Wulfrin

At last the stage was set. Wulfrin recovered from the blows and let loose his Horizontal Square sword art one final time. This time each strike found its mark leaving a trail of blue light in the shape of a square moving outward in four directions. The three remaining henchmen shattered into millions of tiny polygons. Wulfrin briefly glanced above his head. No cursor change, so this vendetta must be something the system deems acceptable. The phoenix eyed Wulfrin with admiration. He had fought bravely and earned its trust. It began to sing its song once again, and Wulfrin just sat back and marv

Wulfrin took offense to being called little red. These NPCs were really getting under his skin. At least he had their full attention. The phoenix watched from its high perch, its eyes fixed on Wulfrin. It was judging every move, every attack, and more importantly every misstep. Wulfrin regained his composure and prepared another attack. No more slacking, it was time for the real damage. He unleashed his Horizontal Square skill with speed and accuracy. Rage filling every move. He managed to cleave off massive chunks of the Health Bars of the two he had missed and cut clean through another, caus

Wulfrin darted forward and swiped his blade towards the henchmen that had oh so neatly grouped up. They were far mor prepared for him this time as two of them broke off and flanked Wulfrin. The two Wulfrin di hit found a sizeable dent in their HP gauges, and the stun from his tech art pulse through them. The second of which doubled over with excruciating pain, the bleed enhancement of his sword taking affect. The final two unharmed henchmen pincered Wulfrin and both laid into him with their kopesh. Each blow was absorbed by the plates of his armor, but Wulfrin still saw his HP start to d

As the creature bathed in the waters, Wulfrin approached with caution. He pulled the small pouch of Familiar Food from his extradimensional inventory space. He placed a small handful on the edge of the well. The Phoenix kept its eyes trained on Wulfrin the entire time. Wulfrin was taken aback being this close to such a legendary creature. He assumed they would be massive creatures that brought destruction and carnage where ever they roost. Instead it was almost exactly the same shape as an adult eagle. It eyed the offering as Wulfrin backed away, giving it space to continue its morning routine

As the sun began to peak up above the horizon, Wulfrin grew more anxious. The well was a welcome respite, but the view of the rising sun behind it was breath taking. This was a deliberate move on his part, as he would be facing in the direction of Fortazela, and just to see the view itself. Not only that, but the phoenix flew from East to West according to the NPCs so this positioning held the best chance at watching the arrival of the majestic bird. Wulfrin didn't have to wait long. As the sun completed its rising, a streak of fire began to soar over head. Above him a majestic eagle with

At last his goal was in reach. Before him a sandstone, whose walls came up just high enough to sit on like a bench. It was roughly ten feet in diameter and filled to only a few inches shy of the top with cold to the touch water. About eight feet from the surface of the pool was an ornate gazebo roof that in the heat of the day could serve as a nice bit of shade. Wulfrin cupped a bit of the water in his ands and sipped it. It felt like near ice cold water fresh from the cooler on a hot day. It was extremely refreshing. Wulfrin looked up to the horizon in the East. He could barely make out Forta

As time crept forward, so did Wulfrin. He was nearing the end of his trek in the waning hours of darkness. He hoped he hadn't gone through all of this for nothing. There were only a couple ways this could go wrong. The first was if the phoenix couldn't be tamed. He had read up on the size requirements before coming, and if it were bigger than three feet, it would be a no go and he would have to start from scratch. The second was just as bad. It was wholly possible that Cardinal had not included this particular myth in its quest databanks, especially since it didn't have a proper quest tied to

Two hours to dawn, and Wulfrin felt like he was making no progress. After his brief run in with Abdullah's men he kept constantly looking over his shoulder. He knew there had to be more, but with the scattered bits of cover all around him it was hard to tell. The darkness didn't help either. Thankfully his night vision mod was working overtime this morning by helping him spot dangers long before they became a problem. Wulfrin stopped briefly to check his map. The good news is he hadn't lost too much time, but the bad news was he had missed his next proper rest point. He had planned to stop at

The sounds of hissing sent shivers down Wulfrin's spine as he dashed through the passage eventually coming to an opening into the wider open areas of El Perdido. Then came the screams. The sounds of the four men who were following him echoed through the canyon like an eerie wail. He had just left those people to die, but at the same time they were after him. He didn't stop for a break until he was well and truly clear from the chaos. At the exit of the canyon, he sat on a small boulder to catch his breath. That made twice in just a handful of hours he had to evade some of Abdullah's men. That

