He bit his lip and feverishly tapped his foot while he looked at the list of items he was about to purchase.

  Would you like to purchase John’s Guide to Inscriptions for Idiots, Morons, and You for 10,000 Merit?

  …

  Would you like to purchase Infantry Warhammer for 6,000 Merit?

  …

  Would you like to purchase Minor Healing Potion for 500 Merit?

  He finally had money again. Was he really going to trash it all at once? It wasn’t like he was wasting it on stuff he didn’t need, and merit didn’t mean anything to a dead man.

  Harvey had always had a strange relationship with money. He didn’t care about flashy cars or all the designer nonsense Cleo enjoyed. The only thing he really splurged on was tech. As long as he had the latest console and a PC strong enough to run his video games on mediocre graphics settings, he was happy.

  What he really craved was certainty. A lot had changed, but that was still the same. Having merit meant you could buy what you needed to survive... when you needed it.

  Still, the things he was about to buy were important, so he gave his assent. He nearly toppled over as the weightless hammer held by his reflection appeared in the real world. It was heavy, and he barely stopped himself from taking out his own shin.

  Where his flamestrike tattoo depicted what could be mistaken for an ornate blacksmith’s hammer, double-faced so he could strike the anvil with each side, the infantry warhammer he’d purchased had a single face on one end with a sharp metal pick on the other. A sturdy wooden handle, similar to his wand, slotted into a tube at the bottom of the head, and leather strips formed a grip like a tennis racquet that covered the bottom third. There were no engravings or embellishments to be seen. It was as infantry as weapons got.

  With a thought, the hammer disappeared into his slipsack, and the book appeared in his hand. On the cover, John stood with a paintbrush in one hand and a bowl in the other, surrounded on all sides by different glowing runes in patterns that were impossible to follow. He was tempted to see what nonsense John had included in his opening paragraph, wondering if it was anything like his own guidebook, but restrained himself in case opening the book would mess with its nature as a single-use item.

  Finally, he purchased two more health potions, bringing his 17,000 merit safety net all the way down to a measly 14.

  Are you kidding me? I can’t even afford lunch. He swore.

  Still, having a health potion had saved him more times than he’d like to admit, and he wouldn’t go anywhere without one. Walking into the pale light, he saw Hannah brushing Buttercup with a pink plastic hairbrush she’d found in the earth tab.

  “You buy the book?” She asked.

  “Yep, and a new hammer.” He replied.

  “I can’t believe you got a skill for a weapon you didn’t even have.” She said.

  “I could still use it without one.” He corrected. “It only would have worked for my punches and kicks, though, and I’d prefer not to get that up close and personal with most of the things we’ve fought. I’ll save that for Master Lee Seung-ho.”

  The mid-40s taekwondo instructor had taken up teaching basic techniques, and his class was gaining popularity. People were a lot more interested in martial arts when they knew they’d need it on a daily basis.

  “He’s awesome. I’d love to take his class if I weren’t gone all the time.” Hannah sighed. “Should we go find Julian?”

  “I need to give Elena the book first. She’s probably in the smithy, and maybe she knows where Julian’s been lately.” Harvey suggested.

  Walking through the creaky wooden door of his workshop felt like coming home after a long vacation. Leaving to see the world was always fun, but there was nothing like jumping back in your own bed. He may have taken his bed with him, it being a sleeping bag on the floor, but the sentiment remained.

  “Welcome home, you two!” Julian called out.

  Elena gave a small wave from her perch on a chair at one of the tall worktables. She was idly adding to the picture of her brother, and he could see new scenes added to the original. Julian stood at his own worktable, a pool of sawdust piled around his feet. The scent of wood shavings almost managed to overpower the stench of soot and sweat he’d grown accustomed to. Almost.

  Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

  “Great to be back!” Harvey smiled.

  “Elena, does Gary have you babysitting this meathead, too? You must have some rotten luck to be stuck with these guys all the time.” Hannah complained.

  “It’s not so bad,” she sighed, “babysitting is the only job I’ve ever had.”

  “You brave soldier. Well, Harvey almost died during his bath, but he should be all ready for his nap whenever you decide to put him down. I told him he can play with his rocks for a little while, but feel free to take them away if he starts getting fussy.” Hannah mocked.

  “Oh my gosh…” Harvey sighed.

  “You almost died? What happened?” Julian asked.

