Alaric had awakened a few hours later before the sun had risen above the horizon. The tower was presently enveloped in darkness even though the eastern skyline was diluted with faint pinkish-orange hues. He curiously wondered why he felt completely rested while still laying in his bedroll. Alaric opened the information menu to check the time and found he only slept for about three hours at best.

Why do I feel like I slept for over eight hours right now? Is it because I don’t have a physical body anymore? Maybe all that needs rest is my subconscious now? Wait a minute here, if I only slept for three hours why does it look like the sun is about to rise? Does this virtual world run on four to five-hour night cycles? If so, then this world must have nineteen to twenty-hour daytime cycles. Alaric had a lot of questions that he would have to ask Hugh about when he had seen him once again.

While enjoying his warm comfortable bedroll he opened the flashing notification icon in the lower corner of his vision to review his new notices.

Spoiler: New Notices!. New Level Notice!

You Leveled Up!

Level 2

You have unused 3 skill points and 5 attribute points to distribute!

New Level Notice!

You Leveled Up!

Level 3

You have unused 3 skill points and 5 attribute points to distribute!

Nice, I gained a couple levels from that goblin battle. At least I was rewarded for the pain I had to endure. The iron shield drop should come in handy as well. Alaric thought as he opened his status menu.

Alaric Brightblade Skills Skill Level Weapon Class Proficiency Acrobatics: 1/25 One Handed: 7% Athletics: 1/25 Two Handed: 0% Blocking: 1/25 Polearm: 0% Equestrian: 1/25 Ranged: 20% First Aid: 1/25 Thrown: 0% Foraging: 1/25 Custom: 0% Pitch Force: 1/25 Custom: 0% Pull Force: 1/25 Stealth: 1/25 Strength: 12 Swing Force: 1/25 Constitution: 12 Defence: 57/57 Intelligence: 3 Health Points: 120/120 Perception: 2 Satiety: 97/100 Agility: 5 Level: 3 (27%) Charisma: 10 Skill Points: 6 Attribute Points: 10 Currency: Gold: 46 Silver: 37 Copper: 76 Jobs: (NONE) (NONE) (NONE) (NONE) (NONE) Title: (NONE)

Hmm since I have some time to kill before sunrise maybe I should think this through before spending my points. It seems that I receive three skill points and five attribute points per level. First I think I will review the attributes. Alaric pondered while clicking on strength.

Strength Attribute- (STR)

Strength determines how physically strong you are.

Strength works together with melee weapon proficiencies to determine damage dealt.

Constitution Attribute- (CON)

Constitution determines your mental and physical resistance against pain, poisons, illness, heat, and fatigue.

Constitution determines overall health points.

Every one point of Constitution is equivalent to ten health points.

Intelligence Attribute- (INT)

Intelligence influences how quickly your virtual brain can process information and situations.

Intelligence works together with skills by heightening their overall effectiveness.

Perception Attribute- (PER)

Perception governs your ability to detect vital clues, traps, or hidden enemies.

Perception will also enhance your touch, hearing, sight, sound, and smell senses.

Agility Attribute- (AGI)

Agility dictates attack and movement speed.

Agility controls accuracy of melee and ranged weapons.

Agility affects how well you can evade an opponent's attack.

Charisma Attribute- (CHA)

Charisma generally influences prices while trading and NPCs.

Charisma influences how NPCs view you. The higher your Charisma the more they will like you.

Charisma also influences your physical appearance.

Damn, there really aren't any throwaway attributes are there. Every one of them is useful in one way or another. I should probably focus on STR/CON for the next few levels. This will improve my attack power and raise my health points. If I also get hit it seems that CON will lessen the pain I feel. PER/AGI are also nice looking as well. I could have detected that half assed ambush before hand, and agility would make my bow more accurate while helping me to dodge incoming attacks.

Spoiler: Show Status!. Alaric Brightblade Skills Skill Level Weapon Class Proficiency Acrobatics: 1/25 One Handed: 7% Athletics: 1/25 Two Handed: 0% Blocking: 1/25 Polearm: 0% Equestrian: 1/25 Ranged: 8% First Aid: 1/25 Thrown: 0% Foraging: 1/25 Custom: 0% Pitch Force: 1/25 Custom: 0% Pull Force: 1/25 Stealth: 1/25 Strength: 16 Swing Force: 1/25 Constitution: 15 Defence: 56/57 Intelligence: 3 Health Points: 150/150 Perception: 5 Satiety: 97/100 Agility: 5 Level: 3 (27%) Charisma: 10 Skill Points: 6 Attribute Points: 0 Currency: Gold: 46 Silver: 37 Copper: 76 Jobs: (NONE) (NONE) (NONE) (NONE) (NONE) Title: (NONE)

I now have 16 in STR, 15 in CON, and 5 in PER. after distributing all my attribute points. I need to investigate my skills now.

