Sotarou

Michael heard the words that Kylissia had spoken... but they only barely registered in his head as he kept thinking about scenarios and whatnot, why this girl out of everyone decided to come with him in the first place... was he singled out...? He'd heard of women like this in the real world, older women who prey on the younger guys... cougars, they were called...? But everything he'd heard, they were MUCH older... Kylissia couldn't be much older than... what... early 30s? Late 20s? Certainly older than him, but definitely not those 50+ year cougars. So probably not that... but then... why...?

After walking some time, suddenly a raised root of a tree caught under Sotarou's unwatching eye and caught him unawares, causing him to tumble forward, hitting the ground hard... "OOF!" He hit the ground hard... as he lay there groaning from the sudden wind knocked out of him, his eyes opened, noting... a treasure chest tucked neatly underneath the tree that had tripped him! "Ugh... well... at least the pain was worth it... found a treasure chest..."

It wasn't so much her calling him Sota-kun as much as the WAY she said it... something about it... Sotarou felt a little... off by it. He hadn't really thought much about girls growing up, his responsibilities were always on the forefront of his mind. But since coming to this place, those responsibilities were more in the back of his mind, reminders of his dog, of his dad, of the forge back home... and yet here he was now, those thoughts pushed back and all he could think to say was "I-I'm okay! Perfectly fine! Just... y-you threw me off a bit there... calling me Sota-kun..." He seemed a fair bit fidgety after that... "L-let's just... let's just keep moving, yeah?" The nervousness in his voice was VERY apparent! That confident Samurai was long gone now, replaced with a timid 'boy'. Though calling him a boy was a stretch, considering he was 20 years old...

Sotarou continued to lead the way along the path in the hopes of finding a lead to a Familiar he could befriend... but he was getting distracted by the thoughts racing in his head...
Does she like me like that?
Nah, can't be. She's way too out of my league...
But what if?
What about it?
Well, if she does like us like that, wouldn't it be nice to know?
Come on, we've only just met today! These feelings you have... they're not actual love! You have to focus!
But she's so prettyyyyy...
FOCUS! If we lose focus, we die! Then we don't get to even think about how pretty she is!

There seemed to be SOME manner of internal dialogue going on in his head as he seemed to almost be spacing out but just continuing on the path like he was paying attention... as the saying goes, the lights are on, but nobody's home.

"Sota-kun~"

Sotarou literally faltered just as Kylissia woulda finished the wolf off! Had she not finished it off, he likely woulda been dog chow from how hard he had froze from that nickname! "Wh-wha..." His previous hardened demeanor and dour mood gave way to embarrassment apparent, complete with a bright flush on his face. "O-o-okay, then...!"

This... was something he wasn't used to having happen to him. Girls never really paid attention to him in school, so... what was Kylissia thinking here...? Did she like him...? His embarrassment was increasing more and more by the second as different thoughts raced through his head... what the hell... he shook his head a bit. "S-sorry about that. Uhh... well, I guess... I guess we finished up here, then...?" He looked around a bit, his eyes every now and again being drawn back to Kylissia, but he was quick to turn his attention back to scanning the area... surely there was something other than a beautiful woman to look at...?

The wolves came. And they both hit pretty decently. He winced, but they were hits his armor was well equipped to handle. He quickly turned to let the most of the bite force be a scrape than a chomp. "Not today, pups." He quickly sheathed his blade as he finished his turn away from the wolves. "And another turn. Mangetsu!" The Fuko spin he'd done, his natural turn away from the wolves was the exact opposite, which he leaned into said spin, letting his blade turn and attempt to cleave into the two remaining wolves.
The first hit this fight left both these wolves decent marred by the damage of the blade. But the first wolf there was hurt even worse, and so the combo attack finishes it off handily. The second wolf was slightly more durable, but only slightly as the wolf had a large gash of pixels in its torso, while just BARELY hanging on! "Tougher than you look. You wish to finish it, Kylissia? Actually... that name feels a little bit of a mouthful to say each time. Mind if I call you Kyli?" Look at this guy! Midst of combat, and he was just still having a casual talk as if it were a normal afternoon stroll! It's not exactly clear if it's the crafts he wears, or his skill. Probably a mix of both, however he was looking like he was actually having the time of his life now! As opposed to his previously dour mood as the pair had left the city.

AoE-I: 5x3=15 Damage to Roaring Wolf 5 and 6, 5 Energy Cost for 2 successful hits with technique. Roaring Wolf 5 killed.
Loot: 216 Col, 1 Rare Trinket

[3] Sotarou | Lv. 3 | HP: 48/60 | EN: 14/24 | DMG: 5 | ACC: 2 | EVA: 1 | MIT: 6 | LD: 2
[0] Kylissia | Lv. 1 | HP: 19/20 | EN: 15/20 | DMG: 7 | MIT: 12 | THORNS: 9 | LD: 3

                  Enemies:

Roaring Wolf #5| HP: 0/36 | DMG: 12 | MIT: 0 | EVA: 0
Roaring Wolf #6 | HP: 3/36 | DMG: 12 | MIT: 0 | EVA: 0
Roaring Wolf #7 | HP: 0/36 | DMG: 12 | MIT: 0 | EVA: 0
Roaring Wolf #8 | HP: 0/36 | DMG: 12 | MIT: 0 | EVA: 0

Sotarou just looked weirdly at Kylissia as the pair began their trek to another area of the floor. "Uhh... did you already forget I was looking specifically for a Wolf or Dire Wolf-like creature to pair with? The whole leaving Koba behind in the real world thing...?" He just sighs. "It's fine if you forgot... we've all been in here for ages now... and it's difficult even, for me, to remember the real world... we've just been doing everything in here and gotten so used to it... I wonder... if we ever get out of here, will we keep forgetting we're in the real world and trying to pull up our menus? Heh..." He was just imagining trying to do the same sort of crafting he did here in the real world... his dad would have a FIT! He gave a very loud laugh at that! As he did so, a twig snap and snarling was heard nearby! Familiar snarling. Seems the prevalent mob in this place was Roaring Wolves. Sotarou immediately went into his horse stance and readied Sokuchi for a fight! "Well, that was short-lived. Let's get through this quickly. We're out in the open, I don't wanna encounter any other adds while we fight these things!" Those words spoken, he immediately ran towards the sound of the snarling, encounter another pack of Roaring Wolves. He quickly spun around as he met with the pack...! This was probably a bad idea... but he could take a few hits. "Fuko!" As he spun, he drew his blade from its sheathe in one fluid motion and cleaved towards all the wolves!
The first two wolves ran right into the very sharp blade, the strike dealing them some massive damage! The third one managed to avoid the strike, but the 4th wasn't fast enough, not realizing their prey was likely to strike back, and got clipped just by the edge of the blade as it tried to get away! A SOLID hit! The sudden appearance and attack of Sotarou did also throw the Wolves off quite a bit, causing them to stagger and not be able to immediately attack the nimble Samurai! "Feeling MUCH better now! Back in the swing of it!"

[2, 2, 0, 1] Sotarou | Lv. 3 | HP: 60/60 | EN: 17/24 | DMG: 5 | ACC: 2 | EVA: 1 | MIT: 6 | LD: 2
[0, 0, 0, 0] Kylissia | Lv. 1 | HP: 20/20 | EN: 20/20 | DMG: 7 | MIT: 12 | THORNS: 9 | LD: 3

AoE-I: 5x3=15 Damage to Roaring Wolf 4, Crit 6x3=18 Damage to Roaring Wolf 2, Crit+1 7x3=21 Damage to Roaring Wolf 1, 7 Energy Cost for 3 successful hits with technique

Roaring Wolf #5 | HP: 15/36 | DMG: 12 | MIT: 0 | EVA: 0
Roaring Wolf #6 | HP: 18/36 | DMG: 12 | MIT: 0 | EVA: 0
Roaring Wolf #7 | HP: 36/36 | DMG: 12 | MIT: 0 | EVA: 0
Roaring Wolf #8 | HP: 21/36 | DMG: 12 | MIT: 0 | EVA: 0

(( Staff, please ignore the attacks from the wolves here. I flubbed and accidentally had the wolves attack me, but forgot they don't go until the second person's turn... GOMENNASAI!!! ))

Sotarou nodded to Kylissia's words. "Hence my focusing. And I can fell a tree no problem, but again. You said it yourself, it's all about precision. My strike was off-center, which damaged the tree. A weapon can be a tool if you know it inside and out." He holds the Katana out in front of him, examining it in earnest. "I know all my blades, because I craft them myself. Both Sokuchi here, as well as Raikiri. I know Sokuchi can handle the stresses of striking a tree. Raikiri wouldn't have the precision to handle such a feat." He takes one last look around the area a bit. "Well, seems luck is out on this spot. Guess we should see about another spot, then? This can't be the only spot the Roaring Wolves spawn at." He sheathed his blade and quickly adjusted his gear once more, making sure he had his Lucky Straights bracelet on and ready to go for this excursion. A silver bracelet with a black pearl centerpiece now adorned his left wrist. He needed to feel a little luckier today...

Sotarou gave a nod to Kylissia. "Fair enough, I suppose." At the same time, he was already going between the trees to find a good one to turn into Material. Can't be too big it might not work, but can't be too small that it would literally give nothing. After finding a smaller tree whose truck was about twice as thick as his forearm, he nodded. He took a few steps back from the tree and got into his horse stance. He took a breath... he had all the time in the world... no danger... no fear... no worry... his heartbeat was slowing back to a normal pace... resting heart rate... he could feel it... focusing on it, he could hear it echoing in his ears... thu-thump... thu-thump... thu-thu- on the beat, he had dashed forward and drawn his Katana in one swift motion... before sheathing the blade once more in its scabbard...

As he sheathed his blade, the tree pixelated and disappeared... leaving nothing behind. He groaned. "I'd been practicing that technique, too... not clean enough of a cut..."

"Are you alright? You're not too rattled, are you?"

Sotarou gave a sigh as he sheathed his Katana again. He gave Kylissia a nod. "I'm alright... just... this was the annoyance I had dealt with the last time I had done this solo. Just me and the enemies all missing each other over and over again... dragged on forever... it was kinda why I asked you to come with. I didn't know your armor had Thorns, though. So that definitely helped to speed things up. But you do seem to have trouble holding aggro. I could make you a weapon to help with that, if you'd like." He took a calming breath afterwards and looked towards where the Wolves had spawned. "Might be wishful thinking, but I typically like to search spawn locations to see if treasure shows up at all. Watch my back real quick."

After searching the spot for a couple minutes, Sotarou returned, sighing wistfully. "Wishful thinking on my part. Oh well." He looked back to Kylissia. "So. This place was a bust. You wanna wait and rest up a bit? Get some hit points and energy back? I can take some time and chop a tree down to get some material and whatnot. Smithing doesn't just use metal alone, after all."

Sotarou was still not reliable with the Quick Change system, but he figured it was an important tool! So Raikiri, before it could fully start glowing for the sword skill, swapped once more into the familiar Sokuchi. It then began to glow and Sotarou attempted ONCE AGAIN to strike at this wolf! Drawing the blade out of its sheathe for another skill, he called the name again: "Hakaze!" But for SOME REASON... some divine, all-seeing viewer from above decided that this wolf wouldn't die by our hands directly... because it had been bashing itself into Kylissia's thorns damage, which was the only thing that had harmed this wolf so far! "You've gotta be- what is this, Spider-Wolf or something!? Sit still, you mangy mutt!" What happened to being calm and focused...? This was getting aggravating... but the best thing he could do is just to either let it kill itself, or maybe Kylissia would get lucky and finish this thing off... at this point, he didn't care if it was him or Kylissia that finished it. If this thing finished itself only due to the Thorns damage, he was going to be MADLY pissed!

