I woke up in my tavern room, stretching my arms skyward while marveling at the weight of my gloves. (After all, which Imperial Soldier wears anything but his armor?) I walked to the small window in the corner, stepping over haphazardly placed balms, potions, jewelry, and combat-related paraphernalia. Looking out of the window, I witnessed a brawl between my clanmate and an ulcerous grohl while two people were trading items next to him. Even from my unfavorable vantage point, I was able to see those two traders as cellmates for the rest of eternity*.

Today was Sunday. Nothing ever happens on Sunday. It was my break day. I fought the whole week, my battle-scarred face uniting with the hard floor of the colosseum countless times. I looked forward to a day where I could finally walk around the lands without being waylaid by a desperate inhabitant of this land.

My happiness was short lived, though.

"Hey! Hey Marcus! I need your help!" shouted the blacksmith Barim Lisar.

"Barim, what is it this time?" I asked him with a surreptitious sigh in my sentence.

"Winter is coming and I need insulation for my house. Unfortunately, the hunters sold all the pelt scraps! Can you please slay eight Darkhoof Buruls for me and bring me their pelts? I will reward you with 300 Experience Points and 30 Simple orbs of Vampirism!"

I shook my head while making no attempt to conceal my sigh.

"How many times do I have to tell you—I don't do quests like this! I'm on break. Do you even realize what I did all week? My arms are sore from swinging around my axe. Get the infernal pelts yourself!"

"Aren't you an Imperial Soldier? Please help me sir. I have helped you in the past to get gear of the best quality, please help me."

"Come on, Barim, that Gladiator Gear was terrible. And your rewards are horrible too. Go ask a level 8 to do this garbage, this quest is beneath me."

I stormed away after delivering a fatal blow to Barim's worthless skull. I figured the gods could create a more sophisticated version of the smith later on.

I decided to head over to the Caldiur Lighthouse to collect some seashells. I believed it would clear my head. As I bent down to retrieve a conch that shimmered with the resplendence of a thousand Fireball V spells, three thkisses attacked me. I then realized the primary law of nature: there is not a thing one can do without being waylaid by monsters. I hacked the flying hellspawn to pieces and found three silver and fifty copper coins among their bloody remains.

It would be logical to sell their meat at the marketplace, but as I had changed my occupation to that of a prospector, I left the remains where they were. I put the shimmering conch into my canvas bag as I walked to my clan hall, exhausted. I was at the Square of Storms when Gaor Trad shouted to me that the protective dome sealing the Abyss had randomly collapsed and I needed to go slay the Spawns of Abyss.

Cursing under my breath, I stormed off towards the Knossos Canyon.








Relatable, eh?

*: Ha. Haha. Hahaha. HAHAAHAH bad joke FTW