Chapter 3
Serenity
Every NPC I talked to sounded like a real person. They all had their own lives, personalities, things they liked, things they hated. Some even had children. Each one just as real and complex as the last.
These guys all seemed to be even more real than Shadow and I. Rather… it felt as though my life had been set in a bubble within a bubble, within yet another bubble. while their lives were more grounded within their reality. Funny considering they’re the NPCs.
These guys actually lived in there world unlike us. They didn’t spend their days behind a computer screen or their phones. They didn't worship celebrities or take the talk of influencers as irrefutable truths. They thought for themselves and were even far more intelligent when it came to life.
For these guys school wasn't the only place to learn. The world was their class room. They lived day by day right in the moment honing their craft to near perfection.
From forging weapons to running restaurants, to street performances. There were no followers here. Just energetic driven life cultivators continuously thriving in their environment.
Another thing I noticed was this world wasn’t new. As in it didn't just appear the moment we arrived. It was evident by the way things were worn down, torn, and sun baked. The trees had at least fifty years on them maybe more. The stone roads were beaten, ragged, and cracked. There were even cracks on the buildings.
In some places plant life threatened to consume the city. As far as I knew this place has always existed. The NPCs even knew of us. They referred to us as primordials. Beings with incredible powers and long life spans.
It made me envy them in a way. They lived so happy. How come our society is so depressing. We have all the technology in the world yet everyone is still so unhappy. I thought to the way the NPCs lived their lives. Each of them had purpose. Was that what we were lacking? Purpose? I’ve never had it. I’ve never been driven towards a calling.
Even the homeless had so much personality. I made sure to give those guys a gold coin. That was a lot. The currency here was bronze, silver, gold, and crystal. One hundred bronze was worth one silver. Ten silver was worth one gold, and one hundred gold was worth one crystal.
You could rent a room for a day or two—depending on the inn—for a single silver coin. Food was usually a few bronze. As the ruler of an entire country. I had over one-thousand crystal.
It sucked knowing these people were my followers. How the hell could I take care of them. I’ll probably be pitchforked by the end of the week. Good thing there’s no media to smear lies about me and provoke violence.
A gold coin wouldn't fix anything but at the very least it would give them a chance to get back on their feet. If they wasted it on something stupid like booze then that was there fault.
I’d gotten their names and marked them on my citizens tab. this way I’d know who I gave money to. Those that didn't pull themselves out of the gutter would need to be interviewed in order to root out the reason for there specific poverty.
While some were simply homeless because of bad luck. Others had mental illnesses that made it impossible for them to live in society. That included the ones that were addicted to alcohol or drugs.
There was also those that enjoyed being homeless but I wasn’t gonna bother with them.
I remember there being a drug in-game called purple mist. It was a story line in-game but here it existed in the back alleys of my city.
Giving addicts an entire gold coin sounded bad but I also knew that those people rarely changed, so if they over dosed then that was just one less person to worry about. Either they'd get there lives in order or die alone. All I did was give them the choice. At the very least they’d die happy.
If my plan went the way I thought it would. Then in a couple days purple mist would be a myth. There was more to it than simply killing off a bunch of drug addicts, but that would come later.
In the empire tab there was a stat indicating criminals. It didn't give me names only a percentage of 7%. I wasn’t sure if I could clean everything up, but I had to try. Of course a bunch of the homeless would probably refuse any programs I’d implement.
A lot of them would probably refuse the moment they realized they wouldn't be allowed any drugs or booze.
Being in charge was rough. Put simply I wasn’t the good guy. It seemed that even this world was made up of varying shades of gray.
On my little tour through the city the NPCs all seemed to complement me and give me candy. Surprisingly candy is very tasty. I never really had much of a sweet tooth before but now that I had new taste buds I couldn’t help but like sweet things.
This one lady handed me a cup of fruits with ice cream. I was so happy. I thought people would look at me strangely for walking around in what most would consider cosplay but instead I was praised and rewarded.
One guy even gave me a ring of vitality. I did the math, well not really. Basically my vitality only gave me one health per stat point. That meant it was a one to one conversion.
The ring gave me an extra health point for each point in vitality. That meant my health had doubled. Instead of it being in the Five-hundreds it was now in the thousands.
My health was still really low but it was better than before. With this I might be able to tank a hit. The ring wasn’t the best rarity but I could find something stronger.
The armor I had before gave me a plus five to health Per vitality. There also didn't seem to be a restriction on the amount of accessories one could wear but I wasn’t sure if the effects of accessories were stackable.
The last accessory I had was a stone that went on my sword called butchers gem. It gave a 15% crit boost. These days health was more important than damage. I really didn't want to die. Especially since I wasn't sure what came next. Valhalla maybe?
