Jake stumbled slightly as the light faded, the feeling of weightlessness fading with it as well.

Blinking the spots from his eyes, he looked around him, taking in the cobbled square and streets, the buildings around him built solidly and made of a grey stone, a far cry from his own town. Shaking himself off, he glanced to his side, glad to see that Eta was still with him, the Shadow Wolf seeming to be just as disorientated as he was.

“Jakey!” the familiar voice called, Jake turning to see the muscular man, dressed in dusty orange armour, walking towards them, a wide smile on his face.

“Andy?” Jake asked, the man quickly hooking an arm around his shoulders.

“Woah, careful there,” Andy whispered, “No real names in game, Jakey, though I guess that doesn’t count much for you. How’ve you been?”

“Good,” Jake smiled, “Just…a lot has happened.”

“Tell me about it,” Andy laughed, suddenly going serious, “No, really, tell me all about it. I know bits and pieces from your sporadic messages, but I want the full story.”

“Sure,” Jake nodded, looking around the square again, noticing that it was surprisingly empty, only people he assumed were natives walking around, a few glancing their way as they passed, “Where is everyone?”

“Huh? Oh, logged out,” Andy hummed as he started to lead Jake and Eta away, “You arrived about an hour after most full-timers left, so there’s only a few actual players around, and most of them are out doing Quests and hunting right now.”

“I see,” Jake nodded, “Wait…full-timers?”

“What players call those of us that play for the full twelve hours,” Andy explained, “Though I guess that doesn’t apply to you or me anymore, considering we’re in Pods.”

“Oh, okay,” Jake nodded, following behind the chatty man as they entered a tavern, Jake catching a glimpse of the sign outside, reading ‘The Full Basket’.

“Morning, Lilly,” Andy called to one of the servers as the three of them entered, “Two breakfast specials, please!”

Eta let out a low growl, startling Andy as he seemed to notice the wolf for the first time.

“Oh, sorry, and something for my friend’s pet,” he quickly added, Eta nodding.

They sat at a table in the back, the food quickly arriving and being set down in front of them, Andy diving into it with gusto. Jake looked at the breakfast platter set out in front of him, bacon, eggs, and a large steaming roll beside it and started to eat as well. The server quickly brought out a large metal bowl filled with meat for Eta, the wolf also eating happily. The three remained silent as they ate, Andy waiting until Jake had finished before talking again.

“So,” he said to Jake, “Start talking. From the start.”

Jake nodded as he started his story, beginning with his strange experience in the Character Creator and Fate Store, to appearing in the Dark Woods. He told Andy about how he’d managed to beat the Giant Shadow Rat, and then been killed by the corrupted Shadow Wolves. He detailed his experiences with the Quests Gaia had given him, then the fight against the Alpha, and curing Luna. When he started to explain how he’d gotten the town, Andy was already slack jawed at the tale, completely enthralled. By the time Jake finished, the man had placed his head in his hands, his shoulders shaking slightly.

“I can’t believe you, Jakey,” Andy chuckled, fighting back a full laugh, “You seriously did all that in what? Like nine days in game?”

“Yeah,” Jake nodded, reaching down to pet Eta as the wolf snoozed beneath the table, “It was…a lot.”

“I’ll say. And what level are you now? Actually, better idea, accept this party invite.”

Goldrun Strongarm has invited you to join his Party.

Accept?

Y/N?

Jake quickly accepted, Andy doing something to the air in front of him before letting out a low whistle.

“Level thirteen?” he said, “You are definitely the highest-level player on the server then, I haven’t seen anyone else over level six yet. Including my regular group.”

“Sorry,” Jake blushed slightly at the words, “I didn’t do it on purpose.”

“Nah, it’s cool, Jakey,” Andy laughed, slapping Jake on the shoulder, “I’m only a little jealous. Anyway, we have some work to do over the next three days.”

“We do?” Jake blinked.

“Yep, gotta save up for that Guild Token,” Andy nodded, “Cheapest one goes for a whole gold piece, and that only lasts for a week IRL. The one that’s permanent is a thousand gold, but that’s long-term stuff, we just have to get started for now.”

“Oh,” Jake smiled, “If it’s only a thousand gold, then it shouldn’t be a problem.”

------

Amelia Hart smiled as she walked the empty streets, ignoring the NPCs as they went about their usual business. She really did prefer the times when the rabble wasn’t on, a few days of peace from the constant requests for parties and Guild invites. Now she was free of all that, at least for the time being, and could focus properly on herself.

