[PP|01]<<Secret Medicine>>Are They Poisonous?!?!

[Shye 0]

Walking through floor one, the shy teenager looked through the quest details. The levels she had gained so fast were great. She was so much stronger than she was when she first started off so she could maybe take a chance at doing a quest on her own. There was one where damage didn't go above ten points and she could survive with her 140 health points and her gear. There would be times where she couldn't rely on Shield and Mari to just carry her through everything. Mari said herself: She needed to grow some back bone and work up the courage to fight.

While she was walking through town, towards the open area where the quest would begin, the redhead collided with a mass of something that she wasn't paying attention to. A man with blue hair, stood above her. She looked up, fixing her skirt as she fell onto the ground.

"Oh, I'm so sorry-" The girl was cut off when she saw his health bar, but not just that, the symbol for Jacob's Ladder. "H-Hey! You're apart of Mari and Shield's guild! Are you that guy she mentioned... uh, Oikawa?" She asked standing up off the ground and dusting off her clothes.

@Calrex

Spoiler

General
Level: 7 | HP:  140/140 | Energy: 14/14

Stats
DMG: 2 | EVA: 0 | MIT: 0 | ACC: 0 | Rec 1

Skills
First Aid | R1+1

Equipment(In use)
Shinkyuu Hari: BLD 2; DMG 1
Gaea Foundation: Expertise/Recovery
Tough Cloth: EVA 3

Equpiment(Standby)
Butterfly Headphones: LD 3

 

[Calrex 0]

Spoiler

HP: 1805 | EN: 176 | DMG: 16 | MIT: 116 | ACC: 4 |  EVA: 3 | ACH: 0.5 (See Achilles in Skills/Mods for details)

Equipped Gear:

Grand Gauntlets III: +9 Unarmed Damage

Grand Chariot III: +81 Mitigation

Rebellion of Sapphire: +3 Evasion

Battle Ready:

x1 Grand Guard III: +28 Thorns & +3 Heavy Momentum

x1 Grand Legionbane: +9 Damage

x1 Grand Skypiercer II: +1 Taunt & +2 Paralyze

x1 Basic Teleportation Crystal: Upon use, teleport to the nearest town next turn

x5 Safeguard Potion: First Attack Negated

Skills & Mods:

Two-Handed Battle Axe [Rank 5]

One-Handed Assault Spear [Rank 5]

Heavy Armor [Rank 5]: Athletics Mod

Charge [Rank 5]: Bull Rush Mod

Battle Healing [Rank 5]: Emergency Recovery Mod

Block [Rank 5]: Rampart Mod

Howl

Parry: Vengeful Riposte Mod

Extended Mod Limit [Rank 3]

Familiar Master: Accurate [Rank 3]

Martial Arts [Rank 5]: Precision Mod

Quick Change

Survival

Disguise

Meditation

Fishing

Achilles [Rank 5]:
- 50% Damage Reduction (All Incoming Damage after MIT and Rampart/Parry reduction multiplied by 0.6 (Ex. [150 DMG - 50 MIT] /2 ACH = 50)
- Counter and DoT damage is exempt and doubled (Stonewall reduces DoT effects by 25% rounded down)
- Status effects that removes player action last twice as long

As the bluenette stood still, he gave a small sigh, glancing at the new guild allegiance symbol that appeared next to his health points, the symbol of Jacob's Ladder. While he was a member, he had not opted to be one of the pillars of the group, "It's been some time since then, but I guess I still haven't made the time to fully come to grips with why I am or am not willing to fully invest. Guess being a regular member again makes sense at the moment, especially with the non-required way Shield and the others are modeling the guild."

His thoughts were broken as he felt something run into him, looking in calm surprise for a second towards where it came from, only to see no one at face level. Only after a brief glance down did he see that someone had fallen after bumping into him, feeling a bead of sweat form on the side of his head, "Uh, no worries, sorry I must have been dazing off, so it's partially my bad as well..."

Upon hearing her speak about Jacob's Ladder, Calrex looked to see that the young woman herself was also a member of the guild, "Oh, yeah I'm also part of their guild, but I'm not Oikawa sadly, heh. I'm Calrex, it's nice to meet you...uh...I don't believe I caught your name."

