Blood

ID: 99710
BD: 9-1=8 (Rage blow: 2*4=8)
MD: 1-3=-2

It had been a boring battle, and Blood had expected far more from the strongest mob that she had seen so far. The mob was weak, and she had completely wasted the safeguard that she applied to herself. It was hard enough to hit her, so even if she was hit by one attack, she would definitely survive and reach the same outcome as what would've happened if she didn't use the potion. What has been done is done, though, and Blood sighed as she finally landed a lucky hit, defeating the troll and sending it into shards. Blood's victory had been inevitable, so now she can finally find her way out of the place and reach the quest giver so she can complete the third quest and obtain the fourth quest... the final quest of the beginner quest trilogy. With this, she was one step closer to becoming stronger.

Blood: 100/100 | EN: 2/10 | [Safeguard]
Cave guardian: -4/20 | DMG: 50/5

ID: 99709
BD: 4-1=3 (Miss)
MD: 4-3=1 (Miss)

The stalemate, of course, continues. There was no sign that the chain of missing attacks would end any time soon, but when it does, Blood would be able to strike and defeat the monster once and for all. This would be the last time she attacks a creature such as this, and for the future, Blood hoped that it would be far easier to hit, but more of a challenge for her. This time, it seems as if she was impossible to hit, and every strike from the troll was a simple dodge that she can simply avoid by moving slightly to the left or right depending on the direction of the attack. The pattern was far too easy, and even without her evasion, Blood was confident that she would've dodged its attacks. Blood swung with her blade after avoiding several of the troll's own attacks only to miss all her swing.

Blood: 100/100 | EN: 3/10 | [Safeguard]
Cave guardian: 4/20 | DMG: 50/5

ID: 99708
BD: 7-1=6 (Rage blow: 2*4=8)
MD: 1-3=-2 (Miss)

Blood closed her eyes. She had to use her senses because her vision did not assist her that much. If she could fully rely on her senses, then she would certainly use it, however, if part of her vision is blurred, then she would rather attack in the pure darkness. She listened carefully, reading the steps that the monster is slowly taking to reach her. Finally, with one clumsy swing, the troll attacked, only for it to realize that it had missed once again. Blood was an expert of evading attacks, and this one was just as easy to dodge. She had managed to evade the attack entirely, not taking a bit of damage as a result. This gave away the position of the monster in the darkness, and with that, Blood was able to pierce the troll with her curved sword, taking the mob down to a one hit with just one attack. One more hit, and it was done for.

Blood: 100/100 | EN: 4/10 | [Safeguard]
Cave guardian: 4/20 | DMG: 50/5

ID: 99707
BD: 5-1=4
MD: 1-3=-2

Hence, the stalemate continues. Blood, at this point, was wondering whether it had been a good choice for her to consume the safe guard potion when she could've saved it for later. The quest had recommended that you take it, but Blood was sure that she would've been fine without it. How much damage could a troll like this really do anyway? Not that much, according to her opinion. She could go at this all day and not get hit by such a slow, clumsy creature. Blood sighed, giving away her position on purpose so she can launch an attack by alternating her body to behind the creature. The plan did not work, however, when she mispositioned herself, and the result was her stabbing the air, not exactly the target that she wanted to hit. Her stats were still far too low, so she was not surprised that she would fail at hitting a lot of attempts

Blood: 100/100 | EN: 5/10 | [Safeguard]
Cave guardian: 12/20 | DMG: 50/5

ID: 99706
BD: 6-1=5 (Miss)
MD: 6-3=3 (Miss)

It was a stalemate. The battle would've ended a long time ago if this was in real life. In real life, Blood could launch herself at an opponent and slash his head off immediately with one smooth swing of the sword, or rather, insert a hole through their head with a bullet from a long distance away. Her abilities in real life, although some were transferred over, the game truly takes away that from you. You are just the same as everyone else, and the only thing that you keep is the experience and the intelligence obtained from the killings of the real world. Hence, for now, Blood must continue to attack, even if it is not backed up by the diminishing if the monster's life points. A slow death, even though I would like it to be fast, a slow, miserable death for an ugly creature is quite fitting.

