《Aefell Online》 Chapter 1 The arrival of the first full-dive virtual reality swept the entire world in a massive storm, and of course, like any medium for entertainment, video games became a huge part of the scene. Many virtual reality MMORPG rose up to the top of the charts with their realistic, incredibly immersive world and gameplay, yet there is only one that really sat at the throne. Aefell Online was revolutionary, and in many ways, ambitious. Even in the most top-rated game with the supposed best graphics of all, one would still be able to discern that they are walking around in a video game. Not in Aefell. This game utilizes their own patented graphical technology, which practically makes the visuals in the game indistinguishable from reality. No matter how hard one looks, or try to find inconsistencies in the textures, particles, and effects, there is none. This technology was so groundbreaking that many powerful nations tried to buy, or at the very least, partake in the usage of this technology, however no one knew the outcome of those negotiations. The world itself is also very much alive. Disregarding the fact that the total area of the game¡¯s world is almost triple to that of Earth¡¯s, every single centimeter of that space is also seemingly hand-crafted meticulously, despite how impossible that may seem. If one were to pick a random location in the massive world, and dug a hole several meters into the ground, it is not impossible to see worms and other manners of creatures thriving in there, living their own miniature ecosystem. In fact, since the launch of this game 10 years ago, the total area explored by players had not exceeded 15%. This game really does seem like an entirely different world, and for many¡­ it is. The cold breeze of the winter event sent chills throughout Argus¡¯ entire body. ¡°Damn, it¡¯s December already?¡± Argus opened up his inventory and equipped the white [Fur Coat]. ¡°I haven¡¯t logged out for half a year.¡± ¡°What, really!?¡± Exclaimed by a man to his back, wearing a set of shining plate armor. He slid the visor in his helmet up, revealing his darker complexion. ¡°Bro, you should go out at least once a week unless you want your body to be frail like a vegetable.¡± ¡°Oh, come on! I¡¯m already frail in the first place.¡± Argus let out a laugh. ¡°Besides, I got my rig from the U.S. and it¡¯s super amazing! Not only does it regularly exercise my muscles to prevent exactly that, but it can also provide me with sustenance the entire time! There¡¯s some kind of fridge-like chamber beneath it so theoretically, I can just stock up food for an entire year and I¡¯d be good to go without logging out.¡± The armored man behind him squinted at this, revealing a face of disgust and confusion. ¡°That¡¯s disgusting bro. Your machine handles your excretions too?¡± ¡°Sure does! It¡¯s connected to the pipes of our house.¡± He then turned around to face the man. ¡°Looks like we¡¯re here, Fort.¡± The man named Fort was already in the process of barfing when he was interrupted. He held his head up high to get a better look at the canyon before them. ¡°That¡¯s¡­¡± Fort gulped with a loud sound. He removed his helmet, letting his blonde hair flutter in the wind, and then attempted to adjust his chest plate¡¯s tightness. ¡°Holy shit. How did you find this!?¡± ¡°Right??¡± Argus looked back towards the canyon in utter joy and excitement, as if a child receiving their most wanted present in Christmas. ¡°I was running away from gankers the other day when I stumbled upon this. I don¡¯t know how long I ran to be honest, probably for an hour.¡± He inched a step closer to the edge of the cliff, taking immense precautions not to accidentally slip off and fall to his death. Beneath the canyon, hovering just centimeters above the canyon floor is a blue crystal the size of a regular car. The crystal itself is not emitting any light, however, its mere presence causes the air around it to glow a tinge of orange, while the dust below it swirls around ever so slightly, as if a tiny tornado is beginning to form perpetually. ¡°How much do you think this will fetch for?¡± Argus asked Fort in a serious tone. His previous nonchalant personality fading away and replaced with a grave voice. ¡°Billions¡­¡± Fort could only utter a single word with his mouth agape at the sight. After a brief silence, Argus broke it by slowly stepping back towards Fort who appears to still be mesmerized about the crystal. ¡°Let¡¯s go get it. Someone might come any time.¡± ¡°R-right¡­¡± Fort snapped out of his trance, wiping away the small drool that¡¯s about to drop from his mouth, before putting on his plate helmet once again and following Argus as he descends the canyon. The canyon was very deep, not to mention steep, however, with Argus¡¯ spells and Fort¡¯s dexterity, they were able to successfully descend in around 20 minutes. The crystal itself is still around 100 meters away from them. As they began walking towards it, filled with excitement and anxiety, Argus managed to pick up a peculiar whistling sound. He immediately grabbed onto Fort with a snap and focused his attention to this sound. Fort, on the other hand, quickly drew his sword from his side and his tower shield from his back almost instantaneously. A testament to their years of battling together side by side. He looked around them in a circle, scanning the premises for anything out of the ordinary while keeping close to Argus, his shield raised. With a quick jerk, Argus all of a sudden raised his right hand to form a circular red ward, adorned with various runes and symbols, up into the air. This ward is about 5 meters in diameter and perfectly covers both of them. Not even a second has passed and a large booming explosion struck Argus¡¯ ward, sending shockwaves everywhere parallel to them, and shaking the very ground they¡¯re standing on. ¡°GANKERS!¡± Argus shouted angrily. As soon as he said that, three people began to appear one by one around them, circling them about 10 meters away.If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. ¡°Shit!¡± Fort bashed the bottom of his tower shield into the ground, sending another shockwave. This one, however, is different as it formed cracks unto the earth, followed by a blinding yellow light emanating from within the cracks. The three who were previously invisible toppled over as the shockwave from beneath the ground shook their very core. Not long after, a yellow magic circle formed centered around Fort and Argus, continuously emitting a bright gold light, as if the sun itself was underneath them. ¡°This should buy us some time.¡± Fort whispered to Argus. ¡°Go get it. After that I¡¯ll use while you channel . Sound good?¡± ¡°N-no¡­¡± Argus replied with a grim expression. ¡°We¡¯re spatially rooted.¡± Upon hearing this, Fort looked at the top left side of his screen to confirm. All hope within his heart immediately flushed out the moment he saw the debuff. ¡°I fucking hate Astromancers¡­¡± ¡°Damn it. How did they find us so easily?¡± Argus began tracing another spell with his left hand while keeping his right steadily pointed upwards to maintain the ward, as explosion after explosion continue to bombard it. ¡°They probably scryed us.¡± Replied Fort as he keeps a close eye at the three people that was just previously toppled over, now on the process of standing up with great difficulty due to the golden light emanating from the ground seemingly weighing their body down. ¡°I have items that protects me against divinations!¡± Argus grunted. ¡°That¡¯s out of the question.¡± ¡°And I have a passive that protects me from divinations.¡± Fort replied calmly, emphasizing on the word passive. ¡°What¡¯s that script you¡¯re writing anyway?¡± ¡°I¡¯m trying to bypass the spatial root. I know it¡¯s possible and I¡¯ve heard stories about others from another kingdom accidentally scripting it.¡± Argus sighed. ¡°And they didn¡¯t bother to write it down or save the script?¡± ¡°They accidentally scripted it.¡± Argus rolled his eyes at Fort, emphasizing on the word accidentally. ¡°I just need a second¡­¡± The golden light emitting from the ground finally faded, and with that the three people who were previously toppled over has now took the chance to get themselves back on their feet. Two of them began walking slowly towards them, while one, with an explosive burst of speed, rushed ahead. He is wielding dual claws, with the blades roughly the length of his own forearms. Fort faced him the moment he noticed him, and then opened up his arms in an embracing fashion while smugly smirking at him. This enraged the rushing player, prompting him to enable invisibility mid dash. ¡°Futile¡­¡± Fort whispered. With a snap, his eyes began to glow a bright gold light. ¡°I see you¡­¡± The invisible player is now two meters away from them, still unaware that Fort is able to see him already. He extended his right claw, aiming for Argus¡¯ throat who¡¯s just writing a script without a care in the world. However, disappointment overflowed him when the blades clanged against Fort¡¯s metallic tower shield, instead of Argus¡¯ fleshy neck. With a quick swipe, Fort brought his longsword upward, attempting to slice the player, but the player was just too fast and has already dodged out of the way of his blade. ¡°Tch!¡± The player said as the invisibility expired two meters away from them. His eyes burning with bloodlust locked onto Argus. Fort pointed the tip of his longsword, which he¡¯s wielding with one hand due to his sufficient strength, towards the player. ¡°Try that again.¡± His eyes filled with contempt. ¡°I¡¯m done!¡± Argus exclaimed all of a sudden. ¡°This should get us out aft¡ª¡± An electrifying pang of pain emanating from his back interrupted Argus¡¯ exposition. He looked at the top left corner of his screen and saw that there¡¯s only a sliver of health left on him. He summoned all his remaining strength to try and cast the script he¡¯s just written, however, before he could even do so much as to flick a finger, a silver flash of light slit his throat from behind him, blurring his vision until it fades to black. ¡°Shit.¡± YOU HAVE DIED Witnessing Argus¡¯ body quickly fade into particles of blue light leaving all his equipment and items on the ground, Fort swiped his longsword will all his strength to the supposed attacker from the back, yet like before, all that he hit was air. The culprit was already several meters away, juggling his daggers nonchalantly. ¡°FUCK!