Chapter 22: Hitting the town (Patreon)

In the morning, Hugo and I took the silver elevator down to floor 98. Both of us were eager to see this newfound town and find out what we could buy within it. For Hugo, it was more about exploring, but for me; it was about new clothes. After several fights, my motorcycle jacket had become shredded beyond use and had to be thrown away. Now I was down to wearing a black t-shirt and jeans to go along with my cloak. A t-shirt which, to be honest, even with my best efforts, probably wouldn’t survive more than a fight or two. If this continues, then I’ll have to start taking laundry with me when I go out. But if the town sold goods, then maybe it had better clothing or armor to offer.

The elevator doors opened up not to a forest but to a dusty, square room. The floor was made of wood, with a small set of wooden stairs leading up and another leading down. Other than that, the room was empty, but it did feature a large circular window with a clockface on the outside of it.

We’re in a clocktower, I realized.

We went to the circular window and looked out. Below us was the small town that the System had built. It was made up of buildings only one to three stories tall, that were connected by dirt roads and winding side paths. People could also be seen walking and going from place to place.

“There must be hundreds of people down there,” I muttered.

It was a relief to know that more of humanity had survived the System’s takeover, even if I didn’t really trust any of them.

Surveying the area, it seemed like the clocktower was located in the town square. A square which also had the two elevators. One silver and one gold. I guess people won’t have to search to find one of them anymore.

“It must select a silver elevator at random. I guess we got lucky by getting one in the town,” I said. “There’s likely more of them out in the forest.”

We decided to check out the rest of the clocktower before leaving. Up the stairs led to a large bell surrounded by four pillars and the open air. Going down revealed nothing except for a key that was on a hook next to the front door. I picked it up and got a new message.

*Item Acquired* [Clocktower Key (Unique)] – You are the first to have entered the clocktower and have taken the key to claim it as your own. This is now your second residence, and additional elevator privileges have been granted to you.

Why would I need a clocktower when I’ve got a perfectly good apartment? Although I guess having my own private elevator in town was kind of nice. It made me feel like a big shot, and that unique classification was an interesting new find too. I guess it means that this key is the only one of its kind. I stored the key in my inventory and then addressed Hugo.

“Alright, it’s time to hit the town. Stay close to me and no harvesting the dead,” I warned him.

“I can’t anyway,” he complained. “Two souls are the most that I can hold until I level up more.”

“Keep the two you do have contained. This is a safe zone, so there’s no need to flaunt them about.”

I stepped out into the town square before realizing that I since I was now the owner of the clocktower that I should lock the door. I hastily brought the key out and did just that.

“Interesting. How much does that one cost?” asked a man behind me.

I turned to see a short man wearing a brown cloak and leathers. He looked like he’d stepped out of a fantasy novel as some kind of ranger. His boots gave him away though, unless the System had started giving people Timberlands. The man’s dark eyes looked me up and down. He was assessing me, analyzing perhaps to see if I was a threat. He moved slightly, which made me notice that he had some kind of crossbow strapped to his back.

“I don’t know what you mean,” I replied before walking away. I had to be more cautious about who I trusted now that I was a cardholder.

The man made no move to stop me and just continued staring.

Well that’s annoying. Five minutes in and somebody already knows that I have the clocktower. Though considering it’s in the center of town with only one door, other people were bound to notice eventually. Is that why the System gave it to me? To paint a bigger target on my back? Now I’m not just a cardholder, but a clocktower owner. I wonder what he meant by payment? He couldn’t be suggesting that I’d bought the thing with one day’s worth of currency. Even if you killed monsters for the last twenty-four hours nonstop, I’d have to think the System would charge more.

After moving away from the man, Hugo and I took in the town square first. Other than the two elevators, there was a large notice board with several blank pieces of paper stuck to it, and finally, the floor’s payphone. I went over to the payphone first, pulled a coin out of my inventory, and put it in. The coin was rejected and slid down into the change dispenser. I sighed. I can’t say that I’m surprised. It figures that it wouldn’t be that easy.

I checked out the board next. The notice board with the blank paper seemed odd. I moved to grab one to see if there was something on the other side when I got hit with messages.

[Welcome to the town’s noticeboard. Here you will find several quests that are open to all residents. This can be especially useful if you find yourself struggling to level up.]