@Shye

[Shye 0]

"O-Oh, sorry for assuming." The girl said with a slight smile readjusting the makeup case that she had strapped around her waist, opening it up to make sure that nothing inside was broken. Thankfully everything was alright. After closing the lid, she turned back to the blue haired boy and held out her hand. "My name is Shye. People tell me not to share my real name, but I'm not really use to this. It feels a bit rude to not introduce yourself with your real name."

The girl looked up at her quest bar, seeing that she still has things to do. "Oh hey, do you want to join me for a quest so we can get to know each other? We'll be guild mates after all- or I guess we are. I only know Shield and Mari so far. Do you know any one else who is in the guild? Are the nice?" She opened her menu and scrolled down to invitations, sending him a group invite.

@Calrex

[Calrex 0]

"No worries, It's not like everyone was present when the guild was established. I'm not exactly the best with names either. Shye, huh, pleasure."

He gave a calm smile while shaking the young woman's hand, although Calrex did temporarily forget that the Grand Gauntlets III were encased around his arms. Returning them back to his jacket pockets, the bluenette listened as Shye suggested that they take on a quest, in order to get better acquainted as guildmates, "Sure, that sounds good to me. Was there a particular one that you were looking to tackle?"

"Going from her equipment and health bar, I guess she's probably in the earlier levels compared to the others, so hopefully she isn't thinking to take on anything particularly high level. Some of them aren't so bad, especially if I can still maintain aggro, but any with area of effect attacks could pose troublesome."

Accepting the party invite the bluenette responded to her query, "Outside of Shield and Mari I am somewhat familiar with the other members. One of course is Oikawa, someone I've adventured with back when I was first starting to leave the safety of the first floor settlement. The other is Baldur, someone who ended up becoming my mentor later on. Both of them are good people, so they're people you can likely expect to have your back."

@Shye

[Shye 0]

Her thin hand swiped down, reestablishing the menu in front of her. The name of the quest was only shown there. She read it allowed when she found it: "Secret Medicine of the Forest - Head into the forest and find a group of plant monsters that will increase in numbers for larger parties. After fighting the regular enemies, a special type of Nepent called the Nepent Variant that drops a special item called "Ovule". Seems easy enough right? I was going to do it by myself, but I can tell that you're strong, so will you help me with that?"

The girl chimed with a warm smile, activating the quest share function for him to see the quest marker and details. "Since you're really strong, I'm sure it wont be a problem for you to get through. I cant do nearly any damage because I can only heal. Shield jumped on the chance to invite me when I told him that had healing abilities."

@Calrex

[Calrex 0]

"Secret Medicine of the...oh that quest. Wow, it's been some time since I took that on. I've heard a lot of the quests have undergone a change since I last remember participating in them, I wonder if this one has too."

"That quest from what I remember was a very low level quest, so it shouldn't be an issue for us to take care of...that being said probably just straight up blazing through it might not be the best approach to this. It might be a good idea if I pull my punches a little, at least as long as those monsters don't scale up to my level in terms of stats."

"Heh, I wouldn't consider myself to be really strong. I've just got a lot of experience on my side is all, nothing anyone else can't achieve at the level I'm currently at. Nonetheless, if these things don't decide to scale up for some reason, I believe it should be a fairly straightforward battle."

Looking at the quest marker at it appeared on his HUD, Calrex gave a nod while stretching his shoulder a little, "Probably my tank gear should be enough for these things, especially since my spear will boot my aggro gain to keep their attention. Should things get bad I can always switch to the battle axe for higher area of effect attacks."

@Shye

 

[Shye 0]

Shye's smile continued. She wondered if she should let Calrex take the lead, but she was the party leader here and it was her quest. Mari took the lead for her when they did the quest with the giant bee, but that was when she was literally level one. She could handle this quest with some success now that she had a few more levels and actually had some good gear now.

"A-Alright Cal, I'll take the lead, if that's fine." She didn't sound entirely like she wanted to, more like she felt as though she had to. Like if she didn't do so she wouldn't get any necessary experience. It was nice to have back up, but she was taking this quest to help her confidence. 

