Ayumu

"Sort of," she started answering his question as they entered the cave, "I was thinking of putting the shop on floor 1...but I was also considering floor 2. I've brainstormed and thought of several shop names, but I haven't chosen my favorite yet."

As she took the sword at him, Ayumu blinked, immediately noticing the difference between it and her own. It was heavier, but it a good way. Besides having the appearance of a good blade, just holding on to the hilt was enough to fill one with awe. Maybe if she got good at this Blacksmith thing, she could make swords like this. Perhaps it was weird to feel so, but she felt honored to hold it, if just for a moment while he used his other sword to fight.

If just holding a sword was an experience, than it was no wonder her jaw literally hung open as wide as it could after watching him so easily take out the Dungeon Guardians. Just a few swings, and they were out. It was watching fighting like this that gave her hope. If she could get to a level to fight like this one day, there was a sure hope that she could clear this game. Even if she never got that good, at least there were players who were. Once she realized she was gaping at the scene, she promptly shut her jaw, rather embarrassed.

"Right..." Ayumu blinked again, still rather wide-eyed even though she was trying to gain her composure, "well...s-sure, if you're still up to it. I mean, four mat is all I need, but you're fine if you want to keep going."

(OOC: Mkay, sounds good)

Her face was immediately flushed by Red's latter comments. Ayumu...was not expecting that...at all. In all honesty, she didn't know what to feel besides surprised. It wasn't like he was rude, so she wasn't upset. Ayumu wasn't necessarily flattered either. As a matter of fact, her feelings were surprisingly of a neutral kind, despite the uncomfortable-ness of this situation. She tried to open her mouth to say something, but couldn't really find the right words to say at that moment, so she clamped it shut. Wincing, she desperately tried to come up with something to make this less awkward. Finally, able to speak,

"I-Its okay Red, don't worry about it," she laughed nervously, "I'm not upset, if that's what you're wondering. Just...caught off guard, I suppose. And since I'm not rude, I should sincerely return the comment - you don't look too bad yourself," then clearing her throat, "well, that settles it," she changed the subject, "if you're up for it Koumori, then it seems we're set." Looking at the both of them, "Whenever you two are ready to go, I am." Ayumu gave an affirmative nod.

She frowned a little bit. Cute? Since when was I "cute?" Then with an awkward cough,

"I suppose we should start looking for this person then," she quickly changed her expression, grinning a little, "come on, let's check the buildings." Ayumu said with resolve, and began walking again towards the center of the town. Looking around, she scratched her chin and thought aloud, "now...where to start? I wonder if she's just randomly in one of these buildings, or perhaps there's one that's slightly different than the others. Hmm..." she narrowed her eyes, thinking hard, "lets see how quickly we can find this old lady." and after scanning the town over once more, picked a building and started towards it. Opening the door, she carefully entered, looking around inside.

"This one seems rather empty," she knit her brows, "I guess I'll check another one then." Ayumu exited the building with a sigh.

"Okay, sounds good. I guess it would be rather risky since I'm only at level 2, but that's alright. Just don't do all the work for me, okay?" she laughed a little, "I guess we should get going then. Lead the way, if you will, since I have no idea where these caves are."

Well what do you know, I'm actually going to get something interesting done today. She mentally mused. I hope I can take this on...what am I saying, of course I can if I put my mind to it! Its dangerous, but this whole game is dangerous, so what difference does it make? Besides, I'm just getting one step closer to waking up in the real world. Maybe finding pursuits in here are a waste of time...but if they help me accomplish my ultimate goal, then I can get back to what really matters. I'm ready for this, and nothing is going to stand in my way!

(OOC: sorry for taking so long to post. This one is still fairly short like the other ones too lol. I'm currently multi-tasking right now)

"Well thanks then," she sighed with relief at his answer, grabbing the cloak as he threw it to her and put it on. With a smirk, "you're welcome then. I didn't know I was so entertaining." Ayumu chuckled a little. As he began to answer her previous question, she winced a little, hoping that she hadn't touched on too sensitive of a subject. She felt bad for him, since the impressive title didn't seem to bring much joys with it. Frowning a little, she wondered why he didn't trust most high level players. Maybe most of them let it get to their head? And were therefore not trustworthy, and only out for themselves. That sounded about right, but there wasn't any way of actually knowing until she met players like this. Nodding a little as he finished,

"I understand," then changing the subject, "so, where do you suggest we go to find monsters or creatures for mat?"

