My first thought on waking, was that I was happy. Not so much because I was living the life of a king (although I wasn't complaining about that), but because I had a reason for living: a mission. It was such a different feeling, having a purpose in life, to waiting around for the COVID restrictions to end. While Greyland was starting in a very difficult situation, I believed I could turn it around.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBEltnTJt33
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIXMQrIKLvk
For a start, I had to ramp up iron production and correct my earlier mistake. As my first action, I assigned the realm's three iron ingots to the Smithy for more steel pickaxes.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt1sVlKt7S6
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPxNWh9dQor
Crucial to my success in this world would be my personal character progression. With some anxiety I called up my character sheet to see if I'd managed to improve it by my efforts of the previous day.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdLe0bR7cMO
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCvMq8d8pW2
Sean de Courcy, king of Greyland584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7K8abmUHX0
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTjE2hg0pU2
Str 7584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9bZy0ITfPy
Dex 4584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOSQIHtWNKG
Con 8584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7cDN9DiZIr
Int 16584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5wsRk3iMSr
Wis 16584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ5l3kblcEe
Cha 4584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYrUmLja1Aw
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoGTFnG4Sxq
Please choose a character archetype:584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwN0bmk4N86
Fighter; Wizard; Healer; Scout584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpW52EITNVj
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOQ7Soy99Ik
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLNok8PMgoS
Of course, neither my Strength of Constitution had shifted. I sighed to myself. How many more days of exercise would it take to test whether those stats would rise? Should I give it a week and then give in and choose a Wizard or Healer path? The people who had summoned me here wanted a battlefield leader and my own desire led me to want to be a martial class of some sort. But it would be idiotic to aim for that if I was stuck with these stats.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡumnYpeRV4E
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3QO0C7Qc7W
Then I noticed the final attribute, Charisma. It had gone from 3 to 4. Yes! Yes! And again Yes!584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9poRjecMjf
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZW3ta26Sui
Stats could be worked on. A glow of pleasure rushed through me. Okay, so it wasn't a Fighter stat that had moved, but really, after one day, even if I had focused on Strength, I could hardly have expected to see progress. I had a hunch that the reason I'd seen Charisma move was that it was a lot easier to raise a 3 to a 4 than a 7 to an 8.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhZQwjqfZPU
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFe7CBgfoxU
Following that last thought, I had to admit to myself that it might take months to move Strength to something useful in battle, but even so I decided to take the risk and commit to Fighter. It was time to get going. I missed being the most bad-ass warrior in Storm Wars and couldn't even imagine what it would feel like to be on top of the game be like in a world where it really mattered? Still, it was pointless, counterproductive even, to daydream. There was a mountain to climb. And I hadn't even taken one step yet towards the summit.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeMD4StU7N7
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn7CMxbGqbb
I selected Fighter and got a message:584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIpE7Hw5Sft
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNXpsGeZUOS
Welcome Sean de Courcy, to the path of the Fighter. You have chosen to stand toe to toe with your foes, dealing blows to them and evading their own attempts to harm you. It is a path for the brave and for the resolute. If you are fortunate and progress, in due course you will unlock specialisations within the Fighter class.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLm4at8jkky
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkXRekuQrIq
You will also unlock new skills by discovering them through action. For now, you have 10 skill points to assign among the following:584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV9s1m9FYQV
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVZGGR0pAih
Bash: action, shield users only, additional attack with shield584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNzYAWJAa0g
Block: passive, shield users only, wards melee attacks if successful584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡitlJF2gxIM
Deflect: passive, shield users only, wards missile attacks if successful584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWtrfG0VjJY
Defensive Stance: passive, reduces damage of hits received if successful584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEXdm5mhyLD
Dodge: passive, avoid an opponent's attack584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5zsnlpM71u
Grapple: action, unarmed attack that restricts opponent if successful584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvrEyODVtCh
Lunge: action, pointed weapons only, additional attack at up to +1m range584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs0klOWDR9Z
Parry: passive, intercept your opponent's attack with your main hand weapon584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeKgXicCwF9
