Emerath

• Name: Renewed Inspiration
• Your Profession: Alchemist
• Your Rank: 5
• Roll ID: 109856
• Roll Result: 12
• Item Type: Potion
• Tier: 1
• Quality: Perfect
• Enhancements: Crafter's Respite
• Description: This light green potion smells and tastes of light mint and emits a light smoke into the bottle with a soft bubble that occasionally ripples across the surface. Drinking the potion makes the person feel refreshed, both thanks to the minty flavor and the effects of the potion, making them want to put their nose back to the grindstone and create many more wonderful things related to their profession. (Immediately Refreshes all Daily Crafts, One Use Per Day) **A Small Fine Print Reads: Emerath is not responsible for any improper usage of this product, nor for any side effects caused by drinking.**
• Post Link

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• Name: Rock Skin
• Your Profession: Alchemist
• Your Rank: 5
• Roll ID: 109858
• Roll Result: 7
• Item Type: Crystal
• Tier: 1
• Quality: Uncommon
• Enhancements: Mitigation (1 Slot)
• Description: This glittering light brown crystal has the appearance of shiny dirt, but at least shiny dirt that emanates with a bit of power. Activating this crystal will make attacks less effective against you, almost as if your very skin has hardened. (Prevent 5 damage from successful attacks against you. Effect lasts for one thread.) **A Small Fine Print Reads: Emerath is not responsible for any improper usage of this product, nor for any side effects caused by drinking.**
• Post Link

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• Name: Iron Skin
• Your Profession: Alchemist
• Your Rank: 5
• Roll ID: 109860
• Roll Result: 11
• Item Type: Crystal
• Tier: 1
• Quality: Rare
• Enhancements: Mitigation (2 Slots)
• Description: This glittering silver crystal has the appearance of shining metal, and you can feel the power emanating in your hand. Activating this crystal will make attacks less effective against you, almost as if your very skin has hardened. (Prevent 10 damage from successful attacks against you. Effect lasts for one thread.) **A Small Fine Print Reads: Emerath is not responsible for any improper usage of this product, nor for any side effects caused by drinking.**
• Post Link

Another day, another round of potion making. Emerath was determined not to let today slip through his fingers like he had the previous day. He pored over his notes from the day before, and decided to opt into a different approach for the yellow flower he had been working with. It was clear that the flower made something, he simply had to find out what. So into the beaker it went, and one, two, and poof, he had actually managed to make a more complicated potion, after only one failure! Smiling, Emerath realized that this craft couldn't get any better, and so he quickly grabbed some papers and jotted down the results to see if he could replicate it later.

In the meantime, Emerath had ranked up, and wanted to try something new. Crystals. He knew their power, and he knew their cost, but he also knew the profit potential. And so, he started to work with some of the other instruments in his shop to create the crystallization process. He used a material he was used to, some roots from the first floor mountains, in making his HP potions. He had some middling success, but all things considered for his first time making it, he wasn't disappointed. A couple of hardy Mitigation crystals and he was well on his way. A good day of crafting, if Emerath said so himself. Which he did.

**Daily Crafts**

Emerath had gotten a bit lost in his first tart as he had pulled out a map and looked it over for just what he wanted to do once he finished his meal. If you could call it that. It was more an indulgence that had no real nutritional value were this the real world, but as far as Cardinal was concerned, it would satisfy his needs. He was just about to take another bite, when he heard the door slam open, the bell above it going absolutely wild for a moment with ringing, before being a bit more gently closed and the calm atmosphere returning almost immediately. But by then, the damage had already been done, as Emerath had managed to drop his piece of tart on the ground and mourned his loss. Slowly, from the fallen tart piece to the door, Emerath's eyes rose to meet that of the player who had just walked in.

As Emerath looked to the cursor, his heart skipped a bit of a beat as he saw orange, instinctively knowing that this was usually a danger sign out in the wilds. But this was in a shop. The young man had either killed some guards, or snuck his way into town. Either way, he was brave. And for some tarts? Well, he didn't have a weapon out, and he didn't have an angry bloodthirsty look on his face. Probably just wanted a day of shopping or something. The young man continued to stare at Emerath, and without missing anymore time, Emerath slowly reached behind him, without taking his own eyes off of the young man, and grabbed his plate with the tart on it. It wasn't out of fear for this orange player, but more that he seemed just as stunned as Emerath was, and Emerath didn't want to spook him.

