[F1-SP] <<Earning A Living>> Flower Crown Princess

[Astreya 0]

Astreya tilted her head slightly as she looked at the rather fanciful, yet simplistic, little wagon that sat amongst the greenery outside the campsite.  Her travels had brought her here, but she wasn't entirely sure if this is where she needed to be or not.  Supposedly, the Gypsy was last sighted around here on the first Floor, and so she was going to see about hunting the woman down and finally getting her a familiar to call her very own.

But as she came up toward the wagon, a female began to make her way out, and the young woman blinked slightly as the blonde female began to approach her.  "Uhm," Astreya began as the woman came closer, as if she'd been expecting Astreya the whole time.  That lined up pretty well with what she'd heard about this woman then, and so she swallowed, looking her over.  "Are you the one that can help me find a familiar?"

--
 

Spoiler

 

--Level 14
--HP: 280
--NRG: 46

--Base Damage: 8
--Mitigation: 37
--Regeneration: 2% (Currently 4)
--Accuracy: 3
--Thorns: 18
--Taunt: 1

Skills:
Battle Healing: Journeyman
Fighting Spirit
Howl
|-> Focused Howl

2H Straight Sword: Journeyman

Heavy Armor: Expert
|-> Impetus

Concentration

Gear:
»Silver Frost [2H Straight Sword] | Rare T2
[Damage] - Gain +2 base damage per slot.
[Accuracy] - Add 1 onto your BD rolls (Cannot cause crits)

»Battle Dress | Rare T2 Heavy Armor
[Mitigation] - Prevent 12 damage from successful attacks against you.
[Thorns] - Successful non-critical attacks against you deal 18 unmitigated damage to the attacking enemy. Only activates on damage dealing, melee attacks.

»Dodgeball | Rare T1 Trinket
[Accuracy II] - Add 2 onto your BD rolls (Cannot cause crits)

»Spotlight | Rare T2 Trinket
[Taunt] - Adds 1 Hate generated from successful attacks, Howl and Furious Howl.
[Recovery] - Regain 2 additional energy on natural CD rolls of 7+. 

Consumables:
»Starter Healer Potions | Heals 50 HP
[3 Total]
»Tier One Damage Potion of Uncommon quality. (+1 Damage)
[1 Total]
»Tier One Health Potions of Rare quality. (+10% HP)
[3 Total]
»Tier One Immolation Potion (+10 Thorns Damage)
[1 Total]
»Fixer Upper (Salve) | Antidote I
[1 Total]

 

 

[Astreya 0]

"A familiar?  Oh, no no, dear, I think you've found the wrong person.  But since you're here, maybe you can help me find something instead?" the woman asked, and Astreya blinked, tilting her head a little to the side in an inquisitive manner as she often did.  "Or is that not something you are willing to assist with?" the woman asked after a moment.  "Gathering is not something that many truly wish to follow," she spoke.

"Gathering?  Oh!  Like Herbs and stuff?  Actually, I'd love to get better at it," Astreya admitted.  "I was helping Zakariah out with getting some herbs for him and the ones he wanted I could barely find!  So if you can help me get better at that, actually, that would be great," the woman spoke, Astreya clasping her hands tightly in front of her in a manner to show thanks to this woman that she had just randomly happened upon.

[Astreya 0]

Giovanna glanced at Astreya for a moment before a warm smile moved over her face.  "Yes, I am familiar with Zakariah and his... teaching methods.  I believe they leave much to be desired.  But I have a request in exchange for me helping to teach you how to gather more effectively, if you wouldn't mind?" the woman asked.

"Sure!  This isn't really what I came here for, but now that I'm here, I might as well," Astreya responded with a smile and a slight grin as the woman reached into her bag then, pulling out what looked like a compass of a kind.  "What's this?"

"In order for me to teach you I need to see your talent at its best.  This will help you locate a Demonic Shard.  Should you find one and bring it back to me, I will teach you," the woman spoke evenly, and Astreya stood up straight before giving a salute, turning and sprinting out into the field.

[Astreya 0]

ID# 188174 results:
Craft: 8
Loot: 5

 

Astreya wasn't exactly... planning to go out and do this and to find a Demonic Shard or whatever it was.  She had honestly expected this woman here to be the Gypsy that she needed to talk to about finding a Familiar, but as it turns out, that was not the case.  She wasn't exactly... down about it, because finding a way to gather more herbs was probably going to make life easier for her overall.

