by M E Robinson
“That would be my honour. I believe that all should be rewarded with salvation, regardless of the value assigned to them by the material world,” Mark replied.
Exchanging a disbelieving look, Eric and Griffin watched as Mark conversed with the priestess, chatting about his will to become a man who saved thousands. Clapping her hands together, Maria took off a rosary that had been hidden with the folds of her gown. Bringing the rosary up to her face, she closed her eyes, using the rosary as a wand as she drew a pair of runes in midair which sparkled with a golden light.
Opening her eyes, the priestess smiled happily as she observed the runes floating in midair, “These are divine runes. The first is the rune for a minor healing spell. The second is the rune of light, the rune that allows us to invoke the power of the divines,” she explained, allowing the runes to hang in midair as the trio observed their shapes.
Seeing that they were done, Maria finished casting the spell, a pale light emerging from her rosary and flowing into Mark’s body which emitted a slight glow where the spell had entered him. As Eric and Griffin watched with interest, Mark’s healthbar appeared, a soft golden glow appearing briefly above it before disappearing.
“Do you need a rosary to cast divine magic?” Eric asked curiously, looking at the small rosary in the shape of a sheaf of wheat clutched in Maria’s hand.
Following his gaze, Maria shook her head. “Divine idols can help increase the power of divine spells. But they are not necessary to cast them, just like wands are not required to cast magic.”
“Would it be possible for me to get a divine idol? My friends are often throwing themselves recklessly into danger - any increase in healing ability would be appreciated,” said Mark.
“We do sell idols here at the church. It’s five silver Sricks for a small idol that has received the blessing of Leralitas. It has the effect of increasing the healing done by a small amount, as well as allowing the wearer to purify corruption in the name of Leralitas. Would you like to buy one?” Maria asked, her demeanor changing instantly to that of a saleswoman. Nodding wordlessly, Mark handed over five Sricks to the priestess who promptly disappeared through a tiny side door behind the desk.
Reappearing a minute later, Maria handed him a smaller version of the rosary she wore, “Thanks for doing business with us!” she told him cheerfully.
“Yeah no problem. Thanks for the idol,” Mark replied.
“Does the church not have a problem with selling divine idols?” Griffin asked, speaking up for the first time.
Maria shook her head. “Oh, of course not. In order to be generous, one must possess things to give away. Sometimes people need more than healing spells or prayers - they need material possessions. Leralitas recognizes that and allows her devotees to raise funds so that we can be even more generous,” she lectured.
As Griffin nodded slowly, Eric spoke up, “Apart from Leralitas, are there any other gods or goddesses in Nasvencia?”
“Of course! There are dozens of various gods and goddesses. Arawm, Bran, Inriona, Grannis, Mirna… There are deities for everything. Blacksmithing, fletching, construction, magic, war, governance, water, wind, luck, love, everything!” Maria explained passionately, her raised voice causing some of the villagers in the pews to look up and shush her.
Blushing in an embarrassed manner, Maria continued in a softer voice, “Most pray to whichever god or goddess governs the issue they’re having trouble with. Mothers might pray to Rhannia, a goddess of fertility, to ensure a safe birth. While a warrior marching off to battle might pray to Maser, the god of battle, or Arawm, one of the gods of war. A mage attempting to learn a new spell might pray to Mirna, the goddess of magic and trickery, or perhaps to her brother Maricks, the god of magic and knowledge. Many also have a patron deity that they pray to for general things, often associated with their trade or profession. I know that Tom the village blacksmith is a follower of Inriona, the goddess of metalworking and he has a shrine to her in his forge,” she explained.
“Is there any benefit to choosing a patron deity?” Mark asked, twirling his rosary between his fingertips.
“There can be,” Maria said with a playful smile.
“There can be?” Eric echoed.
Maria nodded. “Yup. But as otherworlders, you need to become stronger if you want a godly patron. I believe that the journeyman level of skill is the earliest level at which you may take on a godly patron. At that time, you’ll naturally find out more about the benefits and perks associated with having your own godly patron,” Maria said with a wink.
Thanking Maria, the trio left the chapel in high spirits, ready to begin grinding.
Chapter 13
Making their way towards the northern gate, Eric and Griffin began to interrogate Mark about his attitude inside the chapel.
“What was that about selflessness and not caring about the material world? Since when did you become so generous?” Eric asked him, his brow arched high in disbelief.
“You’ve gotta sweet talk the NPCs. Tell them what they want to hear. This isn’t like other games where you can just kinda ignore them and do whatever. How you interact with NPCs directly influences your reputation with them and the rewards and quests they’re willing to give you. I was really hoping Maria might discount the idol or teach me an extra spell there but I guess I’ll just have to keep increasing my rep with her,” Mark explained.
“I mean I do that too. But I don’t think my personality ever shifted 180 degrees because of it.”
“As long as I remain consistent in my attitude towards the NPCs, it’s not technically lying,” Mark said with a sly wink.
“So you’re not suddenly super selfless?”
“Nope.”
“And you didn’t get the necklace because we have a bunch of suicidal fighters who love to dive in on our team?” Griffin added.
