Chương 6: Gem of the Sword

Evan didn't even know where to begin. He had so many questions, but what would Oliver think if he just bombarded him with "what the hell is this weird video game world?" and "how the heck does any of this work?" He decided to start with something easy and go from there.

"Your stat screen… eh, I mean your ledger, says your affinity is Earth. You said that was a bad one, but it sounds pretty neat to me?" Oliver sighed and rubbed his face.

"You see, my father owns a farm. My older brother was supposed to inherit it, but then he… well, I'm the oldest son in the household now, so my father expects me to take over in a few years. He got me this Earth affinity crystal because it's one of those affinities that's likely to yield good skill for farm work if you combine it with the right skill gems. My father saved his mana stones for years to be able to afford this crystal, but…" Oliver trailed off, but Evan was capable of reading between the lines.

"But you don't really want to be a farmer." Oliver looked up.

"How did you know?"

"Well, I met you in some ancient ruins, trying to fight a giant golem with a knife. That's not very farmer-like behavior."

"You're right, it's not. And I'm going to get in trouble for it. I told no one that I was coming here. But it's just so boring out on our farm. It was fun when I was a little boy, but now that I'm an adult, I just want more than sowing fields and feeding horses, you know? I want to join a guild. Guardians would be great, but Explorers wouldn't be bad either. Or maybe even Monster Hunters. I don't know if I have any chance with that stupid Earth affinity though, even if my father would allow me to leave the farm."

Evan had no idea what the Guardians' Guild or the Explorers' Guild was, but by the way Oliver hung his head low, it was easy to see the guy needed a bit of a pep talk.

"I don't think Earth sounds bad at all. And you've got guts. You're brave, Oliver, or you wouldn't have come here. I'm sure there are ways to utilize your skills in a way that'll allow you to join those guilds." Oliver gave a sad smile.

"Maybe…" he said reluctantly.

"Maybe if I used some really good combat-focused skill gems. But those are too expensive for me and my father would never buy them for me. He wants sensible skills that help with farm work." His expression looked almost disgusted at the thought of working a farm.

"Sorry for being so whiny. You kinda hit a sore spot here. I'll stop complaining now. Can I see what affinity you got?"

"Sure. You can see my stats in your own ledger, right? Just like I can see you in mine?" Oliver nodded.

"Yes, I can see your stats right here. It says right here that your… woah!" He paused and suddenly his eyes went wide and his mouth fell open. He stared at Evan in disbelief, then his eyes focused in the distance, as if he was checking the screen again.

"But that can't be true. It can't be!"

"What?" Evan asked, alarmed.

"What is it?" Oliver still looked at him with a mix of disbelief and marvel.

"Your affinity…"

"What's wrong with my affinity?"

"Celestial… mythical."

"Yes, that's what the interface said. I'm not really sure what that means." Oliver shook himself out of his stupor.

"Well, affinities have a rarity. Mine is common. That's the most… well, common. Then there are uncommon affinity crystals, rare, and legendary."

"But mine says mythical," Evan said.

"The fifth rank of rarity," Oliver said in awe.

"But I thought that was, you know, a myth. I've never heard of anyone finding a mythical affinity crystal. The only time I heard about it is in stories about world travelers." Evan gulped.

"World travelers?" That sounded a lot like what he'd done just earlier today.

"There's this myth that there are other worlds but ours and that certain people are blessed by the Celestials, allowing them to travel between worlds. Those lucky few are gifted with the mythical Celestial affinity as a sign that they were chosen for great deeds by the Celestials." Oliver's expression turned serious. He stared at Evan, studying him for a long while. Evan tried not to shift uncomfortably under his boring gaze until Oliver finally spoke again.

"Evan, are you a world traveler?" The question hung between them as they both looked at each other in silence. Even the golem outside seemed to have gone quiet. Evan took a deep breath. He wasn't sure if it was a smart move to reveal that information, but if he wanted to find a way home, he needed to make connections with the people native to this world. For information, for protection, and just to not feel so damn scared. Oliver seemed like a pretty nice guy, so Evan decided to take the leap with him.

"I think so, yes. I'm not sure, to be honest. I've no idea where I am or how I got here, but I'm very certain this isn't my world." If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

"Wow," Oliver said, a grin returning to his face.

"You didn't lie when you said you came from far away."

"Do you have any idea how to get back to my own world?" Evan asked.

"Don't get me wrong, you're really nice, and this magic thing is pretty cool, but my dad back home needs me. He really needs me." Just thinking about his father was enough to make his chest tighten, but unfortunately, Oliver shook his head.

"Until I met you, I'd no idea those stories were even real. I thought they were just stories you tell little kids to entertain them and make them behave so they too could be blessed by the Celestials. Sorry, I've no idea how you might get back."

"Then I'll have to find someone who might know." Oliver looked thoughtful.

"Maybe one of the scholar guilds. They study that stuff. Myths, legends, ancient scripts. If anyone has the answer to your question, it's them, but the nearest scholar guild is in Stormhaven. That's pretty far away from here."

"Can we go there anyway? I really need to get back. My father is sick, and no one but me can care for him."

