[F01-PP] <<The First Few Lessons Are Free>> Collecting Weeds

[Xin 0]

"Yup yup yup yup yup yup yup yup," Xin fired off as she pushed through Zackariah's quest dialogue. She'd played plenty of MMOs in her life and questing was more or less the same in each and every one; she had no reason to believe that SAO would be different. She opened her questlog. "Collect 5 Tier One Quest Materials, huh? Seems easy enough. Now let's see here..." Xin closed the menu and navigated toward the nearest exit. It was bustling but that was to be expected considering it was the very first quest and that the game had just released. She maneuvered to a spot that was relatively clear and proceeded to wait.

Xin hummed to herself and watched as other players were scavenging for and acquiring quest materials around her. But it seemed that her lady luck wasn't with her at the moment as nothing popped up. She opened her menu and took out her sword, examining its aesthetic and getting a feel for it as she contorted into different positions and poses. Eventually a little weed sprung up at her feet which she acquired with the tap of her sword.

1/5 Quest Materials Acquired

Spoiler

Stats

LVL: 1 | HP: 20/20 | EN: 2/2 | DMG: 5 | MIT: 0 | ACC: 1 | EVA: 0

LD: 5

Equipment

• Weapon: Rare 2H Straight Sword | Damage (1), Accuracy (1)
• Armor: Vanity Light Armor
• Trinket: Wayfinder | Loot Die (3)

Items

1. Starter Healing Potion (50 HP) x 3

Active Skills

• [x2 AoE] Blast (2 + 2x EN)
• [x2] Straight (2 EN)

Passive Skills

• [Rank 1] Two-Handed Straight Sword (+3 DMG)

Buffs

• Mochi (+2 LD)

 

Edited May 22, 2020 by Xin

[Assassin 0]

"Hey! That's mine!" A child's voice rang out to the other players around them. She was dressed in what looked like rags and had scars littering her face. It seems as though that another player had stolen her materials that she was searching for while she reached down to grab it. The man looked down on her and said. "Sorry kid, first come, first serve. Besides, it's locked to me now since it's a quest item."

"That's not fair!! I saw it first and you took it from me." The girl whined like she was a bout to start crying. She could get anything she wanted if she just played the act. "No matter what I try to do, I can't give it to you. Go back to the Town and cry, this is no place for children." The man walked off with her materials and left her sitting there fake crying. No one else seemed to want to bother with her at this point.

@Xin

Spoiler

General
Level: 4 | HP:  80/80 | Energy: 8/8

Stats
DMG: 2 | EVA: 1 |  ACC: 2 | MIT: 18 | LD: 3+2

Skills
Dagger Rank I

Equipment(In use)
Dark Cloak(LA): MIT II; EVA I
Fastening Belts(Tri): ACC II; EVA I
Antique Dagger(Tri): LD 3

Equipment(Standby)
Kami Sori(Dagger): DMG III

Consumables
(5x)Starting Healing Potion[50 HP]
Mochi: LD 2 <Consumed

No materials found

Edited May 22, 2020 by Assassin

[Xin 0]

What's a kid doing here?

The cry of a child caught her attention. Xin put her sword fidgeting on hold and she walked over to Assassin. She dug her sword into the ground and used it for support as she knelt down to Assassin's level. Xin put a hand on the child's shoulder. "Hey, hey. It'll be alright. Just gotta watch out for vultures during times like this." Xin looked around with an icy stare, trying to eye anyone who seemed like they might interfere with Assassin's questing and hoping that her glare would be enough to keep them away. As much as she'd like to keep them away by force, it was difficult to do given their current circumstances.

Xin gave Assassin a couple pats on the shoulder before returning to her post. Her last step stomped onto a second quest material which was unfortunate given the timing, but there was nothing that she could've done about it.

@Assassin

2/5 Quest Materials Acquired

Edited May 22, 2020 by Xin

[Assassin 0]

Someone actually listened to her?

The little girl calmed down when someone actually came over and tried to console her. She sniffed up the coming water works and looked the blond in the eyes. Her prominent scars show cased a gallery of suffering from years past. What was even worse was knowing that scars couldn't be created within the game, so she had gotten these marks from the real world, and they wouldn't go away even in virtual reality.

The woman began to walk away almost as soon as she got here, she saw her step on one of the materials, and another one just ahead of her. She got up quickly and grabbed the second one just ahead of the woman as she was reaching for it. She put on her puppy dog face and pleaded. "I've been out here for awhile and people keep stealing the materials from me. Can I have this one?" She asked, hoping she would let her take it.

