A/N: Apologies in advance for the serious parts of this chapter... I’m trying to get across some important topics, including the NPC adventurers, which I plan to make an important part of the game.
V1C3 To the Slums!
(Thundatwin's POV)
I logged on as soon as I could.
It was the last night before all of the players were allowed to go out and everyone was excited. I knew, because I was helping in the bar. Still.
We’d been working here for the past two days. The barkeep, who I came to know as Enzo, had decided that he needed Steph’s help in the bar as a server. Surprisingly, she said that she doesn’t have too many issues with the drunks. I was given the task of cleaning rooms during the day and switching to cleaning mugs and dishes during the meals and almost all night. I chuckled quietly to myself as I remembered what Enzo said to Wubs.
“You have to ugliest mutt I’ve ever seen! There’s no way you’re helping in the bar! You, whatever-your-name-is, are gonna be cleaning rooms and other shitty jobs!” After saying that, he started mumbling to himself in elven. At least, I assumed it was elven, as it sounded as pompous and stuck-up as French.
At the news, Wub Wub shed a tear. I shuddered as I watched it mix in with his constant line of drool and accumulate on his chin. He perked up a couple of hours later when he found out Enzo didn’t care about his pranks as long as he cleaned it up.
Anyway, we’d both gotten pretty close to StephOFF and even traded friend invites. The party chat helped a lot with the boredom. She wasn’t here yet, though I’ve gotten accustomed to it at this point. While my brother and I only stopped for eating and bathroom breaks before jumping right back in, she took her time. The sleep feature of the game was handy for nonstop playing. Steph usually entered the game about an in-game hour after us, though that’s just because the game was four times faster than IRL. The science of which, again, went over my head. Trying to convert the hours was starting to hurt my head, so I declared to only think in game-time.
The bar was hitting that time where it was filling up for the drinking hours. A few of the people staying here retreated to the sanctuary of their rooms, while most migrated down to join the non-residential crowd from around town. One of which was Ulga. Remember the Dwarf that totally schooled me in my new beginnings? That’s Ulga. We’d actually gotten to know each other pretty well, as she was a regular at the bar. Though she never apologized, I never expected one. I mean, who expects someone to apologize for participating in a brawl? Speaking of brawls, that was actually Ulga’s class. Apparently, the game was almost identical for NPCs, as they could choose classes and take quests. There were some that even ignored the permanent death penalty and became adventurers. We could see them fighting just outside of the town gates, mocking us with each slash, showing off the awesome loot they picked up…
The sound of a splash with a side of screams brought me out of my grudges.
“Hahahaha! He got another one then!” (U)
With the sound of a plop and the laugh of grouchy bear, Ulga claimed her regular seat at the bar. Which just so happens to be in front of me. So rather than our charming personalities, we got close because of necessity.
I grunted affirmation and slid her the usual.
Wub Wub strode down the stairs for two high-fives from us. He was all smiles as he made his way back up, not even saying a word.
Not that he needed to.
Two dumbass players started to shout at each other and stand close to each other in a threatening pose. Ulfa’s eyes pleaded in my direction. I shook my head with a smirk as I made my way closer to the soon-to-be-scuttle. They were so focused on shouting insults at each other that they didn’t notice me walking closer. I grabbed both of them by their hair and slammed the empty craniums together.
“If you wanna fight, take it outside.” (T)
Slightly dazed, they apologized to me and then to each other. The atmosphere relaxed as I made my way to the pouting Ulfa.
*Ding*
Bar fight avoided! You make barkeeps everywhere proud.
+10 Exp
+5 copper
Increase in relationship with Enzo the Barkeep
“Aw c’mon! Can’t we have at least one brawl?” (U)
“Not again! I’m not going to force another noob to give up most of their money just so they can take my job!” (T)
I don’t really know why I defended my position here. This job paid crap. Well, not literally. We got 10 copper an hour, and seeing as how a single loaf of bread was 10 copper, it was just barely worth working here. In fact, I wouldn’t be working here if not for the free meals. We resumed our chatting for a bit. Most of the topics were her sharing stories of the few adventures she’d been on. Sometimes, she’d mention techniques or the right way to punch. It was like reading a Brawling for Dummies! book. It was a pleasant conversation, now and then interrupted by the call for another beer or seconds for a meal. Then, a light signaled the arrival of Steph. She smiled and made her way over at the sight of Ulfa. For whatever reason, the Dwarf was like a role model to the girl. I made my way over to Enzo, leaving to girls to their conversation. Steph’s arrival made me realize that an hour had passed. And it was pay time.
Wub Wub arrived at the same time as I did. Enzo finished up with a customer and turned to us.
“Well, here’s your pay. Good job stopping that fight boy, I threw in some extra copper for that.” (E)
I accepted the money and watched my experience bar fill slightly. However, as I was about to turn, Enzo continued talking.
“You guys have been here for a while, and I think I can trust you with a personal matter.” He signaled over to Steph, who came over looking confused. “I need you three to deliver something for me. It’s in bad part of town, so I asked Ulfa to go with.” (E)
New Quest!
