[SP-F1] Enhancing a Living (Story) [Complete]

[Zak 0]

Now that Zak had finally opened his shop, he knew that he'd certainly need a steady flow of supplies and materials to keep his store running without flaw. Obviously, he didn't have many customers so far, but that wasn't much of a problem. The fact of the matter was that, in time, he figured that supply would be overcome by demand. He had quite a good understanding of business and entrepreneurship so he knew that if he waited around, eventually he'd have to raise the price and it'd turn some of his customers away. Fortunately, with the surplus of supplies that he got from this trip, he'd certainly have enough materials to work on crafting more of his own gear and obtaining practice in his profession. It was a win-win-win situation, as it provided his business, his inventory, and his level benefits across the board.

[Zak 0]

Closing up his shop for the trip and making sure to lock the door, considering the thought that crime was probably pretty high at the moment so that player could easily obtain strong gear early on, he embarked on his journey back towards the open plains. The boars and wolves were pretty easy to defeat earlier so they should be cake by now since he had leveled up, but he knew to take things carefully along the way. While he would never tell another player, he had a secondary reason for going on this trip. He had heard rumors about a monster on level 4 that dropped an item called [Essence of Steel], an item that could enhance an item and even alter its enchantments. It was supposedly an incredibly valuable item, one that he knew that he would have to keep supplied in his shop.

[Zak 0]

Unfortunately, the monster had nearly 8 times the health that Zak had and there was simply no way that he could fight off a monster that strong so early on. It would also require training, which he would be getting during this trip with the bonus of a chance of looting materials from the mobs. Apparently, no other shops currently stocked the Essence so Zak figured that if he was first to get it, it would be an incredibly easy way to earn some new loyal members for his shop while leaving the other shops in the dust. Until then, he would have to keep forging, training, and working his way up to that point. Once he had reached the outskirts of the city, he picked up the pace and began trekking back to the beautiful, natural scenery from before.

[Zak 0]

Eventually, he would wind up there with plenty of monsters in sight. There were small groups of boars and wolves all over the place, which meant plenty of loot. He ran towards the closest pair of boars first, remembering the bad luck he had with the higher state of the wolves' moveset. Upon arriving, the boars seemed plenty distracted in eating whatever prey they had hunted down, which suited Zak perfectly. He unsheathed his sword, raised it above his head, and lunged downwards; anticipating an easy kill.

Party

» Zak [11/11] HP]

Enemies

» Boar [2/2 HP]

» Boar [2/2 HP]

[Zak 0]

Of course, it would have been an easy kill if the boars had actually been distracted enough to disregard the noise Zak had made. He failed to be as cautious as he was during the last trip, probably due to some over-confidence in his abilities. However, the boars chose to back away some to check out their opponent, rather than rushing in for an immediate attack. It was a relief as it meant he could rush in and attack them while they were still stunned by the surprise attack, especially the one on the right. He went in, going for a slash as he ran by so that he could keep distance between them.

Party

» Zak [10/11] HP]

Enemies

» Boar [2/2 HP]

» Boar [2/2 HP]

[Zak 0]

He had too much confidence still as the pig went in for a tackle just before Zak could reach him, causing him to tumble over the pig, though he was able to catch himself and turn around. Without wasting any time he leapt forwards to reach for the boar's tail and went directly for a stab deep into the monster, which seemed like a relatively good idea in theory. He would have to be quick though as the second boar had began rushing towards him during this time.

Party

» Zak [9/11] HP]

Enemies

» Boar [2/2 HP]

» Boar [2/2 HP]

[Zak 0]

The boar that Zak had a grasp of began wriggling rather violently and ultimately Zak missed his window of opportunity. The second boar had already closed the gap and tackled Zak from the side causing him to slide a few feet from the force, "Ugh, damn you beasts." He popped himself back up and decided to go for the other one, "They must have changed something... I'm not this bad, am I?" Frustrated, he went straight for a jab, something that had worked a few times for him before.

Party

» Zak [9/11] HP]

Enemies

» Boar [2/2 HP]

» Boar [1/2 HP]

[Zak 0]

The attack was a success and sent the oversized pig tumbling away, while the other one began his own attack. Playing right into Zak's usual trap, this mean that soon, this boar would have a sword going right through its skull. Running in a straight line towards Zak, he simply waited until it was the right time to strike and lunged his sword forwards, hopefully giving him the results he was looking for.

Party

» Zak [9/11] HP]

Enemies

» Boar [1/2 HP]

» Boar [1/2 HP]

[Zak 0]

"Ha, got the two of you now." The pig fell right into the simple-minded attack and retreated to where the other boar was recovering from his stumble, but soon, the third member of this fight would be making his way over... and fast. Zak rushed towards them, going for the one that he had just struck, using a horizontal, downwards slash to make sure he wouldn't miss. Well, in theory anyways, he hadn't had the greatest of luck so far.

Party

» Zak [8/11] HP]

Enemies

» Boar [1/2 HP]

» Boar [1/2 HP]

[Zak 0]

The sword struck, but Zak was devastated and shocked, "Wha- WHAT?" The sword had been deflected by the boar's sturdy tusks and completely knocked the player off balance, allowing the other boar to sweep him clean out from under his feet. He collapsed on the ground, but spun around, using his sword to create a gap between him and the one that had deflected his attack, "You..." He didn't know whether to be pissed or impressed by the unknown move of the boar, but it was something that he'd keep in mind for later.