Leading the both of them out of the safe zone, she reached back into her makeup case and pulled out a couple of needles that looked like needles meant for sowing. She held a clump of them in her off hand and a single on in her main hand. She could only use one at the time since the system denies the use of two at once, her weapon was disposable. Several needles were copied and remade with the same effect. Insanely tedious, but the needles wouldn't last long individually and they were easy to use.

@Calrex

[Calrex 0]

Spoiler

Allied Actions:
Howl (+2 Hate to 4 targets) / 8 Energy Used

Enemy Actions:
ID: 147082-147085
Nepent 1 (Basic Attack): 1 (Evasion -3) = -2 / Critical Miss!
Nepent 2 (Basic Attack): 6 (Evasion -3) = 3 / Miss!
Nepent 3 (Basic Attack): 7 (Evasion -3) = 4 / Miss!
Nepent 4 (Basic Attack): 8 (Evasion -3) = 5 / Miss!

Listening to Shye as she suggested she take the lead, the bluenette gave a nod, but made note of the hesitation in her tone, "Doesn't seem like she's gotten quite accustomed to combat just yet. Plus going from her arsenal, it doesn't seem like she's got a weapon skill just yet. With all the changes I don't think she'd be falling into trouble healthwise, nontheless..."

"Actually, I appreciate the bravery, but I can take point on this. I'm actually normally more of a tank when it comes to combat, at least when other damage dealers are around, so it makes more sense if I engage the monsters first in order to draw their attention...speaking of which..."

He pointed over with a gauntlet clad finger at a cluster of four nepents that had spawned, taking a moment as he did a double take on their appearance, "Egh...I think they made them even more monstrous than before in looks, especially with that mouth...alright, I'll draw the aggro, from there feel free to go to town."

With a quick swipe his regular clothes were immediately replaced by his frontline armor, the Grand Chariot III, the deep sea blue heavy armor fully encapsulating his form. Light blue power swirled around his forearms as Calrex charged up his <<Howl>> skill. Slamming his fists together a powerful sound blast echoed from where the two pieces of metal smashed together, radiating out and crossing over the four plant monster's forms.

Almost immediately they moved towards him as the armored knight took a few steps forward, glancing upwards for merely a moment to ensure that Roc was overhead, "Probably don't need to worry about wiping these things out personally this time around..."

A smirk came across his lips beneath the expressionless helm as the four creatures swiped at him with their vines, winding around their attacks with seemingly little effort, save the fourth creature, whose blow came close to scratching his armor for a moment.

Spoiler

Allies:
(H: 2) Calrex: HP 1805/1805 | EN 168/176 | DMG 16 | ACC 4 | EVA 3 | MIT 116 | ACH 0.5
(H: 0) @Shye: HP 140/140 | EN 14/14 | DMG 2 | REC 1

Enemies:
Nepent 1: HP 7/7 | DMG 3
Nepent 2: HP 7/7 | DMG 3
Nepent 3: HP 7/7 | DMG 3
Nepent 4: HP 7/7 | DMG 3

 

[Shye 0]

Giant plants...They didn't say that they would be absolutely ugly and smell awful. She plugged her nose and moved out of the way of Calrex so he could do his tank thing. "I-I know it probably wont mean much, but if you need healing, please don't hesitate to ask me! I can heal 8% of your maximum health."

She watched the creatures surround him, totally distracted with his presence. The girl took a moment control her breathing. Having an attack in the middle of battle wouldn't be good. Normally, she aimed to strike things in the neck, hitting vital points and making them bleed, but where was the neck? Oh well, just prick the damn thing. She didn't want to be anywhere near it to begin with.

The needle plunged into the Nepent's body, causing it to leak some disgusting ooze. She left the needle in it's body and grabbed a new one. "E-Ew! Are the poisonous?!?!" She asked worryingly.