“I see you have grown stronger,” the familiar voice of her Class Trainer said, Amelia turning to look at him as he stepped out of the shadows of an alleyway, “A good thing.”

“It’s not enough,” she shook her head, “I need to get stronger than this if I want to succeed.”

“A drive is good, but you are working yourself perhaps too hard,” the man sighed, “Resting and reflecting on what you have learned and experienced is as important as gaining levels and Skills.”

“I understand that,” Amelia nodded, “Which is why I have no plans to go hunting today. I shall simply relax and reflect on what I have gained, as you have said.”

“Good,” the man nodded, “Now then, why not share your insights with me. Perhaps I could gleam some things you have not from them and assist you on your road to greatness?”

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“Gladly,” Amelia nodded, the Spellsword telling the man of her latest defeat of the Kobold Tinkerer and realisation that she wasn’t going to gain any more experience from it.

“You have the gist of it,” the Trainer hummed, “You shall not gain more insights should you only pit yourself against the same enemies over and over again. No, you must seek out new prey with each conquest to truly grow.”

“I realise that now,” Amelia replied, looking up at the man as he walked beside her, “But there isn’t much around here that poses much of a challenge for me anymore. When can I move on to the nearest city?”

“You must first reach level ten,” the man answered, “Then the Adventurer’s Guild will be able to give you a gate pass for Eversun, the closest city to this town.”

“I see,” Amelia hummed, opening her Character Screen, and checking her level, “I am already level seven, so that won’t be too long. That is, if I can find a proper challenge to get me through the next few levels.”

“You already have,” the Trainer smiled kindly at her, “You just haven’t located it yet. Think of the enemies you have faced so far. Is there one that should have a powerful foe at its helm?”

“A powerful foe at it’s helm?” Amelia hummed, looking ahead of her as she ran through the enemies she had fought so far.

“I shall leave you to your musing,” the man nodded, stepping into another alleyway as they passed it, “Best of luck, young Spellsword. I look forward to your progress.”

------

“I can’t believe this,” Andy sighed as the pair stood outside the Adventurers’ Guild building, having just walked out, “How much did you earn for breaking the game again?”

“Two hundred thousand gold coins,” Jake said, looking at the black palm-sized token in his hand, “Though I’ve already invested about thirty thousand of that into my town and new manor house.”

“That is an insane amount of money, Jakey,” Andy shook his head, “Even before the real-world exchange has been established, you could probably buy anything you wanted without putting too much of a dent in it.”

“Real-world exchange?” Jake asked, Andy chuckling.

“Right, you’re still a noob,” the man said, quickly explaining himself, “The real-world exchange refers to being able to cash out money in game for credits IRL. The value of GNW’s coins hasn’t been established yet, so it’s still not active, but give it a month or two in the real and you’ll see folks suddenly drowning in cash as they dump their credits into the game and vice versa.”

“Oh,” Jake nodded, looking at the token again, “So, should I use this now?”

“Nah, you need at least five people to activate it,” Andy hummed, “So we have to wait for the rest of my usual party to log back in. And they’ll finally have to admit that you’ve been real all along!”

“Real all along?” Jake smirked, “What have you been telling them about me?”

“Just about everything,” Andy shrugged, chuckling along with his friend, “Anyway, let’s get moving. I want to show you around town.”

“Lead on, then,” Jake nodded as they walked away from the Guild building, ignoring the few players that were staring at them, particularly Jake.

------

“You really think that’s him?” one of the three people sitting around the table in the Adventurers’ Guild muttered to the other two as they watched the pair walk away, “The Firster?”

“Did you see his gear? Had to be,” the leader of their small group muttered back, “I tried using [Observe] on him, and all I got was a bunch of question marks. His pet though…it was level fifteen.”

“A level fifteen wolf?” the third person of the group paled slightly, “How did he manage that?”

“I don’t know, and don’t really care,” the leader hummed, “But we get in good with him, and we’ll be coasting to high levels and loads of coins in no time.”

“Yeah, but how do we do that? I heard the tank talking about his party, so they already have a full group, probably,” the second man sighed.

“Yeah, but they’re all full-timers,” the leader grinned, “Which means they’re probably logged out right now. A perfect opportunity for us off-timers to jump in and make an impression!”

