[F01 | SP] The Wild Calls | <<Scents of the Wild: Keepers of Nature>>

[Sakura 0]

Scents of the Wild: Keepers of Nature

News had quickly reached Aoi’s ears once it had become common knowledge. News of the newfound area within the first floor’s vast wildlands, a place that sat upon the edges of the floor’s existence and led into a cavern that was once the most sought after farming location. Now, as the rumours suggested, it had become an abandoned and empty cave, filled with naught but a single large, closed door carved into the very stone that had been nothing but wall previously. Only a large tree, supposedly inscribed with illegible script, sat alongside this newfound door – a mystery that had driven numerous players to dare its depths and attempt to solve the complex problem that all asked; what was this new area?

Aoi had been plagued by curiosity as soon as she’d been informed about the area’s existence. Knowing that it held some sort of secret, and yet also aware that there was danger to be found in the unknown of this world. She’d yet to hear about any deaths associated with the location, but that hadn’t stopped her more logical side from rushing to the path that led into depth and darkness, knowing that the signs were all there if she simply stopped and looked. She didn’t necessarily distrust the information provided by broker and trusted acquaintance, and yet she knew better than to simply accept everything that was spoken or provided as fact. Which was why, until that morning, she had vowed not to attend the area until further news had been received and spread among the general public.

’You’re sure about this?’ Aoi whispered to the man sitting across from her. She’d known him as Cervais, a player who had turned away from the dangers of field work among the frontlines, in order to focus on obtainment and provision of information throughout the various ranks of players that still struggled. Some called the man good natured, trustworthy and kind – Aoi had always called him resourceful and intelligent. She’d learnt early on in her relationship with the man, if it could be called that, that Cervais was careful with the information that he provided to different players. Some would obtain snippets of actual information, just enough to appease their curiosity, some would obtain details that would turn them away from certain objectives and onto other ones, and still further others would be given information that would prove overly useful. She’d asked him about it once, but only received a shrug and a comment about aligning players with their best path, before having the conversation directed away from it.

’As sure as I can be, yes. The intel is selective, and what little I’ve managed to dig up seems to suggest there’s more to it than simple decoding.’ He passed the note he’d handwritten across to her, reconfirming the details. His information this time had suggested a continuance quest, aligned with the cavern that contained tree and stone door, suggesting that it would actually provide a collection of powerful boosts later on. It had also suggested that much of it was still locked behind higher floors, which the frontlines hadn’t quite yet obtained access to at this point. ’Whatever is in that chamber, there’s more to it than just solving riddles and opening a door.’

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Sakura | Lv. 8 | P. 0 | HP [160/160] | EN [34/34] | ACC [3] | DMG [6] | EVA [0] | MIT [12] | LD [5] | SD [2]   Hide contents Notes [Theme] Tier 1 | Tier 1 Equipment Hand Crossbow [Hand Crossbow | Tier 1] Enhancement: Accuracy [1 Slot] Combat Uniform [Clothing | Tier 1] Enhancement: Loot Die [3 Slots] Raven Pendant [Trinket | Tier 1] Enhancement: Accuracy [3 Slots] Battle-Ready Inventory Starter Healing Potion {5} [Potion | Tierless | Heals 50 HP] Big Bertha Braciole {4} [Snack | Tier 1 | Vitality II] [ID-NIL] Zackariah's Special Draught {1} [Potion | Tierless | HP Recovery III] [ID-NIL] Teleport Crystal [Crystal | Tierless | Post Action to Teleport to nearest Town.] Spyglass {3} [Reduce Posts to Locate Dungeon/Familiar/Field Boss by 5.] Skills   Hide contents Utility Skills Searching [Rank: 2. Active: Passive. Effect: +1 LD per rank, +1 Stealth Detection per rank.] Night Vision [Rank 2 Searching Mod. Active: Passive. Effect: Ignores any penalties from low light or darkness. Negates the bonus Stealth Rating from low light or darkness.] Combat Skills Skill [Active: -. Effect: -.] Weapon Skills Projectile Weaponry [Rank: 3. Active: Passive. Effect: +5 DMG] Armour Skills Cloth Armour [Active: Passive. Effect: 12 Mitigation.] Extra Skills Skill [Active: -. Effect: -.] Combat Mastery Skill [Active: -. Effect: -.] Familiar Skills Skill [Active: -. Effect: -.] Sword Arts   Hide contents [x8] ST-I (8 EN) | A single-target sword art. [x11] ST-II (11 EN) | A powerful single-target sword art. Only available for use when ST-I was used and successfully struck an enemy the previous turn or if ST-II had been used and had missed the previous turn. [x7] AOE-I (7 + [2 * targets] EN) | AOE | A sword art that strikes multiple targets at once. [x8] TECH-A (9 EN) | STUN | A single-target sword art that stuns an enemy. Housing Buffs   Hide contents   [Home] Room [Effect.]

