The next morning, Alex woke up and prepared a hearty breakfast for the two of them. Waking up Melody despite finding her sound asleep, they ate breakfast together and everything was fantastic.
"So Mel, what is on the agenda today? I know you said that you can make money from Reign, but how soon is that going to be viable you think? I can go work at the Cafe to keep us afloat for the moment."
Washing the dishes, Melody responded quickly.
"Don't worry Alex, you don't need to go to work."
Pointing to the new wristwatch that Melody had gotten as part of the present package from Radiance. "Radiance was able to give me a hefty sum of money for us to live off for at least a few months. I also called in a couple of favors and one paid off well enough to last us into next year. It will be a little bit before Reign's popularity allows the economy to mix and provide income for players. What we should be worried about now is leveling and getting some better equipment."
Nodding his head and making a mental note to call his boss to tell him the news later Alex cheered mildly that he would be able to game for quite a while and not have any job hold him back from helping Melody. "Gotcha! When do we start?"
"Right after I finish these dishes. Go get set up and ill meet you in-game. Try and see if the sisters will be on as well."
"On it!" Walking to his room, Alex placed on the snug helmet and laid comfortably on his bed. Starting up the program, he closed his eyes and begun his descent into Reign of the Aspects once again."
Entering the world once again, Alex was amazed by just how lifelike the environment was. Taking a deep breath in and finding the air and even the motion of breathing to be the same.
"Hey there Sol!"
Almost jumping out of his skin, Alex spun around and found Minerva and Diana waving at me from not too far away.
"Oh, its just you two, you almost scared me out of my virtual socks. How are you two doing?"
Despite her shy nature when they initially met, Minerva waved back. "We just got online now, is Luna coming on?"
"Yeah, she should be on soon. I know we didn't get to talk much yesterday, so while we wait would you like to chat some?"
Diana nodded and the group headed to a local inn. Despite the crowd of people roaming the town, the inn was surprisingly empty.
They choose to sit at a random table close to the entrance. Diana, still a bit wary of their companions, started up the conversation.
"So Sol, what do you do for a living?"
Scrunching his face for a second, Alex mentally shrugged. "I work at this small cafe. . . well, I used to anyway, my sister practically dragged me to play this game. While I was hesitant about it, she assured me that it would work out."
"So I guess the answer would be that I am currently a gamer now? How about you two? Are you both students still or something?"
Minerva giggled lightly at the answer and Diana just smiled. "What gives you that impression?"
Noticing their amused responses, Alex could tell he was off the point. "Well, both of you ladies are incredible and youthful beauties. So, if you don't mind me asking, what are your professions if any?"
"Oh, are you implying that us youthful maidens are jobless bums on the side of the road?" Diana remarked playfully.
"I doubt it, some group of heathens would've kidnapped you the second you hit the street with how radiant you both are."
Unable to hold it any longer, Diana burst out in laughter. Even Minerva was shocked as she very rarely saw this side of her sister.
Minerva tugged at Diana's cloak. "Can I tell him, sis?"
Getting a nod of approval, Minerva gleefully spoke. "We're Princesses!"
Diana immediately punched Minerva in the shoulder. "Be serious, just because others call us that doesn't mean it's true. We both worked hard to get to where we are now."
Rubbing her shoulder in feigned pain, Minerva stuck her tongue at her sister playfully. "Alright geeze, you didn't have to punch me so hard."
As Diana rolled her eyes, Luna entered into the inn at that moment and walked over to the table. "What are you all talking about without me huh?"
"Just trying to get secrets from our two beautiful companions sis. They were just about to say what they do for a living." Giving a thumbs up to Luna as she sat down, Sol motioned for Minerva to keep going.
"Have either of you heard of the company Elements?"
"Oh, you mean the one that has the weird spelling where the second E is backward? We live not too far from their headquarters. I have no idea what they do though."
Both sisters were surprised to hear that their party members were living in the same area as they were. Looking at one another for a moment, Minerva continued.
"Well the company mostly deals with various forms of renewable energy, hence the name. However; the company also has recently started to invest in other promising companies, with Radiance being the first foray into the gaming industry."
"We were both selected to be the first group to be sent into the game and test the waters to see just how worthwhile the investment is and the potential Reign may be so Elements may invest more substantially."
In awe and shock about being in the presence of obviously important pair of sisters in one of the most wealthy companies he knew of, Sol pinched himself to make sure he wasn't still sleeping. Oblivious to the fact he was currently playing a hyper-realistic game, he still felt his pinch and nodded as Minerva spoke more about their roles within the company.
