[PP-F1] Duel in Tolbana Town! (Piera, Lee, and Jomei)COMPLETE

[Lowenthal 0]

The sun in TOlbana town was beginning to set. The orange light covered the small town, making everything bright and orange. Lowenthal opened his menu and sent a duel request to Piera. "Alright, you're up first." The duel rules were set to a 'First hit' duel. It was simple, the first person to land a hit would win. Lowenthal had been on such a losing streak in the tournament, that he didn't mind losing a few more duels. "On second thought." Lowenthal said, switching his gaze over to Jomei. "You're first. And come at me with everything you got." Lowenthal said. "I feel that it's better to watch and learn than trying to do a near impossible task. Don't you agree?" Lowenthal said, a hint of attitude appearing in his voice. Lowenthal sent Jomei a duel invite, set to half Hp.

 

DUEL:

All skills allowed

All armor and weapons allowed

First to half HP loses.

Usage of items: Disallowed

 

Stats:

HP: 50/25

Dmg: 8

Eva: 1

Mit: 1

Acc:1

Extra:

Thorns: On not roll of 6-8 enemy takes 2 points thorn dmg

Keen: When Lowenthal misses, he gains +1 to the Battle Die

Saavy: When Jomei misses, Lowenthal gains +1 to the battle die

[Jomei 0]

Jomei stood off to the side, Piera and Lowenthal standing facing each other. Jomei's arms were crossed as he watched Lowenthal open his HUD menu. He noticed his eyes move to him, and then revealed he wanted to fight him instead. Jomei raised his eyebrow, and his body shifted so his mouth was visible past his scarf, "You want to duel me?" he pointed his finger to his chest. "Well, I guess you're right.." Jomei stepped forward to stand in front of Lowenthal, while lifting up his hand and opening his own menu, scrolling through some menu's to equip his trusty rapier. 

Next to his inventory, a small box popped up, prompting him to accept or decline the Half HP duel from Lowenthal. As his finger hovered in front of the Yes button, his eyes rose up to look at Lowenthal standing across from him. A large smirk appeared on his face as he pressed forward, accepting the duel. Jomei unsheathed his rapier and flared it, swinging it in a figure 8 formation across his body. "You know.. I've been looking forward to this.. Didnt want to have to wait until we met in the Season, ya know" After flaring his sword, he held it in front of him, his other hand grabbing at the small shield off of his back. He looked up to watch the count down.

 

Stats:

HP: 46/23

Dmg: 7

Eva: 2

Mit: 1

Acc:2

Thorns: 1 DMG on roll 6-8

 

3..2..1.. Begin!

Right off the bat, Jomei's eyes flickered with yellow crosshairs over his green eyes for a brief moment. He knew Lowenthal as The Master of Shadows.. which meant he was very good at evading attacks. That being said, he needed to be on point with his attacks, so his <Concentration> skill was going to come in handy. Jomei took off running at Lowenthal with his rapier scraping at the cobblestone path below them. He brought his sword up, slashing at Lowenthal. 

ID: 21825

BD: 4(+2)(-1)(+1 Concentration) = 6

DMG: 7 

 

HP:

Jomei: 46/23

 

Lowenthal: 43/25

[Piera 0]

Piera's eyes went wide as Lowenthal said that she was 'first', before a duel request popped up onto her screen. "Eh?! U-Um...." She hesitated, glancing at Lee before looking back at the dagger user. But then it seemed he had changed his mind and challenged Jomei, saying that it was better for her and Lee to watch and learn. Shrugging, the brunette simply declined the duel request that Lowenthal sent and backed up a bit next to Lee as Jomei accepted the duel. Her mouth opened slightly as the ginger did a very cool flair with his rapier and spoke of being glad for a chance to fight Lowenthan before something called 'Season'. "What do you think 'Season' is?" She whispered to Lee. Then the fight began with Jomei sprinting straight towards the blonde before bringing his rapier to slash at him.

[Lowenthal 0]

Lowenthal half expected some witty banter before the fight actually started. But Jomei went right into it. Lowenthal took a step back, and felt the rapier slash across his chest. "Damn." He said, as he prepared an attack of his own. "Alright, now pay attention you two." lowenthal said to Lee, and Piera. "SAO's combat system works as such. Jomei was able to hit me because the system gave him assistance. The battle system, uses movements." Lowenthal more interested in teaching, than actually fighting at the moment. He would attack Jomei when he would least expect it.

