Back in the game, Sirius said his farewells to his hosts as he headed off for an early start.

“Be careful, Dear. And try to be back around the same time as yesterday if you don’t want to miss dinner!

“Alright! I’ll see you later, Palma,” Sirius called out over his shoulder as he waved goodbye.

Twilight still shrouded the island: dusky shades of orange and yellow permeating the morning fog as the sun began its ascent.

Sirius inhaled the cool breeze through his nose as he double-checked his map at the corner, feeling immediately energized. The island air had a real crispness to it that the air on Earth sorely lacked.

‘First a right, then a quick left…’ He took his time walking down the streets. They were practically empty at this hour, so he was finally able to appreciate all the architecture and natural fauna.

Many of the homes had carved wood accents around the windows and door frames as well as a simple second-floor balcony where residents would hang their laundry out to dry and tend to their terrace gardens. Long vines and large, droopy leaves extended from the planters atop the rails, trailing down the walls. It really added a nice splash of color amidst the tightly packed, pastel yellow and beige buildings.

As Sirius continued his stroll, he witnessed the morning greetings exchanged between neighbors, and wives sending their husbands off to work. Everything appeared so harmonious on the surface. However, he could almost feel the sadness in their lingering gazes as they departed.

‘NPCs… They’re all just NPCs,’ he reminded himself. It still felt so strange that he even had to do so. He kept his head down the remainder of the journey, only periodically taking a look at the route he traced out until he arrived outside Alchemist Bolivar’s shop on the outskirts of town — near the stretch of woods that surrounded the base of Blackhill.

Fortunately, during the time it took him to hike over, the tasks in his Quest Log had reactivated. Sirius walked straight up to the door and knocked twice.

“Yes…? Come on in.”

A silver bell jingled above the door as he entered. “Excuse me, I’m looking for Alchemist Bolivar. I’m one of the Heralds here at the behest of High Priestess Necrah.”

“Well, you’ve come to the right place. I was just about to send out the first group to search for Chrennoil…”

***

Sirius worked diligently throughout the day. Completing tasks like gathering Chrennoil for Bolivar, helping bandage and distribute medicine to injured members of the resistance, assisting the Village Chief’s staff with delivering messages to various important persons around Blackhill, and even returning to the food repositories for another round of rodent stomping to break up the tedium.

The quests initially assigned by Necrah weren’t glamorous by any means, but Sirius still found himself enjoying the activities while chatting with the other players. And as long as he paid close attention to the instructions of the NPC in charge, it was pretty easy to complete the bonus objectives.

Most of the jobs offered decent enough rewards — though none as nice as the gloves he got from Foreman Olvar. However, a nice secondary benefit was the [Fitness] Proficiency he managed to earn about halfway through the day. All it did was reduce his stamina consumption by a small margin. Nothing flashy, but more than welcome nonetheless.

It became increasingly obvious to Sirius that the real purpose of the first leg of the main questline was just to help players get acclimated to the game and progressively learn about all of the features and systems. For example, Bolivar’s quest was preempted by a video about resource gathering, then he learned about various injury states and first aid through helping Doctor Kern, and so on. Overall, the experience was pleasant enough, but his role felt sorely lacking in importance — mostly because the players didn’t yet have the opportunity to directly oppose the invaders.

Their presence in Blackhill was helping the village recover from its significant lack of manpower; however, it was clear the leaders of Blackhill didn’t yet want the Heralds on the front lines. And it made sense in the grand scheme of things; as — aside from their immortality — the Heralds didn’t have much to offer in terms of combat potential in their newborn state. It also remained to be seen if they could be fully trusted.

‘Hopefully, I’ll get another skill at Level 3,’ Sirius bemoaned. It wasn’t pleasant — feeling useless, and he was still eager to put all of his training to use in real combat. He sighed as he glanced at the experience bar on his Character Sheet. Each segment of the quest he completed offered precisely 25% of the experience required to level. Currently, the meter was sitting idly at three-quarters full as he was putting the finishing touches on the final task in his Quest Log. Not even going back to kill [Lesser Rodents] had budged it in the slightest.

