[PP-F5] Extreme camping experience <<The Traveler>> (Hunnie)

[Ariel - The Crowned Lion 0]

Floor 5, yet again the two companions found themselves in this special little slice of burning Hell. The 'special' about it was that is seemed to be a bit more bearable than the 9^th floor where the main setlement was literally suspended on top of an active vulcano. Still minor discomfort was nothing compared with the chance of making a new friend.. or in this case bounding with them. She'd experienced it with another pink haired friend of hers but lately their interaction had come to a stop after Ariel made a certain transaction. She would want to mend things with her but that's a thought better archived for another time. But today she was here on another matter, she'd volunteered to help a aspiring frontliner.. or at the very least someone who wanted to get actively involved into clearing this death game by being willing to put her life in peril for other. Or at least that was the vibe the blonde got from her armored blonde counterpart she'd just meet recently.

The pair arrived at the designated coordinates for the meeting. While her appearance was the same as the one on the 4th floor, environmental factors seeming to not work on the blonde. That was partially true as she had the <<Survival>> system skill that allowed her to...'survive' in harsh environments but she also had a natural resistance to cold quite enjoying it. That played a small part in her decission to have her shop set on the 4th floor. "I bet you're anxious to see her again. Nobody else seems to give you as much as her lately" she spoke with a smile as she took a seat, her familiar showing a small nod and making a low growl. The blonde opened her inventory, making sure that all the preparations are set. 

Edited March 30, 2016 by Ariel - The Crowned Lion

[Hunie 0]

"Kimba" The blonde announced her presence by addressing the familiar first. Elated to see that Ariel was accompanied by her trusty familiar. She directed a bow of her head, towards the other blonde, to acknowledge her existence too. This wasn't meant to be offensive, animals just called to Hunie. Then the blonde kneeled at level with Kimba's majestic face. "Hey there..." She said ruffling the fur atop the familiar's head, which one would assume the creature didn't like, but this one seemed happy about it. After a decent bit of time was spent familiarizing with the familiar, Hunie rose up to face Ariel. "Sorry about that, I'm just waiting till I get a chance to get me one of these, not that that'll stop me from going crazy about any friendly creatures... I love animals..." she said to the other blonde, smiling almost apologetically about virtually ignoring the presence of the girl she had messaged for help. "I heard about a quest on this floor, not sure what the rewards are but since you're higher in level I thought you might've done it and you'll be able to tell me more about it." Hunie added. The sweltering heat would have had her sweating, her face had assumed a color tone of the sky, during sunset. "Plus, it would help to have someone around to distract me from this terrible weather." The green eyed girl mentioned, with a soft smile. Hunie still had her heavy armor on, which didn't help with the heat one bit. As she stared at Ariel, she noticed the outfit was the same as she had seen when they had met for the first time. Curiously she asked her companion, "Speaking of which, how is it that you can be dressed like this, here and on the fourth floor? Does the environment not affect you at all?" she asked. 

Edited April 2, 2016 by Hunie

[Ariel - The Crowned Lion 0]

At the mention of her name, the now golden furred lioness... as the sands had already claimed the natural white color of her fur. She was pretty displeased with the floor's condition overall but became rather excited at the mention of her name and dashed towards the armor clad girl that summoned her. A repeat of their initial encounter seemed imminent as the lioness showed yet again, no signs of slowing down. From behind her, the other self-titled lioness of SAO noded as well and simply shouted: "You better dodge!" expecting Kimba once again to jump Hunnie. But that didn't happen as her companion slowed down and came to a complete stop in from of her. The proud lioness started purring as Hunnie started showing her the much needed affection that fuelled her daily laziness and pampering. Without it she would become cranky and opt to sleep instead of doing something else. She would see that her intentions were pure, a big hint being the gentleness of her touch.

