Well, that certainly was something. Gael thought to himself. 

He reminisced about how his battle with the slimes had led to his death. One memory stood out from the rest: Gael threw out a perfectly timed punch in an attempt to counter, but it seemed to have no effect on the slime whatsoever aside from making it angrier.

He attempted to recreate that same exact scene. 

So, I sidestepped the first blow, and threw out my punch like this…

His fist sliced through the air, seemingly weightless but full of force. What did he do wrong? 

It was vital to remember that Gael had practically no experience in regard to fighting. The moves he had employed were mere emulations of the various fighting game maneuvers he had ingrained into his mind. 

He thought he could at least imitate a weaker version of the ones he knew, and that those would be enough to handle the weaker opponents. 

Boy, was he wrong. Now that he recalled the movements in the games he played, he realized one fatal flaw in his calculations.

He was inexperienced. Just from memory, he could already pinpoint one, or two, mistakes in footwork. And that wasn't even mentioning the dreadful way he has thrown his jab. 

While he doubted the effectiveness of combat games' movements in real-life battles, he still wanted to see for himself. If he wanted to even try to replicate those flashy moves realistically, he needed to train himself. 

I'm not too keen on that right now, though. Maybe I should visit a town and join a party.

Gael wasn't sure if any party would accept someone like him, who didn't even know what role he wanted to fill.

Eh, I'll figure it out somehow. A town's a good place to start in any VRMMORPG, anyway.

Another problem arose from this notion, however. How would Gael find a town, or any settlement for that matter?

Without a map, compass, or interface, being nonexistent, Gael did not know where he was, or where he needed to go to find humans. 

The scenery wasn't of any help, either. The game had mysteriously decided to spawn Gael in a place without a clear view of the nearest town. It was only flat, empty plains with the occasional tree for miles around. 

You'd think there'd be a starter town near the spawn point, huh.

Without thinking too much of it, Gael chose a random direction and began walking. He followed nothing else but the gusts of wind that often picked up.

Time in Antoria flowed at the same rate as it did on Earth, but the amount of time that passed in the game was only half of what passed in the real world. Eight-hours in the game meant only four hours had gone by, and so on.

For that reason, Hylos urged players to explore the world around them without fear that they might spend too much time. 

Just then, Gael's nose began to pick up something pungent. He recognized it immediately; it was almost exactly like the liquid he had coughed up earlier. Blood.

Along with this, the clashing of steel. Someone was engaged in combat. Gael pushed forward, climbing the hill in front of him. 

Clang. Clang. It was unmistakable. A fight was occurring right in front of him. 

Peeking over the hilltop, Gael silently watched the battle below ensue. On one side, a party of three was surrounding a hulking beast. By the looks of it, they were an adventuring party. 

The party consisted of one female elven archer in the back, one halberd-wielding half-orc in the front, and one shield-bearer dwarf, who held a small hammer. A typical fantasy party–at least in terms of their race. All three of them were races commonly found in most fantasy games. 

On the other side stood a massive bipedal beast. Being twice the size of the half-orc, who was already pretty tall, it boasted a bloated stature and a massive figure. Muscles lined every single part of its body, and it wore nothing else besides a tightly woven loincloth. Its weapon was a crudely shaped wooden club, twice as long as the halberd the half-orc wielded. The beast's mouth had two large tusks protruding, much like a walrus'. 

That brief description was more than enough for Gael to recognize the beast as an orc. Much like slimes, they were common enemies. Still, they seemed rather terrifying in this game in particular.

I'm definitely not going to get myself involved in that. 

Gael wanted nothing to do with what was happening in front of him. All he wanted to do for now was to reach the closest city. 

If there were other adventurers here, then that meant civilization was close. Gael only needed to go on for a bit more, hopefully. 

And so, under the cover of the hill, Gael decided to sneak around the battle and continue onwards. He didn't need another death to teach him that he wasn't ready to enter combat.

It was still fairly early in the morning, so Gael could afford to go slower. He was starting to get both thirsty and hungry, but he hoped that he would find a way to take care of that once he reached a town.

After another half hour of walking, he had finally found it. 

