Episode 26 - Harmonic Salvation
Floor 49
March 9 – Year 2
Bladescape waited outside of the door of Lisbeth’s Smith Shop. She was waiting for the shop to open, and she had been waiting for two hours. She wasn’t mad, frustrated, or angry. She was a bit bored, but she had chosen to come early and wait. She wasn’t the only one milling around for the store to open. That was why Bladescape was right by the door and had gotten there early. She was not going to be denied today. Lisbeth was in good demand and had turned her away for the past two days because she was booked solid for the day.
A few days ago, Bladescape had paid Argo for the name and location of the best player Blacksmith. She needed her sword upgraded, and as good as the others were, she was guessing she needed a master smith. They couldn’t make a sword to match hers yet. She had stupidly expected to get in and see her on the first day, when the Wondercolts had a personal day where they were free to do what they wanted to do. But Lisbeth was in high demand. She had just moved up to Lindarth on the 49th Floor and into a real store. No more roadside cart for her.
The door was opened by the NPC assistant and Bladescape slipped inside first, heading straight to Lisbeth behind the counter. It was easy to tell it was her because she was in stiff leather clothes that “protected” her while smithing. It was just like the other Wondercolts wore when they crafted metal.
“Someone is on a mission,” Lisbeth teased.
“Floor 57 is fast approaching,” Bladescape said, cutting to the chase. “I need to enhance my sword before we make the boss raid. I have heard you are the best in the business.”
“Well you heard right,” Lisbeth smiled. “But your uniform says you're a Wondercolt. Don't you have your own smiths.”
“Yeah, but I hear you are better,” Bladescape said, nervously tapping on the counter. “No one knows I'm here. I just want some upgrades done.”
“Alright. I certainly won’t turn you away for that. Show me the sword.”
Bladescape opened her menu and the sword popped into her hands. She set it neatly on the counter. Lisbeth tapped it, reading the information.
“This is your sword?”
“Yeah,” Bladescape nodded. “Why?”
“Well, it's just that, from what I hear about the Wondercolts, it’s that you are on the Assault Team. And this is an underwhelming sword for being a front-line fighter.”
Bladescape sighed. “Will enhancements help?”
“Not really. I could max this out, but it's not going to get you far. You should have ditched this sword Floors ago. Before Floor 50.”
“Well,” Bladescape said, tapping on the counter as she thought. “We did get it when the front line was Floor 39. So I guess, is there anything on your shelves that would be better?”
“I don’t have any two-handed swords right now.”
Bladescape sighed. Knightstar was going to have to redo some calculations.
“I don’t want to take up your valuable time. So, what is it going to cost me for getting the best two-handed sword you can make?”
"That depends on material, style, and a variety of other factors. Making the sword isn't hard. It's the materials that will cost you."
"I just want a two-handed long sword," Bladescape groaned. "I don't know anything else. I don't keep track of weapon stats."
"Let's take it slow then," Lisbeth smiled. "Are you a strength-based fighter, or speed based."
"My agility is gaining, but I'm strength based. I prefer to hit hard. If I have a choice between two swords that are almost the same, I pick Attack Stat over Critical Stat."
"That's helpful," Lisbeth smiled. "Tell me how this feels."
Lisbeth handed Bladescape a one-handed long sword.
"It's light," Bladescape said. "Way too light."
"That sword has better stats than your sword. It's also considered a heavy blade."
Bladescape groaned in frustration and defeat. "I don't know anything about weapons, except looks. And mostly, the look has been abandoned outside of two-handed straight swords."
"I have an idea or two," Lisbeth said. "But it will take me a few days to get the materials."
"Okay," Bladescape nodded. "Anything I can do to speed that up? You have a good amount of customers here."
"Yeah, I'll need 10 bars of Ebon. Ebon is a high durability heavy metal and it's not cheap. It's also rare. I was hoping Floor 50 would give us more of it, but it hasn’t. Which is why I don't have any."
"I'll hunt some down," Bladescape said. "Any suggestions?"
"I'd go to Ronbaru on Floor 27. It's still the main location for selling metals of all types. It’s where I go to get my metal. It will cost more for bars rather than ore, but I can't refine it properly yet."
Bladescape swiped up her menu. "Here is a retainer. I'll get you that metal."
