《I Chose The Wrong Save File, Now I'm A Necromancer Class!》 Prologue Damn it! I turn to my left- I got hit! I looked down at my health bar, the red bar flashed at me as it lowered to 20%. Alright, I have one more chance! I put the full force of my movements on my fingers, opening my inventory and drinking my stamina potion. The Slime King and his three remaining minions bounced my way, but I¡¯ve got a strategy now. I used my spray shot to tick away at the minions while damaging the Slime King. Two Critical Hit! Fucking perfect! I dodged the slime throw from the minions and hit another spray, no hits but they did the job. All that was left now was the Slime King. It started bouncing faster than it was before! I aggroed it. I did my starter arrow shot, It only did 3% of its health. I Tried to dodge but the AOE of its charge up was faster in its aggravated state. Health: 13% Shit! I needed to get the final charge shot hit, a critical at that, or else this farming session would be ove- ¡°Ms. Abrahams!¡± I jolted up and looked up, ¡°Huh, wuh?¡± I blinked before realizing I was still in class. ¡°You¡¯ve slept for the past thirty minutes,¡± Ms. Bridge said while using the guiding hand to point to the time. ¡°Oh,¡± I said without really listening to anything she said. ¡°This is the last time. Fall asleep again, and I will be calling home.¡± The class fell silent, before said silence was broken by slight snickers of my classmates. ¡°Got it,¡± I said as i began to get my backpack ready for the bell. ¡°Class dismissed,¡± Ms. Bridge said right before the bell rang. I was too excited for today! I checked my phone and opened up my Tubeyou app. ¡°Lacritia Servers Down! Developer Notes and Guide on Holy War Update!¡± The video was from a Tubeyou creator I followed for game updates, a pretty annoying bearded guy with a tuber accent, but it was worth it for the info. During lunch, I only ate the tater tots on the plate, the undercooked pizza was never appetizing to me. I washed my hands in the bathroom and went to my last period class, biology. I never took it my junior year, so I had to take it this year. I went into the class room and got started on my work as soon as the bell rang. The entire time I did my make-up work, I thought about all the things that would be added to Lacritia, probably the only thing I was looking forward to this week, that and seeing my brother off for his tech scholarship. This week was stacked with emotional pressure, both exciting and bumming. Biology went smoothly, so I was able to catch up before class ended. I got my stuff from my locker, making sure to get my Lacritia backpack badge, yes, I love this game more than I probably should. When the day ended, I got on the bus and watched Tubeyou videos about the new Lacritia update. ¡°Developers Talk Strategy¡± I clicked the video and listened for a little bit. All I absorbed was that the new update would be breaking the undead meta, and balancing it. Good thing my Bunny Beastkin is safe. After the bus got to my stop, I took my earbuds out before starting my walk home. While I walked, the trees and greenery only reminded me of the farming spot I was in while dreaming. I my mind just kept racing, I can¡¯t pretend that I¡¯m not excited as hell for the update! I opened the door, and upstairs to my room. I dumped out all the useless stuff I had from the school day on my bed. I went downstairs and and ate a chocolate rice treat that was in the pantry, it was probably my brother¡¯s, but oh well. Energized with chocolate, I started on the rest of my catch-up work for my other classes. If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. After an hour of work, I was nearly done. All that was left was one biology problem, ¡°I can totally do it later,¡± I thought to myself before throwing it back onto my bed and going downstairs. While I was fixing for another chocolate rice treat, the door opened. ¡°Hey, Veronica, ¡± My brother said . ¡°You¡¯re back from the campus tour already?¡± I asked him. He came into the kitchen and sat down on the chair at the end of the table. ¡°Yeah, had to end early.¡± ¡°Well, would you look at that? Casey Abrahms is going to propel our family into the limelight!¡± I said while trying to keep a straight face. Casey laughed while he came over to help me get the rice treat that I was in the middle of standing on my tip-toes to get. ¡°Aren¡¯t those supposed to be mine?¡± He asked. ¡°Well, I think if your girlfriend drops them off and tells us, ¡®Make sure Casey gets these,¡¯ Its supposed to be for you.¡± I said sassily. ¡°Well, I don¡¯t like chocolate, so here you go anyways, in fact, take the whole box!¡± Casey softly threw the rice treat box at me. ¡°Ow, fuckface!¡± I said while regaining my composure post-hit. ¡°That¡¯s what you get for being greedy!¡± Casey said while laughing harder than he did earlier. ¡°Well, I will in fact take the entire box, since you so humbly offered it up.¡± I said while picking up the box and carrying it to my side. As I started walking upstairs with my newly acquired goods, Casey stopped me. ¡°And one more thing Veronica,¡± I felt the rant incoming¡­ ¡°Mom and Dad told me to talk to you about grades.¡± I got a lil irritated and my eye twitched. ¡°What about them?¡± I asked while on the middle step. ¡°Could you just try a little harder?¡± He asked me, in the super sincere, ¡°I¡¯m a totally authentic responsible older sibling¡± way. I rolled my eyes a little and shrugged, ¡°I¡¯ll try.¡± With that awkward convo over, I went upstairs, put my rice treats under my bed, and went to the family room. I sat down and booted up the family computer, tapping my lap with my fingers while waiting for the screen to finish loading. I quickly opened the Lacritia app and to my dismay- the motherfucker is still in maintenance! ¡°Are you shitting me right now?¡± I yelled out. Good thing my parents get home late. I went back into my room and set a timer for 4 hours. I set my sleeping playlist, got my wireless sound muffs, ate a chocolate rice treat, and started my journey to doze off. Beep! Beep! Beep! I woke up instantly and went to the family computer. The maintenance was over but the 23 Gigabyte update wasn¡¯t done installing. Well, time to swallow my pride. I went to my brothers room and knocked on his door. ¡°Yeah?¡± He asked. ¡°I need to use your computer real quick,¡± I said while waiting patiently. ¡°I actually just finished using it, so sure,¡± He opened the door and stepped aside. ¡°Just make sure whatever you need to do doesn¡¯t take an hour.¡± ¡°Got it,¡± I said while sitting down in his gaming chair. Casey left the room and I started turning on the computer. Just as I suspected, Casey still had Lacritia installed, and it was fully updated! It loaded faster than the family computer, perfect! As soon as the loading finished, I chose the sign in option and noticed Casey was still logged in. I can¡¯t ever pass of a chance to prank my brother, so I logged into his account. His last spawn point was the capital city of Gritzgaldr, the Holy Cathedral City. ¡°Why is the capitol called that now?¡± I thought to myself. I didn¡¯t realize it had been a feature in the new update. Casey¡¯s character was a necromancer, zombie. He had an appearance-change ticket, and had super rare armor equipped with black and purple outlines. ¡°Meh, he has 12 more tickets in his inventory, missing one won¡¯t hurt,¡± I thought to myself. I unequipped all of his armor, used the appearance-change ticket to make his character female, and everything was all set. I never played a necromancer before, so I wanted to try it out before using my Bunny Beastkin character. ¡°Summon Skeleton¡± I used the skill, and instantly saw three skeletons raise rom the ground, before dissipating because the mana boost from the armor wasn''t on. That¡¯s neat, time for me to get into my account now,¡± I said before getting ready to log out of his account. Suddenly, an error message popped onto the screen. [ERROR. ERROR. ERROR-OPTION UNAVAILABLE] ¡°What the fuck?¡± I thought to myself before trying again. [ERROR] ¡°Ehh, I¡¯ll get up,¡± I put my hands on the arms of the chair before starting to get up. For some reason, I couldn¡¯t get up. ¡°What the actual hell is going on?¡± I yelled out loud. Are you okay in there Veronica?¡± Casey asked from downstairs. ¡°I don¡¯t fucking know!¡± I said in response. Y???????_?????????????????????????????e?s?????????????,???????????????????????????????? Y????????????????????????????????????O_????U????? A????????????????_????????R??????????????????????????????????????????????E???????????????????? T??H???????????????????????????????_???????E????????????????????????_????????? O??????????_???N????????????????????????????????E????????????????????????????????????!???????_??????????????????? ¡°Huh?¡± I said confused as shit. With in the instant that image appeared on the screen and a strange voice spoke, I felt the urge to look up to the ceiling. I saw a swriling blue and black vortex that got closer to me with every second. Before I could finish processing what was happening, I was getting sucked into the vortex and and my mind started to get blurry. ¡°What is actually happening? This can¡¯t be real!