Alex stood in the center of his living room, surveying the transformation. Afterming down the stairs, eating lunch at the kitchenunter, and swiping through social media on his phone for a bit, he heard Sarahme into the house and start talking loudly with Mark in the living room.
Curious, he walked through the house and into the changed space. Multiple tables had been arranged in a rough semicircle, each with a piece of paper on it. Each paper had a quickly scribbled word on it, in Mark’s messy handwriting, that designated each table for a different category of loot.
He shook his head and ffed before looking at Edwin, who was adjusting the last table.
“Edwin, I can’t believe you actually helped Mark with this ridiculous request,” Alex said, with a tone between amusement and disbelief.
Edwin straightened hisat and kept his expression neutral. “Master Moore, it is my duty to assist with all household matters, regardless of how… unventional they may be.”
Mark’s voice rang out from the far side of the living room as he pulled some stuff out from the cabinets and mini-fridge. “Oh,me on! Don’t give him a hard time, dude!” He staggered across the room with his arms full of snacks and drinks. To top off the ridiculous image, he was bumping a whiteboard on wheels across the smooth floor with his hip and shoulder before Edwin came over to assist. “This is important team bonding! If you’re gonna be the team captain, you gotta do some stuff like this— for morale.”
Sarah was seated cross-legged to Alex’s right on theuch. She pulled out her laptop and snorted with laughter. “Is that what we’re calling it now?”
As Mark began arranging all the snacks, he suddenly stood up straight and adopted an exaggerated ceremonial pose. “Oh great and mighty loot gods,” he intoned, holding a bag of chips over his head, “accept our humble snack tribute and bless us with epic rewards!”
Olivia leaned against the doorframe behind him and rolled her eyes. “If the loot gods are real, they’re probably more insulted than appeased. I can’t imagine they’d want Doritos…”
“Oh hey, when did you get here?” Alex said as he walked over and gave her a hug.
“… But they’re Cool Ranch…” Mark said as he lowered the bag. There was a long moment where he stood quietly and stared with a blank look. Then he just shrugged and took a bite out of a chip with a loud crunch.
Alex and Olivia walked over to the table, and Alex set his spatial pouch down. “Alright, well, I guess everyone can start pulling out everything we’ve gotten. We can spread it out and start passing things around when Sam gets here.” Alex reached into his pouch and began setting items on the table in front of himself with one hand while he used his other hand and some physical threads of mana to begin gently lifting the items and sorting them neatly onto the proper tables.
He paused for a moment to acknowledge internally howol it was to magically lift things up and move them around. For some of the heavier items, it required multiple threads, or one at either end of the item, to lift it up efficiently, but it was still something that would have seemedmpletely absurd just a few months before.
Olivia, standing next to him, raised an eyebrow. “Hey Edwin, how many Mana Stones does Alex waste getting dust for little parlor tricks like this?” She grinned and dramatically reached out to pick up a small potion bottle with care. “You know, some of us manage just fine with our hands.”
Alex felt his cheeks warm slightly. “It’s efficient,” he muttered, but there was no real annoyance in his tone, and he knew she was only teasing.
Sam entered the room with an enormous grin on his face and walking somewhat stiffly. Alex immediately rolled his eyes andvered both of his eyes with his hand. The teenager held out his spatial pouch and walked to the table before beginning to slowly unload items.
All of their eyes turned to Sam as he wore a cloak that they hadn’t seen before. It appeared to be of extremely high quality. A beautiful azure with gold trim and intricately designed patterns of magic across it. There was allar that rose above the clasp and to the bottom of Sam’s jaw, protecting his neck.
Sam finished pulling out the twenty or so odd items that he’d received frommpleting both his Personal and Rift Quests over the last three weeks and he stood there, smiling, and waiting for someone to say something.
“Wow, great! So when do we get to start?” Sam said.
“Uhh, Sam? What about the cloak? Is that one of the Rift rewards or a custom order?”
Even though it didn’t seem like it was possible, Sam’s smile widened, and then he burst into laughter. Mark and Sarah looked from Sam to Alex, who was stillvering his face.
In a showy motion, the short cloak from around Sam’s shoulders flared to life and twisted, the image distorted and shimmered as the illusion broke.
“Val!” the baby dragon called happily as if surprising the entire group with his grand reveal.
Mark and Sarah both began to laugh along with Sam. Even Oliviauldn’t suppress the grin from her face.
“I guess he advanced the illusion skill, then?” Alex said, watching as hismpanion, who had his eyes closed and his chin lifted in the air with pride.
