Jade lay on his straw bed, the glowing Bannerlord UI hovering in front of him.
He squinted at the screen. "Okay, if this is like those novels," he muttered, "it should… turn off or something." He waved his hand through the UI, half-expecting it to flicker like a glitchy hologram. Nothing. He tried again, more forcefully, like he was shooing a fly. Still nothing. "Come on, disappear," he said, his voice a mix of frustration and exhaustion. He focused hard, willing it to vanish, picturing it blinking out like a computer monitor.
To his shock, it worked. The screen winked out with a faint pop, leaving him staring at the dark ceiling. "No way," he breathed, sitting up. His heart skipped a beat. "Okay, come back." He focused again, picturing the UI reappearing. Sure enough, it flickered into view, the same Jade, Level 1 Peasant staring back at him, the quest log still blinking with Seek the Village Elder. He toggled it off and on a few more times, grinning despite himself. "Okay, that's kinda cool."
But cool didn't mean comforting. He flopped back onto the bed, the straw crunching, and tried to sleep. His mind wouldn't stop racing, bandits, Angry Dad, Mat's grandma, and now a floating game interface. Every creak of the house made him jump, expecting another villager to barge in or a bandit to crash through the window. Sleep came in fits and starts, maybe an hour total, leaving him bleary-eyed when the first light of dawn crept through the shutters.
He dragged himself out of bed, his body still aching. The rusty dagger was still on his belt, and he checked it instinctively, half-expecting it to glow with some game-like enchantment. Just plain metal, chipped and dull. He sighed, splashed water on his face from a clay basin, and headed out to meet the others at the village square.
The air was crisp, the village stirring with early risers, farmers hauling buckets, a blacksmith's hammer already clanging. Jade reached the square, where the well stood like a landmark from a game map. Numerius was there, leaning against it, looking like he'd slept in a ditch. His tunic was rumpled, and his hair stuck out like a bird's nest. Nathaniel paced nearby, muttering to himself, while Yuzon sat on a crate, staring at the ground like it held the secrets of the universe. Mataranas lumbered up last, his eyes bloodshot.
"You guys look like I feel," Jade said, rubbing his neck. "Rough night?"
"Rough?" Nathaniel's voice was a whine. "My mom spent two hours lecturing me about not marrying some village girl named Hilda! Hilda! I don't even know her! And my bed was a pile of straw that smelled like goat."
Numerius snorted, scratching his chin. "My family was a house full of cousins who wouldn't shut up. Kept trying to arm-wrestle me. I won, obviously, but yeah, no sleep."
Yuzon looked up, his face pale. "My dad thinks I'm a scribe. He left me a stack of parchment to copy. I didn't even know where to start."
Mataranas shrugged. "Grandma made me eat three bowls of soup. Good soup, though." He paused, then added, "She snores. Loud."
Jade couldn't help a small laugh, though it felt forced. "Okay, so we've all got families here. That's… something." He hesitated, glancing around to make sure no villagers were eavesdropping. The square was quiet, just a few chickens clucking nearby. "Something else happened last night. You guys might think I'm crazy, but… I saw a UI. Like, the Bannerlord interface. Stats, skills, quests, the whole deal. It floated in front of me, like in those isekai novels."
The group stared, silent for a beat. Then Nathaniel's eyes widened. "Wait, you too? I thought I was losing it! Mine popped up when I was trying to sleep. Nathaniel, Level 1 Peasant, with points in Trade and Stealth. Stealth! From tripping that bandit, I guess."
Numerius grinned, looking almost excited. "Same here! Numerius, Level 1 Peasant, heavy on Two-Handed Weapons. Gotta be from swinging that pitchfork like a champ. It even had a quest log, Survive the Village Raid, done, and now Seek the Village Elder."
Yuzon nodded, his expression grim. "Mine showed up too. Yuzon, Level 1 Peasant, points in Bow and Tactics. The interface is mental-triggered, like Jade said. Think it off, think it on.…."
Mataranas shifted, looking uneasy. "Got mine too. Mataranas, Level 1 Peasant, Shield and Athletics. Grandma kept waking me up, so I barely saw it. But it's there."
