[F1-SP] The Fourth Lesson is Actually Free...

[Frank 0]

"The Ocean boy, she's the greatest thing you'll ever see. A love so vast and so pure, she'll make ye weep for ya home, ya loved ones, and everything between Heaven and Hell. The waves are welcoming ya lad, don't be afraid of them. You can't surely be expecting to run away and never deal with ya problems can ye? No, the problems which plague you, plague all of man and mer-alike must be met head-on and without fear. It's to do this, which is what the wonderful Ocean teaches us. She'll challenge ye, push you til you're stark ravin' mad, til ya are down on your knees not admirin it's beauty, but in total fear of its dangers. It's at that point boy, it's at that point ya find out if ya are a man, or a mouse. If ya be a mouse, then you'll lay on that deck, a'cowerin in fear, but if ya be a man, a true, salt-of-the-earth, take-on-all-challengers type of a man, then it's the Ocean who will show you who ya really be in that moment, and it's the Ocean who ya will rise up against. Now come boy, lemme show you the grandest sight you ever will see."

[Frank 0]

Frank had been on his way outside of the grove, home of the artisan Hannah, when she had stopped him yet again. Deliver an item, she had asked. A grand fishing pole was to be delivered to a man who was presently out on the Lake of Beginnings. Frank, having already completed the dangerous and arduous task of diving into a cave and retrieving a gemstone for Hannah, accepted this task as-well. Once he had been giving the fishing pole, he made his way through the streets of the Town of Beginnings. The Town was as busy as ever. This evening, it seemed like a rather large herd of farmers had been transplanting their cattle through the city for trading, when at some point, the creatures had escaped their pens and were now more then happy to be blocking every street and alley on the eastern side of town, happily mooing away. Pushing through this ruckus, Frank finally left the Town of Beginnings and headed towards the Lake.

[Frank 0]

Once he found his way to the Lake docks, he made his way down across the creaking, wooden planks. There, at the end and nestled between two wooden piers, was an old man of undetermined age. As he approached, Frank called out, "Are you Ol' Pete?" Silently, the man turned and beckoned Frank over too him. Approaching, Frank could see that the man was cast out into the water, watching the surface patiently. After several moments of silence sitting with the old man, Frank finally spoke, "I have a delivery for you. A new fishing line". Tapping into his inventory Frank produced the item.
"Thank you, young man. Tell me, are you a fisherman yourself?"
"I have before, but not here in Aincrad."
"Oh, hohohohoho, then let me show you a few things. Here you take this rod I'm currently using, and I'll use this new one." Frank took a-hold of the rod and the old man cast his new rod out into the water. Together, the pair sat in silence.

Edited January 6, 2019 by Frank

[Frank 0]

"There lad, see the bite there? That's when you reel it in, like THIS!" With a mighty pull the old man reeled in the fish. "See? Nothing to it, ohohohohohoho!!" It took several more tries, but Frank was soon able to replicate this feat. Now with a basic understanding of fishing in Aincrad, he wondered what other hidden tenets this game might hold. Standing up to make his exit, the old man next to him suddenly stirred, "Say boy, you seem quite capable, would ye be willing to help me with a task more fit for a warrior then an ol' man?"

Frank almost smiled, almost. Turning around, he looked deeply into the face of the old man. "Sure, what challenge do you have for me?"

Again the man waved Fank over, this time to a small fishing boat. "There's a creature out there, a mad beast who has been eating all the fish in this lake. In order to stop him, you;; first need to wrangle him, and once you've done so, the monster will likely attack you. Defeat it, and the lake will return to normal, and this fishing spot will be restored."

This was how Frank found himself in the middle of the lake, in a small fishing boat.

[Frank 0]

Sitting on the boat, Frank could feel the cool breeze carry the moisture from the lake into the air. The water ahead of him was still and peaceful, no sign of any monster quite yet. Casting his line out into the water, Frank decided to try his luck. Slowly he thread the hook with the bait the old man had given him, and then in one smooth, stroke pulled back his rod and let the hook fly. With a soft plop, it landed into the lake, momentarily breaking its quiet peacefulness. With a sigh, Frank looked out over the calming waters and took in the view. In all the time he had been in this game, he had never slowed down to take in a view of the scenery like he was doing now. The beautiful view in front of him was truly a sight to behold, it was almost enough to make you forget you were in an unforgiving death-game. But the fact this was a death game was always on your mind, it was one which never went away.