 

[Sakura 0]

The impromptu meeting had ended with Cervais leaving as quickly as he had appeared, sliding from his seat and heading back out into the city’s populace without a commotion. Aoi remained seated for a while, considering the information that Cervais had deemed worth his time to share – for a small price, of course – and the impact it could have on her own journey going forward. Many of the suggested bonuses were no more than speculation, based upon what rumours had been aligned with the questline itself – little of it had been proven thus far, due to further limitations. But enough of it was catching Aoi’s attention that she realised she would likely have to make her own way out to see the chamber for herself, and judge its worthwhileness to her continued development.

Once she’d left the small eatery, Aoi had turned towards the corridor leading towards the city’s entrance, hoping that she could find a way out of the city without too much trouble. The busy streets slowed her, allowing her time to think more and consider her actions. She’d grown since her original exploration days, which meant that she was inherently safer than she had been in previous times – but it didn’t mean she was beyond danger. For a few brief moments Aoi considered changing her course, heading back to the inn that she had been staying at for far too many days as of late. She’d discarded the consideration only through her desire to better herself, and to break free. I can’t survive if I don’t move forward. So here’s to moving forward.

She doubted that it would be overtly dangerous – the area itself was one even she had dared visit a few times in the past, relying upon the hunting grounds that surrounded it. Nothing there had ever given her the concept of being impossible to face. Things change. Just don’t rush into this without thought or consideration. Take it calmly, carefully. She promised herself that she would do just that, fully intending to return home that evening with everything intact and no regrets. Or, as few regrets as one could have in this world of digital creation and fantastical death. Off we go, then…hopefully this is worth my time and not just another pipedream someone came up with hoping it would lead them somewhere – or worse, provide them with the opportunity to fuck someone else over.

[Sakura 0]

Passing through the gate, she’d crossed dozens of kilometres of field and pathway to end up at the destination described by Cervais. Regular, unappealing hillsides surrounded her, a singular small entryway leading into a tunnel that gave Aoi pause. There was nothing to signify it from anywhere else in the vicinity, and yet the marker placed by some unknown system had appeared into view almost exactly as Cervais had described it would. Still, Aoi hesitated, trying to convince herself that there was nothing beyond the entryway, and that this had all been a waste of time. I came all this way. I might as well.

Decision made, she’d stepped into the tunnels, following along in darkened areas that were not quite unwelcoming. The crossbow on her wrist had been loaded and prepared, and her eyes darted all around as she’d made her way further and further into the area hoping she would eventually hit a dead end without any further path to travel. As if in answer, she found at least a part of her desires; the tunnel came to an end at a wall, leaving her nowhere obvious to go as she came to a full stop. She could see markings along the outer ring of the wall, a small etching that might be plausible as a hidden doorway – but no sign of any tree or chamber. At least, until she turned to head back the way she’d come.

The pathway, hidden behind a rock cropping that had been all but invisible from the path she’d taken to get to this point, led into a large open cavernous area, a hole in the ceiling allowing light and small bouts of rainwater to reach the underground area. Aoi had wandered in with caution in her step, the crossbow ready to fire at anything that leapt to greet her – eyes darting at every shadow in an attempt to find the trap she was certain was waiting for her to relax even just slightly. Feet carrying her to the tree, she’d come to a stop at a podium containing a tablet. Even without picking it up, she could see the matching markings upon the one side of the tablet, as if taunting her to doubt its connection to the rock wall she had stopped at mere moments ago. Which means on the other side…

Flipping it over was the coded message, written in an unfamiliar language that the system failed to provide any translation for as she stared at it. Not that Aoi had expected it to do any such thing for her, based on the information she’d received from Cervais. The stone tablet contained the puzzle that she would need to decipher, and as she glanced towards the tree beside the podium, Aoi confirmed the ciphered messages upon its bark. Alright, let’s get to work then, I guess…no avoiding this anymore.