Ariel couldn't help but smile at the scene while basking in the twilight, scene that enhanced her natural beauty. "There are several quests here but most of them involve... fighting powerful mobs. We'd have no problem dealing with them but today I want us to do something more..simple. We'll go find a treasure and get you extra skill as well." she said with a smile, wassing her right hand through her hair in the hopes of removing a part of the sand particles blown by the wind. "And to answer to your last question, yes partially responsible is the <<Extra Skill>> I mentioned, due to its effect I don't take damage from harsh environments. The second part is that I like the snow and hate the sand." she said as she ticked the tip of tongue out at the end of that last sentence.

[Hunie 0]

"Mobs can be scary, although I think I'm doing better now, but higher than floor five or six, I'd probably have a lot of trouble, so quest bosses on this floor would be a big no no, unless you can one shot them like you did with the Avalanche." Hunie concurred with Ariel. "Something easier sounds great and I like the idea of hunting for a treasure" Hunie added with a small smile. Her hand had wandered to find the underside of the familiar's jaw, stroking softly while she spoke to the owner, or rather the player this particular familiar was most loyal too. Hunie didn't like the idea of 'ownership' over any living thing. Ariel went on to answer her next question, as she talked off it, once again Hunie eyed the garments she was garbed in. 

"Oh! So its a skill. Should've seen that coming." Hunie responded, tapping the back of her head, with her free hand, lightly in order to signify how silly she felt. "Sometimes, just sometimes this death game starts feeling so real, I forget it's finally just a game, where enemy mobs spawn out of data packets, so does resistance to the weather..." The girl said bordering on being a little listless. "I don't like the snow or the sand that much. But in a way, I like having had a chance to being exposed to them, to feel them, so now I know I don't like either." The sea-green eyed girl said, mimicking the other blonde's actions and running her fingers through her own blonde strands, to shake out the sand particles there. "I probably wouldn't get such chances in real life." Hunie finished a little solemnly. "So how do we  do this? Where do we start looking for this treasure?" The girl asked curiously, disappointed that she could find no intel on her own. 

[Ariel - The Crowned Lion 0]

"There!" she said as she pointed out toward a shady looking NPC covered all in dark. She appeared to be heading in their direction and the blonde knew she would as this was the 2^nd sensation of Deja-vú she'd get, having finished the quest twice already. Before the NPC engaged them into conversation, mentioning the details of the quest the blonde replied to her heavy armored counterpart: "Lately several members of the frontliner team have stepped down to the lower floors to 'train' new people out of a desire to improve our numbers or simply from boredom. I've seen them take people below level 5 to do the floor 12 quest that's quite dangerous, I believe doing that kind of thing just to rapidly raise their level is stupid. you can't 'breed' someone to join us. They must have the desire to do so themselves, we simply guiding them and giving a helping hand." she said with a sigh as too many new names joined their ranks and had little knowledge of how things work on the lower-mid floors. Still it was a nice initiative and the extra help was appreciated. She'd only help that their overlevel for the current front lines floors would continue to keep them safe as well. "So yeah I'd suggest starting from the 1st floor quests then going one floor up after you finished the quests on it. At least that is how most of us did and..... we're still here." she didn't want to appear arrogant with that last statement but it was the truth. Some come and rival her stats in a very short timespan then for some reason. "I can agree that despite the obvious down part, this place has a 'real' feeling to it. For me particularly it gives me a degree of 'freedom' I don't usually get IRL." she left that as it is. She enjoyed being with the new girl, revealing what the so called 'freedom' was might.... change her opinion over what Ariel truly was. None the less the NPC started presenting the quest to them before they could add anything else.

[Hunie 0]

Following Ariel's indication, Hunie averted her eyes to meet those of the well veiled NPC. The blonde listened to her words carefully, pondering on the risks. "So as we venture deeper there is a chance of dying simply because of the heat?" Hunie murmured, sounding a little worried. The perk seems worth it, I won't have to be worried about such things anymore, I can venture wherever I want, in the hottest of regions and the coldest, wearing whatever I want to... Hunie thought, weighing her options. Meanwhile Ariel spoke of how she disapproved of the new fad taking over the game mechanics. "I see what you mean..." Hunie said, starting her argument with a consensus before going on to share the experience she had had, similar to the kind Ariel seemed to have an aversion to.

