VRMMORPG [Brink]: For The Money

"Who is it?" an old man with bulky body and impressive looking beard come out with a leather apron on and smile to the little girl beside me, Lily. He's only as tall as my c.h.e.s.t so he's probably a dwarf.

"It's me Lily muscle grandpa old grumpy." Replied with a smile.

"I know who you are a little girl and did you eat the pie on the table?" he glared at the little girl but she keeps on giggling like it was funny while the old dwarf gaze getting more intense. I intervene and said I will pay for the pie and then he's laughing so hard until he's out of breath and pat my back while saying I'm a good lad.

"Muscle grandpa old grumpy I'm thirsty. I want a sweet tea, please."

"That would take a few minutes to brew so go buy it outside if you want one, here's a coin for you. The furnace is on so don't linger around in the store it's dangerous. Now go away. Shoo-shoo. Now that she's gone, what business do you have with me?"

I saw Lily hopping around after receiving the money from the dwarf probably going to spend the money given to her by this old man.

"I want to buy a weapon that suits my battle style and armor as well. I get the mission from Mr. Ax to clear the tower trial." Showing him the stiletto, I saw him nodding then he shook his head with a shock expression after hearing I will go clear the trial given by Mr. Ax.

"Did you know what does it really mean? From what I know that Titan won't give his disciple an easy one. It means that after you enter the nightmare level you need to clear it no matter what. If you can't clear it in a year you can't enter any kind of 'Tower of Man' and that makes it almost impossible to get to the second circle."

"I know the gist of it Old Mar told few things I need to know but I never heard that information before. What is the second circle anyway?"

"Second circle is second circle of course! So you want a weapon with high piercing power right? Did you want to gear up your equipment as well?" while murmuring about what weapon I should use. Then I saw an eye-catching black spear coated with red runic words and white crystal blade. Seeing me looking at the spear he smile and said if I want to try it.

"Umm… I think I'll stick with a dagger right now and my skill doesn't really compatible with a spear. I'm just wondering what those words were, they were just that eye-catching."

"Those runes were made from Bloodstone and it acts as a circuit to enhance the weapon as one entity with blood as their drives. If you were wondering why I don't just enchant the weapon through enchantment. I actually already enchant it a few times but you know there is a limit for that, so I enhance it with those runes to make it has a stronger base. With a stronger base, I can further enchant the weapon and the cycle continue, but each time it requires a ridiculous amount of blood and many more disabilities. That was the first unique rank weapon I ever created such a shame I can't sell it. You know the uniqueness of unique rank items right? They only ever recognize one master in their time of existence."

"Erm, can I know what the ranks of the weapon from the lowest to the highest please?"

"What? You don't even know that! You need to read more or hear more, that would help. Go to the library read books to increase your whole base of knowledge. After you read a lot and gain the knowledge you may even get a[Knowledge]skill, even I know that there is no such a thing as too much information. Those scholars from information guild, for example, they can even live leisurely for ten whole years with a single useful information while I work my a.s.s off to get me some luxuries."

The point is the more knowledge you had the higher your likeliness to survive outside. The weapon rank I know is: poor>common>uncommon>rare>epic>legendary|artifact|unique. Poor was usually made by an apprentice or amateur and why is it the last rank had three different classifications even though it still in the same rank? Well, legendary was a weapon of legend not because it's made or come out as legendary rank rather it's evolved from the owner records that made it a legendary rank. It can be a low-grade item that a hero often use, the item will absorb the record from its owner and evolve into a legendary rank weapon. Since not all the weapon will survive until the end to become legendary rank it results in such blind treasure hunt. So here's a question for you; will you sell or give an item that has been with you for a long time and that item is a legendary rank?"

I heard there is a higher rank than those three but I don't know what it is or maybe it's just a rumor."

"I will give it to my kid I guess. Then what about artifact?"

"See? That's why legendary rank never circulates in the market and you know what, most legends don't survive until the end so the likeliness for them to have a successor is slim. Even if there is a legendary item in the market it probably from the tomb of the said hero that been raid or the other source. While 'Artifact' was a product of nature. It can be in the form of a material or living organism. One thing to note here is that even though the items had higher rank doesn't mean it all awesome and stuff. For example that spear, it would turn into dust if I died or maybe I can make it an heirloom so my child can inherit and so on into the next generation. Who knows maybe someday it will reach the rumor rank."

