Note: The first chapter has been slightly rewritten and the format changed. I wasn't sure how to show it besides writing this chapter and posting it. If you wanted to re-read it go ahead, the first version was a mess. But for now, chapter 2!
Holy christ, it really happened, Nexon just decided to insert people into the game now... Is this even a game anymore?
If I was dreaming that was out of the question entirely because pain was apparent, and you wake up whenever that happens. Past experience with pinching my cheek while asleep proved to be an effective get-out-of-jail-free card. Still, I'm in the bloody Maple World! To be honest, it's not the worst series to be inserted into. Sure Pokemon might have been a better choice but thank god I wasn't inserted into Dark Souls, god the poor souls who received that for their escapism.
Actually, what class would I be rolling? Warriors might be fun, hitting things with a sword and force is cool. Though, if HP washing existed here… It seems that going magician was the only option. They were pretty alright, Archmages were the kings of farming and Bishops were the group player's best friend. They could manage without washing as "Magic Guard" protected them, you just sacrificed mana for health.
Wait, now that I'm in the world, do the rules of the game even apply anymore? If they don't then it would be time to go wild on creating new spells. Fire and Poison wizards had it rough compared to their Ice and Lighting counterpart, but without rules, who knows who's the best. I shouldn't be thinking about this, we still have… Like maybe twenty-five levels until we reach 2nd job, there's still a fair grind ahead of me. Still, how do you know if you're ready for advancement? Perhaps the instructors know when it's time or can tell you how much experience you need to the next level.
Looking up, the portal to the east was still apparent but it's a short walk. Getting up and walking, I noticed that the snails started to avoid me after the recent battle; the green ones were outright hiding from me. Guess they're being reasonable, losing a 1v30 fight is just...I can't think of the humiliation someone feels after that. The portal was noticeably longer to reach than the previous area, but nobody attempted to stop me.
I didn't even think twice after reaching the portal and entering it to reach a new area. It appeared to be nearly the same as the previous but this time, a portal was behind me. There was no reason to go back as the area before was a dead end. Like the previous area, east was the only direction that was possible. The walk had me climb a hill, but reaching the top there was another portal in the distance so I walked towards it as well.
Climbing the ladders to the islands felt pointless, most likely they had snails and there wasn't a need to fight more. Now after thinking that, the blue snails are starting to come up to fight. I would comment, but everything felt the same. Kill snail, loot drops, walk a few feet and repeat. Despite being in person, the grind of the game was back in force. Eventually, the trek was over, and after entering the next portal, the area revealed to me was different than the previous one.
There was a fork in the road ahead of me, one on a hill and one going down the side of it. Then there was the fact of a new snail amongst the blue and green ones. This one was red, and it didn't go down in two stabs, but five! It was smarter than the rest of the snails so the fight was not a brainless hack and slash.
After downing one, a silver rod with crystals adorning its ends dropped. If my knowledge was right, this was a Metal Wand. Hopefully, the magic attack on it wasn't below normal, but still, this would be very useful. After grabbing it and placing it in my bag, I was about to head further before a voice called out...
"Excuse me, are you heading towards Amherst?"
Turning towards the voice, a woman who looked familiar was above me. "Yes I was, but aren't you Sera?"
The woman sighed before replying, "I get mistaken for her often, she's my sister. If you are heading towards Amherst, can you deliver this letter to Lucas? It's a subject of urgent importance!"
"Yeah, just hand it to me and I can help you out." The woman dropped the letter, and I caught it and placed it in my pocket.
"Thank you, Lucas has blond hair and a beard, he shouldn't be hard to find. I almost forgot! My name is Maria, I hope your travels are safe!"
I smiled and said back, "I'm William, I'll be back as soon as possible!"
Alright, if my knowledge is correct, the route to Amherst was the upper route. A ladder was on the side of the hill and after climbing it, there was a large sign saying "Amherst" with an arrow pointing right next to a portal.
The trip should have been fine but there was a fair bit of red snails and a new foe. It almost looked like a Goomba, but too different in appearance so the lawyers couldn't sue. It had an orange and yellow cap while accompanied by two feet. It moved much faster than a snail, but like a blue one, it was fragile. If my memory is right they're called "Shrooms"
The trip to the portal was actually somewhat difficult. There was a considerable amount of red snails and shrooms, the latter was more of a threat than the snails because of their speed. I had to resort to eating two of the red apple's mid-fight as my body started to feel slower after taking too many blows.
By the time I reached the next portal, a handful of snails and shrooms fell, the rest of them backed off as they didn't want to have any more losses. Actually, one of the mushrooms dropped a pair of jeans. Somehow, they looked like they would fit.
Making sure nobody was near, I quickly changed pants before putting the black sweats into the bag. Putting them on wasn't a problem, but the moment they were on me they fell. Perhaps my body wasn't strong enough to wear them yet. A quick change later and my original sweats were back on.
Entering the portal after this led me to an area littered with islands and portals. Looking at the sun and taking a guess, it was around noon. There wasn't a way to check if the portals led into areas with more portals and I didn't want to waste time checking each one.
Looking to the east, another portal was a distance away but it wasn't long before I reached it. Entering the portal, instead of the mess of floating islands previously, there was a small village ahead. There was one large house in the middle of the settlement so that must be Lucas' house.
Walking into the village, there were a fair bit of people walking the streets around it, and most of them looked familiar to what Heena said was normal. White shirts, sandals, and shorts. I was going to ask questions, but then remembered I'm in a video game, so everyone who had white and blue was just the garden variety Beginner. Though the amount of glances people gave me told me that I was an oddball compared to everyone else.
"Hey, Redman!" I assumed someone was referring to me and after a short glance around the person who called me was apparent, boy did he have an outfit.
The man looked like a stereotypical surfer, long blond hair, blue eyes, and a surfboard. I wasn't going to comment on his outfit because it wasn't anything special. "You mean me? Also are you sure you're in the right place? I don't think there's a beach nearby."
The man just shrugged before answering, "Eh, doesn't matter. I've been on Maple Island for a fair bit and you just stick out like a giant cherry. You need help around Amherst?"
Now that he mentioned it... "Actually I do need help, do you know where I can find Lucas? I have a letter from Maria that's of high priority."
