Wulfrin

Wulfrin waited as his energy maxed out. He was till far enough away from his usual margin of safety, with his health point total only just barely getting above the start of the yellow zone that signified half had gone. He stood watching Solaris explore their current space. It was secluded. No animals seemed to make their way here. The other odd thing about the space that Wulfrin had only just started to notice by watching Solaris fly above the canopy was that he could not see the bottom of floor 7. Instead he saw the crystal clear blue sky. It was an odd sight for Aincrad. Spending as much tim

Wulfrin continued to watch his energy and health rise. That combat actually allowed him to learn quite a bit about his own fighting style. Up until now he had been simply relearning skills that he hadn't practiced in years. He often left himself open in areas that he could easily defend. The Gemini had found every opening and exposed it without hesitation. Wulfrin had to adapt in that combat. He had almost entered a sort of zen state in that bout. It was almost like The Gemini was teaching him. It was just like his old mentor Mr. Brunner. He always thought the best way to learn a skill was to

Having fully exited combat, his health and energy had begun to restore. There didn't appear to be any dangerous mobs in the area so Wulfrin figured he was at least safe to recharge here. He made his way to the still waters of the pool. As he gazed in, his reflection seemed to gaze back at himself. Only it wasn't his Avatar, but Lance staring back at him. Once Wulfrin blinked the image faded back to his avatar. Wulfrin pondered his situation in the game. Here he was a swordsman with a dream. He owned his own business and was able to fight side by side with some of the higher level players. Back

"Everything and more," The Gemini said as they were pulled up form the ground. "I shall leave you be for now, but I will continue to grow my own strength and challenge you again some day." With nothing more left to say The Gemini lay a hand on Wulfrin's shoulder as he passed. Wulfrin turned to watch The Gemini don his cloak again causing their features to again become obscured and dissapeared into the jungle. Wulfrin collapsed immediately after. He had pushed himself to the point of exhaustion. He lay in the soft grass of the grove looking up at the floor above him. Solaris darted do

"I'm sure at least one of the developers is in here," Wulfrin said as he reset his line. "Akihiko Kayaba is definitely in here with us. It's really basic psychology. Nothing is more boring than watching someone else play an RPG, especially if you are the one responsible for its creation. He has to be in here, we just have to find him. Maybe if we can, he'll let us out." Wulfrin gazed back at the floor above them. One day he would make it to the top, but right now all he could do was grind levels. The frontlines were dwindling and soon there would be no more people taking up blades to clea

The Gemini regained their footing and leveled their blade. Wulfrin did the same. No words were exchanged, there was no need. Both could understand each other clearly by stance alone. One last engagement to decide the victor. Wulfrin's last attack had leveled the playing field as both combatants now stood one hit away from death. In a flash the two pressed forward. Blow for blow they matched each other exactly. Wulfrin was adapting just like the Gemini at this point. As one would strike, the other would perfectly defend, not giving a single inch of ground away. To an outside observer, it would

The two opponents charged towards each other once more. Wulfrin moved with ferocity and total focus. Each blade collision resulting and a shower of sparks and a loud metallic clang that echoed through the grove. The strikes were so impactful the disturbed the still waters of the pond. Wulfrin was taking full use of his virtual body. It was light and nimble, capable of feats in combat he could only dream of. In here imagination was key. Every movement of your body was controlled by though alone. If you could think it, you could do it, within reason. Wulfrin was dodging and parrying strikes fast

Wulfrin lunged at The Gemini. A fire had been lit inside him. He was being mocked at every stage of this fight. The Gemini was proving their points well though. Every attack Wulfrin seemed to throw was deflected or sidestepped entirely with the exception of some well placed Sword Arts. The battle was drawing near its end and if Wulfrin didn't regain some ground he would be losing the last of his HP here and now. Wulfrin continued his barrage of attacks until he saw an opening. Again he aimed for the forearm of The Gemini's sword arm. His opponent expected this however and evaded the strike wit

Wulfrin's HP had already fallen to almost half as the two continued to clash blades. Sparks flew all around them as each impact landed with ferocity. Wulfrin was glad he had decided to allocate some unused points before beginning this trip as they were already paying dividends. He was hitting harder and absorbing a bit more damage than he usually was. His Sword Arts even seemed to drain less of his energy. After another barrage of attacks, The Gemini's defenses broke once again allowing Wulfrin to land another attack with a new Technical Art. He targeted his opponents arm in an attempt to redu

