[PP|F1] <<The Fourth Lesson, Is Actually Free>> Chatter

[ChaseR 0]

Once they'd handed over the delivery from Hannah to Ol' Pete, Chase and @Shay listened to the geezer's request. "F-Fish..? Is that even a profession..? It has to make money, right?", he questioned himself, scratching the back of his head before getting on the boat and looking back at his rogue friend. "Come on.", he invited her on, although he had not a single idea how to even reel a fishing rod. "Have you ever handled a fishing rod before?", he asked his partner, raising an eyebrow curiously.

"So a sword-fish... Some animals must be like they were back in real life, then. So this world is half animals, half monsters, is it?", he began to think about the world's capabilities and inhabitants once more, getting more and more confused by Aincrad. Anything could work to create enough immersion, but... Hm... "Do you think dragons exist?", he followed up, probably unintentionally getting on her nerves again with how many questions he was throwing around.

Spoiler

Name: ChaseR
Level: 8
HP: 160/160
EN: 16/16

Stats:
Damage: 8
Evasion: 1
Accuracy: 3
REC:2

Equipped Gear:
Weapon: <<Cloud Cutter>> (T1/Perfect/2HSS): DMG III
Armor: <<Sky Blue Apparel>> (T1/Perfect/Light Armor): EVA I; REC II
Misc: <<Warm Earmuffs>> (T1/Perfect/Trinket): ACC III

Skills:
Two-Handed Straight Sword [Rank 2]

Extra Skills:

Mods:

Battle Ready Inventory:
Starter Healing Potions(heal 50HP)*3
T1 Rare Health Potions (heal 40HP)*5
T1 Uncommon Damage Potion (+1 DMG)*1
T1 Special Over-Health Potion (+50MHP)*1
Potion of 'Safeguard'*1
Requires Extended Weight Limit 1
Requires Extended Weight Limit 2
Requires Extended Weight Limit 3
Obtained via Item Stash (Housing)
Obtained via Dimensional Backpack

Housing Buffs:

Guild Hall Buffs:

Scents of the Wild:

Wedding Ring:

 

[Shay 0]

Shay took hold of the fishing rod for Chase and sat in the front. "Nope." She said as she cast the line into the water when they were far enough out.  She watched the line sink into the water with the bobber floating upon the surface peacefully.

She sat quietly for a moment, watching the bobber intently. When Chase spoke up, she finally spoke again, after some thought on the subject. "If I remember correctly, there is a really long quest line that involves dragons in the came. You can't really rule out anything not existing in this game because nine times out of ten they are. Just about anything fantasy themed is going to show up here. As long as it's not magical."

Her attitude seemed to have finally mellowed now that they've had a moment of peace away from the fighting. She was looking rather bored already, not even taking her eyes off the fishing line to speak with the boy.

Spoiler

Name: Shay
Level: 17
HP: 340/340
EN: 34/34

Stats:
Damage: 8
Evasion: 3
Accuracy: 1
BLD:12
REC:2

Equipped Gear:
Weapon: (Katana)Murasame α: BLD 2; DMG 1
Armor: Leather Overcoat: EVA 3
Misc: Deep Red Tie: Recovery 2; ACC 1

Skills:
Curved Sword [Rank 1]
Katana [Rank 4]

 

[ChaseR 0]

Chase gave her a confused look, trying to realise what the difference between fantasy and magical creatures was. And then he remembered how unqualified he was to speak in any form of medium. He didn't really read, he never watched that many movies with the intent of getting deep behind them story or character wise, so... It was all new to him. "R-Right.", he huffed and looked at the bobber quietly, before tapping her shoulder.

"It's my quest. I should do it.", he offered her before keeping his hand next to her as if expecting her to hand over the fishing rod. Even if it was halfway through her attempt to fish out this sword-fish, he didn't want her to take the burden of learning how to fish when she wouldn't get anything out of it, neither in experience nor quest rewards. For one, the bluehead seemed eager to participate, on the other, she couldn't really see him with how much attention she was paying to the fishing.

[Shay 0]

She looked back to him and gave a shrug, handing over the wooden fishing pole to him so that he could do it himself. She was only going to fish the creature up out of the water then he would have to kill it. She couldn't do everything for him, but at least he was trying to be proactive with his building. She shifted into the back of the boat, careful not to capsize their poor little dingy into an early grave with Davey Jones.

She was always so quiet and this boy had nothing to do with video games. He'd asked her probably around a hundred questions by now, so it would only be fair if she asked one herself. That being said, what should she even ask him? Did she care at all? Eh, maybe a little.

