Ceres dealt with his morning necessities. Fixing himself up, eating breakfast with family and friends, and a few chores. He was ready to jump back into the game. He was smitten by it, ever since the first time he played it. He's a 19 year old but he doesn't need further education since he was smart enough to skip to PhD levels, he doesn't need to work since he's next to inherit Orion's company. This game was going to be the temporary drive in life.

  He got comfortable in the pod and relaxed. A stubborn glare formed as he came clear to his goal. He wants to be the strongest, the greatest adversary for anyone he meets.

  He's aware that Mercury, Natalia and Damien are powerful players in the game. So, now, he wants to be better than them.

  "Game Start."

  He spoke the almost magical words and the same spectrum of colors appeared around him. No matter how much he sees it, it will still be incredible for him. After that event, he awoke where he logged off. In the new player's barracks.

  Since he was on his own today, he had plans of what do to. He didn't want to be pushy with Dorothy, he was going to patient. He needed to catch and deliver at least two prey to be accepted into a guild. Before he went to hunting, he wanted to utilize this world's magic, {Essence}.

  He was at the Training Fields. The large, wide grassy terrain with a few buildings dedicated to players who want to rest or get something to eat. There were straw dummies that recovered after each hit, showing the state of art technology this kingdom has achieved through this strange power. There were also Training Golems but they were for rent.

  Ceres doesn't have the money.

  Overnight, he studied the known aspects of Positive Energy and Negative Energy. There wasn't much known about it since they are rare {Attributes}. People rather to use more basic types since they aren't hard to discover.

  He closed his eyes and tried to recall the feeling from yesterday. First, he decided to generate Positive Energy. With a climax of power, his eyes snapped open and in the palm of his hand manifested a strange element. It was similar to flame but looking like white, glowing fabric that flowed up and broke apart quickly as it reached the top. It was fast and hard to maintain, producing a vibrant heat and moving wildly.

  Ceres felt his {Essence} draining quickly so he cancelled its production. After catching his breath, he moved to create Negative Energy. He closed his eye and searched for the power, once found he didn't let go! In the palm of his hands, flowed another flame-like element. It looked like a black, dimly-lit fabric that flowed up and broke apart slowly as it reached the top. It was slow and easy to control, it produced a harsh cold and, moved slowly and lucidly.

  Now, since he could produce both types without a problem, he sought to create a {Forte}. Someone can play a symphony from just muscle memory on a keyboard, learning it once and building on it along the way. {Fortes} are applications of {Essence} for specific function. They are activated by calling out its name and once they are used, your body won't forget the system of orders used to create it. And more they are used, the stronger it gets and easier it is done.

  The problem Ceres was experiencing is that he didn't have enough {Range}. {Range} is the amount of {Essence} his body can refine and store. As he is a new player, his deposits are low. Creating a {Forte} seemed impossible right now.

  His sister, Mercury, made him prepared for situation like this. She gave him an exercise to improve his overall strength and {Range}. It was quite simple, he should pour both types on each hand while doing exercises. By exercises, she means 200 pushups, 150 sit-ups and 5 sprints around the entire training field. Your player avatar is basically your body in real life, Ceres was already fit. But for him to survive in the wild, he had to become much stronger.

  He did the exercises as advised. He had to pay attention to one thing while doing it, if he completely exhausted his {Range}, he would die instantly. His body needs {Essence} to survive. Thankfully, after two hours, he successfully completed the task. Feeling exhausted, he rested and ate at the barracks before he went to his next task.

  Now, he need to qualify himself as a hunter. Two hares should do it but he wanted to beyond! He wanted to prove that he had much talent and far better than anyone else. So, he wanted to catch ten or more.

  As he approached the western gates, something hit him. As a E-Rank player, he needed at least one party member to venture outside the city. The western area of Goé Garr is said to be place with the least amounts of threats but, the chances are still there.

  Many of the new players were cautious of him because of the tutorial. And if he managed to score a spot in a strong party's team, he'd probably be forced to carry luggage or get no prey. Luckily for him, there was a familiar face standing nervously by the gate's smaller entrance.

  Dorothy was standing by the gate for hours now. Her Priestess class ended a long time ago but she was too afraid to ask anyone. She felt like her {Proficiency} and {Attributes} were too inconvenient for her to get a party member. That she'd be a burden to anyone she grouped with. At this point, it might be days before she can get out.

