Time and Date: 05:00, 19th day of the third Fire Month, Year 6835 of the Divine Calendar
Location: Boys Bedroom, Family House, Family Farm
~~~
Gato woke up a fair bit earlier than he normally would, considering the fact he hadn’t heard the birds and chickens outside yet. It had been a rather strange night of sleep that had resulted from needing to go to bed about eight hours earlier. Oddly enough, he couldn’t remember dreaming the night before.
What happened last night? I could have sworn that —
[Welcome to the Player’s Life!]
— wait, what?
Gato saw that a strange box had appeared in front of him. The odd thing about this box was that the words written on it were in English, his first language from his previous life.
He lifted himself off his bed and saw another thing odd about the box… it stayed a consistent distance away from him as he moved about in his room. If he were to guestimate how far away it was, it was probably a little over 30 centimeters away from his face.
Well, this is just ridiculous. How am I supposed to get on with my day at this rate?
He sighed. This was not a good way to handle things going forward.
Still, where did it come from, anyway? I’m confused.
He waved his hand through the box from one side to the other, expecting it to go away that way. No such luck.
Ugh… isn’t there any way for this box to just leave me alone?! I’m not about to humor it now, mainly because I don’t know what it wants of me at all!
He gazed at the box in front of his face one more time, only to do a double-take when he saw another box appear underneath the first one.
[Welcome to the Player’s Life!]
[To continue living as you need to, please close these boxes.]
Gato drooped his head as he read what the second box said.
Great… isn’t there any way I can close the boxes at all? Wait, the boxes didn’t block my vision just now, did they?
He looked back up, briefly expecting the boxes to stay put from where they were before. To his surprise, however, they vanished the moment he looked back up.
What the… how did that happen?!
He looked around, trying to find out if there was a prank going on. He sighed when he saw there wasn’t anyone else in the room with him.
Well, at least this is just proof that the rest of my family isn’t involved in the black arts.
He lifted his arm to smell his armpit. It seemed he needed to bathe, based on how badly he smelled. With that, he pulled out a clean change of clothes, noting that he had one more outfit to go before he had to do the laundry for his clothing. The day already was proving to be a headache… and it wasn’t even breakfast yet.
“What am I supposed to do now?”
His thoughts then stalled on a rather important thing that he almost neglected.
Where’d everyone else go? I shouldn’t be the only one left in the room and just waking up, right?
#
Time and Date: 05:30, 19th day of the third Fire Month, Year 6835 of the Divine Calendar
Location: Hallway to Dining Room, Family House, Family Farm
~~~
“Man, why was the bath so hot for today? I can’t believe the water was steamy…”
Gato walked down the hallway in his family’s rather large house, compared to the size of every other house in the area. He should know, especially since he had an invitation to see the inside of each house in the fields section of the region. He didn’t know which family legend got the house to be as large as it was, but it had been that way since long before his grandfather was born.
And I know my grandfather married late in life, compared to his son, my father.
True, his grandfather was going to be a priest in dedication to the Divine Spirits of Nature, but there was a major problem to be had about that. His grandfather did not know why, but he had a dream one night that told him to enlist in the military instead, because there would be a plot to take his life if he joined the clergy.
The truth was likely distorted, but history proved the dream to be accurate. There was an attempt to take his grandfather’s life by someone, though nobody could figure out why. The would-be assassin killed himself upon failure.
Still, Gato’s grandfather served with distinction in the military, eventually letting him marry a young woman who was a little over half his age. He didn’t let the chance pass him by, especially since he wanted children. Unfortunately, Gato couldn’t have any aunts or uncles in the family, as his father was an only child.
“Wait, why am I thinking about that so suddenly? I need to get to the dining room table.”
He walked over to the door leading into the dining room. For whatever reason, the door was closed, as if he wasn’t supposed to enter just yet.
Huh? Why is the door closed? I could’ve sworn it would be open by now.
Gato grabbed the doorknob and gave it an experimental twist. It didn’t even budge.
What in the world? What’s going on in there?
He then put an ear to the door and rapped on it with a knuckle. The noise on the inside was evidence enough that someone was planning something there.
“Is that a tax collector?”
Gato’s father asked the rest of the inhabitants of the room.
“I’ll go check, dear.”
Gato’s mother walked to a different doorway, from what Gato could tell, since he couldn’t hear her walking in his direction.
“Mother, let’s make sure it’s not a thief trying to rob us while we’re distracted by the knocking.”
Jeremiah walked in the direction where their mother headed, as if that was the right thing for him to do.
