The Dragon's Wrath: Ashes of the Fallen (9 page)

It was different than dying in a console game, where you saw the actions but it was on a screen disconnected from your body. Here everything was in first-person and was represented in a way that was hard to separate from reality.

This was, for all intents and purposes, our reality at the moment.

The player literally saw the axe flying towards his face as if it were real, then when he was hit, the pain he would experience felt nearly lifelike. Of course the pain was turned down quite a bit, but to some kids without any life experience, it was probably realistic enough.

To think that some people were legitimately scared from PvP encounters, and even some PvE encounters, was reasonable. Being attacked by two wolves in the dead of night with naught a soul nearby, illuminated only by the soft reflections of the moon, with howling and growling in the dark, glowing eyes, then a sudden leap out from the darkness only to find a wolf nearly as big as you are, snapping its jaws at your face.

I had to admit, the first time that happened I damn near had a heart attack.

Even now, I wasn't entirely used to night encounters.

Hell, even daylight encounters with wolves and bears still scared me a little.

Somehow goblins… despite being as disgusting as they were, didn't bother me as much. And fighting other players, I strangely found it rather easy. It was easier to kill a fellow player, a human being, than it was to kill a rabbit. I couldn't explain that.

Maybe it had to do with the rabbit being cute.

I didn't know, nor did I really care.

"Message me if you need a fifth later ey?" I told Barik for good measure.

"Will do, might be awhile," he replied with a nod.

With nothing else to do, I figured it was time to return to the town. My red name would fall off eventually but until then, I needed to avoid the large crowds out here. Out in the open I could be attacked at any time, but in a town with guards I was relatively safe from other players. Not entirely safe, but safe enough.

Right before I was about to leave though, my favorite duo appeared right in front of the dungeon portal. Without giving them the time to react, I pulled my axe and with one powerful blow, lodged the axe square in his face. The man dropped to the floor from one blow as I turned to the archer and put my right hand on his chest.

Electricity sparked around my hand as the archer tightened up and hunched over, squirming without a sound until he eventually fell to his knees gasping for air. I released the channel of my arc lightning and placed my hand on his shoulder instead, too physically close for others to see the tether of electricity. No one here would know my secrets, all they saw was a man falling helplessly to his knees.

"I thought I said, if I ever saw you again in the North, I would kill you," I stated clearly without much care to the surroundings. "Did you think I was bluffing?"

"You fucker, said you would only kill me once!" he barked back, clearly upset.

Well, that was true.

I did say that after all… oh well, I changed my mind.

No, that's not correct, I had already left and he came into my sight once again, it wouldn't be right if I made exceptions.

I'm a man of my word after all.

"Hmm, unfortunately for you, I saw you in the North," I said casually. "Those were the terms. My apologies, but I'm not as forgiving once I've lost my patience."

Activating the channel of [Arc Lightning] again, I kept it going until the archer curled into a ball and died in the fetal position. I couldn't help but think,
what a baby
.

I was nearly out of mana already from a few seconds of channeling, but I felt fairly confident. The others who were watching the scene stepped back and seemed more scared than eager to challenge me.

I dropped a player with one melee blow to the head, which as a surprise attack was considered somewhat normal… if not vicious and a bit low of character but it showed that I meant business. And then, I used a magic spell of some sort that they had never seen before to completely subdue and kill another player without taking a hit. Rather than getting angry or becoming anxious to fight, they were cautious and watched my every move.

I was a scary sight at the moment.

Then the atmosphere died instantly as Barik kicked the priest's corpse and laughed.

"Hah, these bogans," he said while chuckling.

The scene went from tense to comical in a heartbeat as the dwarf kicked the corpses a few times each while letting out a deep infectious laugh. I ended up joining him and started laughing as well, though I left the kicking to him. Meanwhile, the bystanders thought we had completely lost it and backed up even further, giving us plenty of separation and a degree of freedom to do whatever we wanted.

It wasn't a bad feeling, having the fear of the people.

That was alright with me.

Chapter 46: A Neutral Smith

(Saturday, May 29th Game Day / Friday, February 19th Real Day)

The sound of metal on metal rang sharply throughout the room as the man continued to hammer a slab of iron, forming it into shape. Drawing out the iron with repeated hits, the slab slowly started to elongate as the shape of a sword began to appear. Heating, hammering, adjusting, and repeating endlessly with a patience to be admired. Every swing of the hammer was an accurate one, precision combined with measured force.

