Kranzer

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Name: Blade of the Black Rose

Profession: Merchant

Rank: 1

ID: 54726; 54729

Roll: CD[11]LD[3];CD[10]LD[8]

Quality: Perfect

Item Type: One handed Straight Sword

Enhancements: +1 Damage (1 Slot/Original), Keen (1 Slot), Accuracy (1 Slot)

Description: A long blade with thorn covered vines etched traveling up the center of the blade. A black cross guard curves upward with a hilt clad in black leather.

 

Name: Shield of the Black Rose

Profession: Merchant

Rank: 1

ID: 54733

Roll: CD: 2

Quality: Uncommon [Locked]

Item Type: Shield

Enhancements: Damage Mitigation (1 Slot/Original)

Description: A long blade with thorn covered vines etched traveling up the center of the blade. A black cross guard curves upward with a hilt clad in black leather.

 

Name: Gloves of the Lonewolf

Profession: Merchant

Rank: 1

ID: 54736

Roll: CD: 2

Quality: Uncommon [Locked]

Item Type:Light Armor

Enhancements: +1 Damage (1 Slot/Original)

Description: A pair of black finger-less gloves. A wolves head is stitched into the backs of the gloves in white.

 

Name: Cloak

Profession: Merchant

Rank: 1

ID: 54738; 54739; 54740

Roll: CD[12]LD[3]; CD[11]LD[1]; CD[3]

Quality: Rare [Locked]

Item Type:Light Armor

Enhancements: Recovery (2 Slots)

Description: A plain dark grey cloak with frayed edges.

 

Name: Stone Wall

Profession: Merchant

Rank: 1

ID: 54741; 54742

Roll: CD[11]LD[20]; CD[4]

Quality: Uncommon [Locked]

Item Type:Shield

Enhancements: Damage Mitigation (1 Slot)

Description: A circular shield around the size of two bucklers, with an iron rings encasing it and a stone-like surface

 

Name: Fingerless Gloves

Profession: Merchant

Rank: 1

ID: 54743

Roll: CD[2]

Quality: Good [Locked]

Item Type: Light Armor

Enhancements: N/A

Description: A plain pair of black gloves

Name: Plain Boots

Profession: Merchant

Rank: 1

ID: 54745

Roll: CD[4]

Quality: Good [Locked]

Item Type: Light Armor

Enhancements: N/A

Description: A pair of plain black boots.

Kranzer approached the small cart he had set up in the Town of Beginnings central plaza. There were quite a few people gathered around but he wasn't open for business just yet. This day he needed to test his skill at appraisal and he wanted use his own equipment so he wouldn't run the risk of locking someone else's. Quite some time was spent at that cart. One item after another was removed from his inventory only to be swapped out for another. The young man was met with varied success but in the end he seemed to be rather happy with the results he'd gotten.

Day One (Appraising)[Total Material Used: 18]

