Returning with two baskets of stale bread and three water pitchers, Zen felt envious of Damian’s specialisation trials. Unlike him, the cyborg’s quest progressed smoothly without a single hitch. He had the cheating ability to access information from his digital database of a brain. Although Zen had cheats given to him by the God that revived him, it wasn’t the same.
“You’re back,” Lorren said, eyeing the massive amount of food Zen had brought. Given the boy’s talent, he wouldn’t need to touch the second basket of bread to master the skill of blessing food.“The most important thing when giving a blessing is to have a clear intention. There cannot be a trace of doubt or hesitation in your intention to fully trust or support your allies when giving them the buff. It’s why only those with strong and unwavering faith can become healers.”Paying close attention, Zen observed how Lorren kept his eyes closed tMeeting Damian at the portal of the fifth floor after his specialisation quest, Zen noticed how the cyborg was already working on his gear.“Is that something from your quest?” Zen pointed at a gauntlet Damian was wearing.“This?” the purple-eyed teen raised his left arm. “I made it after finishing the specialisation because you took too long. After getting materials from the others, the blacksmith allowed me to borrow his workshop. It’s built from dismantling the magic wand the specialist NPC gave me with additional crafting ingredients for the buff. How does it look? It’s more efficient than waving a stick. I haven’t had time to create pre-casted magic circles into this, so it’s merely a punching machine for now.”Punching machine… Zen could hardly believe his eyes. However, upon inspection, he confirmed Damian was telling the truth. It was probably better for the NPCs to not know what he did to the
As Damian's voice filled the air with his complaints about the fluttering fairies, which he equated to bothersome flies, Zen trudged through the gloomy forest. It reminded him of the mushroom forest veiled in a poisonous fog. Thankfully, Zen was immune to the side effects of miasma, a stark contrast to Damian's vulnerability. Any miasma that came into contact with him was instantly purified.“You’re like a walking version of an air purifier,” the cyborg commented offhandedly after collecting his fourth fairy tear. “Part of me wish I’d taken the same quest path as you. These flies won’t stop trying to pull on my hair or scratch my eye out!”Compared to Damian’s initial aloof and disinterested personality, Zen thought he had drastically changed since requesting the Trial of Fire. Then again, this might be his true personality all along. The engineering genius had a childish and whimsical side from when his time had been frozen
Even from afar, the forest looked brighter. Its lush greenery and vibrant colours starkly contrasted Zen's slow progress compared to Damian. The cyborg had already turned in his first part of the quest and was now tasked by Blacksmith Bob with creating a fairy trap. Despite the ominous feeling about Damian’s chosen quest path, Zen knew he could do nothing about it. The complex forked path quest on this floor must be a test of character more than skills. Although he had no idea why the Godfather would test someone’s character using the dungeon, he was glad to have a choice. Murder never sat well with him, even if bloodthirsty assassins surrounded him.“I’m back,” he greeted Father Mark, who had a radiant smile.“Welcome back, child,” the clergyman greeted warmly. “The forest looks livelier than it did in years. Thank you for doing what I should have been doing.”Shaking his head, Zen greeted the orphans, who were od
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 other
With 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
When Bolt returned with the first aid kit, he was largely relieved to see how Yelena was taking care of Zen. Taking over, he checked on the burn injury that had greatly reduced thanks to the ice cream tub, although the same could not be said of the melting liquid inside.“That might have to go back into the freezer for now,” he gently told Yelena, who agreed.Now that the actual adult was back, Yelena threw the explanation to Bolt. She hated the woman Chatura. There was no way she wanted to explain all the complicated history to Zen when she could barely speak English. Besides, between the two of them, Bolt was supposed to be the smarter one.“Oh, Chatura. Yes… it’s a complicated story,” Bolt frowned. “There are so many rumours and versions about what happened to her before she had been turned into an invigilator here. I’ve never personally met her or talked to her in my time here. However, I don’t think we have a
After spending most of the day in the virtual world, the rest of Party Godly Food excused themselves to hit the gym and stretch their muscles. Damian returned to finish compiling the game guide while Zen worked on preparing dinner. Yelena and Bolt were present, so there was no need for anyone else to keep him company. Not to mention, the kitchen hands were very helpful. Most of the ingredients Zen needed were already prepared. The dirty dishes from the last meal were washed meticulously and left to dry on the counter.“Did you find anything new in the dive this time?” Bolt asked while Zen mixed his seasoning.Zen wanted to make something simple for dinner as they had a heavy tea. Fried rice and some soup will do. There was more than enough for everyone later.“There were new things,” Zen admitted, reluctant to reveal too much information about the new features and unique split-path quests he and Damian had discovered. “However
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