[OP-F1] Resolve

[Airi 0]

Another empty day spent meandering about in the Town of Beginnings with her head in the clouds and the sounds of her surroundings tuned out. Another long day spent doing nothing. Was this what she was supposed to do until the day the game was cleared? She didn't know. It didn't really matter to her.

As the virtual sun began its descent towards the false horizon, Airi found herself standing in front of the Black Iron Palace once again. It was a place she had always avoided in her day-to-day wanderings, simply because the Monument of Life lied within. She couldn't stand seeing players who've been tracking the status of people they know turn away from the monument with a devastated expression. It tugs at the part of her that's sympathetic and craves justice and she didn't like how it felt. So normally, whenever she finds herself standing in front of that place, she would force her feet to keep walking in the direction of the inn she was staying in. But today, she found her feet glued to the spot and the only way to move was forward, into the palace.

Just this once, she promised herself. Just this once, she would look through the names on the Monument of Life and attempt to figure out the status of the person who was the very reason why she was here in the first place. So she took a deep, deep breath and walked forward. 

The inside of the Black Iron Palace, as its name suggests, is dark-colored. It had windows in every direction, which allowed the light of an artificial sun into the building. Very few players were inside, most of them leaving already. She kept her eyes away from them and instead focused on the direction her feet were heading. It was pretty simple to get to the Monument. She remembered the directions, since it was where everyone spawned, one at a time, on the day the servers opened. From the entrance, go straight until you see two black knight statues and turn right.

The Monument of Life was around three meters tall, and extended ten meters sideways. The names written on it were small, had even spaces between them (maybe the big spaces were where the causes of death would be listed if the owner of that name died), and placed in an alphabetical order. Already, many had a line striking through them and a cause of death listed. She refrained from looking at them and looked at the names that were at her eye-level. A few minutes later, she backed away with a sigh. None of them looked like a name he would use. And she had only studied a small portion of it. And heck, there were even names that were so far above her head that she couldn't read them anymore. Why did she even bother? It wasn't like she had gotten his player name before the game started. Why did she agree with her instincts to even come here in the first place?

The reason why made itself clear within a few seconds. A line slowly crossed over a name she had been unconsciously staring at and she froze, feeling chills run down her spine. At that very moment, as she was looking at their name, that someone just died. The words 'Killed in a floor boss battle' slowly appeared afterwards. She could barely breathe as the letters finished writing themselves and that uncomfortable feeling of guilt and the need for justice appeared once again.

Someone died while trying to liberate all the other players from this death game. The rest were currently risking their lives to do the same. They may be high-leveled, but that didn't mean they were immortal. How many others have died while trying to clear the game? How many more will? How many deaths could she have prevented if she was fighting with them? And what was she doing? She was staying in the Town of Beginnings, completely safe and sound, and doing nothing to help them.

What of hi--Airi slowly breathed in and forced the feelings down. No. She would stay here. The high-leveled players have small chances of dying. Sacrifices always had to be made to achieve a certain goal. It would be hard to catch up to them. She might die without achieving anything. She might never wake up from this death game and continue her past life. But the emotional part of her didn't want to give up, just yet. But don't the other players have lives too? Don't they wake up on the day of a dangerous mission and think, maybe this would be their last day here? 

You know, me, you aren't the only person in the universe.

She normally didn't feel for such things. She even squashed those feelings if they ever surfaced and told herself she was the only one who mattered to her. But at that moment, she couldn't deny that she was being completely unfair. It wasn't just about her. It was about all the living players in this death game that everyone escape from. Who was she to say that she didn't want to die? And who was she to leave the others do the rest for her? With that question, she slowly wrapped her right hand around the curved sword that rested at her hip but was never used and made the decision to fight.

 

(OOC: I know, long post. I think this will probably be the longest I'll ever make. The last part was pretty rushed though. So basically, this just serves as some sort of introduction. Anyways, if you want to know about the "he" person she keeps talking about, just check Airi's journal in the signature. That'll clear things up.)