¡± Fort screamed in desperate anger. He tried to look around the premises for any chance of escape, but it was already too late. The rest of the gankers have descended down the canyon. They were just too many. He looked past the gankers and saw the path that the canyon curves on to. Suddenly, an idea bursts into his mind. Summoning all his will, Fort casted , reducing the damage he takes from all sources by 90% and making him immune to any physical crowd control. After that, he raised his black tower shield forward and sprinted as much as his legs could allow him towards the gankers. His aim wasn¡¯t them though, but rather, what was behind them. He¡¯d already given up on the [Temporal Crystal] and instead focused solely on escaping. doesn¡¯t stop unless the caster wills it, gets crowd controlled, runs out of stamina, or hits a wall. No matter how many stands in his way, will just bring them along with him. The gankers knew this, of course, so the moment Fort charged towards them, they all scurried away like cockroaches when light turned on. Everything happened so fast that Fort, and even the gankers, thought he was really going to escape. A smile had already begun to form on his cheeks as if celebrating another day where he gets to live yet again, but all this hope instantly crumbled down when a jet-black sphere the size of a tennis ball appeared around 5 meters in front of him. The ball seems so harmless, but if one were to focus intently, they would be able to see that the space surrounding the ball does not fit the reality that it should. It¡¯s off-putting and anyone, even a child, would be able to recognize that something is wrong with the space around the ball. Fort instantly realized what it is and prompted to halt his charge right then and there. Unfortunately, he was too late. is an extremely complex spell and only 2 casters in existence are able to cast it. The reason with this is that it¡¯s not a singular spell, but rather a compound spell. It is the combination of 3 separate spells, each being already high-end by themselves. The first spell is . This spell temporarily causes elementary particles to exist at a specified location. The quantity and duration depend on the caster¡¯s ability. The second spell is . It causes the space at the targeted point to crumble unto itself and implode. Normally, this would subsequently cause a violent explosion as the sudden movement of matter would create a vacuum that will instantaneously be filled up, but not in this instance. These two spells together are already compound, creating the spell known as , however, the third spell is what really turns it into a full-fledged . That spell is . This spell is an extremely valuable spell in team fights as it causes space to freeze, and the passage of time to cease its movement within its area of effect. In essence, it is the perfect crowd-control ability. Fort tried to turn back and run away towards the gankers, but it was already too late. He was already caught in the gravity well and can feel the force tugging onto him. He tried fighting it, moving his muscular legs with all his might, but the time dilation caused by his proximity to the slows everything that he does to a crawl, save for his thoughts. He was done for. He looked at the gankers, spying them as much as his eyeballs are able to move, trying to discern and engrave onto his mind just who the hell did this, but he wasn¡¯t able to find them. In fact, the gankers themselves were similarly shocked at this turn of events, and many are desperately looking around them and above the canyon, their weapons drawn. Fort resigned himself to his fate. Releasing the tension in his muscles and let himself be swallowed up by the . It was a quick snap, an immediate flash of darkness that instantly reduced his HP to 0, which was then followed by the text; YOU HAVE DIED Chapter 2 Argus, flashed his eyes open in a mixed emotion of sadness and anger. The illuminated tomb that he¡¯s currently in is blinking with blue light, signifying that the user has woken up. He pushed a button to his left, causing the electronic sarcophagus to open up with a silent swish, and then sat up, letting his eyes adjust to the darkness of the room as he looks around it. It was in the dead of the night, yet the city outside the window is still as lively as ever. He hopped off the sarcophagus and started walking towards the window, fully naked. He was thin and frail, but not so much as to be mistaken as anorexic or malnourished. The streets are lit up with various colors of dancing lights from different sources. Cars, buildings, billboards, disco bars, all contribute to the light pollution that blots out the beautiful starry night sky. Suddenly, he heard a familiar sound he hasn¡¯t heard in over half a year. It was the ringing of his phone. He looked towards it, and saw that it¡¯s attached to the sarcophagus, and then remembered that he left it charging all this time. That¡¯s not a problem though, as most phones are built for that now, unlike previous generations decades ago. Even without checking, he already knew who¡¯s the one calling him. It was painfully obvious, after all. He took one last glance at the outside, the cacophony of hundreds of people who doesn¡¯t seem to know to rest, and the epileptic blaring of the intrusive light drowning his senses. ¡°Yeah¡­¡± He smirked. ¡°I don¡¯t belong here.¡± He quickly turned around, walked towards his phone and pressed the answer button. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m on it. I just took a quick break.¡± And then dropped the call just as fast as he answered. His eyes briefly glanced at his electronic ID, where his picture 2 years ago and his real name was displayed, but he paid it no mind. Afterwards, he checked the fridge chamber underneath the sarcophagus and determined that it would be enough for another half a year. He hopped on in once again, closed the door, and let himself fall back into the trance-like state induced by the machine. ¡°Launch Aefell Online.¡± The faint blue glow of the inside was quickly replaced with darkness, and then once again by a white light. Argus has died and has consumed [Phoenix Feather] x1 to be reborn. One thing to note in Aefell Online was the permadeath. Once your character dies, there¡¯s no respawning. Players could still make another character; however, that character are tied to the players¡¯ biometrics, and each player can only create one character in the span of 365 days. Once your account dies, one has to wait an entire year before being able to play Aefell once again. There are, however, ways to bypass this. One option, which Argus employed, was to obtain [Phoenix Feather] in-game. Once the character that owns the feather dies, they will be reborn instantly. They will keep their appearance and have the option to change their name, but everything else will be reset. Essentially, it¡¯s a new character without having to wait for an entire year. [Phoenix Feather]s are extremely rare though, and in fact, there are only 20 feathers in the game at any given time. Only when one is used will another spawn randomly in the world. For that reason, [Phoenix Feather]s are invaluable, specially to those who practically lives in Aefell and has given up with the outside world. Do you want to change your character name? ¡°No.¡± Confirmed. Please distribute your stat points (10). STR: 0 DEX: 0 AGI: 0 VIT: 0 ARC: 0 RES: 0 Another reason why Aefell is such a popular game is its adherence to realism in many aspects of the game, but more so on its combat. When it first released, so many new players fell to the traditional and stereotypical stat system present in other games. Almost every melee player used their stat points on strength, and almost every bow player used theirs on dexterity or agility, thinking that the mechanics will be the same as others. What they didn¡¯t realized is that unlike most games, Aefell¡¯s realism reversed this logic so that it would make sense.You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. Why would a sword user require Strength to wield their sword when swords by nature are designed to be light? What a sword user requires is Dexterity to properly utilize sword techniques and moves, as well as Agility to weft and weave across enemy attacks and to get into striking position. Likewise, bow users should heavily invest into Strength as stronger bows with longer range have higher draw weight, requiring significant strength to draw, and Dexterity to actually aim correctly. This, however, is just the ¡°base guide¡± in Aefell. Due to its sandbox nature, there really are no ¡°rules¡± on how to build your character and distribute the stat points. Players are encouraged to play however they want, be it a Strength-based magic caster, or whatever may the player¡¯s imagination concoct. Vitality is pretty much the same with other games, it determines the player¡¯s overall max health and stamina as well as their ability to resist poisons and diseases. Arcana is the measure of a player¡¯s understanding with magical principles and laws, and how they work, thereby determining the speed and strength of a caster¡¯s spell, while Reservoir determines the player¡¯s overall max mana. This system enabled each player to play their own specific playstyle. There are no classes in this game, and everyone can be whatever class they want depending on how they use their stats. ¡°I wonder what build I should go this time¡­¡± Argus stared at the stats screen vehemently. ¡°I guess I¡¯ll go with magic again. I¡¯m not really that great with weapons.¡± Stat points distributed. Confirm? STR: 0 DEX: 3 AGI: 0 VIT: 0 ARC: 5 RES: 2 ¡°Confirm¡±. When he was just starting out, Argus, too made the mistake of not paying attention to the stat descriptions. He ended up just focusing on Arcana and Reservoir, completely neglecting Dexterity. As a result, he had extreme difficulty in hitting his ranged, single target skill shots which dominated a caster¡¯s spells list before they get their first homing spell, the . Confirmed. Transporting you to Facilis¡­ A quick flash of faint blue light passed through Argus¡¯ eyes before the scenery snapped to an ornate stone fountain overflowing with water. ¡°Haven¡¯t seen this in years¡­¡± Argus gave a tiny smirk of nostalgia. He looked around him and saw that, despite the age of the game, the number of new people in the starter city is still as much as when it first release. In fact, he¡¯d reckon at a quick glance that there are more new players than before. Over the years, the popularity of Aefell has only increased exponentially. This is primarily due to the already existing players¡¯ reaction to the game and how it pretty much dominated the online gaming forums and video channels despite multiple attempts from other developers to ¡°copy¡± its success. There were a lot of aspects into the game other than just the traditional MMORPG experience such as the base building mechanic where players could construct their own structures anywhere in the world so long as they can defend it from would-be attackers. In fact, aside from the starting cities, every city in the game can be captured by players, where a percentage of its total gold revenue goes towards them. These diversity in mechanics helped Aefell attract a lot more people outside of the MMORPG players, as they could see their particular niche being fulfilled here in a hyper realistic environment. Massive wars between massive guilds are also a hotbed for strategy-centered players. The fact that friendly fire is always active anywhere in the game means that players cannot just launch attacks haphazardly. There is a need for strategy and tactics, and most importantly, synergy and discipline. ¡°Hey, what took you so long?¡± A familiar voice resounded behind Argus. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± He replied, suppressing the nostalgia in his heart. ¡°Let¡¯s go, Fo¡ª.¡± Argus stared at the person¡¯s name in disbelief. Instead of the name ¡®Fort¡¯, what lay before his eyes was the name ¡®Gilver¡¯. ¡°You¡¯re Fort, right?¡± ¡°Yours truly.¡± Gilver replied. ¡°You surprised? Hahaha! I decided to change it to avoid those gankers recognizing me just in case.¡± ¡°They were at the frontiers. Why would they be in the starter cities?¡± Argus replied, trying to reason with Gilver. ¡°Besides, I doubt they even remembered our names.¡± ¡°That may be true, yes, but it still wouldn¡¯t hurt to be careful.¡± Gilver said as he sent Argus a party invitation. ¡°Anyway, let¡¯s go get ready. We have a long grind ahead of us.¡± After spending about an hour going around the city, buying equipment using the starter gold they¡¯ve been given, the two of them exited through the Eastern gate, leading to the Verdant Plains. There were a lot of players scattered about. Each minding their own business as they hunt their monsters, grinding for EXP and gold. ¡°So, what¡¯s in the agenda?¡± Argus asked as he looked at the newbies wasting their time with such an inefficient method. ¡°Don¡¯t tell me we¡¯re going to join them?¡± ¡°Why the hell are you asking me?¡± Gilver¡¯s eyebrows curled at Argus. ¡°You¡¯re the one who knows where to go.¡± ¡°Ugh¡­¡± Argus pinched his nose bridge with his thumb and index finger, racking his memories of a possible place where they can grind. ¡°Verdant Plains¡­ Verdant Plains¡­¡± After about 6 seconds of silence, Argus¡¯ head jolted up with a smile on his face. ¡°I remember.¡± He pointed to his 2 o¡¯clock. ¡°There¡¯s a hidden entrance to a dungeon about a kilometer over there. The boss is level 5 though.¡± Before Argus could even look towards his companion, Gilver is already walking towards the direction that Argus pointed at, his wooden heater shield latched onto his back while his steel sword sheathed to his left. Argus just let out a harmless sigh and followed behind him, using his wooden staff with a blue crystal at the top as a cane while walking. He doesn¡¯t know what Gilver feels about what happened to them since Gilver is a generally stoic person who makes do with what he has, but Argus is very much aware of the anger and the itch for vengeance brewing inside of him. Chapter 3 ¡°This is my first time being here¡­¡± Gilver commented as they¡¯re walking the Verdant Plains, spying around the newbie players who are desperately killing monsters for EXP and gold. ¡°Well, yeah, you originally started in a different kingdom,¡± Argus replied to him. ¡°Don¡¯t you remember?