On the side, Luna was in shock. As soon as Minerva brought up the company Elements, she immediately connected to her past life when hearing about the two heiresses that had been in the spotlight for a moment when Elements had become one of the pillar supporters of Radiance and benefited heavily from their investment.
'Hmmm, so that's why Elements kept such a tight lid on the two of them.' With the heiresses becoming key figures, the company must've had measures in place so they wouldn't be kidnapped and such.
Luna pondered what reason they had to become solo players, but given the fact that they had the support of Elements, it became much more reasonable while at the same time puzzling why they didn't end up creating a clan of their own.
Making sure to do everything within her power to keep the two part of the group, it would allow her to push along several of her plans and have more confidence in building a sturdy foundation.
Oblivious to the machinations of his sister, Sol listened attentively and sighed in awe at the breath of the sister's determination and status they held.
Minerva finished telling about their situation, knowing better than to tell too much with Diana glaring daggers in her side with how much she let them know already. It was only then when she realized that Sol was tearing up. "Huh? Why are you crying?"
Sniffing slightly and brushing away his slightly runny nose, Sol clenched his fist. "Because it is so sad that you both had to work under such scrutiny despite being heiress, I can tell that you both worked hard to get where you are but everyone else just blames it on nepotism."
Grasping Minerva's hand suddenly, Sol almost shouted. "Despite not knowing each other for very long, just want you both to know that I support you whole-heartedly and know that you'll reach heights the like that none of those petty people will even be able to see."
Not being able to handle her brother's over the top attitude any longer, Luna smacked him on the head. "Of course they will stupid. If only you weren't so lazy, you might be able to achieve something in your life.
If you all are ready to go, we should head out since we spent a decent amount of time here anyway. We need to all get to at least level 12 before entering The Dryad's Abode.
Unexpectedly, Diana was the first to get up from her chair with a glint in her eyes. "Really?! That's amazing! I'm so excited to see how Radiance might portray a dryad home!" Seeing everyone look at her oddly, Diana quickly composed herself and acted as if nothing happened at all.
Looking at one another, they all laughed loudly and Diana's face reddened as she rushed them out of town hoping to get them to focus on grinding more experience.
Rushing past most of the other players who were spreading deeper into the forest, Luna led them to a fresh patch of elementals. Since this was still part of the forest, the group fought more of sprites and adolescent rock elementals.
With their teamwork quickly falling into a rhythm, they made quick work of the groups available and moved steadily through the forest. Luna informed them that they were getting closer to The Dryad's Abode and would soon come across more difficult enemies.
Almost as if on queue, Sol climbed over a ridge stumbled as he lost his footing. Groaning, Sol got up, and staring straight in his face was a much larger rock elemental then they had faced before.
At a bit over 2 meters in height, the rock elemental roared at the intruder who had rudely woken it up.
Boulder Elemental (Common) Lv. 10
Health: 500
'Shit, this is gonna hurt.' Bracing himself for the blow, Sol knew it would be impossible to avoid the Boulder Elemental's blow.
Running away might have worked but he couldn't guarantee that the Boulder Elemental wouldn't get a hit in and cause him to die before the rest of the team could make their way down the ridge.
Holding up his shield, Sol flew backward and hit the rocky ridge behind him. Gritting his teeth, Sol felt his vision swim and his arm and shoulder lie limp as the pain coursed through his whole body. 'Damn, and I thought all the action till now hurt. Did they have to make the pain so realistic along with everything else?'
A soft glow surrounded Sol as Eilyria quickly cast a healing and barrier spell. "Sol! You gotta get up and run to the right, the rest will be here in just a sec!"
Nodding, Sol followed Eilyria as she blasted the Boulder Elemental with a few light spells to keep it occupied just long enough to let him slip away. Making sure to keep the Boulder Elemental in his sight as he ran, Sol heard a barrage of arrows flying above his head and crash into the Boulder Elemental.
Enraged even further by the thin layer of ice forming over its body, the Boulder Elemental roared at Luna.
Offering her hand to her brother who was still a bit dazed, Luna smiled. "I did warn you about it, didn't I? Come on, I need you in fighting shape soon. Can't have our brave knight lying on the job while us helpless maidens do all the work right?"
"Pfft, if you all are helpless, then there'd be no need for knights at all. Besides, I promised I would be by your side since you saved my life and all."
Luna's eyes glistened slightly as her sorrowful past reared its ugly head again. "Always?"
Smiling brightly and standing up straight as the sun pierced through the trees, Sol looked towards his sister.
"Always."