[SP|F4] <<Feeding Your Enemy>> Befriending

[ChaseR 0]

After lots of preparations and running around shops, Chase's time to get himself a familiar had come. He wasn't even aware of the perks, but... "I-It's like a pet with some stat boosts too, right? It's not like I'll have a human constantly with me, plus... The little fellow I pick up might be my way out of this game for good, too. I should do my best to use that to my advantage, for sure. I can't let this opportunity slip away and go to waste.", he encouraged himself once he'd teleported to the fourth floor, looking around him.

"The quest giver was rumored to be around here now lately...", he thought, not getting enough time to finish before he saw a gypsy by the side with the quest-unique exclamation mark on the top of her head. Talking to her gave him the quest, as well as the food to tame a familiar. With a grin, he looked to the exit of the small town and began to head on over, opening up his inventory and taking a look at all the items he'd packed together. "Let's see... So..."

[ChaseR used a T1 Sakura Dunbu Mochi! (+3 LD)]
[ChaseR used a Familiar Song! (+2LD when looking for a familiar)]
[ChaseR used Pheromones! (+1CD when taming a familiar)]
[ChaseR used a Spyglass charge (2/3)! (Post cooldown for searching for a familiar reduced to 10)]

Spoiler

Name: ChaseR
Level: 20
HP: 400/400
EN: 40/40

Stats:
Damage: 11
Accuracy: 3
LD: 6

Equipped Gear:
Weapon: <<Cloud Cutter>> (T1/Perfect/2HSS): DMG III
Armor: <<Hard Leather Armor>> (Vanity/Light Armor)
Misc: <<Warm Earmuffs>> (T1/Perfect/Trinket): ACC III
<<Silver Earring>> (T1/Perfect/Trinket): LD III

Skills:
Two-Handed Straight Sword [Rank 5]

Extra Skills:

Mods:

Battle Ready Inventory:
Starter Healing Potions(heal 50HP)*3
T1 Sakura Dunbu Mochi (LD 3)*1
Familiar Song*1
Pheromones*1
Spyglass (3/3)*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:

 

Edited July 16, 2020 by ChaseR

[ChaseR 0]

With his sword tightly held in his hand, he stepped out into the unknown territory. It was cold, like he'd remembered from visiting the rogue's shop, but that's alright. His clothes were warm enough to keep him at a good temperature, plus, he never really had that much of a problem with the cold to begin with. The heat though, that was a whole other issue. While traversing through the snow and looking around farther away from the town of the fourth floor, his eyes met with a red pair from a few meters ahead.

It was at that moment that he realised a monster had set its eyes upon him, so with no other choice, he engaged into battle. He'd just mastered his weapon, so even without his conventional armor he was certain he could do a good enough job. "With all these luck buffs, I can do it myself too, I know it!", he grinned, almost quickly getting a battle rush as he prepared his sword to face the wolf that was now in front of him, growling and ready to pounce at any given moment.

ChaseR: HP: 400/400 | EN: 40/40 | DMG: 11 | ACC: 3 | LD: 6
White Wolf: HP: 200/200 | DMG: 60

[ChaseR 0]

Unlike every other encounter, even if it was just as strong as Chase, he was just as strong as it, too. With a confident smile on his face, feeling the adrenaline pump right through his virtual body, he took a deep breath before deciding to try out one of his new moves. Another fearsome tool to use for encounters like this, in terms of damage and effectiveness. "It doesn't stun though... Tch, no matter, first I'll use Tempest and then we'll try the new move out!", he proclaimed, turning his blade to the side and charging right in to slam the flat of his blade onto the wolf.

To his surprise, fighting without his normal armor was actually fairly different. His attack missed all the same, but he didn't feel as mobile with his warm, albeit heavier starter gear, failing to jump back in time and taking a hit right to the dome as the wolf clawed at him. The hit was clean, but it didn't hurt. It only motivated Chase to hit harder next time.

ChaseR: HP: 340/400 (-60) | EN: 38/40 (-2) | DMG: 11 | ACC: 3 | LD: 6
White Wolf: HP: 200/200 | DMG: 60

Edited July 16, 2020 by ChaseR

[ChaseR 0]

With even more motivation to succeed in this battle, he could already feel the rush get to his head. A savage smirk had crossed his face as he itched to hit back twice- no, thrice as hard as before. "This is one of the last battles I'll ever do truly alone too... Then, I'll always have someone reliable with me, even if it's not Shay!", he finished his thoughts with his teeth almost grinding against one another as he attempted to use the same move, except this time it was a downward smash with the flat of his blade on the wolf. Much harder to hit, but if it did...