“Hey, Shadowfire… Pass me another [Sewing Kit], will you?”

“...Here,” the man shrouded in a cloak grumbled as he handed over more supplies.

Would you like to repair the item [Fine Hide Vest]?

Y/N?

Sirius pressed YES on the system prompt and watched one of the kit’s 5 charges disappear. “Where’d you get that cloak anyway?” he asked offhandedly, grabbing some frayed trousers from the pile on the table in front of him.

“Bought it from Madam Lily.” Shadowfire inclined his head to the attractive woman greeting players at the door.

“Wow…” Sirius sucked in a sharp breath. “How much was that?” He’d taken a look at the Seamstress’s wares earlier and the cheapest among them was still more than 3 Silver Marks. Even after working all day, Sirius had only received 2 Marks and a few Silver Bits for his efforts.

“8 Silver Marks and 5 Bits,” the man replied, dryly.

“What! How’d you even make that much?”

“Spent all last night collecting Chrennoil every time they respawned and sold them all this morning. Bolivar buys 25 stalks of any quality for 6 Bits after you’ve completed his quest. There were a few players out there with me, but I could usually manage to gather over 100 stalks every half hour.”

Sirius did some quick mental math in his head. 15 Silver Bits could be converted into a Mark, so that meant that even if he only worked for 8 hours — Shadowfire probably earned just under 200 bits or more than 13 Marks. That seemed like an astronomical sum at this point in the game.

“Man… and here I was thinking that there wasn’t much benefit to scrounging around on the island at night. I bet there are some nice stats on that cloak.”

Shadowfire shrugged as he reached into the pile of damaged clothes. “Not really, just a marginal bonus to sneaking in dark conditions.”

“Oh…” That seemed underwhelming — to put it lightly. “You’re a Shaman, right? You going for a stealthy build?”

“Nope. I just like cloaks. I was mostly doing it to grind my [Gathering] Proficiency.”

“I see…” Sirius muttered. He probably should have expected that answer considering the guy insisted on being called Shadowfire. “...You know. I could really see you more as a Warlock than a Shaman.”

“Don’t get me started,” Shadowfire groaned.

“What?” Sirius chuckled as he finished his last repair. He could finally turn in the quest, but he wanted to hear Shadowfire out first.

“Warlock was indeed my first choice. But of course, my girlfriend wanted to play as an Orc. Long story short — she wouldn’t relent and refused to join the game if I didn’t play a Khilaite with her. Something about how starting too far apart would be lonely… Anyway, it was a losing battle from the start and I only managed to convince her to allow me to roll a Toth instead of a Vokulle after a few long hours of arguing during Character Creation.”

“I didn’t take you for being such a big softie,” Sirius teased.

“Eh, she always takes care of everything at home, so it's only right I look after her in the game. Plus, it’s her first time playing an RPG, so I worry about what kind of nonsense build she would put together if I wasn’t there to help out.”

“Makes sense. Well, it was nice meeting you Shadowfire,” Sirius said as he stood up, extending a hand. “And I wish you luck in your romantic journey through the Shattered Realm. I’ve just finished up, so I’m gonna turn it in.”

“Last one on the list?” Shadowfire asked as he grasped Sirius’ proffered hand for a shake.

“Yeah.”

“Congrats in advance on Level 3 then.”

“Thanks,” Sirius replied as he released his grip. “You got any more after this one?”

“Nope. I was done a while ago. However, I was thinking of going with Tailor as my profession, so I wanted to get some more practice in with manual repairs.”

“Oh, gotcha!” Sirius was suddenly enlightened. He’d been wondering why Shadowfire was doing all the repairs by hand even though the bonus objective only required 5 out of 20 to be done manually. “How’d you find out about the Professions already — if you don’t mind my asking.”

“Not at all. Just asking around with the NPCs. Only managed to glean a couple so far. Seems like there’s the traditional Blacksmith, Tailor, Cook, but also more unique ones like Cartographer.”

