Sebast blinked. The darkness stared back at him.

What in the world just transpired? Did the power trip or something?

Before he could make head or tails on what was happening, the hatch of his game capsule opened with a mechanical creak of its hinges to the face of his mother. In the background, the voice of his aunt could be heard from the living room, conversing with what seemed like his uncle. Sebast knew that they lived nearby, but to come over twice in a single day was surely intentional.

He immediately recognized what had occurred.

“Mum.” His voice was laced with resentment.

“Your aunt and uncle came over again. Go entertain them.”

It was bad timing at its finest. Right when he was in a circumstance of life and death in Ages Online, control just had to be robbed from him via an external factor, leaving him helpless to affect the outcome. Right now inside the game, he had no idea how the situation was or if they had even managed to break out successfully.

He had no choice. He needed to go back immediately.

Taking a deep breath, Sebast reigned in all the frustration and anger he had felt when he realized his mother had switched off the capsule on him. A fight right now was not what he wanted. “Mum… I am in the middle of something important.”

He reached over for the switch, only to be stopped by a wrinkled hand. Even though she appeared perfectly calm, Sebast could feel cold fury rolling off her in waves.

“Then pause your game.”

“You can’t pause an online game!” Sebast cried out indignantly. Back in the living room, the conversation died down at the outburst.

They heard.

“Go. Out. And. Talk. To. Them.” His mother hissed through clenched teeth. Her self-control was in danger of falling apart.

Sebast could not understand. Did it really matter so much how others perceived them, perceived him? Did it matter so much just to prove a point? If he had been free, he would gladly do so but now was not the time. He was about to retort when the door swung open.

“Michelle, are you alright?” It was his Aunt Kathy.

In an instant, all hints of anger were erased, all facial contortions of barely restrained rage disappeared beneath the skin. The oppressing atmosphere vanished entirely as his mother turned to his aunt with a sickeningly sweet voice.

“Nothing Kathy, I am just talking to Sebast here. Sebast, greet your Aunt.”

“Aunt Kathy.”

“Kathy, please go sit down for a moment? We will be right over.”

Sebast rolled his eyes, but he said nothing as his aunt returned back to the living room. Right as the door closed and the both of them were alone again, his mother reverted back to her original demeanor. The only difference was that this time round Sebast have had enough.

In a moment of recklessness, Sebast sarcastically said. “Mum, I am going out.”

“What?” His mother was flummoxed at his reaction. “Where are you going at this time?”

“To take a walk.”

If she were to prevent him from proceeding on his important quest that would decide the fate of a kingdom, then he would just go find a capsule somewhere else. Sweeping up his wallet and handphone from his bedside table, Sebast strode out.

“Aunt, Uncle, I am going out.”

“Wait-!”

His mother came out of the room after him, but he knew that with his Aunt around, she would never be able to bring herself to destroy the façade she had set up. It was with such that he boldly walked out of the house without looking back.

………………

“Crap…”

Sebast slumped down on one of the side-benches that dotted along the whole stretch of road. After that satisfying show of defiance, reality finally caught up to him. His wallet, having been ‘governed’ by his parents since he was young, had not enough money to pay for a pod at the local VR-LAN shop and he had forgotten to bring his debit card, also under governance, along. Therefore he had absolutely no idea where and how to find a working capsule to get into the game.

Actually his first intention after his exodus had been to seek shelter at the dojo. Besides, the Penguin Dojo has a capsule that he could possibly use. But on further thought, Naomi would already be occupying it so Sebast abandoned the idea.

He looked at the time on his phone. Half an hour had passed ever since he disconnected, which equated to an hour and half in-game. Much would have already happened and the anxiety over the inability to be on the ground was gripping him.

His friends were in trouble and he could do nothing about it.

Friends… That is right! His whole class is playing Ages Online! If he could contact them and ask for help, it would resolve the problem he currently had. Picking up his phone to check his contacts, Sebast’s face fell as the pages showed up blank; He had forgotten that he had yet to make any friends in school.

Sighing deeply, Sebast once again slumped back onto the bench. He was so screwed.

“Sebast Koh?” It was a familiar voice, causing Sebast to jerk his head up to look at the newcomer.

Wong Xiang Jun stood at the roadside, with a plastic bag of groceries hanging off his left hand. He wore a faded t-shirt and bermudas with slippers but to Sebast’s eyes, the man was nothing short of a knight in shining armor. “Wong Xiang Jun!”

“Hey… what are you doing here?”

“What are you doing here?” Sebast asked back.

Xiang Jun closed the distance, his slippers clacking noisily against the tarmac. “I live nearby and am just going home after grocery shopping.”

