Chapter 6 - +1 Skill Point

For much of that morning and the rest of the day, the journey in the wagon was silent. Petgeon and the other members of his group exchanged a few words, but Willow and Aria Valenwood didn't have much to say to each other or to the men.

Towards evening, Petgeon, who was no longer holding the reins due to tiredness, signaled to the tall, dagger-wielding man to stop. They had reached a place that looked perfect for setting up camp for the night. It was dangerous to travel the roads at night, with so many monsters with nocturnal habits. A campfire might scare them away.

Kevneth, the archer, began to set up a large tent, while the man with the daggers, who Willow now knew was Morwin, began to prepare the fire.

Willow, for his part, didn't want to just sit on a fallen tree trunk and watch the others work, so he started collecting some dry branches to help Morwin's work.

Aria moved away from the group, sat down on a rock and began to watch the twilight, which had strong orange tones.

It wasn't long before the fire was finally lit, the twilight was gone and the night had officially begun. It was then that the howling began. At first they were distant, almost inaudible, as if they were just the echo of some distant animal. Willow felt a shiver run down his spine. He looked at Petgeon, who was now more alert.

"Wolves?" ventured Willow.

Petgeon shook his head slowly. "Not exactly. Those sounds are different. More intelligent... and more organized. They're the Wanderers."

Aria, on the other side of the camp, was still sitting on that big rock, staring up at the starry sky. "The spirits of the forest are restless," she murmured, without taking her eyes off the stars.

Willow swallowed. Every detail of this world was becoming more real by the moment. The stars in the sky, the pattern of the moon - different from the moon he knew in real life. The craters had a distinctive formation, like a circular scar running across their surface. 

'I really am stuck in Ether Online... It still seems a bit absurd.'

But the night, despite the ominous sounds, passed without major incident. The bonfire burned brightly while the stars continued to shine, indifferent to the concerns of the mortals below. Shifts were formed so that there was always someone awake and alert. As the sun rose in the morning, the road to Pavagar became wider and more manicured, a clear indication that they were approaching a larger town.

Willow, still a little tired from the bad night's sleep, watched the surroundings more carefully. Pavagar soon appeared in the distance - with its gray stone walls and red-roofed houses. The size of the town impressed him. Compared to Ravepal, Pavagar looked like a metropolis. There was movement in the streets, people coming and going, carrying goods and large lizards pulling carts.

Pavagar had more than five thousand inhabitants and a presence of adventurers was evident in every corner. Armor, swords and cloaks swung as groups of men and women of different races and classes gathered around taverns, inns and at the local market. Willow immediately felt small in front of the number of adventurers present. Many were chatting animatedly, others seemed to be negotiating and looking for groups.

Petgeon looked at Aria, who was sitting quietly in the wagon. "Well, we've arrived. Pavagar, temporary home to many adventurers looking for money."

"It's even a little hard to imagine that with so many adventurers, no one has managed to deal with an evil spirit." Aria said, climbing down from the carriage.

The green-haired man flashed a faint smile, "Oh, you know. Not all humans can deal with spirits. Some mages, like me, can, but it's still a difficult job."

When Willow got off the cart, he watched the incessant movement of people on the cobbled streets for a moment and then turned to Aria. 

"Well, I guess this is the end of the line for both of us," said Willow to Aria, who was already standing next to the cart.

Aria turned to him with a half smile. "Yes, it looks like we've reached our destination."

Aria was a strong, confident woman, very different from anyone Willow had ever met in the real world. Now, faced with the numerous Pavagar, he knew that his path would be lonely from that point on.

"I mean, you've really helped me, more than I could have imagined from a stranger in this world. And I know I don't have much to offer, but one day... I promise I'll repay you for everything you've done for me." Willow said while he rubbed the back of his neck. 

Aria raised an eyebrow in surprise, but then shook her head negatively. "You don't owe me anything, Willow. You humans' lives are so brief. Instead of worrying about repaying me, maybe you should just live as you do, enjoying the time you have. Maybe start a family? Many humans wish they could."

Start a family? He had never thought about it seriously, let alone now, stuck in a strange world where the rules of survival were very different. Even so, there was something comforting in the simplicity that Aria described.

"I don't know if this is my path, but I'll try to find what it is. Thank you, Aria, really." Willow said.

She just nodded. "Make your way, Willow. Goodbye."

"Bye." Willow smiled briefly, bowed and then started walking down the street, following part of the crowd.

Petgeon looked at Aria, confused, as he watched Willow disappear into the crowd. "I really thought he was your slave. I mean, he was dressed like that next to you and..."

The look Aria gave him was enough to make him take a step back. 

"Slave?" Aria repeated with a tone that sounded like an insult. "We elves don't have slaves. The idea of subjecting living beings with such short lives to forced labor is repugnant."

Petgeon swallowed, realizing that he had touched a nerve. "I'm sorry, I... I didn't mean to offend. It was just an unfortunate assumption."

