Complete Eastern Brisshal To me, loyal companion!

[Lily]

"Should be… around here..?"

The girl wandered and wandered around the forest of Eastern Brisshal. She was still wearing mostly her starting gear, but she had managed to acquire a basic sword to use as a weapon instead of just her fists, in case something got in the way. Normally she would have already progressed more, but she wasn't playing a game alone this time around.

When she realized that this game was everything it had promised to be, she stopped playing immediately. She ended her first session for the sole purpose of informing her classmate, May, and getting her to install the strange client as well. Just like she expected, she succeeded with ease and was now diving in for the second time, wondering around the place where she had spawned in herself.

May might not have been completely hopeless by herself, but the girl still wanted to make sure her companion would land safely. Once that would be accomplished, a grand adventure awaited them! Or so Charlotte figured. It would probably still take her some time to figure everything out, but she was confident in herself. And with that thought, she finally spotted it - the falling star in the skies! That must have been her friend, right?

@Delice Sergia

 

[Delice Sergia]

Being tracked down one day whilst she'd been in the library, studying for an exam, and instructed to download and install some kind of weird game client hadn't exactly been May's idea of what she had wanted to do for the day. Though really, she hadn't had a choice, her classmate had been very insistent on the fact that she give whatever game this was a try and hadn't been prepared to take no for an answer. Though it wasn't like May really ever said no to anything, considering just how rare it was, or had been anyway, for somebody to actually reach out to her and want to do something.

Though Ellie had been a little nicer, recently...

Still, when she'd loaded up the game, she'd been pretty shocked to find such a robust and extensive character creator. She'd spent quite a lot of time making her character, Delice. She'd even ended up picking the smaller race, Fae-something, since she'd been able to empathize with the idea of being smaller and more slight than everybody else around her. Even if she was decently athletic in the real world, it hadn't stopped the bullying at all.

But now she was here, in the world, a brief sight of a dense forest from the sky, before she fell, like a comet. She opened her eyes, looking around nervously, half expecting to be attacked at any minute. When she wasn't, she then looked around for something, or someone, else.

E-Ellie?

@Charlotte Ann Marie

 

[Lily]

Vulpine ears rising and standing at the ready, Delice's words found their way to their intended target. It wasn't a voice the girl recognized, but there was only one person who would know that name and call it out as they spawned it. A sly smile spread across Charlotte's face as she followed the quivering voice, quickly moving through some bushes to find herself in a small clearing with a petite girl in front of her.

"Oh? Ooh— May~!"

There was no need for her to ask whether the girl really was May or not. It was obvious, just from the body language. Chuckling, the white fox would walk over and start looking at the newly created avatar from various angles. It certainly wasn't what she expected from someone so timid. It was almost provocative!

"Hee, so you like this kind of body, do you?"

And here Charlotte thought that she made her own character small, the one in front of her was tiny! She reached out with her hands, cupping the other girl's chin as she continued examining her.

@Delice Sergia

 

[Delice Sergia]

Hearing somebody's voice, May, or Delice as she was in this form, turned around, her hands raised almost as if to protect herself, before she realized that the person had called her by her real name. That meant it could only be Ellie, so she didn't have to have her guard raised. Probably. She lowered her arms and sighed in relief, though she blushed as the fox girl began to walk over to her and around her, viewing her new body from various angles, as if she were inspecting it for something.

I-I um, I thought that this kind of body would be...really pretty. I um, I didn't think, I mean, the armor is a bit...

She tugged at the skintight undersuit of her armor, blushing crimson as she did, before one of Ellie's hands snatched her chin, cupping it as she continued to examine her. The faerin remained stock still, like a deer in the headlights, blushing madly as red eyes widened.

@Charlotte Ann Marie

 

[Lily]

Seeing May lose herself to the embarrassment was very much amusing, making Ellie giggle. She had already seen plenty and let go of her friend, taking a step back and crossing her arms across her chest with a satisfied nod.