“If you say so,” the third man sighed, “It sucks that we have to play when there’s no one else around, but I guess it’ll be good to have a proper tank.”

“Oi, you think I’m not good enough?” the leader huffed at the Healer of their group.

“I spend most of my Mana just keeping you upright,” the robed man grunted, “I was just saying that a proper tank would reduce that burden.”

“Trent has a point, Flame,” the third man sighed, “You do rush into things, and you’re a Fighter, not a proper tank.”

“Not my fault that that old bastard that teaches the Defender Class is boring as fuck and insisted on me having to use a shield, Blake,” Flame growled, “I couldn’t stand to hear his boring ass stories any longer, so I just went with Fighter. All I had to do was beat up a guy for that.”

“Whatever,” Blake muttered, “So, are we going to give this go? Or are we just gonna sit here on our asses all day?”

------

“And this is the Auction House,” Andy said happily as they stood outside the ornately decorated building, “A hive of scum and villainy, if you’re a merchant, anyway.”

“And what does it do?” Jake asked as they walked up the stairs and entered, revealing a large open space with several people standing around, all dressed in various types of armour, “And I thought you said no one else was playing right now?”

“Oh, those are probably off-timers,” Andy hummed as they approached the counter, a few of the players looking up at them to stare at Jake and Eta, “That means that they don’t play during the usual times, like we used to. You’ll see more of them out in the fields and forests around Dusk Keep.”

“I see,” Jake nodded, “And the Auction House?”

“It lets players sell and buy stuff from each other, for a fee,” Andy hummed, “Though most of the stuff on the boards right now is pretty low tier, and super expensive.”

“Okay,” Jake nodded as they reached the front desk, a young human woman greeting them warmly.

“Hello, and what can I do for you today?” she asked, Jake glancing at Andy as he waved him forwards, “Are you looking to buy or sell?”

“Uhm…buy, I guess?” Jake shrugged, the woman nodding as the screen appeared in front of Jake, showing a long list of various types of items.

Most were Iron weapons and armour, the majority covered in rust and dents, though a few looked shiny and new. Those ones were particularly expensive, most being at least one gold coin each, though that hardly mattered to Jake with his apparent fortune. Looking back at Andy, he spoke.

“What should I get?”

“Dunno,” the large man shrugged, his armour creaking slightly at the movement, “I mean, it might be a good idea to just buy a bunch of Common Quality equipment so you don’t stand out too much, but I also know that Miri would kill me if I didn’t at least suggest you buy up some mats.”

“Miri? Mats?” Jake asked.

“Crafter friend of one of my regular party members,” Andy answered, “And mats are materials, so leather and ingots and shit.”

“I see,” Jake nodded, turning back to the screen, “I like my current equipment though, so I think I’ll just buy some materials then.”

“Sure,” Andy laughed, watching as Jake waved his hands in front of him, selecting a number of items. Then some more. And even more after that. He began to sweat slightly as Jake continued, before finally speaking, “How much are you buying, Jakey?”

“Oh, about fifty items,” Jake hummed, “All the iron ingots on sale, and some armour for you.”

“For me?” Andy blinked, “Dude! No, that’s cool and all, but I don’t need it! Miri will craft me a full set once we have enough mats from the Goblin Lord World Boss!”

“Oh,” Jake said, looking at Andy guiltily, “I may have already bought it all.”

“What?” the Defender groaned, “How much?”

“A hundred and twelve ingots, and a full set of Iron Armour,” Jake said, “Sorry.”

“Nah, it’s your money,” Andy shook his head, “I just wouldn’t feel right about taking any more from you after the whole FD Rig thing.”

“It’s a gift,” Jake said, pulling the full set of armour from his inventory and holding it out to Andy, who just shook his head.

“I’ll take it, but you have to learn how to trade, first,” he muttered under his breath, moving to hide the armour with his body.

“Trade?” Jake asked, blinking as the screen appeared in front of him.

Goldrun Strongarm has requested a Trade.

Accept?

Y/N?

Jake accepted, putting the full set of armour into his side of the trade, Andy placing a single copper coin in his, before it lit up.

“Accept the trade, Jakey,” Andy hummed, Jake spotting the button at the bottom of the screen, pressing it, “Damn, but that must have cost a bundle. What are you going to do with the ingots, though?”

“I was going to give them to your crafter friend,” Jake shrugged, Andy just shaking his head as he started to laugh.