"Where are you going?" Riu froze on the spot.
He had forgotten that he did not live alone. He in fact, lived with his happy-hating, life sucking foster parents and brother. Aiden, his foster brother, was your everyday, stereotypical popular guy. Hot, athletic, smart and powerful.
"Out." Its best to avoid talking to him. He's not good news.
"Where?" Why was he so nosey?
"With Ember."
"Ha, she's going to the tower. Nice try." He laughed
"She's taking me with her." Riu was getting increasingly mad. Aiden always made him mad.
"Really? Well good luck then." He knew that when Aiden said 'good luck' he really meant was 'don't come back' even if he never said it in those words.
Riu didn't have a good relationship with his foster family, they always hated him for some reason. It was hard to form a relationship with people who hates you. Riu left the house and met with Ember, who has been waiting outside for him.
"Your finally here. Lets go make you a player." She said
"You seem awfully happy."
"Well duh. After you beat the first floor, you can travel with me!" She skipped a step before turning to look at him. He smiled and followed after her.
The tower was just as big as in the game. It loomed over everything, casting shadows behind it. As with the new association and school rules, there are rules for the tower. These rules are made from the tower. Humans have no choice but to obey these rules. The rule is that you can only advance in the tower after beating the first floor. You can't skip it.
"Here we are." She said happily, showing the guard her ID
Since she had one, there was no need to check Riu. The moment they entered, they were one floor 0. They needed to get to floor 1.
"It's right over there. Its a teleporter. It can bring us to any floor you want. Of course there will be people to check your ID." She explained. He already knew this, but didn't say anything to not hurt her feelings.
The feeling of teleportation was, to say, awful. It felt as though your insides were being squished together, you could barely breathe nor stand. But as soon as it started, it ended.
"Fun?" Ember smirked as Riu stumbled.
"Not at all." He answered, wiping dust from his clothes.
Sometime on this floor, he'll have to break away from her. How is the better question. Ember will try to protect him, and he needs to be able to freely hunt. For now as beating floor 1, getting to level 10 is a must. When one reaches level 10 they are given a gift from the tower and up to five random skills. Every time your level doubles, you get these skills. Luck is needed for this.
"Let's go." Ember led the way further into the floor.
They walked for what seemed like forever before stopping near a cave.
"A goblin cave." Ember said, "You know how to take care of them?"
"Yeah." Goblins were easy, just don't get surrounded. It's the hobgoblins and orcs that are the problem. On the first floor they shouldn't be a problem, but he was still only a level 1 F rank. It could get difficult. Now normally a goblin, hobgoblin and orc are considered monsters not beasts, but they are essential for the tower, that is why they are there. They are the only monsters In the tower, as far as he knows.
"Let's see what you can do." She marched right on in.
The cave was dark, though thankfully Embers fire luminated it or they would be coming in it blind.
"Ember, I've played this game more then you. I can take care of a goblin cave." Riu said
He didn't have time to dodge her hand.
"Ow! Hey!" He glared at her, rubbing his head
"Your right, but we aren't in a game Riu. This is real. You can't respawn after you die, and VR isn't experience." She said, arms crossed.
He didn't say anything. It was experience. You were in it. He knew how to take care of things but others insist on babying him. He didn't need that. Maybe this cave was what he needed to show that.
"Here they come." She said looking into the dark part of cave.
A group of five small figures appeared. Ugly, Smelly, Green and short. Goblins. With. . . two heads?
"Uh, Ember?" There were no such goblins in the game.
Through the dim light, he could see her pale face.
"This isn't good." She said
"What?"
"Look, these things have been happening in dungeons and higher floor levels. To think mutants would be on this floor." She said, half to herself.
Mutants? That explained the extra head. Just then the goblin in the lead have a scream and disappeared into thin air.
"Wait what?" Goblins didn't have skills, hobgoblins maybe, but not goblins.
The goblin reappeared in front of him and threw him against the far wall.
"Argh!" Riu spat out blood, how was a goblin so strong? There was only one way to deal with them.
"Run!" Ember grabbed Riu by the arm and yanked him to his feet, "I'll distract them!" She turned to face the mutants again.