[0] Sotarou | Lv. 3 | HP: 52/60 | EN: 15/24 | DMG: 5 | ACC: 2 | MIT: 6 | EVA: 1 (Quick Change Used: Swap Raikiri for Sokuchi) (Quick Change Cooldown: 3 Turns)
[0] Kylissia | Lv. 1 | HP: 14/20 | EN: 10/20 | DMG: 7 | MIT: 12 | THORNS: 9 | LD: 3

                  Enemies:
 

Roaring Wolf 3: HP 9/36 | 12 DMG

The wolf spun like crazy with Kylissia's last attack! Hopefully it being dizzy would help with Sotarou's strike! Another technique is called out to the strike: "Hakaze!" A pair of strikes lashed out at the wolf... but Sotarou did have a little more frustration as to the fact of each of us missing like crazy... this was getting out of hand now... he then had a memory from his childhood, one where his dad was teaching him proper techniques to wield a Katana... he remembered being hit in the head with the wooden blade, and his father chastised him about being too reckless! Wild swings would just miss wildly... focus was necessary to wield the Katana with efficiency and grace... it wasn't a brutish weapon, it was a graceful dance partner. If you just swung your dance partner heavily around the place, it would never find its mark! Remembering that, he took a calming breath... and prepared to try again, in case Kylissia missed her strike. He sheathed his blade and it started glowing just a little bit...

[0] Sotarou | Lv. 3 | HP: 52/60 | EN: 16/24 | DMG: 4 | ACC: 0 | MIT: 6 | EVA: 1 (Quick Change Cooldown: 1 turns remain)
[0] Kylissia | Lv. 1 | HP: 15/20 | EN: 11/20 | DMG: 7 | MIT: 12 | THORNS: 9 | LD: 3

                  Enemies:
 

Roaring Wolf 3: HP 18/36 | 12 DMG

Sotarou witnessed this woman take out one of the remaining wolves... and he took the dialogue moment to try and get a sneaky hit in from behind. "Hakaze!" The blade went forward and thrust fast and hard towards a vital spot on the wolf.

His aim was nice and true... but the wolf just barely noticed and dodged out of the way of his attack! "Oh come on! This is getting ridiculous! I've only hit twice today! Do I need to swap back to my Sokuchi...? Probably better to start with Raikiri, then swap to Sokuchi after... I'm still figuring out sword-swapping..." He just grumbled as he lamented his failure to finish this beast off! "You're probably having more luck than me today... this one's probably your kill..." He would still be ready to attack if she missed, of course... but she seemed to be doing better in the attacking department... such was life.

[1-0] Sotarou | Lv. 3 | HP: 52/60 | EN: 17/24 | DMG: 4 | ACC: 0 | MIT: 6 | EVA: 1 (Quick Change Cooldown: 2 turns remain)
[0-0] Kylissia | Lv. 1 | HP: 15/20 | EN: 11/20 | DMG: 7 | MIT: 12 | THORNS: 9 | LD: 3

                  Enemies:

Roaring Wolf 2: HP 0/36 | 12 DMG
Roaring Wolf 3: HP 18/36 | 12 DMG

"Sotarou, look out!"

Too late, as the quick wolf was speedy and hungry! And it landed a very clean blow against Sotarou's arm! He managed to pull it free from the grasp, but it left a pretty neat gash! Luckily, his armor was plated enough to avoid losing the arm entirely! "Damn! Not cool! Bad puppy!" Sotarou quickly sheathed his blade, it disappearing before a separate blade manifested right where the original had been. (( Quick Swap Effect Used: Sokuchi exchanged for Raikiri )) He grabbed the new blade, jumping into the air and right in between the two remaining wolves! "Aaaaarrrrgh! Mangetsu!" As he landed between them, he spun in a 360-degree arc, his blade drawn from its sheathe. As he did so, it crackled with a bit of electricity.

The wolves were faster than his arc, however. Especially with the time he took to draw his new sword... the Raikiri arc'd alright, but both wolves were just too quick and this forest was too dense. The blade twanged against a tree trunk, allowing the attack to wobble and be unreliable in its strikes... it could be any number of reasons the attack didn't work. But it all culminated in Sotarou failing his offense... once again.

[1-0-0] Sotarou | Lv. 3 | HP: 52/60 | EN: 18/24 | DMG: 4 | ACC: 0 | MIT: 6 | EVA: 1 (Quick Change Cooldown: 3 turns remain) (Equip Swap: Sokuchi to Raikiri)
[0-0-2] Kylissia | Lv. 1 | HP: 16/20 | EN: 13/20 | DMG: 7 | MIT: 12 | THORNS: 9 | LD: 3

                  Enemies:

Roaring Wolf 2: HP 21/36 | 12 DMG
Roaring Wolf 3: HP 27/36 | 12 DMG

"Sotarou, I've got their attention, strike them now!"