What exactly does First Aid do, hmm.

First Aid Skill

First Aid determines your Health Points regeneration rate.

Even if your HP is fully restored some of the more severe injuries will need time to completely heal.

First Aid will aid in healing wounds and regenerate limbs.

Alaric touched the wound on his arm and felt a small amount of tenderness still. “I see even if my health points are at max troublesome wounds can still linger,” Alaric said after confirming what he had just read.

Acrobatics Skill

Acrobatics increases how high you can jump and softens your fall.

Improves your balance in every situation from running on a sheet of ice to balancing on a tightrope.

When mastered you can perform acrobatic stunts, including dives, rolls, somersaults, and flips.

Interesting an Agility/Acrobatics build would be pretty insane I bet. Imagine trying to fight someone who was using dives, flips, and somersaults while jumping in and out of striking range to slash and stab at you.

Stealth Skill

When activated Your skin and gear take on the color and texture of nearby objects, structures, or vegetation.

Stealth allows you to sneak up on or past someone without being seen or heard.

When mastered you will be almost invisible revealing only a faint outline and make no sound as you move around.

Holy crap with an Agility/Acrobatics/Stealth combo you could become a frickin ninja! Without a level cap in this game one day I will be able to max out all these skills. I’m getting excited just wondering how strong I can become!

Alright, I need to figure this out. For now, I will add skill points toward Swing and Pull Force to improve my dealt damage and toss a couple points toward First Aid occasionally.

Spoiler: Status Menu. Alaric Brightblade Skills Skill Level Weapon Class Proficiency Acrobatics: 1/25 One Handed: 7% Athletics: 1/25 Two Handed: 0% Blocking: 1/25 Polearm: 0% Equestrian: 1/25 Ranged: 8% First Aid: 2/25 Thrown: 0% Foraging: 1/25 Custom: 0% Pitch Force: 1/25 Custom: 0% Pull Force: 3/25 Stealth: 1/25 Strength: 16 Swing Force: 4/25 Constitution: 15 Defence: 56/57 Intelligence: 3 Health Points: 150/150 Perception: 5 Satiety: 97/100 Agility: 5 Level: 3 (27%) Charisma: 10 Skill Points: 0 Attribute Points: 0 Currency: Gold: 46 Silver: 37 Copper: 76 Jobs: (NONE) (NONE) (NONE) (NONE) (NONE) Title: (NONE)

“That is all I can do for now,” Alaric said as he closed his status menu and climbed out of his bedroll.

He packed his bedroll and cookware into his inventory after eating the last couple pieces of rabbit cutlets and made his way downstairs. He was about to unbar the door when he thought he heard what sounded like metal slightly scraping against stone.

Alaric leaned forward and placed his ear against the door and held his breath. It was difficult to hear anything through the thick wooden door, but he was sure that something was moving around outside.

Maybe an animal was attracted to the smell of the food from last night or someone from the city arrived wanting to get inside? Alaric pondered.

He decided to be safe and went back up to the roof and walked over to where the door was below him and peered over the edge. What he saw chilled his blood. Gathered around the door were four armed orcs holding swords and spears and wearing piecemeal tattered leather armor.

Holy Shit! If I would have opened that door they would have been right in here on top of me!

Alaric quickly leaned back and opened his inventory to equip his quiver and bow. I guess it is time to see what those two points in pull force can add to my damage. He thought while nocking an arrow.

He took a couple deep breaths drew the bow back and leaned out over the tower battlements straight down at the head of an orc right below him. In the dim dawn light, Alaric took a couple seconds to steady his aim and slowly released his breath while letting the arrow loose on the unsuspecting orc roughly twenty feet below him.

-135 (0/125) (Critical Sneak Attack!) (Head Shot!)

From the close distance and the downward shot, the arrow pierced through the skull of the targeted orc killing it where it stood. Alaric reached back and slipped out another arrow while the other three orcs searched around them trying to find their attacker.

As Alaric aimed down on the next orc one of them happened to look up and called out to the others. Without hesitation, he shot out a second arrow that buried itself deep straight down through the shoulder of the orc that was pointing him out to the others.