"Although, I personally was carried through a few quests and dungeons by a player of a higher level..." the blonde began to state her opinion on the affair. "But to be fair, I had asked for it, in a way, rather selfishly too, it had more to do with my own personal... battles and circumstances." Hunie added. "I do see what you mean, if the players aren't ready, they aren't ready, it takes skill to play, if you level them up and they don't get to do anything, when they're faced with real danger they won't know how to react..." The blonde added pensively.  "I've devoted a lot of time to such games... IRL so... I know for a fact its not just about stacking numbers you have to build the gamer instincts!" Hunie said excitedly, but not bragging, because she had nothing to brag about at least on here."I'm lucky, I could take that risk. And I was with someone I could trust and he didn't put me in any danger... and that having already played such games I wasn't losing out on much." She finished. They had started walking towards the outskirts of the town and into the desert towards the area where they had to recover. Hunie suddenly became awfully quiet, realising she had spoken too much, something she wasn't very used to. Instead she directed her attention back to the striped white lioness. 

"Doesn't this Quest seem to eas-" Before Hunie could finish her sentence, she noticed upon venturing into the open lands, she felt the gust of hot wind against her face. Something that had never happened before happened... She noticed a dramatic fall in her HP, almost 1/3rd of it was gone. "Oh... kay..." She said with a sigh. "I guess not." 

Spoiler

ID# 54849 results: Battle: 3 Craft: 1 Loot: 7 MOB: 4

- 10 HP 

Hunie HP: 22/32

 

Edited April 2, 2016 by Hunie

[Ariel - The Crowned Lion 0]

"A few is no problem." said the blonde with a smile. "Dungeons and things like that but when every quest is done for you your person being there just as a spectator or a spoiled kid, that's when problems start coming up for you and the others around you, later on. And that is a dangerous thing up there." she emphasized where she was referring to by pointing her right index towards the sky. Anyone with more than a half brain would assume that she meant the latest available floor where a boss raid planning had just concluded a little bit back, to which she too was part off. She'd assume she too knew where she was referring to.

As the two entered the desert a strong gust of wind welcomed them. "I hate this place..." muttered the blonde as she lowered the vanguard she had her right arm from the front of her face. Once again sand made it in her hair and other exposed areas. With a sigh she looked at the blonde beside her as she stopped mid sentence. The blonde then raised an eyebrow and send her a party invite. Once Hunnie would accept it Ariel will notice her missing HP chunk "Almost forgot about that." she added while scratching her cheek, next materializing a handful of crystals she had in her inventory. "Use this if your Hp drops below half it shouldn't happen that often though but just to be on the safe side." She then pulled out a plushie that she made a while back and gave it to Hunnie: "Here, maybe this will improve your luck." she added with a small laugh as they two began their journey through the desert.

Gave Hunnie 5x Healing Crystals (+15 HP Recovery) and the following item: (old craft of mine, just look at the ID number :))

Spoiler

Name: Kitty
Your Profession: Tailor
Your Rank: Mentor
ID: 12628 
Roll: 11 (10+1 needle)
Item Type: Plushie
Quality: Rare
Enhancements: +2 LD
Description:  A cute dark colored, cotton filled plushie that was made to look like a cat, small enough to be worn as a weapon accessory.It can easily be attached to the hilt of one's weapon. Some say these plushies bring good luck.

