[PP - F1] Silver is the New Gold W/ Airi

[Cyrus 0]

The harsh climbing of the the tower had begun a few days ago. It was only about a week or so since coming to this new world. Cyrus was starting late but not out of laziness or even fear but rather intelligence. He spent the first few days learning the systems of the new world. Now that he knew how they worked he could focus on grinding to catch up to everyone else that started on day one. Of course he realized that this put him at a disadvantage but knowledge was priceless and would aid him in the long run. It was early in the afternoon and Cyrus was leaving his inn which was closer to the center of the town. His destination was the fields that surrounded the starting city. There was a nice farming area he picked up. A place by a nice stream where mobs were more bunched up than other areas. On the front end of the stream there were barely any mobs around a nice area to have a picnic or something. However on the other side of the stream the further you got away from the stream and the Town of beginning the mobs increased. Originally when he found the spot he chose not to venture on the other side. Rather he just took the widely scattered mobs. Now it was time to put in some real effort. 

As Cyrus walked away from his Inn he chose the more scenic route taking note of a few familiar faces that hung around the area. He chose to walk along the store keeping an eye on a few items that caught his attention. There was so much anticipation brewing in him. The path that he drew for himself was almost crystal clear he just had to put in the work to get there. Stopping for a moment he took the chance to browse a store that had clothes and accessories. His outfit was pretty good for a newbie so he wasn't too shabby but maybe he could add a few things in the next day or so. It would be better to have a few sets of clothes that he could change into. It would at least make his day to day life seem a little more normal.

@Airi

Edited March 23, 2017 by Cyrus

[Airi 0]

It had been about a week and a half since that announcement and the other players had already begun going out into the fields to level up. The suicide rates grew as players who didn't want to live through this ordeal discovered the edge of the first floor, where jumping would cause an instant and maybe painless death. There was also talk of deaths out in the fields, from players wandering out too far alone or a low-leveled team stumbling upon a strong field boss. Multiple names were crossed out in the Monument of Life every day, to the horror of most. Wherever she went, she could find players with eyes full of despair and sorrow.

Personally, she didn't really care. The ones who killed themselves, they were too weak to face reality. Seriously, they could have just stayed in the Town of Beginnings where it was safe and waited for the stronger ones to clear the game for them. They couldn't take any damage here anyway. The ones who died out in the fields, they were strong-willed but lacked cautiousness. They wanted to leave the game, wanted to get back to their real lives fast, so they rushed. And they paid with their lives for it. If anything, the deaths of the weak gave her an advantage. When one person dies, they leave at least two grieving people behind. And it was easy to worm her way into their mourning hearts.

Airi gently rubbed a crying girl's back and whispered comforting words into her ear. The girl she was consoling had just lost a lover, whom she had met in-game. Really, it was her fault for falling in love too easily. They had just been here for a week and a half. And with the girl's story, that man was clearly using her love to feel a bit better about the whole situation. But he fell into depression anyway, and jumped off to his death. However, Airi didn't tell her that. After a few more minutes, the girl looked up still with tears in her eyes and thanked her for being there. "You're such a nice person. Be careful out there, okay?"

They bade their goodbyes, and Airi checked her friends list. The girl had added her, in case she ever wanted Airi's help, and a few more names in her list were greyed out, meaning they had died. She tapped their names and proceeded to unfriend them. They were useless now, and she didn't want their names taking up the extra space. She closed her menu and wandered into a part of the town that players hardly visited. The part that sold clothing and accessories that were complete vanity and didn't have any enhancements. It was a street she hadn't explored yet, and to be fair, the clothes were pretty. She didn't have any money, but that didn't mean that she couldn't window shop. 

But window shopping was quickly pushed back in her priority list as she had spotted a man with silver hair (what an unusual hair color, was it dyed or something?) looking at some male clothing through a shop window. He didn't notice her yet, and replacing the contacts she had lost would be good, so she decided to approach him. Airi clasped her hands before her back, her face carefully arranged into a pleasant expression, and strode up to him while making sure her footsteps would be heard so as not to surprise him. The young girl stopped next to him and looked through some plain-looking female clothing that were somewhat unimpressive for a girl of her status. She turned to the man after a few moments of looking through them. "They sell nice clothes, don't you think?" she said, speaking about the store in general. The clothes may have looked a bit too plain for her, but she knew that people of (at most) middle class liked the design. Airi turned back to the store window. "Cheap, casual, but with a nice style."