¡± I tried to yell out but my voice was muffled heavily. After a few seconds, My eyes became as blank as my mind. Chapter 1: Is This Real? I woke up and gained my composure. I looked around before the realization hit me and my head stopped being blurry. ¡°What the-¡± I started asking myself while slowly moving forward. I was.. In the town square of the Holy Cathedral City? I blinked, before blinking two more times. My surroundings stayed the same. The brick medieval buildings decorated the sides of my view, with the middle being a decorated found atop of smoothed brick road. I looked downward to the road, but noticed my legs were¡­ gone? They weren¡¯t gone, but different, ghoulish even. ¡°What the¡± I thought to myself again before looking at my hands. My hands were different as well. I panicked and ran further into the city, before coming across a mirror shop. I looked through the glass, and my heart stopped for a second. My face, was no longer my face- It was the face of Casey¡¯s character. ¡°This is a funny joke,¡± I thought to myself before taking deep breaths. ¡°Okay, maybe this is some sort of VR update, and I fell asleep?¡± I thought to myself before I readied my mouth for an attempt to deactivate the VR, even if the townspeople looked at me weirdly. ¡°Turn off VR!¡± I said loudly. Nothing happened. ¡°Deactivate Virtual Reality!¡± I said even louder. Nothing happened even then. My panicked increased and I started pacing, still in front of the mirror shop. ¡°Damn, Damn!¡± I said out-loud, before running to a townsperson to ask for help. ¡°Uh, show dialogue options?¡± I said confused while trying to activate the NPC dialogue. The townsperson looked at me with a look of fear in her eyes before yelling, ¡°Guards! T-there is an undead here!¡± Confused, I prepared to ask the woman what she meant. ¡°Guards?¡± Before I could ponder on the thought, I heard the sound of around 10 to 12 people storming towards my area. ¡°Stop right there!¡± A loud man yelled. I turned to see him, he was a knight clad in armor at the front of the group of people, my mind now confirming them as 11. ¡°Uh, there seems to have been a misunderstanding,¡± I started. Before I could finish my words- I was hit. ¡°Holy shit! Ow!¡¯ I yelled out at my eyes focused on where the hit had come from. A cleric had used a light spell on me, and it burned like hell. ¡°Take that, undead fiend!¡± The cleric said as she prepared another light spell. I tried to run, but another hit had landed on me, just as painful as the last. ¡°What the shit is your problem?¡± I yelled out in response to the pain that was followed with a burning sensation. The cleric readied her staff to hit me again, but In the moment I thought I had no other options, I remembered how Casey¡¯s character could summon skeletons. ¡°Summon Skeleton!¡± I said out loud right as the blast was nearing me. Three skeletons rose from the ground, the first one being destroyed instantly by the blast. I took the opportunity to run in the opposite direction of the square, hoping that eventually I could escape the city or find a safe route. As I ran past the maze of the city, I started to realize I already knew the layout of the district I had ran into. The clerics and knights were still hot on my trail, but the time I bought with the distraction was useful enough. ¡°Over there!¡± One of the knights yelled while pointing to my direction as I passed a market stall. They were catching up, badly. I yelled to summon three more skeletons, but this time I felt¡­ weird. ¡°Damn! My mana must be running out,¡± I said while passing up a row of stalls in the chase. As I ran, I turned back to see the lead knight beheading one of the skeletons, Its head fell as it lost its grip on the market awning it was clinging on to bite at the knight. Gritting my teeth, I pushed a market stall over to the dismay of the merchant and continued to run. They gained on me after finishing off my last skeleton. I was out of mana and out of options. ¡°You die here, fiend.¡± The knight said as he corned me in the dead end of the a city alley. ¡°Get it over with, this trope has played out longer than it needed to,¡± I said as I settled in the realization that I might die, or whatever happens to pixel people. I never got a chance to learn about the circumstances that brought me here, why it happened when I used Casey¡¯s computer, all that kinds of stuff. I closed my eyes and prepared to accept fate, but then- Cling!. I opened my eyes and saw that the knights sword had been curved to the left. I looked the left of the alley and saw a figure run towards me, grabbing my hand as they ran at mind-boggling speeds. As the figure ran, I could catch glimpses of their appearance in the gaps of light that shined throughout the alleyway. With on glimpse I could see their tail, the next, their scarf. I pieced together that I had been saved by a Beastkin rogue of sorts. After the last glimpse of light, The figure let go of my hand. ¡°Okay, I¡¯m nearly out of mana and your ass isn¡¯t making it easier to manage,¡± The boy said as he opened his bag and drank a stamina boost potion.Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. He was slim, with short black hair, complemented by his black-gray cat ears and tail. I truly met a Beastkin rogue. ¡°Thanks so much!¡± I said, the grateful tone probably sounding like desperate attempts to prove myself worthy of saving. ¡°Yeah, yeah,¡± The boy started. ¡°I drank that stamina potion for a reason, we can¡¯t talk here,¡± with that acknowledgement, the boy held out his hand again, I held it and he continued running. After a good 3 minutes of running, we eventually made it to a large crack within a dead end in an alley. ¡°Welp, go inside.¡± I looked at the guy puzzled while slightly raising my eyebrow. ¡°Huh?¡± He giggled a little before repeating himself. ¡°Go inside the ass crack of the alley?¡± I was confused and was about to ask him what he meant, but he pushed me into the crack. When I gained my composure, I stood up and looked at my surroundings. I was in a place full of multiple people, players or former players of Lacritia. They all stared at me as if I had done something. The rogue cleared his throat before swaying his hand outward, ¡°I present to you, Safe Haven!¡± ¡°Uh, okay?¡± I was still very much confused. ¡°It¡¯s a safe haven for players of Lacritia who got stuck here,¡± he walked to the corner of the first room of the safe haven and sat down. ¡°My names Cardinal by the way, Card is fine,¡± He held out his hand to me again. I took a little to shake it, but I did and told him mine as well. ¡°My name is Veronica.¡± ¡°Well, Veronica, as I said, this place is a haven for players that got teleported into the world of Lacritia.¡± I sat down, intriguied by the information I was being given. ¡°Teleported into Lacritia?¡± I asked pensively. ¡°Yeah, about a week ago a bunch of players got teleported into the games world, or a world like the game. Whichever it is isn¡¯t clear, but the world pretty much functions the same as the game did, albeit with far more consequences for fucking up,¡± Cardinal pointed to a man who had a missing arm and was being healed by a cleric player. ¡°Ouch,¡± I said before looking back to Cardinal to further absorb the information he was giving me. I was still struggling to take in this information, but tried to further the conversation, ¡°You said it¡¯s been a week since the initial teleports?¡± ¡°Yep,¡± Cardinal said while scratching his right ear. ¡°I¡¯ve been asleep for an entire week?¡± I said with my voice slightly raised. My concern was prevalent. Cardinal leaned back in his chair a little before answering. ¡°Maybe, I don¡¯t know. The teleports seemed to have been a week-long thing.¡± I didn''t know how to take that info, so I just kept asking questions. ¡°Really? I don¡¯t really see that many people here,¡± I said while surveying the room. ¡°There were more,¡± Cardinal started before he sighed. ¡°There were about 100 players teleported to Gritzgaldr alone¡­ They didn¡¯t last long.¡± My heart sank a little at the further realization of my predicament. I couldn¡¯t believe what I was hearing. ¡°You mean they all¡­ died?¡± Cardinal nervously giggled before he spoke, ¡°Yep, very much dead.¡± I still couldn¡¯t understand all of the aspects of the situation. How did the teleports start? Why did they last so long? I had so many questions I probably wasn¡¯t getting answers for any time soon. ¡°How do you guys know for sure?¡± I asked Cardinal while he scratched his nose. ¡°Because in the game, people respawn. No one in this world has respawned after dying, and y¡¯know, the realistic-ass gore.¡± I bent my head a little while thinking about that. He was right, the gore, NPC interaction, and graphics of this world were too advanced. That might rule out a simulation explanation, but I still don¡¯t have enough information. ¡°Uh, did you or anyone else hear a voice and see words when you were teleported into the world of the game?¡± I asked Cardinal expecting a response that affirmed my predicament hopefully. ¡°Words?¡± Cardinal said while slightly leaning forward and pursing his lips. ¡°Yeah, like mystical, weird words on the computer screen before teleporting into Lacritia.¡± Cardinal look more confused than he did the first time I mentioned the topic. ¡°I have no idea what you¡¯re talking about,¡± Cardinal said determined in his answer. ¡°So, that¡¯s a dead end,¡± I said while waiting for Cardinal¡¯s response. ¡°I wasn¡¯t aware there was a road to begin with, but anyways, I¡¯m hungry.¡± He places his hand on his stomach, which was promptly followed by a loud growl. ¡°Wait, hunger is a thing in this world?¡± Cardinal laughed as he answered, ¡°Yeah, It sucks, but at the same time the taste of food beats looking at it through a computer screen,¡± with that statement, he stood up and pushed his chair under the table. ¡°Where are you going?¡± I asked. ¡°To get some stamina potions from the old man.¡± Cardinal went over to a huddled group, where the center had an old man in green robes and a long curly beard. After a bit of talking and shoulder pats, Cardinal came back to the table I was sitting at and flexed his acquired goods. ¡°See how new and shiny these babies look?