The capsule hissed as it opened, and I pulled off the VR helmet with a satisfied sigh. My body felt stiff from the session. It might not have been as long as my encounter with the Elder Stag, but it was definitely much more physically intense.

  I should sleep.

  The summons was at 8.00 am IGT. According to my cooldown period, I could log in at 7:48 am, so I had twelve minutes to report in. I’m definitely not going to do any exploring before that.

  There weren’t many players in the city of Tidemark yet. Out of the 2,000 adventurers around a hundred had reached level 16 by the time I finished the tournament in Oakenlight. Maybe a hundred and fifty, tops.

  Still, I really wanted to see what the city held for us. Even if I couldn’t land any personal quests, I was sure there was a lot going on in the Jewel of the North Coast.

  I was about to go for a quick shower when my eyes stopped at the tablet next to my bed.

  Sleep could wait a few more minutes.

  I grabbed it from the nightstand and opened the Godsrealm Companion app, the familiar interface loading with its distinctive blue and gold trim. The homepage was alive with activity, with thousands of players sharing their experiences from the first week.

  Starting from tomorrow, I will be able to access the forum for the whole Kingdom. I will see what Ryder is up to.

  For now, I opened the Silverwing forums to check on things.

  The recruitment posts dominated the front page.

  The comment section was overwhelmingly positive. Players praised Phantom's leadership in previous games, shared stories about successful raids they'd run with King's Glade members, and debated the pros and cons of joining a large guild versus staying independent.

  One comment caught my eye:

  King’s Glade definitely looked like a great option for anyone who wanted to improve.

  Stone's invitation echoed in my mind. This was a real opportunity, the kind most players would jump at without hesitation.

  So why was I hesitating?

  I scrolled down to the next major recruitment post.

  The comment section was... mixed, to put it mildly.

  The debate raged on for hundreds of replies, players arguing about whether Crimson Court's aggressive tactics were justified or problematic. I noticed several mentions of the Oakenlight incident where Lorrando had been humiliating his opponent, with players taking sides on whether his behavior was acceptable.

  I should watch some of the VODs before tomorrow. It was only a bit past 8 pm, so I had plenty of time and even then I could get 8 hours of sleep.

  But first, I briefed over all the other recruitment posts, paying extra attention to some of the bigger ones.

  Midnight Sun’s post focused heavily on PvE content, advertising themselves as a raiding guild with an emphasis on world-first kills and min-maxing strategies. Their recruitment post was technical, listing specific class compositions they were looking for and detailing their loot distribution system.

  They seemed well versed, but fell behind the posts of the other two guilds, just like Stormfall and Oathkeepers.

  Stormfall seemed more PvP-oriented, already claiming they'd secured a foothold in several counties of the region, including Furrowhold, Salt Throne and Highrise.

  Oathkeepers took a middle path, presenting themselves as a "heroic" guild dedicated to helping NPCs, completing story quests, and exploring the lore of Godsrealm. Their recruitment post had fewer replies but seemed to attract more roleplay-focused players.

  If I remembered correctly, the tournament casters, Shieldbreaker, Virtune and Thorax were also future members of Oathkeepers.

  All strong options, with different philosophies.

  I wanted to move to the VODs but then I noticed something new, a post that had just crept up to the front page of the Tidemark sub. I clicked at it immediately.

  The comments were mostly enthusiastic.

  If the Carpa Crafter Group? joins Athos’ guild, they will have supreme craftsmen at hand to complete whatever they needed, I thought. Honestly, if they gather a good 200-300 players from Tidemark, they could even be a regional powerhouse with this setup.

  I was happy for both Athos and my crafter friends; a partnership like this was sure to benefit both sides.

  I just hoped Danza and the crew will keep giving me the friends discount as well, even if I don’t join.

  I bookmarked the post and moved on to therest of the Tidemark subforum itself.

  The front page was dominated by several topics, but one thread in particular had exploded with activity.

  The comments were a goldmine of additional information.

  Players reported different puzzle solutions they'd tried, shared sketches of monster attack patterns, and debated whether the caves were intended for level 20+ groups or if there was a way to complete them at lower levels with strategy.

  I made a mental note. It might be time to revisit those caves, soon.

  I didn’t forget the feeling when I first entered the northern cave.

  Something strong was down there.

  But I got stronger too.

  Just as I was about to close the forums, a new post had popped up, at the very front screen, and my blood froze.