As he sat and waited, Demi had nothing to do. Imara was occupied in the kitchen and left him alone in the living room to lay the table.
Hence, he decided to look at the stats of the default equipment.
[Mass-produced Cotton Tunic]
Rating: Weak
Durability: Infinite Defence: 2
Usage Requirements: None.
Item Weight: 1
Description: A cheap, mass-produced shirt.
[Mass-produced Cotton Pants]
Rating: Weak
Durability: Infinite Defence: 2
Usage Requirements: None.
Item Weight: 1
Description: A cheap, mass-produced pair of pants.
[Mass-produced Leather Boots]
Rating: Weak
Durability: Infinite Defence: 2
Description: A cheap, mass-produced pair of pants.
Usage Requirements: None.
Item Weight: 1
Description: A cheap, mass-produced pair of boots.
'Truly trash items.' Demi sighed as he closed the equipment screen.
'It'll get better, surely.' He consoled himself by remembering that it was just the second day of playtime and that he was, surely, being too impatient. In no time at all, he would begin training at the academy. Althought Demi wasn't sure of what it would be like, he was certain that it would bring some significant benefits.
Since young, he had never played VR games of any kind before. It wasn't that there were no gaming shops near his neighbourhood that were cheap. Rather, the main reason was that there was no one he could go there with. His classmates avoided him like a plague once they knew that he was an orphan. It got worse when he got violent once, after an obnoxious kid from the next class stepped over the line.
'Shit... why am I remembering those things again?'
Demi cursed in his heart as he slammed the table to calm himself down, spreading bits of sawdust on the ground. Just the memory of being despised and ostracized made him seethed with anger and disgust. After taking a few deep breaths, he cooled down his emptions just in time to hear Imara call out to him.
"Demi! Help me bring the food out please."
Soon, the table was filled with all kinds of delicacies. There were pasta, a bowl of sauce that resembled teriyaki, several dishes of leafy greens, and in the middle of it all, a sizeable tray of meat chops.
"Oh, did I cook too much?"
Imara chuckled to herself as she sat down on a chair.
Ding. Ding. Ding. The jingle of a bell could be heard within the house.
"Ah. That must be my husband." She got up to open the door and seconds later, returned with a tall, well-built man. His eyebrows raised slightly as he noticed Demi sitting at the dining table before sending subtle gaze at his wife.
"Ah, this is Demi. I met him today at the academy and he seemed interested to enroll, so I invited him over to have a chat."
Hearing the upbeat explanation by his wife and her beaming face, the man smiled softly as he took off his travelling cloak and hung it at a nearby rack. Then, he introduced himself.
"Hi Demi, I'm Gato, the principal of Basten Academy. Welcome to my house."
Demi stood up and shook his hand. Just from that alone, Demi could already tell he was a hardened warrior. His hands were rough with callouses, his grip was steady and his handshake were rhythmic. Uust like Imara, the passage of time had left its marks on his face, and his neat crew-cut hair had grayed. There was a small but prominent scar at the corner of his greying brows.
Standing next to him, Demi felt the man exuded an aura of confident and quiet strength. He had no idea how much this veteran combatant would impact his life in Creation's Cradle..
In any case, the good image that Demi was trying to portray to this newcomer was ruined as his stomach growled and grumbled, right at that precise moment. That invited a guffaw and a snort from the elderly male and female
"Well, let's sit down and eat, shall we?" Famished himself, Gato dragged himself at a chair and sat down.
--
The dinner was warm and pleasant. While Demi didn't say much since he knew next to nothing about this world, the elderly couple ate, chatted and laughed heartily about the day's affairs. It was a simple dinner, but somehow felt rather meaningfully. Demi didn't realize that the lines of his mouth slowly crawled up as it went on.
Finally, the dinner ended and the couple's full attention fell on him.
"So Demi, you want to enroll in our academy?"
"Yes." Demi nodded firmly at Gato's question.
"Haha. You're in luck. You have the best magician in the whole region to be your teacher." Across the table, Imara glowed bashfully at her husband's affectionate praise. However, her happy expression soon turned crumpled.
"Magic? I want to enroll to learn the sword, actually."
"What? Didn't your eyes shine like lanterns when I mentioned the City Lord? And when showing you the classrooms and magic facilities?"
"But I never said that I want to learn magic..."