What am I supposed to do…?
Suddenly, he had an idea.
I got it!
“Man, oh man… where was everyone else when I woke up this morning?”
Gato said that as loud as he could, especially since his family had to be on the other side of the door that was closed in front of him.
As if on cue, his family stopped whatever they were doing, with one of his other family members walking to the door.
Oops… better get off the door.
Gato got himself off of the door a few seconds before it was unlocked. When it opened, it revealed his eldest sister, the second child of the family. “Gato, we were so worried that you would not be down here! What happened, exactly?”
Medium height, with barely any curves to make herself a woman, chestnut brown hair, and blue eyes. Yes, this was Cima, daughter of Diana.
“Sorry, Cima, but I had some issues on my end. I didn’t know that I was supposed to be up at a specific time, nor did I know I had to ignore the bathroom. As it stands, I went to bathe in the steamy water.”
Gato said as much as he could to prove his point. He didn’t know how much trouble he was going to get into at this rate, but he had to tell the truth.
“No, Gato, it’s our fault for not telling you. Please don’t take this the wrong way.”
Gato turned to face his father. There was a bit of remorse in his expression that he never thought he’d see in his life. He never knew that this would be a time of such.
Man, I can’t believe it. Why did they forget to tell me about this? Wait, what is it they were going to tell me?
That was when he noticed something about the room. It had a cake of some sort of honey-glazed bread on the dining room table, which stood in the middle of the room, and a lit candle sticking out of the center of the cake. Around the table were seats for every person in the family living in the house, with a basket of things in Gato’s seat.
Wait, is it my birthday?!
“Congrats, Gato! Happy Birthday!”
Okay, it is my birthday, then.
Gato walked over to his seat at the dining room table. Before he could move the stuff on it over to a different place, though, he heard and then saw his mother and Jeremiah return from the front door.
“Gato! I thought it was a tax collector this early in the day. I’m so sorry!”
Gato’s mother had a hand to her mouth before she spoke.
Jeremiah, however, put a hand on Gato’s shoulder when he got close enough. “Man, little brother, I never thought that we’d miss seeing you at the dining table. Did you sleep in today?”
Sleep in? On a farm? That’s impossible to do here! That was all Gato thought on the subject before he cleared his throat. “No, not really. I was up a bit earlier than I should’ve been, though part of the time taken to get here was me getting an early bath this morning.”
This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.
The second son of the family walked up. He had a clean face, light blue eyes, ash blond hair, and a lanky build. “We reserved the bath for you, Gato, for when the celebration ended. Sorry for not telling you beforehand.”
Gato looked at the second son of the family. “Okay, Charles, I—”
“Remember, it’s Chuck, bro.”
“—yes, Chuck. Sorry to get that wrong again, brother.”
At that point, the family patriarch cleared his throat. “Charles, nobody ever uses that ridiculous nickname you came up with, so just drop it.”
No, that’s patently false, father. I use it because I know it’s a real nickname, and it works as a legitimate name, too. That you can’t recognize that is just sad. Gato held his head in his left hand as he pondered that thought.
“I’m telling you, father, Chuck is a far superior name to Charles,” Chuck said. “It even doubles as a shortened form of the inferior name, too.”
Before their father could offer a retort, the second daughter smacked him upside the head. Medium height for a woman, even if slightly taller than her elder sister, with back-length blonde hair, shining emerald eyes, and a pear-shaped body. Yes, this was Cynthia, daughter of Diana.
“No need to get yourself tied in a knot, father, especially not over something as silly as a name. Just be patient with him.”
“Yes, Father, please listen to my twin more often.”
The one who spoke stood at the short side of a tall height, somewhere around 1.7 meters tall, and was a guy. He had short blond hair, dark blue eyes, tanned skin from the sunlight when he was active, and a lot of bulging muscles. This was Jack, son of Alexander.
“Jack, why do you and Cynthia want Charles to ignore his real name like that?”
The family patriarch glared at the twins who had openly sided with Chuck. It seemed to be a rather dangerous time to be living in the house.
Uh-oh… this doesn’t bode well, does it? Gato thought. I need to butt in on the argument before it gets worse.
“Uh, Father, I think you’re overreacting here.”
“Yes, pops, you need to relax now.”
The ones who spoke were also Gato’s brothers, with the elder of the two having short chestnut brown hair, green eyes, and a slender build. The younger brother, however, had a shaved scalp, blue eyes, and an athlete’s build. Oddly enough, they were twins as well.