The man pointed to the south towards the large building in the center of town, must be Lucas's home. "Maria got you to deliver that? Nice, though you might want to know where to get more work around these parts, right?"
Wait, wasn't…. Now that I think about it, in a town like this looking for specific people could end me wasting all afternoon finding them, so this would be in my best interest to know. "Actually yeah, is there a person or place where I can find work?"
The man smiled. "Ah, there's a noticeboard in the chief's house where people put up adverts for quests. All you do is take the post and talk to the person and finish what they need. Efficient right?"
I was impressed, this must have been an effort to set up. "Damn, it seems like this place is built on adventuring. Actually, you seem to have been in this place for a long, long while. Why haven't you left for the mainland?"
The man put a hand on his chin and furrowed his brow before answering, "You raise a good point, I arrived at Maple Island when I was 9, I'm 26 now."
What?! "Holy hell man, you must be lightyears ahead of everyone else here! What's keeping you here?"
The man glanced down a bit before answering. "The oath I made when I was 9, the Islander Rite. I can't leave this island, ever. In return, I don't need to eat, sleep, nor drink!"
That's something that felt familiar, but wait... "What about your parents, don't they miss you?"
The man looked downhearted at this before replying, "They do, but thankfully I have mail communication with the mainland so they can still talk to me. If you're asking why I can't just leave right now, If I try to leave, the rite causes me to fall apart the moment I'm off this island. I've had years to think about it but there are no other options besides sticking with it, but let me tell you something."
"Yeah? What's your wisdom?" The man twirled his surfboard before striking a pose and exclaiming.
"My name is Akoni Kapua, and I aim to be the strongest Islander in the WORLD!" I almost forgot Maplestory had anime tropes and influences because this made me remember it instantly.
To be honest, the guy had charm. It's a shame he can't be a warrior, he'd be a kickass one. "Well Akoni, I got faith in your goal. That said, I wish to become a magician in the future. Here's to hoping your future is great, from a friend named William!"
I held a fist out and he quickly bumped it in return. "Well then William, hope to hear your name around these parts! Take care!"
Waving goodbye to him, I began to walk towards the chief's house and had to notice it was less of a house, and more like a city hall, except it was smaller and more...Rural is the word I could use. Entering the building, a chime was audible above me before looking over the room. There was a board filled with papers and posters to the left of me, but there was a man sitting at a desk to my right. In fact, he looked exactly like what Maria said he would look like, hopefully, the glare he has isn't for me.
Perhaps the board would be first in my visit here, walking up and looking over, people seem to put posters or fliers for help. There was a map that was pinned up showing the entire town with buildings marked. If only- "Free to take with you"? Hopefully, this isn't a trick that would lead to me getting yelled at. Grabbing the poster I tried to tear it off softly and was able to get a manageable copy of the map, looking back to the board the poster regenerated itself.
Thank god for magic, it's gonna suck when my time here is up. Looking elsewhere there were a few posters that took my interest. Most of them gave me memories of a time past.
"Advanced Adventurer Training" was one that was interesting, posted up by a person called "Mai". The reward was a weapon, then the choice of potions or a shield. It wasn't apparent what the challenge was, but it must have been a hard one if it had a reward like that. There was a general location listed on the poster, and looking on the map it was on the outskirts of the town just barely in the forest. I took the poster and put it in a spare pocket for future reference.
The next poster that was on my mind was "Clean up Amherst!" There was a short description of how the streets were piling up trash. There was a specific list of recyclable objects attached, but the most apparent were screws and boards. A person called "Pio" would reward adventurers who bring him the objects listed. It was easy to figure out what the reward was as the location given was the town's furniture store.
I took the sheet and one last advert took my notice. "Snail Hunters needed!" Looking over it, it was from the same person who I was looking for. It seems like he has a problem with snails as the wording for the job seemed to be in anger.
Looking at the map on my person, finding the potion store was my highest priority. Thankfully it was a block away from my current location so selling my loot wouldn't be hard. Taking the advert I turned around to walk up to the desk, Lucas noticed me walking up and began to talk to me.
"Yes? The paper in your hand tells me you're interested in the job."
"Yes I'm here for that, but I'm also here to deliver a message from Maria." I pulled out the letter, put it on the desk, and he quickly picked it up and opened it, after a glance he sighed.
"Thank you, I was worried for her as the monsters seem to be more brazen these days." He pulled open a drawer on the desk and began to write a letter, it wasn't long before he put it in an envelope and handed it to me.
"Here, this should answer all the questions she has." Taking the letter and putting it in my pocket, I placed the advert on the table.
"So what do you need me to do? Any particular location you want me to look into?" He shook his head before replying.
"No, no, you don't need to hunt in a specific area, just bring me the shells. Unless you're a pacifist, they tell me enough of the kill."
"Actually, I have a fair bit of shells on me." Grabbing the bag on my belt and placing it on the table, I began to pull out the shells from my trip here. The bag almost seemed like a clown car as after emptying it, there were nineteen green shells, eleven blue shells, and nine red shells. I quickly tied the bag back on my belt afterward.
The man was impressed before replying. "By Rhinne's grace, you seem to hate them as much as I do! Tell me, what job are you going to take when you reach Victoria?"
Rhinne? Something about that name seemed familiar, but I couldn't nail it. However, his question was easy to reply to. "A magician, I plan to get a place in Ellinia and start a journey there."
The man opened another drawer under the desk and glanced over it before pulling out a pair of yellow gloves. "Here, normally I just pick one at random but for you, these would help you. The man who gave me they said they'd make you smarter when you wear them."
"Yellow Work Gloves," a good starting item for a magician, even if it's just +1 int.
"Thank you, by the time I become one they'd help me quite a bit." Picking them up I attempted to wear them, but when they were on they just fazed out of my hands.
"Hm, you're not experienced enough to wear them yet. Don't worry; by the time you leave this island you'd be able to wear them. What's your name? Your outfit is a sore thumb to the regulars I see."
"William, William Dominic. If there's a mail-service here, I'd try to send word back when I reach the mainland."
The man chuckled before replying, "We do have a post office here, though I don't get much mail myself these days. Good luck on your adventure Dominic!"
