Description: The Blade Dancer shirt does not have a high defense, but it boosts speed by a lot.
Abilities: Defense+50; Magic Defense+50 Speed+200%
Item Name: Blade Dancer Gloves
Item Type: Clothing
Grade: 4-Star
Use Requirements: Can only be equipped by Blade Dancers
Description: Blade Dancer gloves offer a speed boost and some basic protection.
Abilities: Defense+50; Magic Defense+50; Speed+200%
Item Name: Blade Dancer Skirt
Item Type: Clothing
Grade: 4-Star
Use Requirements: Can only be equipped by Blade Dancers
Description: A skirt worn by Blade Dancers. Gives a significant boost to speed.
Abilities: Defense+50; Magic Defense+50; Speed+200%
Item Name: Veil
Item Type: Accessory
Grade: 1-Star
Use Requirements: Can be equipped by anyone
Description: A simple cloth veil.
Abilities; It can hide your face from view
Because she had a hidden class, it was only natural that her stats would be much higher than someone who had a normal class. At the same time, while Aris’s stats were relatively high, what made him gawk was her Speed and Movement stats. They were the highest number he’d seen so far. His own stats were rather impressive, but he had nothing on those two particular stats.
“She’s as ridiculous as you are,” Titania said. Her words were very apt.
“I expected nothing less,” Adam replied.
Adam, Aris, Titania, and Kureha traveled up the mountain and to the mansion sitting on the bluff. Adam was already known to the guards because of the quest he’d done for the mayor. They didn’t even need to say anything before the four of them were directed to the Watershore mayor’s office.
“Welcome back, young hero.” The mayor smiled at him. “What can I do for you?”
“My girlfriend just came from the Village of Beginnings,” Adam explained, getting straight to the point. “I was wondering if you had any quests we can take together.”
“Hmm…” While the Watershore Mayor gave his girlfriend’s flat stomach and modest chest an appreciative glance, Adam was pleased to see the man didn’t focus on it for long. “I do have a few tasks that require someone of strength. I’d normally never give them to someone who hasn’t already proven themselves, but since you are the one asking, I don’t mind giving you this one. We received a request for aid from a village several miles away. There is a powerful beast rampaging there. I was about to send my soldiers, but since you came along, would you like to go in their stead?”
Ding!
[You have been offered a new quest: [Slay Mythical Beast!] Do you accept? Yes or no?]
Adam was a little startled when the quest name was [Slay Mythical Beast], but he decided to accept the quest. This would be a good chance to see how well he and Aris worked as a team.
The village they were asked to travel to was called Llyn. It was not as far away as the Deadlands, but it still took half an hour to reach on horseback. When they arrived, Adam, Aris, Titania, and Kureha were shocked to discover that the village really was under attack by a monster.
In most video games, villages and towns were places monsters couldn’t enter. This was usually explained with some in-game lore like “there is a barrier that protects the town” or some such, which most players just bought into because thinking about it wasn’t worth the effort or the headaches it would cause. Of course, some towns were attacked, but they were always attacked as part of the in-game story.
It seemed like in this game, villages could be attacked at random.
The creature attacking Llyn released an earth-shattering roar as it raised its scaled muzzle into the sky and breathed out several streams of fire. Red scales glistened in the sunlight. Two leathery pinions jutting from its back generated an incredible gust of wind with each flap. It walked on four massive legs, had a tail that swept several soldiers away with every swing, and clawed feet that could easily rend flesh from bone. At present, it was smashing that several yards-long tail into a building, decimating it.
“Is that a dragon?!” asked a shocked Aris.
“No,” Titania answered. “That is just a wyvern. They are related to dragons, but they are much weaker. Of course, this is all relative. A single wyvern is generally powerful enough that it requires an entire squadron of humans to kill. Hold on for a moment. Let me [scan] it for you.”
Name: Flame Wyvern
Description: A wyvern with a fire affinity. It typically ignores human settlements, but they will come down and cause havoc when hungry.
Class: 1-Star
Lvl: 40
Health: 500,000/500,000
MP: 50,000/50,000
Strength: +1,000
Constitution: +2,000
Dexterity: +500
Intelligence: +500
Speed: +100
Skills:
Skill Name: Fireball
Description: The wyvern shoots a large fireball from its mouth.
MP Cost: 150
Cooldown time: 10 seconds
Skill Name: Firestorm
Description: Releases a wave of flame that sweeps over every enemy nearby
200% damage to all enemies within 50 yards
MP Cost: 1,000
Cooldown time: 10 seconds
Flame Bullet: Fires a series of small flame projectiles from its mouth.
Damage = Intelligence
MP Cost: 100
Cooldown time: 1,000 seconds
Tail Sweep: Attacks enemies with its tail.
Damage = Strength + Speed
There is a 65% chance of enemies getting knocked over
MP Cost: 200
Cooldown Time: 0 Seconds
law Swipe: The wyvern swipes at enemies with its claw.
Damage = Strength
MP Cost: 100
Cooldown time: 0 seconds
“This thing looks pretty strong,” Aris muttered.