The matriarch of the family gasped. “Simon! Andrew! You both need to respect your father more than that.”
Simon, the one who had hair between the two of them, turned to face the matriarch. “Er, mother, you’re forgetting something important about how respect works.”
“And what would that be?”
“Nobody ever gets respect for free. One has to earn it, Mother,” Andrew, the shaved one of the two, said. “Remember that for the future.”
Oh, dear… now what am I going to do? Gato felt sweat fall down the back of his neck. I have to put a stop to this argument fast!
At that point, the last of Gato’s siblings cleared his throat in such a way that it would get everyone’s attention. “Okay, everyone, this will not end well if we continue to do this during Gato’s birthday party. Let’s just drop it permanently.”
Everyone else looked at the one who spoke. Dark brown hair, blue eyes, and a lean muscular build under all his clothing. This was the second-youngest child, Delaz, son of Alexander.
Man, guess that’s why nobody should ever make Delaz mad. I’m glad he’s my brother.
“Er, yes, you’re right…” Gato’s father said. “We need to do something else for today.”
“You mean celebrate Gato’s birth for today?”
“Yes, Delaz, that’s what I meant.”
Gato moved the stuff off of his seat and onto the table beside his plate before he pulled the seat out. As he was about to sit down, however, his mother cleared her throat. What now?
“Gato, before we celebrate today, I need to give you your shopping list.”
Gato blinked rapidly for five seconds before he facepalmed. “Oh, right, I forgot about that for a bit.” As he walked over to get the shopping list, however…
[New Quest Alert!]
Wait, now what?!
The Name of the Game is Survival: You are getting ready to head to town after you celebrate your 14th birthday in this life. Find some way to avoid shopping immediately at the market and returning home straight away.
Quest Objectives: 1) Be away from your parents' farm for over three hours.
2) Stay away from the market for at least an hour after getting into town.
Quest Rewards: 1) 5,000 XP and 25,000 Cash Points
2) 15,000 XP and 75,000 Cash Points
Penalty for Failure: Death
Do you accept this quest?
Y/N
Gato looked at the text box in front of him. He noticed that the choice for N, whatever that was, was gray compared to the Y choice. Why is that the case? I don’t get it…
“Son, what are you looking at?”
“Mother, do you see a strange floating panel of text in front of me? Does anyone else see it, even?”
Gato looked around to see what the others had to say.
“No, Gato, I don’t think we see anything along those lines. Are you sure there’s something there?”
Gato’s father gave him a concerned look.
“It could be my imagination,” Gato said, scratching the back of his neck. “Sorry to bother you all about this.”
He shrugged before he moved his right index finger to the Y option. I wonder… what is this supposed to be good for?
As he pressed the Y option, the panel of text went away, making him jump back in shock.
“Are you okay, Gato?”
Gato gave a sidelong glance to the one who spoke. “I hope so, Delaz.”
As far as Gato could tell, he was less inclined to agree that things were all sunshine and roses as he understood it, yet he couldn’t say that. Why? It wasn’t like he could not speak his mind effectively.
No, what was going to happen would be far and away worse than anything they had ever expected for the day. It just wouldn’t be until way later that anyone had a clue about why, though.
Gato’s father clapped his hands together. “Okay, everyone, it’s time to give Gato his gifts.”
“Yes, Father, we understand.”
Every single one of Gato’s siblings said that in unison.
Well, let’s see what the gifts are, shall we?
“Before that, though, Gato needs the shopping list and the money to pay for everything.”
Gato’s mother pulled out a chalkboard tablet and a small bag from behind her back.
Oh, right, the shopping list is on the tablet… and how much money is in the bag?
“Diana, how much did you put into the coin pouch?”
Gato’s father voiced the question he himself was thinking of.
“Well, if I’m not mistaken, the town guard at Alfheimwood takes 15 copper pieces as a fee for entering the town, Alexander. With the state of things going on in the region as we know it, the farm needs a superb source of income. If only the town guard didn’t take nearly as much money as he does, but, well…” Gato’s mother shrugged. “It is what it is.”
Man, talk about a price hike… I remember that the entry fee for Alfheimwood was originally a fifth of the current price just two days ago!
“That didn’t answer my question, though, yet it brings up another one. How did you learn about the entry fee going up?”
Gato’s father asked his wife.
“Oh, right, your question about the money in the coin pouch. I put in sixteen silver pieces and thirty copper pieces. As for how I learned about the entry fee going up, remember when we went to town two days ago?”