In the distance, a quaint, small town could be seen. At first glance, it wasn't anything extraordinary. Rather, it seemed pretty disappointing due to how bleak it looked. Even so, it was a town, and that was what Gael needed right now.

It didn't even take ten minutes before he was already at the entrance to the town. 

It's fairly unguarded. I counted only three towers, and two of them were manned. 

The town seemed to have no protection from outside forces. The only thing preventing it from being swallowed by beasts was probably the modest amount of guards stationed in the area, doing patrols. 

"Halt, stranger."

Gael was stopped by one of the said guards. The man, looking very normal, stared at Gael for a solid minute. He seemed to be making a thinly veiled judgment. 

"What is your purpose here in Goldenleaf?" He finally asked. 

"I've simply come here to help me gain my footing. I've recently arrived here, you see. So I'm looking to do some work."

"Ah, another adventurer? We've had our fill of your kind, honestly. Go on in, but don't you dare cause any trouble. The Town Guard will be on your behind the moment you do."

Gael simply nodded. 

Was that an NPC, or someone really into roleplay? It never hit me to ask.

While Antoria Online boasted a player count of over sixteen billion, that didn't mean there weren't any non-playable characters present. There were bound to be jobs even the most dedicated of roleplayers found a pain to do. He just wasn't sure if being a guardsman was one of those.

Now then, onto work. 

The town split into two, divided by a single, beaten road. Goldenleaf, as it was called, seemed to be no larger than a village. 

Gael began strolling around. There wasn't much to see, but the complexities of human life were quite entertaining nonetheless. In every street and alley, there always seemed to be something going on, and he wondered if this truly was a game.

On one side, there was a worn-out pub that seemed to be populated by drunkards. From outside, he could hear the elated cheers of its patrons as they clinked their beer mugs together. 

Beside the pub, there was a modest smithy. From the looks of it, it was Goldenleaf's primary source of weapons and armor, and possibly where the Town Guard got their equipment. A rhythmic clang could be heard from the inside every few seconds, a sign that the master of the smithy was most likely in the middle of forging. 

Opposite the pub and the smithy, multiple rows of houses, all built from the same wooden material, lined the majority of the road. The line of monotonous housing continued on until it reached the end of the street, where the road seemed to widen into a circle. 

Looking further, Gael recognized what seemed to be Goldenleaf's town square. Judging from the many stalls that were set up around the perimeter, it might've been so. 

I don't have any money at the moment, so I don't think I'll find a use for the square. Might as well check out my two available options. 

Gael had two choices if he wanted to earn money–the pub and the smithy. He wasn't sure if the pub would accept him due to his lackluster knowledge of the smithy, but it would undoubtedly pay more than the pub. 

The pub, on the other hand, had no shortage of patrons. While the pay could be lower than what the smithy would offer, it would be a perfect place to obtain information. Here, as in most things, information was vital. 

Plus, Gael did want to try his hand at being a server. 

Pub it is, then. 

Ignoring the tipsy sensation he felt upon nearing the pub's entrance, Gael pushed the door open. 

The pub seemed to pay no heed to his entrance. Most of the customers continued drinking their hearts out, while the others were so deep in their storytelling that they didn't even notice him. 

Gael didn't want his arrival to sour the merry atmosphere. He simply nodded with a smile, urging the ones who noticed him to continue on with their drinking and pay him no heed. 

He weaved his way through the various tables and took a seat down at an empty barstool. The bartender noticed his arrival and approached him. 

"What'll it be, sir?" He asked as he wiped down a glass.

"Do you guys have an empty spot? I wanna earn some money."

The bartender raised an eye in confusion but then returned to a more neutral expression. "You'll have to ask Sera about that. I'm not authorized to handle applications."

"Uh, alright. Then, where's Sera?" 

"She's at the back, but I'll get her for you. Just sit tight. Is there anything else you need?"

Should I ask him, though…? Gael asked himself.

"Just one thing. Are you also a player?"

The bartender once again donned a confused expression. "You must be new here. We don't refer to your kind as "players." We call them Outworlders. As far as I know, Sera's the only Outworlder in Goldenleaf."