Freyd

Freyd froze, his lanky body contorting at the last minute to avoid barreling into an unfamiliar red-headed woman who'd suddenly materialized in front of him. "GAH! What the...?!" Blinking twice to refocus on the right reality, his brow furrowed in frustration, but only at having let Abdullah's foppish shenanigans so distract him from his surroundings. If this had truly been an ambush by the man's thugs, it could have ended badly. "Oh. Uh... sorry? My fault. I wasn't watching." Canadian instincts were tough to break. The apology reflex was exceptionally strong, even after being a

Rank 5 Appraiser (Base: BD 10, CD 8+ for unique, 10 identifications per day) +1 to CD from Hermes’ Scale +2 EXP: Hard Working (also +1 IDs per day) +2 EXP: Lucrative (Firm Anima) (also +2 IDs per day) +1 EXP: Custom Ambition Tool (bought from own shop 2020-07-16) Crafting Respite | Dragon's Breath | 174612 Source: https://www.sao-rpg.com/topic/19871-f13-appraiser-freyd-edges-open/?do=findComment&comment=683364 Identifications: 5x T4 Perfect Items (@3040 col) = 15,200 col 2x T4 Perfect consumables (@1440 col) = 2,880 col 6x T4 Rare Items (@2080 col) = 12,48

By the time the others had done their respective things, there wasn't much left of Ugzeke. He almost pitied the steaming troll. Deep gashes exposed all over its reddened skin, glared orange as the exposed mesh glared in harsh contrast to the softer hues of their underground surroundings. Freyd thought it looked like the poor thing's essence was bleeding out. Maybe it was. Strange to feel pity for a creature that's done what I've seen it do. NIGHT's tone was unreadable to him as she leaned against her sword, waiting for the meaty mobile redwood she'd just cut to come crashing down. Wa

Freyd sighed, disturbed as much by what Sam had said as by how she had said it. He knew this place too well, and the tricks that it could play on one's mind. "Lium." Hesitation burned, but the man deserved to hear his thoughts. "This is the Forest of Memories. Many think of it fondly as a way to reminisce, but it will devour your past as soon as force you to revisit the worst of it. Do not take it likely. Worse yet, Sam may be clinging to a memory she wants, but never lived. There are few things more dangerous." Freyd didn't want to press his concerns further, but there would be no

A clack and clatter signaled the compartment's opening and vanishing of its contents, barely a moment after Katoka had hit the send button. Apparently, her friend's appetites were especially ravenous of late, possibly in anticipation of the pending raid. Ever since the weird, moose-like thing they'd encountered in the Fire Forest had fallen, it had been nothing but full-bore frenzy whichever way you turned. Shopkeepers up and down the street had been remarking on the sudden uptick in traffic and sales, mostly in a positive light. When she re-opened the box, Katoka found a simple messag

The keening wail of a banshee was nearly as unmistakable that the similar sound of a certain weapon loosing its bonds. Samael's Pride, a hole in the universe kept shut by the slimmest of margins, and a prayer, slipped its tether as the Whisper whipped back into existence right behind the murderer. A swift kick to the back of the knees crumpled his target, felling him beneath the weight of plate and spinning him around to face a furious looking Freyd, who promptly drove his fist so hard through the mob's chest that the ground beneath him crumpled and cratered leaving an imprint of his knuckle

"We've been over this a dozen times, Abdullah. You owe me favours, not the other way around. I've been keeping this bloody menace in check for months now, to your benefit. Don't try to con me into thinking I somehow need your permission, or to pay some ridiculous tithe." Arms crossed as they sat opposite each other in a lavish parlour off the main square of Fortaleza, the place was truly hard to miss. A wretched desert town surrounding with desert in every direction and constant blistering heat, the village's only remarkable feature was its reliable well. Abdullah's abode rested directly

The girl had guts. There was no denying it. Freyd was already impressed by how well she'd adapted to Aincrad's environment and made it work to her advantage, but walking up to a colossal ice golem in the middle of a hurricane-force blizzard? That took something extra. Sadly, there was little time to sing her praises as the giant's body toppled down towards their blonde-haired companion. Feeling his lips move, but no sound emanating as he rushed to snare Morningside, Freyd searched desperately for a shadow to slip through for a last minute rescue, but found none. Shadows didn't real

