A Complex System
"Could you tell us how many professions there are, so we can decide better?" Gilbert asked, practical tone in his voice.
Lua nodded slowly and, as if recalling a mental list that was hard to keep in order, she began enumerating calmly:
"There are thirty professions in total, organized into five main branches: Gathering, Crafting, Economy, Construction and Life, and Specialties."
She paused briefly, took a breath, then continued:
"In Gathering, you have: Herbalist, Miner, Lumberjack, Fisherman, Insect Hunter, and Spirit Collector. All of these focus on obtaining basic and special materials from the environment.
In Crafting: Blacksmith, Carpenter, Tailor, Alchemist, Cook, Rune Engraver, Talisman Maker, and Enchanter. These professions transform materials into objects, weapons, tools, or magical artifacts.
In the Economy branch: Merchant, Farmer, Rancher, Beekeeper, Distiller, and Negotiator. These focus more on resource management, mass production, and long-term profit.
Then there is Construction and Life, which includes: Architect or Builder, Mana Engineer, Mana Gardener, Stylist, and Decorator. These professions modify environments, build structures, or improve social and quality-of-life aspects.
Finally, there are the Specialties " the rarest and hardest to unlock: Spiritual Gastronomer, Beast Tamer, Repairer, Golem Creator or Puppeteer, and Seal Cryptologist."
Lua finished speaking as if she had just recited an entire encyclopedia from memory. Internally, she sighed. I wish SIA could do this for me, she thought, feeling a little dizzy from so much information. The truth was, she herself knew barely five of those professions… and already that felt like a lot.
"Thirty?" Loli repeated, eyes wide, surprised by the scope of the system.
Lua nodded again, softer this time.
"Though personally, I can only help you get four of them. Those are the ones I master: Rune Engraver, Enchanter, Talisman Maker… and Tailor, though that last one I only have because I make my own clothes." She glanced down at her outfit, made of roughly stitched but functional tanned pelts.
"Could you explain the difference between the first three?" Gilbert asked, intrigued.
Lua looked at him attentively and replied without hesitation:
"A Rune Engraver inscribes magical runes onto objects, granting them special properties. For example, the bags you use have an inscription that alters their internal space.
An Enchanter imbues objects with direct magical effects. If you take a stone and imbue it with fire magic, it might ignite on impact when thrown at an enemy.
And a Talisman Maker creates artifacts that store spells. These can be used in combat or specific situations, releasing their power when activated."
"And do the talismans have to be activated manually, or can they work remotely?" Gilbert asked, excitement sparking in his voice.
Lua smiled faintly. "It depends on the type of talisman. Some require direct contact, others activate when they detect presence… and some explode if you step on them. Actually, I know a recipe for one like that. If you want, I can write it down. It's pretty simple."
Gilbert exchanged a quick glance with his sister. Without a word, she immediately understood and handed him the blank Recipe scroll she had obtained.
"Please, I'm interested in that recipe," he said, giving the parchment to Lua.
"Of course," she replied calmly, and with a delicate gesture of her finger in the air, symbols, details, and complex rune strokes began to appear in the space above the scroll. When she finished, the name changed to:
Minor Explosive Talisman (Mine) Recipe
Explosive Damage: 20
Gilbert took the paper with a satisfied smile and activated it. As had happened with Loli, the scroll glowed and disappeared, absorbed into his body. A new interface unfolded before him: the Talisman Maker's recipe book.
"Thank you very much," he said sincerely.
Lua simply nodded and retreated into the ruined house, leaving them to process all the information.
Bert, always more observant, immediately opened his new recipe book. Unlike Loli, he carefully examined every section of the interface. There was not only a list of recipes but also a compendium of required tools and a quick guide on how to use them.
"How did she not see this…?" he thought with a grimace as he saw the section explaining the basic materials. Among the initial tools required were:
Mana Brush
Blood Bowl
Base writing material (like parchment, skin, or leather)
The more refined the base material, the greater the power of the resulting talisman. However, even basic materials could amplify high-level objects if the design was good enough.
"This profession is deeper than it looks…" he muttered as he examined plans to craft his first brush. He only needed a branch and a Mana Fragment.
"…Loli, pass me a Mana Stone," he requested without looking up.
"Here," she answered immediately, tossing him one from her inventory.
Bert broke the stone against a rock to fragment it into ten pieces and took one. He used a branch as a handle and fashioned it like a rudimentary pen, with the blue crystal glowing at the tip.
Then, he took a small wooden bowl they used for eating, washed it, and prepared it as a container for the blood.
They still had leather from the monkeys they hunted, so he would use it as a base for his talismans.
"Let's keep hunting until we get some blood. I want to test these talismans. They could give us an advantage," he said firmly, receiving nods from his companions.
With a piece of rabbit meat in hand and new motivation in their hearts, they left the ruined village… just in time to see one of Bert's traps activate.
A rabbit squealed, caught by one paw.
"Perfect! We have our victim," Loli shouted excitedly.
The three of them ran like wild animals with stone axes in hand. This time, no one got hurt.
"It only dropped meat this time," Loli reported after checking the loot.
"I'll set more traps. Hopefully, some will drop leather or blood too. We need all we can get," Bert said, already setting up more mechanisms.
For hours, amid jokes and laughter, the three dedicated themselves to hunting. The sun began to set when they realized the day had flown by.
