After parting ways with their friends, Lucy and Leone make their way to the main part of town. Vryce follows behind them, with Lucy back at him several times before he finally splits off.

Lucy seems slightly relieved.

"I guess you like Vryce in the real world a lot more than Vryce in Bryconia." Leone cuts his eyes towards the brunette rogue as they continue walking.

"I mean, we were making characters," Lucy says with a sigh. "But I don't feel that different from the way I felt in the real world. Do you?"

"Different?" Leone asks. "I feel the same, but I certainly look different."

"Yeah." Lucy's lips curl into a half-grin. "You definitely do."

"You…" Leone glances over. "Not so much."

"I didn't even come up with a name for my character," She shrugs. "I guess I'm not very original."

"You played D&D, right? I remember your friend Whimsy saying something about that." Leone chuckles.

"Whimsy." Lucy shakes her head and laughs. "Yeah, we played D&D. I was Lucy in that game too."

"Let me guess? A rogue." Leone glances over again.

"Yes," Lucy admits with a laugh. "Whimsy gave me a lot of shit for that. She said if she could come up with a cool nickname in real life and make people call her that, I could at least think up something epic for my character. I still went with Lucy."

"I think it makes you more genuine," Leone says. "I asked to be a seven foot tall elf with golden hair. I don't look anything like myself in the real world."

"You do," Lucy replies. "Especially in the face. The hair is wild though, it's like something out of an anime."

"The funny thing is, that's exactly what I envisioned when I was making the character," Leone shrugs. "Jenkins had no way of knowing that."

"Vryce seems convinced that Jenkins one hundred percent responsible. But he doesn't like to talk about it." Lucy looks down and nudges a cobblestone in the road that is loose.

"Yeah, I understand why he would think that, but it doesn't make sense to me." Leone lifts his head as they get to the main part of town. "I think we're here."

"So what's the plan?" Lucy asks. "I guess since I'm tagging along, I can let you take the lead."

"You don't think you're the... Party leader, do you?" Leone tilts his head slightly.

"Why can't I be the party leader?" Lucy puts her hands on her hips. "Because I'm a girl?"

"No, because you're a rogue and your weapon is a sling with rocks you picked up at the bandit camp." Leone scoffs. "Do you really want to be the first one charging into battle?"

"I mean, I would." Lucy looks down, realizing Leone actually has a point. "But that doesn't mean I can't make decisions like deciding where we go, or what we do. I think everyone should have a vote. Nobody should be firing off orders."

"I have no problem letting everyone have a vote." Leone softens his tone. "And if I fire off orders, I'm sorry. It's not meant to be malicious. You have to understand that when we play these games, people get distracted with side-conversations and waste a lot of time. I'm usually the one trying to get everyone back on track."

"Side-conversations like this one?" Lucy smirks. "I'm not mad at you or anything. This is new to all of us."

"Let's see what we can find out about the Royal Quest." Leone turns towards the populated area ahead. "The tavern seems like a fine place to start."

"You realize we just had breakfast." Lucy laughs.

"Which means we're overdue for a drink. They served liquor with breakfast in the Village of Roth." Leone motions to Lucy and they start walking. "Come on, maybe they have that liquor supposedly made by the elves."

"No way!" Lucy feigns a dry-heave. "I'll sip an ale."

"Suit yourself." Leone shrugs, pointing out the tavern. "That one looks a lot better than the one we drank at last night by the inn."

"They have a lot of taverns here." Lucy chuckles under her breath.

"People like to drink." Leone pushes the door open as they arrive. "After you."

Lucy walks into the tavern first. The one by the inn didn't have many customers. By comparison, this one is quite busy.

"Oh wow," Leone says as he walks in behind her, pulling his cloak down over his face. "I think we're in the right place."

"Find us a table." Lucy glances back at the much larger elf. "I'll get drinks."

"Ask if they have the elf drink!" Leone says before walking off to look for a table.

Lucy walks up to the bar, and tries to get the bartender's attention. It proves more difficult that she anticipated. Not only is he busy, but he seems to be completely ignoring her. She finally gets frustrated, and when he goes to bring two men at the end of the bar a round of drinks, she wedges herself between them.