- 45 ( 80/125)

The pain and force from the arrow drove the second targeted orc to his knees. The other two uninjured orcs with no way to reach their attacker decided the best course of action was to run away. Alaric did not let up on them, he sent the third shot down at the injured orc who was struggling to his feet to possibly run off as well. Alaric’s arrow screamed down and sunk deep into the wounded orc’s back up to the feathers.

-65 (15/125)

When the twice struck orc pitched forward with it face in the grass, Alaric drew back again and took aim at the trailing orc who was running southwest. He aimed the bow just above the orcs head and let the string snap forward. He watched his arrow arc out across the distance and drill the running orc in the hamstring. The escaping orc at a full sprint took a nasty tumble, its arms and legs flung out in every direction as it rolled over the grass.

-35(115/125)

The orc reached back out of panic and ripped the barbed arrow out injuring the leg even more. Alaric could hear the orc let out a howl of pain as it jumped up to continue running with an impending limp. Alaric glanced down at the dead and motionless two orcs near the tower door before launching a long distance shot at the limping orc. The arrow fell short as he watched them run off continuing southwest now far out of his range.

He sent one more arrow down at the motionless orc just in case he was playing possum, but there was no response when the arrow pierced the lifeless body. Before heading down he watched the escaping orcs to be sure they kept on running and didn’t think about turning around and heading back his way.

After a minute of this, he put his bow into his inventory and took out his shield and went downstairs to unbolt the door. Alaric pulled the wood bar free, drew his longsword, and opened the door with his shield held high. He made a quick circle around the tower to make sure the area was clear and when he returned to the doorway he watched as the orc bodies evaporated into small dots of rising light.

The first dead orc left a pouch filled with copper and some silver coins along with his arrow. He picked up the pouch of money and deposited the coins into his funds and placed the arrow back in his quiver.

As he approached the second dead orcs last location and spotted what appeared to be a brown shirt in the grass. When he reached down to pick it up he realized it was a chain mail tunic. When he put it in his inventory he clicked on the slot it was in.

A Rusty Chain Mail Tunic Defence: 25 Durability: 80/150 Bonuses: NONE

Haha a rusty chain mail tunic, now that sure sounds like a beginner loot drop. I wonder if that blacksmith in the city can do anything with this. I will have to check it out next time I visit.

Alaric closed the item window and collected his three arrows and set off to find the arrow that was ripped out and his missed shot. He found the arrow that hit the orc in the back of the leg and a decent blood trail left from the leaking leg.

He sheathed his sword and exchanged his shield for his bow and followed the blood trail in the grass. He never found the arrow that missed its mark and continued on the trail hoping to maybe find the wounded orc dead from blood loss or crippled and unable to continue on. After following the trail for some time he reached the river he saw on his map last night. The blood trail and two sets of prints went straight out into the river never losing their stride length.

It looks like those two never slowed down even for the river. Alaric thought while inspecting the footprints in the sand and pebbles along the riverbank.

Alaric put off his hunt long enough to take out a few large jugs and fill them with water. He replaced the jug lids and returned them to his inventory along with his armor, weapons, and clothes. Now stripped down he walked out into the flowing river and swam to the opposite bank and redressed. It took some time, but after a thorough search of the riverbank, he found where the two orcs had come out of the water.

The water seemed to have diluted the blood from the wounded orc making it hard to follow at first, but it soon began to flow freely once again. Leaving the river behind him after walking some fifteen minutes he found what he had been searching for.

Up ahead the crippled orc was dragging its leg behind it having trouble even moving forward anymore. Alaric activated his stealth skill for the first time and noticed his skin took on a slight greenish hue matching the grass around him and the swishing sound of his feet parting the grass was almost silenced.

This isn’t much of a change, but with only one point in stealth, I can’t expect too much. Alaric thought as he nocked an arrow on the bow string and increased his pace.

Alaric came right up behind the orc without being noticed not more than ten yards behind him. He prepared to draw back his bow, but then he thought to use this orc for training instead of killing it outright. He exchanged his bow for his shield and drew his sword from the scabbard on his waist.

Alaric with a mischievous smile nonchalantly marched up on the orc and spoke up. “Hello there! And just where do you think that you are going?” He called out.

He doubted the orc understood what he had said, Alaric just wanted him to stop and turn around. The orc spun around after hearing him and held its sword up threateningly in an attempt to make Alaric back off.

Alaric unfazed held his shield up at eye level and continued to advance into striking range. The orc took a clumsy swing at him finding it difficult to fight back with one good leg. Alaric redirected the blow with his shield opening up the orcs guard and began to take light snapping slashes at the orc's torso.

swish, swoosh, whoosh!