Blood: 100/100 | EN: 5/10 | [Safeguard]
Cave guardian: 12/20 | DMG: 50/5

ID: 99705
BD: 5-1=4 (Miss)
MD: 2-3=-1 (Miss)

Blood was extremely confident of her abilities at the moment, and she knew that with time, she will be able to defeat the monster completely. It was simply too dark for her to consistently hit the mob without any sort of accuracy boosts on her weapon. After this quest, she might be able to finish up and obtain the col that she needs to obtain a new armor piece that will grant her the accuracy... Or rather just a ring will be sufficient for her to obtain this new accuracy boost. For now, she must focus entirely on the destruction of this creature in front of her. It was as if she was addicted to killing, and each time she charged, she attacked with a different fierceness and devastation. She was unpredictable, both in character and in fighting styles. Unfortunately, her attack was hard enough to land without the darkness, and now, she was still unable to land the strike.

Blood: 100/100 | EN: 6/10 | [Safeguard]
Cave guardian: 12/20 | DMG: 50/5

ID: 99704
BD: 7-1=6 (Rage blow: 4*2=8)
MD: 8-3=5 (Miss)

Blood knew that it was a clumsy mob. The creature was slow to move and so she knew immediately that it would be placed to her advantage. The whole battle had been her victory in the beginning, and she was looking forwards to enjoying the red blade marks that would be made as a result of combat. Blood smirked, her eyes filled with enjoyment in the darkness even though she was unaware of exactly what was in the darkness. Blood charged once more, her eyes glowing in the blackness, and it was almost as if creature could see her coming but failed to anticipate exactly what was coming his way either. Blood smiled, knowing that she made contact, and the next thing that she saw was the red mark indicating the landing of the hit. The slash had dealt almost half the health points away from the creature. Blood licked her lips, sensing an attack before dodging straight back where she was.

Blood: 100/100 | EN: 7/10 | [Safeguard]
Cave guardian: 12/20 | DMG: 50/5

ID: 99703
BD: 4-1=3 (Miss)
MD: 1-3=-2 (Miss)

Blood couldn't see the monster in the distance, but she could tell that it wasn't gigantic. The darkness was making it extremely difficult for her to match her blade with the monster. Once she got closer, she might be able to see the guardian and get a better idea of exactly what she is dealing with. First things first, though, she needed to get as close as possible without taking any damage. With a smile, she lunged forward bravely, pulling her newly acquired curved sword to the use before attempting to swing blindly in the darkness. Unfortunately, she was unable to hit the target with the attack, just as she anticipated, but she managed to see the details of who she was dealing with. It was a troll... a troll guardian with a club in its hand. With that in mind, she made the assumption that it would be easy to dodge the attacks of such a clumsy mob. 

Blood: 100/100 | EN: 8/10 | [Safeguard]
Cave guardian: 20/20 | DMG: 50/5

Blood sighed in relief as she finally saw a red glow in the distance. She had been surprised that there was no mobs that attacked her during this quest, and she was starting to think that the danger in the atmosphere had been caused by her own failure. Perhaps she had been toned down in this world so much that even her own perceptions were deceiving her. This would not be advantageous in the future, as her own experience was one of the few traits that she can use in this world to become dominant. At the moment, she was unsure of how much of her past experiences actually carried over to this world. No... There was no way that Blood was mistaken. If no monsters attacked her before, than it must be after... And that was immediately what happened when she touched the red gem. The ground glowed, and suddenly, a mob was ahead. Blood smiled, applying the safeguard potion to avoid heavy damage.

<<Safeguard>> Potion applied

Blood was lost. She had been lost for about an hour, and she had yet to meet this danger that she had been reminded of earlier. The threat was constantly reminding her, keeping her lost in her own mind as well as her physical body being lost in the maze of the caves. The tunnels split in two directions at every different corner, and it seemed that no matter how much she walked, there was no way that she would find an end to the cave. However, every beginning must have an end, and since this was a tutorial quest, it would be a matter of time before she reached her destination, and since this quest was supposed to be easy, she knew that the jewel would be very easy to stumble across. Blood whistled in boredom, but continued to walk, keeping her eyes out for things out of place or exaggerated.

Blood heard a disturbance in the air. There was something in the cave that she couldn't see at the moment. It was hidden away somewhere, but she could sense danger, she always at the instincts to sense this type of thing, and she knew the moment that she stepped in that she would be facing something powerful in this cave. It would be something far more powerful than anything she had faced so far, but that's not saying much because she had only faced boars. She wanted some NPCs or maybe even low-leveled players to kill, and this might honestly be one of those things above. Suddenly, the quest just got a lot more exciting... and she couldn't wait to slice something up with her curved sword and dominate the health of a mob. Blood smiled, excitedly walking faster in pitch darkness as she approached this danger that she had so much passion for.

