Rise of the Grandmaster

by Bradford Bates

  “Buahahahahaha!” Tim roared as he started chasing her toward the inn. He might not get her now, but eventually, she’d let her guard down, and the tickling would begin.

  Epilogue

  Mornings sucked.

  Seriously, was there ever a good time for it to be morning? Tim thought as he rolled out of bed. The only time anyone looked forward to mornings was if there was a new release of some kind. Otherwise, the world would like to sleep in until a respectable hour.

  Tim looked at the empty half of the bed and realized that maybe he just wasn’t a morning person. Was enjoying mornings a conscious decision? Could he wake up one day and just attack the day like one of “those people?”

  He took his first lumbering steps toward the door and smelled the coffee waiting for him on the other side. Liz was an amazing person. Tim would sing her praises until the end of time for always knowing when he was going to wake up and having that sweet dark cup of roasted delight ready.

  He’d heard tea drinkers refer to coffee as bean water. If that were the case, they were just drinking tree leaves. Those snobby bastards didn’t even have the sense to brew them properly. There was a whole art to crafting the perfect cup of coffee. Tim’s personal setup looked like a science experiment gone wrong, but the product was divine.

  Oddly enough, he wasn’t opposed to a good cup of tea. Tim never claimed to be coffee-exclusive, not unless it was the first drink of the day. Sure, a good dark tea had some pick-me-up, but nothing rocked the house like a cup of joe with a shot of his second-favorite bean for an extra jolt. Expresso was like the kicker on a football team. He was important. You couldn’t win without him, but most of the time, he just rode the bench.

  He wasn’t even sure if they had expresso here, but it took him about five minutes of explaining for Liz to figure out what he wanted and find it. The woman was like a wizard when it came to anticipating their needs. The coffee waiting outside of his door in the morning was just one example.

  Tim never realized how important it was to get the first cup of coffee down on the way to the bathroom. He’d always been a set the coffee maker and get dressed kind of guy. Then it was coffee for breakfast as he ran out the door. Not at the Blue Dagger.

  He had his first cup down before he sat down to take his morning sabbatical.

  By the time Tim climbed into his bath, the coffee almost made him feel like a human being again. He hated to admit it, but he might be slightly jealous of the get-up-and-go types. His bed might as well have been his sanctuary. He only wanted to leave it when absolutely necessary.

  That meant his relationship, food, work, and raiding were the only things standing between him and the sleep he craved.

  Even now that his work was going to be kicking ass full-time, there still wouldn’t be enough hours in the day for napping. Four hours a day at the forge, and another four in the healing shack, plus a nightly run of some kind with the group was leaving him a little ragged.

  Maybe it was just that he hadn’t settled on a new class yet? There were so many good options. Did he want to push on as a straight healer, or did he want to be a little more adventurous? It had been a few days since Jepsom died, and his life hadn’t slowed down one bit.

  He’d settle on a class before he had the meeting with his caseworker. Apparently, becoming an adventurer meant he had to pause his life in-game to sign a new contract. At least he’d be able to set up access to the currency market.

  From the marketplace, he could sell his gold to people for real-world currency, and from there, it was a few simple steps to get that money to his parents. He’d feel a lot better telling his parents about his decision after he sent them some money. Nothing made your choices look better than success.

  There was so much to do, and he was just getting started. His project in the slums was underway, with Mr. Applebottom overseeing the details. A few of the buildings would be ready by the end of the month.

  That meant it was time to put his market kiosk into play. Once people started coming for the market, it would be easier to get the prices he wanted for rent on the newly refurbished structures.

  With renters in place and his percentage from the kiosk, getting more gold should never be a problem. He leaned back, letting the warm water ease the tension in his muscles. He loved the thirty minutes he took for himself every morning. It was the only time he got to let his mind wander.

  A buzz sounded in Tim’s head and pulled him right out of the tranquility zone.