 

Edited April 2, 2016 by Ariel - The Crowned Lion

[Hunie 0]

Hunie nodded thoughtfully, she had to admit Ariel was right. "I couldn't agree more." The whole system reminded Hunie of some irresponsible rich parents, the kinds who didn't have the time to bother about how their kids were spending the money and just gave them a fat chunk of it. With the higher levels being the parents, the lower ones being the kids and all the freely acquired experience and level gain being the cash. As Ariel pointed skyward Hunie's gaze followed, the endless darkening digital sky the blonde sensed a foreboding, a feeling of impending doom. Perhaps this came from the news she had heard about the latest boss fight, Ariel's indication had reminded her of what waited higher up. 

"I've heard the last boss fight things didn't go too well... there were a few deaths and then a lot of blaming followed, do you know anything about it?" Hunie asked about the rumors she had caught from NPCs and a few players at the eateries she so loved to visit. "I suppose that could be one disastrous outcome of underprepared players, when you've been carried like that you're really not prepared for that life and death fight are you..." Hunie elaborated solemnly. "Not to mention, sometimes the one being carried is not the one who actually suffers for making a poor decision, there are other lives on the line." The more she thought about it, the more anger she felt, well up in her, against the system. 

"I can't even blame the frontliners for wanting to train the few other minutely enthusiastic players. How much can they handle on their own, with so many people refusing to leave the safe zones, the few who do, need to gather and fight this game together and for that they all need to have the right equipment and level and all that..." Hunie added. The dichotomy of this argument, as it played out in her head eventually began feeling too futile. It wasn't like there was anything anyone could do about it, those who wanted to train, would train and those that thought that was a bad idea wouldn't engage in it and maybe, voice their opinions to dissuade others. "Games were supposed to be my respite from real life, this is so unfair." she stated, crossly, folding her arms, frustrated with the lack of an appropriate solution to it all. The other blonde too, had muttered something about disliking the place...

At this rate the two were going to have a rather unpleasant experience searching for the goods. Quickly, the lower level blonde shook her head. "I'm sorry, I tend to get carried away and a little whiny sometimes." She apologized. When Ariel noticed the drop in Hunie's HP, she generously offered some healing crystals and a tiny plushie. "I've been so lucky with freebies..." Hunie said softly after thanking her. "So, are you a frontliner?" Hunie asked, noticing the ease with which Ariel parted with these crystals and wondering if the other blonde could shed some light on how the game would treat her as she ascended the floors. The plushie seemed to have worked miracles for her luck already, the girl's gaze caught a glint in the sand, she knelt and rummaged her fingers through the grainy soil to find an emerald like stone, which would do wonders for her trinkets. 

Spoiler

+ 1 kitty plushie
+ 5 HP recovery crystals
ID# 55106 results: Battle: 2 Craft: 4 Loot: 15 (+2) MOB: 6

+ 1 Mat
HP: 23/32

 

Edited April 4, 2016 by Hunie

[Ariel - The Crowned Lion 0]

At the mention of the last fight the blonde left out a sigh, her expression darkening just for a moment. Then put on the facade she had build after that event and offered a smile, she couldn't say that it didn't hurt but she couldn't blame the girl for asking. And Ariel will have to get over it sometime, the sooner the better was what the brain told her but her heart would still ache at the mention of her friend's death. She decided to answer her last question first as it was still fresh in the air. 

"Yes!" she simply replied as she changed her gaze towards the sky. "I was also part of the last boss raid.." she added in a lower tone. "Two death to be precise, a man and a girl... honestly I don't know why would a level 1 would join such a thing. A shortcut towards higher level? the price she paid was unacceptable." she then let out a long sigh and continued. "As for the other player, his name was Azide..." she hesitated to speak but bit her lower lip and continued: "I've known him ever since he decided to get away from the passive masses and actively be involved in the front lines. He created the first functioning noob guild I saw and made it even have a appearance in the boss fights. A hero by merit not someone who just took up a title assigned by the Cardinal system." She gritted her teeth and clenched her fists before she raised her voice and shouted at the skies: "For heaven's sake, he even joined Mari's five man team and went to fight the 10th floor boss!" tears began  streaming on her cheeks and fall into the damned sands, dispersing on contact as she kept remembering about her friend. The smartass alchemist that always had a intelligent reply to things... The strategist that wisely counseled the planning meeting of almost every boss raid he'd been part of. One of her most oldest questing companion and friend....... gone from this world and the other.