"..."
An awkward silence ensued. Looking at the stalemate in the conversation, Gato felt obliged to step in. It appears that his wife's impulsive personality had caused a misunderstanding again. Just as he opened his mouth to speak...
"Wait."
Having said that, Imara got up hastily and went into the room next to a couch. There was the sound of a cupboard door being slammed, and the visibly upset woman soon stormed out, holding something in her hand.
"Here!" She placed it on the table with more force than necessary.
[Tranquility Fruit of Aiden].
"If you decide to enroll, I'll give this to you."
"..."
"Well?"
Demi was indeed intrigued by the offer. It was a free +2 to Intelligence after all. It would also take up at least a month of his in-game time. For him who simply wanted to explore the vast lands and adventures within the game, this could be a rather fun experience too.
"Sorry, but I still want to learn the sword instead."
"Ugh, what about this?!"
There was only a little resemblance left on Imara's face compared to that gentle and kind elderly at the medical facility.
Biting her teeth hard, she fished out something from her pocket and set it on the table next to the fruit.
"Take a look."
[Nimble Fruit of Torol]
Rarity: Precious
Description:
Effect: Increases Agility +2. Reduces resistance to 'slow' for 12 hours.
Description:
Demi's eyes bulged. No, it was more precise to say that they almost popped out of their sockets. Now, he was sorely tempted. While intelligence affected magic damage, defense and max mana, these parameters were more important for a mage. Even in real life, he preferred the blood-boiling sensation of close-combat, after dodging fists and kicks by a hair-breadths before counter-attacking a vital point. The adrenaline produced by the possibility of turning a battle in milliseconds appealed more to Demi than plainly casting spells from afar.
And the agility stats allowed one to do that. It increases attack and movement speed, and evasion probability.
There was no telling when such an opportunity might appear again. While +2 might not seem like much, Demi believed that all these small gains would add up. There would definitely be fast and efficient levelling grounds to be found in the future, but permanent stats increases? A bloodfest would be an understatement if anyone discovered a hunting ground to farm them.
"Uhk..."
Demi was genuinely at a loss. It was the well thought-out ploy of an old woman to bribe him this way. The wisdom of the ages was indeed powerful....
A triumphant gloat began to manifest on Imara's face. SIt was evident that the draw of the Nimble Fruit was too much for the young man to bear. She could already see a glorious future for her fledgling magic academy.
However, just as Demi gritted his teeth and was going to reject her, the observing Gato spoke up.
"Ah. Demi, how about you just accept her? The old woman would really go lengths for the people and things that matter to her." Sensing his wife's great desire and desperation, he wanted to give her a helping hand.
"But..."
"The next batch of warrior intakes would be in 2 weeks. How about this? I'll teach you some basics on the side in the morning and evening as you learn magic. Then you can have a taste of the way of the sword as well." Even as a young boy, it was true that Gato also dreamt of being a great warrior through learning close-combat. Aside from pleasing his wife, empathy was one of the main reasons he would go out of his way for this young stranger.
At the side, Imara's face blossomed. One at her husband's sacrifice for her sake. She knew how busy he really was with running the school and his other duties. Two for securing her first student.
---
Early next morning, at the old couple's backyard.
Demi yawned widely as he stretched up his hands under the dark brown sky. Even the sun had barely started to rise. Against the cold morning air, he put his hands under his shirt and rubbed his stomach to gain some warmth.
Not long after, Gato stepped out of the house. He saw Demi shivering alone in the open and gave a satisfied smile.
"Excited, are we? Had a good sleep?"
Unused to waking up so early, Demi didn't feel like talking and simply nodded. Right now, he was staying at their place. Imara claimed that it was such that he could conveniently attend morning practice with Gato. But from his own point of view, it was part of the scheming old woman's plan to not let him run away after parting ways with her treasures. But he had to admit, the bed was really comfortable. Even more than the one in his own house.
"Alright. Let's get started. First, loosen your bodies for a while. Then we'll go for a short run."
After some simple stretches, Gato started jogging along the main road. Demi, half-awake, followed along. By now, the sun was much more visible. Its golden rays shone on the city, and like a growing seedling embracing the sunlight, more and more of the townsfolk could be seen leaving their house. With nothing to occupy his thoughts, he noticed that some of them were doing daily chores and labor. Some were carrying empty buckets; feeding their livestock, tending their crops. Some others were fully-geared, preparing to leave town. It was the sight of a peaceful city.