This was definitely not a game. The fear he felt was not fake. How could something like this happen? The human race wasn't advanced enough for alchemy.
"Leave!" Ember was no match for them, easily burning them to a crisp. The only problem was more and more were appearing. If there was a mutant hobgoblin.
This was the perfect chance to break away. Riu got to his feet and ran. He didn't go for the exit though. Ember will distract the goblins, he would go for the hobgoblin. The cave opened into a bigger area, showing the hobgoblin. He was a bigger and uglier version of the goblins, but he had three eyes. He also has two heads. Damn it.
"Let's see, a hobgoblins weak spot should be the middle eye. But which one?" Riu muttered, He took out his spear from his inventory. Getting to the eye would be difficult. Hobgoblins will protect that eye no matter what.
The hobgoblin looked down at him. Giving a roar, he raised his club, smashing it next to Riu. Running towards the hobgoblin is the best way to go for now, maybe he could run up his arm or club. He has to make sure Ember wasn't in more danger.
The hobgoblin went in again for another strike. Hobgoblins are smarter then goblins, but dumber then a middle schooler. Their attack patterns are easy to distinguish. When his club hit the floor again, he dug his spear into the rotting wood.
With this, he rose into the air as the hobgoblin tried to shake him off.
"Ugh, stop that." He was starting to get sick.
Without wasting another second be raced forward, across his arm.
"What the hell are you doing!" Crap.
Ember raced into the boss room.
"Stay over there!" She can't get in the way. Not now. He knew that only one eye is the weak point he would first go for the right head and if it's not that one he will go for the left.
"Riu it's both eyes!" Ember screamed
Well thanks. He quickly grabbed onto the clothes that the hobgoblin has on as he tries to shake Riu off. How was he going to get both eyes?
"Riu take this!" Ember threw a knife his way.
It hit the hobgoblin in the nipple. Great. He started to make his way over before a burst of gold flames grabbed the knife and threw at his head. That was a throw he could catch.
"Bad throw!" He called to her
"Shut up and kill that thing already!" She yelled back
With a spear in one hand and a knife on the other, he ran back up the shoulder.
The hobgoblin attempted to grab him but another burst of gold flames grabbed his hand. Ember should be running on empty for mana. With his hands busy, he was able to get the right eye. The hobgoblin let out angry roar and dropped to the floor, Riu had to jump before he got crushed. The hobgoblin stood back up and ran at him.
It looks like it was in a rage.
"Here!" She continued to use her flames to boost him up. He should be able to easily get to his other eye.
God has other plans. The hobgoblin ran past them and towards the goblins who surrounded him.
"I've got this." Ember said
"Are you sure, your mama is getting low isn't it?"
"Worry about killing that thing." She said coldly
She was probably mad at him. He would be mad too.
"Fine." He raced forward as Ember made his path. It was now or never.
He dug his spear into the ground and launched himself into the air. Thankful to his high agility stat, he was able to launch himself high into the air. The hobgoblin attempted to smack him out of the air, but he dug his spear into his club.
He dug his nails into the woods and began to crawl towards the rampaging hobgoblin. He was swinging his club like madman, making it all the harder to hold on. He finally got to his neck. It let out another roar.
"Ugh, ever heard of toothpaste?" Riu grabbed his spear and threw it into his eye.
Just then, the hobgoblin grabbed him and threw him across the cave. His back hit the wall and he was sure it was going to be bruised.
"Thank God for high stats." He groaned, trying to get up.
{You leveled up!}
{You leveled up!}
He got multiple of these messages. This meant he killed it.
"Riu!" Ember ran over to him
"Hey." He said, wincing at the pain.
the fact that she just slapped him didn't help.
"What were you thinking? Are you suicidal?" She scolded
"Not like you could do it alone!" He protested
"I'm still stronger. I can take care of myself." She pointed out.
"Whatever. Let's go." He said, using the wall to help him up.
"Right, let's get the crystals first." She said.
***
For the next few hours, they were bomb barded with questions regarding the cave. Riu got some treatment and rest in the school infirmary. Soon everyone left his room.
"Finally." He hadn't gotten a chance to see how many levels he went up, "status window."
A blue screen appeared in front of him. Showing all of the basic information.