I gave a quick "Thank you!" before exiting the building.
The next stop was the potion store to sell my current inventory and perhaps get a better bag.
On the way, it was easy to notice crates that were almost in a state of decay on the sides of the streets. Hopefully, there wasn't actual garbage within. Normally, you'd whack the crate until it broke but instead of brute force, I slid my blade within a crack on the top and attempted to pry open the container.
The crate lid flipped open with relative ease, and looking inside the crate there were a few bronze coins within, a handful of rusted screws, and a few pieces of salvageable wood. Storing them in the bag wasn't an issue, but a gut feeling told me this bag wasn't going to hold much more for long.
Reaching the potion shop, it looked the same as in the one in game at first glance. But once I entered, it was another story. The closest comparison for the interior was a gas station's interior. There were bottles and food set up on shelves, but there were some boxes for bulk packs on the bottom. The counter had a woman working there and I walked up to talk to her.
"You have things to sell? Most people walk to the counter first then browse with the money they get from selling." I got read like a book.
"Yeah, I have a fair bit of stuff to sell." Grabbing the bag off of my belt I began to pull out the clothing in it. The clerk looked over the selection and gave her prices.
"The shirts I'd give you fifteen hundred for each, and the pants fourteen hundred and the jeans for twenty-four hundred. Overall, sixty-eight hundred for the lot, is this acceptable?"
"More than enough. Say, what do you do with what people sell? I figure a lot of people are adventurers and sell their stuff here." This was a question never answered in the game, tons of people sold dozens of gear for meso, and stores just magically had the funds to support this.
"You're not the first person to ask, it's a complicated question to be honest. Want the full reason or a short and simple one?"
The answer was one that many would want to hear. "I got the time to blow, I'm genuinely interested." She took the clothing, pulled out a drawer and began to pull out paper bills. That was another question to ask, but seeing the "100" on them made me assume they were used for big transactions.
She started to speak as she counted the bills. "Well, the reason we charge so much for clothing like this is that they have a certain magic to them. It helps protect the person better than normal clothing and doesn't wear and tear like normal. We normally have enough money to buy anything an adventurer gives us, so buying it isn't a problem."
"Once we have too much stock we send it off to the mainland where they then dissolve the clothing for its magical energy, then use it in other objects such as potions, magical food, and better clothing and armor. It's the reason that we keep afloat, the money we give comes back to us in the end."
Well, it made sense, but how did the monsters get clothing and weapons in the first place? Perhaps that's a question for another time, the explanation helped clear up a question that many asked. When she finished her explanation, she handed over a fair stack of cash. "Here, sixty-eight hundred mesos. Got any other questions about the Amherst Department Store?"
Ah, so it wasn't a potion store, guess my memory wasn't as solid as I thought. I took the bills, but there was still a question on my mind. "Yeah, do you have some blue and white cloth? I was going to the furniture store to get a custom-ordered chair."
She replied, "I think we have some in the back, let me go check." She walked away from the counter and into the back of the store.
While she was checking, perhaps buying some potions for the future would be wise. One of the isles had only potions in it, and that was my first stop. Looking over the aisle, there were only red, orange, and white potions on the shelves, and reading a sign helped me learn a fair bit more than what the game gave.
Red potions were helpful in closing minor cuts and wounds, but orange potions helped clear up more injuries than the latter. White potions were expensive but powerful, they helped seal major injuries, and if ingested could stop internal bleeding and other invisible injuries.
They sold potions in many sizes, but the most common size was 8 fluid ounces. The Maple World uses the metric system, guess nobody is going to get mad at that. Red potions were priced fifty mesos for a normal bottle, orange for a hundred and sixty mesos, and white for three hundred and twenty mesos. Some of the bottles on the shelf were larger than normal, so they must be sold for bulk. Noticing a warning on a bottle read that the stronger a person, is the less effective a potion is, There wasn't a firm number so this would explain the reason why nobody uses white potions when they reach Leafre.
Guessing from my current level, orange potions would be the most effective. Red potions would heal too little but white potions would be too much. Looking around the general area, there was a twelve-pack for nineteen hundred and twenty mesos. Picking up the box and walking to the counter the woman came back with two lengths of cloth that were blue and white.
Looking at the box in my hands she drew on a sheet of paper before replying. "The cloth is twenty hundred for both of them, and with the twelve-pack, you're eighty short of forty hundred mesos."
I took forty bills out of the stack and put it in a pocket of my swats, then handed the rest to her, "Keep the change, and you were right about money coming back.''
She laughed for a moment before answering "Yeah, most adventurers here spend over half of what they sell. Though you're the first to ask about cloth." I looked at the box and it was obvious that it wouldn't fit in my bag, but the cloth managed to fit in perfectly. It looks like carrying the box was the only option.
After picking up the box, I almost walked out of the door before remembering the main purpose of coming here. Turning towards the clerk and asked. "Do you sell bags here? Like the ones that help you carry more without weighing you down?"
The woman sadly stated. "No, normally the outfitters who sell the bags you describe are on the mainland. I guess that's why you only have the sack Roger gives out."
Damn, guess the sack is going to stay for the whole trip. "Well, thank you for the help, I gotta get a move on to Pio."
Exiting the store with a faint "Have a good day" behind me, I started the trek to the store but noticed a significant problem. Holding the assortment of goods in my hand was not efficient. There wasn't a place to put things down so the only option was to head to the next stop with my hands full. The trip to the furniture shop was uneventful. Guess sometimes life in a video game can be mundane, constant action non-stop would make a man go mad.
Reaching the store, there was a major problem, no hands were free to open the door.
"Excuse me, do you need help, sir?" I turned toward the voice of a girl.
I answered, "Yeah, the box wouldn't fit in my bag so I had to carry it here. Just open the door for me, I'll handle the rest." the girl quickly opened the door and held it open for me.
"Thank you, the name's William," She replied "Rain. I hope Pio treats you well!" She walked off, I swear she had a quest in the game.
Pio was an NPC I doubt anyone could forget, he was the man who gave everyone a chair, except for the quick ones who didn't quest.
