[SP-F1] Late Night Grinding

[Warnik 0]

Warnik stood alone in Starting City's town square in the darkness of night, where Kayaba Akihiko had first announced this death game some time ago. Maybe it could've been weeks or even months that had passed. That seemed like a real long time ago to him, but there he was still standing around here, and in his starting gear. No closer to beating the game that he was when he first entered. He had planned to wait this out, and have the other players handle all the work and put effort into getting everyone home and out of Sword Art Online, but now he wondered if that would ever happen.

 

"A hundred floors and we've only cleared like... 10 of them in the first few months." he thought, leaning against one of the large pillars that surrounded the starting area. He shook his head. "No, they've only cleared 10 floors." he corrected himself. That made him feel a bit sick to his stomach to admit, but it was true. He sat on his rump, while everyone else did all the work. Sure, he went out a few times, and managed to get to level 4, but he never really gave it a lot of effort. If he had some motivation, he'd probably be an even higher level by now, but he didn't. Warnik shrugged and stood up, beginning to head towards the gates of the city. Maybe it'd do him some good to go for a walk before he turned in for the night at the local inn.

 

There were only a few other players around during this time, since most others were probably at the inn preparing for bed. Warnik didn't feel especially tired, so it'd be some time before he'd do the same. Besides, he enjoyed the lack of players wandering around. He didn't like crowds so this new found solitude was welcome. No one would be around to watch him fail, or mess something up, like the few times he did so when he actually went outside and did some training. That was part of the reason why he didn't like social interactions or parties. Once Warnik had gotten to the gates, an idea hit him.

 

"Well... No one would be around to watch me fail if I head out this late." he thought. He scratched his chin, and looked out onto the fields of Floor 1. He desperately needed some col, and materials to get himself some better equipment. Warnik figured he was at a high enough level to go solo, at least on this floor. The night wasn't too dark with the bright moon up high above in the skies, so he'd be able to see things clear enough, and he'd hear trouble coming regardless if he didn't see them since his sense of hearing was pretty good.

 

"All right!" he exclaimed. He opened his menu and tapped a few buttons to bring out his trusty mace. Once it phased onto his belt, and stretched his arms a few times to prepare himself for his adventure, he walked out onto the dirt road that led out of the city. "Let's do some late night grinding."

[Warnik 0]

The moonlight was reflected against the grass of the field, so Warnik was able to pick out most things as he wandered about.  It was a nice night, and he briefly wondered why he didn't think of doing this sooner. Sure the blue skies of day were nice and colourful, but night time could be just as great or maybe even better sometimes. "They've really went all out with this game's graphics." Warnik noted. Though the colours of the night were somewhat duller than that of the day, he had to hand it to the designers. He thought this looked amazing.

 

After walking for a good fifteen minutes, Warnik saw a field of grass and brush that could probably hide a boar or two. Warnik figured that would be a good enough place to train and get a warm up for now. He left the path of the dirt road he had followed aimlessly, and stepped into the thick brush. Warnik didn't see anything as stepped through cautiously. He wondered if there were even any mobs around, but his thoughts were cut short as he stepped on a twig that snapped loudly in the silence of the night.

 

"Crap..." as soon as he stepped on it he heard a rough squeal in the distance, and some rustling.  Warnik would probably make a note on how stepping on a twig was cliche', but the large boar that had appeared out of the darkness had him pre-occupied. He tried to step aside, and dodge the boar who had sailed through the air, but it managed to graze his arm with it's curved tusks. Warnik tried to return a strike as it went by with his mace, but the boar was too fast with it's attack, and he swung at nothing but air.

 

"Slippery." He said as he brought the mace up into a batter's stance, something he doing by habit. Though he missed with his attack, Warnik was glad that he was able to hear the boar coming. He opted to wait for the boar's next move since it started stamping it's foreleg, looking ready to comply.

 

ID: 13533 BD: 5 MD:7

HP:
Warnik 10/11 -1
Frenzy Boar 6/6

[Warnik 0]

The boar let out a sharp squeal which caused Warnik to jump a little bit in response, and lose his composure. The sound was felt like it was amplified in the dead of night, and the boar looked more menacing than it did normally as it began charging towards him. Though Warnik was shaken up, he managed to bring up his mace and block the boar's attack somewhat. It's tusks grazed his arm again, gaining another glowing scar on his arm as the boar collided with his weapon.

