Ashes of the Fallen

[Congratulations! As a member of the first party to conquer the Northern Outcast Goblin Dungeon, you have been awarded a bonus of +50 Reputation!]

[Congratulations! Due to your participation in the Call to Arms, you have received bonus Experience and an extra bounty of +1000 Copper Coins!]

[In response to your exploits, you have also been granted the following Title: First Conqueror of the Goblin Outcasts. All following Titles will not contain the "First."]

Oh.

So, that's how it works.

"Hey man what was that for?" asked the guy standing directly behind me, as eager eyes all around stared and listened intently as to what I would say. I had half a mind to ignore them and walk off, not wanting the extra attention, but that wasn't really a nice thing to do. Ultimately, I gave in to their pleading eyes.

"Ah, I just finished the quest chain for Outing the Outcasts part five and Bringing down the Guard part five," I replied somewhat nonchalantly, trying to play it off as coolly as one could.

"Oh my god how did you clear it!" yelled a girl from somewhere.

"Dude, join my party we're on the third floor," another one chipped in.

"No man, join our party we just entered the fourth, you're a DPS right?" asked the same guy that was standing behind me. "We're a good group, we can clear it fast with you, would be easy farm with your experience and damage."

"Uh," I muttered while looking at all of the faces that were staring at me.

Getting a little nervous at all the attention I was receiving, I was trying to look for an opening to make my escape but the group seemed to sense my indecision and closed in around me. Squeezing me, a dozen different people started calling out to me, some yelling, some pushing, all of them trying to get my attention to join their group.

I didn't want anything to do with them.

"Sorry, but I'm done with the dungeon," I said somewhat apologetically. "I'm kind of tired of the grind, good luck with your runs everyone."

With a quick nod, I started to push my way through the crowd as most backed off dejectedly. A few didn't quit though, as they tried to convince me to help them out, with one cute elf attempting the flirtatious route of winning me over, to no avail. She was definitely cute, but if I was going to be swayed by physical appearances inside the game… well, Katherine would be the first to win that contest.

And, she didn't even win the first time around.

I chose Selene to have fun with… personality won out.

Cutting through a pathway that led behind some buildings, I disappeared into the back alleys and made my way to the clothing store. With my quests turned in, the only thing keeping me in this town were a few errands that needed to be taken care of before I could set out. There were some summer dresses that I meant to buy for the girls, and then there were the saddle bags I ordered from a leatherworker for the cattle. Three heifers and a bull meant I didn't have to personally lug around the couple of hundred swords that been accumulated.

Putting a work animal to work, hell yes!

No more manual labor for me!

Entering the clothing store that I was all too familiar with, the store clerk had moved back inside instead of posting up at the front with a table, but that's because it wasn't really necessary anymore. The store was packed with players looking around, browsing through the goods that littered the shelves and tables all throughout.

Business was good.

Booming, really, and the place had been reorganized a bit as well.

The cheaper goods that generated the most interest were at the front, visible by the door and intermixed with some of the more expensive items, while the goods that were more in the middle price ranges, were all spread in the back. Wearing a mask in the dungeon was now beyond a trendy thing, and most players bought one before entering. It was a suggested item on the forums now, too.

All in all, my hunch was right.

"Ah you're back Sigurd," said the store clerk with a smile while sitting behind the counter. "Welcome, welcome. What can I do ye for today?"

"Well, I'm heading back to the North today," I started to explain as I glanced around at the goods lying about. "So, I figured it was about time I picked out those summer dresses I mentioned  a while back, got any suggestions?"

"Hum, I think I have just the thing," he replied with a sheepish grin.

Waving at me to follow him, the clerk walked back towards his more expensive section of female clothing and brought me to a rack that featured some relatively fancy outfits. These weren't outfits that you would find in the dark ages… nor in the renaissance period… they were, modern.

Current age modern… the stuff people would wear now.

"Huh," I said, startled. "New fashion trend?"

"It's popular in the central kingdoms," he answered with a little puff of his chest, clearly proud of his updated selections. "After our last talk about popular clothing, I was able to get some new shipments in. What do you think? It's been a hit with the tourists!"