Wulfrin waited for the perfect opening to make his escape. Once the four had split form each other and had their backs turned, Wulfrin darted back into the open and broke into a sprint. Rocks dislodged around him causing the attention to focus back on him. He looked back to see the four had spotted him and begun to give chase. Desperately Wulfrin looked left and right for a way out of the predicament. "Need something to slow them down," Wulfrin said under his deep breaths. Wulfrin spotted another narrow passage off to his right. He quickly changed directions to go into the narrow pa

Not too much deeper into El Perdido, Wulfrin found a small cave out cropping that he could duck into. As he hid in silence waiting for his pursuers to close in, he prepared himself for an attack. He really didn't want to fight, as it could take more time away form his goal. That and he had to preserve his HP and EN, as there was no way to tell what lay in store for him at the end of it all. Wulfrin hid within a crevice as footsteps approached. "I thought you said he went this way?" One of the pursuers spoke. "I did," Another replied. "He's got to be here somewhere. Spread out and fi

About an hour into his journey, Wulfrin began to feel a chill down his spine like he was being watched. That can't be right. He thought to himself as he pushed through the heart of El Perdido. In the time he had traversed this torturous area, he had seen numerous giant rattlesnakes and scorpions. He made sure to avoid the groups as best he could, partly because he hated snakes to begin with, doubly so for ones that were two to three times bigger than himself. The scorpions were just more of a nuisance than anything, and would serve no purpose other than to slow his travel. Then again if I can

The desert was harsh. The air was dry and frigidly cold. Thankfully his body was virtual or he probably wouldn't have made it as far as he did. He had been in a heavy sprint for a good handful of minutes trying to put as much distance between himself and the city of Fortazela. He found a small rock that looked inviting enough for a short break. He caught his breath and double checked his map. His run had gone a bit off course but nothing he couldn't correct. He was well outside the safe zone now, if Abdullah wanted to send his men to kill him, he could. No more running, if it came down to it,

"Where you think you're goin'?" One of the guards at the western gate stopped Wulfrin as he attempted to leave. "Look," Wulfrin said with a stern voice. "I'm not looking for trouble. I am simply a passerby. Can't you just let me past." "Not gunna happen," The guard said. "Boss is looking for someone wit yer mug." "I assure you," Wulfrin said. "You've got me confused with someone else." Wulfrin really hoped that it was far to early for the guard to care about his job that much. The NPC let out the trademark yawn that they all do every so often, and Wulfrin seized the opportu

Arriving super early, maybe two to three in the morning, made for just as rough a trek as going during the mid day. The desert was cold, and not a pleasant cold either. Floor Five's environment settings were quite possibly the worst Wulfrin had faced out of the Twenty-Eight floors available to him. Determination served as his fire as he crossed through Fortaleza towards its western gate. Several guards still clocked his every move. "Really even this early?" Wulfrin said to himself as he traveled the city streets. "Usually you don't get this much stink form NPC guards unless you have an Or

As his meal made its way to his table, Wulfrin opened his map. He figured it was better to go in at least somewhat prepared. He focused his attention to the key features on the map to the west of Fortazela. What he had going for him was the floor was finite. One could easily search a floor in 1-2 days in game. Who knew how long that was in the real world, the days had kind of blurred together, so it was hard to tell. There were a few key features, a handfull of mountains near the edge, an oasis, and a single well of on its own. "Wait," Wulfrin said focusing on the well. "Apollo used to st

"Alright," Wulfrin said to himself. "This floor is based on Arabia, so that puts a few things into options. The Greeks believed that a phoenix could be located in Arabia. Wouldn't that be a coincidence, considering your own coat of arms for your shop." Wulfrin dug into his repertoire of ancient Greek myths. There was a phoenix that made an appearance in a fragment of the Percepts of Chiron by Hesiod, but that was simply a description of their lifespan from the centaur to the young hero, Achilles. More likely he would have to go deeper. The Egyptian's maybe? Those myths were never his inte

Wulfrin wandered the bazaar. He had no clue where to begin. As far as he could tell, there were no passive wildlife on the floor. Wulfrin debated heading to another floor to search, but he figured a pass through the crowds may provide at least a starting point. He weaved in and out of the crowded shops, listening to every bit of gossip he could grab from the various NPCs going about their daily lives. Nothing was turning up despite his best efforts, he was turning up short. A small cafe was set up in one of the adobe buildings. The heat was rough, so a quick pit stop was made. "Did you se

