CHAPTER 100: SPROUTING WINGS

For the next few days, things shifted.

Hailie and I weren’t together much after I told her I would be investigating some kind of mystery about that boss we met at the Wroeg’s Hollow, following Eirlys’ order, and Hailie just accepted the deal.

Before we depart, we went shopping and I had my 2800 well spent, two thirds of it was on new, high-end gears for Hailie. Hell, I even bought her a new level 40 staff she couldn’t use yet, just in case the day came.

Hailie got pulled deeper into New Destiny, getting an invitation alongside me for her own one week trial, and people seems to like her, I think, that’s what she told me anyways. We only talk in real life these days, she told a lot of tales about new friends she met all the meanwhile I was wrapped up with Eirlys and our little conspiracy against the Null Shepherd.

I started logging in more often, but always from the gaming room’s VR pod in the mansion. That way, if Hailie came looking, she’d still know where to find me and knew that I would be online... I have no reason to use the pod inside my room anymore really.

Apparaently, Hailie had been adopted into a tiny 7 person total squad inside New Destiny. It was troubling for her initially, because most parties would have way more than 3 hours a day to play, and a fewer party fit in her preferred timeframe, so Hailie had the short end of a stick when it came to trying to find a party. But somehow, she managed to fall right into a party whose schedules matched hers perfectly.

Quite a lucky bastard, although I’d call it relating to the fact that she was a woman, huge buff by the way.

Out of all the gold I spent on gearing up the both of us, I kept around 1000 left, and went to a quiet marketplace in the desert region to buy something that me and Hailie would need.

[Bracelets of Eternal Companionship]

I cringed at the name, and it didn’t help that Hailie yelped in excitement when I handed her the half of a pair. She started hugging me and jumping up and down like I just got down on my knees and proposed to her, enthusiastic girl, I’m telling ya.

"It’s just the name of the item... I’m not proposing to you- Chill gurl, you’re squeezing my spine."

The matching bracelet set was absurdly expensive for one reason only... When both players wear them, you can always see each other’s dot on the map. Guilds could do something similar, sure, but guild minimap didn’t work in dungeons, while these did. And, one more fun fact is that if you press on them hard enough, you can see an arrow pointing towards the other person from your point of view.

And like a mother sending her daughter off to first day of school, into the tiger cage, so to quote Dezso Kosztolanyi, I told her some life lessons she needed to hear... Granted, I actually think Hailie’s older than me...? I haven’t checked, I only know that Eirlys’ 28 and I’m 23.

"You try to hide the fact that you’re invulnerable, okay dear?" I said, "If people find out, they’ll call you a cheater and probably burn you at the stake. And if something happens that you can’t handle, log out, I’ll deal with it later... Or Eirlys will."

I didn’t know why I called her dear, that was out of pocket, I’m sorry.

"Got it!" she chirped.

Now... That’s Hailie’s side done, time for me to investigate the Null Shepherd matter.

But on my side... I was burning money like a drunk pirate who hates booty at a casino.

I hired managed to track down and hired four people to replicate my Warlock-to-Squire switch, hoping maybe we’d catch some thread of the Null Shepherd’s activation conditions.

Each one costed me 200 gold... It was a hassle finding someone at the appropriate level, convincing them to change their class to Warlock by making them kill 10 noobs, then ask them to do the Wish that changes class to Squire.

Here’s what I note down...

First guy’s requirement was to kill a Paladin around your own level with no outside help... Not undoable, but man this sure took a while.

Second guy had to pickpocket a Ranger while blind... Yeah no, for this one, we have to pay a Ranger to stand still while he does it, this was just impossible. Seriously, who writes this stuff??

Third guy... One feisty motherfucker, he gotta escort a Fighter through his quest while missing an arm... This third guy actually tried to molest me so evidence might be inconclusive on the count that the participant was missing a neck.