So he held out the plate, and said, "Hello? Do you... want a tart?"

@Pinball

Here Emerath was, once again letting his stomach guide him to a place he hadn't thought to go before. Well, his stomach, his maps, and other adventurers, but that was only if you wanted to be technical. In any case, Emerath found himself standing in the plaza of a rich city of gold, the town of Condor. It had been a bit of a trek through the mountains, and a bit out of the way, but from what Emerath could see, it may have been worth it. At the very least, he was here for the shop that a player had made in this rich little city. The Queen of Tarts, it was called, and while it didn't seem to fully fit the aesthetic of the city itself, it made decent enough sense.

Emerath explored the town, noting the various NPCs that walked around, and found that he didn't see many other players. It didn't surprise him that much though, the higher up you went, the less players there were. Everyone lived in fear of the higher floors, and with good reason. Emerath tried his best not to feel that way, but he did feel bad for the girl that had made her shop all the way out here. She must not get a ton of business.

Though, as Emerath entered the storefront, he was pleasantly surprised as he saw a couple of players minding their own business, eating cakes and reading various notes and flyers or messing with their UIs. Emerath gave anyone a nod that would look his way, before approaching the counter of a simple brown haired girl in an apron, who appeared to be just pulling out some fresh tarts that were no doubt the namesake of the shop. Before she could run off, Emerath called out, "Oh, that just looks lovely. Can I have one of those before you put them away?" The girl paused, blinked at Emerath a bit confused for a moment, and then smiled and said, "Oh, yes, certainly. I'm sorry. I've just never seen you in here before! Welcome, and here, have two!" Emerath chuckled, and the girl placed two tarts on a plate for the man, and scooped a dollop of custard onto the plate. "I'll just charge you for one. We'll call it appreciation for you stopping in," the girl explained, before heading off to properly display the remainder of the tray. As she walked off, she explained, "Just trade me the Col when you're ready dear, prices are on the menu!"

Emerath nodded, thankful for the pleasant customer service, and looked over the menu. The tart wasn't too expensive. Not incredibly cheap, but when one gets it warm out of the oven, he wasn't sure if he had a right to complain. He took a spoon and put some of the custard on the tart, before taking a bite of the warm pastry, savoring the sweet strawberry flavor. He hadn't expected strawberry, but it was a pleasant surprise. He would certainly enjoy this. He might have to take another for the road.

@Pinball

Emerath made his way to the gates of Mt. Olympia, and all he could think about was how oddly faithful to various religions SAO seemed to be. Perhaps it was just that they made for good RPG fodder, but Emerath could never be too sure when it came to MMOs. Much of the time, the myths that they were based on were always just close enough to the histories, but just different enough that people couldn't feel like they were being ripped off for a copy and paste scenario. Thankfully, these thoughts didn't have to plague him for long though, as he reached the gates, and a couple of guardsmen barred his entry. Emerath chuckled, and held out the scroll given to him, "Is this what you need fellas? I promise, I'm not here to cause trouble. I just want to win a reality TV gameshow, and then we can all move on with our lives, yeah?"

As Emerath stepped down from the platform, the satyr stepped forward to meet him, giving Emerath a bow, before extending a rolled up sheet of parchment to the man. And just as quickly as he had arrived, the satyr was gone. All Emerath had done was blink. Bemused by the theatrics of the quest, and certainly more interested because of it, Emerath pulled the ribbon on the parchment, breaking the wax seal on it that was ornately stamped with what Emerath could assume was the symbol of the god he was to face in trial. Demeter, it seemed. Now, Emerath knew his fair share of Greek mythology, and from what he could remember, she was the god of fertility and harvest. A fitting challenge, Emerath wagered, and one that wouldn't be wasted on a childish game of, "Gather X Materials and Craft X Item, ????, Profit." No, this would be something real, and that was just what Emerath wanted.

Though Emerath had only just returned to crafting, it hadn't entirely snuck by him that as a high level Alchemist, there was a challenge waiting for him. A challenge that, naturally, the man just couldn't pass up. He was a scientist, of that there was no doubt. SAO gave him the chance to express that scientist nature in the form of Alchemy, and he at least appreciated that much in the game.

But what was the challenge? Oh, just besting a god in a craft off, reality TV show style. It was like Iron Chef, except more potions and less ham. Not that Emerath didn't like ham, but he liked potions more, specifically making them.