“Hmm, I’ll have to keep an ear out. Thanks again, Shadowfire.”

“Ah, one second!” Shadowfire called out to him as he was turning away. “After you get yourself situated with your new level and everything — let me know if you’re interested in grouping up for the next stage of the main quest.”

Sirius saw a friend request pop up in front of his face which he accepted right away. “Alright, sure thing. Talk to you later.” He wasn’t sure what that was all about, but he would find out soon.

“Yeah, sounds good.”

Shadowfire turned back to his work as Sirius jogged over to Madam Lily.

“Excuse me, Madam Lily. Sorry to interrupt, but I’ve completed the repairs you assigned.” He gestured towards his pile at the table while the weird mustached player trying to flirt with the Seamstress sent him a scathing glare.

“Wonderful! I appreciate your help, Herald...” Lily paused she glanced over Sirius’ handiwork. “Competent work — a few of these look quite good,” she continued blithely. “Tell you what, I’ll let you take your pick from the pile to carry out with you. Oh, and take a [Sewing Kit] with you.”

*Ding*Ding*Ding*

Bonus reward triggered!

————-

You Have Leveled Up!

Received: 5 Unassigned Attribute Points & Class Skill [Reckless Charge]

————-

Quest completed!

Return to Blackhill Garden Temple and speak with High Priestess Necrah to receive your rewards!

Note: All previous tasks may still be repeated.

“Thank you, Madam Lily. I am undeserving of your praise.” Mustache man rolled his eyes as Sirius’ reply elicited a pleased smile and a chuckle from the graceful Madam.

However, while messing with the random player was amusing, he had more important business to take care of.

He quickly grabbed the [Patchwork Leather Jerkin] he’d been eyeing from his stack of repairs.

[Patchwork Leather Jerkin], Chest

Equip requirement: Level 2

Rating: Poor

Physical Defense: 8; Magic Defense: 0

Durability: 12/12

No bonuses, but all of the equipment had been of poor quality and this was the item with the highest defense. The [Sewing Kit] was probably worth more than this shoddy piece of armor, though it was better than the empty slot he currently had. And at least now that he’d completed this quest he could view the durability of items.

Sirius could only shake his head and sigh when thinking about the quality of his current gear. A grand total of two pieces. Players like Shadowfire who had been grinding for money were far ahead of him. He was only somewhat mollified by the knowledge that skill could significantly bridge the gap between gear scores. But who doesn't love showing off their powerful equipment?

Still, for now he assumed that advancing his progress in the main questline was of greatest import, so he had to resist the temptation of grinding.

As Sirius stepped outside the shop he checked the sun. It looked to only be about 3 or 4 o’clock in the afternoon — plenty of time to reach the temple before sundown considering Madam Lily’s was located only a block south of the central market.

Hence, Sirius set off at a measured pace, taking a moment to distribute his attribute points in the same manner as previously and inspect his new skill as he skirted the crowds.

[Reckless Charge]

Rush at your foe with wild abandon within a range of 5 meters.

Requirements: Barbarian Class

Cost: 10 Rage

Cooldown: 12s

Effect: Deal 1.2x base weapon or attack damage to the target.

If the Skill deals a Severe Blow — damage increased to 1.5x and the opponent will be immobilized for 3s. However, if the Skill misses, user will be slowed by 30% for 2s.

Sirius frowned slightly as he read the description. He hadn’t tried it out yet, so he was unsure how difficult it would be land to the charge, but having a penalty for missing seemed harsh.

Regardless, gap closers were vital and his skillset felt much more well-rounded now.

‘Eh, this looks like a decent spot to test it…’ Sirius thought as ducked into an empty alley. He couldn’t help but scratch that itch of testing out a new ability.

As an active Skill, [Reckless Charge] couldn’t just be toggled off and on at will in his menu like [Aura of Might]. Fortunately, the Combat Tutorial had given him a general idea of how to use Skills without requiring a verbal command. Different from Spells which required pre-prepared materials, chants, or certain gestures — Skills required a combination of appropriate body movement and Resource Draw.

