New Recruits, Old Habits, and a Furnace of Possibilities
"Boss, do you like the new analysis mode?" Sia asked curiously. That was the reason she had been silent for so long: she had been researching ways to modify the entire system's user interface.
"Yes, it's simpler," Lua replied calmly as she reviewed the information of the three new players.
[Information]
Player
Name: Rachel
Affiliation: Spirit Village
Title: —
Race: Race-less Spirit – Race Rank: 0
Level: 1
[Information]
Player
Name: Sally
Affiliation: Spirit Village
Title: —
Race: Void – Race Rank: 0
Level: 1
[Information]
Player
Name: Segler
Affiliation: Spirit Village
Title: —
Race: Race-less Spirit – Race Rank: 0
Level: 1
"Welcome to Drunai," Lua said, lifting her gaze toward the three newcomers. As expected, the curious onlookers who wanted to find out what races the new players had received began to gather around.
Of course, Sig and Loli couldn't be absent.
Lua thought it would be tedious to explain everything in detail again, so when she turned and saw them nearby, she sent them a mission directly.
"You two, handle all the explanations and help the spirits acquire their first race," she instructed calmly as the missions appeared in front of them.
"Sure," Loli answered without any complaint.
Then Lua left, heading back into the settlement with Liora following behind her. The girl kept glancing back with curiosity at the black-haired child.
When they arrived, Lua noticed that gathering materials had been an excellent decision, since the man named Silver was already using them to build a furnace, just as his blacksmith profession allowed.
"Hey. Let's wait for Silver to finish crafting a couple of shovels. It'll be easier to work that way. For now, we'll clear the surroundings and leave the materials in a nearby spot," Joe said casually.
"All right," Lua responded serenely. In any case, if they didn't finish the house that day, they could keep using the tent.
Meanwhile, the harpy and the beaver-man were watching the place with great curiosity, as well as examining their strange new bodies. Both were workers Sig had simply recruited, brought to the house where the new base was forming, and logged into the game. There, they had appeared as puffs of smoke before being sent to a forest to hunt rabbits and get their first form.
Other than that, Sig didn't explain anything.
Alfred, of course, had assumed this would happen and took it upon himself to gather them together with Silver to start giving instructions. The men and woman they had brought were trustworthy people, so when they heard the important details about the system, they were briefly surprised before focusing on speeding up everything they had come to do.
The three had been chosen for a reason. Julia was the group's accountant. Steve, before becoming their bodyguard, had worked as a sort of builder, so he had experience putting up structures. Silver, on the other hand, had survived in the wilderness for five years before arriving at the student city, after his hometown became an enemy of the local gang. He had spent that time gathering resources, hunting, and fishing with weapons he made himself.
Sig was their boss, and of course she would pick the most essential people first. It was no coincidence she herself had been selected by Bert, the most intelligent player so far, and she was already proving her worth.
Although the fact that she was currently sitting in a corner trying to make something out of clay didn't help her image much. She was probably thinking about how to turn it into something fabulous.
Meanwhile, Lua bought a large amount of rabbit pelts from Alfred, who was in charge of managing the inventory. Well, more than buying them, she sent a mission detailing the quantity and the payment. She couldn't say for sure if it technically counted as a purchase, but since she paid, it basically was.
With them, she started crafting another very comfortable bed for Liora to place inside her house. Since the girl didn't seem to want to sleep alone, she planned to put it in her own room. And once the players finished building the wall, they would share a warm and pleasant space to rest together.
…
"All right, this is simple. You just have to kill a rabbit, and the experience will be enough to get your first form. Remember that whatever you choose will be the first step in a whole evolution branch. As far as I understand, if you achieve certain hidden objectives, you can unlock a rarer type of evolution… or you can just go back to the beginning and lose everything. So it's better to choose wisely from the start," Sig explained, turning into a full-on instructor as the three new players followed her. Two of them floated, while the third walked nervously.
"Will my class also be decided this way?" Sally asked with some unease.
"Mmm… no. You're a special case, like some players who start with a rare class. She went through the same thing and showed up as a fairy," Sig said, pointing at Loli. "But it's better if you first see how to level up, learn a bit about the forest, and get to know the enemies."
"Let's gooo!" shouted one of the floating puffs of smoke, glowing with excitement.
"Well… actually, we'll weaken a rabbit for each of you. You just have to finish it off. It's easier that way," Sig clarified calmly.
"Still—let's gooo!" the first one yelled again with enthusiasm.
"…Could you calm down at least once in your life?" the other complained in an exasperated tone.
"Of course not," the first one replied immediately.
Meanwhile, Loli watched them with interest.
"Do you two know each other?" she asked curiously.
"No. I logged in and they were already there," Sally answered.
"We do know each other," Rachel said quickly. "Segler works in an electronics repair shop where I usually take things I find in the trash to resell them."