Blood yawned, and the immediate thing that she noticed was that she was not used to the darkness at all. Normally, in real life, at least, her eyes would've already been adjusted to everything, but no matter how hard she concentrated, she was unable to fully determine the outlines of the walls and the path that she was stepping in. Fighting in this darkness would not be good, and it would probably be harder to hit the creatures. Not only that, Blood didn't have any accuracy boosts in her equipment at the moment, so it would be impossibly hard to land a hit on whatever might be waiting for her. Luckily, she realized that the inside of the caves were silent, so there should not be extremely big creatures on the inside. Blood looked around cautiously, keeping her eyes out for anyone that might be looking and following her. After confirming that she was not being followed, she stepped inside.

"How amusing. It's as if these players think that a bunch of players on the first floor can actually be a threat as a crime guild. These low-leveled players will never be able to achieve anything through this. In fact, this is a waste of time." Blood said, putting the paper back on the board. If there ever came a time where Blood meets a powerful player killing guild, she would join it, but only to destroy everyone from the inside and rise to the top. If she is able to do that, she is able to defeat all in her way and raise to own an army that she can use to destroy her father's own army. Until she can obtain this army, however, she needed something else. She needed her own power to prove her own worth, not only to others but to herself as well. This, would be the most tedious part, but it is also the most important part.

Blood had not expected to be sent on a jewel fetching quest. She wanted something far more exciting then simply going out somewhere to fetch a jewel that can literally be bought from a store somewhere. It was truly a useless quest, but Blood wanted to the crucial skill points that will definitely be useful in the future. For now, she needed to complete these small tasks, and then make her way to the top through harder, and more difficult quests. She would handle them alone, without the help of anyone, and that is the way that she wanted to go about doing things. No one should be there to hinder her progression, and if anyone does stand in her way, she shall cut them down. Blood sighed, looking at a bulletin board as she exited the safe zone at last. "Crime guild." She read, laughing out loud and attracting the attention of other players around her.

Blood reached the woman at last, and handed her the parcel that she had received upon the completion of her previous quest, the second beginner quest. That one had been fairly easy as well, and this one seemed to be just as easy. That was, however, before Blood realized that there was a twist.

"Thanks for the gold band! I'll tell that old fella a quick thank ya later, for now, though, there's one more piece that I'm missing to create my ring, and that is a jewel." 

Blood laughed, "So you want me to fetch you a jewel? There are plenty of people selling jewels out there in the markets. If you give me the col, I'll fetch as many as you want immediately."

It was then the quest giver's turn to giggle. "What I want is not those types of jewels. There is one specific one, deep in the darkness of a nearby cave..."

What she wanted to do was defeat high-leveled monsters so she can use them to obtain the experience, however, she needed to start small, just like every other player in this game. On floor one, there was an exceptional amount of beginner quests that she can complete to get used to the system, and the combat. This game was designed so that real life skills would not influence the way that the characters in game, but from her prior combat experience, Blood knew that she had an edge on the other skinny, small nerds who play video games all day. Those types of players would just grind and grind, but without true combat knowledge, they are just useless, and if faced by a true expert, they are powerless, as well. Blood sighed as she realized that she is soon to reach her destination... the girl sitting by the tree with the glasses.

She had lost inspiration to truly kill in the last few days. Even though she didn't want to admit it, the company that her father had sent to get her was a scary feeling, and Blood would certainly not like to meet any of them before she acquired to levels to kill them off before they can kill her. Even they were fighting a life and death battle, because in real life, they would have no chance against Blood. In this game though, the battles would be in their favor purely from numbers and stats. That is why Blood must not lay back and watch as the world continues on its own. Blood must fight, and grind harder than any of the henchmen and any of the players in this world, and if she continues to do so, she shall obtain her goal... her goal of defeating her father, and become the most feared player of Aincrad.