"I don't take retainers," Lisbeth said as Bladescape walked away, leaving her with the sack of money. Lisbeth groaned and took it to the back where she could safely store it, instead of losing it in her inventory storage, which would mix the money in with hers.
Outside, Bladescape messaged Knightstar. I just visited a Smith on the 49th floor, Lisbeth. She is better than our friends. It turns out, my sword is on the low end for clearing. I'm going to buy the metal she needs to make me a proper sword. I don't want to discourage them, but it looks like they are further behind than we thought.
Before Bladescape got to the teleport square, she got a message back.
Thanks. Good luck. I'll investigate into weapons further.
Bladescape teleported to Ronbaru and began to hunt Ebon bars down, shop by shop. Most didn't have any of what she needed. Bar by bar, Bladescape purchased the materials. The price varied wildly. Sometimes she got a good price, other times she was certain she was robbed, but Bladescape had a pile of cash she wasn't doing anything with. A good sword was her only real lifeline on the battlefield outside of her friends, so she put up with the price gouging.
It took Bladescape all day and required her to hop to multiple floors to track down the final bar. The last place had three, two more than she needed. Bladescape purchased all of them and walked out. The extras might come in handy.
Bladescape got back to headquarters and just wanted to go to her room and sleep. But Knightstar wanted to talk. And the questions just kept coming.
"Look," Bladescape snapped. "Just come with me tomorrow and ask a few questions. Maybe buy yourself a new sword. She had plenty of one-handed blades already made. I don't even know exactly what I am getting. We talked stats and play styles, so I'm trusting her."
"Alright," Knightstar said, dropping it. "Sorry I pushed."
Bladescape sighed. "I'm sorry too. It took me all day to hunt down this metal and it left me more frazzled than I thought I was.”
"I'll see you bright and early," Knightstar said, giving Bladescape a reassuring smile.
The next morning the wait wasn't as boring. At least Bladescape wasn't alone. Kiefer and Backbreaker were leading the others in two parties, doing some work for Argo.
"You're back quick," Lisbeth said as they came in. "I expected it to take at least three days to buy the bars."
"I know I overpaid for half of them," Bladescape said. "But I didn't care."
"I probably should have told you a ceiling price," Lisbeth admitted.
"Also, this is Knightstar, our statistician and one of the guild leaders. She keeps track of our equipment for us, to make sure we stay in the top tier as much as possible."
"Glad to meet you," Lisbeth smiled. "I assume you want me to look at your sword as well?"
"Please," Knightstar smiled. "Our guildmates maxed it yesterday on enhancements."
Lisbeth looked at the sword. "Yeah, I have better. But you don't seem to be close to her level. That complicates things."
"I just hit level 68," Knightstar said. "But I am sure she has edged me out quite a bit more than I last knew. All of the guild probably by quite a bit."
Lisbeth retrieved a few swords and had Knightstar try them out. They soon settled on one. Its name was Justicarian Scale and it was thinner than what Knightstar had been using with a short, square crossguard. It wasn't much wider than Thunderborne's rapier, and it was shorter than what she had been using by a good six inches.
Its base properties were well above what Knightstar thought was currently possible. She would be reviewing the rest of the guild's equipment soon, including what Diemond could do with other materials. Armor was just as important as weapons.
“Alright,” Lisbeth said. “Bars?”
Bladescape produced all of the bars, stacking them neatly.
“Not bad,” Lisbeth said. “They look good. I’ll be back, shortly. Two-Handed, strength based long sword to crush your enemies. Long reach too.”
“That sounds right,” Bladescape said.
“It better,” Lisbeth laughed. “That's the base description of your current sword.”
Knightstar and Bladescape laughed as well and Lisbeth headed into the back. After some banging and noise she came back out. They had seen Kiefer, Lessa, Joltron, and Diemond work with metal. Like every normal life skill, it happened in seconds or minutes, rather than the hours it usually took.
Lisbeth came out with a slate grey sword wrapped in a leather sheath that matched the Wondercolts' blue color. The grip was wrapped in gold leather and the guard was set with a yellow gemstone while the pommel was a large blue one. Its profile was slightly longer and wider than Bladescape’s previous sword.
“Meet Harmonic Salvation,” Lisbeth announced.
Bladescape drew it and she knew a wicked grin was splitting her lips apart. “This feels right. This is a sword. I already know this was worth every piece of Col. The name is appropriate. I haven’t even cared about the names of my swords in a long time. None of them were notable outside of Iron Splitter, my first two-handed blade. How much else do I owe you?”
