As though the Aff gods were watching over his training, it only took some ten-odd minutes for Raidishier to learn to crack his bullwhip, adding a new sound to the Training Grounds’ assortment of laughter, deep grunts, a lone Bard’s off-tune strumming, guttural roars, and sword ringings. It really wasn’t difficult at all to accomplish, only requiring that he softly swing the whip forward in a circle with his elbow, then bring it back down with a little more force after lifting the whip straight up. Not as powerful as a sword swipe, nor as quickly performed, but much more swiftly executed. It had the potential to surprise.

The whip crack seemed to be the most basic whip attack, because after performing it on the dummy he gained the skill Whip Arts. All melee weapons granted such a skill upon learning how to effectively use them, like Axe Arts for axes, and increased attack damage with that weapon by percent depending on the level. The highest weapon arts level Raidishier saw in the forums was Sword Arts at level 12, belonging to someone who claimed to be part of a dojo that taught swordsmanship IRL, and it increased their damage with swords by three percent--one percent per four levels.

Raidishier liked two things about the weapon arts skill system. Firstly, that the skill level increased both with quantitative practice and qualitative experience. That swordsman with the level 12 Sword Arts easily bested almost every other sword user he fought in duels, so if the system were to judge his skills compared to other players, he would be well over tens of levels higher. However, the game didn’t do that, instead just increasing the rate at which he gained skill experience. That detail evened the playing fields for everyone else who wasn’t fortunate enough to have the time or opportunity to have practiced swordsmanship in real life while still giving those who did a reasonable advantage.

Secondly, it was great that the weapon arts level wasn’t capped in any way. If anyone put in the time to practice and better comprehend how to fight with a sword, they could increase their Sword Arts level far beyond their Base Level, like that guy had--he was only Base Level 7 when he reported having level 12 Sword Arts. In that way nobody would be punished by having their weapon arts level limited when they stopped grinding EXP to explore other facets of Authority Fought For, like PlayerKill-less duels, business, crafting, exploration, or just relaxation.

After several episodes of anime--about two and a half hours--Raidishier took a break from whipping the practice dummy, considering it high time he tested his capabilities against other players.

‘And PvP will increase the Whip Arts experience faster,’ the teen thought as he rested his stamina by performing a few stretches, before then loudly announcing his intentions to everyone else in the practice field.

“YO! IF I MAY HAVE ALL OF YOUR ATTENTION!” Raidishier yelled into the sky while cupping his hands around his mouth to be heard over the many grunts and clashes of metal. Everyone soon turned to look at him, even the NPCs like the Training Grounds overseer. “Anyone wanna duel at the stage, wherever it is? I’m a brand-new Monster Tamer. Anyone will do.”

Attracting so much attention at once was nerve-wracking, but it was effective…

Most of the players just kinda awkwardly went back to what they were doing without reply while one guy actually began to laugh, causing Raidishier to gulp while his face burned. Eventually, the large Training Grounds overseer NPC yelled at him with an impressively deep voice from the other side of the field.

“Newbie! Just head to the Sparring Rings on the other side of these Grounds and queue up! No need to bother everyone who’s just hitting a stuffed practice dummy!”

The teen’s face burned even hotter, but he nodded and gave his thanks before moving. He’d known of the Sparring Rings, just not how they worked or where they were. He deserved the embarrassment--it was his own fault for not inquiring with the NPC or looking it up.

“H-hold up!” a voice called out to Raidishier before he exited the field... It was the guy who laughed at him, and the dude was still out of breath.

“Yes?” Raidishier politely asked after stopping and turning to look at the spear-wielding Warrior, still uncomfortably hot from the break in social etiquette.

“Y-you,” the armorless Warrior began, taking a few more breaths before he recovered his stamina from the laughter, “Did you research the Classes at all before choosing?” The man--no, he looked more like a fellow teen now that Raidishier had a better look--donned a condescending smirk as he waited for a response.

