The fairy cake recipe looked fairly simple. Most ingredients could be found at Chef Marvin’s restaurant and Martha’s fruit stall. However, there were several things Zen had to forage personally. The second part of the main chain quest was similar regardless of the path Zen or Damian chose. They needed to hunt for monster loot in the forest.
“It sure would be a lot easier to hunt with a walking air purifier,” Damian lamented over the voice call. Due to the location of the loot they needed, both boys decided to split up. Zen sighed. In the time Zen had taken to finish the first part of his quest, Damian used it to upgrade his gauntlet. Although its attack power was nowhere near as powerful as the main combatants of their party, Damian was able to hunt monsters a lot easier than Zen.“And I wish you could loan me the gauntlet,” Zen replied dryly. “That would make hunting a lot easier.”Not taking each otherWith Marvin’s help, Zen eventually finished baking the fairy cake. He gained a new recipe to bake fairy cakes again if he wanted to. However, baking fairy cakes gave no additional buff or benefits besides summoning fairies for a random event. Summoning fairies could be done once a day. However, nobody could guarantee if they would play tricks or give him treats. The time required to collect all the ingredients, especially the sparkling sundew drops, was not very attractive compared to its benefits. Zen was happy to have a new cooking recipe in the dungeon, but that was about it.Upon his return to the fifth floor, Zen sought out Chef Melvin, proudly presenting the freshly baked fairy cake. After a thorough examination, Melvin deemed it satisfactory and directed Zen to consult Father Mark.“Unlike previously, the fairies are a little more hostile. The clergyman should know how you could appease them and ask them for a favour. If the fairies like you enough, they
Despite getting pulled into a vortex out of the blue, Zen held onto the golden leaf tightly as he screamed. Thankfully, he wasn’t on the party voice call with anyone, or his party members would have logged in immediately to rescue him.By the time Zen overcame his initial shock, he was already in a different dimension. The dimension was a unique dungeon that defied the laws of maps and navigation, a realm of mystery and danger.Getting off the dirt, Zen looked around to see if there were any monsters or NPCs he should deal with immediately. Trees and plant life resembled a regular forest everywhere he could see, if not for their vibrant pink and blue hues. Although Zen was used to seeing weird forms of dysmorphia as a gamer, this dungeon brought extreme proportions to a whole new level. It couldn’t even compare with Gloomie Shroomie’s overly large mushroom cap dress. The size of that seven-pointed leaf was big enough to act as Zen’s blanket. However
“It all started when Baron Claude became the lord of the town,” the Fairy Queen started, a distant look in her eyes. “My children were mischievous, but they were never evil.”Before the humans settled near her forest, the Fairy Queen and her fairies tended to the forest and kept the magical monsters in check. The forest was a dangerous place, and they were the only guardians acting as guides to lost humans. The faes weren’t on hostile terms with humans. However, they preferred to keep to themselves.“One day, an adventurer visited our forest and was having difficulty with the monsters in the forest. One of my children decided to give him a hand. He was a likeable human who quickly won over many of us, including me. We don’t know his name, but he was a hero of the humans who was on a quest. He told us a prophecy that another of his kind will arrive when we are in need.”When Zen first started, he never thought the lore ab
“What? There was such a back story? That’s crazy! Am I engaging in illegal fairy trafficking on the main quest now?” Damian couldn’t help but gawk after Zen called him.Unable to speak loudly, Zen whispered back that he was in a middle of a timed event to capture the corrupted Baron and recover the kidnapped fairies.“You can make an under table deal with me,” he suggested. “Kidnap the fairies without harming them and then turn them in to your main quest giver. I’ll beat them up and recover them later.”While Zen was trying to clear his special quest, Damian had only completed Blacksmith Ben’s special chain quest and acquired his basic blacksmithing skills. The fairy trap with Blacksmith Bob should be ready by now. However, the cyborg no longer felt good about this main quest completion competition.“I want to forfeit our bet,” he declared after teleporting back to the fifth floor. “I d
Zen was no expert in game programming. However, he was very sure it was uncommon to alter the main quest. Yet, Damian managed to find a unique loophole thanks to his job class.“Are you sure this will work?” Zen asked. The fairy trap that Damian was tasked to build looked very different from the ones he saw in the dark magicians’ dungeon.Shrugging, the engineer referred to his main quest log. The system accepted the severely modified fairy trap as a fairy trap. Who knew this was also a possibility?“Have you finished your quest?” Damian asked, amazed at Zen’s progress despite his slow head start.Shaking his head, Zen checked the log. He still had to talk to Father Mark to inform him about what he learned. Moreover, there were new titles and items to check out.“Give me a while to finish the last trap,” Damian stretched. “The fairies are still hostile towards me and won’t listen to me. They attack
