[SP-F2] Gaining Experience

[Edwyn 0]

Edwyn arrived in the town on Floor 2 ready for an adventure. He had been practicing his sword skills and had come to the conclusion that he was not a "sword-guy." His first plan in this new city was to find a weapons vendor and buy a great-axe. He had been working on building his strength and speed and was positive that he could handle one with ease. With that thought in mind he headed into the city looking for a central market area. When he found it he began looking specifically for a weapons vendor and it didn't take long before he had discovered a promising looking shop and walked inside. He browsed the weapons for a while before choosing a promising great-axe. He found out the price from the NPC whose shop he was in, and thought it was pretty reasonable, so he counted out 600 Col and handed it over to the shop owner. Ed then walked out of the shop with his head held high and his new prize strapped to his back. It was a pretty plain looking weapon as far as they go, but it was sturdy and strong and would perform great until he had the chance to forge his own.

[Edwyn 0]

As Edwyn made his way out of the city, he took in the sights and sounds of this new place, he had been on Floor 1 for a while and this was his first time leaving. The territory of the city was pretty much the same as the floor below, and the sun was shining brightly in the sky. There was a slight wind that blew his hair around his face, so he tucked it behind his ears and continued toward the forest in the distance. Before he had gotten far though, he ran into the first monster of the day. It looked like some kind of large cat, but not quite like anything in the real world. It paced towards him slowly, stalking him, before leaping at him with its razor-sharp claws extended. Edwyn already had his great-axe in his hands and he quickly side-stepped the cat's leap and swung his axe in a fast arc, but it only clipped the cat's shoulder as it pivoted and sprang at him again. He barley got his axe between its claws and his body, but he was able to twist and throw the cat away by using its momentum against it. This time he was ready when it sprang back at him almost instantly and his axe caught it between the eyes, cleaving through its skull and into its body. Then it burst apart and the reward screen popped up in front of him, showing him how much experience and col he had gained. Not bad, at all he thought with a smirk. The axe was going to take some more getting used to, but he liked it much better than his old sword.

[Edwyn 0]

While he was walking to the forest, Ed had time to ponder a couple of things in his mind, first and foremost, what did life here in SAO mean? Was it truly life, or was it just a game after all? The only way to find out was no way to find out because that would involve dying, and that was not a chance he wanted to take. Anyway, he didn't plan on dying in the first place, his goal was to keep getting stronger and go join the Assault Team on the front lines. The second thought weighing on his mind was his family back home. He missed them more than he cared to admit, and he was sure that they were worried about him. He was really sorry that he was putting them through this, even though it wasn't his fault, he still felt guilty because he was enjoying himself in SAO.

Suddenly, however, Edwyn had an epiphany. Why should he feel guilty for enjoying the life he was living in SAO? I was still a life after all, he decided, why shouldn't he be able to enjoy himself while he was here. SAO was a dangerous game and you never really new what was going to be around the next bend of these dirt roads, you never knew if some new monster would get the better of you, or if one of the murder guilds would happen across you. It was best to live life fully and completely each day, no matter what. It was his life, and he would find new ways to enjoy himself and have fun in SAO every day, because that's what life was about. But he would never forget his ultimate goal: to fight on the front lines so that they could clear the game and free all of the players that felt trapped and desperate here in SAO.

[Edwyn 0]

It was early afternoon by the time Ed reached the forest, and he knew that he would only have a couple of hours before he would have to make his way back to the city and find a place to stay. With that thought in mind, he began down the trail, his great-axe at the ready, scanning from side to side and straining to hear something, anything that would mean a monster approached. It couldn't have been more than 10 minutes before he ran into a small wolf pack. This could be difficult he winced at the thought. There were 6 wolves in the pack and they had seen him at the same time that he saw them. As the circled around him he realized he could be in a bit of trouble, that he might have bit off more than he could chew, but there was no going back now. As the first wolf charged at him he swung his axe in a wide arc that opened the wolf up from shoulder to shoulder, killing it. Then 2 of them tried to attack him at the same time, he clove in the head of one while accepting a bite on the arm from the other before throwing it to the ground and burying his axe in its back. The last three wolves circled him warily, but suddenly one sprang at him from the front and another from the back. Ed quickly rolled to the side and watched as the wolves crashed into each other, ending up in a tangle of limbs on the ground. He swept his axe through their backs simultaneously and turned to regard the final wolf, which seemed to be the alpha male. It was bigger than the others and seemed more intelligent. It paced towards him slowly and he gave ground, thinking about how to handle this one. It sprang at him suddenly and it was all he could do to get the shaft of his axe between its teeth and his throat. He strained and managed to throw it away from him, but it landed with sure feet and spun to attack him again. He was ready this time though and when it leaped at him, he swung his axe which caught the wolf squarely in its ribs. As the fight ended he was rewarded with experience points, some col, but best of all, 6 wolf pelts.