It would cause the wolf to yelp in shock and get completely stopped under his blade, giving him time to recover and switch up his stance for what would be the finishing blow. And that's exactly what happened. Seeing his chance come up, he grinned even wider, focusing all of his strength on his hands as he raised his sword high into the air.

ChaseR: HP: 340/400 | EN: 29/40 (-10, +1) | DMG: 11 | ACC: 3 | LD: 6
White Wolf: HP: 112/200 (-88) | DMG: 60

Edited July 16, 2020 by ChaseR

[ChaseR 0]

His stance exerted pure confidence, as a terrifying look on his face took over. It was filled with bloodlust, but then again... It was hard for him to convey emotion properly. What was excitement for him was much too terrifying in this case, as he knew this would be the final hurdle he'd need to overcome pushing on through all by himself. After this, he'd have a strong, reliable partner to lean on for every single one of his needs. And the start to that chapter, was none other than a finishing blow with his strongest of moves to add to his arsenal.

Shifting all his weight into his legs, the bluehead heaved and let his instinct take over for a moment, slashing at an angle with all of his might. Some of the snow got blown by the side from the force, as the wolf got split in half before disappearing, the loot window appearing in front of the panting male. "I've grown way too strong... Imagine with my familiar, too.", he mumbled to himself as he began to calm down, smiling out of happiness and childish, giddy excitement.

ChaseR: HP: 340/400 | EN: 17/40 (-13, +1) | DMG: 11 | ACC: 3 | LD: 6
White Wolf: HP: 112/200 (-112) | DMG: 60

Loot: 1 T1 Perfect Armor/Shield, 2 T1 Perfect Consumables, 2 T1 Materials, 1000 Col

Edited July 16, 2020 by ChaseR

[ChaseR 0]

Knowing his limits however, once the battle was over, he decided it'd be best to not go looking for more monsters to test his new sword arts on, but rather to focus on the task at hand and actually look for a familiar. Although he had no clue what type of creatures inhabited this snowy floor, he was certain he could find something fitting enough for him. It was all a matter of knowing where to look, and that... That he did in fact not know too well. 

"Maybe deeper inside of the forest..? I wonder if monsters in this game can travel from one floor to another actually... Can they?", he began to ponder, scratching the back of his head with one hand as he slowly moved through the snow, holding his sword near the white ground with the other. Now that he wasn't into battle though, he kept an eye out for materials around the area nonetheless.

ChaseR: HP: 350/400 (+10) | EN: 18/40 (+1) | DMG: 11 | ACC: 3 | LD: 6

Loot: 1 T1 Perfect Armor/Shield, 2 T1 Perfect Consumables, 2 T1 Materials, 1000 Col

Edited July 16, 2020 by ChaseR

[ChaseR 0]

"I wish there was a list of all the monsters in each floor... Maybe they're randomly generated though, so that would mean a list is impossible, right? It probably is that way... Say, a lot of the 'monsters' here are actually animals instead, with some extra features. Like the swordfish I fought the other day, the wolf just now, the spiders back in the Hoya quest...". The boy had gotten his gears going and that certainly just made him think with excitement about this world. If he had trouble getting immersed into the experience, he didn't have any right now of all times.

He just recently maxed out his mastery of the two handed straight sword weapon type, and that was only one of the reasons he'd gotten so excited for. Sure, a familiar wasn't a substitute for Shay, Lily or any of his worries, but... It'd make the journey much more fun. NPCs could be more than convincing, if that worried mother on the second floor was something to go by from before. With a quick glance at the ground, he made another check for materials. "More stock never hurts~."

ChaseR: HP: 360/400 (+10) | EN: 19/40 (+1) | DMG: 11 | ACC: 3 | LD: 6

Loot: 1 T1 Perfect Armor/Shield, 2 T1 Perfect Consumables, 2 T1 Materials, 1000 Col

Edited July 16, 2020 by ChaseR

[ChaseR 0]

Seeing as it wasn't that lucky of a day even with the stat boosts though, he laughed awkwardly and shrugged it off. It's not like it was going to be a bad day just because he didn't find anything the first few minutes of looking- bad luck was to be expected after all. "It's not like no stock is that bad either...", he joked about it mentally, taking a quick look around, although this time it was for materials as much as it was for any signs of wildlife.