“And… that’s nine!” Damian whooped in delight as another ditzy fairy was lured into his trap. Zen’s fairy cakes were the bomb!Although Zen already had a private fairy circle to access from the church, he decided to accompany Damian and help the engineer complete his main chain quest. The Fairy o’ Meter worked like a charm, and Zen was only glad to put his fairy cake recipe to better use. Unlike the first time when he had to hunt for sparkling sundew alone, Zen found it as an ingredient at Melvin’s restaurant when he borrowed the chef’s kitchen. According to the NPC, adventurers who started favouring his restaurant after the downfall of Baron Claude donated the monster loot in exchange for meal discounts.As the fairy trap continued to work efficiently, Zen found himself growing bored. His role was to hide in the bushes, ready to assist Damian if the machine malfunctioned. Zen had added holy water to the fairy cakes as a sec
One hundred credits richer, Damian Gorski wondered how two non-combatants would defeat a floor boss without aid. After turning in his quest to the balding baron, Damian was tasked to talk to the local fortune teller.As they approached Firah's tent, Zen couldn't help but feel a pang of concern for her weariness. Yet, it was the subtle signs of hidden pain, the bruises on her wrists concealed beneath her long sleeves, that truly stirred his empathy.“The baron extends his gratitude for your contribution,” she addressed Damian. “I can restore the fairy circle for you upon obtaining the fairy queen’s wings. Here’s a map that will guide you to her glade.”Accepting the map, Damian and Zen exited the fortune teller’s tent.“Did you see that?” Zen whispered once they were far enough. “She was hurt.”Damian nodded. It was obvious who the abuser was. The balding bastard wouldn’t stop at fairy tr
Armed to the teeth, Damian and Zen trudged through the same forest with different perspectives.“I hate how gloomy my visual settings are and how darn sparkly it is on your end,” Damian lamented as he viewed Zen’s perspective through the party call.Three minutes ago, Zen sent word in the party chat that they were about to clear the boss dungeon on the fifth floor after upgrading their weapons. He wanted to ask if they could get a boost to the tenth floor from either Liu Feng or Akiko when Sasha requested a video call after learning how Damian modified her rifle. As a result, the two boys received live coaching from backseaters over the party call.“The fairy queen can fly,” Oritha reminded. “It does great damage in a large area when she lands. Remember to dodge that.”Giving her two cents about shooting, Sasha suggested that Damian and Zen should not remain too close and in the same position.“Cover for
Collecting the rewards for successfully defeating John’s cousin, the party members of Godly Food jumped into the portal leading to the next floor. Zen knew that the dungeon had different themes on every ten floors. The tenth floor of each themed stage would be different from the other stages in difficulty. It was why the vanguard team struggled with the twentieth floor’s boss. In addition to the stage mechanic’s difference, the final boss was also tougher to deal with. If not for the monstrous capabilities of the combatants, Zen doubted they could breeze through the first ten floors as quickly as they did.Anticipating a village or town vibe similar to the other floors from before, Zen was stunned to find himself in a rocky cave full of darkness. It had ominous vibes, and only Liu Feng moved confidently in the darkness. Everyone else minimised exploring further without a light source.“We’ll log out here,” Akiko informed Damian. “Y
After entering the boss dungeon den, Zen shivered. It wasn’t similar to a wolf’s den. If anything, it appeared closer to an actual dungeon, as if someone had deliberately attempted to imprison the boss here. The stale smell of dogs and many broken chains of different sizes on the ground spoke volumes about John’s cousin.Unlike the short werewolf, who remained in his werewolf form constantly, the boss was a monster who could transform. Depending on the moon cycle, it could be a violent and bloodthirsty monster or a broken man who lived in constant fear and misery of his curse.“He changes according to the moon cycle once the rampage begins,” Akiko explained. “I took a while to figure out how to kill him, even on the first run. He’s immune to damage on a blood moon. We need to finish it as soon as possible.”With a full party participating in a boss battle, Zen had faith they could conclude it before even the blood moon p
Finally approaching the final boss’s cave, Zen wondered if the storyline would change because they had let Han murder John brutally. His body had been hacked into pieces and scattered around the rotting forest. The maggots would get to it soon and reduce it to bones. Yet, the cruel butchering session remained fresh in Zen’s mind.Everyone in the party knew that feeling all too well. Having lived in the underworld, they sympathised with Zen, who had lived like a civilian his whole life. Although not everyone participated directly in the act of murder, they knew what it meant to take a life. Even Damian had seen it happen. He knew how to interrogate for information and was quite adept at the craft when required.“Don’t think too much about it,” Liu Feng was the first to break the silence. “He wasn’t even real. This is a game designed by the Godfather to find the next successor. It’s just another test.”Even if it wer