Entering the store felt like I was in a smaller IKEA, except everything felt more rustic. There was a sound from the back of the store and an audible "Give me a moment!" There was a counter upfront, so my current handful was placed on it. Taking a look at the potion box, I started opening it and noticed that the potions were stacked the same way a 12 pack of soda would be. Grabbing the bottles and stuffing them down my bag was a short task, though now there was an empty box afterwards.
"Hey there! I guess you're here from the advert?" Turning to the voice revealed an umber man with an orange cap.
"Yep, I got the paper right here." I dug in my pockets to place an advert on the counter. "Can I have a custom order? I got blue and white cloth already."
He had a contorted expression, "What are you talking about? I only asked for materials but never said what I'd give."
Shit, he got me. This wasn't a simple task of explaining because I don't think the explanation of "I'm from a different world where this is a video game" would fly. Still, there was an easy explanation out of this conundrum.
"Well, I just figured if you needed a few pieces of wood, you were going to make a piece of furniture out of it. Word came from the mainland that you made a chair for people who helped clean up the streets, and it was simple to piece things together."
The man whistled, "Damn, I didn't know my name was common in Victoria. Yes, you are right about me giving you a chair, normally I'd use the spare green and blue cloth I have, but for a custom one I'd need to charge you."
Figures, still need to pay a fee instead of getting it for free. "Well, what's the rate you're offering?"
"A million mesos." He spoke flatly with no emotion.
He has to be bluffing, I doubt even Akoni would have that money. It's true if you had enough equipment drops you'd get that money, but potion and rent costs must cut into it hard. "You're bluffing, nobody on this island has the money to blow on that."
He gave no reply before he started to laugh, afterward he regained his composure. "You got me, it's been a while since someone asked me for a custom order. The normal rate is twenty-five hundred mesos."
I pulled out the meso stack from my pocket and took three from it before placing the rest on the counter. "Here, I sold some equipment at the department store for sixty-eight hundred meso. I spent forty hundred there so this should be twenty-five."
He took the stack and started to count before nodding after he counted it all, "You must have had a ton of stuff or just got lucky with monsters, still I can finish your order right now."
Huh? I know in the game it was a few seconds but for here as well? "What do you mean? Don't you have to physically assemble the chair?"
"Not quite, follow me." He walked into the back of the store and I followed. The room in front of me had construction supplies all around but there was a circle in the middle of the room.
"Do you have the materials on you?" I quickly started to pull out the materials from the bag and handed them to him. He then placed each item around the circle before placing the mesos in the middle.
He held his arm in front of me when I walked to the circle, "Stand back, it wouldn't be pretty if you got caught in the circle."
I had no memory of this happening in the game. "What, are you trying to do-?" This entire process was similar to something that was in the game but I couldn't remember the name of it.
"Crafting." he then touched the circle and closed his eyes. Then the circle started to glow as each object started to combine into a sphere of light. Thankfully it wasn't bright enough to make me wince but there was a bright flash blinding me.
When the light died down, there was a blue and white wooden lawn chair in the middle of the room. "So, this is how you create furniture? With magic?"
He shook his head before answering, "No, Maker. It's a skill most craftsmen have now these days. We stopped creating objects physically a few years ago."
That's the skill I remember, it wasn't in the game for long but it had a charm to it. Wait wasn't this only trainable in Magatia? "Where did you learn it? I'm becoming a magician so more magic would be nice."
He turned to me with a smile, "Can't tell you, it's a secret."
Fine then, keep your secrets. Looking at the chair I walked to it and sat in it, and it felt comfortable. "Why does it feel like a bed despite being a simple chair?"
He chuckled and replied, "Well, there is magic in the chair that helps you regenerate wounds and energy. I call it "The Relaxer," and nobody on the mainland knows how to make one, you like it?"
Hell, if this chair can fit in my bag...I wondered if it was possible.
"I like it a lot, but let me try something." I got up and then folded the chair, moved it near the sack's opening and somehow the chair shrunk into a size perfect to fit in the bag. It slid in with no problems. "Okay, when I said like, I now mean I love it. You make some good furniture, why don't you go to the mainland?"
He sighed, "You got a point, not many people order a custom chair. I decided to stay because well, there isn't a place like mine here. Southperry only has imported furniture and it's not always that they have stock, so I stay here for the people who live here. Most retired adventurers like to stay here as it's a peaceful place compared to Victoria."
So there's more to him than just the store. "That's a respectable life, Pio. When I get to Victoria, your name will be in the furniture catalogues!"
He smiled, "Well, it looks like you read the fine print on the advert, but you never gave me your name."
"William, William Dominic. I gotta get a move on, when does the ship at Southperry leave for the mainland?"
"Well, normally they leave at half-past five in the afternoon and reach the mainland by seven at night. It's around…"
He looked towards a corner of the room and when I checked there was a clock reading- "One twenty! So if you have business to finish up here, you'd have four hours of time to finish it before the ships leave."
I held a hand out for him and he shook it with a firm grip. "Well man, I gotta get a move on. Magicians don't live on Maple Island." He let go of my hand and said, "Yeah, just make sure you don't break that chair, alright?"
I left the room and quickly exited the building. The chair would prove helpful in the future, especially if you have to wait for a ship. There was plenty of time to spare, so the training can take as long as it wanted. There wasn't much else to do in the town, so my next destination was the outskirts of town.
The area listed wasn't outside of the town, but barely on the borders of the area. When I reached the destination, there was a small hill leading to a translucent portal in the air. Looking around the hill, a woman in red with a noticeably large sword was standing, waiting. She quickly turned her head towards me and spoke.
"You're the one who took the poster, didn't you?" Her question made me shiver, she felt intimidating but I dug out the paper and replied. "Y-yeah, for the advanced adventurer training?"
The tension in the air somehow vanished as she nodded, "Yes, my methods are more dangerous than anything else on this island." She looked me over before answering, "You have a sword on you, but it won't be strong enough for my training. Here."
She pulled a small blade with a yellow grip. If my guess is correct it's a "Razor." I picked it up when she held it out for me and I looked it over. My sword had more range, but it was only best for stabbing. With the razor, the edge was more defined and could deal more damage.