"You're keeping the armor, right~?"

The other girl was probably already well acquainted with that tone. One that strongly suggested that May was expected to answer positively, even if she didn't want to.

"I'm really happy, though! You made a character that fits my tastes really well, hehe."

That said, the praise, if one could even call it that, was genuine. May really did very much like the outcome of her friend's creative process. And even if things didn't end up like this on purpose, she still very much appreciated it.

"Ah, right. Let's try to use the names we chose for our characters. So from now on, I'm Charlotte Ann Marie!"

Filled with enthusiasm, Charlotte opened up her UI and activated the investigation mode, observing the girl in front of her and seeing how the displayed name would be filled in once it was revealed.

"I will have to teach you all the basics, hm? If you do your best and stay a good girl, I'll reward you afterward as well~!"

@Delice Sergia

 

[Delice Sergia]

She did, indeed, pick up on Ellie's tone, knowing that her classmate had made the decision for her. She was keeping this armor design, it seemed, no matter what she actually wanted. Would she ever get used to wearing a few pieces of armor over what was essentially a latex body suit? Because it was way too embarrassing. Still, she blushed and nodded obediently.

Y-Yes Ellie, I'll keep the armor...

It would be hard fighting her urge to bundle up and make sure that there wasn't even a speck of skin visible and that her clothes were so baggy that nobody would be able to know what her build was, but that wasn't going to happen. After all, Ellie had made the choice for her and she wasn't about to argue with her classmate, or even decline anything.

Though hearing that Ellie liked her character design, before Ellie had introduced herself as Charlotte, made May blush and look down at her feet, awkwardly shuffling until the introduction.

U-Umm, my name in game is, uh, Delice. Delice Sergia...

Hopefully Charlotte wasn't aware of the meaning behind that. She wasn't aware that Charlotte had just activated the investigation mode. She didn't even know what that was. The offer to teach her was nice, though, even if the offer of a reward made her nervous. What did Ellie, or Charlotte, really consider to be a reward?

I-I'll do my best to learn, t-though I don't think I'll be very good in a fight. The options I selected are...well...not very combat applicable...

@Charlotte Ann Marie

 

[Lily]

Ellie was happy that May accepted the proposal and went along with it. That armor really did suit her new body, wonderfully showcasing her petite form. It was almost the exact opposite of the girl's body outside of the game. And, in all honesty, the possibility of enjoying both of those forms excited the soon-to-be captain. For now, however, she wanted to be responsible and make sure her friend would not be in harm's way because she didn't even know how to play this game.

"Delice… sounds nice! Ah, actually… when we're alone, call me Lottie~"

This time, it was not a disguised order, even if it sounded like one. It was simply something that made Charlotte feel like the two girls really were close. She liked to think they were, but she was also fully aware that the other girl might not feel the same way. Perhaps that would change over time, if it really were the case.

"Fighting stuff is usually the core of MMOs, but this one seems to not follow the norm. But if you're not good at fighting, you might be good at support. In which case, I will be in your care~"

She showed a toothy grin, turning around and looking up at the skies, barely visible through the tree crowns. The best course of action would probably be to leave the forest and teach Delice everything along the way.

@Delice Sergia

 

[Delice Sergia]

Delice blushed at that. Such an affectionate and close sounding nickname, was it really okay? It would be easier to get used to, since it sounded a bit like 'Ellie' but for the girl's new in-game name. The faerin girl blushed and glanced at the floor, not quite knowing where Charlotte's mind was going and in what direction the girl's thoughts were turning. Either way, though it wasn't intended to be an order, Delice couldn't help but treat it as such. That was just the kind of person she was.

O-Okay Lottie, I-I'll try to keep that in mind for the future and stuff...

And she'd remember to only call the girl Lottie when they were alone. She didn't want to know if it'd make her classmate mad, if she happened to let that nickname slip when they were in the company of somebody else. God forbid it was whilst they were in the company of somebody that Ellie respected or wanted to respect her.