“Of course, I remember. Two days ago, we went to town to pick up a specialty order you put in from Royal Sylvania. Why you ordered that black powder, I’ll never understand.”
Black powder? Wait, I hope it’s not explosive…
“Don’t worry about it, dear. Just consider it something for the farm’s future. Where was I? Oh, right. The town guard informed me that the Lord Mayor of Alfheimwood decreed the price increase to ensure bandits never got into the town. The increased fee took effect yesterday.”
Gato’s mother gave her testimony for the reason.
“Okay, dear, I see. Now, let’s give Gato his presents, shall we?”
Everyone in the room nodded, even as Gato took the tablet and coin pouch off his mother’s hands.
#
Time and Date: 07:50, 19th day of the third Fire Month, Year 6835 of the Divine Calendar
Location: Just outside the Southern Town Gate of Alfheimwood, Riddle Barony, Sylvania
~~~
Man… what time was it when I left home for town? About six in the morning? Well, either way, I’m sure glad Father gave me his scabbard that works as a collapsible shield, Gato thought. Now, if only I could remember what that referenced by complete and utter accident.
He had the family longsword in the scabbard, which was slung over his back, even as he guided the oxen along the path to the southern gate of the town. There was time for introspection for now, but he didn’t know if that would last.
Of course, the fact is, I need to figure out what my family’s gifts are supposed to be. My siblings kept insisting that they were lucky charms of some sort, though I don’t know why, not one bit. If they really were lucky charms, they wouldn’t be radiating that much power, would they?
He pulled out the pouch containing the gifts from his siblings. It was times like this when he wished he could figure out what the gifts really were. His ability as a person might even depend on this being discovered.
“Halt!”
Gato pulled the reins on the oxen, getting them to stop. It was one of the town guards who had stopped him, holding a battle ax in a bracing position. “Thanks for getting me to stop. I don’t want to know what would have happened if I continued without a care in the world.”
“I understand. Tell me, though. What brings you into town today, decked out with a longsword on your back?”
“I had a bad feeling about today, sir, so my father let me borrow the family sword to protect myself with.”
The town guard loosened his posture, moving his battle ax upright and to one side, before he held out his free hand. “Is that the fee for entering town today?”
Gato looked at the pouch in his hand briefly. “No, sir, this isn’t. I have it, though, but not in this hand.” He put the pouch full of gifts away again before pulling out the money bag. “Here’s the money bag on me. I heard it was 15 copper pieces I need to pay in order to enter today?”
“Yes, you heard right. Please count out the coins you need to pay.”
Gato nodded, pulling out all 15 copper coins one by one. “I wonder why I have 30 copper pieces when the entry fee is 15?”
“Wait, you didn’t hear?”
“Hear what?”
The town guard planted his face in his free hand. “Oh, brother… well, I’d better tell you what I know, then.” He raised his head and coughed into a fist he made with his free hand. “The Lord Mayor of the town has it in mind to arrest bandits who think they can walk out of here after trying to sell goods they steal from honest merchants. Any bandits caught up in this have no chance of getting out of this without paying the fee they need to, especially if they want to avoid prison. This fee is the same amount as required to enter town.”
Gato blinked. “I see… so that’s why Mother gave me 30 copper pieces.”
“Yep. Now, could you please give me the 15 for entering town?”
Gato nodded and handed over the fee.
“Thank you for entering Alfheimwood, young man. Enjoy your stay.”
The guard stepped out of the way for Gato to continue on.
Gato nodded. “You’re welcome.”
As he rode the cart into town, however, he noticed that the marketplace, which was normally open for shoppers, seemed to be rather closed down. There were a lot of shoppers mingling around in the district, true, but they weren’t shopping.
He got off the cart and tied the oxen to a water trough. This ought to give them back their energy.
Looking around, he walked over to the marketplace. Why is nobody shopping right now?
“Hey, kid, are you looking for something?”
Huh?
Gato turned his attention to the one who spoke, who seemed to be behind him, only to see that there was nobody there.
That’s weird… where did they go?
He twisted his head around for a bit, looking around, before he caught sight of someone reaching for his money bag from behind.
Oh, no you don’t!
Gato snaked a hand down to catch the offending limb, moving a lot faster than he would have expected. “And just what do you think you’re doing?”
Before the one who tried grabbing his money bag could say anything, however, the sound of rushing feet caught their attention. Gato looked at the source, to see it was a different town guard than the one who stopped him at the gate to town.
“Both of you are under arrest!”
Oh, you’ve got to be flipping kidding me!