Even after many years of not being on talking terms with the rest of the family, Hans fitted right in when delving blows at the cowardly werewolf. Mai ripped out chunks of flesh with her teeth, snarling at it the whole time while Laura expertly force-fed the werewolf with different herbs with particularly nasty effects.Even with regeneration abilities, John could not recover from herbs that tasted nasty, gave him muscle cramps or made him itch all over. Laura truly knew how to make someone suffer, and Zen watched with morbid fascination at their different uses. Her apothecary skills were no less effective than those of Herbologist Hernie.“Can you heal him again?” Damian asked. “Han needs another round. Mai roughed him up a little too good.”With a priest in the party who did not worship any known religion, the torture session became smoother and more effective. No apology from John would appease the family’s anger. Although Zen did not
After listening to the story about John, Laura’s expression hardened. “That son of a bitch!” she spat. “How dare he prey on my granddaughter! Where is he now?!” Slightly terrified by the murderous aura, Zen reported that Sasha and Damian had the werewolf at Gabrielle’s hut. Mai had been ripping him a new one each time he regenerated. The girls had been doing a great job of making him miserable. Han was already there. “I can’t believe I’m last at the party. That wolf deserves to die. Even death is too cheap a price to pay after what he did to my husband and son.” For once, Zen agreed. Even if John was merely a character in the game, he deserved death. The fact that the game administrators did not grant John invulnerable stats meant that it was possible to kill the cousin of the floor boss. While waiting for Laura to pack her ‘tools’ and herbal surprises, Zen approached Liu Feng and thanked him for accompanying them. In real time, it was already past regular l
Studying advanced herbalism from Laura took more time than Zen expected. Thankfully, the game had a way of providing cheats for him. Instead of cramming all the knowledge into his head that would give him a splitting migraine, it provided a useful guidebook that would prompt him on what a particular herb does upon location and what combinations he could use it for with other known herbs. The problem was, to truly master this skill, he had to pass the final test. Laura’s pop quiz only had ten questions. However, there was a timer. While Zen could attempt it infinitely, there were thousands of herb combinations to remember. Not having any formal education in either of his past lives, the young chef faltered. “You may use anything in this cottage as a reference for your test,” Laura smirked. “All the best. I hope you won’t disappoint me.” Stressing over the best method to find what he needed, Zen tested a few things. Firstly, when Laura said that the new skill would inst
While the other party members gathered the family members for a reunion, Zen and Liu Feng finally found Laura’s cottage after taking a wrong turn. Funnily enough, it was the Seer who pointed out how they had been going in a circle before Zen realised he had misinterpreted the map. Knocking on the cottage door, Zen waited with his sworn brother. From inside, he could hear someone coughing badly. “Who is it?” the cranky old lady hacked as she cracked open the door. Instead of seeing her sloppy son or nosy granddaughter, Laura saw a cute priest and a handsome, long-haired warrior. The new adventurers surprised her. Were they lost in the forest? “What do you want?” she asked briefly before launching into a new coughing fit. It was a particularly nasty cold that had persisted for a week now without any signs of recovery. Despite all the herbal medicine she made, Laura did not see any signs of improvement. Perhaps she was getting on in age. Smiling, Zen show
It was a shame Zen was not with them. Sasha would have gone for a few more rounds, using the cowardly werewolf as a punching bag after Zen healed him. The more they dug information out from the pervert, the worse Sasha’s temper was. Damian did not stop her. The draconian needed somewhere to vent her anger, and it was best for it not to come his way. In truth, the cyborg felt a little sorry for Gabrielle, even if she were just a fictional character created for this virtual dungeon game. The cowardly cousin of the floor boss was no different from lowly thugs borrowing the influence of their powerful relatives to cause mayhem. Whimpering in fear and pain with his tail tucked in between his legs, the werewolf defect who could not transform into a human no matter the moon cycle kept a close eye on Sasha. Under the watch of the merciless draconian female, there was nowhere for him to run. He told them what they wanted to know and was alive for now. Given how tightly they w
Using hand gestures, Sasha signalled the countdown and Damian prepared his stunning spells silently. They only had one chance to catch the secret admirer off guard. Whatever he was doing was disgusting enough. Han wasn’t lying about the obsession. The stalker werewolf was plucking flower petals and chanting Gabrielle’s name to see if she would love him back. Each time the flower petals ended on a no, he would crush the flower, stomp on it and pick a new one, confessing his disturbing love to her before plucking off the petals of a new flower.“Oh, Gabrielle! What sweet rosy cheeks you have, all the better for me to bite into them when they are ripe! They were pink when you were a babe. They were red when you had a fever. I wonder if they’d bleed if I bit them… would you cry in pain and fear? It makes me so excited to think about it! Just wait a little more, my angel. You’d soon be an adult, and we could finally be together!”Disgu