[SP-F3] It's Always Rainy In Aincrad < Easy RGQ > (COMPLETE)

[Takeshi 0]

 

Rain. A weather that symbolizes in a positive or negative way. In one hand, it keeps the Earth, or any other realm from drought. It also brings a sense of peace and probable quiet. On the other hand, it represents sorrow, depression or any other negative human emotions. In contrast to peace, it brings a sense of isolation or grimness of a place.

Some people love rain, either without or with explainable reasons. Maybe they feel calm every time they set their eyes towards the rapid droplets, or maybe it is the slightly, bright wet clouds. Some even love the sound of rain, and one of these people is Takeshi. 

Takeshi loves rain very much ever since he was a child, the sound of thunders did not made him flinch ever so slightly. It brought him inner serenity, and he enjoyed it immensely. Later on, the rain still provide him such effects, but it was mixed with feelings of loneliness. Especially after his best friend, Riki died. He hateed that feeling and yearned for the pure serenity he used to feel. Now in Aincrad, he got what he wanted. But at the same time, he has to endure a new feeling that would effectively occur outside safe zones. The forthcoming presence of danger and violence.

Edited January 28, 2017 by Takeshi

[Takeshi 0]

Takeshi nonchalantly walks among the heavy rain at the prairie in Floor 3, his entire set of armor are fully drenched in contrast to his still dry undergarments and padding. His body is fully covered in chainmail and a black and yellow surcoat layered on top. His head and afro hair are fully covered by a great helmet, which has a pair of small slits that are wide enough for Takeshi to see. Additionally, he dons a pair of metal vambraces on his forearms. 

The surroundings are practically obscured by mist, and to Takeshi, it hinders a bit of his sense of direction as well as expecting a surprise attack from a foe. Nevertheless, he keeps moving on, his expression behind the helm devoid of all but calming emotions. 

An hour passes as his travel is ongoing, there are no signs of life in the prairie. Takeshi starts to wonder if there are any other players around the area. It can be a good or bad thing. He can either ask or provide assistance if he wants to, or he will have to fight or kill them if they turn out to be hostile.

Edited January 27, 2017 by Takeshi

[Takeshi 0]

 

Somehow, Takeshi reaches one of the entrances to The Forest Of Wandering Mists, an area notorious for red eyed minotaurs and the constant obscurity by a mist of unknown origin. As he has nowhere else to go, he simply steps through the small arch, equipping his sword and shield. No sooner after that, he sees something astonishing to his eyes. 

There is a small clearing ahead, nothing really special. But what is really odd is that among the trees are several, actual tree houses sporting unusual designs, each of them are connected to one another with rope bridges. All can be directly climbed up to with small, spiral staircases. In reference to the designs, the tree houses look modernly Victorian, all having one floor up.

Takeshi has never heard of any rumors or news of this particular spot in the forest, and now questions are filling in his mind. Is he the first to discover the houses? Were there any players that ventured through them before? Did this place had been kept secret from the public? Even better, why did the houses even exist?

Eager to explore them, Takeshi stops pondering for now and walks towards the nearest spiral staircase. He brings his shield forward as he anticipates any potential threats within the house. 

Spoiler

ID: 75583

LD: 18

Obtained 1 Material

 

Edited January 27, 2017 by Takeshi

[Takeshi 0]

 

The first tree house is devoid of any sort of furniture or decorations, save for a table, a chair and a small box. Since the box is the only object worth checking in the first floor, Takeshi walks towards it and takes it into his hands. He sits down to examine the box closely, noting that it is made of wood and has no lock. He slowly opens it to reveal some alchemic ingredients inside, much to his delight. He takes them out and stores them in his inventory.

As he stands up and prepares to move upstairs, he hears the door burst open by force. A large figure is advancing into the house as Takeshi arms himself with his shield raised. The figure, which turns out to be a minotaur, has the same appearance as the minotaur he fought and killed last time, with a few differences. Its body is covered with long furs, and its horns are pointing sideways instead of forwards. As it lets out a roar, its larger and sharper canines are visible. It moves quickly towards Takeshi as it prepares to kick him with its giant hoof.

