Carl was nonplussed.

After the short conversation ended, he still had no idea whether he was in trouble or not, as the woman obviously wouldn't even hint at certain keywords over the phone, making it seem like an ordinary discussion. She was a complete enigma. Either way, he now had a meeting scheduled with her same time tomorrow at Bellator Labs. Hopefully she had nothing but good news for him.

This prompted him to be more wary of exposing unnecessary details. He thus decided to play it safe and not mention his financial predicament to his allies, only setting up secure lines with them for emergencies, in case he got cut off. So long as Amaranthine Bushido was handling his capital, not all would be lost.

The swordsman could always sell the gold to other guilds for a promise of future payment, backed by a contract. Then, once the full version went live and the currency exchange with it, these establishments would officially transfer the taxed funds to him, and he would physically forward them to Carl somehow, either in legal tender or in gift cards.

And if Carl never got caught – all the better. He would have Radiant Bulwark establish a small gaming workshop and send over the bank cards to a private account they would open for him in their name, together with an authorization to use them. He could even ask them to leave the cards in a stash somewhere, then withdraw cash from an ATM in Lyon to anonymously pay for everything with it, avoiding an electronic trail altogether if he felt like keeping his identity a secret from his collaborators.

Determined on this course of action, Carl went on to contact the four relevant figures.

…

“Sure thing, brother Lionheart. I wanted to propose this contingency myself, but you beat me to it,” Radiant Bulwark disclosed. “Hmm, let's develop our encryption keys on … say … 'Blood Brothers are done', haha! Ten standard evolutions will do. We will immediately synchronize new keys over the app, in case Cybercore ever wants to eavesdrop. They store all the logs for decades, and you never know what may possess them, with all the classified government invigilation programs and what not. I'm not paranoid, mind you, I'm just–”

“Mhm, got it,” Carl interjected blithely. “By the way, where are you guys from? I'm wondering if it would be possible – and practical – to organize you into a studio in Lyon. What do you think?”

“Oh, that would be nice, but it would also cost a lot. Even for large guilds, only a small fraction of core members work at the headquarters, while the rest plays from home. There is simply no need for cumbersome infrastructure, as streamlining always takes priority. That being said … if you keep going at this rate, brother Lionheart … I mean …”

“Heh, you've seen nothing yet, I'm still warming up. Money won't be an issue, we just need to sell as much gold for guarantees during the tutorial as we can, because there might not be another opportunity to earn such fortune in the full version.”

“True. And I can't wait to witness more of your exploits, haha! To this end, I requisitioned some premium supplies for the girls from Bushido. I know how much you like that blade of yours, so we've elected to take you to the black boars' nest on your next break.”

“Really? Are you that confident?”

“Listen to that, brother Lionheart – stun grenades, and rods … of lightning!”

“… Rods of lightning?”

“Haha, it's gonna be fun! Now you wish you could come with, eh?”

“They're consumables, right?”

“Yep, they're basically wands with limited charges. Once depleted they turn into scrap. Great bang for the buck, though. I'm thinking we can sweep up the boss and the prowlers with less than 30 gold worth of them. Unfortunately, such strategic tools are getting increasingly difficult to find on the market, as all the player associations scramble to buy them out while they're available, leaving only the most expensive stuff behind.”

“Alright, I'll delegate that to you, then. You guys enjoy yourselves. Also, keep my suggestion of a studio in mind, okay?”

“Will do, brother Lionheart. About a third of us lives in Lyon, while another third elsewhere in France, so having physical headquarters would be of tremendous help to us. I'll tell my men to canvass the area and appraise the price range.”

…

“Hello Fate, how are you doing?”

“Oh, hello brother Lionheart, it's … hectic …” a tired voice confessed. “That stunt you pulled … has the whole guild trembling. There's dissent, there's revocation of Geneva branch, and there's colluding with Blood Brothers. But I'm happy that you're on fire. The trick you used at the temple was particularly brilliant, everyone is now convinced it has to do with the Ghost Buster title. Poor souls, they're investing their savings into a wild goose chase … hehe.”

“Was that a chuckle I just heard? It's not all that bad yet, is it?”

“Ahh, brother Lionheart, you have no idea. These people … after interacting with you, it's like … I can see them clearly in new light. They're … full of it. Fake facades, fake smiles … everything's so fake about them. I can't stand it.”

“Take it easy, Fate. Kick back, relax, and savor the dish I'm cooking. Blood Brothers have no clue who they're dealing with, and neither do Skyborne Lions.”

“Haha, well said.”

“I'm actually calling you regarding a couple matters. For one, what offensive spells would you recommend for me to learn? I'd love to be a dual-class mage-warrior, and I'm especially interested in rapid-cast interrupting spells I could combine with melee attacks, like inducing electric shocks for example.