1. Blade of the Black Rose [Uncommon] [Weapon]
   • Cost: 1 Material; ID: 54726; CD: 11[Success]; LD: 3[Keen] [Becomes Rare]; +8 Exp
   • Cost: 1 Material; ID: 54729; CD: 10[Success]; LD: 8[Accuracy] [Becomes Perfet]; +8 Exp << Can't be appraised any longer
2. Shield of the Black Rose [Uncommon][Shield]
   • Cost: 1 Material; ID: 54730; CD: 6[Retry]; +4 Exp
   • Cost: 1 Material; ID: 54731; CD: 5[Retry]; +4 Exp
   • Cost: 1 Material; ID: 54732; CD: 8[Retry]; +4 Exp
   • Cost: 1 Material; ID: 54733; CD: 2[Locked]; +1 Exp
3. Gloves of the Lonewolf [Uncommon][Light Armor]
   • Cost: 1 Material; ID: 54734; CD: 7[Retry]; +4 Exp
   • Cost: 1 Material; ID: 54735; CD: 8[Retry]; +4 Exp
   • Cost: 1 Material; ID: 54736; CD: 2[Locked]; +1 Exp
4. Cloak [Good] [Light Armor]
   • Cost: 1 Material; ID: 54737; CD: 5[Retry]; +4 Exp
   • Cost: 1 Material; ID: 54738; CD: 12[Success]; LD: 3[Recovery][Becomes Uncommon]; +8 Exp
   • Cost: 1 Material; ID: 54739; CD: 11[Success]; LD: 1[Recovery][Becomes rare]; +8 Exp
   • Cost: 1 Material; ID: 54740; CD: 3[Locked]; +1 Exp
5. Stonewall [Good] [Shield]
   • Cost: 1 Material; ID: 54741; CD: 11[Success]; LD: 20[Damage Mitigation][Becomes Uncommon]; +8 Exp
   • Cost: 1 Material; ID: 54742; CD: 4[Locked]; +1 Exp
6. Fingerless Gloves [Good] [Light Armor]
   • Cost: 1 Material; ID: 54743; CD: 2[Locked]; +1 Exp
7. Plain Boots [Good] [Light Armor]
   • Cost: 1 Material; ID: 54744; CD: 9[Retry]; +4 Exp
   • Cost: 1 Material; ID: 54745; CD: 4[Locked]: +1 Exp

Often found within the central plaza in the Town of Beginnings this blue merchant's cart has a variety of goods that any adventurer would need to survive day to day out in the vast wilderness or dank depths of the dungeons that Aincrad has to offer. While the cart isn't the largest around its more about the quality of the goods and services provided than the quantity available. That motto is etched into the side of the cart and its the philosophy that its owner lives by as he tries to provide everything he can to help others survive in this harsh world. A young lady in a long blue dress and black apron stands next to the cart ready to welcome any potential shoppers who happen to walk by.

(General Store)

(Appraisal)

 

Hunie suddenly realized that she’d met Grave before which made Kranzer smile as she giggled. It was understandable though. Even someone that wasn’t in her situation should be wary once the sun sets. He listened as Grave answered her question about the boulder quest. It wasn’t until she talked about getting a familiar that the young man perked up. “Familiar?” He looked at both of his companions. “You’re going to try and get a familiar?” She seemed to hesitate when she asked if they’d help and Kranzer simply nodded. “Of course I’ll help.” It was the least he could do and there was another factor as to why he didn't have any issues with helping her despite the fact he had been about to turn in for the night when he got her message. That factor was that it was just easier for him to help others than try to do anything for himself as odd as it seemed. He didn’t have to make many choices when he acted to help a friend after all. Then out into the wilderness they went. Eventually a bat crossed their path but it didn’t prove to be overly friendly. Kranzer was about to try and offer her encouragement when Grave made a rather bold proclamation. He declared that nothing would harm the lady so long as his fists had anything to do with it. “So how exactly does this work? You just feed a Mob and see if it takes?”

Kranzer followed Hikoru into the forest and kept a vigilant watch out for the Dark Elf. He fully expected a large battle to unfold over this quest but before he was ready they had located the Elf’s base. When Hikoru started to pick up items Kranzer didn’t seem to know how to react. “Wait what about,” he started to say only to get cut off by the scream of an angry Dark Elf. Immediately Kranzer’s hand dropped to the hilt of his dagger but was stopped as Hikoru gave him a thumbs up. The man, with dagger in hand, told him to watch and proceeded to kill the Elf with a single slice of his blade. The young man blinked for a few moments before the cloth was thrown his way and he quickly caught it. "Y-you made that look really easy," he said nervously. Kranzer had been so overwhelmed byhis fear that he was unable to react in time and by the time he'd gotten a semblance of composure it was already over. The item was quickly added to his inventory before Kranzer followed the man's advice and quickly started to gather up the other supplies. 

