"A-A source of problems?"
Lilith's voice trembled, echoing the question in my own head. A quick glance told me she'd gotten the quest too.
I reread the description from the floating, translucent blue screen. Basically, it was asking for us to eliminate the source of the monsters, which had been causing the recent rise in monster attacks.
A torch painted soft rings of light around us like a fragile blanket. Even so, a chill slipped through, creeping up my spine. I clutched Dame Airi's cloak tighter, the fabric thick and smooth like the hand of someone who wouldn't let go.
The doctor back at the alchemist school had warned me of how devastating the attacks had been for the city. But seeing the wounded here, I could only imagine how much heavier it weighed on Dame Airi, who held this outpost together even when abandoned by her superiors.
I glanced at Lilith, who stood with me under the once-lofty comfort of the torch carried by Dame Airi.
Lilith looked back at me, unsure, as she'd randomly gotten a quest out of what was nowhere. It was strange that she'd gotten the quest as well… I thought it was an alchemist school exclusive quest, but I guess that now that it's updated, it's no longer exclusive…?
Either way, there were problems.
Two glaring ones, actually.
One: I'm weak. Pathetically so.
I'd barely survived the assassin's party, and only with Midori's potions. Taking on a nest of twisted monsters sounded like a suicide speedrun, so uhm… no thank you very much?
Recruiting other players to help was a double no. Hard pass, especially after what had happened with the assassin and his party.
Second problem: the timer hadn't reset. Twenty-four hours was still twenty-four hours.
And right now? It was late. Past-midnight late. "I want to sleep and slurp noodles" late. I'm on vacation. Break. Whatever.
Either way, I don't do all-nighters anymore. I burned through enough of those in the hospital, where every minute actually mattered.
Here? No thanks. Good luck waking me before noon, because this girl's beauty sleep is sacred.
AHHHHH.
But then again, I didn't want to abandon Dame Airi or the outpost. Besides, if I did, what would happen to Agëmon? Would the city itself bear the consequences of monsters eventually reaching its walls?
Sigh.
But this was a game, just on its release week… What could go wrong? I wanted to sleep, but maybe it was worth staying up, and…
I tilted my head to one side as I thought, my black hair unfurling around my bare neck like a raven's wing. It caught the firelight, and reflections of tiny embers danced in the dark ribbons.
Before I could say anything, Lilith spoke up again, her voice small and careful. "U-Uhm… Dame Airi? When would we be going? I-I don't want to downplay what you're saying, but… I have some things that I'd like to sort out first."
Airi returned the torch to the sentry with a nod, motioning for us to follow as her combat boots tapped like a hollow drumbeat on the hardened wood that made up the walls of the outpost.
"I completely understand. I'd have farewells I'd like to make too, but unfortunately this outpost cannot stand without me."
She slid down a ladder and looked up to the both of us, her eyes soft. For the first time we'd seen her, she looked… sad.
A small shred of pity drove itself up into my heart.
It was just a game for us.
We would respawn at the nearest safe zone, safe and sound if we died, albeit without our gear.
…
I…don't remember how Lucidia Online programmed NPCs, but would they just… die?
…
Fuck…
…
My thoughts were interrupted by a squeal.
"O-Oops—Eep!"
Lilith slipped while climbing down the ladder. I darted forward to catch her, but she was too far away—
Dame Airi caught her before she fell.
"Are you alright?" The commander's hair whipped like a banner around her shoulders as she lowered Lilith from a full-on princess carry, setting her gently back on her feet.
"O-Oh. Y-Yes, thank you…" Lilith ducked her head the instant Dame Airi released her, silvery strands tumbling forward like curtains of frost to hide her face. She fussed with her skirt, smoothed nonexistent wrinkles, and twisted at the ends of her snowy hair, all while refusing to look up.
Hmm…?
…Hold on.
Wait, wait, wait.
I hadn't exactly clocked it back in the command tent—geniuses can be distracted, okay? Don't judge me.
But now, with the torchlight catching her face… Lilith looked way too flushed for someone who'd just taken a tumble off a ladder.
