On My Brother's Grave: Reconnaissance: A LitRPG Adventure (Vatenkeist Online Book 1)

by E. M. Hardy

  I took off the headgear, switched off the computer, and walked out of the room. There was a lot of preparation to do but, right now, all I could care for was a real nap and a good hot shower. Fighting those goblins and the ogre had left its marks. Even though it was all virtual, I felt genuine exhaustion and excitement from that experience. Maybe something to do with the adrenaline dump?

  “Damn it, Jason,” I said, as I headed back to the kitchen to fix myself a drink. “Even though you’re gone, you’re still introducing new things to me.”

  As I brewed a cup of mocha, my thoughts ran back to Elia. She was efficient in battle but also really smart and kind. Of course, that didn’t mean she really was that way in the real world. For all I knew, she could be a fourteen year-old male spending time in the game to get away from school work or to deal with a parents’ divorce.

  None of that mattered though. What did matter was that she was now my ally. I was slowly beginning to warm up to the idea that I could count on her to see our common goal through.

  Once I had my drink ready and took some time to wash my face and get back to reality, I decided to stay in my bedroom and research more about the game. I used my phone and opened my internet browser to look around for other sites about Vatenkeist Online. Sometimes, fanboys did an even better job than official employees.

  I did find a website with a large listing of quests. As it turned out, there were millions of quests in the game – not just thousands but millions. Players could log into the game, go on their own quests and do their own thing, and they might never experience the same storylines as other players, even those set in the same city.

  What I did find quite interesting was that the game had an overarching story. I didn’t read into it much so that I could discover it in person. That’s just how I was – I didn’t read the blurb at the back of a novel or watch the trailer for a movie, so I wouldn’t get spoiled even by the slightest. It didn’t matter if I didn’t play long enough to really experience the whole thing, I just couldn’t bring myself to read the summary.

  After digging into some of the other pages, I found out that Cael’vron was a very dangerous city. The best way to put it was that it was run by criminal organizations and that very few guilds made their way there. It was a great place for mercenary work, but few people managed to last very long. It made me wonder if the Silver Blades were attempting to make a few bucks in there by dealing with the jobs no one else wanted.

  “I guess we can expect a lot of trouble while we’re there,” I whispered as I continued to read on about Cael’vron. “That’s actually a good thing, in a way. It means Elia and I will always have opportunities to battle and level up.”

  I chuckled when I realized just how geeky I must have sounded. It wasn’t too embarrassing though – when I was younger, I had spent some time playing video and tabletop games. It’s just that this side of me had evaporated when I got into law school and, later, the military. I just had more important things to focus on then. How ironic that I had to come back to gaming to avenge my brother.

  Tired, I put the phone down and finished my cup. I turned on the television and allowed the buzzing sound to help me fall asleep.

  Chapter Eleven

  When I logged back in, I was once again outside the Muddy Princess, roughly an hour after mid-noon. Several days must have passed in-game, I figured. I felt too lazy to make any sorts of calculation though. So, the best way to find out was still through my options menu. I was shocked when I learned that nearly seven days had gone by.

  I was asleep for just six hours and, when I woke up, I spent what? Another three hours eating, working out and relaxing? That was just nine hours out of the game, yet it was already close to a week in here. It was mind-boggling to try and wrap my head around such discrepancies.

  For a moment, I wondered what Elia was doing. When I checked my friends’ list, however, her name was shaded in grey. She was probably still out in the real world. Maybe the girl had a job to attend to or some kids to feed. Who knew?

  That was when I noticed the ping for my level up status. I opened the notification and stared at my new status update.

  I also took note that I had gained two new abilities. But when I checked their description, my enthusiasm quickly fell back. None of them seemed all that helpful at the moment. I could only assume I’d have more use of those abilities as I progressed through the game.

  The notification forced me to pick a favored terrain. My choices were: urban, tundra, mountains, plains, dungeons, coastal, forests, swamps and deserts. I only had one choice. For a moment, I was going to consider taking forests or plains, given how frequently they arose. But then, I figured this was a video game: most of the main adventures to level up would be in dungeons. So, that became my selection.

  “Well, now what?” I asked myself out loud.

  Elia wasn’t online, I wasn’t sure if Mikaela would be in the vicinity, and I didn’t want to go all the way to Cael’vron by myself. With nothing else to do, I dropped into the Muddy Princess.

  I was immediately greeted by loud, raunchy music. Attractive women were serving drinks and the usual barkeep, Trystae, was busy welcoming customers as they came and went. I got myself a seat close to the central stage and listened to a minstrel – I couldn’t tell if it was a player or an NPC – performing. When a barmaid came to me, I ordered a measly mug of ale, the cheapest one they had.

  Sure, I now had some cash to spare, but I didn’t want to waste it all like I was in Vegas. There might be a need to buy potions and arrows in the future.

  “H-hey, mister,” a voice called out to me from the side. I turned over to the table next to mine and saw a young girl, probably eleven or twelve years old, reaching out to me.

  “Yeah?” I responded. “What can I do for you?”