¡± He asked jokingly. ¡°Uh, sure?¡± I wasn¡¯t sure how to respond to jokes. ¡°Well, I got what I need, now we go to see Millie,¡± Cardinal said as he opened his waist bag and put the potions in. ¡°Millie?¡± I said. ¡°Yep, Millie, and arcanist class player who was teleported to Lacritia in the first wave of teleports. I¡¯m gonna be saying teleport a lot, huh?¡± I got hopeful and stood up as well. ¡°I¡¯m assuming she will have answers on our situation?¡± Cardinal smiled before moving towards the crack to go back outside, ¡°That, and she probably has some new connection to inform us on the workings of this world!¡± That alone was enough for me to be convinced, so I followed Cardinal out of the crack and into the streets of the city. ¡°Hold my hand again,¡± he said while holding his hand out. I took his hand in mine, he drank one of the three stamina potions, and we ran fast enough to pace a good amount of building in only a few minutes. While running, Cardinal grabbed a rag and perfume from a market stall once we reached that district. It was hard to do, but I managed to put it on mid-burst, hopefully concealing my identity if even for a little. After we passed the last building, we arrived to a giant market stall in a corner of the city, It was heavily decorated and was in front of a semi-larger brick building that resembled a witch hat at the top. ¡°Well, this is it,¡± Cardinal said as he let go of my hand. ¡°A witch¡¯s potion store?¡± I asked. Cardinal leaned over the market stall desk while responding, ¡°Not just that, a store that can give us information, and a store that can provide us with things to help you out of your¡­ Situation.¡± After a few seconds of waiting, Cardinal started calling the name of the witch that owned the store. ¡°Millie! We don¡¯t have all day out here!¡± There was no response. ¡°Welp, I¡¯m going in,¡± With that announcement, Cardinal jumped over the market desk and started lockpicking the door. ¡°What are you doing?¡± I asked in concern of the consequences of lockpicking someone¡¯s shop. ¡°Millie won¡¯t mind, she can afford ten locks, probably,¡± He continued to pick the door until it made a loud clicking noise and creaked open. ¡°There, now hop over and come in.¡± I hesitated, looked around really quickly, and then jumped over the desk. Once we were both inside, Cardinal started calling out to Millie again. ¡°Millie!¡± He yelled with no response in our audible view In a hurry, he ran towards the back of the building, I¡¯m assuming where most of the items are stocked, and opened the storage closet. ¡°Shit, that.. That is convenient,¡± I didn¡¯t know why, but his eyes widened with horror. ¡°Why are you making that face?¡± I started as I went to the spot he was standing in, only to see- The bodies of two holy knights! Suddenly, a loud crash was heard from a different part of the building, followed by a woman¡¯s voice. ¡°The hell are you doing back here?¡± Chapter 2: Helluva Price Cardinal and I turned to where the woman¡¯s voice came from, ¡°Mill?¡± Cardinal asked while turning to the right of the storage room¡¯s door. The woman stepped out of the shadows and revealed herself. She had long orange hair, orangish-green eyes, purple robes, and a purple witch hat. ¡°Card?¡± She asked. ¡°Yeah, what the fuck is this?¡± He said in a raised voice while motioning towards the bodies in the storage room. ¡°Oh,¡± The woman started midst chuckle, ¡°It¡¯s my way of ¡°cutting loose ends.¡± ¡°Heh¡­¡± I said nervously while being left out of the conversation. ¡°Who is this?¡± Millie asked while turning to me with her left and positioned on her hip. ¡°This is Veronica,¡± Cardinal started. ¡°She¡¯s an outworlder like us.¡± Millie pondered while placing her hand on her chin, ¡°Hmm, interesting. When did you get here?¡± ¡°Uh, a few hours ago?¡± I had no memory of the exact time, everything happened so fast, not to mention I almost died. ¡°Interesting, I would not have thought that,¡± Millie said as she moved her hand away from her chin ¡°Why?¡± I asked. ¡°Same question she has,¡± Cardinal said. Millie laughed a little, ¡°Since I have the arcanist class skill set, when Lacritia became ¡®real,¡¯ I gained the ability to sense changes in mana. When people arrive, the air changes and the mana becomes slightly denser. At no point did I feel a shift today.¡± Millie went to a chair not too far from the storage room and sat down. Met with that information, I didn¡¯t even know where to start. ¡°You mean, I¡¯ve been here longer than I think?¡± ¡°Probably?¡± I was about to ask another question, but I was interrupted by Cardinal. ¡°That¡¯s super interesting and all, but you haven¡¯t explained why you have dead bodies in your storage closet!¡± Cardinal had placed his palms on the small end table she sat behind. ¡°The Holy Knights are looking for outworlders,¡± Millie said while looking at the bodies in the storage room. ¡°Really?¡± I asked ¡°Yeah, a source told me the knights noticed the spike in reports of the undead, right around the time players started being teleported into this world.¡± ¡°So we are all targets now, not just undead or undead players?¡± Cardinal asked with worry in his voice. Millie sighed, ¡°Pretty much.¡± I went to the area they were at, and stood awkwardly a little. ¡°Who are the holy knights, and why do they hate the undead?¡± Millie looked like she was about to laugh, ¡°You didn¡¯t read the update patch notes?¡± Damn, my lore skipping behavior has caught me valuable information once again. ¡°Uh¡­ No.¡± ¡°Basically, the new update introduced a character known as ¡®Saint Excella,¡¯ a woman who rose in the ranks of the Gritzgaldr Church, took control of the Capital City, and then assumed power of the government during the end of the search for Lacritia¡¯s Goblet,¡± Millie ended the explanation with another sigh. ¡°That was a lot to get out.¡± The realization had hit me even more, my lack of knowledge on the game could mean the difference between life or death now. Cardinal chuckled while talking, ¡°Now that she¡¯s caught up, have you made any more advancements?¡¯ Cardinal asked while Millie was still collecting her next thoughts. ¡°The main quest needs to be finished,¡± Millie said as she looked dead-serious. ¡°Main quest?¡± Cardinal asked in unison with me. ¡°Saint Excella needs to be killed, well, that¡¯s what it¡¯s starting to look like,¡± Millie continued, ¡°It seems like this world still has some concepts of tasks that need to be finished, I think the task for this DLC is to kill the person in charge of everything, and the punishment looks like the stakes rise the longer said person is alive.¡± ¡°Like the Holy Knights suspecting you of being an outworlder and stuff?¡± I asked. ¡°Right on the point,¡± Millie started again, ¡°You guys just have to find some way to get to the super heavily guarded Cathedral of the city where she resides.¡± ¡°And how do we do that?¡± Cardinal asked. ¡°Not by your selves, that¡¯s for sure! You¡¯d both be seared and cooked in a holy light barbecue!¡± ¡°That isn¡¯t very reassuring,¡± I said while trying to figure out how it could be viewed as funny. ¡°Tell you what, I¡¯m going to pack up shop and get out of here before that worrisome saint sends another group of knights, I was just barely able to take on those two, most of my potion inventory is gone,¡± Millie stood up and went over to the storage room.Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. ¡°And then?¡± Cardinal asked. ¡°I¡¯ll help you guys if you manage to rally enough people to help you.¡± ¡°Where will you go?¡± I asked ¡°I have another spot me and my friends used to visit when the game was still a fictional; I will be fine for now.¡± Millie said whille picking up a sack off of the second rack of the storage room. ¡°Tell you what, If you two help me handle this mess, I¡¯ll give you some useful stuff for your endeavors!¡± ¡°What would the-¡± I started. ¡°Deal!¡± Cardinal said as he stole my speaking time. ¡°Perfect!¡± Millie said while moving the bodies aside. ¡°You¡¯re pretty casual about that¡­¡± I said ¡°Yeah, yeah, now let¡¯s get to business!¡± Millie was way more excited than before. ¡°First, you need organize the potions, ingredients, cooking recipes, crafting recipes, now I have stuff to finish up front!¡± With those words, Millie left to do, whatever it was she was going to be doing. ¡°Ooh, nice!¡± Cardinal said while picking up a stamina potion. ¡°What are you gonna do with that? I asked, pretty sure he was about to steal it. ¡°Nothing at all,¡± As he said those words, his hand slowly moved the potion inside of his bag. ¡°Right¡­¡± I said. While going through the first rack, I saw pink shards. ¡°What are these?¡± Cardinal got up and looked at the rack I was at. ¡°Those are Glamour Shards, put them together and you¡¯ll get a Glamour Crystal.¡± ¡®Which?¡± I asked. I had seen them before, but my Bunny Beastkin account wasn¡¯t high enough level to access the dungeons or towers that dropped them. Cardinal moved the pieces together, ¡°They capture the appearance of a worn set of armor, and when you put it on it makes your worn armor look like the saved set.¡± ¡°Oh, neat.¡± I said. Cardinal went back to the floor to go through the bags of things he was ¡°organizing.¡± I looked in the back of the rack and saw a troll claw. I moved the claw toward the section of the rack where I put crafting ingredients, and then moved further down. I saw recipes Gritzgaldr dishes, hidden amongst general every day dishes. I moved all the recipes into a pile and reached the last inch of the rack. There was a mirror engraved with a red gemstone. I tapped on the gemstone and before I could process the sensation, my head started to get blurry. I started hearing sounds I had never heard before. Q???????????????????????????????????????u?????e?????????????????????????s?t???????????????????? C????????????????????????????????o????????????????m?????????????????????????????????????????p?????????