《Colors》 Prologue: Introduction to new life Hey everyone, Aura.Bro here. This is my first fanfic and hope you enjoy it. Have fun and tell me what you think. "--- and as such, I eagerly await for all your wonderful future, as your teacher for these long years, I hope that ---" ''Come on, come on! Ring already you stupid bell! Teach would put me to sleep in this case!'' "You are now all graduates from being highschoolers, but this is not the end! In fact this is just the beginning! Some of you chose to get a job, some go to colleges and universities, some not yet undecided but either way you all---" the old wrinkled face of the teacher that seemed lost on his speech was cut short as the bells soon tolled. *Bell Chime* "Alright! Finally!" A man, just fresh out of high school jumped from his seat and dashed straight from his seat to the door in a matter of seconds, completely ignoring the callings of his now former teacher. "Crow! No running in the hallway!" His voice did not even reach the person named crow as he was already out from earshot.
"Now, where was this so called game company again, hmmm..." Crow looked at the pamphlet in his hand as he walked... No, wandered around aimlessly. "Come on miss, it won''t take long. We''re just getting some tea, some food. You know, the norm and stuff." Though faint, Crow was able to hear it. Wondering what was going on, he decided to have a little peek at the commotion that others decided to ignore. "I already told you, no thanks. I''m in a hurry and you''re taking up my time, so if possible, would you please move?" Though the girl asked him to move, she forcefully shoved the thug to the side causing him to stumble and get angry. "Why you, I was asking nicely for your sake but if that''s how you want it!" He raised his fist and was ready to strike the girl when he felt a sudden pull on his arm. "You shouldn''t try to hit a girl. It''s just not right." "Huh?!" The man was seething with anger, not taking a second, he swung his open arm to the wannabe hero. The hero was Crow. He didn''t even dodge and took it head on. "You done now? It''s my turn right?" Without missing his chance, he quickly swerved to the side and swung his arm, his target? The thug''s chin. In one strike, the thug was down. "Humph, weak punk. By the way miss, are you okay?" He decided to change his attention to the harassed woman but the looks she was giving him was a bit... Different than what he expected. The normal expression should be happy, and thanking him for helping but the expressions he''s receing was nothing like that. "I hope you''re not expecting any reward. I''m in a hurry so I have no time for this." ''One, a thank you would be good enough, two, what''s with the attitude?!'' Of course this protest was all in crow''s head. "Well, of course not, but if possible, would you know where this place is?" Deciding to be polite, he showed the pamphlet to her and her expression suddenly changed! For a small fraction of a second anyways. "You''re also a tester?" Ignoring her oh so obvious demeaning voice, Crow simply nodded. "Follow me then. I suppose with you, thugs like this one won''t hassle me on the way." Other people were looking at the downed thug as a police officer was nearing their location. Someone probably called the PD hotline. Not wanting any more trouble, they hurriedly escaped the crime scene. This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.
"Finally here! Thanks for your help... Huh?" As soon as they got to their specified location, she suddenly vanished. He thinks they''ll probably meet again so he didn''t mind. A few minutes of waiting and a man soon called the others attention. He started with introductions and simple stuff. Crow didn''t listen to these parts. "---Since the sudden boom of VRMMO, games have become the highlight of not just our countries... But the countries of the whole world! But lately, even though the experience of VRMMO games are realistic, the contents themselves are quite repetitive. It''s just like a graphics update that made the game prettier, but no more. We made a game that has been released a month ago, ''Unchained Destinies''. This game, takes everything to a whole new level. Where as normal games where you just kill and kill and kill to level up, ours has a real world system!" The crowd that was gathered murmured to one another as the speaker continued his speech. "All your questions can only be answered by yourselves. Now as to why I gathered you all here. We are searching for game moderators, game staff to be exact and thought, what better way than to get the players themselves! With that out of the way, those that are now playing the game will you please raise your hands." More than half of the people raised their hands. "We will require you to surrender your G.E.A.R. we will of course give new ones in exchange, this is to ensure that all testers will have a fair chance against one another. And for those without G.E.A.R.s raise your hands so we can hand you your own." The process was quite slow but it didn''t matter to Crow, for him, this was going to be his first time experience with Virtual games and he will run straight home and play it. "Also, before I dismiss you, I just want to announce that this, is a competition. Only ten will be chosen as the moderators. Don''t worry though, you will all be paid for the duration of your testing. Every month, we will give you approximately 150,000 won. But don''t think its that easy, we will check your characters from time to time to check who''s going to be chosen so without further ado... Have fun." With his last words, everyone who filed their respective information and has gotten their game console ran straight home, Crow included.