“Yeah, and it was his idea to use his wings to bme a cloak. At first he tried to put them over my head, but it just looked like a really weird wizard’s hat.”
“I’ve got to admit,” Mark said after wiping his eye. “it’s actually a pretty good illusion for him. The bottom of the cloak did look a bit pointy, but it really looked like he moved around like cloth.”
“Val watch window cape!”
“You what?”
Valtherion unwrapped himself from Sam before moving over to the large windows of the living room that face the front yard. He flapped his wings and used his long tail to grab onto a section of the curtain before hanging upside down and letting his wings hang down limp. Then, he reactivated the illusion skill and looked as if he became a perfect blend with the curtain.
Mark began clapping, and after a moment, Sam and Olivia both joined him.
Alex looked over to Mark and saw the large Polish man looking at Sam with a smile. When they made eyentact, Mark raised an eyebrow and nodded his head to the teen.
They exchanged a silent look of pride, watching how far he’dme in just a few weeks.
“Alright, guys,” Alex said, clapping his hands together. “Let’s get this loot party started. We’ve all been accepting our rewards and talking about them or even sharing when needed. But I have a feeling this is going to be really impressive when we stop to look at everything and catalog what we’ve got. Next week should be a breeze if we can use this stuff to set ourselves up well enough. It’s the last week of the Teams Event, and it would be awesome to close three more Rifts in that time!”
“Woo, Loot Pile Party!” Mark called, followed by a whoop and cheer from Sam.
The living room buzzed with excitement as everyone finished unpacking their rewards from their spatial pouches, and Alex stepped back to watch them all.
“Let’s get aunt going,” Sarah said, her fingers tapping on her laptop keyboard. “How many Rifts did everyone participate in?”
“Eight for me,” Alex said, which was followed by Mark and Sam quickly echoing the same.
“Four for me,” Sarah added as she looked up from her screen.
Olivia crossed her arms. “Three. Guild duties kept me busy.”
Sarah nodded and finished typing. “So, that’s… 62 total rewards. Jeez, guys. We’ve been busy!”
As they sorted through the pile, Sam suddenly let out a whoop. “Oh, hey! Check this one out, I forgot this was from the one we finished two days ago.” He held up a shining ring that had small runes etched into its surface. “The System called it a Mana Control Ring.”
Olivia’s eyes widened, and she took a step forward. “That’s an Ummon quality item?”
Sam’s excitement dimmed slightly, and he glanced between Olivia and the ring.
Only a moment passed before Olivia saw Sam’s face, and she shook her head quickly. “You know what? You keep it, Sam. You did more Rifts, and it was your drop anyway. Use it well, kid.”
“Thanks, I will!”
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“That’s a decent point, though,” Sarah pointed out. “How do we want to do this? What’s our main goal here?”
“I’d say the main goal is to get our team outfitted first. We have a decent amount of money at our disposal from the Rift information sale. While I’m sure we’ll get a nice payout from selling some of this, it will be more important to have everyone set first.”
When everyone nodded in agreement, Mark spoke up. “So, if it was your drop, you get the first dips on it? Then we can just kind of vote or pass it around to whoever on the team might need it the most after that. Then, from there, we can put stuff in a pile to be sold or traded in the Auction House?”
More nods and agreements and Alex moved to the center of the semicircle. He started working his way around the items, scanning them and sharing with the item descriptions with the group. Sarah wrote them down as he went and he needed to take a few short breaks to give his Heavenly Eye a rest. Scanning so many items in quick succession started cause pressure to build in his head just behind his eye.
“Oh, what about payment,” Mark asked while they waited for Alex to rver during one of the breaks. “Contribution-based or an even split?”
Everyone in the room looked to Alex at the same time.
“Uh, I guessntribution-based,” He said with a shrug. “While I know you guys wanted to be with us more, you were doing jobs that already pay you. Seems fair to let us keep a bit more of the loot for the Rifts we ran while you were doing that.”
Olivia and Sarah looked at each other and shrugged while nodding and agreeing.
After going through a few of the more mundane items, Mark held up a small pouch that clinked like glass was within. “Oh, guys. I know what this is.” He gently tipped the pouch over as three small, circular-shaped items dropped into his palm. “Skill tokens. These are going to be huge.”
Alex nodded with him. “Yeah, these are probably the most valuable things for our team. I looted one of them but I’ll pass on it. I have a lot right now and am a bit overwhelmed with the stuff I’m trying to learn as it is. Mark looted one, and Sarah looted the other; I think it’s most important that you two each get one. You’re the lowest level with the least number of skills. Olivia, are you okay if I give the token to Sam as well?”