Hydra seemed to be ready to leave whenever it suited the others so Kranzer simply nodded at the man. He was just about to turn and speak to Allania when he heard someone else call out for Hydra. The young man turned around and saw a silver haired guy approach. The guy seemed friendly enough but then another one appeared but he just said hey without further introduction. One look at Luna and it was obvious she wasn’t overly comfortable with such a large group so Kranzer scratched his cheek for a moment.  “We’ve got quite a large group going on here which could over complicate trying to teach,” he said as he looked towards Luna as she asked what they were going to do. “Well if you’re ok with we could head out and teach you the ropes, or we can look around at what is available here in the Town of Beginnings. It has a lot to offer. If you’d prefer a smaller group I could always send you a friend invite and you can contact me later." Then he turned and looked at the two new comers for a moment before he smiled and held his hand out. "I don't believe I've met either of you before. I see that you know Hydra," he said towards Sinful. "I've actually only just met him myself." His gaze shifted over towards Pyroth. "Have you met anyone here before or," he started to ask but he let his question hang in the air.

 

When he received the request Kranzer accepted it. The mention of gathering regeants for potions certainly piqued his interest. “Oh? You’re an alchemist?” Potions and crystals were two things he was always in need of since he had planned to take on a more support role within his group of friends. He could only smile when Raun mentioned he’d gotten his coat from a generous tailor. He turned to the side to show off the left sleeve of his coat. There was the emblem of the head of a crowned lion there. “I actually got this coat the same way. This here is her mark which designates a craft as hers.” Kranzer turned back around and gripped the edges of his coat and pulled it forward with a grin on his face. He really did like the coat he’d gotten from Ariel. It had served him very well during his ventures out into the wilds.

When Raun headed out into the fields Kranzer followed. He quickly checked his menu but didn’t see any indicator that he’d gotten a new message. His eyebrows rose in surprise when Raun mentioned that three wolves had set upon him around some tall grass. “There were two wolves that always seemed to follow me around out here but I recently killed them to save another player. Luckily I made it in time.” His memories drifted back to that encounter and it wasn’t until Raun shouted a warning that Kranzer’s focus snapped back to reality. The man cut at the grass which resulted in an angry boar jumped out of it.

Raun’s blade missed which incited a soft curse from Kranzer’s lips. The left edge of his coat was pulled back as he unsheathed his dagger that was concealed on his left hip. The young man charged forward with his dagger held high and ready to be plunged down into the boar's flank. A flash of blue steel sliced through the air as Kranzer's blade found its mark and slayed the Boar where it stood. Its body slumped before it burst into a shower of blue data shards. Krazer blinked for a moment before he let out a low nervous laugh. He quickly sheathed his dagger and pulled the edge of his coat around to conceal it once more. "Sorry I think I got a little carried away."

 

Summary Post

Kranzer: +2 SP, +200 Col, Ability to Open a shop, Extra Materials[Pending GM roll], Title: Cart Merchant
Samriel: +1 SP, +200 Col, Extra Materials[Pending GM roll]

Kranzer blinked at the display the blonde put on by spreading her arms wide with a wide grin. The reference was clearly lost on him but he did stifle a chuckle. While he didn't have much of a sense of humor he could still be made to laugh. A sense of relief settled over him when she agreed to let him appraise some of her items. He'd at least be able to pay her back that way and it'd give him at least some business once his shop was set up. Kranzer offered her a slight nod when the notice for the friend request popped up. He accepted it and then looked back at her. "I'll hopefully have a shop up and running by the end of the day." After that he listened to her response about having already spent most of her day with the kids. The word she used to refer to them by though was lost on him as well. He wanted to ask what it meant and what language it was, but before he had much time to act on it she informed him that she had a prior engagement so she wouldn't be able to take hi up on his offer today. She did ask for him to keep the offer open for another day though. The young man smiled and said, "Of course. Just send me a message if anything comes up. I'll be sure to message you once my shop is established and I have everything sorted." Kranzer extended his hand to shake hers. "Either way have fun on your date," he said with another smile.

