[PP|06]The White Tiger?<<Deforestation>>

[Zajcica 0]

Desforestation

The pink hair paladin arrived on floor six for the first time. It was a vast and dense jungle that looked like something out of a story book. An enchanting atmosphere filled the floor that no other floor really captured for her. Floor four still was her favorite, however. She always thought the snow was beautiful and funnily enough, that's what she was named after. Her mother really like the seasons, so that where her and her sister's names came from: Yuki for snow, like winter, and Aki, her younger sister, for Autumn. Even though she chose the name Yuki, she knew her mom wanted to name her that before they found out she was a boy.

It didn't take long for Yuki to find a reasonable quest. The recommended level for the quest was close to her level, and it wouldn't come close to beating her with tanking abilities. She didn't waste any time and left the settlement as soon as she was ready. The forest would be hard to navigate, but it shouldn't be hard to find a giant tiger burning down all the trees in its wake.

@Hidden

Spoiler

General
Level: 10 | HP:  200 | Energy: 20 Hate: 1/3/4(M/H/C)

Stats
DMG: 1 | EVA: 0 | MIT: 27 | ACC: 0 | Thorns: 18 | Regen: 5

Skills
Fighting Spirit

Equipment(In use)
Regal Cuirass(Heavy Armor): 1MIT, 2 Thorns
Aegis(Shield): 2MIT, 1 Regen
White Spear - Lux(OHAS): 2 Bleed, 1 Taunt

Equipment(Standby)
Silver Serpent Ring: +2 LD
Covetous Gold Serpent Ring: +1 LD

Consumables
3) Starter Healing Potions(50HP)

 

[Hidden 1]

Her eyes darted around her surroundings. She was here for yet another quest. She had decided to prolong her wait to visit the fifth floor. It was nasty, and she would get to the quest there shortly. The figure was concealed in a dark cloak, a dagger hidden within her sleeve. A orange cursor spun curiously above her head. She stood outside the sixth floors main city, Krycim, preparing for her journey. She didn't have a map laid out for the floor so she was forced to wait until the smoke caught the air and then follow its trail. With the quests help she hoped to gain another level and finish acquiring the SP to get Acrobatics. Acrobatics would give her additional Evasion and allow her to move with much more grace than her current ability. She was pretty excited about it. 

A scent caught her nose. The smell of something burning. "Alright, here we go" she would mutter to herself, darting underneath the large trees. 'I need to get there first so nobody else kills it before I do. I am not waiting for a respawn.' 

Spoiler

Hidden
Level 43
[0] Hidden | 880/880 HP | 86/86 EN | 13 DMG | 61 MIT | 4 ACC | 1 EVA | 8 Holy
880 HP
86 Energy
4 Accuracy
1 Evasion
13 Base Damage
61 Mitigation
8 Holy DMG
+1 LD
+1 Stealth Rating

Gear
<<Nato's Might>> // +8 Holy DMG, +2 DMG, +1 ACC
<<Shadow of Dusk>> // +36 Mit, +1 EVA
<<Shadow's Light>> // +3 ACC
              <<Umbra>> // +6 DMG

Buffs

Battle Ready Inventory
 

Skills

Dagger | Rank 5: +5 DMG
Search | Rank 1: +1 LD
Hide | Rank 1: +1 Stealth Rating
Light Armor | Rank 5: +18 Mitigation                               
E Familiar - DMG | Rank 3 +6 DMG
E Survival | No Ranks: Immunity to Environmental Effects
E Disguise | +1 EVA til next turn - 5 Turn Cooldown

Skill Mods

Athletics ~ +20 HP, +1 DMG
Precision ~ +1 ACC

 

[Zajcica 0]

It didn't take long to find the ashen cloud of smoke rose from the green forest, disturbing the beauty of the cool blue sky. A loud roar deafened Yuki's fragile ears and the ground shook with light tremors, slowly working its way up to her position and only getting worse as it approached. Yuki grabbed her gallant lance, ready for the fight that was coming to her. The Byakko burst through the trees next to her and growled deeply in her direction. It was probably the most terrifying monster she had to face yet. It was a fleshy looking skeleton with an orange glow in it's chest. It was ready to fight and Yuki's was beginning to have second thoughts on undertaking this quest alone very fast.