Wulfrin and The Gemini clashed again. This time Wulfrin held the offensive edge, placing The Gemini on the back foot. Wulfrin unleashed a barrage of sword strikes, to which his opponent could only defend against. On the last hit of his assault, Wulfrin batted The Gemini's sword away. In that brief opening, Wulfrin brought his sword around and slammed the pommel into the opponent's chest leaving behind a crimson trail of light. The Gemini stumbled back as Wulfrin brought his sword to bear for the next attack. He had scored his first blow on his foe, now he just had to keep the pressure up. Wulf

The sounds of clashing steel rang throughout the grove. Each blow an almost identical mirror to the other. The Gemini had studied Wulfrin's fighting style and was finding the openings faster than Wulfrin was able to decide the next move. Wulfrin recovered from the blade lock and readied his sword skill. A blue light enveloped his blade as the system took over. The Gemini had predicted this move and artfully blocked the strike with his own blade, causing the skill to veer off course. "Come on," The Gemini scoffed. "All the bravado you carry, yet you can't back it up." The Gemini unlea

The pair wandered through the Jungle for what seemed like hours. They trudged through so many different areas that Wulfrin had become disoriented. The cloaked figure simply weaved between trees and thickets like they had done it a million times before. As they continued, Wulfrin felt a chill in the air. Something wasn't right about this whole situation. While he had come prepared for a fight, he had done no prep that would typically be done when knowing he would be entering a combat. That may play into his favor, as he wanted to see just how far he had come with just his stats and equipment. N

After a few hours of wandering the floor scoping it out for fishing spots, Wulfrin began to feel a chill run down his spine. Someone was following him, yet every time he turned to see who it was, no one was there. He visited the few shops around that didn't treat him like he was the scum of the earth, collecting a few things for a future house that he was close to having the funds to purchase. As he concluded his shopping trip and returned to the teleport gate the chill came back. "So," An ominous voice echoed behind him. "Wulfrin graces floor six with his presence." "Why have you be

The main settlement of Floor Six was at first appearance a peaceful one. The handcrafted architecture played well into the jungle aesthetic of the floor. There was a seamless transition between the surrounding landscape and the settlement as some of the structures were either partially or entirely carved from the trees themselves. The roar of the nearby waterfall created a lovely white noise, just far enough away to break the silence yet quiet enough to not have to do more than whisper to someone. The residents however did not lead to a warm welcome. As Wulfrin traversed the various bridg

"Sometimes life just has a way of working out," Wulfrin sighed as he continued to comfort Ciela. "I was not prepared for a video game to become my life. I guess that's a bit hypocritical considering I want to be a game designer myself. It would be better to probably say that I didn't expect to become trapped in a game like a prison." Wulfrin briefly took his arm back as he hefted a chest up out of the water. It disappeared in a flash leaving behind only an info panel listing its contents that only Wulfrin could read. After dismissing the window, Wulfrin returned his arm to back around Cie

With an inventory of assorted junk, Wulfrin made his way to floor 8 and the familiar relaxing vibe of the Honeydew & Hushwind. He had been here once before, but still had managed to get lost in the woods a bit during his travel. "Hey Morningstar," Wulfrin said as he emptied his inventory. "I'm doing some much needed inventory cleaning and thought I'd stop by. Figured I'd get some of it identified. I've got a bunch of T4 and T2 stuff to junk out to pay for these weapons and armor pieces. If they end up not giving anything good, I'll probably just junk them as well." Wulfrin placed

House Name: Lakeside Manor Location: Floor 22, Located at the edge of Coral only a few short minutes walk from the Lake of Reflection. (Safe Zone) Plot Size: Estate (15 room slots, 4 stories max, 3 yard slots) Yard(s): Yard 1: Sentinel Armaments (Forge) [Wulfrin] Yard 2: Fishing Pond [Wulfrin] Yard 3: Vacant 1st Floor Rooms: Room 1: Living Room [Wulfrin] Room 2: Dining Room [Wulfrin] Room 3: Basic Kitchen [Wulfrin] Room 4: Storage Closet [Wulfrin] Room 5: Vacant Room 6: Vacant Room 7: Vacant Room 8: Vacant 2nd Floor Rooms: Room 9: Bedroom [Wulfr

