The Rules: The Complete Series : A LitRPG Epic, page 7
“And what would that be, my ever curious simian?” Gordon asked.
Yup, the dog only started calling him a simian when he was annoyed.
“You explained the currency pretty well, but exactly how much will things cost?”
“You will need to be a little more specific. ‘How much do things cost,’ is not exactly something I can answer with any great confidence.”
Sam was the one to roll his eyes this time, and he did his best not to allow any anger to enter his tone as he rephrased his question.
“Alright. How much would the average meal cost at an inn?”
This was important, because the fate of his breakfast hung in the balance.
“The average meal would cost about one silver. It may sound a bit pricy, but keep in mind that a meal is normally provided when one pays for a room.”
Oh happy day! Look out breakfast, Sam is coming in hot!
9
It took them another half hour to reach the town of Farmer’s Rest, by which point, Sam’s abysmal Strength had his legs feeling like jelly.
“Finally; it’s about time!” Sam said, raising his hands over his head and arching his back.
“Come now; the Mayor’s house is right this way; follow me.”
Straightening with a light groan, Sam followed Gordon into the town, passing under a wooden sign with the name Farmer’s Rest, painted in sloppy white letters.
He walked down a wide, dirt road, noting that people were already moving around the town, despite the early hour.
No, it was just early for him. These people probably got up early enough to wake up their roosters!
He noticed that a lot of them were giving him mistrustful looks, and he did his best to appear as friendly as possible; waving to the townsfolk, and feeling like a complete tool while doing so.
Gordon then took a turn off the main road, and he was thankfully able to leave all those prying eyes behind. Following the dog, he soon noticed that the road they were on, was cobbled, unlike the roads they’d been traveling on until now. Looking around, he could see that only two buildings lined this smaller street. One had a few people milling about, and the other had a sign above the door that simply read Inn.
How imaginative.
Looking straight ahead though, Sam could see a large house set at the end of the road that didn’t seem to fit the with overall feel of the town.
Could this perhaps be the beginning of another quest? “Corrupt mayor is an asshole; kill him and claim an epic reward!” Or something like that.
Sam shoved down his wandering thoughts as they approached the very fancy front door, and knocked. Just a few moments later, a robust, and red-faced man answered the door. He was dressed in a red silk nightgown, that did little to hide his hairy chest; a matching nightcap of the same color, and a pair of red silk slippers.
Someone call Santa, I think there’s some copyright infringement going on here.
Sam resisted the urge to laugh as that particular thought flashed though his mind; instead, he gave the annoyed looking man his best smile.
“Hello, my name is Sam. We have completed the quest to rid your town of monsters. We’re here for our reward.”
“We?”
The man’s voice was deep and had a slightly aristocratic air to it. Sam wanted to punch him in the face; or kick him in the balls, either was fine with him.
“Yes, we,” he said, gesturing to Gordon. “The two of us killed a siren, and her familiar last night. They had been posing as a farmer and his daughter, and were luring people into their home, before killing them.”
“I see,” the man said, eyes flicking between him and Gordon. “And what proof do you have of this?”
Sam blinked dumbly.
“Proof?”
“Yes,” the man said, giving him a very nasty sneer. “Do you have proof of these outlandish claims? After all I can’t just go handing out expensive rewards to anyone who comes knocking on my door.”
Sam turned to look at Gordon, but the dog seemed nonplussed.
“You do not require proof for the completion of a quest unless otherwise specified by the quest giver,” Gordon said. “As the quest giver, he would have received a notification the moment it had been completed, along with the names of the ones who completed it.”
The pudgy man jumped when Gordon spoke, then turned to glare at Sam.
“If your mutt can’t behave, then I suggest you keep it on a leash. Now if there’s nothing else; I would appreciate it if you would leave.”
The man began closing the door, but Sam took a step forward, sticking his foot out and preventing him from closing it.
“I know you got a message when I completed the quest; now fork over the goods or else!”
“Or else what!?” The man demanded, face going as red as his silk Santa suit.
Sam turned to Gordon with a raised eyebrow.
“If a quest giver fails to deliver on a promised reward, simply say these words: ‘I demand an inquiry in the name of the Supreme Overlord.’ A Inquirer will appear, and deliver the verdict. The guilty party will be punished, and the reward will be forcefully taken from them and handed over to you. The threat of this alone should suffice, as I would not recommend getting the Overlord’s attention.”
“Thanks.” Sam said.
“For what?” The Santa wannabee said, eyes narrowing at him.
“Not you; Gordon.”
“Who?”
“Never mind that!” Sam practically yelled, beginning to lose his patience. “Give me the reward you promised, or I’ll call on the Overlord for an inquiry!”
Sam had never seen someone change colors so fast in his life. The red-faced Mayor went from tomato red, to white as a sheet in the span of a few heart beats. The next second, the man pulled a few items from seemingly nowhere and shoved them into his hands.
“Here! I hereby acknowledge that your quest is complete, have a good day!”