Jade's jaw tightened. "Okay, so we all have it. We're in Bannerlord, with game mechanics. Stats, quests, everything." He summoned his UI, the blue screen flickering into view. The others did the same, their screens popping up like personal holograms, each showing their names and stats. It was surreal, like they'd all been handed the same cheat code to a nightmare.
Nathaniel waved his hand through his screen, watching it flicker. "This is nuts. I mean, cool, but nuts. If we've got UIs, does that mean we can level up? Get better gear? Maybe… win the game and go home?"
"Maybe," Yuzon said, his voice cautious. "But games don't hurt like this. That bandit fight? My hands are still shaking. If we die here…" He trailed off, not needing to finish.
Numerius clapped his hands, startling a nearby chicken. "Then we don't die. We level up, get swole, and conquer Calradia. Easy."
"Easy?" Nathaniel snapped. "You nearly dropped your pitchfork on your foot yesterday!"
"Details," Numerius said, waving it off. "Point is, we've got a quest. Seek the Village Elder. Let's do it, figure out what's next."
Jade nodded, his brain kicking in despite the fog of exhaustion. "Agreed. Let's find him, play it cool, and act like we belong."
Mataranas pointed toward a larger house at the edge of the square, its roof less patchy than the others. "That's where Grandma said the elder lives."
"Lead the way, Matty," Numerius said, grinning. Mataranas shot him a look but started walking, the group trailing behind.
The village was waking up, with farmers heading to the fields and kids chasing chickens. Jade's crew drew a few curious glances, probably because they still looked like they'd been dragged through a hedge. The elder's house was bigger than Jade's, with a sturdy door and a small garden out front.
Jade knocked.
The door creaked open, revealing an old man with a white beard and a face like weathered leather. He squinted at them, leaning on a cane not unlike Mat's grandma's. "You lot," he said, his voice gruff. "Heard you fought off those bandits. Not bad for a bunch of loafers. What do you want?"
Jade swallowed, his UI flickering in his peripheral vision. "Uh, sir, we just… wanted to check in. See if you needed anything after the raid." He tried to sound casual, like a good villager, but his voice wobbled.
The elder leaned forward, his eyes narrowing as he sized them up, one by one. His gaze lingered on Numerius's bent pitchfork, Nathaniel's nervous fidgeting, and Mataranas's massive frame. "You five," he said slowly, "you've got some guts, I'll give you that. Held your own against bandits with nothing but farm tools. But you're no fighters, not yet." He snorted, shaking his head. "Village needs a proper militia, what with these raids getting worse. You're scrappy enough to start, so I'm putting you in. Prove you're worth it."
Jade's UI pinged, and a new quest flashed: Join the Village Militia. He glanced at the others, who nodded slightly, their own screens likely updating. "Militia?" Jade said, trying to keep his voice steady. "What do we need to do?"
The elder jabbed a thumb toward the village square. "Find Torvald, the scarred fella who's always sharpening that dagger of his. He trains the militia. Meet him at the training yard behind the blacksmith's at midday. He'll whip you into shape, or break you trying." He chuckled, a dry, raspy sound, and waved his cane. "Now get out of my garden."
The group stepped back, huddling by the well again. Nathaniel let out a shaky laugh. "Militia? Us? We're barely surviving weeding fields!"
"Chill," Numerius said. "Training's better than getting ambushed again. Maybe we'll get real weapons."
Yuzon frowned, his UI still glowing in front of him. "Torvald's the guy who nodded at Jade in the hall, right? If he's training us, we need to be ready. Militia means drills, maybe sparring. We're not exactly in combat shape."
Mataranas nodded, rubbing his shoulder. "Grandma said Torvald's tough. Used to be a soldier. She, uh, talks about him a lot."
Jade took a deep breath, "Okay, plan, we find Torvald, train, and get better gear if we can. If we're in the militia, we need to step up. No more flailing like Nathaniel and Num with his pitchfork."
"Hey, that pitchfork was iconic," Numerius protested, but he was grinning.