Everyone does their best to try to cheer me up after getting an unlucky drop of loot upon completing the fifth floor. What they don't understand is I don't need cheering up.

The next day, I start with one of my favorite breakfast meals: perfectly toasted potato bread with an avocado spread on each slice, each with its own over-medium eggs. To finish it off, I have three slices of crispy bacon that still sizzles, likely from recently coming out of the oven. The saltiness of the bacon compliments the lightness of the avocado and garlic flavor of the eggs. As soon as I take my first bite, my toes nearly curl from the burst of deliciousness. I wash it down with a warm cup of hibiscus tea, almost forgetting I'm still in the game. I try my best to contain myself, to keep myself from happily shaking my butt from my favorite meal.

Braeden's gaze threatens to sear a hole in the side of my face as he observes me in silence. The longer he stares, the more my irritation grows because if it's one thing I dislike, it's when someone watches me eat like I'm some kind of television set. "You know it's rude to stare when someone's trying to eat. Can I help you?" I ask."I don't mean to stare, but do you always eat your food like that?" he answers. "You seem really happy whenever you eat. It's refreshing."

Refreshing? What the hell does that mean? "Well, could you stop staring? You're making me uncomfortable."

"Oh, sorry. I didn't realize." He returns his attention to his plate laden with kielbasa and fried potatoes and a glass of Dr Pepper on the side. Where's the rice? is all I can think. Doesn't it taste a little dry? I couldn't understand how anyone could eat sausages without some freshly made white rice. A meal without rice tastes incomplete.

We eat the remainder of our meal in silence, all while Yumi casts disapproving glances in my direction, as if silently chastising me for being so snippy with him. I admit I'm being a little short with him, but it doesn't take much to set me off. Why should I change my personality just so he's comfortable? Wouldn't it be better if he adhered to social standards by not staring at people all the time like they're some museum attraction?

As much as I want to believe Braeden is genuine, the truth of the matter is I still don't know him very well. I don't know what thoughts go through his mind when he looks at me so cheerfully. Does he only see my race? Does he only have a fascination with me because I share a cultural connection to the Thai Mythic Kingdom? I hate how his blue eyes peer into my soul, asking for something and yet nothing at the same time. What are you hiding, Braeden?

━━━━━⋅⋅⋅ˏˋ ♚ ˊˎ⋅⋅⋅━━━━━

After breakfast, we make our way to the fifth floor's entrance. The door has etchings of long, winding grapevines and tall goblets of wine. Serafina gently pushes on the door, and a bright light of gold shines on us, forcing us to shield our eyes from the sudden brightness.

When I pull my arm back, I'm astonished by what I see. Everything has turned to gold. The city consists of buildings forged from gold, the waters have frozen from the transformation, and there is an eerie silence that sends chills down our spines.

The door disappears behind us as a new questline manifests on a separate screen in front of us that reads 'Cleanse the City of King Midas' Touch.'

Immediately, a panic sets in because I didn't recall there ever being a cure to King Midas' golden touch. Legends foretold of King Midas entertaining the satyr Silenus, Dionysus' foster father, and did such a good job that Dionysus granted him a single wish. After requesting the ability to turn anything to gold, Dionysus bestowed such great power on the unknowing king. He became aggressive with these new powers that he turned the poorest of objects into the most valuable. However, with such powers granted tremendous responsibility. Because he could turn anything to gold, his powers extended to those of the living.

He embraced his daughter one day, forgetting about his new gift, thus turning her to stone along with the roses in his garden, the stones on the ground, and the food and water he tried to rejuvenate himself with. Cursed to such a terrible fate, the pitiful king died of starvation."A worthy challenge," Mist said, his arms crossed. "It's strange, it was meant to become a great kingdom, but it's only become the king's prison."

Serafina shivers in discomfort, her eyes wandering to the ground, clearly unable to bear looking at King Midas' victims a moment longer. "I find it hard to pity a man who wished for the golden touch. Why didn't he just wish for something that would make the kingdom prosperous, instead of seeking something that would only benefit him? Such greed has its consequences," she says.

"Many people don't realize how good they have it until their greed gets the best of them," I chime in. "Sometimes, we have to lose things to understand just how precious they were to begin with."