[Mist 0]

Mist woke up to the various sounds of The Town of Beginnings. Birds chirping, adventurers conversing, a wagon clanking down the cobblestone pavement she had been asleep to the side off. Letting out a yawn the young spearwoman perched herself up on the bench she took her afternoon naps on and rubbed her eyes free of any sleep. "A new day." She mumbled letting her gingery brown hair flow down. Truth be told to any bypasser she probably would have looked liked an adventurer, her clothing tattered and her hair a mess. Even the large two-handed spear across her back now had a dull blade, yet she had only ever left here once. Since, Mist had simply wandered, letting her curiosity get the better of her. Being kicked out the nearby tavern hadn't exactly helped her condition either and now she now had no place to stay. Letting out a slight whimper and pitying herself she sprung up off the bench and casually began to make her way towards the market district.

"Dusk already..." She whispered at the signs of the growing shadows, it was both pretty and equally disturbing. More so because she happened to be moving past the 'Black Palace' at the time. Mist suddenly stopped "I suppose it wouldn't hurt to check?", twisting her body she slowly made her way into the Black Iron Palace. The atmosphere hadn't been cold but she felt a slight shiver go to down her spine as he entered the vicinity of the building. Up ahead stood 'The Monument of Life. "I wonder if it's grown since I last came." As she reached its base she glanced upwards, 'Zelrius', 'Helios' these were only a few of the names etched into the stone, it certainly looked like a lot more players had died. In the corner of her eye, she noticed someone, a nearby player place their hand on some sort of sword. "I am the only one here out of curiosity?" Mist pondered to herself, failing to realize that she was now blatantly staring at the girl.

[Lawrence 0]

Shepard was standing outside the Black palace were the monument of life was located. He had made it part of his daily routine to stop here and make sure Juni's name wasn't crossed out it gave him some comfort knowing she was alive. He made his way into the palace it was always the same the large room was dimly lit with the monument in the center. As he walked up he took notice of two players that were in front of it one of them had cat ears that reminded him of someone he met on the first day here. When he got there it took him a minute to find her name it wasn't crossed out. "Thank god." he knew said this out loud but didn't care who herd him he rested his head on the monument and continued "I will find you no matter what" his eyes started to water as he spoke the next words "I promise." He had been thinking about Juni a lot lately and had been having nightmares about her dying it had been taking its toll on him and it was starting to show.

Edited March 9, 2017 by Lawrence

[Dominion 0]

Dominion had gone around the town for only a couple hours after having taken a break from searching for that blue haired guy. That boy had ran out of the city limits, no longer to be seen for an unprecedented amount of time. Dominion wouldn't worry, there was nothing that could harm that guy to his knowledge. Dominion reached over his shoulder to grasp the hilt of the massive great ax. "So, I have a book of instructions to something, the basic knowledge to open this thing-" Dominion swipes open his notifications rather suddenly. He had definitely put it to muscle memory. "And, I know that this place is a city of lots of people. The next step for me to take... what must it be?" Dominion said to himself as he let go of the hilt. Returning his arm to his side casually, Dominion moved forward... except he stopped. There was something big in that direction, and he dazzled. This was incredible architecture for a simple game... It looked so real. Dominion could see two people, well, actually three. One he had met a couple hours before. "Hey, short time seen a lot, If you promise, I promise as well." Dominion moved to stand beside the man, his expression as joyous in life as ever, even though the ax would say otherwise. "Don't forget that humans were and still are, given a choice. It is our job to Carpe Diem. That is that is how you will find what you seek." Dominion turned to the other two beside the palace... "The name is Dominion, might I ask yours?

Edited March 11, 2017 by Dominion

[Solomon 0]

Solomon had passed that group, got rid of the dude that persisted to follow him, and made a clear line to the trees. His long blue beaded hair lay horizontal in the air as he ran, somewhat like a kite. The adornments were flashing with the light of the now setting sun, his silk shirt shining an array of orange gold and yellow. He ran barefoot, nothing to protect the soles of his feet. He looked up to determine his next set of actions. However, the trees were quite a distance from the town of beginning, and he would need to walk to conserve energy. Thus, Solomon slowed his pace once more, keeping an eye out for the boars that roamed to either side. A person had just been recently killed by a boar, honestly not that far from the entrance to the town of beginnings. This had sparked resolve in Solomon's eyes. He had been challenged by a red haired player to go and survive in the forest of the first floor for more than a day. That same guy stated that he would pk people, and that Solomon might be next. Solomon would prove he could survive in the wooded area for way longer than a short day. However, he had no reason to say any of this out loud, as it was his own thoughts and not that of the talker. He had more reason to strive for this accomplishment with the player that had just been wiped out by a boar not minutes ago.