Then the door slammed in his face. Sam didn’t even have time to blink, before a whole slew of notifications began popping up.
HIDDEN QUEST COMPLETE
Congratulations! You have completed the hidden quest: Monsters in our midst.
The town of Farmer’s Rest was plagued by a string of disappearances. The townsfolk were becoming worried that there may be a monster hiding among them. Speak to the Mayor to collect your rewards!
Rewards: 850 XP, Basic Leather Bag, Basic Wand, 1 Gold Coin
LEVEL UP!
Congratulations! You have reached level 4! You have 5 new attribute points to distribute.
Would you like to distribute them now?
Yes/No
CONGRATULATIONS!
You have gained a new ability!
Mana Flare: Send out a burst of mana in a sphere around you.
Level: Novice 1 (0%)
Damage: 12-15
Cost: 50 MP
AOE Range: 5 Ft
Cast Time: 3 Seconds
Cooldown: 10 Seconds
ITEMS FOUND!
Name: Basic Leather Bag
Durability: 40/40
Rarity: Common
Quality: Basic
Carry Capacity: 10 Slots
A basic leather bag to store your items.
Name: Basic Wand
Durability: 30/30
Rarity: Uncommon
Quality: Basic
Damage: 3-5
A basic wooden wand that will increase the power of mana-based abilities.
Sam shoved away all the notifications, and stared at his new items.
Finally! A new ability! And even better than that…
“Loot!” He yelled, slinging the strap of the small leather bag across one shoulder. He felt like he was wearing a man-purse, but he didn’t care.
He finally had somewhere to put his stuff!
Examining the wand, he noted with pride that he finally had a weapon; even if it did just look like a slim and shiny stick. His eyes then flicked down to Gordon, who had his eyes fixed on the wand with a hungry stare.
“No!” Sam yelled, shoving the wand into his new bag. “You can’t have this stick! It’s mine!”
Gordon narrowed his eyes at him, a low growl sounding in his throat.
“Oh no, don’t give me that!” Sam said, folding his arms and glaring right back. “This is my stick! If you want one, then find your own!”
Gordon stared at him for another tense few seconds, then he broke eye contact and padded away without a word.
Sam let out an audible sigh of relief.
Holy crap that had been scary. For a second there, he was sure Gordon would attack him!
Looking down, he noticed a shiny gold coin laying on the floor near his foot. He quickly bent and snatched it up, sticking his hand down his pants and finding the Spatial Wallet.
He really hoped that no one was looking right now. Explaining why his hands were down his pants, wasn’t something he wanted to do this early in the morning… Or ever.
Finally dropping the coin into the small bag, Sam thought of retrieving a couple of the silver coins and 3 of the copper. A moment later, he pulled his hand from his pants, clutching the small coins. Looking around quickly, he breathed another sigh of relief that no one had seen that.
Maybe he should find a better hiding place for his Spatial Wallet.
Dropping the coins into his new bag, Sam headed back down the street and walked right up to the very badly named Inn.
He took a few moments to fix his rumpled shirt, then pushed through the front door. A light tinkling sounded through the room as the door swung open, then closed behind him. The lighting was dim compared to the bright sunlight outside, so it took his eyes a few moments to adjust. When they did, he saw that he was standing in a small dining room with a bar against the far side. The floors were a dark, polished hardwood, and the furniture was squeaky clean.
Not something he’d expect from a place like this. Shouldn’t this place be crowded?
Then he remembered that it wasn’t even 9 AM, and that this was a small farming town; of course it wouldn’t be busy here.
“Hello; welcome to Inn, what can I help you with?” Sam turned to see an extremely attractive woman, dressed in a low cut server’s uniform emerge from a door set near the bar. She was around five and half feet tall; had pale skin and long curly blonde hair that fell in waves down her back. Her bright green eyes sparkled from under slanted brows, and were just a little too large to be human.
What the hell. Again with this shit?
Sam didn’t even bother answering, instead using Inspect on the woman.
STAR ELF
Name: Milly
Level: 2
HP: 50/50
Status: Friendly
Sam’s eyes instantly snapped to her ears when he read that. Yup, there they were, two pointed ears poking out from between her curly hair. At least she appeared to be just a normal person though, albeit, an extremely attractive one.
“Sir?”
Sam’s face went a little pink as she realized he’d been staring.
“Right, sorry. Are you serving breakfast?”
“Of course!” Milly replied, flashing him a dazzling smile. “Right this way,” she bowed at the waist, and gestured to one of the empty tables.
The movement brought Sam’s eyes right to her cleavage, and when he looked back to her eyes, saw a glint of mischief in them.
“Thanks,” he croaked out, walking robotically past her and taking a seat at the indicated table.
Good God that elf girl was hot! On a scale from 1-10 he’d rate her at about 100!
Then he heard his mother’s voice echoing in his head about being a misogynistic pig, and his good mood evaporated.
That woman really had been a bitch!
“Is something the matter?” Milly asked, reaching out and placing a hand on his arm.