Quick draw: action, produce hidden or sheathed weapon584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjCoAB1pPTg
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡebHKItIQVR
Quite a lot to think about there. And I had to make my choice right away, as the screen couldn't be flicked away in the usual fashion. Generally, I preferred a min-max approach to RPG gaming. It was usually better to be really good at one skill and adapt your strategy to that skill than to have no particular specialism and be somewhat competent at everything. Ideally, I would have had a taste of fighting before make my choice, so as to get a feel for what would be the best skill to invest in. Here, though, there was going to be a lot of guesswork.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjQnE2BqwwV
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWsEo0MnNbr
On the assumption I'd have the support of the high level people who had summoned me, I decided I should focus on attack rather than defence. Back in Storm Wars defence was crucial but here, at the low levels at least, I felt it best to try to rack up experience fast through killing mobs. Lunge appealed most, surely an extra attack and a bit more range on an attack was going to prove useful? When I tried to put my ten points into the skill, however, I got a message.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcIqQIaKinn
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCtMz1AWHiD
Skills are capped at Level x 5584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgduoQAOXs0
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAqbCXB46IP
Adding 5 points to Lunge worked. So for my other choice? Was I going to use a shield? Probably but not necessarily. I didn't know what weapons were going to be available to me here. Parry then. While Quick draw had its appeal, it was very situational. Whereas pretty much every fight I was in would involve the opportunity to parry.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ59qOAQblf4
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgtMPMoqbxG
My character sheet now had my class and skills, also, an EXP bar, showing that I needed 100 to get to Level 2 and HP. I had hit points! Not many though. And an armour class that at 0 probably reflected the fact that I had no armour on at all. Even if I did, that poor Dexterity score probably carried a penalty.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlyKw2cdq9N
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtHqc1ycQcf
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCXozlvoLzG
Sean de Courcy, king of Greyland584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPYCwNKrv2c
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeaGgrkF8Z5
Fighter, Level 1 HP 8 AC 0584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSi7RAEx9lF
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp43SoCZxH4
Str 7584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjtnCcxjmIY
Dex 4584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5IpgtQSote
Con 8584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMq4xXNbRLH
Int 16584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvUVhNgZUVK
Wis 16584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKb9hC649bN
Cha 4584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu12maKaDGA
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhP2z5aT5RH
Lunge 5584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWPFUGOCI6h
Parry 5584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡneeUx3Dl9m
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7QYddKhoNR
Exp 5/100584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGL6syNOZB6
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJi7LWqe8WY
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgpAUkY4jAG
With the help of the PCs in Greyland, I should be able to level up fast.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdbxUJuBgt1
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNuwQHZERzw
If it wasn't for my heavy body, I'd have leapt out of bed with a spring in my step and an eager desire to get going. As it was, I had to lever myself up and then struggle with every single garment before managing to get dressed. It didn't help that I ached all over from yesterday's marching around the barracks square. At last, I was presentable and down I went to breakfast.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDNEBIZNJoP
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ18LFTfAeVa
Today, the castle servants were ready for me and along with a glass of apple juice was a bowl with more apples and a plate with two poached eggs. I felt desperately hungry and was tempted, when a new servant tentatively approached, to ask for more. But I had to get down to a size where armour could fit me and a horse could carry me. So I had to diet. End of. Back home, I had sometimes tried to cut out unhealthy snacks, and managed for a while, before invariably returning to them and sometimes bingeing while hooked up to Storm Wars. Here, I felt differently. Here, getting the king's body into shape was just as important as levelling up and sorting out Greyland's food supply. There was no 'Will I? Won't I?' discussion to be had with myself. It had to be done.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKTicmZQKLT
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQsJIRALHkW
After breakfast, I left the keep and walked slowly in the direction of the barracks. The citizens of the town hurried away from me or redoubled their efforts if they were working. For the first time, I noticed that stored away in the shadowy corner of a large cobbled square was a gibbet and a chopping block. Had my predecessor really executed people by hanging and beheadings? It was not a question I could ask anyone except one of the three who had been there at the summoning.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcNxf3ml0Gt
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8QNVOfCpTg
