Chapter 7: 7, Shadows, Warnings, and Digital Farewells
Her warning about the back alley was intense—I wondered if she'd had a bad experience there. I decided to stay alert.
"Well, that concludes the tour of this town, known as One. Time's running short, so let's head home and log out for today," she said, pulling me along as she made her way back to her home.
"What's the time now?"
"It's currently Saturday, July 25th, around 11 PM. I've been playing for about four hours."
Wow, I've really been at it for a while.
"Alright, I'm going to log out first. Phoebe, if you get stuck, feel free to use things from the room or food from the storage!"
With that, Lily dissolved into particles of light. Is that how logging out works?
"Um... we'll meet again, right, Lena?"
"Yeah, tomorrow's Sunday, so we can play. After that, I might not be around for a few days, but I should have about a month to play afterward."
Summer vacation is coming up soon; I'll probably spend a day on homework, but then I'll be free.
"Got it! I'll be waiting for you tomorrow, Lena!"
"Alright, see you!"
With that, I hit log out and returned to the real world. I removed the device from my head and looked around...
"...my vision is glitching."
I had just been experiencing the game from a child's perspective, so I felt a bit disoriented. But as soon as Lily... Yuna entered the room, that feeling quickly faded.
"Big brother... thank you for playing with me."
Yuna slowly opened the door, peeking in to see how I was doing. The remnants of Lily's figure lingered in my mind, increasing my sense of disorientation.
"No, I should be the one thanking you for the unique experience... Am I allowed to keep this device?"
"Yeah... I originally intended to give it to you, and I'd be happy if you got hooked on Fantasy Freedom too..." Well, it would be a problem if you didn't, since I wouldn't be able to meet Phoebe...
"By the way, are you crushing on Phoebe? Is she your favorite? I've never seen you make that kind of face before."
"Y-You're asking quite directly... I don't really understand love; I've never experienced it... I can't tell the difference between a crush and love."
"You've always been focused on blacksmithing... But hey, I'm all for you getting really into it! Let's enjoy the game together, okay?"
"Uh, right."
In the cheerful smile of Yuna, I couldn't help but imagine the irritatingly smug grin of Lily behind her.
I think it's best to call it a night...
---
"Fantasy Freedom Bulletin Board / Joke Thread Part... Forgot 45"
56 Anonymous:
Got any funny stories?
57 Anonymous:
How about the guy who spilled lava while carrying it in a magical bucket and caught fire?
58 Anonymous:
I hate the lava bucket.
That was such a tragic incident... I can't believe I lost my favorite outfit!
59 Anonymous:
Thanks to a senior who taught us that flame-resistant gear is essential when transporting lava! We won't forget your sacrifice!
60 Anonymous:
Speaking of strange players, I once saw a girl in starting gear with a shovel, white hair, and big round eyes. She was swarmed by a woman holding a "Welcome to the Blacksmith" sign, then they went outside together. After some time, she came back without her upper gear and missing the shovel...
**62:** So, does this mean you got hunted as a beginner? What does that even mean? Wasn't the woman on the sign waiting for her brother?
**65:** And then the girl with the shovel was approached by a guy, and when she looked troubled, the woman on the sign kicked the thug away and sent him flying.
**69:** Ah, the old trick with traffic accidents… You can't harm players who aren't friends in town, but if you collide at a certain speed and both don't die, it's treated as an accident, so no one reports it. But if you use it too often, it can be flagged as malicious behavior, so it's best to avoid it.
**71:** Then the girl with the shovel went somewhere with the woman on the sign, and for some reason, when she came back, it wasn't in her starting gear but in this bizarre gym outfit that made her look really young… and at that moment, she shouted that she had died from overwork! Overwork death—!?
**73:** Overwork death, haha!
**74:** Overwork death!? What would you have to do to die from that? I've heard of various causes of death, but I've never heard of overwork death!
**77:** It's a sad time when a girl can die from overwork, huh?
**78:** Is that girl with the shovel okay? Is she being treated weirdly by the woman on the sign?
**80:** Well, at least the girl with the shovel didn't look like she was uncomfortable with the woman on the sign… Maybe the shovel girl actually has the spirit of a blacksmith in her? I don't know, it might just be a code only family understands… Though I can't figure out why she died from overwork.
**Anonymous 83:** What's with the person talking about girls? A stalker?
**Anonymous 84:** Not a stalker! Just an observer who's always watching where the newcomers land! I'm not doing anything wrong!
**Anonymous 86:** If I catch you next time, I'll report you.
**Anonymous 87:** Please don't!? But that girl with the shovel was cute.
**Anonymous 88:** I reported you.
**Anonymous 89:** I reported you too.
**Anonymous 90:** Seriously, please spare me (kneeling).
Unbeknownst to Lena, she was garnering a bit of attention…
"Thank you for the meal."
On a Sunday afternoon, unable to synchronize schedules with her working parents, Lena had lunch with her younger sister. She had awoken from a nightmare where she was eaten by a spider, screaming and getting scolded by her mother for being too loud. That morning, she had been studying blacksmithing with her father.
