Sooo, I was typing the chapter yesterday when my keyboard....had a seizure? Point being, my "letter" keys acted like commands instead of letters, deleting a rather large chunk of the chapter before saving could be hit.

Sort of ruined the whole mood, so as apology I'll make today's chapter twice as long.

Also, we passed 3000 average views and acquired a large amount of new followers, thank you guys!

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Morning found Steel waking up in his room at the guild. He automatically leaned over to feel for warmth, but found his bed to be empty, save for himself. Sighing, he got up and exited the room, looking forward to the morning's breakfast.

When Mema had asked about ingredients the night before, Steel had inwardly panicked at first; not only because he had forgot, but because she had been eyeing his egg as she had asked. Thankfully, he had lucked out and had some things to give her.

Hawk, James, and Olaf had all survived the expedition and had bet up with Steel after the alpha fight. They had given him the wolf pelts and meat they had picked up, but he had refused the ears, saying that it would serve as their bounty proof. Besides the meat, he had plenty of plant parts from the trap plants his squad had killed on the way. Mema had accepted both as odd enough food for her to cook with, but hadn't paid commission due to her seeing it before.

Steel walked down the stairs to be treated to a round of applause from the morning patrons. His bewildered face made a few of them chuckle before they raised their glasses to him.

"Cheers traveler Steel, Mema explained to us how you fought tooth and nail for this morning's breakfast, we really appreciate it!" One shouted.

A notice popped up in front of Steel:

Status UpdateYour friendship with the proprietor of the guild as resulted in her spreading tales of your deeds to fuel customer's good cheer and need for ale. +25 fame

'Huh, guess this works.' He thought to himself, wading through a sea of well wishers and back slapping. Even though the fame made him happy, it was also another reminder of her absence. He shook his head, refusing to let the past hold him down; it was there to propel him forward. His face hardened as he took a seat at the bar, just to have a large "thunk" in front of him scare it off.

Mema gave him a comforting look, "That face is not allowed in here boy, remember that. The guild is for smiles and good food, THAT RIGHT BOYS?" Another cheer echoed around the place, drinks hitting the table before being dunked down. She smiled down at Steel and passed him a bowl of...something hot and delicious looking.

He raised an eyebrow at Mema, "What is this?"

She huffed at him, "Have I ever served you something bad? Hurry up and try it!" She held a spoon out to him, which he grudgingly took, eyeing the concoction. To be fair, it smelled divine, like the earth and fire. The appearance, however, left little to be desired. Gulping, he took a spoon full and put it in his mouth.

Food Buff AcquiredFood BuffVitalityFood Quality:MasterCreator: MemaEffect:+10% Vitality until sleep or next meal

Steel raised an eyebrow, "Huh, even though this looks like a plant took a crap in a pool of water, it taste's pretty good." He put another spoon full into his mouth, savoring the taste, failing to notice Mema putting down her sharpening stone and blade.

"Hmm, if I were to describe it." He began, waving the spoon in the air, "I'd say I was eating cooked lettuce that was wrapped around meat." He put the spoon down and began drinking straight from the bowl. A few seconds was all it took for it to disappear down his throat. Wiping his mouth, he held the bowl out, "More please."

Mema hid her surprise, the boy had really enjoyed her new creation. She quickly slid him another bowl of the plant soup. The other patrons were watching out of the corner of their eyes as well. Steel didn't know it, but he was always the first to eat Mema's new food. Everyone had heard what had happened to the last person to try a new creation, she'd gone for a ride of her own.

He downed it as quickly as the first one, watching his satiety meter rise out of the corner of his eye. Seeing it full, he smiled and thanked Mema for the delicious meal, getting up and whistling all the way out the door. Upon his departure from the guild, the other patrons started calling for some of the soup themselves, eager to try this new culinary creation. Mema grinned happily as she scooped more bowls some soup to feed the hungry people. She couldn't wait to see what the boy would bring her next!

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As the doors to the guild closed behind him, Steel started walking to the temple. He had planned his day out yesterday, before falling asleep after that night's lesson. He figured the place that was closest to the gods of the world would be a place to change certain preferences. After all, titles could only be changed at the temple, so why not loot type?