“Um, well, you got the materials, so the cost is going to be a lot lower.”
Bladescape was ready to test this blade. She wanted to charge out and run to the nearest enemy to try it. But first, payment. “Will the retainer I gave you and the extra two bars cover the cost?”
“Huh?”
Bladescape made sure to smile as she repeated the question at an appropriate speed. “Will the retainer I gave you yesterday and the two extra Ebon bars be enough to cover the cost of Harmonic Salvation?”
“Yeah,” Lisbeth stuttered. “Actually, I would owe you.”
“Keep it,” Bladescape said, walked out as she equipped Harmonic Salvation. “This was more than worth it to me.”
Knightstar shrugged and followed Bladescape out. “Do I want to know how much you put down as a retainer?”
“Probably not,” Bladescape said, taking long strides to get to the teleport plaza without running. “It was only a retainer though.”
“Where are we heading?” Knightstar asked, as she struggled to keep up.
“Let's hit 46 and see if we can get into rotation at the Ant Hill.”
“Alright,” Knightstar said as they got into the teleport ring. “But is it safe, without the others?”
Floor 46 came into view and they began the hike out.
“It is still busy,” Bladescape said. “With plenty of top players. It’s safe.”
It was busy. They had an hour and a half wait before they could get into a canyon.
With Knightstar with her, Bladescape could take the extra risk to unleash a stronger Sword Skill. The blade glowed a faint blue. The delay from the strike wasn’t long, but the blade's stats showed as it finished the ant in a single swing. It was more power than she ever had before. Even in the real world, or as a unicorn, she hadn’t experienced more power under her own control. She didn’t count the incident with the crown when she turned into a demon because she had lost control of herself.
This was the tipping point in the game. She hadn't expected this to happen. Each level she had gotten stronger, become faster, had new things at her fingertips. But this was a moment she had never expected to happen. She eclipsed the power she had I.R.L., which meant the possibilities had just truly become unlimited.
Bladescape looked at Harmonic Salvation. She let Knightstar solo the ants for a moment while she examined the blade more closely. Outside of the hilt, it was unremarkable. Lisbeth had done a good job with her intuition to match the colors, but there wasn’t anything special about its appearance.
But what wasn’t unremarkable was the name. Lisbeth wasn’t the one naming the sword. The system named it. It had come up with some remarkable names. Bladescape wasn’t convinced the system freely named the blade something so powerful. Sometimes, it seemed that the weapons her guildmates made had names influenced by their emotion as they forged the weapon.
It was a powerful name for her. She knew the stories from Equestria, about the Elements of Harmony. She had stolen the Element of Magic. Bladescape had only ever talked to Knightstar about Equestrian Magic being in the game, but they hadn’t seen any possible influence of Equestrian Magic in either of themselves.
By now, they both agreed that somehow, magic was slipping into the coding to assist them: Strengthening AJ, making Dash faster and more agile, Pinkie Sense was obvious, Fluttershy's connection with Colorra was the same, and Rarity’s insanely quick maxing out of the crafting skills was also beyond the normal. Neither of them had noticed any perks for themselves though, and both of them had dived with their geode necklaces on.
Knightstar took a heavy blow on her shield, pushing her back unsteadily. Bladescape never called “switch” as she slipped past her and easily shattered the ant. Knightstar took a few steps back to recover in relative safety.
“I like this new sword,” Knightstar finally declared. “It was well worth the cost. The name reminds me of Lady Justice and the scale and blade she carries. I was very afraid I was overpaying, but now I know that wasn't true. We are going to need to make an aggressive upgrade. Especially Backbreaker, Joltron, Diemond, and Astro. Thunderborne should be fine for a while still and AFCK just got Geode Splitter. The rest can be updated in another wave. Funds are too low for the guild to help right now.”
“We will see,” Bladescape said, easily dispatching another ant. “It will happen as soon as we can do it. For now, we've been handling things fine. Let’s finish this time block and hook up with the others. I’ve still got cash. I need to be ready to make enhancements on this blade, but I'll see what I can do.”