In the afternoon, she planned to play *Fantasy Freedom*. Yuna had the same plan, but would their friendship hold up? Well, coming from someone like me, who focuses solely on blacksmithing and has few friends, that's not really my place to say.
"By the way, big brother, let me know if you want to use the workshop… The place I used to use is a shared facility of my team, so I need permission from the leader to bring Lena with me."
"Got it… Oh, by the way, I mentioned Phoebe to the leader—was that okay?"
I had forgotten about that during my exhaustion. If rumors about Phoebe spread from that leader, it could be dangerous.
"They've been silenced... Don't worry, it's all fine..."
"Silenced!? Did you kill them!?"
"I didn't kill anyone… Our leader is cautious, and we're not a good match for combat, so it was just a verbal agreement. They won't spill anything."
Given that shocking status, assassination by speed was definitely possible…
"Well then, I'm off to complete my own quest today. I'd love to know how you two are doing, but having a high-level player like me around could hinder your growth."
"Got it. I'm grateful you're even letting me use your room."
Usually, we'd talk about school or friends, but after yesterday's events, it was all about Fantasy Freedom.
I often get advice from my little sister, Yuna, on where to go and which enemies are dangerous. However, she's not well-versed in the materials needed for crafting, so she told me to search for them myself.
For now, I think I'll go see Phoebe… After washing the dishes from my meal, I equipped the VR headset and stepped back into the world of Fantasy Freedom.
"Welcome back, Lena! What are you up to today?"
"Thanks, Phoebe! I'm heading out to gather some equipment. Want to come along?"
"Yes, please take me with you!"
At Lily's home, Phoebe greeted me and quickly nestled into my chest pocket.
During battle, I need to be careful not to hit Phoebe's heart.
"I'm really looking forward to it! I explored the town yesterday, and since I've only lived in the flower fields, I'm excited about the outside world."
"Is that so? I don't know much about this world either, so I'm looking forward to it as well."
Phoebe smiled at me, her cheerful expression soothing my nerves as I made my way outside the town.
Now, as Lena, a level 6 blacksmith, I needed to recall my current challenges. My armor looks like a tracksuit, but its performance is apparently better than the commercial gear available in this town. The issue lies with my weapons; I only have two. One is a shovel, and the other is a one-handed hammer Lily gave me while I was forging. The shovel has an attack power of 1, while the hammer boasts 2. Thinking back, the Lena-Phoebe Sword I crafted might actually be quite strong.
By the way, it seems that the initial equipment includes a weapon, meaning I can't buy any weapons with my starting cash. Lily doesn't have any weapons suitable for my current level, and I didn't want to borrow money from her—I really don't want to borrow from my sister.
So, I'll have to make do with the shovel and hammer… depending on the situation, I might need to run away.
"For now, let's head to the cave my sister told me about. I hear there are ores to mine, and I'd like to give that a try."
I knew I could mine with the shovel because I had learned the mining skill, so I figured it would work out somehow.
"Got it. If a battle breaks out, I'll cast a few support spells, but let's prioritize staying alive," I said.
"Right, I don't want to die either..." Lily replied.
As we exchanged these words, we carefully avoided any visible enemies. Lily mentioned that getting leather materials from the areas around the city to make armor better than a gym uniform was extremely difficult. So, our focus was narrowed down to gathering ores for weapons.
After a while, we arrived at the cave Lily had told me about. What was its name again? Oh well, let's just call it the Beginner's Cave. Lily said there wouldn't be any bugs here, unlike the forest, so we were safe.
"...It's dark, isn't it? I can't see ahead at all… I guess a lantern would have been essential…"
I had messed up. I thought it wouldn't be necessary since my sister had said it wasn't needed in the game.
"Leave it to me! Light!"
With Phoebe's declaration, a light illuminated above us.
"Wow! You saved me, Phoebe!"
"Hehe, just leave the lighting to me!"
Phoebe's confidence eased my fatigue from the walk, and I stepped into the cave with renewed enthusiasm.
"Hah!"
After about three minutes of walking, a goblin-like monster wielding a club appeared, leading to a battle. I gripped the shovel with both hands and lunged forward with a thrust, while the goblin swung its club at me.
The goblin's punch struck his wrist with a thud, causing his shovel to stab deeply into the goblin's body. Grimacing from the pain, he quickly thrust again, delivering a fatal blow.
"Ugh… it's tough not being strong enough to take it down in one hit…"
"Are you okay? I'll heal you. Regenerate!"
"Thanks. I would've been in real trouble alone…" The redness in his wrist glowed softly, fading away along with the injuries.
"So, this is the mining point." He ignored the goblin's dropped item—a pair of goblin pants—and began digging into the cave wall. With each stroke, he unearthed iron ore.
"Only iron ore has its limits… I wonder if I could find silver or titanium?" This marked his second piece of iron ore, but he wanted to gather more, both for practice and to continue exploring deeper into the cave.
"Hah… this is getting tough…" As he battled and mined, he noticed an increasing frequency of goblin encounters. Two goblins were manageable with Phoebe's gradual healing, but when three appeared, he had to finish the fight quickly or risk running out of healing and being overwhelmed. He barely managed to survive…
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone