In a dark room lit solely by candles, I sat at the head of a table. Around me were Millia, Augusta, Janek, and Robert. Blank sheets of paper and manuscripts were in front of all of us. I had an improvised wooden screen in front of me, from the table up to my shoulders. Most important of all, there were sets of dice before everyone.

  "Does your game involve gambling, Dante?" Janek asked, raising an eyebrow.

  "No. At least, not with real money. You might be able to gamble with the fake money used in the game," I answered. "Just give me a moment to set the mood."

  I closed my eyes and imagined a fantasy landscape. Being in an Early Modern fantasy world, it wasn't that hard. But I had to imagine a Medieval fantasy landscape instead. This took a moment of visualization. Then, I opened my eyes.

  "Are you feeling brave tonight?" I questioned. "Brave enough to do battle with hideous monsters? Brave enough to sneak around dead castles in the dark with chances being the next victim? Welcome to the world of Swords and Sorcerers."

  Millia facepalmed.

  "That's the name you settled on?" she groaned.

  "It's a work in progress," I replied.

  "I think it's good," Augusta's voice was calm.

  Millia groaned.

  "Of course, you do," she shook her head.

  "Anyway," I spoke up. "You all have drafts of the rulebook in front of you. It's time to start session 0: character creation. Go ahead and open the books."

  Everyone did as instructed and started reading. I explained how to make a character as they did.

  "First, you select your race. Then, you roll your stats. After that, you pick a class and get class abilities. Finally, you buy equipment with your starting silver," I said.

  Robert had a perplexed look on his face. Janek and Augusta seemed a bit confused, too. Millia, just as I expected, had her usual expression. Out of all of them, Robert spoke first.

  "Dante, what's an elf?"

  "It's like a huldenfolk," Millia explained. "Except they're less hidden."

  I made a note in my copy of the draft to write better explanations of the races. At least I put in some sample names people could use for their characters.

  "It has a bonus to dexterity and a penalty to endurance," Augusta observed. "Huldenfolk are faster than humans, but they tire out sooner."

  "That's because they have hooves instead of feet," Millia shrugged.

  "Then, why don't the elves have hooves?"

  I couldn't exactly say 'because elves don't have hooves.' So, I went with my best explanation.

  "They're more agile than humans are but not as durable. That's why their bonuses and penalties are the way they are," I explained.

  Robert looked through more of the book with a grimace.

  "What's a dwarf? And what's a halfling?" his voice came to my ears.

  Millia groaned.

  "Halflings are like humans but only half as tall. They live in holes in the ground and like comfort," she explained. "Dwarves are like halflings but much bulkier. They live in deeper holes in the ground and like blacksmithing."

  Augusta started flipping through the book's pages at rapid speed. After a few minutes of looking, my girlfriend spoke.

  "Dante, where are the rules for blacksmithing?"

  "I don't have any," I said.

  "But dwarves like blacksmithing, right? Shouldn't you have rules for it?" Augusta questioned.

  That was a good point. Someone might also want to play a survival game, and blacksmithing rules could help with that. I made a note in my manuscript.

  "I'll come up with smithing rules in the next draft," I said.

  My gaze flipped over to Janek. He had been reading the rules in complete silence. Just what was he thinking?

  "Dante, there's a spelling error. I think," Augusta spoke up.

  "What is it?" I turned back to her.

  "The book claims that wizards can't wear armor heavier than a buff coat," she stated. "As a spellcaster yourself, you know that's not true."

  I rubbed the back of my head awkwardly.

  "Well...the thing is that wizards are...a lot more powerful in the world of Swords and Sorcerers than in our world. I needed to balance them somehow," I explained.

  Augusta read through the rest of the section on wizards with even greater focus than before. It was as if an aura of concentration was flowing out of her. Then, my girlfriend slammed one of her fingers into the book. I was worried she'd break it.

  Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

  "Dante, at level 1, wizards get 3 spells, more if they're smart," Augusta stated. "And by the time they're level five, out of twenty total levels, they have at least 7 spells. That is completely unrealistic."

  I felt a twinge of frustration flash through me. This was going to be a long session.

  "This isn't our world, Augusta. Its magic works differently," I pointed out.

  Robert grimaced. Knowing his personality, I could tell that he was ready to join in on the complaining.

  "I'm so jealous," he groaned. "Why do the gods of Swords and Sorcery give their priests magic spells? Our gods don't do that."

  Millia nodded as she read the magic section.

  "Only antigods give their followers spells. And their magic always comes with a price or horrible test. The priest class in Swords and Sorcery just has to act in a way that pleases their gods," she said.

  Her eyes flickered to me. Lines of frustration formed on her face. Ah. She was still mad about that. I...couldn't blame her.

  "So, umm...what about the fighter class?" I tried to change the subject. "That's pretty cool, right?"

  Augusta flipped through the pages. Her eyes scanned them at incredible speed. Then, she moved to another section of the book. My girlfriend seemed confused.

  "Dante, why do you use your Strength bonus with swords? They're finesse weapons," Augusta said.

  That was a good point. But I'd already thought of that.

  "When we're just dealing with normal humans, agility is more important, even if strength is valuable too. But when you have things like giants, dragons, and people as strong as you, strength becomes more important. At least, relative to normal humans," I stated.

  Robert placed a hand on his chin. He flipped back to one of the earlier pages.

  "That makes me wonder, what would our stats be in this game?"

  "Your Strength is 13, Agility is 13, Stamina is 13, Intelligence is 14, Charisma is 7, and Wisdom is 12," Augusta said.