All Sebast heard from that sentence was ‘live nearby’ and ‘going home’. He could not believe his luck. Here he was lamenting about his situation and fate decided to provide him with a way out with the one classmate that he was the closest with.

“Xiang Jun, can I borrow your capsule?”

“W-what?”

“It is a long story. I will explain on the way to your house.”

“Uh… okay?”

This was how Sebast forced himself into Xiang Jun’s home.

Entering the apartment complex, Sebast was surprised by the emptiness of it. From the outside, it looked average and plain, but when he crossed the door he could immediately see the distinct lack of human life. Dust coated the shelves, an indication of minimal maintenance; It was a stark contrast from his own well-kept home.

“Make yourself at home. Do you need anything to drink?”

“Not really.” Sebast surveyed the place with curiosity. “Do you live on your own?”

“My parents are overseas so I have the whole place to myself.” Xiang Jun emerged with two cans of cola and a packet of cup noodles. Placing one can down in front of Sebast, he started eating his dinner. A few seconds of awkwardness ticked past.

“So… running away from home huh? I didn’t know you do such things.”

“S-since when did I said I ran away?” Sebast fiercely denied. He was very particular when it came down to defining such terms. “I merely needed to borrow a capsule and went for a walk.”

“Uh-huh.” Xiang Jun sounded like he was not convinced.

“Speaking of which, where is your capsule?”

“First room from the right. Wait… wait a minute, dude!” Sebast halted in his tracks. He would have disappeared into the room already had the other man not called him. Sebast narrowed his eyes. Was the guy going to renege on his words or attach strings to the deal?

“You should at least give your mum a call. I think she should be pretty worried about you right now.”

Sebast’s eyes softened.

“I know… I will do that later.”

……………..

Beast logged back into the game, only to find his body being shaken by a pair of violent hands.

“Beast! Beast! WAKE UP!” Naomi basically screamed into his ears, causing him to jerk up from his prone position on the ground when the audio feed finally picked up.

“Hey, stop that!”

“You were out for almost two hours, Beast-kun.” Aveye’s face was close… too close. Beast instinctively reared back, frantically reminding himself that it was a trap.

“Good grief, I thought you did it purposely to avoid my singing.”

“I am sorry. I got disconnected.” His wound was gone and so was his poisoned status. He would have to properly thank Naomi later.

Around him, the rest of his human party sat. The NPCs however were nowhere to be seen. Beast voiced his question on the matter, fearing that they had somehow failed the quest. He was answered by Shadun with an annoyed expression.

“They went over there to calm themselves and the mounts. Should be back in a minute or so.”

As it turned out, the three of them did not really wear their earbuds properly, thinking it was redundant to so do. It resulted in them being afflicted partially with maladies that would take time to clear and was partially why they had stopped for a breather. Beast inwardly wondered if his disconnection had been a blessing in disguise.

In any case, they had managed to successfully break away from their Hondurian pursuers with the advent of their secret weapon and were currently on track to Vanguard Pass. The only thing he had missed was in no specific order, Naomi’s shocked face when she saw people falling off their horses left and right after Shadun broke into a song she could not hear due to the earplugs, the big scare when the others realized he had slumped unconscious on his horse and then the constant complaining when they had to handle and lug his body around after his disconnection. Riwana was said to have been pretty vocal about it, or as vocal as she could be while feeling nauseated.

In the end, the situation had resolved itself even without his input.

“So…” Beast felt that he should make up for his blunders with some attempt at conversation. The whole thing had come about because his cloak gave them away. “I am sorry.”

“What for? If it is because you DCed, it can’t be helped.” Shadun was being surprisingly understanding. “What has happened, happened.” The rest of them nodded in agreement, oblivious as well. Unfortunately, that was not the matter Beast was apologizing about.

“I-“

“Hohoho that was really snazzy.”

“Seriously, warn us better next time.” The pompous court magician remarked, breaking through the undergrowth with a slight rustling of leaves.

The return of the three NPCs interrupted Beast’s words, making them stuck in his throat. Because the timing had been ruined, he forced them down again with great difficulty. It was just as well. What has happened was already in the past, like Shadun had said. There was simply no use harping on it. Deep down inside, Beast made up his mind to make up for it in the future.

“Let’s move on.”

With the fellowship back together again, the seven of them mounted up their horses and continued on their journey towards Vanguard Pass. This time round, they were far enough away from the Hondurian encampment to be able to travel down the road without any more need for subtlety. Besides, after what he had heard from the rest, the enemy would not be very interested in chasing them for a period of time, at least until they realise that their object of interest was already gone.