He didn't need to be told twice! Grasping the blade while still sheathed on his hip, his low horse stance was poised to strike! Dashing forward and unsheathing his blade in one fluid motion, a huge gust of wind erupted from the blade and almost looked like smaller blades forming a cone to slash all the wolves in front of him, leaving Kylissia intact! "Iai Style: Tenka Goken!"

The blades pierced cleanly through the first two Roaring Wolves, however the remaining two managed to dodge just out of the attack's range! Their howling was loud and anxious in response to being struck, as one of the two that had been struck twice now shattered into pixels as it was defeated. Sotarou smiled and nodded. "50% is not bad at all!" Sotarou was gonna celebrate a bit more, but he got a notice in the corner of his vision, indicating an increase in Col count. No other loot dropped. As he saw this and was distracted, the wolves were not finished with their assault and one of them looked a little more towards Sotarou, being the last one to strike them! "Uh-oh. Uhh... nice, doggy... good doggy...!"

[2-2-0-0] Sotarou | Lv. 3 | HP: 60/60 | EN: 19/24 | DMG: 5 | ACC: 2 | MIT: 6 | EVA: 1
[2-0-0-2] Kylissia | Lv. 1 | HP: 16/20 | EN: 15/20 | DMG: 7 | MIT: 12 | THORNS: 9 | LD: 3

+2 Accuracy on BD7+2 hits Roaring Wolves 1 and 2, Natural BD 1 on 3 and 4 automatically miss.

AoE-I: 5x3=15 Damage to Roaring Wolves 1 and 2, kills Roaring Wolf 1, 5 Energy Cost for 2 successful hits with technique

Col: 108
Materials: 4

                  Enemies:

Roaring Wolf 1: HP 0/36 | 12 DMG
Roaring Wolf 2: HP 21/36 | 12 DMG
Roaring Wolf 3: HP 27/36 | 12 DMG
Roaring Wolf 4: HP 3/36 | 12 DMG

*SNAP*

Sotarou was immediately on edge as he looked around at his surroundings... followed immediately by a cavalcade of growling... which seemed to sound like it was surrounding the pair... "Damnit... I shoulda been paying more attention... we were the ones being hunted..."

Out of the shadows of the forested floor stepped out healthy-sized Roaring Wolves. A pack of 4, surrounding the pair and snarling angrily. Sotarou gave a very nervous chuckle at the wolves... "I... don't suppose any of you would enjoy being called Koba...?" One of the wolves that looked much bigger gave a loud snarling noise and all of them charged forward towards the pair! "Guess not! Here we go!" Getting into his horse-stance, Sotarou grabbed the Katana at his waist, unclasping the safety on the blade and readying for a scrap! This reminded him of his Wasp Queen fight long ago... he couldn't hurt the Queen, but the regular mobs were a different story... solid AoE strikes would do wonders here! With that thought in mind, Sotarou leapt into the fray!

[0, 0, 0, 0] Sotarou | Lv. 3 | HP: 60/60 | EN: 24/24 | DMG: 5 | ACC: 2 | MIT: 6 | EVA: 1
  | Sotarou is a Rank 1 [KATANA] user.
[0, 0, 0, 0] Kylissia | Lv. 1 | HP: 20/20 | EN: 20/20 | DMG: 7 | ACC: 0 | MIT: 12 | THORNS: 9
  | Kylissia is a Rank 1 [STRAIGHT SWORD] user.

Roaring Wolf #1 | HP: 36/36 | DMG: 12 | MIT: 0 | EVA: 0
Roaring Wolf #2 | HP: 36/36 | DMG: 12 | MIT: 0 | EVA: 0
Roaring Wolf #3 | HP: 36/36 | DMG: 12 | MIT: 0 | EVA: 0
Roaring Wolf #4 | HP: 36/36 | DMG: 12 | MIT: 0 | EVA: 0

"So, shall we set off, then?"