[Airi 0]

Airi closed her eyes and loosened her grip on her curved sword. Breathed in, breathed out. She had a pretty, pleasant, totally sane reputation to maintain and she didn't want to break it by looking like some sort of psycho (what she thought she looked like right now) in public. She ran her fingers through her short, red hair and clasped her hands behind her back. Then she added a hint of a smile, a facial expression she had taken months to perfect during her stay here in SAO.

She felt exhausted and wanted to return to the inn and lie down for the rest of tomorrow, like that one decision alone took all her energy out. Her hands shook, but she didn't want to let go of it, that resolve she had gotten. She didn't want to live a safely in the Town of Beginnings anymore. Not in this situation anyway.

A question that was obviously directed to her penetrated her thoughts. Airi turned around and let her vision clear for a bit (it always turns blurry when she thinks hard, for some reason). She realized that three other people had arrived and caught the only female's gaze. Airi quickly studied the woman standing a few feet from her. She had reddish-brown hair, a fox ear headband resting atop her head, and looked like she was a bit interested in talking.

Airi decided to respond to the man who had asked her a question first. The question was directed to her and Fox Ears, since he was turning in their general direction and looked at them in turn. The man was big, well-muscled, had blond hair, and most importantly, had a green cursor floating atop his head. A bit safer than the red ones and he looked easy enough to outrun in case of a dangerous situation. Normally, she would have just given him her name and excused herself, but she needed players to help her on her mission to catch up to/help the clearers now. It couldn’t hurt to be safe.

She replied in the generic, polite way: "My name's Airi. It's nice to meet you." She thought about extending her hand to shake his, but then remembered that women weren't supposed to do that (even in business meetings, according to her teacher), so she simply added a question she had heard many players ask each other: "What level are you, by the way?"

[Mist 0]

After a few moments it seemed the girl had finally relaxed, Mist had still been staring in her general direction although with a rather dazed look. "Huh?" A voice cut through the silence a few moments later and Mist turned her head to sight a blonde man, who appeared to have greeted both her and the other girl. The sword user went first greeting herself as 'Airi' and Mist finally realizing why she had come here in the first place turned to face the man in a slight panic and bowed a few times finally managing to state "Hi I am Mist." Refocusing her attention on the conversation, she then slid a pace backward as though she had violated their personal spaces. Airi had proceeded to ask the man his level, Mist glanced at him. "He looks relatively strong." She thought to herself. The strongest player she knew had an orange cursor, at least she had known. The spearwoman needed to seek him out again although come to think of it, she hadn't even bothered looking for his name on the stone. 

Quickly twirling around she read through the names as fast as possible, skipping over half of them in the process. "No, not there hehe." She mumbled in a rather sweet and contempt voice before looking back towards the other two. "Hey, do you guys have any food? I have been eating bread for weeks now." It didn't matter that the world was virtual, she had quite frankly had enough of the stuff and was interested in trying something different for a change. During the first week, she had scoured the various markets and stalls enjoying all the different tastes but since had not exactly been in the best position. "I am going to get stronger and try everything!" Mist continued to ramble on in her mind, a rather determined look now spreading over her face.

Edited March 10, 2017 by Mist

[Vale 1]

Vale had just returned from the upper floors, her sharpened Kitty Claws were grasped around her bicep of the other arm. The massive Turtle nearly annihilated her with a single strike of it's chin of all things. She had never truly felt fear of something in her life, but this thing was able to force her to believe in something she had yet to experience in her young life. She also learned that even though there are suppose to be easy monsters to fight on the first floors, but there are monsters that spawn on every single floor that held differing strengths. Her battle with a whelpling was an lesson she needed to learn, The Neko girl had let her confidence spiral out of control. She had become so cocky around this one man who was leagues ahead of her. And it was him to help her learn such the value of energy conservation and life in this world.