Enzo's Request
SharableYou've gotten close enough to Enzo to have him trust you with a delivery. But be careful! According to Enzo, it's in a bad part of town.
Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.
He's talked Ulfa, the brawler, into accompanying you.Requirements:
Deliver the package
Don't let Ulfa dieQuest Members:
Lil' Wub Wub
StephOFF
Thundatwin
UlfaAccept Quest?YesNo
“Sure!” I answered for our group.
“Then let’s get the show on the road!” (U) Ulfa, now in leather armor, walked up and announced.
***
We started to make our way to the point on our maps. The conversation was centered around Ulfa and Wubs, as they hadn’t the time to get to know each other too well. While completely ignoring the conversation, I began the start assigning roles. I glanced at our levels. Steph and I had both grown two levels, putting her at 5 and myself at 3. She must’ve been pretty close to leveling up. Wubs, however, only gained a single level, blaming it on the fact that he neither participated in a brawl, which had gotten me a few points in EXP, nor had he been able to earn extra experience for stopping any brawls.
I shifted my thoughts towards Ulfa. I didn’t know what level she was, and I thought it rude to ask. I was left experimenting and observing.
We stopped at a couple of shops, per my request, so that I could grab a couple of things. We all bought some apples and a couple of potions. We didn’t know how long this could quest might take, so we were being cautious. Wubs had been saving up for a spell, so we stopped by the mage’s guild. Unfortunately, it was quite the pathetic healing spell, only restoring 15 HP to a single target for 10 MP. Worse yet, it had a 2.5 second cast time. I took a good look at our team and decided to try my hand at archery. Granted, I hadn’t even tried out my sword, but I thought it redundant to have three melee roles. I bought a cheap bow and a couple of arrows. How hard could it be, right?
(Lil' Wub Wub’s POV)
We started walking again. To fill the time, I pulled out the spell book. It was a onetime use that instantly gave one the knowledge of the skill. However, there’s still the book. Who am I to pass up some quality literature?
The book was pretty interesting actually. It talks about the uses of healing magic on a basic level. My reading was soon interrupted by a voice in front of us.
“Let’s make this easy.”
I glanced up and noticed that we had reached the slums. The stream of people had ceased, and the few people actually on the road wouldn’t meet our eyes and ignored the whole event.
“Just give me the package. I know you have it.”
The owner of the voice was a cloaked figure in front of us, though it was clear that the voice was male. The hood dropped, revealing a shifty looking human in front of us.
No one attempted to try and converse with sir shifty though.
“Alright, we can just take it from you then.”
Multiple people stepped out from behind of their hiding spots. Most of them were in front of us, while one or two could be seen holding daggers behind us. Our group shifted in response, the ladies taking a stance in front of me while my brother stood to my side. He unslung his bow and prepared an arrow, facing the people behind us. Steph gripped her sword while I pulled my staff from my inventory.
Old Wooden StaffDamage:2-3Durability:20/20A wooden staff nearing its retirement. It's a good tool for beginner mages.Additional Effects:
Increased spell range (+1m)Requirements:
5 STR
5 INT
“Watch out, I can only heal you four meters away.” (W)
Thundatwin released an arrow, marking the start of the encounter. I watched as it flew by his target. I mentally rolled my eyes as I helped him at the rear, leaving the five bandits in front to the ladies. I observed a human come in with an attack. I blocked a sloppy overhead slash with my staff, both hands on either end, stopping the dagger between them. I kicked out and managed to push my enemy back a bit. At least, that’s what I meant to do. He was knocked back a couple of feet. I’ve got to get used to this orcish strength… A red 3 appeared, floating up past his name and level.
Starved Bandit
Level 2
12/15
An arrow hit his thigh before I moved in for a follow up. The arrow chipped off another 5 of his health. I swung my staff wide from the left, effectively preventing the other bandit from getting closer while it continued on its path to smack into the first bandit. It hit him right in the chest, shaving off another 2 of his health. I shifted forward and right some to put distance between the still unharmed bandit and myself as I tried to finish off my opponent. As an added bonus, it opened up William Tell’s line of sight to the new target. I gripped the middle of my staff and swung one end towards my target. He blocked but couldn’t stop the other end with only his dagger. I finished him off with an uppercut that connected my staff to his chin. The body dropped while I turned my attention to my brother.
Thundatwin was struggling with his bandit foe. They were grappling, and I saw a couple of arrows already in the bandit. One had hit his hand, causing him to drop his dagger. I checked my party’s health and cussed, starting a healing spell on Steph. She’d dropped dangerously low, sustaining only 20 out of her 120 points. Catching my breath, I fell into my role of healer, making sure to kick the bandit still hanging on to life against my brother in between spells.
A/N: Well, I feel pretty confident at my first attempt at fighting scenes. I’m thinking about wrapping the fight up with Steph’s POV. Or maybe Ulfa. I dunno. Thoughts? Also, hit me up with thoughts on classes. I wanna hear some ideas. Don’t make ‘em too OP though.