Fourth? Kill 150 enemies, any kind, players or NPC or mobs, you name it... It was not that hard, because I can be in the same party and contribute to him while we spawncamp a useless slime camp that no one really likes.

The whole thing took five days straight and a lot of scheduling for those four guys to be online... All for nothing, 800 gold down the drain... Five straight days of my life, and not a single lead showed up, nothing but frustration and an emptier purse.

I got like, fucking, 167 gold coin left.

One of these days I’ll kneel and suck Eirlys’ toes if she could throw me in a few thousands with her admin power... Haha, just kidding I’ll do it for free, but like, you know, incentives.

By the end of the fifth day, I was sprawled on a grassy hill in some quiet zone, staring at the beautiful digital blue sky with white clouds passing by.

Never have I thought that I’ll be playing the game like this, refreshing, innit?

Fatigue was a thing in Darkmoon Adventure VR, but sleeping was not, for some magical reason, we don’t feel the need to sleep when we received debuffs like drained, stupefied, fatigue, etc. There will be an urge to sleep, as our natural instinct goes, but no one could really lay down and sleep in this game. So now when I lay on the grass, looking up at the skies, I could close my eyes, but it did not help me feel at ease, I felt an urge to open them again.

Technology is wild... Innit, I could not comprehend how they code our brains to do these stuff, and I wonder if they’re collecting our brainpower like some Matrix stuff.

Half-way through my thinking waswhen my HUD blinked, and I saw that I was getting a voice call from a friend. And it was Hailie’s voice call, so I happily picked it up

Before a "Hello" could be exchanged, she was already bubbling with excitement.

"Hi Cory! How are you doing!"

"Good... Kind of." I coughed, "What about you, Hailie?"

"I’m doing so well! We’re leveling up super duper fast, I’m at level 35 already! Hie~ Soon I can use that new staff you bought me, I’ve been holding it and swinging it as practice for a while now, it fits so well."

Her words made me sit up, not because of the level 40 staff, but like... Thirty-five? After only three hours a day for five days? Well, I guess that’s possible if her team was really affective at farming.

Meanwhile, I hadn’t farmed once since this mess started. If the wider player base was around level fifty by now, I was falling dangerously behind at 45... Leveled up a bit after making those 4 guys do the quest.

"That’s great for you, Hailie." I said.

Even though I was over with the conversation after two of us check in with each other, Hailie continued, still I let her talk. She had that bright lilt in her voice, the kind that you do not interrupt, because you have no rights to, basically.

I opened the map and turns out she’s at the New Destiny’s hideout.

She told me all the names of the players in her seven-man group, none of which I caught because I was busy looking at a butterfly who landed on my nose.

She told me that they formed that little party with a goal of preparing everyone to be up to the appropraite level and finally beat a tough dungeon. To which they succeeded and disbanded on a good note, honorable discharge type shit.

But then two of them: A short guy named Marc and a really tall woman named Rina, had asked if Hailie wanna come with them. They’re farming levels and was in need of a healer, and Hailie had never gone down once, so they thought she was reliable.

...If only they knew the reason, heh.

Together, they were recruiting a new squad for a full grind up to level fifty together.

"Rina said that’ll take about another month if we stick to three hours a day," Hailie explained proudly.

"Good for you, Hailie, but!" I exclaimed, trying to make sure she listens, "Do you remember what I told you?"

"Yes, Drill Sergeant!" She acted along somehow, "Don’t let anyone know I can’t die, and log out right away if something feels wrong."

"That’s my girl."

We said goodbye after that, her voice still fizzing with energy as she returned to recruiting people in New Destiny’s tavern.

I stayed on the grass, headset full of the quiet ambient chirps of coded birds.

Hailie was sprouting wings, flying on her own now, which was amazing, honestly, one of these days I could take my eyes off her completely.

And me? I wasn’t sure if I should be proud, worried... or both.

A lot to do, but nothing to act on, this was torturous...