"Okay? So which one is better between the three?"

"Don't you listening all this time? I said that they may have the highest rank but doesn't mean it all-powerful and stuff. The last known legendary item was from an elder lich and it is a belt, the lich wears the belt because it's from his late wife. Do you know what effect that item has? It had an effect of reminiscences. For someone it might be a good stuff but for other? I doubt that. Well, he got killed by a hero from some unknown little kingdom and that kingdom got destroy by the fiends after that because it's lost their protector, the elder lich. The stupid royalty that sends 'the tool' to kill the lich and the stupid tool, the hero who listen to the royalty without actually know what happens. If I remember correctly he got killed by the fiends after the kingdom falls."

Nodding and sometimes plastered a shock and pity face I listen to the old man that keep talking about some unrelated story until he talks about Lily's story before she gets adopted by Old-Mar. Old-Mar place is basically an orphanage with lots of children that got adopted by him from his wandering days.

Lily was a war orphan with few other small children, with her as the oldest she saved and led them. She scavenged be it from animal or human as long as she can digest it she would eat it. I don't know for how long she kept living like that but when I and Fen discover her she already had "Scavenger" job, the job let her share the nutrition needed by other children. And her condition? Miserable is not even close enough to describe it.

My wife was an orphan as well so I can relate it but her life?

That day, the joy I felt of selling all my wares crumbling, I only felt why the world is so cruel to let these children's suffered. We, we ate our fill without thinking, we waste food, but these kids they don't even know if they would still breathing tomorrow. My view of life changed since that day. I stop selling the weapon for war even though I know it won't change things but at least… that day I shaved my beard clean. As a dwarf, we were known for our weapon supply in human war and our mighty beard. I know I, as a lone individual can't change that but at least I change into a better me.

For a whole week, I follow her around in and out. I don't eat for the whole week but with my first circle pumping me the energy, I don't feel any burden at all. Every day from following her I swallow my tears, I don't even know how many times my eyes damp from tears. The weeks feels like unending misery but I can't help her nor can I get close to her. I just following her from afar. She ate everything she can find, unimaginable I would say. Sometimes she even eats dirt to release her hunger, sometimes she would bury and hide when she saw a group of people. I just can't imagine how hurt she was from those called MEN. These weeks make me determined to change her life into a better one and I know someone who can help her, Marant.

It was hard to convince her that we aren't a bad guy and we were trying to help her. Still, it takes more than two weeks to make her trust me a little. Can you guess how many kids under her care? Seven. There are seven children she's taking care for more than a year and she was eight years old at that time. From their so-called home, I saw there is more than 8, Lily's include, traces of other kid but by the time we were leaving I still can't see the other kid. Probably, already passed away, it must be hard to just keep on living and with the responsibility to raise the kids.

When we were half-way to the capital Marant meet up with us riding his black bull and ask about the kid's condition. He probably knows the story from Fen's letter so that's why he meet us on the road He heals them but when he stared at Lily, I know there is something wrong and ask him about it. He said if he needs to heal her completely he needs to absorb her painful memories to make her life like a normal child. If she stays like that she won't be able to talk to other nor can she socialized and it would worsen as time pass. Fen and I agreed to let her live like any other normal child. Her life was already riddled with pain, erasing her memories should have remove her pain from the past.

❖

The old man talks for hours about anything he can think of from his younger days to how he met his wives until I heard a commotion outside. Leaving him I look outside and see a strange scene, a kid on a Roman chariot pulled by twelve puppies… not, five of them are kitties. She dresses with a leather armor and purple crystal sword which she points forward like commanding an army. After she passes the alley I'm standing on 5 more children ran while laughing dress in cute armor, with spear and shield, though some of them drag it with rope. They probably try to catch up to their commander. What a cute scene.

"Oi! You left me while I'm in the middle of… her? She's the granddaughter of Old-Mar can't you see her golden hair it was from her grandpa. Her hair color actually rose-gold you can't really see it from afar. Anyway, it was me who create that chariot you know. Looks cool right!"

Then I got dragged inside again to listen to his story for a few more hours.