"Morning, Sir Gato."
"Hey Principal!"
"All the best with training!"
And somehow, all these people, whether young or old, men or women recognized and greeted the old man cordially, like an old friend. In return, Gato greeted each of them with spirited wave or shout. It was obvious judging from their faces that they had deep respect and fondness for this man.
Who exactly is he?
After the 17th person greeted him in their dawn run, Demi innocently commented. And that was the first big mistake he made time in his interaction with him.
"Well, aren't you popular." It was a perfectly harmless comment. However...
"... Let's take it up a notch."
Without warning, Gato changed gear and ran at a speed that made horses look like ponies.
"If you can't even keep up, I have nothing to teach you."
"...!" What the hell is this?!
Demi could swear he saw the old man's ears turn red amidst his graying hair.
---
In the end, Demi discovered that there was nothing 'short' about their morning run. A lap was easily several miles. Although the pace was initially slow, the old man got faster and faster. In the end, Demi was so out of breathe that he thought the automatic safety log-out would trigger.
Heartlessly leaving him sprawled on the floor, Gato chuckled at the sight and leisurely went in to have a quick shower before heading to work. Even by the time he came out again, Demi was still motionless. And he departed with with a deadly sentence.
"We'll do this every morning."
Demi was pretty sure he passed at least for a little while, lying on the grass patch.
'But well. That felt good.' It had been a long time since he had such an intense workout. Even though this was virtual reality, the in-game stimulus still caused his brain to secrete endorphin.
Soon, after checking that his stamina bar and 'heartbeat' had resumed to normal, Demi slowly got up and made his way to his new 'home'. He had another forty-five minutes before Imara's magic lessons and wanted to catch a quick power nap.
But, a fragrant smell assaulted his noise as he pulled open the front. A large bowl of brown, thick broth on the dining table was the source of it. There was also a few slices of toast next to it.
Demi smiled at this warm gesture. He never had the habit of eating breakfast, but today, he decided to sit down and take his time. Amidst the snoring sounds of the old lady, Demi had a quiet and satisfying morning in this new world.
Hence, he decided to look at the stats of the default equipment.
[Mass-produced Cotton Tunic]
Rating: Weak
Durability: Infinite Defence: 2
Usage Requirements: None.
Item Weight: 1
Description: A cheap, mass-produced shirt.
[Mass-produced Cotton Pants]
Rating: Weak
Durability: Infinite Defence: 2
Usage Requirements: None.
Item Weight: 1
Description: A cheap, mass-produced pair of pants.
[Mass-produced Leather Boots]
Rating: Weak
Durability: Infinite Defence: 2
Description: A cheap, mass-produced pair of pants.
Usage Requirements: None.
Item Weight: 1
Description: A cheap, mass-produced pair of boots.
'Truly trash items.' Demi sighed as he closed the equipment screen.
'It'll get better, surely.' He consoled himself by remembering that it was just the second day of playtime and that he was, surely, being too impatient. In no time at all, he would begin training at the academy. Althought Demi wasn't sure of what it would be like, he was certain that it would bring some significant benefits.
Since young, he had never played VR games of any kind before. It wasn't that there were no gaming shops near his neighbourhood that were cheap. Rather, the main reason was that there was no one he could go there with. His classmates avoided him like a plague once they knew that he was an orphan. It got worse when he got violent once, after an obnoxious kid from the next class stepped over the line.
'Shit... why am I remembering those things again?'
Demi cursed in his heart as he slammed the table to calm himself down, spreading bits of sawdust on the ground. Just the memory of being despised and ostracized made him seethed with anger and disgust. After taking a few deep breaths, he cooled down his emptions just in time to hear Imara call out to him.
"Demi! Help me bring the food out please."
Soon, the table was filled with all kinds of delicacies. There were pasta, a bowl of sauce that resembled teriyaki, several dishes of leafy greens, and in the middle of it all, a sizeable tray of meat chops.
"Oh, did I cook too much?"
Imara chuckled to herself as she sat down on a chair.
Ding. Ding. Ding. The jingle of a bell could be heard within the house.
