The three Mardukryon players were well-equipped, decked out in very cool armor following the aesthetics of Kurghal village: primal, barbarian-like themes of leather, thick fur, crude metal, and spikes. There was probably some wood and rock somehow mixed with their attire.

The player in front carried round-bottom flasks and glass tubes filled with different colored liquids. Those hang amongst the bulky pouches attached to both sides of his bull body. The next guy had a circular shield and long sword on his left and a collection of daggers attached to a belt strapped on his right. Lastly, the lady Mardukryon had quivers bristling arrows tied across each flank and a formidable longbow slung over her shoulder.

I looked down at myself…wearing absolutely nothing. Did this mean I was completely butt-naked? I wasn’t a nudist, but there was a first time for everything.

The walking chemistry set, most likely the leader of their party, pointed me out to his fellows, his shoulders heaving as he chuckled. They stopped and chatted amongst themselves. I couldn’t hear their whole conversation but I picked up the mention of a newbie.

Nothing could be more obvious from my getup, or lack of it. And I surmised everyone knew each other here that the sight of a new Mardukryon player was understandably surprising.

The leader put his arm on the shoulder of his sword-wielding friend and whispered something. Both of them laughed out loud. No doubt, I was the subject of their joke.

Next, he turned to his female party member and seemed to try to get her to join in their joke, whatever it was. She retreated a few steps back, distancing herself from the two morons braying like donkeys. It was hard to decipher a Mardukryon’s inhuman face, but I could tell she had that expression women wore when a man was acting immaturely in front of them.

Making fun of noobs? I raised my brow at the clowns—brow ridge on my forehead, not eyebrows because I didn’t have those.

Admittedly, I thought lowly of people with lesser skills than me, be it in real life or back when I used to play computer games. But context should be considered. I only mocked people with the same or greater resources than I had—in games, that meant higher levels and oftentimes way more expensive gears—that were dogshit in using them.

In comparison, this guy was making fun of me, the Great Herald Stone, for being weak because I literally had just made this character. But there was no need to get agitated. In time, it was certain I’d be more powerful than him. I should let lesser beings celebrate their momentary advantage.

At any rate, I needed information on possible secret quests I could do before going inside the village. And these people were the only ones I could ask. I banked on the lady Mardukryon pitying me. If I had an accurate read on the leader, he wouldn’t miss the opportunity to show off helping me.

Copying the newbie human player who had approached me for guidance outside Amberkeld, I hesitantly called out at the Mardukryon trio, “Excuse me! Uh, hello. Can I bother you?”

“Hello there, new guy!” The leader trotted over. ‘BeetsByLudwig’ was displayed above his helmet. “How many times have you died inside the forest?”

“Only once. Wait, inside the—?”

“Once?” He laughed as he waved for his party mates to come over. “Wharton, both of us are wrong.” He faced me again. “Seems like luck is on your side.”

“Lucky? I suppose,” I said. Was he talking about not meeting the high-level monster wandering the forest? I didn't have a clue how rare of an encounter it was. “Anyway, can I ask if—?”

He ignored me as if I wasn’t talking. “People still wanna choose Mardukryons, huh? Aviarii is better. And way easier too. I hear those guys will soon be able to descend from their tree. Only pain and hardship await you here. Maybe disappointment.”

“Don’t discourage him,” said the female player named ‘Quivercess’ from behind them.

BeetsByLudwig shrugged. “How many times have we seen people try Mardukryons and then quit a week or two later?”

A gatekeeper with a superiority complex? Interesting. I could see how a long-time player of a race forgotten by the trends would have that mindset as others moved on to other races. In a way, I also had that cynical view of meta chasers. This town might not be big enough for two elitist dicks.

“We should welcome anyone who wants to be a Mardukryon. There’s only a few of us left.”

“I’m just telling him how it is.”

“I wanted to see how it is up here,” I explained. “I’ve played a few characters casually, and I was curious about Mardukryons.” I couldn’t bring myself to admit just how much of an actual beginner I was even if it would probably garner me more sympathy and help. It was my inexplicable second nature to hide my shortcomings and inflate my capabilities no matter the situation—I could usually deliver on any claims I made and my inadequacies were nobody’s business, so I saw no problem with a bit of…inaccuracies.

“Cool, cool,” said BeetsByLudwig. “Playing Mardukryons is really different from mainstream races like humans. But you know what? I’ll be helpful, sure. My name is BeetsByLudwig—”

“He can see that, you know?” the other male Mardukryon interrupted. Their leader called him Wharton earlier, and his in-game name was ‘Wharmonger’.

“It’s called being welcoming and polite. You can call me Luds for short”

“In that case, I’m Wharton.”

“He already heard your name,” said Luds.

“I’m also being polite, yeah?”

“And I’m Nic, short for Nicole,” introduced the last of their group. She pointed at her floating name. “I know that says ‘Quivercess but it’s such an awkward thing to say. That was supposed to be ‘Archer Princess’ or someone already had that registered and I’m not good at coming up with names.”