He walked up the marble staircase and past the white pillars into the statue room, the gods and goddess's as impressive as ever. He strolled right over to the receptionist desk and smiled at her.

"Hello, I would like to change my monster kills." He declared.

The receptionist gave him a bright smile, "Good day traveler, how may I assist you today?"

Steel raised an eyebrow, this was new. "Um, I was wondering if you could help me change what happens when a monster dies."

"Wonderful sir, is question relating to: What happens when a monster dies, Is it okay to kill in a game, or Why do the monsters disappear once dead?"

Steel slapped his head with his hand, this receptionist was the most mechanical he had ever met. In a way, it was actually refreshing to find something that reminded him he was in a game instead of reality.

"None of the above ma'am, I want to change....er...how I get loot from kills."

"Very good sir, is your question, "How do I change loot drop preference?"

'Calm, keep calm.' He thought, gripping his fists, 'She doesn't know any better, come on now.'

"Yes ma'am." He said evenly.

"Perfect, a priest will be with you shortly to help you with your question. Please wait over there." She gestured behind him, where a line of chairs rested against a wall beside a door. Thanking her, Steel moved to the chairs and sat down. He noticed he was the only one waiting, so he wasn't surprised when a minute later the door opened and a priest came out.

"Sir Steel? I can assist you now." The priest called him over. He looked like a typical priest; robes with a symbol and a band of material around his neck.

He led him into the door, which housed a long hallway with adjacent doors down the length. In fact, Steel couldn't see the end of the hallway. The priest opened the first door and they walked in. He sat down in one of two white chairs in the room and smiled pleasantly.

"So young traveler, what can a representative of the gods help you with today?"

Steel bowed respectfully before sitting down, "Sir, I was wondering if I could change my loot drop preferences."

The priest tilted his head and rubbed his chin, "That is certainly possible young one, but may I ask the reason for such?"

"I want to work on my skinning skill, and the monsters and animals keep disappearing before I can try."

"Interesting. Young one, if you are here, do I believe correctly that you are not of the tanner, hunter, or trapper classes?"

Steel blinked, "Er, yes. Why is that important?"

"If you were one of those, then the preference would have changed accordingly without a need to come here. You must have gained the skill from skinning an opponent with the help of a NPC not affiliated with you."

"Well, that's certainly true." Steel thought back to the devil wolf, and how the Hungry Bunnies had killed it.

"Well, that can be certainly changed. Come traveler, pray with me to the gods to hear your plea." They both bowed their heads, and a tiny shower of blue light fell onto Steel's head.

Your loot drop preferences have been changed. From now on, you will not receive loot automatically after killing an enemy. All loot must be collected manually and by hand, including unusual loot. Please note, if this is abused with sentient creatures, your infamy will increase, and your S.S. ranking may fall.

The priest smiled and leaned back, "Anything else the gods can help you with young traveler?"

Steel hesitated, but this was the best place to ask, and he had to know. "Sir, I wish to inquire about the well being of my A.I. friend Hunie, is she all right?"

The priests posture changed, from warm and inviting to serious and hard. He leaned forward, "Human, know that real life questions and the A.I. community are not permitted in this game. As this is your first offense and in an appropriate place, you will not be penalized, but please refrain from speaking about things outside the games lore."

Steel hung his head, "I'm sorry sir, but I have to know. It's my fault she was hurt, and I'd like to speak to her again."

The priest leaned back and put his chin on his hands, observing Steel. "Human, am I safe to assume your friend awoke as an A.I. during your adventures?" Steel nodded, "Well, then she is not the same as a typical A.I. As she was born here, she was no knowledge of anything beyond these coded walls so to speak. If she were to die, her programming would compel her to disappear as well, an effective permanent death like you humans."

As Steel's heart sank, the priest held up a finger, "However, as long as she is alive in some form, her coding persists in the system. I cannot tell you how she is, as only a god or goddess could check the code for her well being. I can tell you that if she is alive, they are taking great care to see that she remains that way, understand?" Steel nodded, relieved.

The priest's manner changed back to his normal self, "Now then, anything you wish to ask further, appropriately of course?"

"Sir, out of curiosity, what are the dark gods?" Steel asked.