[Edwyn 0]

Ed decided to rest a bit after his battle with the wolves, he leaned against a tree to catch his breath and collect himself. The sun was still high in the sky so he figured he still had a couple of hours left to hunt. He thought he'd look for some more wolves, he could do with a couple more pelts to make a cloak out of. With that thought in mind he gained his feet and headed deeper into the forest. The sun was on it's way down when he finally happened across another wolf pack, this one consisted of seven wolves, including the alpha male, this one was black. When he came upon them, he was able to surprise them and kill 2 before they were able to circle him like the last pack he had taken on. This time 2 charged him immediately, but, like before he was able to roll to the side and cleave through the spines of both wolves. Then, two of the last three paced towards him together, getting almost within the reach of his axe before snarling and charging at him. He managed to slice through the head of one, but the other one knocked his axe out of his hands and bore him to the ground. It took all his strength to hold back its teeth as it nipped at his throat, but finally he was able to draw back and punched it in the nose, which sent it reeling away. This gave him enough time to find the shaft of his axe and sweep it through the legs of the wolf before slicing through its neck. Finally, there was just Ed and the alpha of the pack. This wolf was black as the night and big, almost like a dire wolf. It charged him head on snarling wickedly, but leaped to the side at the last second as his axe passed through the air where its head would have been. It pivoted quickly and threw itself back at him. He was able to get the head of his axe between them however and turned the charge so that the wolf was flung past him. Ed then quickly gathered his strength and charged the wolf before it had the chance to completely regain its senses. He swung his axe as hard and fast as he could straight at its head. And the blow flew true, it caught the wolf just behind the ear and nearly clove through its head before sticking. With a wrenching motion he pulled the blade out and watched the wolf burst apart. Once the battle was finished, the experience, col and items he had earned popped up on a window in front of him, this time he only gained 4 wolf pelts, but one of them was black.

[Edwyn 0]

After admiring the wolf pelts he now had in his inventory Edwyn looked around and flinched, the sun was going down, and it was a long walk back to the city. Craaaap he thought, I should probably get going. But when he started back the way he thought the town was, he quickly realized that he was lost. Not good, not good at all... Slowly, he collected himself and scanned the trees around him, looking for anything, any sign that showed the way back to the city. Of course, there was nothing. So, on a whim, Ed picked a direction and started walking; little did he know, but he was heading deeper into the forest, towards the heart. After a couple hours of walking Ed was beginning to think that he had gone the wrong way, but suddenly he saw a break in the trees ahead. Yes! Almost there! When he got nearer, however, he realized that it was merely a clearing, not the edge of the forest like he had thought. As it turned out, the clearing was pretty big, and in the center was a huge black tree. When Ed got close enough to examine it, the viewer read "Iron Wood Tree." Edwyn had never heard of it before so he decided to take some back with him, just in case it was valuable. At first he tried to take some chunks off of the trunk, but his axe bounced right off with a clang. What in the hell? he thought wonderingly, he tried again with the same result. Then he decided to try it on one of the branches. There were only a couple close enough to the ground for him to take a shot at, so he went over to the first one and swung his axe as hard as he could, this time it bit through the bark, but when it hit the wood it bounced right back out. What kind of tree is this?? Edwyn wondered. Finally he decided to use a skill to try and chop off the branch. He held the axe high above his head with both hands and felt as the skill activated, as soon as it was ready he swung his axe as hard as he could in an arc that would cleave straight through the branch right by the base of the tree. This time, when it struck the branch, the blade passed cleanly through it and the branch crashed to the ground with a thud. Ed whooped in triumph and picked it up and put it into his inventory, the one branch was so big that it equaled 6 logs. "Now, it really is time for me to get back to the city," Ed said out loud. Finally able to see the stars he found a constellation that he recognized and used it to orient himself, then headed back in the direction of the city.

