of running the game world, it didn’t have to say anything.
Anyway, he had a wolf to kill. He took two running steps, feinted right, and switched his sword to his left hand and slashed. This strike connected, the wolf yelped again, and a big chunk came off its health bar.
More satisfying, several achievements flashed up on the screen.
MOVIE-STYLE SWORDFIGHTING, LEVEL 1
AMBIDEXTROUS, LEVEL 1
CHUTZPAH, LEVEL 1
“What the heck is chutzpah?” Justin asked the AI. It didn’t answer, and he devoted his attention to the animal again. It had become desperate and crouched like it intended to spring and bite him again.
He knew he couldn’t let that happen. Before it could act, he charged it with a battle cry and dropped onto his stomach as the wolf launched itself into the air. It wasn’t a total success, given that the creature’s back feet caught him in the head, but he avoided the bite.
He also got Clumsy, Level Three.
“That one was on purpose,” he told the AI. “You take that level back.”
It did not.
His adversary might have thought it was snarling quietly as it snuck up on him, but Justin heard it. He turned and swung the blade forcefully and although he lost two points to fatigue—fair, he supposed—the wolf fell. It disappeared and left three copper coins and a scrap of fur, all of which disappeared into his inventory almost instantly.
“Excellent,” Justin said. “Hey, AI? I don’t suppose you have any more quests.”
“There are no more quests at this time,” the AI said.
“So…what am I supposed to do next?” he asked it.
Not unexpectedly, no answer was forthcoming.
“Great,” he muttered. He looked around and thought he spied movement in the distance. A windmill, maybe? Something that looked like civilization, anyway. Keeping a careful lookout for more wolves, he made his way through the grass until he found a road—another good sign—and headed alongside the river and toward the town.
Chapter Twelve
The village wasn’t exactly close, and unlike most video games, Justin’s character didn’t automatically run everywhere. On the road, however, there were no more wolves, so he found he was happy to walk and use the time to study the scenery.
He couldn’t quite get a handle on it. That was one of the things he noticed first. Sometimes, the textures didn’t seem to load and then they loaded all at once. At other times, he could swear the shape of things changed. He noticed groups of trees that he was sure shouldn’t go together, but when he looked back, they were suddenly all the correct types.
In all honesty, he didn’t know what to make of that.
One thing that was like other video games was that time seemed to go faster in the game world than in the real world. The sun had barely begun to set as Justin reached the signpost at the edge of the village that read RIVERBEND.
“New zone discovered,” the AI told him. “Riverbend is a small village on the western edge of the Golian Plains.”
“Thank you,” he replied.
“You’re welcome,” it told him promptly.
He stopped and squinted into the air, trying to sense whether there was some kind of trick in the AI’s politeness, but there didn’t seem to be.
The village, as it turned out, was amazing. It was realistic with broken cobblestones and dirt between them and houses of plaster and thatch, and it was also incredibly beautiful. The whole picture was as if someone had told him to imagine the most beautiful, cozy, picture-perfect English village he could. Some things were unfamiliar—instead of crosses, for instance, he saw elaborate windchimes hanging from the corners of the buildings.
All of it was soothing, however. Flowers climbed the walls of the cottages and roses bloomed in the hedgerows. He could hear chickens, cows, and dogs and once, he saw a cat streak across his path. Swallows darted through the air as night fell.
And the people were nothing like those in any game he’d ever seen. Some poured slops, weeded gardens, and lit lanterns. A few nodded as he went past and others looked at his sword, which resulted in an awkward few moments during which he tried to determine how to sheathe it. They called greetings to one another and the banter between them was comfortable and familiar as if the community was close-knit. He’d never seen a game so detailed.
Justin was content to wander and look around and finally saw the tavern. A wooden sign creaked faintly, a large flagon of beer emblazoned on it in black paint. He smiled as