Without any quest markers or rooms listed on my map, I had to systematically check every room like a sucker. There were prayer rooms, a library, a room full of scrolls interesting, some lavatory rooms, and then I looked over in the second big nave room at a stair well that spiralled up the tallest tower in the temple.
“Typical…”
“Har… har… har… too… many… freakin… stairs…”
The room was completely domed in stained-glassed windows where the sky shone through, there was a sense of divine power watching over the room and an eerie tingling sensation washed over me. The whole world beneath was a blink away, even strange sand storms on the ocean-turn-desert were visible from up here, it was like a slow-moving tsunami of sand rolling in from the horizon.
“Ahrmm.”
It was another greasy old white guy in a bath robe made of bed sheets.
“Umm, hi…”
He slowly looked over at me like a dirty rag blown in from the street, though I knew that that was probably just how he was programmed.
“Can I help you?”
“Yeah, listen, I need a teleport to Celestia?”
He harrumphed and lifted his nose up at me and I swear I could see a malnourished nerd seeking vengeance on all who had wronged him when he coded this NPC.
“Only those whom have been [Baptised] in the church of Holy, may seek the blessings of teleportation,” he said and then proceeded to thumb through a massive book on a pedestal.
“Ex-cuse-me?”
“Can I help you?” he repeated and gave me the same contemptuous look as before.
“How do I become [Baptised]?”
“Only those that prove their faith become [Baptised].”
Quest – [Holy Baptism]
─ Objectives: Learn the secrets of the holy order.
─ Requirements: Must be [Holy Knight] or [Holy Mage]
Bugger…
What was I going to do if I couldn’t get to a beginner zone, it was all a big bloody cock up.
Okay, whatever, don't worry about it, concentrate on what you can do...
I hobbled and grumbled to the main square, it was littered with market stalls. There was one stall with armour equipment and outfits laid out on their table, they glistened in the evening sun.
Guess there was some [Appraise] or [Inspect] skill that I was currently lacking, but it was obvious most everything was class and level restricted or at least completely out of my price range.
What was I thinking, ordinarily the display items were just art and weren’t real?
“Excuse me, can I see your wares?”
“Welcome to Za’Mir’s merchandise!” A boxed window opened in my vision, and I blinked the tired out of my eyes to examine it.
Item
Level
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Stats
Restrictions
Price
Steel Breastplate
40
Defence 49
Class Restriction: WAR, DRK, PAL, CAV
42,356a
Studded Leather Vest
30
Defence 31
Class Restriction:
WAR, MSK, THF, DRK, PAL, RNG, BRD, SAM, NIN, DRG, ARC, HUN, ROG, BAR, CAV, BMG
32,988a
Steel Helm
37
Defence 21
Class Restriction: WAR, DRK, PAL, CAV
29,741a
Plate Leggings
38
Defence 35
Class Restriction: WAR, DRK, PAL, CAV
23,956a
Borderland Tunic
18
Defence 15, DEX +1
19,021a
Borderland Sallet
19
Defence 5, SPR +1
14,053a
Borderland Gloves
20
Defence 4, VIT +1
13,987a
Borderland Pants
20
Defence 9, STR +1
17,579a
Of course, it’s different from the physical display items. Though, none of this is within my level range, or price range. Hah! The shop menu displays all the details, like level, stats, and… restrictions.
It wasn’t exactly like I was in a starter town, this was one of the new towns created at the edge of Divinity, meant for accomplished adventuring characters.
If I can’t buy anything, perhaps I can sell something.
A few of the random items I pilfered from the cavern were showing nil values.
Urgh, that’s so annoying how certain items have no value with NPCs! Fine, whatever, I’ll just sell what I can.
Unable to sell ‘Hermes Ring’.
Za’Mir’s Mechandise has insufficient funds to purchase that item.
“Ahhh! Is this world against me or something?!”
There was a weird twitch in my eye, my body was trying to tell me something that I had been ignoring all day, before I knew it my legs had trudged me all the way to a nice little place next to the Adventurer’s Guild, its sign had a little frog sleeping in a bed on it.
