The floating piece of stone slowly started to accelerate as they got further from the ground. Torches and stairs flashed by them as the group rocketed upwards. The wind howled in their ears loudly.
“Don’t worry!” Kat yelled over the din. “It’s only failed a few times! It’s one of the safest elevators in Volville.”
“That’s not particularly reassuring,” Elijah grumbled, but the wind took his words away. The circular platform continued upwards for a few more seconds before it jerked, slowing to a stop within the span of a few moments.
Miraculously, none of them got launched off the edge. The ceiling above them broke apart into multiple sections and twisted apart. Once it had finished moving, the platform rose up and it closed below them.
They stood in a room that should have been several times too large to fit within the tower. Old tapestries and paintings adorned the walls, dispersed between flickering orange torches. There was a long wooden table in the middle of the room with two sets of cutlery laid out.
A wisp of flame sprang to life in the center of the room, several feet above the floor. Before any of them could react, it expanded outwards, transforming into a bonfire before fading away to reveal a tall man in a beautiful red and gold embroidered robe. His face was clean shaven and youthful.
“Kat!” the man who Elijah presumed to be Master Porter said, a small grin stretching across his sharp features. “I didn’t realize you were bringing friends. Please, introduce us.”
“This is Elijah and Avery,” Kat said, gesturing to each of them in turn. She turned back to the man. “And this is Master Porter.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” Elijah said.
“Indeed,” Avery said.
“Likewise,” Porter said. “So, Kat, how did you come to meet your friends?”
Kat took a deep breath and began to speak at a rapid-fire pace. “Well, I got attacked by bandits and they tried to drown me but Elijah showed up and killed them all and saved me and then he and Avery escorted me all the way back to Volville.”
Porter blinked. He raised a hand and Kat snapped her mouth shut, blushing. “Slow down, Kat. You were attacked?”
“Within the city,” Kat said, shuddering. “They tried to drown me with some water spell.”
Porter’s face darkened and his brow furrowed in anger. “I am relieved to see that you are okay. We will have to reconsider your solo ventures if the cities have truly gotten this dangerous. It is fortunate for those bandits that they are already dead. My thanks to both of you.”
“It’s what any decent person would have done,” Elijah said.
“Then there are fewer decent people in this world than you believe,” Porter replied. “Please, join us for dinner. It’s the least I can do to show my appreciation. And, if there’s anything else I can help you with, please don’t hesitate to let me know.”
“They’re pretty new to the world, Master Porter,” Kat put in.
A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
“Then we can discuss business after dinner,” Porter said. “Kat, could you go get some plates for our guests?”
She nodded and walked over to a door at the far end of the room. She pulled it open, revealing the plain white interior of a kitchen for a moment before she stepped inside and closed the door behind her.
Porter walked over to the table and sat down at its head. He gestured to the seats beside him. Elijah and Avery walked over and sat at the man’s left side, across from the other plate that had already been laid on the table.
“So, tell me about yourselves,” Porter said. “I can tell that you’re rather new to the world as you’re only level five, but you’ve clearly got some ability if you managed to fend off bandits.”
“How do you know our levels?” Avery asked, cocking her head.
“Awakened Eyes. It’s an ability everyone gets at level ten,” Porter said. “It lets me see your basic stats and level.”
Porter raised his hand and tapped something invisible in the air before him. A gold screen flickered to life in the air before him. He spun the window so that they could see it.
Elijah (Dove) Fleet
Human [Level 5]
Class: Spellblade
Strength: 13
Agility: 15
Endurance: 12
Intelligence: 10
Wisdom: 17
Charisma: 19
Luck:3
“That’s convenient,” Elijah said. He mentally took note that his abilities didn’t show and that all the [MODIFIED] tags had vanished.
“It makes it easier to learn people's names, although it’s generally considered impolite to look at someone’s stats before they introduce themselves,” Porter said. “Since you can’t use Awakened Eyes yet, I’ll share mine with you.”
Porter Thistlebush
Elf [Level 87]
Class: Flame Sage
Strength: 6
Agility: 15
Endurance: 15
Intelligence: 103
Wisdom: 72
Charisma: 29
Luck: 5
“That’s a lot of points in Intelligence and Wisdom,” Elijah said, raising his eyebrows. “I hope this is fine to ask, but does that make you incredibly intelligent?”
“In some ways,” Porter said, giving him a smile. “Most of that brainpower is going towards understanding how to properly interact with the flames so they obey my commands. Stats don’t exactly have linear growth. There are big bursts of power at one hundred and five hundred. There are probably boosts at one thousand as well, but I don’t know anyone who’s gotten that high. There aren’t even many people that have gotten a single stat to five hundred.”
“Really?” Avery asked. “I would have thought that at least someone would have hit a level one thousand. How long has this world existed?”
“I’m sure someone has,” Porter said with a shrug. “But my information mostly comes from the guilds, and they’re rather secretive already. I’d be happy to tell you more after dinner. Talking about the guilds tends to put a sour taste in my mouth.”
The kitchen door swung open and Kat appeared with two plates and a bundle of silverware balanced atop them. She ran over to the table and set them out in front of Elijah and Avery before running back towards the kitchen. She returned a moment later pushing a cart laden with steaming food.
“Let’s eat!” Kat exclaimed.