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Post Action: Deciphering Tablet
ID245117 | LD [7+5 = 12] | Decipher [12/60]

Edited 2 hours ago by Sakura

[Sakura 0]

Moments passed before Aoi made any real headway, the cipher and tablet providing nothing more than confusion as she tried to figure it out without any real instructions or guidance. Frustration had built at the very beginning, and she’d found herself forcing it back down as she tried to do anything but become lost among it all. Slowly, she’d compared the two objects, passing back and forth between them until she found herself grasping at the most basic of concepts and understandings within the activity. She’d never truly been great at encoded messages and deciphering them – she knew a lot of people loved these types of puzzles, but Aoi had long since determined her own ineptitude with such activities. Still, she had no choice but to face the challenge head on now, and she was determined not to lose to such a simple thing – even if it was created by an artificial system that made her look idiotic.

’If this goes here, though…then it’s logical to assume…yeah like these two here. What were the basic rules for languages again…?’ Her voice echoed around the chamber as she spoke, eerie against the quiet, and yet somehow not breaking Aoi’s concentration as she worked through the puzzle itself. She’d lost herself into the activity, trying to retain all focus upon it while grasping at concepts well beyond her comprehension. What little success she’d made, came with what she knew would’ve been a massive headache back in the real world. ’This is going to take some time…but I can do this. I know I can. It’s solvable, others have proven that…I just need to stop and think…’

Slowly, far slower than she would’ve liked, Aoi found her footing with the puzzle. There was no doubt in her mind that she was going to be spending hours at the activity – it was one of the more challenging things she’d come across in Aincrad thus far, and that was saying many things about it – but she also knew that at this point she wasn’t going to be ready to leave the chamber until she’d completed the deciphering. Picking up the tablet, she’d moved to a nearby area to sit, having jotted down the few pieces of information available on the tree directly into a notepad she’d brought up in her menu. Her eyes passed back and forth between the two key areas, writing her thoughts onto another notepad she’d opened and was collectively using to mark her findings.

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Post Action: Deciphering Tablet
ID245118 | LD [16+5 = 21] | Decipher [33/60]

Edited 2 hours ago by Sakura

[Sakura 0]

Pieces of the message had begun to traverse themselves into an understandable form within her writings. She’d begun to see portions of what was clearly meant to be a message – another riddle, from the way it was developing to her eyes – within her own language. As if she were working to decipher the actual riddle that would lead her upon a quest, or if the information was correct a collection of quests, towards whatever end goal existed beyond this chamber. Aoi didn’t think that far ahead, not yet, as she continued grasping towards the meanings within the ciphered words.

This one is…power, which means these symbols are likely ‘or’, and ‘o’…this here is consistently commonly an ‘m’, so that makes this ‘unmoved’…I think? Though portions were becoming clearer with every revelation, the message itself was far from logical. She could see words in blotched areas, but none of it made sense as she read of it quickly. If…power, wisdom…restitution? No, something else…find yes those…wait no that’s only ye, find ye…’ She continued editing her notes as she worked, rewriting sections that became obviously out of place or entirely wrong as she went. She had no doubt that her progress was coming along, and yet she felt the impatient desire to be finished rising quickly within her. She knew rushing would get her nowhere though, and completing the cipher was required to move on – which meant she was stuck here until such time as she had some major breakthrough and managed to complete the pieces of the puzzle that still eluded her.

At least it’s safe. She smiled at the thought, knowing that as boring as it may be to deal with, and as mind numbing as the constant review, redesign, repeat, might have become, she was still safe within the confines of the chamber. She’d stopped looking around at some point in search of the danger waiting in the shadows. If anything was to attack her, based upon where she’d seated herself, she figured she would have more than enough time to react – that, or it didn’t matter and her concerns would disappear extremely quickly.