@Xin

Materials found: 1

Edited May 22, 2020 by Assassin

[Xin 0]

Xin cocked her head to the side, reminiscent of a confused dog.

Well, I guess I did just call out people who were vulturing quest items.

"Sure, go ahead, Sweetie," Xin said, obliging the child. She was in no particular rush to complete these tutorial quests. That was the lie she told herself, at least. Xin was in fact itching to gun through these missions but she wasn't willing to do so at the expense of others, especially not this little one.

Xin placed a hand on her hip. She took a closer look at Assassin and took note of her scars. Xin didn't know if there were cosmetic scars in-game, but she did know that SAO was just released and that the NerveGear copied people's appearances to a tee. There was a very high chance that these scars were real and Xin wasn't sure what to make of it.

How in the world did she end up stuck in here with us?

@Assassin

2/5 Quest Materials Acquired

Edited May 22, 2020 by Xin

[Assassin 0]

The Assassin moved the material to her inventory happily and smiled at the lady. She was one of the nicest that she had met in the game so far. Tank-lady was nice to her, but not in a way enough to call her 'sweetie'. How weird it was to be called something like that. Not even the caretaker at the orphanage had called her something nice like that.

"Thank you, nice-lady!" The girl said. She took a moment looking for more materials. Spotting one close by, she snagged them up as quickly as possible. "Yay! More! You make things much luckier for me! Do you have anyone you're partying with? I can join you so you don't get lonely!" The girl offered with a smile. Her emerald irises reflecting the hue of the light that did make it through the trees. It would be a lot easier to keep bullies away if she was with another person.

@Xin

Materials found: 2

Edited May 22, 2020 by Assassin

[Xin 0]

"No problem!" A cheery smile spread across Xin's face. "And sure, I'd love for you to keep me company while we're here questing away!" She opened her menu and sent Assassin a party request. In truth, Xin wasn't quite sure what to make of Assassin and her personality. Was a result of her age, her past, this situation? Or was it all a ploy? She couldn't be quite sure but all signs so far pointed to the former. Still, the results of her curiosity wouldn't lead anywhere, at least for now, since she didn't want to risk not giving Assassin a helping hand.

Xin gave Assassin a gentle head rub before walking off to the side to collect another quest material, waiting for her to accept the party invite. "So, would you rather have me call you by your username, or do you have another nickname you'd like me to use?"

@Assassin

3/5 Quest Materials Acquired

Edited May 22, 2020 by Xin

[Assassin 0]

Assassin hesitantly accepted the party invite and her name displayed below Xin's on her HUD.

Assassin: [  80/80  ]

"The name that is attached to the account was already decided when I loaded up into the game, I wasn't allowed to change it at that point. No one really calls me anything other than kid, or child, or brat. I have a name, but I'm not sure if I should share it with anyone. The caretaker wouldn't like it much if I did, I bet." The girl quietly picks up another material loose on the side. It was apparent that walking with someone else was keeping the bullies away. "Thank you again for  helping me. The meanies around me kept stealing all the stuff I needed, but since you came, they leave me alone. I can actually do this quest so I can get the other ones done. It was hard learning all this stuff. I've never played a game before."

Materials found: 3

Edited May 22, 2020 by Assassin

[Xin 0]

"Hmm, no nickname, huh?" She thought about using 'Sin' but it was a little too closer to her own and it wasn't exactly fit for someone like her. "I guess Sweetie will have to do for now. At least until I can find something more personal." Another quest material spawned and Xin again booped it with her sword. Now that the situation was over, she resumed her poses except this time, she was feeling for how the sword felt farther away from her body.

"Don't worry, if anyone tries to mess with you, they'll have to get through me first!" Though in a game where stats are king, Xin's bravado didn't mean much. "So, who was calling you a brat? And how did you find yourself in this situation, little one?" She decided that she would try a few different pet names, but 'little one' didn't quite feel right.

I sound like a grandma talking to her grandchild...

@Assassin

4/5 Quest Materials Acquired

Edited May 22, 2020 by Xin

[Assassin 0]

The Assassin jumped on another material, taking it before another player was able to [censored] it up from her. She growled at him silently and scared him off. He hurried off when they saw that she was serious. When she looked back to Xin there was a smile on her face. "I don't like bullies and meanies." The girl mentions as she walked back over to her new friend.