  Could people not wait until a decent hour to contact him? And why the fuck had the message buzzed through his filters? Tim sighed in frustration as he pulled up his user interface. The first thing he saw was a reminder to pick his class. Dismissing the window, Tim moved onto his messages. He had a priority message from Jeremy.

  Wow, he hadn’t seen Jeremy since his first day in the game. Not since the man had pointed him toward the inn and said something funny to him. What was it his guide had said? The words didn’t immediately come back to him, so he decided to open his new message and find out what he wanted.

  Message Received From Jeremy:

  I’ve got someone who wants to meet you. See you in five.

  Eat a Fish!

  “What does that even mean?” Tim closed the message and climbed out of the bath. Regardless of the daring it took to try to come up with a cool new catchphrase, he wasn’t sure “eat a fish” was ever going to catch on. Sure, maybe if you ran a fish taco truck and needed a cool slogan, but otherwise, it just seemed kinda weird.

  Despite the friendly feel of Jeremy’s message, Tim wondered if he was doing another job for NPC Corp. If the man was working for the company, it wouldn’t pay to keep him waiting. He finished drying off and equipped his clothes.

  Getting dressed in an instant was never going to get old.

  Walking into the main room of the inn, Tim motioned toward his cup and then at Liz. She nodded, and he set it on the counter before heading to the door. He had to admit that living at the inn had its perks.

  Tim opened the front door and stepped onto the street before he stretched his back. Jeremy was leading a man he’d never seen before toward him. Part of Tim was jealous that he’d never be able to rock an afro the way Jeremy did. The man had a certain 70s funk about him that was cool as fuck and definitely couldn’t be replicated.

  The man walking next to Jeremy was about forty. He had a wide, solid-looking frame, and his arms rippled with thickly corded muscles. The guy had on the same starting tunic Tim had been given when he entered the game. Maybe it was the man’s first day in Promethia. It was kind of awesome that new people were starting to play every day. The more popular the game was, the easier it would be to make money.

  The two men joined him on the porch. Jeremey pointed to the man next to him. “This is Joe. Joe, this is Tim.” Jeremy gave Joe’s hand a brief shake. “Good luck to you.” He turned and headed back the way he’d come.

  Tearing his gaze from Jeremy, Tim looked at the man in front of him, wondering what this was about. Something about his face looked incredibly familiar, but he couldn’t place it.

  Joe stuck out his hand. “It’s good to see you again, Tim. I trust you’ve been taking good care of my daughter.”

  Holy shit!

  It was that Joe. Sierra’s dad was in the game, and he was here right now. They hadn’t discussed what they would tell their parents about their relationship. It just seemed too weird. How did you say, “Hey, Dad, we fell in love in a videogame, and we will be making a life for ourselves here. It’s cool, trust me.”

  Thoughts of what would happen if Joe found out they were basically living together rattled around inside his head loud enough that it took him a few moments to respond. “It’s good to see you too, sir. Sierra is in good hands with me.” It was overly formal, but he found it was always best to be exceedingly polite in situations where he was terrified.

  Sierra’s dad wasn’t a gamer, he was a cook. What was he doing here?

  “Goo
d to hear.” He clapped Tim on the shoulder. “Anywhere we can talk in private for a minute?”

  Tim wasn’t sure how private Joe wanted their conversation to be. He’d obviously come to Tim before Sierra, so something was up, but he had no idea what the man wanted. He hoped it wouldn’t be a morning lecture about sex before marriage. Then there was Sierra to think about. She was probably inside training with Gaston, so taking Joe into the inn was out.

  That left one place for him to go.

  “Follow me.” Tim waved to Joe as he set off around the side of the building. He opened the shack and motioned for Joe to join him. Once they were both inside, he closed the door and waited for his unexpected guest to say something.

  Joe looked at him for a moment, and then in a rush, he blurted, “I sold my restaurant.”

  “What?” Tim was shocked. Joe’s was an institution. The fucking diner should be a landmark, not something that was bought or sold.