-5 -8 -4 (90/125)

Every two or three slashes he would gain a percentage in one handed weapon proficiency. Happy that his idea worked he went on to dodge or block the orc’s blade while lightly slashing it all over.

-6 -9 -3 (72/125)

The orc began to panic and then slowly weaken to the point it could no longer hold its sword and tried to turn and run again. Alaric continued to train with the orc slashing with light strikes up and down its back until it finally collapsed and died. When the body vanished it left a heavy black metal ingot behind. Alaric picked up the ingot and was surprised at how much it weighed.

This metal ingot must weigh thirty to forty pounds! He thought as he placed it in his inventory and clicked on its stored slot.

Castrillium Ingot

Castrillium is a dense hard metal.

Castrillium is black in color and has twice the density of gold.

This metal is known to be extremely hard with a high melting point.

Ooh, this is a neat drop item. Too bad there is only one this Castrillium sounds like it would great for armor I guess it could also make a great melee weapon with the weight and density it would strike hard and smash through iron weapons. Alaric thought as he contemplated the ways he could use the new ingot.

Alaric closed the item menu and opened his notices.

Increased One Handed Proficiency: 4%

Four percent isn’t much, but I now have eleven percent one handed proficiency. Even if I keep making little gains like this it won’t be long until I reach one hundred percent. Alaric thought while trying to remain positive.

Spoiler: Show Notices!. New Level Notice!

You Leveled Up!

Level 4

You have unused 3 skill points and 5 attribute points to distribute!

New Level Notice!

You Leveled Up!

Level 5

You have unused 3 skill points and 5 attribute points to distribute!

One fun thing about being a low-level newbie is how easy it is to level up. Once I get into the higher levels I will need to kill a hundred orcs to gain a level. He thought as he opened his status menu.

I will put three skill points here into Swing Force and three points over here into Pull Force. I take a chance and spend most of my points on PER this time. With these surprise encounters, I keep getting it is only a matter of time I come out one severely injured or dead. Alaric speculated.

With these attribute points, I will put four points into STR and the other six points I will spend on PER. This is a bit of a risk, I should be spending points on making myself stronger.

Spoiler: Show Status!. Alaric Brightblade Skills Skill Level Weapon Class Proficiency Acrobatics: 1/25 One Handed: 7% Athletics: 1/25 Two Handed: 0% Blocking: 1/25 Polearm: 0% Equestrian: 1/25 Ranged: 8% First Aid: 2/25 Thrown: 0% Foraging: 1/25 Custom: 0% Pitch Force: 1/25 Custom: 0% Pull Force: 6/25 Stealth: 1/25 Strength: 20 Swing Force: 7/25 Constitution: 15 Defence: 56/57 Intelligence: 3 Health Points: 150/150 Perception: 11 Satiety: 97/100 Agility: 5 Level: 3 (27%) Charisma: 10 Skill Points: 0 Attribute Points: 0 Currency: Gold: 46 Silver: 37 Copper: 76 Jobs: (NONE) (NONE) (NONE) (NONE) (NONE) Title: (NONE)

When he finished reviewing the notices and distributing his points, Alaric looked up to examine his surrounding. Now that his perception was over double from what it had been he could definitely see a change. He could now hear insects buzzing around a few yards away from him and the grass and flowers gave off a deeper fragrance. Then as he scanned the woodline ahead of him he could now see what appeared to be a structure of some kind set back in the woods.

Alaric turned around and looked to where he had come from as he tracked the injured orc and back to where he saw the structure and realized the wounded orc was headed in that direction.

First I come across a small Goblin camp and now I find an Orc camp right across the plain? The wilderness is a dangerous place I need to keep on my toes. Now the question is do I investigate the camp or head off somewhere else? Alaric thought as he weighed his options.

If I leave I can go off and hunt small critters safely, but if I investigate the camp I might be able to gain another level and get a couple good drops. What to do. What to do. Decisions, Decisions.

Aaah screw it, if I die it will hurt like hell then I will respawn in town and just come back here. I should mark a location so if I do die, I can just fast travel back here and save myself the long walk. Alaric opened his local map and decided to head toward a bridge that spanned the river east of him. When he arrived at the bridge he walked underneath it and used [Mark Location].

“Alright I am all set now, and later I can always delete this mark if I run out of [Mark Location] slots.” Alaric quietly said aloud.

With his bow in hand he double checked his armor and tighten any loose straps and when he was satisfied everything was in place and secured he followed the river west to spy out the Orc camp.