The body movement was fairly straightforward, and each Skill would detail the proper steps in a picture sequence in the menu. Resource Draw, on the other hand, he was almost entirely clueless about.

During the tutorial, the narrator had alluded to a source of power within the body — near the heart. Players could tap into this power and extract the required amount of Rage, Spirit, etc. to activate the Skill. It sounded simple enough, but Sirius had yet to distinctly feel that source within his body.

He’d felt a traces of it when battling the [Lesser Rodents] but nothing concrete enough to grasp.

Sirius toggled on his [Aura of Might], adopting a slight crouch and tensing his leg muscles as he prepared to take off. It would take a few seconds for his Rage to generate, so he just remained still — marveling at the sensation of a foreign energy pumping through his bloodstream. The feelings of power, focus, and dominance it supplied was intoxicating.

Six seconds ticked by quickly, and as his Rage bar surpassed the 12 unit mark, Sirius began to attempt to tap into that resource locus within his body. He struggled at first, unsure of what exactly he was looking for, but as his Rage continued to build, the fiery core of energy became increasingly clear.

It felt like there was a small furnace in his chest, the embers of which were slowly being stoked as his Rage built. The heat wasn’t uncomfortable, but he did feel an instinctual need to expel it — to unleash. Suppressing that desire wasn’t difficult, but he felt himself growing slightly more agitated with each passing moment.

‘Rage is truly apt…’ Sirius smiled to himself. Then, with a concentrated effort, he began his attempts to tap into the resource pool with his consciousness.

At first, he was all over the place, the fire slipping in and out of his grasp like an eel. But eventually, he decided to employ some imagery. Sirius pictured the core of Rage as a well filled with molten lava, and his mind a bucket.

Dipping the bucket into the well finally elicited a response. Sirius checked the corner of his vision and saw his Rage meter instantly drop by 7 before quickly replenishing.

‘Guess I need a bigger bucket...’

Following some trial and error — he finally managed to extract an even 12 Rage and proceeded to pour the hot, viscous energy into his legs where he knew it needed to be directed.

The Rage flowed downward, and Sirius felt his muscles involuntarily tense up once more before the alley suddenly turned into a blur. He came to a stumbling halt as the Skill ended, feeling lethargic as he recovered. ‘There’s the slow...’ It wasn’t too bad but his movements were weighty and met with some resistance like when he’d first entered the character creation lobby.

Suddenly, a laugh bubbled forth from Sirius' lungs. ‘Holy Shit! That was incredible!’

Using [Reckless Charge] had felt like he imagined driving an expensive sports car would. Stomping on the gas as the traffic light in front of him suddenly turned green.

Unable to help himself, Sirius spent the next dozen-odd minutes dashing back and forth through the alley. Not only was it immensely fun, but it also allowed him to get a better hang of Resource Drawing. It wasn’t until a random drunkard stumbled into the alley that Sirius finally stopped.

His Aura had caused the man to piss himself a bit prematurely, but he had no recompense to offer the offended. He could only smile apologetically as he toggled the Skill off and returned to the main road.

Sirius resumed his jog towards Blackhill, and a short time later he found himself at the base of the winding trail that led up the mountain to the temple. There were a few players around the area either picking random flowers on the mountainside or traversing the path like himself.

'It looks a lot steeper than I remember,' Sirius grimaced as he craned his neck upward. 'Better to get it over with...'

His breathing was ragged by the time he crested the final switchback. Unsurprisingly the journey had exhausted almost half his Stamina. It wasn’t a resource he found himself draining very often, but then again, aside from this hike, he hadn’t engaged in much difficult labor or combat yet.

After catching his breath, Sirius hurried inside. He was pleasantly surprised to find the Temple itself was relatively empty. A few Priestesses were hanging out in the long corridor, chatting idly amongst themselves. Sirius even spotted Ameera among them. She gave him a friendly wave and smile as he passed, which he returned in kind.