“This is actually pretty weak,” Adam countered, recalling some of the monsters he’d already slain. “You ready?”
“Of course I am!”
“Then let’s do this.”
With a smile on their faces, Adam and Aris led Kureha and Titania into battle against the [Flame Wyvern].
“You’re right. That was easy,” Aris admitted as they neared Solum.
While the [Flame Wyvern] did have a relatively high level, Adam and Aris had defeated it within just a few short minutes. Adam’s ridiculous Physical Attack stat combined with Aris’s speedy combination attacks had demolished its health within maybe five minutes or less. Adam honestly couldn’t say how well he and Aris worked together as a team because the enemy died too quickly for him to gauge their combat compatibility.
Of course, being able to kill a level 40 1-Star enemy in just a few seconds probably showed they worked well together. Maybe.
“It was even easier than I thought it would be,” Adam admitted.
“I keep telling you, the only person who would find defeating a level 40 [Flame Wyvern] at your level easy is you.” Titania released a long suffering sigh as if they had been over this before, which they kind of had. She often complained about how ridiculous it was to watch someone with such a low level kill creatures ten or even twenty levels above him.
“Looks like we’re coming up on Solum,” Adam said as he saw the city gates getting closer. “I’ve already let Fayte, Susan, and Lilith know we’re coming. They should be at the food court.”
“Do you think… Susan and Lilith will like me?” asked Aris, sounding nervous.
Adam reached out and grabbed her hand. “Of course they will. I’m certain both of them will love you.”
His words didn’t seem to reassure her, but Aris nodded anyway. This would only be the second time she’d met someone whose name wasn’t Adam in the last few years. Because of her Mortems Disease, everyone had a
voided her like the plague, and now that she was finally cured, she wanted to make friends. Her nervousness was understandable.
They reached the gate and were let through after Aris showed her Letter of Recognition to the guards and Adam paid a fee. Aris was enamored with the ancient-looking architecture. He let her look around as he led her to the food court, which was already filled with thousands of players, all looking to form parties or discussing their next quest.
Adam’s group of three was sitting at their usual table. Several men were surrounding the table like vultures waiting for a free meal, but none of those men had the guts to walk over and engage the women in conversation. Adam held Aris by the hand and came over without a second thought. His actions seemed to shock the men.
“Who the hell is this guy?!”
“Does he think he can just waltz over to a couple of beauties and expect them to pay attention to him? Get in line, you bastard!”
“You know what makes it even worse? It looks like he already has a girlfriend!”
“I hope you choke on a cock, you damn normie!”
Adam only sighed at the insults being hurled at him before stepping up to the table.
“Adam,” Fayte said as she turned to face him. “We’ve been waiting for you.” Her eyes shifted from Adam to Aris standing beside him. “Aris, it’s good to see you.”
“Hm. It’s good to be here,” Aris said in a soft voice, now nervous at being surrounded by so many people she didn’t know. It really had been too long since she’d spent any length of time within a group. She tried to hide behind Adam, but he was having none of that. He grabbed her arm and pulled her to the front.
“Everyone, this is Aris,” Adam introduced.
Of course, the one Adam was introducing Aris to was Susan. They were already living with Fayte and saw her every day, and while Aris and Lilith had never been formally introduced, the assassin was perfectly aware of who this girl was. Only Susan did not know her.
“Um… it’s very nice to meet you!” Susan stood up and bowed slightly. “I look forward to gaming with you.”
“M-me too.” Aris, perhaps influenced by Susan’s politeness, also bowed. “Please take care of me.”
Such a polite response…
While Lilith did not speak, she did nod once in Aris’s direction. Adam only frowned a little. He knew Lilith was not inclined toward talking, but he wished the woman would say something. It wouldn’t kill her to be polite to others every now and again.
In either event, with that, Aris’s induction into their party was officially complete.
The Guild Token
Adam did not speak much as he sat surrounded by women. He was content to let them talk amongst themselves. More importantly, he wanted Aris to interact with these women so she could grow more accustomed to everyone. Fortunately, Aris had always been an adventurous spirit. It didn’t take long before she was over her nervousness and enthusiastically talking to the others.
“Ah! Y-you like playing console games too?!” Susan asked when Aris finished telling them about the games she and Adam used to play.
Aris nodded. “Mm. I love old-school console games, especially for systems back in the early 2000s like the PS22 and the XR35.”
“I have both of those systems!” Susan exclaimed.
“Really?!”
“Yes! I’m currently replaying Tales of Alexandria on the PS22 and Curse of Malum for the XR35! I probably would have only bought one console, but they each have their exclusive games that I wanted to play.”
While it was impossible to see her expression because Aris was wearing a veil, Adam knew there was an excited smile on her face and stars in her eyes. Her enthusiasm didn’t need facial expressions to adequately convey. She leaned over and clasped Susan’s hands.
“My new best friend!”
“You realize I also have the PS22 and XR35, right? We were just playing games on the XR35 the other day,” Fayte said dryly. She sounded amused.
“Of course I know.” Aris looked at Fayte and nodded. “You are my first best friend, and Susan is now my second best friend.”
