Lana said you should check your bank,” Xua Yu said. “To withdraw what we left you, try ‘Duty, Moon, Candy, Silverfish.’ I’ll try to get some sleep and let you work alone for now. I know how annoying it can be having someone interrupt your thoughts all the time.”
Xua Yu, for all his faults, had an amazing intuition. Emrin gave a double thumbs up for him to see, then walked towards the two merchants already eyeing him. He’d already sold them some of his previous game.
“Big ones,” one of the burly men said, smiling as he took them from Emrin’s hands. He tossed some coins over. “Ever considered a career for the hunting guild?”
“I won’t be hunting animals for long.” Emrin said, counting the silver in his palm. It was a fair price, at least. Back when he was a newbie, the NPC merchants around the Hallowed capital of Asohan had scammed him for a tenth of this price. He pocketed the money.
[You have gained 12 silver.]
Emrin bid the merchants farewell before turning to walk further into the city. This late in the night the festival was in full swing and the streets full of people laughing and cheering the dancers on. Most wore strange masks shaped like a half moon that left only one eye visible. They idled around the stalls set up along the wider streets, where the smell of burnthistle overpowered the smoke. Emrin squeezed through the crowd and almost tripped on the wide steps of the city’s bank. The building itself seemed massive compared to its surroundings, yet no torchlight or revellers had reached it. Only a few hooded figures rushed in and out, clutching dice pouches close to their bodies. Emrin wore his own hood and walked up the stairs, passing through two enormous stone pillars etched with runes and glyphs. The moment he crossed them, every sound coming from his surroundings faded from the air.
[You have entered a zone of enchanted silence.]
This is what he imagined space was like. No, even there he’d be able to hear his heartbeat or a low ringing in his ears. In here, it was simply nothing. A rather uncomfortable feeling. Emrin hurried forward, reaching one of the many cubicle-like offices spread throughout the floor. There, the sound returned, though only present in the banker’s quill as it dipped in ink and the soft creaking of her wooden chair. She seemed to be in her forties, and wore a dress she must have bought when she was a little thinner.
If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.
“Welcome to Ounis bank.” The banker glanced up at him, then back down at the newest addition to the stacks of paper in her desk. “Runes?” she asked.
“Duty, moon, candy, silverfish.” Emrin replied. He watched as she reached under the desk with difficulty, producing a weird cylinder with hundreds of tiny runes aligned on four vertical, rotating axes. After cycling through a few combinations with an equally tiny needle, one end of the device puffed out smoke and the other spit out a piece of paper. The banker pinched her glasses and lowered them on her nose as she read. She glanced up at him again. “Withdraw?”
“Uhm, what’s my balance?”
“A hundred gold.”
“Decent,” Emrin mumbled under his breath. It was already bordering an amount that would draw suspicion in the hands of a new player. “Withdraw thirty of that, please.”
“Right away.” The banker stood, quickly vanishing through a door to the back.
Moments later, Emrin was holding a hefty bag of coins in his hand. He understood why people held them close the way they did. Contrary to Asohan and the capital of the light, he hadn’t seen a single guard in Shantalar.
“Would you like to change your runes?” The banker asked, already having gone back to scribbling the last of her ink away.
“No, thank you.” Emrin said as he placed the coins in his inventory. With this much, he’d be able to buy a lot of essentials. Healing potions, studded leather armour, maybe even an old horse to get around quicker. He didn’t plan on staying in the starting area for long.
Exiting the bank, Emrin took a sharp turn away from the crowd and into an alley that led directly towards the walls and the forest beyond the city. He remembered seeing an alchemist’s shop near one of the gates, so he figured he should find it again and resupply before the end of the night.
Strangely enough, the music from the festival followed after him, even as he drew away from main squares and streets. Had the bank’s enchantment somehow messed with his hearing? Emrin turned to find a wolf-masked man walking towards him, playing a cheerful tune on his lyre.
“Reveller of the Moon! Worshipper of Fellal!” The man spun and bowed right in front of Emrin, bringing his feathery bycocket forward. “Spare a few coins for a travelling bard?”
“Hah,” Emrin chuckled to himself. It was definitely a catchy tune. He reached into his pocket and tossed a couple of silver coins into the bard’s hat. “Don’t spend it all in one place.”
“Ah, but this seems a little stingy for an adventurer of your calibre!” The bard spoke under his mask as he jiggled the few coins in his hat. “Especially when you have such a thick load hiding somewhere on you.”
“Shit,” Emrin mumbled, hand reaching for his dagger. Was this the effect of Mizpix's touch showing itself already? Two steps back and he bumped into another man, face half-hidden under a mask of the moon.
“It’s not good to be greedy, y’know?” The man spoke with a raspy voice ruined by burnthistle. “Bad luck to not spare a few coins for your fellow man during a festival, they say.”
Three more came out of the darkness, wearing masks and holding daggers and swords in their hands. Emrin felt the cold touch of one against his throat.
The hooded man spoke again, so close to his ear that Emrin felt his vile, warm breath against it. “Why don’t we help ya unload a little?”
“What makes you think I’ve got money?” Emrin grit his teeth and huffed. He could take them all out and he knew it. But without being hit? Perhaps he could surprise one, but the rest would get him. It was plain impossible.
“Hoooh?” The bard spun again wearing his hat and letting the coins drop to the ground around him. “Easy to tell who just got a fatty stack from the bank, ain’t it?”
“Even if you’re blessed by the stars, I hear dying is awful.” One of the masked men behind the bard snickered. “So you better hurry it up.”
“You pieces of shit.” Emrin spat while calling his inventory forward. How much should he take out? The bard wasn’t stupid. If it was too little, he’d be able to tell. Twenty gold should be good. To street thieves, it’d be a small fortune. No matter what, he couldn’t risk being hit, or he’d fail the quest. A coin pouch materialised into his palm, and he barely felt its weight before the bard had snatched it off him.
“Wooooooo!” The man shook in excitement. “Twenty gold? Now that’s a haul!”
It’d been enough, thankfully. “Now please, let me go.”
“Sure, sure,” the bard said as he dug through the pouch. “Let him go.”
The dagger left Emrin’s throat and he breathed a sigh of relief. As the other thieves gathered around the bard to check the contents of the pouch and claim their cut, Emrin quickly ran down the alley and away from them. Nobody followed after him.
“Damned bastards,” he hissed, growing closer to a torch. He brought his hand under the light and examined the button he’d sneakily cut from the thief behind him. Engraved on the metal were a bird holding a coin and the initials ‘RR.’ Emrin looked up, then placed it back in his pocket. “You’ve just been added to the list.”