Suddenly, pulled from his thoughts Frank felt a pull on his line and began reeling it in. It was a fighter, that was for sure. It took all of Franks strength to keep a-hold of his rod and continue to reel it in. Once his line was reeled in, he could see the creature in the water. It was Sword-Fish of immense proportions, surely, this was the terrorizing lake monster Frank had been sent out to defeat.

 

ID 111172 CD 10 - CAUGHT!

Edited January 7, 2019 by Frank

[Frank 0]

Affixing his rod to the boat, Frank looked at the fish was was now stuck on the line and swimming through the waters near is craft. The beast raged and attempted to get free. Frank was going to have to act fast if he wanted to take it out. Readying his axe, and charging up his sword art Hack, Frank leaned over the water and swung it with all his might. His strike however, sailed harmlessly through the water, finding fish nor fin. The fish had easily darted and avoided the strike, with no trouble what-so-ever. As he had swung, the fish had attempted to smash Franks hand against the side of the boat, but Frank had been too quick, and instead the monster swordfish simply rocked the boat. Looking at his remaining energy, Frank knew he had to be conscious of it, without his sword arts, this tough fish was going to massacre him.

 

ID 111199 BD 3 MD 3
Frank - LV 6 120/120 HP | 10/12 EN | 3 DMG | 2 BLD | 2 EVA | 2 RGN | 1 RCV
Swordfish - 35/35 | 50 First Strike/5 DMG

Edited January 7, 2019 by Frank

[Frank 0]

Charging up his energy yet again, Frank was determined to hit the beast this time. The creature was too fast in the water however, far too elusive. Frank felt he really only had one option in front of him and that was to try and bait the creature. As it was thrashing, the creature came around for another attack and this time pulled itself as far as the fishing line would allow it to go, once the line was taut, it turned and charged the boat. Turning toward the creatures attack, Frank prepared himself. As it neared the boat the giant fish leapt out of the water, and Frank finally took in just how massive it really was. The creature had to be ten feet long, and looked to weight almost five hundred pounds. The real fear however, was the large swordfish blade located near its snout. It was the type which would rip into your gut, and turn your insides into your outsides. As the creature attacked, Frank side-stepped the attack easily and then unleashed his sword art, hacking his axe into the creature. When it hit the water, the water turned red from the blood Frank had drawn.

 

ID 111200 BD 7 = HIT! (3 * 2 Hack = 6) MD 6 - 2 EVA = MISS! CD 12 Recovery!
Frank - LV 6 120/120 HP | 9/12 EN | 3 DMG | 2 BLD | 2 EVA | 2 RGN | 1 RCV
Swordfish - 29/35 | 50 First Strike/5 DMG

Edited January 7, 2019 by Frank

[Frank 0]

If it was prone to violent tendencies before, now the beast was unleashing true violence. It swam through the water, twisting left and right, enraged and injured it was now twice as deadly. Spinning around, the beast rammed into the boat and set it wobbling, after broad-siding the ship the creature then leaped for yet another aerial attack. This attack was much closer and it was only because of dumb luck Frank was able to avoid. See, as the boat wobbled, Frank stepped to re-gain his footing, but actually misplaced his footing, and went tumbling backwards. He wasn't able to attack the creature while he was laying backwards on the small fishing boat, but he was also narrowly saved from the mad creatures flying attack. From his vantage point he watched the beast fly over-head, from snout to stern, he could see the beast and the beast, it's black beady eye, looked down at Frank with violent focus.