The priest frowned, not as before but as a game character, "Hmm, young traveler, I would not go poking into the business of darkness. I will not say much in this sacred place, but know the dark gods heavily out number the gods of light, though none save one has an equivalent power. They have their place in this world to help keep balance, but many seek to expand their influence and sow chaos. My advice: do not search for them. Rather, they will most likely find you instead."

Having no more questions, Steel thanked the priest for his help, and the two of them left the room and returned to the great hall. There, the priest bowed and reentered the hallway. Steel took a moment to walk over to Milna's statue and pray for Hunie's safety. He received a note that is wisdom had been blessed for the day, increasing it by 10%. He bowed to the statue, and left the temple.

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Next up on Steel's business, visiting the captain at the guard house. As he walked by the gate, the occasional guard would smack his back and congratulate him for his success. Each hit took off 1 hp and he felt his heart jump out of his chest. Unlike the expedition members, these guards were a lot stronger.

He successfully made his way to the stairs without attracting anymore back slaps, and knocked with MANLY GUSTO at the captain's door.

"Oy, stop banging on my door." A complaining voice came from within. Steel entered to find Captain Harkin holding a bag of ice on his head, grimacing. "Hurry up and close the door whelp, the light's killing me here."

Steel chuckled, taking a seat in front of him, "Oh I'm sorry captain, I thought you could hold your alcohol." Harkin shot him a glower stare, making Steel smile innocently. He sighed.

"That I can do boy, but I was feeling mighty happy last night, so I had a drink. Then I decided to drink to my men's health, then a drink for our success, and so and so forth." He waved his hand lazily in the air, "And it ended up me drinking my way into a stupor. Anyway, your here to hear my thoughts on the expedition and receive your rewards correct?"

Steel nodded.

"And you won't come back later?"

Steel shook his head.

"Oh fine, lets get to it then." Harkin put the ice down and crossed his hands on the table. "Now, before I gave you the ranking of Scout so you could find the lair and be compensated by the city." Steel nodded, "Well, as you know, the ranking of Scout does not fall under the traditional chain of command. Due to your actions, I am officially promoting you to Corporal Scout, which holds the same authority as a normal Corporal. You will have 5 men working directly for you, at a later date of course, since it's too busy right now to split the men up. The captain coughed a little before continuing, "In all honesty, I don't care what you do as long as you stay out of trouble and come when needed. Besides that, I hear Sergeant Hamilton is going to introduce you to a shield instructor?"

Rank UpYour dedication and hard work in the guard has caused you to be officially promoted to the rank of Corporal, Scout Varient. Rewards:Authority over Privates in the Rostwood area

5 direct subordinates

Pay of 1 silver a day

Increased intimacy with the guard faction

Decreased Intimacy with the thieves faction

+ 5 leadership

When Steel nodded, the captain snorted, "About time. I read his report, and I'm surprised as hell you managed to survive so long not knowing what your doing. Blast it boy, you should have told me you'd never been trained in combat before. This would have been plain embarrassing if it had come out during the tournament."

Steel folded his arms, annoyed. "I happen to think my skills speak for themselves." He muttered.

"Well, that's for sure true." Captain Harkin let out a roar of laughter, "All you do is punch with that shield. Tell me boy, how would you win if that shield of yours didn't have that nifty ability?" Seeing Steel at a lose for words, "Or better yet, tell me what would you do if you came across an enemy that canceled magic?"

"Errr, hit him with the shield or my fists?"

That captain whacked him on the head, "Idiot whelp, like that shield by itself would do any real damage, and no way in hell you've had hand-to-hand training, or I'll be dragon's uncle."

Technically, Steel had training, in the real world. Without the proper skill, however, it wouldn't do any real damage.

Captain Harkin sighed, "Besides your desperately needed training, we have to talk something else as equally important." He leaned forward and eyed Steel.

"Lets talk about your friend."

Steel stiffened, his full attention on the captain. He licked his lips, "Sir, it is my understanding that you have experience with this sort of think?"

The captain sighed and leaned back, his eyes seeing something Steel couldn't imagine.