Allies:
(H: 2) @Calrex: HP 1805/1805 | EN 168/176 | DMG 16 | ACC 4 | EVA 3 | MIT 116 | ACH 0.5
(H: 0) Shye: HP 140/140 | EN 13/14 | DMG 2 | REC 1 | EVA 3 | BLD 2

Enemies:
Nepent 1: HP 5/7 | DMG 3 | [BLEED: 2/2]
Nepent 2: HP 7/7 | DMG 3
Nepent 3: HP 7/7 | DMG 3
Nepent 4: HP 7/7 | DMG 3

Edited May 8, 2020 by Shye

[Calrex 0]

Spoiler

Allied Actions:
Quick Change: Grand Gauntlets III > Grand Skypiercer II + Grand Guard III
Stats Change:
DMG: 16 > 7
EVA: 3 > -1
MIT: 116 > 141
Taunt: 0 > 1
Paralyze: 0 > 2
Thorns: 0 > 28
Heavy Momentum: 0 > 3
1 Energy Recovered
0/3 Quick Change Cooldown

Enemy Actions:
ID: 147097-147099
Nepent 2 (Basic Attack): 7 (Evasion +1) = 8 / 3 Damage to Calrex / Incurred 28 Thorns Damage
Nepent 3 (Basic Attack): 6 (Evasion +1) = 7 / 3 Damage to Calrex / Incurred 28 Thorns Damage
Nepent 4 (Basic Attack): 5 (Evasion +1) = 6 / 3 Damage to Calrex / Incurred 28 Thorns Damage

"Since these are starting monsters, I doubt they would have something problematic like poison damage or something like that. Nonetheless I appreciate the healing!"

Seeing a needle fly over and puncture one of the nepents, Calrex watched as moments later it seemingly burst into crystal from the bleed damage inflicted from the attack, "Nice strike! I think we can wrap this up so that the big one will show up."

Giving a calming breath the bluenette focused for a moment, clenching both hands into fists as they shone bright blue for a moment. Swinging his right arm to the side both burst into lights, hovering around his form for a brief moment before returning back, forming into his tower shield and one-handed spear, the Grand Guard III and Grand Skypiercer II. It was right then he felt his body slow, becoming extremely heavy as his pendant's effect deactivated.

At that moment the three remaining creatures moved towards him, their vines targeted to strike. Seeing this Calrex hunkered down, moving his body so that as little of his body as possible was exposed. The tendrils slammed into his shield, which immediately glowed blue before releasing a repulsing blast, dealing reactive damage to all of the three remaining creatures.

Lowering his shield he gave a small sigh, "Alright, with that there's only one stronger nepent that should spawn, at least to my memory."

Spoiler

Allies:
(H: 2) Calrex: HP 1796/1805 | EN 169/176 | DMG 7 | ACC 4 | EVA -1 | MIT 141 | TNT 1 | PARA 2 | THRN 28 | HM 3 | ACH 0.5
(H: 0) @Shye: HP 140/140 | EN 13/14 | DMG 2 | REC 1 | EVA 3 | BLD 2

Enemies:
Nepent 1: HP 5/7 | DMG 3 | [BLEED: 2/2]
Nepent 2: HP 7/7 | DMG 3
Nepent 3: HP 7/7 | DMG 3
Nepent 4: HP 7/7 | DMG 3

 

[Shye 0]

The red head watched all the Nepents explode into blue shards of data, just like what would have happened with Shield. The thorns disposed of them all instantly. Tanks were impressive, they seemed so invincible. Though, Shield would probably say it was more like being so prepared that it was impossible to lose. When the variant spawned, it made her face scrunch in disgust pretty quickly. The ovule was used to make some sort of medicine, which made some sense, but she still didn't like fighting them.

Her breathing got a little uneasy, but she still kept it under control enough to get an attack off. She leaped in and swung against air, she slipped up and landed on her chest with an - "Ugh!". The Nepent Variant didn't like her attempt to kill it. It stood over her menacingly, causing her breathing to lose control a bit. The fear was getting to her now.