 

ID 111201 BD 1 MISS! MD 7 - 2 EVA = 5 MISS! CD 10 Recovery!
Frank - LV 6 120/120 HP | 8/12 EN | 3 DMG | 2 BLD | 2 EVA | 2 RGN | 1 RCV
Swordfish - 29/35 | 50 First Strike/5 DMG

Edited January 7, 2019 by Frank

[Frank 0]

Scrambling back to his feet, Frank checked the fishing line, relieved to see that the beast was still held onto the line. Watching the line move from side to side gave him a pretty good idea of where the creature was going and from which side it might attack. Carefully he readied his shield Silver Lining, and readied his axe Bleeder. One solid hit with Bleeder and it would be over, Frank had confidence in his weapons deadliness. It was just a matter of finding the right opportunity and the right strike. As the line pulled off to the right it suddenly went taut, and that's when Frank knew the creature was coming. Charging his sword skill, Frank prepared himself to find the right moment to strike. The creature neared, and then it leaped towards the boat, but the creature had blown its timing and the boat had drifted just out of position. Frank couldn't reach the beast either, but it was fine. Frank was the better bet in a longer fight.

ID 111202 BD 3 MISS! MD 2 MISS! CD 7 Recovery!
Frank - LV 6 120/120 HP | 7/12 EN | 3 DMG | 2 BLD | 2 EVA | 2 RGN | 1 RCV
Swordfish - 29/35 | 50 First Strike/5 DMG

Edited January 7, 2019 by Frank

[Frank 0]

After the creature hit the water, Frank turned his eyes to the fishing pole line once again, watching the string move left and right. This monster would have been much more challenging if Frank hadn't hooked him on the line first. In fact, if this had been a true open-water battle, many players would have been unable to keep up with the speed of the fish. It wasn't just speed, but it was agile which given its size, gave the appearance of moving at an unbelievable speed. The speed, the size, the agility, this was a mighty foe, this was a player killer. Now understanding how terrible this creature was, Frank felt an urgency to defeat it and to remove the monster from this game. He would not allow it to kill anyone else.

Charging his axe, he felt the vibrations in his hand. As the creature attacked with yet another leaping attack, Frank gave his weapon a mighty swing. This time, he felt the impact with the beast not one of a regular strike, but the solid impact of an extra-damaging critical strike. Frank smiled when he hit, that was it, the fight was over. It was now only a matter of time.

ID 111203 BD 9 CRITICAL! BLEEDING! (4 * 2) = 8 MD 5 MISS! CD 6 Recovery!
Frank - LV 6 120/120 HP | 6/12 EN | 3 DMG | 2 BLD | 2 EVA | 2 RGN | 1 RCV
Swordfish - 21/35 | 50 First Strike/5 DMG

Edited January 7, 2019 by Frank

[Frank 0]

Standing up on the boat, setting his footing, and charging his axe blade, Frank looked out over the water. Following the water to its shoreline, he looked at the sand, tried to see each individual grain of sand as a single piece and not as a whole. He would do his best to hyperfocus on the sand. In battle, the mind would become too preoccupied on the target in front of it, by instead turning your attention to something mundane, it would act as a hard-reset, and keep you from developing too much mental fatigue too quickly. As the creature was bleeding out inside the lake, turning the waters a sick, crimson red, it suddenly leaped from the waters warning. The extremely sharp snout of the creature ripped into Frank and sent him sprawling backwards into the boat. Gasping deeply as his hit points dropped, he smiled. That was his first time being hit with something like that in this game, something which did real, dangerous amounts of damage.

ID 111205 BD 1 MD 8 - 2 EVA = 6 HIT! CD 9 Recovery! 
Frank - LV 6 70/120 HP | 5/12 EN | 3 DMG | 2 BLD | 2 EVA | 2 RGN | 1 RCV
Swordfish - 9/35 | 50 First Strike/5 DMG
Bleeding (1/2)

Edited January 7, 2019 by Frank

[Frank 0]

Frank sat back on a small plank of the fishing boat. It was a tiny vessel, not fit for more then two people. In fact, Frank remembered taking his wife out on such a small craft when they were dating. Now THAT was a long time ago. Frank was aware that he had won this battle. He had neither reason to continue, nor worry the beast would. In the water next to the small fishing boat, the creature slowly lost its fight and its will to live. The blood loss was just too great, slowly the bleeding effect ticked its life points down to zero. While sitting there watching it slowly die,  Frank felt a small pang of remorse. The creature was no different then he, just a base animal trying to survive in a deadly game. Would that be Frank one day? Would he be looking up at his killer helpless and unable to stop the blackness from coming? With nothing else to do for now, Frank waited for the creature to die and stared out at the water. He thought about many things, life and death, home, his family, but mostly he took in the beauty of this marvelous world.