[Edwyn 0]

When Edwyn finally got back to the city the first light of dawn was just starting to light the sky. He decided he might as well watch the sunrise seeing as he was already awake, and sunrises in Aincrad were always beautiful. He turned towards the east and watched as fingers of pink and orange reached across the sky from the sun just coming over the horizon. This morning's sunrise seemed particularly stunning after his adventure in the forest the night before. Finally turning away from the sunrise, Ed looked around, the city was just starting to come to life; people were opening the windows of their homes and shop owners were just beginning to open up. Only a few vendors had emerged so far, but he was sure that there would be a lot more soon. To the smithy, Ed decided, he wanted a few new weapons, he didn't like the way he had to fight with his axe. It seemed like he would have to get used to taking damage because he wasn't fast enough, if he kept up with the great axe. A spear, he decided, with a couple of shorter javelins for in close fighting, maybe some throwing knives later on too. He also planned to get his wolf pelts made into a cloak, so he needed to find time to head to the tailor's too. So much to do, and so little sleep to do it on Ed thought, well, no rest for the wicked, let's get started. He set off immediately, in search of a smithy and a tailor.

[Edwyn 0]

It didn't take too long before Edwyn was able to find a tailor's shop on the side of the road, and it had opened not too long before. He walked in and was immediately greeted by the NPC who ran the shop. Ed bought some black wool cloth and gave the tailor the cloth and the wolf pelts that he had harvested. He then told her that he wanted a wolf pelt cloak and asked her how long it would take to finish. The NPC informed him that she had some other jobs to finish but that he could come back later in the day and it should be done by then. Ed thanked her and left the shop, now searching for a smithy, but also keeping an eye out for any promising looking inns that he could return to in order to rent a room and crash. He finally found the smith's store on a back street after walking around for probably about an hour, by this time he was nearing the end of his rope and about ready to give in to exhaustion, but he knew he had just one stop left and then he could return to the inn that he had seen back on the main street. He quickly entered the smithy and found the black smith who owned the shop, this time it was a player. Edwyn showed the black smith the items that he had acquired, the Iron Wood Tree logs and asked the smith what kind of spear he could make with these. The smith thought for what seemed like an eternity before offering Edwyn a solution: Ed could by some obsidian that the smith could then use as spear heads, he offered to make Edwyn 4 3-ft javelins where the spear head would be about 1/3 of the length and a 7-ft spear with a spear head that would be about 8-in long. Edwyn didn't even have to consider the offer, it was perfect, exactly what he had been hoping for; he gave the smith the col and the materials and was told to return that night to pick up his order. With his last errand taken care of, Edwyn headed back to the inn as fast as he could, it was a small, cheap inn on the main road. He rented a room from the innkeeper and was then shown to his room. As soon as he closed the door he collapsed on the bed, without even removing his gear, and gave in to the exhaustion, passing in to a deep sleep.

[Edwyn 0]

When Edwyn finally awoke, the sun was getting low in the sky, he estimated it to be about four in the afternoon. He quickly changed out of his gear into a red tunic and loose, light-brown pantaloons, along with buckskin boots. They were some of his finer clothes, but he felt like looking good when he went to go pick up his new gear. His first stop was the tailor's, to pick up his new wolf hide cloak. When she brought it out to him he was amazed, it was finer than he could ever have imagined. The outer layer was all grey wolf hide, except for the top of the cloak, along the neck and shoulders, which was black as pitch, and the inside of the cloak was black wool cloth. It was a hood-less cloak with a silver clasp that came together on his right shoulder. He put it on immediately and marveled at its comfort and warmth. Edwyn thanked the tailor profusely and told her that he would proclaim far and wide where it was that he had gotten this fine cloak. He then proceeded on to the smith's shop where he found the player waiting for him. Ed was led to a back room where a blanket covered a table. When the smith removed the blanket Edwyn saw the amazing set of weapons that the blacksmith had made for him. There were four javelins, about 3-ft in total length, with the black steel head making up a full third of the length and the shafts being made of the Iron Wood that Ed had discovered. Alongside the javelins were a dozen obsidian throwing knives. The knives were completely made of obsidian with leather, dyed red, wrapped around the hilt. They were only six inches long but sharp enough to shave with. But the most magnificent weapon on the table was the spear. At 8-ft in length with a 8-in mithril head, it was incredible. The blade was leaf-shaped, solid and sturdy, meant for killing. The shaft of the spear was also made of Iron Wood, with a mithril cap on the end and mithril tracery running like veins all along the rest of the wood. Edwyn was blown away, it was far beyond what he had hoped for when he had commissioned the set from the smith this morning. After paying the smith and thanking him once again, he left the shop, with a much lighter coin purse than before.