Wulfrin found himself back in the sandy, Arabian Desert themed area of Floor 5. The floor was as desolate as ever. It's only major attraction being the lively bazaar of Fortaleza, acting as one of the few safe places of respite on the floor. The sandy wastes wasn't his first choice to return to, as his last trip consisted of a boss fight and getting jumped by the local rich asshole Abdullah. He and Freyd were ambushed shortly after their fight with Terra Firma had ended during what Freyd dubbed, The Shark Bait Training Program. Freyd had taken on the visage of one of the fallen guards and root

DATE: [3/23/24] RANK 5 BLACKSMITH | [EXP: 233/319] | Daily Crafting Attempts: 6 CRAFTING BUFFS: Ambition Tool +1 EXP per craft Crafting Tier 2 [Heavy Armor]s: ID: 220599 | CD: 12 | Success | Perfect ID: 220600 | CD: 6 | Salvage | LD 12 | Material Saved ID: 220601 | CD: 12 | Success | Perfect ID: 220602 | CD: 11 | Success | Rare ID: 220603 | CD: 8 | Success | Uncommon ID: 220604 | CD: 12 | Success | Perfect RESULT: +40 XP (8+2+8+5+3+8+6) | [EXP: 301/319] -5 materials | sent to banker New Items: Uncommon T2 Heavy Armor [220603] Rare T2 Heavy Armor [220

"Did you check the area where the last boarlet fell?" Wulfirn said. "Some times they drop an additional item." This was a partial lie. Wulfrin knew how the quest worked. It relied on a choice of the player undertaking the quest. When the third Boarlet falls an additional item drops, a small vial of a redish colored liquid. If the player just pockets it, nothing of note happens. If the player examines the item, well let's just say its an eventful experience. "I do suggest you take your time," Wulfrin said. "Sometimes the random items dropped can be dangerous if handled improperly. Al

As Nari's strike landed true, Wulfrin noticed a drop in The Avatar of Avarice's defenses. He angled the flat of his blade to strike the creature. With a resounding TWACK, the boss was left staggering once more, the crimson light of his Tech art fading. The boss would now be stunned for a second go round, leaving an opening for his mentors to finish the job. The boss's Hp had already fallen a significant amount, well over half with only one onslaught from the party. "Another opening created!" Wulfrin shouted over the chaos. "Give 'em hell!" Wulfrin leapt back from his position at the

DATE: [3/22/24] RANK 5 BLACKSMITH | [EXP: 233/319] | Daily Crafting Attempts: 6 CRAFTING BUFFS: Ambition Tool +1 EXP per craft Crafting Tier 2 [Straight Sword]s: ID: 220511 | CD: 7 | Success | Uncommon ID: 220512 | CD: 12 | Success | Perfect ID: 220513 | CD: 3 | Salvage | LD 20 | Materials Saved ID: 220514 | CD: 9 | Success | Uncommon ID: 220515 | CD: 10 | Success | Rare ID: 220516 | CD: 2 | Fail | Materials Lost RESULT: +28 XP (3+8+2+3+5+1+6) | [EXP: 261/319] -5 materials | sent to banker New Items: Uncommon T2 Straight Sword [220511] [220514] Rare

"By the look of your strike," Wulfrin commented "You way over killed that boarlet. I'm pretty sure I saw the Blight effect of that sword take hold briefly. The reason it's in that special scabbard is that the blade is actually capable of dealing additional necrotic damage. Essentially it withers the target's HP away for a couple of seconds and lowers their mitigation, meaning they absorb less of your subsequent attacks during the same time. It's a unique enhancement, so you won't be finding anything better for now. Tanks specialize in dealing damage when they are hit and inflicting Damage Over

"Told ya," Wulfrin chuckled as he placed a hand on Ciela's shoulder. "He's a grouchy old guy. Just don't let it get to you. I think he is designed that way to get people riled up. Come on we're going back out into the fields." Wulfrin led the duo out to the fields of Floor One not too far outside of Tolbana. He drew his sword and gestured for Ciela to do the same. "Alright," Wulfrin said as he set up. "We can't exactly spar with each other without a proper duel, unless you want an Orange Cursor, so mimicry will have to do. Your fighting style is going to differ significantly from min