"Excuse me!" Lucy grunts at the lack of personal space. "I need an ale, and do you have any elven drinks?"

"We got wine," the bartender replies, jerking his thumb towards the shelf. "It isn't the stuff the slave-elves make, so it is expensive."

"Great!" Lucy says, clutching her coin purse. "I'll take a tankard of it!"

"You got it," the bartender says with a nod.

"Excuse me fellas, I'll be going now." Lucy smiles to the two men she's wedged between and pries herself loose.

The smell, however, does not leave as she moves down the bar. She sniffs her shirt and this time, it's not a fake dry-heave.

"Oh hell." Lucy shudders. "They're fishermen."

The price for the drinks is eleven gold pieces, and only one of them is for her ale. Lucy pays with a grimace, collects her drinks, and spots Leone at a table. She makes her way through the tavern and sits down, putting the wine in front of him.

"That damn sure better be good," Lucy says as she sits down. "It cost ten gold pieces."

"Wow," Leone remarks, lifting the tankard to his lips. "Okay, that may be worth every coin. Want to try it?"

"I guess I should." Lucy nods. "I did pay for it after all."

Leone slides the tankard over to Lucy who takes a small sip, then her eyes get wide, and she takes a deeper drink.

"Yep, that's really good." She smiles. "Too bad we can't afford to keep drinking it."

"We'll find a way to make more money," Leone says. "While you were buying the drinks, I heard a couple of people talking about the Royal Quest."

"Anything interesting?" Lucy asks. "We listened to people talk about it last night, too."

"News changes daily," Leone replies. "Today, people are saying that king has announced a Day of Feasting will begin in two days time, and at the end of it, he will have news about the Royal Quest."

Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.

"That sounds like one of those announcements about an announcement they had back home." Lucy smirks and sips her ale, visibly displeased with it after tasting the elven wine.

"Yeah, but a Day of Feasting sounds nice." Leone shrugs. "I think it's like a holiday to people in Bryconia."

"Should we buy groceries and plan a barbecue?" Lucy asks sarcastically.

"Maybe." Leone laughs and sips his wine. "Let's do a little listening for now, and see what else we can hear."

Lucy tries to listen, but she mainly hears chatter. A few pieces of a conversation here, and there, but nothing significant.

Leone, on the other hand, has noticed that his hearing is much better than it was in the real world. He has the ability to differentiate various conversations and hone in on them if he focuses. He first realized it in the bandit camp, where he heard a lot more about the bandit's plans for them than Palmer or Vryce. He elected not to tell Vryce that the bandits deemed him useless and planned to cut his throat at dawn, nor did he tell Palmer that because he was holy man, he would be dumped in the woods somewhere. The bandits couldn't bring themselves to kill him, out of fear of being cursed by the gods, but were fine if the elements took care of it for them.

In the tavern, Leone is able to learn a few new things, before Lucy interrupts.

"I really can't hear much of anything except noise." Lucy sighs and sips her ale. "You hear anything?"

"I heard that the last time there was a Day of Feasting, the drinks were half-off in this tavern." Leone smirks. "The barbecue is canceled."

"That's not very useful." Lucy rolls her eyes.

"I also heard that if we want to hear King Brynn's announcement, we'll have to be in the Royal Square at sundown on the Day of Feasting." Leone smiles and sips his wine.

"You heard all of that in this noise?" Lucy looks around. "How?"

"Maybe my ears are bigger." Leone shrugs. "Or it could have something to do with being an elf."

"I'm going to make my next character an elf." Lucy perks a brow, then her expression darkens. "If there is even is a next character."

"You'll look cute in a cloak." Leone say with a smile, despite the brunette's change in demeanor.

"I hope the next game isn't Bryconia." Lucy looks down at the table.

"Here." Leone pushes his wine across the table and grabs Lucy's ale. "Finish that, you did buy it after all."

"Are you sure?" Lucy asks with hesitation in her voice.

"Yes," Leone says with a nod. "I don't mind the ale."

"Thank you," Lucy replies lifting the tankard to her lips for a sip. "That is so freaking good!"