As for fighting stuff, she frowned slightly at the thought. She'd never once thrown a punch in her life, so she wasn't exactly confident in her ability to fight. It was more likely she'd just curl up and allow mobs to kill her.

I'll try my best to support! I um, I can do things like Alchemy and tame beasts, so maybe those will be helpful? I-I can also cook...

@Charlotte Ann Marie

 

[Lily]

"Good, good~! I'm already looking forward to Delice's cooking!"

She half-joked before she gestured for the other girl to follow her. She roughly knew the nearest town's direction, so they shouldn't get lost too badly. And while they were moving, she'd be able to explain some things.

"Okay, so, hmm… I guess the first thing would be the menu. All you have to do is close your fist and then open it up again!"

As the white fox talked, she also gave a practical demonstration of performing that exact gesture, opening up her own menu.

"You've played some games before, right? You should find everything you need in there. Mm, should send you a friend request, so no one steals you away~!"

Another half-joke. But she did exactly as she said, quickly navigating the menu to find her list of friends and sending a new request. And a party invite, while she was at it. That way, things could go even smoother.

Notice

Charlotte Ann Marie has sent you a friendship request.

Party

Charlotte Ann Marie has invited you to join their party.

@Delice Sergia

 

[Delice Sergia]

Now that made her blush, though she was definitely glad. She enjoyed cooking in the real world, so knowing that it was possible to do the same even in this game had been a pretty comforting thing. In fact, there didn't seem to be a whole lot that couldn't be done in the game. She'd just picked the Mastery options that looked like they'd be the least useful in a fight. Alchemy was for brewing stuff and Beast Arts would just allow her to have pets, like a dog or a horse or something nice like that! Certainly nothing dangerous!

She followed after Charlotte when the girl gestured for her to follow, though, repeating the gesture that Charlotte had told her to open the menu. It was probably a good idea to learn how to do that, the menu was, after all, super important.

And whilst she had her menu open, a friend request had come through from Charlotte, as well as a party request. Delice quickly accepted both, watching as Charlotte's name and HP appeared in the corner of her vision, though it faded when she stopped focusing on it.

S-So, um, I'm guessing that you made your character to be really powerful and strong, r-right?

@Charlotte Ann Marie

 

[Lily]

Seeing the two requests be accepted in her UI made the girl smile as invisible digital bonds tied the two girls together. It also meant that she could bother her classmate whenever they were both online with ease, now that she could see Delice in her otherwise empty friends list! That said, Charlotte's smile quickly changed into outright laughter when she heard the other girl's comment, even having to stop for a moment as her body trembled from amusement.

"Pfffsshh, what the heck does that mean? Have you never played an MMO? All players get more or less an equal set of tools to grow strong. At least if the balance has been done correctly."

Once she ensured that the small fae was still by her side and ready to follow, they'd start walking again. Since they were already on the topic, Charlotte figured it was as good time as any to ask about masteries.

"So you decided to pick your masteries while creating the character, right? Alchemy and… I guess beast taming would be Beast Arts? Did'ya get a third one as well? I'm *pretty* sure they can all be changed later, but it would still be good to think about how they could all interact together and with the world."

@Delice Sergia

 

[Delice Sergia]

Delice blushed at Charlotte's laughter, correctly assuming that the girl was laughing at what she said. Apparently it was pretty dumb to assume that Charlotte was super strong already or something like that? She looked down at her feet, before figuring she could maybe salvage it and looking back up with Charlotte.

Well I just meant that, like, you're so good at these things and so smart that you probably picked a bunch of powers that will develop into something super strong and tough.

She had faith that Charlotte was going to do pretty incredible things in the game, if only because she'd never been able to see Ellie as anybody other than somebody that was totally dominant and in control of things. The faerin girl followed after Charlotte as they walked, before humming when she was asked about her masteries.

