Chapter 34- “I made it back”

Abel stretched his slightly stiff muscles after getting out of the pod. Even though he had gotten out a few hours ago to grab a bite to eat, he hadn't actually moved that much.

While the brain wouldn't be under a heavy load while in the virtual world, the muscles don't move either which makes logging out every so often very important.

The more high-end luxury edition pods could include some features such as ultrasonic vibrations. The ultrasound waves create vibrations, producing a little heat that acts as a kind of massage for the muscles. What's more, the vibrations stimulate the self-healing processes of the skin, which has a positive effect on radiance and skin health.

Even with Abel's recent windfall, he couldn't even think of affording something as high-end as that.

He switched to the Xiang family breathing style and stilled his mind, clearing his head of such thoughts as he stretched for a few minutes.

He took a look outside the window, the sun still hadn't risen, but it would within an hour. He quickly washed up, changed his clothes and grabbed some bait before making his way outside. He planned on checking the trap, if it caught something then he'd have a lot of work to do bringing the boar back home.

If it hadn't been set off then he had to replace the bait and planned on buying some breakfast on his way back, surprising Melly and Frankie.

Before long, he found himself back in his old haunt. Unfortunately, the trap still hadn't caught anything but Abel had built up years' worth of patience when it came to hunting. He expertly removed the half-rotten and pungent rabbit lungs from the day before and put the last of the offal in its stead.

This was the last bit of bait he had from his last catch so if still didn't catch anything then he'd have to place the trap somewhere else. He had some faith in this bait as boars loved other animals stomach and would sniff it out from a distance.

After rubbing his hands with a wet wipe, he quickly started jogging towards the local bakery. He bought a wide assortment of different pastries, buns and bagels that were fresh out the oven and quickly ran back home.

He placed his recent purchase in the toaster and set it to the lowest level. He wanted to keep them warm, not burn them. Just as he was stepping out to feed the chickens, he saw a groggy Frankie walk in.

The latter seemed to be shocked seeing his little brother was actually outside the pod. For a second he thought he might still be asleep.

"What are you doing up so early?" Abel broke him out of his trance, it was barely 6 am and an hour earlier than their usual wake up time.

"I have to clock in a little earlier today, it's Wednesday remember? I should be asking you that instead. Why aren't you in the game?"

Abel recalled that every other Wednesday, there'd be a large shipment of goods so all warehouse personnel had to clock in earlier than schedule.

"Ah yeah… hah I completely forgot."

Abel scratched his head in embarrassment. It was easy to get muddled and forget about the days when you broke a routine. This usually happens when a person goes on a long vacation, he used to experience such things during summer breaks as Xiang Xiaowen.

"I finished up early and figured I'd take care of the chores I neglected yesterday. I went to check on the trap and got some breakfast on my way back home. It's in the toaster, just squeeze some juice and make a pot of coffee, I'll go feed the chickens."

Abel pointed to the toaster before heading out to the chicken coup. He saw Melly come down a few minutes later as he was adding water to the plastic containers on the side.

"Wow, a rare guest!"

"Good morning to you too Melly" Abel smiled in reply. He was feeling unburdened after making back what he spent on the pods and then some!

He was feeling even better about doing so in less than 3 days. If others heard about his leveling speed or how quickly he made money, he'd definitely turn famous. But that wasn't something Abel wanted nor cared for.

Fame was a double-edged sword. It might prove useful and open up a lot of possibilities, but all it took was one mistake to have it swing back and hurt him instead.

"I got breakfast from Coral's Bakery. Frankie should be done with the drinks so let's go and eat."

As the three sat down to have their meal, Abel said something that Frankie and Melly didn't understand at first.

"I made it back"

"Yeah, we finally got you back from that pod!" Melly joked as they hadn't seen each other in a couple of days.

Frankie simply smiled as he started digging in. But Abel's next words caused him choke on his food.

"No, I mean… I made back the money I spent on the pod."

A few seconds passed in silence before Frankie started a coughing fit that turned his face light blue.

*Cough* *Cough* *Cough*

Abel quickly got behind him and started patting his back, trying to push whatever was stuck in his wind pipe through.

*Gaaaaaasp*

"Are you alright Frankie.. here have some juic- no have some water it'll be better"

He reached out to the juice but quickly put it down as he reached for a bottle of water, pouring a cup for his brother.

"What do you mean you made the money back?!"

Frankie asked in bewilderment as soon as he got his breath under control while Melissa was looking back and forth between them. Concerned about her boyfriend but also waiting to hear Abel's explanation.

Her mind was blanking out, not understanding how Abel made 1,600 credits in a mere 3 days. What she didn't know yet was he actually made more than 2,000 credits.

"Well, remember yesterday on the phone... I told you I was busy with something in the game but I didn't want to jinx it. I'm glad I didn't because if I lost that opportunity then it would have been hard to meet my payment deadline."

"Explain it clearly!"

Frankie seemed both excited and agitated at hearing Abel's words.

He was excited his little brother made so much money so quickly but he was also agitated because Abel still didn't explain things in detail.