“I thought he wanted it because it looks good with his dress,” Eric snickered.
“You’re just jealous that I look awesome and I’m liked by the cute priestess chick while you’ve got a blacksmith’s apprentice that wants your bones in a basket,” Mark responded.
“Touché,” Eric conceded. “Anyways, what’s the plan? Just grind for a few hours to earn some coin while we wait for Rob and his tank friend to get here?” said Eric, changing the subject.
“Yeah, Mark was saying something about elites on the way here though,” said Griffin.
Mark nodded. “Yeah, I wanted to see if we could hunt down some more elites. Griffin and I have killed two, and they’re way better in terms of drops and skill levels than anything else. We haven’t gotten a skillbook like you did yet. But I got a pretty sweet quest from an item from the elite wolf we killed. And Griffin got his sword from an elite spider.”
Eric’s face contorted slightly. “An elite spider?”
“Yeah. There was a whole nest of them that we found. After we killed the smaller ones, a big one the size of a small horse came out,” said Mark.
Griffin shuddered slightly as he recalled the fight. “So. Many. Legs,” he muttered.
Seeing Eric’s reaction, Mark laughed. “Oh right you hate spiders, don’t you?”
“Yeah. Creepy bastards. Four legs are my limit for calling something cute. Six is already too many. Eight needs to be killed with fire.”
“Oh, so you know how we dealt with it,” Mark replied with a laugh. Eric shot him a questioning look at this to which he responded by miming the casting of a Flame Strike.
Giving an understanding nod, Eric shot him a thumbs up. “That’s what I like to hear. Burn ‘em all! Anyways back to the topic at hand. Elites. How do you guys want to go about hunting them? I can think of a few monster dens that I’ve passed in the forest so far but I’m not sure how to encounter elites specifically.”
“On the forums, they’re saying that elites tend to reside in monster dens or in places with a heavy concentration of monsters. Griffin and I found the spider den inside a cave, and the elite wolf was alone on top
of a small mountain inhabited by other wolves,” said Mark.
“Yeah. So far our strategy has been to look for places that stand out, big hills, caves, ravines, anywhere where monsters congregate,” Griffin added.
“Sounds good, shall we get going?” Eric asked. By now the party had arrived at the northern gate. Waving to the sleepy guardsman on duty, Eric received a half-hearted nod in return as the three exited Tonbura village, heading towards Stillwood Forest.
Making their way through the forest, the trio made small talk as they occasionally killed off monsters they encountered. For the most part, only demonic rabbits and red-maned wolves came charging out of the undergrowth towards the trio. However, for the first time since he’d arrived, Eric also began to notice other monsters appearing. An enormous hawk swooped down, its claws ready to tear at their exposed flesh, various animals leapt from the undergrowth, foxes, hares, giant rats, and other northern species. Some attacked the group, saliva dripping from their mouths, their gaunt forms showing a lack of nutrition, while others simply passed on by, giving the group frightened looks as they charged southwards.
Watching a deer stampede through the brush, ignoring the group as it sped blithely onwards, Eric spoke up, “There are far more animals and monsters in here than there were when I last entered the forest. Did you guys see this many creatures over near your village?”
Griffin shook his head. “We fought giant rats and giant spiders. But apart from that we’ve mostly dealt with demonic rabbits and wolves. The occasional goblin, but mostly just the normal monsters.”
Mark nodded. “I haven’t seen this many animals before. And none of them approached us either. I saw a deer once but it turned and fled the moment it saw us.”
“There was also that other one,” Griffin began.
“Which one?”
“The one with the elite wolf.”
“Oh right, yeah that one was super dead. I’m not counting that,” Mark said with a chuckle.
“Still, it’s concerning. All of these creatures seem to be running away from something. They’re all heading south, and most of them have heavier coats than the ones I’ve seen up until now,” said Eric. As if to prove his point, a red-maned wolf came flying out of the forest towards him. Unsheathing his sword, he activated Dashing Cut, his blade slicing through the wolf’s open mouth, eviscerating it and draining the poor monster’s health bar in a single strike.
Bending down over the dead monster, Eric pointed to its pelt. “See? Unlike the normal wolves in the forest, this one has a much thicker pelt. It’s almost like a husky’s fur, rather than the thinner, denser fur of the red-maned wolves I’ve killed before.”
“Weird,” said Griffin, bending down to get a better look at the monster. “Still. Do you think they’re fleeing something? Or are they just looking for more food. This guy is practically just skin and bones, his pelt is mangy and it looks like he hasn’t eaten in a while,” he observed.
“Maybe it’s part of the main plot. Remember that quest we did earlier, Griffin? The one where we had to report the Gnoll encampment we found?” asked Mark, looking at his companion.
“The stealth mission? Yeah, how could I forget, that’s how I got my shield,” Griffin replied.
“Well Captain Melvin said something about how it sounded like they were a tribe that should be way further north. It sounded like they’d been forced to come further south. He didn’t say why, but I’m willing to bet they were forced to come south, fleeing something happening in the north.”