The monsters were active, always interacting with the environment regardless of whether he or another player was there or not. That means they must leave traces behind, for sure. And traces it was that he found- along with a material right next to them, too. "Bingo, animal tracks!", the swordsman chirped as he picked up the material, stashing it away in his inventory and beginning to do his best to quietly follow the tracks.

ChaseR: HP: 370/400 (+10) | EN: 40/40 | DMG: 11 | ACC: 3 | LD: 6

Loot: 1 T1 Perfect Armor/Shield, 2 T1 Perfect Consumables, 3 T1 Materials, 1000 Col

Edited July 16, 2020 by ChaseR

[ChaseR 0]

"W-Wait, animal tracks... I just said some of them are monsters though, uh...", he began an internal monologue on how he was right and wrong at the same time, which ultimately ended in him feeling happy. Happy that he was in such a state, this was the biggest of his worries- whether his wording was right or wrong. Albeit a rocky start with getting himself going in the game, he was getting to experience quite a lot of fun at this point, feeling especially peppy now that he'd had a great fight just earlier and was now on his way to make a new, special friend.

While he kept following the tracks, he kept his eyes out for any materials he could find by the side, although he didn't pay too much attention. His main focus was on finding that pesky little animal, or monster, with the small paws, judging by the marks left in the snow. "I wonder what it will look like... Thinking about it, what can it look like? It can be anything as long as it's not a full on monster, or anybody would have huge dragons or other monsters with them, right..? Maybe... Er..."

ChaseR: HP: 380/400 (+10) | EN: 40/40 | DMG: 11 | ACC: 3 | LD: 6

Loot: 1 T1 Perfect Armor/Shield, 2 T1 Perfect Consumables, 4 T1 Materials, 1000 Col

Edited July 16, 2020 by ChaseR

[ChaseR 0]

Delving further and further into the dense forest with the tracks' assistance, the boy began to see what seemed like a clearing just a few ways ahead. Like so, he kept on going quietly, taking a deep breath as he approached it more and more and making sure to keep his steps as silent as possible. He peeked into the clearing, although that wasn't really enough. Bracing himself, he stepped into it and hoped for the best, that some familiar would happen to be there waiting for him- although probably not with open arms.

It was at that moment that he scanned the ground, seeing various patches of snow here and there. Out of one though, a little pangolin with white and blue scales came out, looking up at him almost in a battle-ready stance. "That's a familiar, I found one! Now to tame it... It's going to be aggressive, so like the gypsy said, try to calm it down with the food..."

ChaseR: HP: 390/400 (+10) | EN: 40/40 | DMG: 11 | ACC: 3 | LD: 6

Loot: 1 T1 Perfect Armor/Shield, 2 T1 Perfect Consumables, 4 T1 Materials, 1000 Col

Edited July 16, 2020 by ChaseR

[ChaseR 0]

The boy looked at the little fellow, which seemed to have burrowed under one of the patches beforehand, resting. Of course, that was all until he came here and ruined everything for the pangolin- he wasn't planning on doing that for long though. He wanted to get close to it, tame it and make it his partner. "I don't want to harm you. Look.", he said as he took out some of the food from the small pouch the woman had given him, holding it out on his palm for the bewildered animal to see.

At first, his offer went by with silence. Not even a growl, a hiss, or whatever noise this monster could make. After an intense stare-down however, it began to approach and extended its tongue from its mouth to lick at the food, calming down as it took all of it. The childish excitement returned to Chase, seeing the familiar accept his gift as taming it worked right off the bat, even if he didn't expect it to.

ChaseR: HP: 400/400 | EN: 40/40 | DMG: 11 | ACC: 3 | LD: 6

Loot: 1 T1 Perfect Armor/Shield, 2 T1 Perfect Consumables, 4 T1 Materials, 1000 Col

Taming: Success!

Edited July 16, 2020 by ChaseR

[ChaseR 0]

As the little monster completely calmed down, Chase took it up on his hands and quietly looked at it, only for it to lick at his cheek in return. It wasn't big enough to be considered a threat, and it was just small enough that he could pick it up with ease, carry it around and even let it rest on his shoulder if it could get a good enough grip and balance itself there. "Hey little buddy. We're going to head back to the town for now, okay?", he told it, although he certainly had his doubts about whether or not it could even understand what he was saying- probably not, but that made no difference to him really. 

With that, he kept it in one of his hand, stashing the familiar food back into his inventory with the other and gripping his sword tightly once more, starting to backtrack his way out of the forest as he hummed lowly. "It's almost blue too... Kinda like me, huh? A fitting partner then~.", the boy's happy thoughts continued, as he swung his head left and right a bit while exiting the forest.

