Jade
"What the HELL is this?!" I ripped the paper off a tree by the side of the road leading to a medium-sized town, my mouth agape. "It's me!" It definitely was me, or at least, a crude engraving of me, and any doubt about that was crushed by the name "Vinea" written right below "dead or alive."
"B-But why? When did I become a wanted criminal?"
"That was almost a day ago, when you were back in the Strange World."
While I was offline? I thought.
The imp continued, seemingly amused:
"And the reason? For starters, you have me with you... But if you still have doubts, why don't you read the text below your image? Guihihi!" The imp I had in a bottle inside my bag laughed.
"Fraud, theft of military valuables, inciting insurrection, cannibalism, murder of police officers... Come on, those mutineers did whatever they wanted! And I would have died if I hadn't given that bandit a little bite! And the police would have shot me for no reason!" I pointed out the obvious absurdities of those accusations. I continued reading: "Well, at least it seems they're not on my tail that much yet. They must have just hung up some posters in the surrounding towns randomly, without knowing which one I would visit" I assumed. After all, otherwise, they would surely have mentioned my newest [Title], earned after getting rid of that annoying [Marquis] and his henchmen.
[Title: Insignificant Treason (Rare). Description: Granted to those who illegally violated the rights of their best, the imperial nobles.]
I would expect this [Title] to be "common," since it's in the nature of players to challenge authority figures, but I think the reason it's "rare" is simply because no one who receives it survives for very long...
"Anyway, it looks like I won't be able to enter the city through the front gate, but it's not like I can keep putting off my visit to the bank much longer; these coins are really slowing me down."
Besides, on the way here, I saw players with gear far superior to mine; without access to the city markets, I'm falling behind... I realized that the only reason I hadn't been recognized was that I was wearing the [Marquis]'s copper-and-leather mask, which granted me an extra 12 points of defense. Not that it would work once I was completely surrounded by people.
"I can show you a safe way into the city... if you make a contract with me, guihihi!" the imp offered with a laugh.
"Have you been here before?"
"Carcará used to come here now and then. After all, what's the point of stealing from others if you can't spend your money anywhere? Guihihi!"
"Of course, every city has its underworld" I said. And that was especially true when it came to video games; not everyone liked playing the noble hero, after all, and it was standard for RPGs to offer hideouts for criminals, black markets, and alternative choices for players who had more fun joining the dark side. "That makes sense."
"So? Will you accept my offer? At your current [Level], if we formed a contract, I could act as your guide, revealing secrets, routes, and nearby enemies. What do you say?"
"Oh, I already know the route to the underworld in that city" I said, hiding the [Marquis]'s motorcycle, which I'd ridden there, in the woods.
"What?! Y-You're bluffing..."
"It's the sewers, isn't it?"
"H-HOW DO YOU KNOW?!"
Just as I thought: it's standard practice.
▲○X■
"Damn, this really stinks," I said, wading into the sewer while holding my nose.
I certainly wouldn't have complained about a lack of immersion if the devs hadn't added this particular smell, let me tell you.
"H-Hey, there's nothing around here, seriously! S-So, you really ought to make a contract with me, or you might end up in a world of trouble, you know?" the imp said.
"Hmph! Yeah, right."
NPCs might have been more cautious, but once players started using the criminal underworld's secret passages, they didn't bother hiding their tracks when entering or leaving a sewer tunnel.
And sure enough, it didn't take long for me to find a metal door with a small sliding hatch.
"What was that you were saying?" I pulled the bottle containing the imp out of my bag, just to flash him a nice, big smile.
Perhaps because it was a corrupt creature, the imp didn't seem satisfied with the treat I'd given it, so I put it away.
"Bam! Bam!" I knocked on the door, and the viewing hatch slid open to reveal a bandit with tribal tattoos marking his face.
"Password," the bandit demanded. I simply showed him five gold coins; his eyes slowly widened before the door opened and he said, "J-Just don't do anything stupid."
"I promise I won't," I smiled and climbed the stairs into what looked like a surprisingly well-kept, though uncomfortably empty, tavern. There were artworks on the walls, a chandelier on the ceiling, velvet-upholstered sofas, brazilwood tables, and even a fireplace opposite the bar. I sat on one of the stools facing the bar, turned to the barmaid who was polishing a crystal glass, placed a silver coin on the counter, and asked, "A glass of wine, please."
"...One of our best." The barmaid, a woman with braided white hair and small cat ears and a tail, served me a glass of deep burgundy wine.
A single silver coin buys a glass of this place's best wine? I definitely paid that doorman too much...
"Magnificent," I remarked honestly after taking a sip. Finally, though, it was (probably) socially acceptable to broach the main topic: "Tell me, woman to woman... would you happen to know where a girl could... freshen up her appearance?"
"Trouble with obsessive ex-boyfriends, dear?" the barmaid asked playfully, reaching for something beneath the counter. "Don't worry, that's one of our specialties: we can change your face, your body, and even how the [System] displays your name. But first, would you mind answering a few quick questions?" she asked again, placing a crystal ball on the table.
"Not at all, ask away," I said, trying not to sound too hesitant.