Party

» Zak [8/11] HP]

Enemies

» Boar [0/2 HP] - [Material] x2 obtained!

» Boar [1/2 HP]

[Zak 0]

The horizontal slash to make a gap was more than a success as the boar failed to move out of the way, producing shards that brought some happiness and relief to one's heart. He had obtained two materials from the first one, nearly making up for the trouble they had made, but one still remained. Propelling himself up and forwards off the ground, Zak bolted to the remaining boar to finish this off and in style. He leapt over the boar, dragging his sword beneath himself so that it'd slice cleanly through the retched beast.

Party

» Zak [8/11] HP]

Enemies

» Boar [0/2 HP] - [Material] obtained!

Level Up!

Zak has achieved Level 5!

[Zak 0]

It worked and without flaw, giving Zak back that confidence boost that he needed. Granted, he didn't intend to ever give up, but his results definitely would alter his mood on the matter. "Two monsters down and I've already gotten three materials, this is shaping up to be pretty damn good, if I do say so myself." He looked forwards, spotting a trio of wolves nearby, but he flinched at the thought of going for more than two targets at once without higher quality gear. He would make his way around the small pack and began heading towards a lone boar off in the distance, an easier target.

[Zak 0]

Making sure that the trio of wolves was far enough away and that there were no other monsters in a close enough vicinity to become hostile from the attack, he marched on. Approaching the boar, he figured that this one could be finished easily and quickly, "This one should be easy..." Of course, he made absolutely sure to be a little stealthier on the approach as he homed in. Once he got within striking distance, he quickly stepped forwards and went to poke the pig in the side.

Party

» Zak [8/11] HP]

Enemies

» Boar [2/2 HP]

[Zak 0]

The boar sidestepped just out of range of the player's attack, bringing bad memories of his luck back into the picture, "Oh, I call bulls..." He muttered a few more words under his breath as he realized he should keep his anger under control while fighting, but he pushed the thoughts out of his mind. Instead, he focused solely on the target in front of it and his readied blade, which would soon slash right through that's boar's guts.

Party

» Zak [8/11] HP]

Enemies

» Boar [1/2 HP]

[Zak 0]

The blade tore through the boar and propelled it a few feet away, where it struggled to stand up with half its health missing. Zak grinned, "There we go... Now that's more like it." He could already taste the shards and the loot that would soon follow, though this time, he wouldn't have to lose any health in the attempt. He took a running start before he jumped in the air, ready to land on the pig, using his weight to force the sword all the way through.

Party

» Zak [8/11] HP]

Enemies

» Boar [1/2 HP]

[Zak 0]

If he didn't need his sword, he would have more than likely tossed it in a fit of rage, "OH, COME ONNNNNN!" The boar seemed to have been able to avoid the sword by moving out of it's short range, something that didn't really occur to Zak when fighting such a "supposedly" easy monster. He had more range and chance to strike with a slashing attack when compared to a stabbing attack that didn't use the opponent's momentum against them. This time though, he would take one last push towards the boar and go with a safe horizontal slash, "This had better work."

Party

» Zak [7/11] HP]

Enemies

» Boar [1/2 HP]

[Zak 0]

The boar simply stepped backwards, avoiding the slash by a mere few inches, but this time, it wasn't just going to sit back and wait to be killed. It found the perfect opportunity to attack in the moment that Zak's momentum was being thrown off by the missed swing, then took it by tackling him. He crashed backwards and the boar grunted in pride, thinking highly of itself for such a well deemed counter, "Just give up already, make it easier on the both of us..." He hoisted himself off the ground and dashed forwards to finally finish this ugly hunk of meat off.

Party

» Zak [7/11] HP]

Enemies

» Boar [1/2 HP]

[Zak 0]

"This boar must be a bugged or something," he muttered to himself as the quick attack was rendered useless. The boar ran off in a hurry as if it suddenly decided that escaping was even a better option than fighting back or giving up, "Get over here, you beanpole!" He picked up the pace and continued to chase it down until he was within striking distance, where he pulled back his sword and swung as hard as he could. Unless this clumsy beast changed directions at the last minute, there was no way it would last another second.

Party

» Zak [6/11] HP]

Enemies

» Boar [1/2 HP]

[Zak 0]

Who would have thought? The boar did exactly the only thing that it could to stay alive and pester Zak any longer, it decided to change directions. That was frustrating, sure, but it didn't end there. The oversized pig was capable of making a tight loop, getting behind Zak, and launching him up and over the boar from behind. Zak landed ended up landing on his back with a thud, before kicking himself up, "Damn you.... JUST DIE ALREADY!" He grabbed the boar's tail after chasing it this time and stabbed it in the rear, which he hoped would be the most painful thing this monster would ever feel before its death.

Party

» Zak [6/11] HP]

Enemies

» Boar [0/2 HP] - [Material] obtained!

[Zak 0]

Zak grinned wider than ever as he heard the boar's shriek of pain just before it shattered into shards, raising that to one of the top moments in SAO on his list. He raised his sword and threw it in the ground, letting it create a backboard that he could lean against while he munched on some bread and quenched his thirst. Looking around, this sight was truly extraordinary; if it wasn't for all the monsters walking around, one might actually mistake this for the real world. The way the trees moved in the wind, the clouds loomed in the air, and the sun looking down upon the grass. It was a shame nobody was really going to have the opportunity to enjoy it to the fullest extent, considering their lives were always at risk here, but moments like these would easily be memorable, "... and not just because I killed that sucker a few moments ago either..."