[Cyrus 0]

There were plenty of depressed players lurking around. Their faces and weeping would probably bring down a normal person's mood. However Cyrus held no sympathy for them. He was never one to easily be empathetic to others and their troubles. Nor did he ever try to feign like he cared. Only those closest to him or those that earned his respect received that courtesy. These broken players were just taking up space and wasting loot. Some just never tried to fight the game and whined all the time. The others tried and probably danced with death breaking their resolve. Those that died because they weren't prepared mentally were no longer there for obvious reasons. Anyway you put it there were no soothing words coming from him. These were the people that gave up without truly trying. Honestly he respected those that died fighting against low level mobs than those just laying around weeping on the streets. Staying in the town of beginnings for as long as he did made him rather immune to what was happening nearby.  

Window shopping wasn't something that Cyrus did often. Most of the time he knew exactly what he was gonna get as soon as he walked into a store. That went for the real world as much as the virtual one. However he was now being forced to do so since he didn't have much in the way of currency. The former gamer wasn't exactly broke but he knew how to budget coming from an upper middle class family. Instead of wasting his money on clothes for now he would focus on his room and board as well as his equipment. If he focused on his task when he was strong enough he could indulge.

Just as he was about leave the window of the store and be on his way to the gate footsteps caught his attention. Surely in a market area such as this footsteps would have been a common sound. However this wasn't a common shopping area. There also weren't as many people running around the town as day one. The heroes moved on to the front lines. Those still in despair moved slowly usually dragging their feet. No, these steps were determined and growing closer. Breaking his gaze from the window he acknowledged the arrival of the woman with a nod before they turned back to the shop. "Oh? I've never really had the chance to and look around here. I usually take the main road out of the city limits." It was usually a shocker to most still left in this town when he said that. However she didn't seem like the other poor soul lost in self pity. That alone kept him interested rather than resorting to small talk and finding a way to disappear. 

[Airi 0]

She watched the man out of the corner of her eye curiously. When Airi had approached and talked to him, she had expected to see someone with that despair-filled expression everyone seemed to have nowadays. He wasn't moping like the others. It showed in the way he stood, the tone of his voice, and how he seemed to regard her coolly. She didn't know him well and he wasn't like the others, who were too focused on their sorrows and the lack of the log-out button (or maybe something else) to realize that she was subtly slipping threads of trust around them as she talked. She was even growing a bit too lax with the others since they didn't stand a chance of noticing anything. She had to be careful with this one though.

"It's my first time in this part of the town as well," Airi agreed. It was the truth, however her expression or the tone of her voice didn't change. She knew of a person who could tell if someone was lying by knowing how a person looked or talked whenever they're telling an obvious truth (or a lie, in some cases) and then observing their voices and facial expressions whenever said person talked. He wasn't one hundred percent accurate, but Airi thought he was pretty damn hard to lie to. She only hoped that no one in this game had the same abilities as him or she would have to watch her actions all the time.

The red-haired girl then turned away from the clothing (she wasn't really interested in those plain garb anyway) and faced the taller man. It was a sign that she was interested in having a conversation. She went through his response again, looking for something to begin with. I usually take the main road out of the city limits. "You mentioned that you leave the city limits?" Airi asked, her voice taking on a curious tone. He really didn't seem too interested in the clothes, so it was the best question she could think of without taking too much time. "I haven't really been out in the fields much, but how's the atmosphere out there?"

Edited March 24, 2017 by Airi

[Cyrus 0]

Cyrus was looking into the window of the shop for a while longer but he was aware of the woman next to him. It was impossible to actually be 'attacked' in safe zones. So there really was no need for him to be on edge. His stance was relaxed and calm but alert. It was easy to keep tabs on her out of his peripheral. After he had responded he wasn't expecting to receive a response. This was only the second person that he was actually engaging a real conversation with. Normally he would just give some simple small talk and the depressed fools would go on about their unfair life. That's where he usually tuned them out or walk away. Normally he didn't come off cold-hearted but enough whining would make anyone annoyed. So when an actual conversation came about he actually took some interest. In this game an actual conversation brought about interesting things. It was a simple conversation that brought about his first ally. Where would this conversation take him? 

