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[FO1-PP] Can't Avoid Adventure <<The First Lesson>>


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It's funny how quickly time passes by when you settle into routine. If anyone asked her how long it had been since she'd been unceremoniously trapped into a video game, she wouldn't have an answer. Years, maybe? Or only months? Hard to say. She'd decided early on not to worry about those things and just… busy herself, working hard within the limits of this oddly realistic city, avoiding the floating symbols and boxes that sometimes obscured her vision. She liked the busy work.

So when Dorian stops her, handing off some busy work, she's not too bothered. She just smiles at him, nodding. "Got it, boss. Find the money, get the money, and don't let nobody know 'bout the money."

Her smile twitches, diving for a frown, when the box appears. 'Quest <<The First Lesson> accepted. Quest line <<The First Few Lessons>> started.' Alright then, whatever that means.

Dorian nods and direct her along to Zackariah, the alchemist.

So off she goes, trekking through the town until she finds his shop, and ducks in. "Hi!" she calls as she enters, eyes darting around to the various colorful liquids, the snow-bearded man and his bubbling liquids, and… another person, in the corner of the store. She falters in her steps, eyes landing on him for a moment too long, then shakes her head and turns back to Zackariah as he starts talking at her.

She can scarcely get a word to explain herself when he's already asking her to help again. She swallows. "Outside the city walls?" She can't help the slight tremble of her voice. She'd done her best to stay well within the city, having overheard people talking about the monsters outside the so called 'safe zone'. This is a little outside her comfort zone. But… better a young spritely woman do the gathering than an old man like him, right? "… Alright."

She turns and walks right out the door, walking mechanically to an alley out of the way of the street and the store windows, where she promptly sinks into a squat with her head in her hands. She groans. "I'll need… protection, right? Stuff. But where do I even begin…"

 

Quest Details for <<The First Lesson>>

Spoiler

SuzuNa | Lv.1 | HP: 20/20 | EN: 20/20 | DMG: 3

Equipped:
- [Vanity] Basic Claws

Battle-Ready Inventory:
- Starter Healing Potions (3)

Skills:
- [R1] 2H Claws

@ChaseR

Edited by SuzuNa
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It was around now that Chase's gears had finally gotten going again, waking up determined to go do something. But... god knew what. He was clueless, and still somewhat stumped he hadn't gone doing things for a fair while- was it a week, a month, however long? The system update had genuinely crushed him, just when he learned everything it turned itself upside down.

Chase DBP Default Uncertain.pngAnd so, he made his way back to the first floor to feed his nostalgia a tiny bit. He stood outside of the inn he was spending his days away at while level 1, before heading over to Zackariah's. The NPC would probably not remember him, as their routine was to forget players once their scripted dialogue was over, but the update should have fixed that. The 26th floor was so lively, NPCs walking about and getting to their routines, their stares a lot more concentrated and fixed on everything around them than before. So things might have changed. By the time he thought to approach the old man though, a troubled lass had made her way up to him, accepting his request to go gather materials out in the fields. "... She looks older, like Mari.", he huffed upon seeing her, before hearing how troubled she seemed.

Before killing a field boss or two, maybe it was time to get back to that one good deed a day, week, whatever. His legs wouldn't budge while they were both near the shop, so he quietly followed her until she was a bit further, coughing dryly to (very awkwardly) get her attention. "... You're new?", the words came out more charming than the other. If this wasn't a trip down memory lane for his first encounter with Shay and how choppy he used to speak back then, what was this? "I'm a high level. I can help."

Spoiler

ChaseR,
Level: 31
Paragon Level: 56
HP: 840/840
EN: 102/102

Stats:
Damage: 21
Mitigation: 69
Evasion: 3
Accuracy: 3
Battle Healing: 46
Loot Dice: 6
HLY BLS: 18
HLY: 16
PARA
V.D.: 46

Equipped Gear:
Weapon: <<Fragmented Blade>> (T4/2HSS/Perfect): HOLY II, PARA I
Armor: <<Azure Getup>> (T4/CA/Perfect): VDEF I, HBS I, MIT I
Misc: <<Chained Bracelet>> (T2/Trinket/Demonic): ACC II, EVA II

Skills:
2HSS R5
Cloth Armor R5
Battle Healing R5
Searching R4
Charge
Extended Weight Limit
Fighting Spirit

Active Mods:
Precision
Stamina
Athletics
Nimble
Large Pockets

Inactive Mods:

