Chapter 9: The Guild's First Victory
We left the Whispering Caves an hour later, walking back through the forest toward Riverside Town. The sun was setting, painting the sky orange and purple. It would've been beautiful if we weren't trapped in a death game.
Emma walked next to me, her new bow slung over her shoulder. She kept looking at it every few seconds like she couldn't believe it was real.
"That was incredible," she said. "Jake, you're... I don't even know what you are. How did you get so strong?"
"Practice," I said. Same answer I always gave.
"No, seriously. Nobody else is like you. Nobody can do what you just did." She grabbed my arm, making me stop walking. "You have to tell me. Please. I want to help. I want to be useful too."
I looked at her. She seemed genuine. Scared, but genuine. The manipulative act from earlier was gone. Right now she was just a person who realized she was in over her head.
"You are useful," I said. "You kept your head during the fight. Didn't panic. That's more than most people can say."
She smiled a little. "Really?"
"Really."
We kept walking. Behind us, David, Sarah, and Alex were talking among themselves. I heard David say something about "never doubting Jake again" and Sarah laughing.
When we got back to town, it was different than when we left. More organized. Players had stopped running around screaming. Instead, they were forming parties, checking quest boards, buying supplies from NPCs.
People were adapting. Faster than I thought they would.
We headed straight for the New Dawn guild hall. Inside, the other parties were already back. Marcus was standing at a makeshift table made from crates, looking at a map someone had drawn.
He looked up when we entered. "You're back. Everyone alive?"
"Everyone alive," I confirmed. "And we cleared the dungeon."
The room went quiet. About fifteen guild members were scattered around, and they all turned to look at us.
"You cleared Whispering Caves?" Marcus said. "The level 10-15 dungeon? With a party of level 7s?"
"They're level 9 and 10 now," I said. "I'm level 15."
More silence. Then Marcus grinned.
"Outstanding. What'd you get?"
I pulled up my inventory and showed him the loot. His eyes widened when he saw the Epic tier items.
"Holy shit. Epic gear on day one." He looked at my party. "Everyone get something good?"
David showed him the armor. Emma showed him the bow. Sarah showed him the ring.
Marcus nodded approvingly. "This is what I'm talking about. This is how we survive. We get stronger, we get better gear, and we stay ahead of the curve." He raised his voice so everyone could hear. "Jake's party just proved it's possible to punch above our weight class. They cleared content they shouldn't have been able to clear. That's the standard for New Dawn. We don't play it safe. We take risks and we win."
A few people cheered. Not everyone, but enough.
Sophia, the mage, walked over. "What was your strategy? How'd you not wipe?"
"Jake one-shot everything," Alex said bluntly. "I'm not exaggerating. He literally one-shot the boss adds and did 48,000 damage to the boss himself."
Sophia looked at me. "How?"
"Good class, good skills, good gear," I said. "And knowing the mechanics."
"That's not an answer."
"It's the only answer you're getting."
She frowned but didn't push it.
Marcus turned back to the map. "Alright, here's the plan for tomorrow. Jake, I want you running dungeon clears all day. Take different parties through, spread the wealth. Get as many people to level 10 as possible. We need the whole guild combat ready."
"I can do three runs tomorrow," I said. "Maybe four if we're efficient."
"Three is fine. Sophia, you're in charge of organizing who goes when. Make sure the parties are balanced." He looked around the room. "Everyone else, if you're not running dungeons with Jake, you're grinding in the level 10 zones. No more starter area. We're past that."
People nodded.
"One more thing," Marcus said. His voice got serious. "I've been hearing reports. Players are already killing each other out there. Not by accident. On purpose. Taking gear, taking gold. There's a group calling themselves the Red Vipers. They're camping the roads between towns and robbing low level players."
"How many?" I asked.
"Maybe fifteen of them. All level 6-8. They're targeting solo players and small groups."
Emma moved closer to me. "That's horrible. Why would people do that?"
"Because they're scared," Sarah said quietly. "And scared people do stupid things."
"Or smart things, depending on how you look at it," Alex said. "Stealing gear is faster than grinding for it."
"It's also a good way to get yourself killed," Marcus said. "We're not doing that. New Dawn doesn't rob other players. We don't PK unless it's self-defense. Clear?"
Everyone nodded.
"Good. Now everyone get some rest. Eat something. In this game, your body still needs food and sleep. Take care of yourselves."
People started dispersing. Some logged out—wait, no, they couldn't log out. Some went to the NPCs to buy food. Others just sat down against the walls, exhausted.
I was about to find a corner to rest in when Marcus pulled me aside.
"Hey. Good work today. Really."
"Thanks."
"I mean it. You're carrying this guild right now. Without you, we'd be like everyone else out there. Scared and weak." He paused. "I know you're holding back information. I can tell. You know more about this game than you're saying."
I didn't respond.
"I'm not asking you to tell me everything," he continued. "But if there's something we need to know to survive, I need you to share it. Can you do that?"
I thought about it. Marcus seemed like a good guy. A real leader. Not like Ryan Foster who just used people.
"If I think of something important, I'll tell you," I said.
He nodded. "That's all I ask."
He walked away to talk to Sophia about tomorrow's schedule.
Emma appeared at my side. "You want to get dinner? The inn has that dragon steak again."
"You're buying this time," I said.
She laughed. "Fair enough."
We left the guild hall and headed back toward the inn. The streets were quieter now. Night was falling in the game, and with it came a strange kind of peace. People were inside. Safe. For now.
Tomorrow would be different. Tomorrow, people would start dying for real.
But tonight, we could pretend things were okay.
Just for a little while.