Resolute Heart

Roused from his deep dive into a sea of contemplation by an unexpected notification, Dante was abruptly brought back to reality. The transition was made all the more stark by the skeleton's 'heartfelt' remark.

"I suppose my work here is accomplished," the skeleton quipped, maintaining its characteristic blend of humor and detachment.

Dante, momentarily caught in the flow of conversation, began to question, "Jokes aside, is that even allowed by—" He stopped mid-sentence, catching himself before voicing a question that, in the context of "The Game," seemed utterly foolish. A twinge of concern flitted through him, the fear of jeopardizing the boon just awarded for the mere act of questioning.

"Ah, the trials and tribulations of mentoring a talentless disciple," the skeleton sighed, its voice laden with mock sorrow worthy of an Oscar. "Anyway, proceed with caution and... try not to die too frequently." The final words were delivered with a flair designed to imbue them with a sense of foreboding drama.

Dante couldn't help but shake his head, a slight smirk playing at the corners of his mouth. Under normal circumstances, he might have offered a word of thanks, but he was keenly aware that any expression of gratitude would merely serve as fodder for the skeleton's endless jests.

"You are welcome," the skeleton laughed, having effortlessly tapped into Dante's unspoken thoughts.

Dante was momentarily taken aback, having momentarily forgotten the skeleton's ability to peer into his mind. Yet, with his evolving understanding of "The Game," he realized that fretting over the skeleton's mind-reading capabilities was trivial. The Game, in its omniscience, likely had the capacity to forecast not just his immediate future but every conceivable action he might undertake, rendering any concern about privacy moot in the grand scheme of things.

Snapped back to the present, Dante felt a surge of satisfaction wash over him, buoyed by the unforeseen boon of gaining 1 SP. This unexpected windfall was great, yet the skeleton's words echoed in his mind, casting a long shadow over his triumph. Indeed, everything up to this point might have seemed facile, but he was reminded that he was still navigating through just a tutorial. Albeit an expansive, days-long tutorial, sprawling like a mid-sized city and teeming with bones, it was a tutorial nonetheless. The reality was that the challenges were escalating in complexity and difficulty as he advanced. Without his 'Immortal Macro' strategy, Dante recognized that the hurdles he faced would border on the insurmountable. His discovery that fallen skeletons did not respawn—or at least not within a feasible timeframe, confirmed by his deliberate backtrack to check—meant he couldn't rely on grinding for levels and money as a viable strategy.

This revelation suggested that perhaps the Tutorial's intent was to familiarize him with the breadth of his powers, each escalating challenge a nudge to devise and deploy strategies akin to the 'Immortal Macro.' Perhaps he had simply stumbled upon that strategy prematurely, rendering subsequent encounters trivial. However, Dante surmised that the forthcoming challenges were likely calibrated with the assumption of his strategic foresight, hence the anticipated sharp uptick in difficulty.

The pervasive omniscience of The Game, particularly in relation to the array of strategies Dante could employ, was undeniable. The brief notion he had harbored—about potentially exploiting a glitch within The Game—now appeared entirely ludicrous. This realization was a sobering admission of The Game's elaborate architecture, a construct so advanced and meticulously engineered that even the thought of circumventing its rules felt like an act of defiance against an unassailable fortress. The idea of outsmarting such a system seemed not just impractical but almost blasphemous, challenging the very foundation upon which The Game was built.

Embracing this newfound insight, Dante resolved to adopt a strategy often advocated in gaming but one he personally had reservations about: conserving the 1 SP for future use. This approach held several advantages, as it afforded him the flexibility to allocate that skill point towards enhancing a specific skill when most needed, potentially altering the course of a battle to his favor.

Furthermore, Dante reflected on the intriguing discovery that, alongside Titles, a concept akin to Enlightenment played a role in this game's universe. This mechanic was unfamiliar to him, evoking elements typically found in wuxia and cultivation novels*, now woven into the fabric of RPG gameplay. This revelation marked yet another layer of complexity and a new avenue of power within the game's world, a factor Dante was determined to remember and exploit to its fullest potential.

Having settled on his strategy, Dante surveyed the path before him. The familiar, murky dimness of the caverns stretched out as it had for days, yet something about the scenery now felt distinctly different. Despite knowing that each step forward would usher in greater peril, and that his every move might have been anticipated by The Game, he remained undeterred. The realization that the pinnacle of this game lay at an almost unfathomable distance ahead, and that he was merely navigating its Tutorial phase, did little to dampen his spirits. Instead, there was a burgeoning sense of excitement within him. The notion that his strategy, which he half-jokingly considered a cheat, would be met with challenges designed to match its ingenuity, invigorated him. It suggested that The Game recognized the cleverness of his approach and was prepared to escalate the difficulty accordingly.

A smile broke across Dante's face, his eyes alight with renewed fervor and determination.

***

"Fret not, Alice, as all is not lost. The dice of fate have been cast, and now the moment of choice beckons," Lumière stated, his ethereal form gesturing towards a boundary that lay beyond vision. "Now, it is time for you to determine the blessings you seek."