"Ah. That must be my husband." She got up to open the door and seconds later, returned with a tall, well-built man. His eyebrows raised slightly as he noticed Demi sitting at the dining table before sending subtle gaze at his wife.
"Ah, this is Demi. I met him today at the academy and he seemed interested to enroll, so I invited him over to have a chat."
Hearing the upbeat explanation by his wife and her beaming face, the man smiled softly as he took off his travelling cloak and hung it at a nearby rack. Then, he introduced himself.
"Hi Demi, I'm Gato, the principal of Basten Academy. Welcome to my house."
Demi stood up and shook his hand. Just from that alone, Demi could already tell he was a hardened warrior. His hands were rough with callouses, his grip was steady and his handshake were rhythmic. Uust like Imara, the passage of time had left its marks on his face, and his neat crew-cut hair had grayed. There was a small but prominent scar at the corner of his greying brows.
Standing next to him, Demi felt the man exuded an aura of confident and quiet strength. He had no idea how much this veteran combatant would impact his life in Creation's Cradle..
In any case, the good image that Demi was trying to portray to this newcomer was ruined as his stomach growled and grumbled, right at that precise moment. That invited a guffaw and a snort from the elderly male and female
"Well, let's sit down and eat, shall we?" Famished himself, Gato dragged himself at a chair and sat down.
--
The dinner was warm and pleasant. While Demi didn't say much since he knew next to nothing about this world, the elderly couple ate, chatted and laughed heartily about the day's affairs. It was a simple dinner, but somehow felt rather meaningfully. Demi didn't realize that the lines of his mouth slowly crawled up as it went on.
Finally, the dinner ended and the couple's full attention fell on him.
"So Demi, you want to enroll in our academy?"
"Yes." Demi nodded firmly at Gato's question.
"Haha. You're in luck. You have the best magician in the whole region to be your teacher." Across the table, Imara glowed bashfully at her husband's affectionate praise. However, her happy expression soon turned crumpled.
"Magic? I want to enroll to learn the sword, actually."
"What? Didn't your eyes shine like lanterns when I mentioned the City Lord? And when showing you the classrooms and magic facilities?"
"But I never said that I want to learn magic..."
"..."
An awkward silence ensued. Looking at the stalemate in the conversation, Gato felt obliged to step in. It appears that his wife's impulsive personality had caused a misunderstanding again. Just as he opened his mouth to speak...
"Wait."
Having said that, Imara got up hastily and went into the room next to a couch. There was the sound of a cupboard door being slammed, and the visibly upset woman soon stormed out, holding something in her hand.
"Here!" She placed it on the table with more force than necessary.
[Tranquility Fruit of Aiden].
"If you decide to enroll, I'll give this to you."
"..."
"Well?"
Demi was indeed intrigued by the offer. It was a free +2 to Intelligence after all. It would also take up at least a month of his in-game time. For him who simply wanted to explore the vast lands and adventures within the game, this could be a rather fun experience too.
"Sorry, but I still want to learn the sword instead."
"Ugh, what about this?!"
There was only a little resemblance left on Imara's face compared to that gentle and kind elderly at the medical facility.
Biting her teeth hard, she fished out something from her pocket and set it on the table next to the fruit.
"Take a look."
[Nimble Fruit of Torol]
Rarity: Precious
Description:
Effect: Increases Agility +2. Reduces resistance to 'slow' for 12 hours.
Description:
Demi's eyes bulged. No, it was more precise to say that they almost popped out of their sockets. Now, he was sorely tempted. While intelligence affected magic damage, defense and max mana, these parameters were more important for a mage. Even in real life, he preferred the blood-boiling sensation of close-combat, after dodging fists and kicks by a hair-breadths before counter-attacking a vital point. The adrenaline produced by the possibility of turning a battle in milliseconds appealed more to Demi than plainly casting spells from afar.
And the agility stats allowed one to do that. It increases attack and movement speed, and evasion probability.
There was no telling when such an opportunity might appear again. While +2 might not seem like much, Demi believed that all these small gains would add up. There would definitely be fast and efficient levelling grounds to be found in the future, but permanent stats increases? A bloodfest would be an understatement if anyone discovered a hunting ground to farm them.
"Uhk..."
Demi was genuinely at a loss. It was the well thought-out ploy of an old woman to bribe him this way. The wisdom of the ages was indeed powerful....