As the younger woman spoke, it was hard to tell just how old she was, he listened. Her voice was soft and light. She was coming off friendly as far as he could tell so she was given some of his attention. Turning away from the shop now trying not to be rude he nodded letting her speak. Growing up in New York developed cynicism and awareness. She at least seemed like a sweet girl so she was given the benefit of the doubt for now. Her interest in him leaving the city put him on edge for a moment however you would never tell by his outward appearance. Internally he was now paying attention. It didn't necessarily mean she was a threat but it was possible she would try to hang on to him to keep herself safe. Which was a smart play by her if she wasn't strong enough to fight on her own. If that was the case he at least respected her more than the mindless zombies still lurking in the city. "It's not too bad. I'm used to playing these sorts of games. So it's not very different to me. Instead I feel comfortable. Maybe even more in tune with the game now that it's become dangerous. If you know what you're doing it's pretty easy to avoid danger on this floor."

Years of gaming experience gave him insight to a few things. While SAO was vastly different from other games it was still similar in some area. There's only so much you can do with coding. It's very draining to put particular detail into every single thing in the game. So there were patterns to watch for things to listen for. Breaking away from his thoughts for a moment he took a second to study the girl in front of him now that he was really looking. His eyes ran over her briefly taking in a few details. Her red hair and intense eyes were interesting traits for her. She could probably bring men to there knees with just a smile. Was that something she knew herself though?

[Airi 0]

The older man had turned to face her and was now speaking. His posture showed that he was calm and relaxed but actively paying attention to either her, what he was saying, or maybe something else. It was hard to tell. The tone of his voice and his expressions didn't give much away either. Her expression didn't change, but Airi internally applauded her amazing luck. She had found someone who would probably be a clearer once they actually start fighting the floor bosses (would be very useful to her, as well), but that someone was exceptionally hard to read. And someone she had to be a bit careful around for reasons already mentioned. But anyways, the man stopped talking and waited for her response. 

He hadn't given much away about the outside (probably wasn't willing to), only that he played games like SAO before and therefore possessed a generous amount of knowledge with MMO games; which is why he was pretty comfortable with leaving the safe zone. She had gotten that pro-gamer vibe from him earlier, so his response wasn't really a surprise to her. But then what could she say? "That's an interesting take," she replied, her voice taking on a somewhat distracted tone. "Most of the players I've talked to all thought that the atmosphere outside was quite heavy. Like even though they went out in teams, you could hardly hear any talking since everyone's so focused on staying alive and every lost point of HP felt like a step closer to death." Then she appeared to refocus on the conversation and smiled innocently. "But anyways, that's just what I've heard."

A short pause. "It really is unusual, to meet someone with your level of calm," she continued, making eye contact. "I find it reassuring, in a way." Then another short pause.  I haven't introduced myself yet, have I? My name's Gr--" she pointedly coughed before continuing, a sign that she had made a mistake. "I go by the name Airi."

[Cyrus 0]

As they continued to talk Cyrus had his own game to play. It was less of an actual game for him though. This was him feeling Airi out. Everything she said, did, and reacted to was analyzed more or less. Playing MMO's before he knew the cautions that needed to be taken when meeting a new player. You had to be friendly but not too friendly. It was better to suspect everyone you first meet and be wrong than to hope for mercy later because of misplaced trust. Despite her smiles and general nice personality he wouldn't be swayed just off their first few minutes of conversation. She had his attention for now though only because she seemed like a fighter. 

And so their dance of wits continued. They would be feeling each other out and testing each other to see if they could benefit from further association. Cyrus wasn't ashamed to admit that he was going to be using her to some degree if she proved useful. Right now everyone would be leaning on each other to further their own goals. It just depended on how each individual reevaluated their associates once they didn't need as much help. Frankly even if Cyrus was one to form bonds with those he played with long term. As long as there was respect and some degree of loyalty he wouldn't discard anyone like a tool. However there was another side of that coin for those that chose to wake up that side of him. "Not everyone hear is able to handle the pressure. Just because they are in the game doesn't mean they were ever good at it or wanted to play it for more than the scenery. And even if they were there's now the psychological aspect to it since this is all so real now. But that's neither here nor there. It just makes one curious where you stand." His eyes met with Airi making an emphasis that he was talking about her specifically.

