Level 1 Fallen

After we left the store, I asked Nuoda for an update on the people that had been rescued from the trait farm dungeon. Apparently, more than half of them had recovered enough to reenter society. There were still a few that were still too far gone to do anything, but they had been making great strides over the two weeks that we had been gone.

“Well, since we have some free time on our hands, where do you want to head next?” I asked, looking back at Bella and Diane while we made our way towards the city’s gates. We were two weeks behind on any new content, thanks to the punishment mission, so we had some severe catching up to do.

“I’d like to visit Feycross,” Diane answered, surprising both Bella and myself. When she saw our confused looks, she elaborated. “We heard before that monster players are being directed to Feycross in order to kill NPCs. That also means that there are a lot of monster players that we can fight while befriending the locals.”

“Normally, the pixies of Feycross wouldn’t hesitate to attack any outsider, but they’re still limited in what they can do thanks to the change in the rune system. If we show that we’re willing to help them, we may even be able to get some of them to migrate to Fallcry.”

“In addition, Feycross is home to elemental dungeons of all varieties. I might be able to find the monsters that I need for the dungeon expansion that I told Hammerhead about.”

I wasn’t sure which of those reasons was the main one for wanting to visit Feycross, but when she presented so many arguments, there wasn’t really a reason for me to refuse her. Besides, I didn’t really have a plan for what to do next anyways, so this was as good as anything else.

“Sure. Do you have a way for us to get there? The nearby rift doesn’t connect to Feycross, remember.” When I said that, Diane pursed her lips.

“Give me a few minutes. I’ll log out and check the schedules.” The brand on her forehead faded, and we stood waiting outside the city gates for about twenty minutes before she logged back on. 

“Sorry about that. The nurse came in with lunch while I was checking the forums,” she spoke with a slightly embarrassed tone. “Anyways, it shouldn’t be too hard for us to get to Feycross. The rift near Ella’s kingdom connects to it, though that connection won’t be for another hour yet.”

I pursed my lips in thought. That particular portal was largely controlled by the elven nation, Evergreen. It would be risky for us to idle there for an hour, given that Evergreen was not exactly fond of me. Even if I had a powerful stealth skill, it wasn’t uncommon for the rifts to be watched by grandmasters.

Normally, that wasn’t much of a problem because we rarely went through rifts controlled by hostile forces, and when we did we sped through quickly. Thus, I presented a suggestion. “Let’s wait here, and head over there once the rift is connected. That way, we can get right through without any delays.”

The other two quickly caught on to my concerns, agreeing that a delay may be for the best. For the next hour, we went back and had our own lunch, then made sure that we had everything that we needed for the excursion into Feycross.

Once it was time, we hopped in the car, teleporting into the air near the rift of Pyrrhos. The rift showed a vibrant array of pinks, reds, and greens as we immediately drove through. On the other side, we found a pastel mountain range, with neon-green mountains topped with red snow. At their bases was a sprawling forest of pink trees, the sky a wavy mosaic of various colors.

It felt disorienting just to look up at the sky, so I focused on driving. “Which way, Diane?” I asked, flying away from the portal to prevent any camp defenders from attacking us in the air.

“The Feycross map hasn’t really been updated yet,” Diane admitted, shaking her head. “Just start flying around until you see something… weird, I guess?”

“Diane… I’m pretty sure I saw a cloud wink at me when I looked at the sky. This entire realm just radiates weird,” I grumbled, but chose to keep flying in a straight line. “Bella, you’re on lookout duty. Let me know if you see anything ‘weird’.”

Bella chuckled at that, leaning to look out the window. “Got it, boss. By the way, Diane, have you found out the specifics about how the rune system changed? It might help us prepare for whatever we may face up ahead.”

Diane thought about it for a moment, before shaking her head. “Unfortunately, there aren’t any updated guides yet. Players have been sharing images of specific runes, but not the new methods to use them. We’d need to ask Hammerhead for a detailed explanation.”

“For now, all we know is that runes have been rebalanced to not be a viable improvised combat tactic. That means that my Chosen won’t be able to pull off any more big area darkness spells when I log out, and also that the pixies here won’t be able to just turn us into a shrubbery on command.”

“That said, runes should still be usable if they are set in advance. So, if the pixies made them into traps, they’ll hold all the same power that they did before. So if you see any big circle of runes, don’t fly into it.”

I couldn’t help but chuckle at that. “Understood. Don’t fly into any obvious traps, because they might be traps,” I repeated, causing Diane to roll her eyes.

“Drake, I’ve got something!” Bella suddenly called out, her eyes narrowed as she peered into the distance. “I’m seeing fluctuations to the north-east. It looks like someone is repeatedly using fire skills, but the fires are snuffed out instantly.”

