Joy

Steven took a slow breath.

The brass platform beneath his boots vibrated ever so slightly with the rhythmic heartbeat of the Gate.

Tick.

Tick.

Tick.

Every few seconds, somewhere in the distance, another colossal gear rotated into place with a thunderous metallic CLUNK.

His right hand reached into empty air.

The motion had already become instinct.

His Equipment Preset activated.

The silver Apprentice Mana Earring appeared on his left ear.

A faint coolness washed over him as his mana pool increased.

MP: 200 / 200

"Nice."

His fingers curled around nothing.

A second later, shimmering blue particles condensed into the Beginner's Mana Pistol.

It felt surprisingly light.

More like polished ceramic than steel.

Blue runic lines glowed faintly along the barrel, pulsing in time with his heartbeat.

"So this is what Arc Gunners use..."

He gave it an experimental twirl.

It balanced beautifully.

Almost as though it wanted to be held.

Steven carefully walked across one of the rotating bridges.

Steam vents hissed from nearby pipes.

Several gears rotated beneath transparent metal grates, exposing machinery disappearing hundreds of feet below.

"...Please don't make me fall."

As if hearing him...

The bridge shifted.

Steven froze.

"...I was joking."

The bridge settled into place.

He exhaled.

A low mechanical growl echoed nearby.

Steven crouched.

Peeking around a rotating gear...

He spotted his first enemy.

"...Seriously?"

It looked almost adorable.

A bronze wolf, roughly the size of a German Shepherd.

Its body consisted of interlocking plates, tiny pistons pumping beneath its shoulders.

Steam vented rhythmically from vents where ears should have been.

Blue light glowed behind polished glass eyes.

Its tail slowly ticked back and forth like the hand of a clock.

The thing looked like someone had dropped an anime robot into a Victorian steampunk novel.

Steven couldn't help himself.

He laughed.

"...You're ridiculous."

The wolf immediately snapped its head toward him.

The glowing eyes brightened.

A sharp mechanical howl echoed through the chamber.

"Guess we're doing this."

Steven assumed a proper two-handed shooting stance.

Just like he'd seen countless times in movies.

He aligned the glowing front sight.

Focused.

Then squeezed the trigger.

Instead of gunpowder...

The pistol emitted a soft hum.

A bright blue bolt of condensed mana shot forward with a satisfying PEW!

The projectile struck the construct square in its shoulder.

CRACK!

The bronze plating fractured.

Blue sparks erupted outward.

The wolf stumbled violently.

A floating damage number appeared.

-21

Steven blinked.

"...Twenty-one?"

The wolf shook its head, trying to recover.

Steven immediately pieced the number together.

"My Intelligence is twelve..."

"The pistol gives five attack..."

"Twelve plus five..."

"Seventeen."

He smiled.

"So..."

"Constructs are weak against mana."

The extra four points of damage made perfect sense.

Their animated cores were fueled by magical energy.

Pure mana attacks disrupted those systems more effectively than simple physical force.

"Works for me."

The bronze wolf lunged.

Steven calmly fired again.

PEW!

Another bolt smashed directly into its chest.

-21

More bronze plating shattered away.

The construct lost its footing.

Steam erupted uncontrollably from ruptured pipes along its flank.

"One more."

Steven fired a third shot.

The mana bolt punched straight through the cracked chest plate.

The blue crystal embedded deep inside its body exploded into glittering fragments.

The bronze wolf froze mid-step.

Steam poured from every seam.

Its glowing eyes flickered.

Once.

Twice.

Then faded completely.

With a metallic groan...

The construct collapsed into a heap of lifeless gears and bronze plating.

A familiar notification appeared.

+12 EXP

Steven lowered the pistol.

"...Three shots."

He looked at the weapon appreciatively.

"Honestly..."

"This thing's pretty awesome."

A second notification appeared almost immediately.

Construct Core ×1 Acquired

The small blue crystal shimmered briefly before vanishing into his Inventory.

Steven grinned.

"My first loot."

Then he looked down at his mana.

MP: 185 / 200

"Five mana per shot..."

He nodded.

"Not bad."

He mentally estimated his limits.

Forty shots before empty.

Less if he needed to keep Mana Circulation active.

Still...

Compared to punching acid slimes and wrestling living trees...

Standing at range while blasting magical bullets felt incredibly luxurious.

Steven smiled as another distant mechanical howl echoed somewhere deeper within the endless clockwork labyrinth.

He raised the pistol once more.

"Alright..."

"Who's next?"

Steven holstered the mana pistol against his hip and immediately started scanning the moving pathways ahead.

The entire Gate felt alive.

Bridges shifted.

Gears rotated.

Steam burst from pipes overhead.

Every few seconds another massive mechanism locked into place with an earth-shaking THUNK.

Then...

Movement.

Across one of the rotating platform marched what looked like a...

"...A chicken?"

Steven blinked.

"No..."

It stood nearly as tall as his waist.

Its body was built from polished brass plates riveted together.

