Volume 1 - Chapter 8

Emma's Kitchen

Stepping out onto the streets during the day was exactly what I'd come to expect from this game's interpretation of a dangerous old city.

I knew Grimsborough Heights was only one district, and I started wondering about the others. There was no way that every player started out on equal footing.

My story was clearly meant to be difficult. I was poor and I had no idea what was going on. In part because I wasn’t intentionally looking for every possible advantage, but also because of my character's storyline.

I might need to adapt my play style, otherwise everything would be an uphill battle in this city.

Looming tenement buildings crowded the sidewalks, their brick facades crumbling and streaking with grime.

It was one thing to see the place at night, and another entirely during a late sunny morning.

Sedans and roadsters jockeyed for space on the street, with no lane markings or obvious driving standards.

I reminded myself that vehicles had only been affordable for about a decade in this game world. A lot of things we took for granted in the modern real world hadn't been normalized yet back in this time.

NPC drivers went wherever they wanted at whatever speed they felt like, and then they parked in every different direction imaginable. There didn't seem to be very many rules for the road.

I saw one driver cranking a handle on the front of his machine to start it, and then I saw two cars nearly collide before each one swerved away.

I took a moment to get my bearings, peering down the sidewalk in both directions. The diner Claude mentioned should be... that way, I decided with an inward shrug, setting off to my left.

It didn't really matter if I found the exact place Claude recommended. All that mattered was that I found somewhere to eat and then I went to Samuel Donovan's agency.

Weaving through clusters of loitering NPCs, I started feeling like all these people were victims of a harsh environment. The grey-names had sunken eyes and poor clothing, and it was all the more evident during daylight.

There only seemed to be a few good blocks in this entire district that were bustling. Everything else was slowly decaying.

I was once again awestruck by the details. A pungent aroma of trash and exhaust fumes wafted thick in the muggy air when I walked past alleyways.

A big silver bus with rounded curves drove by, full of workers headed off to some factory or plant.

After walking a little further I got lucky and found Emma's Kitchen.

The diner itself was a squat, unassuming location wedged between a boarded-up storefront and a bank. A battered metal awning extended over the cracked sidewalk, providing shelter from the sun.

As I pulled open the diner's front door, a small bell jangled overhead, announcing my arrival. The handful of occupants at the booths and countertop stools fell silent.

NPCs briefly turned to eye me. I was the newcomer, and they wanted to see who was entering their regular establishment. They looked at me with a mixture of curiosity and guarded suspicion.

It made sense. The NPCs usually did this in most games. I offered the regulars a tight smile and an inoffensive shrug before sliding onto a vacant stool at the far end of the counter.

Within seconds, a woman's voice called out from the kitchen. "Be right with ya, hon!"

True to her word, a heavyset woman in her fifties soon emerged, wiping her hands on a dingy apron. She looked very motherly and business minded at the same time. The woman fixed me with a warm look.

"Well now, I don't believe I've seen you 'round here before," she said, her tone carrying a lilting southern twang. "Emma's the name. Welcome to my place."

"Ethan," I answered with a polite nod. "Pleasure to meet you, Emma. I've been here a few months, but still new you could say."

Emma let out a hearty chuckle at that. "Ain't we all, sugar? Now, what can I get for ya? Today's special is a fried steak, covered in gravy made with caramelized onions."

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My mouth watered at the description. "You know what? That sounds incredible. I'll take it."

"One fried steak, comin' right up!"

As Emma bustled off to put in my order, I took a moment to glance around the diner. It was a quintessential greasy spoon, from the well-worn vinyl booths to the chipped ceramic mugs filled with endless coffee.

It was nice, in an old way. Comforting, almost, despite the seediness outside. I felt like I had stepped into a little slice of old America.

It was obviously designed to make me feel this way.

Before long, Emma reappeared, sliding an overflowing plate in front of me. With a prideful flourish, she said, "There ya go, darlin'."

I didn't need to be told twice. Forgoing any semblance of manners, I dug in with excitement, barely pausing to savor the first few amazing bites.

The meat was juicy and perfectly coated with a breading before it was fried. The caramelized onions gave bold flavor to a thick gravy.

It was simple food cooked to perfection.

Back in the real world, one of my favorite meals was a chicken fried steak covered in white gravy. Most places served the same powdered gravy mix, warmed up in a microwave oven, and poured over a steak that had more breading than meat.

That was good, but nothing special like this. Emma's Kitchen was exactly the sort of place I needed. If it was possible, I would come back to this place very often.