"Wow, I leveled up 8 times." Riu smiled. Two more levels till level ten. Who knows, maybe this will work out after all.
"Well?" He jumped at the voice.
Ember made her way inside the room.
"I leveled up 8 times." He said, why keep it a secret?
"Wow. Well I guess it was a mutant." She said, crossing her arms.
The silence In the room could kill someone.
"I'm sorry." He decided to break the silence
"For?"
"Staying."
"Oh well," She sighed, walking over and sitting on the chair, "we're alive, we beat the thing and leveled you up."
Riu nodded, thankful she wasn't still mad.
"You don't know how scared I was throughout that." She whispered
Riu looked at the ceiling, "I can take care of myself just as good as you."
"I know, I just can't help it. Knowing you. ." Her voice trailed off.
Riu didn't answer. He knew she cared for him, that's why he wanted to beat the hobgoblin alone. He didn't want to worry her, she was his best friend.
"Oh yeah, here. I grabbed this for you." She pulled his spear from her inventory.
"Thank you." He grabbed it, putting it into his own inventory.
"It's an amazing weapon. Where'd you get it?" She asked, her face gave no hint on what she was thinking.
"I made it." He said
"Made?" Her face slackened in surprise
"Yeah, blacksmiths and alchemists were a must in the game." Riu explained
"We are not in a game!" Ember stood up
Riu looked at her in shock, of course this wasn't a game.
"You keep talking about that stupid game, it's not a game." She said, her voice shaking a bit.
"I know that." Riu said
"Then why?" She stared at him
"This is DragonTale. If you read the very first message, you would have caught that. This is a game become reality. My knowledge of the game is knowledge of the world. That's why." He explained
"I see, that's how it is. Then is there anything else I should know?"
Riu hesitated before answering, "nothing."
"Fine." She got up and turned to leave, "get well soon. When you leave, go to the principal, he should have your ID."
Riu inwardly jumped for joy. With that, it is easy to get in and out of the tower alone.
"Dear, how are you feeling?" The school nurse walked up to him.
"Fine."
"Then you should head home." She said, smiling sweetly.
"Yes ma'am, thank you." Riu got up and bowed.
"No problem." She said
He started to make his way towards the principals office. He stood at the door, wondering if he should have asked Ember to come with him. He was always afraid of the principal. He knocked.
"Come in."
He opened the door to reveal a middle aged man. He wore a black suit, a sword sitting behind him. He has slick blonde hair and piercing green eyes. Eyes that find any fault. This man was the famous principal Lou. The man who built this school from the ashes. A genius S class who is ranked number 6 in the whole world.
"Um, you have my ID?" Riu hated the way he looked at him.
"It's right here." He opened the drawer on his left ans pulled out a small card.
Riu walked forward to grab it. It really was his ID.
"I must say, congratulations on beating a mutant hobgoblin." He said
"Thank you, sir." Riu bowed.
Principal Lou smiled, a smile that couldn't be trusted, "Here is your code."
He pushed a small piece of paper towards him. Riu reached forward and grabbed it, just for Principal Lou to grab his wrist.
"I'd be careful with being around well known people." He said quietly in his ear.
Riu pulled away quickly, holding the paper
"Thank you, sir. I'll keep that in mind." He replied, exiting the office.
Be careful around well-known people. Was he talking about Ember? It made sense. The two of them made a ruckus. But why did he have to be careful around her? Was it because people like her better? Or was it Ember herself? Riu slapped his face, shaking the thoughts. He'd just be more careful from now on, no need to be so serious about it.
Not to mention, at least the man noticed that he helped defeat the hobgoblin. Riu sighed. Exhaustion was setting in. He better make it home quickly before he collapsed. Luckily his house was close to the school. The way home seemed to extend, it felt as though he walked for what seemed like an hour when he really only took 15 minutes.
"Oh look who's back. Our mutant slayer. Wait no, I mean our leech." Aiden came out of nowhere and sneered.
Riu was too tired to say anything from him, so he just pushes past him and made his way to his room. He was too tired to fight back. Not like he would anyways, it's just too complicated to say anything to bullies.
Tossing and turning, he realized that he wasn't going to sleep anytime soon. Why was he so dizzy when he stood then? That didn't matter right now. Riu pulled out his ID. The ID served more than just an identification, it's evidence. It's also a bank card. Any money you make from dungeons goes into your own bank account.