Kranzer offered a slight smile in response to Samriel's response. "That's quite true actually. I mean how was I supposed to know the mushroom would be inside the hollowed bark of a tree?" The young man offered a slight shrug of his shoulders. He looked back over towards the Merchant for a moment and let out a low sigh. He'd managed to set out on a path at least. He was now a merchant. When he looked over at Samriel again he had a curious look on his face. "Well if you're ever looking to have your items appraised I can definitely take care of that for you." In fact he had a lot of equipment in his inventory he could appraise and see if he could unlock any of those special properties he'd heard about. "What do you have planned next? Heading back to look after the kids here in the town?" He'd likely need to go open a shop but if she had anything else going on that he could offer his assistance with it would be the least he could do. Well that was his reasoning anyway.

He'd come to love it? Did that mean he wouldn't like it at first. Kranzer was just about to ask Hikoru what he meant by that but he was distracted when the man revealed that the forest would be just beyond the next hill. Kranzer gave a slight nod as he turned to look. The hill wasn't too far off and soon the young man started to climb up over and the moment he reached its apex he saw the forest that stretched out before them. A sudden chill passed through Kranzer's body that rooted him to the spot. The trees grew close together and foliage was tightly packed into any space available. Ringing the forest like a blanket was a thin layer of mist that flowed back and forth. It almost looked like the wind didn't know which direction it wanted to blow, but by the lack of movement in the surrounding foliage he could tell that there wasn't any wind blowing through the area. "We have to go in there," he asked incredulously as he pointed towards the forest. Eventually he managed to muster his courage and he took a step down the hill. One step after another and eventually he stood on the outer treeline and for a second he could have sworn he heard a scream echoing from within that darkened forest.

With no small degree of effort Kranzer reached forward and pushed his way between two trees and stepped within the Forest of Wavering Mist. "Just got to find a Dark Elf, kill it, and leave. That should be easy enough right?" The young man turned to look at Hikoru to make sure he was able to enter the forest behind him. His voice was a little shaky as he was stepping into unknown territory. He didn't know anything about this place which immediately made him wary.

"Oh," he said as she explained why she had laughed. He'd actually made a joke? It was subtle at first but soon a huge smile appeared on his face as he felt amused over the entire thing. He always had trouble when it came to that sort of thing and the fact that it had been completely unintentional made it all that much better. At her suggestion Kranzer walked over towards one of the trees and pressed against its park. When it sank in he gave the woman a curious glance before he crouched down and pulled the bark back. "Well crap," he muttered. When he was done he stood up with the mushroom in hand. After all that time he spent searching for the thing it just happened to be in the first tree he looked at. The mushroom was added to his inventory. His expression was one of relief when he turned and looked around. "Best be getting back then." During the trip back he glanced her way. "Thank you for the help. Without your quick thinking I might have been looking out there for," his voice trailed off with a shudder. He might have been stuck out there with the sun setting which was a thought that didn't appeal to him at all.

It didn't take too long to get back through the gates and after that he navigated his way to that small merchant's shop. The instant he stepped through the door the Merchant stood up. "Well that took you long enough," the Merchant said with a huff. Kranzer could only frown as he walked over towards the counter and held the mushroom out to the man. A strange scent clung to the air that nearly made his mouth water. "Oh noticed that did you," the Merchant said with a smile. The man took the mushroom and walked over towards a fireplace behind the counter that had a pot suspended over the flames. The lid was pulled back and the mushroom was thrown in. Kranzer's hand reached out and his jaw dropped. "What?" The Merchant turned around and walked back with a big grin. "Thank you lad, without that my stew would have been absolutely horrid." Kranzer didn't look amused. In fact he looked down right livid. "You made me go out in the forest to get you an ingredient to finish your stew?!" The Merchant scoffed at that idea. "If that's what you think then perhaps you aren't cut out to be a Merchant. Listen boy nothing in this world is free. You must give something in order to receive something else."