"While you're inspecting it, tell me, what's the weakness of this compared to your sword?" She asked me, and it wasn't hard to answer it.
"The razor has a shorter blade meaning it has less reach than the sword, but in return, it has a better edge than the sword allowing it to deal more damage."
The woman nodded, "You already show more interest in your weapons than most adventurers, I take that you're learning the way of a Warrior?"
"No, I'm training to become a Magician, I just happen to know a fair bit about swords and blades." The woman seemed impressed before looking me over.
"Your build seems to be made for it, but you've passed the first part of your training. The next part will involve the portal on the hill." I turned toward the portal, it looked different than the ones before.
"Wondering what's different about it?" I nodded and she answered, "It's a portal that could lead to multiple destinations; for your training, you will enter it and need to fight through four areas in a row. When you finish one area, a portal will lead to the next one. In the end, you'd come back here."
"What am I going to fight exactly?" I asked, even though the answer was on my mind. "Monsters that normally aren't on Maple Island. Only snails and mushrooms exist on this island."
I put the razor on the side of my belt and like the sword, it levitated in place. "Well, if I've managed a squadron of snails this shouldn't be too difficult."
The woman looked surprised. "You were attacked by a mass of snails? Normally they don't fight in large groups."
Wait, they don't attack in mass numbers? That was weird to know, but I paid it no mind and said, "Yeah, and no snail messes with me after it!" I climbed the hill before stopping before the portal, potions on my left side and razor on the right.
After taking a breath, I entered the portal.
The same fade into black happened and after it, my foes appeared.
Stumps, living walking stumps, and five of them. Somehow, the remains of a tree gained sentience and began to walk, there was a single eye giving it sight. To be honest, looking at it in person, it was morbid. Thankfully, they took no notice of my appearance so I was left alone for now.
If I had an ax, this would be easy. But alas, no hatchet. Pulling the razor out, this appeared to be the best weapon for the task. A lone stump noticed the weapon in my hand and stopped moving. Thankfully, he wasn't amongst the group so picking him off wasn't going to be hard.
I sprinted towards it, and this action shocked it as it staggered backwards. When my arm was within reach of it, my arm swung twice. Each blow managed to take off a chunk of its wood, and with one more blow, it fell and dropped a branch and single bronze coin.
This action alerted every other stump near me as they started to shuffle around me. It appeared that stumps were noticeably smarter than the previous foes, as a tactic like this was unusual. Their speed was the same as a snail, but they were bulky. Charging towards one, the rest of the group closed in.
I managed to deal two blows to the stump before the need to retreat to avoid being grouped up. The stump that was injured had a chunk of it missing, but it didn't slow him down. He started to drift further away from me and let the rest of his brethren deal with me. If this battle plays out what I'm thinking, then this wouldn't be hard.
I charged another stump and managed to deal with the same amount of blows to it. The stump also had parts of its body missing after the damage. The stump followed the same action as the first one and moved away from the other two.
Bingo. I charged a stump that was a distance away from the others and managed to down it before the others could reach me. After this, they started to panic; the two injured ones attempted to leave the area. They didn't know that it would get them stuck as they froze at the same time.
Downing the remaining healthy one took little effort, and finishing the rest was a simple blow to finish them off. After the final one fell, a portal appeared in the middle of the area. Collecting the mesos and remains into my bag, I holstered the razor before looking over the area. It was completely flat and without anything notable around it. The next area should be the same layout like this one if my logic is correct, there was nothing to do but to enter the portal.
After entering, the next foes were a group of five red snails. When they noticed me, they quickly grouped up in a herd before moving towards me. Unlike the first battle I had, there were no shells to be thrown so the only option was to attack them with a blade. Even though that action wouldn't be wise, there were no other options available.
Quickly pulling out the razor, I charged directly into the group with my blade swinging.
The battle was more of a mosh pit with my blade swinging at everything. My legs were subject to attack and I almost fell, but eventually, the snails started to fall and when the last one was gone the portal appeared.
Afterward, I fell on the ground and started to inspect my legs. Bruises all over, touching them caused me to feel pain. Opening my sack to get an orange potion, the moment my hand was in it, I pulled out an orange potion. The bag must have known my demand.
Opening the bottle was simple, and the mixture smelled of oranges. Surprisingly, the potion didn't taste awful at all, but in fact, it tasted like orange juice! The liquid was room temperature but I managed to down the entire bottle. My legs slowly started to feel less pain before eventually, it stopped altogether.
Touching the area where the bruises were caused me no pain; a full recovery. The empty bottle was placed into the bag and I looked for the portal. It was in the same location as the previous area was and after entering it, there was a foe many would remember.
Three slimes, the green ones with yellow eyes. They appeared to be more aloof than the snails as they bounced around the area without caring about me. Looking at them, the speed they had would be problematic. They moved faster than anything else I fought, and most likely dealt more damage than everything before it.
Pulling out the blade on my right side, I went into a stance and waited. One of them noticed me and quickly hopped towards me, when it was within reach of me it leaped directly towards my chest. I managed to deal a strike to it before my body fell down on the ground.
The slime of it started to engulf my chest and it fuckin' hurt. Thankfully, a good couple of stabs caused it to melt away and I was able to get back on my feet. The other two noticed my struggle and charged me head-on. Moving my hand to my left and with quick handwork, two red shells were flung at them, dealing considerable damage.
The slimes had a chunk of their bodies missing from the blows and were dazed. During their stupor, I charged and dealt a single blow to each of them striking them down. After the battle, while picking up their drops something surprised me.
A white bandana was dropped, it wasn't in the way to wear on your face but to wear on your head.
Picking it up, I tried to put it on but forgot that my current head had a headband around it. Removing the strip of cloth and putting the bandana on, it felt more comfortable than the band. Placing the headband back into the bag and getting up, there would be one last portal ahead.
I wasn't sure what it would be, but if the slimes were a problem then the next area would be the hardest fight yet. My body didn't feel the same amount of pain as the snail room so a potion wasn't needed. I braced myself before entering the portal. I wasn't given much time to get ready, as a monster attempted to strike me when my body was in the area.
When there was a pause, the foe before me were two pigs. They were faster than the slimes before and looked just as mean. One charged me during my focus and I had to sprint away from it.