[Edwyn 0]

"Well, the last couple days have certainly been an adventure," Edwyn said, speaking out loud to himself as he walked down the street. I suppose I don't need my axe anymore, he decided, so he sold it at the first weapons vendor he found. He only got a few hundred Col for it, but it wasn't a bad price. Now to earn back the money that I spent on this new equipment! With that idea firm in his mind, Edwyn started for the edge of town again, heading back into the wild to do some more hunting, it was a slower way to earn Col than doing quests, but quests always took a lot longer and you had to find them first. Plus, he figured he would gain more experience by hunting than he would by slowly doing quests. Hmmmmmm he thought next I need some new armor, after all, the lieutenant of the Mystic Swords can't go walking around in shabby, beaten up gear, especially if he wants to get to the front lines! This time Ed made his way toward the pine forest, instead of the oak grove that he had been hunting in before. He didn't know if the monsters would be any different, but a change of scenery was always welcome. When he reached the edge of the pine forest he gazed around in awe, the trees were huge! Each one easily rose 70-ft into the sky and were as wide around as a cart. The forest floor was a soft carpet of pine needles that muffled the sound of the forest. The trees seemed pretty evenly spaced, and far enough apart that some meager sunshine could filter down through the canopy. Edwyn breathed deeply, then exhaled and sighed contentedly, he loved the smell of pine. He quickly equipped his new spear and started making his way through the trees, using the spear almost as a walking stick, with the head point to the sky. If he hadn't needed to be on high alert and constantly scanning the forest for monsters, the hike would truly have been a beautiful one, as it was, he was only partially able to absorb the magnificence of the forest around him.

[Edwyn 0]

After hunting for a while and managing to kill a few monsters, Edwyn was quickly realizing that the spear was not the weapon of choice for him. He was finding that it was too unwieldy and slow, he couldn't maneuver with it quick enough and he was ending up taking even more damage with the spear than he had been when he was using the axe. Hmmmmmm he thought this is really unfortunate. I spent so much time gathering the materials and Col to make this spear, and now I find out that I am definitely not a spear wielder. Damn damn damn damn. Looks like new armor is going to have to wait, I'm going to have to sell this spear and use my Col to commission a new sword. Peeerfect. Now he was kind of pissed. But, that was part of the game, trying to figure out what your specific skills were and what weapon made you the most comfortable. After all his work he had come back to the realization that he was a swordsman, he just needed practice.

Edwyn hunted monsters for the rest of the night again, unfortunately he had to use healing potions a couple of times because he would take so much damage while using the spear. He got back to the city just after dawn and many of the vendors were already set up and most of the shops were open. While he had been out hunting he had come to the decision that he would have to sell his new cloak if he wanted to have enough money to buy a new sword today. He sighed, so many items were coming and going so quickly, and he really like this cloak. On the other hand, he really needed a new sword cause this spear was just not going to cut it, and he was thinking about becoming a beast tamer and finding a dire wolf to tame, it wouldn't do to have a wolf pelt cloak and have a friend that was a wolf too. He sighed again, better to get it over with quickly. He found a item merchant's shop quickly and was able to sell his cloak, long spear, and short spears for a sizable amount, certainly more than he had though he would get for them. After that he decided to go back to his room at the inn and crash for a while before heading to the blacksmith's shop to commission his new sword.

[Edwyn 0]

When Edwyn woke up it was just getting to be mid-afternoon and he decided to head to the smith's shop. He went to the same one that he had commissioned his spear from because he had been so impressed with the work. It took some explaining, but after a while Edwyn was finally able to communicate what had happened and why he needed a new weapon already. The player who ran the store just laughed it off, after all, it was more money in his pocket. Then he started quizzing Edwyn about what he was looking for in his new sword. It didn't take long before the smith had an idea in mind. He wasn't busy today so he let Edwyn watch him work. They went to the work room of the shop and Ed watched as the smith gathered the items that he needed to make the sword. The blade was going to be made out of mistarille, with a mithril hilt and pommel. Edwyn could tell this was going to nearly empty his coin purse this time.