 

"Ow!" Warnik groaned as the boar backed off. His arms shook as the weapon rattled. He brought up his weapon regardless and tried to land a hit of his own, but again he hit nothing but air as the boar stepped backwards. This thing was pretty tough, and agile. Warnik was glad that no one was around to see his blunder. The next time that thing attacked, he'd be sure to repay the last two hits in kind.

 

ID: 13535 BD: 4 MD: 6

HP:
Warnik 9/11 -1
Frenzy Boar 6/6

[Warnik 0]

The boar lunged towards Warnik again, but this time he saw the attack coming, and managed to dodge it. It was beginning to get somewhat predictable with it's attacks, but that didn't mean the fight was going any easier. He tried to return a strike, and swung his mace horizontally towards the mob, but it dodged the long and slow arc of the weapon, by jumping back to a safe distance.

 

"This fight is going to take longer than I thought." He mentally slapped himself for thinking it would be easy, and was more careful with his approach to combat. He waited for the boar to make it's move, as it snorted and let out some air out if it's nostrils.

 

ID: 13537 BD: 5 MD: 2

HP:
Warnik 9/11
Frenzy Boar 6/6

[Warnik 0]

The boar stamped it's foreleg again to let his opponent know that it was going to charge towards him. It squealed as it charged towards Warnik, but he saw it coming and took a quick step to the left, and allowed the boar to run by him, though just barely. Warnik let out a breath of air, because that attack was too close and if the boar were any faster it would've landed a hit against him again

. 

As it ran by, Warnik tried to swing his weapon towards it, but it was a pitiful attempt. The boar had already ran by long before he tried to attack it. Warnik shook his head, and brought the mace back up in his hands, readying himself again for the next exchange of blows.

ID: 13540 BD: 1 MD: 5

HP:
Warnik 9/11
Frenzy Boar 6/6

[Warnik 0]

Warnik watched the boar's movements carefully this time. He began to note how the boar was practically telling Warnik that it was going to attack him before it actually did. It'd stamp it's foot before charging as a warning. He didn't know if that was how boars behaved in the real world, or if that was just a design of the programmers in game to have players pick up on to help them in combat, but it was helpful. Warnik then brought his mace up high as he'd seen the boar do just that.

 

The boar then let out a cry as it began charging towards Warnik with great speed. Once he heard the boar's squeal, he brought down his mace, and managed to land a powerful hit onto the boar's skull with a crack. The boar ran right into it, and although it managed to strike his midsection with it's curved tusks, it was sent reeling in pain.

 

"I know you felt that!" he boasted, as he was knocked back by the boar's charge. Warnik stumbled a little bit, but he was certain that he landed the stronger hit after the clash. The sight of the disorientated boar confirmed that.
 

ID: 13542 BD: 9 MD: 8

HP:
Warnik 8/11-1
Frenzy Boar 4/6-2

[Warnik 0]

The boar shook it's head violently as it recovered. It seemed to be angry with the powerful hit that Warnik had landed, but he couldn't blame it. He was getting a bit annoyed with his opponent as well. They both locked eyes and that had set the boar's rage off immediately.  It didn't bother stamping it's feet, and that caught Warnik off guard somewhat, but against his better judgement to dodge, or avoid the attack, he decided to meet the boar's attack head on. 

 

"Ooof-" he groaned. The mob was just within his reach and managed to land another blow against Warnik, but he in turn landed a strike as well. The mace flashed as it was swung towards the boar and both were knocked back by each other's attacks. Once both had righted themselves, Warnik wiped his mouth, and smiled. 

 

"Gotta admit this is kind of fun." he thought to himself, as he and the boar stared at each other. He looked at the boar's HP which was down to only half, but he didn't care. Warnik was certain that he had more than enough of his own HP to take it down. The boar snorted, seeming to do so in response, which made him chuckle a bit. He nodded, and brought the mace back up and waited for it's next move.

ID: 13553 BD: 7 MD: 8

HP:
Warnik 7/11-1
Frenzy Boar 3/6-1

[Warnik 0]

Again with another charge, the boar lunged towards Warnik, but this time he effortlessly side-stepped the attack and it ran by. Warnik swung the mace sideways and managed to land a hit on to the boar's backside before it stopped, and turned around. 

 

"Too slow that time." Warnik thought, after landing the blow and retreating to a safe distance. The charges, and lunges of the boar were getting predictable, so he was confident that he had gotten the hang of battling. The boar didn't look amused however, and shook it's head as it prepared to attack yet again, to which Warnik braced himself for.