Seriously, how many tests does this shitty bandit guild have?
"Are you working with the police, the army, or any other organization or individual that opposes us?" the barmaid asked, her hands resting on the crystal ball.
"No," I replied, relaxing a little. If all the questions were like that, the interrogation wouldn't be long or difficult.
"Do you carry any kind of evidence-gathering item, or possess a [Skill] with the same effect?"
"No," I answered again, wondering how she could possibly verify my answers.
"Great. Finally, have you ever betrayed or killed a member of the Balance Guild?"
"No," I answered a third time, confident, as I took another sip of wine.
"LIAR!" a high-pitched little voice screamed from inside the crystal ball. Pressing a grinning, feather-covered face against the glass of the sphere that imprisoned him, the barmaid's imp continued: "She killed and devoured the leader of the Carcará Gang, Carcará himself! One of the Balance Guild's most illustrious members, hee-hee-hee!"
"Devoured...?" the barmaid repeated hesitantly.
I took my time to finish my wine, thinking about how I could explain myself.
I sighed contentedly (at least outwardly), slowly placing my glass back on the counter while the other tavern "customers" surrounded me, drawing daggers, blowguns, and even playing cards.
"Thanks for the drink" shit, I can't think of anything to get out of this!
"Kill her" The barmaid finally ordered, not allowing me to stall any longer.
"Whoosh!" The playing cards, enveloped in red energy, stuck to the counter as I dodged them.
"Thuck!" A dart stuck in the stool I kicked into the air.
"Zwush!" Daggers cut through the air as I dodged their blades with quick steps.
"What…?!" The barmaid whispered as I dodged each of the attacks from all six bandits surrounding me. "What?!" She repeated, as I ran vertically up the tavern wall and leaped onto the luxurious chandelier hanging from the ceiling.
Judging by the speed and damage the enemies' attacks were causing to the environment, they must have been at least around [Level: 17], and considering my low-quality attributes and equipment, if they hit me even once, they could kill me. If they hit me.
"What's the problem? Is this the best the Guild of Balance can do?" I taunted from the chandelier that was swaying from side to side, and when one of the bandits threw a hatchet at me as fast as a professional athlete, I hit it and deflected its trajectory just enough for the weapon to break the chain that held the chandelier to the ceiling.
We fell, me and the chandelier, crushing four of the bandits and reducing their life points to zero.
[You inflicted: Fear! You inflicted: Fear!]
"The little devil of Sinhá said that one devoured Carcará, didn't she?" One of the survivors said, retreating.
[You inflicted: Terror! You inflicted: Terror!]
"What is... By the Gods!" The doorman bandit climbed the stairs just in time to see the last breaths of his companions.
"You can't handle her, she's an Evolved. Retreat, and call daddy. Tell him I captured a traitor," the barmaid advanced, drawing a knife and a lit lantern.
The barmaid's subordinates didn't hesitate to do as she said and ran out of the bar.
"What's wrong, are you the shy type? Don't you like your men seeing you get a beating?" I scoffed, trying to buy time and think of a way to defeat the boss of that place. After all, while I had the means to protect myself from her attacks due to the quick reaction time nurtured by most of my twenty-four years of life, I lacked offensive power; I hadn't leveled up enough times to invest in both, after all.
"Say, isn't that you? Jumping here and there like a flea, without showing your true strength..."
Sorry, lady, but this is my true strength! I thought. But what I actually said was:
"Shy? N-No, I'm, like, a total slut! I love, uh, playing with men, that's why I took my time with your boys."
Silence.
Say something, woman!!
"...Sure" the barmaid grumbled.
I take it back: you should stay silent forever! No one can know what I just said! I thought, right before drawing a derringer with my free hand and firing at the barmaid.
But the woman didn't even need to dodge; she defended herself as a dark figure emerged from the ground and deflected the bullet with an equally dark blade, the woman's own shadow.
What the hell kind of secret class is that?! "Shadow Master"?!
"Enough stalling, show me your true strength!" The masked woman shouted as she charged at me, side-by-side with her own shadow. "If you don't fight with everything you've got, you'll survive... and believe me, you don't want to be alive when the Boss arrives."
Giving her exactly what she wanted, I wasted no more time on talk and sprinted toward the bar counter; the barmaid and her dark copy pursued me. They were faster and deadlier than the thugs from before, each moving with the precision and speed of a natural-born predator.
It was a struggle, but I managed to slide under one blade, leap over another, and twist away from the first one yet again.
"H-How?!" The barmaid gasped in surprise.
But by then, I had already reached the other side of the bar. I toppled the rack holding a hundred or so wine bottles; they shattered, spilling their contents across the tavern floor near the only entrance and exit. Before my enemy could react, I ignited the alcohol with a spark from the hammer of a small pistol.
The fuel didn't just burn,it exploded, scorching nearly the entire tavern hall before settling into flames on the floor and smaller flickers of fire.
"Fool! Did you really think that would be enough to finish me off?" The barmaid advanced, her clothes singed but her bearing still haughty, accompanied by her shadow-double. "This is the end for you!" She charged from the right while her shadow did the same from the left.
