Chapter 53: Baby Steps (Part 2)

As they turned to a back alley, the idea of Paul leading him into a trap did not cross Alan’s mind. All thanks to you, Amelia.

“Do you have any idea how many people live here in Unus?”

“Like close to a hundred people, maybe?” Paul replied, shrugging. “Why?”

“It just makes me wonder why you’ve all decided to stay here.”

Paul halted before they could enter a shady-looking establishment, with the logo of an anthropomorphic bull holding a beer on the door.

“Hey, buddy, let me tell you something before getting inside. That sort of question is not cool around here. Get it? Everyone has their reason not to leave this place, so it’s a touchy subject. The owner of this place, for instance, is a very grumpy dude, so be careful with what you say.”

“Oh, sorry. Understood.”

The door opened, letting the smell of alcohol escape. Phosphorescent blue lights made everything look as gloomy as the people drinking there, sitting on individual leather armchairs, who barely glanced at Alan. A female employee, serving drinks behind a metal counter waved at him.

“Paul! If you’re here looking for Roxx, she’s busy for the next 20 minutes.” She then focused on Alan’s face, and subsequently on the number above his head. “Who’s your friend? Could he be… Alan Warden?”

In that instant, the entirety of the place went silent, and all eyes were set on him.

“Do I know you, ma’am?”

“No, but everyone knows you and your pyromaniac girlfriend.” The woman smiled, leaning forward. “I’m Gaby, nice to meet you. I’m going to get straight to the point, okay? Please, tell everyone present what’s the deal with your mysterious low level.”

Alan frowned, looking at the clientele. Every set of eyes and ears waiting for his reply.

“I… was in a coma.”

A collective groan was heard as Gaby tried to quiet the crowd. “Okay, okay! Who was the one that said coma?”

“Lukas did, but he’s not here!”

A Video Screen appeared behind the bar counter, showing a betting chart:

Reasons why Alan Warden is a level 5

He has been hiding this whole time (31 votes) He was punished by an angry Administrator (19 votes) He died in real life, and the system revived him as an NPC (10 votes) He’s roleplaying (5 votes) He was in a coma (1 vote)

“Lovely people,” Alan said bitterly.

“Here.” Brenda served him a drink. “For my comatose friend. On the house. For Alan, Comatose, Warden!”

“Cheers!”

“I liked Alan, The Ghost, more, ironically,” he muttered, gulping his drink. “Thanks for bringing me here, Paul…”

“Actually, I brought you to meet Kristoff.” Paul said, leading him to a corridor that smelled completely different than the rest of the establishment.

After crossing a curtain, Alan found a room filled with weapons, artifacts, and sets of armor on display. “What is all this?”

“This is Kristoff’s Fun House. Welcome to my humble shop, Alan Warden,” a bald, overweight, pale man said from behind his counter, without taking his eyes off his User Interface. Despite his gentle words, his tone of voice was cold and coarse.

“Alan, I’ve helped you enough today, haven’t I?” Paul whispered, pulling Alan’s sleeve. “Give me 300 gold. That’s what 45 minutes with Roxx costs.”

He really helped a lot.

“All right…” Alan created a temporary window for Paul to tap, who exited the room in a hurry.

“Thanks, see you later!”

Although I don’t know yet if coming here was worth it… He frowned and stepped forward, looking at the items in awe. But before he could ask Kristoff for the Bronze gear he was looking for, a large display case showing a human-sized doll with animal ears caught his attention.

The doll suddenly looked at him and smiled, revealing her familiar face.

It’s her! The NPC that used to be Unus’ mayor!

Alan’s eyes widened at the sight of her. There’s no mistake. I recognize her fox ears.

The NPC opened her eyes and grinned warmly at him, making his heart ache. He peered behind her, spotting the previous hostess of The Dragon’s Belly, too.

“Why do you have them locked here?” he asked the underground shop owner, who responded without shifting his gaze from his User Interface.

“Because I’m selling them. 30,000 gold each. 55,000 for both. They’re already Blank.”

“What do you mean?”

Kristoff glanced at him. “Oh, right. For a moment I forgot I was talking to Alan ‘Comatose’ Warden. It means the System no longer recognizes them as NPCs. They are more like… mobs and monsters? Choose the term you prefer. They’ll do whatever you order them to.”

“55,000 gold…” Alan muttered, staring at the former mayor who now gazed forward like a soulless doll.

“If you want them, you should hurry. There’s always a high demand for female NPCs.”

“I don’t have the money…”

“What about your girlfriend? Can’t she lend you the gold?”

This guy is only thinking of making a sale. For the moment, I can’t do anything for them. I’m so sorry.

“Listen, I came here looking for bronze gear. Do you have any?”

“Of course I have,” Kristoff said, tapping on his User Interface, making the display racks change their contents automatically.

Alan’s heart skipped a beat at the sight of the desired gear, but checking the listed prices made him bite his lower lip. Dammit. It seems that this guy is the same seller from that online marketplace.

“Not what you were expecting, huh?” Kristoff sneered initially but quieted down when he saw Alan’s dropped shoulders. “Hey, pal, forget about buying gear, it’s not worth it. Why don’t you make your own weapons instead?”

Alan dashed to the counter. “Can I do that?!”

“Wait, I think I spoke too soon. You need an NPC to teach you the profession, and the only one who could is in the hands of that creep from the Weapon Shop.”

“So I could theoretically create my own gear?” Alan muttered to himself, feeling rejuvenated.

But…

He glanced at the pair of NPCs again, and at a set of familiar gleaming armor beside them. He stepped closer as he examined it.

“That’s not for sale,” Kristoff said aloud. “It’s an incomplete set and I’m trying to get the sword and boots.”

“These boots?” Alan said, pulling them out of his inventory, making Kristoff’s eyes gleam.

“Where did you–?! Wait, it’s so obvious! You still have your old gear, don’t you?”

“It’s not that old to me!”

“The full set? The one called Beginners Set?!”

“Yeah! I even have a pair of ‘New Beginning Shirts’ and I may even get one ‘New Beginning Dress’, brand new!”

“Splendid!” Kristoff beamed, leaning forward.

“I know, right?! Shall we do business then?!”

“Wait, wait, hold on. All of those items must be pretty worn out…”

“Well, yeah, but…”

“I can’t buy them from you just yet until they’re restored. My wife has the Tailor Profession so she can restore the shirts and dress, but you’ll have to handle the armor and sword’s repair. I’d do it, but I can’t stand that guy!”

“Who, the Weaponsmith?”

“Yeah, I hate that asshole. Always gloating about his NPC wife…” Kristoff said, grimacing. “Restore all of your gear and we’ll do business.”

“I can do it!” Alan said, feeling hopeful. “Hey, this feels like an RPG chain quest!”

Kristoff quickly narrowed his eyes at him. “Do I look like an NPC to you?”

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