CHAPTER 47

"Hold on, let me give you your gold." Reineke froze for a second.

Once they'd finished, a portal opened, and Romuil stepped into it. I probably could have added him as a friend, but for some reason, I didn't want to. Maybe that was one of the choices Reineke was talking about.

"He has a dark side. And there's something going on with him and Murat, by the way," Kro said with a glance at Reineke.

"We don't have to have anything to do with him." Lis gestured my way with his eyes, obviously reminding Kro of my presence.

I figured it was best not to inquire.

"Lis, show me the map again. How do I go there, and what's the final destination?"

Lis opened his map, and I estimated the distance, pulled up the game map and tried to compare the two. Then I activated the quest for Ogina the East and checked the red circle. It turned out to be about five days' walk from Selgar, right on the border with the notorious Gruskat Plain, where all the wild ores were. Hordes of them. Romuil was right: it would be easier for me to cross the Foim Plateau. But the yetis…

"Look, there's a crossroads you have to go to either way." Reineke had obviously realised what I was trying to figure out and pointed to a city on the map. "You need to go here, to Montrig, and that will take two weeks. By then you'll have made a decision."

"Maybe you'll find someone to go with you!" Kro was trying to be encouraging. "Want me to give you my knight?"

"'Alas, Lady Krolina," said Gunther as he walked down the steps, "while I would be happy to go with Laird Leyton, I cannot. The master is sending me to the Supreme Chapter at Grondar to tell them about the death of the witcher and other news."

"Grondar. That's somewhere way off in the south." Krolina scowled. "How long will it take you to ride down there?"

"A long time. But I don't have a choice. He gave the order, and that's final."

Krolina looked at the night compassionately. "Let me take you with me. I'm taking a portal to Hostig, and that will save you 1,500 leagues or so."

"Are you serious, Lady Krolina?"

"No, I'm joking. Come on, get your things together."

"I'll be back in three minutes." Gunther sprinted back up the stairs, his armor clattering as he went.

"That's a shame—he'd make things easier for you." Reineke looked at me. "Good NPCs always come in handy."

"Sometimes, the opposite is true." I smiled. "You're responsible for whoever's in your care. Life's simpler when you're alone."

"Yes, I'm aware. Just don't miss the moment when the game stops being a game. If you don't see it com-ing, it'll make it harder for you later."

"I'll do my best." I knew what he was talking about. More and more, I was thinking about the NPCs as real people rather than digital creations. It was unusual, but kind of fun. And not that healthy.

"Lady Krolina, I'm ready." Gunther bounced down the stairs and froze in front of Kro. "All I have to do is bring Duke here."

"Don't worry about it," said Kro grandly. "We'll go find your little stallion and port from there. Okay, boys, send me a message if anything fun happens. I'll come save you."

"Goodbye, Sir Reineke. Goodbye, Laird Leyton." Gunther bowed his head in farewell.

It was odd, but in those two days, I'd grown attached to the young knight and his belief in honesty, friendship, and the eventual triumph of good over evil. That was certainly the least of what I believed in when I was younger…

"Goodbye, Sir Gunther von Richter. I think we'll cross paths again," I said.

"Of course," said Gunther with conviction and with-out a shadow of a doubt. "Did you think we wouldn't? You're on your way to the east, and I'll head that way soon. Just make sure you wait for me there. I'll find you."

"I'll be sure to wait," I promised. "I don't have anywhere to go."

"We're off. Mwah!" Krolina blew us kisses and took the young knight into the stable behind the mission, where a minute later we saw the light of a portal.

"The valiant von Richter dragged off like a lamb to the slaughter," I said matter-of-factly.

Reineke grunted.

"Well, to the hotel?"

"To the hotel."

Lubelia was at the hotel looking as beautiful as ever, and she handed us keys. I noticed she didn't ask who Reineke was, even though she'd never seen him before in her computerised life.

"Don't leave without me," Reineke said. "Let's meet by the entrance in ten minutes."

"Sounds good."

I stretched out on the bed without taking off my boots, something I—dirty swine that I am—had always dreamed of doing, and I finally distributed my points.

There were thirty-five of them. All of five went to wisdom. I added fifteen to strength, another ten to stamina. Intellect got three, agility got two, and I was done.

Next, I set about sorting through everything I'd gotten. Where was that super earring? And what ear were you supposed to put it in? I definitely remembered that fruits wore them in one specific ear—but which? I decided to just go with the left. Later, I'd look it up online.

All that was left was the highlight of the evening: the Hounds of Death Friendship Ring. I could feel myself turning into a killing machine...probably. One thing was for sure: I was becoming a prime target for PKers.

Next, I collected everything I needed to dump in my chest and hoped there'd always be as much. There was extra gold after saving thirty for myself to buy bread and some treats. Then there was the shield. I wasn't sure I'd use it even after I got to Level 45, as it was too valuable an item to have with me regardless of the bonuses that came with it. Plus…there was still a ways to go before Level 45, and I was far from certain that I'd even get that far. And I wasn't bothered in the least that my clan didn't know I had a set item. I certainly wasn't going to turn it in to the clan storehouse. It was my shield, and that was final.

So where was I, having turned yet another page in my online life?

Basic attributes:

Strength: 128 (80+48)

Intellect: 13 (8+5)

Agility: 19 (12+7)

Stamina: 100 (55+45)

Wisdom: 15

Not bad. Sure, I was a little one-sided, but that die was cast. We can't all be mages.

And then it was time to go—Reineke was probably waiting for me already.

He had a question waiting for me as soon as we met on the stoop. "Hey, do you remember when I gave you the amulet? I told you that I don't like selling things I don't use anymore."

"Well, yes." I was a big surprised—did he want me to give the amulet back?

"I'm selective about what I save, but I never sell the weapons I've used. And I never will. I do like to give them away, though. You're a good guy, even if it's always a bit hard to tell what you're thinking. Anyway, take this."

He held out a blade.

"I ran around with this beauty from Level 30 to Level 41. Before that, I had a morning star until one day a friend told me it was time to switch to a sword. He said that blunt weapons don't work as well as edged ones, and he was right. I didn't really want to use a regular sword, so I got this broadsword instead. Here."

Scorpion Broadsword

Damage: 73-114

+11 to strength

+9 to stamina

+12% chance of doing fire damage

+9% chance of poisoned strike

Durability: 160/180

Minimum level for use: 28

"You're my personal Santa Claus," I told him. "I don't think I'll ever repay you."

"Don't worry about it." He clapped me on the shoulder. "You'll take care of me in the next life. Well, you didn't forget me either. That reminds me—here's your 100 gold from the witcher."

The coins clinked together pleasantly.

"Hey, did you give Kro her gold?" I asked.

"Nope," he answered calmly. "She forgot, and you didn't remind me. I'll mail it to her. Oh, and about Santa Claus, you're a lucky son of a gun. Something came up in Mettan, which is right on the river. If you want, you can come with me."

"Can you show me on the map?"

"Look. Here's Fladridge, and here's Mettan. You'll save at least five days."

It looked like I wasn't going to have to deal with the Very Dark and Very Scary Forest. Instead, I'd jump right into the river I needed to travel along.

"Hey, are there any boats on the river? Do you have to ride, or can you take one of them? Maybe a ferry with the big old wheel, a boatswain, and some gypsy music?"

"Yes, there is, though—no offence you don't have the money."

"It's that expensive?"

"That depends on who you're talking to. For me, 10,000 gold per day isn't bad. I don't know about you, but I imagine you can't afford it."

"You imagine correctly. Why is it so expensive?"

"They want you to walk. Otherwise, everyone would take the boat."

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