Both slashed and thrust through the air as I spun, ran, leaped, and pirouetted away from their weapons.
"Damn it, are you a [Contortionist] or something?" the barmaid shouted, positioning herself near the corpses of the other bandits and reaching toward their shadows.
Wait, reaching for what?
"Whoosh!" Shadow-forged playing cards flew through the air, nearly ending the game right then and there as they whizzed mere centimeters from my chest. My opponent had raised yet another dark puppet.
"Fine then, I've got just the thing for troublesome vermin like you," my enemy said as the shadows of all the dead rose up and merged with her own, swelling her size until she barely fit in the room. "Once you spill everything you know, your corpse will rot in the sewer!"
Oh, crap...! There was finally nowhere left to run. That was just how those games were designed; a big enough [Level] gap made certain enemies simply invincible, that was the fantasy sold to players: in this world, you can be unbeatable.
Then, the shadow dissipated all at once, like a cloud.
"H-Huh...?" the barmaid grunted, suddenly collapsing to the floor.
"Damn, it was about time!" I sighed in relief. "I was starting to think this was the end for me."
"W-What did you... do to me...?!"
Well, if this game boasts so much about its branching paths and realistic mechanics, I just...
"Poisoned you." I tapped my gas mask with a finger before adding, "Lighting fires in confined spaces is dangerous, you know?"
Even so, that NPC had breathed in enough carbon monoxide to kill an elephant while I was busy running away from her.
"You... bitch," my enemy cursed before passing out.
"Right! Now I just need to kill this girl, find the stash of disguises they sold here... and since I've already made enemies of this lot, why not empty their coffers too?" I cheered, getting ready to finish the job.
That was when the tattooed doorman from earlier showed his face a second time:
"Mistress, the boss and his men are already com- Wait, what?!"
"Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang, bang!" I emptied the cylinder of a revolver, looted from the dead, into the bandit's chest; when he didn't drop dead, I quickly closed the distance and slashed the blades of two daggers across his body more than thirty times before he could even draw his shortsword.
While my damage output wasn't high enough to be effective against enemies like the barmaid, it was more than enough to handle the small fry.
But I still had a problem...
"Shit, is the boss of the boss I worked so hard to kill coming here?! And with his men in tow, no less?" I wondered what I could do to escape with my life, gnawing at my fingernails as I stared at the completely wrecked tavern around me.
Should I log out? No, if I do that here, when I log back in, I'll be surrounded by even more bandits, and maybe other players out for my head!
"I have no choice," I decided, opting for drastic measures.
Game Over ☠
Peridot
I was driving home after spending too much time talking to Marilyn in the parking lot. I couldn't understand why she insisted on interacting with me so much when I wasn't even part of her professional routine or duties. And that wasn't all...
When she looks at me, doesn't she remember the past? No, maybe she does. Maybe that's exactly why she does all this. Marilyn K. Ller, Elvis's pilot... The one who took down the Green Hell. But even so, she shouldn't even know that...
"BEEP!" A car honked behind me when I turned without signaling.
"Shit," I was too distracted. "I'd better turn on the radio so I don't think about this stuff."
But when I turned on the radio...
"...Millions of players! Apparently, Vanguard is the most successful video game since Warcraft Art Online."
Of course they're talking about Vanguard...
"And since the game is still so new, people are discovering everything right now, you know? The latest craze among players is 'relics' and 'imps,'" the first host commented.
"And what do they do?" the second host asked.
"From what I gather, they're wish-granting NPCs. But, like, the quality of the wish depends on your character's 'soul' and how much these entities like the player in question. The exact mechanics are still unknown, but the point is: whoever gets their hands on one of these... items? Characters? Anyway, they can be a huge help, granting overpowered passive abilities or even turning into incredible weapons!"
"Cool, but what do you mean by your character's 'soul'?"
"Oh, nobody knows. Maybe it's fame; I've heard players speculate about karma... But, personally, I just think they killed the wrong NPC!"
"Hahaha!"
"Hehehe!"
"Those guys threaten shopkeepers and then act surprised when the guards string them up!"
I doubt there's a karma system, or she would've been dead ages ago. But the whole fame thing, and whatever other secret mechanics exist, is interesting. Maybe I can use that to track her down?"
"Now, an exclusive interview with Lordecí, currently the RICHEST player in all of Vanguarda according to the Vanguarda Central Bank rankings, with EIGHT THOUSAND gold coins! Just a reminder: each gold coin is currently worth twenty cens in the REAL WORLD, so in just a few days of gameplay, this guy has already made enough money to pay for his full-immersion system! So, Lordecí, how did you manage to amass such a fortune so quickly?"
"First off, thanks to the radio crew for having me here today. As for my strategy? Well, Vanguarda is sort of a steampunk game, so that old trope of kicking off an industrial revolution, which seems to happen in every medieval MMORPG these days, wouldn't work here, even if the game's physics are realistic enough to support it. That's why my strategy was a liiittle bit different. You see, I became a grave robber."
The radio helped replace one compulsion with a less offensive one in my head, and I managed to drive the rest of the way without getting honked at again.