Outset

A blade of grass drifted onto Daichi's forehead, but he was too weakened to brush it off or even open his eyes. Instead, he felt the soft touch of a woman caress his face clean. 

"Daichi . . . is a pretty name." Her lulling voice beckoned him into a trance, like a dream he never wanted to wake from. The tenderness of her fingers traced his chin's outline as if searching for wounds to sooth. 

Over several minutes, Daichi's consciousness wavered between drowsy and passed out. He squinted his sight open to see a gorgeous, lilac-haired woman looking down on him as he rested on her lap. She was weaving her fingers through his silver hair, then smiled when their eyes briefly met. A pearl pendant around her neck was the last thing Daichi perceived before he knocked out again and awoke leaning back on a tree. 

Alone.

What . . . happened? He appeared healed and had regained his sense of hearing. The Hoppers were also nowhere in sight. Where was the girl that'd treated him? Why would she even bother saving a stranger in this world? He checked around him to see if any belongings were stolen, but everything was still in place—scrolls, their holster, and his brown Invoker robe were all intact. 

Paradise was strange in more ways than one.

Taking in his new surroundings, it looked like she'd relocated him somewhere safe near the forest's edge. I'd love to track her down to thank her, but getting out of this hell of a first level takes priority. He lumbered to his feet and continued his journey out towards the wild world.

After veering around sloped trees, a cobblestone path down the hill came into view. It spiraled towards sets of towering walls seemingly surrounding an enclosed city. The stone barriers were dozens of meters tall and cast an enormous shadow thanks to a setting sun behind them.

Daichi paced towards an open gate. Dotted on both doors were hand-written signs saying, "Welcome, Adventurers!", and as he walked through, a pop-up appeared saying he’d just discovered Outset. The city was now displayed on his World Map as a found location.

One small step for man, one big step for me.

Inside, a few guards standing in armor gave him a stink eye but otherwise left him alone. Myriads of NPC’s and Adventurers were roaming the medieval streets lined with quaint taverns, shops, and inns. The architecture was something he’d only seen in story books—mixes of gothic and Byzantine styles combined with wonderous fantasy designs. Daichi felt like a tourist enjoying his tour a tad too much.

But he still had a mission. Determination resurfaced on his face. 

From afar, he scanned a bustling crowd of pedestrians as they walked about. Individual Playercards displayed in his POV, giving him a feel for which classes were most common and everyone's average level. But more information was still needed.

Daichi strolled up to an Adventurer standing beside a mask shop. “Hey, sorry to bother but do you know where I can find Outset's Guild House?”

The swordsman in basic armor pointed to a large building towards the center of town. Daichi had already guessed his destination but just wanted an excuse to compare someone's Playercard with their appearance:

[Name: Sabo

Level: 17

Class: Paladin]

Playercards really are just ID cards, huh? Daichi thought. It's irrelevant for NPC’s since there aren't many details on them, but this might be problematic for me. Probably smart to limit how much I stand out.

Daichi thanked Sabo then departed for an excursion downtown. 

Outset's Guild House was by far the most lavish structure around. Its outward appearance was that of a cathedral adored with dazzling, stained-glass windows. A clock tower stood poised over the double-doored entrance while gears let out guttural chimes. Meanwhile, scents from burning candles inside invited Daichi within as he strode on through.

A hallway greeted him illuminated by colorful windows depicting various tales, akin to churches from reality. But in these panels, there were knights battling against fire-breathing dragons and wizards dueling fierce giants. Displayed in another window nearby, a family of green-haired women peered down from the clouds as their light alone seemingly ended the war below. 

Gonna have to research lore a lot more later. Daichi backed away and trekked further down the hall. Adventurers of all shapes, ages, and genders roamed about, conversing about recent quests or new skills they'd just unlocked. Daichi followed the crowd’s flow towards a front desk where a blonde, uniformed girl smiled on seeing him. She radiated a wholesome aura accentuated by the pink flower in her breast pocket. 

“Hello! How may I serve you?” The NPC receptionist said in perfect Japanese.

Huh. Guess communicating with NPC's won't be a problem. Daichi noticed she also wore a golden, green-pulsing ring on her index finger, much like rings Collectors wore. He curiously brought up her Playercard:

[Name: Mabel

Level: N/A

Class: NPC+]

NPC+? She was the first NPC he’d seen with that denotation. Does it have something to do with her ring? He didn’t want to be rude and have it be the first thing he asked about. Instead, he'd utilize his years of honed conversation skills to have her bring up it herself.

“Yes, hi," he replied with an honest smile. "I just spawned today and I’m wondering if there’s a guild I can apply for?”

Her eyes focused in on him, likely bringing up his own Playercard.

“Unfortunately," she said, "we don't have jurisdiction to sort out applications. That duty rests with Adventurers, specifically their guild leader. Guild Houses in Paradise mainly issue quests and handle registrations. Other than that, all of a guild’s functions like adding members are handled through the Menu.”