We walk further into the citadel, doing our best to ignore the statues of the people who once gave the city its vibrancy. We expect to run into a mob of monsters, but instead we bump into a group of humans who appear to be looting homes of the NPCs.

Two males with brown hair and evil eyes filled with excitement scurry out of homes of nobles with their bags full of gold, jewels, and food supplies. Another two lug clothes crafted of silk, while another pair attempts to roll a heavy, expensive rug down the hill.

"Hurry up, Titus! I want to get this to the markets before sundown," a leader chirps from the bottom of the hill. They run around us, not caring that we're watching them. The leader murmurs to himself as we continue to listen in, "Just think of the untold riches. We could get a fortune from the silk clothes alone. They're not nearly as pretty as the ones the NPCs share in the shop in this Mythic Kingdom. I suppose we'll have to return for the armor. I can't imagine we'll get a great deal out of that, but perhaps we could repurpose it into something better? I didn't recruit someone with great blacksmithing skills for nothing..."

He raises his head, noticing we've stopped. "Nothing to see here. If you don't want a problem, you'll continue on your way," he warns us.

There's no use getting into an argument with them. They have more men than us, and if they're that confident, they must be strong. I turn to leave, but Yumi's desperate grip holds me in place, forcing me to turn towards what everyone's still looking at.

What I see next is enough to make my eyes pop out of my sockets in astonishment. Braeden walks up to the leader and delivers a swift kick to his face, sending the player flying back into a pile of pebbles. The enemy player's health bar goes down by a third as he spits blood onto the ground.

Once he fully recovers, he points at Braeden angrily. "What the hell do you think you're doing? Are you trying to kill me? You took out a third of my health bar!"

"My mistake," Braden answers coldly with a bright smile on his face. "That should have taken out half of your health bar. Don't worry, I'll make sure this one counts." He raises his foot, preparing to strike again.

The leader who was just proudly barking orders to his comrades crumbles before us. "W-What do you want? Are you angry because we're not sharing the loot? We're more than happy to split it if it means clearing up this little misunderstanding. How about half of the gold and the women's clothing for free? You couldn't possibly need anything with a rug. You're a level twenty, you're probably a grinder."

A grinder is a type of character who finds joy in doing the same tasks over and over again in order to progress in a game. Some call it power-farming, but others recognize them as the most disciplined players in the game because being a grinder required patience.

"You don't get it, do you? These people may have turned to gold, and they may be NPCs, but their feelings are just as real as ours. How would you like it if they came into your home while you were bedridden and stole some of your precious belongings? Would you side with the thieves?" Braeden asks with a fierceness I didn't think he was capable of. Did he really empathize with NPCs? Although they are artificially intelligent beings, they're far from humans. And yet, I can understand his argument. It's easy to dismiss NPCs when you're not living in the game side by side with them. You don't forge connections with them. You don't see how they live.

"Dude, they're just NPCs! Let's not get worked up over this. You wouldn't want to become a murderer because of a nobody like me."

"He's right, Braeden. Don't blacken your heart over an ass like him," Mist says, trying to dissuade Braeden from making the biggest mistake of his life. Killing isn't an easy act, but it's even harder to accept once you've committed such a sinful act.

"Listen to your friend, buddy," the leader added.

"How will you learn your lesson if I don't put you in your place now?" Braeden's question nearly makes my heart stop as he stalks closer to the enemy player.

"W-Wait! Please! I don't want to die like this!"

I close my eyes as a loud thump follows. When I open my eyes, I see Braeden standing over the leader with a stack of what appears to be playing cards. Confusion washes over me as I try to make sense of his next moves. Just moments ago, we were all sure of Braeden's intentions. Now, I don't know what's going through his mind.

"We'll play for it. You know speed?" Braeden asks. "First person to clear their deck of cards wins the game and the loser has to do what the winner says."

I glance at the leader, who looks as though he's nearly pissed his pants. I notice his username says FiveFingerDiscount. God help us all. He's leaving our fate in the hands of a kleptomaniac. Sure, nothing can possibly go wrong!

"Y-Yes," FiveFingerDiscount stutters. He regains his confidence and adds, "There's no way I'll lose!"