When the smith finally got to work, Edwyn could tell immediately that he was very skilled. He took his time getting everything just perfect before setting about finalizing the product and making the last minute changes and finer details. After he was done Edwyn just stood in awe. The sword was amazing. It looked like a gladius, but was longer than a typical gladius by quite a bit. Normally a gladius was a pretty short sword, used for close combat and typically used with a shield. But the smith had made the blade of the one longer and the hilt was a little longer too, making it a hand-and-a-half sword, not quite a two handed; which meant that it could be wielded with one or two hands, depending on the user. In total it was about a 4-and-a-half-foot sword, the hilt made up about 9-10 inches and the blade was the rest of the length. The blade was made of mistarille, which made it pure white, and the hilt and pommel were both made of mithril, with a black leather wrap for grip on the hilt. There was a wolf's head design where the blade met the hilt, and it was so detailed that it took Edwyn's breath away. The wolf had sapphires for eyes and its face was snarling. The pommel was a simple circle set with a large sapphire.

When the smith told Edwyn the price, he wasn't surprised, but he sighed all the same as he reached for his coin purse. After paying for the sword Ed had a mere 67 Col left to his name, on the bright side, the smith threw in a sheathe for free. And the sheathe wasn't a simple, plain leather sheathe either, it was pure white, like the blade, set with silver designs running up and down the sheathe, with a silver cap on the end and silver running along the edge of the top. All in all, Edwyn was very happy with his purchase, even though it left him nearly broke. And there would be no more hunting for today, Ed was too tired after staying out all night long for two nights straight. So he went back to the inn, used a few of his last pieces of Col to pay for a meal before heading back up to his room to sleep.

[Edwyn 0]

When Edwyn finally awoke it was the next morning, but he finally felt rested. He quickly got out of bed and did his stretches, first a little workout with some yoga involved, and then tai chi as a cool down. After that he left his room and headed to a field just outside of town with his sword; there he went over his sword exercises, trying to remember the moves that had been lost while he had been using an axe and spear. He spent the rest of the day going through sword exercises, slowly but surely getting faster and more complicated as his muscles remembered what they were supposed to do. Some of his muscles hadn't been used in this way for a while and so it took some getting used to, but by the end of the day he was much more confident than he had been. The next day was the same routine, and so was the day after that. He spent a total of 4 days retraining his sword skills and going through exercises, getting stronger every day.

Finally, he felt that he was strong enough and skilled enough to go hunting again. So he set out soon after dawn to find some monsters that he could test his new blade on. It wasn't too long before he came across a trio of large ape-like creatures wielding what looked like small trees as clubs. Damn damn damn damn! If I get hit with one of those that could be the end of me...Hmmmm, should I fight them, or turn back and look for easier prey? Nope, I fight. He decided. With that thought, he waded into battle. He charged at the lead creature, dodged as it swung its club down at him, then jumped on it and ran up its arm and shoved his sword through its head. He quickly wrenched it out as the beast fell to the ground and burst into pieces. Then he ran at the next one, this one was slow to react, but its fellow behind it swung its club around at Edwyn, he barely saw it to dodge in time, and it thew off his attack. He recovered in a heartbeat thought and charged again. This time he made to run between them, and they swung their clubs at the same time, he was gonna be crushed. But at the last second he jumped high into the air and the clubs hit each other, getting knocked out of the beasts' hands. Then he swung his sword to the left and right, severing both of the beasts' necks and ending the fight as quickly as it had started.

[Edwyn 0]

After the battle with the beasts Edwyn grinned, it felt good to use a sword again, it felt right. Edwyn grinned again, savagely, and set off in search of more prey...tonight was going to be a good night to be alive! The next beasts he found were a couple of cave bears, they shouldn't be any trouble, he thought as he waded into battle. The huge beasts barreled towards him and swung at him with their huge claws, he dodge quickly and rolled beneath them, slashing at them with his sword. He scored a couple of hits, but they weren't enough to kill the bears. He continued his roll, getting beyond the range of their claws and spun to face them again. The bears lumbered around slowly until they were able to find him again, as soon as they did, they charged recklessly, straight at him. This time he sheathed his sword and jumped straight into the air, grabbing onto a tree branch and pulling himself up. As soon as he was on top of the branch, he unsheathed his sword and dove off, with the sword leading the way. When he hit, the sword ended up buried to the hilt in the bear's back. Edwyn wrenched the sword back out and leaped at the other bear. This time his sword pierced the last bear's heart, and it burst into a million pieces, just as its brother had a moment before. Edwyn howled in delight and ran on in search of more monsters.

