Robert’s last save point was in his house in the capital city of the Federation inside Excel. It wasn’t anything special. A small two-bedroom apartment above a shop that he was part owner of. That was the thing Robert loved the most about the fully immersive MMORPG games he frequented. Many of them allowed players to build wealth and even build or buy houses or businesses.

Before doing anything else, Robert walked downstairs to the shop to check on the business. His partner, a man named Frederick, had gone in on the shop about a year ago. While it wasn’t a huge moneymaker, it generated enough to keep them both stocked in health potions and various other commonly used items. The F & R Depot sold just about everything from camp markers that allowed parties to camp in the wilds safely all the way to minor food items. They had a few regular customers and traded with other more specialized shops when they came across something unusual.

Frederick was a middle-aged man in real life that Robert had met on a random quest early in the game. While he wouldn’t consider Frederick a real-life friend, he found him dependable and honest. Frederick had a limited amount of time to play each day because of a full-time job, a wife, and a young daughter, but he always checked in and was the one who really ran the shop. Robert was mostly a backer because he had hoarded a small fortune of items that couldn’t be moved over to the marketplace and exchanged for real-world currency. About a year ago, Frederick had proposed buying the shop, and they had owned it as partners ever since.

As he walked down the stairs leading into the storeroom, a young man looked up and said, “Good morning, boss. I haven’t seen you in a few days.”

Because of the time dilation effects of the game, Robert and Frederick had hired a young NPC to run the shop while they were away. Since they would be away for entire workdays in the real world, it would appear that they were away for at least a full day each time they returned.

Having an NPC in charge allowed them to make money even when they were not online. The NPCs in the game were sophisticated enough to adapt to new situations, provide basic levels of conversation, and take on new occupations if needed. William was the third son of the local baker, and his parents were more than happy to have him join Robert and Frederick as there wasn’t a lot for him to do at home. His two elder brothers were already running their family business.

“Yeah, I just got back. Have you seen Frederick around lately?”

“Yes, he was here a few hours ago. He said something about going to the smith’s guild.”

Robert nodded and said, “I see. He’s been looking to set up an agreement with them. I think I’ll go find him.” Pausing at the door. “Before I go, how’s business?”

Robert could look at his terminal, but he enjoyed getting the information from William. “It’s a little slow today, but yesterday we had a sizeable party of mid-level adventurers stop in and load up for a raid.” He looked down and opened a ledger. “We are a little more profitable than last month, but there have been many adventurers stopping by trying to sell all their goods. I thought that was a little weird.”

Robert knew why that was happening. A lot of players had decided to leave Excel when the subscription model was announced. Many people in the Nexus used it as an escape from the real world where they didn’t have enough to afford subscriptions, even if the cost was reasonable.

“That makes sense. Many adventurers will not be returning to Excel. Did you talk to Frederick about this?”

“Yes, he told me to offer twenty percent below market value on all items. We’ve had a few takers, but a lot of grumbling.”

Robert contemplated the situation for a moment and said, “That’s an excellent idea. If anyone grumbles, tell them we’ve had a ton of adventurers trying to sell off all their gear, and the demand is way down. If they still don’t want to sell, refer them to another shop in town, but I assume everyone will adjust prices.”

“Yeah, even Desmond’s has dropped offers to around what we are paying.”

“Ok, well, I’m going to go find Frederick. Have a good day, William.”

“You to sir.”

Robert exited the shop and turn up the slight hill, heading towards the center of the district. The capital city was set up like a wagon wheel with the palace in the center and the eight different wagon wheel spokes ending in the center of a district. Each district was set up like a wagon wheel. You could easily navigate or give directions by telling someone you are in the lower right district and then telling them you are in the upper left neighborhood. It was a straightforward system to use if you liked circles.

After walking for around ten minutes, Robert paused in front of a large gated compound. A massive metal banded door greeted him. It was the main entrance to the Smith Guild. He walked up to the gate guard and let him know that he was looking for Frederick. In the real world, most people would probably find it weird to ask for someone by their first name only, but one thing Excel and many other game systems did was connect a user’s friends list to his or her in-world actions. So, when Robert asked for Frederick, the guard knew which one he was talking about.

“Please wait here one moment, and I will have a runner see if he is available.”

“Thank you very much.”

Even though VR games had existed for nearly four centuries, many players still treated NPCs like parts of a program. Robert found the more sophisticated games had intelligent AI that allowed NPCs to develop over time and be influenced by a player’s choices. So, he took the extra second in each interaction to be nice when appropriate. He took the small quests to help a local NPC to build relationships with the locals when most players skipped them. That’s how he’d found William to work at the shop and how he’d found several other contacts to complete quests. Robert treated games like they were real. He worked hard and did his best to stick to his base set of principles.

Many other players became the exact opposite of who they were in the real world, physically or morally. Sam created his characters to be physically imposing and confident. In real life, he was neither of those things.

Other people fulfilled their deep down evil desires and became villains or criminals. In fact, one of the most powerful adventurers in Excel was known for brutality and underhanded deeds. Robert always wondered what she was like in real life.

After waiting for a few minutes, the runner returned with instructions to let Robert in and directions on where to go. The runner escorted him through the gate, and they entered the central smith guild courtyard. The guild office was an enormous mansion at the back of the courtyard, ringed by a series of forges. Immediately after stepping through the gate, Robert was inundated with the sounds of clanging metal and the unique sound that heated metal makes when it is quenched in oil or water. The air smelled heavily of coal smoke and iron.

The runner motioned for Robert to follow. They entered the main building and walked straight down the hallway towards a set of heavy wooden double doors at the end of the hall. The runner paused for a moment, straightening his livery, and knocked firmly on the door.

From beyond, Robert could hear someone say, “Enter.”

While the hallway and the rest of the building was decorated with dark hardwoods, the guild master’s office was bright and white. Marble floors and ornate tapestries filled every surface. Frederick sat comfortably in a high-back velvet upholstered chair. The guild master sat leaning forward with his hands tented in front of him. A massive black-stained wooden desk separated him from his guests.

“Hello Robert, I didn’t know if you’d be around today, and we had discussed talking to the guild master just the other day.” He said, looking a little concerned.

“Oh, no problem, Frederick. I just wanted to catch up with you as we have some business to discuss, and I wanted to introduce myself to the guild master.”

The guild master stood from behind the desk and said, “It is a pleasure to meet you, Robert. We were just talking about an arrangement that I’m sure you are aware of.”

“Oh yes, we had thought to approach you for an exclusive agreement between your guild and our store for household items created by your members.”

“Yes, that is the one. I think we can come to some arrangement as long as it doesn’t impact our weapons and armor production.”

Robert smiled and said, “That is excellent news. We have no interest in interfering with your other agreements and wouldn’t have the contacts to make it worthwhile. We are just looking to be your preferred buyer of all non-weapon and armor items. There’s a demand for these items amongst the adventurer and native populations. We think an arrangement could be mutually beneficial.”

Frederick added, “At least that is the goal. As the guild master and I discussed before you arrived, we will work out the specifics of the agreement at a future date.”

Robert nodded. “I see, well, I’m sorry to have jumped into the conversation late.”

Frederick got up from his chair and turned back to the desk. “It was a pleasure to talk to you, sir. I will put together a proposal, and we can discuss it. How does next week sound?”

The guild master stood, showing his actual height and mass while reaching out with a hand that had been hardened over a lifetime of hard work at the forge. “That would be excellent. I look forward to hearing from you.”

The runner waiting outside the door led them both to the front gate, and they were walking back down the hill toward their shop only a few minutes later.