Those weren’t the only things I was given. This one lady gave me a few old dresses from when her daughter was younger. I didn't have very many clothes I would consider… not cosplay so it was greatly appreciated.
The only thing was they didn't offer any protection or stat bonuses just a charm boost. I even got a few dolls and plushies. The dolls were creepy as fuck, but I liked the plushies.
They were pretty cool. Each one was of a different in-game monster. I was especially fond of the pudgy white ghost. In-game it was known as a white wraith but as a plushy it was very rounded, very soft, and had a derpy face. It was adorable!
When in-game these things were more like trophies you could collect. Seeing as I could never hold them I didn't see a point in keeping them, so I sold all of mine online for real cash.
There was a super rare plushy I got once from killing a secret special mob boss called Murmur. Murmur is a shadow demon cat.
I got the murmur plushy but mine was a rare version where instead of black it was red. It sold for over 1k online. I kind of wish I had kept it. I bet it was super cuddly.
Shadow didn't understand my love for plushies. I tried to explain the concept of gamer plushies but she still thought I was being childish. Maybe I was but who cares.
Shadow was also having fun. She genuinely enjoyed her conversations with the NPCs. I was surprised at how friendly and talkative she was. I wish I could do that. She didn't speak like that too me. This was the mutual respect talk you gave to strangers.
Warm smile, soft spoken, charming, welcoming body language. I should be taking notes.
There was this one lady she really hit it off with. The lady owned a flower shop. They talked about flowers for half an hour! I felt like a kid that had been dragged around shopping by their mom. It was torture.
As I sat there on a chair listening to the two flower enthusiasts I got a glimpse of a small boy. Probably the son of the flower shop owner.
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He was watching me from behind the door frame that led into the back. I waved at him smiling. He ran away. The sound of pitter patter on hardwood reverberating from the back room.
Poor kid must be shy. A moment later he came into the room approaching me. The little guy handed me a flower. It was a black rose.
He must of thought I liked the color black because of how I was dressed. Then it hit me like a sack of screaming potatoes.
This little dude was crushing on me hard! I was shocked. A little disgusted but… from an outside perspective I suppose it was also kind of cute.
Obviously I wasn’t going to pursue a relationship with a child but I also didn't want to hurt the little dudes feelings.
This whole thing was familiar. I was reminded of the time when I was around his age and I gave a girl a flower.
I found it in the grass fields behind my childhood home. By which I mean I stole it from Mrs. Robertson’s garden.
My efforts were in vein. She threw it on the ground and stomped on it. Then called me ugly in front of her friends and laughed.
I cried all the way home and through most of the day. My dad called me a pussy so I tried punching him but it did nothing. He just kept laughing and told me “A girl like that is nothing but trouble.”
Mom comforted me but the damage was done. Still I wouldn’t call that memory a bad one. It served as a lesson in a way.
The world was cruel and people were tribal beings. I didn't know it back then but that was a power move. She wanted to look cool in front of her friends so she could climb the metaphorical social ladder.
I just so happened to hand her the perfect opportunity. In other words it was nothing personal just business. Anyway, that's how I met my wife Alice. She still laughs about it to this day. Meanwhile the hole inside me grows with every moment that passes demanding for its hunger to be satiated. Ah yes. Good times.
I decided to accept the gift and treat the young lad with respect. I took the flower and said thank you. The little dude got all excited and we got to talking.
Turns out he wanted to be an adventurer and fight monsters. He even showed me his toy sword and did a few flourishes.
The kid’s name was Arthur Magnus. He was named after his grate grand father. The kid had a big imagination and was very energetic and animated.
He kind of reminded me of my younger brother. After an hour Shadow and I finally left. As a thank you for the flower I gave the boy a magic cloak that would protect him from danger.
It wasn't super strong gear but it was useful and in his size. It was also augmented, enchanted, and had been re-forged from C to SS. I even managed to put a few runes on it back in the day. That was before an update injected better gear into the game.
The cloak was about two updates behind the current gear I was wearing. It would really suck to hear Arthur had died in battle.
Once I’d given him the cloak he began to treat me like an older sibling and started calling me sister Aku. It was a complete one-eighty.
I preferred it this way. He would grow into a fine young man one day. He could later get the cloak refitted once he grew up. That was something I found out from the seamstress at the clothes shop. She could do it with clothes but not with armor.
Armor had to be reshaped by a blacksmith. The strange part about all this was the NPCs all referred to me as Lady Aku. It kind of weirded me out but I was slowly getting used to it.
I didn’t see the point in correcting people since that would require me to say “No actually please call me Isaac. By the way I’m actually a mister.” Then they’d look at me funny and I’d have to explain the whole body reincarnation thing. That would be every single time I met someone! Fuck that!
We decided to stop at a fountain and sit for a bit. I happily munched on funnel cake while Shadow looked through her own guild tab.
