Game’s Dogma

​​​​​​​The wooden door creaked as it opened. Drako Yau shuddered from the surprise, and the fire crystal giant hunching in front of him immediately turned into smoke and disappeared.

‘Oh? Didn’t think you’d be up so soon.’ It was a gentle voice.

He turned to look at the opened door to see an old granny sending a serene smile his way. She wore a white robe, and on her chest hung a golden crucifix.

Noticing that Drako Yau was trying to get off the bed, she immediately shook her head and said, ‘Young fella, you’ve just healed up so don’t move around. This old granny understands your goodwill, just lie down.’ She then placed the bowl of hot congee on the bedside table next to him.

Drako Yau immediately asked, ‘You saved me last night, right? I’m really grateful.’

The old granny chuckled in response. ‘You could say I did, you could say I didn’t too. I indeed healed you, but if it hadn’t been for the young girl who brought you over, even I couldn’t have saved you.’

‘A young girl?’ Drako Yau rummaged through his mind. ‘Who…?’

The granny smiled and pointed to a memo on the small table. ‘Look.’

Only then did he notice the sheet of paper lying there.

‘Hello masked big brother. Because your name is hidden, I can’t send you a message, so I used the most ordinary way of writing you a message on paper. I’ve paid the fees to the chaplain for healing and staying overnight, so big brother doesn’t have to worry about it. Hope you recover soon! Scaredyface.’

‘Haha, it looks like you have a good girlfriend.’

Before Drako Yau could explain, the old granny had already left the room, leaving behind the steaming bowl of congee.

After resting for a while and bidding the granny farewell, he finally realised he was at the city of Yoda.

The place where he just left was none other than the church in Yoda, which served as the location where clerics learnt their skills. It was also situated directly next to the resurrection altar.

Even if players were injured outside the city walls, as long as they paid the fees, the NPC priests and priestess would heal them with their magic. Their powers were truly amazing, given how gravely he had been injured yesterday. If Scaredyface hadn’t carried him all the way here, he would have probably died already.

‘So I owe her my life…’ Drako Yau murmured. He never liked the feeling of being in debt to others, so he quickly sent Scaredyface a message, but all he got was a notification that said ‘Player is offline’.

‘Sis, how long are you gonna sleep? It’s time for school!’ Angryface’s voice came from beyond the door.

Inside the room, Scaredyface was hugging onto her huge teddy bear and murmured, ‘A few more minutes…’

Her brother clearly had no idea about the troubles and torments she had gone through before finally logging off last night.

As he walked, Drako Yau pondered about his current equipment. They were starting to come up short for his needs. Putting aside the Fire Crystal Master who was a real powerhouse, even when facing the fire crystal giant elder, his uncommon equipment which was below Level 10 was simply paper. They practically provided no protection at all.

The same went for his weapon. While Dawnlight, which he had received from Hades the weirdo, was decent, now that he had to face stronger and stronger opponents, it was somewhat lacking.

Just when he was about to head over to the trade centre in search of upgrades, someone on his friend list suddenly messaged him.

That was a true surprise. He had only added two friends in the game. One was the young girl Scaredyface whom he planned on repaying his debt, while the other was…

‘What did you message me for.’ Drako Yau’s words were straightforward as usual, which was somewhat embarrassing for Zephyrwolf.

‘Uh… Nothing much! Just wanted to say hi!’

Drako Yau facepalmed. ‘I forgot to delete you from the friend list after trading… That’s all, see you… No, let’s never see each other again.’

‘Wait, hold up!’ Zephyrwolf immediately said. ‘Of course there’s a reason I messaged you! Encounter quest, you interested?’

‘Hoh?’ It piqued his interest. ‘Encounter quests have crazy rewards, you’re actually cool with sharing it with me?’

‘Sigh…’ Zephyrwolf sounded upset. ‘Right, the rewards are spectacular, but that’s only if you can get them! This quest is really difficult and can only be challenged by a two-player party. It’s also limited to three attempts only… I’ve already failed twice, so I only have one chance left. The quest will be gone if I fail again. I’ve thought about it, you’re the strongest guy I know, that’s why I’m asking you for help. Don’t worry, the quest rewards are individually awarded, I won’t take yours. Of course, you can’t take mine either. Eh… Haha… What? Don’t think I’m afraid of you!’

Intrigued, Drako Yau asked, ‘But it’s an encounter quest. If you send a message on the global channel, many high level players will surely help out.’

‘I don’t trust them.’ Zephyrwolf shook his head.

It evoked a snicker from Drako Yau, though his words were just as dull. ‘So you trust me?’

Surprisingly, Zephyrwolf actually nodded. ‘Right, maybe because we’ve negotiated once before. You’re a guy who keeps your word, so I trust you. If I teamed up with others, they might kill me right after we clear the quest. I’ll not only lose my items, but also a level that way.

‘How’s it? You in?’

‘Now that’s interesting…’ Drako scratched his chin.

There was a certain distance between Yoda and the starter area. Most players would quickly leave the starter area and head towards a city, but right now, a player was calmly walking the other way.

His strange actions caught the curious eyes of many new players, but soon, he disappeared into a nearby forest. It was publicly known that there was nothing in the forest, not even a single monster, so those new players only spared him another glance before moving on to the city.

‘Yo.’

Not long after the player entered the forest, a voice came from ahead of him. A person emerged from behind a tree, the name ‘Zephyrwolf’ hanging above him.

‘No one was tracking you, right?’

The player was obviously Drako Yau who hurried over to the coordinates Zephyrwolf had sent him.

‘Is there a need to be so cautious? You even made me come over only when it’s nighttime in the game’, he said as he looked at the dark skies.

‘It’s an encounter quest you know! If the major guilds found out, they’ll probably camp at the resurrection altar and kill you over and over again until you drop the rewards! You’re underestimating the dark side of those guilds.’

Zephyrwolf was no doubt a veteran when it came to gaming experience. In terms of combat prowess, even 10 Zephyrwolfs might be unable to defeat Drako Yau, but it was the complete opposite when it came to in-game socialising skills.

Under the lead of Zephyrwolf, the two headed further into the forest.