Besides, if finding Materials was going to be easier, that would make it all the more easy for her to go about and to get materials for others.  And that meant she could seriously consider getting some really cool new gear.  Granted, she'd have to wait until she was a little higher level to get the really good stuff, but at the very least, it would provide her with a way to get some better gear in the future, which would be great.

Edited April 12, 2021 by Astreya

[Astreya 0]

ID# 188175 results:
Craft: 7
Loot: 7

 

She glanced down at the compass then as she could tell that it was trying to direct her towards something.  She paused, glancing back over her shoulder where Giovanna was simply standing there to wait for her.  She wondered how life would be, being an NPC.  If it was something exciting... or if they needed to just stand around and wait for a player to come and visit and talk with you.  That seemed like all levels of boring.

Then again, there was the good chance that they didn't really even notice any time passing.  Just sort of sleeping between interactions?  It was something kind of interesting to think about, and she was quite curious how the NPCs themselves acted when no players were around.  Kind of like that old question about the tree in the forest.  If there were no PCs around, did the NPCs even bother to move?  Were they all just a hivemind through Cardinal?

Edited April 12, 2021 by Astreya

[Astreya 0]

ID# 188176 results:
Craft: 10
Loot: 10

 

Her footsteps slowed to a stop then as she looked down at the compass.  "Wait a minute.  A Demonic Shard?" she asked aloud, frowning slightly as she glanced over her shoulder back at Giovanna once more.  Why in the heck would a woman who was all about gathering flowers or whatever it was that Giovanna did want to get something called a Demonic Shard?  That didn't really seem to correlate to anything that made any real sense.  "Okay hold on," she spoke aloud, opening up the quest tracker in her own window.

It didn't take too much longer before she scrolled through the information and then found the quest information.  "Let's see... talk to Giovanna... yeah yeah... take the Cursed Compass and find a Demonic Shard.  Why in the heck is it called that?  And why is she looking for it?" the young woman asked no one at all, given that she was alone in the field.

Edited April 12, 2021 by Astreya

[Astreya 0]

ID# 188177 results:
Craft: 8
Loot: 11

 

She had to calm down a bit and remember that this 'was' just a game.  This wasn't anything major or real and they weren't going to be summoning any actual demons into anything.  But she also understood that there was likely nothing wrong with the quest either and the item just happened to be called that.  Whoever was running things at Cardinal, the Game Master or whoever, just had a weird sense of humor to put a Demonic Shard on a flower gathering hippie lady.

Astreya shook her head, the girl's dark hair dancing about her shoulders and upper back before she exhaled slowly, beginning to refocus again.  She had a real tendency to let her thoughts and mind wander- which wasn't at all what she should be doing on the field, especially if there was a chance she might get attacked for it.  But thankfully, at least for the moment, there weren't any monsters around at all.

Edited April 12, 2021 by Astreya

[Astreya 0]

ID# 188178 results:
Craft: 12
Loot: 6

 

She was starting to get closer now.  The Compass started to emit a small, steady beep now and then as she drew closer to where she figured the Shard was.  It wasn't anywhere near her, of course, but it was still somewhere nearby.  And that meant that she'd be able to ask Giovanna about it... or if the woman even wanted it.  Now that she thought about it, she didn't actually remember hearing that Giovanna wanted it for herself- she just wanted to see if Astreya could actually find it.

The young woman mused on this for a long moment before she shrugged.  She didn't see there was a reward here beyond the experience itself... but she also hadn't exactly looked at the quest all that closely.  She was still focused on the Familiar- this was just a brief aside before she was actually able to get started on the quest she actually cared about.

Edited April 12, 2021 by Astreya

[Astreya 0]

ID# 188179 results:
Craft: 5
Loot: 7

 

The beeping was starting to get a little more incessant, now, and Astreya moved to follow along with the noises, her footsteps taking her closer and closer to where the Shard was.  She wondered if she could keep this thing.  She doubted it, but it might help her to find a demonic shard in the future... presuming that she actually needed one for anything.  There wasn't much reason for her to have one, but maybe they were useful in crafting, in some way?