In other words, their journey east was uneventful. The only other noteworthy event of interest was when they were halfway down the road to Vanguard Pass.

At their front, a black mass blocked the way. Lugwen brought the group down to a slow trot, ready to give the signal to escape the other way should it be an enemy encounter while he himself took the lead to investigate.

It was not clear at first due to the darkness of the night, but a small caravan appeared into view after the seven of them came close enough. On first look, it appeared to be simply a normal merchant caravan heading east down the road with goods and supplies. This caravan that consisted of a carriage and a wagon of items was slowly being pulled by a lone steed, of which was a weird choice for a steed, as it was revealed to be an alpaca of all things upon closer inspection. It was larger than the usual alpaca, and apparently strong enough to carry both its owner and the caravan at once. Atop the saddle, the owner of the caravan seemed to be taking his time with the procession, even humming a song to the moonlight.

“Hey travelers!” The merchant spotted the group, hailing them with a raise of his hands. There was a wide grin on his face, like he was overjoyed in seeing people other than himself. “What brings you on this path on this boring night?”

“….”

Nobody answered, for they were all wary of the stranger. Lugwen, being the honorable knight that he is, returned the greeting after a few seconds of silent consideration.

“Good sir, may I ask where you are heading to?”

The merchant answered without hesitation. “Vanguard Pass. Duh! This road leads only to that place after all.”

Everyone else stiffened. It was common knowledge that trade between Loyderidge and Vanguard Pass had been blocked due to the siege. This implied that the merchant was either smuggling items, or he was someone from the enemy camp. The merchant must had guessed the atmosphere, because he quickly fished out a parchment from his bag and showed it to the party.

“Look, I have a pass for it. See?”

On what appeared to be a trade document stating that the bearer is allowed to conduct trade between Loyderidge and Vanguard Pass, the crest of both Honduria and Caerheim shone in bright red ink at the end of the page. It was an amazing feat, considering how both countries were currently on bad terms but yet still potentially possible due to the gift of gab inherent in all merchant classes.

Beast idly wondered how much he had sacrificed to obtain that permit.

“I am just a poor merchant trying to make a living. I have spent all my fortune on my goods in Kagel and thought I could sell them in Loyderidge. But then the war came and I am stuck outside the city so I had to beg my way past to go trade in Vanguard Pass. Right, Alpy?”

The alpaca steed gave a hum as though it was confirming its owner’s words, at which the merchant gave the llama-lookalike a gentle stroke on the neck. There was a brief scene of intimate affection as mount and human looked into each other’s eyes, creating a world of their own that only had space for the both of them.

Suddenly, a look of realization drew itself across the merchant’s face before it turned dark. His voice came, doubtful and unsure.

“You guys… are not r-robbers, aren’t you? At this time of the night… only robbers would wander around the roads.” His eyes took on a tinge of desperation as they flitted from the alpaca to his wagon and back again. “T-this is all I have left. Please spare my Alpy. I will let you take all of my goods but please don’t kill Alpy.”

“Surely not!” Lugwen indignantly denied in face of the accusation for robbery and slaughter. Before Beast or anyone else could stop him, the royal guard spewed more in righteous anger. “We are knights from Loyderidge, and we will not stoop to something as low as robbing merchants or killing their faithful steeds!”

“Knights?” The merchant was unconvinced. “How could knights from Loyderidge be here? They are under siege!”

“We broke out.” Riwana chipped in, accepting that the damage had already been done. “That is all you need to know. As a gesture of our non-hostility, let us escort you to Vanguard Pass. In return, we would request that you let us join as your bodyguards, even when entering town.”

It seemed that the court magician had contrived of a way to make use of the merchant to bypass the town’s security. It was a brilliant tactical move, but Beast was not sure if the plan would work like Riwana expected it to.

“What if you are lying?”

“Then you would already be dead. But you are not.” It was a barely concealed threat at its finest.

“Y-you are right.” The merchant looked like he was finally persuaded. “Fine.”

Riwana grinned, having gotten her way. If they could enter Vanguard Pass on legit grounds then there would be no need for troublesome things like sneaking in for an audience with Prince Duplent. Meeting this merchant was like a heaven-sent that resolved most of their problems at once, regardless of the merchant’s origins.

Besides, what threat could a merchant be? Even if he were to suddenly turn hostile, there was no reason why the seven of them could not handle a single person and then return back to their original plans. It was with this thought that Riwana and the NPCs began to escort the caravan east in earnest.

Beast, however, did not let his guard down.

He was not taken in at the slightest.

It was hard to see at night but despite his ragged appearance, the merchant’s entire body was emitting a light blue glow.