“Don’t overstretch your personal funds,” Knightstar warned. “You already admitted to overspending on the blade, even as good as it is. I'm not saying you actually did overspend, because value to you is important and something I factor in. But you did just spend a lot. So, let's take it slow and keep you well supplied. We need you at the top. The best. And I know the materials for your armor upgrades are either going to cost a lot, or be a hard thing to get a hold of and force you to go on long hunts to secure them.
“I've never said it before, but I have believed from early on that you are the only reason we will survive. You're keeping us together. That's obvious. If you die, we won’t last on the front lines. Not together. BB probably would join the KOB, Astro and Thunder might as well. But the rest, we would hide out and craft. I’m sure AFCK would open a restaurant that would bring in players from all Floors. Diemond would begin to be a rival for Ashley. And I would just end up selling guides, but money isn’t everything.”
Bladescape chuckled as Knightstar switched in. “The only reason she isn’t rivaling Ashley is because she's on the front line with us and she exclusively does tailoring for us.”
Bladescape switched in and Knightstar replied. “We need to get you new armor, made from better material. I don’t care if you look different. I don’t even care if we have to pay someone else. I actually want you to look the best out of all of us. Still flying our colors, but unique isn’t bad. I want you looking like our version of Commander Heathcliff. It is obvious he's in the KOB, but it’s also obvious that he is very special in the organization.”
“I won’t be in metal plate armor,” Bladescape chuckled. “But sure. You get to convince her though, not me.”
“Fine,” Knightstar chuckled. “But our hour is up. Let’s go join up with the others.”
Bladescape (SS): Lvl 78 – Two-Handed Sword – Search – Weapon Defense – Leather Armor – First Aid – Battle Regeneration – Sprint – Acrobatics – Blade Throwing – Extended Weight Carry
Knightstar (TS): Lvl 68 – One-Handed Sword – Shield – Equipment Appraisal – Parry – First Aid – Battle Regeneration – Light Metal Armor – Search – Armor Pierce
Thunderborne (RBD): Lvl 71 – Rapier – Sprint – Acrobatics – Armor Pierce – First Aid – Battle Regeneration – Leather Armor – Weapon Defense – Extended Weight Carry – Search
Backbreaker (AJ): Lvl 74 – Heavy Shield – One-Handed War Hammer – Extended Weight Carry – Heavy Metal Armor – First Aid – Battle Regeneration – Fishing – Search – Martial Arts – Acrobatics
AFCK (PP): Lvl 71 – Two-Handed Axe – Parry – Cooking – Weapon Defense – Martial Arts – First Aid – Battle Regeneration – Light Metal Armor – Thrown Weapon – Musical Instrument
Diemond (R): Lvl 71 – Heavy Shield – Mace – First Aid – Battle Regeneration – Heavy Metal Armor – Tailoring – Light Metal Armor Forging – Heavy Metal Armor Forging – Jewelry Making – Extended Weight Carry
Doombunny (FS): Lvl 68 – One-Handed Dagger – First Aid – Hide – Search – Listening – Battle Regeneration – Fighting Spirit – Familiar Communication (Colorra) – Drug Mixing – Reveal
Astro (PS): Lvl 71 – Two-Handed Spear - Purchase Negotiation – Armor Pierce – Acrobatics – First Aid – Light Metal Armor – Battle Regeneration – Weapon Defense – Parry – Extended Wight Carry
Kiefer: Lvl 68 – One-Handed Curved Blade – Parry – Weapon Defense – First Aid – Battle Regeneration – Light Metal Armor – Slash Weapon Forging – Katana – Martial Arts
Lessa: Lvl 68 – One-Handed Sword – Shield – Light Metal Armor – First Aid – Battle Regeneration – Equipment Repair – Metal Equipment Repairing – Armor Pierce – Search
Joltron: Lvl 72 – One handed Axe – Heavy Shield – Heavy Metal Armor – First Aid – Battle Regeneration – Metal Refining – Blunt Weapon Forging – One Handed Weapon Creation – Two Handed Weapon Creation – Extended Weight Carry
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I gotta say, that is a pretty badass name for a sword. I wonder how it would do if it were in a duel with Kirito though?
10057388
Stat V Stat, either the Elucidator or Dark Repulser, Harmonic Salvation has better stats. But that is because it is designed to be used two handed, while the other are designed to be used with a shield. Different tactics.
