Chapter 43

  Eve hesitated before typing the next sentence.

  “I was thinking about recording our quests from now on.”

  Ben looked back at Eve in surprise.

  “Recording?”

  Eve nodded.

  “Mhm. Just like the streamers and Youtubers. I have done a ton of research and I think videos of you fighting can become really popular, especially since your primary goal is to be a first achiever. I can record your fights and turn them into guides online. Given how big Eternity is, I think we could make a lot of money that way. Money you could use to purchase better items, upgrade your gear, etc.”

  Ben took a moment to process Eve’s idea. That hadn’t even crossed his mind. A small frown crept across his brow.

  “You know I’m trying to lay low, Eve,” Ben said.

  Eve typed rapidly, as if she had already predicted his response.

  “I know, that’s why I would do it as safely as possible. I would only ever ask your permission before recording. And we would both always wear our masks and hide our names, just like when we fought the Eagle players. No one would know who we are. We wouldn’t even have to speak. I can edit the videos to either have text or an artificial voiceover. I can even block our faces and voices completely.”

  Ben went wide eyed at the idea. Eve continued typing.

  “If we have even a little success, you can even make real money. I don’t know the details about your life, but I think everyone can use a little extra cash.”

  Ben’s eyes wandered as he considered the possibilities.

  “True,” he thought.

  “Just how much are we talking about?” he asked.

  Eve tapped a finger against her chin in thought before responding.

  “I am not sure. There is a chance that we could make nothing, but I think it’s worth a try, at least for the extra in-game currency that we could potentially generate from posting videos in the in-game forum. If we did make actual money, do you know what you would do with it?”

  Several ideas flashed in Ben’s mind.

  “Yeah, I can think of a few things,” he said.

  “Then it’s settled. I’ll start by recording your fight with the final dungeon boss,” Eve typed excitedly.

  Ben went wide eyed.

  “Wait, hold on, I didn’t actually agree to this.”

  Eve bowed her head and typed sheepishly.

  “Oh, sorry.”

  Ben took a long moment to consider the pros and cons. Getting extra in-game currency would help a lot toward his goal, but doing it by recording, or even streaming, might cause more problems. It could paint a big target on his back. Smart players might be able to figure out who he was and target him.

  Eve waited with baited breath. He picked up on her anticipation and glanced back at her.

  “This is important to her,” he thought.

  Ben tackled the situation with that context in mind.

  “If we are to do this, I need certain guarantees.”

  Eve’s posture straightened.

  “Name them.”

  Ben nodded.

  “You need to make sure that we are completely anonymous. Use every technique you can think of. Hide our faces, hide our voices, names, everything. No one can know who we are yet. It’s bad enough that we got on the wrong side of the Eagle guild, but at least we were both wearing masks. If this goes the way I hope, then we will be putting out a lot of videos showing first boss kills. Smart players will be able to track us down based on the videos, or worse, hunt us down. Even if we are extremely strong right now, conflict with guilds will be counterproductive and would undercut any benefit we get from the videos.”

  Eve narrowed her eyes with determination before replying.

  “You can count on me.”

  Ben smiled.

  “I’m sure I can. If you can make sure we are anonymous, then I suppose there isn’t much risk. We’ll split any income 50/50.”

  Eve frowned.

  “I don’t need any money. I’ll just send everything to you,” Eve texted.

  Ben matched her frown.

  “Absolutely not. We are partners,” Ben said.

  Ben tried to sound firm, but when he looked back at her, he saw the frustrated pout on Eve’s lips. She typed frantically.

  “I’m not your partner, I’m a helpmeet. There is a big difference.”

  Ben was thrown off by the fervor in which Eve typed that sentence. She seemed genuinely offended by the notion of her being his partner. Ben raised a hand defensively.

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  “Woah, I didn’t mean any offense by that. I just wanted to make sure you are compensated for your work. I consider you a valuable partner.”

  Eve hesitated before responding.

  “You know my goal is to be a better Christian by behaving like a helpmeet, because that is what is biblically prescribed to women. Helpmeet. That term is important. Where is the word partner mentioned in the Bible?”

  Ben’s eyes wandered in thought.

  “Well it depends on the translation I guess. When any word like partner is used in the Bible, it is used to refer to something like business partners, or a church fellowship,” Ben said.

  Eve responded almost immediately.

  “Is it ever used to refer to the relationship between husband and wife?”

  Ben paused to think.

  “No.”

  Another message appeared.

  “Exactly. The word helpmeet matters. It’s a role specifically given for wives, for marriage. The use of partner to describe relationships is a modern idea that is really used as a subtle way to attack biblical gender roles. Words matter.”

  Ben was astonished by Eve’s conclusion.

  “She is really leaning into this helpmeet role,” Ben thought.

  Ben scratched his chin.

  “Alright, alright. Helpmeet then. But my point stands. You should receive compensation for your work. If it helps, then we’ll just reduce the amount to make sure this doesn’t look like a business relationship. How about a 70/30 split?”

  Eve frowned.

  “I don’t want anything.”

  Ben huffed.

  “That sounds more like slavery than anything,” Ben said.

  Eve went wide eyed at the suggestion.

  “No, that’s not what I am trying to say. Just… Um…”

  Her typing slowed, then stopped.

  Eve’s fingers trembled as she struggled with her response. Ben patiently waited. He idly surveyed his surroundings while Eve typed.

  The path toward the boss spire was still far off in the distance. Most of the orcs in the dungeon had been cleared. Any stragglers were quickly dispatched by the procession of angels that followed.