This battle was obviously to my disadvantage as they had the edge in speed. There wasn't any time to pull out a shell as they pressed hard on me, giving little time to think. The only way to get out of this situation was to end it fast, or limit their movement. They must have a similar body to a real-life pig, and that means they have a brain.
If I could hit the brain, the foe would most likely die. Pulling out my sword, it had a longer reach than the razor on me but not a sharper blade, it'd do nicely for this. Looking towards one of the two pigs, it started to prepare for a charge and I waited for his strike. The pig took off like a missile towards me, but instead of moving my body, my sword was held to pierce his head.
The pig didn't notice my plan until it was too late, the blade connected with the head and it was a clean hit. The pig slammed on the ground before it's body disappeared, leaving its loot in tow. I would have retrieved my blade but the remaining pig charged, blocking my way. Drawing the razor out, it dawned on me that aiming for the head wouldn't work with this blade.
Taking a closer look at the pig, it had very small limbs. It was obvious what I needed to do, as the pig charged towards me, a sidestep and a slash later it's leg flew right off. The pig indeed moved slower now, but a strange thing was apparent: no blood. Actually, the pig had no flesh behind the skin but instead just more skin! So monsters don't bleed, thank god. It's not going to be fun if there was blood, how would you explain the stains on your clothes when you returned to town?
As I was internally thinking, the pig in front of me looked twice as mad without one of his legs, he still attempted to charge at me but it was more manageable this time. Another sidestep and slash and he had two legs left. The pig couldn't move now, but after a few more slashes the pig fell.
That was it! The four fights were over and this time a yellow levitating portal appeared. I quickly picked up the sword that was dropped and put the razor back in on my right side. Afterward, there wasn't really anything worthwhile on the ground besides coins an-wait. My eyes took notice of a gold metallic rock.
That's right, pigs used to drop gold ore. Picking it up the rock, it felt heavy but it wasn't hard to place it in the bag. This time though the bag started to feel slightly heavier, guess the bag could only hold so much before it started to gain weight. No matter, there would be a store on the mainland for a better bag anyways. Afterwards, I entered the portal to return back to the starting point.
Mai was waiting for me and faced me as I returned. "You're surprisingly resourceful in combat. Most adventurers needed to drink many potions but you managed with needing only one. Impressive."
Taking the compliment as it was I replied, "Thanks, but what about my reward for all of this? I'd take the shield over the potions."
She looked surprised at my request. "Really? Why would you take it over potions, you're training to become a Magician and you'd need plenty of them."
She did have a point, but I had a better reason: "Yes, most Magicians have to down dozens of potions to fight normally, but the shield would be more useful. Most fights I'll go into will have physical contact, and a shield would help mitigate damage taken."
She nodded before pulling a section of the hill out and retrieved a piece of wood that looked like a broken part of a fence. "Here, this should help you in your future."
She handed it towards me and I grabbed it, there was a strap on the back of the shield to attach my arm to. Putting it on was a simple job, and the shield covered a quarter of my body. Despite it being a literal stolen fence, it was alright for the time.
"Thanks, this will help me for a good awhile." I was going to trek out but her voice got my attention.
"Wait, take this to Lucas. He'd give you something in return." she dug in one of her pockets and pulled out a letter.
Isn't this- "It's a letter that proves you finished my training, less than half of the Beginners here even try this." Taking the letter from her I nodded.
I turned towards town and said, "Well, it seems like this is when we part ways. Here's hoping the next group of beginners pass with flying colors!"
She bowed and said, "Farewell… You didn't give me your name."
"If Lucas talks about me you'd know, but it's William Dominic." I gave her a wave goodbye before walking back to the town and quickly heading to the town hall. Entering the room, it appeared that a group of Beginners were looking over the board. I ignored the group and instead went towards Lucas's desk.
He noticed my approach and asked, "You already delivered the message to her yet?"
His question made me wince, I forgot about that. "No, but I have a letter from Mai."
His face lit up at her name, I handed him the letter she gave and he opened it and read it in depth.
After reading it, he let his hand down. "Well, I'm impressed Dominic. Not only you're a menace to snails, but you also tackled Mai's training with ease! By the goddess, you're going to cause hell when you reach Victoria." He then stood up and searched a shelf behind his desk and pulled out a letter with a red seal.
"Here, show this to the captain in Southperry who takes you to the mainland. It's a letter that shows you've proven your worth on this island." Taking it and placing it in my pocket, I nodded.
He sighed, I knew he grew to me. "Still, it just means you're still leaving our island. Try to remember us when you're in Victoria, alright?"
His words felt genuine, I'm unsure if I can remember everyone I've met so far but, "I'll make sure to remember, and when I retire come back for the rest of my days." Even if this place was forgotten by most, I'd be sure to come back when my body becomes old and brittle if I can't go home.
He smiled, "Thank you, we barely get people like you these days. Make sure you leave a legacy for everyone."
I held my hand out and he shook it but before I could reply another voice was heard. "Wait, you finished the training from Mai?"
Turning towards the source, the group who were looking at the board changed their interests to me. Looking over them, they looked to be around the same age I was, if not younger. Two of them were boys with black hair and one was a girl with orange hair.
Normally bragging isn't a thing of mine, but my reply was "Yep, I finished it. Need some help?"
The girl spoke up, "Yeah, did you have to face it by yourself? We were wondering if we could do it as a group."
Thinking about it, I wouldn't see why you couldn't do it as a group. "I think you'd actually be allowed as a team, but I expect Mai to make it more difficult with more people at once."
The girl smiled before a boy spoke up, "Is that shield the one you get when you finish? It doesn't look like much."
I answered, "Yes it is, but despite its appearance it's sturdy. Keep careful not to damage it and to avoid overusing it. If you do this it will last longer than it should."
The last member of the group asked, "What are you going to be once you reach the mainland?"
Simple, "A magician, I like the idea of casting spells."
The girl spoke up, "What's your name?"
"William and you three are?"
"Stacey", "Nick" and "Ron" were the responses I heard from them. Ron asked my class and Nick asked about the shield. Hopefully, they'd have enough time to join me on the trip to Victoria. "Well, I'm moving on past this island today and I'm on my way to Southperry. I hope to meet you there!"
