Michael and Alexander opened the gate. After that, Michael returned to the others, and Alexander got up near the gate.

Dan was running around the castle, jumping and doing various physical exercises. There was no clock on the game menu! It"s hard to tell how much time he spent on morning exercises. But when it was over, Dan had enough.

Dan"s characteristics rose by +2 to strength and +1 to dexterity. That"s good.

This rapid growth will not last long, there is progress because he still has small levels.

Dan went to the blacksmiths to give the trophies to the dwarf.

It was very hot in the blacksmith"s shop. The corners of the mountain, the red-hot red, were now heating the strips of metal lying on them.

The dwarf rolled up his sleeves to his elbow and hid his magnificent beard behind his ap.r.o.n. Turin was naturally opening up a hot piece of metal on an anvil.

Brutally and naturally, Dan realized that the craftsmen in this game would work with full force and time.

"On business?" asked the dwarf.

"The trophies came in."

"Trophies are good, wait, I"ll be right out."

Turin didn"t stop working when he started talking to Dan.

Gamer came out of the blacksmith"s and sat on the doorstep. A couple of minutes later, the dwarf came out.

"Show me," he said.

A bag of powder, an iron bar, two iron daggers, fifteen silver, and one copper coin, two small crystals and one large/

"How many skeletons did you kill for that?"

"Six."

"Not bad, not bad. The other one"s going down less."

"I"m lucky."

Turin pointed a finger at a large crystal.

"This is Talakat. It can be melted into the blade of the sword, it will become sharper and never blunt. Such stones are rare, you don"t need the skill to use them. Usually only shards like those small ones are brought in."

"So you can improve one of the swords taken from the skeletons."

"Where did you come from so interesting? I"ve been watching you. You"re not from the city. It"s as if the children were unreasonable at first, they didn"t know the simplest thing. Then, you got used to it, and you got used to it very quickly, and you started to gain strength very quickly. And you die, but the next day you"re alive as if nothing had happened."

Turin suddenly changed the subject.

Dan didn"t know what to say to him. The truth? Making up a story? To dodge the question?

"We are not local, Turin, I would say very much not local. And your world is a stranger to us, but now we have to live in it. And yes, we"re not dying, definitively, at least. There"s a place in the main building of the castle where we"re born again. We keep and increase our knowledge. This is our gift and our curse."

"And how does it feel to die?"

"I don"t know how to answer that question correctly. You just stop being for a moment. This is very unpleasant. And then the pain of the first breath of air, and you"re alive again."

Turin was a little quiet and asked.

"Are you scared?"

"It"s scarier than pain, Turin."

"Thank you for your honesty, master Dan. I know your name. Here, this is for you. It was your hand that took the life of the creature that killed my daughter. I will not accept rejection from you."

On his huge, as if carved from stone, palms lay a simple, wide ring with three crystals.

Dan looked at him carefully:

*

The Power of Mountains

Type: Rare

The effects:

Strength +3

Dexterity + 3

Spirit +3

Intellect +2

Overview: Dwarves are great masters of the blacksmith, working with metal and stone is in their blood. Improving the skill and creating new products, the master of the business can create masterpieces. They go beyond the boundaries of the skills learned.

The Ring of Power of the Mountains is one of these masterpieces.

Forged by Master Turin in the hour of great despair.

*

Dan was shocked. He wasn"t happy to know that he got a thing like that just because of a whim of fortune.

That"s a great ring! It"s a masterpiece.

"Thank you, Turin, your gift is invaluable."

"You"ve done enough to get it."

"Turin, why did you leave the village for us?"

"I swore to Father of Mountains that I would give the dearest to the one who would avenge the death of my daughter. The most precious thing I have is my work."

"And Father of Mountains is..."

"You shouldn"t talk about it. It"s a bad topic to talk about."

Turin turned around and went to the forge. He"s a dwarf without ceremony, as it turns out...

*

Dan was thinking about the important details of the conversation. Right Michael, the locals are not stupid Not Playing Characters that are created for a player fun.

This conversation left a lot of food for thought. Dan was so sick of these puzzles. He needs to find Michael, go to share the details and new facts. Let him have a headache, too.

Dan went to the stables.

Michael and John and Jim were building a new shield to replace the one that the Ghoul broke.

Dan pulled the leader aside and held the ring in the palm.

He could read the effects of the ring and ask:

"Where is from?"

Dan completely told him where he got this kind of wealth from. And he was pretty confused.