  "What's up, doll?" She heard a familiar voice and was pleasantly surprised. She looked up at Ceres with bright hope which immediately melted into a frown, recalling why she doesn't have a party member. Ceres noticed her change of mood, "Why the sad face?"

  "I-.. Um," Dorothy didn't want him to pity her. She fumbled with her fingers and looked away, trying to find an excuse but couldn't come up with one.

  "Pretty hard to find a party member? I can get the feeling," Ceres understood she was the secretive type and respected it. He ruffled her hair and sighed. She blushed and looked away, glad that he could understand. "You need one to hunt so do you want to be mine?"

  She really wanted to. But, she could tell that Ceres has a lot of potential. She didn't want to ruin it with her awful fate. "I don't... know if I'm suitable."

  "You won't be a burden, Dorothy," He said suddenly. She felt butterflies. He read her like a book, seeing her concerns at face value and assuring her. And the way he used her name suddenly. "I want to party with you."

  He held her chin and rose her face up, staring straight into her eyes. After a long pause, he gave her a smug smile. "I won't fight for you. Instead we can fight together."

  Dorothy was stunned. He wasn't making her a burden. Yet, she still felt like it. Ceres leaned in and Dorothy snapped back to reality. She turned away from him to hide her flustered expression. "Ok... I'll party with you."

  Ceres was slightly agitated since he didn't get a kiss but went along with it, "Anything for you, doll."

  They confirmed their group as a Party by the Guard's Post and were allowed outside the city. They were greeted by the eerie air and shadows known as the Cenel Forests.

  "What.. are we hunting?" Dorothy asked nervously. She didn't know how to act, whether professional or casual. Either way, she was too awkward to act casually.

  "House Hares," Ceres haughtily pointed out.

  "Oh... we just need two each, so four in total?" Dorothy felt ease. She believed they were going for the easiest route to get in.

  "Awe you know how to do basic math," Ceres teased her but did it in a way she didn't feel offended. She rolled her eyes and looked away. "But no, I won't be settling for anything easy."

  "We'll be catching 10 House Hares." He declared confidently.

  "Isn't that.. overkill?" Dorothy didn't want to voice her opinion. She already felt like it was already enough for her to party with him.

  "Kinda but it'll give us early money," Ceres explained himself while doing the math. "We should get 1 silver each or more."

  Dorothy pondered on it.

  1 Copper Coin is equal to 0.25 IND.

  100 Coppers Coin = 1 Silver Coin

  100 Silvers Coin = 1 Gold Coin

  1 Silver is 25 IND. She could pay for her rent for two months with that and buy herself a slightly better meal.

  "Ok.. What's the plan," She agreed. Money talks, and it spoke to her well.

  "There's none. Am confident I could chase one down so, let's go corner one," Ceres pulled out his dagger and indicated to her to get ready. She revealed an old dagger with chipped edges and a scratched up handle. She didn't buy a new one, Ceres could tell. He was getting suspicions about this girl.

  And they sent off on their reckless plan. Upon seeing a hare, they immediately chased after the creature. House Hares are large, the size of a house cat and fatter. Their hind legs are large and powerful, they were long and had tall ears, typically having brown fur. They were faster than expected, Ceres has an amazing physique that lets him compete with racing dogs in real life but this was much different. They were slippery and made use of their environment. Dorothy was slow and got tired easily, so she wasn't much help.

  They chased down three hares into their burrow. Ceres stuck his hand in the burrow and tried to drag one out but, he was responded with bites and hard kicks to his hand. He flinched and dragged his arm out from the intense pain. The House Hares put a wall of weeds to block out the entrance to their burrow. Ceres tried to punch it open but the hares reinforced the wall of weeds with stones and dirt.

  "Smart bastards!" Ceres knew he was outplayed and respected it. But, now he was eager to catch one. The most basic prey was his worst adversary.

  "Are you okay?" Dorothy rushed over and examined his hand. It had bleeding bite marks and parts of his hands swollen. The bites weren't deep, the hares weren't built for that category of attacks.

  "Am fine, we should get back to h-?" Ceres tried to stick to the task but Dorothy didn't go of his hand.