Aria crossed her arms. "Yes, very unfortunate. Now, where is the evil spirit? We have work to do, and I'd rather get it over with."

{±}

Willow, now alone in the crowd, watched uneasily as Pavagar was even bigger and busier than he had imagined. 

The adventurers seemed almost superhuman. The men, for the most part, and a few women, were not far behind either.

Willow looked down at his arms and sighed. It was clear that he wasn't in good shape. For years, he had spent all his time sitting in an office, working without ever really focusing on his own physique and the worst part was that his avatar in the game was identical to him in real life. However, he quickly shook his head. This was no time to be discouraged. 

[Congratulations! You have completed the "Hitchhiking" Mission!]

[You have gained +200 XP.]

[You have gained +1 Skill Point.]

'Oh, finally the mission counted as completed. Well, I think I can become stronger now... The only problem is that my options are a bit...'

+

[Skill: Melodious Voice].

Description: This skill allows you to use your voice to calm creatures and people, promoting harmony in the environment.

Effects: Stuns the target and nullifies any effect that is afflicting the target, whether this effect is emotional or magical.

Rating: Unique

Requirement: None

Cost to Unlock: 1 Skill Point.

+

'Great! A Crown Control-type skill, but what will a loner like me do with a skill like this? How can I use it to kill a monster and level up?'

+

[Skill: Touch of the Predator].

Description: This skill will allow you to temporarily steal the skill of someone you kiss or have sex with. The duration of the ability will depend on the pleasure provided to the target.

Effects: Copies and stores third-party skills for use by the user for a limited time.

Rating: Unique.

Requirement: Carnal love interaction.

Cost to Unlock: 2 Skill Points.

+

'Okay... This class I got. The Divine Seducer. It's a bit suspicious...'

+

[Skill: Transparent Loop].

Description: Allows you to measure relationship levels with people using hearts as a metric. If you have zero hearts with someone, it means you have a NEUTRAL relationship. If you have six, it's a loving relationship with benefits. Enmities begin when you lose hearts with the person to the point of becoming negative.

Effects: None. This skill won't force people to like you or hate you, it just serves as visual support for your relationships.

Rating: Unique.

Requirement: None.

Cost to Unlock: 1 Skill Point.

+

'Ah, it's like one of those Eroge systems!'

+

[Skill: Carnal Bond]

Description: When you reach a high degree of emotional bond with someone and you have sex, a permanent increase in all your attributes will be granted.

Effects: Increase in Attributes.

Rating: Unique.

Requirement: Have more than five hearts with the target (Read about the <Transparent Bond> skill for more details).

+

Willow was beginning to think that all the skills in his Skill Tree were too weak to be Single Rank Skills, but the Carnal Bond skill put everything on another level. Willow had played Ether Online for five years, on and off, but he had played it. Still, he had never even heard rumors about a skill that could increase a player's attributes. There were only two ways a player could increase their attributes. The first was to level up as everyone else did, and the second was to use equipment such as armor to increase Defense, Strength, Agility and so on.

So, without a doubt, although very strange, the skills of this class that he received were very overpowered and combined too much if used in the right way. 

Even so, there was a problem for Willow. Although he had a spectacular class for the future, he was still a wimp. He would never be able to get laid at that moment, nor would he have the money to pay for a night with a prostitute. Therefore, he first needed to think about how to get money or power in another way.

He was in Pavagar, and the best thing to do would be to sign up as an adventurer straight away. He could try to join a group that was in need of a backpack carrier, but then he could end up dead and he didn't know if he could be resurrected if he died; part of him didn't want to risk trying either.

As he walked, lost in thought about which skill to unlock with the only skill point he had and what to do with the hours of his day, his right foot hit something soft and crumpled on the ground. He looked down and saw a piece of paper, partially covered in dust. Leaning over, he picked up the paper and shook off the dirt.

It was a kind of local newspaper, with headlines talking about recent successful missions, news from around the kingdom and rewards for those who managed to eliminate monsters in the vicinity. 

[Is an agreement between Sylvanor and Ferrum possible?]

[Demon Empire advances further to the front!]

[Queen Helena is close to convincing the world about the evils of slavery].

[Civilians gather in Pavagar to pay a generous reward to whoever defeats the Evil Spirit of the Forest].

[A member of the Council of Mages finds a magical cure for tetanus].

It was a lot of news, but what caught Willow's eye was the date. He blinked, confused.

'That's right...'

The date in the newspaper indicated that it was Day 64 of Cycle 10 of the Continental War Era. This date was exactly 63 days after the launch of Ether Online, which, when launched, the world of Ether Online had just entered Cycle 10. The Age of Continental War began when the Demon Empire started attacking the surrounding kingdoms, seeking to expand, and this Age lasted from the beginning until the closure of the Ether Online servers, which was on Day 100 of Cycle 15 of the Age of Continental War. 

In other words, Willow had somehow returned to shortly after when it all began.