That probably made the conversation awkwardly intense so he just gave her a genuine smile and attempted to save her from it. A change in the subject.  "It's quite odd not to call yourself by your real name right? It's fine. You chose a beautiful name you might get used to it." He was still smiling. But he nodded to her recognizing her warm introduction. She was a very social person and he was as well. She knew how to navigate a conversation. "I am Cyrus. What's keeping you in the Town of Beginnings Airi?" A little more effort into their conversation to make it easier on her and engaging. He didn't exactly say that Cyrus was his real name either. Perhaps she would learn that fact later if she stuck around long enough. 

[Cyrus 0]

(Need to get this removed)

Edited March 27, 2017 by Cyrus

[Airi 0]

She had grabbed his interest in the conversation and increased it with her previous words. Airi carefully took note of the words she had said and the non-verbals she remembered doing all while appearing to think of how she would respond. The man who had introduced himself as 'Cyrus', a name that sounded like it came straight out of an Ancient Rome History textbook, knew how to string his words together. There was even a slight chance that he was a manipulator at the same level as her. Maybe even better, considering the fact that he looked around three years older than her. 

"It is. I think I've almost made that mistake quite a few times by now," she responded, slowly bringing herself to relax. She didn't really look very tense on the outside, but she felt like her posture was a bit too stiff. Then she began telling of half-truths. Ordinarily, she would say the real reason: she was a bit afraid of dying and she didn't like taking many risks when it comes to her life. "Someone logged into the game with me. A very good friend of mine, and he was also the one who gave me the NerveGear. But we didn't get to tell each other our player names, and this town is just too big and too populated, so it's hard to find someone without knowing their name. So I'm focusing more on looking for him, or at least learning about his current status." Then she paused, as if considering her options. She brought out a notebook from her inventory, flipped a few pages, and showed Cyrus a sketch to prove her point. "You wouldn't have happened to have seen him, would you? The last person who saw him said he was with a blonde-haired girl just a few days ago."

[Cyrus 0]

Cyrus was good at being cordial and just playing things along as they came. It was fairly easy to play nice with Airi. Having a few younger sibling it was kind of a knack he had for having a calming tone and vibe to him. After a while he didn't have to analyze every little thing she did. His initial impression of her had been cast so his current view of her was more on the positive side of the scale. The conversation had a nice flow to it so he didn't have to search for words to keep things going or search for an excuse to get away. Rather the way she spoke seemed to pull him further in. It was something dismissed by Cyrus at the moment. She didn't pose a threat at the moment. Everyone was about equal in strength. It also helped that she didn't look like a fighter. Yet, looks could always be deceiving. 

When she continued with their conversation he wasn't expecting part of her life story. Empathy wasn't something that he was well versed in but he could only image his little sister getting lost in a game like she was. So despite his wall that protected him from being drawn in by sob stories she at least got some sort of reaction. Taking a good look at the sketch the male gamer just shook his head. "I've never seen him before unfortunately. It's a big city. It would be easy to pass by somebody you know and never even know it. But I can definitely keep an eye out now." Cyrus wasn't the type of man to make promises. So that response was as good as it was going to get. Committing yourself to obligations you could not fulfill was something he despised. Besides there was no point in giving Airi false hope that he would be passionately searching for this person. "I'm usually moving around a lot in and out of the town. So I might run into him. I was on my way out the city today actually. When I'm out there I'll keep that sketch at the back of my mind. There was always the possibility that he would forget over time. There was no need in worrying the poor girl though.

[Airi 0]

She kept her notebook in her inventory while Cyrus responded with a negative. This was the longest he had gone without anyone seeing him. Of course, it could always just be a coincidence. Airi didn't really go asking around about...him that much, she preferred pushing it to the very back of her mind. Thoughts about him were distracting, too distracting for her liking. And there really was no use thinking about it now. If he died, he died. Thinking more about it wouldn't bring him back to life. It would just make her feel a bit...lonely-- Airi shook the thoughts out of her head vehemently. She was in the middle of a conversation with someone who would be very useful to her if she could just make him trust her. She had to concentrate.

