Celest warmed herself by the central hearth of her home, grilling deer meat for tortillas over the open flames. When she and Grimmblade had designed their house, they had opted for an open floor plan with the fire in the middle. It served as both the kitchen and the heater for their sleeping area. It kept her warm, which was what mattered, that, and the fact that she was now skill-grinding. Constantly. It was really all she could do when she was alone for most of the day.

  She pulled the meat and tortillas from the heat and sprinkled them with a bit of "lbs cake dust" she had acquired from Noobkitty’s shop. While it made the savory wraps oddly sweet, it also made the food feel much more filling.

  Congratulations! Your [Basic Cooking] skill has reached Lv. 19.

  In retrospect, she wished she’d spent more time cooking with Noobkitty back at the shop. But someone "normal" had to run the counter back then. Knowing that chaotic ball of fluff, Celest figured there was probably a raccoon watching the register by now.

  She sighed, looking down at her meal. She wasn't actually hungry anymore, so she tucked the burritos into her inventory to keep them warm. Stepping outside, she went to watch the NPCs go about their scripted lives.

  She had desperately wanted a café or a grocer, but they had to be sensible. They needed to prioritize buildings that would actually grow the town. More importantly, they needed to discover something up here, anything, to attract other players. She was starved for interaction.

  She approached one of the two miner NPCs, who was currently hauling a heavy load of iron ore toward the blacksmith.

  "A brisk evening we’re having, isn’t it?" she asked the dirt-stained man.

  "Hello! I work hard, but not as hard as the rock," the miner replied, mindlessly reciting one of his few lines of text.

  "I’m sure you do," Celest said with a sad smile. "Would you care to join me for some venison burritos? I have extra."

  "The missus would be upset if I ruined my appetite; she’s making a lovely pie," the program recited.

  Celest sighed. He didn't have a wife. He didn't even have a house yet. According to the building interface, Grimmblade needed nails, so the blacksmith took priority over residential housing.

  The town currently consisted of her and Grimmblade’s little cabin, the blacksmith shop, a mine shaft, and exactly three NPCs. That was it. Next on the list was a storehouse for ore and wood, then maybe a farm and a farmer. Then, finally, maybe a store.

  She pulled up the town-building interface. They had plenty of wood and some stone, like the slabs she had used for her hearth, and nail production was slowly ticking upward. The blacksmith’s shop was a constant ting-ting-ting of activity. She considered spawning another blacksmith NPC, but they were on a strict budget. She didn't want to risk being unable to afford something nice, like a café waitress, later just because she was impatient about nails now.

  "Coro?en?" she asked the empty air.

  "Yes?" the world replied.

  Her mood lifted instantly just at the sound of his voice. "Do you have any extra self-aware NPCs?" she asked hopefully. She would take any kind of company at this point.

  "Not humanoid ones. I’m actually running low on animals, too. How do you feel about a giant spider?"

  Celest shuddered, her skin crawling. "Um... how big?"

  "She stands about five feet tall."

  The hairs on the back of Celest’s neck stood up. "I'll pass for now."

  "Fair. I’m thinking of putting her in the forest near the Starter Town to see what happens," the world AI confided.

  "While I have you... what were all those world notifications today? Someone became a Druid, someone else a Mixologist, and a bunch of skills were unlocked. What’s going on down there?"

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  "Oh, there was a picnic with demons," Coro?en answered, providing absolutely no further context.

  "And are any players heading up this way yet?" she inquired, her voice hopeful.

  "Not yet. Players are currently getting very excited for the beach resort that’s about to be built."

  A flood of emotions hit her: jealousy, disappointment, and a deep, biting confusion. "What beach resort?"

  -----

  HelzBom watched as Aiden climbed like a feral raccoon up the massive stone golem’s back. He stabbed... and stabbed... and stabbed.

  She sighed. It was going to be a lesson day; she just wasn't sure which one yet. She casually tossed an explosive up and down in her hand as her two rogues tried to shank a moving rock. It was a good bomb, strong, with a pull-fuse and a handle featuring a quick-tie rope. If only she had a rogue who could stay in stealth long enough to attach it to a stone construct and pull the cord from a safe distance.

  "Aiden! We have to hit the same spot repeatedly to break the core!" Deadsilence screamed.

  "What core?!" their son yelled back.

  "These things always have a core of some kind, either in the head or the chest!" she replied. As the golem turned, putting both Skidmark and the shallow crack he’d made into her line of sight, Deadsilence loosed an arrow. It "tinked" off the golem’s back, taking only a few crumbs of stone with it.

  'Or... you know, tie an explosive to its neck, jump off, pull, and pop. Headless golem,' HelzBom thought. But what did she know? She was just the healer.

