Chapter 17: “The Sellsword Guild”
The city was walled, so guards were stationed at the gates. They were there to keep criminals out, of course, but the wall’s primary purpose was to defend against monsters, so entrance procedures weren’t very strict. For Wayne, or really for any players who didn’t have any form of identification, they could enter as long as they didn’t have any contraband in their possession. Players all had inventories, though, so they could get past that sole restriction with ease anyway.
After asking the guards where to find a good inn, he began to make his way to that part of town. Now that he was inside the city, there shouldn’t be any danger to his person, but he wanted to promptly update his respawn point. You generally respawned at the last place you logged in, so he was planning to log out quick at the inn.
The inn recommended by the guard was pretty rundown, but unlike NPCs, he wouldn’t actually be sleeping there, and his belongings were stored in his inventory so they couldn’t be stolen. Inns were also designated as safe zones, where thievery and other kinds of hostile actions couldn’t be initiated. Finally, he didn’t want to waste any money on his first inn anyway.
After checking in, he found his room furnished with a wooden bed, straw mattress, threadbare blankets, and nothing else; the very picture of a cheap hotel room. From the perspective of the guard, Wayne was wearing a cheap shirt and pants, and he had a dull short sword; he was the perfect example of a newly minted warrior. Since the guard assumed that he probably didn’t have any money, it was with all the best intentions that he recommended this inn. And that assumption wasn’t wrong at all. Since Wayne did want to save money if at all possible, he really was thankful.
Log out for a second, then immediately log back in. He had three days off starting tomorrow, so there was no need to worry about real life. This next-gen VR apparatus was completely wireless, so he wouldn’t even have to disconnect to eat or use the bathroom. That said, after spending three whole days playing, he’d have to remember to do some light stretching and exercise before going in to work.
As soon as he logged back in, Wayne immediately went to the sellsword guild to look for a quest. After getting directions from the innkeeper, he went down the main street to get there. He might be in the city, but he could still get into trouble if he ended up in the alleys or other less-frequented areas. In order to emerge unscathed from those kinds of encounters, he’d need to be a bit stronger first.
Knowing the way there, he wasn’t in danger of getting lost. This being a city built at the border inside a wall, it required rather detailed blueprints, and its construction followed them to the letter. If he did get lost, he could just find his way back to the main street to regain his bearings.
Since it was the middle of the day, the sellsword guild didn’t have many sellswords at the moment. For normal businesses with daytime hours, most people would be working now. He headed to the counter to let them know he’d be working out of this town for the foreseeable future. There wasn’t any kind of registration. Sellswords were mostly outlaws, in the first place. They were prone to dying or deserting at the drop of a hat, so there was little value in overseeing their activities. Furthermore, rewards were all or nothing. If you didn’t return successful, even if you worked yourself to death in the process, you wouldn’t get paid. Ignoring the fact that players couldn’t die.
Next, Wayne asked about selling the wild rabbits he had killed on the road. The bodies could be sold as they were as materials, minus the fees for processing and commission. Normally, dead bodies would slowly degrade, so carrying them back like that would mean their price would drop like a rock. However, Wayne had stored them in his inventory, so they were still fresh. He pulled out five wild rabbit corpses and placed them on the counter.