"Well, if you don't mind, then I don't see why not," she smiled a little bit, "sure, I'll come. Sounds fun, and that would be nice for a change. What is the objective of the quest? Do we have to find an item, or maybe do some combat? Where is it exactly around here?" she asked curiously, "I haven't ran into any quest prompts. Is it in the little town, or maybe in a more woodsy part?" then with an embarrassed chuckle, "sorry...I'm asking a lot of questions, aren't I? Its just this would be my first actual quest. I've started to work on the Earning a Living quest, but that's a little different than this," opening her menu, she scrolled through all the options, finding the party invitation, "should we form a party, or just start the quest?" Ayumu asked him before sending an invite

"Oh, riiight," she cringed, realizing that fact, "well...what do you suggest we do instead? Do you think it would be easier for me to just search for mat?" then with a groan, "I'm sorry, my inexperience and noobery is pathetic, I know." Her shoulders slumped a little. After he offered her the cloak, she blinked with surprise, caught off guard by this, "u-uh, well..." she almost wanted to say no, just so she wouldn't cause any trouble, but he may take that as rude and annoying. Besides...it was still coming down pretty heavy. "I-I guess if you're offering then sure! Thanks!" Ayumu gave him a friendly nod, smiling a bit. "That's very nice of you," after a small pause, she asked, "say, why are you going out of your way just to help me? I mean...if you don't have, er..."commander stuff" to do, or whatever you call it, don't you have higher level players to hang out with?"

"Its fine, no need to apologize," she waved his apology away, "and hey, level six - that's pretty good! Moving on up, eh? Before you know it, you'll be out with the front-liners." then, her mind going to the quest he mentioned, "A quest huh? Hm...I didn't know there was one around here," Ayumu mused for a bit, "is something that low level players could take on? Because if so, I could help you if you like. I mean, only if you want, I would understand if you want to go alone. If you need some company though, I'm available. I don't really have much going on. I've just been chillin', just exploring and learning the area. Its funny, for being stuck in a death game, life has been pretty slow. I guess it will pick up once I actually get to a useful level."

Wow, this sure is awkward. She winced, trying to clear the color from her face.  And he's blushing too...let's try to ignore that.

"I-I've been fine, actually," she said after clearing her throat, "you know, just coping the best I can. I haven't really been doing much combat or gaining levels since the last time we ran into some boars. I still don't think I'm ready to advance to the next floor, I want to get to a higher level first. So, how about you? How have you been doing?" Ayumu asked with a nervous laugh.

I wonder why he's here. Was he looking for me? Hopefully it was just chance, just running into each other. I wonder what he's up to. Hm, I might end up actually doing something today. This could be interesting.

She chuckled a little at his first comment, then about the latter topic,

"Okay! Thanks, help would be nice. I guess finding some monsters would be the easiest option...I mean, not that any of them are easy or anything. That's the whole point of doing a quest to start the profession. I'm not too keen on searching hours on end with possibly no finds, I don't think I have enough Col to get all that I need from shops. Besides, getting some more SP and Col would be nice. I need to do some more training anyways, might as well kill two birds with one stone." she said, walking out of the shop and back into the rain. With a heavy sigh, "still pouring as heavy as ever. Oh well." Ayumu started walking out of the town, and towards the fields where creatures and monsters were usually found.

Ayumu had been having a relaxing day so far. No training or grinding, just enjoying the area of floor one. She hadn't moved onto the second floor yet, as she still needed to increase her levels to handle some of the creatures up there. For now, she had stopped at a small and very peaceful village to rest before she continued her adventuring. With a content sigh, she leaned against a rather large tree, finishing up the last bites of her lunch as she looked out at the scenery. A gust of suddenly blew directly at her face, causing her to squint a little, the wind picking up the ends of her hair, causing it to gently flap in the breeze. She huffed, rather annoyed by this, and was grateful when the wind eventually died down. Finishing up the bread, she decided to start walking again, turning a corner. Then, out of the blue, someone rushed up to her, gathering her up in a hug. She froze, not sure what to do. Her face was beet red, and it took her a moment to gather her wits and lightly hug him back.

"O-Oh, h-hi..." she barely got out

She tapped the blue circle, also accepting the request.

"All of that sounds pretty good. It may not be good to do some combat at level one though. I tried that and almost died. But the rest sounds pretty reasonable," then after thinking for a moment, she looked to Koumori, "hey, how about this - you seem pretty familiar with this place. How about you show us around so we know where the most significant stuff on this floor is. You know, like the gate to floor two, some good places to find boars and other creatures to train, and some shops. I'm still rather at a loss at finding my way around, and Red might be too. I mean, if you don't want to its fine, but its definitely something we could do besides combat. The last thing we need is a player dying before they even got started. Not a good way to start the day."