That was all Sotarou needed to hear to get his mind back into the headspace! He nodded in affirmation. Looking out the safe zone boundary threshold, he took that first step... then another. And another, and soon he was just strolling towards it at a normal walking pace, until finally... he stepped beyond it. As he did, he could feel that sense of dread creep into the back of his skull, as he turned to look... only seeing Kylissia. He breathed a sigh of relief. "Maybe they are gone. Either way, let's get this going! Koba won't find himself, after all!"

His thoughts went back to that scene way back when... seeing his friend pixelate right in front of him... the cackling laughter as the man in black was chased off... as he just helplessly stood there unable to do anything... no more. He would never be that burden again! He would become stronger! Better! He would become a man that everyone could look up to and be relied upon in times of need! Not some whimpering child in the corner... no, Sotarou kept moving forward one foot in front of the other on the way to the next part of his life!

"Say...do you have something in mind as to what you're looking for, or would you prefer to wait for an encounter that seems fated to you?"

He hadn't ever been asked that, really. But it was a simple enough answer, at least. "Actually, I have a pet in the real world that I kinda miss... a big, fluffy Siberian Husky Wolf-dog mix by the name of Koba. My dad fought like hell to get him... and I kinda miss him. Might not be the exact same... but I'm thinking a Wolf companion would feel the best to me."

He looked towards the town's exit into the outside zone... a reminder of the past... but he shook his head as he took a calming breath. "Just... be cool, Sotarou... those black cloaked guys aren't around here anymore... at least, I'm pretty sure..." He took another breath. "We can do this. It'll be easy! Can even do some other things while we look for a good candidate! I need to do some restocking of my crafting supplies and the like." Sotarou pulls up his inventory list and just makes sure he has everything set properly. "Since I recently ran out of materials." He looked at Kylissia. "Do you have anything you'd probably be doing as an aside while we're out and about?"

"Let's get to it, then."

Words to live by! With a new adventuring buddy in tow, Sotarou interacted with the teleport point, using the menu that popped up to teleport himself and the woman to the third floor! "I'd found the Gypsy on this floor the other day, and had to abandon the quest because the food got corrupted somehow... maybe some sort of spoil mechanic or something...? I dunno. Either way, even if she's not here, can possibly find-"

"You there."

The newer voice startled Sotarou... it was a familiar voice, but still startled him as to the sudden appearance of it as he turned to see the familiar Gypsy woman he'd met before. "Oh. Uhh, hi. Yes."

"You seem lonely... the world so big and you so small... you feel as if a traveling companion would liven your life... it just so happens, I know this feeling..." The Gypsy woman gently pats what was assumed at first to be some sort of shawl that instead raised its tucked head to reveal it to be a black fox-like creature. "I can help you alleviate this feeling, if you would like..." The woman's voice was sultry, almost hypnotic... but not quite pulling enough to force a decision. But at the same time, there's a hint of an uneasy feeling... something eerie about her... as the feeling was creeping into Sotarou for the second time, the dialogue popup showed:

ACCEPT QUEST, <<FEEDING YOUR ENEMY>>?
                           YES                 NO

Of course, Sotarou tapped the 'yes' button. Upon doing so, he gave the Gypsy a nod. "Yes please."

"Good... very good... now... take this." She hands Sotarou a package. As he takes it, a notice appears on his HUD: 'Acquired <<Familiar Food>>'. "This will help you. Find a soul that pairs well with you... when you are finished with your task, find me again. I will remain here on this floor for a time, and I request the remaining Food you do not use. Good luck."

QUEST ACCEPTED: <<Feeding Your Enemy>>

Sotarou turned to look at Kylissia. "See? Couldn't be easier. I could do this solo if I had to, I just find it extremely boring to do stuff like this by myself."

Sotarou was glad for the words of comfort from this individual... Kylissia, from the party listing. She was impressed by him knowing her name...? But... "... I just... used the proximity invite. Did you not know that was a thing...?" He was a little confused... but it wasn't very important in this moment. What was important was...

"Wait. I thought if each person had the quest, they could do it. Just not at the exact same time? I mean, if you want a Familiar as well, I don't mind helping you out as well. Up to you, though."

