Chapter 22 – Motherload

As it turns out, nothing went wrong.

We rummaged through the crates as fast as we could. It didn’t go too quickly, considering I had to keep one of my hands on my nose at all times, but we still made good time. The crates mostly contained raw Alchemical ingredients and glass vials in large quantities, and I pocketed everything I could as quickly as I could. I also went over to the two corpses and pilfered through their belongings. The beggar didn’t have anything, but Theodor’s body had several items of note that I gleefully store away. There will always be time to check them out in detail later.

We looted the building at a decent pace. By the time the twenty minutes were up and someone started knocking on the door, my underlings and I were already well on our way to disappear out the back. I’m currently running on a high from the great success, and by the time we arrive back at the warehouse I’ve been using as an impromptu base, the confirmation of the completion of my heist appears.

The Job: Running on Fumes is Successful!

A knife in the dark, a real Thief Lord doesn’t mind collateral damage. You decided to murder the Alchemist and one of his errand boys. While you did find an efficient way to complete your task, it might not be without repercussions. Nevertheless, the job was a success and you may reap the full rewards. May you prosper, Thief lord.

Rewards: 250 Experience, (4) Pieces of equipment, (374) Crafting Reagents, (5) Miscellaneous Items, 8 Gold, 5 Silver, 6 Copper.

I grin. That’s not a bad haul. If every job goes as well as this job, then my troubles would be over. I’m really starting to get a hang of this Thief Lord business even if the game system gave me a subtle and ominous warning in my job completion notification. What’s up with that, anyway?

Meh. Whatever floats the game developers’ boat I suppose. On another note, I really enjoy how I can combine both my Illusion magic and the destructive potential of the Thief Lord class in a single fight. Imagine what I can do when I reach level twenty? The potential for kicking ass is enormous. Life is good, and it’s only getting better. How do I know? Well, because I still haven’t looked through my loot!

Gathering my underlings around me, I tell them to hand over everything they carry. My eyes widen when I read through the list of acquired items.

[Novice Alchemy Kit. Uncommon. Requires: Alchemy. *Contraband*]

[Scholar’s Glasses. Uncommon. +3 Perception. Requires: Level 4. *Contraband*]

[Crafter’s Leather Apron. Uncommon. 10% Skill acquisition in crafting skills. 5% Physical Resistance, +3 Endurance. Requires: Level 3. *Contraband*]

[Crafter’s Leather Apron Set. Common. 10% Physical Resistance, 10% Boost to crafting speed and effect. Requires: NPC. *Contraband*]

[Painting. Novelty Item. #41. *Contraband*]

[Recipe: Weak Health Potion. Common Alchemy Recipe. *Contraband*]

[Recipe: Weak Paralyzing Poison. Uncommon Alchemy Recipe. *Contraband*]

[Recipe: Weak Blight Poison. Common Alchemy Recipe. *Contraband*]

[Recipe: Weak Damage Poison. Common Alchemy Recipe. *Contraband*]

104x [Simple Glass Vial. Common Alchemical Ingredient.]

23x [Shadow’s Bane. Uncommon Alchemical Ingredient.]

32x [Moon Lily Petal. Uncommon Alchemical Ingredient.]

85x [Rose Thorn. Common Alchemical Ingredient.]

76x [Gillyroot. Common Alchemical Ingredient.]

54x [Dried Imp’s Blood. Common Alchemical Ingredient.]

That’s the motherload if I ever saw one. The sheer amount of items and crafting reagents I just received are staggering. The crafting ingredients aren’t even marked as contraband, which in reality means I can sell it to other players for full price. It’s a virtual gold mine for me to perform these types of jobs. I think these ingredients are worth close to thirty gold on their own. If the game can supply me with more heists like this, my monetary problems would be solved right here and now.

“Who said crime never pays?” I chuckle whilst grinning like a mad man.

Everything here is useable. The best items I received were from the dead body of Theodor. Being a named monster, he dropped both the majority of the coin, as well as the glasses and the apron that is equippable by me. I didn’t really expect there to be both a set for me and the Poisoner, but who am I to complain? Hell, it’s about time I gained a few gear pieces that I can wear, even though I don’t particularly need any Perception as of yet. The three points of Endurance from the apron is going to be a big help though since it nearly doubles my health pool on its own. I should really pay more attention to my health points. I’m far too frail.

Which is why I need some new and better equipment. It’s not really because I need more protection, but I need to increase my attributes. In roleplaying games, equipment is everything. No matter how high level you are, the majority of your attributes will always come from your weapons and armor. Currently, I have less than half my item slots filled with useable gear. It’s a disgrace, really. It’s just a waste of both potential and attributes. I need to fill them fast, which is why my next big priority is to prepare for and complete the ‘Burglarizing Bard’ job.