Sam looked sheepish as Olivia shrugged. “I don’t want to get all of the good stuff,” he said, clearly feeling selfnscious about getting two things that the dark-haired womanuld have gotten herself.
“No worries. I have already gotten two of them through work. Besides, I’m with Alex. I need to focus on leveling and developing the stuff I’ve got. I feel like too many skillsuld be a bad thing.”
Sam didn’t seem to be put much at ease, though he did accept the token as Mark tossed it to him.
“Sarah and Mark, it might be worth it for you guys to hold on to your token for a few days. We’ve got to look into that a bit more, but if they are just normal skill tokens and not one of the ones that’s bound to a stat type, it should give you a skill that fits you. Ituld be worth it to wait until you’ve chosen a class before you break the token.”
“Wait, who looted this?” Olivia said, her attention fully focused on the far table. She held up a small black token that looked like a domino.
“What is it?” Mark and Alex asked at the same time.
“A Class Reset Token,” Olivia answered. “These things are really rare, and I’ve only seen one so far with the Guild. Apparently, you can crack it just like a skill token, but it will strip your class and give you a prompt just like the one you got at level 10 to choose different options for your class.”
“Woah, so you wouldn’t need to wait until you hit the threshold to change?”
She nodded. “But from what I understand, you only use this if you’re looking to change class types altogether. The System won’t offer you the class that you’re changing form, and it won’t offer the evolution path either, so it can’t be used as some sort of shortcut.”
The divery of the Class Reset Token caused a stir. After a brief discussion led by Olivia explaining its rarity and potential, they almost all agreed that it should be kept for future use, rather than going into the sale pile.
As theyntinued sorting, the process became more efficient. Potions and Mana Stones were divided equally, ensuring everyone had essential supplies. The group naturally fell into a rhythm of fair distribution, and Sarah used her laptop to track major items and their estimated values.
Alex watched Sam grow morenfident in his choices and by the end, he was easily deferring items to his teammates, whould better use them. The sorting resulted in three main categories; there were personal keep piles, team resources, and a decent sized sale pile of crafting materials and redundant items.
When they finished going through the pile, each member stood excitedly beside a small pile of their own loot and items. Alex looked down at his personal stash and grinned, excited for one item in particular.
E Rank Item - Introduction to Spellcasting
Rarity: Common Type: Manual
“I’ve really been looking forward to getting into Spellcasting. At least now, when I want to get into it, I don’t have to buy a manual from the Auction House.”
Mark picked up his own manual. The Physical Training Regimen of the Iron Kingdom seemed promising. Even at first glance, it seemed to focus more on methods for training and developing a strong Constitution rather than high Strength.
The other manual of note was Olivia’s. “Yeah, the manuals are pretty big. I wouldn’t have thought about getting one like this, but since it’s here, I can see how it would be a great fit for me. This will definitely improve my uting skills and will help me make some maps.”
E Rank Item - Fundamentals of Cartography
Rarity: Common Type: Manual
In the end, they distributed the Mana Stones based onntribution among the group. While it didn’t seem like a lot over three weeks, they’d moved at a pretty leisurely and safe pace through their Rifts. And that was also only looking at the raw Mana Stones gained. If they were to sell more items or trade for Mana Stones, they’d have gained far more money.
The group laughed as Val dove into his small pile of stones, chomping down on one while seeming to bask in the feeling of laying on a pile of pure crystalized mana.
Alex felt proud of how smoothly the entire thing had gone. Each of them had prioritized the group benefits over their own gain, and while he hadn’t thought that there would be any problem, he’d seen far too many games where people in social situations only wanted to look out for themselves and their own personal gain.
“Well,” Alex said, “I’d say this was a successful loot party. We’re better equipped, have backup resources, and should make a decent profit. Not bad for three weeks of work, huh?”
The others all agreed, and a sense of amplishment clearly settled into the room. They began packing up their new items, and thenversation naturally shifted toward the challenges ahead in the final week of the Teams Event.
As they finished organizing their loot and Alex began to put items into his bag, Olivia cleared her throat. “I’ve got some Guild news. The new Headquarters is almostmplete, and they’re planning to host the final Teams Event ceremony there next week.”
Alex noticed Sarah shift umfortably at the mention of going to the Guild event at the end of thempetition. Olivia must have caught the look as well, as she quickly added, “Sarah, you canme too. Though I can warn you guys a little more than others, Elana will almost certainly use this event as a time to bring in some press and recruit some new Guild members, too.”
Sarah’s shoulders relaxed slightly. “Thanks, I do want to join. Even if we aren’t first or anything.”