As much as she wanted to keep cool and calm behind her facade, she was broken to pieces. Dejected she turned her head towards the sands, her blonde bangs and sandy hair covering her pitiful expression: "You know? I don't even blame him. I blame all of us, we all wear the mark of killers even if this damn thing is still green." she shook her head making the green marker above her to follow her movements. "The ones that attended the planning and the ones that attended the boss fight. We are all guilty of letting them die!" she added at the end, the stream of tears diminishing in quantity as now only a couple of drops would reach the sands at her feet. 
Realizing that her honesty (and emotions) once again took the better of her, she tried to wipe out her tears with the back of her vambraces and her hands then looked at Hunnie with a somehow forced smile. "I'm sorry for dumping all this onto you. you must think I'm some sort of instable blonde... a emotional wreck... you wouldn't be far from the truth..." she added at the end, not sure how the armored girl would react to her 'little' outburst. In the meanwhile, her furry companion went and picked up something from the sands and gives it to Hunnie.

ID# 55970  LD: 16 (Mat found, given to Hunnie)

Edited April 9, 2016 by Ariel - The Crowned Lion

[Hunie 0]

(OOC: Sorry about such a delay in the response, got stuck with some IRL things which involved studying, tutoring/Assisting and then getting locked in my own house :p ) 

The girl noticed a rock in the sand and retrieved it to attempt collecting a crafting material from it, she succeeded meanwhile Ariel's face wore a strained smile. Perceptive as the aspiring tank was, the smile did nothing to hide the gloom that had grasped the other blonde when Hunie asked the question. She felt a sinking feeling of guilt, take over. To see The Crowned Lion try so hard to be proud and brave was disheartening and inspiring at the same time. "You don't have to tell me if you don't..." Realising, it wasn't so much as her not wanting as it being too painful to probably recount, Hunie edited her words. "You just don't have to tell me...." She had muttered softly, but her heart wasn't in it. In all honesty the lower level girl was curious about the life of the frontliners, the ones who had shouldered the responsibility, but she didn't want her companion to feel uncomfotable. She had then gone on to talk of other things as a cover up. But the topic and come to the surface again when she had asked if Ariel herself was a frontliner. 

As the question was answered with a monosyllable the longsword wielder's gaze followed Ariel's into the sky again once again, squinting so her dark eyelashes could try and prevent the persistent dust from entering her eyes. It had taken on a far darker tone, in just a matter of seconds. The other blonde stayed true to her title, swallowed her pain and answered Hunie's previous question. The feeling of impending gloom and sadness hung in the dry air as she announced that she had personally been part of the last boss raid. The prickly topic of that fight had now precariously placed itself in the conversation. Hunie nodded in encouragement while the feeling of guilt ate at her, but she had to know. "Wait... level ONE? I would say that was brave but its... It's suicide." Hunie said, irresponsibly using the colloquial term. Her sentence was a lot darker in this game, because unfortunately for that girl, it was literal suicide. "Oh god..." Hunie said shaking her head. When she spoke of the second death, the sea green eyes trailed back to the other blonde's face. Talking about it was cracking Ariel up and Hunie's guilt surged but she didn't interrupt. She noticed Ariel bite her lip, presumably to prevent it from trembling. Ariel recounted how close she and Azide had been, from pretty early in the game and how active he had been, just like the others, in attempt to clear up this infernal game. 