"Most of it is junk," Segler muttered with a hint of annoyance.
"Hey! At least I bring you something to do instead of you just sitting behind a counter where no one ever comes in," Rachel shot back indignantly.
"That's not true. Sometimes I get customers who come to fix their mana collectors," Segler retorted, a little angry.
"That was me this morning," Rachel said calmly.
"Whatever," Segler muttered, frustrated.
"So… how did you end up playing together here?" Loli asked, growing more and more curious.
"Actually, not long ago, a family was captured by the hunters, and all their belongings ended up in the junk heaps. Among their things, I found two computers. I brought them to Segler to see if they worked, and when we turned them on, a prompt suddenly popped up. We accepted out of curiosity," Rachel explained.
"Yeah, but these games consume a lot. We'll probably just be here for a few minutes until the low-quality flask runs out, and that's it. I don't have enough money to become a regular player," Segler said with resignation.
Sig and Loli exchanged a glance.
"Well, you don't have to worry about that. This game actually consumes very little mana, even with such advanced graphics. A low-quality flask lasts 10 minutes, a medium-quality one lasts 100 minutes, and a high-quality flask lasts up to 1,000 minutes," Sig explained calmly. She still wasn't sure whether to tell them about beast cores; she preferred to watch them a little longer before deciding if she would share that information. Maybe she could win over two—or even three—dedicated players.
"Really? They consume that little? Amazing!" Rachel exclaimed, excited.
"Still, you don't have any medium-quality flasks to waste, you idiot," Segler grumbled.
"Actually, I've saved quite a lot over the years. After all, I only spend what I need to survive and don't waste money on anything else," Rachel replied serenely.
"And you're going to blow it all on a game?" Segler asked, looking at her as if he could frown if he still had a face.
"Hey… if it's worth it, I will. We live in a toxic, rotten world. This place feels like mental cleansing for me. If I have to dig through garbage just to come back here, breathe this clean air, and see the sun, the snow, or the grass… I'll do it," Rachel said firmly.
Hearing those words, Sig had already decided she would tell Rachel about mana flasks and beast cores.
"Well, actually…" Loli began, glancing at Sig, who nodded slightly.
"In this game, you can get high-quality mana flasks," she added calmly.
All three players turned to look at her immediately, falling silent—especially Sally, who couldn't help feeling guilty. She knew her father worked hard to bring money home and gave her part of what he earned just so she could play, since they didn't allow her to go outside.
"That sounds pretty made up, honestly. I don't really believe you," Segler said seriously.
"Well… why don't we explain everything properly first, and then you can get your first forms?" Sig suggested patiently.
…
"Excuse me, Miss Lua," Alfred said as he approached where Lua was sitting, focused on making a mattress out of rabbit pelts for Liora.
"What is it?" she asked, lifting her gaze calmly.
"Actually, Silver finished building the furnace. But it needs to dry in the sun, which could take several hours or even a couple of days. I remembered you can use magic, and I was wondering if there was any way to speed up the process. That way, we could start processing minerals and crafting tools sooner," Alfred explained politely.
"Yes," Lua replied, standing up.
She then walked behind Alfred to the furnace Silver had built. It was made from sandstone, clay, and mortar, reinforced with some sturdier stones. At first glance, it looked like a solid and useful piece of work.
"This will probably last, with luck, a couple of days before it starts to crack. It's the simplest furnace we can make with what we have right now," Silver said seriously.
Lua nodded and raised her hand, writing a red rune on the top of the furnace, followed by a white rune inside it. Then she began tracing additional runes all around the structure.
As if they had connected to each other, the runes began to glow brightly while streams of hot air circulated through the furnace and spiraled outward in an orderly flow. In a matter of seconds, the moisture evaporated without damaging the structure.
"Truly fascinating…" Steve murmured, watching with great interest.
The furnace was ready.
"Thank you, Miss Lua," Alfred said with his impeccable manners.
"Mmm," was all Lua replied before returning to her work, while Alfred quickly gave the order to begin crafting the necessary tools.
Meanwhile, Joe had dismantled one of the half-collapsed houses. They had used the stones and some of the salvaged materials to reinforce the dwelling they were building for Lua.
With the strength he had now, lifting a rock almost as big as himself required barely any effort.
At that moment, Loli and Sig arrived, accompanied by the three new players in their first evolutions.
Sally looked the same as before, though she seemed a little more confident. Next to her was who appeared to be Rachel: a young woman in her twenties, her face full of excitement at everything she was seeing. Her transparent, ethereal body made her look like a ghost.
Finally, there was Segler: a somewhat chubby young man with a decent face, but whose greenish skin made it clear he had chosen to become a zombie. Rachel never missed a chance to tease him, claiming he smelled awful—though it wasn't true, it still managed to annoy him.