"Sorry to hear that. I'd really love to travel there. The last time I was in Stormhaven, I was still a little boy, but I'm not sure my father would allow me to stay away from the farm for so long." Evan was disappointed, but if Oliver wasn't willing to accompany him, he would find someone else or go there alone.

"Either way, we have to get past this golem first." Oliver nodded, but his face looked concerned.

"Honestly, I've no idea how we're going to accomplish that, even with an awesome affinity like yours. Can I check your skills?"

"Sure, go ahead. Can I see yours?" Oliver blushed a little again.

"I only have the one that activates when you first bind the crystal. We haven't been able to afford any skill gems yet. The one I got is pretty useless. My father was very disappointed because it's not helpful for farm work. It's not really useful for fighting either." Evan flipped through his menu and inspected Oliver's skill. [Ironroot - Tied to your Strength attribute Conjure roots to bind or ensnare your enemies. Mana Cost: 20 Cooldown: 40 seconds]"That doesn't sound useless at all," Evan said.

"Have you tried to—""Trap the golem with the roots? Yep. He snapped them without breaking a sweat. The ability is called Ironroot, but they might as well have been made of paper. I'm just not strong enough to fight a rank 3 monster." His sentence gave Evan pause. He'd already wondered about how ranks worked. Maybe Oliver could clear things up.

"How many ranks are there?" Oliver blinked in surprise, then shook his head.

"Sorry, I forgot this is all new to you. No one really know for sure how many ranks there are. I've heard 20 or 22 and even 24. Some people even believe there is no limit at all. Most people's progress falls off somewhere around rank 6 or 7. Even the guild members usually don't make it past 11 or 12 before they retire. The strongest person I know of is the headmaster of the academy in Stormhaven. I've heard he's rank 19. Insanely strong."

"So a rank 3 monster is significantly stronger than us?"

"Oh yes," Oliver said.

"Maybe a really strong rank 1 could take it on, but not us. No offense, but neither of us is very good yet. You have potential with your amazing affinity, but you're inexperienced. So am I, of course, and on top of that I only have one skill, the one that came free with the crystal. And it's not very useful in a fight."

"Ah, I can fix that. I have more skill gems. You want to be a fighter, right? Do you think these sword gems would be useful for that?" He reached into his inventory, and the two green gems materialized in his hand. Oliver stared at the gems for a moment, looking flabbergasted.

"Where did you find those?"

"In one of the rooms in the big building where I woke up. And then the other one came with some reward I got for fulfilling a quest. You get quests too, right?" Oliver didn't bother answering the question. His attention was still fixed on the gems. Evan could see the longing in his eyes.

"Gems of the Sword… wow. My father would never get those for me."

"Then take mine," Evan urged.

"I don't need them. I already used my free slot." Oliver shook his head with a sad look on his face.

"I can't. They're too valuable. You can't just give them to me."

"What else would I be doing with them?"

"You could use them when you rank up and your next skill slot opens up. Or you could sell them."

"I'm not going to do either of those things if we get smashed to pieces by an angry mud monster," Evan said.

"Use one. You'll unlock a cool skill, we'll find you a sword—I'm sure there must be some lying around in these ruins—and then you can use your new skill to fight the golem with me." Oliver sighed.

"I don't know. How would I ever be able to repay that favor?"

"Are you sure your father is a farmer and not a loan shark? You keep talking about repaying things when we clearly have bigger problems to solve. Just take the damn gem, Oliver. It's the only sensible thing to do." Evan unceremoniously dumped one of the gems into Oliver's lap. Oliver picked it up, but kept it in his palm, looking uncertain.

"You're absolutely sure?"

"Yes!"

"Okay, fine. I'll do it. But I will—""Just use the damn gem!"

"Fine, fine. Don't rush me. This is an important moment." He took a deep breath and closed his fist around the gem.

"Father's going to kill me when he finds out I used my slot for a sword skill." He closed his eyes, and moments later a glowing green light emanated from his hand. It spread to his arm, crawling up his shoulder until his entire body was engulfed. The whole process took just five seconds. With the look of a kid on Christmas morning, Oliver dove into his menu. He started grinning.

"Okay, that sounds pretty good." Evan immediately opened his party menu to check out Oliver's new skill. [Petrifying Strike - Tied to your Strength attribute A powerful sword attack that deals physical damage to your enemy and renders the attacked limb stiff and heavy. Duration: 3 seconds Mana Cost: 15 Cooldown: 40 seconds Increase your Strength attribute to improve this ability.]"That'll definitely come in handy," Evan said.

"Are you happy with what you got?" Oliver's grin got even wider.

"Very. Do think we can take the golem on with my new skill? What do you have? I bet it's pretty cool, considering your Celestial affinity."

"I have this Star Slash thing, but I can't use it now that my sword's broken. And then there's Teleport, but I don't…" His sentence trailed off as a thought grabbed hold of his mind.

"You look like you just had an idea," Oliver said.

"I think I might have an idea, yeah. But I'll need to borrow your knife, and we'll need to find you a sword." He got to his feet and reached his hand out to Oliver, pulling him up too.

"Come on. Let's go rummage around those ruins. We need to gear up before we face the golem."