Active Extra Skills:
Disguise
Forgotten King’s Authority
Meditation
Survival

Inactive Extra Skills:

Battle Ready Inventory:
Gugnir's Shard (T3/Instant/HP REC III): 15
Imugi's Inspiration (Mass HP Recovery): 1
Insta-Life ++ (T2/Perfect/HP REC III): 1
Woodland Armor (T3/Perfect) MIT III (1/3): 1

Housing Buffs:
Rested: -1 energy cost for the first two expenditures of each combat
Clean: The first time you would suffer DoT damage in a thread, reduce damage taken from DoT each turn by 20% (rounded down)
Filling: Increase the effectiveness of a single food item consumed in a thread by +1 T1 slot.
Relaxed: Increases out of combat HP regen by (5 * Tier HP) and decreases full energy regen to 2 Out of Combat Posts.
Skylight (Searching): +1 Rank to the Searching skill.
Advanced Training: +10% Exp to a thread. Limit one use per month [1/1]
Multipurpose: Gain +1 to LD, Stealth Rating, Stealth Detection, or Prosperity to one post in a thread. Can be applied after a roll
Decor [Potted Tanabata Bamboo Tree]: This buff affects the player and their choice of up to two party members.

Guild Hall Buffs:

Scents of the Wild:
Tanos Statue: +25 Mitigation for a thread.

Wedding Ring:

 

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Her head jerks up, eyes flitting to the new arrival. A man. The one lingering around in the store, even. "New?" Her ears burn red as he offers help, calling her 'new', even. Apparently even strangers could immediately recognise that she couldn't handle this on her own.

She chews her bottom lip, shoving down the irritation itching in the back of her mind. She's not a damsel in distress needing no help. She takes a deep breath through her nose. "Ain't no need to do that,"—she straightens to her full height and avoids his gaze—"but I ain't stoppin' ya if ya decide to follow."

She clears her throat and leads the way towards one of the far walls of the city boundary, pausing at the end of the alley and looking expectantly at him. Only after she's confirmed he's following does she continue.

For all her grief about being helped, it is comforting to know there's someone stronger around to accompany her to the wilds beyond. But… "Y'said… high level, right?" She peers closely at him, brows furrowing. "Now, uh, what exactly does that mean again?"

@ChaseR

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The "I don't need your help attitude" was somewhat to be expected. He'd have given her the same flak if she was the one trying to help and he didn't know just what sort of position he was in. With a sigh, he scratched the back of his head and followed right behind her, until they were standing near the exit and he got one of those stares.

Chase DBP Surprised.pngWas she for real? Cold beads of sweat began to form on his forehead as he exhaled heavily and looked up at the sky, opening up his menu and showing it to her, pointing at his level. It read 'Level: 31' and right next to it, 'Paragon Level: 56'. His shocked expression quickly switched for a smile and he brightened up like he never had before during his stay in Aincrad. "This is how strong you are. You're level 1. B-But you haven't... played a game before, right?". Hope could be heard in his voice as he even chuckled to himself out of excitement, seeming a bit offputting if not overly endearing. "I-It's been fucking months, god. This is my first game too.", he shared with her before letting out another laugh, feeling his heart racing as he placed a hand on the hilt of his blade, hanging by the belt on his hip. A blade made out of stone, that seemed all good to go and bash some faces- except for the upper half of it that was completely broken off. "This is completely weird, right?", Chase's inquiry seemed to be less related to his sword and more so to the environment they both found themselves in.

A gust of wind blew from the fields they were right about to enter, hitting the back of the boy's neck and sending shivers down his spine. Today wasn't 'maybe a good start'. This might have been what he was asking for from the getgo. Someone else he could share his alienating experiences and feelings with. Not yet, of course, but... This was the closest he'd gotten to another non-gamer before. Just when he'd made up his mind about being the only one stuck in here, finally someone he could relate to had emerged out of nowhere.

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She's not a fan of his reaction—the initial shock (of what, her being so clueless? So dumb?) sends her reeling into her shell, head retreating into her raised shoulders. And that odd box, similar to the other ones she's seen and adamantly ignored… well, now she can't ignore it. She squints at the letters. Right there. Level. And even 'Paragon Level' beside it. Now she's even more confused. She doesn't like being confused.

Her suspicious glare flits to his face as he beams, lips pursed into a frown. She waits for the laughter and the chiding, the childish mockings about her being a robot or something.