He soon found Necrah in the Spawn Cave, standing in the same spot as she had been when he left nearly two days ago, busy chatting with some fresh arrivals. She was one of the few NPCs he’d met that didn’t seem to follow a schedule of her own. Though, considering her duty of guiding new players it made sense.

Even now, there seemed to be people phasing into the world for the first time, gazing around in muddled wonder much as he had. Sirius questioned if these people would have the same opportunities as everyone who had arrived during the launch. Or would they get left behind as the frontrunners progressed through the storyline?

The five quests in the first leg of [Invasion of Blackhill Garden] were static events, but it remained to be seen how the rest would pan out. Sirius couldn’t imagine that the invaders would just respawn suddenly after being repelled, or the opposite should the players fail, resulting in the storyline constantly cycling through a loop. Doing so would completely diminish the urgency and importance of the story, but not providing new players with contingencies to catch up or experience events of similar magnitude would hurt the game’s balance and ability to attract customers. ‘There’s definitely no perfect solution.’ he mused.

“Oh! High Priestess Necrah!” Sirius suddenly called out as he saw a chance to grab her attention.

“...Sirius, isn’t it?” she replied with a bemused smile as he hustled over. “I’ve heard whispers of your great diligence and kindness. I assume you are here to receive your due compensation?”

Sirius shook his head, an idea brewing in his mind. “I do not desire to be rewarded. I was only doing what I should as a member of the Toth. In truth, I have come to you to seek more responsibility. After seeing the scars left behind by the invaders firsthand, I only wish to contribute directly to the fight against them.”

Necrah sighed, her sapphire eyes glittering with a hint of melancholy in the shifting light of the flames. “I’ve truly become jaded in these past years. It seems Ameera has already surpassed me as a judge of character…” The High Priestess squared her shoulders as she set her mouth in a hard line. “Herald Sirius, I appreciate your sentiments. I think you have what it takes to emerge as a true champion of our people.”

*Ding*

Bonus reward triggered!

Received +10 favorability with High Priestess Necrah, [Ring of Minor Strength]

___________________

Quest Completed! [Invasion of Blackhill Garden Pt. 1]

You have received +15 Reputation with Blackhill Village (5 extra for completing all bonus objectives).

Achieved {Accepted} status in Blackhill Village!

Hint: Faction specific rewards can be purchased from the Blackhill Village Chief

“And you are right. It is time we take the fight to the invaders! They’ve been quiet for too long and I fear they are only waiting on some reinforcements before making their final assault. We must act before it is too late. Go and see Berek of the Blackguard. He is planning an operation that will take place tonight and could use all the help he can get.”

*Ding*

Quest Accepted! [Invasion of Blackhill Garden Pt. 2]

High Priestess Necrah has instructed you to seek out Captain Berek if you wish to participate in tonight’s operation against the invaders.

“Thank you for placing your trust in me, High Priestess. I will go to Berek and join him on this mission.”

“Very well… May Kimala guide your path, Herald.”

Sirius waved farewell as Necrah sent him off with a bow. Out in the temple corridor, he pulled up the Vault Creative messaging app and forwarded a text to Shadowfire.

Sirius of the Toth (SoT): Hey. I just finished talking with Necrah. You joining that quest with Captain Berek?”

Shadowfire: Yea. I’ll spare you the details, but we’ll be working in groups of 4. If you’re okay with it, I’ll go ahead and contact two other players I’ve been in touch with. Another Shaman and a Priestess.

SoT: Fine by me. Any idea where Berek usually is?

Shadowfire: I found him previously at the Barracks — northeast of the central marketplace. Are you heading there now?

SoT: Yup

Shadowfire: Ok, then I’ll notify the others and meet you over there.

SoT: Cool, see you soon.

Sirius dismissed the messenger and slipped on his [Ring of Minor Strength]. It gave him a +5 boost to Strength, but because it was an equipment effect, it only counted as a flat bonus and couldn’t be enhanced by his Attuned Body or [Aura of Might]. Still, it was almost as good as another level and he had a feeling he would need all the extra damage he could get his hands on for the upcoming battle...