The duo continue to drink, make a few jokes, and listen in on the conversation. The wine clearly goes to Lucy's head, because after she finishes it, she not only wants another, but wants to buy one for Leone as well. Leone tries to dissuade the brunette rogue. He is not successful. Lucy goes to the bar, orders the drinks, and returns with two tankards of the eleven wine, her coin purse visibly lighter.

"You didn't drink much in the real world, did you?" Leone eyes Lucy.

"No." She laughs. "I had a beer at a few high school parties, and a couple shots of liquor. Oh, I did try tequila!"

"What did you think of it," Leone asks, his interest piqued.

"It was awful." Lucy gags. "Even with lime."

"Let me guess, you had Jose Cuervo or something?" Leone shakes his head.

"Pretty sure that was it." Lucy shrugs. "Why?"

"If we ever do get back to the real world, I'll introduce you to a really good Mezcal." Leone lifts his tankard to his lips for a deep drink. "It'll be better, I promise."

"Speaking of the real world." Lucy leans closer. "We have actual knowledge of the real world. Couldn't we put that to good use here? Like, imagine if we had a car!"

"Do you know how to make a car?" Leone asks, perking a brow.

"No, but…" Lucy grabs her drink. "Don't you?"

"Why would I know how to make a car?" Leone chuckles. "I can change a tire and jump start one, but I leave the rest to the professionals."

"Hmm." Lucy ponders. "Well there has to be something we can use to our advantage."

"Look at you, trying to turn into a power gamer." Leone smirks, sipping his wine. "I think we should focus on the Royal Quest. Each time we level up, we get stronger, and I'm sure the Royal Quest will offer lots of opportunities for that."

"Are we even strong enough to do the Royal Quest?" Lucy asks a sobering question, despite her buzz. "We're level one, but Vryce hasn't even leveled up. Plus, we really need to try and find out what happened to Rabu and Malakai."

"Well, we won't find out anything about them here." Leone lifts his tankard. "Let's finish these off, and see if the others had any luck."

The duo continues drinking. Leone doesn't appear to be drunk, but Lucy clearly is. She can't even finish her drink and pushes it across the table. Leone takes the last gulp and puts the tankard down. When they stand up, Lucy appears to have be a little unsteady, but she seems to have stopped herself before she got further than that.

"Need a hand?" Leone asks, offering to Lucy.

"I'm okay." Lucy waves him off.

They turn to leave, but after they get halfway to the door, it opens. A man walks inside, wearing a duster, boots, and what appears to be a cowboy hat. Lucy and Leone stop in their tracks, glancing at each other, as if they're silently asking if the other is seeing it too. A nod between them confirms it.

"Am I really drunk or does that guy look like he just walked out of a Western?" Lucy raises both eyebrows.

"Yeah," Leone says. "He really does."

The man walks up the bar, leans against it, and shifts his duster so that Lucy and Leone can see what appears to be a gun hanging at his side.

"No fucking way!" Lucy blinks in surprise.

"I'm going to talk to him." Leone says.

"No, wait!" Lucy grabs his arm. "If you talk to him, he may realize you're an elf!"

"That guy." Leone points. "Is clearly not from Bryconia. I don't think an elf is going to be that surprising."

Lucy tries to latch onto Leone's arm, but he shrugs her off. He makes his way through the bar, and leans next to the man with the gun on his hip.

"Uh, excuse me." Leone tilts a head. "Is your name Clint Eastwood, by any chance?"

"Damn," the man replies cocking his head towards Leone. "You're not from around here, are ya?"

"No," Leone replies coldly. "And neither are you."

"Did Jenkins do it again?" The man asks. "Fuck, I never even considered that."

"I'm Leone," the golden haired elf says. "You?"

"Well, I know Leone ain't your real name, nor is Cowboy mine, but that's that's what you can call me," the man says, picking up his ale.

"We've only been here a few days." Leone motions to Lucy, who is waiting nearby, clearly nervous.

"Ah," Cowboy says, glancing at the brunette rogue. "Lost anyone yet?"

"Yes!" Leone says immediately. "We're still searching for two of our friends."