_??????????????????????????????????????l????e????????????t???????????????_??????????????????i???????_????o????????????????n??????????: 1??????????????????????2??????%???? The blurriness ended in abrupt blankness. ¡°H- Ar- Ake?¡± ¡°Ey! E! Wa!¡± I still couldn¡¯t understand anything I heard. ¡°Hey, are you good?¡± The voice asked. It was Cardinal and I was on the floor. ¡°Uh, I think so?¡± I said ¡°What happened?¡± Cardinal asked. ¡°Great, now regain your composure and help organize this stuff.¡± I nodded and went back to organizing. I noticed that Card had organized all the rest of the racks, with neatly grouped piles of potions, all of which were color-coded. The blue potions were at the start, I¡¯m guessing mana, with the health and stamina potions being last. I moved the Banshee Cords into the pile of crafting ingredients, the minor mana potion recipe into the crafting recipe pile, and was finally finished with the first level of racks on my side of the storage room. Cardinal helped me organize the last few stacks, in the middle of organizing the final stack, we heard a loud yell. ¡°I¡¯m back! Did you guys finish?¡± It was Millie. ¡°Pretty much,¡± Cardinal said as he moved the last pile we finished aside. ¡°Yeah,¡± I said. ¡®Great! You can stop now, the rest of that stuff is junk,¡± Millie said while readjusting her hat. ¡°Now, about that re-¡± Cardinal started. ¡°Yeah, yeah, your reward.¡± ¡°Glad you remembered,¡± Cardinal said while he excitedly smiled. Millie opened up the sack and began looking around for something. After a few seconds of looking, she took out three items. ¡°What is that?¡± I asked after she took out a hand-sized, green, diamond-shaped orb with a gold ring around the top of it. ¡°Looks like it¡¯s worth a lot!¡± Cardinal said, practically grasping at it. ¡°It kinda is, but don¡¯t sell it. It¡¯s an Ally Stone?¡± ¡°Ally what?¡± I asked Millie started talking as she tapped the center of the gemstone, ¡°An Ally Stone, it lets the group using it recognize themselves as friends, meaning they won¡¯t take any damage from each other as long as they are registered.¡± ¡°For our ¡°future endeavors,¡± I assume?¡± Cardinal asked. ¡°Yep,¡± Millie said. I took the Ally Stone and she reached into her hand for the next item. When presented with it, it was a crafting starter pack for minor mana, health, and stamina potions. ¡°I¡¯ll be taking that,¡± Cardinal said as he snatched it from Millie. ¡°Watch it, little shit.¡± Millie said jokingly with a hint of seriousness. Millie reached into the bag and took out the last item. ¡°Oooh! Gimme!¡± Cardinal said. ¡°Nope, not for you,¡± Millie said with the palm of her hand stopping Cardinal mid-flight. Millie turned to me and presented the item. It was a light resistance potion. ¡°You¡¯ll need this for when you plan to deal with Saint Excella, don¡¯t waist it unless you¡¯re in a life or death situation.¡± I nodded and took the potion. ¡°Thank you so much.¡± I said. ¡°No problem, honest work for honest pay, not should you probably get out of here, since that¡¯s what I¡¯m about to do.¡± With those words, Millie snapped her fingers, causing the sack she had taken earlier to open and suck up all the piles we created. ¡°Wait! Where can I find a sack like that?¡± Cardinal yelled out. Millie turned as she was walking towards the back door of her shop, ¡°It was a side quest reward, probably not available, toodles!¡± She drank a stamina potion and stealth potion, before booking it down the street. ¡°Well, she¡¯s a character,¡± I said. ¡°Understatement,¡± Cardinal said while taking all of the ¡°junk¡± that Millie left and stuffing his bag to max capacity. ¡°Now we should imitate her and be out of here!¡± Cardinal drank one of the stolen stealth potions and a stamina potion, and then handed me a stealth potion. ¡°Right,¡± I said before drinking the stealth potion and taking his hand. We ran through the same path we took to get to the store, made it to the crack in the dead end, and waited. After a few seconds, we went inside the crack and were met with the stares of people around us. ¡°The hell have you been, Card?¡± A voice asked. I turned to my right and saw a Shadow Elf with long purple hair and darker purple skin. ¡°I went to Millie¡¯s, you know how she can be, Starch.¡± The man laughed and continued, ¡°Alright, just give me a warning next time. ¡°A Shadow Elf thief? That must be a really effective combination!¡± I said, clearly geeking out over the game. I liked the aesthetic of races and classes, even if I skipped the lore and skill descriptions indiscriminately. ¡°Yeah, it was a pretty clever choice, if I do say so myself,¡± Starch said while laughing even more. We laughed a bit, before the sound of our laughs was broken by the sound of violent gagging and coughing. ¡°Old Man!¡± A voice yelled out. It was a girl with pink braided hair in cleric attire. She ran to the old man who Cardinal seemed close with, and held him as he laid on the floor. Everyone ran towards him, with Cardinal quickly taking out his health potions and pouring them into the mans mouth. For a few seconds, the man was calm, but within the half second he was better his coughing started back up, even worse than before. ¡°Shit! What¡¯s wrong?¡± Cardinal asked. ¡°Yeah, what¡¯s happening?¡± The girl with pink hair called out in tears. In the midst of the emotions I remembered, Lacritia had an aging option in the character creator, and the game world seems to be similar. ¡°It looks like he¡¯s dying,¡± I said solemnly as my head went down. ¡°Damn! If only Millie¡¯s shop had a Life Span Potion!¡± Cardinal said loud with a pained voice. As he frantically searched his bag. For a few more seconds, the man started coughing up blood, but used his hands to touch Cardinal¡¯s face, ¡°I don¡¯t even know if any of this is real, but It feels like I¡¯m dying, all because of a stupid scaler on a screen, ain¡¯t that funny?¡± The man said as a smile formed on his face. ¡°Don¡¯t talk like that!¡± The pink haired girl said as she grabbed his hand and rested it on her cheek. ¡°Cardinal, Marsa, just find answers and stay alive, okay?¡± ¡°Y-Yes!¡± The girl and Cardinal said, as the mans hand dropped and he stopped breathing. The man didn¡¯t dissipate like you would have in the video game. His body laid there without ever moving. This moment told me everything I needed to know, this was no longer a video game- It was a game of survival. Chapter 3: A Heavy Toll An hour had passed since Old Man died. He went by that name because he thought it was funny, at least that was what the others had told me. ¡°I still can¡¯t believe he¡¯s really dead,¡± Marsa, the pink haired girl had said while sitting in a seat at the table Cardinal, Starch, and I were sitting at. Cardinal had covered the body in a blanket to respect the old man¡¯s memory. Cardinal¡¯s ears lowered a little, ¡°This shit is ass,¡± He said while looking downward. His ears repositioned and he looked up slightly, ¡°But even if it sucks, we still have stuff to do!¡± He turned to Marsa, ¡°Old Man told us to find answers and survive, so that¡¯s what we need to do.¡± Marsa stopped herself from being on the brink of tears and nodded with us. ¡°Y-yeah.¡± Starch pondered before speaking, ¡°So, age really does matter?¡± ¡°Pfft, ha!¡± I said, I was bad at hiding my enjoyment of comedy in tense or dreadful situations ¡°That¡¯s one way to word it!¡± Cardinal said. ¡°It¡¯s not funny you guys, Old Man is dead!¡± Marsa said with a more upset tone than before. ¡°But, I¡¯m pretty sure he would want us to laugh, so at least you¡¯ll be making him happy doing that¡­¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± Cardinal and Starch said while nodding in agreement. I was curious as to how the group became friends with Old Man, they all seemed to care about him, even if they didn¡¯t know what all to make of this situation. ¡°Say, how did everyone meet Old Man?¡± I asked. ¡°He was one of the first people to make this place,¡± Cardinal started while looking around the Safe Haven. ¡°He saved me with his magic when a psycho player tried to kill me, the first day of teleports was utter hell.¡± Marsa nodded and added on, ¡°Yeah, I had to heal Starch because he almost died to a guard NPC he thought was an updated CPU,¡± Startch chuckled, ¡°Yeah, those were the days, well it was nearly a week ago, but still counts. We had our work tied up for us, Old Man just made it easier to deal with. He was really knowledgeable on things, like potions and the such.¡± ¡°Sounds like he had a really good impact on you guys,¡± I said while observing the joy in their memories of Old Man, it was more than clear to me he would want them to pursue their dreams. Everyone nodded and I continued, ¡°He said to find answers and survive, the only way we do that is by having a mutual understanding,¡± I started. I turned to Starch and Marsa, ¡°I¡¯ll admit, before things happened, I was a massive lore skipper. I even skipped the tutorial at the start of GOL, my Bunny Beastkin account was purely me spamming archer skills with no Idea what I was doing.¡± My statement was followed by Marsa¡¯s chuckle, ¡°You can¡¯t be hard on yourself for that stuff now, Veronica. None of us had any idea we would end up inside the world of Lacritia, now we just need to improve our understanding to see our goals through.¡± Cardinal played with his dagger. ¡°Agreed.