‘What should I do now?’

  Candy looked down at the two dolls she was holding. Unfortunately, they gave no response.

  ‘Guess I’ll just wander around more. I don’t know how big this district is, so should I head towards the city center?’

  Deciding that was the best idea, Candy began walking towards the tower that stood in the center of the city. Since there wasn’t a straight path, she spent quite a while trying to get closer. By the time she made it, the sun had set. The city, however, was as bright as ever.

  The buildings made of pearl wood and stone used to build the city glowed softly in the night. The road beneath her feet looked like a river of light. The pearl trees spread around emitted sparkling light, as though the stars had descended on the earth. Fountains stood in the plaza surrounding the tower and the flowing water was like liquid moonlight.

  Candy stood motionless for a long time.

  ‘Silva, it’s even more beautiful than I imagined. Why did the developers destroy such a wonderful place?’

  Walking towards the tower, she noticed a small chamber on the outside of its wall.

  ‘What is that? It looks like…an elevator car?’

  As she walked closer, she saw that it indeed looked like an elevator. It was made entirely of glass-like material and had a door at the front.

  ‘How am I supposed to use it?’

  There weren’t any buttons on the exterior or interior of the chamber, and trying to open the door by force proved futile.

  Deciding to figure it out later, she turned around to leave when she saw another person approaching.

  It was a woman wearing the simple cloth shirt and pants one might wear beneath leather armor. Her dark purple hair was tied in a high ponytail and a shortsword hung from her belt.

  “Are you trying to use the tower lift?”

  “Yeah, but I don’t know how, I just arrived in the city this morning.”

  “Coincidentally, I was also heading up. Would you like to come with me.”

  “Really? Thank you, you’re so nice!”

  The woman gave a small smile. She placed her hand on the lift’s door, and a small magic circle appeared.

  ‘Ah, so it involves magic. She really saved me.’

  The magic circle gently faded as the door opened. They both stepped into the lift.

  “I’m Stella, by the way. Nice to meet you.”

  “I’m Candy. Nice to meet you too.”

  As the lift ascended, the city below turned into a sparkling jewel.

  “The city really is beautiful.”

  “Night is the best time to see it. That’s why I love going to the top of the tower when the sun sets.”

  “I’m so glad I got to see this.”

  The lift slowed to a halt as they arrived at the top of the tower. This area was higher up than the bridges, and completely flat except for a short wall for safety. The floor was engraved with the branches of a pearl tree. The pattern softly glowed, giving the entire place an ethereal look.

  “Amazing.”

  As they stepped out of the lift, Candy turned to Stella.

  “Thank you for helping me see such a wonderful thing.”

  “There’s no need to thank me, I didn’t do anything.”

  “No, you did. Without you, I wouldn’t have been able to experience this, so thank you.”

  This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

  Stella looked slightly confused but didn’t question further. Instead, her gaze turned to the badge on Candy’s shoulder.

  “You’re a new adventurer?”

  “Yep, I just registered today. Ah, your badge! You’re an intermediate level, right?”

  The badge on Stella’s shoulder displayed a golden lion.

  “Yep, I’ve been an adventurer for about a year now. I’ve been working hard to advance, but I feel like I’m at a bottleneck right now.”

  “What’s wrong?”

  “I’ve been training with my sword for months, but I’m not improving at all.”

  “Hmm. Maybe I could help.”

  “You?”

  “Yeah! It might not seem like it, but I’m actually pretty good with weapons.”

  “Why not? At this point, I’ll try anything.”

  “I promise you won’t regret it.”

  “Shall we meet at the training grounds around noon tomorrow?”

  “Sounds good, uh, where is it?”

  Stella walked over to eastern side of the rood and to a large building surrounding an open courtyard.

  “That’s where most of the city guards are, but adventurers are allowed to use it as long as we don’t disrupt their training.”

  “I see.”

  “By the way, Candy, you’re a novice adventurer and you said you only recently enter the city. How’d you get all the way to the front lines?”

  “Hm? Oh, it’s…a bit of a long story…”

  Stella looked curious but asked no more. Candy sat down on the ground and looked up at the dark sky. Stella sat next to her.

  “Well, it’s always been my dream to visit Silva, and I figured now was a great time to do so. That’s all. I didn’t come to fight against demons or become famous. I just wanted to see the city of my dreams.”