He was starting to get more used to speaking... maybe it was the fact that this woman felt more comforting... instead of stammering like a love-drunk high-schooler, he was being a bit more mature like the adult he's SUPPOSED to be...

The armor comment was upsetting to him... she already had a full set. "Well, if you change your mind, I'm at The Platinum Dragon. I can also do repairs if anything breaks on you somehow." He looks at the teleport point. "So. Shall we get started, then?"

Sotarou was only half paying attention... she was just so damn beautiful...! And his body language certainly betrayed that thought behind his head! But when she mentioned the teleporter, it finally snapped Sotarou's mind back to the conversation as he cleared his throat once more...

"Well, uhh... I mean... i-if you wanna come along, I don't... I don't mind so much... have you done the quest <<Feeding The Enemy>> yet? That's the quest I was gonna go reacquire."

At the mention of her having her own set but wearing more comfortable clothing in the safe zones, he looked slightly pale... "You... shouldn't automatically trust being in the safe zones... m-my friend... he left town in cloth gear because he couldn't get anything better... and we were immediately attacked... he..." He looked like he couldn't even finish the sentence... "But I never take this armor off anymore... not since then..." He just cleared his throat, shaking his head as if to shake away cobwebs or something in his mind. "Uhh, nevermind that. If you wanna join up, I don't mind it at all!" He sends a quick party invite to the girl in front of him.

"It's dangerous to go alone, you know. Is there anyone you'll be meeting up with outside this floor?"

The words caused the young man to jump a bit as he turned to see a tall, striking blonde woman... holy crap, she was hot! But... no! Bad! Bad thoughts! That wasn't a way to interact with people here! He cleared his throat before he spoke in response.

"Umm... not really. I've tried the quest before, but just lucked out. Though gotta go back to the third floor to pick it up again. Materials are on a time limit, seems..." He shrugged. "It'll be tough, but I've fought and won several fights before doing this quest." Every now and again, his eyes start to move ever so slightly, but quickly move back to meet the woman's gaze... his tough-looking Samurai garb and two Katanas at his waist didn't do much to hide his still boyish figure of a 5'6" toothpick... "Why do you ask? You offering your services as a bodyguard?" He noted the woman lacked any sort of armor. "By the way, do you need any armor? Should come by my shop sometime, I do a bunch of custom-order creations."

The memories of the past still haunted Sotarou in the nightmares... he'd kept himself recluse and away from anyone else in town on the first floor... the day when Jarrod ended up dead just for stepping outside the gate... floor 1 was much safer nowadays with more people willing to defend against the crazies... it didn't block out the nightmares of that day... recently however... he got a pang of nostalgia seeing someone in the street playing with their Familiar... it made Sotarou miss his buddy Koba... as he lay in bed that night, he pulled up his quest list, revealing the top tracked quest, <<Feeding The Enemy>>. As he looked at it, the info on the quest seemed bugged out... then a note at the bottom: '[Familiar Food] spoiled. Abandon quest and reacquire.' He sighed and pressed the abandon button and watched as the quest disappeared from his list... well, if it weren't one thing... guess that's something he was to do tomorrow.

The next day, Sotarou awoke to a bright morning on Floor One. The last time he encountered the Gypsy, she was on Floor 3. Was as good a place to start looking as any. He got up and gathered his things, making sure he was ready to go for whatever the day had to hold with it. After making sure he had everything, he made sure the sign on his shop showed 'CLOSED' before heading to the center of town and getting ready to take the teleport to Floor 3.

(( Equipped Items: Akaviri Samurai Armor (Light Armor), Sokuchi (Perfect Katana), Jeweled Bee (Trinket) ))
(( Battle-Ready Items: Raikiri (Rare Katana), Jeweled Straights (Jewelry), 3 Starter Healing Potions. ))
(( Private Post with @Kylissia for the quest <<Feeding The Enemy>> ))

Current Level: 3
Current SP: 21
Link to SP Tracking: 

Notes:

The Jeweled Bee item above, I made the purchase back then and removed the T1 Mats as cost the item. However, I believe Kirbs did not even make mention of the item's purchase nor did they even see my post. This is up to you if you would allow this to come with. If not, I have another item I'd like to make sure got brought over, full list below, but the first item is next in priority.