*DING!* [Quest Selection Available] – Select as many or as few as you like. Quests that you choose not to accept will still be here should you change your mind. The ones you do accept may also be taken by others, so competition should be expected.

*Quest Available* [To Bed, Bath, and Beyond] - Find a place to stay in town like a civilized person instead of living in the woods like an animal.

*Quest Available* [Daily repetitive grunt work] – Kill ten of the same animal within 24 hours in order to grind for experience points.

*Quest Available* [The Rose, The Thorn, and The Root] - Discover the identity of the town founder and unlock their secrets.

I agreed to take all three quests.

*DING!* Quest Completed – Congratulations! You attained a residence in record time and have received a Common Loot Box.

*DING!* Quest Completed – Congratulations! You killed more than ten of the same creature in under an hour. Have a Common Loot Box.

Huh, that was easy. I told Hugo to accept the quests as well, and he got the same reward that I did. It seemed like mostly starter quests except for that last one. The System hadn’t mentioned a town founder and if we’re meant to find out who it is, then they’re likely hiding their identity. I guess we start by talking to more people about who was here at the beginning. But first we should explore.

Across the square lay taverns, inns, restaurants, and a line of stores. The architecture was a mishmash of old-fashioned western European styles. Some of the places even had a patio area with tables and chairs that had people sat outside. They were eating, drinking, and laughing like they were on vacation. It unnerved me. Seeing people treating this like some kind of game.

We avoided the restaurants and taverns. Further along were the stores that sold specialty items. As soon as I saw the wooden sign with a needle and thread hanging over a store, I made a beeline for it.

Inside the store were mannequins that wore fine robes and tunics that shimmered. I ignored them and focused on the man stood behind the counter. He looked close to retirement age with his large grey beard and was easily the oldest person I’d encountered in the tower thus far. He had a deep tan and wore a suit that looked like something from the 1940s with a measuring tape hanging around his neck.

“Hello,” he called out, greeting us warmly. “Welcome to my humble shop. My name is Andreas. Please let me know what I can do to meet your sartorial needs.”

I squinted at him and his overly friendly demeanor. “Who are you?”

“I’m Andreas,” he said, as if that explained everything. His smile never wavered.

“How long have you been here?”

“I came here this morning once the town had been built.”

I frowned. “Came here from…?”

His eyes lit up. “Ah yes, I see your confusion. No, I’m not a player like yourself, though I will be residing in the tower for the time being. I come from another world and had my consciousness implanted in a human body so that I could come here.”

My frown deepened.

“A body that was custom made for me in a lab, I assure you,” he quickly added. “I did not steal this one from a previous occupant of your planet.”

Somehow that sounded more ridiculous that just bodysnatching.

“And so you just decided that while my planet was going through the apocalypse that you’d come and what, hang out?”

“No no. I became a tower merchant to earn for my family and appreciate what life was like for humanity before the System came.” He let out a happy sigh. “I have to say, it doesn’t disappoint. I’ve already had several customers that have all walked away happy and once I’m done helping you, I get to go into the back to manage this store's inventory,” he said excitedly, like he was sharing a secret with me.

“Yes, working retail was something of a dream job back in the old days of 48 hours ago,” I drily replied.

Andreas nodded emphatically before approaching me with his tape measure in his hands. “I’m very glad you came to me, because you are, how you say? ‘Looking like a bum.’”

Hugo tittered before covering his beak with a wing.

“You might want to update your local lingo,” I said. “But yes, I could use better clothes. Preferably indestructible if you have it in stock.”

Andreas chuckled amiably. “Sadly, nothing is truly indestructible. But I might have a few ideas if you tell me a little about your fighting style and class. I notice that cloak of yours is very fine, at least. Did you get it from a loot box?”

“No, I won it in a challenge room. Why? Can loot boxes offer items like this?”

“Yes, of course. It spits out an option at random, but sometimes it draws from a pool of options that are weighted towards what you need. Sometimes it gives you garbage and sometimes it gives you the perfect item.”

“So you’re saying if I get a loot box, it’s probably worth opening right away?”

Andreas nodded. “That’s right, unless you're fighting, of course. Why? Do you have an unopened one in your inventory?”

Hugo and I looked at each other. “We both have four of them. Is that a lot?” I asked, and Andreas’s eyes widened.