¡± ¡°Did I?¡± Gilver involuntarily looked back towards Argus in surprise. ¡°Damn, I forgot. That was years ago.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t tell me you also forgot why you transferred to this kingdom?¡± Argus asked him while looking at his skill tree, trying to figure out which skill he¡¯s going to take first. ¡°Uh¡­¡± Argus sighed. ¡°You were going to apply for the guild Ex Machina, but they rejected you because they thought you were bad based on the gear you were wearing. Frankly, you really looked like a total noob back then.¡± ¡°Oh, yes, I remember now!¡± Gilver snapped his fingers. ¡°Wait, how do you know all that?¡± ¡°Damn, you¡¯re really forgetful, aren¡¯t you?¡± Argus scratched his black hair tainted with faint red. ¡°I was behind you on the line. Well, they rejected me too because I was a spellcaster. Spellcasters were incredibly weak back then because no one knew how to make them work yet.¡± ¡°Haha! Yeah, I remember when a semi-tank build like a barbarian would have more damage output than a full-damage glass cannon spellcaster.¡± ¡°Simpler times¡­¡± Argus whispered loudly. ¡°The four of us used to stay up all night raiding dungeons.¡± A stray arrow from one of the newbie parties flew towards Argus who was fully immersed in his skill tree to pay any attention around him. Luckily, Gilver managed to block it with his heater shield. It embedded itself on Gilver¡¯s wooden shield, before gradually evaporating into tiny blue particles. The shooter tried to run towards them to apologize but Gilver just waved him off from the distance, signaling not to bother and just focus on their enemy. The rest of the party appeared to scold him briefly, before laughing at his actions. ¡°Yeah, we were total noobs back then.¡± Gilver replied in a soft voice as he looked towards the newbie party laughing together. ¡°Do you still have contact with Umber and Honiden?¡± ¡°Not anymore. Umber hasn¡¯t contacted me ever since his character died two years ago,¡± Argus finally closed his skill tree menu, looking up to where they¡¯re going. ¡°And Honiden apparently deleted his account due to some real-world problems with his family, so no luck with that.¡± ¡°I see. That¡¯s unfortunate.¡± ¡°Yeah¡­¡± The rest of the 30 minutes¡¯ walk was done in utter silence with neither of them saying anything towards each other. Gilver was just attentively looking the surroundings for any wild monster that may attack, while Argus was now back on scanning the skill tree and his equipment, as well as inspecting Gilver¡¯s. After arriving at their destination as stated by Argus, which is a larger than average tree at the edge of a forest, the two of them began preparing themselves for battle. Argus did some test shots with the ability he took, , on random neutral creatures such as deer and rabbits in the premises, while Gilver swung his steel sword over and over again, both of them trying to grow accustomed to their equipment. Once both of them are satisfied, Argus stepped towards the larger than average tree and stuck his hand out to it. Instead of meeting the tree¡¯s bark, it instead phased straight into it, to Argus¡¯ satisfaction. ¡°Yep, this is it. Let¡¯s go.¡± He said towards Gilver, who then proceeded to follow him inside. Dungeons in Aefell are different from many MMORPGs, due to the fact that there are no ¡°trash mobs¡± that the players must grind through first in order to reach the boss room. Instead, it is a giant chamber where the boss is seen in a passive state, whether it be sleeping, eating, or doing anything else. Only when the players step into its ¡°territory¡± marked by a red line surrounding the boss would it turn hostile. Additionally, most dungeons, and subsequently, bosses in Aefell have unique mechanics that may aid the players in defeating the boss, or is the sole way for the boss to be defeated. These unique mechanics vary from boss to boss. This dungeon appears to be a giant cavern underneath the tree, as roots can be seen ¡°grasping¡± the soil around the chamber walls. The boss itself is a [Treant], around 5 meters tall, and is currently assuming the appearance of a regular unmoving tree. Upon reaching the edge of the boss¡¯ territory, Gilver immediately bursts into a full-on sprint towards the boss, prompting it to uproot itself and reveal its true appearance. ¡°OOOOOOOO!!¡± A loud, haunting scream of twisting wood permeated and echoed throughout the whole chamber. Argus stepped into the boss¡¯ territory and started to cast centered on the boss while Gilver is still quite a distance away, making him safe from Argus¡¯ AoE spell at the moment. A blast of orange fire exploded just beneath the boss¡¯ two wooden legs, causing it to falter for a second, but quickly regaining its composure. It looked towards Argus, the caster, and broke off one of its branches. It was in the process of hurling said branch like a javelin towards Argus when Gilver stopped it. He ¡°bashed¡± his heater shield in the air towards the boss, sending a shockwave of air and yellow light. After ¡°piercing¡± the boss, the shockwave completely reversed its direction, hitting the boss once again from the back and returning to Gilver¡¯s shield, illuminating it yellow. This was the skill . Enemies hit by this skill is taunted and are forced to only attack the caster for 20 seconds. Additionally, it gives the caster increased defenses for the duration of the taunt. The [Treant] hurled its branch towards Gilver with great speed. It was so fast that it whipped in the air and created a loud booming sound the moment it collided with Gilver¡¯s shield, making him take a step back due to the force. Another ball of fire exploded, this one right on the boss¡¯ face. Despite this, the [Treant] could only focus its attention towards Gilver, who¡¯s currently continuing its sprint towards it. At this point, the boss¡¯ HP is now down to 90%, with each taking down roughly 5%. Argus hurriedly started casting once again. Meanwhile, Gilver has now finally reached the boss, raising his shield towards it as the boss tried to stomp on him with its left wooden foot.The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. ¡°Bang!¡± The collision caused another explosion, a fainter one, this time. Gilver then took his steel sword and stabbed the boss¡¯ left foot currently stepping onto his shield. It penetrated, but the boss immediately stepped away from him, dislodging the sword but also freeing the weight off his shield. At this point, between doing the sprint and blocking two attacks from the boss, Gilver¡¯s stamina has already been depleted. Any attacks that he blocks now would not be negated entirely, but only a percentage of its damage. The boss broke off another minor branch from itself, and then subsequently swung it towards Gilver, wielding it as a bludgeoning weapon. Gilver hurriedly raised his shield to meet the attack. A loud breaking noise sounded as the branch splintered into various tiny pieces as it collides with Gilver¡¯s wooden shield. However, signs of deterioration can also be visibly seen on his shield as it takes blow after blow, with little chips and cracks forming along the shield¡¯s metallic frame and wooden body. Additionally, Gilver received some damage from that attack due to his depleted stamina being unable to support his blocking. ¡°Boom!¡± Another managed to hit right at the boss¡¯ head area. Because of its relatively small area of effect, this explosion left Gilver unscathed despite his apparent distance from the boss. Immediately, the [Treant]¡¯s entire body bursts into flames. Its wooden limbs and barked skin charred red, with large pockets of ember on a lot of places. causes an instantaneous exothermic reaction of 1-meter radius from the targeted point in space. Anyone hit by the explosion receives the seared debuff, lasting for 10 seconds. Upon three stacks, the seared debuff is consumed and the target is ignited, receiving fire damage equal to 5% of the target¡¯s max HP for 5 seconds. The moment it becomes enflamed, the boss quickly retreated and thrashed around the ground, attempting to put out the fire. It was not able to do so, however, and the effect merely expired. Almost simultaneously with the expiration of Gilver¡¯s taunt. With much of its body badly burnt like a tree after a forest fire, it set its angry sights on Argus, who has no intention of giving it any time to react and is already casting another spell. Due to the [Treant]¡¯s natural weakness to fire, any burning damage inflicted unto it is doubled, causing it to lose 50% of its max hp in just the span of 5 seconds. Now, only 35% of its original HP remain. Gilver saw this as an opportunity, with his stamina fully recovered as the boss¡¯ thrashing about gave him a momentary respite to replenish it. He held his steel sword firmly in his right hand and leapt up, latching on a large branch on the boss¡¯ back with his left. The boss tried to shake him off but Gilver¡¯s strength prevented that from happening. He switched his sword to an icepick grip and started stabbing the boss as much as he can. This enraged the boss further as he cannot reach on to Gilver. It tried to ignore him and instead run towards Argus, who by now is finished casting but cannot launch his spell as it may hit Gilver. ¡°No.¡± Gilver plunged his sword on the boss¡¯ wooden back. ¡°You.¡± Another stab followed. ¡°Don¡¯t.¡± And then another. Each stab temporarily halting the boss¡¯ tracks and slowly but gradually depleting the boss¡¯ HP. ¡°Let go!¡± Argus cried the moment he saw the boss¡¯ HP was about to fall into the 10% mark. Hearing this, Gilver immediately lets go of his grip with the boss and rolled to the ground upon landing to minimize the impact and not outbalance himself. ¡°Run!¡± Argus shouted once again as he lets go of the spell he prepared, hitting the boss with another explosion. ¡°It¡¯s switching phase!¡± It was too late, however. The [Treant] stomped its foot down on the ground, causing a brief quake. Gilver hurriedly ran away as innumerable spikes jut out from beneath the soil surrounding the boss. Afterwards, it began to plant itself, reverting to its ¡°tree form¡±, its remaining 5% HP slowly regenerating. Another explosion blasted, briefly staggering the boss and momentarily halting its regeneration. ¡°Do it!¡± Argus said as he prepared another spell once again. Standing at the precipice of the forest of thorny spikes double his height, Gilver attempted to look for a gap that gives him a direct line of sight to the boss. It didn¡¯t take long for him to find one, and with a quick but forceful push of his shield, the same shockwave and golden light from before bursts out and taunted the [Treant]. This forced the boss to abandon its defensive position and uproot itself once again, forsaking its currently ongoing regeneration. It¡¯s HP has now regenerated back to roughly 60%. It looked towards Gilver with almost a human-like hatred in its brown, solid eyes, and began walking towards him. A burst of flaming orange ball knocked the back of its head slightly, causing the [Treant] to once again ignite in flames. ¡°OOOOOOOOOOOOO!!¡± It cried, the deafening roar of nature reverberating throughout the chamber walls. It broke off one spike at the ground and hurled it towards Gilver. Fortunately, the distance between them was enough and Gilver didn¡¯t have to block it, but instead dodged out of the way. It continued to walk towards him amidst its burning body. But when it was finally outside the forest of thorns, Gilver greeted it with a jump, plunging his steel sword right at the [Treant]¡¯s charred woody face. It tried to grab unto him, but before it could do so, three more stabs bore through its bark, reducing its HP to 0 and finally ending the fight. The [Treant]¡¯s fall was unceremonious. Its left knee collapsed to the ground, followed by its right. Gilver hurriedly jumped out of the way as the boss¡¯ body would surely bury him should it fall face forward, which it did. A timid wave of air flushed through the entire chamber the moment the boss¡¯ body hit the soil, ending in a faint ¡°thump¡±. A notification box popped up in front of the two. You have defeated the [Treant] of the Fermer Forest. EXP has been rewarded. Suddenly, their EXP bars shot up to completion twice fold, finally stopping in around 7% at level 3. ¡°Well, that was easy.