 

 

ID: 21826

BD: 1 (FFS)

 

 

HP:

Jomei: 46|23  ~5/5 Concentration

Lowenthal: 43|25

[Jomei 0]

Jomei smirked as his sword connected with Lowenthal's chest. He really had been waiting to test his new strength against his friend, so despite trying to make this a lesson for their two friends watching... he was going fight seriously. As Lowenthal began to explain some of the mechanics of fighting, Jomei decided to take advantage of the situation and try and make his opponent slip. As Lowenthal spoke, Jomei unleashed a flurry of strikes with his rapier, purposely letting them get deflected or dodged by Lowenthal. When he was done with his statement about movements and the battle system, Jomei thrusted his rapier forward again, piercing Lowenthal in the shoulder. "Hah! I'm sure they'll get it no problem after watching me beat you!"

As Jomei taunted Lowenthal, he flinched a bit. {What was that..?} He looked up at his HP to notice he took a little bit of damage. 

"Thorns huh.."

 

ID: 21830

BD: 7(+2)(-1)

DMG: 7

 

HP:

Jomei: 44|23  ~4/5 Concentration

Lowenthal: 36|25

[Lowenthal 0]

Lowenthal felt the cheap jab enter his shoulder. "Alright. That's it!" Lowenthal said. "You shant beat me again!" Lowenthal called out. Lowenthal popped his <Concentration> skill and rushed at Jomei. He dragged his kunai across Jomei's chest, creating an identical red line that Jomei had left on him. "You already took one thing from me, and I'll be damned you take this victory from me!"  Lowenthal spat out.

 

ID: 21833

BD: 6 (4+3-1)

DMG: 8

 

HP:

Jomei: 38|23  ~4/5 Concentration

Lowenthal: 36|25 ~5/5 Concentration

[Jomei 0]

Jomei grunted as Lowenthal got in close, his eyes looking just as his did moments ago, and scraping his kunai across Jomei's chest. Lowenthal then spoke of Jomei taking something from him. He used his shield to knock Lowenthal's arm out of the way so he could jump back to gain some distance. "What are you talking about? I took something from you?" Jomei was as confused as ever.. He did not remember ever taking anything from his friend, he never would do so in the first place. As much as he wanted Lowenthal to answer, this was still a duel that he was determined to win. Now with thoughts of the two's past on his mind, wondering what his friend was talking about, he lunged forward again with his rapier out. Bypassing his defenses, Jomei was able to give Lowenthal two quick gashes shaped like an acute L on his abdomen. Again, as his sword connected with Lowenthal's body, he felt a throbbing pain in his head that caused his HP to drop a little more. 

 

ID: 21838

BD: 8(+2)(-1) 

DMG: 7

 

HP:

Jomei: 36|23  ~3/5 Concentration

Lowenthal: 29|25 ~5/5 Concentration

[Lowenthal 0]

Lowenthal felt the slashes across his gut, and he dance backwards clutching his wound. Lowenthal stared at Jomei, and quickly brought up his menu. His appearance changed, as an off-white jacket appeared on Lowenthal. "That was the last hit you're getting." Lowenthal said, the coat blowing gently in the wind. Lowenthal rushed forward, his kunai burying itself into Jomei's chest. "That is for stealing her!" Lowenthal said. Lowenthal prepared a second strike, keeping the distance close.

 

 

ID: 21862

BD: 7 (8-2+1)

 

HP:

Jomei: 28|23  ~3/5 Concentration

Lowenthal: 29|25 ~4/5 Concentration

[Jomei 0]

As the white coat settled over Lowenthal's shoulders, Jomei began to sweat a bit out of nerves. He did not know what that coat did exactly.. but he knew that if it was anything like his own, he would be in trouble. As the two clashed again, Jomei could sense a bit of hostility in Lowenthal's voice. Why didnt this seem like a friendly duel anymore. "Lowenthal what're y-Guh" Jomei coughed as Lowenthal's kunai dug into his chest. Apparently Lowenthal seemed upset about a girl.. but who? He coughed, "Her? What the hell are you talking about?!" Jomei clenched at his shield and pressed it forward into Lowenthal's stomach. The shield began to heat up, the metal getting brighter as if being placed into a forge. He began to hear the sizzling of skin and cloth as Lowenthal took minimal damage from the burns. Jomei managed to thrust his shield forward, dislodging the kunai from him. He jumped back to gain some distance, coughing again while holding at the large wound on his chest. 

