The Demon King’s Funeral

It was a sad day, for the Demon King had died.

His obituary echoed through the forum of the Full-Dive VRMMO MYSTALE ONLINE, and like many others, Claudine the Dark Elf followed its call for his funeral. She had logged in tonight for the first time in ages, and fast traveled like many other veterans to a small, unmarked place on an insignificant world shard called Medrica. There floated a tiny temple, tethered to the main shard by a flimsy wooden bridge. There were no monsters here, no loot or quest-relevant items. It was simply a nice place to sit down and gaze at the sky. And it was one place that Vrixus <First Night>, guildmaster of [Twin Moon Night], the one they jokingly called the Demon King, had frequented in his quiet moments.

Right now, it was night, and above them the sky glittered with blue and orange stars, while the two moons shone down on them. Even though there were many players present, it was eerily quiet. Most of them stood on the bridge leading to the small temple, waiting for their turn to pay their respects. It was a colorful mix, as both factions were present. On one side stood the Children of Lucine: Humans, High Elves, Half-Giants and Dwarves. And on the other, the Children of Nys: the Dark Elves, Imps, Demons and Automatons. While the two factions were at war in-game, tonight even the most hardcore roleplayers laid their differences aside. Tonight was about the people behind the avatars, for even the Demon King had been a regular guy, just like them.

Claudine wished she had spent more time in-game during the last few months. Or at least chatted with Vrixus more often. But as it happened oftentimes, her real life stood had taken priority, and so she only heard of Vrixus’ untimely death through a message from Berus, their mutual friend.

She looked towards the tiny, derelict temple everyone was going towards. While some people stayed a little while after leaving their messages, others vanished immediately. But one person stood there, and Claudine was sure he would stay there for the entirety of the night. Berus <Champion of Lucine> watched the whole ceremony in silence, and his posture did not reveal his thoughts. He and Vrixus could not have been any more different in-game, and still, both of them were bound by a deep friendship that had developed over many years of playing the game together. Claudine thought back to all the times she had watched the two of them fight in the Coliseum, as she tried to learn something from them for her own fights. She closed her eyes, suppressing a sigh. Vrixus had been the one to teach her how to use her class more effectively. Even though he had started many accounts, and tried out each and every class, he had returned to the Demon Swordsmaster each and every time. He was just predictable like that.

The queue moved forward, and she spared a glance down into the fog below the bridge. There, she saw the familiar silhouette of a giant, muscular dragon and a raid party attempting to defeat it, as said optional boss was usually the only reason people came to this area. She blinked, and focused on that group in the quick flashes of lightning that illuminated the darkness.

They’re doing a good job, she thought. Probably not their first attempt.

She watched as the party members dodged the dragon’s attacks, directing it where they needed it to be. It was so different from her own first attempts. A smile crept back onto her face. Vrixus had helped her with that raid, she remembered, and after countless hours of preparation, when she finally defeated it, he was part of her party, as well.

Surely, she wasn’t the only one on the bridge with fond memories of him in-game. When it was finally her turn to go into the temple, she walked past many messages that others had left for him. Each and every one glowed golden as she stepped on them.

[Thank you for teaching me how to actually fight in PVP!]

[I wish you were still here.]

[I miss our long talks in Hell’s Tavern. Thank you for always listening to my rants.]

[Thank you, for all the tips and your support.]

[You were a great friend.]

[I miss you.]

As she read the messages, Claudine fought her tears down. How could she not have noticed that his health was declining? Apparently, he had only shared his ailments with Berus, and had continued to smile and joke with everyone else. That didn’t make it any better. Now, she only wished she could have done something. Anything. Maybe even start a fundraiser for him. But it was too late for that now.

She knelt down before the Goddess’ statue, the features so worn down no one could tell if she was meant to depict Nys or Lucine, and thought about which message she wanted to leave. She opened her menu, and scrolled automatically through her friend list.

[Vrixus <First Night>]

[Last Seen Online: 5 Days Ago]

His profile picture still grinned at her with sharp teeth. He was the perfect embodiment of a Demon player character: with bright, red skin, mighty curled horns, short black hair and an intense stare in his yellow, snake-like eyes. No wonder he earned himself the nickname of Demon King, even though he always thought it cringe. Maybe that was why it stuck.

Maybe I have some old pictures from our raids, she thought. I should really look at them again.

Even though she didn’t know his real name, and didn’t know what he looked like in real life, he had been a real friend to her. It had been a shock, to get that message from Berus. To realize that she would never chat with him again. He was… gone. And it left a strange emptiness in her, one that was hard to grasp. She finally wrote down her message.

[I’ll miss you. And I’ll remember you.]

It was the only thing that came to mind. The words were the same that so many others had written, but they were true.

He would live on. Even if no one knew his real name, he wouldn’t simply vanish from MYSTALE ONLINE. Even if not in the game’s lore itself, then at least as a whispered legend between players.

Finally, she took out a moonflower from her inventory and dropped it in front of the statue. Slowly, the blue glowing flower drifted to the floor. It would stay there, until another player picked it up or it despawned in a month’s time. Just like a real flower, this item wasn’t made for eternity. Claudine quite liked that.

It felt like the first step to healing. She would still hurt, and she was sure it would take a long time until it wasn’t strange to see his name on her friend list, until his account sank to the bottom of it. But she wouldn’t forget him, or all that he had done for their wonderful community.

“Thank you,” she whispered, “For everything.”

Around her, other players gathered, writing down their own messages or dropping items. Most of them were from their guild, while there were others she had never seen before. But tonight, they were all united. Only Berus stood alone, looking as if he wanted to be left alone. And she respected that. Still, she turned towards him and waved. He waved back. Even though real life took its toll on her, she promised herself to chat with him in the next few days. Together, they would remember their friend.