“I'm sorry, brother Lionheart, but I have to recommend that you don't. You have already found your niche, and arcane magic would not benefit you there – on the contrary, it would do you more harm than good. I know it's sad, but you have to accept it. The reason for it is simple – specialization. Mages wear dedicated equipment that boosts their focusing, channeling and casting speed, as well as mana conductivity, capacity and regeneration. Without it, their overall efficiency in battle drops severalfold. And weapons are the most important amplifiers of offensive magic, so you're better off sticking to what they offer you. If you want to shoot spells from your fingers for example, absent a wand or a staff or any other mage weapon compatible with the spell, then you'll take much longer and waste a lot of mana for inferior results. In short, if you want to have access to functional magic, then you need quality focusing items embedded with appropriate formulas. Otherwise it's not worth it.”

“Oh … that's a pity,” Carl deflated. He was so counting on magical prowess, only to be thoroughly disappointed in the end. “And just out of curiosity, what about a lightning bolt? What grade would such a spell be?”

“The basic version was available during character creation as a peak grade 1 skill for 40 allocation points. It is both powerful and power-hungry. Even a great mana potion wouldn't suffice a top mage for a boss fight, so it's not very practical. Honestly, magically-empowered melee is the way to go if you want to solo dungeons. You should search for focusing weapons in high-rank system shops next time you visit one. Electricity is most effective when applied directly to the entrails, saving you the trouble of ionizing a plasma channel and disregarding the resistance of a thick hide, so if this is what you fancy, then look for daggers that amplify it – or better yet, see if you can find one with its own rechargeable energy storage, though I'm not sure if there is any in a rank 5 shop – and learn the grade 0 spell Jolt at the temple. It's easy on your mana and will stun your targets, or at least give them convulsions, granting you precious initiative.”

“Hmm, I remember reading about electric capacity when I was browsing for the Black Fang. Anyway, thanks for the tip. As for the other matter, I want to set up encrypted communications with you all …

…

“Bushido, how are things going on your end? Give me the scoop.”

Having returned with the NPCs and restocked, Carl took another group of impatient players, who were visibly eager to get to Camp Redmont and start scavenging. For the first time he had met the rarely chosen catkin, cute little furry creatures, slightly bigger than halflings. Funnily enough, there was a couple of each in the party of four. Designated gatherers undoubtedly, as these two races were by far the most stealthy of all.

“I don't know if this is your doing, brother Lionheart, but I'd like to think it is – gold is tanking on the black market. Just dropped below 100$. It's because Asia is making big moves, and everyone anticipates the scale of gold farming to go up a notch. Either way, your fame continues to spread, and players keep swarming to Geneva. The total population now crossed the 1 million threshold, while concurrent numbers fluctuate around 200-300 thousand, making us one of the most active cities in Europe. This, in turn, drives NPC migration. I have to say, it's getting really cramped. Moreover, the various guilds are slowly shifting to haunted dungeons, and they're suddenly behaving much more politely. I wonder why that is, hehe. On another note, all Scrolls of Danger have been cleared out from the market already, and we've failed to locate a single one. Sorry about that. Luckily there's 21 more in the queue, only 4 short of your quota, and I'm expecting them to appear before long, because the two ceded spots got auctioned off for 52 and 53 gold this time. As to the enhanced arrows for our archers, there's an endless selection of amazing effects, but once more – they're quickly being bought out. Only fragmentation and stun arrows seem to be readily available, considering their production volume. Still, it's going to be a challenge to secure large amounts. The fine quality ones cost below 1 gold a piece, and they vanish like hot buns. Superior cost below 4 gold, and they're a little easier to snatch. Masterworks are again rare due to low demand. I'm also looking into poisons, and here I see a lot more promise. They're far more affordable, and there are even grooved or hollow arrowheads specifically for augmenting poison injection.”

“Awesome! Tell me more …”

…

“So, Uncle Time, what are you guys up to?”

“Oh, nothing much, brother Carl, just running some experiments in the gray wolves' den.”

“Huh? You don't plan to search for the boss, do you?”

“… Yeah … we kinda do.”

“Scrap that, it's a waste of your potential. Since you want to help, then I have a better idea. To be frank, I'm going to need Liss' bow skills for high-rank dungeons soon, and I'll have her learn tracking from a professional instructor as well. For now, take her to hunt giant crabs, and try to get her accustomed to danger in the arena. She'll be resting at the sanctuary and burning through mana potions for as long as she has the blessing. And you know what? Mercy won't be of any use there, so send her to the temple to pick up some strong offensive magic, maybe a debuff, or whatever is most suitable for a healer. If she does well, then she'll get the same treatment as Liss. I thought I'd have the money for everyone, but not just yet, so you boys will have to wait.”

“Wow, brother Carl, that's … so generous of you! But crabs? I'm not sure–”

“Hold that thought, Uncle Time, we've found the horrid wolf. And don't worry about it, just go get the supplies from Bushido, he's already in the loop.”

Having set the course, Carl merrily charged at the terrifying beast, treating it like harmless prey by this point.

Last Hurrah!

Jarring Fist!

And the jaws obediently snapped shut on the bite sleeve …

Vicious Hook!

And the jaws … yanked it off before the dagger arrived …

“Uh-oh!”