The monster's gaping maw let out another roar that was so deafening that Yuki had to cover her ears, this was a bad idea.

@Hidden

[Hidden 1]

(Whew, careful of that word count)

Darting in between the thick trees that nestled within the forest, the dark-cloaked figure raced towards her target. The burning smell that filled her nostrils was becoming more and more noticeable as she honed in on the Quest monster's location. As she approached, a earsplitting roar filled the silence of the jungle. 'It sounds as if another player managed to the boss first. Maybe I can get there in time and steal the kill though.' she thought. 

The first sight of burning trees was the sign that she had arrived at her destination. Her target was just through the flames. Racing towards a large tree, she would quickly scale it and peer off of its highest branch. Much to her surprise there was only one player challenging the flaming inferno of a beast. A pink-haired girl with her hands covering her ears. 'That roar at close range must have been deafening,' Hidden would presume silently.. The Flaming Tiger began to pounce at its target, its prey too distracted to be able to fight back. 

The cloaked figure would leap from the tree, landing in between the two entities. She hardly flinched as the monster bore down on her. Using her arm to shield herself, the creature would bite down on it, her health bar completely unaffected by the creature's attack. "That's what you call disappointing." Hidden stated monotonously. She pushed back, throwing the monster off of her arm. "Get up." Hidden commanded the girl behind her.  "Cowering away is a good way to get yourself killed." Hidden drew her dagger, holding it in a reverse grip. 

ID: 138004
BD: 1 Critical Miss
MD: 7-1=6 HIT
       DMG: 60-61=1 DMG

[0] @Hidden | 879/880 HP | 86/86 EN | 13 DMG | 61 MIT | 4 ACC | 1 EVA | 8 Holy
[0]@Zajcica  | xxx/xxx HP | xx/xx EN |

<<Byakko>> | 150/150 HP | 40 MIT | 60 DMG | 

• On MD rolls of 9 or 10, half the damage dealt is instead dealt as burn damage, which ignores mitigation as a status. This has no DoT.

[Zajcica 0]

Yuki could barely hear anything. The creatures roar had made her ears ring from the sheer decibel this close. She had her eyes close from the intensity, but when she reopened them she watched another player jump between her and the Byakko. Normally she would have been fine on her own, but the sheer appearance of the monster threw her off. She was basically cowering like a little girl and she definitely didn't want to show that to another player. Her finally stopped ringing and she could barely hear the hooded figure speak out to her.

'-ering away is a good way to get yourself killed.' She could hear under the growl of the Byakko. She took a deep breath and grabbed her spear and shield. The hooded figure took a splice of damage from the beast's maw, but took only a minuscule amount of damage.

"Gomenasai! I'm alright, I was just startled.." She admitted, stepping in front of the girl that stood between her and her enemy. The spear quickly went though the monsters shoulder, digging in shallowly but still well enough to land a some damage. The massive one-handed lance gleamed off the jack-o-lantern like beast's luminescent chest. She retracted the lance to her side and readied her shield for the creatures next attack. It wasn't looking too kindly at her, after all..

[0] @Hidden | 879/880 HP | 86/86 EN | 13 DMG | 61 MIT | 4 ACC | 1 EVA | 8 Holy
[3]@Zajcica  | 200/200 HP | 20/20 EN | 1 DMG | 27 MIT | 0 ACC | 0 EVA |  18 Thorns

<<Byakko>> | 150/150 HP | 40 MIT | 60 DMG | 

• On MD rolls of 9 or 10, half the damage dealt is instead dealt as burn damage, which ignores mitigation as a status. This has no DoT.

Edited March 17, 2020 by Zajcica

[Hidden 1]

The pink-haired player stood up behind her, apologizing to her. The woman brandished a spear and a shield, preparing herself behind Hidden. 'Don't get in my way' Hidden thought as she returned her attention to the beast. Twirling her dagger in her hand, Hidden slowly walked forward, the surprise falling from the beast. She discontinued her twirling and pointed her dagger at her opponent. Instead of a typical orange light being produced, a magnificent white light was produced as the cloaked figure was imbued with a Holy Aura. "You're dead, cat" she stated plainly. Her weight shifted forward before she bounded towards her opponent. She moved fast, slashing across the enemies body from nearly every angle. Each successful attack was rewarded with a splash of light. Her final strike was a thrust. A that exploded a brilliant white light that took out the boss as well.