She realized she hadn't actually sat down to figure out what she wanted to do with her Profession at this point... but she'd probably need to figure that out soon.  Plini and Freyd had both given her some good ideas to consider, but she hadn't had a chance yet to actually sit down and start planning things out.  Maybe she could do that while she was hunting the Gypsy woman later on?

Edited April 12, 2021 by Astreya

[Astreya 0]

ID# 188180 results:
Craft: 11
Loot: 17 (GOT IT)

 

The sound of the compass was devolving into harsh noise and Astreya frowned as the sound became more prevalent and more ear-splitting as she drew closer to the Shard.... and then when she was finally on top of it, she had to turn the compass off.  That was giving her a headache.  She leaned down to where the Shard was sitting and she gave a slight grin at the edges of her lips.  "That actually wasn't too bad!" she cheered, picking the item up before she looked it over.  It didn't seem all that dangerous.

In fact calling it a 'Demonic' anything just seemed silly and needlessly edgy.  She was going to be in for a rude awakening when she realized what the grade of item above 'Perfect' was.

She shook her head slowly as she slipped the item into her pouch and began to make her way back to the woman who'd given her the quest.

Edited April 12, 2021 by Astreya

[Astreya 0]

The young woman exhaled briefly before turning on her heel to head back toward Giovanna.  It didn't take very long for her to cross back the way she'd come.  Thankfully as this was still on the First Floor, there weren't really any monsters or beasties that wanted to try and take a chunk out of her.  Most of the creatures would get killed by her Thorns before she even had a chance to swing anyway.  That just meant that it would be that much more annoying if she did get attacked.  She could just keep moving and not even bother address them at all.

Making her way across the field, she could see where Giovanna waited, the blonde woman standing with a shallow smile upon her features, although as Astreya came closer, the woman visible brightened, and the dark-haired woman wondered if perhaps her original thought had been closer than she'd imagined when it came to NPCs.

[Astreya 0]

"Welcome back.  I trust you were able to find the Demonic Shard?" she asked, and Astreya gave a nod and a grin, showing it off a bit.  "Wonderful!  Then I am pleased to announce that you are now a professional Gatherer," the woman spoke, giving the young woman a wide smile and a spread of her arms.

"Wait.  What?" Astreya asked, her head steadily tilting to the side in her own confusion.  "Wait I thought you said you were going to teach me the secrets to gathering once I found you this shard thingy," the girl continued, before she held it back out to the woman to take.

"No, no.  Well, yes, in a manner of speaking, but no.  Being able to find a Demonic Shard that easily, even with the aid of the compass, just goes to show that you've got what it takes to be a professional gatherer even without my help."

[Astreya 0]

"So wait wait.  So you send me all over looking for that Demonic Shard thingy, and really you weren't going to train me at all?  I don't know if that's, like, something I can get behind, here.  I thought you were gonna show me some cool tricks and some neat ways to tell Zakariah that his quest is dumb and stupid," the girl pouted a bit, frowning in response to the woman's words that there wasn't actually any training to be had.

"Now, now, Zakariah is a man who knows quite well what he's doing.  He is the one who taught me, after all, so unfortunately our methods are quite similar.  Although I will have to ask you for my compass back.  That's not something that I can let out of my hands for too much longer.  If you would return it, please," the woman spoke, extending her hands out for it, and Astreya nodded, returning it.

[Astreya 0]

SHe had no need to keep it any longer than necessary, and while she was sure that it worked on this particular quest, there was no way of telling that it was actually going to work going forward- it was just easier to return it and get it out of her inventory, anyway.  She shook her head slowly at the situation, frowning a bit.  "So then if I'm a Gatherer now, does that mean I'll be able to find the Demonic Scales on my own?  Without that little radar thingy?"

Giovanna nodded.  "Yes.  Now that you've completed this quest to learn how to be a gatherer, you'll be able to find Materials much easier, and as well, you'll be able to locate the Demonic Shards.  They can be used for upgrading your equipment, so they are actually quite useful to be able to find," the woman responded, and at that, Astreya's eyes widened a little.  