"So, why are you here?" Her social ineptitude shining like a star in the night sky.

[ChaseR 0]

Chase accepted the pole in his hands, furrowing his eyebrows and looking at the bobber intently, waiting to see if a fish would appear. "Here? Aincrad?", he asked and waited for a moment, figuring that's what she probably meant. She was right to ask that question though. After all, it was just like she'd figured so far, he was like a fish out of water in an MMORPG like this. "We wanted to see it for ourselves.", he blurted, his stance seeming to ease up and his voice even softening.

"Lily and I wanted to see another world. We wanted to live here, too.", the boy continued, smiling just slightly before he looked over his shoulder to ask her. "Why are you here?", he repeated her exact words, expecting an answer from her as well. Not so much because he wanted her to feel indebted to him, but more so because he thought it must have been a while since she last talked to someone like this, if she'd ever done that in the first place. She'd want to get it out of her system, too, probably. Before she could answer, he felt something from the fishing line and turned to look again, focusing on the bobber.

Spoiler

ID# 156393
CD 9

He noticed the bobber starting to sink into the water, taking his chance and planting his feet in the boat as much as he could, groaning and putting all his strength in pulling it out of the water. He managed to do so with ease, seeing the sword-fish pop out of the water and move slightly in the air, locking eyes with it. He dropped the fishing rod next to him on the boat, before putting both hands on his sword and taking it out of his sheathe, holding it in a battle ready stance. "So?", he asked again to make sure she'd answer, still focused on his own battle though.

ChaseR - HP: 160/160 | EN: 16/16 | DMG: 8 | EVA: 1 | ACC: 3 | REC: 2

Sword-Fish - HP: 35/35 | DMG: 5 (50 on first hit)

Edited June 29, 2020 by ChaseR

[Shay 0]

Shay stared at him. Her crimson gaze like that of an assassin's dagger, piercing his own. She was quiet for a moment again, thinking on the subject. She knew the exact reason that she had come to this world, but should she really tell him?

"Where is Lily?" She attempted to divert the conversation to give herself some time to think. This wasn't the first time he'd brought up that name, and she was sure that it wouldn't be the last she heard of it. If he was sweet on a girl, she'd figure that she would be here learning the game with him so she could protect herself. Staying level one effectively meant that you were limiting yourself to the strength of a toddler after all.

The sword fish worked it's way around the boat, making itself difficult to pin down. Shay hardly seemed bothered by it's presence. Her eyes were still affixed to the blue-haired boy in front of her.

[ChaseR 0]

Chase could tell that she wasn't too keen on talking about herself quite yet, just by that short time they were glancing one another. He paid attention to the Sword-Fish however, keeping perfect track of it. "She's back in the real world. We paid for the NerveGear and SAO together. We could only afford one.", he finished abruptly, watching the monster launch itself out of the water and towards the sky. His purple began to glow purple just then, the same way it had back in the cave, as he let loose.

The bluehead began with an upward slash, before following up with a diagonal slash back towards the water to make it lose its momentum. Before it got too far out of reach, he managed to land another hit horizontally and finished with a quick slash towards its rostal bone. By the time that he was done, the fish seemed to be completely thrown off from the attack, losing its chance to counterattack and falling back in the water. "It's low. I can kill it next time it tries to attack me.", he thought, gripping his blade tighter.

"I was supposed to come back. Just give her my first impression. I'm happy she was busy that day and I got trapped.", he finished, trying to catch his breath as he looked over his shoulder with a small smile. "She would have gotten herself killed here.", he commented, with a much softer voice compared to usual. Shay could tell just how nostalgic he was to be talking about Lily as if nothing had ever happened.

Spoiler

ID# 156398
BD 7
MD 4

ChaseR - HP: 160/160 | EN: 9/16 (-7) | DMG: 8 | EVA: 1 | ACC: 3 | REC: 2

Sword-Fish - HP: 3/35 (-32) | DMG: 5 (50 on first hit) (Stunned)

Edited June 29, 2020 by ChaseR

[Shay 0]

Shay grabbed one of the sides of the boat, nonchalantly holding on to not dip into the water as her duo swung at the enemy. He was already getting better at using the sword arts in his kit and at fighting. There was some confidence in him now. A good time to start getting it honestly, considering that from here on out, the game was only going to continue to throw fire in his face.

"Perhaps. She would have been just as strong as you from a systems perspective. No person can really outmatch anyone in here if they put in similar time at least. If you were my level, you would be just as strong as me, for example. As for how one's determination and willpower make it through the game, yeah, that's a bit different." The girl finally was able to stabilize herself in her seat enough to let go of the boat. He should finish it off easily.

