Diana looked up to the corner of her eye, thinking about how to answer Gil’s question.
“Either that or hide. Fort Haleson is rather large and the second largest city of the duchy after the capital. If you keep to yourself and stay on the down low, you may be able to survive by avoiding Angus. However, I recommend taking quests to earn some gold to hire other members or mercenaries to take you as far away as possible.”
“Then what if I trade this token? How much money would I get?”
The lady looked at Gil with an astonished face, thinking he was some kind of fool.
“Are you serious? Of course, the guild would be more than willing to take that precious token off your hands, but I guess you really do not know. I guess you really don’t have a sponsor who took you here.”
“What do you mean?”
“I still don’t know how you came here without a patron. But all otherworlders know how valuable the token in your hand is. Those tokens are what all the higher beings are trying to steal from this world. It’s the sole reason they contracted and sent you all here. They are trying to collect as many of those tokens as possible.”
Floored by the sudden information, Gill suspiciously looked at the seemingly simple wood token in his hand, doubting the receptionist’s words.
“Ang gave me something so valuable?”
The lady nodded her head.
“To the extent that we all wonder if the rumors are true.”
“They’re not! I didn’t know it was so precious! Why would he give such a thing away?”
“How would I know? You would have to ask Angus himself. If you dare, that is.”
Gil fervently shook his head. He dared not face death anytime soon.
“What's so great about this token? Why is it so sought after? Do you know the reason?”
“My name is not ‘you.’ It is Diana. It’s a long story, but I will tell you since Angus somehow trusts you. Besides, it's not something secret like an undercover lover.”
The lady joked with a smirk. Gil huffed back and pouted with a frown. She let out a giggle, enjoying teasing and seeing Gil’s reactions. For once, she felt at ease with an otherworlder. She did not know what to think of the sudden change of heart, but she felt Gil to be different.
“Like everything in the universe, resources are limited. Even the resources available to the higher beings are finite. Of course, a minor god is endowed with vast amounts of resources, but they require more for their purposes as well.”
Diana took a deep breath before continuing her explanation.
“However, if a god used up all their resources, be it on their creations or themselves, then if they want to create something else, they would have to destroy something that they previously made to use the essence towards their new projects. Something cannot be made from nothing. Everything has a source. Except for the supreme creator, who made all. The Creator is the only true omnipotent and omniscient being. All the others are only minor higher beings, calling themselves as such.”
The muscles of Diana’s face went stiff with anger.
“But like with many limited resources, they are contested and fought over. Our world was made by the Creator and is considered a higher plane. As such, we have more resources. No one understands the Creator’s intentions, but he made it a law of this world that the essence appears as fused tokens, dropping when someone or something is destroyed. Because of this, you foul otherworlders killed many inhabitants and recklessly harvested our plane.”
Gil began to understand why many of the natives disliked the otherworlders. Diana's fury grew even more, thinking about lost loved ones. The damn holding back her emotions slowly cracked.
“You people ravaged and plundered our lands, burning the fields that were our livelihoods and destroyed our towns! You raped and murdered innocents, not even granting them a quick death but instead enjoyed as we wreathed in agony! And all in the name of your so-called gods. Do you know how many of my-!”
Diana calmed herself, catching her elevating breathing and rising tone of voice. But her eyes glared coldly at Gil.
“And that is why the Guild of Adventurers was formed, to give us a fighting chance against monsters in our world and those invading it. It is a powerful organization, designed to help everyone, even those who would be typically overlooked. It set laws and restrictions surpassing the boundaries of any single kingdom. Although many non-members and otherworlders don’t abide by those rules, it can send massive forces to enforce the safety and regulations for this plane so that tragedies like the defilement and destruction of entire towns never happen again.”
Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.
Gil did not know what to say. The mood was heavy. Diana went quiet with a stern face. Gil lowered his head, contemplating what he was told while looking at the seemingly simple token in his hand with a complicated mix of fear and respect.
“Everyone, otherworlders and natives included, wants the resources tokens our Creator made. Upon defeating your foes or harvesting materials, a token with the person’s name deemed worthy as the owner will appear. Only the designated person can decide upon what to do with it. When used, they become essence points and have many applications. Most use them to upgrade themselves, like upgrading their stats or skills. But they can be added to items to make them superior. Or if enough is collected, they can even be used as a wish to materialize the imagination. However, after many millennia of exploitation, the tokens don’t drop as often.”
Her facial muscles loosened, and her eyebrows drooped in sadness as she recalled unpleasant memories. A light bulb turned on Gil's head, but then it was shattered by the last piece of Diana’s words.
“You otherworlders have taken almost everything from us, and yet there’s not one bit of remorse or gratitude. Some of you even dared to harm us, trying to exploit us natives through slavery and force the ways of your world and customs. And yet, we cannot fully retaliate and eliminate all you invaders since the Creator is missing. We are practically defenseless without a guardian to fight against your invading gods. They sent you to do their bidding. You people never saw us as your equals. We will never get along or see eye to eye with those that ripped pieces of us and our plane.”