"However, exercise caution, as the scope and magnitude of the boons at your disposal are not without their restrictions. What are these limitations? That remains for you to uncover. You will be granted three attempts to articulate the boons you wish for. Should your requests align with these constraints, they shall be bestowed upon you. If they exceed what is permitted, you will be prompted to revise your selections. And, should you err in your choices three times, destiny will intervene and select on your behalf."

He paused, a knowing light flickering in his eyes. "But there is an additional layer to consider," Lumière continued, his expression hinting at a smile that seemed both inviting and ominous. "You have the opportunity to make offerings in exchange for an expansion of your limitations. The magnitude of your sacrifice directly correlates with the extent to which your boundaries may be broadened. Yet, heed this warning: the consequences of your sacrifices will manifest as the game begins, with no chance for postponement."

Alice, her heart still racing from the previous shock, hung on every word with intense focus. She recognized the gravity of the situation; the choices she was on the cusp of making carried the weight of her entire existence in this unfamiliar reality. Her mind briefly wandered to the life she had envisioned with Richard—a serene existence as a wife in the rolling hills of Provence. That was the future she was prepared for, a stark contrast to the unexpected journey fate seemed intent on thrusting upon her.

Shaking off the remnants of her fear and apprehension, emotions she had long learned to despise and overcome, Alice steeled herself. Such feelings had never served her well, nor had reliance on others. She had always known that when it came down to it, she could only truly depend on herself. This principle had guided her through life, and it wouldn't fail her now. With a newfound resolve, she prepared to face the unknown, ready to carve out her path in this strange new world, just as she had always done.

***

Dante had braced himself for a significant uptick in difficulty following the jesting skeleton's cryptic hints, anticipating a formidable challenge just around the corner. However, to his mild disappointment, while the difficulty of encounters indeed escalated, it did so in a manner consistent with the gradual increase they had experienced thus far. The Tutorial remained comfortably manageable.

Despite feeling a tad let down, Dante remained vigilant, pressing on through what felt like an entire day's worth of battles. He faced level 9 adversaries, encountering cleverly arranged groups of skeletal warriors, archers, and hounds that seemed to spring from every direction. On the upside, these foes were now yielding a substantial 33 TC apiece, a fact that brought some satisfaction as the sum total began to accumulate, earmarked for his next encounter with the vending machine.

In the throes of unending battles, Dante found himself yearning for the comfort of a simple joy from the world he left behind. "I really miss a good meal," he pondered, letting his thoughts wander to the tantalizing image of a steaming, cheesy pizza. "Honestly, at this point, I'd even welcome pineapples as a topping..." But then, he paused, reflecting on his statement with a hint of amusement. "Actually, scratch that. Pineapples on pizza remain a hard pass," he corrected himself, laughing at the absurdity of his concession.

Yet, beyond these light-hearted musings on culinary delights, Dante faced the grim reality of his solitude, surrounded by nothing but bones and the shadowy echoes of a world devoid of human warmth. Days had morphed into an indistinguishable blur, each marked by the absence of another living soul, save for the skeletal adversaries that fell before him. It was in this isolation that Dante's mind began to tread a fine line between sanity and a peculiar brand of madness unique to the forsaken depths of The Game.

The relentless uniformity of his surroundings, combined with the heightened pace of his cognitive processes, brewed a complex array of psychological trials within him. Dante found himself wondering if this incessant solitude and combat was nudging him toward the brink of madness—a prospect that seemed all too real in the unchanging gloom of his environment. Despite his attempts to inject humor into his situation, the unsettling realization that the continuous cycle of battle and introspection was fraying the edges of his mental fabric was inescapable.

The process of being re-summoned, though it offered a respite from both physical and mental weariness, scarcely addressed an ineffable sense of accumulation that Dante struggled to articulate. This intangible weight settled in his consciousness, layering over time like dust in the forgotten corners of an abandoned room. The habitual act of blinking, by now an unconscious tic, had morphed into a relentless rhythm, each blink a reminder of the sanity slipping through his mind.

Despite the pervasive sense of isolation that this journey imposed, Dante found solace in the constant presence of Virgil. This silent, skeletal ally walked the path alongside him, a steadfast figure in the shifting shadows of their eerie surroundings. Their bond transcended the need for words, offering Dante a touchstone of connection in the vast, echoing solitude. It was this unspoken camaraderie with Virgil that mitigated the solitude's sting, a reminder that, though the path was lonely, he did not tread it alone.

Embracing this realization, Dante knew he had to recalibrate his mindset, to foster resilience within and cling to a singular thought that would prevent his psyche from unraveling. His fear wasn't of madness per se, but of madness becoming an obstacle on his determined quest. From the outset, Dante had committed to a journey that demanded sacrifices far greater than physical loss; he had forsaken the allure of the limelight to embrace the obscurity of the shadows, foregoing the direct thrill of wielding magic and superhuman abilities. The true terror for Dante lay in the possibility of anything derailing him from reaching the zenith of The Game.