“So should I just ask around here and see if any guilds wanna take me in?”

Mabel stamped some random papers on the desk. “I’d hate to say it, but with you being a new Adventurer, most guilds won't accept you. Spots on a roster are quite competitive."

Yup. The Playercard is burning me already. "So I'm guessing guild member slots aren't exactly plentiful?"

"Indeed. The max number of members a guild can have is seven without triggering the EXP Curse.”

“Hmm? EXP Curse?”

“Yes." She lifted both hands and started raising her fingers one by one, stopping at the eighth. "When a guild accepts an eighth member, the whole party's shared EXP is affected. Barring MVP, guilds split the EXP they earn evenly between its members, but the EXP Curse halves that amount—and should they decide to add more members, the guild’s EXP will keep halving until essentially no EXP is awarded to anyone. So the unofficial limit of members a guild can have is seven but with a max of ten."

Daichi scratched his head. This seemed more convoluted than he thought it’d be, but it was a good opportunity to strike for intel. “Right, well if I wanted to make my own guild, could I invite NPC’s like yourself to join? Since most Adventurers probably wouldn’t join mine.”

She looked at him, surprised. “I’m flattered, but NPC’s are only here to add more depth to this precious world of ours. We’re usually not very strong, thus we wouldn’t be much help even if we could join.”

Well here goes. “So all you NPCs have to follow the same rules as everyone else then?”

Mabel lifted her right hand again, showcasing the golden ring. “I’m an NPC+, which differentiates me from regular NPC’s—not in power but Authority—due to my link to Princess Dominion, the ruler of this land. I’m granted wisdom through this ring to better assist Adventure—.”

“Wait, so the Dominion is here?" Daichi's hands slammed on the wooden counter. "The embodiment of our Dominion chips we all met before we got here?”

“N-Not quite. As far as I understand, the Dominion you encountered in the in-between world is a different Dominion than our princess, although they look similar. There’s a painting hanging in our main lobby if you’re curious.”

“I’ll take a look later." He calmed down with an exhale. "But this link to Princess Dominion—does that mean you know anything about what’s going on in the real world? Or why we’re all here in some fantasy land?”

She shook her head. “I only know what's needed to help Adventurers get started . . . Also, may I voice a concern?"

"What's up?"

Her blue eyes pained. "I know this world may seem like a fake to you, but to me it’s very real, and it’s all I’ve ever known. I'd appreciate it if you didn't imply my home is some falsehood.”

What? Daichi was taken aback, shocked at how NPC's were programmed to be as lifelike as possible—indistinguishable from real people. They had concrete thoughts, feelings, dreams, and desires. Yet this NPC knew and lived by its principles better than most humans.

“Please forgive me,” he said, bowing his head. “I didn’t mean to cause offense. My brevity here just made me forget my manners.”

Now she looked taken aback. Mabel started cutely fidgeting about. “I-It's fine. I was out of line for voicing something like that. I’m here to make Adventurers feel welcome, not uncomfortable. Rest assured I am here to serve!"

"Guess I'll be in your hands next time I swing by then, haha."

"Mm! Are there any other questions you might have?”

Daichi could feel impatient stares burning into his back. The long line behind him was grumbling. “N-No, I think that’s good for now thanks. I’ll probably take my chances and see if anyone wants to take me in. If not, I’ll make my own guild.”

The receptionist fiddled with her golden ring. There were conflicted emotions swirling within her eyes. “I did say I’m not here to make you uncomfortable, but it wouldn’t be befitting if I didn’t mention a warning."

"Huh? About what?"

She peered into the crowds behind him streaming through the hall, then leaned in close to converse. "Some years ago, a group of Adventurers calling themselves the ‘Defenders of Earth’ formed—who fancied the hobby of human trafficking.”

“Human traffickers? Here in Paradise?” The concept didn’t seem far from what Dominion did to everyone in Japan.

“Yes. As their ranks have grown so have their abduction schemes in complexity. One of the common ones is tricking new Adventurers to join their high-level guilds. So please use good judgment should an experienced guild try recruiting you."

"Can't say I'm exactly familiar with this world yet though . . ." Should try fishing for more important trivia.

Mabel seemed to notice the large line forming behind him. "Just be wary of guilds that take random interest in you. Unless you have great reason to trust them, I’d refuse such invitations.”

Daichi nodded. His green eyes gleamed with friendliness. “Okay, thanks for the heads up! Where I come from, we have a saying that goes, 'If it’s too good to be true it probably is’."

"Oh! Those are wise words to live by."

"Yup, so I’m comfortable continuing that philosophy here. Got a big world to explore after all."

“I wish you well then.” She smiled at him one last time.

Daichi waved goodbye as he blended in with the crowd. A rush-hour of sorts began while he conversed. Wide halls helped alleviate congestion but traffic headed in mostly one direction.

Alright, main lobby, right? he thought. Let's see what we can find there. Bound to be something interesting.