Chapter 15

  Ben and Eve appeared in the town square to witness the bustling starter village. Ben noted that it was far busier than when he first arrived in the game only a few hours prior.

  It was filled to the brim with players running around trading with NPCs, training in the practice areas, and going in and out of local stores.

  Ben took a moment to get his bearings while checking his local map. After finding his destination, he looked back at Eve with a gentle smile before taking off in a sprint.

  Eve was thrown off by Ben’s sudden movement. Ben was the only player in the town that seemed to be running at full tilt. His pace caught several people’s attention. It was very strange for someone to be running in the starting village.

  Some few people recognized him by virtue of the fact that he had a similar build and appearance as the madman that started the game sprinting through the village.

  “Woah, is that the guy from the beginning?”

  “It looks like he didn’t die, but why is he in such a rush? Is he trying to be a ranker or something?”

  “Good luck with that. No one is going to get ahead of the Beta players with the gear, money, and skills that they start off with.”

  “Hey, he’s got someone else with him? Maybe his crazy is contagious.”

  Ben paid the local chat and conversations no mind. To him, every second mattered. Eve tried to keep up with his pace, though she found herself left behind.

  Eve frowned. It was like the dungeon all over again. He didn’t even wait for her. He was so fast that she lost sight of him after a few seconds. However, she could still see his location on the mini-map since they were in the same party.

  Eve was a lot more curious about the commentary than Ben. She huffed.

  “Don’t they have anything better to do? The gossip is like high school all over again,” she thought.

  Eve followed Ben’s location on the mini map and arrived at a blacksmith’s shop. She walked in and saw Ben talking to a tall, muscular man that was swinging a hammer down at a heated sword.

  “I can get that done for you in 1 hour. Are you sure you want to spend this many enhancement stones on a gear of this level? Not even those spoiled noble children used this much. It’s going to cost 50 gold just for this one piece,” The blacksmith said.

  The blacksmith looked at Ben in astonishment as Ben handed over his new halberd. Ben didn’t hesitate. He maintained a confident smile.

  “I’m sure. I’ve heard of your legendary skills. I know this will be in good hands,” Ben said.

  The blacksmith took the weapon and released a hearty laugh.

  “You are going to make me blush. Ok, just for you, I’ll work on this right away. It should take 30 minutes maximum.”

  Ben nodded in satisfaction and turned away. There were other players in the shop who looked at Ben as if he were crazy.

  “That guy is spending 500 Minor Enhancement Stones and 50 gold on a starter weapon? He must be made of money.”

  “Pay to win is still alive and well.”

  Eve was astonished.

  “You spent 50 gold and almost all your enhancement stones just for that weapon?” Eve typed to him.

  This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

  Ben gave Eve a knowing smile.

  “Yep,” he said.

  Eve, like everyone else, knew the value of 50 gold. It was an inconceivable amount to have on the first day. The enhancement stones were also relatively hard to come buy. The only reason he had so many was because the few Mid-Grade enhancement stones they earned could be converted into minor enhancement stones. Those mid grade enhancement stones came from Dire Bear Boss, which told of how rare they were so early in the game.

  As for gold, In the entire LIzardman dungeon, Ben and Eve earned maybe 10 gold, total. The system was exceedingly stingy. Most players didn’t complete dungeons in the first day. Most players leveled through quests and hunting low-level monsters because that was the safe route. No one wanted to die and get booted from the game for an hour. Even low level dungeons were exceedingly dangerous because the enemies were far stronger and more numerous than the monsters in the wild.

  Even completing the Lizardmen dungeon was extraordinary for the first day. If it wasn’t for his racing achievement, Ben wouldn’t have had enough gold for his project.

  To Eve, Ben’s splurging was a big waste of money. Ben clearly felt differently.

  Ben ran past Eve and continued forward at a breakneck speed to his next destination. Eve did her best to follow. He moved so fast that once she got to the location, he was already concluding his business.

  He went to the general store, auction house, alchemist, and a few NPCs to turn in quests he had completed.

  He had completed a few quests from his activities in the wild. There was a Lizardman hunting quest he turned into the city guard, a “Slay the Bear,” quest he turned into the bounty hunting guild, and a “Clear the Lizardman Dungeon,” quest that he turned into the local adventure’s guild.

  The last quest he turned in was at the mayor’s office, where he ran into the son of the elderly man that they saved. Ben received experience, gold, and reputation points for each quest he turned in.

  Ben completed all his errands in about 5 minutes. He and Eve went to a local restaurant for a meal afterwards.

  “You are really in a hurry,” Eve texted.

  Ben let out exhaled heavily as he relaxed back in his seat.

  “I don’t want to waste any time. Time is of the essence,” he said.

  Eve folded her fingers together and placed her chin atop her hands while looking at Ben with an intrigued glance. Ben understood her body language, and the silent curiosity she displayed.

  “Let’s just say that my goal is to be number 1. So I have to play the game at a completely different level than others, especially if I want to keep up with the Beta players,” Ben said.

  “Why?” Eve texted.

  Ben paused and stared at Eve in thought. There was no way he could reveal his true reasons. He would just sound crazy. He also didn’t want to lie either.

  “It’s…I have my reasons,” Ben said.

  He hoped Eve wouldn’t press the matter, and she didn’t. She simply nodded in understanding.

  While the restaurant food was being prepared, Ben finally took a moment to look through his notifications. At least he tried to. Before he could, the waiter delivered two plates of steak to him and Eve. It was a game so they didn’t actually need to take time to cook the meal.

  “Steak? Isn’t this one of the most expensive meals on the menu? It’s 1 gold each,” Eve texted.

  Once again, Ben’s overspending drew a few envious glances from other players. Most people could only afford to spend a few copper on a meal, or a silver at most.

  Eve tried to initiate a trade with Ben, in an attempt to pay her half, but Ben immediately denied the trade.

  “Don’t be like that. We get a temporary buff to experience gain and attributes based on the meal we eat, so I am buying the meal that gives us the best results. I am able to progress much faster because of you. Plus, it's my job to get you to level 15. This is a small investment,” Ben explained.

  Eve bit into her bottom lip and fidgetted. She was still clearly uncomfortable with Ben spending so much money on her, even if it were just in-game currency. Ben sighed.

  “Eve,” he said.

  Eve snapped her eyes to Ben. His tone got her attention.

  “You said you would follow me right?” Ben asked.

  Eve went wide eyes and quickly nodded.

  “This is part of it. Eat,” Ben said.

  Eve was surprised by Ben’s stern voice. She felt like she was being scalded by her father. It was a foreign feeling.

  In her real life, she would never tolerate a man speaking to her that way, who wasn’t her father. Now, she just bowed her head sheepishly and picked up her fork without another complaint. Ben smiled in satisfaction.

  “Good girl,” Ben said.

  Eve’s cheeks burned red. She was thankful she was wearing a mask.

  As Eve picked up the fork, she received a notification. Unlike Ben, she didn't have the instinct to automatically ignore most of her notifications.

  [If you log out for 30 minutes, the temporary buffs and buff duration received from this meal will be tripled.]

  Eve honestly forgot about that function of the game. There were a few functions in the game where players were encouraged to log-off. It was to get players not to forget about their real bodies. Ben’s voice grabbed her attention.

  “Lets take a small break and meet back here in 30 minutes. Sounds good?” Ben asked.

  Eve nodded obediently and watched Ben disappear right in front of her. His plate disappeared along with him. Eve navigated the system menu and tapped the button for “log out.” Her world faded to black.