 

Regen (1/2) (+10 HP)
Frank - LV 6 80/120 HP | 5/12 EN | 3 DMG | 2 BLD | 2 EVA | 2 RGN | 1 RCV
Swordfish - 0/35 | Defeated!

[Frank 0]

After it had died, Frank added the item 'Swordfish Corpse' to his inventory, and then returned to looking out at the water. The lake was so peaceful now, it was hard to imagine that just a short time before it had been a raging, violent, storm of a battle. The water was so still you could see the bugs land on its surface. The frogs leaped from the lilly-pads while resounding out there throaty songs for the world to hear. Every now and then a fish from deep below would jump, breaking the surface of the water as it snapped up a delicious insect for its dinner. Frank sorted through his menu's and chose a soothing background song. He hadn't listened to much music in the real world, but he was gaining an appreciation for it while here in Aincrad. It was all strange, how different this life was from his old. Sometimes when he closed his eyes and opened them again, he wasn't sure if he hadn't always been here, in this game, living this life. Maybe his memories of his old life didn't exist at all...

[Frank 0]

After the song he was listening too, Frank turned his attention towards the pier. Beginning the long, slow journey back towards the pier, he felt the struggle of paddling after an arduous battle. Each time the paddle broke the surface of the water the water would ripple as he pulled it threw the lake water. And then after rising, he would switch the paddle over to the other side, and pull again. Finally, after much paddling, he came close to the dock. Reaching out, his hand grasped the wooden pier and he pulled the boat in so it was nestling close. Stepping off, he legs felt strange at first. The transition from water to land was always an interesting one, the feel of it being completely different. Turning back to the little fishing boat, Frank knelt down onto one knee and clasped the rope on the dock. Reaching down he tied a knot anchoring the boat to the dock. Frank had no need to use the system-assist to do this as he could confidently tie any variety of knots even while blindfolded and with his own hands tied behind his back. Guess all that military training was good for something.

[Frank 0]

Turning around, Frank almost ran into Ol' Pete who had snuck up behind him. "Ohohohohohohohoho, good work my boy! You must be hungry after all of that yes? Well, why don't you hand me the fish and I will take care of prepping our dinner. If you wouldn't mind doing me another small favor while I cook? The frogs over there have been getting aggressive, a big bullfrog in particular. If you wouldn't mind taking care of him, I'd be most appreciative!"

Frank reached down and thumbed his axe, he was getting tired of running these errands for these NPC's, and he knew his time would be better spent hunting out in the wilds but it was getting late, and even he would need to eat soon. Plus a meal for a bit of combat was better then spending col at the high prices of the inns. "Sure, let me take care of the problem."

[Frank 0]

Heading towards the frog den the man had mentioned, Frank came across a group of frogs, all rriibbiting without a care in the world. One of the creatures was clearly larger and meaner-tempered than the others, that was Franks target. Readying his axe, he attacked the creature. A quick charge of his weapon and Frank was on top of the creature. It was pitifully slow and made no attempt to dodge. In return for his slow speed, Frank punished the beast with his sword art Hack. Ripping the axe once, across the chest of the frog, and ripping it a second damaging time he felt his axe hurt the beast. This bullfrog was going to learn some manners one way, or the other. In response to Franks attack, the creature hopped and made a feeble attempt to kick him, but Frank easily avoided the frog. The remaining frogs in the area all scampered away through the water. It was just Frank and the bullfrog now.

 

ID 111209 BD 8 HIT! Bleeding! (3 * 2 Hack) = 6 MD 5 MISS! 
Frank - LV 6 120/120 HP | 10/12 EN | 3 DMG | 2 BLD | 2 EVA | 2 RGN | 1 RCV
Bullfrog - 54/60 HP | 18 DMG

Edited January 7, 2019 by Frank

[Frank 0]

The crickets chriped, and the sun was slowly going down. Frank spied the sunset, and though it was a breathtaking view filled with marvelous colors, shades, and hues, it was also a warning; that he couldn't let this battle drag out. Fighting any creature in Aincrad at night was dangerous. From what Frank had gathered from other players is that Aincrad wasn't like other games where fighting at night was no big deal. Here, in this world, penalties were given at night, and the truly dangerous predators lived at night too. It wasn't so much the frog Frank worried about, but the other creatures he may or may not run into. Swinging his axe Frank decided he wanted to end this battle quickly and get his dinner. Stepping into his strike, he tried to put more power then usual into his Hack sword art, but in doing so missed and blew his timing, missing completely. As the Bullfrog bounced from lillypad to lillypad, Frank kept his distance, not letting it get a clean attack off with whatever spit attack it was trying to hit him with.

