“Urk, most of these don’t look any good…” he muttered, lost as to what was worth accepting. Unlike what he was used to in games, there were very few slaying quests, and most revolved around gathering herbs and other resources.

He wanted something cool to do, like defending a village from bandits or slaying a dragon that nested in the local cliffs. Not collecting Dimweed or Gurgle Root. If he was going to be stuck here, he might as well have some fun with this adventure. The good quests also seemed to be locked behind a higher guild rank, not that the priestess had explained the ranking system to him.

He wanted something cool to do, like defending a village from bandits or slaying a dragon that nested in the local cliffs. Not collecting Dimweed or Gurgle Root. If he was going to be stuck here, he might as well have some fun with this adventure.

“It’s probably better this way, but still… gathering herbs? That’s a point in the ‘not a dream’ category, alongside all the side chatter in this room. It’s hard to believe I’m coming up with all of this.”

His thoughts were interrupted by someone tapping his shoulder, causing him to jerk slightly. Turning around, he saw a rugged-looking man with dirty blonde hair and brilliant green eyes. This was the level 41 challenger he had seen earlier, a “Blademaster.”

“Hey kid, you alright there? You seemed new so I thought I’d offer some advice,” the man gestured to the text above Sam’s head.

“I’m fine, what advice would you give to someone in my position?” Sam asked cautiously. The man seemed nice enough, but a high level wanting something to do with him sounded like bad news.

“Relax kid, I just wanted to point you in the right direction. Take the woodcutting quest if you have any strength, it pays in dividends and you can get good fights in around there. I won’t explain further, but fight some low-level goblins and level up a bit before you start swinging an axe.” the man said, chuckling a bit.

“Thanks for the advice. While you’re at it, where do I go from here to find an inn and somewhere to eat?” he asked as his stomach growled.

“Ahaha, a fantastic question. How about instead of explaining I show you. Consider it a free tour of Fair Grove, from yours truly. I’m Rubio by the way, what’s your name, kid?”

“Sam,” he replied shortly.

“Sam, huh? Sam the Mirrored Scholar, what a fun combo.” Rubio said, winking at him before waltzing towards what looked like the front door. “Come on, you can claim a quest later. You’ll need time in the plains before you want to do much anyway.”

Chasing after him, they walked through the front door and out onto the street. The building opened up on a massive plaza with a large foundation in the middle. Looking around, he saw a massive smooth black tower that reached into the sky disappearing behind the clouds.

The amazing thing was the clouds themselves though, showing a myriad of colors shining through. It was like there was a kaleidoscope resting in the sky, casting a beautiful array of light through the clouds. Despite the colors, the area around them looked normal though. The light was the same as he was used to, not multi-colored.

“What’s up with the clouds?” Sam asked as he looked around at the hundred or more people waiting in various groups around the plaza.

“Ah, the candy clouds. The thing is, the colors are actually the clouds themselves. It’s said they’re an effect of the tower, but nobody knows what their deal is. Anyway, come on. Let’s get some food.”

Walking through the plaza towards the east side, away from the tower, Rubio hurried through the crowd, dodging through parties left and right. “This is the adventuring plaza, everyone meets up here for tower runs. You’re seeing the afternoon rush, most folks like to sleep in so we get most of our activity around this time.”

Staying on his tail, Sam just listened to his monologue and focused on not running into anyone.

“You see, unlike my party none of these losers have any work ethic. That’s why they’re all mostly stuck in the 20s. My party is all upper 30s, aside from myself.

“But it’s rare to see any serious adventurers down here anyway, most of us settle on the higher floors and just return here for supply runs and turning in quests. You wouldn’t know this yet, but there’s a whole world to this tower that holds more than you could ever imagine.”

With that, they broke through the edge of the plaza and onto the main street. Continuing down the street, there were now significantly fewer people crowding around them so Rubio slowed down a bit.

A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

“At the end of the day, we’re all just trying to survive and find our place here in the tower. This might be the safest floor, but it’s also pretty dry compared to some of the other places you can settle on higher floors. We call this newbies town, although a few of us like sticking around to help you freshies.”

“Freshies?” Sam asked.

“Fresh meat, new challengers like yourself that have no idea what you’re doing. The tower will eat you for breakfast if you don’t build your skills and level up fast. That means you’re a freshie.”