Spoiler

ID: 75584

BD: 1

MD: 4

Takeshi: HP 60/60

Minotaur: HP 15/15

 

Edited January 27, 2017 by Takeshi

[Takeshi 0]

The minotaur's hoof lands greatly against Takeshi's shield, knocking him off balance as he backs away until his back bumps against the wall. Takeshi quickly sidesteps to the right in response and swings his sword, only to miss the attack as the Minotaur is already walking backwards before the attack was initiated. Takeshi remains still after this as he thinks that he would be grabbed by the Minotaur if he goes berserk against it.

The Minotaur cracks its knuckles as it begins to speak: "Did you kill my friend who was found somewhere outside this forest?"

Takeshi, a little surprised that this one can speak to, answers without a single hesitation. "Your friend paid for his foolishness to try to attack me. Maybe you should make smart friends instead of dumbasses like him."

The Minotaur lets out a scoff as it slowly approaches Takeshi, a hint of anger displayed in its eyes. "You dare to--"

"I think it is best if we shut the f**k up and proceed," he says with a calm voice, eyes staring back at the Minotaur's as it simply nods with another scoff and throws both of its huge fists forward.

Spoiler

ID: 75585

BD: 1

MD: 1

Takeshi: HP 60/60

Minotaur: HP 15/15

 

Edited January 27, 2017 by Takeshi

[Takeshi 0]

The Minotaur's attack is blocked effectively by Takeshi's shield too, and soon, the fight escalates as they exchange blows against each other, all attempted attacks are either blocked or missed. The sounds of rattling chainmail and loud thuds echo throughout the tree house as each tries harder to at least land a successful hit. After minutes of the battle, both of them step away from each other and take a small rest like boxers in the corners of a boxing ring. 

Takeshi tries to come up with a solution as he stares at the Minotaur, who is also doing the same thing. Several of his attacks are perfectly parried, and because of that, he has to severe the weak points of the parrying weapon, aka the Minotaur's arms. Raising his shield up once more, he advances towards the Minotaur as it leaps towards him and grabs his shield, maintaining its grip there.

Spoiler

ID: 75586

BD: 7

MD: 4

Takeshi: HP 60/60

Minotaur: HP 10/15

Energy: 5/12

Sword Art Used: Snake Bite

 

Edited January 27, 2017 by Takeshi

[Takeshi 0]

Before the Minotaur can realize Takeshi's plan of attack, it sees its wrist being pierced and cut away from the flesh, thanks to a Sword Art he used. It lets go of the shield and doesn't roar out of pain, instead muttering the word, "Darn" as if it makes a mistake of tearing the page of a book. It covers the cut with its other hand, and glances at Takeshi who is standing still, the sword no longer glowing green in color. 

This one is boring, Takeshi thinks to himself. The Minotaur, although stronger by appearance, isn't really impressive in terms of battle. All it can do is to swing its fist around like a retard and not using its intelligence to try to counter him. Its friend, on the other hand, is able to do all of these things effectively. For instance, swiping Takeshi's favorite cigarette away to distract him and punching with the proper techniques. 

Still, it doesn't change the fact that he has to keep his guard up, so he taunts the Minotaur by knocking his shield with the sword's pommel. Letting out a deep, heavy sigh, it gets onto all fours as it prepares to charge towards Takeshi, thinking of bashing him with its thick skull.

Spoiler

ID: 75587

BD: 4

MD: 3

Takeshi: HP 60/60

Minotaur: HP 10/15

 

Edited January 27, 2017 by Takeshi

[Takeshi 0]

The Minotaur pushes its head forward as it is close to its target. However, thanks to his experience of fighting the last minotaur, Takeshi quickly dodges the attack, and keeps on moving until he sees his opponent hitting its own head against the wall like a dumbass. The Minotaur expresses its anger and humiliation by roaring loudly, running towards Takeshi as it swings its arms wildly in a desperate attempt to hit him. Takeshi backs away throughout his defensive actions against the wild attacks, finding that he has little chance of taking a swing. Every time he does, the Minotaur would withdraw its arms quickly to avoid receiving the same kind of injury again.