"So, who was calling you a brat? And how did you find yourself in this situation, little one?" She thought on it. "Well, the older kids at the orphanage pick on me a lot because I'm one of the younger ones there. There is this one boy that is seventeen. He picks on me a lot so I stole his game thingie and put it on. I have no idea how to get out, until that big dude said we couldn't leave. I missthe caretaker lady. Her name is long, and I can never remember it correctly Kobayashi I think?"

@Assassin

Materials found: 4

Edited May 22, 2020 by Assassin

[Xin 0]

"Nobody likes bullies and meanies, hon." That...didn't feel right, either. Like at all. Xin almost physically recoiled at the word rolled off her tongue but she managed to keep herself composed. She turned away from Assassin for a moment as a material spawned right behind her only to catch a thief [censored] it up and run off. Xin was very, very tempted to swing her sword at the vulture, but she didn't want to set a bad example and, being level 1, it wasn't safe to do so with how many people were in the vicinity. "Mother-," she muttered.

"An orphanage? That must've been tough." Xin crossed her arms. At least the caretaker seemed to care for her. "Well, when we get out of here, you can show those older kids who's boss. And I'm sure Miss Kobayashi misses you too, and she'll be proud of you when you get to meet again."

@Assassin

4/5 Quest Materials Acquired

Edited May 22, 2020 by Xin

[Assassin 0]

"Mmm, maybe. I'm pretty sure she'll be happy to see me, but I don't know about the rest of the people there. Who knows how long we'll be here though. A hundred is lot of floors, just think of building with a hundred floors. Climbing up that would take you a super long time. Especially if you had to locate the stairs to the next floor and fight crazy dogs on every set of stairs, once you actually find them." The girl explained while picking up her last material a bit far away from Xin. Who still seemed to be finding it difficult to call her something that sticks. Assassin thought on it on her way back over to her new friend. "How about you just call me Kaya. It means Pure in Japanese."

With all her quest conditions met out here, she would be able to return to the man in the store and get the quest finished. However, she was starting to like Xin's kindness, so let's stay with her for awhile. "I'm done looking around, so I'll wait for you and make sure no meanies bully you now!"

@Xin

All Materials Found

Edited May 23, 2020 by Assassin

[Xin 0]

"Yup, it will definitely take a long time to climb up this place, but there are sure to be a lot of strong people around and we have to believe in each other." Xin subtly twisted her tone at the end as if I take a swipe at the vultures who were snatching up quest materials right out from under other people. She wasn't sure where she stood in the grand scheme of things, either. Xin always tried to push the meta, but that was in PvP. In terms of PvE and raid meta, she was more of a follower.

[In this situation though, I don't think I can afford to sit back.]

"Kaya...," Xin's voice faded as she let the name linger. She smiled. "That's a pretty name!" Though with Kaya's scars, she couldn't help but feel the irony of it all. Xin's last quest material popped up at her feet, and with a quick swipe of her sword, she nabbed it up for herself. "No need for that. It looks like I'm all done, too!" She sheathed her sword into her inventory. "C'mon, let's get back to the shop."

@Assassin

5/5 Quest Materials Acquired

Edited May 23, 2020 by Xin

[Assassin 0]

"Ok!" The Assassin cheerily agreed, leading the way back to town. "These quests are super easy when you have someone helping you! I got it done super fast when people stopped stealing my materials." It didn't take long for the group to make their way back to town. Zachariah's shop was pretty close to the safe zone barrier anyway. When they entered, the old man welcomed them back, preparing the potion making. Assassin decided to go first, stepping ahead of Xin and needing a chair just to reach everything.

It took some time of explaining from the NPC to the girl, but sooner or later, she had made a usable potion. It wasn't the worst she could have done, but it wasn't the best either. Very middle of the line. "Hey look, I did it!" The child said happily holding up the potion to the lady she had made friends with. "Ok, your turn, lady!"

Crafted Rare HP Potion.

Edited May 23, 2020 by Assassin

[Xin 0]

"Ooo, nice job!" Xin made a clap. "Hopefully I can make one as good as yours." She skipped over Zachariah's dialogue where he went into detail on the best crafting procedures, figuring that it would be pretty straight forward. She messed with various liquids, reagents, and apparatuses across the table. "Just gotta do a little of this and a little of that and done." She held up a flask that was weak in color.