Instead of feathers it had overlapping bronze fins that hissed steam with every movement.

Its legs ended in piston-driven talons that clanged loudly against the metal floor.

Most bizarre of all...

A giant brass alarm clock was built directly into its chest, its hands ticking rapidly as it walked.

"...Who designed this place?"

The construct spotted him.

Its clock suddenly rang.

RRRRRING!

Then it charged.

Steven burst into laughter.

"I can't take you seriously!"

The mechanical bird covered the distance surprisingly fast.

Its spring-loaded legs launched it forward.

Its pointed bronze beak shot toward Steven's chest.

He twisted to the side just enough.

The beak scraped across his shoulder instead.

"Ow!"

It stung, but not enough to worry him.

He raised the Mana Pistol.

PEW!

The blue mana bolt struck squarely in its side.

A floating number appeared.

-21

The bronze plating cracked.

Steam hissed from the damaged section.

The construct retaliated immediately.

Its tail unfolded into a fan of spinning metal blades.

Steven ducked beneath them.

"...Okay."

"So you're actually dangerous."

Another shot.

PEW!

-21

This one struck the clock built into its chest.

Glass shattered.

The ticking became erratic.

The construct lunged one final time.

Steven calmly sidestepped.

Raised the pistol.

Fired.

PEW!

The mana bolt punched through the damaged clock.

Blue light flashed from inside the machine before the entire construct froze.

Steam vented violently from every joint.

Then it collapsed into a pile of lifeless brass.

+13 EXP

Two items remained on the ground.

One was another glowing blue crystal similar to the one dropped by the mechanical wolf.

The other...

Was a thick bronze gear about the size of his palm.

Steven picked both up.

The crystal disappeared into his Inventory beside the first one.

"So another Construct Core."

He recognized it from the marketplace listings. Artificers and Engineers were always buying them for crafting.

Then he turned the gear over in his hand.

Heavy.

Perfectly machined.

Not a single imperfection along its teeth.

"...No clue."

He shrugged.

"Storage for now."

The gear disappeared into his Inventory as well.

Over the next half hour...

Steven hunted three more constructs.

A six-legged mechanical spider that vented blasts of scalding steam.

A brass dragonfly whose razor-thin wings whipped up cutting gusts of wind.

And a squat mechanical boar fitted with a rotating drill where its snout should have been.

After fighting each one once, he quickly figured out their attack patterns.

The spider always paused before releasing steam.

The dragonfly briefly hovered before diving.

The boar committed fully to every charge and struggled to turn afterward.

Once he understood them...

The fights became almost easy.

PEW!

PEW!

PEW!

Mana bolts shattered gears and ruptured steam pipes.

One construct after another collapsed into scrap.

This time Steven didn't take a single hit.

By the time the fifth construct fell, he checked his status.

MP: 41 / 200

"...Hmm."

He frowned.

"I've still got enough to heal if something goes wrong..."

"But..."

"I should probably head home."

The thought made him unexpectedly disappointed.

"I just got here..."

He looked deeper into the endless maze of moving bridges and colossal gears.

"So much left to explore..."

Then...

His brain finally caught up.

"..."

"...Wait."

He stopped walking.

"...I'm an idiot."

He smacked himself lightly on the forehead.

"I can just buy mana potions."

He stood there silently for a moment before laughing.

"...I've played MMORPGs for years."

"...How did I forget potions exist?"

Still chuckling at himself, Steven exited the Gate.

The moment he stepped back into the real world, his phone buzzed as it reconnected to the network.

He immediately opened the Player Marketplace.

Mana Potion.

Hundreds of listings appeared.

Most veteran first-generation Players had no use for the weakest versions anymore.

Demand was practically nonexistent.

Exactly what Steven was hoping for.

He sorted by lowest price.

One seller was offering bundles.

25 Minor Mana Potions — $250

Steven grinned.

"...Ten bucks each."

Without hesitation he purchased twenty bundles.

Five hundred bottles in total.

Five thousand dollars disappeared from his Player Wallet.

A notification appeared.

Purchase Complete.

One after another, the potions materialized inside his Inventory.

Instead of filling hundreds of slots, they stacked neatly together.

Minor Mana Potion ×500

Steven stared at the number.

"...Beautiful."

Five hundred mana potions.

Five hundred chances to keep fighting.

Five hundred reasons not to go home early.

"Classic MMORPG economy."

He laughed.

"Nobody wants the low-level stuff, so they slash the prices."

To experienced Players, these potions were nearly worthless.

To Steven...

They were one of the best investments he could have made.

He still had fifteen thousand dollars left.

More than enough to keep improving later.

Steven pumped a fist into the air.

"SCORE!"

A passerby walking down the closed-off sidewalk gave him a puzzled look.

Steven immediately cleared his throat and pretended nothing had happened.

Then he turned back toward the giant silver Gate.

Pushed the doors open.

The rhythmic ticking welcomed him once more.

Steam hissed from distant pipes as enormous gears slowly turned overhead.

Steven drew his Mana Pistol with a grin.

"...Round two."