With her recent brush with death, Vale decided it was time she went to the place that gave her the most amount of discomfort. The Monument of Life. She looked akin to a panther, skin tight gauntlets, legguards, leotard. All covered in mostly black with hints of purple fur, her natural dark skin displayed by her thighs, bicep/triceps, and face really helped emphasize the Cat like demeanor, along with her dark purple hair and amethyst colored eyes. The Martial Artists toned body and outfit garnered a lot of attention through the streets since she naturally strutted in her walk, something she was mostly unaware of the fact she did.

it didn't take too long before the Panther reached the based of the steps that led up to Black Iron Palace. It was appropriate today to honor the dead with what she had been through. Taking a long deep breath, she began her ascent up the darkened stone staircase. Since she was naturally physically toned in the real world, her journey toward the Monument of life took but a few moments. Her eyes flicked around to note that four people stood within the room, one she remembered from her time in an Inn with him. She wanted to speak, but first the Neko needed to do what she came here for.

She went toward the end of the Monument of life, sitting down upon her knee's intertwining her kitty claws together infront of her face. She mouthed some words, but no sounds were made. Vale had her own tradition she upheld with her family when honoring the deceased. Opening her eyes she looked at the name crossed out on the giant slab, Yukino death by falling off Aincrad. It really tugged at her heart strings to read that after the decade and a half of spending time together, but it was a memory of the past and she had committed to moving forward regardless.

Standing back on her feet she turned her head to the blonde haired monk, "How did I know you would manage to get yourself in conversation with two other ladies. Is one not enough for you?" She asked joking with a tongue sticking out inbetween her cat-like fangs. Vale was well aware of how oblivious Dominion could be and how likely he was going to take it as an insult. She prowled up next to him swiftly, looking at the Axe on his back peculiarly, "I thought you said you were a Martial Artist?" She followed up quickly.

 

[Airi 0]

The girl with fox ears identified herself as Mist after a few apologetic bows. Then stepped back and asked if any of them had any food. Airi tilted her head to the side slightly in interest. Like most low-levels, she had been eating plain bread and water for months (it was the only free food item NPCs sold, and while no one could die from hunger, it felt very unnatural to go about without food and water for days), aside from the occasional meal she would share with some of the people she met in the town. So, of course, she didn’t have anything that wasn’t bread. Nor the money to buy some. “I don’t have anything that isn’t bread,” she stated. “Hmm, but now that you mentioned it, I’m starting to crave some food as well.”

Then someone new joined in the conversation. Another woman, with purple hair and dark skin and whoa, was she wearing spandex? It clung to the woman’s skin, like, too much. Airi looked away, wondering if it was rude to stare too long. First, the girl beside her wore animal ears; second, she knew a man who wore armor that bared his chest; and third, the purple-haired woman with the spandex. Is it normal for players to go around looking a bit strange? “There’s a Martial Arts skill here? I thought the combat skills were all about weapons.” Airi said, addressing the spandex-wearing woman.

(OOC: Did I get the descriptions right? I mostly just referred to the pictures and the journals)

[Hei 0]

Hei was wandering around town, as he did nearly every evening. He still hadn't found a really nice place to stay so wandering around till he was tired enough that it didn't matter any more where he was going to sleep was what he was doing. While walking around he often looked for other players and what they were doing, not because he was interested in them, but because he was interested in what the game made them do, as this would be another article he was going to write once they got out of the game.

It was already getting dark and he still wasn't tired as he saw a strange looking woman enter a building next where he was walking at the moment. She somewhat looked like a feline, with how she walked and how she looked like. - was she wearing fur? or was it her fur? no that wouldn't be possible, as the characters in this game were all human - he thought while following her with his eyes. The building was one he had seen before, not like most of the others in this town, so he recalled it was called the black iron palace and there was the monument of life in it. This monument was another one of the developers tricks they used to increase the immersion with the game, as it showed the player names of all that were logged into sao and also the one which had died. - If there was something that made players belief in the game as their reality it was going to be this monument as it always remembered them of there dead friends and others, but I won't ever belief them. All of this is just some strange form of thrill increasing programming - he thought while walking behind the cat woman into the palace.