"Interesting cases, very interesting."

"The most interesting thing about our conversation is the end of it, Michael. There are G.o.ds in the game. This is very important information. This is cla.s.sified information."

"The village sells strong drinks on herbs, you can try to drink a dwarf drunk and learn about their religion."

"It"s not funny, Michael. It"s a dwarf! I think we"ll all lie under the table before we know anything from him. Dwarves are very tough guys."

"That"s right, too. So, let him be quiet, we"re in no hurry. What"s important to us won"t pa.s.s us by. But I"m even scared to imagine the future. I"m calm about faith. But I don"t know how others would feel about having real G.o.ds. Jesus is not going to meet us in this h.e.l.l for sure."

"Michael, this is not a topic for conversation. You"re right, we should wait for the news.

Take the ring while you"re at it, you"ll need it today in battle. But after the fight, I ask you to return it."

"Aren"t you afraid I"ll keep your Precious?"

"I"m not worried. Easy come easy go. Just think what happens if a dwarf sees you with him. This ring is his present to me."

"Dan that was a joke. I will return the ring intact after the death of the d.a.m.n ghoul."

And Michael ran towards the blacksmith.

Oh, yes, there was a useful stone on his sword. Dan laughed and helped to complete the shield.

By lunchtime, the battle preparations were over. The battle group began dressing in armor.

Michael and Alexander were dressed in almost the same armor. The dwarf forged a second armor from the trophies, almost identical to what we received in the form of loot.

Nick and John were wearing leather armor reinforced with metal plates. They even had knees.

Three were armed with swords, John had daggers and a spear, and sheaths under the daggers were made of Jim"s leather. Michael"s sword blade was poured blue.

Someone was upset that there was no photo camera in the game.

Leo and Tom picked up a new shield. And Jim and Dan got a shield and one stake each.

A new attempt to clean up the castle began.

The hall was empty. The pa.s.sage between the columns was also poorly illuminated. A new pack of torches was taken from Michael"s inventory, set on fire and scattered around the hall.

There was no level 1 skeleton! As soon as they took positions, the Skeleton elite of level 17 appeared. They caught him and dragged him to the bones. And they quickly removed the remnants of the old shield and installed a new one, and supported it with four stakes. The Elite died a minute later.

*

[Received 7000 experience points. A new level has been obtained.]

*

Dan gently looked into the gap of the shield. He couldn"t see the enemy. The other warrior"s skeleton was launched from the other side of the hall. The fighters killed him quickly, too.

Dan got 4000 experience points.

And Michael shouted the team out loud:

"Everybody out! There"s a Ghoul left."

Players started to get out of the hall. Dan managed to shout out to the fighters:

"Good luck, guys, shut that b.i.t.c.h down!"

Now all they have to do is waiting. Dan turned the group status around when was sat down right in front of the Donjon Gate. One minute later, it was starting to look like the ghoul wasn"t coming down. Suddenly, Nick"s health bar was fluttering. Then, the health started to fall on the others. And worst of all, their hits were dropping pretty fast.

John died first, Nick followed. Michael had 1480 hp left, and Alexander had 1134, while his life continued to fall, but slowly, hitting 12 per second. Apparently, he was seriously injured.

Then, the status of Alexander"s life flashed twice, and he went to the rebirth. Michael died suddenly, too.

There was a frightened whisper all around. Players wondered what happened, is there really another strong creature? Jim said quietly, but harshly:

"We don"t have any medicine or potions, guys. The damage was 500 points each. It was Michael who killed the wounded Alexander, and then killed himself. Take out your weapons and sit quietly."

n.o.body dared to object. But players got up and went under the window to wait for the rebirth.

It was already becoming a ritual. "Whenever you come back to life, you"ll always be waiting". Strangely, that thought made it easier.

They came down in about 20 minutes. They had smiles on their faces. Happy and a little pale Michael quickly stopped the questioning:

"All stories are canceled. Now we take all available weapons and in the crowd, we go through the donjon. There are unfinished skeletons of the 1st level left. One at a time, no one goes around. Divide into pairs. Let"s finish this d.a.m.n quest."

Everyone backed his decision with an approving nod. Players were already armed with clubs and daggers. The group went to look for enemies in the donjon. They found seven more skeletons. Level 1, weak opponents. Dan ran through halls and rooms and never stopped wondering about the strange planning of the building.

*

There were three floors in the donjon.