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Post Action: Deciphering Tablet
ID245119 | LD [16+5 = 21] | Decipher [54/60]

Edited 2 hours ago by Sakura

[Sakura 0]

Determination and brutal force had given her the advantage she’d needed. Where her advancement had been slow to start – a true struggle to understand the concepts of the puzzle, and what needed to be done to translate it into something understandable – her continued workflow had taken a massive turn as she saw patterns once invisible to her eye appear before her. It was as if something opened in her mind, and suddenly she was able to not only notice, but also relate the patterns to one another and find the connections between ciphering and translation, providing herself with an understanding of the riddle as it came into existence. She wasn’t entirely finished, but as she leaned back for a single moments break, Aoi found herself smiling at her progress and success that she’d made already – the majority of the message had been translated, and while it made little sense as it was, she had a feeling that she was on the right track.

Hopefully when I get it translated it actually means something, and isn’t some aloof and odd reference to some material that I’ve never seen or heard of before. She’d seen that in other games before, where materials and ideas from other pieces of literature and media had been integrated as if to bring about some larger world picture – or perhaps in honour of those other pieces, she was never sure of their purpose in actuality. Whatever the specific reason, it had left her stumped numerous times before, and she’d found herself relying upon other people’s knowledge of such topics in order to pull her through the more difficult areas. Except I’m on my own here. There’s no relying on anyone else, unless I send them a message and then have to explain myself, and that may cut whatever edge I’ve found here thanks to Cervais. I would hate to pull someone into this who isn’t ready for it…though there doesn’t seem to be any danger here. Yet.

The thought brought her pause as she picked up the tablet to finish off her work, suddenly realising that she had no idea what came after she finished the cipher. It was plausible, and highly possible even, that she could unlock some hidden mechanism through its translation and open a portal that would allow creatures beyond her imagination to appear before her – violent, rested, and ready to tear her to pieces given the chance. A shift in her weight brought her crossbow to bear, and Aoi double checked that it was loaded and ready for use before she turned back to the puzzle, her eyes suddenly less focused on it, and more aware of her surrounding areas.

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Post Action: Deciphering Tablet
ID245120 | LD [5+5 = 10] | Decipher [64/60]

Edited 2 hours ago by Sakura

[Sakura 0]

The finished product sat before her, the words emblazoned into the tablet as soon as she’d figured out the meaning behind the ciphering. Her eyes passed over it numerous times, taking in the translation as she tried to comprehend what she was reading. Some portions of it were logical, and Aoi was quick to pick up on the fact that she would be facing numerous dangers going forward – a fact that suddenly made Cervais’s illusive hint about the longevity and continuation of the quest more reasonable to her mind almost instantly – but she found herself entirely lost with some of the references.

Stygian river…? I could’ve sworn I’d heard of that before, but where…? Was it a location in Aincrad? Or is it something from the real world? Her brow furrowed as she tucked away the tablet, accepting the various notifications that arrived confirming her success with the quest itself, and the continued effort she would have going forward. A part of her wanted to stop and review each of the newly unlocked quests – there had been a collection that flashed passed her as she closed them away with confirmation of their existence. Another part of her realised that she was pressing her luck as she remained within the chamber, not knowing if some unknown danger would suddenly appear before her with ill intent.

I can review all of that once I get back to safety. For now, let’s get out of here. Her decision made, Aoi gave one last glance over the chamber before making her way back into the tunnels, and eventually back into the sunlight beyond. She’d gathered as much as she knew she would be entitled to within this part of the line, and although there was still so much more ahead, she felt a small measure of peace and excitement at the general success she’d had. I even managed to decipher the code by myself. I wonder if my fans would be proud. She almost laughed at the thought, realising how long it had been since she’d thought of her streaming days.

Beneath the sunlight, back in the wildlands of the first floor, Aoi turned back towards the Town of Beginning. Much still laid ahead of her, but for the time being she was certain that she could face it without much in the way of consequence. There would be more challenges, she was sure of that, but for the time being she would face them without hindrance or doubt – she’d succeeded here, where many others hadn’t reached yet or were still too timid to place a foot within, or simply hadn’t learnt of, and that meant that she wasn’t as far behind as she originally thought. One day, soon, I’ll be up there with the others.

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Thread Summary
Word Count: 3,104
Experience: 3,104/5x1 = 620 [Word Count] + 500 [Quest] = 1,120 EXP
Nature’s Tablet | A stone with a message directing the player to defeat six tough enemies. It is an <<Immortal Object>> and cannot be broken by any other means than clearing the SotW questline. | Not Transferrable
<<Scents of the Wild>> quest line