Sighing, she would sheath her dagger back into her sleeve before looking back to the player behind her. 'That boss was killed far too quick. It must have been made with a far lower level in mind.' Coughing quietly Hidden would say, ""Congratulations on not dying I suppose. If anything, that's one thing you can do in a world like this."

ID: 138072
BD: 10 Super-Critical
       DMG: 13+2(Crit)+8(Holy)=23*13=299 -40 =259 DMG

[2] @Hidden | 879/880 HP | 75/86 EN | 13 DMG | 61 MIT | 4 ACC | 1 EVA | 8 Holy
[3]@Zajcica  | 200/200 HP | 20/20 EN | 1 DMG | 27 MIT | 0 ACC | 0 EVA |  18 Thorns

<<Byakko>> | 0/150 HP | 40 MIT | 60 DMG | 

• On MD rolls of 9 or 10, half the damage dealt is instead dealt as burn damage, which ignores mitigation as a status. This has no DoT.

[Zajcica 0]

Yuki sighed in relief as the boss exploded into data. Hopefully there weren't many more bosses and enemies like that terrifying creature. Video games that she had played before had similar types of beasts, but it wasn't hardly as terrifying as it was in virtual reality. Her attention returned to the hooded player.

"Arigatou, you came just in time to get credit for killing the bo-" The hooded figure had an orange crystal floating above her head. Yuki choked on her words when she noticed and her grip grew tighter on her lance. After watching the girl destroy that tiger on her own, she was sure she could not defend herself from the dagger that she wielded. The grimace could be noticed by the hooded woman. "I assume you came only because you wanted to collect the quest like I did?"

Her voice was shaken. The serious demeanor she was aiming for failed to come out as intended. It was obvious that she was either still shaken up by the Byakko's appearance, or by the fact that she had just met another orange player this early in her SAO career.

"Or, did you have ulterior motives?"

@Hidden

[Hidden 1]

Hidden smirked as she faced the girl, the pink-haired girl seeming more than happy at her disposal of the boss. No doubt had she saved this girl's life. It wasn't as i she meant to save the girl's life. Her true motive had been earning the experiencing and if she managed to help some player out because of it so be it. She doubted this player's like affected her own at all. 

Arigatou, you came just in time to get credit for killing the bo-"

Hidden frowned at the girl's sudden break off of words. Her eyes glared into the girl like daggers. 'Whats the problem now? No way could the boss have spawned behind me already' She noticed the girl began to tense, the grip on her spear tightening. It was hard to notice, but the girl seemed to be trembling. 'Out of anger of fear? Have I done something to one of her friends or something?' A grimace sat on her face. 

"I assume you came only because you wanted to collect the quest like I did? Or, did you have ulterior motives?"

Hidden's eyes narrowed from sheer irritation. A forceful sigh was pushed from her lungs as she became aggravated. Not two seconds after saving her life was she the new monster that stood before the girl. 'I am going to do everything in my power to make this girl feel as stupid as humanly possible' She was tired of players making stupid decisions. The girl should have been thanking her and appeasing her mood if she had actually wanted the chance to survive from the Murderer. Even leaving quickly would have been a better option. 

Hidden forcefully stepped forward, her foot crumbling the dirt that she stepped on. A sarcastic evil laugh escaped from her throat as she threw her head back and grabbed her head with her hands in the most anime cliche way possible. "How clever you are! How quickly you seen through my disguise and discovered I was actually the most wanted player on Aincrad? Now... where was I?" She began to circle the woman, her finger resting on her chin in a questioning tone. "Aha!" she exclaimed as she pointed up into the air. "Ulterior motives! Yes, I had ulterior motives. I came here to get as strong as possible so that I could kill..." 