The central building:

First floor: Hall with columns, entrance to the donjon.

Second floor: Throne Hall. The hall had a long rectangular table carved out of smooth, light, with dark veins of stone. 13 stone chairs surrounded the table. One chair was at the head of the table, it looked like a natural throne. The stone wolf"s head above the back of the throne and the armrests in the form of paws were very artfully made.

Third floor: An empty hall with remnants of wooden furniture and a huge fireplace.

The North Round Tower:

First floor: a.r.s.enal. It"s a pity it"s empty. It had many stone racks and shelves for weapons and equipment.

Second floor: Alchemist"s room. There were tables with flasks and retorts of various kinds, and there were many empty shelves. Dan immediately thought that they needed gunpowder! There"s alchemy, they need to invent gunpowder!

Third floor: The Hall of Revival.

The East Round Tower:

First floor: Dining room with a small kitchen and storage room. It empties again. Well, at least the dishes are in place.

Second floor: Six rooms that look like small cells. There was only enough room for a bed and a small table with a chair. All the furniture was ruined.

Third floor: Six more rooms, the furniture was ruined.

The square Main Tower:

First floor: A hall with columns, where a memorable battle for the donjon was fought.

Second floor: Two cabinets with preserved tables and heavy armchairs with decayed upholstery, plus another cell.

Third floor: The library. But the only remnants of the books on the shelves are the dried-out leather covers and roots with the remnants of thick threads.

Players found out that finished the last skeleton when the Mission Report jumped out.

*

[Congratulations! Order Renaissance mission accomplished!

Enter the name of the Holder to present the award for the task]

*

Dan smiled;

""We did it! We have a new horizon for development! I think I"m beginning to guess what we"ll get as a reward. It"s not money and it"s not a loot.""

All the players have gathered in the Renaissance Hall and started exchanging opinions.

It was weird! There was an atmosphere of peace and comfort in this place. It had to do with death, but it was nice to be there.

They solved the issue with Holder"s Name. Michael asked a question:

"What name shall we use?"

"We"re probably about being given clan and clan hall rights, we need to enter the Clan Name," said Gandalf.

Dan realized a long time ago that the kid was playing computer games. Dan was also thinking about a new stage in group development. The Clan, the Guild. It"s the standard for the game. Michael offered to enter his name options.

Then, an argument started and there was a lot of unnecessary stupid talking. The men"s fantasy turned out to be rich. Gandalf gave such a name that it was impossible to reproduce it to a normal person. In the end, Michael entered the following in the name of possession:

*

"The Phoenix" Clan.

*

[Congratulations! You have come to this world with nothing, but you have not bowed to the hardships thrown by fate on your shoulders. You paid with your own blood, you were able to find your new home in this cruel world. So, own it by right.

From now on, the Abandoned Preceptorium location becomes a safe zone.

Built by builders into the walls, the Undead Protection is activated.

Safe radius: 100 yards (91.44 m) from the walls of the Preceptorium.

Owner: Phoenix Clan.

Type: Preceptorium.

Durability: 50000.

Congratulations! Clan got 300 Glory points. The general status of the clan is changed to "You can be trusted with your word". Until the next general status change, gain 500 more Glory Points. Your clan gets the third level of Glory (3/20)]

Attention! The new quest received, "In the footsteps of the Greats".

Description: In ancient times this place was owned by great warriors, their Power and Glory protected the surrounding land for many miles around the Preceptorium.

You took responsibility for this possession, you put a heavy burden on your shoulders.

Attention! Map update: 23 desecrated locations detected. 7 locations of dungeon type.

Despite the difficulties in your way, you must clear 2 desecrated locations per month from monsters. If you do not complete the quest, your clan will lose 200 "Glory" points. [30:23:59]

Quest type: Rare. Reward: Variative.

Warning! Having cleaned all the desecrated locations, you can get a unique quest.

Attention! Sensible monsters living in these lands will do anything to desecrate locations that you have already cleared.

Attention! Players who have reached level 10 can get Character Cla.s.s. An appropriate initiation is required.

Enter the Cla.s.s Selection Room.

Attention! In three days a caravan of traders will come to the nearest village, the range of goods in the shop will increase]

*

What a reward! Dan expected something like this, but he was shocked by the news and the perspectives. Players expressed themselves out loud and more rudely. These people thought they would be returned home! But now everyone got another confirmation that they do not have another home.

