"I'll be back in a second!"
Serena waved her hands and left Dream Avenue's blacksmith workshop where Dark Hammer and Red Sparkle were hard at work. Dark Hammer was engraving runes on her newest creation while Red Sparkle was exploring a new magic scroll, tasks with which others could hardly help. Thus, Serena decided to use the time to place the food she recently made in the auction house.
Although she could also let people from the guild take care of the products, she enjoyed doing so on her own and watch as the dishes were quickly snatched up. By now she had achieved some renown as a chef. Although it was nowhere near that of her brother or his friends, it was enough for her food to sell out quickly as soon as she placed it in the auction house.
Serena left Dream Avenue's headquarters and appeared on the large plaza adjacent to the auction house. Ever since the event, Duabalis was quite bustling. Serena made her way through the crowd. But before she could enter the luxurious auction house, various exclamations caught her attention.
"Look, what's that?"
"Where? I don't see anything?"
"Up there, in the sky! A white light is coming towards the city."
"Is it some NPC? Perhaps someone triggered a quest?"
"There seems to be a figure in the light."
The players pointed their fingers at the sky, and more and more people stopped to look up. Serena was also among them. She squinted her eyes trying to see through the light, but it was impossible. However, as the light came closer to the ground it gradually dimmed, revealing the figure within.
"Wow, such a beautiful fox!"
"A flying fox?"
"A fox with white fur and two tails, I've seen a description of that before. That's a Twin-Tailed Celestial Fox, a celestial beast!"
"Bullsh*t. I've witnessed the grace of a celestial beast before. That small fox can't compare. And furthermore, would a celestial beast allow someone to ride them?"
"Damn, there is really someone riding on the fox? Which NPC is it?"
"That's no NPC… it's Bleary Mirage!"
Serena was naturally one of the first players to recognize her brother. She stared at Liam as he descended to the ground on a gorgeous white fox and her eyes twinkled with stars. Noticing that Liam was about to land in front of Dream Avenue's headquarters, Serena quickly returned. When she managed to get out of the crowd, Liam was already standing on the ground next to Drasky, watched by a large number of players who couldn't enter Dream Avenue's plot of land.
"Liam! What… who is this?"
"This is Drasky, my new flying mount.", answered Liam with a smile.
"So beautiful! Can I pet him?"
"Sure."
A sunny smile formed on Serena's lips as she gently reached out with her hand. Drasky looked at her curiously but didn't dodge. Serena's hand touched his shoulder, and she was amazed by the comfortable, soft fur. A few of Dream Avenue's members came out of the guild house, watching the flying mount curiously. But no one stepped forward to pet the fox. They were grown-ups after all. They couldn't embarrass themselves in front of the crowd.
"Me too!"
"Wait for me!"
At that moment two shouts came. Dark Hammer and Red Sparkle rushed towards Serena, their eyes glued to the celestial fox.
Dark Hammer was already about to stretch out her hand, but Red Sparkle held her back, politely asking Liam for permission. Only once he agreed did the two girls start petting Drasky.
However, after a few seconds the fox seemingly had enough of being petted as his playful nature came through. Under everyone's amazed gazes he suddenly shrank his body to the size of a cat and began hopping around the yard. He moved left and right, before suddenly jumping on Serena's shoulder, drawing joyful giggles from the young girl. Next, he rushed around the three young girls, always dodging just before they could touch him.
Liam watched the scene with a happy smile. But suddenly his expression faltered as Drasky darted out of the yard and into the crowd of players, jumping around on top of their heads. If someone tried to catch him, he would simply fly above them.
"Drasky! Come back! Stop!"
Fortunately, the flying mount was still obedient to Liam. It stopped fooling around and returned to him, snuggling against his leg. Liam let out a sigh and looked at the crowd of players apologetically. He said a few words before escaping the embarrassing scene into the guild hall.
Gradually everyone went back to what they were doing. As Liam waited for the crowd outside to disperse, a message arrived.
[Cyclone: Your fox is so cuuutee!]
[Bleary Mirage: How do you know?]