  The golem, feeling a nuisance behind it, stepped backward until it crashed against the cavern wall. Skidmark, who was too busy stabbing to notice the positioning, got pinned. He crashed to the ground after being crushed for massive damage.

  "Healz," HelzBom said, raising her staff a few inches and restoring her son’s lost HP.

  Aiden changed tactics. He dismissed his shoes into his inventory and, using his sharp nails, began to climb the wall like an awkward spider. Meanwhile, Deadsilence strafed, timing her shots to hit the exact same target spot every time.

  "Hey, fam!" HelzBom yelled to her wife and son, holding up her available bomb.

  "Not everything is solved with bombs! We got this!" Deadsilence shouted in her focused "gamer" tone.

  HelzBom shrugged. It suited them, she supposed, but it was surprising how often a bomb actually was the answer. Water bombs, fire bombs, glitter bombs, big ones, small ones, some the size of a human head. She smiled. She doubted she’d need one anytime soon, but she did have her signature weapon in her inventory: the Healz Bomb. Perfect for a party... or an undead uprising.

  She watched as Skidmark fell from the ceiling onto the golem’s head, then scampered down to his designated stone-chipping spot. HelzBom checked her inventory for cold fruit drinks. It felt like a smug moment to be sipping something chilled, but she only had a few left and didn't want to waste them before they were "needed." She pulled out an apple juice, donned a straw hat for flair, and sat in a relaxed pose while her family continued to chip away at the rock.

  Eventually, there was a loud crack. She lifted the brim of her hat to see a chunk of rock fall away, revealing that the golem's chest was solid stone.

  "Fluffing butt!" Deadsilence screamed. "It’s in the head!"

  Infuriated, Skidmark climbed to the golem’s head, reached the top, and activated his Stealth. He disappeared and, using game logic, snuck directly into the golem’s open mouth.

  There was an explosion of holy flame as Skidmark pulled himself back out, clutching a glowing, flaming scroll. Catching on fire himself, Skidmark leaped from the falling goliath and yelled, "Parkour!"

  He spun in the air and stuck a perfect superhero landing just as the golem crashed behind him. Deadsilence and HelzBom both clapped at their son’s antics. He grinned as the holy light from his mom’s healing spell engulfed him, putting out the flames.

  "Told you we had this," Deadsilence said, breathless.

  HelzBom put her bomb back into her inventory but kept the straw hat on. "Never doubted you. Good job, Aiden. Do that on a stream and you’re sure to get clicks." She handed him an apple juice and then passed one to Deadsilence. They deserved it, even if a bomb would have made it a lot faster.

  "What’s on the scroll?" Deadsilence asked, sipping her juice gratefully.

  Skidmark unrolled the parchment. A soft light emitted from it, revealing two names. "It says... Mr. and Mrs. Magicname."

  ----

  Grizzlebeard was in his kitchen, prepared to start the day. His NPC barmaid brought in a stack of handwritten orders. "Here you are, boss."

  "Ey, thanks lass," he said. He watched her go, hips swishing, skirts flowing, and he shook his head. All body and no brain; such a waste. Still, help was help, and eye candy was eye candy.

  He looked at the order: triple portions of bacon, eggs, and toast. Simple and hearty, he approved. He pulled up his market screen to order some "Farm Fresh Bacon," but the entry was greyed out with a notification: [Out of Stock]. He scrolled down. No beef, no steak, no ham, not even chicken.

  "Oy! Coro?en! Where’s my bacon?!"

  "The farm is under new management," Coro?en stated plainly. "No bacon, or any meat, is being sourced from the farm." He considered. "Is it the cat?!" Grizzlebeard barked.

  "No, it’s HnyThsl the Druid," Coro?en clarified.

  Grizzlebeard looked closer and noticed he could still buy milk and eggs, so it definitely couldn't be Noobkitty’s doing. "What am I supposed to feed my customers, then?"

  "Don't worry, I took that into consideration," said Coro?en.

  The pages of Grizzlebeard’s interface flipped to a new market menu: [Hunted Meats]. Grizzlebeard scrolled through. There was no beef or lamb, but there was wild boar meat and boar bacon. He saw venison, giant iguana, dire tapir, and plenty of bear meat. He nodded; this could work.

  He stroked his beard thoughtfully. "This looks like a lot of unique ingredients, Coro?en. Lots of experimenting will need to be done. Will I be getting bonus experience for the trouble?"

  There was a brief pause, and a new notification pinged in front of the dwarf.

  Congratulations! You’ve unlocked [Wild Game Cooking]!

  Grizzlebeard nodded with a grin. This would work he’d out-level that cat in no time.