Once tears started streaming down Ariel's cheeks, Hunie no longer felt the need to read her face, it was apparent it was painted with sadness. She trained her eyes on the desert's floor as her feet shuffled in the sand listlessly and so did the other. Her breathing had grown heavier and she felt tears well in her own eyes. So prone to guilt she wondered if she could ever take losing a companion in battle... "It... I don't know what to say..." Hunie said softly. "This is not how life is meant to be lived, and..." Hunie swallowed the hatred for Kayaba rising in her throat. "And... We all, especially the ones like you who are doing what you can to save everyone have no intention of letting anyone die... S-" Her meagre attempt to make Ariel feel better was interrupted. The girl seemed to respond apologetically, assuming Hunie thought she was a wreck. "No... no! I'm not trying to say the right and practical thin- Oh dear lord." Watching the girl cry, Hunie let the tears stream down her face too, this was the second time that a story of an in game death had bought her to tears. She extended her arm towards the girls shoulder hesitantly and then let it rest there tenderly. "You are very brave Ariel. This is very tough to handle..." 

Spoiler

ID# 55694 results: Battle: 4 Craft: 6 Loot: 15 MOB: 1
+ 1 Mat (+1 from Ariel) = 2 Mat
HP: 24/32 

 

Edited April 12, 2016 by Hunie

[Ariel - The Crowned Lion 0]

The blonde appreciated the kindness Hunnie offered her, trying to stop her but Ariel wanted to tell someone.... she just wanted a breather, wanted to voice out how she felt. And so she went on, let out every bit of her bottled up emotions. In the end, she might've just 'scarred' the aspiring front liner, thinking that it would be better to turn around and leave the quest, even give up upon her desire to ascend. That thought made the blonde swallow a very harsh knot but in the same time, she was happy that the armored girl shed tears for her and helped ease the pain, as she finally spoke. "Look at me, making a girl cry. If Azide were here to see me, he'll be kicking my but and tell me to get going so that we finish the quest." as Hunnie extended her arm the lioness responded and attempted to hug her, if she would accept it Ariel would gently stroke her hair in a motherly fashion as to calm her down too.
"You don't have to say anything, I'm just happy you listened to me, even in this damned heat." she added as she took a deep breath. "Okay, what do you say if we leave it here and focus on the task in hand?" she asked while raising her gaze to meet Hunnies.

ID# 56711 LD: 9 (no mat)

(short one... muse issues)

[Hunie 0]

(OOC: Don't worry about it.) 

Her blonde hair were stroked gently, similar to what her family members would do. A few more tears escaped, a couple for the two deaths Ariel had mentioned and the rest for the homesickness that embraced her along with Ariel's arms. Hunie wiped her tears and had let a half-hearted laugh escape her lips in response to Ariel stating that her late friend would be pushing her to focus on the task at hand. "I just... I just don't know how I'd ever deal with losing anyone... I don't have too many friends IRL, for... reasons." She added, pushing the reason i.e. her disability out of her mind before adding. "Since the game has replaced my reality in a way, anyone I've interacted with are as close as I have to real friends... and the game this game is so brutal, I don't know how I'd deal with what you went through... So I, don't know what to say..." She finished, still nestled in Ariel's arms. To which Ariel responded by saying that she was just glad someone heard her out.

Hunie smiled a sad little smile, pushing herself out of the other blonde's arms gently, as the other one added that they should focus on the task at hand '...as Azide would have wanted I assume.' Hunie thought, and tried to imagine a fitting face for that name, since she had never seen that player. "Besides except a few, most people I know are like you. You frontliners are getting stronger everyday right? So you all will be safe and fine right?" Hunie asked optimistically. She thought of Dom, and how invincible he seemed in the dungeon and against that big snakey water monster. That well armoured Macredon who had helped her out on one of those early days in the game, the first time she had had her run in with that stalker. Mack whom she'd interacted with from a distance, obtained a part of her own armor and acquired an invite for a party... Takao who she had run into in that party and who's chess game she had invaded previously.  Hunie found her thoughts drifting to other faces, especially in that party. The girl Dom had taken away with him. The women Mack had been with, the commander and vice commander of the Knights of Blood... The guy Ariel had accompanied, the one who had run off somewhere... All of them presumably part of Frontlines. Her eyes rested on Ariel's, who had decimated the ice monster, Avalanche, with such ease. That was also when she and The crowned lion had gotten properly acquainted. All so strong, they'll be fine. Hunie convinced herself as she averted her gaze and continued walking towards their destination.

