"Welcome back Shidou, you have 200 credits to use today. Please enjoy your stay."

Shidou slowly opened his eyes. He was greeted by various floating platforms and a pink-tinted sky. He was back at the Main Hub. The place seemed to have a larger crowd than before. It was Saturday, therefore more people would have free time on their hands. Shidou was no different. After rolling around in his one-bedroom apartment wrapping his brain around the homework that was due on Monday and the inevitable divine punishment that would await him if he failed to hand it in, Shidou put it on halt and escaped into the Dream Konnect.

It was easy to distinguish between the DPC and other people. DPC always have a festive attire that suits the season and had a certain headset like the Dream Konnect in shape, a distinct colour for each type of DPC. Green headsets were for general requests such as escorting to a certain area or to fetch certain items. They have the lowest rewards but also have next to no risk of doing them.

Next were the Red headsets. They oversaw maintaining peace and providing certain areas with energy to build up to events. This included slaying monsters or capturing rare creatures based off myths, this was a large hit for young men who were obsessed with being a hero and fighting strong monsters. Once monsters were defeated, people can collect energy from them using a provided jar and hand them in for not only credit but also to participate in the upcoming events. The upcoming event is the Spring festival. Not much information is known but it is said that a large dragon will descend on whoever collects the most energy and grant them a wish.

Last, the yellow headsets were DPC who resembled merchants. They provide people with consumables and equipment for rent. By exchanging credit, people can prepare before they venture out if they plan on going somewhere dangerous. The further from the Main Hub that people ventured, the more dangerous it became; However, people may purchase a safety item that will prevent them from encountering anything dangerous if they wish to explore, however, they will not be able to take requests from any Red headset DPC until they return the item.

Shidou arched his head towards the large clock tower. It read "10 past 10." He paced around for a bit, annoyed that his so-called 'guide' was late. He was plenty capable of taking a request by himself, however, he wanted to cheer Yui up after what happened at school. He felt partially responsible for what happened, therefore he asked Yui to assist in his first adventure. While coming up with a list of reasons as to why Yui may be late, he felt a light prod on his right shoulder. As he turned his head, he felt another prod that went into his cheek, the person's nail pressing uncomfortably on his face. Past the finger, Shidou spotted a pouting Yui, bent over and glaring daggers at him. Rather confused as to why Yui was annoyed with him, he straightened himself and faced her.

"Where were you? I was waiting here for ages. You're like thirty minutes late!"

"Why are you waiting here? I told you to meet me underneath the Old Wisdom Tree, didn't I? I said that the Main Hub was too crowded, and we'd spent forever looking for each other. But under the spirit tree, it'd be nice and quiet."

"You know, now that you spell it out, that does make sense, however, you missed out one important detail."

"Oh? and what would that be, oh wise one."

"As generous as you are for helping me out, it might be helpful if you pointed me towards the whereabouts of the spirit tree in the first place, don't you think?"

"it's not like it's hard to find. Anyway, you're treating me to lunch next time. Let's go! the night is young! let us go to where the stars take us!"

"That's not exactly what a guide should be saying is it?" Shidou sighed at Yui's ignorance as he ran to catch up with Yui, who was skipping ahead, humming an annoying tune.

Yui stopped in front of a large bulletin board, plucked off a piece of paper and handed it over to the nearby DPC. The bulletin board was surrounded by people who were gazing at it from top to bottom. Its red colour shone brightly and made it easily distinguishable from a distance as it stood out from the greenery that surrounded the area. Stars hovered above each piece of paper indicating its danger level. They ranged from one star to five, one being the least dangerous and five being the most dangerous. The term "dangerous" is used lightly as there is no actual pain nor death nor any discomfort when it comes to monster slaying. Upon leaving the safe areas, people will have five "lives" that will be consumed upon contact with anything marked as "dangerous". This included any form of attack; projectile or hazardous terrain will consume a life. When someone's total life count reaches zero, they will be teleported back to the hub and have 50% of their credits taken away as a result.

"Hey! I found the most perfect request that we can do together!" Yui shoved the piece of paper up to Shidou's eye level, almost blasting him in the nose as it stopped a few inches from his face."

"Woah too close! I can't read it!" Shidou took the piece of paper and skimmed over it. "Lemme see. So, we're going to… exterminate some raiding trolls at a nearby forest. Sounds easy enough, but why this one?"

"I'm glad you asked Shidou! This request is limited to once a month, but rumour has it that deep in the forest, there is hidden treasure! plus you're pretty lucky mister I-started-with-two-hundred-credits."

"Shhh, I told you to keep a low-profile about that didn't I? What if someone overhears us and gets jealous?"

Yui raised an eyebrow at Shidou, unimpressed.

"We're stopping by the yellow DPC first anyway, you're basically naked right now, we need you to look your best if you're gonna be hanging out with me."

Without skipping a beat, Yui pivoted on the spot and headed east towards the vendors. With Shidou's extra bonus, he ended up with more than he probably needed, but it was a valuable experience. Yui seemed to be having a lot of fun at least while Shidou felt more like a doll playing dress up rather than a warrior about to set off on an adventure. Shidou decided to outfit himself with a basic sword and shield combo along with basic leather armour to cover himself. This armour set gave him an extra two lives. Rather pleased with the outcome, Shidou wondered what kind of weapon Yui would use. Maybe she would use a bow and arrow combo since she's so fast and quick on her feet, or a Greatsword to smite anything that encounters her seemingly endless energy that exuded from her, or perhaps she took a liking to magic after experiencing fire magic for the first time recently. Filled with wonder, Shidou turns around to find that Yui is-

"Gonna have to go with the big guns! Yaaaa!" Yui lets out a war cry as she pulls out an enormous cylinder from thin air, spins it around and slams it into the ground.

"What… what is that thing your holding? Is that a massive club or something that you're gonna use? How are we gonna loot them if you golf swing that thing into their face?"

"it's not a club Shidou, it's a… you know what, you'll see for yourself once we get out there, hurry up, let's go let's go!"

Yui lifts her hand and two small puffs of cloud appear. She explains that they are basically a taxi service and can transfer people over large distances for the price of a few credits. The two of them floated above the landscape as they are taken off the safety of land and begin accelerating away to new areas. Yui sits with a smile on her face as the wind blows through her hair, her bright blue eyes full of life as they stood out from the pink tinted clouds. She happily hummed a catchy tune to herself while she bobbed her head along. Shidou's eyes widened as he sped forwards. Farms, ice caps, volcanic sites, marshes, they flew over all of them. They greeted other people along the way, it seemed like a lot of people caught wind of the hidden treasure and came to try their luck. The clouds did an excellent job of avoiding any collisions as they effortlessly danced around each other. Despite the air being so vast, the clouds have a set path to fly, therefore people can easily crowd around one specific area while travelling. Shidou made a mental note of four other places that he already wanted to go and explore later and soon they had arrived at the forest.