At this point, Takeshi decides to retreat upstairs, and so he does after dodging an incoming attack. The Minotaur undoubtedly give chase, but it is slower than the player as there is only enough room for one human to go along the staircase. It makes itself some improvised space by breaking the walls between itself as it makes its way up to the second floor.

Spoiler

ID: 75588

BD: 8

MD: 6

Takeshi: HP 51/60

Minotaur: HP 5/15

Energy: 0/12

Sword Art Used: Snake Bite

 

Edited January 27, 2017 by Takeshi

[Takeshi 0]

Takeshi's sword glows green in color once more, he prepares to launch his Sword Art against the arriving Minotaur, not making any noises or moves. What he doesn't expect, though, is that a debris from the broken walls is thrown towards him, hitting his great helmet hard. The resonance of the impact caused a short headache to Takeshi as he tries hard to compose himself. 

The Minotaur, seeing that it actually made a hit, grins as it charges towards him again, unaware of his glowing sword. Using his ears to hear the incoming footsteps of the monster, Takeshi simply takes one step forward and swings his sword immediately, slashing its face in three quick successions before bashing it away from his personal space with his shield.

Takeshi manages to regain his balance and notices the Minotaur covering its face, one of its eyes is apparently dug out. It grits its teeth as it leaps towards him, its palm reaching towards his helmet.

Spoiler

ID: 75591

BD: 3

MD: 7

Takeshi: HP 42/60

Minotaur: HP 5/15

 

Edited January 27, 2017 by Takeshi

[Takeshi 0]

This time, the Minotaur actually parries Takeshi's incoming strike and grasps onto his great helmet, lifting him up to deliver a barrage of knee strikes against the gut before concluding the attack with a faraway toss towards the corner. He tries to withstand the pain as he struggles to stand up and adjusting the helmet. But as he does so, the monster is already close to him. 

It grabs onto his shoulders forcefully and headbutts him, which should work if not for the shield he already raised just in time. Takeshi bashes the Minotaur on the nose repetitively until it can no longer stand the pain and lets him go. He quickly retreats and stops near the staircase as he notices that the bashing isn't impactful enough to lose some of its low health.

The Minotaur soon recovers from the ordeal and covers its bleeding wrists, crushing a table with its foot and grabbing one of the legs to be used as an improvised club. It walks towards Takeshi and prepares to thrust its weapon forwards.

"Dodge this!" The minotaur roars.

Spoiler

ID: 75600

BD: 6

MD: 1

Takeshi: HP 42/60

Minotaur: HP 3/15

 

Edited January 27, 2017 by Takeshi

[Takeshi 0]

If the table leg hits Takeshi, he would be seriously injured as strong, blunt weapons like maces or clubs can transfer the force of the impact through armor, fracturing some bones if the impact intensifies. Either by pure luck or the Minotaur's pathetic attack, Takeshi manages to not let himself fall down the staircase as the impact caught by his shield almost gives him a powerful knockback. He dashes forward and gives the Minotaur a thrust through the gut before it can deliver another attack.

Blood spurts out of the Minotaur's mouth as Takeshi proceeds to disembowel him, guts spilling out from the abdomen. He slashes the Minotaur's legs in an attempt to severe the tendons, but he is pushed away by the Minotaur and watches it retreating to a corner, possibly to avoid being slashed further. Takeshi lets out a sigh of disappointment as he walks towards the creature, who is now looking at him with fear mixed with boiling rage within its red eyes.

Spoiler

ID: 75603

BD: 3

MD: 4

Takeshi: HP 42/60

Minotaur: HP 3/15

 

Edited January 27, 2017 by Takeshi

[Takeshi 0]

"Get up..." Takeshi speaks as he looks at the critically injured Minotaur through his helmet. "Get up and die fighting just like your friend."

And the Minotaur does so, or at least it tried. But it could only spit out more blood as it poorly covers the deep cut across its stomach. It grits its teeth as it tries once again, slowly putting its hooves onto the wooden floorboard. Takeshi simply waits for an attack from the monster, but his shield isn't raised as he is certain that it will die in a short time. 