  “We were swimming in the river when this grass-looking eel thing trapped me underwater. A giant rainbow trout tried to eat us, but Hannah dove in and got me out.” Harvey explained. “We brought it back if you guys want fish for dinner.”

  The massive fish plopped to the floor with a wet smack, its empty eyes looking up at Julian.

  “Eww, gross! Don’t put it on the floor if you’re going to eat it later!” Hannah shrieked.

  “What? It’s seasoning, like cooking steak on a charcoal grill!” Harvey laughed, picking up the fish and charging toward her. She shrieked and ran away, dodging around tables and half-built furniture. When she got within arm's reach of Julian, he snatched her up, holding her arms down as Harvey wagged the fish in her face.

  “Wow, you guys really are children!” Elena laughed.

  “Alright, alright. That’s enough.” Julian chuckled.

  “You guys are the worst!” She yelled, straightening her clothes. “I’m almost scared to introduce you to Buttercup. You’ll try to corrupt him.”

  “Buttercup?” Julian asked, just as the back door exploded open. They all shrieked in surprise, a satisfied grin on Hannah’s face, until a sword appeared in Julian’s hand.

  “WAIT!” Harvey and Hannah screamed as fear blanketed the young buck.

  “He’s my bonded beast!” Hannah explained. “If you hurt Buttercup Julian, I swear I’ll shoot an arrow up your butthole.”

  “Why did he charge in like that!” Julian yelled, dropping his sword.

  “Because I told him to! I thought it would be funny!” She screamed back.

  “Golly, woman! You thought having a wild animal charge in here when we’re surrounded by animals that want to kill us would be funny! Have you lost your mind!” Julian exclaimed, panic turning to a hearty laugh as he approached the scared buck. “Hey, there, Buttercup. I’m Julian, nice to meet you.”

  They spent an hour or so catching up. Harvey and Hannah shared their adventure and told the others about the strange variant they’d met.

  “It had some kind of shadow magic, but I was able to fight back somehow. I think it was my aura.” Harvey explained.

  “That’s what it was?” Hannah asked. “It all happened so fast. One minute, the shadows are choking you out, and then you jump from the tree like it was the top rope of a wrestling ring.”

  “It’s the only answer I can think of. Fighting back was easy at first, but then my stain started burning. The more I doubted myself, the worse it got, but the second I leapt from the tree, it snapped back into place.” Harvey shared.

  “Gotta be willpower related then.” Julian guessed. “At least we know these variants are out there now, and we might have a decent way to fight back.”

  Elena sat quietly as the trio discussed, only adding her two cents when someone asked her directly.

  “Well, it sounds like the trip was a success.” Julian smiled.

  “It was! Speaking of, I was able to buy your guidebook, Elena.” Harvey said, the textbook appearing from thin air.

  “Already? Don’t you have your own stuff you need to buy?” She asked, hesitating as he tried to hand it to her.

  “I got what I need. Besides, I already bought it, and I doubt the magic mirror has a good return policy.” He smiled. “Just take it! Veils End needs a good inscriptionist.”

  “Th-thanks, Harvey.” She stammered, her cheeks going flush as she inspected the cover.

  “Don’t mention it!” He replied. “How have things been here?”

  “Pretty good. Nothing super exciting. Progress is steady on the wall, and I’ve gotten a few builder levels making bunk beds for the dorms. They’re pretty simple, just a place to put a sleeping bag, really, but it's making the living arrangements a little more bearable.” Julian explained.

  “What level are you now?” Hannah asked.

  “My profession’s up to level 4, and my class is still level 11.” He replied.

  “HA!” She shouted, pointing a finger at him. “I’m higher level than you now.”

  “Hold on a minute, you do not get to brag about this when happy thoughts and lunchtime give you profession levels,” Harvey exclaimed.

  “You wanted to hurt Buttercup, and I said no!” Hannah yelled.

  “I made one joke about a bottomless salad bar, and The System gives you a level! Try and convince me that isn’t ridiculous when Julian and I have to slave away building things that are actually useful.” Harvey complained.

  Elena watched with a grin as the trio returned to their shouting match. It baffled her how calm they seemed to be in a place like this. They were surrounded on all sides by monsters and madness, but still found time to joke around like siblings on vacation.

  She’d love to feel the same way, but she couldn’t. Maybe if she were strong like them, but if nearly drowning while a giant fish monster watched was the price, she wasn’t willing to pay it.