¡± Starch nodded, ¡°Yep, and that starts with you learning the basics of that. You said you had another account, so I¡¯m assuming this wasn¡¯t the main one?¡± I nodded, ¡°It¡¯s my brother¡¯s account, I logged on to prank him by changing his character¡¯s gender, then the teleport stuff happened,¡± My memory of the starting events were as clear as ever. I never forgot that swirling blue vortex of doom. ¡°As an Undead Necromancer, you take extra light damage, making this DLC your worst possible course of events,¡± Starch started.This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. ¡°Understatement,¡± Cardinal added. Starch continued, ¡°I don¡¯t know that much about the Necromancer line move set, but it looks like you only have the Skeletal Summon move unlocked.¡± I Nodded. ¡°Well, stick to using them. They do physical damage instead of dark, slightly helpful towards light enemies.¡± Marsa clapped before adding on, ¡°Yeah!¡± She continued, ¡°We don¡¯t really know how class progression works in this world, but I remember that in lore, class progression is done by following the paths and learning skills, the skills could be learned from NPCs, probably a little different now.¡± Cardinal finished twirling his dagger and put it in his pocket, ¡°Before any thing, you need to get some actual armor and weapons.¡± Cardinal¡¯s words hit me, I had been wearing rags and a dirty brown coat this entire time. ¡°Those still matter?¡± I asked. Cardinal laughed, ¡°Of course they do! The buffs from the game carry on in the armor of this world, you having none makes you a sitting duck!¡± I guess I had fucked myself over by removing Casey¡¯s armor for the prank. Funny how that works. ¡°Well, where do I get armor?¡± ¡°Marsa pointed to a corner of the Safe Haven, ¡°We have a pile of clothes over there, you¡¯ll probably find something that buffs mana usage.¡± I got up and went to the corner, grabbed a pair of robes to put on but stopped. I saw something shining, it was silver armor with a light enchant! I hurried to put it on, but suddenly fell to the ground with a large thud. ¡°That¡¯s priceless!¡± Cardinal said while laughing loudly. ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s pretty funny!¡± Marsa said while her and Starch joined in on the laugher at my utter dismay. I took the armor off while on the floor, before getting up, ¡°What did that happen?¡± I asked. ¡°You aren¡¯t high enough level to use it, I¡¯m assuming,¡± Starch said while moving his finger to his chin. ¡°Huh?¡± I responded. Cardinal added while scratching his right ear, ¡°Levels still matter, although¡­ We don¡¯t really know how to keep track of them now.¡± I remembered that Casey¡¯s account was level 46, way off from the level 250 cap. This was going to be a long and miserable progression journey. ¡°Cardinal, you said that the first day was chaotic, can you extend on that?¡± I had the courage to pursue the answer. Cardinal¡¯s demeanor got slightly grim, ¡°To sum it up, people do crazy shit when they think there aren¡¯t any consequences. You could say that¡¯s why most people who teleported in the first day are dead.¡± ¡°Pretty much,¡± Starch added while him and Marsa nodded. ¡°So what¡¯s the plan now?¡± I asked the group. Cardinal stood up, ¡°You get robes you can actually wear from the pile, a better wand, and I fill these two in on what Millie said,¡± He turned to Marsa and Starch. I nodded, ¡°Got it.¡± I went back to the corner where the clothes were and put on a some robes that had a small green aura to them after fitting, probably the signifier it was common clothing. After getting situated, I went back to the table and sat down. Cardinal had just finished explaining the information Millie shared to the others. ¡°Looking fly!¡± Cardinal said jokingly. I laughed a little. ¡°I second that notion!¡± Marsa said. ¡°Jokes aside, we need to discuss what to do with this information,¡± Starch started with his finger on his lip, ¡°How are we going to find enough people to aid us?¡± ¡°Wistgardia?¡± I asked. Marsa moved her staff to the side of the table, ¡°They would be more than happy to help kill Saint Excella, although, how do we even get there?¡± Cardinal spoke up, ¡°Easy, a group of us escape the city, another stays here to build connections, we regroup in a few days or so, and then we take on Excella!¡± He clutched his hand with excitement. ¡°That¡¯s a prestigious plan,¡± I started. ¡°But how do we escape the city?¡± I asked. ¡°Diversions!¡± Cardinal said even more excited. ¡°What kind?¡± Marsa asked. ¡°I¡¯ll figure that part out later, but you would be useful! You would blend right in with a division of the Holy Knights!¡± ¡°Probably, but I still don¡¯t like how this plan is based on things that we aren¡¯t sure of,¡± Mars arebuttaled. ¡°Yeah, but I still like our odds with what Card said,¡± Starch said. ¡°I guess that just leaves the tie-breaker to Veronica,¡± He finished as he turned to me. ¡°I¡¯m with Cardinal on this,¡± I said as I stood up. ¡®We won¡¯t know if this¡¯ll work until we do it, so let¡¯s do it!¡± ¡°Guess I¡¯m outnumbered on this one,¡± Marsa said while giggling. ¡°Seems like it!¡± Cardinal said. ¡°There¡¯s no time to waste, let¡¯s prepare now!¡± We all nodded. ¡°Starch, you come with me to ¡®borrow¡¯ some of the things we need, Marsa, you go to the Holy Knights headquarters and do some infiltration, Veronica just needs to wait. With those orders, everyone left to do their assignment, leaving only me in the Safe haven with the other players who were engaging in their own activities. I went to the corner and searched a chest that had a Mirror. I reached for the Mirror and tapped the screen, curious to see if anything similar to what happened before would reoccur. After a few minutes of awkward silence, Nothing happened. ¡°Maybe, this?¡± I tapped the upper part of the mirror¡¯s screen. Nothing happened again. I put the mirror down and went back to search the chest, I found a wooden want with silver ends. ¡°Jackpot!¡± I said out loud while putting it into my robe¡¯s pocket. ¡®I¡¯m all set now.¡± Chapter 4: Call to Action ¡°Is that everything?¡± Cardinal asked after putting his bag down and untying it. He had just arrived from doing his ¡°borrowing¡± objective. Starch got back earlier than him but we waited for everyone. ¡°You took long enough,¡± Starch said while he leaned his back on the wall. I turned to them, ¡°What did you guys get?¡± Cardinal sighed, ¡°Mostly everything we need, I couldn''t get past the defenses for some of the bakeries, but what I got will do,¡± He opened the bag and took out a small black ball. I was confused, ¡°You stole¡­ A ball?¡± Starch laughed as he spoke, ¡°It¡¯s not just a ball, it¡¯s a smoke ball!¡± I remembered the smoke ball. It was a item used by people of the rogue class. ¡°The one that lowers aim and visibility?¡± ¡°Yep!¡± Starch said. Cardinal tied the bag again, ¡°I basically had to steal enough ingredients to make 10 of these things, worth it, but I nearly got caught by some old lady¡¯s cat.¡± ¡°Sounds like a skill issue, should¡¯ve picked the thief class,¡± Starch said while chuckling. ¡°Fuck you, you purple fuck,¡± Cardinal said irritatingly. ¡°What did you get Starch?¡± I asked. He was a thief class, so he probably had better luck than Cardinal in that regard. ¡°Where do I start?¡± He said as he opened his bag and started taking things out. After taking out 3 smaller bags, he threw one to me.¡± ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± I asked while moving the bag around. ¡°It¡¯s the ingredients to make a minor summoning scroll,¡± Starch said while reorganizing the things in his bag and tying it shut. Cardinal added on, ¡°Yeah, you are a necromancer, the Necromancer Class is a splinter of the Summoner Class. You should be able to use a smaller summoning scroll.¡± They were completely right, I didn¡¯t have to entirely depend on my undead skills to fight, even if it meant my normal summons were way weaker. I turned to Starch, ¡®I¡¯m guessing this plays a role in the plan you guys discussed further?¡± ¡°Yep,¡± Starch confirmed. Cardinal ate a piece of roasted chicken he had taken out of his pocket before he started talking, ¡°So since we did our part, did Marsa and you get started yet?¡± He asked. ¡°Yeah, she left a while ago to go to the cathedral, I checked the chests and stuff for new clothes,¡± I said while showing the wand I had found. ¡°Say, when can I wear better equipment?¡± I asked them. Starch got up from the wall he was leaning on, ¡°You already partly understand it, wearable armor is determined by your level, but also by the progression stage of your class.¡± ¡°Progression stage?¡± I asked. It would seem my skipping of tutorials and lore would come back to bite me in the ass, yet again. Cardinal sat down in a chair and leaned back, ¡°You were not joking, you really skipped all the tutorials!¡± He started chuckling. Starch continued his explanation, ¡°Basically, there are four stages to classes, Starter, Novice, Advanced, and Adept.¡± This information was vital, but also interesting for me to learn. ¡°And what stage is Necromancer?¡± I asked. Starch sat down in a chain next to Cardinal, ¡°Necromancer is an advanced class, all things considered, with a good set of armor and more levels, you would be a powerhouse! Necromancers were so good that this entire DLC was based around kneecapping ya¡¯ll!¡± He seemed really surprised at the notion. Cardinal finished the chicken from his pocket and uncrossed his legs, ¡°Exposition is nice and all, but we have a task to do.