With a pair of tongs in his left and a hammer in his right, he worked the iron while oblivious to the dozens of players lingering about watching his every move. To most players, a blacksmith's craft was one of mystery, our knowledge being borne from movies and games rather than first-hand experience, yet here we were watching what was believed to be an accurate representation of the art form, an honest portrayal performed before our very eyes.

It was captivating, maybe even enchanting, to watch the man laboriously pour every ounce of his focus into the work at hand while beads of sweat rolled down his face. He looked tired, but he was determined. I had been standing off to the side for nearly thirty minutes, simply observing while attempting to discern some secret of the trade. I was roughly familiar with the work, the process, but I was no expert.

There was a lot to learn about the world and its many machinations.

Knowledge was power anyhow, no matter how you cut it… and I believed it was time well spent. I had numerous plans, ideas, and theories even, that I wanted to put into practice. Though, without sufficient knowledge, there would be no way to successfully carry out said plans. So, I was now researching at the expense of my time.

My name was no longer red and Barik had yet to message, but this was as good of a use of my time as one could figure. The potential to make large sums of profit, whether it be built on small increments done a thousand times or in a few transactions with massive return, was worth it to me.

Another fifteen minutes passed before the man had finished hammering out the rough form of a cheap sword. It wasn't anywhere near completion but it reached a step where he could finally take a break. How long he had been working on that slab was unknown to me, though forty-five minutes had passed in the blink of an eye.

"Your supply of iron seems limited," I said clearly, as soon as he relaxed.

He turned to face me as he sat down in a chair, finally looking around his workshop to find it rather empty. Most of the other players came and went, not bothering to stick around for any real length of time. The majority dealt with the clerk at the front of the store anyhow, with no explicit need to come into the backroom workshop

"In a way, but I have enough to fulfill orders," he replied casually.

"Ah, I see. Well, the bloomery you're using is quite large, would you be willing to melt down a few broken swords for me?" I asked seriously. "I'll pay whatever is reasonable, a usable bar of wrought iron is all I require."

"Familiar with the trade?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

"A little, but only familiarity," I replied. "No practical experience."

"Heh, as long as you realize your own limitations, I have no qualms with you," he said rather strangely as he pulled his gloves off and laid them on a table. "Do you have the swords with you? I'll tell you if it's worth it."

"Yes, where shall I lay them out?" I asked, as I opened my bag and eyed the thirty some swords that were in there. "I've got quite a few to choose from."

The man pointed to an empty table off to the side and I quickly obliged, laying out all of the swords that I had brought with me. He carefully eyed them all over and then turned to face me. His face didn't seem displeased, but he did seem curious.

"A few swords huh," he said with a grin.

"To start, or possibly more if you're willing," I replied with a smile. "What do you think we can do with them, if we can do anything at all? And is it worth it?"

"From their condition, I could probably turn three of them into one usable sword, but the labor would be about ten copper per. If you're looking to have one sword made, I'll take three of these broken ones and thirty copper. If you just want a bar of wrought iron, I'll want five copper per for the hassle."

I swallowed the saliva that had accumulated in my throat while thinking everything over, the pricing was reasonable but I wasn't sure if I could actually turn a real profit.

The vendor swords as we players liked to call them, were worth ten copper each at the trade post, broken down into a processed material such as wrought iron would cost me essentially fifteen copper once I included the price of the sword itself. I wasn't sure what a bar of wrought iron went for, but three swords plus this blacksmith's labor at thirty copper made out for a sixty copper value.

Yeah, I wasn't sure what kind of quality to expect, and couldn't really make my mind up with so little information. I enjoyed the gambling and taking of risks, but I liked educated guesses and limited risk. Blind faith didn't suit me well.

"What kind of quality sword should I be expecting, at thirty copper?"

"Here," he answered quickly, tossing me a finished sword that was hanging off a weapon rack. "If you want something fancier, it'll take more material, and a bit more money… and some extra time. That's standard quality there for around here."

Inspecting the sword, it was slightly better than the sixty copper swords we were looting in the dungeons, though to really get an estimate on the value I would need to take it to the trade post. Of course, he also sold these swords, so I realized my answer wasn't too far away.

"How much would you sell this for, if I was interested right now?" I asked casually.

"You want to know how much the raw materials are worth, in other words."

"That works too, but I am curious how much the sword is as well," I replied. "I like to collect information, just a bad habit of mine."

The man in front of me didn't seem to care either way, as he paused for a moment before answering. I was being a bit rude in a way, but I was a potential paying customer and he didn't seem to mind.

"I'll sell that sword for ninety-copper straight out, though with your broken swords, there is a risk that it won't come out as perfectly," he answered carefully while taking the sword back from me. "You can expect something within a seventy to ninety copper range, and if things work out maybe something even nicer."