[ChaseR 0]

Chase knew fully well what she was saying, even if it seemed like just another number in the game's code to him. "I see.", he simply said, keeping track of where the Sword-Fish was moving. Just as it went behind him and tried to attack once it'd recovered from the strong attack he performed on it, he turned around and raised his sword in the air, the blade beginning to glow red. He quickly swung it downwards, before following up with another upward strike and one final hit that threw it back in the water. Just as it hit the water's surface though, it broke into tiny crystals and disappeared.

Needless to say, Chase felt incredibly tired from using both of these moves in quick succession, panting weakly and placing his sword back in its sheathe by him. "That was it. Let's go back, geezer.", he told the NPC who simply nodded and began to take them back towards the lake's side. The bluehead sat down, wiping some sweat off of his forehead before he asked Shay again. "So. Why are you here?"

ChaseR - HP: 160/160 | EN: 6/16 (-3) | DMG: 8 | EVA: 1 | ACC: 3 | REC: 2

Sword-Fish - HP: 0/35 (-3) | DMG: 5 (50 on first hit) 

Edited June 29, 2020 by ChaseR

[Shay 0]

With the boss destroyed, that marks the end of Chase's tutorial. From here on, the game would not be as nice as it was. Things will be hard and he was going to have to deal with it or quit. Through hardship is how one gains strength.

"Good job," She gave him a light smile. Up until now, she was being difficult on him, but making it through the entire tutorial was enough to prove to her that this boy really wanted to try to get stronger and that he wouldn't up and disappear just because things started to get hard. She sat up more straight in her seat on the boat and looked at him with less darting eyes. "I'd say that was enough to prove to me that you aren't a total wimp with a big heart. From here on, things will continue to get difficult. Are you ready to face those challenges in order to become stronger?"

His question about why was not going unanswered, but she felt that there was still more important things to speak about before they talk about that stuff.

[ChaseR 0]

Not having expected her to change the topic once more, he raised his head to look at her somewhat surprised, getting caught off guard. "Hm? Of course.", he replied, giving her a nod and placing his hand on his sword's hilt's end. "I want to clear the game. Backing down isn't an option. If I'm to take time, so be it. I'll do it though. I said we'd be in the frontlines together, so don't die until we get there.", he finished, offering a small smile once more.

His mind then went back to how she just ignored the question, at least for the time being. He wasn't one to push others, so he assumed that it was already quite a bad situation. Unless she offered to speak up on the matter, he wouldn't say anything about it again. "... She's still as focused on the focused on the task as ever. Something's telling me that even during rest, she's just as tense. Then again, when we were eating yesterday...", he thought, looking back on the dry bread he'd shared with her. "No, she was definitely relaxed back then... Man...", he huffed, shaking his head to himself.

[Shay 0]

"I'm too careful to die." She said plainly, taking back that tone that she normally had once again. She looked out to shore, hoping that they would be back there soon enough. Boats weren't her favorite vehicle. "We'll make it to the front lines. It's only a matter of time and dedication."

After that, she sat quietly, thinking of how to answer his question. She couldn't come up with anything that would satisfy his curiosity though. She wasn't entirely sure why she was here, or even why she wanted to make it out.

"I guess..." The raven-haired woman began. "I'm trying to get away." Cryptic with her feelings as ever, that's about all she can manage. He was expecting something more than that, she was sure, but unfortunately that's about all she could grasp. To get away from real life and ignore it as long as possible. Was this life really any better?

[ChaseR 0]

Although Chase wasn't really certain that he could understand what she meant, to an extent... He knew what she was trying to say. "... It's so real you want to live here, right?", he asked her, looking with a nostalgic smile and a sympathetic look on his face. "I told you already, me and Lily wanted to live here too. That's why we bought it.", he reminded her, feeling the same as she did to an extent because of that.

Everything looked and felt so real here. Obviously it was a game, but when you let loose and only did the basics... It was hard to tell this and reality apart. You got used to the flow of things, and eventually, this became your new reality. "What do you think was on Kayaba's mind?", he asked her, taking on a more serious tone and face. "When he made the game."

[Shay 0]

"What use is that question?" She turned to ask once the boat had docked against the pier. She stepped up out of it and helped him out as well, expecting the fisherman to send them on another quest or something completely stupid. "Do you want to sympathize with someone that just left you bareback naked in a forest full of bears and wolves?"