"Yeah," Ayumu nodded, walking over, "I actually found him and started the quest. Now I just have to gather I think about four basic materials to craft something simple. Thanks for your help." she grinned a little. Then, after he introduced himself, "I'm Ayumu, the...completely average, inexperienced low-level player. Quite a title I guess." she said sarcastically, smirking a little and poking fun at herself. Perking up a little, "oh, and hey - before you go do whatever...erm, could you point me in the direction of said materials? I mean, I'm sure I can find them on my own, but some pointers would be great. I mean...do have to go and buy this stuff somewhere, or do I just happen upon it in a certain area? Don't feel compelled to come with, but do you know where I can find this stuff?"

"Reasonable enough," Ayumu shrugged, "he's probably back there and I just missed him, or...something."

She walked past the counter, and through the open doorway to the room in the back of the shop. The smell of the workshop immediately stung her nose, but it honestly wasn't that bad. She was also engulfed in warmth omitted from the fire that was currently burning in the backroom. With a small frown, Ayumu walked around in the little space, still seeing no one.

"Erm, hellooo?" She called to no one. With a heavy sigh and a shake of her head, she started to leave. At that moment, someone tapped on her shoulder. Loosing a startled cry, she whirled around to face whoever was suddenly behind her.

"Hello, how can I help you?" the Blacksmith NPC who owned the shop asked

"Oh..." she blinked, "well, uh...I'm here for the 'Earning a Living' quest." Ayumu said rather awkwardly, as she was caught off guard by this

"Of course," he smiled, "here." the NPC gave her a nod, and a small screen to accept the quest appeared in front of her. With a sigh of relief, she pressed the "accept" button.

To his surprise, a grin tugged at the corner of her mouth, slowly changing her previously unamused expression. While Ayumu had been doing her best to retain a stoic demeanor, it fell for a brief moment. A bit of her normal self leaked out,

"Yeah, people don't really tend to get all crunk up in this SAO, my son," she gave a small snort of laughter, then realizing what she said, winced and quickly removed her joking expression, "I-I mean," Ayumu cleared her throat, "anyways - yeah, it seems we're both open to forming a party. Finding someone who knows a lot about this place is helpful when really starting to get involved. I'm only at level 2, still ignorant of all this stuff, and yet I've already learned a lot from other players. Its not easy to stay alive in SAO, so picking up tips is a good idea. So, do you know how to form a party Red?"

"Actually, no - I wouldn't mind at all. The time I've spent looking for the darn thing is embarrassing," she gave a small snort of laughter as she started walking in the direction of the Blacksmith's shop, "thanks, by the way. I appreciate it."

The shop wasn't too terribly far away, and rather easy to spot. It matched the style of the other buildings, so the only thing that signified that it was different from any of the others was a simple sign to label the shop. Opening the creaky door, Ayumu stepped into the rather empty shop. There were displays of simple, basic weapons (as this was just a shop on the first floor), but that was about it.

"See? No one is here. I even carefully peeked into the backroom, and didn't see anyone in there either. I didn't enter that room though, so maybe I missed him. As far as I know though, he's somewhere else." She sighed 

"Well, I'm only at level two," Ayumu shrugged, "so you and I are in the same boat Shizua - low energy, low HP, and not many Sword Arts to perform due to energy constraints. But that's alright, hunting is do-able, even with such low stats." she smiled a bit. "Besides, in no time I'll be able to get enough SP to be at a good enough level to zoom through the floors. The sooner I get home, the better," then after a pause, she winced, "sorry...I'm rambling, aren't I? I guess I'm just a little eager to clear the game. I have some insanely important stuff to do back in the real world, so I'm trying to train all I can to get back. Enough about that though, lets go find some creatures and do some hunting!"

Ayumu turned to the boy who had randomly approached them. She could clearly see the nervousness in his countenance as he spoke, finding it awkward to speak up. With a good humored smirk,

"Red, huh? Okay," she looked him over, "and as for a party...well...I guess that would be alright. I wasn't expecting to do something like that today, but life is supposed to be unpredictable, eh? What were you thinking of doing, if we made a party? Some training, exploring, quests? Hopefully you have some objective to accomplish."

Well, life just gets more interesting everyday here. She mentally mused. This is good...if I keep busy like this, eventually I'll be able to fly through all the floors and clear this thing. The sooner the better.

"I guess normally I would be," she sighed as she stopped walking, "but I kind of need to find a certain NPC to start a quest. I'm getting kind of bored just hanging on this floor, too chicken to advance because I'm weak as of right now. I know it sounds stupid, but I can't find the blacksmith NPC anywhere to begin this said quest. I looked for him in the blacksmith's shop...or her, I'm not entirely sure...but they weren't there. Do you know if the NPCs on this floor have programmed routes, and where this one might be?" Ayumu asked

(OOC: I would put on a pink moustache and scream "where's the blacksmith," but that would be a bit much, don't you think? XD Yeah...I spend way too much time on youtube...)

