Civilization

Relaxing in the mansion felt amazing, both Rebecca and I had a great time chilling in the room, eating snacks, and chatting while looking around the place. The whole experience felt foreign to me, but Rebecca was used to it, immersing herself in the rich girl's life almost immediately. Adam knocked on our room once dinner was ready, escorting the whole group down to the dining room where a long marble table was placed in the middle of the room with candles burning brightly down the center.

Shining gold-rimmed plates with glimmering silverware next to them were plated evenly along the sides of the table and as we took our seats one by one the food arrives carried by Adam, Eve, Keo, and a couple of other employees. Sam sat at the head of the table with Kingston on his left and Evan on his right, while next to Evan were Sabrina and Nina, and next to Kingston was me and Rebecca.

Placed before us was a perfectly cooked and cut steak, glistening in the light as the fat drips down the side of the charred edges. A small ball of mashed potatoes and a handful of other vegetables accompany the steak with a small amount of red wine as well. Opening his mouth first, after the food was served was Evan commenting on the food and the experience he had so far.

"Sam… This is amazing. From the ride from my house to the plane to the mansion and then the room to this. It is phenomenal and I don't know how to explain it other than say it was a once in a lifetime experience." - Evan

"Hahaha! It wasn't that much, there is no need to be modest. I am just doing what I believe is right as well as what I believe is what everyone here deserves. You are my dearest friends and I want to share with you my enjoyment as well as celebrate our coming together.

Previously, we met at a cafe and that was an experience for me. I almost never went outside so when I was able to, I went via transportation rather than by car. I looked for the route to the cafe myself and I had an amazing time just experiencing what everyone else experiences daily.

Now, I want to share what I am used to with everyone here especially since we are able to meet both Kingston and Nina. These two lived in different states and we weren't able to meet up. Only Ian has talked to Kingston and Nina in the game but the rest of us have only conversed through text or call. This was an opportunity for us to become closer as friends and individuals so I wanted it to be as amazing as possible for everyone." - Sam

"It is great at the moment, Sam. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to experience what it is like to have money. I absolutely love it and I want to help as much as I can." - Kingston

"Thank you, Sam! I have been having a great time here! There is so much here that it is hard to look at and see, however, I do have a slight concern. While we would be here living in this place I want to be able to work and provide some sort of income rather than just use your money. I understand that you want to do this for us, but my family has always taught me that we should always repay our debts no matter how small." - Nina

"There isn't really anything you can do in terms of income here, Nina. We are isolated from other people in the mansion so it will be hard for you to acquire a job." - Sam

"Why not find an online job? Something that can be done using a computer or maybe set up a website to sell things. That can provide some income even if you aren't working a lot." - Sabrina

"That could work if you are worried about making money." - Ian

"Or, Sam could hire you for something?" - Rebecca

"I can have a look and ask someone, Nina." - Sam

"Thank you, sorry about that. I just don't feel as comfortable just freeloading off you." - Nina

"Hmm, I have no qualms about that though…" - Evan

"That's because you are a selfish greedy individual." - Sabrina

"Wait, if I had no qualms about it too, does that make me a selfish greedy individual as well?" - Kingston

"No, I think that makes you Kingston." - Rebecca

"Babe, don't me to mean even if it is the truth. Kingston is a sensitive guy, it might hurt him too much if you say something like that." - Ian

"HEY! What is this aggression?" - Kingston

"Hahaha! Enough, let's dig into the food before it gets cold." - Sam

And with that, we dig into the food whilst chatting amongst ourselves, bringing in extra food for Adam, Eve, and Keo to join in on the fun. Since they were employed by Sam, there was a slight awkwardness at the start but after a few drinks and a lot of laughter, they started to fit in immediately.

Dinner ended late and we all parted ways once we arrived at our room. After a quick shower, Rebecca and I got ready to enter the game and below long, midnight hit and once again we get transported into Settlement.

Opening my eyes, I immediately get to work. From previous information, I could assume that the monsters I will be facing were the monsters from the sea which attacked the East on the first night and the North on the second night. However, since most of the monsters weren't able to go on land the group of monsters that attacked the East and the North were different.

The first night focused more on monsters that lived in the depths of the ocean, coming up to the surface and attacking Cordelia's troops or the players that made their homes near the many marshes, swamps, and coastline. The second night had more amphibious monsters that looked like a mix of skeletons, zombies, fish, frogs, and other nightmare fuel.

According to Sam who was fighting against this group of monsters, they were able to eject water out of their mouths or fingers creating water jets that could break through a tree. They also wielded weapons, mainly spears and swords, and had high proficiency in using them. Even able to go toe to toe with some of his Bison demi-humans in terms of strength and some of his Cat demi-humans in terms of speed.

Sam told me there was a variety of monsters in that group and not one was the same with some even being an outlier. Worried about this new group of monsters that have been buffed from the patch notes I needed to come up with a plan as soon as possible after all there are 3 places that get targetted in each attack, the cave, the small path next to the waterfall and the gate near the forest.

I am most worried about the cave and the path near the waterfall. The cave was due to the proximity, but the path was near the waterfall because it was a source of water for the monsters which might heighten their abilities. Since I have no information on them, I want to avoid giving them a place to swim as much as possible.

Calling Noah, Howard, and Gobi for a small meeting, I start to explain some of the details I want to get through and implement immediately. After fighting against the zombies at the cave front, I realise that we were able to defend against them very well and suggest we camp next to the 'Pillar of Light'. Fighting as they exit the door and keeping them congested there as much as possible.

Both Howard and Gobi disagreed with the idea saying it was too dangerous since we don't know the strength of the monsters coming through the door. If they are too strong then we would get pushed back immediately and forced to retreat which would lower morale and even cost us some lives in the process. However, Noah suggested we make a trap for them.

The trap would be simple pitfalls but, at the bottom would be spears pointing upwards. We won't kill all of them but we could reduce their numbers even just a little. The other idea of the trap would be to block off the path upward and place a lot of dry grass and branches and burn them underground, killing them with both smoke and fire.

Despite how terrifying the second idea for the trap was, it changed both Howard's and Gobi's opinions and they immediately contacted a group of goblins to get dry grass and small branches from the forest, transporting them with the help of demi-humans to the cave. The next plan was to strengthen the wall near the waterfall by creating layers of walls that monsters would need to go past.

However, the difference would be by using boulders naturally found nearby to block the path rather than make a wooden fence. The boulders are already there and the only problem would be to move them but with a little bit of teamwork from demi-humans and hobgoblins, they can move tons of rocks around. Blocking as much of the path as possible while also eliminating some of the monsters that roam in that area.

The next plan was the forest and since it also connects to Krepost it was hard to set up any real defense. Using Noah's earlier suggestion, we had some people start to dig small pitfalls around the front of the gate, dotting them in that area and covering them with a layer of branches, leaves, and dirt to make it look as natural as possible.

These pitfalls will be the first layer of defense and other than having the wolves, Gewari, and Gyumi on that side of HavenFall defending against the incoming monsters, there wasn't much else I could do to bolster the defense. Getting to work, Howard helped in the transportation of boulders near the waterfall whilst Gobi oversaw the trap in the cave and Noah proceeds to dig holes in the ground. I help out everywhere, making sure Lucina had enough potions, Robin had more than enough arrows and that old man Hus and his team were taking breaks.

The sun slowly descends to the horizon and the third night of the event starts. Another long night awaits us…