Arkanos City was big. I mean, not just big, but massive.
It was carved from stone, built into a mountain that stretched high enough to touch the clouds. The whole place looked like a fortress turned into a city, with four enormous levels stacked upward. Each level wrapped around the mountain, covered in glowing runes, with narrow bridges linking one ring to the next.
At the bottom, the lowest level was crowded and loud. Markets filled the streets, packed with stone and wooden stalls. You could hear hammers on metal, steam from forges, and merchants shouting prices. Smoke, spices, and cooked meat thickened the air. Adventurers wandered between shops, armor clinking, faces lit by magic lanterns.
Higher up, the second and third levels were cleaner and calmer. Gardens lined the terraces, their plants glowing softly. Water flowed through carved channels, spilling into open pools. Trains of light carried supplies and travelers between the rings.
At the very top was the Crown. It held the tallest towers, the great halls, and waterfalls that spilled down the mountain like silver threads. From there, you could see the entire city glowing against the cliffs below.
Arkanos City felt ancient but alive, like it had been growing upward for centuries and still wasn't finished.
And there I was, Level fifteen, walking through Arkanos City's massive stone gate, still wearing gear that smelled faintly of ogre sweat. Beside me, Lars was losing his mind over a glowing cube of floating jelly he had just looted from a cube monster, a level two violet-colored blob you could find in any grassy field.
"This is Slime Berry gelatin!" he gasped, eyes wide like a kid in a candy store. "It boosts mana regen for fifty minutes. Do you know how rare this is?!"
I nodded. "Of course. Definitely," I said.
He looked at me, raising an eyebrow. "Are you being sarcastic, or do you want me to beat you up?"
I laughed. We laughed.
Then we explored the lower part of the city where the dungeon gate had appeared.
First was the street food bazaar. The place was crowded with stalls selling all kinds of dishes: griffin leg, slime ice cream, honeycomb pasta, snake barbecue skewers, and spicy fried mushroom sticks. Each one costs only a single ether.
"O-OY! A GRIFFIN LEG MEAT!" Lars shouted, pointing at the stall selling it. "PEOPLE SAID THEY ARE EXTREMELY GOOD!"
I smiled at him. "Do you want to buy one?"
Lars closed his eyes and sighed. "That is the problem... I do not have any money..." He looked at me. "Do you maybe have extra..." His eyes went wide as I vanished from his side and appeared in front of the stall, buying a griffin leg.
He stared at me, mouth open, still holding his slime berry gelatin. "You just did that like magic."
"Absolutely," I said, biting into the steaming griffin leg.
Then we noticed a stall owned by a magician who had just turned a potato into a pigeon.
Lars stopped in front of it. "How in the world is that even possible?!" he said, bouncing with excitement.
I rolled my eyes but could not help smiling at his enthusiasm.
After five minutes, we reached a strange alley beside the last stall of the street food bazaar. It was darker, narrower, and quieter than the others we had passed. Rumors said it held a black market run by players who became merchants to avoid dying in the game.
I felt Lars gripping my arm. Just a little.
"H-Hey... I think we should find a place to rest and not proceed there..." he whispered.
"Yeah, Let's do that. I'm a bit tired too, and that place is kinda sketchy," I said.
By the time we found a stone bench to rest on, my map had a new pin labeled.
Lars was almost done eating his slime berry gelatin when he asked, "We heading in now? Dungeon's still active. Loot boost might still be up."
I glanced skyward. Floating golden notifications drifted lazily:
[DUNGEON]: [Shallow Chambers]
[Status]: [Uncleared]
[Reward Boost]: [Active] — [1 Day Remaining]
[Players Lost]: [519]
"Yeah," I said in a sarcastic tone. "Not terrifying at all."
I stood, brushing crumbs off my tunic. "We'll go. But first... one more stop."
Lars raised an eyebrow. "Another food stall?"
"No," I replied, smirking. "There was something I heard about in a nearby secret alley. A place called the Archivist's Gate. Supposed to be a hidden library that contained lost lore, or maybe... secret skills."
The Archivist's Gate was the new pin labeled on my map.
He perked up immediately. "Now, that sounds like a side quest!"
We pushed through the city's lower rings, moving carefully through crowds of shouting adventurers, potion-hawkers, and those creepy, robed NPCs who seemed to only speak in riddles.
Lars bumped into a passing merchant and apologized quickly with his face turning red.
I ducked under a floating lantern as it swayed too low. Every step felt like a small battle just to not get caught in the chaos.
"Creepy..." Lars whispered, eyes darting at a hooded NPC that had a decaying skin.
Eventually, tucked behind a vine-covered archway and a rusted sigil that pulsed faintly with old magic, we found it.
The Archivist's Gate.
A heavy iron door sat embedded in the stone, guarded by a statue with glowing eyes and a mouth shaped like an open book.
Then it spoke.
"Speak your curiosity, and the gate shall answer."
I looked at Lars. "Wanna try?"
He grinned and asked the statue, "Is there a spell that can turn a potato into a pigeon?"
"Nice joke…" I said. "I wonder if it'll open up for us."
He smirked. "Come on, I'm curious about it!"
Our heads turned as the statue then groaned open.
"See?" he said with a smug look on his face.
I laughed and replied, "Whatever, dumbass!"
Inside was a large limestone room filled with countless wooden bookshelves. Gravity seemed to have taken a break, because old books floated between the shelves, their pages turning in mid-air as if they were reading themselves. At the center, an NPC librarian with glowing eyes and black robes watched us enter without saying a word.
"This place…" Lars whispered, awe in his voice. "I think it's full of secret knowledge."
We didn't stay for long. Lars discovered the 'spell' on how to turn a potato into a pigeon, only to find out it was just a clever trick, not an actual spell.
But I found a single parchment, weathered and curled at the edges, that read:
"Those without class may walk roads hidden to all."
I tucked it away without a word, my mind already racing with possibilities.
As the sun dipped low behind Arkanos's silver domes, we headed toward the dungeon gates. Around fifty players had gathered there, fully geared in uncommon armor with swords and bows on their backs. Guild banners fluttered, and conversations filled the air.
I stepped forward with Lars, our mismatched gear glinting faintly in the dusk light. Two idiots armed with nothing but side quests, scavenged loot, and misplaced confidence.
"Duo party?" a warrior mocked as we passed by. "You're dead meat."
I didn't answer. Lars just smiled.
"Let's show them," Lars said, "What a pair of losers can do."
"But, Lars…" I said, trying to stop myself from bursting out in laughter. "You're the only loser here..."
"Oh, really?" he said. "I won't even bother saving you when you're about to die, stupid!"
I laughed and replied, "I-I was kidding!"
Lars laughed, but behind us, the dungeon gates suddenly rumbled.