[You have remained logged in for 12 hours within a 24 hour period. You have been stricken with Fatigue]

  [Fatigue]

  [Description: Remaining logged into the world of Eternity for an extended period of time causes fatigue. You must tend to your real body. Eat, sleep, take care of your body. The game will be waiting and ready when you return]

  [Effect: You receive a severe penalty to experience gain, loot quality, loot quantity, and attributes while under the effects of Fatigue. You must log out of the game for at least 9 hours in order to remove this debuff.]

  Ben and Eve finally cleared a path to the orc dungeon. They stood on a hill that overlooked a massive fortress built with mostly wood and stone. The orcs had constructed towering walls and erected great tents to house themselves within the fortress. There was a massive front gate that was heavily guarded by level 12 Orcs. Ben recognized it as the Orc dungeon.

  In the game of Eternity, dungeons could be “instance” based or “server” based, depending on the dungeon. Some dungeons could be explored by multiple different parties of players at the same time. It was like the players would be transferred to a pocket dimension where their dungeon would have its own fresh enemies, loot, and boss. Other dungeons were server based. Which meant that players had to compete within the dungeon for a limited amount of loot that was restricted by respawn times.

  That is one reason that large guilds attempted to monopolize areas. In some cases, guilds even tried to restrict access to Instance dungeons so they could have the exclusive access to unique gear that dungeons often spawned, which would be very advantageous for that guild.

  In the case of the Orc dungeon, it was a server based dungeon. Multiple parties could attack the fortress but loot and experience would be shared.

  Thankfully, Ben and Eve were much further ahead than everyone else. No one besides them was ready to tackle the level 10 zone. Ben was sure of that because he was able to monitor the progress of the other players via the global announcements. Him and Eve were the only players there.

  Ben looked at the Fatigue notification thoughtfully.

  “This is actually a good time to get some rest. We can return and tackle the dungeon in the morning when we are refreshed. We can also pick our level 10 class advancement path with a clear head. You’ve got to be tired. I know I am,” Ben said.

  Eve hesitated. She didn’t want to seem like she wasn’t ready to continue forward if he wanted. Ben could see her fatigue. He didn’t imagined that he looked much better himself. Eve nodded tenatively.

  “Alright, let's meet back here in 10 hours. That should give us enough time to eat, sleep, etc. Tomorrow, I am going to grind hard again. Are you up for that? I don’t know your life schedule, like If you have school, or work, or other obligations,” Ben said.

  Ben tried to make it seem like he wasn’t trying to pry too much into her life. Given her behavior, he didn’t think she would have a problem with the grind, but he couldn’t have been sure. If she had other commitments, he wouldn’t wait for her. He couldn’t afford that.

  He had long been strong enough to go on his own. Eve’s abilities were just a bonus. A very good bonus, but not something that he absolutely needed. They both knew that. Eve shook her head.

  “I cleared my schedule in preparation for the launch of the game. I’m yours for as long as you will have me,” Eve typed.

  Eve averted her gaze bashfully as soon as she hit send on the message. Ben picked up on her behavior but didn’t bring it up. Ever since her mental breakdown, he viewed her in a different light and recognized her behavior for what it was.

  She probably had a crush on him. It was cute. He didn’t plan on reciprocating. He couldn’t afford to think in that way. He had to stay focused. As long as she didn’t let her feelings get in the way of questing, he didn’t mind. She was still very nice to be around and she was extraordinarily useful.

  “Good. Let's meet back here at…around 10am. Goodnight, Eve,” Ben said.

  Eve smiled sweetly.

  “Goodnight,” she typed.

  Ben disappeared. Eve’s eyes lingered on where he had been. She took a breath to calm herself before logging out as well.

  A young woman removed the VR headset from her head and sat up from her bed. She noted how fatigued her body felt. She was drenched in sweat. She felt a desperate need to bathe. She got up and headed straight to the bathroom. When she arrived, she stared at her expression in the mirror.

  Her cheeks were still burning red. She shook her head frantically.

  “Stupid, stupid, stupid,” she said.

  She berated herself over and over again. Finally she sighed and ran a bath for herself. It had been a long day.

  At Ben’s house…

  Ben hopped out of the shower and walked down the hall towards his room. The house was dark and quiet. He didn’t bother to turn the hallway light on. He raised a hand to shield his eyes when a light appeared.

  “Victoria, can you lower the light?” Ben said.