Her tail swished back and forth like she was one of those weird Felix cat clocks. I wonder if I can use her to tell time?
The desire to grab her tail was slowly creeping up on me but I refrained from doing so. She’d get mad again. It was both her weakness and her murder trigger. Kind of like kicking someone in the balls. You never know if they’ll crumple over or go berserk. I’ll do it when her hands are full.
“Luca says she’s headed to the tavern.”
My attention was pulled away from Shadows fluffy tail and I managed to pull myself together just before she saw what I’d been focused on.
“Okay. I’m tired though. My feet are killing me. Let’s sit for a bit longer.” Our plan was to walk the streets and try to find out more about this world. Having such short legs made it hard to keep up.
So far it seemed like this world was as real as our own just way more raw. Our country even had trade relations with neighboring countries dating back twenty years.
Countries like Erickdom and Zone. I bet that was something Mao set up. I wouldn't know since I had completely checked out when it came to the town building mechanics.
All I knew was that Zone was located to the west and Erickdom was up in the north. To the east was New Sweden and to the south was ocean.
Though a few miles into the ocean there was an island called brah. Also in that direction was Pearlescent. Pearlescent was a town in our country located to the south right next to the ocean.
That was where Rhyme was now. She had an in-game fishing hobby. it was one of her favorite game mechanics. Pearlescent was where we got all of our fish, salt, and a few other things.
Rhyme said she couldn’t meet with us due to something going on in that area. She didn’t explain anymore than that so I was left to wonder.
That girl was never the type to give elaborate explanations. The only resource we were truly missing was iron and coal.
There were no good spots for us to mine so instead we traded other things like crops for it.
Erickdom was in the mountains. They had plenty of iron and coal but not enough food. There best food source was mountain goats but that was about it.
Crops didn’t grow very well in that rocky cold area. We invested in green houses. Not only did the food grow yearly round it also grew fast.
From my understanding Erickdom could make greenhouses but lacked the dirt to make anything significant. It was pretty tough to farm in such a rocky area. Our land was mostly open fields. Food would not be a problem.
What we were lacking was security. Our military force was only eight players and there were currently only three available.
We couldn't secure the entire country by ourselves. If a player wanted they could stroll through our country. It would be easy for them to travel to a settlement that was unprotected and claim it for themselves.
Even if they couldn't defend it. They could still take all the resources for themselves and skip out before we got there.
It’s a little strange this hadn't happened yet. Then again, maybe they haven't caught on yet. Rhyme said something about invaders but she hasn't responded to any of my messages.
She must be to busy to respond. I couldn't just storm over there. At least not the way I am now. I needed to hire NPCs. Not just for a military force but a policing force.
Monsters also roam around freely now. A wall around each settlement would be nice. That way we could keep track of the people coming and going.
Serenity had a wall and it was being misused. People could come in and out without any form of identification. Having some guards would be grate.
I could also charge people for entry passes. A quick interview and paper work. The passes can have expiration dates. Any players caught without one get the chance to buy one or get kicked out.
This is all so complicated. I’m not suited for this kind of stuff. It was interesting to see all these things from the game taking real form. The game was never designed to be a real world.
Maybe that was intentional? The only thing that could make something like this happen would be some kind of God.
Everything here was designed to well for it all to be random. What if this whole thing was just a simulation? Like were all plugged into some sort of machine.
How am I supposed to get Shadow home? I’m so useless. Why did I promise her something so impossible? I could feel a weight on my shoulders. A dark heavy burden weighed on me. I shouldn't be here.
Shadow looked to me and all of my delicious sweets. Mr. ghost, the pudgy white ghost plushy and Snowball, the white cat plushy, were sitting next to me. “You know those are bad for you.” She reached over and took my bag of rock candy. It vanished into her inventory.
“Hey! My candy give it back!” I cried out. She shook her head. Her ears swinging left and right. “No its to much sugar. I think you’ve had enough. Do you want to get a tummy ache?” She tuck my candy apples and stored them away. One by one my sweets vanished before my very eyes.
“but, but that’s not fair! Those are mine!” When I realized she wasn’t going to stop I reached for my bag of freshly baked cookies only to have my hand slapped away. She stored them giving me a stern look.
“Come on Shadow that’s not fair. I’ll be fine. I won't eat them all just… most of them…. Look! They were gifts from my people! I can’t just let them go to waste!” The only thing left was the slice of cherry pie.
She took it to. I wanted to cry but didn’t want to give her the satisfaction. Instead I turned away from her and tried to finish my funnel cake only for Shadow to snatch it from my lap and put it away.
“No more you’ve had enough. They won’t expire in my inventory. Besides At this rate you’ll have a sugar crash and I’ll have to carry you around.” Her tail looked like it wanted to smack me.
