Payday

Siegmund was waiting in the middle of the marketplace.

Being an NPC companion, he didn't permanently die when "killed." Rather, he "fell unconscious" and then "recovered from his wounds," even if he'd died in a catastrophic way such as decapitation. It wasn't the most immersive system for dealing with NPC death, but it was certainly better than having to spend Crystal Coins on a new companion every time one died.

There were a few MMOs in the past which had permanent NPC death, but they never found much success, because the game became quite boring when players had the freedom to kill every NPC around them.

When Ignatius approached, Siegmund rose from his seat on an upturned bucket and waved happily at him. "There you are, my friend! It is truly tragic that we were unable to save the lives of these poor city guards, but I am grateful that we at least got away with our lives once more." Siegmund squinted as he stared into Ignatius's face, then raised his eyebrows in surprise. "My friend, your eyes are glowing! Could it be that… you're an Immortal? By the gods, I never dreamed that I'd find myself in the middle of such fateful adventures as these!"

Ignatius laughed. "Yep. Immortal, all right. Good job trying to protect the city, even if the Heavenly Assassins sort of stabbed you in the face immediately."

"Bah," Siegmund snorted. "It's nothing! I've bandaged up my wounds and feel better than ever already."

He had apparently "bandaged up" a knife wound that had passed through the eyeball and into the brain, but Ignatius wasn't about to point out the absurdity of the companion respawning system. "I'm glad you're back in fighting shape," he said instead. "Unfortunately, the Grand Master didn't survive the assassination attempt, so I suppose we don't have any more business in Stomrus for the moment."

Then he took a single step into the very center of the marketplace, triggering the event that he knew would happen next.

A dirty-faced orphan dressed in rags, with a tiny hat on his head, rushed up to Ignatius and thrust a scroll at him. "Mr. Monk! I was told to give this message to you!"

"Thanks," said Ignatius, and took the scroll from the street kid.

The NPC shifted on his feet, looking embarrassed. "Could you maybe spare a bit of Essence, sir? I got the message to you right away, just as quick as I could!"

The kid asking for Essence was a minor event that would have a small effect on a story mission down the line. Even though he was trying to preserve as much Essence as possible before the end of this story mission, Ignatius knew it would be worth it to enable the future event.

"Thanks, Kid," he said, and held out his hand. Rainbow light danced between his fingers and coalesced into a shimmering coin that sparkled with different colors in the light. When one character gave Essence to another, this was the appearance it took, though it only had the rainbow appearance if an Immortal was the one to manifest the crystallized Essence.

The orphan's mouth dropped open in programmed astonishment. "Wow! The rumors were true! Immortals really have come back!" He snatched the single point of Essence from Ignatius's hand and scurried away through the crowd, yelling to everyone around him that an Immortal had been reborn among them.

"What a kind fellow you are," Siegmund chuckled. "Very good of you to give a bit of Essence to that child. I suppose the glorious colors of that coin prove it once and for all—you really are the Immortal who will one day become Emperor and unite the kingdoms of this accursed world!"

"Probably," Ignatius said in an off-handed manner. A quest prompt appeared, asking him to read the contents of the scroll, but he already knew what it contained from his first life. He opened the scroll for a brief moment simply to trigger the next quest step, then snapped it closed again.

"Brightlord Temporix has laid waste to the Valley of Sorrow," he said. "The Valley Tribes begged my masters at the monastery for help in stopping the undead that have risen in the valley, and so you and me are going to go help them. Later. We've got some other things to do first. Ready to leave this city, friend?"

"I think so," Siegmund sighed. "Though at another time I would love to experience the culture of this magnificent capital, this day is far too sorrowful for such tourism. Let us depart."

A prompt appeared in front of Ignatius and followed him as he walked, informing him that the story mission had ended. Once he interacted with the prompt, it would teleport him to Path of the Immortal's regular version of the City of Stomrus. There, he could actually interact with other players and make use of the city's merchants and services.