  Ben’s little sister walked towards him. She used her smartphone flashlight to illuminate the way towards the bathroom that Ben just came out of.

  “Oh, my bad. Why didn’t you turn on the hallway light?” she asked.

  Ben shrugged casually.

  “I have good night vision,” he said.

  “Weirdo,” she said.

  Victoria walked past him but stopped.

  “You didn’t come to dinner,” she said.

  “The game just came out yesterday. You know I have been prepping for this,” Ben said.

  Victoria nodded.

  “Right, I know. You should still come to dinner. Its not the same without you. Plus, you should have seen how annoyed dad was. He kept looking over at your empty seat. He knows you quit your job to play the game. You are just making the inevitable conversation worse,” Victoria said.

  “Duly noted. I just need one more day of hardcore grinding, then I should be able to have dinner on Sunday,” Ben said.

  Victoria frowned.

  “Dad is going to end up storming your room and dragging you down to dinner if you keep this us,” Victoria said.

  She was exaggerating but Ben understood. Family dinner was sacred. Even had to admit to himself that he didn’t like missing it.

  “Ok,” Ben said.

  Victoria nodded and continued towards the bathroom.

  “You should play too,” Ben said.

  Victoria immediately shook her head.

  “No way. I actually have a life,” she said.

  Ben chuckled.

  “Right,” he said.

  Ben’s voice was playful, but he maintained a look of deep concern that Victoria didn’t see. His eyes lingered on her as she disappeared behind the door of the bathroom.

  The next morning…

  “Heavenly father, we thank you for this food…”

  The family sat with their heads bowed as Ben’s father lead them in prayer. Once they were done, Ben hungrily devoured his plate. His ravenous drew everyone’s gaze. A high-pitched giggle snapped Ben out of his hunger induced ferver.

  His little brother and little sister were giggling at each other. They were twins, only eight years old. They clearly found Ben’s eating amusing.

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  “You wouldn’t be so hungry if you didn’t miss dinner last night,” a voice said.

  Ben looked across the dining room table to see his father’s stern gaze. The man was using a knife to slice a piece of sausage. He and the rest of the family ate notability more dignified.

  “I apologize. I will also have to miss dinner tonight, but I will be able to attend regularly after tonight,” Ben said.

  A long silence fell over the table. Ben’s mom, the twins, even Victory looked at Ben with a wide-eyed gaze.

  Ben’s mother looked towards her husband cautiously. The man stared at his son in disbelief.

  “Because of that game?” The man said.

  Ben nodded without hesitation.

  “The first few days are the most important,” Ben said.

  “More important than your family?” His father asked.

  “No, but-” Ben began.

  “But what?” his father interrupted.

  Ben paused. All the air seemed to be sucked out of the room. His father was clearly agitated.

  “Stephen,” Ben’s mother said.

  She looked at Ben’s father with a gentle gaze. She reached over and placed a hand gently atop his. The grip from his wife served to calm his nerves. He took a breath. The atmosphere became noticeably less intense.

  “I plan to schedule my time better going forward. Lord willing, I will not miss another breakfast and dinner,” Ben said.

  Stephen looked at his son with a hint of agitation. The comforting caress of his wife could only do so much.

  “I hear you even quit your job to play that game,” Stephen said.

  The twins gasped in unison.

  “Yes,” Ben said.

  “I’m sure you realize how irresponsible that is. I raised you better than this,” Stephen said.

  Ben nodded in agreement.

  “You did. I just need some time, a break,” Ben said.

  “A break? What kind of break?” Stephen asked.

  Ben looked at his father without falter.

  “One year. One year away from it all. Work, school, everything except church, of course,” Ben said.

  “And that game,” Stephen said.

  Ben nodded.

  Stephen’s eyes narrowed.

  “Idle hands are the devil’s plaything. What do you think would happen if God rested for a year instead of guiding us? He gave us the sabbath. That should be plenty of rest,” Stephen said.

  Ben listened to his father’s lecture with an amicable nod. Ben didn’t disagree.

  “Yes, dad, I know,” Ben said.

  “I don’t think you do. From now on, if you are going to remain in this house, I want you to start paying rent. Market rent for our area. If you can’t afford it, then you will need to go work enough until you do. i…I can’t support idealness, even if that means that will have to find another place to live,”

  “Stephen,” Ben’s mother said.

  Everyone was mortified. Even Victoria looked at her father with a horrified expression.

  “Dad, is that really necessary?” Victoria asked.

