Failure to plan is planning to failure. That’s why Alex and Timon had a gameplan.
Though, it took a few days for reality to really set in for the two earthlings (about the whole saving the world quest but more so that Alex was really stuck in a fantasy world while Timon has to play hero without his levelling system). They were given a place in the castle and were treated as special guest of the King. They had the entire King’s men at their immediate disposal.
Alex and Timon enjoyed the royal treatment of being showered with food, clothes and everything they could ever want but they couldn’t rest. Alex grilled Timon on the details that night.
First, Timon reassured him that there were no ‘big bad villains’ in this game – it’s a low-risk fantasy game, he had said. Though Alex wondered how the destruction of the world could be ‘low-risk’.
The four shrines were planted across the world and they were areas of high-density elemental mana sprouting from the legendary mage’s spirit. Hence, the water shrine is located underwater; the fire shrine on a volcanic mountain; the earth shrine on the wasteland and the air shrine in the sky mountains.
Goal: Replenish the World Tree by feeding it the elemental crystals from the shrine
Out of the four, the closest was the Earth Shrine located west of the castle. It was also the easiest to travel to by foot as it was the only four shrines located on ground level.
Milestone 1: Retrieve the Earth Crystal
If we skip all the side quests it will take two weeks to travel by horse and that’s if everything ran smoothly, Timon had estimated.
The road to this shrine is also apparently booby-trapped to deter outside forces from getting in. So, they will need Earth mages to pave the way. Not only that they also have to pass the trials given by the shrine to collect the crystal. The fastest route would be to take on the trap as per the game but having playing the game, Timon should know the most optimal route to avoid everything though the trek itself would take much longer. The two agreed the the path of least resistance, especially against their own life, would be the best one – neither of them were confident in their abilities to fight.
Second, it was agreed that Timon will focus on learning earth magic and specific skillsets (mainly basic survival skills and combat abilities) needed for the journey to speed the training process up. Timon knew King Kaizer would provide him with the necessary people to join his party. This party naturally consisted of highly regarded Earth mages that worked under the King. The most recognizable one (the only one with a name and speaking role in the game) being Pandora, an ex-combat mage, who would also be in charge of Timon’s training. In the game, the player would learn one element at a time, but Timon supposed he could learn some basic survival skills from other mages at the King’s disposal.
Deliverables 1.1
Time to Complete
Task Allocation
Basic fire skills, water purification, manipulate the earth into pavement, intermediate earth combat skills
~3 - 6 months
Timon to train with Pandora
Assemble party
< 1 week
King Kaizer
The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.
Timon and Alex broke down the skills he will most likely need to protect himself and some useful survival skills to camp for the two weeks in the wasteland. They had no idea to gauge how hard the magic system will be and how Alex will fare against learning it. Three months was the ideal time to practice and not delay the quest. However, they agreed if he couldn’t master the skills in six months then they would go regardless. Theoretically, they only needed him to retrieve the crystal as it will only reveal itself to the hero.
Third, they needed to prepare for the obstacles that they would be facing when traversing the wasteland towards the shrine. Apparently the first Earth mage: Aurelius was known for his commitment and responsibility to his people, so the Earth shrine tested potential people based on how their goals align with being a hero. In game, that meant the earth around them often manipulated to deter them off the path. That’s why they needed earth mages to literally pave the way for them.
When they reach the shrine, the final boss guarding the entrance is lo and behold, an earth golem. Alex had no idea how a giant golem made of the earth would make an accurate assessment of heroic qualities that but wrote it off as gaming things. As per game mechanics, when the golem attacks, it takes 3 seconds to recover, that’s when they would need to strike its heart. They had five mages at their disposal to distract and defeat while Timon can retrieve the crystal. Alex questioned if only two Earth mages were enough on the journey considering they had to pave the way for them, rest, recover and fight over two to three weeks.
"I suppose if we really want to speed things up, we need to convince General Titus to help us. He doesn’t join the party in the Earth shrine but in the last battle to save the World Tree since he’s position at the borderline. He’s the best of the best when it comes to earth manipulation. If we can get his help, it would be a big boost to our team. The only problem is I doubt he would join us when he’s currently holding the defence line against the World Tree," Timon explained.
So Alex agreed to travel to the borderlines and convince General Titus to join their quest. If the world operated on game mechanics, then maybe he’d have to do a side quest to win General Titus over. Though Timon was unsure what that will be, he knew Alex needed to appeal to his sense of duty and responsibility to fight for his people. Alex was sure that saving the world was more than enough motivation, nonetheless, he had a least the duration of Timon’s training to convince him should things so sideways.
Deliverables 1.2
Time to Complete
Task Allocation
Recruit General Titus to the Party
< 3 months
Alex
After six months, once all of these tasks were completed, they would only need to prep for the resources needed to begin their hopefully two-week trip. King Kaizer had assured them that things like food, water, clothing, equipment, cavalry would be prepared for them and any further things they’d like to add will be provided to the best of their abilities.
Deliverables 2.1
Time to Complete
Task Allocation
Assemble resources and equipment for the journey
<1 Week
King Kaizer
Finally, it turns out Timon’s optimal route to the shrine is to find a person named Ida, a local from one of the villages on the outskirts of the kingdom. She had an innate ability to sense earth mana and would act as a guide to the Earth Shrine. In the game, if one accepted her side-quest, she would join the party and lead them to the path that avoided most obstacles. Timon reassured him that it will take less than a week to complete and would help shortcut their journey immensely.
Deliverables 3.1
Time to Complete
Task Allocation
Travel to Ida’s village
<1 Week
Earth Shrine Party
Complete Ida’s side-quest
< 1 Week
Earth Shrine Party
Alex and Timon looked at their action plan scribbled over ink and parchment paper that they revised over several days in Timon’s room. The ideal timeline was six months to prep and one month to retrieve the crystal. Alex knew from his engineering project experience that tasks, always without fail, would get delayed and project deadlines would get extended into infinity. Their very optimistic goal had them completing one milestone in seven months. At this rate, they’ll be stuck here for three years.
A knock on the door disrupted their doubts and their endless pile of looming tasks.
“Come in,” Timon said. One of the maids, who often delivered their food, clothes and whatever they requested came in.
“Miss Pandora requests both of your presence at the training grounds.”