  Robert looked like he was about to blow a gasket, but he controlled his anger.

  "Your Highness, I'm not that ugly," he stated.

  "No. But your personality is bad," she replied.

  Millia chuckled. Robert looked utterly dejected.

  "We're both commoners, Millia," he grumbled. "We're supposed to be on the same side."

  Augusta's gaze fixed on the other girl.

  "Millia," my girlfriend spoke.

  "Yes?"

  "Your strength is 10, agility is 13, stamina is 13, intelligence is 15, wisdom is 15, and charisma is 3. Your personality is truly horrible," Augusta said.

  Millia huffed and folded her arms. Her eyebrows flickered with irritation.

  "Whatever," she scoffed. "It's not like base stats are everything. I'm higher level than the rest of you."

  Seemingly satisfied, Robert turned his attention to Janek.

  "What about him?"

  "Janek has a strength of 14, agility of 15, stamina of 14, intelligence of 15, wisdom of 16, and charisma of 10," Augusta explained.

  Robert blinked in shock.

  "But he barely says anything."

  "He doesn't say anything stupid either," Augusta bluntly stated.

  Robert's eye twitched. Augusta turned to me.

  "Dante. Your strength is 19, agility is 19, stamina is 17, intelligence is 18, wisdom is 15, and charisma is 14," she said.

  It was my turn to be surprised. This shock did not last long since I recalled the bias Augusta had in my favor.

  "You're just saying that because I'm your lover," I stated.

  "Yes. Because you're my lover, you trained with me. That increased your stats," Augusta explained.

  Robert jabbed a finger at my girlfriend.

  "Alright! Augusta! Then, tell me: what are your stats?" he asked.

  "My intelligence is 18, wisdom is 13, charisma is 5," her answer was without hesitation. "The maximum stat in this book is 20, so I'm not sure what my physical stats are. 20 is too low."

  This conversation was making me wish that I could see more of Augusta at her full strength. I'd have to get stronger so I could spar harder with her.

  "I'm done," Janek said.

  He spoke so suddenly that everyone except Augusta jumped. I composed myself with swiftness and extended my hand.

  "Let me see your character sheet," I told him.

  "Of course," he nodded.

  Janek handed me the piece of paper he had written on. I looked through it.

  "You're playing as Joff Toehook, a halfling thief?" I asked.

  "Yes, I am," Janek answered.

  Robert scoffed.

  "Of course, a noble is playing as a thief. Just like one of them to steal from hard-working folk."

  Millia put her head in her hands.

  "Please spare me the communist bullshit," she groaned.

  I put a finger in the air.

  "Actually, considering how the nobility is the government," a grin crossed my face. "Wouldn't this be libertarian bullshit? They're the ones who say 'taxation is theft' after all!"

  Robert looked incredibly confused.

  "I have no idea what you're talking about," he said.

  Moving on, I examined Janek's character sheet another time before handing it back to him.

  "Your character is good. Now, the rest of you can finish up your characters."

  Thankfully, there weren't many other complaints, although Augusta asked me a lot of lore questions. Everyone was able to concentrate and put together their characters. Our party consisted of:

  Joff Toehook, a halfling thief played by Janek. He left his village after it was burned down by barbarians when he was a child, and had to turn to crime to survive.

  Filia Istlost, a dwarven wizard and Augusta's character. She studied at a magical school before reaching a dead end in her progress. Now, Filia's become an adventurer to find magic items. Goals are always good in a backstory, so I approve a lot.

  Father Remmold Darkrule, a human priest created by Robert. He's a follower of the war god, Mars, whom I included as a sample god since Millia assured me that no one in the Duke's Duplicity knew who Mars was. Also, he's an alcoholic.

  And speaking of Millia, her character was an elven warrior named Khristina Florence. I had no idea why she gave her character two first names, but I didn't mind. She also didn't bother giving her character a backstory.

  After our characters were finished, I called the session. We had spent several hours on it, and I needed to make our adventure. Augusta stayed to help me clean up while the others went back to their quarters.

  I don't blame them, considering how Augusta insisted on being the only one to stay.

  "Thank you, Dante," she said.

  "For what?" I asked.

  "If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't have friends and Millia," Augusta answered.

  I didn't like being thanked for this. But I couldn't think of a counterargument that would be anything other than an empty platitude. So, I changed the subject.

  "The expeditions are coming up soon," I stated.

  "They are," Augusta nodded. "I hope the teachers give us more details."

  She didn't seem surprised that I knew about them, which was good. In fact, I was a bit shocked Augusta knew, but she was also a high-ranking noble.

  "I hope so too. I'm also going to recruit someone new to our party on the next free day," I said.

  Her bonding event would come up soon.

  "You can't recruit Crummel, Dante," Augusta advised.

  "Not him. Someone else," I replied. "Obviously, you're coming with me. So, you'll meet her soon enough."

  My girlfriend gave me a single nod.

  "Okay, Dante," she said.

  "Also, when I go on my expedition, I'd like to take you with me. It'll be a sort of date," I stated. "If you don't want to go, then..."

  "I'll go," Augusta interrupted me.

  There was a slight smile on her face as she reached up and patted my head. It sent waves of warmth through my heart. The expedition shouldn't be that dangerous, so Augusta wouldn't need to worry about protecting me.

  Besides, I did some research in my spare time. The most likely place I and Augusta would go to is Annwfyn Mountain. It's protected by the God of the Underworld, so it probably was a pretty easy level in the Duke's Duplicity.

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