The sun rose above Red Oak City, dousing the majestic name-giving tree in a warm orange light, a sight comforting everyone's hearts. In Dream Avenue's gaming house, the players met for breakfast, groaning as they complained about their sore muscles. The atmosphere among Liam and his friends was relaxed. They talked and laughed until it was time to enter the game.
The friends didn't immediately go to work. They decided to wait for Bloody Edge to finish his class quest. During their leisure time they either trained some PvP, read some lore books, or furthered their professions.
Two hours later the party met in Greypine Town. Nine players stared at the teleporter until Bloody Edge finally appeared with a big grin on his face.
"Hmm, he looks surprisingly healthy.", remarked Cyclone.
"Yes, no signs of turning into stone, no red eyes, not even showing some noble demeanour. Is this really a vampire?"
"Did someone bring the garlic?"
"Yes. I did."
Bloody Edge's eyes twitched as his friends spoke loud enough for him to hear. As he came to a stop in front of them, Radiant Shield suddenly took a garlic out of his inventory and held it in front of his face, shouting:
"Begone! Demon!"
Even a few players in the vicinity noticed the conversation, sending the friends strange looks. Bloody Edge helplessly rolled his eyes.
"Very funny, friends. Could I implore you not to besmirch the dignity of a noble vampire like me? If such childish threats like garlic or the sun could hurt our race, we wouldn't be long for this world."
"Ok, but you do need drink blood, right?", asked Fortune with a chuckle.
"Others do… I don't…"
Noticing the thief's expression everyone couldn't help but laugh lightly. The reason why Bloody Edge didn't need to drink blood was only because he was a player. The vampires of Crunaboul couldn't go without the red liquid. However, there were multiple agreements in place confining them, for their own protection. In the history of the world, it has happened more than once that greedy vampires drew the ire of multiple races at once.
Anyways, the friends stopped teasing Bloody Edge as they could feel his excitement. They congratulated him for finally getting a race and class he was content with. The biggest hurdle for Bloody Edge now was to find equipment suitable for his class. The armour he currently wore harmonized with holy damage, which was now obsolete.
"Sorry for being selfish, guys. I will do my best to catch up.", apologized Bloody Edge again.
"No need to be like that. Didn't we promise to support you in your decision?"
"Exactly. Isn't it just some equipment?"
"It's really not that big of a deal."
Bloody Edge nodded silently but he kept the favour in mind. He was determined to become an undeniable top player to not let down his friends.
After briefly talking about their new classes, the friends finally put their attention on their original purpose. Cyclone eagerly took out the treasure map they received from Meyhran before and held it in front of everyone's eyes.
The map looked tattered and frail, as if it would turn to dust from a single breath. But no matter how Cyclone treated it, it held on. Surprisingly both sides of the map were almost blank. Only one corner of the map was occupied.
"Eh, who created this map? This look like the paintings of a child.", complained Cyclone.
"So sloppy."
"How are we supposed to interpret this stuff?"
The friends all looked annoyed. Silver Blade shook her head and took the map from Cyclone, speaking in a measured tone:
"Why are you so impatient, guys? Let's just take this step by step. Here, we can start with these intersecting lines."
"Well, it's not like we have a choice. Those lines, I think they look like a star.", guessed Quickstep. The others thought for a bit and agreed. Especially since there was an arrow pointing upwards above the star, which might symbolize the rising sun.
"But as we join the game it is already day. We never see the sun rising.", mentioned Bloody Edge, prompting Balm to shake her head:
"We still see it moving, though. Look, the sun is approaching the north now, coming from the east."
"So we have the sun rising in the east. And here are a few lines with little… roofs. Is this supposed to be the Eastern Mountains?"
"Yes. I think it makes sense. And, look, this wobbly circle below. Doesn't resemble a bell? A bell below the Eastern Mountain. What does that remind you off?", asked Balm with a smile.
"Deep Bell City!", exclaimed Silent Acacia.
"Wow, babe, didn't expect you to solve such an impossible puzzle!"
Quickstep was clearly being ironic as Silent Acacia had obviously listened with no more than half an ear. The hunter smiled wryly, drawing chuckles from everyone.
However, the solution was accepted by everyone. Without delaying any longer they stepped into the teleporter, travelling to Deep Bell City.
The atmosphere in this majestic dwarven city had changed a little. One could see metallic golems patrolling the street, intimidating everyone who planned to cause chaos in the city. At the lower levels of the city, one could see refugees gathering. Dwarves from outside, usually living in smaller communities, camps, and villages, came to the city for protection. In dwarven society big cities like Deep Bell City were like their own small kingdoms, governing the territory around them. They couldn't refuse the refugees in times of need.
Although the changed situation provided many new quests, the friends weren't here for that. They looked for a quiet corner to study the map again. Now there was another symbol on the map, indicating that the friends were on the right path.
"Heh, we're so smart!", basted Cyclone.
"Don't get too full of yourself. We have only just started. Let's figure out the path ahead."
"Hmm. A big rectangle and there are even a few words written here. 'Biggest rock'? What does it mean?"
"We are already in the Eastern Mountains, so I guess that triangle should hint at a mountain.", surmised Silver Blade.
"Does biggest rock mean biggest mountain? Does someone know which is the biggest mountain in Crunaboul?"
"The biggest mountain in Crunaboul is Dean, also called Path to Heaven, or home of the godspawn."
With this remark from Liam some of the friends showed thoughtful expressions. Silver Blade felt there was something wrong. She eyed Liam and saw the smile at the corner of his lips.
"Hey, are you trying to confuse us on purpose?"
"Who? Me? No, I would never do such a thing! Not a single word of mine was a lie!"
Everyone could tell from Liam's tone that he was saying one thing and meaning another. Cyclone snorted at him.
"It's fine if you don't want to help but at least don't lead us on a wrong trail."
"Ok, ok. I just thought I should answer Balm's question. I will give you a clue as compensation. If you want to find the biggest rock, you can ask around the city."
Immediately Cyclone's eyes lit up. She gave Liam a thumbs up.
"That's more like it!"
As they were stuck figuring it out by themselves, the friends decided to follow Liam's advice. They split into teams of two and asked the residents of the city for clues. It didn't take long until Cyclone and Balm received the solution form an elderly dwarf.
[Cyclone: Got it! Eyoal Kir is a mountain a short distance from Deep Bell City. Back when the city was founded it marked the edge of its territory, and it had also been the tallest mountain within the territory. Eyoal Kir comes from an old dwarven dialect and in the modern language it would roughly translate to 'Biggest Rock'!]
[Silver Blade: So that's why we couldn't figure it out! It's only the biggest mountain within the old territory, not within the entire Eastern Mountains.]
The friends felt enlightened. Cyclone and Balm also learned how to reach Eyoal Kir the fastest from the old dwarf. The friends gathered again and used the city's cable cars to descend a few levels. They reached a spot where a busy street led deeper into the mountain. After a short walk they came in front of a tall building.
Cyclone and Balm were quite curious. They led their friends through the tall gate and entered a spacious, busy hall. Tall pillars connected the smooth, white stone floor with the tall ceiling. Dwarves, mostly in the clothes of mine workers hurried left and right. And at the other end of the hall, one could see stairs leading up to special cable cars, long and big, which multiple waggons connected together.
"It's really cable trains!"
Cyclone exclaimed in amazement. She had heard from the elderly dwarf earlier. These cable trains were high-speed vehicles carrying both cargo and passengers, connecting Deep Bell City with various external mines and important locations. One line could even be used to travel to other dwarven cities. A marvel of magical engineering.