The trio nodded before Stacey spoke up, "Well, last time I checked it was three so we have some time to catch up. Hope to see you again!"
I gave a simple "See you there!" and the sound of "Will do!" "Gotcha!" was on my ears after exiting the hall. There wasn't much else to do now, besides delivering the letter to Maria. The sun above me moved downwards, it seemed that the training took longer than I expected. It didn't take long for me to reach the portal that was the entrance to the down, and after entering it the return trip began.
Before this moment, there were red snails and mushrooms blocking my path, but this time nothing was waiting for me. I still ran into monsters, but they avoided me like the plague. It's weird, how do they know? The previous fights were in a closed area but yet they avoided me like they knew what went down. Then something strong hit my back and knocked the wind out of me, turning around, it was the monster who everyone knew.
An orange mushroom, and boy was it big. It was around half of my size and it was bulky, but despite that, it looked like it could move without a problem. The expression it had was the standard expression all mushrooms had. Its eyes were just plain black dots and I couldn't tell if they were real spheres or just filament.
In the middle of my inspection, it jumped towards me! I jumped back and quickly drew my razor out. If this monster wanted a fight, it chose poorly. Lunging towards my blade pierced its skin, but it pulled away before more damage was done.
I almost forgot about my shield entirely despite it attached to my arm, but now would be a good time to try it. The mushroom started to charge forth and lunged at me. My shield was raised to block its blow, and it managed to hold against the weight of the mushroom. In the time it was on, a handful of stabs were delivered to it. The mushroom fell down after the last blow and left behind its cap after death.
A sigh of relief came out of my mouth. This shield proved to be sturdy enough, and it'd serve me for a good while. The cap wasn't in my plans to loot as there wasn't a need to have one on me, so leaving it behind was the action I took.
Leaving the area behind and after using the portal, the fork in the road was reached once again. Instead of climbing down and heading towards Southperry, I headed towards the start of the split to reach Maria.
She noticed me and waved me over, pulling out the letter I handed it to her. "Thank you, I take it you're heading towards Southperry to leave?" She was right.
I turned around and walked ahead before replying,"Yeah, I gotta get a move on, don't worry about giving me a reward alright?"
She seemed to be surprised but I quickly turned around before walking down the lower route to Southperry. Reaching the portal was a simple job, but my guess ahead of it was utterly wrong.
Instead of another area to cross, the portal led to the town directly. The entire town from a glance felt like Lith Harbor, but there was enough of a difference to distinguish itself. There was an airship docked in the port at the end of the island, is it even a port without water? No matter, the boat hasn't departed so we'd be able to reach Victoria by the end of the day.
Entering the town it was obvious that it was larger and more active than Amherst by a noticeable margin. People shuffled from and out of the streets, even without cars this was packed like a can of sardines. Thankfully the ship was visible the entire time so it was a simple job to reach it. When I reached the stairs that led up to the deck of the ship, someone tapped my shoulder.
Turning towards them it was a person I recognized, but one I never expected to meet. The Maple Administrator, the NPC that was the sign of an imminent ban and the one for events. The question was that there wasn't an event going on to my knowledge, nor hacks on my person.
She spoke with a hand open. "Greetings, you're William Dominic correct?"
Either she knew my name from the people I've met or she knew more than what was possible. I replied, "Yes, but what do you need me for?"
She smiled before answering, "No I don't need you for something, I just wanted to know how you were enjoying this world."
Wait a minute, "Wait, have we met before? What are you on about with "This world", normally there is only one."
She gave a blank expression, "Don't you remember? I asked you to look at it with both eyes open and you said "Absolutely!" I don't think you could have forgotten about me so soon."
Holy fuck, so this was the person that I was talking to before this ordeal happened! I had many questions already with this conversation, but the obvious one was on my mind: "W-what do you want from me, you must have another reason to speak to me instead of just "wanted to know"."
She nodded without breaking her smile, "You're correct, I have much to talk to you about but for now I want to give you something, but you need to choose which," she spoke in vaguest terms possible, a sly mouth. I answered with, "Well, what are you offering?"
She took in a breath before she stated. "Well, normally people would only have a normal gain of experience but for you, we've doubled it for free. If you're wondering what happens if you die, you respawn in the nearest town, but instead of ten percent of your experience, you lose it all."
Yikes, more penalty for dying. Wait, "What about everyone else? Do they respawn?"
She looked down at the ground and broke the smile, "No. Everyone here is a living mapler, and they follow the same rules people did back on earth. If they fall in battle, they're sent to the grave."
That was a morbid thought, not being able to truly die and the fact everyone else had one life shook me a bit. "Well, what are you offering me then? Food, Power or perhaps Equipment?"
She shook her head before regaining the smile, "No, you'd choose between three blessings. The first one doubles your current experience gain resulting in four times the experience. The second one would have your body grow stronger faster, we would talk about a point system but that doesn't work here. The final one allowed you to learn skills faster than normal, you'd be able to learn more skills than the average adventurer."
She put her hands together, "So now you pick between these three, what do you choose?"
Thinking about it, every option sounded tempting, but picking one would be a hard decision. The first one was helpful, but if Oryssia wasn't reachable yet there'd be a significant dead zone of content. The third one also would be helpful, but the same problem as the first would make it for naught. The only real decision was the second one, having a stronger body than most would be vital in long fights.
The choice was made, "The second blessing, the other two become weaker if only Victoria Island is open for me."
She nodded before replying, "A wise choice, give me your hand please?"
Doing so, I held my right hand out before she held her hand above it. Slowly a marking started to appear on my hand. When she removed her hand, the marking was a maple leaf with a stick figure inside of it.
While I looked at it she spoke, "The blessing of Fortitude, your body will grow faster now with it on your skin." I drew back my hand, touching the mark I felt no pain before it slowly started to fade away.
"This wasn't in the game before, why are you giving me this now?" I had to ask, there must be a catch for giving a power boost like this for free.
She nodded and said, "Right, you have a job to do."
Well here it was, "Go for it, anything would work."
She inhaled before answering, "You have to save the Maple World."
