When I became a player, I lost everything—gear, stats, reputation—and apparently money too… if Vaelric ever had any to begin with. I figured maybe I could sweet-talk the NPC selling clothes. Who wouldn't feel sorry for the guy wrapped in a blanket like some failed cult leader?
I was about to try when a voice boomed behind me.
"Yooo, what's going on, man! The name is KADE BLADE!"
A tall, wiry elf strode up like he owned the street. His leather chestplate hung half-unbuckled in a way he clearly thought was stylish, and two daggers dangled from his belt. Without asking, he slung an arm over my shoulder like we'd just survived a raid together.
"What's with the blanket?" he grinned.
"…What?" I blinked.
"I am K-A-D-E-B-L-A-D-E," he spelled it out like it was divine scripture. "Ever seen me on the PvP leaderboards? Top 5% in the world, baby."
"Are—are you a player?" I asked.
He gave me a look. "Dude. I just told you I was in the top 25% for PvP. What do you think?"
My stomach tightened. Another player. Someone else from Earth. I wasn't alone.
Kadeblade kept talking like he wanted the entire market to hear. "So seriously—blanket? Kinda knew something was up when I saw your player icon."
So that was the icon I'd seen earlier. Still… weird I hadn't noticed his when I entered town.
"I don't have any money," I admitted. "Just trying to find some clothes. How long have you been here?"
"Brah, you're kinda weird," he said with a shrug. "Got here when everyone else did. Tell you what—I'll help a noob out. I'm feeling generous today."
I wasn't sure if he was smug or sincere, but I needed clothes.
The vendor handed over a leather tunic, roughspun pants, and battered boots. Kadeblade dropped two silver coins like he was tipping a bartender.
"Thanks," I said, heading off.
"Whoa, whoa, where you going?"
"To change. Preferably somewhere without an audience."
"No worries, man. I get it." He said that… and still followed me.
He stuck to me like a persistent puppy until I found a quiet alley. I tossed off the blanket.
"Holy shit, dude, you're ripped!" Kadeblade laughed. "Didn't even think you could make an avatar that shredded."
If only he knew. These muscles were mostly for show. I pulled the tunic over my head and laced the boots. Tight fit. Guess the vendor didn't expect a six-foot-six wall of man to shop here.
"How long have you been here, Kade? Can I call you Kade?" I asked.
"Big K," he corrected. "Been here five days."
Five days. I'd only been here two. That meant players arrived before me… which raised more questions than it answered. Why was I late? Why were we here at all? And how did we get out?
"Big K… do I look familiar to you?"
"Nah, man. I fly solo."
With his PvP focus, he probably avoided raids like mine. Crownfall was good at keeping PvE and PvP players in their own lanes.
"You don't think this is… weird? Being inside Crownfall Online?" I asked.
He shrugged. "Didn't have much in our world. Assuming you're from Earth, this was my life—sleep, eat, game. Even streamed for a while. Hit five viewers once."
"Well, I am from Earth," I said, "but this isn't my original character. I was an orc warrior."
"That's wild. I've been Kadeblade since launch."
He didn't recognize me as Vaelric. That was good.
"What's your name, then?" he asked.
I could have leaned into Vaelric's infamy. Used his face, his reputation. But I wasn't him. Not really.
"My name's Jayce."
"Lame!" he said instantly. "You got that crazy body and went with Jayce?"
I ignored him and started walking.
He hurried after me. "Okay, sorry! Jayce is cool. Where you headed?"
"Wild boar hunting."
"With what?"
"A stick. Maybe a rock."
"Hold up." He rummaged in his inventory and pulled a full sword from nowhere.
[Lyra]: Would you like me to inspect the weapon?
Yes, I thought.
[SYSTEM MESSAGE]
Iron Broadsword – Level 5
Rank: Bronze
Durability: 50
Not bad.
"Take it," Kadeblade said. No joke, no strings. Just… genuine.
Maybe the guy really did need a friend.
"This'll do," I said.
"Then let's go kill some boars!" he grinned.
The two of us walked to a spot that Kade said had an abundance of boars just outside the town. It felt good to walk around in normal clothes, even if I was still getting used to towering over everyone in Vaelric's body. Kadeblade felt like a dwarf compared to me.
"Alright, dude! Waaalaa," Kade said as he gestured dramatically toward a pack of boars.
I didn't really skip a beat. A regular starting mission like this should be pretty easy even at Level 5—and it was. I easily took out the boars.
[Lyra]: Yes?
How do I check my quests? I asked.
[Lyra]: You can simply ask me to show your missions tab. This will show your current objective and its rewards! Would you like an EXP bar on at all times to track your progress?
Sure! I thought.
[SYSTEM MESSAGE]
EXP Bar Added.
Current EXP: 250 / 1000 (25%)
[Lyra]: You now have a new mission. Would you like to see it?
Yes, I thought.
[Quest Updated]
Kill the Pack Leader
Objective: Kill the Alpha Boar
Reward: 500 EXP — 15 Silver
Well, the quest EXP was definitely better than the last one. If I had too much trouble, maybe Kade could help me out.
Lyra, I thought, do I have a wallet function?
[Lyra]: Once you completed your last quest, I made a function to hold your money. You can say "Wallet" to open.
Perfect. It was good to know Lyra was evolving with me. Who knows what she could do for me in the future?
Open my wallet, I said in my head.
A screen opened in front of me.
[Wallet]
Gold: 0
Silver: 2
Not too bad!