"Well, it was worth a try," Airi murmured, looking almost a bit distant. She hadn't got his initial reaction on her last few sentences since she was distracted, but she could make do without them. She forced herself to refocus on the conversation. "Anyway, you said that you would be leaving the city, right? I currently have nothing better to do right now. Would you like to have some company?" she offered. From the appearance of his armor, he wasn't at a very high level himself. Just to make sure, she added: "I'm at Level 1, one rank in the Curved Sword skill, and plan on going down the healer path once I start doing quests."

[Cyrus 0]

Cyrus had been a little anxious to get out into the field and start putting down some mobs. After meeting his partner they had been grinding back to back out as of late. Today was the only exception. Truly it was to see if he could handle a fight by himself. Being teamed with Kisodeth was great of course. But what if it came down to having to kill a mob all by himself. Getting comfortable in back up wasn't going to be much help in a situation like that. Of course if he died it would be bad for both of them. For Cyrus it would be the obvious. For his partner however she would be fighting on her own. He liked to think that they were getting used to each other and if he disappeared it would leave a vacuum of space. All of this wasn't for his pride however. It was more a test of his worth. Since coming to SAO he looked down on the other players cowering in the Town. But if he couldn't beat these low level mobs on his own then how was he any better than them?  So this was all to prove a point to himself. Reassurance that he wasn't all talk and that climbing the tower is what he should be doing. 

Airi was offering to join him. At first he was going to decline because this was supposed to be his proving day. However upon hearing her level and path his mind was quickly changed. She wouldn't be giving the same level of help as Kiso which meant he would be taking the forefront of the battle. And a healer was a rare path to take. Most of the people in SAO were arrogant hero type choosing DPS and maybe Tank roles. Everyone liked to be the one to deal the last blow. Having a healer around would prove useful to his plans. So if he could prove that they would be useful to each other perhaps he could convince her to ally herself with him. The day was getting quite interesting. "I suppose I wouldn't mind you out there. I'm level four with one rank in curved and just picked up the Katana skill. I'll be sticking to DPS it's where I'm most comfortable." The only thing that stood out was probably his level. Maybe the Katana skill. But DPS was a common role. The young gamer would be watching her reaction to see if he could move forward with his plans. 

"If you're still coming along then let's head out." Not even waiting for a reply he started leading the way to the fields. If she was coming she would follow. If she had changed her mind and was leaving then there was no point in continuing their conversation. Of course the tone of his voice was polite but there was no point in having further conversations with someone who couldn't keep up. Cyrus planned on shooting through the beginner floors. Upon reaching the field he looked for some loot on the way to finding their first mob to fight. There wasn't much luck there though. Maybe the mobs would drop something useful.

ID# 80816 results:

Loot: 11

Edited March 30, 2017 by Cyrus

[Airi 0]

Dropping the Healer Path card was apparently the best thing to start with when it comes to asking other players to team up. She knew healers were rare, everyone else wanted to be a DPS nowadays and most players think support roles can only work in a team and are completely fragile by themselves, but they were definitely in-demand due to their rarity. So she decided to take that path and make herself widely known as a potential full-support character. Eventually, she would be getting level boost after level boost, since full-support characters like her were rare and very-much needed in the front lines. 

Airi smiled to herself as she recalled her plans while following behind Cyrus. She liked to think she was a good planner. They neared the town exit and she quickly equipped her curved blade (which hadn't been equipped while she was talking to him, walking around safe zones with swords equipped felt weird). Then she quickened her pace so she was walking beside the older player. Cyrus wasn't exactly the most trusting person. She noticed that with his initial reaction to her offering him help. He wanted to decline before she told him that she wanted to take on a support role. It even showed in how frugal he was with information (whereas she gave away a lot; false information, that is). So therefore, walking behind him outside the safe zone, even with her level being significantly lower than his, wasn't the best idea.

They left the safe zone, and Airi suppressed a shiver, the pleasant expression she had maintained melted away. But she kept her blade sheathed and her expression calm and blank. To her companion, she would look like she was merely focusing on her surroundings, completely alert. There were no mobs in view yet, so she decided to look for materials instead. It would always be nice to have some, even if she didn't have a profession yet. While still paying attention to the person walking beside her, she looked around. At one point, she stopped to examine a clump of plants that usually had flowers which could be picked and used as materials for crafting. Freshly picked. There were still many players in the first floor, after all. She then straightened, dusted her short skirt, and sped up her pace to catch up with Cyrus.