"You were there at the hot springs party weren't you, I remember how well you handl-" She decided against mentioning the wardrobe mishap. Clearing her throat she went on. "I was there too, though you probably didn't see me, I was rather quiet and hiding in a small corner of the springs..." Hunie said, almost apologetic about the lack of appropriate social etiquette that day. Fortunately most didn't care much about it. "Who was the guy with you? Frontliner too?" The blonde asked, trying to change the topic of this morbid conversation. 

Spoiler

ID# 56314 results: Battle: 7 :: Craft: 4 :: Loot: 8 :: MOB: 9
25/32 HP 

 

Edited April 12, 2016 by Hunie

[Ariel - The Crowned Lion 0]

A soft smile came across the blonde's expression as the armored girl accepted her embrace. Has she been engaged in this sort of physical action before? yes, when she conforted the sister she never had IRL but gained here in this death game, Teayre. So she wasn't so shy or infantile to put another meaning behind her actions. She had continued to gently stroke her crimson hair as she did now until she let it all out. She would suspect that is was more behind her feelings than just sadness from losing two players she didn't even know and would get a partial confirmation as to why was that. The comment about them getting stronger made her sigh and mutter: "Stronger or more broken?" Still she was happy to hear as Hunnie showed concern towards them while other merely saw the front lining team as a arrogant select few that ruled the world. When she brought up the topic of the hot springs, a faint blush started manifesting on her cheeks as she thought she was going to ask what did they do in that changing room. She let out a sigh of relief as the question was about her partner: "Oh him... Hikoru is my future husband." she said with a small smile as she produced the hoya that he gave her when he proposed. "I know it isn't a ring but its the closes thing to it and I wouldn't have it in any other way now." she then tried to search through the images of that memory, to see if she could locate the girl. "there were a lot of people there..." she said at the end, in a attempt to hide her inability to remember her. 

ID# 57609  LD: 15 (Material found!)

[Hunie 0]

The girl with emerald-sapphire eyes gently ducked out of the embrace to give Ariel the space to talk about the man Hunie had seen her with. "Hikoru is it?" The lower levelled blonde repeated the name as per habit. "Oh! I thought as much, you both look lovely together, from what I recall... I'm sure you both will have a happy life..." The girl praised and blessed, after Ariel finished announcing her betrothal of sorts, complete with a token. The Longsword wielder admired the necklace. "It's beautiful..." she whispered with admiration. Despite the slight discomfort she had sensed coming off of the other player Ariel had accompanied to that crowded party, the two had looked like parts of one whole. She noticed Ariel couldn't remember seeing Hunie amidst the plethora of people at the party that day. "It was a rather full party and I stuck to the corners, observing mostly..." She added, in hopes to make the other blonde feel at ease about her inability to recognize her face amongst the party goers. "Hikoru seemed a little off a the party, at least initially... What was up?" Hunie asked, eager to carry on the conversation about the happy mundane realities one wrought in this ugly game. "If you don't mind me asking..." The girl added tentatively, in case she had crossed the line from pleasantries to personal things. She noticed something shine behind Ariel and in an absent minded fashion reached to add another material to her inventory.

Spoiler

ID# 58427 results: Battle: 9 :: Craft: 3 :: Loot: 16 :: MOB: 4
Health: 26/32
+2 Mat (One from Ariel) 
 

 

Edited May 7, 2016 by Hunie

[Ariel - The Crowned Lion 0]

Ariel took a second to think about how to answer, it was not that she felt uncomfortable discussing it with her heavy armored counterpart but more in the lines that she had put filled that event in some obscure place of her memory, not associating it with something important. She scratched her cheek as she dug in her memory, after a short while getting a glimpse or a slight flashback of what happened. "He was just upset about something that reminded him of the real world. I cheered him up in the locker room." she said with no shame. To her, as one that knew nothing... illicite happened behind the lock door, it was a natural wording but to an outsider as Hunnie, her words could be interpreted in a different manner. At the end it resumed to how experienced a person and how 'dirty' 'open' their mind was.