But the laughter she does hear is not what she expects. Rather than malice, it's… relief? Maybe? Her face shifts from narrowed irritation to flustered confusion, frown falling into a slight gape. "You too? But you're…"—she searches for the words, tentative—"'... 'high level'." Is this some roundabout way of trying to garner favor with her? Pretending to be in the same boat? She can't sense any of that from him, but she can't imagine anyone else being stuck in the same ridiculous situation.

She can't help the huff of a laugh that escapes her at his final words. "Weird don't even begin to cover it."

Edited by SuzuNa
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Chase absolutely empathized with her, he would have reacted the exact same. If he could spurt wings out of happiness, god he'd be flying by now. "Yeah, I uh... I was also sleeping in an inn until a while ago. And then I started doing things but someone had to guide me through this mess.", he tried to explain his situation, looking out into the fields and giving her a smile before opening up his menu, and assaulting her with a white message box in her face. A party invite, to be precise.

Chase DBP Happy.pngNow out into the grass and no longer the confines of the safezone, he quietly looked around and gave her a grin. "Come on. Your quest was to pick materials, so just... crouch and pick materials. They shine so you shouldn't have trouble seeing them. I'd help but it won't count for your quest... I think. I've tried.". And what was left of the quiet blue boy had now turned into a chatterbox, happy to have finally found someone to share the absolute anguish of Aincrad with. Learning all this as a non-gamer caused him to suffer having to ask embarrassing questions left and right, but she wouldn't have to worry about the same. "Levelling was easier before too though. You had skill points and every few you got levels, but now you get skill points depending on your levels and there's a stupid thing with experience instead..? E-Either way, you still get levels if you do quests, so... I can help out. You'll need someone that doesn't know how to play games either so you can understand it from a similar viewpoint. Right?". Talk about a sudden change of plans and attitude.

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She's not sure what to do when another box covers her vision. 'Invited to ChaseR's party. Accept / Decline.' It takes her a moment to notice the countdown. Ticking away. 5... 4... Leaving no time for questions or decisions. 3... 2... Panic sends her hand sailing through the accept button, and more stuff pops up in the corner of her vision. Great. Lovely.

She follows helplessly after ChaseR—she assumes that's his name, at least—as he leads her through the open field, more worried about other invasive boxes than she is of wild monsters attacking her… for now.

At least he has a good head on his shoulders, reminding her about the 'quest'. She shakes herself out of her worries. "Right. Gotta focus." She takes a deep breath and looks around, just as instructed. Sure enough, among the tall grass stalks, a weed-like plant sparkles. "Hey! Found one! Just like ya said!" She sneaks closer to it as if approaching a frightened stray, then carefully tugs it free from the earth. And just like that, she'd done it! Not bad!

She stands back up. She'd only been half-listening as he chattered away, most of her focus on not tearing the plant. But she sort of gets the gist of it. Maybe. "So what you sayin' is, the more I experience, the more 'levels' I get? An' the more levels, the stronger I am?" That… sort of made sense? If she squinted hard enough. It made more sense than it did before, at least. Maybe it would be good to have someone clarify things.

She frowns as she looks at him. "I… don't like bein' a bother to people, or owin' favors, or nothin'. So… You'd best be figurin' out how I can pay ya back."

She clears her throat and rolls back her shoulders. She'd rather focus her attentions on the job at hand. "So, uh, did ya hear if the old man said anythin' about how many of these I need?" She only remembers the very helpful amount of 'some'. "Maybe I shoulda brought a basket…"

Spoiler

ID: 196410 | LD: 20 | Gather material (LD 11+)
Success! (1/5 Materials)

Edited by SuzuNa
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Going on that tiny rant might have confused the lass a bit. So, he tried to tackle it the same way he would have normally. Simplify it to non-gamer terms. "Doing stuff gives you experience. Fights give you more and quests the most. Every some points of experience you get levels. And levels give you points you can use to get new skills that give you uh... s-skills. You can wield your weapons better or unlock new attacks. Or you can look for materials faster and easier. Hide from enemies, heal others, use a shield, armors..."

Chase DBP Awkward Silent.pngYet another bombshell of things she would most definitely not understand if he couldn't back then. Hopefully, he was wrong. "Uh... I think Zackariah needs five materials. So you should need four more.", he reassured her, looking up the hills nearby and seeing a few boars look around. Monsters didn't attack unless it was a special condition or you entered their den, dungeon, wherever they resided, so they would just passive-aggressively walk by. It was a good chance to give "Suziena... Suzu..."... Suzuki, a glimpse of what combat will look like. One push to not go back to staying in an inn like past Chase would, had he not grown tired of cowering alone and wishing for this to end.