  She closed her eyes and Ceres felt an energy wafting over his hand.

  "Rosaria..." Dorothy muttered. The bite wounds quickly closed up and his swells went down. He was amazed, she had a {Forte} already and it was quite efficient.

  "See, you're being helpful," Ceres smirked at her and leaned against the tree. Dorothy sat on her knees and looked away.

  "All I can do is heal..." She muttered in clear bitterness.

  "And that's great too. Plus you were helping me chase them down," Ceres pointed out.

  'I wasn't much help there," Dorothy reminded him that she kept becoming exhausted.

  "At least you're still here and helping me," Ceres sighed and ruffled her hair. "Why did you name your {Forte} that?"

  "I.." She didn't know if she should tell him her sad story. She felt like he didn't care. Ceres stopped talking to listen to her. So, Dorothy spoke, "That was the name of my grandmother. She took care of me and my father until she died. She... was a loving and nurturing lady."

  "My Priest teacher told me to name my healing {Forte} after something or someone who reminded me of the process," Dorothy explained shortly.

  "That's adorable," He smiled. Seeing that they were having a conversation, he wanted to learn about her. "How old are you, doll?"

  "I'm 19.." Dorothy was getting afraid of these questions. What if he found out the state she lived in. Would he still want to party with her?

  "Same. Do you work or...?" Ceres continued.

  "No... I was hoping to make money off this game.." She tried to avoid anymore questioning.

  "Oh, so you're tryna have fun while making money, I can respect it," Ceres nodded. He was born to a rich family and is waiting in line to take over his brother's company, he basically wiped his ass with your yearly paycheck.

  "I guess your parents takes care of you while you try to become a big shot?" He assumed.

  Dorothy hesitated. What is she supposed to tell him? "Y- you can say that."

  Ceres could tell she's being secretive. His suspicions about the girl was growing more but he was still infatuated with her. You could tell, he took every chance to come in contact with her. He patted her head, "Don't worry about it."

  She sat beside him and rested her head on his shoulder. A stupid smile formed on Ceres's face, "We'll become bigshots together."

  As silence took over, Ceres looked to solve the problem at hand. Why were they even called House Hares?

  He realized upon examining their burrows. They were unaware of a burrow in the first place because the House Hares used the wall of weeds to hide it. And when they were inside the burrow, they put stones and dirt behind the wall of weeds to block the entrance. They used the wall of weeds as a door and their burrow a home, a defense that seemed to work well if they aren't caught outside. Hence their name, House Hares.

  He made a strategy to catch one. They'd find a new area with a burrow and check to see if any House Hares were home. If not, they would put stones behind the wall of weeds before hand to block the entrance while one waited for it to scurry to the burrow for shelter and the other chase it. The one waiting would catch the hare since it can't enter its burrow.

  With excitement, he explained the plan to Dorothy. She returned the energy and thought it was flawless. She knew he had some amazing potential.

  They had to move to a new area since the hares were now aware of them. Dorothy would be the waiter while Ceres being the chaser. Roles that fit them perfectly. Finding an empty burrow and blocking it, they took their positions.

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  Ceres spotted three hares grazing and immediately got to moving. He chased them down desperately past trees, uprising roots and crevices. As planned, they were heading towards the burrow they blocked. Dorothy hesitated but managed to grab one hare. Ceres talked the other two and quickly slit their throats. Dorothy couldn't muster to courage to take its life.

  "What are you waiting on!?" Ceres grabbed the struggling hare from her hands before it could escape. With no remorse, he slit its throat and watched as the blood drained out. They both had to catch their breath from the sudden burst of energy.

  "Are you okay?" Ceres asked her. It looked like she never took an animal's life before. Even if it's just a game.

  "Yes.." Dorothy didn't want to admit she was a bit shaken up. She'd look more like a burden.

  "Ok, get ready, we're moving to the next spot." Ceres tied the three dead hares to a stick and went to the next spot.

  They found another burrow and got to moving quickly. Dorothy kept the dead hares within the bushes while Ceres went looking for their new prey. He spotted five house hares grazing while some said on guard. He knew it would have been hassle with these numbers so, he signaled to Dorothy their numbers. She became apparently nervous but nodded, steeling her resolve.

