Lauren is an avid player of the famous MMORPG Red Ocean Online and has been playing since its launch 7 years ago. When she receives the news that her beloved virtual world will be shut down, her biggest fear is losing her favorite NPC, Amara, who sh...
Daena observed the almost cloudless blue sky, trying to remember if she had already said "stupid". She was lying on the dirt and grass road, grumbling in frustration after spending almost two hours trying to free herself from the chains Darka had placed on her feet. The sound of approaching footsteps made her stand up suddenly, startled. She saw two hooded people and covered in knee-length cloaks, who stopped when they saw the girl sitting on the floor. They appeared to be wearing masks that covered the upper half of their faces.
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— Who... Are you travelers? Can you help me?
The two just looked at each other in silence, until one of them approached Daena's shotgun, which was thrown out of the girl's reach.
— Hey, that's mine! — Daena began to worry when the person approached even closer with the gun in hand. — Wait... What are you going to do??
The figure straightened up, pointing the shotgun in her direction. When trying to unlock the gun he noticed that it was jammed, and in a quick movement he released the lock with some agility. Daena broke into a cold sweat when she realized that he was aiming at her and closed her eyes, waiting for the shot.
— No!
The sound of two gunshots reached her ears, but the pain didn't come. She quickly opened her eyes, only seeing that the chains were now in pieces.
— Oh thanks! Ha, ha, for a moment I thought you were going to shoot m... — Daena was interrupted by a hit on the back of the head.
✰★✰★✰
The guard station guesthouse was simple but also surprisingly well equipped. The rooms had comfortable beds and a single bathroom, much to Darka's happiness. He had discovered in the middle of his clothes what was apparently his wallet with a good amount of draks, the game's currency, so he managed to pay a room for himself and Miko. This made many questions begin to arise about what happened to his inventory in the game's conversion to a "reality", and a quick investigation resulted in only a few consumable items in small pouches on his belt. Things like refinement stones and event items seemed to be gone, as were large objects and potions.
The strangest thing was having memories of having acquired items as "Lauren", but not as "Darka". She realized that her character's body memories were a little different from what had happened in the game, especially in gameplay, so she came to the conclusion that she probably wouldn't have a warehouse full of items in every city, available at her disposal.
— If you don't mind, I'll take a shower first. — Darka began to tie up his long hair. — I hope there's hot water...
— I think they just have a huge tub of cold water. — Miko observed as they took their bag off the shoulder and placed it on the bed. — Hot water is only available in big cities.