In one quick motion after her final word, she darted at the girl, holding her dagger less than in inch from the girl's throat. Her dagger gleamed with an orange light, prepared to sever the girl's life from the existence of Aincrad. 

"... Laughing Coffin so that I may be free to walk the world as someone who isn't hated by everyone." She removed the dagger from the girl's throat and sheathed it before walking a few feet away. "Don't assume someone's up to no good by the color of their crystal. If I wanted to kill you, I would have attacked you before the boss." 

 

[Zajcica 0]

A worried strain came across the paladins face. It didn't come across as respectful as she imagined it would. What she had said really upset the other player, which was the last thing she wanted to do to any player, green crystal or no. Mari had warned her about other players with orange crystals floating above their heads, even herself. Yuki wasn't scared to die defending a person to her last breath, but as hooded figure's words grew even more irritated, she could tell she really struck a nerve. She circled Yuki slowly as she spoke until she made a full circle, explaining her 'master plan' but she was pretty sure it was all in sardonic jest. The knife quickly thrust to her neck made her flinch heavily. She wanted to destroy Laughing Coffin? Why did seem that all orange players she met actually had better intentions than some of the green ones?

The tiny blade was taken away from her neck. The paladin sighed heavily in relief that this wouldn't be the last face got to see. The lance she carried was dug into the ground next to her and her shield placed next to it as she got on her knees and bowed her head to the dirt, the smell of slightly crisped grass wafted into her nose. Her muffled voice was raised to ensure Hidden could hear her apology.

"My deepest apologizes. I did not mean to suspect you in that fashion. I have met other orange players and they all seemed nice enough to people to trust, I should not have judged you any more than I had the others. I had only in mind that if I was going to be attacked and I had my chance, I would not go down without fighting. Please forgive my reckless approach to this situation." Her head remained on the floor until she got a response from the other girl, or until she walked off. " I deeply appreciate your help in my time of need. I could have easily died to that boss monster without someones help.

@Hidden

[Hidden 1]

As she held the blade at the girl's throat she could feel her fear. Her words and actions scared the girl. 'And this is why everyone thinks I am a ruthless killer. Oh well, i'm already this far in' She stepped back, a few seconds passed before the girl began to speak again with a completely changed attitude. The girl apologized and explained herself, whether it was out of actually kindness or trying to save her own skin was unknown. Hidden was fine with other. It was okay to be scared. 

"You were going to try and fight someone that took out a boss you were afraid of in one hit?" A laugh escaped her throat. "You're funny. I like that." That sentence resembled something that she had probably gone and said at one point. "Now, I appreciate your thanks. However, if you couldn't take it on why did you try? There should be easier bosses on the lower floors."

She took a few steps back. Where did she get off saying something like that? Absolute Zero was absolutely not made to be soloed but she did it. "And as for Orange Players. I typically like to think of us as people who just don't take [censored]. Now, you're not wrong to be careful though. Thats all players though." Her face turned back to the girl. "Now, I wasn't joking about that I am the most wanted player or that I am after Laughing Coffin." She would state eeriely. 

[Zajcica 0]

Yuki gulped as she stood back to her feet, leaving her weapon on the ground for now. It was obvious how scared she was of this girl, but she tried to keep her cool. The hooded woman wasn't anything like Mari, though, that wasn't any reason to judge her just by the crystal over her head. Yuki smiled to Hidden.

"Destroying Laughing Coffin, hunh? That sounds noble, at least! I commend you for wanting to take action against something so vile even if it puts your own image to shame. Her tone changed pretty quickly. She still wasn't entirely sure if she was out of the clear with her adversary, but she wanted to appease her for her misconception. "I could have outlasted that boss with potions that I have and my thorns would have killed it eventually. You came to kill the boss and beat the quest then? Glad I got a hit on it so I could get the completion. Ore wa Yuki-desu. Yoroshiku!" She introduced herself. "I'm a bit of a weaker player right now, but how would you feel about registering each other in our friends lists? Maybe I could help you defeat Laughing Coffin somehow!" She gave the other girl a happy smile and a thumbs up.