 

ID: 21864

BD: 6(+2)(-3) Miss

Thorns +1 Dmg

HP:

Jomei: 28|23  ~2/5 Concentration

Lowenthal: 28|25 ~4/5 Concentration

[Lowenthal 0]

Lowenthal pointed his kunai at Jomei. "I mean Ahti!" Lowenthal screamed. "I fell in love with her, and than you came along! You stole her from me!" Lowenthal said, rushing at Jomei. Lowenthal's dagger bounced off of Jomei's shield. Lowenthal stayed close, knowing that the Rapier was primarily a stabbing weapon. Being in close was Lowenthal's sweet spot.

 

 

ID: 21865

BD: 4 (4+2-2)

 

HP:

Jomei: 28|23  ~2/5 Concentration

Lowenthal: 28|25 ~3/5 Concentration

[Jomei 0]

Jomei's eyes widened when Lowenthal mentioned Ahti's name. {W-what? He loved her..?} Jomei wished he'd known that earlier.. he would have never tried to compete with his friend.. someone he, in fact, would even call his brother. He did not even care for Ahti in that way anymore.. but still, to know he caused his friend pain.. Everything seemed to freeze for a moment before Jomei grit his teeth and clenched his fist as tightly as he could. His fist began to glow a golden color as he activated his <Martial Arts> skill. He dropped his shield, gripping at Lowenthal's collar with his open hand. "Don't be a f***ing dumbass!" he yelled as he swung his fist upward, attempting to connect with Lowenthal's jaw. The anger in Lowenthal's comment threw off Jomei's focus, as his punch swung right in front of Lowenthal's face. The force from his attack spun his body around, his open side now facing Lowenthal.

 

ID: 21866

BD: 5(+2)(-3) Miss

 

Jomei: 28|23  ~1/5 Concentration

Lowenthal: 28|25 ~3/5 Concentration

[Lowenthal 0]

Lowenthal let himself get grabbed by Jomei, but was actually surprised that Jomei missed his punch. Lowenthal however, wouldn't stand being man handled like that. He shoved himself off of Jomei. "Are you kidding me!?" Lowenthal retorted. "I mean, who the hell said you could have her! And then you have the gall to treat me like nothing happened!" Lowenthal said, freeing himself from Jomei's grasp.

 

ID: 21867

BD: 5 (3+3-1)

 

HP:

Jomei: 28|23  ~2/5 Concentration

Lowenthal: 28|25 ~2/5 Concentration

[Jomei 0]

Jomei stood with his arms at his side, clenching at his rapier. Jomei's eyes were closed as he listened to Lowenthal yell at him about Ahti. His lips opened to show his grit teeth, soon after his eyes shot open, the yellow crosshairs on his eyes, indicating his <Concentration> skill had finally cooled down. Without saying a word, Jomei stepped forward and shoved his rapier through Lowenthal's chest, knocking his HP below half. Jomei looked Lowenthal in the eyes with furrowed eyebrows, and the crosshairs flickered off. He pulled his sword from his chest and sheathed it. "I did not 'steal' anyone from you... In fact, I doubt Ahti even cared for me." His voice had a bit of anger in it.. bit it was not from learning about his friend loving the girl he was cared for.. it was because he would let something like that possibly get in the way of their friendship, but even more so, he seemed to care more about being with her than the fact that she was no where to be found. He let out a heavy sigh, he was not going to make this any worse. "If you had only said something Lowe.." his voice was much softer as he stepped towards his friend, ".. I would have backed off... honestly... But now she's gone.. and neither of us have any idea where she is.. and we have both moved on. So lets put this thing behind us." He put his fist out confidently to Lowenthal, looking to bump knuckles. 

Meanwhile, the words 'Winner Jomei' flashed in large letters above them, though Jomei seemed to care less about that at the moment. 

 

BD: 21868

BD:6(+2)-3... +1 Concentration = 6

DMG: 7

 

HP:

Jomei: 28|23  

Lowenthal: 21|25 

[Lee 0]

Lee was already taken aback first and foremost as the challenge went from Piera to Jomei. Lowenthal spoke about how watching two advanced players duke it out, it would show them the things they should be aspiring to become and what they were in for. Piera would then beg the question of what he thought a 'Season' would be. "Seems like some sort of fight or tournament." Not even a moment after he had finished, the fight had began. Jomei taking the initiative and lunging first at his foe. 

 

Lowenthal seemed more than helpful in his words, speaking that the game helps the player in their attacks so that things weren't too overly complicated which was plus. Lee admittedly liked Jomei's confidence as he spoke about them learning plenty after he defeated Lowenthal. They seemed evenly matched though something caused Jomei to flinch when seemingly, Lowenthal was not the cause and this was something he would remember. Once again from Jomei's attack he was caused harm and then Lowenthal switching his gear into a jacket of some kind.