"There's some boars up there. Wanna watch?", he asked her with a small smile as he unsheathed his broken sword, holding it in one hand. Maybe if it were fully together, he'd have to use both, but it was light enough for the time being. "They won't be attacking you. I'm uh... It's called a tank. I take damage for others and make monsters attack me. There's a few skills that help with that. So I can always use 'Howl' to take their attention if they decide to attack you, but it's the first floor. They're weak."

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She nodded, the puzzle pieces of information clicking together in her mind. She'd spent all this time slaving away in the town, certain she was too weak to do anything in this game-like world, unable to comprehend it. But… if she worked hard enough, she could catch up. She could live, possibly thrive, instead of just rotting away. Her lips settled on a firm smile as she rolled her shoulders back, looking up at the sky for a brief moment. She'd spent so long, feeling alien in this world, but it didn't have to be that way. She wouldn't let it be.

At his reassurance, she started looking around again. Another plant, similar to the one pinched between her fingers, sparkled not too far from them. She trotted over to it, a slight spring in her steps. She carefully grabbed the plant as close to its roots and—

She jerked, tearing the plant in half as ChaseR called. "Wha? Oh. Hm." She gave the torn plant a disappointed glance, rolling it between her fingers. A greenish sap oozed out from within, crawling to her fingers. With a grimace, she tossed the useless piece to the ground, then turned back to ChaseR. "That sounds good. Always learned best from demonstration." She made her way to him, looking up at the same hill as him and squinting. She could sort of make out a couple silhouettes in the distance, but what they were exactly remained unclear. "Just… don't tear up the materials around too badly." She was already doing a good enough job of that herself, apparently.

Spoiler

ID: 196725 | LD: 2 | Gather material (LD 11+)
Failed (1/5 Materials)

Edited by SuzuNa
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Chase quietly looked at her and scratched the back of his head, trying to figure out what she meant by tearing up the materials. On the ground? His attacks didn't have any form of reach that would hurt the environment around him so they should be safe. His blade isn't that long either, even when holy kicks in, so that should be good too.

Chase DBP Default Uncertain.pngThe bluehead began to take a few steps towards the boars, the rustling grass being enough for them to turn their heads and look at him, grunt and start preparing to charge right at him. As he continued, it seemed he'd accepted their challenge. They started running, and so did he. With a slash to one of them, it was downed and broke into multiple shards, getting almost hit by the other and giving it a smack with the flat of his sword. When the third one was coming right at him, he lifted his sword to slash vertically down at it, but little white wisps had already begun to form from the guard of the sword, floating up to the broken part of the blade. "Ah fuck.", he said and quickly raised his other hand up to hold the hilt of his blade, before a blinding white light covered the area, probably doing a job as well as a flashbang would at blinding Suzuna.

While she could still see though, it would appear as if the wisps were oozing out light, filling in whatever part of the sword was broken with a luminescent, transparent material. Once the flashbang was over, the boar and light (literally) part of the sword were both gone, and he was holding the miserable stone blade with one hand once more. "It does that, sorry. The light didn't blind you too much, right?"

Spoiler

image.png

ChaseR uses Galaxy Destroyer on Boars #1, #2 & #3! (BD: 9, 4+3=7, 7+3=10)
(21 + 1 + 16) * 17 = 38 * 17 = 646 + PARALYZE
21 * 17 = 357
21 * 17 = 357

ChaseR: HP: 840/840 | EN: 85/102 (-17) | DMG: 21 | MIT: 69 | ACC: 3 | EVA: 3 | HOLY: 16 | PARA: 9-10 | BH: 42 | V.(DEF): 42 | HBS: 16 | LD: 6

[3] Boar #1: HP: 0/30 (-646) | DMG: 9
[2] Boar #2: HP: 0/30 (-357) | DMG: 9
[2] Boar #3: HP: 0/30 (-357) | DMG: 9

 

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placeholder notes:

- flinch and frown at the lightbang tyvm for that warning my dude
- disoriented and struggles to spot any of the materials while looking around bc she can't tell the difference between light particles and the ui sparkles
- ask about his broken sword thing

Spoiler

ID: 197006| LD: 9 | Gather material (LD 11+)
Failed (1/5 Materials)

Edited by SuzuNa
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