  Ceres chased the hares down. All five went hurdling towards the burrow they blocked, as planned. This chase was harder for him, since he had to keep each hare from straying. They tried to enter the burrow and it failed, they were frightened and gave Dorothy the opportunity to grab two of them. Ceres skidded across the ground to secure the other three.

  "Quickly! Kill them!" He commanded while killing the three in his hands. Dorothy gulped and closed eyes as she used her old dagger to cut through both of their necks.

  Ceres grabbed the stick of other dead hares from the bushes. He broke off a large branch from a tree and used flexible twigs to tie all dead hares to the branch.

  "You got so... dirty," Dorothy frowned. Remembering as he skidded through the dirt to catch those hares. His serf clothes were covered in dirt and blood

  "It's all apart of being a hunter. Am proud of ya," Ceres grinned and ruffled her hair. She was also messed up with blood and dirt but not as bad as Ceres. Dorothy smiled when he said he was proud. "How's the dirt treating you? Doll?"

  "I- it's ok," Dorothy quickly defended herself. "Am... used to filth worse than this."

  Her last remark rose his suspicions. He didn't want to assume anything about her. So, he sought to get back to task.

  "Don't bother your pretty little head," He sighed and began walking, beckoning for her to follow. "We have at least one burrow to go through."

  She smiled brightly, skipping to catch up to the snarky giant.

  After finding another burrow, they went through the same procedure. Dorothy waited in the bushes while Ceres got ready to chase.

  He only saw one house hare. Which he found strange, they always move in numbers more than two. He scouted out the area for awhile but to no avail, he saw no other. He chased after the known house hare.

  It ran to the burrow as planned. Dorothy easily tackled it and slit its throat. And suddenly, three house hares peeked from the bushes. Dorothy and Ceres looked at each other with shocked eyes. The intelligent prey saw their kind dead in their hands and their homes invaded so they ran off.

  Ceres wasn't going to allow it. He chased after the beasts despite them being faster. He managed to catch one and tossed it at Dorothy. She flinched but caught it, killing it quickly before it escapes.

  "Where are you going!?" Dorothy questioned as he chased after the other two hares.

  "I will be back!" He answered without losing sight. The hares were moving wild, having no clue where to go since their home was gone. Ceres slid under a tall root and grabbed one of the hairs, quickly killing it and going after the other. He picked up a few stones and threw it at the stone, it instinctively dodged but ended up in his range. Ceres slid along the ground and cleanly cut its throat.

  He was triumphant. In fact, he looked awesome while doing it. There was no one to see him so he was agitated.

  He felt a change in himself. So, he closed his eyes and concentrated. From those sudden action, he unlocked a {Proficiency}. It was of a {Proficiency} Assassin Rank E, the lowest grade.

  {Proficiencies} are similar to classes or jobs in a MMORPGs. It is a special service or style a person is categorized in, from Merchants to Paladins, the lists goes on. His movements were fast and deadly, he only went for critical hits. Reaching the requirements for him to become an Assassin. If his Rank goes up, his body will adapt to the {Proficiency} and he might be able to learn special {Fortes}.

  After awhile, he returned to Dorothy with both hares in hand.

  "Are you okay?" Dorothy asked with genuine concern. She was a nervous wreck for the few minutes he was gone.

  "Never been better," Ceres gave her a haughty grin.

  "You didn't need to go for those, we already have ten," She gestured to the branch of dead hares, with addition to the one Ceres tossed to her.

  "More the merrier," He grinned, tying the extra two to the branch.

  "Are... we going to share them up evenly?" Dorothy knew she didn't put in as much work as him. She didn't want to exploit him.

  "We should gain more coins if we submit them as a party, so we'll do that," Ceres stated, he wasn't going to take no for an answer.

  "Ok.." She agreed, the more she could get the better.

  As the scarlet blood painted the carpet of grass in a hue that told of life, their biggest mistake diffused into the area and scattered. The scent of life, precious to any predator scavenging for a free snack. With no warning or hints, a strong jaw clenched itself in Ceres's neck.

  He was shocked but didn't hesitate, he tried to fight off the unknown beast. The beast was strong, clinging close and tightening its bite. "Doll! Heal me!"

  Dorothy froze, she saw the size of the predator and lose hope. She shivered from fear. "Dorothy!!"

