Their journey took some time. Ryullusion only had an accumulated level of 15, although he'd already acquired the path of Bard. He didn't seem to have any quick movement skills like Aishin, but his graceful elf wasn't as slow as Shrubbery either. Danika knew that he was a musician in real life, but she thought that he moved like someone with a lifetime of training in something like dance.
If she hadn't already been in love with Aishin, Danika was pretty sure her heart wouldn't have been able to stay as steady as it did as she traveled beside the beautiful dark haired elven bard. It almost surprised her how she could look at someone so clearly attractive without feeling… more. She wondered if it was because she knew that he wasn't as he appeared, because he was her boyfriend's father, or if it was just how tangled up her feelings had gotten over Aishin, and there was no room left.
His deep voice was usually gentle and faintly amused when he spoke, but he didn't speak often. Danika was actually quite startled when he suddenly shouted, "The merchant! Wait up traveling merchant sir!" He even dashed forward suddenly, to catch up with the merchant who had come into view as they'd come over the last rise.
Danika zipped after him, and the traveling merchant turned and stopped to wait for them. He grinned his cheerful familiar grin and greeted them both. Ryullusion apparently had a quest to turn in, as he hastily presented the merchant with a small collection of daisy heads from his inventory.
"These are the only ones I found with the blue streak to their petals," Ryullusion told the merchant a little anxiously.
"They fulfill the request excellently, well done," the traveling merchant replied with a twinkle in his eye. "Thank you Ryullusion, and I see you're in good company today."
Danika didn't know what to say, but Ryullusion replied quickly, "I am! ZipZing has agreed to take me to the cursed harp I'm looking for."
The merchant replied thoughtfully, "With ZipZing's help, you'll reach it much sooner than I expected last time we spoke. Are you sure you're ready? Would you like to stock up on restorative foods or potions?"
Danika frowned a little when Ryullusion said doubtfully, "I don't think I can afford any more."
She zipped closer and asked directly, "How much do you think we'll need?"
The NPC winked at her and replied obliquely, "Who can know what any new adventure will bring my friend, but it's usually better to be as prepared as you can?"
He spoke so directly when she called him up from her work account that Danika blinked at him in surprise. This was his normal mode, and even his cheerful expression that made her feel like he was laughing at her was normal, but she felt like it had been awhile since she'd heard one of his subtle warnings. She bought all the healing potions and candies that she could afford, and gave Ryullusion as many as he could carry.
Ryullusion protested, "This is too much. These are quite expensive! There's no reason for you to spend this much on me."
Danika smiled at him and said, "Don't worry about it." She added a little shyly, "If just our shared affection for Aishin isn't enough reason for me to help you this much, we'll also be guildmates after tomorrow."
Ryullusion actually blushed as he replied, "Oh. Well, um, thank you ZipZing."
Danika gazed at him curiously, but the traveling merchant interrupted. He hefted his pack again and said cheerfully, "I must be going. Take care Ryullusion, and ZipZing. The harp you seek is old, and dangerous."
Danika blinked again at this direct warning. And then she grinned and asked the merchant cheekily, "As old as you are?"
The traveling merchant, who had previously stated that he was 'as old as the world' which was a literal truth, replied seriously, "Perhaps older than this world." But then he smiled as usual and strode off quickly, as he usually did when he was finished with as much as he would say.
Ryullusion asked thoughtfully, "Do you think the merchant knows that the legend of the harp predates the game?"
"Maybe," Danika replied with a shrug. "I think he's probably the NPC who knows the most about our world."
Danika told Ryullusion of how, when she'd begun her new job, she'd found out that the game had also literally been crafted from legends. "Lin Hao, he's the head of the seventh division - the programmers, said that they stuffed the game with data from stories and legends, and then it crafts the closest thing it can to match new requests and create personalized quests," she said excitedly, and then wondered if that would make sense to a man as old as Aishin had made his dad sound.
Ryullusion just smiled gently at her and said, "Well, that would probably explain the harp. There are many similar legends about such a harp." He added with what Danika could only call a mischievous grin, "I can't wait to try it!"
--
When they finally arrived at the inn, the innkeeper looked at Ryullusion, and then ZipZing, and asked accusingly, "You experienced the harp's power yourself little dragon, and yet you still dare to bring such a young bard under its influence?!"
Ryullusion said quickly, in his deep resonant voice that matched his character so well, "Do not blame ZipZing! I heard of this legendary harp and was making my way here as best I could, but it was a journey fraught with many dangers, and ZipZing has done nothing but aid me in arriving safely."
His voice was so persuasive and his speech so… suited to a bard, that Danika again regarded him with amazement. She wondered if Aishin's dad was actually really into roleplaying. She suddenly remembered how he'd assured Kit that the game was only a story, and even when he'd been confused about how to interact with things in this world, he'd stayed calm and collected. Maybe he was really familiar with the fantasy settings, just not through such a modern interface as Aishin's full motion console?
The innkeeper tried to argue, but Ryullusion used his low leveled bardic persuasion skill effectively, and the innkeeper finally lead the dark haired elven bard into the clearing beyond the rose hedge where the cursed or haunted harp still stood, just as Danika had last seen it. Danika wondered if Ryullusion's apparently real skill with persuasion had given his low level bardic skill a boost.
Ryullusion came to a halt and gazed at the beautifully carved harp like a man already under an enchantment. Danika couldn't even put words to his expression, but there were elements of awe, longing, curiosity, and maybe even something as naked as lust. She found the harp pretty mystical and curiously enchanting herself, but she couldn't see anything about the instrument that should inspire such a powerful reaction.
He wasn't walking toward it though, he was just standing there staring at it, so Danika didn't think that the harp was actually enchanting his character the way it had forced Aishin and ZipZing and everyone near enough to hear its music to it before.
Ryullusion's lips parted and he breathed, "It's so beautiful. It looks so real." He took a single step forward, and then seemed to remember that he wasn't alone. He glanced at ZipZing and the innkeeper, and asked, "May I?"
His hesitation and his question reassured Danika that he wasn't actually enchanted yet.