Gil thought about the implications of her words. He looked at the glaring lady’s face, warped with fury by the long accumulated history of abuse by the otherworlders, recklessly doing as they pleased in a new world. He knew her anger came from something more personal, but he did not ask. However, he understood and felt sympathetic to her explanation.
Gil softened his eyes and replied, “I’m sorry. I know there’s nothing I can do or say about the atrocities that happened here. The natives deserve better. It may be too much for me to say, but I am sorry for your loss.”
Gil’s last words pricked Diana’s heart, unleashing a torrent of withheld heartache. She turned away, wiping away a tear, feeling some respite from her pent-up anger and hatred. Gil did not know, but his words dug up deeply buried tragic memories and emotions. She lost many dear to her to a gang of berserk otherworlders.
The resentment she felt could not be allowed to surface while on the job. She did not think well of Gil, but his sympathy was something she didn’t know she needed.
Still, she adjusted her stance and straightened her posture, shifting back into business mode. Not fully understanding the new emotions, she locked them away, but they already influenced her next actions.
“So will you register? The guild gives two free points to new adventurers.”
“Now you tell me?”
“You previously said you didn’t want to.”
Gil went quiet. Diana smirked and continued.
“If you don’t have a god, you will not have access to their library of skills. If you want access to the guild’s library to obtain skills, you will first need to become a member. After that, registration and entry will cost you a quarter of an essence point, meaning you will only have four and three quarters essence points for use.”
Gil contemplated about his next steps. He had a few inklings in mind, but he needed to know if they were feasible.
“Is there a way to obtain a contract with a higher being? Not that I don’t want to become an adventurer, but I’m trying to find my way home.”
The lady widened her eyes at Gil’s simple unusual desire, but she shook her head.
“No. The other minor gods are not able to interfere with this world beyond secretly allowing their contractors inside. Once here, even communication between the two is limited and requires large amounts of tokens. The only higher being you could contract with would be our Creator, but our god is missing.”
“Do you think I can put in a request? Would someone know?”
“You can, but I don’t know if anyone can help.” She noticed Gil’s shoulders droop and the hopelessness on his face. “Then again, maybe someone might know something.”
Gil lifted his head and smiled weakly at Diana’s attempt to cheer him up. He knew it was unlikely. Suddenly, he remembered the light bulb from earlier.
“You said that the tokens can be used to manifest the imagination, right?”
Diana caught on with wide eyes.
“Of course! Why didn’t I think of that!?”
But then she gave it some deeper thought.
“Well, it’s a bit complicated actually. I don’t know how many points you’ll need, but it will be a lot. Wishing something into existence is in the realm of the gods. I’m not too familiar with it because not many of those occurrences happen. But from what I hear, it’s not simply wishing. You have to understand the concepts behind what you are trying to imagine. What that means exactly, I don’t know.”
Gil saw a murky path open for him. It was a murky road, full of unknowns. But he could see the flicker of light that would lead him home. He planned to collect tokens and form a wish to bring him back to his world. He smiled at Diana.
“I will register as an adventurer.”
The receptionist lady gave him a dubious look.
“You’re going to do it, aren’t you? Do you even know how? You heard what I said, right?”
“Yup. But it’s my only clue right now. I don’t know exactly how, but I can start by collecting tokens. It won’t be a loss either way. I’ll have to figure out the rest as I go.”
Diana sighed. She didn’t have any better advice.
“That’s true. Either way you’ll need to find tokens to exchange for points. You’ll need to be able to survive in the world first. Ok. So in addition to registering and access to the guild’s skill library, do you also want to buy entry to the informational library? I recommend reading books about survival basics before leaving the safety of the fortress walls.”
“How much would that cost?”
“Depends on how long you want access. The guild’s skill library requires payment per entry, but access to the informational library can be bought for longer lengths of time. Most noobie adventurers choose to buy for at least a month or two. You can get a discount if you buy out longer times. It will cost you a quarter of a point a week, half for a month, or four points for the year. And you can use your access at any guild building.”
Diana did not mention that not all guild libraries were the same. Gil thought about what to choose. He knew he needed access to the informational library as well.
“I’ll take a week for now.”
“Che,” Diana chided under her breath.
Gil glanced at her with an arched eyebrow. He did not know she got extra commissions from selling the guild’s services.
“Ok, fine. Member registration, one time entry to the skills library, and a week’s entry to the informational library. Correct?”
“Um, yes,” Gil responded with a tone like he did something wrong.
“I didn’t mention this before because I know you can’t afford it now, but you can rent out the guild’s other facilities and services. We have alchemy labs, training rooms, living quarters, a food area, blacksmiths for hire, skill mentors, job counselors, massage therapists, healers, the list goes on. You can check everything by connecting to the guilds interface by swiping down when facing the quest board.”
Diana pulled out a square mirror and a pair of black goggles.
“Put these on and give me your hand,” she instructed Gil, handing over the goggles and dragging his hand to the mirror.
“Ok, this might hurt a little.” Diana said with a devious smile.