@Hidden

[Hidden 1]

The girl would smile at her, standing back up. As the girl mentioned hunting Laughing Coffin to be a noble pursuit, a dark chuckle would escape Hidden's lips. "Murder is murder, no matter how you spin it. The only defensible thing you could say is you were protecting yourself. Going out of your way to kill anyone is not noble." Hidden turned away from the girl. No matter who you were... forget it. 

 "I'm a bit of a weaker player right now, but how would you feel about registering each other in our friends lists? Maybe I could help you defeat Laughing Coffin somehow!"

Hidden shook her head, turning back to the player. This time, her voice was edged with a hint of regret. "Don't even try to mess with them. As soon as you get involved there is no going back. You are stuck where you started. I've been after Laughing Coffin for almost a year now, and now I'm even hated by the rest of Aincrad. As for friends, I don't do friends lists. I only have 1 person added on thee and they are quite a special case. I don't want to be easily tracked."

Hidden took a few steps away. "You said you have thorns right? That means you are looking to be a tank. Focus on getting stronger and helping out other players. The darker side of Aincrad isn't designed for people like you. " Hidden chuckled. "I'm barely an adult and starting to sound like an old woman, tired out from experience!" She didn't wish her life upon anyone... other than Itzal, Hestia, and Aereth of course. They should be cursed with a life worse than hers. 

[Zajcica 0]

It was hard to stay positive around someone like this. She wondered at first why she would save her if she really didn't care about helping other that much, but then she remembered that it was just for completion of the same quest she was doing. It was annoying her a bit, but she did her best to keep calm.

"I thank you for the warning, but if I chose to do what you are trying to do, you wont stop me. However, that isn't my plan. I have chose to join the front lines when I get to that level and help them clear this game so that we all can go home. If I die there, at least I can die knowing I did something and not just withering away in the Town of Beginnings for the rest of my digital life.

The pinkette put a hand on her hip and gave her another smile. She was attempting her best to help others see the best in themselves through her own actions, but being an idol wasn't something that was easy to accomplish. Not everyone would like the person she was.

@Hidden

[Hidden 1]

Hidden smiled at the girl's words. She sounded like a lot of other players, desperate to get to the frontlines and be of assistance to the players up there. None of them realized how broken the frontlines were until they were at the mercy of it. She understood now to go against anybody's goals, goals seemed to always be pushed forward by something important to them.

"That's a good goal and I understand you will do whatever you want." she said softly. This player seemed to be trying really hard to win her over in terms of friendship. An odd goal for someone like Yuki to be trying to get someone like Hidden as a friend. Hidden knew she was quiet, and moody. She also wasn't very nice and rather full of herself at times. She looked at the pink wanna-be tank as the girl beamed a smile that was obviously forced. 

"Any other goals you have besides fighting on the frontlines?" Hidden asked. "I mean you're trying to be a tank right? I thought people who wanted to be tanks normally had some close friends or guild they were trying to fight for" Hidden turned, slowly beginning a walk back to the town of Krycim. She did have more quests that she needed to get to. 

 

[Zajcica 0]

The paladin paced behind the dark, hooded girl as she had the exact same destination. It was painstakingly obvious to Yuki that Hidden wasn't the best socializing with others, but she was strong in her own mind.

"No, I'm pretty much a solo playing tank. I'm not very familiar with these type of games so I did what seemed logical and loaded up what should keep me alive. I didn't quite understand how sword arts and skills worked, so I just loaded up on armor and just survive. I'm not fighting alone though. I have some friends, and I have my family waiting on me to wake up. I'm gonna do whatever it takes to protect myself, and everyone I can, so we call see our friends and families again!" She smiled to Hidden when she looked back to the paladin. "Is that a satisfying answer to you? Some people have called me a joke. The front line is a serious place that inexperienced players like me shouldn't go anywhere near." She was reminded how she cowered to the giant burning tiger. That probably didn't leave a great first impression on her.