Rain...why did the game makers have to make rain one of the weather functions? Ayumu groaned, she felt soggy and damp. She enjoyed a gentle sprinkle, or even a moderate rainfall, but it was pouring today. Trudging rather aimlessly through the town, she sighed with annoyance. Today, she was wanting to take her first quest - one to actually start a profession and make a living while she was in SAO. It would be a good way to make some Col, and have something to do besides just combat and leveling. At first she was thinking of taking the Merchant profession, but in the end she had decided to go with being a Blacksmith. For some reason, she had trouble finding the NPC. Ayumu had went to the blacksmith's shop, but he/she wasn't currently there for some reason.

So I guess Kayaba designed these NPCs with mind of their own. Impressive, considering in most games they just stay in one spot the whole time. She mentally smirked to herself.

"Whatever," she sighed heavily, shaking her head a little, "its fine." Then, scanning him over from head to toe with a scrutinizing look, "you don't seem like a low level player...if I could even be the judge of that, which I'm probably not. What are you doing on the first floor? Don't most of the higher levels fight bosses or something on floors like ten, eleven or twelve?" she asked with a hint of curiosity, "not that I would judge you for just relaxing out here. Despite the fact that we're all trapped in a dangerous game where we can actually die, it doesn't dampen the fact that some of these floors are really well made. Even though Kayaba is probably crazy since he trapped a bunch of people in his death game, the fact that he and the rest of the developer team for this game must have some resume and portfolio for this excellent work."

With a small gasp, she winced a little, almost feeling his pain. Hesitantly, she opened her menu, and then her inventory. Ayumu paused, deep in thought. She had wanted to save the health potion Ryuma had given her for another time...it might come handy in a more important fight. Now she wasn't so sure...she had to finish off this boar, since Ryuma couldn't take any more hits. Finally...she decided to save it. It was a crazy, risky choice, but she felt confident in herself. Now she was beginning to understand what SAO was really like. She hadn't thought a simple boar could take out two players...even if they were low leveled. A surge of new-found energy coursed through her. Taking a deep breath, she prepared a Vertical Sword Art...

ID# 37526

BD: 9 (YAS! Critical hit, +1!)

Ayumu took a swing at the boar, involuntarily loosing a loud battle cry. It sliced clean through the creature, and it didn't even make a sound as it burst into delicate, rather pretty blue particles. She stood there for a moment, breathing heavily, not sure of what to do.

Ayumu: 1/4 EN 0/1

Ryuma: 2/16 EN (I forget and I don't feel like looking lolz)

Boar: DEAD (0/4)

(OOC: Yay I logged on at just the right time :3 )

Taking a deep breath, Ayumu began following the girl, excitement tickling her. Even though she had planned on doing nothing today, she needed to begin leveling up so she could clear the game...or at least become better at combat, if she was going to be stuck here forever. Opening her menu, she scrolled through her inventory to find her sword. Tapping it, the weapon materialized in her hand, and she carefully carried it as she walked.

Her eyes widened a little, rather taken aback by this sudden outburst. She was surprised by his blind loyalty and protective instincts. Ayumu barely knew the guy, but now she was pretty ticked at the boar too. Growling, she decided to attack it

ID# 37480

BD: 4 (whyyyy???)

As Ayumu took her swing, the pain that was still existed in her back pierced with extra strength as she moved, causing her stumble and miss. With a groan, she nervously turned towards the boar, unable to do anything if it hit her.

This could be it. Her head pounded. Dying because of a stupid boar.

MD:4 (phew!)

As it ran towards her once more, it tripped on a rock, flying forwards and almost plummeting into her. Ayumu sighed with relief, exhaling sharply to release the nervous tension that had built up.

(haha awesome. :3 )

Rather startled, Ayumu looked down at the strange person who had just shot out of the bush. It was a player clutching a rabbit who had tried to bound away. Blinking with confusion and surprise, it took a moment for her to find some coherent words to say,

"Uh....yeah..." she narrowed her eyes, "I'm not sure if I should laugh at that, or just completely ignore the oddness of that excuse." she coughed to emphasize the last part. "How about you tell me what you were really doing just now behind that bush? You surprised me! I thought you were a boar or something." scowling a bit, she put her sword back into inventory, and crossed her arms, "even though I'm not very strong, I could've swung and attacked you...which is not something I'm too keen on doing to another player."