  “I couldn’t bear the thought of my girl growing up in here and missing all those memories. I don’t care where we spend our time together as a family. Being with one another is all that matters.” Joe looked at Tim. “I just don’t know how to tell her.”

  Tim was still trying to play catch up. “Wait, you sold your restaurant?”

  “Yeah.” Joe looked a little bummed about it. “Got a hell of a price from some corporate assholes who wanted the location for some crappy chain.” He shrugged. “Thought I could open a restaurant in the game. Things can’t be too different.”

  “You’re going to need someone to help you adjust. Some of the things here have different names.” Tim smiled sheepishly. “Although you could always just go to the market and point at the things you want.”

  “Should be fun?” He leaned forward, looking a little worried. “First, I’m going to need some new clothes.” Joe’s face turned almost ashen. “Do NPCs even eat?”

  This was one thing Tim could answer easily. “They sure do, and they like to drink.” He started to get excited about the idea. “But I’m also sure there are plenty of people here who would kill for a taste of home.”

  “I’m counting on it.” Joe wrung his hands. “Feeding people is what I like to do. All I have to do now is find a place and set up shop.”

  “Just so happens I might be able to help you with that, but first, we need to let ShadowLily know you’re here.” Tim put a hand on Joe’s shoulder. “And get you some clothes. I can’t have my girlfriend’s dad showing up in a smock.”

  “Ah, so it’s ‘girlfriend’ now.” Joe watched Tim intently.

  “Yes, sir.”

  Joe let Tim suffer for a few more seconds before he started to laugh. “I’m pretty sure I called it before you left.”

  Tim just nodded. It was funny how parents could see things before their kids did. It must come with experience.

  “What I’d really like to do is cook her favorite meal for her.” Joe smiled as he thought about it. “God knows, she can’t go a week without eating a plate of chicken parm.”

  Chicken-fucking-parmesan!

  “How would you feel about cooking enough for a group?” Tim started thinking about how much the entire guild would appreciate a real meal, especially after weeks of stew.

  He paused when he realized he was trying to hijack Joe’s moment with his daughter. He held up a hand to stop Joe before he could answer. “Sorry, it was a stupid idea. This moment is about you and Sierra.”

  “You remember she was in the restaurant before she left with a booth full of her friends? I wouldn’t mind cooking for a few of her new ones. Not to mention, it’s really just as easy to cook for twenty as it is for two.” Joe smiled. “As long as you have a kitchen I can use.”

  Tim had access to a kitchen, all right. “Let me go and set things up with Ernie. Then I’ll find ShadowLily and take her out until tonight. We’ll come back to the inn, and you can lay it on her.”

  “That sounds like a good plan, but why is she here? Doesn’t she have her own place?” Joe watched Tim like a dog eyeing a stray burger at a barbeque.

  “You’ll have to ask her that tonight.” Tim opened the door, prepared to run. “Give me about fifteen minutes before you head inside.”

  Joe nodded, keeping his steely gaze focused on Tim.

  Secrets weren’t his strong suit, but Tim would have to try his best. His hand closed on the door to the inn, and he smiled. “I’ve got this.”

  “Today was such a blast.” ShadowLily grinned as she yanked Tim toward the inn. “But I’m hungry. Why couldn’t we stop and get something to eat?” the half-elf questioned as she picked up her pace.

  “I told you, we’ve got a guild dinner tonight. If you don’t like the food, don’t eat anything, and we’ll go out afterward.” Tim grinned. “Or I could order some of those little cakes you like.”

  “Petit fours.” She stopped walking, savoring the thought of her favorite mini-cake snack. “I can sit through anything for a box of those sweet, sweet delights.”

  “Good to know for when I have to ask you to do something you don’t like.” Tim pulled out an imaginary pen and paper to take a note.

  “Just promise me it isn’t stew. Liz picked the cook already. By now, he should be able to make more stuff.” ShadowLily sighed. “I never knew how good I had it, being able to eat at my dad’s restaurant.”