Dan looked carefully at the players" faces. Michael was thinking about the obligatory quest. His face was calm. Alexander cried his lips in a cruel smile. The others were clearly upset by this state of affairs. And suddenly Gandalf asked a very important question:

"Guys, did anybody see the Cla.s.s Selection Room?"

Really, where is she? Players started a fresh sweep of the building. Even the walls were tapping, but there was nothing. That"s an interesting turn of events. Jim a.s.sumed there was an underground floor. Men knelt down the entire first floor, examining every square yard closely.

Nothing. No bas.e.m.e.nt. That"s sad.

To keep the team from falling into despair, Michael used a reliable tool to remove unnecessary thoughts from bad heads. He drove the group to clean the rooms.

The wreckage and remnants of furniture were taken to the yard, where they were folded near the tent. Shields and supports, including the remains of a broken shield, were taken to the stables.

Then, Michael took Jim and Turin with him, and they went to the village, to discuss with the local carpenter about making new furniture.

Players dragged the tables and benches from the chapel to the new dining room.

Velida started mastering the new household. Gandalf remained with her, and he still felt guilty about his behavior when he met her. It was not worthy of the future great magician.

The starting clothes were used for cleaning rags. Players took buckets of water and started cleaning up the rooms.

They finished late, it was already darker in the yard, but there was still enough sunlight.

After cleaning, the players went to different sides of the castle. Everyone continued looking for a room to get Character Cla.s.ses.

Dan went to the hall with columns to get a good look at the very interesting low relief.

A group of knights in heavy fantasy armor was carved on the wall.

Due to the low light, Dan couldn"t make out the details of the image. Why is there a pedestal with a bowl? And that mystery wouldn"t let him go.

Dan picked up one of the obscured torches from one of the columns and lit it from one of the burning torches on the pillars.

The light of the torch helped him look closely at the square pedestal.

Various monsters and ancient knights were also carved on it.

The figure of one knight was thrown into the eye. The image of this warrior was encircled in a square with a clever pattern.

Dan held out his hand and touched the stone.

At that moment, he discovered that the figure of the knight was slightly pressed inside the pedestal.

Dan pressed harder and heard a loud click. The plate with the knight slipped down.

In the stash that opened, stood a small, tightly closed copper jug.

Dan pulled out this jug and examined it carefully.

It was a regular copper jug with a round neck, tightly closed with a cork. And something was splashing in it. When he pulled out the cork, Dan smelled it carefully, but there was no smell.

And then what?

He has a bowl, he has a strange liquid. Dan poured liquid from the jug into the bowl on two fingers. Then, he corked the jug and put it back in place. The plate with the knight immediately slipped up, hid the stash again.

It"s not weak middle Ages. A very competent mechanic of the hidden stash.

Dan wet finger in a poured liquid, he figured out what it was like b.u.t.ter, but why no smell?

Dan picked up a lighted torch from the floor and brought it to the bowl. The flame broke out brightly, the pleasant smell of incense sprayed in the air.

*

[You have paid respect. Your Spirit has been increased by 20% for 12 hours]

*

At the same moment, the floor in front of the pedestal began to fall down, and a pa.s.sage opened with stone steps, which used to be part of the floor. Dan took the club out of the inventory. Clutching the torch tightly, he began to descend carefully. He reached the end of the stairs and froze on the last step.

The light of the torch wasn"t enough to see what was ahead of him.

Then. Dan lighted the floor in front of him and noticed the stone gutters that went into the darkness of the hall from both sides. At the bottom of the gutters was gleaming liquid, which was already familiar to him. Dan lowered the torch to the gutter on my right side. The flame flashed sharply and ran to the side of the gutter.

It turned out that the gutter had been laid out along the walls of a large round hall.

In the center of the secret hall there were four groups of stone statues of full height in a semicircle, a bit far apart from each other. In each group there were three statues and the small stone stands with small bowls in front of them.

*

[Attention! The Cla.s.s Selection Room has been detected.

Attention! Make sure the pa.s.sage to the selection hall is open and the flame of Tribute of Respect is lit.

You"ve got the pa.s.sive "See the Hidden" skill.

The current skill is 1. You have a 5% chance of finding the hiding place.

Luck +1]

*

Yeah, this is me, I"m lucky!

It"s been a pleasure getting new achievements and luck increasing. Dan sat on the steps of a secret staircase in a secret room. Suddenly, there was a voice in the back:

"You really did find The Cla.s.s Selection Room!"