 

ChaseR: HP: 400/400 | EN: 40/40 | DMG: 11 | ACC: 3 | LD: 6

Loot: 1 T1 Perfect Armor/Shield, 2 T1 Perfect Consumables, 4 T1 Materials, 1000 Col

[ChaseR 0]

"Say... I heard some rumors while doing the quests around the second and third floor about 'treasure' around any densely populated parts, at least with monsters. Maybe I could find one to make this moment an even better memory, hm?", the swordsman grinned, looking down at the little pangolin which he'd eventually have to name. It looked back up in confusion, its scales shining just slightly when met with a very faint light through all the foliage. "I've an idea for us two before we head back."

He proclaimed, starting to head where he knew some monsters would lurk, but that was alright. He wasn't planning on putting the new friend he just made in any danger, he'd let it stay behind him and take cover while he took care of them. And maybe then, he'd hopefully find a chest with even more goodies than before to commemorate this meeting of him and the new familiar he just acquired.

 

ChaseR: HP: 400/400 | EN: 40/40 | DMG: 11 | ACC: 3 | LD: 6

Loot: 1 T1 Perfect Armor/Shield, 2 T1 Perfect Consumables, 4 T1 Materials, 1000 Col

[ChaseR 0]

Before he had too much time to think about the possibilities, he was near the outskirts of the forest and could see a pair of red eyes staring him down just like before. Probably another snow wolf like the last. He had his doubts about letting the pangolin out of his sight though, deciding to make this somewhat harder on himself to ensure its safety. He placed it on the top of his head, watching it latch on with a grin on his face. "I know you can't understand me, but... I'll take care of this. Just hold on and don't worry, okay?"

Once he'd assured his friend of its safety, he averted his gaze to the wolf once more, gripping his sword with both hands. This time he'd use Tempest, but in a different way than every other time. Probably one that would bring him closer to the monster, but it'd put him in a much better position to use his next move right away, in order to chain them together and go for a swift kill.

 

ChaseR: HP: 400/400 | EN: 40/40 | DMG: 11 | ACC: 3 | LD: 6
White Wolf: HP: 200/200 | DMG: 60

Loot: 1 T1 Perfect Armor/Shield, 2 T1 Perfect Consumables, 4 T1 Materials, 1000 Col

[ChaseR 0]

This time, he kept his sword's blade almost behind him, taking a charging stance and not taking long before rushing right at the monster. Sure, the snow slowed him down, but he had too much momentum to take long to get there. Once he was there, he shifted his grip so that the pommel was headed right for the monster, specifically its head in order to slam it right in and give the stun a much stronger effect. The damage might be lower, but the stun should work just as well all the same.

The wolf got struck right between the eyes, letting out a confused howl and jumping back, although losing its balance and not getting too far away. This gave the bluehead the perfect opportunity to finish what he started, although his movements were much calmer than usual so that the familiar wouldn't get knocked off of him and placed in harm's way.

ChaseR: HP: 400/400 | EN: 30/40 (-10) | DMG: 11 | ACC: 3 | LD: 6
White Wolf: HP: 112/200 (-88) | DMG: 60 (STUNNED)

Loot: 1 T1 Perfect Armor/Shield, 2 T1 Perfect Consumables, 4 T1 Materials, 1000 Col

Edited July 16, 2020 by ChaseR

[ChaseR 0]

In order to practice his strongest move, he decided it was time to use it once more. With all the momentum, he quickly shifted his grip once more on his heavy blade and raised it to the air, giving it an angle with all his force going back up into his arms as he planted his legs a few inches deep in the snow. With a heave, the boy slashed downwards at the wolf in hopes that this combo of his would work perfectly, just as it'd worked last time- given he did miss the first attempt at stunning the wolf.

Saying it worked was an understatement. The attack landed just fine, tearing through the monster which shattered into pieces just moments after Chase pulled his blade out of the other side, grinning while the loot window appeared. He let go of his weapon with a single hand, picking the pangolin up slowly from his head and looking at it. "Are you okay, little fellow? Not too shook, are you?", he joked with a smile, watching it simply tilt its head in confusion once more.