  Tim grinned as he pushed her toward the door. “I made Liz promise we would have something else tonight.”

  “That’s sexy talk.” ShadowLily pushed open the door to the inn and paused in her tracks. “What’s that heavenly smell?”

  She spun. “It smells just like home.” She gave him an accusatory glare. “What’d you do?”

  “He didn’t do anything.” Joe came out of the kitchen, wiping his hands on an apron.

  “Dad?” ShadowLily paused for a second as she let his presence register. Once she realized it was really him, she rushed forward and pulled him into a hug. “What are you doing here?”

  Joe hugged her back and took a step back so he could give her a solid once-over. “Changed your ears,” he mumbled before returning his gaze to her eyes. “I sold my place. Couldn’t bear the thought of being away from you for so long.”

  ShadowLily started to grin. “And what’s that I smell?”

  “Only your favorite,” Joe replied swiftly.

  Tim motioned for everyone to head to the tables. “Tonight, we feast like gods!”

  “Hear, hear,” the room shouted back.

  Tim looked at their growing band and couldn’t have been happier. It was nice that Sierra and Joe were going to get to spend more time together. Ok, so maybe he was more excited about the food possibilities that had just come back into his life, but you could be happy for more than one reason at a time, right?

  Things were starting to come together in the best possible way. They had a new quest to look forward to and new monsters to hunt. The Etheric Coast was just as fresh today as the first instant he stepped into the game. He took a drink of his ale and smiled. Tim wasn’t sure what would happen next, but he knew they’d be ready for it.

  The Blue Dagger Society was ready for anything.

  List of Tim’s Current Stats and Skills.

  “Tim” Level ten magic user

  Primary Stats

  Strength 12

  Endurance 12

  Dexterity 16

  Intelligence 16

  Wisdom 30

  Perception: 5

  Vitality: 3

  Revitalization: 3

  Luck: 5

  Tim also has two undistributed stat points.

  Notable Gear

  Circlet of Wisdom +1

  Simple Dagger of Dexterity +1 (X2)

  Level Ten Class Change Token

  Boots of Wisdom +2

  Robe of the Everlasting: Wisdom +3

  Belt of Wisdom +2

  Gloves of Wisdom +2

  Skills

  Healing Orb: Apprentice rank nine

  Dodge: Novice ran
k two

  Flame Burst: Apprentice rank three

  Cleanse: Apprentice rank seven

  Appeal to the Goddess: Novice rank one

  Infiltrator: Novice rank three

  Sneak: Apprentice rank two

  Small Blades: Apprentice rank six

  Appeal to the Goddess: Novice rank one

  Throwing Knives: Apprentice rank two

  Sneak: Apprentice rank three

  Night Vision: Novice rank five

  Back Stab: Novice rank seven

  Flame Burst: Apprentice rank three

  Weaken Undead: Apprentice rank one

  Divine Light: Apprentice rank one

  Healing Storm: Novice level one

  Open Quests

  Get the Wraith Out of Here

  The story is far from over. Tim and his companion’s adventures will continue in The Etheric Coast Book 2!

  Author Notes - Bradford Bates

  December 9, 2019

  I always start by thanking my wife. Without her help, inspiration, and steadfast belief that I can do this, none of these books would exist.

  This was a fun series to dive into. I’ve been a gamer since the eighties, and have really enjoyed watching the integration between literature and gaming as it’s progressed over time. The marriage of two such beautiful things was bound to happen because, at its heart, every game tells a story.

  There were a couple really cool things that happened during this book, and one of them was getting to spend some time working with Michael Anderle. The way Michael digs into a story and can communicate what he feels while reading it really helped me grow as an author. I would call the opportunity to work with him, life-changing.

  Now that the sappy stuff is out of the way, I have more people to thank. I’d like to start by thanking Nat, who read the first book and gave me some priceless feedback. I’m not sure if I’m supposed to name my beta readers by name or not, so I won’t. But thank you for all of your feedback. I take those notes seriously, and the books change because of them.