Mr. Anuji excused himself to rest. He let Squeak climb into his shirt pocket then shuffled upstairs.

Still stunned, Freya looked again at the vials. Turning to Infamous Biscuit and Heilong, she simply said,

“Look!”

She held them out. After taking a moment to read, they also gasped in surprise.

“A piece of sonder! But it didn’t even come from the dungeon rewards,” Infamous Biscuit said.

“Well, it was certainly related to the story of the dungeon,” said Heilong tapping her chin. “Maybe only fully resolving the situation would trigger Mr. Anuji to give out this reward.”

She looked at Freya, “But it seems like a lot for a level five dungeon to require shaman knowledge, especially when the premise of the dungeon seemed designed for a marksman.”

Freya looked away but said, “Maybe waiting for a shaman to come to town or tracking one down would have been enough.”

“True,” Heilong acknowledged. “But how did you learn those shaman skills? You said you learned about magical contracts, but you don’t deal with them often. Meaning you must do shaman work often. But you’re a martial artist. Why did you bother to learn all these shaman skills? How did you even do it? People have tried to become apprentices to shamans, but no shaman has ever accepted them.”

As she tried to process all of Heilong’s questions, Freya’s stomach grumbled. The last thing she ate was the date cookie hours ago. Figuring out how to deal with the magical contract had kept her distracted, but now her hunger hit at full force.

Freya sighed, “Do you mind if we eat while we talk? It’s a long explanation.”

Heilong agreed. They ordered dinner from the innkeeper and sat around a table. It was a simple meal of seasoned chicken and rice, but it tasted delicious to the famished Freya.

Once she ate enough to be able to think clearly, Freya considered how to word her explanation. She didn’t understand all the game jargon of what she was, so she simply explained what she knew about herself.

“I know a lot about shaman skills because I was a shaman apprentice for seven years.”

Heilong put down her fork.

“Seven years?”

Freya moved a piece of chicken around her rice, “I was offered an apprenticeship when I was eleven. I studied and gained experience for seven years, and now I hold a shaman position for the town of Safka.”

“So,” Heilong said slowly. “Are you an NPC?”

“She’s a player now,” Infamous Biscuit broke in. “But Freya was once a non-player character.”

“How?”

…

Safka’s town square was pitch black by the time Freya fast-traveled home. Usually, in the early evening hours, enchanted lights illuminated the busier streets. Judging by the darkness and eerie quiet, it was past midnight.

She checked her pocket watch and groaned. It was almost morning. Exhaustion washed over her. Trudging home, she collapsed into bed and promptly fell asleep.

A few hours later, harsh light streamed into her bedroom. Freya groaned and buried her head into her pillow. She had important morning plans, but all she wanted was a few more minutes of sleep. Resisting the urge to close her eyes again, she sat up in bed. After a few conscious minutes awake, rational thought returned and she got ready for the day.

Taking the shirt she bought from the Green Box silent auction, she headed over to Yina’s shop. The rose embroidered near the shirt’s neckline looked like the tag Yina used on her creations, but she wanted to be sure. Her friend was usually an early riser, but she didn’t open her store until eleven.

Along the way, she waved to the merchant Allen and checked on the construction of the town's new library.

Finally, she reached Yina’s shop. The rose bushes out front looked recently trimmed. She pulled the bell string that led up to Yina’s loft living space.

Freya heard Yina’s distinctive footsteps come downstairs. Even at home, she still liked to wear high heels.

“Freya! What good timing! I just finished your outfit.”

Yina took Freya’s hand and dragged her upstairs before the latter could say hello.

“I found just the fabric I was looking for! I wasn’t sure about it at first, so I didn’t bother to dye it, but I think it’s just what this outfit needs.”

Putting aside her personal questions for the moment, Freya tried on what Yina made for her. The first thing she noticed when she picked it up was how light it was.

“Oh wait, first try this on,” Yina said, handing her something else. “You’ll need more support if you’re going to be moving around a lot. Someone else actually asked me to make them this, but I think it will work well for you too. I never thought of designing a chest support like this.”