“Ah, so kinda like rookie. I get it. Freshie... I’ll keep that in mind, thanks.” Sam replied, scratching the back of his head.

“Yep,” Rubio replied shortly.

Continuing down the road in silence, they were now in a market area filled with countless barrels, tables, and displays showing more gear than the tutorial room had. There was enough to prepare an army for battle, a pretty impressive sight.

“This is the gear market, all blacksmiths sell their ready-made and mass-produced pieces here. This is where lower-level challengers buy most of their gear, this stuff will last you until level 20 if you aren’t too abusive with it.

“You can expect to get a pretty good deal on bulk purchases too, which allows early tanks to stock up on spare armor, shields, and weapons. Something they’ll need until their defensive skills are high enough to mitigate damage and durability losses.”

He jealously eyed some of the light armor as they walked, looking down at his normal clothes. He didn’t imagine they would offer much in the way of defense if the goblins had landed any hits, it was only thanks to his skills he had won that fight. Absorbing the stats from the rare goblins was ridiculously useful.

Forcing his eyes away from the armor, they left the market behind and returned to a normal-looking street with stores lining both sides of the road. He saw tailors, custom armorers, the occasional eatery, and countless shops dedicated to crafting of various kinds. It was a veritable commercial district you’d only see in video games, living up to this place’s reputation.

As they walked Sam was still getting a lot of attention, but not nearly as much as Rubio. A level 41 seemed uncommon here, more so than a class they had never heard of or a bright blue hoodie.

“Why are you so popular, Rubio? Is it because of your level? Or something else?” Sam asked curiously. Catching the eyes of a few people as they passed, Sam almost crashed into Rubio as he suddenly stopped and turned to enter a tavern on their right.

“Yeah, it’s probably more my level and class than anything else. My level isn’t unheard of, but my class is pretty rare. We’re here, we can talk inside.”

Gesturing for him to follow, Rubio headed into the building with Sam in tow and bolted the door behind them as they entered.

Once they exited the entry hall, they came upon an open tavern room that was eerily quiet — having no other patrons. It looked like they had just opened or were not quite ready for business, which made Sam wonder why they were there. That didn’t stop the amazing smells from the kitchen though, causing the boy to start drooling.

Taking a seat at one of the booths, Rubio waved him over and Sam took a seat across from him. A moment later, Rubio began to blow through his hands and a bubble appeared from them, expanding to cover their entire booth and then some.

“Welcome to ‘The Rump’, my favorite place to eat on the 0th floor. The waitress will be out in a minute, they don’t usually open the doors this early but anytime I’m in town she makes an exception.”

“‘The Rump’, huh? What was that bubble about?” Sam asked.

“Ah, nothing major. Just a privacy spell, ‘Bubble of Exclusion.’ It makes any sound or discussion we have be silent outside of its space.”

Nodding, Sam turned his attention to the rest of the room and its various paintings and carvings adorning the walls. It was like an art gallery, all the walls being covered in something interesting and eye-catching. He was particularly drawn to this one carving that depicted a boar being slain by a man carrying a ladle, of all things.

A few minutes later, a girl with the same dirty blonde hair and green eyes approached from the kitchen. “Hey bro!” she said as she entered the bubble. “I know you want your usual, but what can I get for the kid?”

“Don’t ask me, ask him. He has his own free will, you know?” Rubio shot back.

“Fine, fine. Hello there hun, I’m Lattice, the sister of this grouchy old man,” she said, winking at Sam. “I see you’re a freshie, welcome to the tower! So, what can I get for you today?”

“Oh, uh… whatever you recommend? Is there a special or?” he asked, looking around for a menu.

“One boar’s brain stew coming up then!” she said, winking at him and feinting that she was going to walk away. “We have plenty of wonderful boar dishes here, but the brains are to die for.”

“Er… I mean, maybe something a little less ghoulish?” Sam chuckled.

“I was just kidding, don’t worry! I already know that would be above your price range. Let’s just do a boar steak, some honey ale, and some mashed potatoes. That should get you nice and cozy.” she said before rolling her eyes at Rubio and dramatically walking away.

With that exit, Sam wondered how they were siblings. She seemed so carefree, unlike the rough person in front of him. He supposed they both had a certain similar charm, at least.

Once she was out of sight, Rubio spoke up again. “Alright, let’s get into it. You’re new, we have time. Ask your questions.”