  "Rosaria!" Ceres's voice snapped her to reality and she used her {Forte}. Ceres was feeling better so he attempted to slash the beast. It backed off and he was able to see it clearly.

  It

  looked like a strange wolf. It had the ears of a racoon but the large body of a wolf. It had the tail of a racoon and its feet were stripped black and white. Its face had the pattern of a racoon but looked like a wolf.

  Ceres recognized it immediately, the guard warned him about it. It was a Benaki Wolf. His best chances against this predator was scaring it away with noise. He stomped at it and yelled, it did flinch but stayed its ground. It decided to switch targets, pouncing swiftly at Dorothy who had her eyes clothes.

  "Dorothy! You don't keep your eyes close in a fight!!" He yelled at her and sprinted over to intercept the wolf. Ceres was successful but took another deep bite to his waist.

  Ceres lifted it up slightly by one leg and attempted to slice its gut. The Benaki Wolf desperately fought him off and made distance between them. Ceres realized that its belly is its Achilles heel. If he could get a good slice, this can be done.

  "Doll... Stay behind me... and keep healing me... Prepare for anything...." Ceres commanded Dorothy. He was feeling intense pain from his deep wounds but he couldn't back down.

  The Benaki Wolf got into a low position and prepared for Ceres to make the first move. Ceres knew the wolf would be going upwards so, when he moved forward he went low.

  His aim was to throw the beast over but it fought against his strength. It was strong and to make matters worse, it bit into his shoulder wound again.

  Ceres cried from agony but he couldn't go down now. "Doll! Punch it in its gut!"

  "I- I don't- I-!" Dorothy was startled at the sight of his blood. She was too conflicted to move, human's blood was enough for her.

  "Come on, Dorothy, I need you!" Ceres pleaded with her. Upon hearing that he needed her, she wasted no time. Her fear disappeared and she socked the beast in the gut.

  It gasped for air and Ceres was successful in throwing it over. He coated his blade in Positive Energy and easily cut through the beast's belly.

  It whimpered for a bit and cried for help. It was a sad sight to see the beast die. The wolf just wanted an easy buffet, the hares and the bodies of the players. In the end, it was the one to meet its demise.

  "Who would have known..." Ceres felt himself become light-headed.

  "Ceres?" He heard Dorothy say his name. He smirked, that's the first she's saying it. But his happiness faded as his vision went dark.

  ~×?×?×?×?×?×?×?×?×~

  After a few minutes of waiting in darkness, he logged out and panicked. He paced around his room with an anxious expression. The weight of his footsteps echoing out through the hall.

  "What the hell is your problem, man?" Lance came to his door and asked. He looked like he just got home from work. He was still in his suit but looked as if he was just undressing, His face covered with a soap mask.

  "I got knocked out and I left her in the forest!" Ceres vaguely explained but still relied on his big brother for advice.

  "If you think you're dead, you're not," Lance sighed and stepped in the room.

  "What the hell do you mean. I got no time for proverbs, old man," Ceres growled at him.

  "Look here you bottle-nosed redcap, the light on the pod is green," He pointed on the large LED indicator on the mechanism.

  "Yeah.. what about it?" Ceres was confused

  "It means you're still alive in the game, it takes four hours for you to respawn," Lance stated and revealed a flask of alcohol. Taking a large gulp and giving a satisfying burp.

  "Oh! I gotta get back in quick," Ceres hopped into the pod and gave his older brother an loving smile. "Thanks, you deranged alcoholic."

  "No prob. Go get her, lover boy," Lance sneered as he closed the pod.

  ~×?×?×?×?×?×?×?×?×~

  Ceres opened his eyes to a beautiful figure. By the shade of her long, dark strands, her blue eyes were able to glow. The moons were radiant behind her already angelic figure, magnifying the amazing sight more. Her light skin seemed to emit a strange light under the blessings of the night. Ceres was stunned for a minute.

  It was night now, she was asleep while sitting up. He was resting in her lap and he was healed remarkably. His bite wounds weren't aching and on the verge of healing completely.

  Ceres sat up, despite how peaceful she looked, they can't stay out here at night. "Wake up, doll."

  Her eyes burst open and became teary. She lunged at Ceres and embraced him, "You're alive!"