Freyd was right, the arena wasn't far. In fact the group had basically bee lined it there. Perhaps because Freyd had been there before and knew the way. As they entered the foreboding arena, Wulfrin felt a wave of energy wash over him. His weapon felt light in his hand, like he had lost a fair bit of power in his attacks. The field boss's level lock ability was in full effect. Wulfrin took point into the arena, and waited patiently for the beast to make itself know. In a flash the loose sand beneath his feet began to tremble. A spire of dark brown, which Wulfrin had mistaken for a rock be

DATE: [3/29/24] RANK 6 BLACKSMITH | [EXP: 386/639] | Daily Crafting Attempts: 7 CRAFTING BUFFS: Ambition Tool +1 EXP per craft Crafting Tier 4 [Straight Sword]s: ID: 221010 | CD: 2 | Fail | Materials Lost ID: 221011 | CD: 6 | Success | Uncommon ID: 221012 | CD: 12 | Success | Perfect Crafting Tier 4 [Heavy Armor]s: ID: 221013 | CD: 5 | Salvage | LD 3 | Material Lost ID: 221014 | CD: 1 | Crit Fail | Material Lost ID: 221015 | CD: 6 | Success | Uncommon ID: 221016 | CD: 11 | Success | Rare RESULT: +30 XP (1+3+8+2+1+3+5+7) | [EXP: 452/639] -7 material

"Pretty much," Wulfrin said as he pulled a fish from the water. "Had to fight off some more of Abdullah's men that wanted to take the bird for their mobster boss. Afterwards I went back to my shop and slept for a few hours. It wasn't much but I'll manage." The river flowed peacefully on, save the new ripples across its surface caused by Wulfrin's bobber landing. He felt at ease. More at ease than he had in a while, even since logging in to SAO. Solaris fluttered down and nestled himself between the two, obviously not happy with the lack of attention. "Honestly most familiars aren't

“All good here,” Wulfrin said putting his blade away. “That one lasted about the same as the first time we did it.” Circling above the arena was a streak of fire. After a few seconds Solaris returned to Wulfrin’s shoulder as he climbed out of the depression. Wulfrin half expected Abdullah to have sent some men after them, but at the moment the area was clear. Wulfrin eyed the horizon expecting to see the goons coming towards them, but nothing appeared. Wulfrin couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief. He was rather exhausted with Abdullah, and he really didn't want to deal with any more

As Ciela rest her head on Wulfrin's shoulder, he wrapped his free arm around her. There was something oddly comforting about the gesture. After all they were in a game of life and death, so Wulfrin never really took the opportunity to relax. It was always one quest after another. Then the memory of Morningstar's advice during their trip up the mountain on Floor Two came up to the surface. That message of taking the time to enjoy this world for what it is and not to rush too much weighed heavy on him now. "My journey came to an end at a well in the desert," Wulfrin continued. "This was jus

"Yeah once the monsters start getting some actual damage numbers that will go well over your mitigation threshold," Wulfrin chuckled. "Don't let it go to your head too much. I will say this though, heavy armor and shield is the best source of mitigation. That means as you make your way up the tiers, your mitigation will go up exponentially. You could double down by stocking up on Immolation Potions at the general merchant at the same time you buy Teleport Crystals." A quick glance at the HP and EN of Ciela worried Wulfrin. She was basically running on empty but wasn't showing signs of wor

"Understood," Wulfrin responded. "No major alterations, and donations are graciously accepted." Wulfrin gathered up the payment and gifts of potions offered and went straight to work. Solaris wasn't happy to have his roost disturbed. The phoenix always found the fires to be quite relaxing, but Wulfrin needed the fires. In but a few minutes of Rhythmic metal strikes, Wulfrin had forged the requested Halberd. At the same time he pulled a suit of heavy armor that was rather plain and close to being completed. Finishing the craft and stamping both with his signet in the most unintrusive way h

Wulfrin looked over the request with intruigue. It was something he had not considered before, and thus presented a challenge, and Wulfrin loved challenging himself. "It's not the usual request," Wulfrin said with a glint of excitement. "give me a few minutes, I'll have to start from scratch on this one." He disturbed the rest of his Phoenix Familiar, Solaris, who loved to use the flames of his forge as a nest. In a few minutes he returned with some rather ornate greaves. He placed them on his makeshift counter. "Well," Wulfrin said taking off his thick gloved. "Here you are, o