Ah, but Emerath's mind was wandering again, as he appeared in the Teleport Gate of Floor 17, and was immediately greeted by a satyr who popped into existence out of nowhere. Emerath cocked his head, and couldn't help but chuckle as murmurs went out across the NPCs.

The Nepent was not ready to rear its ugly plant head again, but Emerath decided that the girl's shouting wasn't actually helping matters any. Instead, Emerath tried his best to focus, searching the surroundings through the mask's glass eyes. Nothing seemed out of place, until... a rustle. It was slight, but the bush had moved as Emerath's mask had turned to face it. Fear? Would a sentient plant feel fear? Emerath had never really considered the possibility before, not until now. Though honestly, if it hadn't considered fear before, it was certainly about to.

Emerath rushed into the bushes, and without a moment of hesitation this time, grabbed the stalk of the plant and pulled as hard as he could. There was a tearing of foliage and the heavy sound of moving dirt, as the plant was pulled root and all into the air and towards the woman standing with her mace at the ready. Emerath was attempting to give her something to do, as in smacking the plant as it sailed towards her, but it appeared that Emerath had been a bit too forceful. Instead, the plant exploded into pixels before it even got halfway.

Sheepishly, Emerath scratched his head as he walked out of the bushes and towards the woman, unequipping his mask and hood so that she could see his face again, though he remained garbed in the light armor itself. "Well, I tried not to kill it in one shot, you know, give you something to do. I guess these things are just too weak for that." Emerath shrugged, and gave her a half cocked smile, as he continued, trying to move past it with, "So, three more of those I think, then we go after the big mama plant."

**Combat Details**

• Name: Red Heart
• Your Profession: Alchemist
• Your Rank: 4
• Roll ID: 109803
• Roll Result: 7
• Item Type: Potion
• Tier: 1
• Quality: Uncommon 
• Enhancements: HP Recovery (1 Slot)
• Description: This red, slightly glowing potion will restore some health to the drinker (20 HP) and ensure that you live to fight another day in this death game. There is a crudely drawn heart in red crayon on the front with a smiley face. The creator is clearly a better alchemist than artist. **A Small Fine Print Reads: Emerath is not responsible for any improper usage of this product, nor for any side effects caused by drinking.**
• Post Link

Emerath had gone out gathering, and had returned home with a renewed sense of vigor. Well, that and he had gotten some sleep, had a nice stew, and then documented and took notes on each different plant type he had gathered. But then he had a renewed sense of vigor. It didn't matter too much anyway, what mattered was his experiments and what they yielded. So he got to work on one of the new flowers he had picked. A simple yellow flower, that seemed easy enough to mix into a potion. He but it in the burner, and of the five flowers that he worked with, only one yielded any notable results, that being a simple health potion. But, rather than be upset, Emerath simply noted this down, and stored his notes for the next day.

** Daily Crafts **

Emerath made his way into the shop of someone that he had heard many adventurers call knowledgeable and experienced. The trip had been a bit of a journey, and in all honesty he hadn't really made the trip for even that great of a deal or sale, but he had been able to finish a couple points on his Floor 11 map, so it was at least worth it for that. As he stepped inside, he waited until the man behind the counter had a free moment, and then he placed two consumables on the table. "Two Unidentified T1 Rare Consumables for you. I don't need identification, I simply wish to sell them off, if you'll take them," Emerath explained with a polite smile.

**Item Details**

Quest Complete!

• 1 SP
• 50 T1 Materials
• 475 Col
• 2 Unidentified Rare T1 Consumables

As Emerath opened the chest, what he found inside wasn't great, but it wasn't terrible. He still couldn't help the smile on his face. This had been the first chest he had ever found in SAO, despite his consistent adventuring. It was an exciting find, despite everything. He couldn't help but feel like the day had ended on just the right note, even if the loot itself was nothing to write home about. Emerath accepted the Col rewards, the extra materials, and the couple of consumables in his inventory, before standing and giving one last stretch as the chest faded away. Mist gave a happy hoot, and Emerath nodded to the owl. "Yes, I agree. Let's head home and count up the spoils. At least you've got plenty of meat to feed you, and I've got quite a bit of my own to have a cook make me that stew!" Emerath really was excited for that stew. His mouth watered all the way home just thinking about it.