The Minotaur picks up the table leg and quickly swings upwards, only to make itself more painful as it tries to balance itself from kneeling down. Meanwhile, Takeshi non-chalantly takes one step back as the swing misses him. He taunts the Minotaur further with the shield banging, prompting it to drop the table leg and simply charge towards him while ignoring the ordeal it is suffering.

Spoiler

ID: 75604

BD: 6

MD: 9

Takeshi: HP 32/60

Minotaur: HP 1/15

 

Edited January 27, 2017 by Takeshi

[Takeshi 0]

The charge is successful as the Minotaur's thick skull bashes against Takeshi's chainmail covered torso. Surprisingly, he makes no effort in dodging that attack, and simply lets it deliver the probable last attack against him. Letting out a soft sigh within his helmet, he drives his sword through the neck of the Minotaur before it can grab and lift him up to crush him. It chokes on its own blood as Takeshi moves the blade across the throat.

The Minotaur falls onto the ground, its arms wrapped around his legs as it tries to use a last resort to damage him. Sadly for itself, the injuries it received so far are too much to bear, and soon take their toll as it is in the brink of death. Takeshi withdraws his leg from the Minotaur's weak grasp as he prepares to completely diminish its health. It is a pity to expect a monster like him to fight very well, only to find out that it is stupid and would be useless if it is ever an ally in combat.

Spoiler

ID: 75605

BD: 8

LD: 18

Takeshi: HP 42/60

Minotaur: HP 0/15

Obtained 75 COL and 1 Material

 

Edited January 27, 2017 by Takeshi

[Takeshi 0]

 

Takeshi kneels down and plunges his sword into the Minotaur's brain without hesitation. Instantly, it breathes out for the last time and dies, disintegrating as it leaves out loot that consists of 75 COL and one Material. He takes them and keeps himself armed as he heads downstairs and exits the house. Onwards to the second.

Crossing the rope bridge may seem like a bad idea at first glance, since they look decayed and fragile to step on. However, as Takeshi slowly takes some first steps onto one of them, it is still intact and hard. After crossing his way to the end, he steps into the next tree house and looks around carefully. The interior is prettier than the first's, it is surprisingly furnished. There are tables, chairs, shelves, and any other furniture that are typical to own for a living. 

Like the previous house, there is another small box sitting on the table. Takeshi takes it into his hand and opens it slowly.

Spoiler

ID: 75606

LD: 11

 

Edited January 27, 2017 by Takeshi

[Takeshi 0]

The box do have some alchemic ingredients inside, but upon closer inspection, Takeshi can tell that they are actually duds. The smells and the false textures are a dead giveaway. Disappointed at the contents and whoever created them, he leaves the box closed on the table.

He surveys around the area and look for any more Materials in the shelves and drawers, but to no avail. The shelves contain some books that are still intact, while others are decayed or destroyed for some reason. Out of curiosity, he decides to read one of them, but pauses himself to do so as he has to check for any present threats first.

He heads upstairs and looks around the second floor, which appears to be a bedroom of some sort. The bed itself has a dirty matress and pillow, visible bloodstains are on the sheets. This unnerves Takeshi a little as he can hardly imagine what actually happened to the owners of the tree houses. He hopes that none of the owners were children, otherwise he would become sick upon learning their apparent demise.

[Takeshi 0]

Takeshi heads back downstairs and sits down as he lets out a sigh of relief, due to the absence of enemies for now. He removes his great helmet and lets his afro hair flow wildly along the cold wind of the still-heavy rain, taking a book about wilderness survival, something that he used to read about so many times with various sources.

He leans against the chair as he re-memorizes subjects about eating wild plants and animals, the latter being his preferable food if he is ever in a survival situation, or simply camping out of interest. As he reads about the process of skinning, gutting and butchering/cooking a snake meat, his stomach rumbles from hunger. Takeshi looks at his it emotionlessly before looking outside. 

Unless he has thermal vision or anything else to help him see through the mist, it is virtually possible to locate a wild animal, not to mention the fact that minotaurs are inhabiting deep within the forest.

