“Weird? It just clearly meant that boss had won, and the day was over. Glorious news! My paycheck has gotten richer! Also, that gold split? Niiice! Good job, boss,” Bonnie said with a big smile. “I think I’ve made more money in a single day than any other player ever has. I’m going to prove I’m the best mercenary ever!” Placing both hands on her hips, she began cackling out the villain’s “muwahahaha.”

“It wasn’t news. News implies new information. But we all knew that Lucas was guaranteed victory from the moment he agreed to go in. That’s our leader, the great villain,” Viola said proudly, sticking out her chest as if the accomplishment were her own.

Katie just nodded her agreement, raising her bow a little. She hesitated and then said, “It . . . umm . . .” Then, as if giving up on words altogether, she pulled the string back on her bow and let go. She hadn’t even nocked an arrow, but as she did so, two beautiful icicles shot out and struck the wall to Lucas’s right. They left a small, palm-sized patch of Ice where they landed. “It’s better.”

“It is . . .” Lucas noted, and the whole group seemed a little stunned.

“Do you want it back?” Katie asked, pursing her lips as she did so.

“No, that’s fine.” Lucas shook his head. “Just consider it as payment for a job well done. You’re a great member of the team,” he said, feeling a bit like the cheesy boss in charge of raising motivation during a work retreat.

“Thanks,” Katie sighed. She clearly didn’t want to part with the bow but felt obligated to offer. Lucas liked that: it was good to have someone reliable and honest on his team.

“Well, boss, now that you’ve killed the biggest bad in town, what’s next?” Bonnie asked.

Despite the high intensity and stress, Lucas still wanted to play the game. He didn’t want to just log in. He didn’t want to lie out on his back and soak up the sunshine. He just wanted to play. And that was exactly what he planned to do until sleep eventually took him: build his little dungeon and finally get to enjoy the fruits of his labor as he planned to crush the dreams of players that sought his demise.

“We’re going to crush the enemies of the Imperium, of course,” Lucas said with an ear-to-ear grin.

Epilogue