¡± I quickly remembered why I was here in the first place, we were going to do Old Man justice by fulfilling his wish. We had to survive and find answers. ¡°Yeah,¡± Starch and I said in agreement. I went to the table they were sitting in and sat down. Cardinal pulled out a map, one of the things he had stolen, and laid it out on the table. ¡°What is this a map of?¡± I asked. Cardinal finished rolling out the last inch of the map, ¡°It¡¯s a map of The Holy Cathedral City,¡± He said while pointing to the main cathedral. Starch crossed his arms, ¡°And I¡¯m assuming that we are trying to avoid that?¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± Cardinal said. Cardinal moved his finger to the city gates. ¡°The northeast gate leads to the Fae Forest, from there the path goes to Wistgardia, supposedly.¡± ¡°The Fae Forest?¡± I asked. On my Bunny Beastkin account, I had farmed slimes in the outskirts of the Fae Forest many times. I usually farmed during the Class Boost Events, like the Archer Skill Boost Event. Those were the times.Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. Cardinal continued, ¡°Yeah, the members of the forest are probably nice, according to lore at least. We go past there, keep going, and then we get to Wistgardia.¡± Starch slightly leaned back in his chair, ¡°So, did anything you find give us any information on Wistgardia?¡± Cardinal moved his hand off the map and pondered, ¡°Not really, outworlders who got teleported say that it happened almost as soon as the update went online, nobody has any experience with Wistgardia.¡± ¡°But the risk is worth it?¡± I asked. ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure it is,¡± Cardinal said while getting comfortable in his chair again. I turned to him and spoke, ¡°So, the plan is to escape the city, get to the Fae Forest, get past that and then go to where Wistgardia probably is?¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± Cardinal said while putting his finger back on the map. Starch moved his finger to his chin, ¡°Sounds great, but do you even know if this leads to Wistgardia?¡± Cardinal quickly directed his attention to us, ¡°Do either of you remember that fog that was around the end of the map last update?¡± ¡°No.¡± I said. I had no idea where he was going with this. ¡°Actually, yeah,¡± Starch said. Cardinal continue , ¡°Well, to put it shortly, there was a foggy area that you couldn¡¯t access two updates ago, most people forgot about it.¡± Starch responded, ¡°And you think that fogged area is where Wistgardia is?¡± Cardinal doubled-down, ¡°It has to be, the fog lines up perfectly with the Fae Forest route, it even fit the shape of the sneak peaks that were posted!¡± ¡°Sounds good enough for me,¡± I said while turning to Starch. ¡°I think it¡¯s risky, but the risk factor lowered for me, I think it¡¯s solid too.¡± Starch said. ¡°Glad both of you are on board now,¡± Cardinal said. Starch leaned forward in his chair, ¡°But even if this is more manageable, how are we going to escape the city in the first place?¡± He asked. I added on, ¡°Yeah, how do we get past the heavily-guarded walls to even make it to the Fae Forest?¡± Cardinal smirked, ¡°I¡¯m glad you asked! Now we can get to the real bones of the plan!¡± He reach into the bag and took out pieces of some game he had stolen. Starch winced slightly, ¡°The plan is¡­ tabletops?¡± Cardinal snickered, ¡°No, it¡¯s to set the scene, lock in.¡± He presented the figures in order in order: Cleric, Necromancer, Thief, and Rogue. ¡°Marsa is¡­ Here!¡± He moved the cleric figure towards the Cathedral closest to the gate. ¡°And while there she?¡± Starch asked. Cardinal smirked even harder, ¡°The guards are sent by the holy knights, she can either prevent them from going straight on our tail, or she can be one of the clerics sent out in the groups.¡± ¡°And me? ¡° I asked. Cardinal picked up the necromancer piece and moved it to the road leading to the gate, ¡°You summon skeletons, and when they are running out of mana, you book it towards the gate while amped up on speed potions!¡± My eyes widened, ¡°Okay, cool! Then what?¡± Cardinal moved the piece further up the path, ¡°You use the scroll to make an opening for me and you to get past the gates!¡± ¡°Just you too?¡± Starch asked. ¡°Yeah,¡± Cardinal said while picking up the thief figure. He placed it on the path leading to the gate, ¡°You can¡¯t leave with us, you gotta stay and lead the remaining division on that side away to better our odds,¡± ¡°That makes sense,¡± Starch started, ¡°Me and Marsa can stay and handle things here while you guys go on your little journey,¡± He ended jokingly in a smile. ¡°But what about you?¡± I asked. ¡°Me, I¡¯m going to be the cause of the best diversion in history!¡± Cardinal said enthusiastically while pointing his thumb to himself. ¡°How so?¡± Starch asked while leaning forward more. Cardinal reached into his bag and took out the Smoke Balls, ¡°Smoke!¡± He said loudly. ¡°That all?¡± I asked. ¡°Let me set the scene, stop interrupting!¡± Cardinal said. ¡°Okay, okay,¡± I said. Cardinal picked up the rogue figure on the map after putting the smoke balls back. ¡°I divert attention from the patrolling division heading from the left path,¡± He moved his finger to the opposite path of the one Starch¡¯s figure was on.¡± ¡°And?¡± I said. Cardinal moved his figure to the top of a building, ¡°I throw smoke bombs at them, disappear, but then I join you and throw a final smoke bomb, pretty radical.¡± ¡°Radical indeed,¡± Starch said. I analyzed all the information Cardinal had laid out, ¡°So the plan is to divide and divert until the remaining group left to guard the gate is something we can handle?¡± Cardinal stood up and pointed to me, ¡°Exactly! Right on the money!¡± Starch clapped while laughing, ¡°I have to admit, that is a really good plan!¡± Cardinal bowed playfully, ¡°Thank you, thank you!¡± ¡°Well, we best be getting started,¡± Starch said. ¡°Yep,¡± Cardinal said. ¡°Yeah,¡± I said. We rested well, well¡­ everyone else did, the other undead outworlders and I didn¡¯t have to sleep, so we kinda watched everyone else. When morning came, we all gathered around the table and went over the plan again. I would wear my cloak over my attire to hide my undead nature, and perfume provided Starch would hide my deathly scent. Cardinal handed out five of the ten smoke balls to Starch, he gave me one speed and mana potion, and then gave me a small bag to hold them in. As soon as I tied the bag around my waste, I saw something in the air. [Inventory Type: Small Sack. Inventory Storage: 1x Minor Mana Potion, 1x Viobee Swarm Scroll, 1x Speed Potion.] ¡°Huh?¡± I said out loud. ¡°What?¡± Starch and Cardinal asked. ¡°Does anyone else see this?¡± I asked. ¡°See what?¡± Cardinal said, still confused. ¡°These numbers and stuff,¡± I said while pointing towards the words. ¡°Are you¡­ okay?¡± Starch asked. Within a few moments after bringing attention to it, the words had disappeared. ¡°Nevermind,¡± I said. Cardinal put his sack on his should as Starch finished tying his. We left out of the crack of the Safe Haven and stood on the street. Cardinal went the path he had planned, and so did Starch. ¡°Stick to the plan guys! Cardinal said while whisper yelling. ¡°Of course!¡± Starch said while whisper yelling back. All that was left was me. I was supposed to go towards the main gate past the town square, through market district, and then towards the intersecting road that led to the northeast gate. I went to the market district. It had a brimming array of characters, ranging from every race but undead, for obvious reasons. I quickly sprayed the perfume on myself to mask my scent, moving through the sea of people that went in and out of stalls. The guards kept close watch, many were inspecting newly imported goods. ¡°When did this come in?¡± A guard asked in a stern voice. ¡°They just got here from Frelagar!¡± The man at the inspected market said. ¡°Frelagar?¡± I thought to myself. Frelagar was one of the nations that released a few months ago, but only the outskirts were available. I wondered how it was possible for this world to have already extended on what was in the game files. ¡°Alright, be on your way,¡± The guard said after inspecting the box of food and giving it to the merchant. After making it out of the market, I waited for the sound that would alert me of the plan being in its second phase. I wondered around from stall to stall, pretending to be someone interested in buying goods. I saw all sorts of finds, rare items like Banshee Cords. There were even more items than Millie¡¯s shop had, it was pretty amazing. ¡°Order here! Order here!¡± A cook yelled while flipping kebabs on a grill. ¡°Get your Grilled Gritzgaldr Special!¡± I could barely smell the aroma of the food because I was a zombie, but I guess Casey¡¯s character have a mostly intact nose helped with that. I walked past the food stall before I was suddenly stopped. I looked down and saw that a stray cat with a fleshy tail was pawing at my robe. I looked around before slowly reaching down and petting it. It purred before walking past me and going back to the alley. I assumed that was where it came from. A few more minutes went by, before I head the sign to commence the rest of the plan. ¡°Guards, there¡¯s been an incident!¡± A man yelled. ¡°What kind?¡± A guard yelled in response. ¡°A guard has been stabbed a few houses down from here! The culprit might be undead!¡± The main said as he struggled to finish his words. ¡°Get the division head!¡± The guard said. ¡°We are going to assist the situation!¡± Within seconds, most of the guards in the area had stormed towards the path leading further behind the market, exactly where Starch was supposed to do his part of the plan. I looked from side to side, making sure that no one was watching me as I made my way to the northeast gate. ¡°Halt!