¡± Gilver commented while wiping the tears from his forehead as he examines the boss¡¯ body. ¡°Was that really a boss?¡± ¡°That was close.¡± Argus replied, slowly walking towards it. ¡°I only have enough mana for 1 more cast. Good thing it wasn¡¯t able to dodge any of them due to the taunts.¡± ¡°Pfft, I knew you got everything calculated.¡± Gilver jested after throwing Argus a small branch he picked up from the boss. ¡°Right?¡± ¡°Well¡­¡± Argus cleared his throat. ¡°I tried. There is just so much the two of us could do by ourselves. This boss is designed for level 5 players, you know? You could thank our mechanical experience for that.¡± ¡°Haha! Right, I suppose so.¡± Aside from gold and crafting materials that neither of them would use, the only worthwhile loot that they got from the boss was the [Brambleheart Necklace] and [Nettle Shiv]. [Brambleheart Necklace] gives the wearer a shield equal to 10% of their max HP. Any damage that the wearer takes is applied to this shield first before their HP. Once the shield is depleted, it takes 1 minute to fully recover. [Nettle Shiv] on the other hand is a slim, needle-like dagger that stuns the target for 0.5 seconds. This effect has a 30 second cooldown per target. ¡°That¡¯s unfortunate.¡± Gilver said after dividing the loot with Argus. ¡°You got nothing you could use.¡± ¡°That¡¯s fine.¡± Argus replied, examining the [Nettle Shiv]. ¡°I could always just sell this. Besides, the reason why I decided for us to fight this boss first is so that you could get that necklace. It¡¯s going to be valuable in the future.¡± ¡°Ah, I see.¡± Gilver flashed a smile. ¡°Is there anything that you don¡¯t plan?¡± ¡°Why, of course.¡± Argus flipped the shiv once before placing it on his inventory. ¡°For instance, I didn¡¯t plan for us to get ganked.¡± A malicious, yet somehow still joyful smile appeared on his face. ¡°Hahahaha! I see, I see.¡± Gilver has long been used to this behavior of his, and pays it no mind. ¡°Well, I have to log out shortly. Let''s hurry back to Facilis.¡± Upon arriving at Facilis, the two of them immediately sold the materials and other items that they were not going to use, except for the shiv, which Argus decided to keep afterall. They each got around 50 silvers. Afterwards, Gilver bid his farewell to Argus and rented a room at the local inn. Logging out in Aefell is not as easy as with other games, since even if the player has succesfully logged out, their character remains within the world of Aefell and will be sleeping. Therefore, they are susceptible to players and other monster''s attacks. To combat this, one must only log out in safe places such as within cities, or if it can''t be helped, in hidden places in the wild where there is little to no chance of being found. Gilver went offline. ¡°Well, time to grind.¡± Argus thought as he once again examines his skill tree. Chapter 4 ¡°Hmm, should I go through the Pyromancer tree or should I branch out?¡± Argus sits at a bench at the central plaza, right beneath the towering stone fountain where new players spawn. ¡°Last time, I went with Runemancer, and while I liked the utility it offered, the damage is severely lacking.¡± He was so enamored with his activity that he was unable to notice the party of three awkwardly approaching him. ¡°E-excuse me¡­¡± The boy clothed in leather spoke out to him. He has two short swords fastened unto his left and right waist. ¡°Are you looking for a party?¡± The boy appeared to be their leader, as the other two, a robed caster with what looks to be healing-focused staff and another leather wearer but with a bow, are just silently watching behind him. Argus glanced at the leader¡¯s weapons, sighing internally at his grave mistake. Dual wielding is perfectly possible in Aefell, however, it is heavily stat-dependent and could only really shine in higher levels, particularly with high dexterity builds. Dual wielding this early in the game is just a recipe for imminent death. Additionally, most successful dual wielders have some real-life experience with handling the sword, and it is their experience, coupled with the massive help by their stats, that they¡¯re able to make dual wielding work. Unless you¡¯re ambidextrous, there¡¯s no way you¡¯d be able to thrive with dual wielding right off the bat. ¡°No, I¡¯m not.¡± Argus replied monotonously, hoping that they¡¯d go away after that. ¡°I see.¡± The boy was visibly disappointed. ¡°W-we¡¯ll¡­ I mean, I¡¯ll pay you if you party with us!¡± ¡°What?¡± Argus was surprised at the boy¡¯s proposition. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Because you¡¯re a pro! Aren¡¯t you?¡± ¡°Wha¡ª No I¡¯m not, why would you think that?¡± ¡°I saw you and your friend earlier selling your loot.¡± The boy went on an exposition. ¡°Those leaves and wood, plus the dagger that you tried to sell but decided no to; I looked them in the wiki and they¡¯re drops from a level 5 boss. Which means the two of you single handedly defeated a level 5 boss on your own!¡± Argus was speechless in shock and confusion. ¡°I was going to ask both of you right then and there, but I was too shy. When I finally summoned the courage, your tank friend already logged out at the inn.¡± "He was watching us?"Argus couldn''t help but be suspicious of him. He was highly considering if these kids were spies from someone and was seriously debating if he''ll lure them into a trap and wipe them all in one fell swoop. "So? So?" The boy enthusiastically asked with a bright, jolly face. "I''ll give you 75% of the drops if you agree!" Looking at the boy cleared Argus'' doubts about them being spies, but that suspicion was replaced by annoyance and contempt. Not only does Argus absolutely not like annoying little kids, but his ignorant yet blissful enthusiasm just rubs him off the wrong way that he cannot explain. ¡°Alright, listen here kid,¡± Argus stood up visibly imposing on them. ¡°Your build is a detriment not only to you, but also your party. I have no qualms with partying, but I don¡¯t grind low level monsters. If you¡¯re fine with tackling bosses several levels higher than you, familiarize yourself with the game¡¯s mechanics first. Grind, but not levels or items; grind for personal experience. Otherwise, you¡¯re just going to get yourself killed. You are aware of the permadeath, aren¡¯t you?¡± Awkward silence ensued. The three of them looking at Argus with utter shock. ¡°L-let¡¯s go Kail.¡± The bow wielder said after a couple of seconds. ¡°We¡¯ll just level on our own.¡± The boy named Kail was utterly speechless. The blank stare in his eyes was reminiscent of someone whose had cruel reality thrown into their blissful utopia of carelessness and comfort. ¡°No.¡± He replied, facing towards the ground. ¡°He¡¯s right. I did notice the difficulty with this dual sword I¡¯m trying to make work.¡± He then looked up towards Argus after wiping his eyes. ¡°Thank you for this lesson. I promise we¡¯ll improve ourselves.¡± Argus raised his eyebrows upon hearing this. ¡°Right, good." He replied while nodding. "By the way, where can we find quests?" The two behind him where about to leave when Kail asked one final question. "Ah, quests." Argus flashed a tiny smirk. "There are only a handful of quests in the game. This is a sandbox. Play however you want." They left after Kail thanked him, leaving Argus alone once again. He sat down with a heavy back afterwards; his entire body laid out in full. ¡°What the hell just happened?¡± Unbeknownst to him, a figure obscured by the shadow of a local establishment was watching him the entire time. ¡°Fuck!¡± Argus dove to his right, barely being able to dodge the giant boulder hurled at him by the Level 7 [Golem]. Since he leveled up twice, he was awarded with 10 stat points, as each level gives 5, and two skill points. He added another 5 to his ARC, 3 to his RES and 2 to his DEX, bringing his final stats to 5 DEX, 10 ARC, and 5 RES. Also, he¡¯d decided to continue on the Pyromancer tree for now and took , which heals the caster or the target in hand reach for 50% of their lost HP but decreases their max HP by 10% for 30 seconds, and , which shoots a thin filament of fire that deals damage and ignites the first target hit for 3 seconds. If the struck target is already ignited, the initial damage is multiplied by 50% and the ignite duration is increased by 1 second, adding to the already existing one.This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. Just two more levels and he¡¯d finally be able to reach the first milestone in the Pyromancer tree, although whether he¡¯d actually continue on it or branch out is yet to be decided. Every skill tree in the game has a milestone point, typically every 5 skill points invested onto that tree, though the actual number may increase or decrease depending on the tree, and how far into the tree. For Pyromancer, the first milestone is split between three choices; Arsonist, Blazer, and Anarchist. The Arsonist tree focuses on fire skills that inflict and sustain several fire-based DoT (damage-over-time) spells, particularly centered around igniting the enemy. The Blazer tree is a mixture of DoT and instant damage spells, but focuses on buffing and restoration. Lastly, the Anarchist tree focuses on high damage, AoE (Area of Effect) burst spells. That being said, one can take all branches if they wish, though that would be the at the expense of advancing in the previous branch as the cost of skills dramatically increases after a milestone. This is the other determining factor for player¡¯s character builds in Aefell. One can invest both in swordplay and in magic, but he will not be as proficient in either of them as someone who focused on a single path. Argus casted his third consecutive at the boss, applying ignite onto it. Its rocky body bursts into flames, imbuing it with some kind of flowing orange substance reminiscent of lava, bringing its HP down to about 67%. Immediately after, he shot onto it, dealing large amounts of damage and taking its HP down to 56% as well as extending the ignite duration to 9 seconds. As the boss is currently losing HP by the second, he took this time to distance himself and recuperate. His HP currently sits at 45, and that was just from the single punch he took. If he takes two consecutive hits, he¡¯ll surely die. He used on himself, healing him for 23 HP, bringing it up to 67, but also temporarily lowering his max HP to 90 for 30 seconds. He cast another on the boss as it¡¯s slowly striding itself towards him. He decided that he¡¯d fight another Earth Elemental as they¡¯re the slowest among all the monster types, making it easy for him to hit his skill shots, but the tradeoff is that they¡¯re also the most enduring. The [Treant]¡¯s gimmick was its extreme regeneration once its HP falls to 10%. This [Golem], however, is in pure, raw defense. However, that is easily circumnavigated by the percent DoT of Argus¡¯ ignites. Many may think upon seeing this battle that Pyromancer is overpowered and unbalanced, specially the ignite that can easily take off 25% of the boss¡¯ HP in the span of 5 seconds, but what they don¡¯t realize is that this is only strong in the early game. Many monsters from mid to late game are resistant, if not outright immune to fire damage, while also boasting regenerative abilities whilst in combat. Early game bosses are designed to be introductory, as the more ¡°serious¡± ones are intended to be treated as raid bosses. Another thing to note is that the boss¡¯ difficulty; it¡¯s HP, damage, and resistances, scales with the number of players present. Argus being alone greatly helps in this regard. Also, Argus is only able to fully utilize ignite''s power because he''s fighting Earth Elementals, who are by nature incredibly