DING! Uncommon Potion Crafted

"Hmm, it seems alright me!" Xin said with a smile, completely ignoring the fact that she nearly failed at making the thing. "That didn't seem too bad." With the crafting portion of the quest done, all that was left was to deliver the parcels that Zachariah had given them to a nearby blacksmith. "Okay Kaya, there's just one more thing to do for this. Let's get going." She exited the shop and took a gander at her map.

@Assassin

Edited May 24, 2020 by Xin

[Assassin 0]

She took the package that she was supposed to carry herself in her hands and moved it into her inventory. Once that was done, she held the door open for Xin. The Assassin gave her friend a smile and walked with her towards the blacksmith's quarters. "I know that there's a chain of quests that go with this one. Do you wanna join me for the next one so no more meanies bug me while I am trying to do it? Since you are doing this quest, that means you haven't done it either, so you could get it as well. I heard it's easy experience early on and that you can't pick up this experience if you go past a certain level."

The little girl opened up her menu and scrolled to the next quest. She inspected the details. "Hmm, combat is required as well. Maybe it's a good idea to go as a team then. If we're together nothing can hurt us!"

[Xin 0]

Xin figuratively raised an eyebrow because Assassin seemed suspiciously in-the-know about things despite having never played a game before. She wasn't entirely sure what to make of it so she simply made note of the info and filed it away somewhere in her mind.

"Sure, we can party up for the next quest, I'd love that!" Xin smiled. She opened her quest menu as well and did some light reading. "You're right. It'd probably be best if we just burned these quests know before the level cap becomes an issue." Combat huh?, she thought. All Xin had done so far was swing her sword at the air so she was eager to see what combat actually felt like. "They're only beginner quests so it shouldn't take too long anyway...hopefully!" She chuckled at the thought of them being a struggle.

"Oh, and before I forget," Xin said while entering her menu. She sent a friend request to Assassin.

@Assassin

[Assassin 0]

The girl looked at the menu pop-up that appeared in front of her. Another friend request? It was hard enough to tell people what her username was when she didn't even get to chose it and it made her look awful. Or was more like the fact that she actually took to it and looked like a shadowy murder? Probably that last part, but how else could she hide from monsters?

"Uh, you aren't afraid of having the name 'Assassin' on your friends list? There could be people who see and think you're friends with someone bad." Assassin asked. It felt weird to send and accept friend requests, but nevertheless, she pushed accept on it. Scrolling down to her own, just to ensure that it was accepted, she smiled. "You're only the second person who has sent me a friend request so far. Tank-lady sent me one too. I wonder if she did it so she could keep tabs on because I'm younger. I'm just fine on my own though. I know how to take care of myself."

@Xin

[Xin 0]

Any suspicions that Xin had in the moment were quickly washed away. Admittedly, Kaya's username may have played a part in fueling Xin's suspicions, but Xin thought it best to keep that info under wraps.

Xin laughed again, this time more hardily. "Kaya, sometimes you can learn a lot about people from their usernames. But nobody is going to think you're a bad person just because your username is of a bad person. At worst, someone is going to think you're edgy and not creative, but really that'd apply to the kid that was messing with you so you having nothing to feel ashamed of." Xin smiled and placed her hands on her hips when she heard that Kaya had someone else of her friends list.

"Two friends? You know you have more friends than me, right? I only have one right now and that's you!" Xin gave Kaya a couple of pats on the shoulder. "Hopefully I'll get to meet this 'tank-lady' someday."

@Assassin

[Assassin 0]

The two arrived at the blacksmith's shop and moved the items from their inventory to him. He then asks them a favor to collect some needed tusks from some low level boars. When they were off to their next quest, the Assassin looked up at her and smiled to Xin. "Tank-Lady is nice. She beat up a meany wolf that bit me in the leg and protected me from a bit bee that wanted to sting me. You helped me to get this quest done, so I'm glad we met. Thank you a lot for the help."

Assassin crossed her arms and smiled up to Xin. She was a useful friend if she was going to be nice to her. The small frame really helped get people on your side, not that she was meaning to be malicious with Xin or anything. It was just a nice bonus, until they started trying to pamper you because you were nothing but a child to them. She might be young, but she wasn't a complete idiot or anything. She hoped people could see that.

Spoiler

Rewards

- 5 Tier One Health Potions of Rare quality. (+40 HP)
- 1 Tier One Damage Potion of Uncommon quality. (+1 Damage)
- 1 Tier One Over-Health Potion of Special quality. (+50 HP to maximum HP for remainder of thread)
- 2 SP quest; 1 SP page; 1 SP event
- 200 Col per player