Three days of pure unadulterated relaxation has left Sorp a beaten down version of himself. Still awe inspiring and a towering behemoth, but a demoralized one.

On the fourth day Sorp was stable enough to practice his basic weapon techniques.

These basic techniques are actually the entirety of his strenuous exercises. Because only basic weapon techniques are taught in the Third wave reinforcement camp.

They are exceedingly simple, a slash, a thrust and vague references to blocking. It is more about the stance and weight distribution. Sorp enjoyed practising them.

The value of these techniques is dubious and not at all required to take the test. The camp still provides accommodations to learn them.

The next few days went on as expected. The trainers denied any challenges from Sorp, they even considered rewriting some policies regarding challenges.

Without his previous company, Sorp sought the comfort of women. Either inviting them to practice with him or seeking them out in social environments.

Being his handsome charming self, he had no issue finding companions to spend their free time with him.

It took a whole week for the first one of the guys to arrive. It was Ret, and the corse he trained. He had taken care of all four. But one was given special attention.

The corse’s stature is not good for warring or fighting in general, but they can be valuable mounts in many situations.

This corse, now named little retty, has become the leader of the pack. Ret has similarly obtained a token to enter the second wave reinforcement camp.

The rewards seem small, and inconsistent with a game environment. A veteran gamer would expect great reward after a lengthy quest.

But this was never a quest. They had sought out education and training. They were provided with education and training. In the end they were deemed fit to continue on this course.

The reward, if any, is the educational benefits, the experience of surviving in a wild environment and the B.F.M. endurance training.

In the future, many will curse this way of thinking. But this is how things will continue to work. Contracts can be accepted and requested.

A contract to fulfill a request of a person or an organization will yield rewards, or in better terms, payment.

There are also thousands of contracts that provide a service, rather than requesting one. These do not yield payment and will in most cases, request it instead.

With Ret back, Sorp dragged him to practice, It was easy to see that Ret had not practiced fighting with weapons.

Lucky for Ret, he had an excuse, to take care of the animals. He then went out prowling for women, he felt like years had passed since he last felt a woman’s touch.

Before long the rest of the guys began trickling in. They varied greatly in completion time, but they all finished the required tasks.

The test itself isn’t too difficult. It isn’t difficult because they were taught how to complete it, there were no tricks involved.

They were taught how to do everything, and what they were taught, they used.

This was like this because this is a service, they paid for this and they got what they paid for.

In cases where people would fail the test, it was often due to unfortunate events or a frail character. Perhaps someone afraid to spill blood or afraid of the dark.

The guys were not frail in the least, perhaps uncultured and unruly, but not frail. They, like Sorp, grew up fighting for most things.

It’s not like wild savages fight, more like growing up where hostility is very much promoted. Those docile more often than not, ended up being forced into sorry states.

In the past it was mandatory to seek education. This changed once it was made entirely free. From then on, the actual enforcement of the law stopped. And later abolished.

In a similar way, hunger was eradicated. People are given an identification chip, and they can retrieve enough food from local dispensaries.

The word food is used loosely here. It was enough nutrients to live a healthy life, but the taste was not guaranteed.

People are also afforded free housing. This housing is not considered safe in many of the worst neighbourhoods. This includes most of the Ring.

Sorp and his friends did not live in free housing but in what could be considered their own. Now they owned the entire building, before they only owned or rented the apartments.

With free housing, the market for houses actually collapsed to a large degree but later regained some of its former value.

This is one of the reason why Sorp could afford to buy a new house in a better neighborhood, as the housing are not actually too expensive.

The newer houses are mass manufactured and only put together. The only time consuming event is the creation of the foundation.

Most of the houses are created by the government in an effort to house every individual. This proves hard with the growing population, but not impossible.

People spend money on luxuries. This might make it seem like a poor incentive to work, but people do care about their luxuries. Even if it is just not eating government issued food.

One of the reason Sorp was so eager to enter a world of crime was to buy better food. His large build demanded more food than the average person.

If someone was observing the intake of food Sorp’s real body was receiving, they would at least feel some shock.

People can overeat in the virtual world. Eat enough and they will see their bodies inflate. Sorp has yet to inflate, but his belly is showing some change.

Vigorous physical exercise mitigates his overeating for the most part.

The last one to finish the test is Dart, not unsurprising. He was the last one to enter and not exactly the greatest fighter.

Sorp and Dart’s figures were very different. They were of similar height but one appeared to be stretched, while Sorp appeared have been scaled up.