“Captain Alistair said something similar now that I think about it,” said Eric, furrowing his brow as he looted the wolf and stood up. “He said that many monsters had been forced to flee by unrest in the north. Including monsters far stronger than what should be here. There was also something about a war and forcing back the goblins, but he didn’t elaborate.”
“Well no matter what, it just means more loot and exp for us,” Mark said with a grin, pushing past Griffin as they started walking once more.
“I suppose. But we should probably be careful. I don’t want to lose any of my gear because we died a stupid death,” muttered Griffin.
“No need to worry about that. At least not yet,” Eric told him with a grin, taking the lead from Mark as he led them deeper into Stillwood Forest.
Leaving the path, Eric forged his way through the forest, with Griffin and Mark trailing behind him.
“Where are we going anyways?” Griffin spoke up.
“There was a cave system I saw earlier. I didn’t have time to explore it though,” Eric explained, opening his UI to check his compass. Confirming that he was headed in the right direction, he pressed onwards.
“Right, I forgot that you died already, Eric. What are the penalties like? I’ve read a bit about it on the forums but there’s conflicting information,” Mark asked.
“It wasn’t that bad actually,” Eric said thoughtfully, going silent for a minute as he recalled the experience. “So when you die, they really dull the sensation. I got hit so hard I was probably chopped in half, but I couldn’t feel a thing. The entire world went black for a moment, and then after that I had the feeling of waking up in a field. Super calming place called Elysium.”
“After the fields of Elysium? Like in Greek mythology?” Griffin asked.
“The very same according to my fairy. Like I said, super nice place. Had a calming effect, I half suspect that Hurricane was drugging me,” Eric joked which got a grin from Mark. “Anyways. You need to stay there for half an hour in-game time, but you’re free to leave the game and spend the time in the real world. That’s when I checked your Strife message, Mark,” Eric continued. “After that you’re allowed back in the game. I feel that you respawn in whichever location you started at. So for me that was Tonbura. I didn’t lose any of my equipment, but I did lose a ton of loot from my storage, and there was a system message which told me I’d lose more in the future once a certain system was unlocked.”
“So for now our equipment is safe? Good to know,” Griffin mused.
Mark nodded. “I was a little worried about that. What about our money? I haven’t found a bank or anything yet and I don’t really want to just buy equipment so that I won’t lose my silver.”
“I’m fairly sure that coins are treated like equipment rather than loot. At least for now. I got to keep all my money at least,” said Eric, spreading his hands helplessly to indicate he didn’t really have an answer.
“What about skills? Do we lose skill levels when we die?” Griffin asked, opening his own UI to check his stats.
“I don’t think so. At least I didn’t lose any skill levels. The more I play, the more I feel that skill levels are actually proficiency levels. They show how good you are at something, rather than how many times you’ve performed the skill,” Eric explained.
As Griffin and Mark nodded their understanding, Eric opened his UI, doubting himself now that Griffin had asked about his skill levels. Dismissing the skill level up notifications that he’d been ignoring for a few hours, he checked his current level.
[Status]
Erick Kystfyr - Level 12
Health: 210/210
Mana: 210/210
Title: Corporal
Weapon: Fine Yew Longbow (20 Fine Goose-feathered Iron Arrows, 20 Stone)
Common Iron Shortsword
Armour: Leather Padded Armour (Common)
Skills: Basic Magic (Arcane, Fire, Wind, Water)
Basic Martial Arts (Apprentice 5)
Militia Spearmanship
Militia Swordsmanship (Apprentice 4)
Basic Archery (Apprentice 7)
Basic Evasion (Apprentice 9)
Basic Herbalism
Basic Speechcraft
Active Skills:
Evasive Shot (Apprentice 2)
Charged Shot (Beginner 8)
Sword Technique - Guard (Beginner 6)
Sword Technique - Dashing Cut (Apprentice 2)
Magic:
B
asic Arcane Magic (Apprentice 6)
Arcane Strike (Apprentice 1)
Arcane Blade (Beginner 1)
Arcane Dart (Beginner 1)
Basic Fire Magic (Beginner 6)
Flame Strike (Beginner 5)
Multi-linked Flame Strike (Beginner 2)
Basic Wind Magic (Apprentice 2)
Wind Blade (Beginner 9)
Wind Dart (Beginner 7)
Basic Water Magic (Beginner 1)
Water Strike (Beginner 1)
Water Blade (Beginner 1)
Water Dart (Beginner 1)
Arcane Formations (MAX)
Basic Novanalba Mana Technique (Beginner)
Seeing his new stats, Eric raised an eyebrow in surprise. While his sword skills and archery had leveled up at roughly the same rate they’d been leveling since he began, his magic had actually gone up by quite a bit, as had his martial arts. There was also a brand new magic skill at the bottom that he’d clearly gotten from the book at Morningstar’s lab, but strangely enough it didn’t have a level associated with it - it just said beginner.
Opening his event log, Eric quickly found the chronological sorting function. Setting the parameters, he examined what had happened in the past few hours since he’d died.
[You have died!]
[Wind Dart has levelled up to Beginner 6]
[Wind Dart has levelled up to Beginner 7]