Edited January 27, 2017 by Takeshi

[Takeshi 0]

 

Exiting the house, Takeshi notices that the rain is getting a little lighter, but that is about it as it still pours down rapidly. He is about to cross the next rope bridge when he stops in his tracks since his eyes catches the sight of a humanoid reptile.

The reptile, known as a lizardman, dons leather harnesses and a pouch around its scaly, soft body. It is mostly green in color, but its entire underside is white. It bears no teeth and has a pair of eyes with slit irises. It carries a crude spear as a weapon, the tip sharpened from stone. It can hurt, but not really sharp enough to cause bleeding as it shows signs of weary condition.

The lizardman sets its eyes towards the fully chainmail armored Takeshi, who is standing guard wih sword and shield drawn, It lets out a hiss as it sprints towards him with its spear pointing dangerously ahead.

Spoiler

ID: 75615

BD: 4

MD: 1

Takeshi: HP 55/60

Lizardman: HP 12/12

 

Edited January 27, 2017 by Takeshi

[Takeshi 0]

Takeshi takes cover behind the shield upon realizing that the spear is already ahead before his sword. Blocking the spear is like blocking a couched lance, so the knockback is high and he has to step back further until he stops at the entrance of the second tree house.

The lizardman continuously thrusts its spear forward as Takeshi blocks or dodges the attack. Now that is an actual opponent he can fight, but then comes some problems he has to face. The lizardman is agile, and its spearhead is still strong despite its old age. Getting severely hit by it equals to broken parts of the chainmail, and Takeshi hates to see that.

He dodges another attack and retreats back towards the start of the ropebridge. Perhaps he can cut it somehow to make the lizardman fall, and if possible, he can initiate a plunging attack on top of it. But that would be risky, for he couldnt determine its intelligence in combat.

The lizardman lets out another hiss as it spins its staff around, forming a grin. Takeshi simply remains stoic and silent, banging his shield as an invitation to attack him.

Spoiler

ID:  75693

BD: 1

MD: 9

Takeshi: HP 45/60

Lizardman: HP 12/12

 

Edited January 28, 2017 by Takeshi

[Takeshi 0]

Unexpectedly, the lizardman speedily throws its spear like a javelin, hitting Takeshi's leg as the tip manages to pierce through the chainmail. He is briefly shocked by the injury he is receiving, but remains focused towards the reptile that is advancing forward and grabbing the wooden handle of the spear. Instead of attacking him with brute strength, it forcefully withdraws the spear away from the limb, further increasing the seriousness of the injury. It lets out a wicked laugh as it is delighted to see its opponent hurt.

Takeshi grits his teeth within his helmet, never letting out a scream as he immensely stare at the lizardman through the small slits. He could still stand up, but now he has to bear the wound which sounds like a pain in the ass to him. It launches its spear towards his helmet, but he blocked that effectively and quickly sprints, or rather, limps towards him at a rapid pace. His shield raised and aimed at the face.

Spoiler

ID: 75711

BD: 3

MD: 8

Takeshi: HP 36/60

Lizardman: HP 12/12

 

Edited January 28, 2017 by Takeshi

[Takeshi 0]

The lizardman swiftly kicks Takeshi's injured leg, triggering the painful stimulus of the wound to make him stop his attack. As Takeshi tries to attack regardless, it whacks at the gap between his helmet and shoulder, hitting his neck. It repeats this one more time before Takeshi jumps away and staggers to recover from the blunt damage. He holds on the rope bridge as he rubs his neck, the lizardman is already dashing for a thrust attack with its spear. 

Not wanting to have the weapon running through the surface of his shield, Takeshi narrowly dodges the attack, the spearhead picking off small bits of chainmail at his arm. He blocks a swinging attack and wonders why would it do that, as swinging a spear like an edged weapon is very impractical. Unless the spear has an axe-head like a halberd, which might make the fight worse than it is. He kneels down slightly as he prepares to attempt a thrusting attack. The lizardman takes that gesture as a challenge of some sort by grinning.

Spoiler

ID: 75723

BD: 1

MD: 1

Takeshi: HP 36/60

Lizardman: HP 12/12

 

Edited January 28, 2017 by Takeshi