“I suppose I can accept that,” Fayte said with a tinkling laugh that sounded like wind chimes.
“Excuse me, but what are these ‘vee-dee-o games’ you speak of?” asked Titania.
“Ah. Video games are…”
Adam stopped paying attention as Aris tried to explain the concept of video games to Titania, treating the fairy like she was just another member of their party. He instead looked at Lilith. The young woman had not said a single word since he introduced Aris. Of course, she seldom spoke anyway, but, perhaps because of how much the others were talking, she seemed exceptionally quiet right now.
“Are you not going to join them?” he asked the woman as she pet Kureha’s two fluffy tails and fox ears.
Lilith shook her head. “I am too different from them. You know that. It is better if I remain in the background.”
Adam felt an imperceptible frown tug at his lips. “I know you haven’t had the most… conventional of lives, but you’re here now, and you have four great women who would make good friends. Shouldn’t you at least try to make an effort to befriend them?”
“Is that an order, Master?” asked Lilith.
“Do you want it to be?”
Adam and Lilith stared at each other for several seconds. The silence seemed to stretch on. It wasn’t long before Adam realized the conversation between the four women had died down and they were now staring at him and Lilith. He looked at Aris as she tilted her head, then Fayte whose narrowed gaze said she saw something he might not be comfortable explaining. Only Susan seemed to have not noticed.
“I have noticed this before, but… you two seem awfully close,” Fayte said.
“I was about to say the same thing,” Aris added with a nod. “Do you two know each other?”
Adam briefly considered lying, but he could never lie to Aris. It was not something he ever wanted to do.
“We are acquaintances,” he allowed. “I’ve known her for about…” He glanced in her direction. “Eleven years now.”
“Ah! That means you knew Lilith before meeting me!” Aris exclaimed in shock.
“I had not realized you two had known each other for such a long time.” Adam thought he heard a frown in Fayte’s voice, but he could not tell for sure. She was excellent at masking her emotions. The veil didn’t help. At the same time, that tone made her sound colder than he was used to.
“That’s all in the past.” Adam shook his head. “Anyway, since all of us have gathered, there’s something I wanted to discuss with you.”
“W-what is it?” asked Susan.
He looked at the youngest of their group. Susan’s innocent brown eyes were larger than even Aris’s beautiful blues, so big they reminded him of a puppy. However, beyond her adorable appearance was a perceptiveness that shocked him. She seemed to recognize that he wasn’t comfortable talking about his and Lilith’s past (he now realized she had probably noticed his interaction with Lilith too, but she did not say anything out of consideration for him), so she was allowing him to change the subject.
He would have to reevaluate his opinion of her. She was meek, but she was also observant.
“Not here. Too many ears. Let’s find a more suitable location to talk.”
While the ladies all looked at each other, no one said anything as they stood up as one and headed off. Kureha climbed onto his head, Titania sat down on his shoulder, and the group gathered around him under the intense scrutiny of nearly every player in the food court. Of course, the reason Adam had decided not to talk there was because of the people who had been staring at them this whole time.
There were a lot of other areas they could speak in Solum, but for the sake of privacy, Adam decided to get a room at an inn where they could talk.
Unfortunately, they ran into another problem.
“All six of you are sharing a room?! Do you think my inn is a brothel?!”
The owner of the inn that Adam tried to rent a room from stood behind the counter, her somewhat large and masculine face bright red, eyes narrowed in anger. She was a big woman, which made her more intimidating than your typical hotel clerk.
“We’re not actually here to sleep,” Adam tried to tell her. “We just want to—”
“So you’re not here to sleep, are you?! Planning to keep these girls up all night, huh?! Listen here, young man, I won’t tell you and these women how to live your lives, but in my inn, there will not be any debauchery allowed! Do you understand me?!”
Adam was glad no one was inside this inn aside from them right now. The wide, open space near the front was bereft of other people. He didn’t think he would ever be able to live it down if someone was present and heard what this woman was saying. At the same time, he was wondering what he should say to get out of this situation.
While he was debating with himself, Fayte stepped forward. “Excuse me, ma’am. I think you have the wrong impression here.”
“Oh? Who are you? You think I’m going to listen to someone who hides her face behind a veil?”
Adam flinched at the rancor in the woman’s voice. He’d never met such a belligerent NPC before. It made him wonder which crackpot AI developer had a hand in her programming.
Whether Fayte was upset with the woman or not, she never let on, instead nodding her head. “You are absolutely right. Hiding behind a veil is rude when you are trying to speak with someone as their equal. Allow me to rectify that.”
“Ah?”
The inn owner became shocked when Fayte removed her veil, revealing a face so beautiful that even Adam was tempted to believe she wasn’t real. How could anyone except a goddess have such a gorgeous face? Her soft appearance, beautiful blue eyes, refined elegance, and artfully combed golden hair combined with an aura of nobility and gentleness to create a woman whose outstanding beauty could ruin nations.
Adam once heard a story about Helen of Troy, how a woman named Helen was so beautiful that a prince abducted her to force her into marriage. This action was what started the Trojan War. Adam imagined Fayte’s beauty was even more outstanding than that woman’s.
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