  "Why wouldn't I be?" Ceres smirked and accepted her embrace. Having a pleasant grin as he felt her warmth. "Your healing ability is amazing."

  "Yeah but... you're the only one who got hurt.." She sat before him and frowned. Tears were forming in her eyes. "You had to protect me."

  "It's not like you did nothing. Your {Forte} was hella useful," He patted her head and grinned. Ceres didn't want her to feel bad about herself. "Not to mention that punch you delivered. You were doing great."

  "But I wasn't the one who took damage," She was swelling up, her tears becoming uncontrollable.

  "Doll," Ceres held her face and wiped away her tears. He had an irritated expression, "I don't know why you doubt yourself like this but stop. You did great, you're amazing.

  There's no need for your self-hate."

  Dorothy smiled, feeling comfort in his words. "It's nice... being needed by someone for once."

  The atmosphere around them become quiet. They didn't break eye contact, it felt as if time froze. Ceres leaned in, he knew this is what he wanted. He held her chin and closed his eyes, anticipation haunting him as he waited for their lips to meet.

  Dorothy got flustered and broke away, "Maybe!... We should save that for another time."

  Ceres was agitated. He backed up Dorothy against the wall and blocked her from escaping. "What you running from? Doll?"

  She shied away but couldn't escape. Dorothy avoided eye contact, "It's just that... I don't have experience with these things."

  "You don't have to be anxious... I will give you all the experience you want. And more," He held her chin and their lips were seconds away from meeting. Ceres paused to see her reaction, she had her eyes closed and waited anxiously for him to seal the deed. He smirked, she was adorable but they had to reach back to the city.

  Monsters lurk at night.

  "What's up with the change of heart? Doll?" Ceres teased, leaving her stunned at the sudden change of action. He tied the Benaki Wolf to a long flexible twig.

  "I just.. realized something.." She muttered, coming to help him handle the luggage. Ceres threw the branch of hares over his shoulder and held up the wolf by a part of the twig. Dorothy held the other end and helped him lift it up.

  "Care to tell?" Ceres asked her. They made their way slowly towards the city, that looked beautiful at night.

  "If I were to lose my first kiss to someone... I wouldn't mind it being you.." Dorothy blushed as she admitted.

  "You're gonna make me smile, doll," Ceres grinned but he wasn't going to make any sweet words get to him. "Is it because I saved your life?"

  "No... I just feel... comfortable around you," Dorothy walked close to him and gave him a genuine smile. He felt his heart squeeze, this was going to be the death of him.

  They were unaware of another presence. Wouder, Terrence and Herminia were lurking in the bushes. They witnessed the whole thing happened and dumbfounded. Benaki Wolves are known as the weakest predators in the Cenel Forests but they are still able to kill new players easily. Yet, they took it down with less casualties than imagined.

  Not to mention, they caught so many hares. Wouder and his party traded IND to Coins so they could get great equipment quick yet they were still unable to catch a hare. Ceres was clever and strong, a superhuman athlete who's going to topple down this game.

  Dorothy's healing ability was amazing too. Ceres was at the doors of death and she healed him quick enough to save him. Her potential as a Priestess was incredible but she doubted herself for some reason.

  Wouder could tell those two were going to become powerful. So, he wanted to use them.

  "What's the plan? Cap'n?" Terrence asked Wouder from curiosity.

  Wouder smirked, "We're going to get those idiots in our party and use them for our benefit."

  ~×?×?×?×?×?×?×?×?×~

  They successfully dragged the corpses to the city with no difficulties. Feeling tired, they rushed to the Detrema Guild to trade in the animals for Coins and a guild membership card. They were officially apart of the guild and were hunters now.

  Dorothy nodded to Ceres, "Thank you so much for partying with me."

  "No problem but, do you want to stay in a party with me?" Ceres requested. He was confident she'd say yes so he already had a triumphant grin.

  "Yes, I'd like that," She returned the grin. "My Priestess class ends at 9 AM tomorrow, I'll see you tomorrow?"

  "Yeah, tomorrow," Ceres nodded and waved her away. He headed to the barracks to log out.

  Dorothy waited till he was gone so she could trade her Coins for money. She didn't want him to see her doing it, it would look bad. From trading 1 Silver Coin and 20 Coppers Coin, she got 30 IND sent to her bank account. That's rent paid for three months.

