Chapter 3

Level up

I looked back at the door I had just walked through, and to my surprise, the stone wall began to suck in the door like quicksand, making it disappear into its stone body.

The only thing that remained was a stone wall with no traces of the door that had just been there a second ago. Which meant there was no turning back now.

I looked in front of me and saw another corridor, to my displeasure.

The sword and shield in my bony hands felt good, not that I could feel their surface, but it felt good to have something to protect myself with, who knows what I would encounter in this dungeon, though luckily every monster I had encounter had been friendly, but nonetheless, it felt good to have a weapon for protection.

I could still see the rectangular text boxes of the sword and shield telling me what I already knew. Which was quite annoying, feeling like I was playing with the start menu on, wondering just how to switch it off, there must be a way, or else this was going to be quite cumbersome to my enjoyment of the game.

And yes, I was certain I was playing a game, I just hadn’t figured out how to log off, yet.

I looked at my weapon and wondered just who exactly I was supposed to use this weapon against. I don’t think I could use them against monsters considering I was one of them, but then again, there was such a thing as friendly fire.

Or perhaps I was supposed to use them against another enemy, a more human one.

Was I perhaps an npc in a dungeon?

I stopped.

I had arrived at an arched entrance of some kind, except there was no door, only a dark spot where a door was supposed to be. I looked back at the corridor, the dimly lit torch lights were flickering my shadow on the walls. I looked at the darkness in the middle of the arched entrance, trying to decipher what could be at the other end, but I saw nothing, not even a text box telling me anything.

I tightened my grip on my sword and shield and proceeded to walk into the darkness, and just as I got close, a text box appeared.

“Would you like to enter? YES / NO."

This is it, once I pick my answer, there was no going back, I imagined myself swallowing my saliva as if I was still human, preparing myself to fight whatever was at the other end, after all, for what other reason was I given a sword and shield and pointed toward this direction.

“YES,” I said, doubting my voice would be heard, but to my surprise, the text box did register my voice for the “YES” option began to glow. And the next thing I remember was the darkness of the archway swallowing me.

The room was dimly lit just like the corridor I had come from. The same stones made up the walls and floors of the room, there was also a pair of skulls scattered on the floor and in the middle of the room, there was a small wooden treasure chest.

There were other skeletons, just like me, who also had swords and shields.

They were walking aimlessly around the room.

I looked around and counted five of us, we looked just like carbon copies of each other, I also saw text boxes floating above their heads,

“Lvl 1 Skeleton,” the text boxes read,

“Lvl 2 , Lvl 3, Lvl 4.”

They were all low levels, which meant my level was probably the same as them.

I could also see the same box of text on the weapons they were carrying as well.

“Basic sword and shield.”

I looked at the treasure in the middle, it also had a floating text box above its wooden body.

“ Small treasure, contents unknown, ?????”

My eyes almost felt like they were having a screen overload due to all the textboxes, I wanted to turn them off, but I didn’t know how, yet.

“H-Hello,” I tried to say, no idea why, for I was sure only empty air would leave me, but to my surprise the skeletons turned to me. I had no idea if they understood me, or if they too were other players like me, which I doubt it, for they looked to be very dead, and it wasn’t the fact that they were skeletons like me, there was this empty feeling around them.

But yet, their stares made me feel like some newly hired employee trying to make small talk.

“U-um….” All those years of social isolation came back to me like a wave ready to drown me.

I was never much of a talker growing up. But thankfully, they turned back to whatever they were doing, ignoring me.

Upon further inspection, I noticed that they weren’t walking aimlessly but that there was a certain pattern to their movements.

They were all walking around the chest like sharks circling their prey, always keeping a distance.

I walked to the treasure chest in the middle of the room, trying to get a closer look, but to my surprise, all the skeletons stopped. Their hollow eyes laying heavy on my bones, which made me feel awkward, I had become , to my displeasure, the center of attention once again.

I could feel myself getting red, though I knew I wasn’t literally, but metaphorically, I was blushing.

I walked past the treasure chest, fainting ignorance of them who were causing my social anxiety , and as I did, their eyes left me and they continue to go back to their walking, or circling to be more precise, around the chest, keeping their distance from it.