Allies:
(H: 2) @Calrex: HP 1796/1805 | EN 169/176 | DMG 7 | ACC 4 | EVA -1 | MIT 141 | TNT 1 | PARA 2 | THRN 28 | HM 3 | ACH 0.5
(H: 0) Shye: HP 140/140 | EN 13/14 | DMG 2 | REC 1 | EVA 3 | BLD 2

Enemies:
Nepent Variant: 15/15 | MIT: 5 | Dmg: 10

Edited May 8, 2020 by Shye

[Calrex 0]

Spoiler

Allied Actions:
Focused Howl (+4 to Nepent Variant)
Quick Change: 1/3
Focused Howl: 0/2
6 Energy Used / 1 Recovered
+90 HP from Battle Healing

Enemy Actions:
ID: 147173
Nepent Variant (Basic Attack): 1 (Evasion +1) = 2 / Critical Miss!

With the quest boss' appearance now made, Calrex slowly turned, shield and spear trained on its position as both pieces of equipment began to swirl with light blue energy. "Yeah...they definitely made them uglier..."

Watching Shye rush forward to attack, the blunette was prepared to provide assistance, but it seemed right as the attack was about to land, it whiffed and caused her to lose balance. "Uh...ok then?"

With the creature primed to target his teammate the Ultramarine Knight rushed forward, giving a calm exhale as he slammed his shield and spearhead together, unleashing <<Focused Howl>> on the creature, the single-target Hate technique successfully gaining its ire. Lowering his stance, he prepared for an attack, but as his vision was covered by the shield, there was momentary pause as nothing happened.

Peering out from behind cover Calrex felt a bead of sweat form once again as he saw the Nepent's upper body swayed back and forth, seemingly out of control. Apparently it had tried to attack him, but missed so badly that it too had also lost its center of gravity, and due to the disproportionate body it was composed of, was struggling to regain its balance.

"I...think now might be a good opportunity to strike. I've got its aggro now, so you shouldn't have to worry about attacks directed at you. Need a moment to gather yourself?"

Spoiler

Allies:
(H: 4) Calrex: HP 1805/1805 | EN 164/176 | DMG 7 | ACC 4 | EVA -1 | MIT 141 | TNT 1 | PARA 2 | THRN 28 | HM 3 | ACH 0.5
(H: 0) @Shye: HP 140/140 | EN 13/14 | DMG 2 | REC 1 | EVA 3 | BLD 2

Enemies:
Nepent Variant: 15/15 | MIT: 5 | Dmg: 10

 

[Shye 0]

A moment of careful breathing. She did what her mother taught her to control her attacks. Keep breathing stable and take deep breaths. Stable and slow. Ten slow seconds went by as Calrex kept the enemy distracted enough for her to regain herself.

"S-Sorry, anxiety attacks can be a problem sometimes." She stated giving Cal a smile. Once the Nepent was on the ground, healer took her time and walked up to the giant plant. A needle slid into her hand with a quick jab it was embedded deep into the plants skin(?) The needle was wedged so deep that it quiet literally went all the way in. That couldn't feel good, the was for sure.

"It's bleeding, it'll die in a little if you happen to miss it." She stated, backing up behind him. She looked fine now, her breathing was still a little worrying but she was keeping under control to the best of her abilities.

Allies: (H: 4) @Calrex  HP 1805/1805 | EN 164/176 | DMG 7 | ACC 4 | EVA -1 | MIT 141 | TNT 1 | PARA 2 | THRN 28 | HM 3 | ACH 0.5
(H: 1) Shye: HP 140/140 | EN 13/14 | DMG 2 | REC 1 | EVA 3 | BLD 2

Enemies:
Nepent Variant: 14/15 (-1) | MIT: 5 | Dmg: 10 | [BLEED: 1/2]

Edited May 9, 2020 by Shye

[Calrex 0]

Spoiler

Allied Actions:
Rampart (25% Damage Reduction)
Quick Change: 2/3
Focused Howl: 1/2
Rampart: 0/5
8 Energy Used / 1 Recovered
+90 HP from Battle Healing

Enemy Actions:
ID: 147243
Nepent Variant (Basic Attack): 4 (Evasion +1) = 5 / Miss!

Calrex continued to watch from a more relaxed position, to a pint he wasn't really sure if he was actually taking the boss battle seriously. His eyes remain locked onto the Nepent Variant's upper body as it continued to sway back and forth. After the terrible miss it incurred, the creature was still struggling to fully regain its balance, and at this point the bluenette almost wanted to stifle a laugh.