@Hidden

[Hidden 1]

The pink-haired player follow behind her, almost like a lost-puppy bounding after another person to call master. At least, that's how it looked in her eyes. It was all she could do to stop herself from laughing when Yuki mentioned that she picked up the tanking because she wasn't actually sure on how a lot of game mechanics worked. "Eh, I just went with what suited me most when it came to my build. I liked reading and games before coming in to this world, and I was lucky to get my hands on a nerve gear with the financial status of my family." Her father spent a lot of money on alcohol and had a dead-end job after her mother died. The way she earned money for herself was doing other students homework for them. With all of the reading, she was pretty booksmart. She didn't mention to the other girl that all she looked for was an escape to that world. And here she was in Aincrad and she still two years later was fine without going back. She was hated by a lot of players here, but at least she was where her father wasn't. She was free to live whatever life she chose. She had even met someone, something she couldn't manage back in the real world. Though she did hate people talking to her.... Always came back to that problem. 

"Sure. It's satisfactory. Though the only difference between you and the frontliners is level. Its the same difficulty down here if you ask me. Everything is relative." Hidden shook her head. 'God i'm basic' 

[Zajcica 0]

Yuki caught up to her a bit, trying to not look like a complete creep just treading behind her. The girl mentioned her efficiency in book-smarts and gaming, which was a pretty good skill set to boast for a game like this. Knowledge was the true power to getting strong: Knowing how to make a build and use it correctly was what MMO games were about. She was really regretting not having played more before she picked up the stupid Nervegear.

"I have played some games before, but nothing like an MMO. I'd say I'm a pretty smart person, but I've always been exceptionally good at cooking and with English. I'm from Japan so I apologize if my accent makes my speech a bit unintelligible." Yuki said. "If you ever need food crafted, by the way, I intend to start a shop up there that will be orange player accessible." The pink-haired paladin gave Hidden a thumbs up and another light smile.

@Hidden

[Hidden 1]

The girl caught up to her, walking to her side instead of trailing behind. She was almost amazed that the girl still followed her after she had even blatantly said that she was Aincrad's most wanted. As the girl mentioned her accent, Hidden frowned. "I am from Japan as well. Doesn't the nerve gear automatically translate your voice into the language you decided on in the settings? I mean, it sounds to me like you are speaking Japanese." Cardinal was definently something special, and it incorporated the few other native languages that came into the game. "A shop you said? I'm not sure if I would come, I do have another person to cook for me if I wanted it and he does it for free"She was referring to Sey who she missed but she spent her time away from him to keep him out of the danger. It had now been over a month since she had seen him and her heart ached for him dearly. Once she dealt with the Laughing Coffin problem and being wanted, he would be safe to see once again. 

[Zajcica 0]

"Actually I set the language to English, not knowing the translation system had existed." The paladin scratched the back of her head. They were getting close to the town again, and that's where they would likely say their goodbyes. "I assumed most of the players would default to English, and since I'm already well versed in it, I didn't mind setting it to that." She explained. Maybe there was a setting that could activate Japanese voicing in her menu. She'd have to explore that at some point.

The two girls walked through the safe zone barrier, back to town safe and sound. Yuki turned to the other girl and offered her a handshake.

"Thank you again for the help. I dunno how I would've managed without you, even if you weren't inherently trying to help me. I am afraid this is where part ways, however. I have things I need to attend to and I'm sure that you are tired of listening to me ramble on. Maybe we'll meet again some time. Bai bai!" Yuki waved goodbye as she took off towards the town teleporter.

@Hidden 

[Hidden 1]

Hidden was definitely confused by the girl's statement, it seemed to her that more Japanese players were in this game then English. She remained silent until they reached the Safe zone barrier in which she stopped at, not budging anymore. The pink-haired player would thank her again and bound off towards the teleporter. As she watched the girl go, she would smirk. The girl didn't have much use to her currently, but someday she'd definitely be a handful. Chuckling, she would crouch down and activate her <<Hide>> skill. Dashing forward, she would slip through the guards, many of them unable to spot her. Once they finally had, she was already at the teleporter and whispering "Floor five" With speed and hiding, on could easily find their way into a town and able to use its teleporter. Many other players traveled from floor to floor with the sue of stairs, but there was no way in hell that she was going to waste that much time just getting somewhere. With a flash of blue light, she was being whisked away to the desert floor. 

Rewards

Each player recieves:

• 4 SP
• 200 Col

Hidden Additionally recieves:

• Tiger's Rage: +2 DMG Potion