"Well, it started in the training citadel…"

Abel went on to explain how he went for the training and by beating the first obstacle course, he was able to learn 2 weapon skills. He also explained how he was respectful to his teacher and how his favorability increased speedily, giving him the opportunity to start a hidden chain quest.

He mentioned how he'd sold some information to a couple of rich players and prepared for the quest. Then went on to tell them about the chain quest leading him to a hidden dungeon as well as the ore in the trap-chest after the first level. Finally, he told them about the hidden profession he received after clearing out all the monsters.

They were surprised to hear the quest still hadn't ended and even more shocked to find that a single ore was sold for 5 gold coins.

"And now I'm a little stuck as I don't have much information to solve the riddle."

It took him 15 minutes to explain the details, he was interrupted a couple of times because neither Frankie nor Melly had a good understanding of Faeron.

After finishing his detailed explanation, Abel reached out for the juice to quench his thirst. He looked up to see the dazed duo as they were processing all of what he just told them.

It took a while but Frankie was the first to get out of his stupor and laugh joyfully.

"HAHAHAHAHAHA! I knew you could do it!!!"

"Did you really?" Abel asked with skepticism.

"Well I didn't expect you to achieve so much in so little time but I knew you'd make it eventually!"

"What's the riddle in the quest, we might be able to help you think of an answer"

Melly asked after her boyfriends laughter snapped her out of her daze.

Abel got up to get the pen and notepad Grandma Meng used to use for writing down her grocery list and started writing out the prophecy. He thought he'd have to log back in and check on his quest menu to remember it all but as he thought about, it all came to him.

In caverns deep where shadows breed, 

A monster's nest, a young apprentice seen.

Through winding paths, the legacy shown, 

To where the smith's inheritance was left to be sown.

Beneath the roots of an ancient mine,

Find the hammer that is enshrined.

Through echoes of hammers and anvils loud,

To the forge of kin, where secrets shroud.

A guardian awaits with a gaze of steel,

Seek the entrance with a craftsman's feel.

Past the flame that flickers bright,

To the birthplace of weapons, shroud in light.

Unlock the door, with knowledge profound,

To claim the treasure, hear the ancestors sound.

'How the hell did I remember it all. Is my memory getting better or is it because of what happened on that day…?'

After he wrote it all down, he was inwardly surprised at remembering it all. He started thinking about the previous 2 days, especially when the instructor was teaching him about the sword and archery. He realized his memory was much better than before.

He could clearly recall the instructors' words and even his actions. His mind felt much clearer after his self-examination the day of the merger, when he made the decision to simply follow his heart and do what he felt was right. As he started piecing together all the small signs he shrugged off, he realized his cognitive abilities were far greater than they were in the past.

While he was always observant, his short-memory often caused him to suffer. Grandma Meng used to call him her little goldfish when he was younger. In fact, the very first and only fight he had with Frankie was because he called him a goldfish. While it was fine for the old lady to do so, Abel wouldn't allow anyone else to call him that.

While Abel was internally going over the changes he finally took note of, Abel and Melly were studying the so-called prophecy.

"Hmmm I can't make much sense of it. I understand the first part, but I can't make out the important part at the end"

Frankie was the first to give up and throw up his hands in surrender while Melly thought about it for longer. While they didn't know the world of Faeron as well as Abel, they didn't need all the background information to make some suggestions.

After a few minutes of thought, she turned to Abel and voiced out her ideas,

"I think you should look up the records of famous volcano's, preferably ones that have flickering flames and cause a shroud of light. They might be related to the birth of some god or maybe a divine weapon in the game's lore. I think it's probably not in your region so look beyond it, but still… you should check your area just in case"

She seemed unsure but carried on with her thoughts, in case it might be of help to him in the future.

"Since you said you'll have access to the records from the old man as well as the royal library… either the answer will be split between these 2 places or it'll be in one of them. Of course, it could be in neither but then it makes this quest much more difficult as the answer could be found literally anywhere. It's unlikely… and I think there's more to the fourth line then what you think. It can't just be about the old guardian since it mentions anvil and hammers."

Her explanation pulled Abel out of his own thoughts. He could think about his changes later on, besides it's not like it was anything bad or he could do something about it.

He agreed with her assessment and planned to check out the records at old man Rye's place first, seeing as those were left by the Battlesmith himself. They should hold a clue at least. If that didn't work out then he'll check the Royal Records.

He didn't want to waltz into the Palace grounds if it could be helped. The palace sat right before the central square, an area that was teeming with players day and night. He wanted to stay as low-key as possible for as long as possible. Fame didn't necessarily have to accompany fortune and that's what Abel was aiming for.

They discussed matters further over breakfast, the couple still finding it surreal how Abel made more than 2,000 credits in a matter of days.

They understood it wasn't easy and required a lot of hard work, some fate and a little luck.

Frankie had to head out earlier, so he quickly left after finishing breakfast while Mellissa took care of some morning chores before getting ready for work.

Abel took a hot shower and climbed into bed, he wanted to be in tip top shape before diving into the records at old man Rye's place.