The difference shows in the ease of movement and pressure on certain joints. This is not exactly external but it is still possible to deduce this from outside appearance alone.

No time was wasted, Ret, kom and Jarem had finished preparing for the journey to the next camp.

Anyone that knew the guys would find it shocking that they would even consider furthering their training. They have always been hooligans.

But it is because it gave them something they didn’t know they wanted. It gave them a feeling of responsibility.

This isn't a responsibility towards the world but towards themselves. Not only this, but their comraderie pushed them forward as well.

It is no coincidence they feel this way, Perpetual Power did no haphazardly design their world.

The journey towards the Second wave reinforcement camp is supposedly about four thousand six hundred kilometers away. This is quite the distance to trek without motorized vehicles.

It is not impossible to obtain a motorized vehicle, but it is expensive and difficult. Instead beasts are trained, some moving fast enough to compete with their vehicular counterpart.

Like mentioned before, this has to do with a lack of resources, according to Perpetuity’s lore.

Perpetuity isn’t technological deficient, the Pebble in the river just doesn’t have enough natural resources to make use their more advanced technology.

That is the lore. The actual size of the Pebbled in the river, the island Perpetuity lies on, is larger than any of Earth’s continents.

But it really is just a pebble in a river, ninety percent rock. What minerals there are to find are scarce and difficult to find.

Most rare material are wash up from the Endless river. This is through the aforementioned underground caverns.

There are rare excursions to the outside world that bring back various things. Elite soldiers Perpetuity has trained.

These excursions are rare and few are successful. According to Perpetuity lore, the world outside the pebble is vicious. Few survive there.

Few survive, this in the sense that prolonged stay results in death. It does not mean they cannot enter the wilderness and return.

Numerous plans are in motion to facilitate the expansion into this wilderness. How is another question. It certainly will include the involvement of B.F.M. users.

One of the largest feats of engineering in Perpetuity is, one, the city Perpetuity and its logistical brilliance. Second, the two great bridges.

The bridges lead to each bank of the Endless river. This towering monster of precious materials was built before Perpetuity was built.

Lore has it that it was only in such deserted places, such as the Pebble in the river that grand emergency shelters could be built.

It does not say whether there are other such emergency shelters. Most of the actual city building came after the emergency.

It is fortunate that the planning to the city was within their possession. Without it, this glorious logistical masterpiece of would have been a shadow of its present self.

Sorp and the guys had not taken the time to marvel the city. They could still view it from a far from their palm devices.

It is in these long distances travels that this device comes in use. Multiple people record themselves exploring the city.

In the city there are places to train, similar to the reinforcement camps. They are more centered towards governmental employees. But not impossible to gain access to.

In the same manner there are multiple places centered around miscellaneous crafting professions. These are also related to the government.

It is related to the government in a different way from the reinforcement camp. A person usually has to become affiliated in some manner or earn the right amount of reputation to gain access.

The reinforcement camp is a service you buy while the others are one you work towards. Both can render the same results, at least to a degree.

This is the Third reinforcement camp. The second and first are of different tiers. And it is the second reinforcement camp where Sorp and the guys are heading now.

The road is endless. It is straight, even and empty. There are no longer any farmers to be seen, as there is not farmland to be worked.

There are no travellers, as only seven individuals have any business on this road. One should be well over a week and a half ahead.

It is not difficult to see how far along Daisy is. She is recording her journey for the world to see.

The guys took it as an ill omen that she is still on the road. She is riding on a wagon, pulled by a single beast. In front is a solemn looking man.

This traveling is costing a fortune. Closing on what the guys paid for their corses. It is because she is paying for ten people. One for each seat unbooked.

What is troubling is the length of the journey. The distance between places to restock on food are far and few between.

Unlike the farmlands where on regular intervals a small village could be found. And in those villages, people were selling rather cheap produce.

On this road there are villages on the way. Each pertaining to a specific natural node of resource and some subsistence farming.

Their wares are not as plenty. The variety sparse and their prices absurd. Only cheap in the local natural resource.

Perhaps some trader may make use of the lower price of resources. But not people like Sorp. Dart might entertain the idea, but he is no trader.

These resources can range from a small mineral deposit, to a specific natural climate that lends itself to a growing of a certain herb.

This is what Perpetuity lore says. It is difficult to ignore the convenience of it. But as it is, the scale of the land is too large. People are forced to spend weeks traveling.