Total loot of the day:
Loli: +3 levels
Sig and Bert: +2 levels each
20 low-grade rabbit pelts
25 kg of rabbit meat
7 mana fragments
1 mana stone
8 low-grade horned rabbit horns
1 rabbit stew recipe
3 low-grade demon blood vials
Exhausted but with their bags full and hearts happy, the three walked away laughing into the sunset.
Unknowingly, they were beginning to love this world.
As soon as they arrived, they saw Lua waiting outside with a serious expression that conveyed urgency. It seemed she had something important to tell them.
"I'm glad you got back on time," Lua began, her voice firm but concerned. "When night falls, the beasts in the forest become much more violent and aggressive. Also, their strength increases considerably. Going out at this hour is practically a death sentence."
Bert nodded seriously. "Thanks for the warning, Lua. We'll be careful."
Despite the warning, Loli enthusiastically took out her device and showed Lua the new recipe she had obtained. "I got a recipe for Rabbit Stew, but I need some vegetables. Do you know where we could find them?"
Lua's eyes sparkled with interest for a moment before she replied, "What kind of vegetables do you need?"
Loli reviewed the list as she looked at her interface: "Potatoes, carrots, and onions. With those, I can make the basic version of the stew, but if there are more vegetables available, I could improve the recipe and make it more nutritious and powerful."
Lua nodded and without delay added, "Perfect, I'll be back soon. I know where to get them."
Before Lua walked briskly toward the village exit, Loli hesitated for a moment: "Didn't you say it's dangerous to go out after dark?"
Bert looked at the sun, already low on the horizon. "I trust Lua knows the area well and will return quickly."
Curious, Sig broke the silence: "How long have we been playing already?"
Bert approached the improvised sundial in the middle of the village and observed the shadow. "We entered when the clock showed 2, and it only works until 6. So it must be almost 8. We've been inside the game for about five or six hours."
"Then those high-quality mana vials really multiply time," Sig said excitedly.
"Exactly. The medium-quality vial lasted us about three hours and twenty minutes, and now we have double that or maybe more. Following the pattern, the high-quality vial could give us up to 16 hours of gameplay," Bert explained, his smile reflecting excitement and curiosity.
"In the real world, a high-quality vial costs the equivalent of 15 medium-quality ones, and a medium-quality vial is worth 7 low-quality ones," added Sig as he calculated mentally.
The exchange rates were based on supply, demand, and needs. High-quality vials are scarce and reserved almost exclusively for paying the elves, who control production. Each person must pay at least one high-quality vial per month, while medium and low-quality vials are used for daily consumption and food.
Bert reflected, "In the game, 16 hours might seem little, but considering that time inside the game passes twice as fast as in the real world, that would be 32 effective hours of gameplay. And so far, we've only hunted low-level beasts. That's quite a lot of time."
Turning seriously to Sig, Bert said, "We need to improve our strategy for hunting and resource gathering. We also have to get entries quickly to bring more helpers."
Sig nodded, "I have more workers who could join."
Bert added with some concern, "Although I'd like grandpa to join as well. I know he's on the verge of collapse with all this, but if a high-quality vial can give him that much time here, I wouldn't mind getting him one, even if he can't help us directly. I'd just have to work harder to get mana fragments."
"All right, I'll help," said Sig determinedly. "Maybe grandpa will cheer up being here, and maybe he can see the clear sky again…" His voice faded as he looked up.
Loli and Bert followed his gaze, curious, until they were frozen in amazement.
In the sky, next to one of Drunai's two moons, a gigantic beast occupied nearly half the firmament. Its body twisted among the stars, and twice it furiously rammed an invisible shield glowing golden before slowly retreating.
"This game is too realistic… too realistic," Sig repeated, trembling, still unable to process what they had just seen.
Bert and Loli also couldn't hide their surprise.
Suddenly, a voice behind them startled them.
"What's wrong?" It was Lua, who had been watching them attentively.
"In the sky..." Loli barely whispered, pointing upwards.
Lua looked up just in time to see the giant figure moving away, like a cosmic serpent weaving among the stars.
"Ah, it's that time of the month again," Lua said with a mixture of respect and understanding. "Looks like you're lucky. When that creature appears, the beasts hide in their nests for several hours. That gives us a chance to explore the forest without danger."
"By the way, I brought the vegetables you asked for, but better leave that for later. Come on, let's not waste time," Lua added with a slight smile.
"Wait… you're not going to tell us what that was?" Bert asked, frowning.
"That," Lua answered calmly, "is the World Devourer. Don't worry, it can't cross the protective shield of our world. It appears once every 20 or 30 days approximately. Its arrival scares the beasts and gives us the opportunity to enter their territories to collect plants or other valuable items."
Lua looked at the three seriously. "Are you coming or not? I could use a hand bringing things. I can only carry one bag per person, and once it's full, I won't be able to carry more."
Loli quickly perked up. "Of course."
"Sounds interesting," added Sig.
"It's a good way to explore without facing the beasts, and that way we can plan better strategies by knowing the terrain," Bert concluded.
"And what exactly are we going to look for?" Loli asked.
"You said you needed vegetables, right? Well, we'll look for all kinds to plant here in the village. Let's go, no more wasting time!" Lua was visibly excited. Although she wasn't much of a fan of vegetables, she knew a good cook like Loli could make the most of them.
After tasting the roasted rabbit, Loli was eager to cook the stew.
The four ventured into the forest together, already immersed in the twilight the night was beginning to bring.