“I did, and I chose Monster Tamer anyway,” Raid replied with a neutral expression, irritated by...Runn1ng’s attitude. “Look my username up in a few in-game days. I’ll be streaming my progress and might just be the first to uncover how to effectively tame monsters.”

Raidishier watched as Runn1ng’s face went from a smirk to a neutrally raised eyebrow, then brief surprise, then ended on another smirk. The Warrior seemed to hold in more laughter as he said, “I get it; you’re stupid!”

Internally sighing at not being lucky enough to avoid jerks for more than a few hours, Raidishier considered walking away right then, but held himself back, thinking, ‘Might as well get used to this shit early rather than late.’

“Thanks, your comment will be duly noted for when I bitch-slap you across the face with my results in a couple weeks.” Raidishier put a hand on his hip and frowned as a front, unwilling to show that he was unused to antagonizing others.

“HA!” Runn1ng failed to contain the mocking laughter that time. “BET! I mean, WAGER! You think you’ll succeed where everyone else failed? I give you two in-game weeks to tame a monster that you can use in a fight, just like you said, and whoever loses gets two-hundred silvers from the other.”

Immediately, a prompt opened in Raidishier’s face.

[You have been offered a Wager by Player: Runn1ng

View Wager (Yes) or (No)

View “What is a Wager?” (Yes) or (No)]

‘He actually bet so many silvers? This guy’s such an ass.’

Having never seen the in-game explanation--only read about them in the forums--he selected to view the Wager’s description.

[“Wagers” are Authority Fought For’s system of managing bets between players and with NPCs. Players may hold personal bets with each other as they wish, but unless a formal Wager was called and processed, Authority Fought For will not be responsible for ensuring the bet is enforced.]

The description was exactly as Raidishier understood, so opted to view the specific Wager Runn1ng offered him.

[Wager: Player “Runn1ng” wagers that you cannot tame a combat-worthy monster within two AFF weeks of this Wager being accepted. If you tame a combat-worthy monster within two AFF weeks, Player “Runn1ng” will pay you 200 silver coins. If you do not tame a combat-worthy monster within two AFF weeks, you will pay Player “Runn1ng” 200 silver coins.

WARNING: There is a mention of Quality within this Wager in the words “combat-worthy monster”! If you win this Wager a Wager Specialist may be called to judge the aforementioned Quality. AFF staff are trained to a very high standard, so if the Quality does not fit what was agreed upon, it will be assumed that the Wager Specialist is correct. If you disagree with the Wager Specialist’s verdict, an appointment with a council of Wager Specialists may be created.

WARNING: There is a mention of Traded Goods within this Wager in the words “200 silver coins”! If you lose this Wager while being unable to pay the agreed upon Traded Goods, the method by which you pay the Traded Goods may be subject to a Wager Specialist.

Will you accept this Wager?

(Yes) or (No)]

Raidishier carefully read every word in the prompt before putting a hand to his chin and nodding thoughtfully--though not verbally agreeing--ignoring the warnings he knew would be there. It was a good Wager for him. To begin with, “combat-worthy monster” didn’t exactly mean that whatever monster he ended up with had to be able to brawl like a Warrior or rain down destruction like a Sorcerer--which was probably what Runn1ng intended. A creature that gave buffs, dealt debuffs, or healed during a battle would also very likely count. Really, the only monsters that wouldn’t count would be ones that had no ability to deal damage at all, unless the Wager Specialist dictated that it had to deal damage near what was useful in a fight around Raidishier’s Base Level, or something similar.

Additionally, the teen’s plans were for taming a monster within an in-game week, not two, so even if it didn’t work he could still bounce back to tame something random and win the Wager with the leftover time…

But it wasn’t enough. Raidishier declined the Wager, then accepted the next option to edit it, which he did with willpower. Within a minute, a slightly tweaked Wager appeared in Runn1ng’s face, surprising him.

“Huh?” the Base Level 1 Warrior mumbled before beginning to read, at which point his eyes narrowed. After a few minutes he said, “Really? HA!” and snorted. “Sure. Can’t wait to see you cry.”