...What? "What do you mean? The Black Mage isn't active and isn't going to break out for a long time."
She waved a finger, "It's true he is sealed away, but other forces work in the shadows to take over everything by themselves. You'll know who they are when they start to show their actions."
Cryptic and barely helpful, still her words implied I'd have time to prepare. "Well, thanks I guess. Will I be able to go home once my job is done?"
She nodded, "As long as no variables come up, you'd return home once you're done."
I was going to think it over, but she turned around and began to walk away. "I have to leave, you should take the rest of the day to relax. Victoria is a foreign world compared to here."
I couldn't even say goodbye before she disappeared into the crowd of people, leaving me alone. She was a confusing person overall, but she didn't seem to have bad intentions, just very vague. A horn above me sounded, and a voice spoke. "Ship departing to Lith Harbor leaving in one hour!"
Damn, time flies when you're having fun. The stairs in front of me were more of a slope leading upwards, but after climbing them a person stood in the way of boarding the ship. He was wearing blue and had an extravagant hat. Walking up to him, he noticed me and said: "Your ticket please."
I didn't have a ticket, but instead pulled out the sealed letter Lucas gave me. When I handed it to him he looked shocked. "A Beginner who completed Mai's training?"
He turned his entire body towards me and bowed, "Excuse my manners, sir! It's not often we have people like you on board."
He walked out of the way and I walked onto the ship. The deck felt like an old pirate ship from the tales of old but instead, it was more accommodating. There was a snack and drink machine on board with plenty of tables and chairs to sit on. Actually, were the mushroom lollipops the only food that I ate?
The groan of my stomach told everything. Walking up to the machine there was a feeling of familiarity. All the choices that were available were similar to the brands on earth, but instead, everything was a few letters off. The shocking part was that the food was very cheap, twenty mesos for a bag of chips. Putting the mesos from the monsters into the machine, I ordered a generic load of snacks.
I'm not going to go into detail about eating snack food, but let's just say I was full afterward. The man from before ran up to me before he spoke, "I almost forgot, here."
He handed a small strip of paper and after grabbing it, it was a ticket for one night at a hotel in Lith Harbor. There wasn't a clear room type listed, but anything would do for sleeping in. The man then returned to his post and I pulled out my chair and leaned back in it. Now we play the waiting game.
There wasn't much I could do besides sleeping or just staring around the ship, or the sky. A short nap sounded nice, in fact, my body felt tired, and I let myself go before going to sleep.
The sound of a horn going off quickly jolted me awake and a voice spoke. "Ship departing to Victoria now leaving the station!"
So the ride starts now, looking around the deck there were a handful of fellow beginners, but none of them were the three I met in Amherst. A sigh left me, they sounded like good conversation partners. The sound of the platform connecting the ship to the dock moving was audible, and shortly the sound of a large engine operating replaced it.
Getting up and placing the chair into my bag, I walked on the edge of the ship to notice a… Let's just say a magic-powered engine. Not sure how else to explain how it worked. Whatever the case, it was slowly starting to operate faster but yet the sound wasn't deafening. Eventually, the engine stopped going faster and stabilized at what must be its operating speed.
"Anchors rise!" The captain of the vessel yelled and moments later, the ship started to move away from the dock.
Now I flew in planes before, plenty of times, but this was a whole different can of worms. The speed was comparable to a horse, well let's just say thirty miles per hour. The wind felt good, and after the ship moved out of the dock was when everything went livid.
Maple Island's size was around the same size as an island in Hawaii, small but enough for a few towns. Seeing the town of Southperry and Amherst from the sky made me feel how little I traveled. When the entire island was visible in my sights, it just felt unreal. Perhaps it was just my past life still trying to rationalize this change, but looking at the island in whole made it stop. The island slowly started to fade amongst the clouds in the sky and that was another subject entirely.
These clouds just felt more physical than the ones you see out of a plane's window. The ship cruised at an area above most, but a few clouds were above us. This entire sight just had my attention entirely, I couldn't look away.
Don't know how long I looked at it, eventually, the ship passed the clouds and the sea became visible. It slowly started to approach the ocean before I noticed our destination. Victoria Island felt massive, and Lith Harbor was barely a tenth of the size of the continent. There was a long, long journey ahead of me, but for now, rest. We'd deal with that problem in the morning.
The ship slowly started to slow down before crashing into the ocean below. Afterward, the ship floated on the water and into the docking area on Lith Harbor. Once the ship had a full stop the sounds of bodies moving were apparent, a platform was raised towards the dock allowing everyone to disembark off the vessel.
Looking in my pocket for the voucher, the hotel was right down the corner of the dockyard. I was bloody tired to be honest. Entering the hotel, it looked like what a normal hotel would look like.
A woman was waiting at the counter, and after walking up to it she spoke, "Welcome to Mano Inn, I take it you're wanting to stay tonight and leave in the morning?"
I put the voucher on the counter, "Yes, but the captain gave me this."
The woman looked over it and placed it within a drawer, she then typed a combination on her keyboard and handed a keycard to me. "Room 102, it's right down the first-floor hall."
Looking around, there were two hallways, the differences between them were the left corridor descended in number and the right corridor ascended. Taking the right hallway, my room was the first door to the left. Hovering the key over the handle, the room unlocked.
The room was...Well, the standard for a hotel room. A desk, nightstand, single-sized bed, and a bathroom. The entire day seemed to come back at this moment, and the bed felt like a warm bath. Before that, I took off the belt and shield on me and placed it alongside my razor and sword on the desk for tomorrow. Then I fell on the bed, and after some sheet shuffling, my body was snug as a bug. The sheets just felt perfect, and then the embrace of sleep took over me and my body went to sleep.
And the Maple Island grind is over! I know you don't know what Willam looks like at the moment, but rest assured, the next chapter will describe him in detail.
Writing this chapter was fun, I took more liberties this time around to try to make the world feel more natural compared to the game. Yes, you're right that we skipped the quiz quest with Rain, but I had no idea how to write it without it feeling unnatural. I tried to explain every other quest realistically and I'm comfortable with the way they were handled.
Thank you to beta readers Lem, Lia, and Rock!
That's pretty much it, see you next chapter!