"Nah, I don't mean people you're looking for." Cowboy shakes his head. "I'm talking about something a little more permanent."

"No." Leone blinks a couple of times. "We did have a close call…"

"We had a bunch of those." Cowboy sips his ale and sighs. "But eventually, we did lose someone. There were four of us in the beginning. I'm the only one left."

"Did you make a character? For Jenkins?" Leone leans against the bar and motions for Lucy to come closer.

"Yep," Cowboy says. "Fuck, we were kids at the time. Jenkins was always creating games. He had a whole system he made for us when we played with our action figures. He made up this game we played in his front yard that combined football and baseball. It was a terrible game. But then one day, he told us about Bryconia. We were certainly intrigued…"

"How old were you?" Lucy asks, joining the conversation.

"Fuck, I don't know exactly. I was in fifth grade at the time. The rest of it gets a bit hazy." Cowboy shrugs.

"So you never found a way home?" Lucy's face gets solemn.

"Nah, honestly? What's the point now? I've been in Bryconia for a really long time. I'm married. I got kids. Why would I even want to go back?" Cowboy downs his ale and motions for another.

"How did you manage to make that?" Leone motions to the gun hanging at Cowboy's side.

"Oh, it's not as impressive as it looks." Cowboy chuckles. "It's just magic. It's not a real gun. Looks cool though."

"Do you have a character sheet?" Lucy cleans closer to try and look at Cowboy's wrist.

"Yeah, I got one." Cowboy nods. "You won't be able to see it though. Nobody can."

"What level are you?" Leone perks a brow.

"High enough not to care about them anymore." Cowboy sips his fresh ale. "It's exciting in the beginning, right? Feeling that rush? It doesn't last forever, so enjoy it while you can."

"It is rather nice," Lucy admits.

"We've been thinking about doing the Royal Quest." Leone tilts his head slightly. "What about you?"

"Nah," Cowboy says with a scoff. "I've done enough questing for one lifetime. I'm just going to enjoy a few drinks, and go home to my wife. My daughter just got accepted an apprentice at the Tailor's Guild. Apparently one of their apprentices got murdered a few nights ago."

"You didn't…" Lucy hesitates.

"No," Cowboy says coldly. "Killing people for no reason is a dark path. I wouldn't recommend it. Now if you'll both excuse me, I would like to drink in peace."

"Thank you for your time." Leone gives Cowboy a nod. "Maybe we'll see you again sometime and we can have a few drinks."

"If you live." Cowboy shrugs. "That might be harder than you think."

"We're going to try." Leone sighs.

Despite the rather pleasant buzz the duo had when the left their table, Leone and Lucy are rather solemn after leaving the tavern.

"Do you think we just die?" Lucy asks absently. "Life, if our hit points get reduced to zero, that's it. The end."

"Yeah," Leone replies. "I don't think we go back to the real world if we die."

"What makes you so sure?" Lucy cocks a brow.

"Jenkins told me a story about some kids in his neighborhood that disappeared when he was younger." Leone sighs. "I remembered the story when he told it. It made the news, and my mom wouldn't let me go outside by myself for almost a year. She used to watch me if I was walking across the street to my best friend's house. I thought Jenkins was just embellishing, like people who swear they lived next door to a serial killer, but actually lived several miles away."

"I remember something about that, but I moved to the area a while after it happened." Both of Lucy's eyebrows shoot up in alarm. "Do you think Cowboy was one of those missing kids?"

"My parents watched that news story every night," Leone says. "They showed those faces every single broadcast. I'll never forget them, nor will I forget that one of them was wearing a cowboy hat."

"Damn," Lucy says solemnly. "That means our parents are probably worried about us, right now."

"Yeah." Leone nods and motions to Lucy. "Come on, let's get back to the inn. We need to let everyone else know we found out."

"Agreed." Lucy trails behind Leone for a moment before finally catching up to him.

The golden haired elf and the brunette rogue are both shaken after their conversation with Cowboy. Their demeanor is quite solemn and it's beginning to sink in for both of them that going home may never be an option.

Game or not, the consequences are certainly real.