(PP-F1) Unfolding Stories (Shizua)

[Ayumu 0]

“We’re all stories, in the end.

Just make it a good one, eh?”

- Doctor Who

 

Today the Town of Beginnings was abuzz for some reason. People weaved in and out of the markets, shops were busy, and it was rather crowded. To add to the commotion, the sun blazed down on top of them, extra hot, with no cloud or any signs of overcast in the sky. Ayumu didn't care though. Some might've been rather perturbed by a situation like this, and to be honest with herself, she most likely would have as well on an average day. Something was different today. Instead of focusing on levelling up and continue planning her strategy to beat this game, she was content with casually and carelessly enjoying the floor. As Ayumu carefully strolled through the little town, doing her best not to bump into anyone or step on their heels, she kept her eyes peeled for empty shops waiting for someone to sell their goods in it. She had started the profession as a Blacksmith, and was thinking of opening her shop soon.

Her mind's focus was split, looking for a good shop to reside her craftsmanship in, and musingly in herself - her thoughts rather aimlessly churning in her mind, producing deep but rather pointless thoughts. Eventually, her mind decided to only focus on one of these aspects...the latter, to be exact. Ayumu involuntarily stopped paying attention to what was around her, residing sole in her mind.

I feel like I've reached...a new chapter, of sorts. Was one of her thoughts. I'm only at a low level, and I haven't accomplished much...but I've learned quite a bit. Its like I'm paving the road that myself in the near future will tread upon, following the path to the exit of this place. Hopefully I'll finish that road soon, so I can race down it to freedom.

(OOC: would you rather this take place before or after the other thread we've been doing. I guess it would make more sense to place it afterwards. XD)

[Shizua 0]

(Yeah, afterwards sounds good.)

Shizua was bored. Not the sort of bored where somebody has lost inspiration for something, or doesn't have the energy to work, but the sort where there is painfully and honestly nothing to do. She had been training and grinding for three full days, and she was still very, very low level. "Why is there nothing to do in this world...?" She groaned under breath as she trudged through the Town of Beginnings. Unlike Ayumu, Shizua was not watching where she was going, and ended up colliding into someone, who had their back turned.

"A- ack..!" Shizua squeaked, looking up to see who she bumped into. "H- hey... Ayumu...?" She asked, cocking her head to the side slightly.

[Ayumu 0]

"Woah!" she stumbled back a little, then finding her footing, "Oh! Well hey yourself Shizua!" she smiled a little, "sorry I didn't see you coming. I had one of those weird moments where I was actually using my brain to think about things. Rare, I know - but still. How are you? I haven't seen you since our last hunting adventure," Ayumu asked. "Are you doing anything today? As for me, I've just been strolling around, trying to find a good place to set up my Blacksmith shop once I finish the quest to start that profession. I have the materials, but now I have to craft something. I'm not sure where I would set up my store either...whether on the first floor, or on another one of the ten floors. Enough about all that though, fill me in on you. What's up?"

[Shizua 0]

Shizua nodded slowly, listening to the information about what Ayumu had been up to since they last met. "...Hm.. I see... I haven't done any quests yet, so I don't have the foggiest idea what I'd wanna do.." She said, a frown playing onto her lips for a few moments, before returning to a small smile. "Um... me.. Hm.." She thought for a moment. "I... haven't really done much, to be honest... Just sorta... moped around." She said, sighing. "Just the laziness kicking in, I guess... As for your shop, are you going to be catering to the weaker players, or are you going to set up to help the people on the front lines..?" She asked, her gaze shifting from the redhead's eyes to the ground, then back periodically. Her hand moved quickly, going to readjust her glasses, making sure they were aligned correctly.

[Ayumu 0]

"I totally understand. Honestly, moping around sounds nice," she couldn't help but laugh a little, "I would do the same if I wasn't trying to quickly level up. Maybe I should slow down a little," then, tapping her to chin as she thought about Shizua's latter question, "you know...I'm not really sure. Whoever I can attract to my shop, I guess. I haven't really thought about that. It all depends how it goes." Ayumu shrugged. "Anyways, are you off to do something important, because if not, I wouldn't mind some company. I don't really have an agenda today, so I'd be cool with hanging out. It's funny, some of these NPCs are busier than players are! I'd be lying if I said today was eventful for me. Floor one is just so nice to relax on."

[Shizua 0]

A soft smile came to Shizua's lips, and she nodded. "Well, from a monetary standpoint, I would think it'd be much more profitable to cater to the frontliners.. Still, it's your choice. I'm sure you and your shop'll end up great." She said, giving a nod to show her approval. After Ayumu gave her second question, Shizua became a bit surprised. "You'd... like me as company..?" She asked, this being the first real time somebody had asked her to hang out or be with them other than hunting. "Well... I'd love to. I'm just kind of... wandering around, seeing what I can find... But other than that, I'm free, so yeah~!" She said, her smile turning into a full grin. "What would you like to do?"

[Ayumu 0]

When Shizua showed surprise to her question, Ayumu chuckled a little.

"Of course I'd want you for company! Why not? We're both bored, so we might as well do something!" after Shizua asked what she wanted to do, she shrugged, "I'm up for anything really...maybe not hunting though, at least not today. We could explore the floor a little, search for mats, or maybe do a quest. Whatever you're thinking is fine with me. We might as well have some kind of fun while we can, since once we get to higher levels its all fighting on the front lines and such. Low level players like us get the privilege of taking it easy, casually going through the game and building their skills," she started walking with the girl, "we could pretty much do whatever we want right now. While I'm anticipating the day when I'm actually at a good level, I'd enjoy just taking it easy today."