As they continued to walk in the stormy desert, night began to fall upon them. The air getting slightly chiller and the wind picking up in intensity as even the artificial light began to fade: "We need to make camp soon." said the blonde as she looked for a suitable place to do so.

ID# 58435  LD: 11

[Hunie 0]

Ariel explained how Hikoru's real life demons caught up to him. It was not rarity for that to happen, this game had a knack for driving people into dark places. There were cruel things the players had to do to the monsters they were forced to fight, and being locked in the game, it all seemed very real, too real. Then there was also a shroud of doubt each person bore towards any acquaintance they made...  Mistrust that often ended in violence. All in all, this game was stretching humanity thin. In order to distract herself, briefly Hunie let her thoughts drift to the ways in which Ariel could have cheered Hikoru up... It wasn't long before all the literature and cinema she used to drown herself in, influenced her mind, it coloured her thoughts dirty and her face pink. Luckily the other blonde interrupted the greatsword wielder's inappropriate ideas suggesting that they should set camp. "Er... We could set camp, but aren't we very close to our destination? How dangerous would it be to carry on and try to find whatever that NPC wanted us to find?" Her green eyes were wide with curiosity as she finished her question. 

Spoiler

ID# 59389 results: Battle: 3 Craft: 6 Loot: 2 MOB: 8
Health: 27/32

 

Edited May 21, 2016 by Hunie

[Ariel - The Crowned Lion 0]

Seeing as Hunnie's face became redder than a fried lobster, Ariel couldn't help but giggle and squeeze out a reply: "We didn't do that yet!" She then combed her hair behind her ear with her right hand and begin playing with the golden split ends. "Not that I would mind him doing that with me........" she muttered in a sweet and seducingly soft whisper. Ariel wasn't the one that would use flirting as means to get what she wants, not that she was against the concept but merely because she was inexperienced. Having to train in real life in almost all her free time, filling the remaining amount with her videogame playing hobby; going out with friends and flirting with boys was something she lacked in practicing, on top of that add the fact that she was travelling a lot around the world, participating in different fencing tournaments... her social skill were lacking at best, if not inexistent. But here in SAO, she would tease and flirt like it was a second nature to her.

Weighting Hunnie's questions, she reply: "so far we've encountered 0 mobs so I'd say the same would stand until we finish the quest, that is if we don't go around looking for trouble. And for some reason the way back always seems shorter even with the extra weight." she diverted her mirror-like gaze from the tank's greenish glare and looked around. "Could that be it?" she pointed with a half dumbstruck expression towards something like a box that was half buried in the sand, just a bit further from them.

ID# 62974  LD: 7

[Hunie 0]

As the blonde contemplated whether she would or wouldn't do it with her boyfriend, Hunie's face turned a deeper shade of red. In all fairness, thoughts like that lingered in her head once in a while, but she wasn't sure if she'd ever find anyone. The irony was, this game allowed her to be disability free, but she was sure she wanted her first experience to be something serious and real, not something a person is likely to do in this death game, just to cure frustration perhaps. In real life, her disabled legs prevented her from going out and about much, not to mention her overprotective family, who always saw her as vulnerable. Ariel seemed rather straight forward, Hunie wasn't used to that, most people who visited her at home were always over-polite, this was surely a welcome change. The conversation took a turn towards the more pressing matters. "Well no mobs is always good... I better go check that box." The green-eyed blonde was fairly sure Ariel already knew that was it, it was likely since she had already done this quest. Hunie went and dug around the box to retrieve it. "Yep this seems to be it, better head back for that NPC."