The Merchant waited to make sure Kranzer was listening. "You asked me to teach you how to be a Merchant, but that isn't free. The price," he said as he pointed back at the pot. "Was that Mushroom. It also served as a lesson. In order to appraise both weapons and armor you will require a piece of material like that." He took out a pair of gauntlets from behind the counter and set them down and handed Kranzer a different material to use. "Oh." That was all Kranzer could say. "Now touch the item with that material and examine it." Kranzer did so but the item flashed and the word "Locked" appeared over it. The Merchant sighed as he picked the gauntlets up. "Bad luck there. That happens at times, but don't fret. When at first you don't succeed try try again." With that the Merchant turned around and started to stir his stew.

Kranzer took a few steps back and looked at Samriel apologetically. "Thank you for the help. I doubt I would have finished that quest without you." He offered her an awkward smile.

 

 

ID: 54379; LD: 17 [1 Material Found]

Hikoru showed considerable confidence in his ability to end the Dark Elf with but a single a slice of his dagger. Kranzer wasn't about to argue that fact and instead just decided to trust the man's judgement since Hikoru would know his own capabilities than anyone. When Hikoru left Kranzer cast one last look towards the Blacksmith and his wife before he hurried after him. "Thank you for the help," he said once he'd caught up with the man. "This forest... I suspect it isn't that far off then," he said more hoping it to be true than actually making a statement. There were some rather strong similarities between Kranzer and the man who was leading him along on this quest. Both he and Hikoru were merchants, even if Hikoru was likely more skilled. In fact the man was probably more skilled with his dagger too. "Hikoru right? You said you were a merchant as well? What do you think of the profession?" Kranzer's dark-eyed gaze shifted over towards the man as they walked.

The concern she showed made an awkward expression flash across his face before he offered her a quick smile. "No no I'm ok. It already passed." The young man stood up and inhaled deeply as if to express his point. He continued to listen to her until he noticed a rather strange expression on her face. Kranzer could only stand there and blink while Samriel seemed to lose it and burst out laughing. She managed to conceal her face behind her shield so she'd miss the sudden flush in Kranzer's cheeks. He quickly pulled up his scarf to hide the fact that he blushed as her shield was lowered. Idly he pondered at why she laughed and it was almost sad that he didn't get the joke. When she almost said princess Kranzer turned to look at her again with his eyebrow quirked as he grew more and more curious. "I hope so," he finally said with a smile. His dark-eyed gaze left her as he started to scan their surroundings. However, try as he might he just couldn't seem to find the thing. "Nothing yet," he called back over his shoulder. Despite his lack of success Kranzer was not quite ready to call it a day just yet.

ID: 54068; LD: 5 [Nothing Found :*( ]

He was more than ok. His heart didn't race from any physical effort on his part. It was more due to the fact he'd gotten very nervous and he had to work at steadying his breathing out. He stood up and raised a hand and offered her a quick smile. "I'm ok. I uh," he started to say before his voice trailed off. The hair along the back of his head was ruffled as he scratched at it. "I tend to have attacks like that from time to time when I get really anxious. Though it wasn't something I had to deal with while I've been here." The thought that he had to deal with that here of all places was a little unsettling to say the least. When she reminded him that this was the first floor he looked at her with a shocked look. "Oh.. right." He had been a bit too hasty then. "In truth I don't always like to fight, but I have grown more accustomed to each day I'm out here." He was about to look around when she asked how his progress went. "None at all. Maybe my mushroom is just in another forest," he replied unaware of the unintentional joke he'd made. His eyes settled over the area for one last look before he set off for another section of the forest.

When he didn't notice anything he sighed. "Guess it is in another forest." Kranzer walked over towards the tree he'd left the leaf on and started to head deeper into the forest. There was still quite a while before the sun set but he'd prefer if if he found this mushroom soon so they could head back well before the risk of being caught out here at night became an issue.

