I stand outside the forge, watching Renna disappear inside.
One hour, she said. Come back in one hour.
But where am I supposed to go?
I look around the street. The sun is still high, maybe early afternoon now. People are going about their business—shopping, talking, working.
Normal life in a medieval fantasy town that's secretly filled with death traps.
My stomach growls.
Right. I haven't eaten anything since... when? This morning? Yesterday morning?
Time is weird when you die and respawn. I don't even know if my body still needs food or if it's just phantom hunger from being used to eating.
Either way, I'm hungry. And thirsty. My throat is dry from all the walking and running and panic.
I should find food. Maybe there's a tavern or something where I can get a cheap meal.
But I don't have any money.
Maybe I could ask Renna? She did offer me work, so maybe she'd be willing to—
No.
I stop myself before that thought goes any further.
She's already helping me.
Already giving me a chance to earn money when she doesn't have to. I'm not going to beg for food on top of that. I'm not that pathetic.
Am I?
I lean against the wall of the forge, trying to think. One hour to kill. No money. Nowhere to go. Nothing to do but wait.
And then it hits me.
The game.
When I played the game, when Luna first spawned in Millhaven, she had money.
Not much—just 10 gold coins. But it was something. Enough to check her inventory and see what she started with.
Which means...
I straighten up, my heart starting to pound.
If this world works like the game, if I spawned here the same way Luna spawned there, then maybe—
I pat my pockets.
Nothing in the front pockets of my jeans. Nothing in my hoodie pocket.
But then I reach back and check my back pocket.
My fingers touch something.
Something small and hard and metallic.
I pull it out.
A coin.
A single gold-colored coin, about the size of a quarter. It's heavy, solid, and when I turn it over in my hand, I notice something.
There's an engraving on it.
"10"
Just that number, etched clearly into the surface of the coin.
I stare at it.
Ten. The coin is marked with the number ten.
"So it's worth ten gold," I mutter to myself.
That makes sense. One coin, but it represents ten gold pieces. Like how paper money works back home—one bill can be worth different amounts depending on what's printed on it.
Relief floods through me.
I have money. Ten gold worth of money.
I have money. Which means I can buy food. Which means I can buy—
Wait.
If I have ten gold worth, I can buy a weapon.
I don't need to work for Renna. I don't need to haul ore around. I can just... buy a sword right now. Go to the well. Kill the rabbit. Get the Sword of Beginning. Complete the mission.
That's the smart play, right?
Except...
My stomach growls again, louder this time.
Can I fight a demonic rabbit on an empty stomach? Should I eat first? But if I spend money on food, I might not have enough for a weapon.
I turn the coin over in my hand again, looking at that "10" engraving.
In the game, there was a shady hooded guy in an alley who wanted 50 gold for information about the sword's location.
That's expensive.
But an actual weapon—a sword, maybe a dagger—that can't be more than ten gold, right?
Right.
I'll buy the sword first.
Then, if there's money left over, I'll buy food. That's the plan.
I take a breath, square my shoulders, and head back into the forge.