[Edwyn 0]

Edwyn hunted for the rest of the night, until he was so tired he could barely lift his sword, before heading back to the city for some food and rest. He got a good meal from the innkeeper before going back to his room and crashing. He managed to take off his gear before plopping onto the bed, but was too tired to actually get underneath the blanket, so he simply lay on top of the bed and slept soundly. He woke up the next morning refreshed and ready to look for something else to do. He had breakfast first, before heading through the city, searching for something fun.

[Edwyn 0]

Edwyn was eating lunch at a small diner when he over heard some locals talking. They were NPCs so he had to assume that they were quest givers and this was a pre-programmed occurrence, however, it was too good to pass up. At first he only caught bits and pieces, but when he hear them say something about treasure, he perked up and began listening to their conversation in earnest.

"...treasure in the forest you say?"

"Yes indeed. The spoils of trolls who have preyed upon travelers taking the road through the dark part of the

forest. It is said that there is quite a hoard in a cave in those parts."

"But wouldn't the trolls be quite the opponent to take on?"

"For some people, there should be definite caution involved, but if you've got the training and the bravery required,

you shouldn't have too much trouble acquiring the treasure."

Well, that was enough information for Edwyn. He finished his meal quickly, paid and left immediately, heading for the spot that he had hear the people mention...the dark part of the forest.

[Edwyn 0]

Edwyn decided to take the most direct route, the one that would attract the attention of the trolls the quickest so he could get the fight over with and find their treasure trove. That meant that he was taking the road that the men had said that travelers were getting attacked on...he was using himself as the bait to draw out the trolls. He was walking through the darkest part of the forest, and it truly was dark because it was so late at night, when he began to sense something watching him. It was that tingling feeling you get on the back of your neck, like all of the hair is standing up straight. Immediately he knew that something, probably the trolls, was watching him. Things were about to get very interesting, very quickly...

[Edwyn 0]

Edwyn hadn't walked another 10 feet before the first attack came. There was no warning, and without his detection skill he probably wouldn't have noticed the troll hiding behind the boulder, but thankfully he did notice and was able to dodge the heavy blow of the club, before it took off his head. In that moment, everything seemed to slow down and take on a brilliant clarity. He was able to distinguish the very grain of the wood in the club, he heard the heavy breathing of the troll that was attacking him, and the shallower breathing of the other two who were attempting to sneak up behind him. Just as soon as it happened, the moment ended and he went into a handspring, moving to the left which put him out of immediate danger. He quickly spun around and faced off now against the three trolls. And boy were they big. Standing probably 10 feet tall at the shoulder, with long, greasy, black hair and knobby skin. The only clothes that they wore were over-sized loin clothes and it smelled like they had never showered in their lives. Ughhhhh, I really need to end this one quickly he groaned, trying really hard not to take a deep breath.

[Edwyn 0]

Edwyn charged, running straight at the troll in the lead and jumped up, going from its arm to its shoulder and stabbing his sword into the soft spot in the troll's neck. Then he leaped straight in the air as the next troll swung its club at him. Instead of hitting Edwyn, however, it cracked into the side of the now dead troll's head and Edwyn landed on the club, jumping from there right at the next troll and slicing his sword through its neck, though not fully cutting through. That left one troll to be dealt with, and this one was the biggest of the three. The club that it wielded looked more like a small tree than a carved weapon. Well, here we go he thought, smiling grimly. He charged at the last troll, and this one was a little bit smarter than the other two were. It swung its club in an arc, just high enough above the ground that he couldn't avoid it by diving to the dirt, and high enough that he wouldn't be able to jump over it. He tried jumping anyway, and wasn't surprised when the club caught him just below the knees, sending him cartwheeling end over end to smack against a nearby tree. "Oooff, that one might be somewhat of a challenge..."

[Edwyn 0]

Edwyn quickly regained his feet and watched intently as the troll charged at him, its club held high over its head for what would be a devastating strike if he let it land. But Edwyn had no intention of letting himself get hit again. As the club began to descend towards his head, he bolted to the left and charged at the troll's let. He slashed at it with his sword, cutting deeply, and the troll bellowed in pain. It turned towards him, once again, its eyes aflame with rage.