ID: 53955; LD: 2 [Nothing Found]

Kranzer nodded. “He was a huge help actually. Did you know that you have to break a giant boulder with nothing but your fist?” He held up his hand as if to express his point and gave Hunie an incredulous look. “Without Grave’s help I would have been there… well I would probably still be there actually.” Kranzer smiled but remained quiet as Hunie and Grave made their introductions. He waited until they were finished speaking to look at Hunie once more. He seemed a little hesitant to speak since it looked like Hunie hadn’t met Grave before so he didn’t bring up the real reason he was concerned for the message she’d sent him. “I came as quickly as I could. You said you needed help with something?” His dark-eyed gaze shifted between the two as he waited to see what was going on

The Blacksmith grumbled at Hikoru’s question. “What if I am?” His wife nudged him and after he’d taken the time to roll his eyes he readdressed the question. “Of course I am.” The two NPCs listened as Hikoru explained that Kranzer was an up and coming merchant and getting some armor would help him with that endeavor. The Blacksmith’s gaze shifted from Hikoru and settled on Kranzer, who seemed to shrink back under that heavy gaze. “A merchant? You should have taken up a real man’s profession, but hey it’s your life.” Griswold shrugged his shoulders. Several moments passed and the Blacksmith finally said, “Well out with it. What kind of armor do you need? And don't be vague about it." Kranzer blinked a few times as he tried to figure out what this NPC's problem was. "Well I wear light armor." Griswold burst out laughing which drew a concerned look from Kranzer. "Sounds about right." Before Kranzer could question what Griswold meant the man started his explanation. "If that's the case then I need a special kind of leather. I had a shipment due to arrive yesterday but as your friend here stated there is an elf that raided my supplies and ran off with it."

Kranzer straightened out his posture. "So I need to go kill this elf to get it?" He cast a questioning gaze towards Hikoru but the boisterous voice of Griswold drew his attention away. "Well I'll be, we have a genius over here. Unless you can get it away from him any other way then yes. You'll have to kill him. That and if you kill him I won't have to deal with the hassle of him raiding my supplies." Kranzer had no idea why what this NPC's problem was but at least he'd gotten the quest. Hanna stepped forward and offered a gentle smile to both Hikoru and Kranzer. "Just travel to the Forest of Wavering Mists. That's where the Dark Elf usually ambushes our supply wagon." The small window appeared before the young man and he readily accepted the quest. He looked over towards Hikoru with a nervous expression painted on his face. "I hate to ask this but... do you know how to get to this forest?"

“Uh,” the young man said awkwardly. He held his hands up and a nervous smile spread across his face. “Really it’s no trouble.”  This was the first time anyone bowed before Kranzer and it was a little strange for him. When he got back the man continued to thank him and a hint of sorrow flashed across his eyes. Is this what it was like to have a sibling? It was clear that Raun was worried and appeared to be genuinely happy at the chance to be reunited with his sister. The thought of having been alone most of his life never truly bothered him and this was one of the rare instances that it did. When he saw someone like this it gave him insight into what he’d missed out on and it cast a heavy weight to settle over his heart.

 When Raun made mention of going out to hunt Mobs it brought Kranzer out of his thoughts and back to reality. “I could use some more materials actually. I’m aiming to open a Merchant’s shop so I need all I can get for my appraisals.” A quick look at his menu showed that nobody had replied just yet. "Send me a party request. Are you properly geared and leveled to survive out here?" The last thing he wanted was to part two siblings before they could be reunited by having the brother dying at the hands of some Boar.

Kranzer listened to Seul’s response to Ratatosk about the difference between gear and skills. The young man nodded slightly but found himself rather distracted as the entirely too large insect started to descend towards them. A bead of sweat dropped down his left cheek and Kranzer took an involuntary step back. The man’s first attack missed and he didn’t need to tell him not to attack twice. He had no issues in biding his time before attacking that thing. That thing’s stinger would have been incentive enough to stay his blade. The edge of his coat was quickly pulled back and his dagger freed from its sheath. “That thing is freaking huge." For now though all he could do was wait for Seul to get enough hate on himself that it would be safe to start attacking it.