Luds went over to my side and gestured to the two of us. “See, Nicole? We’re friends now.”

“Is that your name in real life?” Nic asked me, not paying a mind to Luds. She squinted her eyes as she read, “Herald Stone.”

“Haha!” Luds exclaimed. “You used your actual name?”

“No, I didn’t,” I said with a laugh. Of course, I did. I was embarking on a great journey to complete the elusive Goal #1, what better name to use than my real one to let everyone know who the top tank was going to be in MCO? This was more reason why I didn’t want to look stupid and clueless. “I’m from Eyrie—”

“Eyrie?” said Luds. “I went on a vacation there with my girlfriend last year.”

“—and we have a restaurant chain here that I really like. Dolly’s? Not sure if you’ve heard of it; they don’t have that many branches abroad. ‘Herald Stone’ is the name of one of the owners and he’s a great guy, a businessman, and philanthropist, who made a ton of donations to our town college. I look up to him that’s why I use his name.”

“Cool, cool.” Luds jabbed his thumb at a path leading to another part of the forest. “We got to attend to something. My plants are about ready to be harvested. Do you need help with anything? We can give you advice before we leave.”

“Are there quests we need to do before going into the village?” I said. “Maybe something down that small side path from the fork back there?”

“You got a good brain on your head. You’d need that around here.”

This patronizing ass. I controlled myself not to say my thoughts out loud this time.

“Luds…” Nic reproachfully said.

“I was praising him.” He held his hands up to show innocence. “There is a quest back there. I did it months ago when I just started as a Mardukryon. And you’re right, new guy. It’s not mandatory, but if you intend to do it, you need to finish it before entering the village because it won’t be available once you go past the gates.”

I was right, as expected. Spawning at the cliff signaled the player to explore their surroundings, and those that did would be rewarded. “Are there many quests like that in the forests? Those that need to be completed before going in the village or else they’ll disappear?”

“I only know of that one. Other quests connected to the Golden Forest have different triggers or conditions. You can do them later unless you bungle up their storylines.”

“Thanks for the heads up,” I said. “So, I need to follow that other path and find the Mardukryon who’s the owner of those footprints?”

“Correct. You’re a fast learner, new guy.” He chuckled as he patted my shoulder.

“Is it easy? And what are the rewards—oh, I’m sorry. Am I asking too many questions?”

“Nah, new guy. I’ll help you since I’m welcoming to newbies, isn’t that right Nic?” She shrugged at him and gestured for him to just answer my question. Luds noticeably exhaled in annoyance. He changed his tune. “New guy, I’ll just quickly go through this since you’re taking my time. That quest will give you an Ocadule and good starting gears, pretty nice rewards considering how easy it is.”

“Is it easy?” Nic said. “I heard—”

“I had done it, remember? You haven’t. Why would I lie?” Luds leaned closer to me as if telling me a secret. “Basically, you’ll be asked to kill a Mirdabon and bring a patch of fur as proof. Easy enough to start, yeah? Then just follow what the NPCs ask you to do. Got that, new guy?”

“Yes,” I said. “Thanks again.” You condescending fuck, I added in my head. If I got a warbler for every time he called me ‘new guy’, I would already have six warblers and buy myself a Double Dolly with all the toppings.

Nonetheless, I wouldn’t deny it was good fortune running into them, even if I preferred anybody else other than this guy. Helping Herald Stone granted him reprieve for his mockery. I was about to enter the village and miss an important quest like this—it wasn’t mandatory, but it was a bonus nonetheless.

He walked a few steps away before he stopped and looked over his shoulder. “I got one last tip for you, new guy.” And that was another warbler for me. He pointed with his front hoof at a Mirdabon. “As a shortcut, you can just kill a Mirdabon now and get its loot so you can immediately complete the quest the moment you give it.”

“That sounds like a good idea,” I said. Perhaps I could explore the forest more after finishing this quest fast.

“I don’t think—” Nic began to say.

“It should be fine,” Luds cut in with a raised voice. She pursed her lips and looked conflicted. Or I assumed she did. “I’m just helping out the new guy, yeah?” He stared at me, expecting me to follow his advice.

Their interaction made me a bit suspicious. I believed the information he gave about the quest earlier was correct—at least some of it was—but I also had a hunch he wanted to play a prank on me. Newbie hazing.

What was it going to be? Would killing a Mirdabon now not count for the quest? It could be that the NPC would ask for a kill itself and not the loot. Or would I deal only a tiny amount of damage at my level, then Luds and Wharton would laugh at me? In either case, it’d benefit me if I played along. This clown would have his fun, and he’d probably be more open to helping me more in the future. I could also capitalize on being a bullied hapless noob and farm sympathy from Nic.

A Mirdabon rolled up near me as if begging for me to attack it.

Finding the secrets of Mardukryon mountain on my own would be hard. And I couldn’t rely on searching for guides on the internet; veteran players wouldn’t share their most important finds online. If the price to pay for gaining connections for information was to be the butt of a joke, so be it. However, I wouldn’t forget this slight on Herald Stone’s honor.

I kicked the Mirdabon.