ChaseR: HP: 400/400 | EN: 19/40 (-13, +1) | DMG: 11 | ACC: 3 | LD: 6
White Wolf: HP: 0/200 (-112) | DMG: 60

Loot: 1 T1 Perfect Armor/Shield, 3 T1 Perfect Consumables, 1 T1 Rare Trinket, 6 T1 Materials, 2000 Col

Edited July 16, 2020 by ChaseR

[ChaseR 0]

Of course the familiar wouldn't understand. Maybe it got a few words here and there, but especially seeing as it was a wild monster up to a few minutes ago, it'd probably take a fair bit of effort getting it to learn to communicate with him in very basic ways. It would still have some ways of getting a message across, but... Chase didn't really know anything similar. "C-Come think of it, I barely know what the species is called... I wonder how I'll get to teaching it how to help me out or understand anything I say. It's a game though, so there has to be a way, right?"

He began to wonder if he could do some quest to talk to it or learn how to teach it tricks, considering 'game logic' applied everywhere but here. With a shake of his head, he closed the loot window and sheathed his sword, albeit keeping a hand on its hilt to have it at the ready. 

 

ChaseR: HP: 400/400 | EN: 20/40 (+1) | DMG: 11 | ACC: 3 | LD: 6

Loot: 1 T1 Perfect Armor/Shield, 3 T1 Perfect Consumables, 1 T1 Rare Trinket, 6 T1 Materials, 2000 Col

[ChaseR 0]

With the idea about the treasure chest in mind, he decided that they should linger around the forest's outskirts for a while longer. Maybe like that, they'll find something, even though he didn't know what one looked like, so chances of spotting it in this snowy mess were slim as is. The lighting coming from the sky was dim due to all the clouds after all, so he didn't expect much to come out of it- even so, it had been a great attempt, and success, at finding a familiar. "We'll steer clear of any more monsters, so don't worry. You can stay on my shoulder if you'd like."

He told his familiar, watching it blink a few times before deciding to stretch. As much as he wanted it to help him in battle somehow, he was more so immersed in its ordinary behavior. It was a wild monster until he fed it and tamed it, but now it was acting more like a household pet in his eyes. And an unusual one at that, too. "How can it even help me in the first place..? Unless uh... Game logic. Maybe?"

 

ChaseR: HP: 400/400 | EN: 21/40 (+1) | DMG: 11 | ACC: 3 | LD: 6

Loot: 1 T1 Perfect Armor/Shield, 3 T1 Perfect Consumables, 1 T1 Rare Trinket, 6 T1 Materials, 2000 Col

[ChaseR 0]

With a sigh and a shrug from the boy, the familiar decided to try climbing onto his armor with its claws, making its way onto his shoulder and settling itself there. It wasn't the most comfortable spot, but given its dimensions and firm grip around his shoulder with its claws, it did the job properly. Now that it had found a spot to sit on and rest for the time being, the swordsman got a chance to do his favorite task when travelling and looking for nothing in particular- searching for materials!

Of course, he didn't find anything, but he was just wandering about the outskirts of a fairly dense forest. There was more light now, but when it came to a faintly glowing object, it was probably going to be hard to spot them anyways. That aside... He should try to find a treasure chest by now. It was nice, stocking up on supplies for more crafts of his, but he didn't want to miss the chance for better treasure now.

ChaseR: HP: 400/400 | EN: 22/40 (+1) | DMG: 11 | ACC: 3 | LD: 6

Loot: 1 T1 Perfect Armor/Shield, 3 T1 Perfect Consumables, 1 T1 Rare Trinket, 6 T1 Materials, 2000 Col

Edited July 16, 2020 by ChaseR

[ChaseR 0]

And like so, he decided to focus on it. He tried to clear his mind and kept an open eye while looking as best as he could, in hopes that he'd find some abandoned chest under all the piles of snow. Perhaps it'd be next to him and he just wouldn't have noticed, or maybe it'd be sitting at the base of a tree, forgotten and waiting to be opened. Only luck would tell however, as not knowing what he was looking for in the first place didn't make his job any easier. "L-Let's see... A chest, eh? So it'd look like..."

And then he saw it. In the distance, a chest waited for him under a few trees and behind some bushes even. If it weren't for the metal lock on it reflecting some of the light that fell on it, he wouldn't have noticed it. "Like that!", he cried out and got the attention of his familiar as he ran towards it, crouching and opening it up to see what was inside.

ChaseR: HP: 400/400 | EN: 40/40 | DMG: 11 | ACC: 3 | LD: 6

Loot: 1 T1 Perfect Armor/Shield, 3 T1 Perfect Consumables, 1 T1 Rare Trinket, 6 T1 Materials, 2000 Col

Edited July 16, 2020 by ChaseR