It still felt awkward, focusing on C&C while champions rained down ruin on a target whose entire focus was meant to be kept on you. He'd volunteered for the role during the last raid because they were desperate. NIGHT had done the same, for which he was grateful. The raid might have failed before it began without them both taking on the challenge. Watching Macradon and Katoka blaze around the battlefield, Freyd found himself smiling, even if the role of tank still felt awkward as a mantle. NIGHT came in blazing from the flank, her own acrobatic flair still and always inspiring to

"There. Border stones. The sentinels should keep stray beasts at bay beyond this point, though we shouldn't lower our guard." Sewallus concurred, appreciating how Freyd recognized his people's customs and symbols. Guiding back to the main road through this area, it was really more of a well-worn trail. The elves used few wagons and other vehicles, and trouble with the Treants made mass travel or carting of goods too tempting a target. "Foyle. Jeeves. You're both valued additions to the O&I team. This will likely be the first of many training missions we'll need to undert

Jeeves' line of questioning perked the Whisper's interest, especially given Sawallus' responses. A shared glance between them, from the corners of both their eyes, confirmed that they'd both noted the potential value of the information provided. It would have gone over Foyle's head anyway, but was definitely worth discretion and filing away for later use. Freyd had many, many different sources of data at his disposal. Adding more was never a bad thing, especially if they came with a greater degree of certainty and accuracy than more common fare. Players, for example, could be the most and

"That should cover the essentials, but we'll make time to go over the rest." A supportive pat on Foyle's shoulder earned him a grunting gratitude. The older man was appreciative, just out of his depths in this world. But, it had taken the persistent effort of Freyd's closest friends to help him find a person inside himself. There was a certain karmic catharsis to him helping someone else learn to navigate the system's more technical parts. Maybe that was why he'd conjured up the idea of the Sharkbait Training Program in the first place? "We shouldn't linger." Sewallus. The dour-fac

"Good to see you too, Mac. It's been a while." An unusually warm response from the normally cold and elusive player, but they had met and fought side by side before, including that bug hunt on the shores of the Lake of Reflections after Tanabata. Mac was a good egg, at least in the Whisper's scrambled mess of a recipe book. "Kat's a guildmate whose been rising quickly through the ranks. Boss killer, and fast as lightning. She's got quite the spark to her. You two should get along great. She joined the front lines for the last raid. Speaking of which, we missed you against Wushen. You

Blistering winds beat down upon them driving endless sheets of sleet in their path. The fluffy, powdered hills of Snowfrost's environs had soon given way to the tempestuous frozen nightmare perpetually swirling about their target's position. Absolute Zero's general vicinity was therefore never really hard to find. You could spot the maelstrom of snow and ice from leagues away. Navigating the icicle hellstorms that constantly surrounded it, then managing to actually fight the thing inside five overlapping subzero hurricanes? That was the real trick. Some players had learned this the hard wa

To: Tricolor_Mina From: Freyd Cobbled together a little something I thought you might appreciate in advance of the next raid. Swing by my shop in Angel's Point, when you have a moment. We can share a cup of coffee and catch up. Call it a 'thank you' for your ongoing efforts. You don't easily give up on people. That matters - a lot. If this trifling gift can provide you with some sense of how much what you do truly matter, all the better. Your friend. ~Freyd It had taken him hours and dozens of drafts to properly

Melt the following items down to create 3x Mystic Essence: Fuse the following items (Cost: 1 gleaming shard) Fuse the following items (Cost: 1 gleaming shard) Upgrade the following item to demonic quality (Cost: 1 demonic shard), spend 3 Mystic Essence from above to select Holy. Trial by Fire +4 (T4 Perfect Weapon (WH) - Abs.Acc., Phase, Holy 1 Fusion ID: 224208 A redwood staff shod with brass at both ends, the haft glows with crimson light when wielded in battle. Producing: Trial by Fire +4 (T4 Demonic Weapon (WH) - Abs.Acc., Phase, Holy 2 Fusion ID:

