"What's the plan, Master Abel?"
Eli's asked, bring back his immediate attention.
"Right..."
"The name's King now though" Abel replied.
Eli bowed slightly, a faint smile crossing his face. He already understood the reason for the new name.
"Yes, Master King."
King looked closely at Eli as he raised his head, noticing something was different.
His eyes had a faint glow to them. It was subtle, but unmistakable.
"Ranger class?" King asked.
"Affirmative, Master King."
"Good, very good."
King paced for a moment, his mind already running through the next steps.
"So for my plan, I'm thinking I should trigger Barlan's secret quest first."
Barlan the Arcbearer.
An important NPC who wandered Lindoln city in the early game, although his questline ran deep into the end game. His first quest rewarded a unique multifunctional weapon that could easily solo early-game bosses and hold its own well into the mid-game phase.
But activating his quest early was a tricky thing to do.
The questline flowed more naturally when encountered later on, around the mid-game where it was designed for. But in the beginning, Barlan the arcbearer was hostile. He snubbed players, told them to get lost. And if they persisted too long, he'd outright kill them.
King had discovered a way around that.
Getting Barlan to respond early required a unique emote, a subtle hand gesture with a glow that Barlan himself made during interactions. King had noticed it during one of his playthroughs, tested the theory in another, and confirmed it worked as a shortcut.
The emote could be purchased from the Merchant Hall.
But no one bought emotes early game. Players spent their starting 1,000 runes on gear upgrades or straight up leveling. Emotes were considered cosmetic, useless most of the time.
King knew better.
"Barlan's quest?" Eli asked.
"Yeah, you've watched me play multiple times. How well do you remember the game?"
Eli paused, considering the question.
"Much of the early game has faded. I think I remember the endgame more."
King nodded. "Well that's understandable. The general best thing to do before the First Penance is rune farming. And in that regard, We might have to split up for now."
He opened the MAP.
It displayed only their immediate area. Lindoln City. Before the First Penance, cities were isolated from each other and designated as Starting Zones. Everything you did before the Penance had to be within your starting zone.
The trigger for the First Penance would break the barriers shielding the Zones. Only then could players move freely between regions.
"This is where we are," King said, pointing at their location. "For Barlan's quest, I need to move east. But there are Rune Orcs that spawn here."
He tapped a marker to the south.
"You kill them and they just keep respawning, they give about fifty to one hundred runes per orc, pretty useful for now."
"I suggest you go there to farm runes. With your range weapons, you should be able to farm without problems."
Eli folded his hands, studying the location carefully.
He would've preferred to stay by King's side and protect him. But to do that effectively, he needed to get stronger himself. And with their classes being different, so were their paths.
"Are you sure you'll be fine, Master King?"
"I've done this a thousand times. It's no big deal. It's you I'm worried about "
"Just be careful out there."
"I will, Master King."
At that moment a thought flashed in king's mind and his eyes suddenly lit up.
"Shit," he muttered under his breath, opening his interface and navigating quickly to his Friend List.
He tapped it.
[UPDATING FRIEND LIST]
King held his breath.
The interface loaded
And two names appeared.
_________
[FRIEND LIST]
[ELIJAH]
[VI]
______________________
"Phew." King exhaled in relief.
Vi.
That had to be tk_BOOMerang. She'd probably used her shortened name when she logged in. She was the only female friend he had, so it had to be her.
He opened a direct message.
KING: Hey there, tk_BOOMerang?
The reply came almost instantly.
Vi: Sorry, who's this?
KING: It's OP.
Vi: OH MY GOODNESS! How are you?!
KING: Still processing everything. You?
Vi: I'm so overwhelmed right now. How did this happen?!
KING: I don't know. It's crazy.
Vi: IKR!
KING: So where are you?
Vi: I'm locked in my crib.
KING: Okay. Just try to stay safe till the First Penance. I'll come get you.
Vi: Really?
KING: Yeah. I can't leave Lindoln before the Penance starts, so I can't come get you now.
Vi: Okay, I remember I think I can handle myself till then. Just need to get a grip first.
KING: Alright. Hit me up if anything changes.
Vi: Ok. Thanks, Superman.
KING: LOL, My pleasure.
King closed the chat, his tension settling.
She was safe, at least for now.
He turned back to Eli.
"So I've got a friend in Lindoln. I'll be going to get her once the First Penance begins. I want you to come with me."
He paused.
"So we meet back here before the nineteen days are up. Is that alright?"
Eli gave a slight bow.
"Yes, Master King."
King nodded.
"Good, let's move."
They began walking toward the door.
"First, we'll head to the Merchants Hall" King said, marking a location on map. "You could get some extra bullets, I think your rifle should do just fine for the farming..."
"And I'll pick up whatever valuables I can"
"Sounds good, Master King".
They arrived the door, Eli loaded a few bullets into the rifle and they opened the locks.
_______________________________
The exterior of the Mansion was a cleanly cut grassland that spanned several acres with the tall fences standing at a distance. The Smiths had built this as a getaway place, it was a bit distant from the main city, closer to nature than people, but there was a travel highway that ran meters away from their land space.
King and Eli moved first to the garage, where rows of cars sat like silent iron tombs, unresponsive to every turn of the key. Leaving the cold machinery behind, they made for the stables. The Smiths' eccentric devotion to their horses had once been a quirk of the wealthy; today, it was their salvation.
CREEAAAKKK
"The dappled grey and the black," King requested, his voice was sharp against the rhythmic thumping of hooves against wooden stalls.
The horse let out a low, vibrating huff as Eli place saddles on both horses and dragged them out to King. With a grunt of effort, they swung into the seats, the world suddenly shifting to a higher vantage point.
They exited through the main gates, galloping outside the grassland and into more solid stone. As they cleared the estate's perimeter, King spared one last look at the silent mansion behind them.