Freya tried on the undergarment. Unlike the one she usually wore, this one compressed her chest more, but it wasn’t uncomfortable.

“It fits well, I think it will be good for fighting,” Freya told the dressmaker.

Moving on to the other clothing pieces, Freya found the shirt and pants more close-fitting than she was used to. However, the clothing design and the fabric made it feel loose and supple.

The shirt was sleeveless, allowing a full range of arm movement. The neckline was low, so it didn’t rub her neck, but not too low to cause other problems. Her pants were cut short at the knee. Yina used some stretchy fabric to construct a belt that didn’t need to be fastened. It was just one piece of fabric that Freya slipped on over her shirt and pants.

For now, everything was a dull grey color, but Freya didn’t mind. It was comfortable, flexible, and breathable. Unlike her shaman outfit, the appearance didn’t matter. Only the function mattered here.

While Freya looked at herself in the mirror, Yina also appraised her work.

“Yes, yes, I think that works well. Maybe the arm opening could be cut in a little more. Go like this,” Yina posed, and Freya copied the position.

“Yes, I think I’ll hem a little more.”

“It looks really good so far,” Freya said. “I love it!”

“What color do you think?” Yina asked.

Freya shrugged, “I don’t know, you’ve always had a better eye for that kind of thing.”

“Red would be a fierce color of a fighter, but I don’t see you as a red person. Maybe some green or blue highlights would be nice.”

The dressmaker cocked her head to the side, staring at her. Freya could almost see her trying on colors in her mind.

“Yes, some green borders would be good, but I think keeping the fabric’s original grey color also seems appropriate.”

Yina nodded to herself. Her eyes cleared a bit when she looked up at Freya again, “What brought you here so early in the morning?”

“Oh, I had a question for you,” Freya brought the shirt out of her bag. As Freya glanced over it again the text box came back up.

[Tailored Shirt]

[Item Class: Common]

[Soft and comfortable shirt. Tailored to original buyer]

[+0.5 Dexterity]

“Did you make this?”

After seeing it in the Green Box Market silent auction, Freya had paid a steep price to buy it outright without waiting until the end of the auction. Infamous Biscuit said it wasn’t necessary since not many people would bid on this kind of simple shirt anyway, but Freya wanted to make sure she wasn’t outbid.

Yina took the shirt and examined it, “Yes, this is definitely my work.”

“Do you remember who you sold it to?”

“Hm, I think I sold this rather recently, but I can’t bring to mind what the person looked like,” she shrugged. “Why?”

“I bought it at a silent auction for game players, so you must have sold it to another player,” Freya said. Concern colored Freya’s voice, but Yina answered unperturbed.

“Oh, really? It’s a pity they didn’t like it.”

Freya looked at her a bit exasperated. Yina chuckled at her discontent.

“By the way, how was your most recent escapade? I saw you were out of your shop yesterday,” Yina said, changing the subject.

Freya sighed. She couldn’t understand her friend’s disinterest in this weird “game player” phenomenon. Was she the one freaking out about it too much? Setting aside the issue, she recounted the events from meeting Heilong at the Green Box Market to her reveal to the marksman.

“So you’ve made another friend,” Yina said, taking a sip of her tea.

“I… guess so?

“You should bring them over someday, maybe I can design something for them too.”

“Sure, I can bring them. They’ll actually be visiting tomorrow. Heilong suggested trying to teach them as if they are shaman apprentices. Maybe then they can pick up this Meridian Manipulation skill they both want.”

Yina sat down at her desk and gazed up at Freya, “I remember when you were a freshly minted shaman, and look at you now getting ready to teach.”

Freya blushed, “Well, let’s hope I can be a good teacher.”

............................................

~Info Corner~

Character Cards:

*Heilong*

Class: Marksman

Age: 18

Nationality: American

Ethnicity: Korean

Lives In: New York City, New York

In-Game Skills: Tracking (innate), Precision Aim (innate), Stun Trap (innate), Marked Down, Arrow Crafting, Geologist’s Eye

Likes: Reading manga and xianxia novels, puzzle games

Dislikes: Abstract art