I stood at the corner, watching them. I hope I’m not some grunt or something cause that would suck.

Did I pick the wrong class or job? I tried to remember anything that would tell me how I ended up here, but nothing. My mind felt like it was covered in a dark mist that was clouding my memories.

I knew they were there, but I couldn’t reach them. So I just stood at the corner like some nerdy eight grader at their middle school dance that had no one to dance with, staring at the empty eye sockets of the skeletons as they walked by me. This room, I’m guessing, was ours to guard, and that treasure was ours to protect with our life. I wonder was in it ?

I don’t think is something good, for the treasure chest looked basic, its wooden body looking less impressive than the treasure chests that adorned the armory. Now those were treasures.

If this was a dungeon, which I was sure of it, that meant there were other rooms just like these, and with different monsters as well.

“Monsters,” those words engulfed my head, I don’t remember picking a skeleton monster as my avatar, Heck, I don’t remember anything leading up to me being stuck here…. Damn it! I could feel my memories floating in my head, it was as if I was staring at them through a foggy window, if only…

I don’t remember just how long I had been standing by the corner, perhaps it was a few seconds, or minutes or maybe hours. Time seemed to stopped for me in this room.

“This is so boring,” I said , not caring whether my bony co-workers understood me.

The endless waiting was killing me, figuratively. I don’t think these VRMMORPG games just have you sitting and waiting around.

This was still an RPG game after all.

Where was the beginning village where you start out? The npcs’ with the quests ? The low level monster fields where you would grind levels? I wanted all of that and not to be literally a part of the low level monsters themselves.

I placed my weapon down, which to my surprise, cause the skeletons to turn their heads to me,

“S-sorry,” I said, instinctively ,picking it up, their heads going back to whatever they were doing.

I sat down and watched them, it didn’t seem like the skeleton monsters care that I just stood here, doing nothing. As long as I didn’t approach the treasure chest or let go of my weapons, they ignore me, which was fine.

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I looked around the room, and to my surprise, I saw two dark arched entrances that I hadn’t notice before.

One was to my left and the other one was at what looked to be the front of the room.

“Stupid, stupid,” I said, feeling stupid for not noticing them earlier. But I could’ve sworn they weren’t there before. I got up and began to walk to the one closest to me, and as I got closer the arched entrance disappeared.

I walked back and forth, and the arched entrance would appear and disappear, it was almost like a mirage.

Great ! now I’m losing my mind too. Wondering where the log off button was, because this game was making be bored out of my mind and now it was making me see things.

And just when I was going to walk toward the treasure chest and see if the skeletons would attack me, I heard voices coming from the darkness of the disappearing arched entrance that was in front of the room.

“I can’t believe we have to start from the first room again,” one of the voices said, it was a male voice. I tightened my grip on my sword and shield. Finally I was going to get some action.

‘Yes, and who’s fault is that, besides, this room is easy, is just filled with low level skeleton monsters, one cast of a divinity spell and boom, done.” Another voice said, this voice was more sure of itself, there was a certain confidence to it that the other voice didn’t have.

His words made me recall some of my RPG knowledge, if I was a skeleton monster, that meant I was an undead, which meant divine magic was super effective against me.

I imagined myself swallowing my saliva, I didn’t know why. It was as if death, my death, was a possibility, which was silly, I was, after all, inside the game, so why should I worry about death.

“Let’s get this over with.”

The arched entrance became clear as day as they walked out of it, no longer being a mirage I thought I saw.

There were clothed in the stereotypical garments you find a mage and two knights in.

The mage had on a robe of pink and yellow, she was female, and cute. She looked to be in her early twenties, and she was the one to avoid if I wanted to continue to live.

One of the knights was a big stocky guy clad in a heavy red armor that covered every inch of his flesh.

He had brown short hair, and looked to be as old as the young girl. He was carrying a broad sword on his back.

The other knight looked to be ripped straight out of a fantasy story. He was clad in an armor of white and blue with a wing symbol protruding out of his chest plate. He had long blonde hair, piercing blue eyes, and a sharp, handsome face. He looked like some hero out of any girls dream.