  Stephen’s overbearing gaze shot towards Victoria. She immediately bowed her head and averted her gaze. Upon seeing the reaction of his daughter, Stephen closed his eyes and released a deep, calming breath.

  “It is Sweety. It would be for your brother’s own good. He is a man. A man must take responsibility for their life. I cannot encourage or coddle idleness. That would be spiritually irresponsible of me. Of all of us,” Stephen said.

  Stephen spoke notably gentler when addressing his daughter. Victoria nodded in understanding and looked towards Ben with concern.

  “I agree,” Ben said.

  Victoria and his mother looked at Ben in horror. Ben reached into his pocket and retrieved an envelope. He handed it to one of the twins.

  “Michael, can you pass this down to dad?” Ben asked.

  The little boy grabbed the envelope curiously and passed it to his sister, who sat right next to him. The twins both inspected it curiously.

  “What is it?” The girl asked.

  “You’ll see,” Ben said.

  He maintained a knowing smile. The twins looked at him with wonder. The girl passed the envelope to their mother, and she passed it to Stephen.

  Victoria raised a brow and looked at Ben as if to ask “what are you up to?”

  Stephen took the envelope and opened it while watching Ben suspiciously. He took out a few sheets of papers. They were filled with charts, graphs, and numbers.

  “I did research on market rents and average cost of utilities in the area. I saved up enough to be able to afford market rents and utilities for at least a year. I wrote your a check for the amount,” Ben said.

  Everyone at the table was shocked as Stephen pulled out a check from the envelope.

  “Woah? Mr. Money bags. Are you serious? An entire year’s rent?” Victoria said.

  “Ben are you rich now? Can you buy me a pony?”

  Ben looked down at his youngest sister, one of the twins. He chuckled in amusement.

  “Maybe for your birthday, Mary. But no promises.”

  “Really?” She said.

  “I want a new bike!” The boy said.

  “If you get good grades in school, I’ll think about it,” Ben said.

  The twins looked at each other excitedly and giggled.

  “Where did you get all this money?” Stephen asked.

  Stephen eyed Ben suspiciously.

  “That’s the reason I have been working two jobs and hustling this past year. I wanted to make sure that my time was free for a year. I appreciate you allowing me to stay here while I figure things out,” Ben said.

  Stephen was taken aback. He saw the mature and determined look in Ben’s eyes. Stephen wasn’t blind. He noticed the changes to Ben’s personality in the last year. He just didn’t think that Ben had been so insightful. Stephen looked down at the check in amazement.

  “You have been working non-stop for a year in preparation for this game?” Stephen asked.

  “Yes,” Ben said.

  Stephen looked at Ben with a conflicted gaze. He didn’t like that Ben planned to so thoroughly engross himself in a video game, however, he did approve of Ben’s planning and his accomplishment. The check in his hand told the story of how hard Ben had worked. That showed drive and purpose, which were things Stephen could respect.

  Stephen looked at his wife. She was just as bewildered as he was. Stephen sighed and suddenly tore the check in half, to the shock of everyone.

  “One year. After that, I don’t care if you have a million dollars. You need to go back to work. And I expect to see you at church, and at dinner and breakfast,” Stephen said.

  Ben nodded without hesitation.

  “I will, Dad,” Ben said.

  A wave of relief washed over everyone. Victoria looked over to Ben with a mischievous grin.

  “So…since you have a lot more money now. My birthday is coming up, and I could use a car,” Victoria said.

  “Victoria,”

  Ben’s mom looked at Victoria with a stern glare.

  “What? I’m just saying. Then you wouldn’t have to drive me to and from campus every day,” Victoria said.

  “I like driving you,” the woman replied back.

  Victoria huffed and played with her food.

  “It was just be nice to have a little more freedom,” Victoria said.

  “Freedom to do what?” Stephen asked.

  Victoria went wide-eyed and averted her gaze.

  “Things,” she said.

  “That’s exactly why you shouldn’t have a car. I don’t want you out in the world where it is so easy to get into trouble. The devil-”

  “I know, Dad,” Victoria said.

  Stephen frowned from Victoria’s interruption but he dropped it when felt his wife’s comforting touch once more.

  “I won’t buy you a car, I agree with dad. But, I will help you earn it yourself. As long as you promise not to get into any trouble,” Ben said.

  Victoria perked up and looked at Ben hopefully.

  “What? Really?” She asked.

  Stephen raised a brow. Ben nodded with a small smile.