  And fortunately for her, her rent was due today. She went to the barracks and logged off, she saw Ceres's avatar resting and smiled. Logging off, she was awoken by the noise of banging on her ruined door.

  Dorothy tried to brush off the dirt on her and answered the door. Her landlord, a beer bellied and bald man in a tank-top and joggers stood before her.

  "I need my rent." He growled at her with a disgusted expression.

  Dorothy was proud of herself, she was finally on time. She ran over to a broken up dresser and grabbed her cracked, cheap smartphone. She used the app to transfer the fee with a bright smile, "I just paid for this months rent and the next.

  Her plan was to keep the remaining 10 IND for later.

  The landlord was pissed off, her smile summoned levels of bottled anger. "So what? You think you're better than me?'

  "No, I was jus-!" Dorothy tried to explain herself but the landlord took action. He dragged her hair and slammed her in the wall.

  "You poor piece of shit! You don't make nearly enough to compare yourself to me!" He punched her repeatedly in her face. A satisfied grin appeared but once he saw her cower and cry, he became more enraged.

  "Don't you dare make me look like the villain!" He revealed a knife and stabbed her several times in the arm. She screamed from the extreme pain and pleaded for him to stop. Kicking her in the gut was the gut.

  "Yes your rent is paid for this month and the next! But don't your poor, pathetic self think you're better than me!" He slammed the door behind him and exited the building.

  Dorothy bawled as the scarlet liquid drained rapidly from her right hard. She's right-handed.

  Dorothy felt like she wanted to die. But, she couldn't give up now, it would be wasting everything her father sacrificed for her. And, Ceres was expecting to see her tomorrow. She had a chance to become financial stable off this game and wasn't going to pass on it.

  Reaching into her drawer, she took out cheap ointment and old bandages. She couldn't afford a hospital visit so this was her only hope. Applying the ointment and putting on the bandages, she gathered her determination. Dorothy logged back into the game and started to train for tomorrow.

  ~×?×?×?×?×?×?×?×?×~

  Ceres was helping Mercury with her university homework. She's just 16 years old and in her last year but that doesn't mean she's a natural genius, sometimes she gets help. Ceres didn't have any problem with helping his siblings.

  "This is boring," Mercury dragged along the word and slouched on her chair.

  "Too bad, get your assignment done," Ceres instructed her. His mind was else where, recalling the events that transpired in the game.

  "Come on, tell me how the game went to them," She pouted and yanked his sleeve.

  "Mercy, you have two questions left," Ceres reprimanded her.

  "Exactly, so give me a little break," Mercury was stubborn. It was a trait she got from her elder brothers.

  "Fine. I managed to kill 12 House Hares and a Benaki Wolf today," Ceres proudly announced, awaiting praises from her.

  "Oh, those are hard to kill, especially Benaki Wolves at your level. Aren't you a champion," Mercury smiled sheepishly and patted his head. Ceres's ego was being built upon.

  "Lance said you thought you died in the game and was panicking."

  "You didn't plan on encountering the Benaki Wolf, did you?" Mercury hit the nail on the head. He knew Ceres was risk-taking but, he isn't dumb.

  "Well aren't you smart? How bout you use that brain on your homework?" Ceres scoffed, feeling irritated by how she easily read him.

  "How did it ambush you? What were you doing?" Mercury persisted on the topic.

  "I was bringing back some hares I killed and it bite me on in my shoulder," Ceres casually explained, hoping she won't reprimand or laugh at him.

  "How did you kill the hares?" Mercury questioned.

  "I slit their throat like a badass," Ceres grinned.

  "You should break their necks instead. The scent of blood attracts predators," She explained clearly. She was bored so she went on her phone.

  Ceres thought about her advice, she's right. Mercury is clever when it comes to the game. He snatched her phone out of her hands.

  "What are you doing!" Mercury desperately tried to get her fun back but Ceres was stronger.

  "I helped you with your homework so you'll help me learn more strategies for the game in exchange," He stated, not taking no for an answer.

  "Ok no problem, just give me back my phone," She reached desperately for the device but Ceres held on.

  "Finish those two questions," Ceres commanded.

  "But...!" Mercury was going to argue but Ceres glared at her. She pouted, "Fine!"