**Opening the Treasure Chest**

Emerath had felt like he had done enough for the day. His mind was beginning to wander too much, and it was about time he went home and got some proper rest. Even if it was just a nap in his cozy arm chair by the fire, it was better than nothing. But as he turned to leave, something odd caught his eye. It appeared that a large bit of the foliage had begun to grow in an odd pattern. It was overgrown and seemed to crisscross itself in ways that plants didn't do, unless they were hiding something. Emerath cocked his head, and made his way over to the mess of plants, and slowly pulled them apart, some needing more forceful pulling than others, until he uncovered a small footlocker dug into the dirt. It seemed that his long day hadn't been without its own rewards, besides that of the materials gathered. His heart beating faster, Emerath reached out to open the chest.

**Treasure Chest Location Attempt**

Emerath knelt down, and ran his hand through the dirt, and he managed to shake off some of the tiredness. He saw a paw print, a wolf print. His mind wandered a bit as he looked at it, knowing that there were wolves in this area. But that wasn't what his mind focused on. There was a specific wolf that he kept thinking about, another familiar. Why did he keep going? Why is it that despite him going home, despite him reaffirming everything he had ever wanted in life, and his desire to live, he kept going? Maybe he had just wanted to see the world through her eyes. He wondered if he could say he had, but he had never asked her what she saw. Maybe that was why he kept going. It wasn't enough to think he had seen enough. He had to know.

With a blink, he snapped out of it, and brushed away the paw print from the dirt, before grabbing some more herbs for the road.

**Gathering Attempt**

As Emerath moved through the garden, his eyes grew more and more heavy, and his movements more sluggish. The game was dragging him down, making him feel the simulated tiredness that he tried so hard to ignore most times. But today had been busy. Full of plenty of people, encounters, vegetables, and herbs. So much to see, so much to pick. And it all just kept respawning, it never failed. Emerath grabbed for a nearby plant, and nearly fell over, and gave himself a light chuckle. Mist hopped along behind him, giving a concerned hoot, and Emerath looked down at the bird with his tired eyes. "Am I pushing myself too hard? I suppose I do just keep going and going. I went home, I started crafting again, and yet I still just keep going," he explained to the owl, and she just cocked her head, before fluttering up to his shoulder.

**Gathering Attempt**

With a groan and a stretch, Emerath stood up. An involuntary yawn escaped his lips, as he looked around at the other few remaining adventurers in the area. The sun was still peeking above the trees, and it was time Emerath got up and wrapped up his day, or else he was liable to fall asleep in the grass. He hadn't picked a few of the different herbs that lay around the area, and so he decided to finish out his variety tour of things that might make better things with those. He walked around and hand picked some of the more colorful herbs that Emerath didn't readily recognize. He hoped that he could make something out of it all. He had gathered quite a bit of stuff, even not including all the vegetables and meat that he had gotten. Though, that was important too. The man did have to eat, and Col didn't grow on trees.

**Gathering Attempt**

As Emerath watched the sun head down towards the trees, Emerath began to realize that he was tired. He had spent so much time gathering here in this garden, that it had taken an entire day. He chuckled to himself, as he sat back in the grass, and let himself just relax. He had gotten so engrossed in all this garden had to offer that he hadn't even noticed that the day had just flown by. Not that Emerath would mind some night gathering either, but it wasn't as effective. Although, Emerath would wager a guess to say that it was probably quieter. Less adventurers, all of them in their shops crafting after their bountiful day, or simply celebrating at a bar or sleeping at an inn. Some crazier ones would go to kill the night monsters for some extra loot and experience after a hard day of gathering. Emerath wondered what the night held for him this time, as he considered picking more herbs before it got dark.

**Gathering Attempt**

Honestly, meat had a multitude of alchemical uses, as did bones and other animal parts. Emerath could see the merit in having his owl hunt for him out here in this bountiful garden, as he continued to feed pieces to the happy familiar, and sent it out. Unfortunately for Emerath, it didn't appear that animals followed the same rules as the rest of the garden. Mist flew around in a large radius, but she didn't seem to find anymore rabbits for Emerath. She did seem to find a mouse, that she picked up and swallowed all at once, but that didn't really help Emerath all that much. He was happy that Mist was getting some hunting and exercise in. Occasionally she would fly off on her own and search for food. She'd always come back of course, but this was a bit more of a joint hunting effort, and one that allowed for more bonding. Too bad there weren't anymore rabbits, at least for now.