In there was a small group of players standing next to the monument, talking about something, but the only thing Hei understood was I thought the combat skills were all about weapons which a red haired girl said. - I remember her, mat her at the first day I think. What was her name? - and he opened his friendlist, looking her up. - Alright, Airi it is -

more or less prepared Hei walked to the group, clearing his throat to get their attention so he wouldn't have to introduce himself more than once. "Good evening, I am Hei, nice to meet you all" he said in a polite manner, bowing lightly and giving Airi a quick smile, knowing that she probably wouldn't remember him.

[Dominion 0]

Dominion watched as Airi and Mist introduced themselves to him. Airi asked for his level, which Dominion was somewhat reluctant to give out. Before Dominion could respond, he found that Vale had made her way to stand beside him, saying something about one woman being enough. Dominion smiled, his hands to his sides as she moved to inspect his weapon on his back. Dominion spoke to Vale first turning his head around to glance at her, "It is nice to see you as well, Vale. I don't suppose you would be that one lady?". Dominion then turned to face Airi, Dominion more focused on their conversation. "I am a level 24, but I have been called out by Vale. I am also a martial artist, but it would seem Vale forgot what I told her when we first met". Dominion laughed, and about the same time his monkey, Enma, appeared from the corner of the building. Enma resembled a human in form with a tail and white fur, standing 3 feet off the ground. Enma jumped onto his shoulder, Dominion's smile widening. "Took you long enough, mischievous little monkey!" He turned back to Mist, who had refocused on the names listed on the wall and Airi. "It is certainly a pleasure to meet you Airi and Mist. If you ever seek help in this game, I am always ready to assist" Dominion said, offering his fist for a fist bump, one of his more common greetings to newer players.

(Vale made mention of my character in the present while I was RPing in the past. That is why there is a current change in equipment, stats, etc.)

[Vale 1]

Vale's new found ears perked up, instead of their normal look and location, her easr were up atop her head slyly hiding within her hair when Dominion asked if she were his one. Her tail unfurled around her hip, cleverly disguised through the armor as the fur color was the same. Her ears twitched and her tail swayed as a normal cat's would, "Oh please Dominion, you surely jest." She chuckled. Out of the corner of her eye she noticed Airi giving Vale a long stare, her sides were completely exposed, showing off a lot more than the normal woman. She watched as Airi looked away, Vale was unsure whether or not the girl had been aware that Vale noticed her looking the whole time. The Neko unveiled her catlike fangs as she bit down on her lower lip, this panther was intrigued.

She looked at the other girl, Mist was the name she had given out. Without a second thought she began strutting toward the two girls, her long tail brushing under the chin of Dominion. Before she got half way there, a new fellow entered the the large dark dimly lit room. He even started off by giving his name, Hei. She still had the thought of food on her mind, and she wanted to spend time with the two other girls she had come to meet because of Dominion. That's when she heard the question about Martial Arts being a skill, Vale purred audibly, loud enough for others two hear. Swiftly she dashed around Airi and Mist, "Martial Arts is a skill my dear, and it is so satisfying when you get to use it." She informed the girl. Ever since the Primal Shift Potion she drank after crafting it with her Alchemist trainer, she noticed her sense of smell was becoming far superior than before. The Panther girl enjoyed the aroma that came off the bodies of the two girls, "I am sorry to disturb the two of you, The name is Vale. Tis marvelous to meet you." Her vixen-esque smile came up as she purred next to them.

[Airi 0]

Another person joined into the conversation. Idly, Airi wondered if it was the two higher-leveled players socializing among them that were attracting all these people. The new player introduced himself as Hei with a quick bow, and a small smile in her direction. Three-letter name and an average appearance. Why did she feel like she’d seen him before? “Airi,” she offered with a friendly smile, opening the main menu and scrolling through her friends list. Sure enough, the name Hei was there. “You’re in my friends list. Have we met?”