The next instant a notification alerted Raidishier that his edited Wager was accepted, a timer appeared in the top left of his vision counting down from two in-game weeks, and according to the first new stipulation he and Runn1ng were added to each other’s Friends Lists.

“Now, let’s get on with it! I’ll beat you into a pulp!” Runn1ng continued, hefting his spear onto his shoulder and exiting the Training Grounds.

“Yep.” It was Raidishier’s turn to smirk as the two soon arrived at the Sparring Rings according to his second stipulation, which required they have a duel. The place was a little empty thanks to the early hour of the day, so the two had no trouble queueing for and beginning a no-magic 1v1. Immediately, the two were teleported by the game onto a circular raised platform of stone, and forced to stay motionless while a voiceless countdown began.

Raidishier’s eyes remained closed as he gathered his wits and maintained his calm, trying not to allow adrenaline to make him jittery. Maybe if he were a Warrior he wouldn’t have to worry, but the power output of whips was mostly determined by Dexterity instead of Strength, so a shaky hand was not ideal.

He opened his eyes as the count reached 0, then watched as Runn1ng clumsily charged him with the intimidating spear. Such a weapon match-up wasn’t preferable because it negated the reach advantage of his whip, but he’d make do. Raidishier struck as soon as Runn1ng entered his range, dealing first blood as Aff’s combat system guided his hand a little bit to perform the basic whip crack. A cry rang out as Runn1ng’s eyes were struck, and his form was ruined. Raid took full advantage of the temporary blindness he’d inflicted to sidestep away and launch two more attacks, none of which landed on the face again and only one of which actually landed on the opponent.

A red bar with some gray space on the right side appeared above Runn1ng’s head, showing the enemy’s health. The first strike was a critical and dealt twice the damage while the other strike did normal amounts. Runn1ng was at about 7/10’s of his HP.

Raidishier’s next attack landed uselessly on his foe’s spear, as Runn1ng moved the long weapon up to defend his face while waiting for his eyes to recover...but while he was ready to defend against that single attack, he certainly wasn’t prepared for Raid’s own charge. Raidishier barreled into the spear user whose spear was over his head, knocking him over and putting him into some kind of wrestling move he didn’t know the name of. The fight from there lost all pretense of skill as Raid dropped his whip and threw his fists into the annoying Warrior’s face, who tried and failed to defend himself with his forearms.

Too panicked to escape the hold, Runn1ng’s HP trickled away until he lay there dead under Raidishier, who huffed heavily with adrenaline and a sense of accomplishment for winning his first-ever fight in both real life and Aff. A voiceless message in the air above and in Raidishier’s face announced him as the winner of the first round of two before time seemingly reversed. Raid and Runn1ng stood at opposite ends of the Sparring Ring with full stamina and HP again, but this time, Raid was grinning even harder while Runn1ing’s face looked as though it had been crossed with a pitbull’s.

Needless to say...Raidishier lost the second round.

Runn1ng guarded his face and ran full-force into his opponent, using Raidishier’s own tactic to overwhelm him with higher Strength and Vitality. Though Raidishier knew not to panic, he also lacked the stats necessary to remove himself from the pin and died a gruesome, painful death, just as Runn1ng had moments before.

Regardless, Raidishier was ecstatic at their draw. Sure, a win would have been amazing, but such a thing was impossible. Being a Warrior against a monsterless Monster Tamer, Runn1ing held every advantage in that duel--realizing that was all he needed to do to win, but he realized too late and ended it in a draw…

And confirming his disadvantages as a Monster Tamer was Raidishier’s sole goal in that fight.

Before the Monster Tamer departed from the Sparring Rings to meet up with his friends, trembling words akin to a growl were spat in his direction.

“Y-you Monster Tamer bastard… I thought it was a typo because nobody fights duels with only two rounds, but...but you planned this. Didn’t you?”

Feeling as victorious as the Goddess Nike, Raidishier turned to get his last look at Runn1ng’s face for the next two weeks, confirming that his opponent realized his mistake in accepting the Wager.

“I’ll tell you after bitch-slapping you.”