Afterlife Dream

DragonTalon was not wrong.

Even during my short visit to the school, I noticed that popular and beautiful girls like Aurendiria did not end up with ordinary guys. The cheerleaders always ended up dating the rugby players. Rugby players were akin to male celebrities at school.

Aurendiria was no doubt the prettiest girl in the game. Her soft, curly, and long blond hair along with the baby blue bright and round eyes made her look innocent but at the same time appealing to the senses. One could not get bored when looking at her beautiful face. Her fair complexion was even more enchanting with blushing cheeks. Aurendiria's demeanor was flawless. She always treated everyone kindly. Her high fame level was not only due to her outer beauty but also due to her inner beauty.

Aurendiria always paid meticulous attention to her appearance. No matter what skin she used to cover her gears and weapon, they always came together perfectly like a well-coordinated orchestra performance. In fact, she was a trendsetter in Afterlife Dream. A lot of female players tried to imitate her dressing style, but they could never fully figure out Aurendiria's taste.

Aurendiria was the only girl in the game I knew that dressed to the nines while joining a raid. It was easy to fall for Aurendiria. Not as easy to get her. It was thus no wonder that BlackPuma won her heart. Popular girls always ended up with equally popular guys.

It felt awkward to go back to Fairy Forest, even more awkward to go back to Marsh City. The farther we went, the more low-level players we met. They looked at us adoringly as if we had just come back from a level 140 raid. They would not believe us if we told them that we too only started playing the game a few weeks ago.

Within these few weeks, both DragonTalon and I improved a lot. We both completed not only the second job but also the third job advancement. Unfortunately not everyone from our peers back in our newbie days strived to get to higher levels and complete one challenge after another in the hope to gather Life Points. Some, like Kitty and Wolfhound, had decided to make a life in the Afterlife Dream realm.

The farmhouse that Kitty and Wolfhound lived in was located at the far end of Marsh City. One could say that it was built on the outskirts of Marsh City. Nevertheless, it encompassed a huge area. They not only farmed but also kept some cattle such as cows and pigs.

In the middle of the fields stood a relatively large farmhouse. DragonTalon and I walked toward the house and knocked at the door.

"Coming...!!!" Kitty's voice was heard from behind the door.

Soon after, Kitty appeared. When we finally came face-to-face, we barely recognized each other. DragonTalon and I were wearing our Native Islander sets while Kitty was wearing a red polka dot farm dress with a white apron.

"Antares...? DragonTalon...?"

We both nodded.

"Kitty? Wow... Hey...!!!"

Kitty pulled us both into hugs.

"Oh my God. I missed you two so much. Oh my God. Look at you... level 73. Wow. Geez..."

I sensed some envy in Kitty's tone, but it quickly disappeared behind a bright smile.

"Welcome to our farmhouse, guys!!! Come in, come in, you are just in time for dinner!"

DragonTalon took a deep breath and sighed in approval.

"What's that smell? God, so delicious..."

Kitty pulled at our arms and led us toward the dinner table.

"Roast goose! I have chickpea puree, steamed broccoli, and also boiled potatoes ready. But first, some appetizers. Have some garlic bread, guys. There are also some cheese blocks..."

Kitty would not stop talking. She was so excited to feed us.

"So... Where ish Wolfhie?" DragonTalon asked with a full mouth.

"He is coming soon," Kitty answered with a smile. "He is selling some of our products in the market section."

I whistled.

"Kitty, you specialize in cooking?"

Kitty nodded with a broad grin.

"Yes! And Wolfie is specializing in farming and fishing."

It was DragonTalon's turn to whistle.

"You guys make a perfect team," he commented.

The reason for that was simple. To cook high-end dishes, high-end ingredients were needed. The plant-based ingredients came from farming, and the animal-based ingredient came from fishing and cattle farming. By having a household that could cover all these skills, it was easy to make money. Moreover, Kitty and Wolfhound no longer focused on leveling up. They chose to settle down and enjoyed their life in the Afterlife Dream realm.

Wolfhound came back shortly after, and we greeted each other warmly as old friends before we sat together at the dinner table.

The dishes were naturally empty dishes, but they tasted like heaven. DragonTalon and I ate like prisoners who had not been fed properly for seventy years. Endless but gibberish praises escaped our lips as we tasted one dish after another.

"Sooo," I turned my attention to both Kitty and Wolfhound. "What are your plans for the future?"

Kitty and Wolfhound exchanged smiles before answering me.

"This is our plan. We want to stay here for a while."

I already guessed it, but it was still such a pity.

"Don't you guys want to collect Life Points and exit the game soon?" DragonTalon piped in.

"What for?" Wolfhound asked after taking a sip from his cup. "Life here is good. I cannot ask for better."

Kitty nodded in agreement.

"I know that most players take the world as an intermediary space between two reincarnations on earth, but I disagree. When we reincarnate in Afterlife Dream, we are given the chance to live in Afterlife Dream. So why not make the best of it? Life Points can wait."

DragonTalon lifted his cup in our direction.

"Nothing wrong with that. Let's make a toast. For Kitty and Wolfhound our dear friends. May your farm life in Afterlife Dream flourish and give you the greatest joy. When I need food, please do spare this poor guy something to eat."

The table roared with laughter.

It got quite late when we were full and finished telling each other the newest updates in our lives. DragonTalon and I wanted to retreat to our homes, but Kitty stopped us.

"Antares, do you remember when we had to rent houses in Dai City?" Kitty asked me.

"Sure."

How could I forget? The time when we were all homeless, hahaha.

"Even after unlocking home, we don't feel at ease sleeping alone in our homes. That's our main reason to build this farmhouse. We have two guest rooms and we already furnished them. One for Anty and one for DragonTalon. Why don't you guys sleep in there tonight?"

DragonTalon and I exchanged excited looks. Of course we had to take Kitty up on her offer. We both had not slept in a real house since... time immemorial.

The guest room was exquisite. By exquisite, I was not saying that it looked like a VIP suite in a five-star hotel. No, what I meant was that it felt like home. There was the single bed with a fluffy pillow and patchwork blanket. A wooden, lacquered nightstand with a small lamp on top of it stood next to the bed. The yellow lampshade had the form of a trumpet flower. The headboard was directly underneath a double window, and the window sill was wide enough for someone to sit by the window.

I opened the window and sucked in a lungful of the fresh night air. I then climbed over the headboard to sit at the window sill.

When I sat there on my own, I started to reminisce about my past life.

I died in my sleep. I wonder which nurse found my corpse first. Probably the one who had the morning shift and came to take my blood pressure and temperature. Poor nurse. I hope she was not too frightened. How did my adoptive parents react after they heard the news about my passing? How did Jaden react? Were they sad? Where did they bury me? Or did they cremate me? If they cremated me, what did they do to my ash?

I pulled my knees to my chest and sighed. So many questions and no one to answer them. Look at the bright side, Daniel. At least you died peacefully in your sleep. Would you rather die in a bus crash like Kitty? Or burnt to crisps like HellWitch?

With gratitude in my heart, I went to sleep. It was a relatively good sleep. The bed was so soft and fluffy that I thought I might drown into the mattress and returned to earth right away. I would definitely sleep for a long time. It was fine because I was not in a hurry to go anywhere or do anything.

I was planning to sleep past 10 AM. Just trying to enjoy my night in Kitty's and Wolfie's farmhouse. Against my expectation, I was woken up by the ruckus outside of the farmhouse just hours later.