  “I know you don’t like gaming. But if you start playing Eternity, and do what I tell you to do inside the game, I’ll pay you to play. 30 dollars an hour. I will only pay you for 1 hour a day during the week, so it doesn’t hinder your studies too much. And up to 4 hours on Saturday,” Ben said.

  Victoria’s eyes widened.

  “30 dollars an hour?”

  Victoria had never worked a job before, but she had friends who did. They always complained about how poorly they got paid for all the work they did at their retail jobs.

  Ben chuckled and nodded.

  “Yep. But if you do end up buying a car, you can’t use it for anything devious. I don’t want you getting into any trouble because of me. You still have to follow the curfew. And if you break the rules, I will fire you,” Ben said.

  “Sounds good to me!” Victoria said.

  She couldn’t hide her excitement. Stephen frowned.

  “You are going to pay your sister 30 dollars an hour to play that game with you. You realize how much of a waste of money that is,” Stephen said.

  Victoria pouted. Ben’s gaze did not falter when looking towards his father.

  “It will be a good opportunity for her. The type of work she will do for me requires time, dedication, and research,” Ben said.

  That peaked Victoria’s interest.

  “What kind of work?” Victoria asked.

  “An enchantress,” Ben said.

  Victoria was confused. Stephen didn’t like the sound of that.

  “An enchantress? Sounds demonic,” Stephen said.

  Ben had to suppress a chuckle. His father was dead serious. Ben shook his head.

  “It’s not. An exchantress is simply a person in the game that choses to take on the enchanting profession. An enchanter can imbue gear, like armor and weapons, with special properites. They can make swords more sharp, armor more sturdy, things like that. In fact, if you do what I say, I will help you unlock a special class. The Divine Enchanter. The Divine Enchanter imbues their enchantments with holy power, which greatly increases their potency.”

  Ben knew of the Divine Enchanter class from his last life. It required very specific criteria to unlock so it didn’t show up until far into the game. It was a powerful, exclusive class. This time, Ben planned to secure that class for his team.

  Victoria marvled at the description. Stephen was still skeptical. Before Stephen could protest, Ben set his eyes on his mother.

  “Mom, the same offer applies to you. When you have time, I would like you to play the game as well. There is a very useful job that I would like you to do with me. I’ll pay you the same salary. 30 dollars an hour,” Ben said.

  The woman was taken aback by Ben’s declaration. Everyone was flabbergasted.

  “I don’t play videogames, Benjamin,” she said.

  She was the only one in the family that called Ben by his full first name. Ben smiled warmly at her.

  “Don’t worry. It will be easy for you. I want you to become a tailor. You will be able to sew and craft clothing that people can use in the game. You will also be able to enhance and improve clothing. You are already a really good seamstress, so you won’t have a problem doing the work. Neither of you will be fighting any monsters or doing anything complicated. It will be easy once you start. And we will be able to spend more time together while I teach you how things work,” Ben said.

  Stephen looked at his wife with a frown.

  “Diane, you aren’t seriously considering this are you? If you need money-“ Stephen began.

  Diane smiled sweetly at her husband.

  “Of course I don’t need the money, but it would be nice to spend more quality time with our children. That is getting harder these days. They are both so busy, Benjamin especially,” Diane said.

  Stephen couldn’t argue with that. Diane and Victoria looked at Stephen with hopeful gazes. Not even his wife would make such a big decision without his express permission. Such was the nature of their traditional relationship.

  Stephen thought for a moment then sighed.

  “One year,” he said.

  Victoria exchanged amazed glances with her mother.

  “What about me!”

  “And me!”

  The twins said. Ben shook his head apologetically.

  “The game is for teens and up,” Ben said.

  The twins pouted.

  “Is this really how you want to spend your money?” Stephen asked.

  Ben looked at his father resolutely.

  “Absoluteley. I already bought two extra VR headsets. I have them in my room. When you both are ready, I’ll show you how to get things set up. No rush. Maybe next Saturday. In the meantime, you can do some of your own research on how to do enchanting, and how tailoring works in the game. I’ll share with you some good Youtube videos to watch. I will even pay you for the research time, up to 1 hour a day. Same salary. 30 dollars an hour. So spend the next week preparing. Next Saturday, I will guide you both into the game,” Ben said.

  A long silence fell over the dining table. Victoria and Diane were overwhelmed. Only one thing came to mind for Victoria.

  “Wow.”