And to do that, I need to maximize my chances, which means that I need to put my Poisoner to work while simultaneously try and grind up the experience of my underlings. If I am to cover all my bases on this job, then I need to bring my A-game. That means I need an ample supply of poison and for my underlings to be in top shape. I also require to strike at the correct time. Since the job description clearly stated that the Bard’s College is frequented by players, then I need to find a window of opportunity where there is the least amount of chance of running into any of them. The natural time for this should be during the night when there is nothing else to do but grind monsters or get drunk in a tavern since all the merchants and quest givers are asleep. Since that’s still a few hours off, I figure I should spend the time wisely.

First of all, I’m handing over the crafter’s item set, the recipes, and the alchemy kit to my Poisoner. She needs a safe place to work. I consider letting her work here in the warehouse, but I quickly dismiss the idea. She might be able to work uninterrupted, but I fear she would be at risk from criminal NPCs or a wandering player. Since I can’t bring her with me down into the sewers, and I can’t spare any underlings to protect her, I‘m left with only one option. Renting a room for her in the tavern.

The trip over to the tavern is uneventful. I seriously underestimated how few players bother visiting this district. I don’t think I’ve actually met any of them yet. No wonder no one discovered there are perfectly good monsters to battle right beneath our feet. They can’t find them if they won’t even bother looking. I’m sure the Dark Pegasus guild knows about it, but none of their players should be beneath level twenty anyway, which means these monsters are far beneath them. I wonder if the monsters scale to a higher level in the other districts?

I should ask Anna whenever I get the chance. Huh, I glance at the ingame watch. 11PM. That should be a good time for good old Ryan to go to bed, shouldn’t it? Opening my friends list, I change my status to appear as online. After only five seconds, the all too familiar ringing tone appears in my mind.

[Anna’el Windrider writes: Hey Ryan! How’s it going? Already back on?]

Woah, that was fast.

[Rynorn Stabberton writes: Hello, Anna. I’m fine. Thank you for asking. I hope all is well with you?]

[Anna’el Windrider writes: Yeah, it’s been a rough day. My sister has been throwing a fit over the fact that we couldn’t find the Thief Lord last night. I kept telling her there is no escape for any Villains, but she is certain the Thief Lord managed to slip our grasp somehow.]

I frown. They are still looking for me? Why? I don’t get what the problem is. Sure, Thief Lords and Villains, in general, can be really annoying to deal with, but it’s not like we are that big of a nuisance to a city this size.

[Rynorn Stabberton writes: That sounds rough. Are the Thief Lords really that bad though? They are only players like the rest of us. From what I read, they can’t even work in groups.]

[Anna’el Windrider writes: That’s what I tried to tell her! Man, I mean come on. It’s just a lousy Villain. They are fairly easy to deal with anyway. Which reminds me! You need to check out the video of my party killing one of the highest level Villains in the game; a level thirty-eight Necromancer. You won’t believe it! The guy was a total noob! I’ll forward the link to the video. It’s gone super viral over the last day. EVERYONE has seen it *giggles*.]

My eye twitches. All right… Now I feel slightly less bad about lying to her. Gritting my teeth, I make a damn good effort not to transfer any of my bitterness along with my next message.

[Rynorn Stabberton writes: I’ve already seen it. Great job! Tell your party that they have my congratulations. It puzzles me though. If Villains are this easy to deal with, why do your guild have such a grudge against them? If you don’t mind me asking, that is.]

[Anna’el Windrider writes: Haha, I don’t mind. I don’t, really. They’re just players. My sister keeps ranting over how bad they are all the time though. Especially Thief Lords. It’s getting a bit stale in my opinion.]

[Rynorn Stabberton writes: Especially Thief Lords? Why?]

[Anna’el Windrider writes: Oh, I don’t know. It’s more like Villains in general, but she sort of has an extra hard-on for Thief Lords. I usually just tune her out when she starts blabbering. Something about them having some sort of top-notch concealment skill, yada yada. She’s really mad at them and keeps calling them the greatest threat to her economic future or whatever. In my opinion, she needs to loosen up a bit. It’s just a game.]

[Rynorn Stabberton writes: Hmm, it sounds a bit drastic. I don’t see how they are that much of a threat though.]

[Anna’el Windrider writes: Well, they’re not, really. They will be if they get a high enough level though. Theoretically, if the Thief Lord gains a high enough level compared to the regular players, they will be next to impossible to discover without being caught in the act. Like all Villains, they can do some real damage to player property without needing to worry about the drop in renown that normal players do. There aren’t a lot of players willing to risk months of grinding up to a high enough level and attempt a one-time suicide mission like that.]

[Rynorn Stabberton writes: So, the Thief Lords are basically James Bond type of Villains?]

[Anna’el Windrider writes: James who? o.O]

[Rynorn Stabberton writes: Nevermind. Old guy stuff.]