ID: 13557 BD: 8 MD: 4

HP:
Warnik 7/11
Frenzy Boar 2/6-1

 

[Warnik 0]

The boar looked to be getting tired as it turned around, and starting wheezing as it breathed. The battle wouldn't last much longer. Warnik decided to take the initiative this time and tried to land an attack that would help him get closer to putting this mob down. That was a mistake. He was pretty sure that he saw a nefarious glint in the boar's eyes as Warnik brought the mace up over his head, and tried to bash it's skull in. Before he could even manage to swung his mace, Warnik was greeted with some tusks in his midsection and was sent sailing through the air. The world around him flipped and spun, before he crashed face first onto the rough grassy terrain below.

"Damn it!" he groaned as he laid down on the ground, clutching his sides where two new glowing scars had formed after the boar had drove into him. Reality hit him hard when he discovered that just because a monster was near finished, it didn't mean that they were helpless. His opponent was squealing in delight, and was practically laughing at the display, until Warnik had gotten up from the attack. The boar braced itself for another attack, to which Warnik would gladly comply... as soon as he regained his bearings, and the world around him stopped spinning, .

 

ID: 13564 BD: 3 MD: 9

HP:
Warnik 5/11-2
Frenzy Boar 2/6

[Warnik 0]

Warnik wasn't able to recover in time due still being disorientated, and trying to regain his footing, but the boar didn't wait for him to do so and he was sent straight back down onto the ground. His HP was in the lower yellow region. He was beginning to feel light-headed, and woozy, due to all the attacks that he had suffered. He looked up to the skies and felt two more puncture marks on his chest, and was beginning to worry. He laid there on the ground, and slapped himself mentally for not preparing more, and his overconfidence earlier. Warnik's vision blurred, and struggled to get back up on his feet.

"S**t... this just got less fun, incredibly fast." he said, as he propped himself up on his mace, and tried to set his sights on the boar. It was just a measly boar! He slapped himself for real this time, and tried to get his vision straightened out. Once it did, he noticed that the boar was beginning to stamp his feet yet again, and prepared to lunge towards him.

 

"Mom... If I die, I guess they'd be right and I would be just an idiot. I'm sorry." he said out loud, apologizing to her for his pitiful display. He prepped himself for the next attack, this time more cautious, and careful about his attacks and what he'd plan. He brought the mace back up, and waited for the boar to attack this time, not willing to charge ahead and put himself in that sort of danger again.

ID: 13565 BD: 1 MD: 9

HP:
Warnik 3/11-2
Frenzy Boar 2/6

[Warnik 0]

Warnik gritted his teeth, and brought the mace up as the boar approached. Everything seemed to be going in slow motion as the beast strode across the dark grasslands. It's breath puffed in the cold air of the night, and it's eyes had the intent to kill. It squealed, and thrashed about. Warnik took a deep breath and readied himself for the possible outcomes, against his instincts to run, he brought the mace backwards. The boar still squealing had lunged towards him. It jumped up into the air, and began sailing to him. It was at that moment that the head of Warnik's mace had brightened up into a green hue, and was quickly brought across the boar's head with a trail of the same colour. A loud crack echoed into the night followed by a burst of bright blue crystals.

"Ahhhh! Holy s**t" Warnik bellowed in the silence of the grassy plains. He was alive. The boar dissipated into the air and it was defeated. He was battered and left in glowing puncture wounds and cuts on his arms, but he was alive. Warnik immediately dropped plopped down onto the grass, back first and stared off into the starry skies. His breath was heaving, and he was in disbelief. His hands shook, and he dropped the mace to lay down beside him.

"I am never doing that again." he said out loud. He was satisfied with that one battle for now, and would be on his way back to starting city to go and heal up, but for now he just needed a moment. He briefly wondered if his mother was watching over him in some form, and felt glad about that thought. He burst out laughing upon realizing something. "God damn. I am an idiot."

ID: 13568 BD: 9 MD: 6 LD: 3

HP:
Warnik 2/11-1
Frenzy Boar 0/6

Loot: 1 mat. 

[Warnik 0]

Warnik continued to lay down on the ground, as he gazed up into the stars that flickered up above. His warm breath was still visible in the cool air of the night, as he tried his best to catch it and stop breathing so heavily. His heart pounded, and his thoughts were focused on the fact that he could've died just a little while ago. He brought up his hands to where the puncture wounds on his chest and abdomen were. They were still there, since Warnik actually poked into one with a finger. This gap in his chest felt weird. In the real world, a wound like this would have been fatal, and he'd only have minutes to live, but here he was lying down on the ground and poking at his wounds. 