Sam realized that he’d been scowling, and quickly arranged his face into an approximation of a smile.
“Don’t mind me, just had a bit of a rough morning. So, what’s on the menu?”
Please don’t say stew. Please don’t say stew. Please don’t say stew.
“We have a pot of lamb stew made fresh this morning, along with some fresh baked bread.”
Mother fucker!
“Do you happen to have anything else?” He asked, attempting to keep a smile on his face.
Milly shook her head, her smile faltering just a bit.
“Alright then, a bowl of stew and bread it is,” he said, feeling his heart twinge when her full lips turned down in a frown.
She was way too hot to be sad!
Milly’s smile was back in and instant, and she gave his arm a light squeeze.
“Excellent! I’ll got get your order ready now. It’ll be fifty copper for the meal, or one silver if you want to rent a room; two if you’d like a little something extra.” She said with a smirk, tugging her low cut top just a little lower, and giving him a wink.
Of course.
10
Once Milly had gone back into the kitchen, Sam sat up straighter and tried to compose himself.
That elf girl was something else, and even though she was basically offering herself to him, he didn’t think he could accept; despite was his downstairs brain was telling him. He was a romantic, well sort of, and thought that a first time should be with someone special.
“A first time with that girl would definitely be special.” A small voice in the back of his mind said.
“Oh shut up libido!” Sam muttered under his breath, trying to force the metal image that Milly’s offer had conjured in his mind. He decided to open his status, and assign his attribute points from his last level up, to get his mind out of the gutter.
CHARACTER STATUS
Name: Sam
Race: Human
Level: 4
XP: 565/1,200
AP: 6
Class: None
HP: 80/80 (Regen 0.8 Per Second)
MP: 170/170 (Regen 1.5 Per Second)
STA: 80/80 (Regen 0.8 Per Second)
ATTRIBUTES
Strength: 5 (6)(3)
Constitution: 8
Agility: 6
Endurance: 7 (8)
Intelligence: 17
Wisdom: 15
Charisma: 11
Luck: 8
ABILITIES
Mana Shot: Novice LV - 4 (87%)
Mana Burn: Novice LV - 3 (91%)
Mana Flare: Novice LV - 1 (0%)
SKILLS
Sprint: Novice LV - 6 (64%)
Stalker: Novice LV - 2 (11%)
Inspect: Novice LV - 2 (3%)
Mind Over Body: Novice LV - 2 (77%)
EQUIPPED ITEMS
Clothing
Farmer’s Canvas Shirt
Farmer’s Canvas Pants
Farmer’s Leather Boots
Total Armor Rating: 7
Set Bonus: +1 Strength & Endurance
Other Items
Basic Leather Bag (Basic)
Carry Capacity: 2/10 Slots filled
Basic Wand (Basic)
Damage: +3-5
RULE OF THE DAY
Do not use any swear/curse words (Broken)
Divine Curse
Effect: Total Strength Attribute Halved
Duration: H 4 : M 37 : S 11
He stared at his status for a whole five minutes, before assigning 2 points each to Intelligence and Wisdom, bringing them up to 19 and 17 respectively. Against his better judgment, he also put 1 point into Charisma, bringing it up to 12.
Damn you fragile ego.
Sam closed his status just as the door near the bar swung open, and Milly came out, balancing a tray of bread, stew, and a mug of something on top. Sam really hoped it wasn’t beer, as he didn’t think he could stomach it so early in the morning.
“Here you are sir,” Milly said, setting the tray down and moving the food onto the table.
Just water, not beer, he noted when the mug was set before him.
He quickly pulled a silver coin from his bag and handed it over, figuring that he’d probably be spending the day here, and wanted to sleep in a bed that night.
“For the meal, and a room for the night,” he said, as she took it from him.
“Are you sure you don’t need anything else?” She asked suggestively.
“Yes actually,” he said, keeping his eyes fixed firmly on his stew. “I was wondering if there might be any work around here for me.”
“Oh, so you’re an adventurer?” Milly asked.
“Kinda.”
“Then I might just have a job for you.”
Sam looked up at that, being very careful to look the elf girl in the eye, it didn’t help.
Flashing him a wide smile, she walked around to the other side of the table, and took a seat across from him.
“I’ve been wanting to leave this place for a while now, and make my way to the city of Shtut. It’s very hard to make a decent living in such a small town, but I’m afraid to travel alone. If you can escort me there, I’d really appreciate it.”
As soon as she said those words, a screen popped into his view with a light ping.
QUEST AVAILABLE
Escort the escort: Milly wants to leave Farmer’s Rest, but if afraid to do so alone. Escort her safely to the city of Shtut to receive your reward.
Difficulty: Medium
Objective: Escort Milly to Shtut
Rewards: 400 XP, 10 Silver, Milly’s gratitude
Sam gulped. He had a fairly good idea of what ‘Milly’s gratitude’ meant, and tried not to think of the insinuations. The other rewards were good though, so he decided to accept the quest.