  She looked at me with a big puppy expression. Her eyes were red and sunken too, as if she had been crying for hours. When she spoke, it was soft, making it hard to hear through the loud music. “I-I don’t think you can. I don’t think a-anyone can, but I really have no one else to turn to. None of the guards would listen to me.”

  That was when it hit me: she was an NPC about to offer me a quest. It was taking a while, but I was slowly getting the hang of this. However, at the same time I needed to remain alert. Parnax had shown me that players could be real scammers, and Mikel had proven that NPCs were in fact no better. No matter who I dealt with, I had to remember to tread with care.

  “Hmm, sure,” I told the young girl. “I’m Fhauste. What’s your name? Why don’t you sit here and tell me about your request.”

  Immediately her face lit up. She scooted over and explained, “M-my name is Louisa, good sir. Oh, thank you for lending me an ear. It has been so difficult to get anyone to give me the time of day. Y-you see sir, my father went down to the forest where the Jellies like to frolic to get us some firewood, but it’s been two days now and he hasn’t returned. Oh, I fear the worst for him!”

  Quickly, I checked again if Elia was online. She wasn’t. I gave a shrug and figured I had nothing better to do anyway. “I’ll go find your father,” I said to Louisa.

  “T-thank you, kind sir.” She took my hand and gave it a soft kiss. “We don’t have any money but, if you can rescue my father or at least prove he’s fallen, I swear I’ll give you something in return.”

  I didn’t mind the lack of rewards. The EXP would be reason enough to accept the challenge. “Okay then. I’ll head out now and see if I can get him before dark.”

  “You’ll find me at my home, sir Fhauste,” she said as I stood up to leave. “I live in the small hut two buildings away from the Riverhorn Apothecary shop down west, close to the central bridge.”

  Yep, she was an NPC, I was sure of that now. I simply waved goodbye and opened my main menu screen. I then clicked on my journal and read the new log:

  “I’ll see you in due time,” I said. I finished my drink, paid the tab and walked towards the exit.<
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  Outside, there was the usual deluge of adventurers going about their daily business. It made me wonder for a second if any of them ever got tired of playing this game. With the time compression, some of them must have spent the equivalent of years inside this virtual world. Wasn’t that more than enough to get utterly sick of it? Wouldn’t they want to move on to something else?

  Well, I was back in the game and – if I was to be completely honest – I was starting to have fun. So, who was I to judge?

  I took hold of my belongings and made my way out of the city gates. There were fewer newbies this time around, hunting for Jellies, and I could only assume it was because in the real world it was a little too early in the morning.

  I passed a few roaming Jellies, but I didn’t waste any time engaging them. There was no point. I had learned that Vatenkeist Online worked more like a pen-and-paper tabletop RPG than most video games, so attacking lower-ranking monsters wouldn’t get me much Experience Points. I appreciated that design choice because it meant less grinding and a higher focus on moving on with quests.

  A good twenty minutes passed before I got deeper into the woods south-west of Strovport. This was the farthest I had gone in this direction yet – the goblin den Elia and I had gone into was out in the east. Going in this deep, I was starting to regret being on my own. Maybe I should have waited for Elia before tackling this quest.

  I heard a rustling in the bushes. Quickly, I turned around. Although I couldn’t spot exactly what was there, I did see a silhouette dashing through the shadows of the trees. Then I saw another, and then another. I quickly put two and two together and realized I was being ambushed.

  One, two, I started counting. My eyes darted to and fro as I kept a look out for my pursuers. But I didn’t stop walking. I just kept on as if nothing was wrong. Three, four… okay, so there are four of these bastards.

  A shriek emerged from one of the bushes and out ran a humanoid creature about four-feet high. It had red and orange scales instead of skin and fur. Its snout and tail made me think of a mini dragon. It was wielding a curved scimitar and was rushing straight at me.

  I rolled out of the way, then nocked and fired an arrow as soon as I could. The arrow pierced right through the creature’s back and out of its chest. The little dragon-lizard thing died screaming as dark green blood spurted out from its wound and mouth.

  Just as I was recovering, two other monsters came lunging out from the shadows with their swords. I dodged as best as I could but, even then, I got surprised by an arrow coming in from the grove of trees to my right.

  My body flashed white and the projectile dug deep into my thigh. Luckily, I had only taken 2 points of damage, and I figured these weren’t all that strong. The main problem was that they had me surrounded now. Even their weak damage range could take me out if I didn’t handle the situation quickly.

  I bit down hard and ripped the arrow out, hoping that the devs didn’t make it as realistic in the game world as to have me bleed out from a ruptured artery. And I used that same arrow to fire at one of the foes closer to me.

  The arrow flew towards my target, but it only grazed the creature’s shoulder, which was padded by armor. Now enraged, it rushed towards me along with its companion.

  “Damn you all,” I cursed while activating my Fire Shot ability. I thought it was a total waste to consume my MP this early out, but it still beat dying any day of the week. I fired, and both of my first shots struck right through the two incoming enemies. One was hit in the chest and died more from the heat really than the wound. The other was caught right in the mouth as my arrow flew into its gaping maw.