His shoulders slumped as he walked back along the path. Kranzer had intended to keep an eye out as he walked but the sound of Samriel's voice suddenly drew his attention and made him run towards where he'd left her. He'd kept her within eyesight but from the angle he was at a tree blocked his view. Kranzer ran around the tree just in time to see her hammer miss its mark and the wolf's hackles raise in response. For an instant he hesitated as he tried to figure out if he wanted to intercede or not but it only lasted less than a second. The side of his coat was pulled back and his dagger sang with a metallic ring as it was freed from its sheath. "Stand back," he shouted as he closed the distance between him and the wolf. The dagger was held low with his arm reared back in preparation to plunge the blade into the wolf's flank. As he charged forward a subtle lavender glow flowed along the blade's edge. Now that it wasn't concealed by the coat this would be the first time Samriel would have seen it. The hilt was wrapped in black cloth. The blade's cross guard extended out and curved down over his fingers. The opposite end was angled up to give a place for his thumb to rest and to provide more post when the blade was thrust forward. The blade was double edged and a deep blue that almost looked black. The edges of the blade was darker though and from the looks of it was actually black. Which gave a dazzling effect when the lavender light flowed along the blade's edge.

The instant the distance vanished between the young man and the wolf his dagger flashed forward twice in quick succession. Each strike plunged deep within the wolf's side which left huge red gaps in their wake. The wolf let out a low yelp before its body broke down into shard of blue data. Kranzer breathed heavily as he rested one hand on his knee while crouched down. He took a quick look around before he slid his dagger back into its sheath and sighed. "That was a little weaker than I thought." Had he been a little hasty by stepping in?

 

When Hikoru laughed Kranzer tried to figure out if he’d said something that was funny but when it was confirmed that the ferret was a familiar his gaze lowered to look on it. While Hikoru explained why he had invited Kranzer along the young man’s gaze remained focused upon the ferret. That is until Hikoru turned to head in side. “That is correct,” Kranzer said but he was a little curious how word had gotten out so quickly. The mention of quest and armor though did garner his interest so he quickly followed him into the shop. Upon arrival the young man had naturally assumed this would be the shop of another player and was genuinely surprised when he was greeted by a pair of NPCs. The shop was quaint and rather tidy all things considered. "Look dear, you have customers." Kranzer's gaze was drawn by the voice of the Blacksmith's wife, Hanna. He blinked for a moment at the blonde haired woman. From a back room a booming voice called out, "Great! Just great! Like I didn't have any better way of spending my time." The blacksmith emerged from the back room. He towered over the short woman and his dark hair was mostly concealed beneath a white bandanna intended to keep his hair in check. "What do you want," the Blacksmith demanded. Hanna placed a hand on her husband's shoulder. "Now now Griswold. Is that anyway to speak to your customers?" She turned and flashed both Hikoru and Kranzer a beaming smile.

"What my husband mean to say was, Welcome how can we help you?" Kranzer blinked at the pair for several moments and when he was finally able to say something all that came out was, "Uhhhhh." He didn't know what to say. A rather annoyed expression flashed across Griswold's face which instantly reminded Kranzer of that merchant he had to deal with in order to complete his profession quest. "Well? What's the matter boy? Out with it already, I don't have all day." Kranzer could only stare with wide eyes and his mouth slightly agape. 

“Thor,” he asked with a slightly wide-eyed gaze. He stared at her in wonder for several moments. The way she talked it was like it was an easy choice for her to make. If only he could decide on things quite as easily. When she frowned and glanced his way he thought he might have said something wrong, but when she offered him advice about investing in his weapon and armor first he looked ahead and truly considered her words for a few moments. “That’s actually some sound advice. Thank you , and yeah I can see why that’d be best." Once she confirmed she was ready and that'd she'd keep watch he felt rather relieved. This way if anything did try to attack them they'd at least have some forewarning. The mention of his determination being tested made him let out  a soft sigh. For some reason he didn't expect this to be such an ordeal to take up the Merchant profession but he might as well see it through now. Especially since he had someone here helping him. "Alright, let's go." His voice flowed with not only determination but acceptance. The young man stepped between two trees as he entered the woods.