I looked over at Diane, who shrugged her shoulders. “It’s worth investigating.”

With that, I turned the car, following Bella’s instructions and flying towards the disturbance. Soon enough, Diane and I were able to make it out as well, while Bella was able to see more details. “It looks like a pair of players. One of them is… I think that’s your friend, Ella? Black robe with fire-patterned trim, and bright red hair. She’s standing in a circle of mushrooms together with a rabbit-eared girl that’s just sitting on the ground.”

I perked a brow at the description, driving closer and landing a few dozen meters away from the scene. Sure enough, I could make out Ella and an unfamiliar beastfolk within a ring of mushrooms. Ella continuously shot fireballs out of her hand at different angles, but they disappeared upon reaching the edge of the ring.

Once the three of us exited the car and stowed it away, I dropped my stealth. Ella’s eyes widened, and she waved a hand. “Drake! Is that you?! What are you doing in Feycross?”

“Currently… I’m getting you out of a tight spot. What’s going on here?” I asked, walking closer while examining the ground for any other traps.

Ella quickly shouted out. “Be careful! The mushroom rings are hidden. They only activate when you step in them. I’ve been stuck here all day, trying to find a way out…”

With a huff, she crossed her arms in front of her chest. “I thought I’d come here and try to meet some fairies since I finally got some from time. Wandered around for a bit, then saw this girl crouched on the ground, dejected. Came over to help, and a sudden barrier rose up around us.”

“What about the girl?” I asked, looking at the rabbit-eared woman sitting on the ground behind Ella. “What’s her story?”

Ella hesitated at that, looking back at the other figure. “Not much of a story… it’s just a bait. As far as I can tell, it’s made of mud and transformed to look like a distressed girl.” She then turned back to face the three of us. “Anyways, think you can get me out of here? I’d like to not become the queen of the world’s smallest mushroom kingdom.”

I smirked, glancing around. “I can, just give me a minute.” Using True Sight, I could confirm that there were indeed runes drawn on the underside of the mushrooms surrounding Ella. Similarly, there were numerous circles spread out over the ground containing a single type of rune, likely one used for concealment.

It would seem that the pixies had begun to figure out how to handle their runes again, even if it wasn’t to the same level as it was before. At the same time, there were five pixies watching the scene unfold from various positions nearby. One of them was even hidden inside the mud doll next to Ella. Though, I had the feeling that mentioning that would cause them to run away.

Lifting my hand, I created a small, circular disc of ice, and launched it out to mow down the mushrooms forming the barrier around Ella. Once the mushroom caps had fallen, the air around Ella seemed to ripple. She let out a sigh of relief, taking a step forward before I stopped her.

“Hold on, there are more traps around here,” I told her, manifesting large rings of water that hovered over the runic rings I had spotted.

Seeing that there were two more barriers in between the two of us, Ella froze. Instead, she navigated around the water rings, using them as a guide to safely navigate the colorful minefield. “I’ve been here all day, and haven’t even seen a single fairy,” she complained. “I’ve only got a couple more hours of online time for the day, so maybe I should just head back to Pyrrhos?”

“Why not just stick with us?” Bella asked with a bright smile. “Drake can just teleport you straight back to your palace when it’s time for you to go. That way, you’ll get to explore more and make it back home earlier.”

Ella paused at that idea, turning to look at me. “She makes an… interesting proposal. As long as I’m not imposing too much?”

I shrugged my shoulders, unbothered by the presence of one extra person. “It doesn’t matter to me much either way. We’re looking for some elemental dungeons, and also for the monsters tormenting the pixies. Figured that we might be able to prove our good intentions if we helped them deal with their problems.”

As I said this aloud, my fingers typed out a message to the other three. We’re being monitored. Five pixies. No, six now. A new one just arrived. Don’t look for them, they’re keeping themselves hidden. If we make it obvious that we see them, they might flee. Better to make them want to come to us.

The other three widened their eyes slightly upon seeing the message, but silently agreed. “Let’s get in the car,” Diane suggested. “We’ll be able to find the monsters more easily if we’re flying.”

I thought so as well, so I pulled the car back out of my inventory and got into the driver’s seat, with Bella sitting next to me. This left Diane and Ella in the back. Unlike before, I didn’t use my stealth skill to hide the car, and instead began lifting it into the air. Of the six pixies, one of them rushed forward, attaching itself to the underside of the car.

I couldn’t help but feel sorry for the little thing. It had chosen rather poorly when looking for a place to hide. Still, I couldn’t outright say anything about it, and just silently messaged the other three about our stowaway to prevent them from saying anything too revealing.

The three looked at one another as I drove through the sky, their eyes glancing down towards the floor of the car, as if they were looking through the frame of the car and down at the poor pixie struggling to maintain its grip.

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