Ah, the potential for a high quality iron work… or maybe even steel.

That would certainly be worth it.

"But if it doesn't work out, I could expect to lose slightly, I imagine."

"That's the risk you take, but my skills aren't so bad that you would need to worry son," he replied sternly as he crossed his arms across his chest. "I'm confident."

"I'll take two swords then, if you will," I stated, having decided on my plan.

The goal was to judge the market on taking a trash item that was only worth ten copper each, and potentially turning it into a processed material and then into a new weapon. If this man's quality was sufficient to break even, it was worth it for me to bring back a hoard of broken and cracked swords to Dragon's Breach. The experience that my blacksmiths would accumulate from working the metal along with a hometown discount should net me a small profit and help usher in future success.

It was another win-win situation for me.

After paying him and letting him take his pick of the cracked and rusty swords, I thanked him for his time and collaboration and made my way back out into the town. A quick stop at the clothing store was next, as I saw a few adventurers talking to the shop clerk about the bandanas lying on the table.

A smile crept up on my face as a thought occurred to me.

It was time to play a bit.

"Oh! Bandanas, just what I was looking for," I said somewhat excitedly as I walked up to the table. "Do you think this will keep some of the ash out of my mouth old man?"

The clerk just looked at me, a bit confused.

Raising my voice slightly so people could hear me, I continued with my charade.

"Ah the dungeon air is so filthy, after a few hours in there… I just can't stand breathing and choking on that ash," I complained with a sigh. "I can't believe you haven't sold out of these yet, I would think anyone heading down to the second floor would need it. Let alone the third floor… you can hardly breathe at all down there!"

Rummaging through the selection that was out on display, I quickly pulled out two of them and waved them lightly in the air before tying one around my face. A quick glance at the window that showed my reflection and I nodded with enthusiasm, giving myself a thumb's up.

"I'll take two, mister. How much do I owe you?" I asked happily.

"Uh… you, well, thirty copper…" he muttered out.

"Oh that's it?" I replied quickly. "That's pretty cheap, thanks!"

Handing him the thirty copper like it was no big deal, I turned around and walked off with the mask still on my face. I had no reason to buy my own stock but I caught a few people's attention. As I walked on by, I could see from the reflection on the windows that a few people had walked over to the table as well.

I didn't need to do much, but if I could get a few people to start wearing bandanas and shawls, eventually a trend would get started. Psychology was pretty simple really, if you appeared to know what you were doing, other people with less of a clue would follow. I name-dropped the second and third floors as a way to convince the others that I was somehow in the know, now, they were interested to take part.

They would advertise for me, and hell, I was going to have Barik advertise for me as well. Maybe even his priest buddy could give it a try, the more the merrier, anyways. Having convinced myself that my ruse was a success, I now had one last place to stop at before I finished all of my affairs.

When I first set out for this town, I had one major interest outside of the Call to Arms and dungeon grinding, and that was to secure some sort of livestock for Dragon's Breach. There wasn't a whole lot to choose from up North and having it delivered was extremely expensive… not to mention, I couldn't check the quality of the animals I was purchasing. The chickens and such that arrived were fine, but those weren't big purchases.

I wanted cows, oxen, maybe even a horse or goats if I could.

The goal was to have a fully functioning metropolis all to myself, a self-sustained town with crops, livestock, and industry, all at the edge of civilization. Throw in some resort-like functions, and I was practically drooling at the daydream of a winter resort up at the base of the mountain. Easily accessible but just as defensible, with everything a person could or would need within reach.

That was where my real fun was, in the city and economy building.

Plus, I had two lovely female companions to keep me company… there was no reason to spend an excessive amount of time with the other players. I had enough of those pug-types already… and it was only a few days in.

But before I could get to my last destination, Barik messaged me out of the blue.

"Hey, up for a run?" he asked with the telepathic-like system.

Since he was on my friend's list he could open up a video chat, similar to a conference call or send voice messages or even typed-chat if he wanted. There were a lot of options, and I personally preferred the chat interface over phone and video calling, but I was probably in the minority there.

"Yeah definitely, when are we starting?" I replied quickly.

"Soon as yer 'ere," he said bluntly but without much care. "We'll take a breather while we wait for ye, don't take forever."

"Alright, be there in a bit."

A chance to explore the fourth floor was rather appealing, much more so than a trip to a farm to learn about animal husbandry. That stuff could wait, I was eager to give the fourth floor a shot, and if we were lucky, maybe even the fifth.

No one had reached the fifth floor yet.

I wanted to be the first.