Hearing Shye apologize, he gave a acknowledging nod, "It's quite alright, take as much time as you need. This is part of the reason why we travel in teams right?"

"With her current skill set, it would be dangerous to let her quest too much on her own. It's one thing to struggle with landing a hit, but it's another thing entirely to lose the ability to act while under pressure. It might be something the guild will have to help her get accustomed to if she's going to be planning on participating in the floor raids at some point..."

Seeing another needle impact on the creature, he gave a small whistle, impressed that the young woman was already two for two. Both of her strikes inflicted the Bleed enhancement, something that usually didn't occur very often even if you specialized in it, "Well if it's going to die from your attacks, at this point there's no need for me to put it in the grave."

Tightening his grip on the Grand Guard III, the bluenette stabbed his spear into the ground before sliding his other arm into the secondary handle on the shield, slamming it into the ground. The outer surface of the guard shone with a bright blue field for a moment as he activated <<Rampart>>, enhancing his defenses further.

The field boss recovered enough to try and send out another vine at him, but the striking limb missed to the left of him, coming inches from tapping against the edge of the shield.

Spoiler

Allies: (H: 4) Calrex HP 1805/1805 | EN 157/176 | DMG 7 | ACC 4 | EVA -1 | MIT 141 | TNT 1 | PARA 2 | THRN 28 | HM 3 | ACH 0.5
(H: 1) @Shye: HP 140/140 | EN 13/14 | DMG 2 | REC 1 | EVA 3 | BLD 2

Enemies:
Nepent Variant: 2/15 (-12) | MIT: 5 | Dmg: 10 | [BLEED: 1/2]

 

[Shye 0]

The timid redhead watched the Nepent writhe in pain from her blow. Was she really that much stronger than she thought? This was supposed to be a strong field boss, she thought. Well, she was glad that she had brought someone along with her. If she didn't, things could have gotten out of hand. Note to self: Don't Quest Alone.

The girl moved closer behind Calrex as the Nepent lifted its vine to whip one of the two. As it connected with the ground next to him, she let out a small yelp and jumped from the sound. Come on Chelsea, gather yourself. The girl saw it's health tick down and nearly kill it. They needed to loot the beast for a item, so best to pull out her headphones.

She reached into her makeup box and pulled out a set of fold-in headphones. Removing her weapon from the equipment slots and replacing it with that. With them firmly placed on her head, she was ready to try for the drop once it was finished.

@Calrex

Spoiler

Shye switched out her weapon for her LD III Trinket.

 

[Calrex 0]

Spoiler

Quick Change: 3/3
Focused Howl: 2/2
Rampart: 1/5
1 Energy Recovered

A few more seconds passed as Calrex continued to watch the health bar of the stronger nepent slowly fade down to zero, the final pixels of red vanishing behind the opaque background before it burst into crystals. Hearing the sound effect of the creature's death, the bluenette stood upright, extracting the end of his shield from the ground and retrieving his lance, "Well, that quest was a lot more straightforward...and less harrowing than I remember."

"If I remember, the time that Teayre, Oikawa, and I did this before the health of us versus the nepents was a lot narrower. This seems significantly easier, a lot more suitable as a beginner quest from back then. I guess Cardinal really did show some mercy on the players after all, it's just that the frontliners didn't really reap any of those changes to their benefit very much at all."

"Well, I believe that was the last thing we needed to take out for the quest to complete, nice work taking the boss creature out. Going from the amount of Bleed damage your weapons deal, it seems like you could have handled it on your own."

Spoiler

Allies: (H: 4) Calrex HP 1805/1805 | EN 158/176 | DMG 7 | ACC 4 | EVA -1 | MIT 141 | TNT 1 | PARA 2 | THRN 28 | HM 3 | ACH 0.5
(H: 1) @Shye: HP 140/140 | EN 13/14 | DMG 2 | REC 1 | EVA 3 | BLD 2

Enemies:
Nepent Variant: 2/15 (-12) | MIT: 5 | Dmg: 10 | [BLEED: 2/2]

 

[Shye 0]

As Calrex was gearing up to leave, the redhead stopped him. "W-Wait Cal, we're not finished yet! I have to make sure it dropped the quest item or else I can't turn it in!" She said moving around his form and looking for the item cube that was supposed to drop through the cloud of blue shards that littered the area. Sure enough it was there. She opened it up and found the Ovule inside.