 

"Thank you, game designers." He thought, mentally thanking the designers for their lack of realism in this situation. The pounding in his chest subsided, and his breathing pattern was back to normal, so he got his back up off the ground, and seated himself on the grassy terrain. Warnik looked towards where the defeated boar's body would've been if it hadn't exploded into blue crystals. This battle was a real wake up call, and he'd have to be a lot more careful in the future. The boar had really opened his eyes to just how dangerous this death game can be.

 

"Thank you. too." he said to the empty patch of grass where it would have been. Even though it was only code, and a bunch of ones and zeros, it taught Warnik a lesson that he wouldn't forget any time soon. He turned his head towards the mace he had dropped, and picked it up by it's head, before he flipped it around and strapped it back onto his belt. Warnik rose up onto his feet and dusted himself off, before taking a few steps back towards the city. He walked carefully, and cautiously along the dirt path, because he didn't want to run into any other boars. At least not until he healed and would try again.

HP:
Warnik 3/13(+1 out of battle.)

[Warnik 0]

The walk back to the city was uneventful, which Warnik was glad for. The battle with the boar and the fact that his health points reached the red level during said battle, had him feeling a bit jittery and anxious about being outside in the field. A few more well placed hits would have him burst into crystals not unlike any other thing that expired in this game. Though Warnik was glad he was alive, he couldn't help but feel that he was a pitiful sight, almost getting done in by the the first enemy that most players would encounter in this game. He shook his head, and tried to banish the thought for now, once he had gotten to the gates.

 

"Rest first, self-hate later." he groaned. He held his sides, but not in pain. Warnik wanted to hide the glowing wounds from the stray player that would be out this late. Warnik walked through a narrow street in the nearby marketplace, and immediately turned left into a back alley. He tried to make himself scarce and not attract any attention. There weren't any torches or lights in this area, so no one would think to cross through here during the night. They'd probably think it'd be too dangerous to do so, and even Warnik thought so, but for all the times he's used this path nothing bad has ever occurred here. After walking a few minutes, Warnik reached a quiet corner behind some buildings turned himself around and just plopped down onto the ground with his back towards the wall. He quickly opened his menu, and opened his inventory to bring about some bread into his hands, which he tore into right away. Warnik initially thought that if he'd ate something that his HP would rise up for each item eaten, but he had forgotten that wasn't the case in Sword Art Online. Half way into eating the tasteless bread, he remembered.

 

"Shoot... that's right. Food doesn't heal in SAO," he sighed. Warnik thought about just tossing the bread away, but decided that would be just a waste and finished it slowly. Unsure of what to do with his low HP, Warnik decided to just sit there and wait it out while the bar refilled on it's own.

HP:
Warnik 4/13(+1 out of battle.)

[Warnik 0]

Waiting around for his HP to rise up enough for another battle with a boar was taking a bit longer than anticipated. Warnik should've bought some healing potions before he went out to train, or gotten himself some better gear with the col he collected from the adventure he had with Jynx a few days ago. Though he didn't, because Warnik was never good with planning ahead. He leaned back into the wall, and looked out into the dark alleyway that was lit up by the moon in the sky.

Warnik didn't do much other than just sit there, and wait for his HP to rise back up..Though that was getting really boring. Looking down towards his wounds, he noticed that the scars were beginning to clear up, and their red glow were slowly fading. Maybe once they had cleared up completely, he'd take another walk and see all the sights there would be in Starting City. For all the weeks, and months he'd spent here, he doubted that he'd have seen every single inch of this place. Perhaps he could even find some spots other players might have overlooked and find something of worth. 

"Yeah... sounds like a plan." he thought to himself as he pushed himself off the ground with a hand, and began walking through the alley.

HP:
Warnik 5/13(+1 out of battle.)

[Warnik 0]

Warnik rested the mace on his shoulders, holding it by it's handle with one hand, and it's head with the other when he walked through the dark alleyways of Starting City. He decided to walk to the one area he was familiar with first, the marketplace. It was pretty quiet tonight as he headed there. He would've thought that he'd run into a stray player that was just making their way to an inn, but not a single one was found as he walked out of the darkness, and into the torch lit streets. It must've been a lot later than Warnik previously thought. The lack of players was welcome, however. That would give him a chance to wander around town and get a look at stuff without any chance of social interaction.

Once he got to the center of the marketplace, Warnik put his weapon away, and opened up his menu, examining the floor's map. Not really having a set destination in mind, Warnik scratched the back of his head, and pondered the places he could've gone. Despite being trapped in the game for a month or so, Warnik's only ever been at the north eastern end of the city. He decided to head south and see what he could find down there.
 