Mark chimed in, “Speaking of the Guild, any word on that Hunters Association criticism?”
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Olivia sighed. “Yeah, they’re not thrilled with our expansion and the use of intermediaries to get through the Safe Zone checkpoints, but it’s all playing by their rules… so I don’t really see what they can say about it. But honestly, we’re just trying to establish a stable network.” She glanced at Alex. “Which reminds me, they’re talking about potentially sending a team to Europe. They’d send a few Peacekeepers and some of our stronger members to help establish a branch in Belgium.”
Sarah raised an eyebrow. “Are you saying that intentionally with me here?”
“Elana made it clear that Iuld share it with the team, you included. I think she wants to make it clear that we’re not making shady deals with anotheruntry or something, just attempting to expand and make branches.”
“I’m not reporting stuff you tell me to other people.” Sarah shrugged, repeating her previous statement. “It’s not my job, and the moment they start to pressure me to spy on friends is the moment I leave. If it’s a big deal, I’m sure the Hunters Association has other, more reliable ways of finding things out.”
The room fell silent for a moment as they processed the information and the large step that the Guild was about to take internationally.
Alex broke the silence. “Well, let’s focus on what we canntrol, yeah? We’ve got one week left in the Teams Event, and then the celebration at the new HQ. I say we aim for three more Rifts, push our limits a bit, and maybe make these loot parties a more regular thing?”
Enthusiastic nods all around.
“Great,” Mark said while pulling out his phone. “But first, we need a team photo with all this sweet, sweet loot. Everyone, get in!”
They huddled together in the middle of the semicircle of tables. They were still surrounded by most of the small piles of distributed treasures. As Mark held up his phone, Alex looked at his friends and was just in time to see Valtherion’s head pop up from over Olivia’s shoulder and enter the picture before the flash.
Mark and Sam cheered after the picture and Olivia chased Mark around the living room, telling him to let her see the photo. Sarah walked over to him as Val joined the chaos and held up her laptop.
“Just in case you wanted to see the full list of the distribution. I sent it to your email, too.”
“Awesome, thanks for doing that. I have a feeling that we have a lot more lootming our way if we keep this up,” Alex said as he accepted themputer and began to read through the list.
Loot Distribution by Team Member
Alex
Wooden Shield (Common - E Rank)Introduction to Spellcasting (Common - E Rank)Bundle of 3 Mana Rvery Potions (Common - E Rank)27 Mana Stones
Valtherion
27 Mana Stones
Mark
1 Skill TokenHeavy Club (Common - E Rank)Chainmail Shirt (Common - E Rank)Iron Helmet (Common - E Rank)Basic Iron Ore Chunk (Common - E Rank)Basic Combat Forms (Common - E Rank)Physical Training Regimen of the Iron Kingdom (Common - E Rank)27 Mana Stones
Sarah
1 Skill TokenWooden Bow (Common - E Rank)Leather Vest (Common - E Rank)Bundle of 4 Minor Healing Potions (Common - E Rank)13 Mana Stones
Olivia
Iron Dagger (Common - E Rank)Steel Bracers (Common - E Rank)Rabbit Meat (Common - E Rank)Fundamentals of Cartography (Common - E Rank)Bundle of 2 Agility Potions (Common - E Rank)10 Mana Stones
Sam
1 Skill TokenRing of Magical Control (Ummon - E Rank)Essence of Dewdrop (Ummon - E Rank)Shimmering Leaf (Ummon - E Rank)Bundle of Common Herbs (Common - E Rank)Herblore 101 (Common - E Rank)Bundle of 3 Focus Potions (Common - E Rank)27 Mana Stones
Group Stockpile
Straight Sword (Common - E Rank)Basic Spear (x2) (Common - E Rank)Standard Crossbow (Common - E Rank)Padded Boots (Common - E Rank)Sparkling Gemstone Chip (Ummon - E Rank)Bundle of 4 Minor Healing Potions (Common - E Rank)Bundle of 2 Minor Fortitude Potions (Common - E Rank)Bundle of 3 Stamina Booster Potions (Common - E Rank)
Sell Pile
Beginner's Guide to Ornamental Glassblowing (Common - E Rank)Bag of Grain (Common - E Rank)River Clay Lump (Common - E Rank)Cracked Bone Fragment (Common - E Rank)Small Vial of Mineral Dust (Common - E Rank)Dull Crystal Shard (Common - E Rank)Rough Animal Hide (Common - E Rank)Bundle of 4 Swiftfoot Potions (Ummon - E Rank)