Now that these quests were done, she could easily bring him along on more difficult quests. Best thing to catch him up would be to simply redo the quests that she has already done. By then, he'll be about the same level as her and they'll have an easier time facing bosses since the level difference won't be so marginal. "Next we're going to either kill the Hoya Minotaur, or the Queen Wind wasp. Which do you prefer to do first? Each one is exceptionally easy for me and you."

[ChaseR 0]

The boy shook his head at her when she asked her own question, letting out a deep sigh and getting off the boat too. "No, I don't want to sympathise with him. I just want to know what the point behind making a world is, if you're going to let it burn. He's probably watching us from outside, isn't he?", he asked, seeming to give the matter way too much thought than Shay would, for sure. He rubbed the back of his neck, feeling the conversation was getting awkward before she asked.

Out of both quests, which one to pick, he wondered... A minotaur sounded much less managable than a wasp, so he'd stick to the easier choice, gain some levels and then take the big baddie out. "How about we do the Queen Wind Wasp? A wasp's much easier than a minotaur, so once I have more levels and higher stats, I can take on the minotaur with you. Sound like a plan?", he explained his thought process to her as well, curious to hear her answer.

[Shay 0]

Thinking on the subject, Shay was pretty sure that the Wind Wasp Queen had better stats than the Minotaur did, but hardly by anything that really mattered. However, she did remember that Mari had given her a freebie in that quest and killed it for her. It would be fun to actually fight it herself.

"If you say so. They're both around the same level anyway and I've done both of them, so I already know what to expect from them." Shay mentioned as she started walking back to the Town of Beginnings towards the teleporter. "I'm heading home to craft for now. If you want to tag along, I don't mind. Bring something warm."

Her daily crafting attempts had finally reset, and thankfully that meant that she would be able to make the two of them some healing crystals. She wasn't sure how they worked really, but that wouldn't stop her from using the benefits they provided.

[ChaseR 0]

Chase got caught off guard once more when Shay invited him to her house, unsure how to feel. It certainly wasn't a bad invitation, but it was the first time he'd ever enter a player's real home rather than the dirt cheap inn he had been sleeping in all the way up to now. He was certainly moved, although expressing it would be much easier said than done. 

With a nod, he let out a small smile and agreed to go along, crossing his arms. "I suppose I can stick around for a while. It'd be nice to see a normal house. Thank you.", the boy replied somewhat plainly, although there was a warmth to his voice. He gestured her to lead the way, seemingly much more relaxed than ever. The cold wouldn't be a problem either, given how warm his normal outfit already was. 

[Shay 0]

The teleporter that led to the other floors was in the center of the Town of Beginnings, so it would be a moment before the two of them made it there. He would have to sit there and wait for her to make her crafting attempts before they could go fight the Wasp Queen. It likely wouldn't be that tough of a fight considering that she wasted a song on the cave guardian to help him out. This time she would make a few healing crystals. They could be used if the fight started to fall out of their favor, so holding on to a few of them in her empty inventory wouldn't be a bad idea.

"When I start to make my crafting attempts, you must stay quiet. Polluting the audio can cause the crystals to shatter. It's why I chose such a remote location to put my shop."

[ChaseR 0]

Chase gave her a weird look, as she spoke like her music was something unpleasant to sit through. Back in the fight with the Cave Guardian, he was inspired by the music and much more focused than he normally would have felt. He gave a small smile at her, throwing a joke- which he hadn't really done up to now. 

"You're not really that bad, so it's not that tiring.". In general, he talked much more now than he did before, showing indirectly that he'd grown a lot more comfortable with her, despite it having only been a day. Just the fact their character were similar enough was a good reason he'd taken such a liking to her, if not for the way she'd treated what he would call a coward, hiding behind the lives of so many others fighting for his sake. 

[Shay 0]

Shay made no comment. She knew that she wasn't bad at the piano, that didn't change the fact that she didn't like playing it. It was tedious and took her years to learn, and now even with the help of the system, she still had trouble making successful crafts. She probably had more fingers on one hand than she had created perfect crafts since she started her profession. Granted, she only crafted when she needed those buffs.

"Whatever, just stay quiet while I'm recording." She said as they passed through the barrier into the Town of Beginnings. Going home would be nice after spending hours helping this rookie out. He seemed to be a worthwhile person to invest with. If he ran away like Titan did, however, she was going to kick his little blue ass into next week. She couldn't deal with putting her faith in another person for them to leave her alone again.

Spoiler

Rewards:

SP: 2 Quest(Chase); 1 Page; 1 Event
Col: 400 to ChaseR
- 1 Fish with +1 ACC snack (+1 BD for one Thread) to ChaseR