slow, and frankly, stupid. If it were any other monster with a respectable speed and intelligence, he would have died from the first 5 seconds of the fight if he fought it alone. The final tick of the ignite brought the [Golem] down to 19% HP, prompting it to switch phases. The slightly molten rock covering its body caused by the ignite shifted and moved like tectonic plates. The affected ones sank onto its body while new, almost polished-looking ones replaced their place. Additionally, it planted itself onto the ground, much like how the [Treant] assumed the appearance of a normal tree, but this one looks like a gigantic spear of stalagmite 15 meters tall. The earth started rumbling as the boss assumed a defensive position. Knowing that it¡¯s pretty much invulnerable at this state, Argus forgone the idea of attacking it and wasting mana. Instead, he focused all his attention to his footing and the vibrations of the earth. A crack rapidly formed beneath his feet. Prepared, Argus immediately jumped away of his current position, as he knew exactly what this crack entailed. Not even a second has passed after he jumped away, a thin spike of rock and earthly materials pierced out of the crack, around Argus¡¯ height, before promptly retreating back to the ground like an appendage upon missing him. Another crack formed, and Argus dodged out of the spike¡¯s way again, just like earlier. This was the boss¡¯ second phase. He patiently did these movements a dozen more times in a cycle, waiting for this phase¡¯s expiration. Surely enough, after dodging the last spike, the boss finally rose out of its defensive position and stood up. Fortunately, it did not regenerate any health and still remains at 19%. Unfortunately, however, the hard part now begins for Argus. As the [Golem] stood up, all the plates of rocks covering its body began to shed one by one. Argus wasted no time and immediately blasted it with . This did not faze it however, and just continued to shed its armor. After around 3 seconds, what lay before Argus was not the same [Golem] covered in rocky plates. Instead, it appears to be a sculpture made out of shiny marble, though the joints have indentations on them to allow movement. Its black, hollow eyes pierced Argus as it stared at him. Argus tried to distance himself from the boss, but this seemingly prompted it to move. With a quick burst of movement, it sped towards Argus unlike its sluggish movement before. At the rate that it was going, it was going to collide with him in just a second or two, despite the sufficient distance between them. When it was just inches away from Argus, it pulled its right leg back, preparing to kick him with immeasurable force. Argus knew that if this kick connected, even if he was at full health, this would definitely one-shot him. Still, he decided to take the risk. He turned towards it and released the spell . It flinched for a split second, not even the duration of the blink of an eye, but that was all Argus needed. When the boss threw its kick, Argus dodged sideways, trying to time it as perfectly as possible. At that moment, everything felt to slow to a crawl. His body is in a diving position in mid-air, almost seemingly suspended, while the boss¡¯ marble foot inches to him closer and closer. When ¡°time finally resumed¡±, Argus couldn¡¯t be more relieved. It was definitely a close one, as the kick actually brushed the back of his head, with the boss¡¯ sole just millimeters away from his sprawled back. Nevertheless, he managed to survive the one-hit-kill attack. Upon landing, he hurriedly started casting while lying face-down on the ground. This was nerve-wracking for him, even though he knew exactly how many seconds it takes for the boss to recover from that attack, the fact that he cannot see it for a couple of brief seconds still incites an instinctual fear on him. The boss became off-balance after missing its kick, though it didn¡¯t even take a split second for it to recover. It immediately faced towards Argus and raised a foot to stomp down on him. When the foot is descending down, Argus rolled over to face it, and then released . An orange ball of pure exothermal energy started to spontaneously form and expand in front of him. Though it was far away enough not to affect him, the force of its explosion still carried a minor gust of wind that brushed his hair messy. ¡°Boom!¡± An explosive noise resounded throughout the cavern-like boss chamber. Like before, the [Golem] flinched for a split second, but promptly resumed its stomp on Argus, who by now has rolled out of the way and is in the process of standing up. Plumes of orange-red flames erupted all over the boss¡¯ body, which it tried to ignore as it recovers itself from the missed stomp, which had embedded its foot onto the cavern floor. However, it was futile. The moment it started to charge towards Argus, its HP fell to 0. It collapsed on the rocky floor mid-dash, causing it to drift forward like a landslide before coming to a halt just inches away from a desperately running Argus. After sitting still while heavily panting as he recovers his stamina, he looked at his MP and turned pale at what he saw. It was completely drained. Chapter 5 You have defeated the [Golem] of the Karite Ranges. EXP has been awarded. Argus leveled up twice from this encounter, with the EXP bar stopping at 79% towards level 6. Like in most games, the difficulty of leveling up increases as numbers go higher. This is why doing the traditional grind for trash mobs is highly inefficient if the purpose is to level up. Typically, large guilds would only do this for gold and material farming. He placed 5 stat points to ARC, 3 to RES and 2 to DEX. LEVEL 5 STR: 0 DEX: 7 AGI: 0 VIT: 0 ARC: 15 RES: 8 ¡°Yep, looks fine.¡± Upon reaching 15 in Arcana, Argus finally obtained his first passive skill. passive skill has been learned. This is the true beginnings of a caster in Aefell Online. In summary, there are two ways to cast and/or learn a spell in Aefell. The first and easiest one is through the system UI where one invests a skill point to learn a skill, and then cast it by thought with the help of the system. The second way is by scripting it. Scripting a spell is very much like writing a code or forming electronic circuits. The script functions as a rule, a pathway, and a medium of spells to exist and function. To learn a spell through scripting, one must first have sufficient enough Arcana. Even if a player already knows how to script certain spells, if their Arcana wasn¡¯t enough, it would be like writing a code that you already fully know how to make work, but the language you¡¯re using is severely limited, or creating a circuit that doesn¡¯t have all the logic gates required. It just wouldn¡¯t work and would end up fizzling out. Casting a spell through scripting is pretty much similar to learning it. The advantage this has over casting it through the system, however, is its cast time. The cast time of spells cast on script is entirely dependent on how fast the caster can write the script, as well as how much he understands said script. More experienced casters could script complex spells faster because they know certain shortcuts to it. Obviously, these shortcuts are highly secret and no caster would willingly give away a shortcut in a spell that they discovered themselves. Another advantage is that compound spells can only be created through scripting, and that the actual effects of spells can be tweaked and altered depending on the caster¡¯s proficiency and knowledge. Theoretically, someone who is sufficiently skilled enough in scripting spells could make it so that the spell could have a 1-kilometer radius and deal tremendously more damage that pretty much turns it into a nuclear bomb, however, such a feat, while generally agreed upon to be probable, is incredibly difficult to achieve and no one has yet to achieve something similar over the ten years the game has existed. Through script, spells essentially become clay that they can mold to their hearts content, provided they know enough of what they¡¯re doing. Argus is obviously happy that he¡¯s finally able to obtain the ability to script, but the number of spells he can actually script is tremendously limited by his Arcana. For now, he¡¯d decided to leave this be and instead examine the boss¡¯ drops. Aside from high quality rocks that can be used for building structures, there were three drops that stood out to Argus, one of them he¡¯s expecting as it was the reason why he fought this boss in the first place. It was the [Ring of the Mountain]. After being stationary for 3 seconds, the wearer receives a 5% increase to their resistances. Additionally, a circular stone shield 1 meter in radius spawns at the wearer¡¯s back. This shield floats in the air and can be freely controlled by the wearer¡¯s will as if an extension of their limbs. It will break upon receiving damage equal to 100% of the wearer¡¯s max HP, appearing once again after 30 seconds. It cannot deal damage, and will only push back when hurled at enemies. These effects expire when the wearer moves out of their stationary position. At a glance, this item could be more suited to tanks as it gives them a physical shield that scales off of 100% of their max HP as well as increase their resistances, however the caveat is that these effects could only activate if they¡¯re not moving from their place. This is not acceptable, as tanks in Aefell, unlike other games, are more than just meat shields. They can¡¯t just stand idly, taking enemy hits as that would pretty quickly kill them, even with their several abilities. Tanks should always be on the move, dodging attacks. Only if the attack is unavoidable should a tank use their shield or defensive abilities. For that reason, this item is actually more suited to stationary DPS characters like mages or archers, as they can freely control the stone shield as if it were their limbs, meaning one does not have to concentrate to maneuver it. After equipping the ring, Argus pocketed the other two items for now, deciding to review them later on. The more pressing matter is where he should put the points that he had just gotten from leveling up. He quickly exited the dungeon and began to make his way back to Facilis, or at the very least, to the Verdant Plains. The dungeon he¡¯s currently at is more than a kilometer away north of Facilis, and since it is located at the Karite Ranges, outside of the Verdant Plains, the city guards would not be able to protect him from any potential ganker that might be prowling the area. Upon leaving the cave, the darkness of night that¡¯s being illuminated by countless stars greeted Argus. He looked down to the steep steps he climbed up earlier to get to this dungeon and sighed. He can barely see anything due to the darkness, and any wrong step could cause him to slip off and easily lose a ton of HP. If there were any gankers around, he¡¯d surely be easy prey since despite his MP slowly regenerating, it¡¯s still far from being combat ready. Carefully, he started descending down the rocky steps, taking extreme precaution not to miss a step or land on a slippery part. It was nerve-wracking, and the occasional howls of wolves and caws of unknown birds did not help in the slightest. Using his staff to reach onto the ground in front of him if there are any gaps, he quickly descended the mountain in approximately 20 minutes without any accidents or gankers, fortunately. During that time, his MP has fully regenerated.The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. He was still quite a ways away from Verdant Plains, but the trek isn¡¯t as hard or long anymore. The land at the foot of the mountain was heavily covered with trees, and off the distance he could already see the Verdant Plains¡¯ Outpost. While walking back as he carefully examines his skill tree, deciding where to put the 2 skill points that he just obtained from leveling up, a peculiar rustle that originated around 10 meters away from him stopped him in his tracks. Not only does the darkness limits his visibility, but the countless trees surrounding him also blocks much of the area, save for the dirt road at that he¡¯s currently following. He immediately assumed a defensive position and readied his spell , tensing his legs so that he would be able to react to any sudden movements as fast as possible. ¡°Aaah, he¡¯s good.