Kapitel 53: Meeting Diabolical
"And wow. I really love the food update. Things actually taste like real food now."
The group of 3 refreshing faces discussed while they were eating.
"I know, right? Especially the drinks, boy oh boy, I can get drunk without actually getting drunk!"
They looked like a young and ambitious party of adventurers getting ready for their first mission. However, that isn't necessarily true.
"Still, it's been what, more than half a day, yet there's no news regarding the chapter?" The person who gave Bob some food continued the discussion.
"I don't know. The entire guild has been sent to investigate but there's been no news as of yet." A blonde cleric replied. He wore armor and brought with him a hammer.
"We know. For how long are we going to do this again? An entire day?"
They were a party of adventurers that were part of a guild called 'Diabolical'. A guild that wasn't necessarily a huge one, they weren't even considered strong. In other words, they were mediocre.
However, the members of this guild are all driven by one principle, roleplay.
They are the type of players that would like to create their own story and narrative in games. That is why they spent time wasting away in pubs as that is how an adventurer should act.
"Yep. We are supposed to get back to headquarters in a day and report if we found anything."
-
"Here you go. Two grilled sandwiches, that should be worth 20 copper but seeing your current state, I can give it to you for 10."
The waitress took pity on Bob with his ruffled hair and burnt leather armor. It was as if he burned alive yet somehow survived.
"Thank you! Here it is."
Bob paid her the money and set the sandwiches, which were wrapped in paper, aside. He was still eating the meal he was given earlier and wouldn't be able to finish the sandwich.
After eating the meal, he went back inside and gave the plate to one of the waitresses and finished his business. Subsequently, the party of refreshing faces finished eating and also went on their way.
At the door, Bob crossed paths with the party.
"Hello. And thank you!" Bob bowed his head a bit and the chicken/bird on his head pointed towards the party.
"Oh? You're welcome, sir. Are you well?" The person who gave him the meal replied.
They didn't care much about Bob's ragged appearance, they were more concerned about the bird on his head. They were confused because it looked like a bird with the head of a chicken.
"Uhm. Hahaha. Yes. I am well." Bob replied with a cheerful voice. But it was only his voice that seemed full of joy.
His face didn't reflect what he was actually feeling. Bob is a depressed adventurer that lost everything, his house, his mom, and now his friends. He didn't even know where Chikinsupu was, the only remaining acquaintance he had.
"Are you sure? You don't look like it."
The party was full of roleplayers. They interacted with everything within the game world and acted accordingly as if they were a part of it. Due to that constant acting, the line between reality and virtual becomes ever so thinner.
"No, really. I-."
Bob tried to deny their suspicions. But the tears rolled down his face once more. When could this man ever find his happiness?
"Who am I kidding? I'm broken."
"Cluck."
Bob broke down in tears by the door.
"I'm sorry to break the melodramatic mood but I'm going to have to ask you to leave the premises."
With a change of scenery, Bob calmed down his crying. He began by speaking of his woes. He retold the atrocities the world has done to him the past few days.
Sitting on a bench just outside the pub, the party felt sympathetic to him. Rather than saying anything, they felt that all they could do was listen. They could think that this was a tragic backstory of such an unlucky NPC.
"We're so sorry for your loss."
That was all they could say. Saying anything more would only open the wounds that just closed and rubbing some salt on it.
"It's fi, it's fine. It was inevitable. We got into a run-in with a lusty vampire. All I can do now is to live with that fact." Bob rationalized the event by telling them some details.
However, because of what he just said, the eyes of the party of adventurers bulged in surprise.
'Vampire?'
'This just got interesting.'
'Lusty vampire. Nice.'
All three of them found separate interesting details within Bob's sentence.
Bob continued telling more of his story but everything he said was nonsense for the party. They stopped roleplaying and only focused on anything that had an inkling of the Blood Moon line of quests.
"So, that's when I got home, I found two werewolves having a meal. It was just that- they were feasting on m-my mother."
"Excuse me, did you say werewolf?" The leader of them asked.
All 3 pairs of eyes lit up in excitement. They finally found a lead despite the odd chances of ever finding anything. The quest itself was a world quest, and they found a trace.
"Yes. When I found them, they howled and all of their werewolf friends came and attacked everyone. It was terrible."
Bob's words only further confirmed their suspicions.
'This guy is the originator!'
Tap Tap~
The leader tapped on the blonde cleric and whispered.
[Hey. Contact headquarters, we found our main character.]
[Main character? Isn't he just a small part of the story?]
[You fool. You never played offline fantasy games before? Just do it!]
[Geez. Alright.]
"I'm sorry. But I have to use the bathroom for a while. I'll be right back." The blonde cleric said and moved away. After moving a few steps away, he vanished into blue light.
"Sure, take your time." The leader said with a smile.
He was now confident that they could bask in the glory of the game's story now that they've found their lead. And now, the cleric was on his way to inform their entire guild.
-
[Shutting Down.]
A man in his mid-twenties just terminated the connection of his virtual rig. He successfully logged off the game. His mission was to inform the entire guild of their findings.
Churn~
However, his stomach churned and he suddenly felt shitty. Yes, literally shitty. You never know when diarrhea strikes.
Prrrrt~
He couldn't control his bowels and had to abandon the thought of informing his guild. Immediately going inside the restroom and did the number 2.
"Ah fuck."
One thing that the modern-day person hates is when they're stuck in the restroom and they forgot to bring their phone with them.
-
'What's taking him so long?'
The leader was anxious. Unlike most games, the whisper system in Immersion Online had restrictions. You can't send them a whisper when they're too far away. The convention was that it only works within the same kingdom.
To counteract this restriction, there are messaging relay stations in each kingdom, where people can hold such whisper sessions for a small fee. But who in their right mind would use such an inconvenient feature?
There are already posts in the forums that are asking for the abolishment of this system, however, the game developers themselves said that it will cut the immersion of the game too much.
'Oh my god. Where the hell is he?'
The leader couldn't bear listening to Bob anymore. It was just too depressing to hear him speak. All of the events he described had him as the victim.
"And that's how I ended up lost within the woods."
"I'm sorry, Mister?" The leader asked for his name.
"My name is Bob."
"Okay. Nice to meet you, Bob. I am Jianni. I am part of a guild of adventurers. I know that your life may look bleak, but would you consider the chance to meet new people?"
[Hey, Jianni, are you inviting him to our guild?]
[Yea. The main character of the story needs to be in our guild.]
[But he's an NPC. Is he not?]
[.... I forgot. Damn, roleplaying made me forget the line in between.]
"Guild? You would consider letting a dirty man and a chicken inside such a prestigious circle?" Bob knows about guilds and how it was like an adventurer's union.
They gave somewhat of a "job security" and the people in it are also adventurers that have went through rough times as well. Making it the perfect place for Bob to fit in.
"Y-Yes. Sure."
Svenja couldn't say it in one breath. She hesitated and spoke awkwardly.
-
'Got em. I guess the objective of that page was to inform the authorities of their return, right?'
A guildmate of Jianni from 'Diabolical' read the announcement that the blonde cleric Enrik made. He deducted the quest clear condition and will now try to finish it for himself.
'I'll be part of the story through any means necessary.'
Quest stealing it is.
Geschenke
-- Geschenk
erhalten Wöchentlicher Energiestatus
-- Power-
Rangliste 
-- Power-
Stein