Spoiler

ID: 80879 | LD: 14

Edited March 31, 2017 by Airi

[Cyrus 0]

Drawing his own curved sword Cyrus started his look for their first mob to encounter. This wasn't going to be anything fancy really. For the most part he was pretty confident in his skills as a gamer. To him this was something rather simple. While on the surface a lot of things might have been different it all came down to how well he could play. To him this was something that you were either good at or you weren't. Especially for a game that wasn't turn based. This was real time. So he wasn't going to put his life in the hands of someone he just met. It also didn't really help that she was level one. It also didn't help that his goals for the day had changed. There was no fear in her eyes and that gained her a little respect. She didn't look like the type to be able to keep all her eggs in one basket when faced with real danger. But looks could be very deceiving. The fact that she was looking for materials said a lot already. 

Spotting a mob by itself Cyrus decided to make it their first victim. "Alright let's see what you got Red." The way he said it wasn't like he forgot her name but more so to provide a lighthearted mood. It was kind of necessary based on this type of situation that could be their end. Fortunately it was super weak so that chance was very low especially with his level. Starting things off first he charged the boar having his curved sword ready. Out of habit he drew it like it was a katana instead of a regular sword. So much practice with his new skill made it muscle memory. The draw style he learned was also an attack great for starting combat. Apparently the game was going to acknowledge it as a valid attack because he was able to catch the pig off guard landing a critical hit. Hopefully Airi caught on and would attack right after him.

ID# 81129 results:

Battle: 10

Cyrus Damage(2): 2+2=4

Boar Damage(5): N/A

Boar Health: 6/10

Edited April 3, 2017 by Cyrus

[Airi 0]

The young girl's eyes roamed the grasslands, looking out for materials she could pick up while the silver-haired man beside her looked for a mob they could attack. But before she could locate any, Cyrus spotted a lone boar and called her attention. He called her 'Red' and said something else that she didn't quite catch in a tone that sounded a bit playful. Airi didn't respond verbally since she didn't hear what he said (she really had to fix her inability to multitask outside the safe zone), but she unsheathed her curved blade, slipping easily into a battle-ready stance, and nodded at him.

The man charged forward and she followed suit, pacing herself so she would be just behind him once he attacks. He attacked the boar from its blindside and it gave out a surprised grunt, clearly it didn't expect the attack. Airi quickly observed her surroundings, then activated her only effective Sword Art, <<Rage Blow>>. There were no other mobs around, and she wanted them to take the least damage possible. Right after Cyrus finished his attack, she went in close and dragged the sharp tip of her blade horizontally through the boar's side. The mob let out a dying squeal and burst into red pixels. Critical hit. Well, she didn't expect that. Airi looked back at Cyrus. "My energy's spent, but that was a pretty good warm-up," she informed with a hint of a smile on her face.

Spoiler

ID: 81137 | BD: 10 (critical success, +2 DMG)
<<Rage Blow>> = 2 * (2*1) + 2 = 6 DMG

[H:2] Cyrus: ??/?? | EN ??/?? | DMG: 2
[H:2] Airi: 20/20 | EN 0/2 | DMG: 2

Boar: 0/10 | DMG: 5

Edited April 3, 2017 by Airi

[Cyrus 0]

The boar had been dealt with but it was also very low level. It honestly was just a test to see how well Airi could do and make sure he didn't die in the process. It might have been a little too cautious but it was better to just dip a toe in the water rather than diving into deep waters. But the red haired girl did quite well and he was sure she could handle something a little stronger the next time. Together they were doing a minimum of four base damage if they both hit. It was possible they would be able to handle something that would drop loot also. "You did good Airi I wasn't expecting you to fit in so easily on the first try. Very smooth. I'll give you a chance to recover your energy. Did you want to try something stronger maybe even something that would drop loot?" This was going to be harder on them given their mismatched levels. With Cyrus being higher it would require a stronger mob to drop anything. But it would also put Airi at a disadvantage more than him. Cyrus didn't want to just rush in without asking her first. If she wasn't ready he would just stay on the lower end of things. This wasn't really a trip to acquire loot but more to feel the healer out and see if their would be some possible association later.

In the mean time while he waited for her energy to recharge he looked for more materials. This was a habit that he was starting to establish. It was easier to casually look for equipment while out with others than to spend an entire day focused on it. And his commitment to his craft was rewarded.