"Okay! We got it. We actually can leave." She said moving the item to her inventory and returning to his side. "I-I'm sorry again about that out break. It's...difficult to control some time. I don't think I want to be questing alone at all, so I'm glad I found a guild so willing to help me get stronger. You, Shield and Mari are all really nice to someone as hopeless as me. I don't know if I deserve such great guild mates to be honest."

@Calrex

LD: 12+3 Ovule found!

Edited May 9, 2020 by Shye

[Calrex 0]

"Oh right my bad, hehe. It must have slipped my mind."

As Shye moved over to where the nepent boss was previously standing, Calrex took the time to switch back to his casual combat attire. The deep blue full body heavy armor vanished in a flash of light, his light blue fur-lined jacket, white shirt, and other articles of clothing taking its place. Deciding to leave his gauntlets uneqipped, the bluenette put his hands into his jacket pockets, giving a nod as the young woman returned back, "Okay, good to hear to that we didn't accidentally goof on the very last part of the quest."

Listening as she spoke, apologizing again for her previous lapse of focus, and her appreciation for finding guildmates like the people in Jacob's Ladder. He gave a small sigh, giving a calm smile, "It's quite alright, you've got nothing to apologize so profusely for. Going from the way you handled the nepents, I wouldn't say you're anything near hopeless. In fact you've got a really good amount of potential, probably part of what the guild pillars saw in you. You're just at the same spot most new players are at, mostly focused on surviving. As you go up in levels and become stronger, it really helps with the self-assurance and being a little more calm during fights. From my experience, most of my closest calls actually happened in my first few levels before I finally hit a stride."

@Shye

[Shye 0]

Shye looked down at her feet while she listed to Calrex speak. With a quiet sigh she looked back up to him. "It's not just that though, I have been prone to anxiety attacks since I was young. It really tolls the brain, and even if I learn to control my fits, I could still easily break down in combat. I'm afraid that me being unsure of myself will get someone killed. I'll hesitate...And they'll be gone..."

Her mind seemed to trail off again, like the scene was playing out in her mind. Her breathing went uneven again, her breaths got deeper in and out. More breathing techniques were getting her through the ordeal it seemed. "O-Oh sorry. I apologize too much, I know... I just don't want to see anyone die... That's why I want to be a really strong healer, so I'll never have to see someone die!"

@Calrex

[Calrex 0]

"A healer huh? Well just for picking that role, I'd say in spite of your history anxiety attacks, that's a very brave move."

"Especially in a game like this, where combat ability more than anything seems to be the go to for keeping yourself alive. Whether it be a damage dealer, who keeps themselves alive by taking out opposition, or a tank who stays alive with protective skills, it's rare to find someone that wants to fully dedicate to keeping others alive above anything else."

"Also...I have to apologize this time, since I guess to some level I made an assumption while being aware of your history. I'll tell you this much, the frontlines is in a real need for more people that serve as healers. The closest comparisons we have are moreso attackers that heal than dedicated ones, so you've got some serious guts there."

Stretching his arms for a moment the bluenette gave a small sigh, gathering his thoughts before continuing, "Not gonna lie, I guess I was in a similar spot before. With all of the perceived dangers around when I first started, be it from monsters or malicious players, I didn't want to be the person incapable of doing anything to help the people I care about when things got tough, and I think because if that it caused me to inevitably throw myself into grinding vigorously in order to become as strong as possible."

Returning his hands to his jacket pockets he glanced up at the sky while they continued to walk, "I guess in some ways, strange as it seems, the best way we've all found to not have to see someone die, is to help them get stronger. I know for sure that as long as I'm in this guild, I'm gonna do what I can so that the others don't come anywhere close to that."

@Shye