¡± A voice said. It was a guard. ¡°What business do you have here?¡± He asked. I stayed quite. ¡°I won¡¯t ask again, what business do you have here?¡± I still walked without answering, my back turned to the guard. As soon as I heard his sword sheathe, I threw a pocket full of dust in his face. He coughed and wheezed, giving my the opening to run. The plan was now fully in motion. Chapter 5: Sword Tuning ¡°Summon Skeleton!¡± I yelled and summoned skeletons. One of the skeletons grabbed the leg of a guard, but was quickly cut down. I ran as the group of 4 knights and 2 clerics chased me. ¡°Kill the undead!¡± One of the knights yelled, followed by the footsteps of the rest of the division. I kept running straight, summoning another set of 3 skeletons. The gate was still a good distance from me, but I liked my odds of making it. The knights and cleric chased me for about three minutes, until the cleric tried to hit me with a light spell. The blast of light just nearly missed me, I realized it was time to drink the speed potion. I had enough base mana left for one more skeleton summon. ¡°Summon Skeleton!¡± I yelled. The skeletons rose and temporarily pushed back the two front knights, giving me an opening to drink the speed potion. After I drank the potion, I wiped the residue off my mouth as I continued to run. I was confident in the plan, but I didn¡¯t know how long I had before the speed potion wore off. As my mind pondered the thought, I saw words in the air again. [Potion Longevity: 24s] ¡°Uh, thanks words,¡± I said confusingly. Still running, I thought about how the potion lasted longer than a minor potion would have, Starch must have raided a really good place for the loot. ¡°The accomplice is in sight!¡± Shouted one of the knights as they gained on me. ¡°Fuck!¡± I said in my head. This really wasn¡¯t the time for my lack of physical ability to show. I didn¡¯t feel exhausted by I knew that my stamina wouldn''t last this entire chase at this rate. I tried to dodge another light spell but missed, it hit me and the number appeared again. [Health: 620/1020] ¡°Shit, shit!¡± I thought as the realization hit me as hard as the blast. I was still at a major disadvantage because of the type of magic used. I still had the mana potion and scroll. I could use the scroll and foil the rest of my part of the plan, use the mana potion too soon, effectively causing the same foil. My options were extremely limited. [Stamina: 40/100] I saw the numbers again, ¡°Damn it! Also, why the fuck was Casey¡¯s build dependent on his armor? Why did he have warrior armor as a mage to begin with?¡± I had to save the questions for when I wasn¡¯t in such a dire situation. ¡°Foil the plan, or foil the plan differently, what do I do?¡± the most important aspect of the plan was my ability to get to the gate and use the scroll, as long as I could make sure I do that, I could probably make alterations to the plan, key word being ¡®probably.¡¯ The knights were pretty much at my throat at that point. All they needed was a few seconds and they would have claimed victory. That thought wasn¡¯t assuring of my situation at all, but it still lingered as I ran. [Stamina: 13/100] ¡°Yeah, I have to think of something. Using the potion won¡¯t help me, those knights don¡¯t rely on dealing light damage and those physical attacks will get the job done. Fuck it, I¡¯ll drink the mana potion right now. It might foil the plan, but I¡¯ll take that risk over dying.¡± I drank the mana potion, summoning another wave of skeletons before I could even finish drinking it. I was almost at the gate, just a little longer. All I needed to do was use the scroll and th- Before I could finish my thought, I was on the ground, I looked down and saw my leg. I looked up and saw a man with long blonde hair, blue eyes, clad in knightly armor with a yellow glow. His sword had my blood on it as it rested to his side. ¡°This is the culprit¡¯s accomplice?¡± The man asked while pointing his sword straight at my face. I turned to the knight that the guard has questioned. He was restraining someone in his arms who had a potato sack over their head. They removed the sack, revealing Starch¡¯s face. A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. ¡°Run, you have to go!¡± He yelled. The man turn to him, ¡°You best be quiet, I have no patience for more nonsense today.¡± He swiftly hit Starch in the stomach with the blunt end of his sword. His sound of pain was brief but clear. ¡°Now, I would be happy to leave this up to Saint Excella, but I need to know what you and your little friend were planning,¡± The man said as he turned back to me. ¡°Planning?¡± I said The man sighed, ¡°I¡¯ll be clearer, tell me what you were conspiring or your friend loses his annoying tongue.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t t-¡± Starch started to speak, but was stopped with another jab to the stomach. ¡°Okay, now he gets to lose his tongue and eyes, or you can speak,¡± The man¡¯s eyes looked dead-serious. I cleared my throat before speaking, ¡°We were going to escape.¡± ¡°Escape?¡± The man asked. Right as we was going to continue, a giant cloud of smoke appeared. ¡°Captain Lancaster!¡± One of the knights yelled. Suddenly, I was face to face with Cardinal. He tilted his head towards me, ¡°As you can tell, there¡¯s been a change in plans,¡± He said while chuckling a bit. ¡°Understatement,¡± I said. ¡°Do you still have that scroll?¡± Cardinal asked me. ¡°Yeah,¡± I said. He turned back towards the direction of the knights, ¡°I think you might have a little mana left, summon 3 skeletons,¡± With those words, Cardinal threw my leg towards me. It landed right towards its original place. Within seconds, it had reattached itself to my body. ¡°How di-¡± I started to asked. ¡°Explanations can wait, do the summon now!¡± I nodded and went along accordingly. A gust of wind cut through the smoke, I assumed it was from the sword of the captain. ¡°Summoned Skeletons!¡± I yelled as the last remnants of smoke were leaving. As I began to run, I looked back and saw that Cardinal was frozen. I looked further down and saw why¡­ Starch had been impaled by the captain. His body was sliding off of the sword. ¡°B-but captain, I thought we were only supposed to take them alive and kill the undead!¡± Spoke a small Dwarven healer. ¡°I¡¯m the captain, I¡¯ll do whatever I need to to complete Saint Excella¡¯s goal.¡± I looked around- We were surrounded. Every inch of the area was covered in knights and clerics, there was truly nowhere else to go. ¡°You bastard,¡± Cardinal said while gritting his teeth. He started clenching his dagger tighter in his hand. ¡°You fucking bastard!¡± while yelling angrily, Cardinal shattered a speed potion in his hand and darted at the captain as his ears tilted back. The captain braced himself, but was still pushed backwards by the force of Cardinal¡¯s lunge. ¡°Feisty little cat,¡± The captain said while pushing back. He swung for another hit but missed, leaving room open for Cardinal to land a hit. ¡°It appears I¡¯ll have a challenge after all!¡± The captain started increasing the speed of his attacks, repeatedly swinging horizontally before landing a hit on Cardinal, or so he thought. Within seconds of the hit, Cardinal had already moved. ¡°You aren¡¯t fast enough,¡± Cardinal said before landing on a brick wall with his knees crouched. ¡°Wanna bet?¡± The captain asked as a smile grew on his face. Cardinal went at full force, landed a small hit, jumped from a wall, then repeated. ¡°-10 -10 -10 -10 -10¡± The numbers appeared again. ¡°Holy shit!¡± I thought. Cardinal was really giving the captain a run for his money. It dawned on my still, This was only capable because of the speed potion Cardinal drank, and the assumed stamina potion as well. He¡¯ll be dead when that runs out. Cardinal leapt downward from the awning of a building while throwing 3 daggers at the captain. ¡°Nice trick,¡± The captain said while flicking the first two. As he was about to flick the last one Cardinal slashed him right before he could. ¡°Shut up already,¡± He said while flipping his dagger for another slash. The worst came to pass- The potion ran out and his speed slowed right as he was going for it. ¡°Argh!¡± Cardinal yelled out as the captains sword pierced his shoulder. He jumped back and tried to hold his shoulder as the blood seeped through his hand. ¡°Shit!¡± He said. Within that same moment, the dwarven healer from before ran to his side. ¡°Hold on!¡± He said as he started healing the wound with his raised staff. ¡°What are you doing?¡± The captain yelled angrily. ¡°I¡¯m saving someone who needs it!¡± Said the healer. ¡°Then you¡¯ll all bleed!¡± The guard yelled. He rushed towards them, but I couldn¡¯t let that happen. I was done standing around. My mana was recharged enough, I could do something. ¡°Summon Skeleton!¡± I yelled. Before the skeletons could even finish rising, I took out the scroll. ¡°Scroll: Viobee Swarm!¡± I yelled as I unraveled the scroll. The summoning sigil on it flashed green, then yellow, before the scroll blew up in a swarm of Viobees. ¡°Ahh! Help!¡± The knights yelled. ¡°Damn insects!¡± Another pair yelled. ¡°Come on!¡± I yelled to the healer and Cardinal. They nodded and quickly followed me. We were already close enough to the gate. ¡°My shoulder hurts like hell, but I got it!¡± Cardinal said as he hit away the arrows of the archers stationed on top of the northeast gate. ¡°I¡¯ll help too!¡± The dwarven healer said as he shined a light on ahead of us that blinded the guards stationed, making them easy for me to push aside. Cardinal in his last bag of tricks, threw a smoke bomb and yelled, ¡°Push through the gate!