 

Lowenthal then spoke of Jomei stealing a 'her' to which Lee's eyes would shift between the two and then lean down only slightly and raise a hand to the side of his mouth as to muffle his words to Piera "Things just got really serious, really fast." The fight only seemed to escilate further from that point, Lee continued to watch the two closely but in the end, a large sign-like victory icon would appear in the air indicated Jomei had emerged victorious.

 

Lee would quickly clap his hands together loudly "Bravo! Congrats! Other words of similar encouragement! One very important and crucial question." He would point at Jomei and then back to Lowenthal "When Jomei hit Lowenthal, Jomei got hurt for what looked like no reason. Is that a skill or glitch or an item?"

[Piera 0]

Piera payed close attention as the battle commenced, listening as Lowenthal explained to them about the game's battle system. Jomei just seemed cocky, and while that was entertaining, she was glad that the dagger wielder was taking the time to explain some of it to them. Her mouth made a slight 'O' shape of comprehension as Lee made a guess as to what the 'Season' was, as it made sense. She only wondered why she hadn't heard of it before. But then again, Floor 1 wasn't always the place to be for the juiciest gossip. It usually trickled back to them at a very slow pace.

 

Then she felt a shift in their demeanor, or at least Lowenthal's as he attacked, saying that Jomei had stolen something from him? When it was further explained that what was stolen was a girl, the brunette's eyebrows raised a bit and she glanced sideways at Lee as he whispered quietly about how fast things had gotten serious. Nodding silently, Piera wondered if this was the reason why Lowenthal had switched the duel to Jomei instead of her.

 

The duel was very close, but in the end Jomei came out on top and she let out a small sigh, though she wasn't completely at ease yet, still waiting to see if Lowenthal would accept Jomei's peace offering. It sounded like this 'Ahti' really did a number on the poor guys. Of course Lee did what he could to break the ice, clapping loudly which prompted her to clap along with him, though noticeably quieter. She snickered at his 'words of encouragement' to the winner. The question he posed to them was interesting, she had noticed but hadn't even thought about it. But she had a question herself. Timidly raising her hand as if she was in a classroom, Piera waited for some sort of acknowledgement before asking, "Can you really attack without a weapon? Like punching or kicking or maybe biting?" She was of course referring to when Jomei attempted to punch Lowenthal, but had missed, so she wasn't sure if it was because you couldn't damage anything without a weapon or if he just missed.

[Lowenthal 0]

Lowenthal gritted his teeth as the fight commenced. He was ducking, and weaving through Jomei's jabs, and just when it seemed that Lowenthal was about to get the advantage he lost. Jomei's rapier had pierced through his chest, draining Lowenthal's life down into the yellow zone and thus ending the duel. Lowenthal fell backwards, clutching his wound and gritting his teeth. He listened to Jomei's words. "The hell? What're you trying to pull?" Lowenthal questioned as Jomei said that Ahti had no feelings for him, Lowenthal not believing a word of it. He listened closer to Jomei's words, apparently she had gone missing and hasn't been seen for the longest time. Lowenthal stood silent, for what seemed like an eternity. Finally he came to his senses, and saw that Jomei had his fist outstretched to him. Lowenthal smiled, and lightly tapped his fist against his friends. "Sorry, bro." Lowenthal apologized.
 
Lowenthal returned to his attention to the two new players. "Alright, did we learn or notice anything?" Lowental asked aloud, assuming the role of teacher. He pointed to Lee when he asked his question. "Good eye, Lee!" Lowenthal complimented. "On my armor, I have a certain enhancement called 'Thorns'." Lowenthal pulled his jacket back to show off his skin tight Shozoko. "This peice has 'Thorns' which means, should someone strike me they'll feel it to. As it will rebound some damage back to them. Kind of a cheap trick, but it makes sure that I'm not the only one who gets punished when I'm hit." Lowenthal explained to Lee.
 
"Anything else? You Piera?" Lowenthal asked her, wondering what she had seen. He looked over at Jomei when she had questioned about using fists. "It seems that one can. Jomei here has a special skill called 'Martial Arts'." Lowenthal said, jerking his thumb at Jomei. "He missed cause he missed. Which is surprising to me, to say the least. How do you miss something that close?" Lowenthal joked alongside Jomei.
 