I don't plan to have a duel between them, so I will state the answer:
If Kirito and Bladescape were to duel, Kirito would win. Both in "First Strike" and "Half Loss" Kirito would win. At best, Bladescape could run down the clock to a draw, but Kirito's reaction speed is the best in the game, and Two-Handed sword is slower than One-Handed Sword. Bladescape's only shot at winning would be Half Loss, and then she would need strong enough armor to tip things in her favor. Still, the advantage certainly goes to Kirito.10057373
But could it not be more simple if the tanks and those that have high strength focus in carry the things like a porter so that the others could focus in something that could increase their efficiency in battle? Instead of make everyone increase the weight they can carry
10057429
Sorry then, I must have misscounted... Another question... Is the story going to cover Alfheim Online and Gun Gale Online? Or only the first game?
10057442
This arc will only cover SAO. I am unsure about if I will continue. I would love to, but this is a lot of work. I do have basic ideas and plots for ALO and GGO lined up. It would be a new story/book if I did.
10057468
Yeah, no rush. Finish one thing then continue with another if you feel like to do it.
Hey, something has been bothering me for a while. Sunset has the skill 'Blade Throwing' but we have never seen her throw her blade or use any kind of throwing weapon. In the future can you include her using such tactics, because everything about Sunset in this story screams she's power gaming and it doesn't make sense for her to have a skill that she never uses.
10057596
You haven't see Blade Throwing yet? Hmm. Let me see. Episodes off the top of my head that she uses it: 28, 31, & 36.
I think I Know what happened. I pre-prepped that Skill. I have it being used in the background, training it for those moments where it is needed. It comes. I promise, I will do what I can to use all of the Skill of each character in the future. As much as I can. I do try.
OK, thank you for the clarification. I'll be looking forward to those chapters.
10057594
I jumped to the last chapter see see how it would turn out and there is Lisbeth. If you are writing within the box of SAO's story, we know what the ending is going to be and the question then becomes what are you going to do differently, but keeping so close to the SAO characters means that whatever they do differently, it is not going to be so awesome that it could have effected SAO's timeline. It seems like you are writing the girls as generic hack and slash characters instead of injecting any friendship lessons. It's also hard to follow when the girls aren't going by their names. I know that making a character name would be normal for most situations, but trying to relearn everyone's names is sucky. Considering this is EQG, where human-things have names like Sunburst the not changing of their names would have been normal for that world.
10057670
I certainly can understand. The first few chapters work on the name changes, and it does become important to the story.
Friendship lessons do abound. I was just working on some later chapters which do just that. I won't ruin any surprises or even hint any future even, but Aincrad was a dangerous world before it became a death game.
EQG:SAO primarily an adventure tale. We know our fairy tales. You know the knight in shining armor kills the dragon and rescues the princess. What is fun about that story is how he did it. What dangers did he face as he traveled to the castle. What was his squire doing? Is his squire with him? What about his horse? Was he even on a horse? What kind of dragon was it? Did that particular dragon happen to smell good?
More often than not, we know how the story ends. We often complain about them, but we read or watch anyway because of the journey. And that is what is happening here. A journey.
But yes, it is set inside the story of SAO. It isn't a "take over" fic. It doesn't replace anything. Kirito, Asuna, Lisbeth, Klein, Silica, Heathcliff and Agil are only 0.007% of the players in Aincrad. Their story is a sliver compared to all the rest of the tales inside Aincrad over those two years. And even most of the major characters' stories are left untold. So, what are those tales?
My story helps fill the enormous gaps we have over the 2 books/13 anime episodes. Lisbeth is one of the top smith, so you see her. - this chapter actually introduces her for the first time. Agil was an early friend and continues to pop up, mostly to sell gear to. Asuna is in charge of strategy for a lot of Boss Battles and Kirito is his aloof self, staying out of the way. Klein pops up too. But none of them are the center of the story. Supporting characters at most. And they don't always get along. Not everything is hunky dory and all nice and pretty.
I love SAO. I saw the untold, unseen story of the girls getting trapped in SAO and what they would do, and how they would react. I took things from there. But yes, it stays in the framework of SAO's original arc. I can tell an amazing tale inside SAO without needing to change that.
If it isn't your type of tale, that is okay. That is the world of Fan Fiction. Some you like others you don't. If the Pilot and Episode 25 are the only ones you have read, you did skip a lot. A whole lot. But I won't try and convince you to read it more than that. I want my readers to enjoy the story. That is what matters.
updates on a tuesday? you KNOW tuesdays are trouble days right? :P
10058181
Never heard of that one. lol
10058254
10058349
I'll tackle both. Starting with Agil. He has said, "True dat" at least once. That would be in the English Dub.