It was the next day, a couple of days actually... Well, now that she thought about it, it should've been far more than a week before she last ventured out of her dark alley way. She had been staying there, undiscovered for a time now, but she didn't mind. She just wanted a place to stay until she got her venom shop set up and completed so she can venture out and destroy anything in her path using the venom that she creates from her own alchemist mastery. Today's task appeared to be an easy one... One that only required her delivering something to another woman, and it seemed that she had to do this task in broad daylight, something that she would rather not get used to. She liked doing her tasks at night, and that included these quests, so Blood was naturally unhappy with what she had to do, and a grumpy Blood, is a scary Blood.

I had actually received the message, but forgotten about it and hence forgot to come and claim the items that I had ordered from the high-ranked blacksmith. It was just a lucky coincidence that I walked past the place and suddenly realized that I have yet to pick up my items. It was getting rather late and she hoped the shop was not closed yet. With a shrug, she slowly walked up and opened the door before heading inside and looking around once more. It was the same looks with just a few items added to the displays, and amongst them was one... No, two of my items. They were definitely carefully made and the craftsmanship was excellent - the obvious signs of an experienced weapon maker. I checked out my items, observing it carefully - especially the katana - as it would be the more powerful weapon out of the two. The curved sword was there for backups, but the Katana was the true devastator, the true death weapon, and the effects of it suited her tastes perfectly. With no patience and wanting to test the weapons, I glanced towards the front where a red-haired man and the shop owner was talking.

"I heard you had 50% off for all beginner players," I mentioned, recalling that I had read something about it from within the shop whether on the menu or the prices. Although I am unsure where I got the information from, there is no way I am mistaken - The information stuck to my mind. "7 material items would be reduced to 3.5. Two of them would be back to 7." I exclaimed, swiping down and opening up my menu to send the trade offer to the blacksmith. As soon as my items were traded to me, I grabbed them and stole a glance at the red-haired man. He seemed... Unusual and there was something about the man, but I don't know exactly what I sense about the man. Perhaps my mind was deceiving me based on his size? It didn't matter. I am sure I'll meet the man once again. With that, I walked out of the shop with the curved sword by my side - the first sword that I would test out in this game.

-7 T1 Materials
+1 Soul Splitter (3x Damage)
+1 Moonlit Dread (1x Damage, 1x Paralysis, 1x Bleed)

"I don't care what you believe." I said, keeping my eyes locked to his as I grabbed onto the bottle that he offered me and taking a sip, feeling some sort of burn in her throat as she downed a small bit. I shook the bottle around, hearing the swish of the alcohol. "Well, even if you can handle the situation, you were still outnumbered. Any experienced killer will know when to back off and retreat." I finished up with that. If I was in his position though, I would not have stopped combat even if someone was in need of my protection. I would rather dig my sword deep into the heart of an enemy than prevent the death of an ally. I live to satisfy my thirst for blood, hence I named myself Blood to remind myself of my life. 

"Oh, I remember the last time I was in a room alone with a man who said I had a nice, little butt. He ended up dead on the floor - his fate was sealed as soon as he placed his mouth one mine. Poison on the lips... Oldest trick in the book." I shrugged, taking another gulp of the whiskey. I am aware of the fact that you can't get drunk in this game. I learned that when I learned that pain does not exist in this game. Learning that was quite the let-down. Inflicting pain is half the fun in killing someone and that was taken away from the game. However, the look of horror on players' faces was still there, as she witnessed earlier from this man's fight with those players.

"Laughing coffin. Sounds contradictory. How can you be strong but lazy at the same time? If you're not part of it, why are you killing those players?" I asked.

@Aereth

I chuckled slyly. There were so many things wrong with what the man just said. First, "A normal person would indeed just thank you and be done with it. I guess the reasonable conclusion would be that I am not a normal person." I stared at him right in the eyes, delivering my message with as much dramatic emphasis as possible. "Scared of you? Why would I? You are just someone who kills players, while I am someone who has looked at the face of death so many times that I am no longer scared of death, himself. Whatever you've faced in this game is nothing compared to the things that I have faced in my past life. Fear is just a concept that can be controlled and manipulated to be nonexistent by a skilled and experienced assassin. Honestly, I would just let you kill me if only I didn't have something left to do in this game... Some disputes to be settled if you want to know."