Lowenthal looked at the two, as he rummaged through his pockets. Lowenthal pulled out a small crystal, reddish pink in colour. "This is a healing crystal." Lowenthal said. "A rather cheap one, but one none the less." Lowenthal then crushed the crystal in his hand. A soft light covered lowenthal, and his HP ducked back up into green. "There are two HP recovery items. There's crystals like the one I used, which can be used instantly. And potions which take some time to drink. Potions are cheaper than crystals, but offer the same effects. Potions just take longer to activate." Lowenthal explained, feeling much better.
 
He looked at Piera and Lee. "You two have any more questions for me or Jomei?" Lowenthal asked, wanting to make sure that they had no questions left. He liked being a teacher. Or at least, being in a teaching position. Perhaps it was something he could do in the real world, after everyone got out of here.
 
27/50 [21+5hp+1hp(out of combat regen)]

[Jomei 0]

After Lowenthal bumped fists with Jomei, he gave his friend a smirk. He hoped Lowenthal truly put this whole thing behind him. It saddened him to know that when Lowenthal said he had 'girl problems' that he himself was the cause of them. He turned around and out a heavy sigh, then he looked up and realized that he really had won the duel.  He really came a long way from when they first met, and he chuckled to himself at the thought of it. He walked back past Lowenthal, to a short wall acting as a fence to a shop. He plopped down on the floor and crossed his legs, that fight had taken a lot out of him. He was not too far from Lowenthal, so he would be able to join in on their conversation with Lee and Piera.

 

Jomei nodded as Lee asked about why Jomei was taking damage without Lowenthal hitting him. Lowenthal told him it was thorns, an enhancement added to different armors. "Not just his armor, my shield also deals Thorns damage whenever its hit with a hard enough attack." His gaze moved to Piera as she asked about being able to attack without weapons. "Yeah. There was a quest that I completed that trained me in the art of unarmed fighting.. Without that skill, you probably would not do much damage to your enemy."

 

When Lowenthal pulled out the healing crystal and used it, Jomei thought about using a healing potion of his own. However, he decided since he was merely going to be sitting off to the side rather than fighting again, he would let the out of battle healing take care of his wounds.

 

Jomei: 29/46 (+1 Out Of Battle)

[Lee 0]

At the knowledge of just what it was that had caused harm to Jomei without even actually having to do anything, Lee's face seemed to light up. The compliment was and even bigger reason for his grin to widen. Praise was always good, especially when it was at him. Lowenthal revealed the piece of armor that had these' thorns' on it and spoke of the simple rule of 'hit me, hurt you'. He then spoke to Piera about Jomei's ability to fight without the use of a weapon and that it was a special skill that had to be unlocked in order to actually be of any use.

 

Jomei then took the time to take a seat off to the side and spoke that it wasn't just armor that could hold these 'Thorns', but shields as well to which he could not contain himself anymore "I Need These In My Life!" He held his hands up in front of himself, his fingers constantly moving as if controlled by some other-worldly being. 

[Piera 0]

Piera's eyebrows raised as Lowenthal explained to Lee the reason why Jomei had flinched and was damaged even though he wasn't attacked. Thorns seemed a pretty useful thing to have and she was immediately reminded of another game who had a similar mechanic with some of their armor. And SAO had it for armor and shields, quite handy. Naturally Lee absolutely smitten, she could just see it in his eyes that he wanted Thorns on everything that he owned or would own in the future.

 

Lowenthal was really good at explaining things simply and the brunette nodded thoughtfully as he explained that attacking without weapons was possible, Jomei had just missed. Then said rapier wielder further elaborated that he had acquired this skill through a special quest and without said skill that unarmed attacks were severely lowered. "That would be extremely useful as a last resort..." She wasn't one for hand to hand combat, but that little skill would definitely give a player an edge and might even be the difference between life and death one day.

 

When Lowenthal took out a rectangular crystal that was light red in color, Piera focused on it as he simply crushed it in his fist and she was about to ask why he did that when he glowed softly and she noticed that his HP bar was a bit fuller than before. Eyes shining and mouth open in rapture, the spear-woman listened intently as he explained about crystals and potions. After he had finished and asked if they had any questions she immediately asked (without even raising her hand), "Can you make those crystals and potions? I know you can buy them from merchants, but is there a way for you to possibly craft them yourself?"

[Lowenthal 0]

Lowenthal looked at Ipera as she gawked at his healing crystal. "Um, actually you could make them. There's a quest called <Earning A living> that'll give you access to a special menu and your very own shop." Lowenthal explained. "Example. I'm actually a tailor, and I have a shop here on the first floor." Lowenthal said, trying to explaining to the best of his abilities. Lowenthal turned his head to Lee and looked at him. Perhaps, he might be as strong as Oikawa one day. Perhaps Lowenthal could get Oikawa to train him.