[Anna’el Windrider writes: Haha, right. Whatever *winkyface*. Anyway, I’ll be back in town in a few hours. Want to meet up? My entire party and I will be at the Prancing Leprechaun at 4am. Want to meet us? Drinks are on Brian! *grin*.]

Oh, shit. I can’t do that. From what I remember, that ranger guy, Paul, had a pretty high Perception attribute. If I meet them, I’d be fucked.There is only one thing to do: Initiate evasion maneuvers.

[Rynorn Stabberton writes: I’ll see if I can make it. I managed to get a few quests for my Trap Maker class last night that might take me awhile. I’d really like to try and finish them before morning.]

[Anna’el Windrider writes: What? Boo… *poutyface*. You can quest later. It’s not like they are going anywhere. Aren’t you like level two or something? Are you sure you can’t come?]

[Rynorn Stabberton writes: Sorry, Anna. Raincheck?]

[Anna’el Windrider writes: Yeah, sure… We can hang later. I gotta go now. Paul is being a real stickler about this dungeon we’re in. Talk to you later Ryan!]

Well, I’ll be damned. I had no idea Thief Lords could have that sort of impact late game. Why haven’t I read anything about it? Do the large guilds really fear the Thief Lords to the extent where they think we are some sort of super spies? Sure, I get it. If I was a guild leader in charge of a potentially very lucrative organisation, I’d be pretty wary of anyone who could effortlessly fuck things up for me or my income. It seems a little excessive though.

Perhaps they fear the Thief Lords are actually agents from rival guilds? Corporate espionage and sabotaging might be illegal in the real world, but in this game? Everything is theoretically allowed here. The impact of Thief Lords or Villains in this game can be huge. Both as political pawns or just for downright griefing. I finally understand why the Dark Pegasus guild is so adamant about wiping out every single Villain that takes a step inside the city.

Shit. This is actually really bad. Earlier, I had just considered Villains to be a nuisance to the Dark Pegasus guild. If this is correct, then it’s even more important now than ever not to raise any suspicions about my existence. How the hell can I do that though? At one point or another, I will need to up my game. I can’t keep grinding monsters in the sewers or perform these jobs forever. There isn’t enough late-game content in this city for that, I think. No, at some point I will run out of monsters or jobs around my own level. I would need to branch out in some way. And as soon as I do, I’ll gain the attention of so many pissed off players that they’ll likely tear the city down brick by brick just to try and get to me. Can I really stand up to over a thousand players? No fucking way.

Come to think of it, what is my end game here? Sure, I know what my personal goal is, but what is the end game for my class? There isn’t any information about it online, and there isn’t a single player who has reached a high enough level to find out yet. So what could it be? Hunting players? Toppling kingdoms? It could be anything. It just wouldn’t make sense if there wasn’t any end game content for Villains.

I shake my head. I can think about this stuff later. Insinuating and guesswork aren’t going to get me anywhere, at least not when I’m just a measly low-level scrub. I need to focus on the here and now and figure out the other stuff later.

Finally reaching the tavern, I briefly enter it to check if the coast is clear. Seeing that no players are present, I quickly usher my Poisoner in and have her wait for me by the stairs. I walk up to the tavern keeper who is busy refilling a keg.

“Good evening, my good sir. I would like to rent a room.”

The tavern keeper looks surprisingly similar to that old bastard Joe back in the Noob Zone. Right down to the same angry scowl on his face. The angry old tavern keeper glares at me, before his gaze wanders over to the Poisoner to the side, taking her measure by sight.

“I’m sure you could find a prettier woman to warm your bed tonight, Traveller.” He snorts while shaking his head. “Anyway, who am I to judge. That will be one gold coin per night. Five silvers if it’s just for the hour.”

I frown. What in the… I look over towards my dark elf craftswoman. My eyes meet with hers, her large bloodshot eyes smiling maniacally back at me. She flashes me a wide smile, showing a set of crooked yellow teeth. I shiver. Oh dear god.

“It’s not like that. Really. Just no…” I wince, trying to erase the image from my mind. “I’d like to rent it for the night. And please, don’t ever mention anything like that to me again.”

The tavern keeper snorts. “It’s your coin, traveller. Do you need anything else?”

“No…” I mutter, furrowing my brows. “Actually, yes there is. You wouldn’t happen to know if there are any weapons and armor shops nearby, do you?”

“There’s a few down by the docks, just a few blocks down. If you want any recommendations, then my cousin Sigurd offers the best prices on this side of the bay. Tell him Sigvard sent you. He’ll sort you out.” He says, returning his attention to the half-empty keg. “Anything else?”

“No, that will be all. Here, for your troubles.” I smile as I put a copper coin on the counter.

The old man raises an eyebrow. “Pleasure is all mine, kid. Come back any time.”

I smile. “I sure will.”

I suppose there is no harm in doing a little shopping before the next job. I smile while rubbing my hands together. Things are really starting to come together.