Afterlife Dream

The trade list was very attractive. It was full of various items that normally only dropped from the gachapon machine. Mysterious tree seeds, Angel Feathers, all kinds of Mount Pieces, Pet Purchase Receipt Shreds, stones, scrolls, food, potions, plastic surgery coupons, and even the Skill Reset Scroll were items that were familiar to most players in Afterlife Dream and highly sought after.

And then there was one item at the top of the list that seemed awfully ordinary and did not make sense at all. It was initially puzzling to see this item be placed on the same list as other luxurious, rich items. This item was named "Brick". It was a block of bright red stone. A normal brick like the one on earth. It was not until I checked the item description that I realized that this single, extremely ordinary item might be the most unique item on the trade list.

The item description of the Brick informed players that Fairy Forest inhabitants were trying to build bridges back into the Afterlife Dream realm. They needed 1368914 Bricks to connect to Marsh City, and 1459489 Bricks to connect to Paradise Island. Next to the Dimensional Fairy stood a mailbox with the words "Brick Donation Box" imprinted on it. After players traded their Dimensional Points for Bricks, they could donate the Bricks to the Brick Donation Box and these Bricks would be used by the Fairy Forest inhabitants to build bridges.

All those who suffered from losing Fairy Forest and with it the possibility to have their second job advancement had their eyes pinned on the Brick. 10 Dimensional Points were necessary to trade a single Brick.

There was only one problem with it. All the players had to chip in to make it happen. All those who had their second job advancement already were not concerned about getting an access to Fairy Forest. It mainly concerned those who had yet to complete the Second Job Advancement Test and those who were at the moment trapped in Daisyville, Dai City, and Marsh City. But how many of them were there? And what was their average level? If they worked hard for the next five days, were they going to be able to farm enough Dimensional Points? What if they did not have enough Bricks at the end? Half-built bridges were not going to get them anywhere!

To make matters even more complicated, two bridges needed to be built to establish the connection to Fairy Forest from both sides. The Brick Donation Box gave players two options to donate. They could donate the Bricks to build the "Spring Blossom Bridge" that connected the last map under Marsh City to Fairy Forest, or they could donate the Bricks to build the "Enchanting Beauty Bridge" that connected Marsh City to Paradise Island.

It would make sense to first complete one bridge before building another, but which one to complete first? If the "Spring Blossom Bridge" was the one to be built first, there was a risk that the other bridge would remain incomplete, and vice versa. Which side was allowed to move on and which side must take the fall?

I looked at the world chat, expecting discussions to break out. Sure enough, players started to discuss the event that was about to take place.

"Everyone, I MEAN everyone. Let's not be selfish and use your Dimensional Points to get anything but the Bricks. Please, everyone, just get the Bricks and donate them to the friggin' mailbox."

"Yes, everyone, please. High-level players, please help to contribute to building the bridges to Fairy Forest."

"Afterlife Dream is swamped by newcomers, there is barely any space in here. Please focus on building the 'Spring Blossom Bridge' first."

As soon as that last sentence dropped, I knew that arguments would start.

"I don't think it is the right thing to do. We all must now focus on leveling up and defeating the Dimensional Master. Naturally, we must focus on building the 'Enchanting Beauty Bridge' first."

"Are you saying that everyone in Daisyville, Dai City, and Marsh City just had to stay put and wait?"

"Is it such a huge problem? You guys just have to sit and wait while we defeat the Dimensional Master."

"Fuck you! Do you think that we want to just sit and wait???" Came an enraged response.

"Everyone please calm down. Defeating the Dimensional Master will fix the problem. We should focus on doing that."

"I don't think so. The connections to Fairy Forest were broken. Even if the Dimensional Master was defeated, bridges still needed to be built. This event is our only chance!!!"

I also thought the same. Defeating Dimensional Master did not mean undoing all the damages that he had done. Some maps would forever be lost. The mini-boss maps were not very significant because they were still accessible in the safe zones. Moreover, all maps had devised working traps to keep the mini-bosses at bay during the night so that they no longer posed a threat to the area. Fairy Forest was very significant because without Fairy Forest there was no second job advancement. Without second job advancement, players were stuck. They did not have the skills to survive the raids. Without raids, there were neither Life Points nor the possibility to exit the game.

Meanwhile, the world chat had started to use the term "beginner maps" to refer to all the maps before Fairy Forest and the term "advanced maps" to refer to all the maps after the Fairy Forest.

"I just want to point out that building one bridge only is not going to solve the problem. After building the 'Spring Blossom Bridge', players from beginner maps were merely given the second job advancement and one additional map. Without the 'Enchanting Beauty Bridge', you are still stuck. You can not get to Paradise Island."

"We have to build both bridges!"

"All players, can we please be selfless and trade all our Dimensional Points for Bricks? I am especially appealing to the high-level players!"

The high-level players meanwhile had not said a single word. It was easy to know why. It was also the reason why I and my five friends remained silent. The trade list included items from Love Dungeons. Love Dungeons were also no longer available thanks to the elimination of all party quests. I could see players wanting to complete their mount pieces, pet purchase receipt shreds, Angel Feathers, and get the Skill Reset Scrolls that were so rare that only a bunch of players were able to get them to date. While the other items were mostly luxurious items, Skill Reset Scrolls were crucial for an avatar's build.

Was it worth closing our eyes on the Skill Reset Scrolls and just trading our Dimensional Points for Bricks? This might be a once-in-a-lifetime event!

Also, how many high-level players were willing to chip in?

I looked at the impassive faces of my peers, who were standing in Chinatown and looking alternately between the trade list and their user interface screen.

We were all conflicted.

If only the trade list only contained one item. Why must it offer so many other desirable items against a single item that could provide relief for half of the community?

A hand reached out and tapped at my shoulder.

"Antares, it is almost 13.00."

I turned around and looked at my friends.

"Monsters will start spawning soon. In all areas. That means that we should find areas with fewer players to be able to get as many points as possible."

I nodded in agreement.

"Where should we go?"

All my friends furrowed their brows and contemplated.

"Come with me, guys," Livina said as she led us to an empty yard at the corner of Chinatown. She took a wooden stick and started to draw on the ground.

She put a few circles to denote the available safe zones, with Paradise Island in the middle, reaching out toward the next maps.

Paradise Island as the hub map was naturally crowded, not to mention that it was the base of Twelve guild and all players that came from Fairy Forest were still staying there.

Chinatown was the base of the Dominion guild. Naturally, it would also be crowded.

Frozen Tundra Land was a no-no, let alone the recently opened Dimensional Sphere. The average level was too high.

Livina drew a few smaller circles on her map and wrote words next to them.

Level 50 raid, Lava County.

Level 60 - 70 raid, Summer Rain Forest.

Level 80 - 90 raid, Cursed Temple.

As soon as she finished writing the last word, she looked up at us expectantly.

Cursed Temple. That was where we should be going.

"Let's head there first," HellWitch said in a low voice. "This is only the first round of invasion. We can use it to gauge the maximum Dimensional Points that each player can get. As for what items that players should get... Let's answer that question after we get a better overall picture of the event."

We exchanged glances and nodded.

I threw one last glance at the world chat before closing my user interface screen and heading to the Cursed Temple with my friends.