ID# 81412 results:

Loot: 15

Edited April 5, 2017 by Cyrus

[Airi 0]

In all honesty, Airi didn't expect a compliment to come flying in her direction once she finished the boar off. He struck her as the more silent type, even though he showed himself to be quite talkative at first. More specifically, the type that wouldn't engage in any unnecessary talk once outside the safezone. Sounds better. Then Cyrus asked if they should try something stronger, a mob that would drop loot for the both of them. Which meant, a mob that was a bit higher than his level. She didn't really know his exact level, but it was definitely a bit higher than hers. It was like a high-risk, high-gain situation, and she was almost reluctant to say yes. But she didn't want to look like a coward, and he would be tanking anyways.

"Sure, we can try a mob that would drop loot," Airi responded, after a few more moments of consideration. "With our level gap, you would have to take most of the damage though, would you be alright with that?" She stopped talking and turned to look for materials like he was doing, but a question suddenly surfaced in her mind. "Speaking of level, I don't think you've told me yours yet. Would you mind telling me that? So I would at least have an idea of what type of mob we would face."

While waiting for his response (she wondered if he would even give her a specific level, some players were quite touchy about other people knowing their exact level), she looked through the virtual terrain and resumed her search for materials, keeping Cyrus in her line of sight. Unfortunately, her search yielded nothing and with a small sigh, she turned back to Cyrus. The silver-haired player had already found some. She then noted that she was looking in a completely different direction than he was and decided to try that direction out once they have walked a bit farther. 

Spoiler

ID: 81487 | LD: 6 (fail)

EN: 1/2

Edited April 6, 2017 by Airi

[Cyrus 0]

Cyrus contemplated their position for a while not sure exactly if this was a good idea. This decision could possibly be his final one and the young gamer wasn't exactly sure he wanted to risk that. "Hhhmm perhaps another time then... I'm built for damage not really for taking on heavy amounts of damage. It might have been possible if we were closer in level maybe. Not to say you wouldn't be able to handle yourself." While she seemed like she was a great fighter he wasn't entirely sure about their chances against the mobs at the moment. Patience would be needed for now at least. It only took one wrong move for them to end up in a very bad situation with no way out. Perhaps when she was farther along her healing path this team up would work. "I thought we told each other earlier?" Perhaps he just never responded to her earlier question but he was quite sure he did. Either way he didn't make a big deal out of it. "How familiar are you with the combat system? Did you need more practice?"

The white haired man stood in an alert position keeping his eye on the horizon with the occasional glance. While they talked he just casually looked for materials. He would be needing A LOT more if he was going to get any better than rank one. It would acquire a lot of forging and time to get high enough to start forging his own armor. His casual search turned up nothing once again. Perhaps all of his luck had run out from the hours he spent looking with his partner.

 

ID# 82161 results:

Loot: 9

Edited April 13, 2017 by Cyrus

[Airi 0]

She tilted her head to the side and tried her best to recall their short conversation while they were both in the safe zone. Then she remembered. He'd told her about his level and other necessary details right before they began heading towards the town exit. Level four, one rank in the curved sword skill but probably going to switch to a katana like most initial curved sword users did, and going DPS. To be sure, she repeated those bits of information in her head a few more times as she pretended to search for materials.

Well, that was careless of her, she thought once she was sure that those pieces of information were now seared into her memory. How could she have forgotten such important details? But she already knew the answer even before she asked the question. It was her inability to focus on more than one thing once outside (or leaving) the safe zone. Usually, she would have memorized or written down any type of information right after hearing it, but since she was mentally preparing to leave the safe zone when she heard about his level, she didn't get to do any of the two. Yet another reason for her to train her multi-tasking skills.

Airi looked around for nearby mobs, and finding none, shifted her focus to the ongoing conversation with Cyrus and hastily prepared a response. "Maybe when we're both a higher level," she agreed. "With our current level gap, I wouldn't be able to do much damage against the mobs that would drop loot. And yes, I remember your level now." She then paused to think a bit about his question with her experience in the combat system and answered honestly. "I have the knowledge, but not the experience. Though I'm pretty sure I can take on anything that's my level in this floor. Speaking of, my energy's done regenerating. What about yours?" 

Spoiler

ID: 82344 | LD: 2 (fail)

EN: 2/2

Edited April 15, 2017 by Airi