[Astreya 0]

"Hold up, I'm confused.  These things can upgrade equipment?  I didn't even think Equipment could be upgraded.  Hey, you taught me how to find them so you should at least tell me how this all works," the girl spoke, not about to let anyone, even an NPC, off the hook when it came to getting more information about how this game worked.  If she was going to be playing at the end game levels, she'd need to be able to find that information out.

The NPC couldn't help but to be caught off-guard by the demand for information, but the surprise didn't stay long as she began to provide the information that was asked for.  "Certainly.  If you have a piece of gear at the Perfect level, you can upgrade it to a Demonic level by combining it with three Demonic Shards.  So that way it can have four separate bonuses on it instead of just three."

[Astreya 0]

Astreya blinked, her head steadily starting to tilt to the side before she put her hands out.  "Wait.  In Sword Art: Online, the highest level item is called Demonic?  What edgy fourteen year-old made this game?" she demanded.  Of course, Giovanna wasn't really programmed to be able to ask questions directly about the creation of the game and so she merely smiled demurely in response to Astreya's question, and the young woman realized that there wasn't going to be any sort of actual answer given to her.

"Okay, okay.  I know you don't have any idea on what I'm talking about.  Okay.  So then did you want the Demonic Shard too?  You said I'll need to be able to hunt my own in the future, right?" she asked, not sure if the woman was going to want this as well- if so that was kind of lame, but all the same, she figured she should ask.

[Astreya 0]

"Oh no, not at all.  You were able to locate that with the help of my compass so it is yours to keep.  So now you only need two more pieces to upgrade a piece of gear to demonic level," the woman added giving Astreya another smile.  

At this, Astreya nodded, although in the back of her mind the fact that it was called 'Demonic' still felt silly.  Why not like... 'Legendary' or 'Super Perfect' or something?  Well whatever, it wasn't like the name of it actually mattered, it was just  a little silly, that's all.  "Okay cool.  So I guess I might as well go start hunting them.  I wonder if there's anywhere that makes it easier to find them?" the woman asked aloud, mostly just talking to herself because she didn't realize that Giovanna was going to actually answer her.

"Well, there is something... I could give you the information, although it is quite dangerous."

[Astreya 0]

"Dangerous?  Dangerous how?" Astreya asked, turning back to the woman, a little more excited now at the prospect of having something to find more of these Demonic Shards.  Granted, she didn't have any Perfect-Level Equipment, but she could pretty easily now start hunting down Shards to have for when she was at the final parts of the game, right?  That would make her transition into actually being able to front line a lot easier than what she was going to do now.

The woman smiled sadly.  "There is a monstrous, ferocious beast that guards it, but there is a special dungeon to help gather materials, including the Demonic Shards, that you can locate.  So you'll be able to get a lot more materials there than you would otherwise.  But beware, if you go, the keeper of the dungeon is incredibly dangerous, and if you do choose to go, I would bring as many people with you as you can to help defeat it."

[Astreya 0]

Astreya gave a small breath at that.  That was a little scary to think about.  That there was a monster that strong just sort of lingering about.  But she supposed that it made sense- it wasn't like there was going to be something that open and free, especially for things like Materials.  She had hoped that it might be something easy, but she doubted that would be the case.

"Okay, well if you could let me know where it is, I'll get a group of friends together before we go in."  Really, she  just planned to look around a bit in there and see what she could find, and then at the first sign of danger, she would want to leave- there wasn't much more to it than that.  She'd just stay around until danger presented itself and skedaddle when the going got tough.  Discretion was absolutely the better part of valour here in Sword Art Online.

[Astreya 0]

At her agreement, Giovanna nodded, giving Astreya the location of the specialized dungeon, which then began to glimmer on her map.  She noted, with some interest, that it seemed to stay there no matter what floor she switched to for viewing.  (Not that she had many floors available, but it was always in the same spot on all the floors.)

"Okay, awesome.  Well, I guess I'll thank you for letting me do this little thing and I'll probably get a crew together to check that dungeon out at some point.  But for now I think I'm just going to go and relax for a spell.... and then get back to hunting the familiar lady.  You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you?" she asked.

Giovanna spread her hands.  "Unfortunately I do not.  I know of who you speak, but not where she may be found."

Astreya sighed.  Couldn't be that easy.  "Okay, well thank you anyway!" she cheered before turning and heading back the way she'd come.  She was one Demonic Scale richer, she supposed.