HP:
Warnik 6/13(+1 out of battle.)

[Warnik 0]

The south side of the city was completely new to Warnik, as he tried to navigate the area and take in the sights. It wasn't very impressive. there were only more cramped streets and shady alleyways. He wondered why he even decided to come here, but the low HP gauge in the top left corner of the screen reminded him. Warnik felt entirely lost in this situation. Not lost, as in he couldn't find his way. He felt aimless, and without a goal to work towards. The didn't happen in the real world. In the real world, he'd be constantly working and selling off some scrap metal, or other discarded valuables he found during his routine garbage runs. Now it appeared that he didn't have that liberty since whatever players dropped in the world of SAO burst into crystals almost immediately.

 

"I don't that's going to work in this world." Warnik said as he looked through every nook and cranny of the street he walked on. He had heard that there were ways to gather materials without combat, but the guide said that it wasn't as sure as getting something from defeating a mob. He was probably looking around in the wrong places, and needed to be out in the field somewhere to use that feature of SAO. 

 

"I'll try that out. Just gotta watch out for those boars until I heal up." He nodded, and started heading towards the southern entrance.

HP:
Warnik 7/13(+1 out of battle.)

 

[Warnik 0]

Finding the southern entrance to the city was somewhat hard, since he had never been down this way before. Straying away from the main roads probably wasn't the best idea for taking a stroll. The twists and turns of the streets had him confused for a few moments, but he did eventually find the gates.  He'd have to figure out that area one of these days, but for now he just wanted to get out of that and cramped section of town. He made a mental note on not to visit the area during the day, since it'd probably be very busy then. 

 

Warnik walked out of the gates, and began looking around for a possible place to start gathering materials in the grassy plains. He didn't know what to keep an eye out for, so he followed a dirt road path that lead off into the fields. The full moon was still pretty high in the night sky, and it wasn't all that dark. 

 

"Materials would be... cotton and metallic ore right?" he thought. If the game were as realistic as it made itself out to be, the latter would be tough to gather without a pickaxe. He could just bash on a rock with his mace, and hope for the best, but that idea didn't seem like it'd work in the fields of Floor 1. There were a lack of mountains or rocky regions where he could try that. 

 

"Cotton it is then." he said. It didn't sound fun, but picking flowers and plants would be the thing to do in this situation. He saw some of the white plants to the side of the road and began digging through them, without knowing exactly what he was doing.

HP:
Warnik 8/13(+1 out of battle.)

[Warnik 0]

ID: 13920 LD: 8(+1=9)

The white specks of cotton Warnik tried to gather into his hands had quickly crumbled, and fallen apart the minute he took them off of their plants. He watched as they fell to the ground and burst into tiny blue crystals that sailed through the darkness of the night. Warnik rose up from his crouch and scratched the back of his head in confusion. He didn't think he did anything wrong here. since he was just picking plants nonchalantly. He let out a breath of air, as he knelt back down towards the plants that were in front of him, intent on getting at least one decent clump of cotton that he could maybe sell to a shop, or use for himself. A different approach would be needed here.

"Must've been too rough." he thought. Warnik tried to be more careful, as he started to pick off pieces of cotton one by one.

HP:
Warnik 9/13(+1 out of battle.)

 

[Warnik 0]

ID: 13968 LD: 13(+1=14)

Warnik continued plucking the white cotton from the plants in front of him. Things looked to be going well, as he took them into his hands, and began amassing a clump of the white material in his left hand, as he picked with his right. He took his gathering at a leisurely pace at first, and made sure not ruin the materials, but this was taking a bit too long. Warnik decided to place the cotton by his side, and began picking with both hands in an effort to speed things up. With two pinches of cotton in his hands, and his gaze shifted onto his task in front of him, Warnik failed to notice that the amount he stockpiled previously had burst into blue crystals.

"Okay... this is going by quickly." he mentally noted as he kept picking. Pretty certain that he had gathered a good amount, Warnik placed the cotton in his hands on the pile he had amassed, only to see that there was nothing there. "What? Where'd it go?!" he said out loud and began looking around. It couldn't have been blown away, since there wasn't that much wind blowing through the lands. His eyes widened upon seeing that the flacks he put there just now, then dissipate into the air with a blue glow, and shattering sound.

Warnik was at a loss for words, and was perplexed as to why his gathering wasn't working. He growled and scratched his head violently with both hands, before realized that the cotton disappeared because he dropped it onto the field. "That's not fair."

HP:
Warnik 10/13(+1 out of battle.)