And why was that, hmm~?
Where's the screenshot button?
No, like actually, where the heck is it?
Seriously, I need to clip this. Too precious. The stoic, knightly commander and the blushing healer girl? That's a ship that practically sails itself. (Literally, and yes, I am proud of that pun and you can't tell me otherwise, shut up.)
Ahem. Cough cough.
Moving on.
I stepped down the rungs of the ladder, my boots catching the rough wooden structure as I made my way back to the ground.
As soon as I stepped back onto the ground, Dame Airi set out back toward the command tent, her rose-red ponytail flashing in the firelight behind her.
Stopping in front of the command tent, Dame Airi turned back towards us and met our eyes.
"With what we have, we can hold out for another week before the need to end the source becomes critical. Provided we have your continued support, of course. Please, settle whatever you need to within that time… I don't know if we can hold on for much longer."
*Ping!*
[Time Remaining: 1 week]
Dame Airi's eyes seemed hollow, making her seem like a shadow of a person that'd seen horrors beyond imagination. There was a tint of sadness as she turned and raised the canvas flap of her tent.
Only then did I remember I still had her cloak.
"Dame Airi, your cloak—"
"Keep it. Your old one was ruined, yes?"
"Ah…"
"If you need a place for the night, ask around the med tent. They can point you towards a place to rest. I wish the both of you a good night. And… hopefully, we can end this all soon."
Her pearly pink quartz eyes caught the light and glimmered as she retreated back into her tent, leaving Lilith and I standing outside.
- - -
"Uhm, so… was this the quest you were doing? The uhm… A Source of Problems?" Lilith asked.
"...Yes and no. The quest I was doing was class exclusive, but now it's… not?"
"I see… So… what now?" Lilith clutched her staff.
"Well, I presume we go prepare before coming back. You said you had something to do?"
Lilith's robes rustled as she shifted her stance, her silvery hair rising and falling like crystalized breath with the light breeze blowing through the outpost. "Ah… not really, I just need to go to bed—it's getting late for me."
"Me too…" I stretched and yawned.
There was a brief silence. I was about to speak up when a translucent blue message popped up with *ping* on my HUD.
[Player: Lilith_OHC has sent you a friend request.]
I blinked.
"Friend request…?"
Lilith, flustered, flailed her hands wildly in front of her.
"S-Sorry if that's too much… I j-just thought that, you know, since we both have the quest, and we're both going to log out, that we should have some sort of contact…"
Seeing her flail made me giggle. Cute.
"Of course."
I flicked [accept].
She sighed visibly with relief, deflating like an unfairly cute balloon. "T-There's also a party and friend chat," Lilith said. "You can pull down your friends list from the player icon in your basic info, then select the person you want to chat with, and…"
Lilith continued to fumble with her words. My heart might kill me when I'm talking to Midori, but it was warm and fuzzy when I was talking to Lilith. Lilith was just… a good girl, with no strings attached. No romantic-ness (lord, no), Lilith was just… a good girl .
"I see…"
"O-Oh, sorry if I'm a bit much…"
I smiled. "No, no, you're fine. How about this; I'll be back tomorrow morning, and I'll contact you then. We can go from there. How does that sound?"
Her face lit up, all traces of fatigue and trauma vanishing. God, she was so bright. "A-Ah! Yes, that sounds good."
"Mhmn."
My finger hovered over the log out button before I stopped myself and looked straight into Lilith's eyes. She tilted her head to one side and blinked innocently. God, she was just so precious. (Must… protec…)
I struggled to speak in front of this princess. I spoke slowly, brushing flyaway strands of hair over my ear that was pink from the cold. I shivered. "Uhm…I wanted to say thank you. I know that seeing all of that at the medical tent and working there with me… it must have been tough, but I don't think that we would have made it without you."
She looked down, staff trembling in her hands. "O-Oh. It was just a quest, right? And… thanks for taking out Qirune's party, but they'll respawn somewhere else anyway..."
Mmmn.
