A Dream and a Hope

"Last Stand aaaaand.........YES!!!"

It took him days to plan for this raid, weeks to find the best day and months to ensure everyone's best schedule. And finally, it happened: Jake and his party have defeated Harbinger Ultima.

Knights and Sorcerers Online was the largest VRMMO game in the market since its release 7 months ago, and it hasn't slowed down at all, with player counts consistently topping 100k, totaling to two million across all platforms and climbing still. The VRMMO promised a vast magic system based on one's ability to imagine it. It also fosters a great deal of complexity for the use of the elements, their combinant reactions, as well as a combat system meant to reward mastery of any aspect.

In Jake Ethi Marlow's case, it was being a Grand Wizard. And he loved the role so much that he earned a reputation for using all the magic in the system and pushing the limits of what the physics engine could handle, even reciting equations like he was in a chemistry project mixing chemicals.

"And THAT-" He slaps the shoulder of his party member to his left, widely grinning all the while, "Is how to cause a natural nitroglycerin buildup!"

"So you're telling me that you made C4 inside of him?"

"No, C4's a plastic explosive, cyclotri-" The increasingly blank stare he received was enough to stop him from continuing.

"Right, in short: C4 is a plastic explosive. Nitroglycerin is actually something that your body can use, so it couldn't have registered as a toxin in Harbinger Ultima's body even if I increased the concentration. Once it reached saturation and we spark a flame inside him..."

"All he could do was explode! What a way to beat Harbinger Ultima, and look!" Tyler, his friend, began as he looked through the chat, "We set a record AND were first to clear this Dungeon Tower! The stream is going NUUUTS~!!"

"It's not really a wonder, is it? Harbinger Ultima is the strongest boss in the game, and the most risky. You literally needed to beat the other seven within the same week just so you have the keys to open his gates! I am so glad that we managed to get here!"

"Same, mate." Tyler took a look at his system clock, his eyes bulging in his skull as he realized the time, "Oh would you- Sorry, man. But I need to sleep. Any more than this, and I won't wake up in time for my shift tomorrow. Later!"

"Later man."

Soon, the empty Boss Room was vacated by the other five of his party of six, and soon he left too.

Passively, he claimed the rewards of being the first-clear of the tower and checked in on his menu. And Jake soon made his way to the tallest mountain available. He set up a teleport signal here for several reasons, many of which he would claim are petty, but above all, it was quiet.

Quiet for him to gather his thoughts. Now that he's defeated Harbinger Ultima and proved his theory...what next?

He defeated the toughest challenge in the game, and his build? Already optimized to whatever degree possible; thank the developers that this game had an active player economy, so he didn't have to mindlessly grind out and pray to RNGesus for good drops, or he might've left the game by week 1.

"...Layla."

At the enunciation, the diminutive fairy and designated guide of the Greatest Magician, a title that comes with Layla's ownership, materialized next to him, following along as Jake trekked the snowy path.

"Yawn...Greetings Grand Sage. I see that you have defeated Harbinger Ultima. Congrats!"

"Thanks." Jake commented, then continued with the AI system. "Can you give me another objective?"

"Pardon?"

"In my objective to be the first to conquer the ultimate Dungeon Tower, I had spent the last seven months mastering magic and none other. As you know, that led me to having you as a companion." Jake snapped his fingers, causing a small flame to settle upon his fingers, which then turned into a ball of ice and then dissipating in a warping snap of void. "My personal goal was now complete...so what now?"

"Hmm...This is difficult to answer..."

"...Let's move on to something else, because I find this weird. You might be able to answer it."

"Of course, Grand Sage. What is it?"

Jake laid himself down upon the snow, appreciating the sensation before he continued, "For...I think since last week, I have been seeing something interesting in my dreams. I saw a meteor fall from the sky, then 25 circles of varying patterns, then what I think is a demon, a ruined city, and a magic circle. Can you make any sense of it?"

"One might say that you have been fully immersed in the world of Knights and Sorcerers and have subsequently developed your own quests to go on."

"That's what I thought too, but the difference here...is that the details are too clear. The words that I could see are legible, the world that I see...feels real. And there are usually easy tells as to whether you're in a dream."

"Hmm...if the idea stays long enough, may I encourage you to write them down? If it gets refined enough, you may submit it to the KNS Creators Program; maybe we can turn it into an actual quest for you to experience."

"True...Oh well, I can think of it tomorrow. I'll be resting, so if you don't mind, log me out after some inactivity."

"Understood. Have a nice night, Grand Sage."

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"Ow."

"OW! The he-"

A swipe from his hands and a dozen birds departed from his body. The brief glances he could get before they flew away painted birds that he didn't recognize from Knights and Sorcerers, but all at once...they weren't the birds he knew in his world.

In fact...he wasn't sure where he was.

In the middle of some plains, a forest bordering his vision to the right, smooth cool rock beneath him, a shade above his head blocking off the noon sun, an a breeze that carried scents he could not recall.

And when his eyes adjusted to the brightness of his surroundings, what greeted his eyes were a lush spread of grass and nature, in the distance snowcapped mountains, and immediately before his eyes was a girl.

Jake could tell that she was shocked, seeing that there were some fragments of what he could only assume was an ornament on the ground, as well as her wide eyes and that the rest of her face was covered by her hands.

It seemed as though she didn't know where to look.

He looked down upon himself, and he could tell why.

And he too panicked.