"Beater," This is a crossover. Some things will be ported over or understood that the girls might not know. Or, they learn and adapt in game. It is very easy to learn those cultural reflections. "Beater" is a easy one to learn and understand. And I never actual have them call Kirito a Beater. It is always used in a non dialog setting.
Also, as I pointed out in another discussion, the only nation confirmed in Japan and that the girls are from outside Japan. I give no other information on that because it isn't relevant. Japan existing is relevant, but not the country or location of the girls. So there are some cultural differences, but others may not exist.
And this is MLP Equestria Girls. They would already play the game in a "together" ideology. It was what they decided to do when they all tried to get copies. Their friendship is their binding factor. And even more individualistic players would switch in a death game where the only way out is to work together.
Switch is apparently something that players in a lot of games do. Including calling for it. The reason for switching is simple. If the monster hits the shield of one player, the other "switches" in and strikes the distracted monster. That is the basic principle. It allows players to team up against monsters with better ease and take the heat off each other so they can recover. It is essentially a two person attack and counter attack strategy that spreads out the stamina requirements. In a full immersion game like SAO, that is very important. On a keyboard platform MMORPG, it is less important, but you still need to be able to jump back and heal, or take the chance to switch in and attack the distracted boss.
I never name games played outside of "Pitch Perfect: Soccer Champion." Poly Stitch/Astro is a veteran MMORPG player. Dash has played some. Maybe Sunset has tried, but None of the others have. The key is Twilight. She did all the research. While they don't have the experience, they are not starting fresh. She can teach them the tactics and strategies to MMORPGs from her own research.
10058409
I have some back edits to do. I know. With help from my new editor, we are taking care of these so that I have more effective communication of the story for the better enjoyment of the reads.
10058738
Thank's for catching those errors. I am fixing them now. I just had an editor come on, so we have to do some back edits.
Clothing on or off was a long discussion we had in the comments. Yes, you can, but it is a hidden feature that many don't know about. It wasn't in the Beta Test. You have to dig very deep into the menu and then click to "remove moral code." The Wondercolts would not know this. Asuna only knew because someone in the guild told her, but Kirito had no idea that feature existed. The only one who might is Twilight, and she would keep that info hidden, because you lose the system's protection for a lot of things.
Alcohol is not something you can get drunk on in SAO. That is confirmed. I don't know the drinking age in Japan, but many of the players couldn't drink legally and the game stays inside that.
10058404
He does doesn’t speak that way in the original though. In the original, he really is this polite formal but not stuffy bar tender.
10058790
In which lightnovel is this detailed?
Edit: I found the messages detailing it in 16, but where does it confirm that alcohol has no effect?
10059061
I'm trying to find the exact quote location. Kirito states that Alcohol is Aincrad doesn't have any actual effect. It is essentially flavored water. I can find other people mention that he states it, but I don't know where that is. ALO also has the same setting. GGO let's you get buzzed, but not actually drunk. Underworld you can get drunk, but Alicization arc is special.
10062249
Looks can be deceiving. It is good.
10062573
Thanks! We are getting to a few back edits to catch these errors.
I'm honestly surprised they haven't gotten new members at all
I've found plenty of grammar errors
10063044
I would have to find them members. Not an easy thing.
And we are editing back episodes. We have the next few done. So they will be taken care of.
10063449
Let us all contemplate the irony and insanity of the fact that the sole creator of the game and NerveGear, Akihiko Kayaba, fully expected minors to play SAO and sought to protect their sexual rights even as he murdered them... I call tomfoolery, tomfoolery to the power of shenanigans. XD I checked chapter 16 and 17 again and there is no mention of a secret sub menu, just that Kirito “didn’t know”. What the author was saying here is that Kirito was so obsessed with the generic game aspects of the SAO that he didn’t consider the lifelike possibles of the game.
What I gather after reading the first book is that SAO had no such limits, but future games like ALO may have. The author opted not to go into detail for the first book probably because the narrative is supposed to highlight the complexities of living in the world one wants at the cost of dying in the real one, but it also could have been that the author simply didn’t think about the full extent of the world he was writing.
Not to mention has a big secret.