I was in disbelief. First off I knew for a fact she would love to carry me around and had even suggested it when I told her my feet were hurting.
Also How could she be so cruel. Tears rolled down my face. I got the sniffles. Then burst out into full angry crying. “I hate you, I hate you, I hate you! Your ruining my life! You don't love me!” I kicked my feet like a toddler and let out all my frustrations.
I wasn't proud of my actions but it wasn’t fair. It was like discovering a new addiction only to be sent to rehab after the first hit. I didn’t even get a chance to hit rock bottom.
I sat there at the edge of the fountain with a heavy pout. A sniffle here, a jerk reaction there. I started to wonder if this was my divine punishment for handing out gold to potential drug addicts.
She looked upon me unfazed. “Are you done? Did you forget I have three kids back home. I’m used to silly little tantrums. The one you just had isn’t even in my top ten. Oh look people are watching. Isn’t that embarrassing. Your ugly crying in front of strangers.” The people looking on were laughing at my outburst.
I felt kind of stupid now but I was still upset and when your upset you do questionable things.
I didn’t respond. I did the only thing I could and that was the silent treatment. Oh she was going to pay. I’d spend the whole day quiet if I had to. It'll drive her crazy. Yeah that's what I'll do.
“Honestly you seem to become more child-like with every second that passes. I’m starting to get worried. Are you still in there?” She waved her tail over my face like she was trying to lure me back to her.
I could bite her but I was doing the silent treatment not the… biting… people… treatment? Whatever. It would only get me in trouble.
I turned away crossing my arms over my chest with a childish “humph"
She didn’t say a word. Instead she sighed. Her ears fallen. “Okay… in that case if your good I’ll give you back one of the sweets, but only if your good.”
My mood instantly changed. “Really!” I smiled happily as I turned to her.
She looked surprised but managed a “Uh… yup.” She had been trying to tease me but I called her bluff.
“Okay I can do that. I’ll be extra good. You'll see.” I just about bounced in my seat.
she looked even more worried now. “Hey. Master your still in there right? You haven’t like actually turned into a child… right?”
I hugged both my plushies feeling gleeful. “Whatever do you mean. I’m the same as I’ve always been. Um… so can I have a candy apple now?” Shadow tried to stay firm but melted at my charm.
Making my feet kick back and forth was just icing on the cake. With my current gear my charm was boosted by 20%.
At first I didn’t know what charm was, but after interacting with NPCs I realized it was my literal cuteness. It was basically like having high charisma but with a few drawbacks.
For one I couldn't ask for booze. Well… I could but I’d have to be very persuasive. It worked for what I currently needed so I wasn't complaining.
Charisma wasn’t a stat that existed in-game. Somehow in this world it was an actual thing and playing on it let me get things from others.
Like all the sweets they gave me. Though… the tantrum was actually real. This body tended to act on its own at times.
I was trying to be as cuddly as possible. That way Shadow would give me back my candies. So far it didn’t seem to work as well on actual players. Though it did have some type of effect on them.
Maybe it was because they had a counter stat. Some kind of secret stat that went against charm like a bull shit detector.
It could also be the fact that Shadow knew what I was actually like or the fact that she knew I was actually a grown ass man. Only way to figure this out was to test it against players that didn't know me.
“I suppose a candy apple is fine. It is an apple after all.” It kind of worked but not quite.
If she was an NPC I’d of gotten all my sweets back. She still seemed worried about me. I wanted to tell her about the charm stat but decided against it seeing as she might get mad and refuse to give me any of my candy back.
She handed me the aforementioned candy apple. I licked it. “Yummy, let’s find Sister Luca! Come on Shadow.” I tugged on her arm she looked on in disbelief.
Since I was stuck in this body I decided to use it to my advantage. Shadow couldn’t make fun of me anymore since I’d embraced the child like act. In fact she wasn’t saying much anymore. Most likely thinking I’d gone insane.
For the first time since we met up in this world I was in control. Still I couldn't get this feeling of guilt off of me. It clung to me like a cold wet pair of jeans. God I hate when that happens.
This was nothing compared to the weight I felt but for some reason it just kept gnawing at me.
I felt bad about what I said so I stopped in my tracks and looked back at her, my face full of regret. “Um….. I’m sorry, I don’t actually hate you." I had to overt my eyes due to the embarrassment moving through me.
I was sure the guilt wasn’t mine but I had to get rid of it and this was the only way to do that.
Shadow let out a giggle. “Don’t worry about it. I know you didn’t mean it.” Her hand tousled my hair.
The feeling of guilt disappeared. Yup, those definitely weren’t my feelings. It was like I was sharing a body with someone else.
I was never sure what emotions were actually my own and which were Aku's. The two seem to blend together at times. I just hope I don’t lose myself at some point.