The inn of the town was called [The Frog’s Pond], it was a three-storey house made of timber and stone walls, very European-esque. Inside on the ground floor Kappa and Finfolk huddled at two long serving tables that ran the length of the room and a bar on the opposite end to the entrance, to the right of that were some stairs, presumably to the guest rooms.
The cafeteria was rife with chatter, mostly about inconsequential things like the price of fish or joining the guard, other chatter was…
“Did you hear one of the princesses of Kristian has come to broker peace with the Beastmen?”
“Hyrrendal will sooner rise from the grave before that comes to past!”
“I wouldn’t put it past the dark dragon…”
The two patrons looked at each before sighing and drowning their sorrows.
I made my way to the bar and flagged down the Cat-girl.
“Hi there, I’d like to rent a room please.”
She wore a linen garb with puffy white sleeves, it was tight around her chest, but that didn’t stop things from bouncing around.
“Aww hello, miau!”
Her cute voice made my cheeks flush.
“ , and it comes with breakfast, purrhaps you’d like to stay a few nights?” She leant over the counter and suddenly I found it hard to think straight.
“Um, ahh, yesss, yes of course, three nights please.” I all but blurted out.
Damn, how did that happen, I really just wanted to stay one night to figure things out. But wait, also, that’s weird, normally you’d have ot pay one night at a time.
“Umm, do you have any food available?” She showed me a menu.
Item
Price
Stock
Grilled Hare
200
99
Fish Broth
250
52
Carrot Broth
250
46
Plate of Anchovies
1,000
7
Milk
100
25
Melon Juice
1,000
25
Tomato Juice
500
25
Salted Sardine Recipe
1,295
1
Pickled Herring Recipe
1,436
1
Tomato Juice Recipe
415
1
They can’t be serious?! 250 Aurem for a carrot or fish broth, 200 for some grilled hare, or 1,000 for anchovies? I didn’t even bother scrolling down the list, I had some long-life food from home that would keep me going for a couple of days. I trudged upstairs and to my room for the next three days.
It was a simple wooden clad room with open windows with wooden shutters. I dumped my backpack to the floor and collapsed on the bed.
This kind of world was supposed to be exciting for someone like me, like who wouldn’t go ga-ga over Adventurer Guilds and Weapon shops, but I kinda wish I could just go home…
Sunlight broke into the room uninvited and wreaked havoc upon my sleep-in…
Piss off sun, I’m not getting up…What’s the point?! What the point of anything? Nothing matters now anyways. My friends are dead.
“Get up!” imaginary Jonas shouted at me.
I wasn’t going to get up, but...
The swell in my belly was threatening to explode. But there was nothing in the room to foot the urinary bill though.
Why would there not be a toilet in the room, though thinking about it, there wasn’t really any toilets in IFO, maybe implied but not graphically. It’s not like NPCs ever had to go to the bathroom, maybe they do now…?
The room had a small writing table, a bucket, and a bed I was reluctant to leave but had little choice.
Not even a bedpan… Just a bucket, surely not, surely NPCs don’t use a freakin bucket.
The windows opened onto the alleyway below, and the smell answered everything. I am not peeing into a freakin bucket! Sharp pain spiked in my lower abdomen. Faaa!!!
Liquid streamed into the wooden bucket until it petered precariously close to the brim.
“Ahh…” I’m a disgusting human being. Now, what the eff do I do with the bucket?
Gurgle, grumble, rumble. Oh jeezuz, what I’d kill for a big breakfast… with smashed avo, those tiny little sausages, freshly grilled mushrooms, with, with… herbs on top, oh and! A milkshake!!!
Thankfully my bag was packed as per the advice of the Game World Migration department. I downed some of my water supply as quickly as I could. “Ahhh…”.
There were also muesli bars in my bag, a nice easy, simple breakfast. I tore the wrapper off and it disintegrated into dust and fell through my fingers.
“What the hell?!” Ehh, whatever. I bit down into a block of ash and a bitter taste filled my mouth, like charcoal or dust. Urrragh! “What the eff is going on?!” Even the muesli bar turned to ash. I looked at another closely.
404 Error; contains 404 Error
Hardiness: 0, Durability: 0.01
“Noooo?” Is this why I don’t have any shoes?