Their wards had gone to ground, which took them out of the immediate equation and satisfied his immediate concerns. About to rip into the mob's shadow to taunt and call its anger unto himself, Freyd's efforts were undermined by Sewallus breaking out into some weird elven dirge. Whatever the significance, it was also enough to rouse their enemy from its daze. Ripping the same tree its head had impacted out of the ground, the Monkey King roared "Oh, fuck. They gave this thing its AoE back? Or maybe its just an unlucky trigger" Freyd vaguely recalled that it once had such a power, but

"We're getting close," Sewallus cautioned, and Freyd concurred. Despite being clad in impressive armor, its intricate design seemed too formal and ceremonial to his appraiser's eye. He knew the main could take a hit or two, but not comparable to the scale and capacity of a true player. The differences were just too vast, making him want to be sure that he could cover the NPC. Or, should that prove impossible, take down the Monkey King as swiftly as possible. A warning shout and crashing of trees to the left was all the time they had as the beast breached the tree line and charged into

A friendly nod in parting, directed towards Remington, and the three players were off. Guided by their captain, they made their way to the main gates leading out of town. Ramshackle, as was so much of this settlement, and indeed the entire floor, it was doubtful these redoubts could hold up against any form of organized attack. They weren't meant to. Animals were often the most dangerous hazard here. "You're spot on, Jeeves. Good for you for having done your homework." Freyd didn't sound surprised in the slightest. The younger lad was studious by nature. What he needed was some fi

"Seems like traffic has picked here lately," Freyd observed, leaning across from Remington along the edges of Florenthia's palisade. Sipping on vanilla-scented coffee, the Whisper and zoologist had been trading information on local news, flora and fauna. His latest crop of trainees had already been summoned and should be arriving shortly to partake in the latest hunt to claim the Monkey King's prize. But, for now, he had a little time to kill. "There's been trouble throughout the floor, as if the jungle knows that something is brewing. We just can't identify a source. The Monkey King

"Yeah," Freyd agreed, smiling and recovering his breath. "Nice moves, Euled. Glad you had my back." Relaxing, but only a little, the Whisper remained keenly aware of how close they were to the lands of the Unseelie Court and the fae who reigned in that domain. To call them fickle would be like comparing a blue whale to a guppy. Moody wasn't much better. He'd had no problems with them in the past, but their unique rules were not standard player fare and could be easily run afoul. "Good work today, but we shouldn't linger here. These woods have ears, claws, teeth even, and you don't

"That might be enough. You'd be surprised what I can accomplish with a name alone." A party invite prompt substituted for formal introductions in a much more Freydian manner: make the System do it. Talking still wasn't really his strong suit, especially when his inner bloodhound had caught a whiff of something mysterious. Besides, it never really occurred to him that his two companions didn't actually know each other. Hadn't they both been in the last raid together? Meanwhile, he could practically hear Shaggy and Scooby reveling by their sides, while he and the gang went about solving

No dark elf warrior should ever be underestimated, even if he was made to seem ridiculous. Freyd had learned that lesson the hard way, and on more than one occasion. No staggered enemy was incapacitated. And so he knew better than to approach Yeff without due wariness and guard. The feral elf, driven mad in his exile, moved swiftly and suddenly, a wild swing the went wide while Freyd contorted his torso to avoid the blade. A sweep took Yeff off his feet once more, combined with a crippling joint lock at the elbow that forced him to release his weapon, nearly wrenching the arm off in the pro

Mouth full of an unknown assortment of consumables, Freyd seemed to be too busy or developing some sort of eating disorder - possibly both. Dude was always on the go, it seems. Gallivanting might carry the right idea, but he was often too serious for it to really stick. More like... driven? Even with his newfound sense of self and changing perspectives on the importance of people, Freyd still drifted back to acting like a machine when it meant grinding through content. "Meed moww ovf veez fings!" His hands wrapped in weave of destructive oblivion, he rapped his fingernails on the me

Freyd wasn't sure he'd gotten the message right. Mina's request was so full of cat emojis and gifs that he was starting to wonder if the profiling business was knocking her off her rocker. Meeting her near Olympus seemed equally weird until he remembered something about the Nemean lions prowling the badlands near the towering mons. "Didn't these things and Ki'raeion used to be on the same floor?" The NPCs gathered nearby just looked him strangely, wondering aloud about whether he was some wandering sun-addled nomad dragged in from the desert. Freyd certainly looked the part, clad from hea