However, before he did that, Ignatius needed to visit the one merchant who 'did' offer services in this story mission.

He led Siegmund back to the road leading to the town. Due to somewhat sloppy programming, the same NPCs who had been making their slow way into the city were still in basically the same locations as before. The merchant and his donkey, in particular, still stood off to the side of the road. The hot desert wind whipped the man's clothing and tickled the tips of the donkey's ears, but they otherwise seemed completely oblivious to the world around them.

"Hello again!" Ignatius called as he approached. "I have something to sell you, Mr. Merchant."

The man turned to his visitors, looking intrigued. "Welcome, good sirs! I have some goods to sell as well. If you think you might run into any trouble in the city, perhaps you'd like to buy some food to bolster your spirits, or perhaps a fresh set of clothes?"

He was suggesting that Ignatius buy low-quality armor and foods which would provide temporary stat buffs, none of which were needed at the moment. Instead, Ignatius drew the [✯Executioner's Knife] from his inventory and handed it to the merchant.

Despite this being the legendary weapon of a secret cult, the merchant simply wasn't programmed to care. He examined it for a moment and then said, "What craftsmanship! I'll give you 500 Essence for it."

This wasn't actually an opportunity to bargain. A menu appeared in front of Ignatius, allowing him to buy and sell from the merchant's inventory. He sold the knife and received the Essence, then exited the menu, ignoring the weak items the man had for sale.

"Thanks," said Ignatius, then checked his character sheet.

╔══════════════╕

╟─╼Ignatius

╟─╼Monk LVL 2

╠══════════════╡

╟─╼Health Points: 100

╟─╼Energy Points: 100

╟─╼Power Rating: 20

╟─╼Essence: 1,119

╟─╼Crystal Coins: 101

╠══════════════╡

╟─╼ATTRIBUTES

║　╰╼[Vigor] 10

║　╰╼[Strength] 10

║　╰╼[Dexterity] 10

║　╰╼[Intelligence] 10

║　╰╼[Endurance] 10

║　╰╼[Luck] 10

╠══════════════╡

╟─╼ACTIVE SKILLS

║　╰╼[✧Sacred Fist] {⇝0.5 sec}

║　╰╼[✧Balance ]{⇝2 sec|↻10 sec}

║　╰╼[✧Purgation] {↷10 EP|⇝2 sec|↻60 sec}

╟─╼PASSIVE SKILLS

║　╰╼[N/A]

╠══════════════╡

╟─╼EQUIPMENT

║　╰╼R.HAND: [Empty]

║　╰╼L.HAND: [Empty]

║　╰╼HEAD: [✯Onion Knight Helm]

║　╰╼TORSO: [✯Onion Knight Plate]

║　╰╼LEGS: [✯Onion Knight Greaves]

║　╰╼GLOVES: [✧Sarexia's Gauntlets (Drained)]

╟─╼ACCESSORIES

║　╰╼BELT: [✧Monk Sash]

║　╰╼AMULET: [Empty]

║　╰╼R.RING: [Empty]

║　╰╼L.RING: [Empty]

╚═══════════════╛

Excellent. And now all he had to do was leave the mission and benefit from the Essence multiplier he'd earned by finishing the story mission on Hell mode.

Ignatius moved his hand to the "End Mission" prompt.

GAME: You cannot end the mission at this time.

He froze.

This wasn't supposed to happen.

What 'had' happened?

"Hello there," said a dull voice from behind him. "I don't recognize you. Would you mind explaining how exactly that's possible?"

Ignatius spun in place, staring in disbelief at the black-cloaked figure standing a few meters away across the marketplace square. His eyes burned brightly with Immortal energy, and his raised right hand swirled with distorted space.

It was then Ignatius realized every NPC in the area, including Siegmund, had frozen in place, as well as the clouds and birds in the sky, and even the water in a nearby fountain.

The only things that still moved were Ignatius and the stranger he'd followed before, the stranger who had vanished into thin air and now reappeared to prevent Ignatius from leaving.