¡± I nodded and ran, summoning 3 skeletons to distract the guards from the gate as Cardinal picked them off. We busted through the gate, and right as we did, the words appeared again. {New Skill Unlocked: Skeletal Archer} ¡°Uh, fuck yeah?¡± I said confusingly. Even so, I yelled, ¡°Skeletal Archer!¡± Within seconds, the skeletons I had summoned created bows out of their bones, and started using them shot at the archers. We ran as the distracted archer''s aim wasn¡¯t directed towards us, barely managing to get out. I turned back and looked at the chaos that had happened. ¡°We did it,¡± I said as I turned to the healer and Cardinal. ¡°I guess we did,¡± Cardinal said. The plan was over, even if it costed the life of someone we cared for. Chapter 6: Forest Dwelling ¡°Who even are you?¡± Cardinal asked the Dwarf. He had finished collecting his thoughts within 3 minutes of traversing through the forest. He was still wounded. ¡°Marsa sent me,¡± the Dwarf said in response. ¡°Oh, that makes sense,¡± I said while swatting a fairy branch out of the way. The first was overcome with the invasive species, something that wasn¡¯t present in the game before it turned real. ¡°Is Marsa okay?¡± Cardinal asked while we moved forward, the fairy branch having less hold the further we went into the forest. ¡°I¡¯ve been wondering that also,¡± I added. The Dwarf turned to us as he jumped on a small steep, ¡°She¡¯s just fine. Her cover hasn¡¯t been blown.¡± We followed him up the steep, the relief of that statement made it easier. I helped Cardinal up to account for his wound. ¡°Ow!¡± He said as he stepped over. ¡°Oh, apologies,¡± The Dwarf started as he stopped on the path and turned to us. ¡°My name is Bike, you guys?¡± Cardinal¡¯s laughter broke out instantly, ¡°Bike? Like, two wheels?¡± I felt the need to laugh, but I held it in. ¡°I don¡¯t recall something named a ¡®bike¡¯ with two wheels,¡± Bike said. ¡°You don¡¯t know what a bike is?¡± I asked. ¡°Nope,¡± Bike responded. ¡°Where are you even from?¡± Cardinal asked, still in disbelief. ¡°From Gritzgaldr of course!¡± Bike said. Me and Cardinal were left in confusion, but realized within the same moment- Bike wasn¡¯t an outworlder! Cardinal winced in pain afterwards, ¡°Okay, I¡¯m Cardinal and this is Ver, let¡¯s keep moving, I¡¯m sorta in pain if you couldn¡¯t tell.¡± I nodded and followed along as the others started moving on the path. I started to not feel like myself, as if that wasn¡¯t already exemplified by the fact I was a zombie in a world that used to be fictional. I walked behind Bike with Cardinal, his long, puffy, green hair blended in with the foliage of the forest at points, but was distinct enough to not be covered fully. ¡°We are almost there,¡± Cardinal said while pointing to a split in the path. ¡°I¡¯m guessing you memorized the map?¡± I asked. ¡°Probably,¡± Cardinal said. ¡°You won¡¯t need a map for much longer, I¡¯m accustomed to these woods!¡± Bike said boastingly while pointing to himself. ¡°You mean forests,¡± Cardinal said jokingly. ¡°Same thing!¡± Bike said before putting his hand down and continuing on the path. We walked for a bit more, the forest becoming green, then pink and green. The Fae Forest had always been one of my favorite farming spots, it was such a beautiful display of design and the soundtrack was always calming. We came into a clearing that had a pond, the standard shiny kind found in the Fae Forest. We went over it and continued on until we came to a broken tree in the road.This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°How did this get here?¡± Asked Cardinal. ¡°Beats me,¡± I said. I didn¡¯t recall a tree being a part of the map of the forest before. This was probably another alteration made post-teleport. Bike went to the end of the broken tree, inspecting it before turning to us, ¡°This branch was spawned with a nature spell,¡± He said. ¡°Nature spell?¡± Cardinal asked. Bike looked around before answering, ¡°Yeah, it isn¡¯t like the other trees, it has no deep roots, it¡¯s the result of a spell.¡± ¡°And the implications of that are?¡± I asked. ¡°Someone intentionally put this here to block us, maybe it¡¯s a sign to leave,¡± Bike said while eyeing the area. ¡°Hell no,¡± Cardinal said while positioning himself onto the tree, ¡°Starch died for this plan, we are following it. End of discussion.¡± With those words, he finished scaling the tree and slide over. ¡°Now get over here, Wistgardia isn¡¯t a moving city, last time I checked.¡± I helped Bike up the tree before going up myself. The view on the other side was nearly the same, only there was something yellow in the air. It seemed to be some kind of force field. ¡°What is that?¡± I asked. ¡°A nature barrier,¡± Cardinal said. ¡°I¡¯ve fought players who used that spell before, it¡¯s a Druid Class thing.¡± ¡°Well, I think we-¡± Before I could finish my words, a thorny branch sprang up, I dodged it, barely. ¡°Yep, it¡¯ a Druid!¡± Cardinal said as he tried his best to dodge with the assistance of Bike. ¡°Stay back!¡± Bike yelled as he shot a holy light attack at the vine. [-10] ¡°That¡¯s it?¡± I thought to myself. We were most definitely screwed. I wondered why I was just now seeing numbers again, I thought maybe the ability was combat activated. Within a few more seconds of dodging, a wall of vines and branches sprung up between us, leaving me divided from Bike and Cardinal ¡°Shit!¡± I thought to myself. My mana should have regenerated by now, but I doubt my skeletons would matter all that much. Druids are a splinter class of healer, meaning they would have some light magic left from their prior classes. It wasn¡¯t looking good. ¡°Why are you attacking us!¡± I yelled. ¡°Aren¡¯t Druid supposed to be peaceful?¡± Within that moment, the wall of vines and branches receded back into the ground, leaving the other in my visible sight again. ¡°What Druid do you speak of?¡± A tender voice spoke, followed by a sweet scent. It smelt like lavender and lilac, just good things in general. I turned to the direction of the voice, in the center of the path lied a woman. A spectral woman with deer antlers and a greenish-yellow aura. ¡°A nature spirit?¡± We all said in unison at the discovery. ¡°Yes, I am a spirit of the forest, I serve the Mother of Nature in teaching her arts to those who wish to become Druids,¡± The spirit spoke while walking towards us, a trail of flowers followed her feet. I couldn¡¯t believe it, an attacking NPC? In the game world, Mentor NPC types were docile and peaceful, they would never attack without being attacked first. Not only did this NPC have the ability to attack without being agitated, her dialogue was completely new. ¡°Why did you attack us?¡± Asked Cardinal. He was visibly bitter at the encounter. ¡°I have the same question,¡± Added Bike. The spirit turned to me, her spectral robes draping from her wrist as she pointed to me, ¡°She was the intended target,¡± She said as her finger still directed towards me. ¡°Why me?¡± I asked. She lowered her hand, ¡°The undead have used our lands as nothing but a means of war,¡± She said as she waved her hand, revealing destroyed trees, clears remnants of a battle between two forces. ¡°Sorry for all of this,¡± I said before walking towards her. ¡°But we wish you no harm, in fact, our travel through the forest is because we have the end goal of ending this war.¡± Cardinal nodded in agreement while Bike looked slightly confused. The nature spirit looked to us, ¡°And how do you intend to do that?¡± ¡°By enlisting the help of Wistgardia, we can make sure no more damage is done to your forests,¡± I said passionately. ¡°Not only that, we can heal my wound, one that hasn¡¯t gotten any better because it bleeds with every movement!¡± Cardinal said in annoyance. Bike scratched his chin awkwardly, ¡°Sorry, I don¡¯t know that much healing stuff, I can¡¯t cure status conditions.¡± The nature spirit pondered before answering, ¡°It appears you all have noble intentions, intentions that I¡¯m not too sure of, but noble nonetheless. I will allow you passage and refuge in the forest. You can use the materials you seek, and then be on your way to Wistgardia.¡± ¡°Really?¡± I asked excitedly. ¡°Make with that as you will,¡± The nature spirit said as she faded into the air. ¡°Find something to properly cure my status condition so I can stop being in pain,¡± Cardinal said. ¡°Will do!¡± Bike said as he sprawled the forest for materials. I don¡¯t know what he used, but Bike found some herbs and stuff, mixing it together to make a healing solution. We got situated and sat down. I couldn¡¯t see the health of other players or NPCs even in combat it seemed, but I could tell Cardinal was benefitting from the healing process. ¡°Finally, sorry for being an ass,¡± Cardinal said while relaxing on a tree while his ears went down. ¡°It¡¯s all good,¡± Bike said while applying the rest of the solution over the wound. Within a few minutes, it had closed up and only left a little scar. Suddenly, Bike started to sparkle, His body became light gold, shimmering bright enough to illuminate the sky, followed by a flash of light. I looked back after the sequence had finished- Bike had become an Alchemist. ¡°Did we just witness a Class Progression milestone?¡± Cardinal asked as he looked at me and then back to Bike. ¡°I think we did!¡± I said while leaning back on my tree to recover from the light. ¡°The Gods recognized my actions to be in line with the Druid path?¡± Bike said as he looked at his hands and moved them out of disbelief. ¡°It appears so¡± Cardinal said while putting his hands behind his head to relax. ¡°Thank you, Starch!¡± Cardinal said out loud. ¡°Yeah,¡± I said. The day was long but we made progress it seemed.