¡± A woman¡¯s voice suddenly echoed not too far in front of him, followed by the said voice¡¯s owner coming out of a roadside tree. ¡°I told you to fucking stay put.¡± The woman is wearing maroon leather outfit, with a skirt flair for aesthetics. She¡¯s also playing with a dagger with her right hand, with some sort of viscous, green fluid on its tip, possibly poison coating. ¡°Damn it. Not again.¡± Another voice, this time of a man, sounded. He came out shortly, on the other side of the road where the woman was. ¡°Well, it¡¯s just a single caster so it¡¯s not really that big of a deal.¡± He unsheathes the longsword at his side, wielding it with two hands and assumed an overhead stance, pointed directly towards Argus. Argus, on the other hand, did not react haphazardly. He observed what the two will do first, despite their blatant intent to kill him and loot his items. He had determined that if anything happens, he should deal with the woman first, as she¡¯d probably the one faster than the two. What the two gankers didn¡¯t notice, possibly due to the darkness of the night, was that a circular stone had already formed behind Argus, floating in mid-air as if awaiting his commands. Sure enough, it was the woman that acted first. She sprinted towards him all of a sudden, trying to surprise him as much as possible. The man with the longsword followed suit, although his movements were more reserved as he¡¯s not as much in a rush as the woman. With a snap, Argus released towards the woman. When a skill shot is cast, there is a window where players would be able to see the spell¡¯s hitbox before it actually materializes. This window is shortened by the caster¡¯s proficiency. The woman currently dashing towards Argus was able to notice the ¡¯s hitbox, however, she was not able to dodge it as the window was very short and her agility wasn¡¯t enough to actually enable her to dodge it. As a result, she ended up taking the full brunt of the blast, causing her to lose balance and stopping her in her tracks. Her HP has also taken a considerable amount of damage. She rolled thrice on the dirt road before coming to a halt. ¡°I¡¯ll¡­ I¡¯ll fucking kill you!!¡± The woman screamed on top of her lungs as she begins to stand up. Argus wasted no time and began preparing another right after releasing the first one. The other man on the other hand seemed unfazed and continued to carefully close towards Argus as fast as he can. As soon as the woman stood up, the man with the longsword also rushed towards Argus. Now, two people are currently sprinting at him at full speed. ¡°Shit, I have to time this right.¡± Argus thought to himself, beads of cold sweat have started to form on his forehead. Argus¡¯ position on the dirt road relative to the two gankers make it so that there is a certain point where a single would be able to hit them both, as they have to inevitably run closer to each other as they near Argus. This was the moment that Argus needs to time correctly to him them both. Just a blink later, and the moment had finally come. ¡°It¡¯s now or never!¡± With a flick of his finger, a ball of pure orange flame materialized between the two gankers currently running at full speed towards him. Like the woman earlier, they tried to avoid the blast by shifting their body weight away and maneuvering their legs, but it was all for naught. The explosion sent them both flying at the respective direction that they were originally intending to dodge towards, partly due to the fact that they caused themselves to be imbalanced in the first place in their futile attempt to dodge. If they had just stood straight and steeled their footing, they would have been able to resist the force of the explosion, though the damage would still be there, the effect wouldn¡¯t have been as severe as to flung them rolling. The man took roughly the same amount of damage as the woman did the first time. Her, on the other hand, now have her HP at around 45%. From those exchanges alone, Argus was able to deduce that these gankers are pretty new to the game. Not only were their attacks severely telegraphed, they were very straightforward as well, lacking any coordination and tact. If they had just circled him and attempted a pincer attack, it would¡¯ve been much harder for Argus. As it stands now, he might not even need to use the stone shield currently hovering at his back. He began casting another as the two are simultaneously standing up. ¡°Good thing these gankers are total noobs.¡± Argus inwardly sighed. If they were a least bit experienced, he wouldn¡¯t be able to hit every single that he cast, and would probably have to wait another year to play again. Still, he shouldn¡¯t celebrate yet. The two are now dangerously close to him, and it would take a second for them to run and stab him after standing up. He readied the stone shield, making sure he¡¯s fully capable of controlling it just in case. The woman stood up first, and, after picking up her poison-coated dagger, did a single, long stride towards Argus, placing him in her striking distance. With all her might, she thrusts her poison dagger towards him, a sinister smile beginning to form in her face. Yet, despite her best efforts, her attack was ultimately deflected sideward. She flushed all thoughts of confusion and regained her footing in order to strike again, but when she looked towards Argus, what covered her view was a circular stone that¡¯s rapidly approaching her. It struck her, but to her surprise, it dealt no damage. It merely pushed her back 2 meters. Argus was about to finish casting the when he realized he had made a grave mistake. By using the shield to push away the woman, he had left himself defenseless. To his other side was now the man with the longsword, hands raised up high and on the process of bringing down his sword towards Argus. ¡°Fuck!¡± Argus¡¯ eyes widened. ¡°I underestimated his recovery time.¡± The man brought down his sword with swift, furious movement, aimed at Argus¡¯ pathetically exposed face flooded with a look of confusion and desperation. It¡¯d only take a split second for the sword to connect, and the critical hit from a headshot would surely kill Argus instantly as he doesn¡¯t have any headwear on. ¡°AAAAAAAAAGGGH!!¡± The man shouted with intensity that it echoed throughout the forest, causing the nearby nocturnal birds to fly away in panic. When the sword was just inches away from Argus, a sudden force tugged at the man away, jolting his body backwards, causing the sword to miss Argus and hit air and dirt. ¡°What?¡± Argus was similarly confused as the man that was just attacking him. Another person stands behind the ganker who¡¯s now lying on the ground as a result of the pull. This person is wielding what looks to be a miniature scythe, with chains connected somewhere underneath their sleeve. The darkness of the night and the shadow of the trees obscuring this person''s figure, and all that Argus could see was their silhouette and other hand retrieving a dagger from their waist and plunging it down the ganker¡¯s exposed throat. The ganker tried to resist by reaching for his sword, but all strength within him appeared to drain away instantly. He grabbed the person''s hand that¡¯s still holding the dagger embedded into his throat and squeezed it as hard as he can, before finally disappearing into a puff of blue particles of light. ¡°NOOOO!!¡± The woman screamed in utter horror. This prompted Argus to snap back to reality from his trance. He released the onto the woman who tried rushing towards her companion. The force of the explosion interrupted her and subsequently set her ablaze. ¡°AAAAGGGHH IT HURTS!¡± She cried dreadfully while rolling on the dirt, attempting to put out the fire. Just seconds later and she, like her companion just earlier, disappeared in a puff of blue particles, leaving behind all her equipment and items. Argus paid this no mind and immediately casted another preparing for whatever this new person would do. He glanced up to see their name. ¡®Mephistoz¡¯. Chapter 6 Argus leers at the person before him. ¡°Who are you?¡± He asked. He obviously can see the person¡¯s name, but that wasn¡¯t the point of the question. The wild lands are a very anarchic area, and no one would just simply help someone else without any ulterior motive, especially if they can easily kill both the ganker and the victim and reap all the profits themselves. Playing the game for years, Argus has learned that there is no such thing as a ¡®good Samaritan¡¯ outside of the protected zones. The person obscured by the darkness named Mephistoz started spinning the scythe, or rather, the kusarigama with their right hand where the chain is seemingly attached on to. Argus frowned upon seeing this. Not only because Mephistoz is getting ready for an attack, but also the fact that their weapon is incredibly unorthodox. Weapons like these, much like dual wielding, very heavily relies on stats to function properly. A small scythe attached to a chain is incredibly DEX dependent, and while it can be extremely effective when used by the right hands, not many people even at high levels uses this, as this weapon excels neither in long range, nor close range. It¡¯s a strictly mid-range weapon like yoyos, flails, and whips, which many find it awkward to use. He hovered the stone shield in front of him, so as to block any attack that this person may throw. The shield¡¯s health is still around 75% so Argus concluded that it¡¯d still last a couple more hits. Mephistoz whipped the scythe towards Argus, attempting to hit him from his left, but the stone shield quickly and easily blocked the attack. Argus counterattacked by releasing but Mephistoz had already dodge rolled forward and has now retrieved the scythe by pulling on the chain. He then spun it again, waiting for Argus¡¯ next move, who by now is already in the process of casting. ¡°Once this stone shield gets destroyed, I¡¯m dead.¡± Argus has already figured out how Mephistoz utilizes this weapon. By using the scythe to impale targets at range, and then pulling on the chain to hook them closer, Mephistoz could score an easy critical hit with the off-hand dagger as they¡¯d be lying prone, or entangled to resist. Obviously, an easy counter for this is heavy armor or mobility, which Argus unfortunately has neither of. Mephistoz threw another shot at him, which the stone shield blocked once again. This time, however, the scythe latched on to the stone shield, and Mephistoz attempted to pull on it. It didn¡¯t budge, as the stone shield cannot be forcefully displaced and can only be moved by the wearer¡¯s will. Realizing that the stone shield won¡¯t go anytime soon, Mephistoz disengage the scythe and pulled it back, spinning it once again. Before Argus could release , Mephistoz did a spinning jump forward, his body on a horizontal position. The scythe on his hand was then released, which caused it to fan around as it spins, giving the image of a bladed flower. Argus flinched upon seeing this, as he had instantly recognized this move. It was like a moment of eureka, but for memories of the past. Afterall, this was something he¡¯d always scolded Umber for doing, as it¡¯s highly risky and serve no purpose, not to mention flashy. Umber always did it nonetheless, but with a katana, typically in an attempt to last hit a boss. It¡¯ll just take a split second for him to release the , and then quickly follow up with a , but he failed to do anything. ¡°U-Umber!?¡± Argus couldn¡¯t help but mutter in confusion. He wasn¡¯t expecting any response from this person named Mephistoz. It was just an involuntary reaction as a result of his surprise. All of a sudden, Mephistoz landed while crouched down. The scythe still carried momentum and continued for a brief period before Mephistoz tugged on it to retrieve it. Argus¡¯ mind was going in all kinds of directions as the scene unfolded before his eyes. ¡°Was it just a co-incidence?¡± He gulped as he watches Mephistoz slowly stand up. ¡°But then why did he stop?