He walked for several minutes. As he walked he'd stop momentarily by one tree and look ahead. He'd then pick a tree farther ahead and walk to it before repeating the process. In the real world getting turned around in an area with dense trees was all too easy and what he was currently doing was a basic navigation skill to make sure you traveled in a straight line. If they got lost out here in the woods it could end up taking them quite a while in finding their way back. As an after thought Kranzer asked a question about something Samriel had mentioned a while ago. "So you're in a guild?" He didn't look her way as he asked and instead remained focused on keeping on a straight path and keeping a keen eye out for that mushroom. He came to a stop and motioned for her to do the same. "I'm going to look around here for a bit." He looked around for a moment and picked up a small leaf only to set it up against the root of one of the trees that was in his direct path. "So I'll know which direction we were headed," he said with a brief smile. 

He started his search in the immediate area and slowly started to work his way out in a counter-clockwise pattern. Try as he might though he just wasn't able to find the mushroom. Well he did find all sorts of fungi. The forest was abundant with all of it. There just wasn't a yellow one with white dots along its stalk among them. With a low grumble he turned around and started to head back over towards where Samriel was.

ID: 53603; LD: 8 [Nothing Found]

"That was great," Kranzer said as he watched the chunk break free from the boulder and fall to the ground. Before it faded from existence he was already moving forward with his arm drawn back. "Almost there," he mumbled. Air flowed from his lugs as he exhaled and his fist was slammed forward into the boulder. A small portion split off and fell to the ground as he finished off a small section previously damaged by Grave. "This isn't nearly as bad as I thought it was going to be." The young man quickly stepped back to give Grave more room to unleash his next attack. Idly he pondered if the man would unleash a kick while performing a back flip.

ID: 53555; BD: 10 (9+1)

Party
Grave: 14/19 NRG
Kranzer: 4/5 NRG

Enemies
Boulder: 5/50 HP

The sun had started to set on yet another day here in Aincrad. How many days had it been since he first logged into SAO? He really didn't know. After a while he'd simply stopped keeping count. Tracking the passage of time had lost its meaning for the young man. Now he simply counted the clearing of floors since that was the only thing that seemed to matter. There was one thing Kranzer knew though and that was this day had been a very productive day. He sat at a small table in his room at his favorite inn. After having gone through the list of stuff he'd managed to acquire he was just about to take a bite into a piece of bread before he was alerted to a new message. "Huh. I wonder who that could be," he muttered under his breath. The bread was placed carefully upon the table as he opened his menu. Hunie? He quickly opened the message and his dark eyes followed each line and as he finished the young man sighed in relief. At first he grew concerned that the one who stalked her had taken action against her, but from what the message said she was simply looking for help with a quest. "Well that's good," he mumbled. The bread was devoured before he went anywhere. 

Once Kranzer was fully outfitted in his typical attire and gear he made his way towards the gate. It wasn't that far of a walk as he preferred the Inn closest to it. Every morning he got a very early start and being closer to the gate meant he had to travel through fewer crowds of people and waste less time in getting his day started. Now if he was surprised at the sudden message from Hunie he was doubly surprised when he saw Grave standing next to her. "Hello," he called out with a wave. "Hunie you mentioned about needing some help," he asked as he turned his attention towards Grave. "Good evening. Have you managed to become a Grandmaster yet?" Kranzer extended his hand out to shake the man's hand as well as Hunie's. 

Kranzer nodded and said, "I'm good." He shook his hand back and forth as he observed the kick Grave unleashed against the rock and his dark-eyed gaze followed the chunk of rock that fell free after. A soft whistle escaped his lips as he started to prepare himself to attack once more. With his left side facing the rock he held his hand up. When he finally brought it down he pivoted off of his rear foot and twisted his torso at the waist to add more force behind his strike. The area were his hand hit the rock splintered but only by a small amount. The lack of any true damage didn't matter to Kranzer. The fact that he was cracking the stone surface with his bare hand made him happy enough. "Yes we are," Kranzer remarked to Grave's estimation that they were almost there. 

ID: 53551; BD: 9 (8+1)

Party
Grave: 14/19 NRG
Kranzer: 4/5 NRG

Enemies
Boulder: 18/50 HP