  ‘Before it’s too late.’

  “I’m glad you could make your dream happen.”

  “Do you have a dream, Stella?”

  “Yeah…I want to become a great adventurer. Then I’ll travel all over the world searching for rare herbs and stuff.”

  “Ooh, treasure hunting. Sounds exciting.”

  “It’s for my brother really, he-sorry, I don’t really want to talk about it.”

  “No worries, I’m sorry for prying.”

  “No, it’s fine. I was the one who chose to share.”

  “Still! It’s great to have dreams. That’s what makes you want to keep moving forward.”

  “I guess you’re right.”

  Stella smiled slightly.

  “You’ll definitely make your dream come true! I know it!”

  Laughing quietly, Stella replied.

  “Yeah, I’m sure it will. Thanks Candy.”

  “Hehe!”

  Looking at the twin moons slowly making their way across the sky, Candy stood up.

  “Well, it’s getting late. You should probably go home if we’re gonna train tomorrow.”

  “You should too.”

  “Yeah.”

  The two entered the lift and descended the tower. After stepping out, Stella turned and waved.

  “Have a good night Candy. See you tomorrow.”

  “Good night Stella!”

  Candy watched as Stella’s back disappeared into the streets before looking around.

  ‘Now then. I should probably find a place to stay for the night. Continuing to walk around would definitely look suspicious.’

  Pondering over the places to go, she ultimately decided to head for the training grounds.

  ‘I don’t want to wander too far off, or I don’t know if I’ll make it back in time. It’s not unnatural for me to go to the training grounds as an adventurer, so I shouldn’t get into trouble. Plus, I didn’t see anyone around when I looked down at it, so I’m less likely to run into someone. If I do, I’ll just say I want to do some late-night training.’

  Walking around the tower, she soon spotted the guardhouse. Passing under the archway, she saw the training grounds ahead of her.

  The training grounds consisted of a dirt courtyard with benches lining 3 edges. Empty weapon racks were scattered about, and a few training dummies stood at one side.

  ‘Perfect. It’s empty, but I can use a bench as a resting spot. Since they’re covered, I don’t have to worry about rain either.

  Choosing a secluded bench partially hidden behind 2 weapon racks, she lay down to rest.

  [Would you like to rest?]

  [Yes]

  [Wake up: 8am]

  [Saving Game…]

  Closing her eyes, she decided to return to reality for a bit. Playing too much right now wasn’t good for her real body.

  [Log Out]

  Warm light shined from a window overlooking the grounds. Inside the room, a man silently watched as she laid down on the bench and appeared to fall asleep.

  ‘Hm, that’s interesting.’

  With that thought, he extinguished the lamp and went to sleep.

  …

  Waking up from the pod, she felt as though her body hadn’t moved in a year. Slowly stretching as she exited, she viewed her barren room and sighed.

  “Welcome back Young Miss. It has been 5 hours since you entered the pod. In that time, your room was cleaned and your bedding changed. Your meal and medication were left on the table.”

  She swung her arms as she walked over to the table. On it was a bowl filled with some tasteless substance, a glass of water, and her medication.

  “Please remember to eat before taking your medication.”

  “Yeah yeah.”

  Thinking back to her time in the game, she smiled brightly.

  “Hey, guess what I did in the game.”

  “What did you do Young Miss.”

  “I made a friend. At least one, maybe two.”

  “Congratulations, Young Miss.”

  “Hehe! Even if they’re NPCs, they’re the first people I’ve made friends with. I’m so happy.”

  With her good mood, even the tasteless substance they called food wasn’t so bad. After eating and taking her medicine, she felt refreshed and went to play some more.

  “Please remember your appointment in 2 days and plan accordingly.”

  “Aren’t you supposed to do that for me?”

  “I’m just reminding you since you tend to forget until moments before.”

  “Fine, I’ll remember.”

  “Have a good time, Young Miss.”

  After re-entering the game, her vision went black and was greeted by the rest screen. Suddenly a notification popped up.

  [Attention: Player body is being disturbed.

  Current In-Game Time: 6am

  Would you like to wake up now?]

  'A disturbance? Is someone trying to wake this body?'

  [Wake up?: Yes]

  She opened her eyes to a face staring closely at her.

  “WHAHH!”