Oh um, I picked Mend as my third mastery. I figured something that would let me heal wounds, including my own, would be a really good option for me to take. E-Especially since I hate fighting and hurting things so much. I um, I just want to look after people. And beasts! I can look after the beasts I tame, with this.

@Charlotte Ann Marie

 

[Lily]

It was nice that Delice was trying to praise Charlotte, but the white-haired fox figured it would be best to hammer the point down as much as possible to ensure that the other girl did not have some strange delusions about the game and other players when encountering them. Or at least she assumed that the fae would keep playing even without her classmate guiding the way. She did still have her own life.

"As I said, all players should have access to a more or less the same potential. Sure, my masteries might have the potential to do something really cool, but yours should be capable of that as well. Just not… combat-cool, I guess."

Beast Arts alone were probably a great boon. Pet classes always had that… allure. The possibility of not playing alone even when there were no other players alone. A safety blanket of being protected by a loyal companion. Well, it seemed fitting for someone as delicate and timid as Delice. That said, Charlotte probably did not have to worry too much, given the reveal of the girl's last mastery.

"Mending… you really did go the support route, hmm? Well, that's okay! Though I might end up stealing you away whenever I'm about to do something dangerous~!"

@Delice Sergia

 

[Delice Sergia]

There currently wasn't exactly much reason that she'd found to play this game when Charlotte wasn't online, though of course she HAD only just created her character and still new basically nothing about playing the game. It was possible that the game would hook her, though it also wasn't guaranteed. Still. the thought of herself doing something cool made Delice shake her head, an embarrassed half smile on her face.

N-No, that's okay. I don't...really mind if I don't do anything cool, so long as I can do things that are helpful instead. I don't really need, o-or want, to be noticed when I'm helping out and stuff.

Though she nodded when Charlotte remarked that she had gone down the support route, gasping when Charlotte talked about doing dangerous things. Surely Ellie wasn't actually planning to do things that were dangerous, was she?

Actually, what did Ellie even plan to do?

S-So um, what even is the goal of this game? D-Don't they usually have goals, like rescuing a princess or collecting everything or something?

@Charlotte Ann Marie

 

[Lily]

Having her classmate start going on about not wanting to not be noticed got Charlotte a bit annoyed. Enough that she would pause, turn around, and march straight to Delice before grabbing her cheeks and pinching them while also stretching them to the side a bit.

"Gimme a break, this is why everyone bullies you. You're too easy!"

Well, the girl being so bulliable was the reason why they were in this situation right now, so Charlotte couldn't say that she wasn't happy about that fact. But still, only she should be able to bully Delice, so the girl had to stand up for herself when it came down to others! Not that she would ever say that out loud.

"Pretty sure even support can be cool if you come up with a real neat spell or something."

With that, she let go of Delice and resumed their march toward the nearest town, all the while thinking about what this game was actually about. The question made her realize that she wasn't entirely sure herself.

"Well, single-player games usually do have a story. MMOs can sometimes skip that step, though. I think this one has some kind of story, but I frankly haven't got a clue. Pretty sure everyone plays because you can do almost anything here anyway! It's like having a second life that's much more interesting than the one you got outside of the game."

@Delice Sergia

 

[Delice Sergia]

And suddenly her cheeks were in the grasp of the beastkin girl, stretching them to the side and pinching them. Delice yelped, tears beading in her eyes as Charlotte pulled and stretched out her cheeks, telling her that she was too easy or something like that.

I-I'm shorry! Pleashe let go!

She begged for Charlotte to let her go, only finding it mildly hypocritical that somebody who had bullied her was telling her that she needed to stand up for herself. It wasn't like she was going to say that kind of thing out loud, though. Never! There was no way that she could say such a thing.

Or that she could come up with a cool spell, considering that, as far as she knew, she didn't have any magic. There didn't seem to be anything inherently magical about Alchemy or Beast Arts, at least when it came to being able to cast spells.

