Saphia

I arrived today, 6 weeks after the launch, and in front of me is an NPC with entirely different Hair and 2 scars that were never designed for the female models. Moreover, she left the Town, a place NPC's normally cannot leave, and fought a Shadow Soldier who definitely didn't attack first. And as it seems, she has been doing that for a couple of weeks.

"Well, would you mind forming a party and take out the enemies together?"

She could prove useful in the future, and I need to find out more. Why is she capable of doing all that? What more can she do?

"Sorry, but no, thank you. I'm grateful for the Bora, but I can manage myself just fine."

She is less Hostile towards me now somehow.

"Well, sorry to bother you."

One last try. I open my inventory and push the Bora in it.

"What was that?"

Saphia looked at me with an incredible surprised faced. Perfect.

"I just put the Bora in my inventory. Makes carrying easier."

"How?"

"All players have that ability."

"Let me come back to that offer of yours. You wanted to form a party, right?"

That was surprisingly effective and far too easy.

"Yeah, that would also include me carrying all your stuff in my inventory."

"Sounds good, I'm in."

Wow, it's just an inventory. But yeah, I guess its impressive. In the beta, I barely managed to create spacial magic to store 5 items. And I couldn't even stack the ones of same types.

I open my menu to see if i could add her to my party. I just need to point at the person that i want to invite.

A window appears before Saphia and she winces in shock.

"What is that!"

Saphia shouts and points at the window.

"Party invite. Just press the green button."

"Ok."

Saphias HP bar appears beneath mine in a smaller size.

Level 37.

Wait, which level was that Bora on? I check my inventory.

Bora (Shadow Bora) Level 40.

How did I kill this thing? Come to think of it, I also picked up some XP orbs. I open my Status screen and check my Level.

Level 21.

"Well, let's hope I will be of any assistance. You are clearly higher leveled."

"What are you talking about. Levels are just Numbers. You managed to keep up with me and that Bora on your Level."

"You have a point."

"And besides, you can be my luggage boy."

"So that's what I am for you now?"

Saphia Looked at me with a straight face, but then started to laugh and walked towards the Town. It felt like I was just naturally talking to a girl. I have never done something like this in the real world, so I don't know how it is supposed to be, but I feel something warm in my chest.

I like this feeling, I want to keep it forever.

This girl just called me her luggage boy. The NPC's never could say something like that.

"Let's go back first. I'm hungry, and I need to patch myself up."

"Good idea."

Well, I can say for certain that she appears to be almost alive. No, she is alive. She doesn't follow her Routine, she has a larger vocabulary, and she has cut her hair and even received scars through battle. She does not seem to be the same book reading NPC anymore.

We spent a lot of time together. And once the minor NPC's got updated I spend my time explaining new mod ideas, weapons, Rune spells and the Idea of making staffs in game. In hindsight, I feel somewhat stupid thinking about how she is now.

But does that also mean that all the other NPC's are also like her? And moreover, the amount of NPC's is far lower than it should be. The Majorities were slaughtered by Players, this developed fear of the Heroes. NPC's can naturally distinguish Players from normal people, unless the person is concealed with an item or spell. This explains her hostility, but not why she allowed me to help her so readily.

I wonder if I can get them to trust in me.

Saphia keeps her distance from me, with at least two meters distance between us.

"I guess the so-called Heroes did something messed up, and that led to you distrusting every other one with that energy."

"Well, you weren't here when the thousands of them came over flowing the island and destroying everything in their path."

"I seriously hate Players. They always destroy everything and kill everything, just because they think they get stronger through levels."

"You say that, but you don't look like that."

"Sorry, but I'm not really an emotion type of guy"

"Hate is an emotion."

"Better than, let's go with disgust. And I mean actual physical disgust when I see some."

"Has that ever happened."

"Twice."

Saphia stops, looks at me and starts to laugh.

"Wow, those must have been some seriously disgusting people."

"You don't want to know."

"Then I won't ask."

Saphia was trying to stop laughing but was having a hard time.

"Thanks, can I ask you something?"

"Go ahead."

"Why were you out here?"

"To get stronger."

Saphia looked at me confused, Still giggling a bit.

"Why else would I be out here?"

"You got another point there. But why do you need to get stronger? What happened that drove you so far you kept going even after your injuries?"

"I would prefer not to answer that."

"Then I won't ask anymore. That was more than clear as an answer."

Thereafter, the conversation ended. I guess something happened to a person close to her when the Heroes arrived. She also seems to be a bit down from the conversation. I should cheer her up, that would increase her trust in me. If I want to use her in the Future, I need to do a lot of groundwork.

"You know, if we go out there every day and use my inventory, we could gather enough supplies for the entire Town. I can even carry several logs in my inventory."

Saphia lifts her chin up and looks and me with wide eyes. I guess that hit the mark.

"We could finally rebuild the Town."

"When they trust me, you can propose the idea."

"I could do that even now. I'm popular enough on the island"

I guess she would be. In her Character file, it is mentioned that she is considered the island's beauty and the Older sister of the Librarian Helper.

Wait, the Older sister? I know what happened to her. A Hero killed her Younger Sister.

So, her goal is revenge. But on whom?

"Well, if you think so, go ahead."

We finally get out of the Forest and see the Town far behind the plains. A rumbled mess of bricks and broken homes, tents, and small makeshift houses from the rubles. A sad sight, I remember this being a wonderful and blooming Town.

"We really need to fix this place up."

Saphia stands next to me quietly. This was once her home, even though she is only 6 weeks old she has memories of this place before we came. Memories from before she existed. I start walking again and Saphia follows me in the same pace.

"What did you do before everything went downhill?"

"I spend most my time reading, tending to my garden or talking to the people. It was boring but peaceful."

So, the same character description.

"How about you, what did you do before you came to our world?"

"I created weapons, learned how to fight and studied."

"Wow, sounds way more exciting. Why did you leave?"

"Because I did all of this here."

Saphia looks at me with an even more confused face.

"Wait a minute, what?"

She puts her hand to her face and sighs. Understandable.

"Well, I was here before all of this existed. For about Four years. And after the Shadow Army and the Heroes arrived, did I return Six weeks later."

I'm not sure, but I think I just broke Saphias brain. Another thing that AI's can't.

"Ok, that is a lot to take in. So, you learned to craft and trained swordsman ship for Four years in this world before it existed."

"Yeah, that describes it."

"Ok, I'm just not going to question it. What about the rest of the 16 years."

"12 years. I went to school and studied."

"That's it?"

"Yes"

"What about Friends?"

"None."

"Hobbies?"

"I already told you."

"So you are 16 than?"

"Yes."

"You certainly don't look like that."

I wonder how old she is. The NPC don't have an age, just an age group. As far as I remember, Saphia was in the adult category.

"Well, how old are you?"

"That's rude to ask that, a lady."

"I don't care."

"Wow you're heartless. I'm 19."

So, 19 is adult in this game. I take it that 15 would be young adult than.

"Well, wouldn't have guessed that. I thought we were around the same age or that I was older."

Saphia blushes and turns her face from me. You make it way to easy for me. With a few more nice words and a couple of harsh ones sprinkled in, I could bind her to me. Now I just need to learn to smile like in the real world, but no mater how hard I try, the corner of my mouth wouldn't move.

No showing emotions if you got no Emotions. You're too cruel, DAI.