You can find out how much is in the account through your phone. The code is used to make payments and stuff. Its best to loe to his foster family about it for now, or they'll try to take all his money.
His mind slowly drifted back to Principal Lou. As he said, Principal Lou is ranked 6th on the world rankings. In the short time that the world has become like this, people wondered who the strongest players were. Currently first place is taken by a man named Yoo Jooghyuk from Korea. It was decided that the world competition would take place yearly.
Of course, this is not set in stone. Someone doesn't have to participate. So in reality, someone could be stronger then Yoo Jooghyuk but we wouldn't know.
Riu wondered if there was anyone who didn't participate because of strength. He also wondered if one day he could get on the world rankings. It could take years, but he'd get there. For now, leveling and ranking up are priority.
There was a knock on his door. Without waiting for an answer, it opened. It was Kaira.
"Go make dinner. I have to go somewhere." She said before leaving.
This happens sometimes, Kaira having an errand and unable to cook for Jack, her husband. Riu slowly got up and headed downstairs. Kaira kisses Aiden and left. What should he make? There was a list of things on the fridge. Today was seafood bowl. Easy.
"Aw man, I was hoping you wouldn't make it. It always tastes weird when you do." Aiden said, coming up besides Riu.
"Then why don't you make it?" He grumbled, getting out the pan.
Seafood bowl was a mix of different seafood. Everything to make it seemed already out and prepared. This was probably a last minute errand.
"Nah. I can't cook." He said
"Then stop complaining." Riu said
"I do as I please." He got quiet.
Was it too much to wish he left? Riu turned to grab the crab and he was still there. Dang.
"So, what happened?" Aiden asked
"What do you mean?" Avoid the question.
The crab was the first to be added.
"I mean in the mutated cave. It's rare to see one one the first floor. The news is going world wide." Aiden said, leaning against the counter.
Should he just say that Ember did all the work?
"I mean, strange isn't it? This whole thing is based off that stupid game you used to play." Riu froze. Aiden definitely wasn't an idiot.
"So what?" He glanced at him
"No need to get so defensive," he put his hands up," I just want to know if you know something."
"How would I know anything? It's too unreal for any of this to be happening at all. There was nothing about mutated monsters or beasts in the game." Riu said.
"Really? Not even in the passing?" He said leaning closer
"Nothing." Through the lie, he stood his ground.
There has indeed been a word about mutated monsters and beasts in the main storyline of the game. It never happened in it due to the player, but it was still a major arc in the game. Aiden wouldn't know this unless he played to the middle part of the game, but he had lost interest in it at the first bit.
Riu started to set the table as Kaira came back inside. Aiden backed away, seemingly with no more questions.
"Thank you." She grabbed the food and began serving the plates.
Soon enough, Jack came in. He was a tall, broad man. Like Aiden, he has blonde hair. He was the bread winner of the family, as he was an A class. He was apart of a large guild known as [Red Ren].Riu didn't know exactly what rank Kaira was, but he guessed C rank, though he couldn't be sure.
"Looks good." He said, kissing Kaira and taking his place at the end of the table.
They ate supper in silence. It wasn't until dessert came out that, that silence was broken.
"You got an ID right?" Jack asked
"Yes sir." Riu said
"So you did beat that mutant?"
"No sir. That was Ember." Riu said quietly
He nodded as if he suspected it. Aiden gave him a sideways glance. The rest of dessert was also in silence. Riu gave a sigh of relief when he got back to his peaceful room. But that peace was soon broken when Aiden came in. At least Kaira and Jack had the decency to knock.
"What a lie. 'Oh Ember did everything'" He said mocking him.
"What?" Riu stared at him
"Please, Ember told me everything already. You can't fool me." He laughed
" Please, Ember hates you." Riu said, it was true, she told him herself.
"We've been working together lately, due to our statuses. We've actually become pretty close." Aiden said, picking at his nails.
Riu said nothing. A million thoughts going through his head.
"You should wonder where you place with her." He said laughing as he left the room.
Riu stared after him, too much in shock to say anything else. That couldn't be true, right?