 

ID 111210 BD 2 MISS! MD 3 MISS! 
Frank - LV 6 120/120 HP | 9/12 EN | 3 DMG | 2 BLD | 2 EVA | 2 RGN | 1 RCV
Bullfrog - 42/60 HP | 18 DMG
Bleeding (1/2)

Edited January 7, 2019 by Frank

[Frank 0]

Frank charged his battle axe, feeling the pulsing heat coming from his energy-laden axe, Frank watched as the bleeding damage ticked away at the Bullfrogs health gauge. As it dropped, Frank prepared himself for his follow-up strike. He was going to damage this frog and put an end to this battle. One good strike, that was all he needed now, one good strike and his bleeding enhancements would take care of the rest. There were times he wasn't sure if he had picked the right enhancements, but bleed was paying off more and more lately. Damage over time, it seemed to have become his ally. Frank narrowed his eyes, focusing on the strike, and then as the creature hopped near him, swung his blade with a mighty fury. As he hit the monster, he felt the sold impact signifying that it wasn't just a hit, but a critical hit. That surely did it, the battle was now his. Frank however wanted to protect his flawless battle and carefully avoided the follow-up kick the Bullfrog attempted to land. 

 

ID 111212 BD 10 CRITICAL! BLEEDING! (5 * 2) = 10 MD 4 MISS! CD 6 Recovery!
Frank - LV 6 120/120 HP | 9/12 EN | 3 DMG | 2 BLD | 2 EVA | 2 RGN | 1 RCV
Bullfrog - 20/60 HP | 18 DMG

Edited January 7, 2019 by Frank

[Frank 0]

Frank was forced to use his shield, Silver Lining, in a more active way as the Bullfrog attacked him with a mighty leaping attack. As the creature bounced into his shield, Frank directed the frog down and away. It leapt back at him a second time, and Frank was forced to do the same. After pushing it away this time, Frank stepped backwards and put some distance between him and the creature. Unafraid, Frank smirked. This bullfrog didn't realize it yet, but its days were numbered. This fight ended with Franks last hit, and all Frank needed to do now was sit back and wait for the next damage over time. At that point, the creatures remaining hit points would drop to 0, and the battle finished. Frank continued to side-step any possible attacks from the Bullfrog, and Frank almost felt bad. If the creature had just given up and left, it wouldn't have had to come to this; but instead, killing it was the only option Frank felt he had left.

 

ID 111213 BD 2 MISS! MD 5 MISS! CD 9 Recovery!
Frank - LV 6 120/120 HP | 9/12 EN | 3 DMG | 2 BLD | 2 EVA | 2 RGN | 1 RCV
Bullfrog - 8/60 HP | 18 DMG
Bleeding (1/2)

Edited January 7, 2019 by Frank

[Frank 0]

Frank chose to skip his next attack, there was no point in it and it would have simply been a waste of his energy. Instead he watched the bleeding effect on the bullfrog finish it off. After the battle, a prompt appeared with a loot dialogue. Frank clicked through the menus and happily accepted the rewards. If he could keep this grinding up, he would be buying a home in no time. Ok, that was maybe too lofty of an aspiration, but still Frank was content with his progress so far. Now that this bully of a bullfrog was defeated, Frank returned to the old man. Ol' Pete was in his shack, hunched over an open fire. The overall hut smelled of fish, from the corners to the floors and when Frank was finally seated at the table, he realized just how hungry he was. The stew in front of him was one of the most delicious smelling stews he had ever experienced.

 

ID 111214 LD 14 CD 8
Loot Drop Results
420 Col = (60 * 3) = 180 Col + (60 * 2) + (60 * 2) = 240 Col
1 - Unidentified T1 Rare Weapon 
1 - Unidentified T1 Uncommon Consumable

Edited January 7, 2019 by Frank