[Cyclone: How wouldn't I know? It's all over the global chat and the forums. There are so many pictures.]
[Bleary Mirage: Is that so…]
[Silent Acacia: Haha, Mirage, this time you embarrassed yourself.]
[Balm: I don't think he embarrassed himself. I see so many comments gushing over how they got to touch that little fox.]
[Silver Blade: But to be honest, he's really so cute! Even I want to pet him.]
[Bloody Edge: I wonder if my flying mount will be that gorgeous…]
[Watchful Eye: No chance.]
[Bloody Edge: Damn, how did I deserve this?]
[Cyclone: Hahaha, I didn't know Watchful Eye could be that funny. The fact that you don't say much all day makes it even better.]
[Bleary Mirage: Guys, why do you all have the leisure to discuss my fox? Are you done with your class quests?]
[Cyclone: Of course! Behold the might of I, the terrifying Missionary of Thunder and Lightning!]
[Silver Blade: I'm done as well.]
[Silent Acacia: Same.]
The friends answered one by one. Everyone except for Bloody Edge was done with their class change. Now they were all eagerly testing their new skills. Since there was only about an hour left until the game ended for the day, the friends decided not to start anything new. Liam thought about it for a bit and decided to go to the smithy, advancing his profession a little. At his current pace he was already falling behind others.
As Liam worked in the smithy, he watched Serena interacting with her friends and a warmth spread in his heart.
An hour quickly passed. Shortly before everyone was about to log off, a small commotion spread in the global chat, suppressing the topic of Liam's flying mount.
[Cyclone: Hey, did you see? There was a big change in the ranking list.]
[Fortune: Of course. Ten new people suddenly appeared.]
[Balm: Woah, places 91-100 all got replaced. How did they do it?]
[Silver Blade: Must've killed a world boss or something.]
[Radiant Shield: SpireX, Occulus, Henragon… I never heard of their names.]
[Cyclone: Strange. What guild do they belong to?]
The friends discussed a bit but ultimately this occurrence only caused a small ripple. Not much later the game turned offline, and everyone returned to the real world. Back in the guild house Liam was again the centre of attention as the guild members all asked about flying mounts. He didn't mind, giving everyone advice on how to behave in mounted combat.
During the conversation Liam could feel everyone's eagerness. But the most excited was Felix. After witnessing the commotion caused by Liam today the young man couldn't wait until he finally got his hands on his own flying mount. He also wanted to descend on a city under the admiring gazes of all the players. Just the thought made him giddy.
Silva noticed her brother's expression and could imagine what he was thinking. She shook her head with a chuckle.
Afterwards everyone went through their usual routine. Today Master Baker was present to torture everyone in the gym. The old martial artist didn't hold back, teaching the players actual combat. Although he first needed to get used to the players' ability to use skills. However, the skills were not that much different from what starlight masters could do, so Master Baker took this as reference.
After exhausting themselves in the gym, everyone met in the dining area. Liam sat together with his friends talking about their plans for the next few days.
"Honestly, I want one or two weeks without too much pressure before we focus on the preparation for the tournament.", said Cynthia as she stuffed her mouth with food.
"I agree. We can just level casually."
"I'm so close to level 60. I need to level up tomorrow. I also want to fly!", said Adrian, causing everyone's eyes to brighten up. His friends all agreed eagerly. Only Cynthia surprisingly looked somewhat hesitant, asking:
"Power levelling was not what I had in mind."
"Well…", answered Silva. "What did you think of?"
"Do you remember the treasure map we got from Old Man Meyhran? Perhaps it is time to search for some treasure? I'm sure we will level up on the way."
"Wasn't the map recommended for level 63 or so?", questioned Mel.
"Yes, but aren't we strong enough? I'm confident a level 63 map is not difficult for us. What do you think, Liam?"
"Sure."
Seeing that Liam only shrugged his shoulders, Cynthia grew more confident. She implored her friends some more until everyone eventually agreed. Her argument that they would naturally reach level 60 on the way was accepted by everyone.