The soldiers were already drilling when I got to the barracks and I was pleased to see archers firing at straw scarecrows. Thirteen, fourteen… yet fifteen. Those were my new recruits. It might have been a dumb move using up all my iron before the steel pickaxes were completed but I was glad to see the archers all the same.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYK2OEXT1xy
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7qj7SFOuWd
Carradock was there, marching some foot soldiers back and forth. He passed the duty to one of the men and came over at a brisk walk on seeing me.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNySG1lIdwr
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7lUVGmUNE9
'How are you today sire? Able to continue?'584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFuuViAdF4z
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHdBtV0wOHw
'Stiff, but yes.'584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgd4sYulR8C
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKRjlFw3bp1
'I suggest another march then. Sixty circuits.'584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPMie2gOtww
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdXruftgeyj
'Right so. Before I set off, I've a question you might know the answer to.'584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqdAmZ2SW8z
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNsbVozA8Mk
He looked at me expectantly.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs2XAtTT7n4
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIYQm2EyK5y
'I just learned the Lunge skill. Do you know how I utilise it?'584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwe6isqxOwU
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqImK49NCb5
Surprise, then caution crossed the trainer's face. 'Not I sire. Skills like what you're talking about are special. You need to talk to someone like Lord Arval.'584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQFXCKL3CP6
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTXLp0MP6Pd
'Good idea. Send someone to fetch him will you.' As was my nature, I almost added 'please', but no doubt that would be taking my change in character too far.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡblgQzRHuKI
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFV4mpAjC7G
On lap six, Lord Arval fell in step. 'Sire?'584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp5YYvbWUpY
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXUcfmI0gWO
'Two questions.' I already felt the need to be economical with my breath. 'Active skills like Lunge, how do I use them? And what's the quickest way for me to level up? Got some giant bats I can kill?'584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2EG2XSv7Em
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsKVjQNkMQc
'Skills? You'll see them as selectable icons when the right conditions are met. I mean when timers are ready; or the right weapon is in hand; or you've moved yourself into the right position. Skills are very experiential. You get to discover them and advance them mostly by practice.'584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡANFbYWqDCr
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWfaa8l9z0R
I nodded, hands swinging like pendulum weights as I strode determinedly around the square.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtIngIM3tRv
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzADaJBsZ1C
Lord Arval kept pace effortlessly. 'For levelling up, I think quests. Without access to the menus I can't be exact, but I felt that just by performing chores for the townspeople I became significantly stronger. Perhaps reaching level three or four.' He gave me a sharp look. 'It helps with your reputation with them too.'584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqi5VFdiKvi
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7epXGjlPPh
'Good. I'll be done here by midday, come with me this afternoon and show me these quests.'584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ21t7NSCH11
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtvQi0mv1lI
First checking no one was close enough to overhear us, Lord Arval leaned closer and dropped his voice. 'I'd never disagree with a command of yours, but I was intending to take the new archers down to Three-Ways Fort and check on our defences. I could ask Carlena to show you the easiest town quests?'584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6nHbO16B1V
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTbmjlSIeRb
I caught his – grey – eyes and gave the slightest of nods.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6klBhtWDA8
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeYniQALUKz
'Very good sire,' Lord Arval spoke loudly and deferentially. 'As you ask, so it will be.'584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3nUvqJ5n98
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8KAkQeUNqI
The laps today were a little easier and even a soft rain didn't deter me. Walking was good for studying the menus too and I drilled down into the kingdom's various options, reading up on descriptions of buildings and balancing their various benefits against the immediate need to solve our food problem and be able to resist an attack if Southway and Trolland continued their alliance.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUUGGZfdttR
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4jVBOP8Bnt
After I finally completed my sixty laps, I took a salute from Carradock and went back to the keep for a bath and change of clothes. Then I sat in the very large throne in the large hall on the second floor, the solar they called it. Outside, beyond the lead crosses that contained the window glass, the day was still grey. I could have rested there, alone, for some time, but Carlena arrived and waving away the servants who had brought her to me, came over.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxTNBS9VDry
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQQaa0UjBEC
'You wanted me to help with quests?'584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsdwgkRdVuq
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvzFdqtBOw8
'Yes please. I've started as a Fighter but, honestly, I'm not in the shape to hit things yet. So quests are perfect. And Lord Arval said they would level me fast.'584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGZQkECghTj
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZekkdKY5jj
'Yes, they will. At least, they got me to my third spell. After that, you'll need to battle monsters. Also, your combat skills won't increase unless you do.'584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQwjq5zguka
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK2h5XVTpyL
'Right so, let's go and do some quests.' It was painful, moving again after being seated for a while. But pain meant gain, right? And I had the incentive of levelling up to encourage me.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡavGZUz3IS4
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1J03wzZXvP
'It's been a while since I did these…' She looked thoughtful, long, silver hair tied back so I could see her severe face clearly. 'And try to be more like King Carlos. Everyone is talking about you. About how you've changed.'584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG7lnYtegyr
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDImRC5lEik
'He was a thug, right?'584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsemlxqdkFm
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu0WlSna6a8
'More of a sly creature, like a fox. Watching and waiting … then punishing. Never trusting anyone. You didn't know where you were with him. Not even me, who – forgive the lack of modesty – is the most important person in the kingdom. There was a time when I thought he was going to hang me for treason. Even though that would mean no sorcerer for our battles.'584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa9fsyemUFn
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0JGCb9PEd2
Having reached the large, double doors Carlena went silent and waited for me to lead her out. From just behind my right shoulder, she muttered directions as we walked down narrow cobbled streets until we came to a bakery.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIc56fjSId5
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNOzYDKrhTw
'In there is a female baker who needs a large rat killed.'584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0wWjUNZvoi
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2UjVL23JEg
I barged in, under the swinging sign of a loaf of bread. My bulky body made a small room feel even smaller: counter with several loaves; bare planks for floors; whitewashed walls; back room with an aroma of newly baked bread that made my mouth water.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡslGzHdxy1M
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4Vaqpc7P3R
A boy, about ten years old, was sweeping dust. His mouth dropped open. A thin woman behind the counter looked at me with pure horror, then said quietly, 'Miya bless me!'584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPUQwBTLjlB
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ51zRkUUHz7
'I believe you have a problem with a rat?'584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOS9MveANKu
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2IWIqOvk9N
No one moved or spoke, until the boy dropped his brush and ran. Then the woman did the same.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHcEMoI8wnA
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC6fuO2mpgC
'Guards!' yelled Carlena. When two soldiers came running, she instructed them to bring the baker back.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb7KN4u8jWV
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjXdBc1NLc7
Feeling impatient, I tried to strum my thick fingers on the wooden counter top, but couldn't, they just thumped down in a group. My crappy Dexterity? Or simply lack of practice with this body?584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3dZXoB8yjy
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnVyuRBHlVV
At last the guards returned, holding the woman between them. She was clearly terrified and I would have said something comforting, except that Carlena wanted me to stay in character.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmHF92o7igG
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwg4MCMao5n
'You have a task?' I asked.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhOPX2Ry5ex
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4Udyef3B3H
'But…' she was looking at the floor. 'But… you've already done it.'584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuSHeLvYr0l
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO5t4YMbgjJ
I shot a glance of alarm at Carlena who remained perfectly impassive. No doubt for the benefit of the guards.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmCnFvAomRx
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnyVyw3wyie
'Give it to me again.'584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0KVEI8aN6O
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgeF45z3KVT
'I can't sire, I really can't. Please don't kill me, I have three children.'584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh62EXPELkq
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtOb2tkmGo2
'Just try. Just say the words. I'm sure it will work. Go ahead!'584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcLqSgMkdQG
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ99FmYIVWwZ
But she couldn't. Her mouth opened and closed without a sound coming out. Tears ran down her face.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDDIptx88SY
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFnu20RYQSI
Exasperated and not wanting to cause the baker to suffer any further, I strode back outside, took a second to orientate myself, and set off back toward the keep. Levelling up was going to require a rethink.
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