  However, there was one more opponent left which fired a barrage of arrows. I unleashed my last flaming arrow, but it missed the target by a wide mark. Despite my best efforts to get out of the way and take cover behind a large boulder, I still took another two hits, losing 5 HP. I leaned back against the rock and tried to think of my options.

  He’s weak, I reminded myself. I can beat him.

  Repeating that phrase took me back to my early days as a rookie in the military. During those times, back when I didn’t have the extensive experience of today, I always found myself repeating some mantras to reinforce my confidence. As I got older, that habit had slowly died, but here I was picking it up again in this new foreign environment. This universe where I was, once more, a damn novice.

  I heard a rustling nearby to my left. These creatures weren’t just weak; they were pretty dumb too. My stalker made almost no effort to sneak up on me, loud as a roaring river could be. I figured their only strategy consisted in attacking with big numbers.

  With the enemy drawing near, I didn’t take off to create some distance and fire. Instead, I rushed right in. Just as I turned to greet the creature, I discovered it was just ten feet away and trying to creep in to slash at me with its scimitar. Dazed, it froze and didn’t even try to parry as I banged my fist against its chest, knocking it down.

  The creature flailed and attempted to swing its sword at me, but I took an arrow and made quick work of it, firing directly at its forehead. Blood squirted in all directions and the creature finally stopped moving.

  What in the world were these things? As I got up and started to retrieve my arrows, I checked each of the creatures. None of them was carrying any pouches, so there went my luck of finding gold or valuables like potions or weapons.

  However, my last kill did have something fishy about it. When I checked its body further, I found a small key tucked away underneath one of its back scales, almost like in a pocket. The key turned out to be slightly rusted and quite rudimentary in its design. Assuming it might come in handy at some point, I tucked it into my bag.

  That was when I remembered I had a Bestiary in my menu. I flicked my menu open and tapped onto the Bestiary tab to find out more about these creatures.

  “Hmm,” I then hummed to myself when I inspected the dirt and noticed the tracks they had left behind. Curious, I followed the path these Kobolds had taken and, before long, I found myself staring at a heavy, rusted grate on the ground.

  At first, the grate looked a little out of place in the midst of the forest. However, as I kept snooping around, I discovered signs of what could have been an old village. The trees and vines had surely taken over the area but I could still make out the old walls of a few dwellings. Other buildings seemed to have vanished over time, and I supposed they had been made of wattle and daub or even bamboo to have withered away like this.

  Then again, the village may have never existed in the first place and the game creators just wanted to give the illusion.

  I tried to pull the grate open but it wouldn’t budge. That was when I noticed a small keyhole, and I almost smacked myself in the forehead when it took me so long to figure out I had to use the key I had looted from the kobold.

  They weren’t just random creatures picking on the next guy, I thought as I unlocked the grate. They were specifically placed there as an ambush for someone taking on Louisa’s quest.

  Working out the logic behind the game’s design was starting to ruin the fun for me. I decided to just stop meta-gaming and go along for the ride.

  There was a rusty ladder and the pathway down was too dark to navigate. Fortunately enough, there was a scone by the side of the inner walls with a torch hanging from it. I couldn’t see any means to light it, so I activated my Fire Shot ability and used that to set the torch ablaze. I was now down to eighteen arrows.

  With one hand holding the torch and the other on the ladder rung, I descended into what appeared to be an old, abandoned tunnel way.

  Chapter Twelve

  The ladder took me down a good thirty-five or forty feet. Without the torch, I would have been completely blind and lost down here. At the bottom, I found myself in a tunnel with mossy stone walls. It could have been an old sewage or maybe a passage to deliver goods, but it was just dry and dusty now and filled with cobwebs.

  Only one
way was possible and I trekked down that path for a while. Remembering how Elia had triggered a trap outside the goblin den, I made sure to look around and not accidentally step on a wire or a raised platform. Elia wasn’t around to heal me in case I got hurt down here.

  Surprisingly, I only found one setup laid out for me and it wasn’t cleverly placed. I was coming around a bend heading south when I noticed one of the stones on the ground was slightly out of place. Without crossing its path, I pressed down on it with the tip of my bow. In an instant, several darts flew out from both sides of the wall. I simply stepped back until the trap was fully triggered and the danger was over.

  “That was ridiculous,” I whispered to myself.

  As if to answer my comment, a sudden rumbling rose in my back. When I turned around, I saw a big, round boulder rolling down the tunnel towards me ala Indiana Jones in Raiders of the Lost Ark! Without hesitation, I took to my heels, waving my torch around to light the way as I frantically tried to remain in one piece.

  The boulder was closing in. It was moving too fast for me to escape. I simply made a dash and crossed my fingers I could find an intersection or something to help me get out of its path. Another ten yards and I started to lose my cool. Ten more and I could now feel the sweat dripping down my back as the boulder came for me with bad intentions. With another ten, I felt my legs about to give out… but somehow I kept going.

  Suddenly, the tiles crumbled. Before I could jump to safety, I fell down a vertical shaft, crashing fifteen feet below. The boulder above continued to roll, and it took a good minute before I finally heard it crash against a wall.