Airi turned around to face Dominion, and he replied to her question after a small delay, stating his level. Maybe asking for other players’ levels wasn’t the best conversation starter? She bit her bottom lip in thought. Then what else could she ask a person she just met? That was something she would have to think about in another time, however. She refocused her attention on Dominion and watched a monkey approach him and climb up to his shoulder. His familiar, judging from the big grin that appeared on his face. “I’m still at level 1, but I’m trying to work my way up,” Airi told him. Then she gave him a small, thankful smile. “And thanks for the offer. I’ll keep you in mind if I need help in a quest.”

The woman that acted a bit like a cat appeared next to her and Mist and said: “Martial Arts is a skill, my dear, and it’s so satisfying when you get used to it.” Airi opened the skills tab of her interface once again and skimmed through the skills listed in it. Not there. Was it something that only appears after reaching a certain level? “Then how come it’s not in listed in my locked skills?” she asked, a hint of curiosity in her voice. “Also, it’s nice meeting you…Vale.”

[Mist 0]

Mist's ears dropped slightly, at least that's how she envisioned it in her head as she heard Airi had no food. "Ah so your in the same boat as me then." She mumbled cupping her hands together and bringing them to her mouth. At that point the player who had introduced himself as Dominion offered a fist bump, the brunette looked at it puzzled for a moment before lightly tapping it with her own knuckle, her friendly nature quickly returning as she let out a light laugh "Thanks, although I have another friend who said he would come to help me one day." Noticing Emna she suddenly tilted her head to one side "Wow that looks amazing!" She thought to herself, trying her best to resist from grabbing the familiar.

 It was only now that Mist noticed a newcomer had joined, one which looked rather like a feline. "Huh," She let out a hum rather curiously as she looked at the player. If things weren't already chaotic enough by now another man showed up who started talking to Airi and then the cat woman suddenly started circling the pair. Mist scratched her cheek laughing rather nervously and slightly confused at the whole ordeal. Once she had finished she introduced herself as Vale, "Im Mist." The brunette spoke sweetly bowing once again, although this time more relaxed. 

[Hei 0]

It seemed that Airi at least had a clue that they already met, as she opened her friendlist and had a look at the names, but then she asked if you're in my friendslist, have met? Hei realized, that he hadn't made as much of an impression on her as he thought. - well, looks like being nice to strange boys doesn't stay in mind as good as being beautiful. - He was about to answer when the cat woman moved from where she was over to the two girls, telling something about how martial arts was a skill. So he stopped and listened while waiting for an opening to answer Airi's question.

Both the cat like woman and the girl with the fox ears, now standing next to Airi gave their names, so he mentally noted them. As soon as it was quiet he walked over to Airi, and took out a notebook from his inventory, showing it to her. Not as loud as before saying: " we met at the first day of this game, do you remember? "

[Airi 0]

Airi nodded at Mist's reply and Hei took out a notebook - or some sort of journal? - and showed it to her. She stared at him blankly. Was he telling her to read it? Then the man spoke: “We met at the first day of the game, do you remember?” Airi looked to the side, trying to remember that particular day. Most of the events had slipped from her memory now, and only that moment where the game developer announced the reason behind the missing log-out button stayed clear. No one would ever forget that. Then the memory of the blue-haired man who couldn’t remember himself and the average-looking man attempting to help him resurfaced. “Yeah. I think I remember,” Airi told him. The notebook…what was the significance of that notebook again? “Have you seen him, by the way? The man whose named started with ‘Sol’?”

She took a break from the conversation long enough to look around and notice a few other players staring at the monument intently, hoping to check if their friends were still alive. One was staring at a name that was crossed out with a blank expression on his face. The others wore solemn expressions and avoided her gaze. “Hey, should we move outside?” Airi suddenly suggested to the group. She felt the attention of the group on her. “I mean…some players are mourning, and I think we should give them the peace and quiet.”