And I also notice, as I looked at them, the floating text boxes on them as well,

“ Eliana, Divine Mage- Lvl 25,” the box floating above the young mage read,

“HP 123 MP 200”

“Saul knight in training Lvl 27 ,” the heavier knight of the two,

“HP 200 MP 56.”

But the one that caught my attention was the handsome one, and it wasn’t because of his looks.

“Erion Knight ??? Lvl ??? HP ??? MP ??” his text box read, he was the dangerous one. And the one I needed to really keep an eye out, I looked around at my skeleton brothers to see what our gameplay was, but to my displeasure, they were not one for cooperation for they rushed at them like mindless mobs.

“Aggro them, Saul,” the knight named Erion said,

“I know,” the one named Saul said, lifting his sword into the air, text boxes of their equipment filled my eyes . Which was beginning to be a detriment to my vision, which I needed now more than ever if I was going to survive them.

“Attract,” Saul said, and as he said that, his words filled me, and no doubt my other skeleton buddies as well, with a sense of attraction and lust, as if there was nothing but him in the room. Shit! he must have used an aggro attack meant to attract our attention, and as much as I tried to fight it, my body moved on its own. And along with the other skeletons, I began to rush the knight named Saul. Shit! was all I could think of as I found myself before this knight, attacking him along with the other skeletons, my body may have been trapped by him, but not my eyes, for I watched the mage begin her incantation.

‘I’ll hold them off, Eliana, and cast a divine spell, let’s get this over with.” The knight said, as we attacked him, our weapons were barely chipping at his health, and whatever damage we did was healed just as fast as it was done.

I noticed the other knight was standing in the back, just watching his other two group members.

Shit! Shit!

I need to find some way to get out before I’m dice meat.

‘Divine lighting,” the young mage said, and a burst of lighting shot out of her staff, striking each one of us, and sending us flying away from the knight.

The lighting ran through my body as I landed next to the treasure chest. I wanted to scream as pain surged throughout my bones, no doubt destroying any life in them. And, for the first time, I felt a real emotion, fear.

Smoke came out of my bones as if they just had been burned to cinder, But luckily I was still alive or else I wouldn’t be here, talking. Just go, please, was the only think I could think of as I laid on the floor with my fallen brethren.

“See, easy peasy,” Saul said,

“You miss one,” his words send a chilled down my bones.

I wanted to move, but I couldn’t. The fear of death had awaken in me, and I didn’t like it one bit. This game was proving to be too real for my taste now.

“Did I,” the knight said, slamming his sword and crushing one of the skeleton that was besides his feet with ease.

And as I saw his health bar reached zero, I prayed that they wouldn’t notice me. And unfortunately, someone must have heard my prayers, because a skeleton began to move his body next to me, his movements looking like the last muscle spasms before death, to my luck.

“HP 1” his text box read.

“Be quiet! Please !” I said, desperately, but it was useless, my words didn’t reach him, I was sure of it.

“Let’s get going, the treasure here is worthless, we still have three more floors to go before the day is over,” the handsome knight said, stopping the young mage from walking toward the treasure chest, which was next to me and the moving skeleton. And in that moment, I wanted to kiss that handsome knight and kill the skeleton that was moving next to me, even if we were both skeletons.

“Did you hear something?” the handsome knight said.

Shit! Shit! Shit! I began to panic,

“Stand still you idiot!” I tried to say, trying to get the skeleton next to me to understand my words , but only empty air left my jaw.

And in my desperation, I moved my arm, trying to stop the skeleton from moving any more, but in my pain, fear, and desperation, I had forgotten I still had my sword on my hand, and as I reached for the skeleton to stop him from moving any further, my sword hit him, killing him.

“HP 1 -1, “

"0"

A level up sound engulfed my ears.

And a large transparent blue text box appeared before me , displaying my stats for everyone to see.

Which I was sure that they would,

“It’s nothing lets go,” the handsome knight said, and a sigh of relief took me as they exited the room through one of the arched entrances , leaving behind a room full of death skeletons, and me.