**Gathering Attempt**

Emerath took the rabbit from his familiar, and he was pleased with the result. "You are a lovely creature, you know that Mist? I'm so glad I found you," Emerath admitted to the snowy owl, and she cooed with pleasure. Emerath took a knife to the creature's body, and the game's mechanics quickly took over, converting the raw animal into parts immediately. It was at least cleaner, but a part of Emerath, having to survive in this death game and living out in the wilderness for days on end, had wanted to learn how to properly clean and process the animal. But that wasn't how this worked. Instead, Emerath fed some of the meat to Mist, and then instructed her to go out on another hunt. This one ended just as quickly for a poor rabbit, as Mist brought it to him and he processed this one as well. Plenty of meat, safely tucked away in his inventory, for that stew later.

**Gathering Attempt**

All this discussion of grass, and Emerath decided that it was time to move on. There were plenty of other interesting herbs out there, and it seemed that the peanut gallery of other adventurers had quieted down and returned to their own gathering what with Emerath not throwing stuff away anymore. Idly, a part of him wondered if he could pick a meat plant in order to get some meat for his stew. But you know, that brought up an interesting point. A garden often had animals that ran around in it, and those animals had both alchemical and cooking potential. Quickly, Emerath dug around for more of those carrot plants, now that he had found them, and as he did he uncovered a rabbit hiding in the foliage. His hand shot out, but he wasn't fast enough. However, his owl was, as she shot after it, and grabbed it in her claws, bringing it back to Emerath to survey.

**Gathering Attempt**

As Emerath sat there, picking at the yellow grass, he began to wonder if there were other colors of grass. Was there pink grass? Purple grass? What about bluegrass? No, he supposed a Performer would have to help him with that one. In the meantime, there was some brown grass. He wondered if that was just dried or dead grass. Could something be dead in a bountiful garden like this? Hell, even if it was, it probably had some alchemical properties that Emerath could use, so he grabbed a bunch of it anyway. He'd figure it out one way or another. Or, the game would, he supposed. It always came back to that. The game would figure it out, even if he was the one that really wanted to. It was silly how that worked. The more he tried to immerse himself and feel like he was living in the real world again, the more he was limited.

**Gathering Attempt**

Emerath was certain the thing that made him the most sad about this bountiful garden was the fact that he didn't really even have to try. He just had to sit in any spot in the middle of this area, reach out and pick some flowers, and BAM! he had materials. It was that simple. In fact, he did just that. He ended up with a handful of grass, but that was neither here nor there. The grass was yellow grass. That probably meant he could use it in a potion somehow, he was sure of it. Either that or someone just couldn't make it to a bathroom. Suddenly he wasn't sure if he wanted the grass anymore. But hey, perhaps urine could be used as an alchemy ingredient. Wait, he had never had to use the bathroom in SAO. Did anyone? It was really weird the sort of mental trips one goes on when they're bored in the middle of a bountiful garden.

**Gathering Attempt**

As Emerath wandered the garden, he wondered what to even pick next. Sure, he could just grab any old thing and probably make it into at least a basic potion, but where was the fun in that? Perhaps it had just been his growling stomach that had led to him wanting to get a stew made later, but he still had his pockets and his health to think of as well. As well as his sanity. Boring potions were boring, after all. Honestly, it didn't help that there were quite a few other adventurers that insisted on him getting out of the way and to stop wasting the resources. Emerath thought it was adorable. Though, a part of him waited for one to get a big head and try attacking him. Wouldn't that be a trip? It would certainly make the day more interesting, that was for sure. But no such attack came, and Emerath still hadn't decided what to pick next.

**Gathering Attempt**

It took some more digging, but eventually Emerath was able to find some carrots in the bountiful garden. He had pulled out plenty of plants, and wasted them, much to the chagrin of many of the other adventurers. Emerath ignored them. If they really wanted it, then they could simply pick them up. Or, that's what Emerath would have said if they didn't immediately burst into pixels when they hit the ground. SAO was a strange game when it came to that. Perfectly good materials, but oops they touched the ground, and now it's dead. Even if it came from the ground in the first place. Go figure. Didn't matter though, Emerath now had three lovely looking carrots. That was what mattered. He quickly stuffed them into his backpack with the potatoes, and he could just imagine the stew he could make later. Or get a cook to make later, as it were. It was all the same in the end.

**Gathering Attempt**