¡± Even though the darkness still pretty much obscures both of them, the fact that Mephistoz has now left the cover of the tree¡¯s shadows enabled Argus to take a better look at him. His crimson red eyes are the only discernable feature shown on his face, as much of it from the nose all the way down to his neck and shoulders is covered by a black cloth that functions as a half-mask. His armor appears to be hardened black leather, with numerous pockets and clips, most of which houses daggers on them. Similarly, his forearms and heels each also have daggers sheathed on them. The silence was very deafening. Argus wanted to release the spell he¡¯s holding, but the reservations in his mind, no matter how improbable, is holding him back. His doubts and reason overwhelmingly dominate any other possibility that might sway him, but somehow, this minority in his mind is currently in control. ¡°There¡¯s no way¡­¡± Between the occasional howls, and the cawing of the birds, there was a silent noise between the two that was much louder than anything else in that forest. It was like a soundless fuse that inches ever so closely to the bomb, a man walking on a very, very fine thread, that just a slight nudge from a harmless breeze would cause him to ultimately fall to his demise. The tension in the air feels radioactive, and any small movement from either of them could cause the situation to further descend into chaos in a blink of an eye. Suddenly, like pinching the spark of a fuse to put out the fire, the tension all of a sudden disappeared into a puff of smoke. ¡°So, you¡¯ve noticed?¡± Mephistoz said. Argus wanted to release at that moment. Despite the confirmation of the improbable, despite it not contributing to the situation in any way, shape, or form, Argus just wanted to blast Mephistoz¡¯ face off with a good old . ¡°You fuck.¡± Argus exhaled heavily, releasing all the air he¡¯s been holding all this time. ¡°You fucker.¡± He smiled. ¡°Huh, I wonder what gave me away?¡± Mephistoz walked closer to Argus, extending a hand. ¡°Oh, yeah,¡± Argus said sarcastically as he grabbed onto Mephistoz¡¯ hand, shaking it intensely. ¡°I fucking wonder what¡­¡± ¡°No, really,¡± Mephistoz asked. ¡°What gave me away?¡±Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. Argus couldn¡¯t help but just sigh. He fixed his hair that was starting to get into his face due to the intense action just earlier and proceeded to loot the gankers before walking towards Facilis. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell us though?¡± Argus skeptically asked Mephistoz as he sells the relatively low-end items that the gankers had. ¡°You could¡¯ve at least said that you weren¡¯t going to play anymore.¡± ¡°Uhh, how?¡± Mephistoz replied as he sat beside the stall that Argus is selling at. ¡°I didn¡¯t have any resurrecting items or passives, so I had to wait a whole year to be able to contact you all again.¡± ¡°Huh? I thought you had contact in real life with Fort?¡± Argus examined the sword that the ganker had, determining that it was, after all, not any use to them. ¡°Oh, by the way, he¡¯s changed his name to Gilver.¡± ¡°No, that was Honiden, not me. They know each other in real life, apparently.¡± ¡°Really? I see. I guess it never really came up again.¡± ¡°Yeah, affairs in the real world should just stay in the real world.¡± Mephistoz tosses a dagger in the air and then promptly catches it. ¡°So, what made you play again, after 2 freaking years?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. I guess I just felt like playing again?¡± He sheathed the dagger that he was just playing and looked at the stone fountain. ¡°Still, what a co-incidence that I started playing again at the same time both of you died from gankers. I actually saw you a lot earlier when you were talking to those kids, but I didn¡¯t think it was really you. I thought you¡¯ve died somehow and someone else decided to use your name. That¡¯s why I decided to follow you.¡± ¡°Yeah, I know right. If I remember correctly, names of dead characters can¡¯t be used for a year and a half? Not sure though.¡± Argus walked towards Mephistoz after selling the excess items. He took the [Nettle Shiv] from his inventory and handed it over to him. ¡°I gotta say. Your current name is¡­ awfully long.¡± ¡°Long?¡± Mephistoz took the [Nettle Shiv] and examined it. ¡°What¡¯s so long about it?¡± ¡°Uh, the fact that it¡¯s 3 syllables?¡± Argus also sat down and opened up his skill tree. ¡°You know I¡¯d prefer edgy names if they were shorter to pronounce.¡± ¡°Honiden had 3 syllables¡­¡± ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s why I called him ¡®Hoe Den¡¯ instead.¡± Argus couldn¡¯t help but smile as he recalled the past. ¡°I¡¯m privileged to call you something worse since you just tried to kill me, but unfortunately I can¡¯t think of anything as of now, so you¡¯re going to have to make do with ¡®Mephz¡¯.¡± ¡°Whatever, suit yourself.¡± His eyebrows perked up in interest at the [Nettle Shiv]¡¯s stats. ¡°Oh, this is good for interruptions!¡± Argus dove into his own world, as he would always do when focusing intently on one subject. The casual chatter that Mephistoz is saying no longer reaches Argus¡¯ ears, and the world surrounding him seemingly evaporates into oblivion, leaving nothing but the skill tree screen in front of him. ¡°The Arsonist tree is only good for long, drawn-out fights, which our party cannot afford to engage in as we lack a healer.¡± He sank in deep thought, reading the skill description in the window while weighing all his options. ¡°The only two options for me right now is the Blazer branch or the Anarchist branch. Going for Anarchist would be the best in the short term, as it significantly boosts my immediate damage, as well as my clearing ability should we encounter a group of monsters or gankers. However, the Blazer tree leads to the Sunborn, and then finally to the Phoenix, which gives me the passive, which is basically a free [Phoenix Feather]. Plus, it¡¯d be roughly the same as my role before as a Runemancer, I can act as a support, although to a lesser degree.¡± He stroked his chin in contemplation. ¡°The problem with that, though, is we¡¯re going to be severely lacking in sustained damage and AoE attacks. Mephz excels at single target bursts, so as of right now, I¡¯m the DPS. I guess the best course of action right now is to go for the Anarchist branch, and then invest on the Blazer later on when I¡¯ve achieved a balance with my build¡­¡± A brief moment of hesitation prevented Argus from immediately investing on the Anarchist branch, however, he instantly cleared his mind and convinced himself that this is the most logical approach given what they currently have. He is just maximizing their overall potential. ¡°Damn. It¡¯s really hard to min-max in games like these. There¡¯s so much to consider.¡± The two skill points were used to learn and . is an active skill costing no mana that instantly causes a jet of flames to shoot out to any direction originating from the caster. This pushes the caster the opposite direction, and pushes away enemies hit by the jet, while dealing a small amount of damage. on the other hand is a passive ability that gives a 50% resistance to environmental heat. Upon doing this, the Pyromancer skill tree shifted and turned, revealing 3 branching paths. As expected, these are the Arsonist, Blazer, and Anarchist branches. With the hesitation cleared off him, Argus took the Anarchist branch with a single breath. You have chosen the Anarchist path. The flame within you breaks off its shackles and refused to be controlled. A scorched land ripe with death and destruction follow you in your wake. Your maximum HP has been permanently reduced by 25%. Your maximum MP has been permanently increased by 100. passive acquired. Upon falling on or below 5% HP, you will rampage for 10 seconds or until your mana runs out, attacking anything and anyone in sight. During this time, all your spells deal 100% more damage and have 50% reduced cooldown. ¡°W-well¡­¡± Argus couldn¡¯t help but flash an awkward smile. Even though he already knew that this is what the Anarchist''s passive entails, he¡¯s still a little bit reserved upon receiving an ability that he cannot reliably strategize around. ¡°It¡¯s okay, I took this branch for the spells anyway. I¡¯ll just make sure not to fall below 5% HP.¡± ¡°¡­ey! Hey!¡± Mephz¡¯ voice gradually start to enter Argus¡¯ consciousness as soon as he closed the skill tree window. ¡°What happened to you? What¡¯s with that thing on your arm?¡± ¡°My arm?¡± Argus looked at his right arm in curiosity, wondering what exactly was Mephz just talking about. Not just his right arm, but both of them now have tiny red-orange cracks on them. It didn¡¯t take up a lot of space in his arm, in fact, only around 5% of the total skin in his arm was affected, but it¡¯s still very noticeable especially in contrast to his otherwise lighter skin tone. ¡°Ah, this? Don¡¯t worry, it doesn¡¯t hurt or anything. It¡¯s just an aesthetic effect of me choosing the Anarchist branch.¡± ¡°Ooh, you¡¯ve hit a milestone already!?¡± Mephz exclaimed in surprise. ¡°I didn¡¯t know! I¡¯m already level 4 so I¡¯d be getting mine once I level up.¡± ¡°Ah, that reminds me¡­¡± Argus looked at the sheathed kusarigama on Mephz¡¯s hip. ¡°What skill tree are you investing on?¡± ¡°Chain Weapon Mastery.¡± Mephz replied in curiosity. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°I see, I see. Nothing I was just curious.¡± He searched the gigantic list of all the available skill trees in the entire game, and found the Chain Weapon Mastery after a second or two. ¡°Aah, so it mostly consists of passive abilities¡­¡± ¡°Yeah, this weapon is very stat and skill dependent. Not much abilities to execute from it. I do have 2 techniques though.¡± ¡°Yep, I can see that.¡± Argus closed the window once again. ¡°So, what do you plan on doing?¡± ¡°Hmm, I don¡¯t know. I just want to level up so I can reach the first milestone. What about you?¡± ¡°Actually, I was thinking of doing some gathering to earn some gold. You¡¯re can¡¯t survive from doing PvE alone, you know?¡± Argus laughed. ¡°Participating in the economy is still important.¡± ¡°Ah, gathering what?¡± Mephz asked as he stands up. ¡°Herbs, probably. Then I¡¯ll refine them to potions and sell them.¡± Argus stood up after him. ¡°If I raise my proficiency enough, I¡¯d be able to make high value potions. Those can easily sell for 100 gold each!¡± ¡°Right¡­¡± Argus went back to the Verdant Plains to pick some herbs and hunt trash mobs for the alchemy materials that they drop. Mephistoz came with him as he¡¯s intending to go to Fermer Forest to kill world bosses. World bosses are different from dungeon bosses, as they can be seen wandering around the wild lands. They are generally weaker than dungeon bosses of the same level, and are designed to be fought by 1-3 players. The two waved at each other good luck as Mephistoz continued on while Argus remained at the plains. He held his staff with his two hands and looked around the surroundings, trying to find the first unfortunate trash mob that he¡¯s about to utterly destroy. Chapter 7 After picking a blue herb by his foot and placing it on his inventory, Argus scanned the premises for any monster that he could attack and farm. There were about 2 to 3 low level parties around him, but the sheer size of the Verdant Plains prevents the area from being crowded. Each of them was about a hundred meters or more from each other. Not even 10 seconds has passed and Argus finally found his first prey. A mound of earth half a meter tall rose from the ground, before a hideous creature of exposed and wrinkled naked green skin bursts out of the mound. It was a [Naked Mole Goblin]. It¡¯s standing in an upright position, with its head elevated as high as it can to survey its surroundings. The two arms that it has doesn¡¯t have any discernable fingers, but instead have claw-like appendage that are seemingly stuck in a single position meant for digging earth. It quickly spotted Argus and let out a shrilling shriek. Instead of using like he¡¯d always done before, Argus used his left hand to quickly trace symbols and figures in the air. These symbols and figures glow like neon, but disappear just half a second later after being written into thin air like a disappearing ink being written onto paper. Of course, he has ready on stand-by should the scripting fizzle out, using his staff on his right hand as a focus. ¡°I think this is how it goes¡­¡± Argus tried to remember the exact script as he writes it. He paid the [Naked Mole Goblin] no mind as it slowly strides itself closer to him. ¡°Tch. I didn¡¯t expect that Rune spells and Fire spells have this much difference in their scripts. I might have to learn the fundamentals all over again¡­¡± Half way towards Argus, the [Naked Mole Goblin] all of a sudden burst into movement. It ran as fast as it can to Argus, with both of its claw-hands raised in the air, ready to be brought down on him the moment the monster enters striking range. At the rate that it¡¯s going, it¡¯s going to reach him in roughly 2 seconds. This didn¡¯t faze Argus, as frankly, he¡¯s too focused on scripting to pay any attention to the monster. Errors in the script were continuously erased and edited as he writes it, hence, the reason why he¡¯s taking such a long time. ¡°I should have tested this first before coming here.