I smiled and sat down on a nearby boulder and took out a cup of water from my inventory. "And you should thank me. I don't know how skilled you are but you were obviously outnumbered. Backups were approaching you quickly and you were probably way too concentrated on the battle to realize the approaching danger. When I came out from my hiding spot, I brought along a few seconds of surprise, giving you and I some time to escape." I yawned, taking a sip of the water and after finishing it, picked up a boulder and tossed it up and down in the air,

"You said you were just some guy trying to do a job? I don't really care, honestly. I just want information. Know anything about the Laughing Coffin?"

@Aereth

I had anticipated for my item to require at least a few days for it to be created, but it had been created in less than half an hour to her delight. That was the first perfect equipment that I had ordered and received on the first floor. I needed three more - two weapons and a lucky charm. I had placed in orders for the weapons already but they were not being created at the moment and I am not even sure if the shopkeeper was even attempting to craft the items that I had placed. Hopefully, the items that I requested will not take that long to be created as they are vital to my progression in this game. I need the damage boost, and that was inevitable. I glanced over at the prices of the items and accepted the armor that I had requested from the tailor. "Eight materials." I stated blankly, completing the transaction and giving him the materials that he charged for a perfect tier one armor. It was a bit expensive, but it was actually one of the cheaper shops that I had visited in this game. Now, I just need my charms and my weapons - time to pay a visit to an artisan.

+1 Loose Cloth
-8 T1 Materials

@Aereth

I walked into the tailor shop on the fourth floor, making it the first time that I visit this floor since the beginning of this game. It was snowy and extremely cold on this floor and it was one that suited my tastes. The spill of blood would illuminate and stand out on this white-covered floor - of course, if there was blood. Killing in this game didn't produce blood though, as I learned from my multiple boar assassination plots. Anyway, the first thing that I saw was a pool table - if I wasn't as busy as I am, I might have hopped on and played a game or so with someone around, maybe the owner, even. I sighed, walking past the pool table and approached the front of the store where she placed in an order so she can pick up the item as soon as it is crafted. "Light armor, I'll pay once you make it." I declared, turning and looking at the equipments that were placed on display for visitors. "And I'll pay full price."

@Aereth

Watching carefully and observing the man's combat movements, I noticed that he was extremely skilled in combat and could've definitely carried on with the fighting. Instead, he decided to retreat and gave a signal as well. Of course, since this game was not based on real life skills, I was far slower than the man, but soon enough, we were safe from the opposition, especially since they had decided not to give chase considering that they were extremely injured from the combat. I panted, checking my surroundings for any danger before looking at the brunette that I suspected to be a member of the laughing coffin. However, due to his recent actions, I am currently reconsidering my suspicions.

"A Laughing Coffin member would never retreat from combat when they are not out-powered. Judging from what I could see, you were fully capable of continuing the battle but you decided to retreat instead of carrying on with the fight. If you did so to protect me, then you managed to miss out on an opportunity to kill... Something that I don't really see from a killer." I stood up straighter and looked at him straight on, "Who are you?" I asked.

@Aereth

"Does it look like I would be someone to hide?" I asked, obviously insulted by the man's comment that I have either been hiding or been setting up shop - neither of which were correct. Indeed, I had not been doing any of those things. Actually, I have been kept prisoner but the man would not have known that and he wouldn't find out either, as it is something that involves only me and my father. "That man would not have killed me. I could've gotten more information from him before running away." I explained. There was no way that my father would let a henchman kill his only daughter. Instead, he would want to kill me with his own bloodied hands, not through the works of another. However, since Z-07 had seen me, he would surely report to his boss that I am currently on the first floor. It would not be safe for me here and I knew it. I would have to get out of this floor as soon as possible if I can.

"I will take that Katana though. I've been searching for one since coming into the game." I picked up the katana and held it in front of me, observing the details of it, or whatever details it actually held. It was plain and distasteful with no aura of intimidation sprouting from it. It glared during the night time, giving away the location of the wielder from miles away. Sure, I could use it for the time being but eventually, I would have to purchase a far better katana than the basic one that I was holding. I replaced my upgraded curved sword and replaced it with my newly obtained katana, already feeling stronger because of the weapon. After doing so, I turned my back and began to walk away, not finding a point of sticking around any longer outside the safe zone when the man hinted at a proposition of sorts. I glanced back, stopping in my track as I did so. It was unlikely that I would agree to anything he says next but my curiosity got to the better of me. Perhaps it would even benefit me in one way or another.

@Hikoru