The lack of a goal was worrying though. If there was no goal, then what was she supposed to do? She began to wear a distressed expression.

T-Then...if there isn't an actual goal, w-what am I supposed to do in here? I-I can't really think of anything I want to do...

@Charlotte Ann Marie

 

[Lily]

Well, Delice probably understood what Charlotte wanted. Though even if she did understand, she had a feeling that it wouldn't do much good. It wasn't possible to change someone's personality on a dime, and the other girl was just too shy sometimes. It got Charlotte thinking about how that could be changed, but not much came to mind as one could expect.

For now, the topic of what to do in the game was a bit more important. It got the girl scratching the back of her head as she considered a few things. Ultimately, what Delice should do was up to her. But as she said, she didn't seem to have any immediate goals, and it was Charlotte who pushed her into this whole mess.

"Do you really not have anything you'd want to do? I mean, you don't have the limits of the real world here. You could just run out there and do whatever, consequences be damned, if you really wanted."

While there were undoubtedly some things that could limit a person, this was still just a game. Sure, one that could potentially kill a person, but one could always stop playing before that happened. But as for something less lethal, the girl did end up making a bit of a joke.

"If you don't find anything, you could always just be my lil' pet~"

@Delice Sergia

 

[Delice Sergia]

It was definitely awkward, to be dragged into this whole thing with no real goal or idea in mind. She wasn't sure even Ellie had known what she wanted her to do when attempts to get her to join this game had finally been a success. So being asked about what she wanted to do really left her with a lot of doubts and confusion, especially when she was informed about the whole lack of consequences and things like that.

I uh, no, I can't really think of anything that I'd want to do. It's not like I want to fight things or anything and, well, a lot of this game's...things...seem like they're suited towards hurting.

And as a pacifist, Delice didn't like causing anybody to hurt if she could ever avoid it. It was better to be hurt than to hurt others. She believed that wholeheartedly.

The joke about being Charlotte's pet made Delice blush and squeak, hiding her face in her hands, her fingers parted just enough for her eyes to be visible.

W-What...would you want from a pet?

@Charlotte Ann Marie

 

[Lily]

Charlotte's smile remained even as she let out a brief sigh. While she was often teasing the other girl, just like right now, and even occasionally had a bit of a bully moment… her gaze grew much softer and kinder right now. Perhaps it was because she felt a bit disappointed in herself?

"That was just a joke, May. I'm… I don't really want to hurt you anymore."

There was a brief pause so the small fae would hopefully absorb what was just said. Delice already surely noticed that her bully was much less of a bully than in the past. With a few things happening in Ellie's life, she had a bit of a retrospective. And while she could not change herself immediately, she was working on it step by step.

"And, well, we are still in a game. Hurting is usually what happens, since the enemy is not real. But, hm… I do have things I want to try. You should still explore around for a bit by yourself, but if I find anything, I will let you know right away."

That way, they could possibly have something to do together in case Delice would have a hard time finding new friends in the game. Knowing how her real self was, it might have been more likely than anyone would have liked…

@Delice Sergia

 

[Delice Sergia]

Oh, Ellie had been joking. Of course Ellie had been joking. Ellie wasn't the kind of person to make those kinds of demans and requests anymore. Making her play this game had been the most forceful thing that anybody had done to her in weeks and months now. Delice felt her cheeks filling with heat, glowing red with embarrassment as the flushed.

Oh. Oh, um, of course you were joking. Right, that makes sense.

She chuckled weakly, her gaze cast down at her feet, before she sighed. There went a way that she could've been helpful. She'd gotten her hopes up that Charlotte wanter her around, but the suggestion that she should explore by herself just made it seem like Charlotte didn't want to actually spend any time here with her.

Well...I don't really...have anything I really want to do here, so I might just...log out until you need me.

She sighed, shuffling her small faerin feet in the dirt, looking and feeling lost.

@Charlotte Ann Marie