As I ate the meal, I caught glimpses of movement outside through the diner's streaked windows. Cars and pedestrians passed by. They were all grey-names.

Every few minutes I saw a blue-named player come and go. They were out there doing whatever missions they had been able to find, and they were mostly oblivious to me.

One player darted by the diner's windows, moving with an almost frantic urgency. Then they were gone just as quickly. It was a while before I saw another one, and I finished the hearty meal, feeling much better.

There was only one thousand players in the game. I had no idea how many districts existed. I looked at the achievements screen and saw the one I received for entering Grimsborough Heights.

The numbers showed me that all but one player who started in this district now had the achievement.

I laughed, thinking that someone out there hadn’t even managed to leave the threshold of their starting location yet.

I assumed the distribution of players between districts might not be evenly split. If approximately seventy-five players went to each district, then there were thirteen different areas making up the metropolis of New Horizon City.

It was amazing what conclusions could be drawn from playing a numbers game. I watched the other players come and go for a bit, until there was a long dry spell where I saw only NPCs.

When I was done eating, I received another notification.

Achievement: First Meal - You ate a meal in the game for the first time.

I ignored it, seriously thinking about turning them off.

Emma came by with the check a few minutes later, and I looked at the bill like there was a problem.

"Ten cents?" I asked, amazed. "You're kidding me, right?"

She just winked at me with a sly grin. "Like I said, sugar, my place ain't much, but it's humble. Now you just take your time and pay whenever, alright?"

Shaking my head in disbelief, I fetched a dollar out of my wallet and left it there. If I overpaid just to be kind, then I could get a full and satisfying meal for the grand total of a single dollar.

That wasn't a bad deal at all, considering a fast food joint in the real world was around ten bucks or more.

Then I realized two important things. There was no need to be overly kind in a game, and that it was weird to pay too much. The NPC would probably be kind to me even if I didn't overpay.

Secondly, I didn't know much about inflation, but I wondered if one dollar back in this time was like twenty dollars in my real world. That was way too much for a tip unless I was trying to be overly generous for clicks on my livestream.

Waiting for change was probably the smarter thing to do. First, I would learn what coinage did to my wallet. Second, I would still have plenty of money.

Doing the smart thing, I decided to wait for change. Emma came by a few minutes later and took the money.

She returned with my change, dropping a few coins on the counter with a clink. "There you go, hon. You take care of yourself out there, alright?"

I nodded, pocketing the coins. "Thanks, Emma. You too."

She flashed me a warm smile. I watched her for a moment, impressed by her ability to juggle so many tasks at once. The diner was bustling.

As I was about to leave, Emma came back. "Hey, just want to remind you, don't let the big city get you down, alright? It gobbles up players left and right, but you can make it. I have faith in you."

I was surprised by her words but I shouldn't have been. It felt like she was programmed to be a supportive NPC.

"Thanks, Emma. I appreciate it."

She nodded, her eyes filled with sincerity. "You know, I've been around a long time. Seen a lot of folks come and go. Some of 'em make it, some of 'em don't. But the ones who do, they're the ones who don't give up. They keep fighting, no matter what."

I felt inspired by her words. "I'll try my best, Emma."

She patted my hand. "Now, you go out there and show 'em what you're made of. And if you ever need a good meal or a friendly ear, you know where to find me."

I thanked her again. Emma's words had given me a much-needed boost of confidence. I may not have known what I was doing in the game, but I wasn't going to let the over-achievers like Stalvek Dyomin get to me.

Looking down at the change, I saw old coins I didn't usually have to deal with in the real world. Back there I was used to paying for things with a plastic card.

Emma had given me two quarters and four dimes. I left a dime for the tip and put the other five coins in my wallet. When I opened the screen to look, everything had gone into the same one slot that showed two dollars and eighty cents.

"Good."

I didn't need to worry about how to manage multiple coin and bill denominations. That was at least one less headache.

Another notification appeared.

Achievement: First Purchase - You purchased something with game currency for the first time.

Beside the new achievement, the number was 91.1%.

Once again, I didn't actually gain anything from the achievement, and I wondered how many seemingly useless notifications I would receive.

As I made my way towards the exit I gave Emma a grateful wave goodbye. This was a place that I would come back to many times, given the opportunity.

I realized my initial three dollars was going to stretch a lot further than I first thought, especially when being frugal.

Since things felt so cheap in the game, I wondered how much a weapon and vehicle might cost me.

I decided to worry about that later. Even though I wasn't sure what choice to make yet, it was time to find Samuel Donovan so I could complete my first mission.