I stepped closer, crouching so I could meet her eyes. "First off, if you remember their usernames, report them. I was going to report… Qirune, was it? But I didn't remember," I said softly. "Those assholes did harass you into pocketing them, after all. They deserve it."
Her gaze flickered.
"Second—you did great. Seriously. I know it was hard, but you held on."
I squeezed her hand, then pulled her into a hug.
"E-Eh?!" she squeaked. Lilith was a little stiff and awkward at first, but then melted just a little under my embrace.
Cute…
I should let her meet Hiyomi sometime. I'm sure that Hiyomi would have the same reaction. Was this part of her good-little-princess perks? /j
She was soft and waaaaaaay too good at receiving hugs. Like a little bunny rabbit, or that one wholesome tsundere (sister. Hehe~
As good as Lilith was with hugs, I could tell that she was freezing.
I slipped off Dame Airi's cloak and draped it over her shoulders, the black fabric fluttering in the warm firelight like a warm, comforting moth.
"I need to go now, but please stay warm. And… I know that it was just a quest, but I have to help and save people just like that every day. Even if it was NPCs… knowing that you helped to save those lives means a lot to me."
I smiled.
"Goodnight, Lilith."
[Log Out]
*Ping!*
My finger pressed the pulsing pastel blue ring to leave the game, and my surroundings vanished into a flood of white particles.
[USERID: HA_MDwastaken has left the game.]
- - -
"Fuck… mmmmn~"
A breathy yawn slipped from my lips as I raised my hands over my head and stretched (after setting my headset off to the side to charge, of course.)
My eyes flicked over to my clock.
[12:13]
Jesus. It was past midnight already, and I hadn't taken a shower or eaten yet.
"Haaaaaaaaaah…"
I pushed myself up slowly, steadying against the wall.
My hangry grumbling stomach reminded me that I still had to eat. I tried to remember what I had left in the pantry.
I was pretty sure that cup of curry ramen had been my last one… guess I'd have to eat out.
Ah, well.
The night market's only fifteen minutes away, and I could grab a bite there. Been a while since I went into town anyway.
A walk might be nice.
I tugged open my closet and glanced at my wardrobe. As much as the Lucidia Online clothing gods seemed to hate (or love me…?) me, I wasn't uh…
Yeah.
I'm not walking out like this and flashing everyone.
No thanks.
Since it was late autumn, I wanted to be warm but not overdressed. Definitely not couchmaxxing either…
…A hoodie and trenchcoat should be fine, right? I tugged on a pair of thicker leggings and socks, then glanced down at myself.
Now, normally, you'd think I'd be against showing my legs like this—but honestly? I'm fine with it.
Leggings are a thousand times better than the designs the Lucida devs came up with. (And no, I haven't forgotten about that email on clothes destruction. Tomorrow-me can deal with it.)
I squeezed my thighs again—they were soft and supple to the touch, as always.
Squish…
Hehe~
Hopefully they'd say that way.
Hey, it was one of my attractions, what can I say?
I tied my hair back into a loose, sloppy ponytail before grabbing my phone, my keys and my wallet. My feet padded softly against my wooden floor, and I stopped by the door to slide on a pair of sneakers before heading out, locking the door behind me with a neat *clack*.
- - -
"Phew."
I could begin to see my breath crystalize in the air. It really was getting colder out. I rubbed my hands together (which had already gone pink and raw, somehow) and thrust them into my pockets.
I passed a few doors along the open-air walkway of my apartment before heading down the metal stairs, each step clanking beneath my feet.
The lamplight's cozy bulb shed a dim halo of warm light in the blacky blueness of the late night, and more and more streetlights dotted the smooth-paved concrete sidewalk like a runway.
I walked through the suburban-urban transition, and within minutes I was back in the middle of Forest Brooke City, the neon kaleidoscopic lights of windows and signs twisting and overlapping like glowing branches of an electric-and-steel canopy.
They formed dizzying patterns while cars still honked, beeped, and growled on the ever-packed streets. I took it all in. I'd taken this path so many other times—only now, I wasn't rushing to work.
…
I smiled.
It was a nice change of pace.
…
Now, where was the night market again…?