  The White Mage angel continuously cast haste on the party. That haste spell enhanced Ben, Eve, his angels, and White Fang, which notably increased their travel speed.

  Ben’s angels were barely able to keep up with White Fang. The only reason they were not left behind was because White Fang kept a pace that allowed Eve and Ben to continue their conversation comfortably. Even so, White Fang traveled at least three times as fast as Ben could on his own.

  The boss spire drew closer.

  A notification appeared. Eve had finally finished typing.

  “I am trying to follow the way things were done traditionally, before modern life changed everything. Families usually had only one main income. The husband worked, and the wife focused on the home and the children. The apostles encouraged this kind of focus. You know how much Eastern Orthodoxy focuses on the teachings of the apostles.

  Women did some work. They traded and produced goods, but it was always meant to support the household, not to build a professional career. That is what Proverbs 31 shows too. Some liberal Christian feminists use it to justify women pursuing careers for their own ambition, but that is not what it is about. The passage is about a wife doing extra for her family, serving God and those in her care. The apostles emphasized service and faith over personal gain.

  My mother is a career woman. That is how she met my father. She raised me to study hard and aim for a good job, mostly for security and independence. That was not necessarily wrong, but it was not about serving God. That is the danger I am trying to avoid.

  Most of my friends follow the same path—school and jobs for themselves. I chose a different one. I paused college to focus on home duties. I cook all the meals, do the laundry, manage the household. I want everything I do to be for God and my family, like the traditional women of old. That is the kind of helpmeet I want to be.”

  Ben took a while to take it all in. Eve waited with baited breath while Ben processed her words.

  “Wow,” Ben said.

  “I hope that clears things up and doesn’t sound too strange,” Eve typed.

  Ben’s eyes wandered.

  “Actually, not as much as you think. That is exactly the relationship my mom has with my dad. They both came from traditional families. My mom never went to college. Once she graduated from high school, she focused on helping my grandma with the home life until my dad proposed to her. They met at church. My mom makes some money, mostly baking and selling her cooking at the local farmer’s market. Any money she makes she gives to my dad, and she receives a simple allowance to handle things like buying groceries, hygiene products, and other necessities. If she needs anything extra, like birthday gifts or other big purchases, she always asks my dad for permission.”

  Ben paused.

  “Given that, the concept of a traditional helpmeet isn’t foreign to me. I’m just surprised to be hearing something like that from a woman as young as you seem to be. You mentioned you were attending university until you dropped out? And you can cook? That’s more than a lot of young women can say.”

  In his mind, Ben couldn’t help comparing Eve to Sarah. It wasn’t something he consciously did. Given that Eve had a lot of things about her that reminded him of his past wife, he kept a running calculation in the back of his mind about their differences.

  Two notable things stood out. Eve’s player dropped out of college to be a homemaker. Sarah would never.

  Eve’s player knew how to cook, so much so that she handled all the meals for her family. Sarah could hardly boil an egg. More details that put Eve in the category of “not Sarah.”

  And another more unsettling category. Better than Sarah.

  Ben had to actively quell that kind of thinking. Eve was an avatar, not a real person. It wasn’t fair to compare Sarah to a someone he didn’t actually know.

  Some things just couldn’t be helped.

  Eve paled.

  “Did I reveal too much?” she thought.

  She fidgeted, but ultimately nodded.

  “Yes, most of the younger girls at my church are pretty modern, but I have been spending more time with the older women. That is where I learned how to be more traditional. I think I would like your mom a lot,” Eve typed.

  Ben nodded in understanding. A fond smile formed across his lips.

  “I think you would too. I don’t know anyone that dislikes my mom. She’s an angel.”

  Ben spoke the last sentence with a hint of sadness in his voice. The memory of finding his mother dead in his past life resurfaced. Eve picked up on Ben’s soured mood and quickly changed the subject.

  “So now that you know a little more about me, I hope our arrangement makes sense. I do not want compensation. I do not want to work for money. I want to work only because it serves you,” Eve typed.

  Ben considered Eve’s proposal for a long while.

  “How about this, Eve. 85/15. And before you protest, consider this. Even my mom gets an allowance. If you really don’t feel comfortable having extra money, then just donate it to the church. My mom uses part of her allowance to tithe. You could too,” Ben said.

  Eve nibbled on her bottom lip in thought.

  “90/10,” she typed.

  Ben huffed in mild annoyance and looked back at her.

  “Eve, you said you wanted to be a helpmeet, right? Well, that starts right now by doing what I say.”

  Eve went wide-eyed and immediately bowed her head. She rested her forehead against Ben’s back.

  “Okay.”

  “Good girl.”

  Ben felt Eve’s grip around his waist tighten. He glanced back at her but could not see her expression, the subtle, satisfied smile across her lips. He did not need to. Her submission was obvious.

  It was still such an odd feeling. He had never had someone act so obedient toward him. Not his little sister, not even his own guild from his past life.

  It was unsettling.

  He couldn’t help questioning himself. Did he really need to be so assertive over a five percent difference?

  Then there was the way he had spoken to her. Calling her a good girl.

  It was strangely satisfying. The power he held over her was intoxicating, dangerous. Something his younger self would not have recognized. As a regressor, reincarnated into his younger body, he was hyper aware of his own behavior.

  Ben looked toward the approaching boss spire, lost in thought. Eve’s possessive hold on him complicated everything.

  The boss spire loomed, but the greater threat was the temptation inherent in Eve’s complete obedience, which quietly tested his self-control.