Sucked into a Fantasy Game

After they got dressed in pants and turtlenecks—courtesy of the innkeeper because she insisted that they should be decent—and headed out, they walked along the busy streets, passing merchant stalls under the noon sun. Unequipping their robes had reduced their Intellect by a negligible amount. They weren’t going to battle, so the reduction didn’t matter for now.

“You want to join a guild once we reach Level 10?” Sako asked, looking to Kiyomi beside her. Level 10 was the minimum level required.

“Normally, I’d say no, but that’s a wise option. If we expand our connections, we’ll have an easier time getting the info need. And if we make friends, they might even tell us stuff for free… But…”

“But…?”

“…I…”

“Yes?”

Kiyomi hung her head.

“What?”

She mumbled. “How… How do you make… friends again?”

“It’s easy. You just go to someone, say hi, and give them a biiiig smile! Make sure you look really cute too!” Sako leaned towards her ear to whisper. “And if they’re your crush, throw in a sexy wink.”

Kiyomi stepped away, alarmed with wide eyes. “That’s easy for you. Your Charisma is pretty high, mine’s not.”

“Yeah, but who cares about numbers. You’re still pretty.” Kiyomi’s hair had a distinct shine in it under the sun. And even though her dark eyes made her somewhat unapproachable, they didn’t hinder her potential charm.

Kiyomi blushed. “This is a game of numbers, idiot.”

They stopped when a slightly taller young man in leather armor up to his neck approached. His orange hair completely clashed with his whole outfit. Not the best fashion sense. He stopped before them.

“Hello, I’m terribly sorry to interrupt you. I mean, I hope I’m not interrupting. Well, no, it’s obvious I’m interrupting, but I won’t take up your time for too long, I promise!” He was trembling.

“Can we help you?” Sako tilted her head.

“Yes… Maybe. I-I think so.” He looked down at the cobblestone ground. “It’s just… I saw—and I wasn’t stalking, I promise! I saw you girls, and I wanted to ask one of you something.”

Kiyomi looked at Sako. “Good job, you’ve attracted a weirdo to us.”

Sako grinned anxiously.

“Actually, I’m more interested in you, Miss Kiyomi.”

Her eyes were burning daggers into him. “I don’t know you, so use my last name only.”

“Oh! I’m sorry, yes, of course, Ayano. I’m so sorry. So…”

“What.”

“Do you… maybe want… maybe want to make a party with me? You can be leader of course.”

Sako was impressed with his bravery.

“You examined my stats from far away to find my name like some creep, but you didn’t bother looking at the fact that I’m in a party already?

“I saw, but I just thought—”

“You thought I would just up and abandon my friend here?”

“Aw, that’s so sweet,” Sako commented.

“Shut up,” Kiyomi snapped at her then looked back at him.

His eyes teared up.

“Fuck off and go kill—”

Sako tapped Kiyomi’s shoulder, frowning. “Hey now. Don’t be like that. He’s been so nice and respectful to you, and you’re treating him like this? Did he do anything to deserve your attitude?”

Kiyomi turned her head away.

“What should you say?” she asked.

“…Sorry.”

“To him, not to me.”

Kiyomi turned her head his way. “Sorry.”

He blinked away the tears. “No, it’s okay. It’s my fault. I’m sorry for bothering you. I should’ve known better.” He turned to leave.

“Do you mind if we add you?” Sako asked.

He stopped and turned back around. “Really?”

“No, she’ll add you, not me,” Kiyomi said.

“Oh. That’s okay too, I guess.” The disappointment was heavy in his voice.

Sako swiped the air to open her UI on a few holoscreens. Once they popped up, she pressed a few buttons and his name appeared on her list. “There!”

“Thank you so much.” He managed a small smile and left.

They resumed walking down the street.

“Check his stats,” Kiyomi said.

Sako did that.

Kondor Vance	Level 40	Info 🛈
Strength	60+25	Affects physical power; attack damage, lifting ability against Weight, and Carry Weight.
Vitality	60+25	Affects HP and Defense.
Intellect	40+7	Affects damage of magic attacks, MP capacity, and MP regen. rate. Also affects overall wisdom.
Agility	40+40	Affects physical speed and perceptive speed.
Dexterity	40	Affects deftness in minor tasks and movements, especially with the hands. Also affects accuracy of projectiles.
Endurance	53+9	Affects stamina and stamina regen.
Resistance	44	Affects resistance to status ailments and elemental damage.
Charisma	40	Affects charm, leadership, and persuasive skills.
Luck	47+10	Affects drop rate by a small amount and crit chance.
Class: Warrior

“Warrior class,” Sako said.

“Really?” Kiyomi checked. “I wonder then if he knows he should be wearing plate armor, not leather.”

“Is plate armor only for warriors?”

“Usually for melee classes.”

“Oh. I don’t understand why his Agility is so high though in bonus. Wouldn’t it make more sense to go more for bonuses in Vitality, Strength, and Endurance with his gear?”

“Yeah. Leather armor gives you higher Agility. He’s weird.”

“Or broke?”

“Or broke. Or an idiot.” Kiyomi shrugged.

There were so many people and small places, like alleys, to cover. They couldn’t do it. They stopped at a water fountain in the center of town.

“We should split up. We’ll cover more ground that way. Rendezvous back here in 3 hours?” Sako asked.

“That would be a smart idea, but I don’t want a certain airhead getting lost,” Kiyomi replied.

“I have a minimap.” She pouted.

“Fine. 3 hours.”

3 hours later

Kiyomi sat on the fountain edge alone. She hadn’t found anyone remotely useful.

The sun’s soft, orange half-light was dying.

1 hour later

It was night.

Kiyomi lay on her stomach on the edge with one arm and one foot dipped into the water, her other half on the opposite side of the fountain and dangling above the ground. She moved her hand around in the water, playing with it.

Yet another hour later

She sat how she had initially sat then stood up and screamed. “SON OF A—!”

“Hiya!” Sako skipped up to the fountain.

“YOU—!”

“Meeee!”

“WHERE—!”

“I can explain! There was a cat, and then another cat. I didn’t know cats existed here. So anyway, I followed the first cat, and then that cat led me to the second cat. And then the second cat—”

“Get to the point.”

“I got some interesting info, though I’m not sure how useful it is.”

Kiyomi looked around. “Is it sensitive?”

“Part of it.”

“We’ll talk about it back at the inn then.”

They went back to the inn.