Converted Items:
Akaviri Samurai Armor: Shop Post of Crafted Item
Sokuchi: Evaluation Post
5 Starter Healing Potions (I never got around to using them at all)

[any other items that are required to be converted would go here. players may also leave additional clarifications for staff to refer to regarding their application here. note that converted items do not benefit from the same upgrades provided in the field above.]

Sotarou could just hear his father's words in his mind: "Anything worth doing isn't easy. It's work. Work makes it worth. And when you work for it, it feels all the more satisfying."

Yeah, easy for you to say. You weren't stuck in a Death Game, surviving for your life... he had invited his father to join him... he was thinking about it, wanted to see how it was through Sotarou before he committed to joining... well... guess it was a good thing he DIDN'T join... otherwise, he'd be stuck here same as Sotarou...

He shook his head, kicking those thoughts from his mind as he continued with his goal. He had to come up with 5 Materials for this guy. He hadn't acquired a single one yet.

Spoiler

ID	Battle	Craft	Loot	MOB	Character	Link	Purpose	Time
117875	2	6	6	9	Sotarou		First Few Lessons: Material Gathering, +2 LD	2019-05-28 02:21:10

He almost felt like this one would be it! But... it fell short. As usual... Sotarou sighed. This was gonna be a pain in the butt. Oh well. At least this cave had quite a few materials. Pretty sure it was designed specifically for the use of this quest. At least that was something.

Of course... that was the day everyone in SAO found out they couldn't log out... and not long after that, Akihiko Kayaba announced his intention to make SAO a Death Game... Sotarou and Jarron had all but forgotten about the quest... at least... until that day... that day when... he was taken by force... those damned PKers... it just boiled his blood knowing that those goons were out there still... oh well... they'd get their comeuppance... one day... either way, it wasn't what he was focused on today. It was early morning, he had on Jarron's Lucky Straights, he had his Katana, he had his Armor. It was time to head out and complete this quest for Zackariah... after over a year... he'd finally finish what he and Jarron set out to do.

Getting out of the Town was the easy part. The next part was finding a good spot to get the materials. Caves. Caves were always a good spot to go. And so, he found the nearest cave to the Town and began his mining operation, looking for Materials to give to Zackariah.

Spoiler

ID	Battle	Craft	Loot	MOB	Character	Link	Purpose	Time
117874	8	10	1	8	Sotarou		First Few Lessons: Material Gathering, +2 LD	2019-05-28 02:16:47

And of course, the first mining point was empty... this was gonna be some work... like usual...

FLASHBACK

"C'mon, Sota! You're being rather rude to the guy!"

"It's an NPC. It's got a set programmed response guide. It doesn't do anything past what it was programmed to do."

Jarron and Sotarou stood there arguing between one another while this NPC, Zackariah, had just been standing there, waiting for a confirmation of the acceptance of the quest <<The First Few Lessons Are Free>>. It was a newbie quest... rather basic. From what he understood, it was just 'Go out and fetch 5 T1 mats, bring 'em back and we'll continue from there.' Simple enough to do. So why was Jarron making such a big fuss over NPC interactions...?

Jarron nodded profusely to Zackariah. "I am so sorry for my friend's rude behavior. We'd be glad to accept this quest and help you out."

The NPC was rather polite in its response as Sotarou and Jarron both pressed the 'Accept Quest' button on their respective menus. "Thank you for accepting the quest. You just performed one of the first basic actions in this world. The next one is to acquire 5 Materials on this floor. You don't need to fight any monsters at all. Nothing will harm you on this floor as long as you don't provoke it. Gather the 5 materials, and bring them back to me. We'll continue once you return."

Jarron nodded to the man. "Of course! Of course! We'll get those materials and be back before you know it!"

Sotarou pointed to the sky. "Uhh... it's getting late... we need to be logging out soon..."

Jarron smacked his own forehead, a look of shock on his face. "Oh crap! You're right! My Fiance's gonna throw a fit when she finds out I was on here all day! We should get out of here."

END FLASHBACK