Asha relaxed. Master Tyrlian knew the drill. He was playing the game just like the rest of them, so there wouldn't be any trouble.
She followed him inside and placed the staff on a trestle table. Master Tyrlian examined it a moment, before nodding acceptance. They haggled over the price a moment, before Asha promised she'd be spending a good portion of her profits in his shop, which she hoped got her a better price. Once they agreed upon three silver and twenty-five copper shekels, she went over to the potion display. She spent a full silver shekel on healing and mana restoring potions. In fact, he promised his mana potions would increase her mana significantly and quicker than the listed ten minute cooldown period.
Mana Restore Potion. Will restore 25 mana points. Cooldown: 10 minutes. Can be used once an hour.
So she bought five more, and drank one. Her mana began ticking up.
Asha walked over to a display of knives and daggers. "What is the enchantment on that Elven dagger?"
It was long and curved, with a bejeweled hilt. The purple rhinestones spoke to her, that being her favorite color. And it would match her outfit.
"Excellent choice, Lady Sorceress," he said. "That is the Dagger of Wrath. Any Immortal killed by it won't respawn for a full month. Very powerful."
Dagger of Wrath. A Bound object. Sends victim to Purgatory for one month.
"How much?"
"Two silver."
She vacillated, wanting it, but not eager to pay so much. The sorceress even thought about selling the Robes of Concealment to buy it, but in the end just sucked it up and paid for the enchanted dagger.
A jolt of coldness rippled through her when Asha wrapped her hand around it.
"Oh!"
Master Tyrlian chuckled. "I guess that is your first Bound weapon. It'll stay with you if you're killed. It's yours until you sell or gift it to someone."
They settled up. She'd spent almost all of the money she'd gotten from selling the staff, which explained Master Tyrlian's pleased expression as he counted out the money she still had coming.
"Is the exchange rate in this realm the same as the previous?"
"Yes," he said. "One hundred copper shekels buys a silver, and ten silver buys a gold. But the value of gems is based on local supply and demand."
Asha thanked the wizard and headed back towards the Crooked Staff Pub. It sat on the corner of the street going back to the main gate. Madam Elise's Inn was near the gate, with her friends inside. She got all tingly with excitement.
And then she saw the shop sign and did a double-take. "Spells'R'Us? Really?"
There was no way she could walk past a shop with that name. So, grinning, she entered the dark, cool shop. A gorgeous blonde sat at a desk in back, writing by candlelight. The sorceress checked her out as the shop owner turned to regard her with a smile.
Lady Isadora. Human witch (Lvl 31). +27 Light.
"Hello, milady," Lady Isadora said. "How may I serve you today?"
"Hello. What kind of spells R us selling today?"
They laughed. Isadora pulled her thick braid forward as she approached. Her thin gown was the most beautiful shade of blue, and Asha was surprised to see she wore stilettos. Not something she saw much of in the Game.
"I have a highly cultivated Skill in Spell Writing, milady."
"Not to mention being a level 100 fashionista," Asha said, admiring her look. The witch blushed, looking flattered. "But I'm here to shop for spells."
"All of my spells are exceptional, but I'm afraid most will require you to level up before you can buy and use them. Did you just pass over today?"
"Yesterday." She looked around eagerly. "Do you have any fire and fireball spells a level 12 sorceress can cast?"
Lady Isadora brightened. "Yes."
Asha was led to a handwritten chart on the wall. It listed spells, in alphabetical order. The spells were listed in five columns, each column requiring a different spellcaster level. Asha grimaced when she saw the second column was for level 20 and above. So she turned her attention to the Level 10 and above list.
"Do all players start at level 10?"
The witch nodded. "Yes. Mobs start at 1, and rise as they grow older. Most are 5 when they reach adulthood."
The other VR realm was barely three months old, so this more advanced realm had to be newer. Asha looked Lady Isadora over, wondering how the advanced players she'd encountered had leveled up so high and fast.
"How long have you been here?"
"Here? In Oxenbluff or the Game?"
"This realm."
Lady Isadora thought about it a moment. "I was one of the first to join the Beta Test, and opted to stay afterwards. So a little over two years."
"You've been stuck in the Game for over two years?"
"No, about eight months. I could exit during Beta testing, but had to choose to go permanent."
"Then there really isn't any way to exit the Game now that I've passed over to this realm?"
"None that I know about," Lady Isadora said. She shrugged. "There are always rumors of secret dungeons with a portal to other realms, or even to exit the Game. But once you pass through such a portal, then you aren't seen or heard from again. How do we really know where you went?"
Asha hadn't thought about that. Going through a secret dungeon's portal got her there. She wasn't sure she wanted to try her luck again.
"What about our bodies in the real world? Did we die in real life upon entering this realm?"
The witch cringed. "Probably. When I came over permanently, they said our bodies would pass away a few days afterwards, or whenever someone disconnected our body from the Game, whichever came first. Like everyone else, I had a terminal illness. So your real body is probably still alive, but not for much longer."
Asha bit her lip and rolled her eyes. It was just getting worse and worse. She knew a moment of panic, but then felt a coolness flow through her and her nerves calmed.
"The Game just calmed you down, didn't it?" Lady Isadora asked. She smiled. "It won't let us fret too much on being trapped here. The designers thought of everything."
"I know. I was actually eaten alive by mosquitoes yesterday."
"I have spells to protect you from biting insects," the witch said. Then more seriously, "Did you come over to this realm accidently?"
"I guess. My friends and I challenged a secret dungeon outside of Uhrs, and all we found was a black altar that sent us through to what it called the Hidden Realms," she said. "We never imagined we could be trapped forever inside the game. Indeed, I suspect a lot of people will go to jail once the authorities find out about this."
Isadora sighed gustily. "They hide and guard those dungeons so only the players who chose to go permanent, and fill out the proper paperwork, can find them and pass through. Obviously their security measures are inadequate. Far too many are finding their way here."