"Aye boy, it did indeed." He rubbed his face, "Me dear wife in fact. Tis was back in my younger adventuring days, before I met the others. My wife and I were exploring an old dungeon with a team of miners. They were searching for rare crystals and the like, and they had a very rare item that located every gem in the dungeon walls. As it so happened, the instance we entered had the dungeon heart close enough to be dug to in the bottom floor. Full of desire, we pushed ourselves through, heedless of our injuries in pursuit of riches. When we reached the heart, we found it, old and pulsing with power. It called it's strongest monsters to fight us, and we fought bravely against the mighty foes. In the end." He smiled at the memory, "We triumphed over our enemies and stood triumphant in front of the crystal."

He frowned, "However, the blasted thing still had one more trick up it's sleeve. My wife had taken the worst injuries, so no one had noticed one of the monsters stick her with a crystal piece from the heart. It called her, and drew her body and soul into itself. I remember her screams as she vanished in front of me." Silent tears began forming in his eyes.

"It changed itself, becoming a crystal statue of her body, thinking we would leave it alone. However, the bigger it got, the greater the greed of my mate grew. They attacked me, and tied me up as they advanced on the crystal heart. I watched as their picks tore it apart, a crystalline shriek filling the room. I knew she was still in there, but I couldn't do anything about it. The more they tore, the more unstable it grew, until it finally exploded into a flurry of spikes. They all died, stuck to death by the needles. Ironically, the only ones that hit me actually freed me from my bonds." The tears were really falling now, unhindered by his face.

"I grasped at the crystals, but the light faded from them, and they faded to dust in my hands. The dungeon died that day, and I was left with an infant son to raise on my own. I joined up with Bob and the others after that, dedicating myself to raising my boy and teaching him how to survive. Not that it mattered in the end." Harkin shook his head, putting his hand over his eyes.

Quest ReceivedHelp the Captain reach closureDifficulty: N/ARequirementsHigh Intimacy with the captain

Listen to his story[/tds]The captain of the guard has had a tough life, losing his wife and son. Find ways to help relieve him of his guilt and move on. Failure will not result in any change.[td2]RewardMax intimacy with the Guard Captain

Possible familial connection

Gift from the captain

Steel read the notification. A familiar quest allowed players to increase their affection with important NPC characters, and helped with receiving more quests in the future. Besides, he honestly liked the old man, and helping him out would help to repay some of the debt Steel felt he owed. He clicked yes.

"Sir, I took this from the cave, can you explain it's significance to me?" Steel took out the dark pink crystal and showed it to the captain.

Captain Harkin inspected it gently, taking great care to return it Steel's hand, "Aye boy, I know what that is. That is a heart crystal."

"You mean a dungeon heart?"

He shook his head, "Nay, tis the heart of your dear friend in physical form." Steel's mouth dropped.

"Is that true sir?" He asked, shocked.

"Indeed, the crystal is the same as my wife's. Before I continue, but that away boy." He waited til Steel had returned it to his inventory before continuing, "Those are the rarest of crystals, heart crystals. Unlike dungeon hearts, which hold souls, heart crystals hold the body, soul, and heart of someone. Do not let anyone else know you have it, as many would go to great lengths to steal it from you. It can be used to power things, as the heart holds an immense power on its own that is normally impossible to harness. Least that's what they say." He shrugged, "Really, it holds two important purposes."

"One, having a heart crystal allows the holder to travel to the dungeon heart from whence it came. Two, the crystal can be forged into anything and grant special properties, as well as power spells to a higher level."

"Could I use it to move her soul into another medium, like the egg?" Steel asked.

Harkin smacked his head, "Idiot boy, soul tampering is a dark art. Besides, you'd need the entire crystal and all it's parts, as well as an empty body and immense magic power. Even then, the connection would be terrible and would cause the soul great pain." He shook his head, "No boy, your friend will have to recovered another way, if at all possible. I still have some of my notes from years past, I'll see if I find anything useful in my spare time."

"Thank-you sir." Steel bowed.

The captain waved him off, "It's the least I can do as it was my subordinates fault it happened. Best be off now son, Hamilton will be waiting downstairs for you."

Bowing again, Steel left the room, his heart a little more hopeful.

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Hope you guys enjoyed it!