A triumphant gloat began to manifest on Imara's face. SIt was evident that the draw of the Nimble Fruit was too much for the young man to bear. She could already see a glorious future for her fledgling magic academy.
However, just as Demi gritted his teeth and was going to reject her, the observing Gato spoke up.
"Ah. Demi, how about you just accept her? The old woman would really go lengths for the people and things that matter to her." Sensing his wife's great desire and desperation, he wanted to give her a helping hand.
"But..."
"The next batch of warrior intakes would be in 2 weeks. How about this? I'll teach you some basics on the side in the morning and evening as you learn magic. Then you can have a taste of the way of the sword as well." Even as a young boy, it was true that Gato also dreamt of being a great warrior through learning close-combat. Aside from pleasing his wife, empathy was one of the main reasons he would go out of his way for this young stranger.
At the side, Imara's face blossomed. One at her husband's sacrifice for her sake. She knew how busy he really was with running the school and his other duties. Two for securing her first student.
---
Early next morning, at the old couple's backyard.
Demi yawned widely as he stretched up his hands under the dark brown sky. Even the sun had barely started to rise. Against the cold morning air, he put his hands under his shirt and rubbed his stomach to gain some warmth.
Not long after, Gato stepped out of the house. He saw Demi shivering alone in the open and gave a satisfied smile.
"Excited, are we? Had a good sleep?"
Unused to waking up so early, Demi didn't feel like talking and simply nodded. Right now, he was staying at their place. Imara claimed that it was such that he could conveniently attend morning practice with Gato. But from his own point of view, it was part of the scheming old woman's plan to not let him run away after parting ways with her treasures. But he had to admit, the bed was really comfortable. Even more than the one in his own house.
"Alright. Let's get started. First, loosen your bodies for a while. Then we'll go for a short run."
After some simple stretches, Gato started jogging along the main road. Demi, half-awake, followed along. By now, the sun was much more visible. Its golden rays shone on the city, and like a growing seedling embracing the sunlight, more and more of the townsfolk could be seen leaving their house. With nothing to occupy his thoughts, he noticed that some of them were doing daily chores and labor. Some were carrying empty buckets; feeding their livestock, tending their crops. Some others were fully-geared, preparing to leave town. It was the sight of a peaceful city.
"Morning, Sir Gato."
"Hey Principal!"
"All the best with training!"
And somehow, all these people, whether young or old, men or women recognized and greeted the old man cordially, like an old friend. In return, Gato greeted each of them with spirited wave or shout. It was obvious judging from their faces that they had deep respect and fondness for this man.
Who exactly is he?
After the 17th person greeted him in their dawn run, Demi innocently commented. And that was the first big mistake he made time in his interaction with him.
"Well, aren't you popular." It was a perfectly harmless comment. However...
"... Let's take it up a notch."
Without warning, Gato changed gear and ran at a speed that made horses look like ponies.
"If you can't even keep up, I have nothing to teach you."
"...!" What the hell is this?!
Demi could swear he saw the old man's ears turn red amidst his graying hair.
---
In the end, Demi discovered that there was nothing 'short' about their morning run. A lap was easily several miles. Although the pace was initially slow, the old man got faster and faster. In the end, Demi was so out of breathe that he thought the automatic safety log-out would trigger.
Heartlessly leaving him sprawled on the floor, Gato chuckled at the sight and leisurely went in to have a quick shower before heading to work. Even by the time he came out again, Demi was still motionless. And he departed with with a deadly sentence.
"We'll do this every morning."
Demi was pretty sure he passed at least for a little while, lying on the grass patch.
'But well. That felt good.' It had been a long time since he had such an intense workout. Even though this was virtual reality, the in-game stimulus still caused his brain to secrete endorphin.
Soon, after checking that his stamina bar and 'heartbeat' had resumed to normal, Demi slowly got up and made his way to his new 'home'. He had another forty-five minutes before Imara's magic lessons and wanted to catch a quick power nap.
But, a fragrant smell assaulted his noise as he pulled open the front. A large bowl of brown, thick broth on the dining table was the source of it. There was also a few slices of toast next to it.
Demi smiled at this warm gesture. He never had the habit of eating breakfast, but today, he decided to sit down and take his time. Amidst the snoring sounds of the old lady, Demi had a quiet and satisfying morning in this new world.