Edited March 15, 2017 by Airi

[Hei 0]

It seemed as if Airi had recognized him, after telling her, that they had met at the first day. - I might have a chance to make a friend in her, I mean she remembers me, which is a good thing I hope- he thought while following her eyes, seeing that she was looking around. He saw some people using the monument as it was intended to be used and he had a bad feeling for being so happy while others might find out that someone they liked was "dead". Then Airi suggested that they should leave the palace and Hei wouldn't say something against it, as it would probably make him feel better. With quiet voice he answered: "You are right, it would be rude to say here and talk about old times. Let's go outside."

Hei made his way out and waited for Airi to follow him, as his stomach rumbled. - It's time for eating something. I should ask Airi if she would like to talk while having some food. - 

[Airi 0]

The dark-haired man quickly agreed to what she said and began making his way outside, looking back at her to see if she would follow. Hei seemed to have most of his attention on her, and the others not so much. Airi was tempted to follow him and see how many hypothetical strings of trust she could latch onto him but then she turned back, her dreamy violet gaze resting on the group. Everyone must love me. She buried the sentence and the memories it brought deep into her mind and gestured for the group to follow and then strode outside.

The red-haired girl stood by the entrance of the Black Iron Palace as she waited for the others to come outside as well. “So, how have you been? Which quests have you taken already?” Airi asked, making eye contact. She knew all about the names of the quests in Floor 1 and the locations of their quest givers, but knew nothing more than that. Usually, the types of information she sought would be provided by overly-friendly players or a few NPC information brokers. Expensive and hard to find. So if he had already taken one, and responds with an affirmative, then he would usually tell a little story about what happened and how strong the mobs were as part of the friendly conversation. Free and easy information. She started off by offering her (vague, but conversational) information first. “I haven’t actually gotten stronger since we last met, but I’m planning to take some of the beginner quests soon.”

[Hei 0]

Hei stood by the entrance of the palace together with Airi, when she asked him how he'd been and what he had done so far. Then adding that she hadn't done anything yet. As he was polite he would first answer her question before asking her if she would like to go eat something with him. "I've been fine so far, no dramatic fights where I was close to getting killed and no problems with other players either. How about you?" he concluded his first answer, then without waiting he began talking about quests. "And about what quests I have taken, there isn't much to tell. I only finished one quest and there are two more I have open at the moment, but they aren't finished yet. If you take the quest from the old man with his alchemical workshop, be prepared for walking around hours and hours looking for silly plants and the like." 

After a short break, which he used for thinking about a way to ask her to eat something with him that would not sound like a fifth grader asking out his crush he asked her: "I earned some col at the last quest and I know that there is only bread if you don't have money, have eaten it long enough. So would you like to join me getting some better food?" Hei did not realize that Airi was waiting for the others to follow them, so he was keen to leave this place.

[Vale 1]

Vale listened to Airi's question, "The reason that it doesn't show up in your list is because it cannot be self taught." Vale grinned at the adorable red haired lass, flashing her proud cat fangs. The nekogirl shifted backwards placing her left hand on her hip while her right hand to open up her inventory, swiping her hand a couple time in one of her pages she removed a single sheet of paper that had quest details. Holding out for Airi to take, "This''ll explain why, you must commit yourself to your own determination. If you have that then you'll be rewarded the Martial Arts skill. Go ahead and keep that paper. I have a stack of quests that are somewhat melted together kinda like a book..." Vale began to chuckle slightly, "Kinda broke a potion over it and that kinda happened." She continued to giggle.

Her ears twitched when they saw the fox ears of the other girl, The Panther girl didn't even think to look at people's hair as she assumed everyone would be like her. Eyes growing wide, "Nyaaaan~!" She purred happily, pointing at the ears of Mist, "It is a pleasure to meet you Mist... I really wanna touch them!" She yipped. Vale was about to let her habit of loving on Nekogirls get the best of her when the shine refocused in her vision. Her hand visibly twitched and began to retract, "Sorry... That was inappropriate of me." Her tone of voice audibly changed. Her eyes shifted to the top right of her head to look at what time it was, "I actually need to go." She turned to bow to Hei, "I am sorry I didn't get to talk to you more. But I really gotta go." She put her hands together to pardon herself from the group. And immediately darted off jumping building top to building effortlessly in a hurry.

-Vale Leaves the Thread-

Edited March 16, 2017 by Vale