¡± Argus thought to himself, but quickly removed it from his mind as he needs all of his attention in scripting. Just as the [Naked Mole Goblin] jumped up and started bringing its claws down on Argus¡¯s neck, a thin line of orange fiery energy about the girth of his forearm shot out from his open left palm, directed right at the [Naked Mole Goblin]¡¯s head. The line was perfectly straight and stretched out all the way towards the sky, seemingly going on forever. Although it made no sound at all, everyone in the Verdant Plains saw the beam as it made a small puncture at the blanket of clouds before disappearing a second later. It wasn¡¯t quite day yet, and the dark sky is just starting to light up, so the bright beam of flame pretty much contrasted against the darkness of the whole area. You have discovered the spell . The [Naked Mole Goblin] crashed down to the ground, with plumes of smoke rising from its punctured head. The spell instantly killed it as much of the monster¡¯s head was now nothing more than an empty hole. Argus looked at his mana and was surprised to see that it¡¯s already at half. Obviously, the culprit wasn¡¯t the spell, but the numerous errors that he had made when scripting. He took out a carving knife and immediately harvested the monster¡¯s heart before the system removes the body from existence. ¡°At least now I can just use the system to cast it.¡± While looting a dead [Fermer Orc General], Mephistoz managed to pickup the sound of approaching people. He quickly bagged all the looted items and immediately climbed on top of the nearest tree. ¡°They¡¯re not leaving the plains anymore.¡± A male voice says. ¡°Aah, this is boring. I really want to kill someone.¡± ¡°Leader said to just wait them out.¡± A monotonous female voice replied. ¡°He knew this was going to happen.¡± ¡°Yeah, I know. But this is boring.¡± A subtle rustle sounded from the two. ¡°Hey, what do you say we do something to pass the time, eh?¡± The man¡¯s soft, but obviously malicious voice dominated the otherwise silent forest. ¡°Oh, get off me! The next time you try that I¡¯ll slit your throat.¡± The reply from the female voice was harsh and unforgiving. ¡°Hahahaha! Chill! I¡¯m just trying to pass the time.¡± At this point. The two finally passes beneath Mephistoz, enabling him to see them. The man was tall and is wielding a halberd, while the woman holds a longbow, with two quivers of arrows fastened unto her back. ¡°Wait.¡± The woman suddenly halted. ¡°Look, someone¡¯s been here.¡± She then pointed towards the dead world boss that Mephistoz had just killed. ¡°Ah, that¡¯s probably just some turf war or something.¡± ¡°No, you idiot! Look at the wounds. Those are some precise cuts. World bosses typically start decomposing after 5 minutes of dying. That means the one that killed this was just here earlier.¡± Suddenly, a sinister smile flashed on her face. ¡°We might get to hunt someone after all.¡± ¡°W-wait!¡± The woman desperately tried to get the words out as chains strangle her neck tightly, restricting air in her lungs. ¡°P-please, let me live. I¡­¡± She looked at the items that her companion dropped after his death. ¡°I¡¯ll do any¡­ Anything¡­¡±You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. ¡°Then¡­¡± Mephz looked down on her from the huge branch he¡¯s currently sitting on, strangling the woman with the chains from his kusarigama. His eyes burning with intense bloodlust that the woman dared not even look at them. ¡°I¡¯d like you to die, please.¡± ¡°No¡­ please¡­¡± She started crying as she begs for her life. Mephistoz ignored this, tightening his hold even more. This caused the woman to let out shrilling strangulating sounds as her body start to shake uncontrollably from the fear. ¡°You liked killing new players that much, right? How does it feel to be in the same position, where someone stronger than you hold you at their palms?¡± Unable to reply due to the tightness of the chains, the woman simply tried to loosen the choke with her hands while desperately gasping for air to breathe. Her feet struggling to tip-toe on the ground to prevent herself from being fully hanged. ¡°Aaah, I¡¯m bored.¡± Mephistoz laughed. ¡°Well, good bye.¡± With a quick snap of his arms, he pulled the chains towards him with intense force. ¡°Crack!¡± The quiet sound of breaking bone flooded the forest¡¯s serene silence. A cathartic sigh escaped his lungs in the form of a heavy exhale. ¡°Damn. I missed this.¡± He whispered to himself with a demonic smile plastered on his face. Argus spent the entire time picking herbs and plants that can be used for alchemy, and farming trash mobs for their materials, until daybreak. ¡°Oh, wow, so that really was you¡­¡± Mephistoz commented behind Argus as he witnesses a [Naked Mole Goblin]¡¯s head get punctured by the like soft butter. ¡°For some reason, I had a feeling that it was you who¡¯s been firing it.¡± ¡°I take it you¡¯re done?¡± Argus replied without looking back at Mephistoz, deciding to just take out his carving knife and harvest the monster¡¯s heart. ¡°What bosses did you fight?¡± ¡°Eh, nothing impressive. Just some [Fermer Orc General]s. I actually killed more gankers than monsters¡­¡± ¡°Gankers, huh¡­¡± Argus contemplated on Mephz¡¯ mention of them. ¡°I¡¯m actually surprised there are gankers this close to newbie areas. I mean, what do they get out of killing noobs?¡± ¡°I know right. Lot of them too prowling the forest. They¡¯re pretty shit though, both their moves and their gear.¡± ¡°Good thing you got out. I know you can handle a few couple of them, but from what you¡¯re saying, there¡¯s a lot of them. That could have gone very badly for you.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t fight them. I just did some occasional ambush.¡± Mephz began spinning his kusarigama while walking towards Argus who had just finished looting the monster¡¯s corpse. ¡°They seem to be members of the same guild, or at least organized in some way, though.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Argus perked up upon hearing this, his eyebrows furrowed. ¡°What do you mean?¡± Mephz looked at Argus suspiciously, unaware of the gravity of what he had just said. ¡°Err, well, they were talking about shifts and some person they just call their ¡®leader¡¯ or something like that.¡± Seeing Argus have that look in his face again, Mephz just laughed silently. He knew that no matter what he does, he can¡¯t get Argus out of that ¡®extreme contemplation¡¯ mode. It was something that he¡¯d always done, specially regarding skill trees and fight strategies. ¡°Organized ganking in a starter city?¡± Argus dove into his own world of speculation and ponder. ¡°Why? What do they get out of this? Items from players in this area are generally shit tier and is certainly not worth trading reputation for. What does low level players have that¡¯s worthy enough to raise their crime?¡± Argus¡¯ mind began scanning his memory for all the possible valuable items that are obtainable by new players within the area of Facilis, but no matter how much he thinks, there¡¯s just none. ¡°Maybe it¡¯s not an item¡­¡± He pinched the bridge of his nose. ¡°A quest? But that would just cause them to gank on their own accord. There would be no need for an organized ganking as proven by the quest ¡°Alter Mind¡± 3 years ago. In fact, that would just encourage those gankers to backstab each other to fulfill the kill quota.¡± After what felt like minutes, Argus finally got out of his own world and looked at Mephz. ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± He defeatedly said. ¡°You don¡¯t know¡­ what?¡± ¡°Why they¡¯re here. They¡¯ve probably encircled the whole Verdant Plains since there was also one at the Karite Ranges where we met.¡± ¡°They¡¯re here to gank, aren¡¯t they?¡± ¡°Yeah, I mean¡ª¡± Argus interrupted himself. ¡°Why they¡¯re ganking this place in such an organized way. I¡¯d understand if it¡¯s just some independent gankers who do it for fun, but from what you told me, there¡¯s so much more to this.¡± ¡°Is there really? Aren¡¯t you just overthinking things?¡± The two began walking towards Facilis. ¡°Hah? When did I overthink things?¡± ¡°Always?¡± Mephz teased Argus. ¡°aLWaYs.¡± Argus teased Mephz back by copying what he said in a mocking way. Mephz swiped his kusarigama at Argus, but he was able to narrowly dodge it by ducking. ¡°Anyway, when¡¯s Fort going to log in?¡± ¡°Gilver.¡± Argus corrected him. ¡°I don¡¯t know. Probably shortly. I don¡¯t even know what time it is now in the real world.¡± ¡°I bet he¡¯d be surprised to find out I¡¯m playing again.¡± ¡°Yeah, he¡¯ll definitely be surprised.¡± Argus examined the alchemical materials he¡¯d gathered. ¡°Now we just need Honiden and the squad will be complete again.¡± ¡°¡­like the good old days.¡± ¡°Though, I think we need a healer so we don¡¯t make the same mistakes before.¡± Argus and Mephistoz looked at each other, waiting for each other¡¯s response. ¡°Naaaaah!¡± Both of them simultaneously exclaimed while laughing. Upon arriving at Facilis, the two briefly separated as they do their own things. Mephz sold all the loot and drops that he got from the world bosses and the gankers, while Argus went to the crafting district to dabble in alchemy. There were only 2 alchemy stations in the whole district. As expected, most were forges and tailoring stations, since newbie players don¡¯t really use potions that much and would rather focus on metallic weapons and armor, as well as cloth and leather armors. Argus checked the first alchemy station, named ¡°Merry¡¯s Brewery.¡± ¡°Welcome!¡± A male NPC greeted him. There was only a reception table at the immediate entrance of the shop. ¡°How much for using the stations?¡± Argus got straight to the point. ¡°5 gold!¡± The NPC exclaimed. Argus was surprised at how low it was, since on most cities, the usage of stations, let alone alchemy ones, could easily go as high as 100 gold per item crafted. Like a hungry wolf that¡¯s been starved for days all of a sudden meeting a defenseless foal goat, Argus pounced on the opportunity and immediately accepted the deal. Due to the fact that the economy in Aefell is entirely player driven, there are no NPC shops and everything is run by the players where an owner of a shop or station can hire NPCs or even other players to facilitate the shop. In fact, a large majority of the items in the game are made by players one way or another. This means that the economy isn¡¯t static, and it changes depending on the demand of the current market. Argus thanked whatever invisible economic forces were at play to cause the usage fee of this particular alchemy station to be as low as 5 gold. Upon paying, he was escorted to one of the doors on the hallway right past the reception. Inside was like a modern-day laboratory, but without all the modern, fancy equipment. There were flasks, boilers, mixers, and even a huge cauldron just standing by the window. ¡°Thank you for using our station! Do note that any damage to our equipment will be shouldered by you, so please do be careful.¡± The NPC then bowed at Argus and then closed the door, leaving him alone inside. ¡°Alright, time to make some money.¡±