Vi slept surprisingly well considering it was on a cold cave floor with a stranger she had just met a day ago.

  She woke up with the light streaming into the cave and hitting her face, and stretched her back, trying to sober up.

  “Biiiiiig stretch~” said a cheerful girl from behind her. The white rabbit was packing up and looking at her with a lazy smile on her face. Her red eyes seemed to shine always, it pissed Vi off.

  “I'm not a cat, you know,” she said with a huff and rubbed her eyes. The older girl stared at her a little and started laughing.

  “What?!”

  “Nothing”

  “What are you laughing at,” said Vi defensively. She hated it when people laughed at her, back in her old life and the current one. She was constantly mocked for her mannerisms in middle school by her classmates. Then her guild saw her as a useless part of the team. Now this random furry(?) was bullying her. It wasn’t fair.

  “You just remind me of my younger sister is all” replied the white rabbit. “She is around your age, always grumpy, rushing to grow up, but looking more adorable because of it. So small and so full of rage-”

  “IM STILL GROWING-”

  “I know, I know!” she replied, raising her hands, her smile a sadder thing now. “I kinda miss her is all.”

  Vi didn’t know how to reply to that. She was never really good at consoling people. It felt like a cruel joke that she was a healer in this world. She was definitely more the… barbarian type. Or ranger. She'd make a GREAT fighter too-

  “Are you hungry bud?”

  Vi sniffed the cave sleepily. It smelled like eggs and honey and bread and world peace… She was suddenly way less irritable now that she saw the breakfast white rabbit was cooking. She stood up and approached the campfire, grabbing a slice of bread tentatively.

  “... You never told me your name, you know.”

  “Oh, right!”

  Vi took a bite from the bread and threw a deadpan stare at the older girl.

  This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

  “You can’t be serious.”

  White rabbit seemed to look even more cheerful, somehow. “No idea what you are talking about.~”

  “...”

  “...”

  Vi sighed as if speaking the words took years off of her lifespan. “I am sorry I said your bow is stupid,” sme murmured, looking away.

  “What was that?” asked the older girl, batting her white lashes.

  “I will NOT repeat that,” said Vi, biting the bread with more force.

  “Okay, okay, tough guy, apology accepted,” said the white rabbit, offering some honey to the younger girl from her pouch. “My username is Pancake, but you can call me Pan. That’s what the knights call me anyway.”

  “The knights?”

  “Oh yeah, I am a part of the Knights of Arbor!” said Pan, showing her uniform badge proudly. “Pretty cool, right? I am a forest ranger, so I basically look for suspicious domain openings. Not a part of the raiders, so I don’t get a lot of glory. But I always liked exploring, you know? Even if we are stuck here, I still think this game has beautiful graphics. I used to wish real life looked like this sometimes… I guess be careful what you wish for, huh? Hahahaha~”

  “Woah… that's the biggest guild in Midgard.”

  “It sure is! Berries?” said Pan, seeming not to care much about that fact. Vi couldn’t help but wonder how she kept such high spirits all the time. She was also way more humble than her old narcissistic no name guildmates. She couldn’t help but be impressed at least a little bit.

  “So, where do you go after this?”

  “Back to Headquarters, probably,” mused Pan. “What about you? Looking for a new guild?” she asked, taking a bite out of her bread slice.

  “I should”

  “Or you could try to join the knights? We always need more healers. You can level your skills pretty fast with all the experienced healers in the hospital wing, also. A lot of spell books and potion recipes… It makes my head spin even just while thinking about it.”

  “Really?” asked Vi wide-eyed.

  “Why not?” shrugged Pan. “But I have to warn you, the healers are very busy. They see insane injuries from all the raids. They can also wake you up in the middle of the night and call you for service. Healers have it rough, I respect you guys a lot…” said Pan thoughtfully, wiping her hands on her handkerchief and starting to pack.

  “I- I don’t mind the work! I WANT to work! I need to get better and stronger and- Are you sure they will accept me?” asked Vi still frozen in place. “I can heal pretty consistently, but the rate is pretty low, so it takes me a long time to recover the entire health bar… I promise I will work hard tho!”

  “That’s the spirit!” said Pan, crossing over the cave to get her bow and quiver. “I think you will fit right in! We have a lot of low-level folks there. As long as you work hard and frequently, I am sure you will become a pro healer in no time! Hey, maybe you can patch me up sometime, too! I always appreciate extra healing potions, friendship discount, and all.”