"Some people say games like these are like those games I used to play, job systems and all that. This is so going to be fun!" He connected it to the Internet and after double checking that everything was fine, he laid down and started the game. (Booting) (Systems Online) (Program: Unchained Destinies) (Checking scans) (...) (...) (...) (Scans complete. Identity not found.) (Identity Saved) (Starting up New Game) ¡¾welcome, Traveller, to our world called "Verdania". May I ask what your race is?¡¿ (The player may choose from the possible choices such as humans, dwarves, e...) "Human." ¡¾I see. Do you have a destination or city of our world in mind that you want to visit?¡¿ (the possible choices are ...) "Random." ¡¾An adventurous type I see! Then, before you start your journey, what is your name?¡¿ "Crow." ¡¾The adventurous human, Crow. Your soul is quite pure, I''m surprised! Your sould indicates the color white and its purity. Now go, Traveller Crow! And unfurl your destiny!¡¿ Chapter 1: Crows first day. "This. Is. Amazing!" Crow yelled out as he looked all around him. "Am I really just lying down in my room? I should have bought one of these a long time ago! Now, what do I need to do?" "Hmm, First, check the items and equipment, then stats. Right, same protocol as any other RPG games I''ve played... But how?" A few minutes of thinking and having found no option, decided to look for some help. "Ah, excuse me." he called out to the person he first saw but he was promptly ignored. He kept trying though, all other people he saw, he tried talking to, but to no avail; he was ignored. ''I really should have read that beginner''s guide first.'' "Excuse me young man. I saw you trying to talk to the other travelers and failing, do you need some help?" "Huh?" Crow looked behind him and saw an elderly person. "That would be helpful. Yes, please." "I see, then tell me, are you perhaps new here?" Crow nodded. "I see, I see. Then that means you are also a ''Traveler'' yes? If so, then perhaps you can help me with some problem?" Crow''s eyes instantly became vibrant as he paid more attention to the old man. "If I can do it then I will, but what is it about?" "You see, there''s this person who hasn''t paid the money he owed me, every time I try to get it, he''ll just run away from me. I''m old so I could never catch up. If possible can you go for me instead?" *TING* Elder''s Request Someone owes the elder some money but refuses to pay him. The elder has asked you to go for him in his stead. Difficulty: - Reward/s upon completion: familiarity with the elder. ''He''s the elder?'' "Then let me help you." at Crow''s answer, the elder showed a deep smile and thanked him. "His name is Dale. He is often seen at the village pub. Tell him the elder sent you. Be careful though, he might just run after you tell him that." As soon as he got the information he needed, Crow set out towards the pub but was instantly stopped by the elder. "You''re going the wrong way young man! The pub is that way." the elder pointed at the opposite direction of where Crow was going to. At the realization, his face went red in embarrassment and thanked the elder again before running off.
"Hello, I''m looking for Dale. Is he around here?" at Crow''s sudden entrance and question, all eyes were looking at him and then to another person. "Aye, that''s me. Come, come. I figure the elder sent ya, eh?" "I''m surprised. The elder said the first thing you''d do is run away." Crow inched closer and closer until he sat on a chair next to the man. "Look, I ain''t got any money on me to pay the old man. Can you just tell him to wait?" Crow only said no and Dale sighed. "Figures. I may as well tell you the truth now then. You see boy, I borrowed money from him to get some provision before I went monster hunting. Everything was going smooth and all, even got some pretty little gem dropped by a monster, I''d thought to pay him with that but I got attacked. Barely got away with my life! I tried going back time and again but that monster is still roaming around the area. I can''t beat it myself... Wait, that gives me a great Idea! How about you go get it with me? Come on, the sooner we get this done, the better right?" *Ting* *Updated* Elder''s Request Dale was ready to pay back the money he owes but got attacked. He didn''t say where the area was but he has been trying to get it ever since. He thinks, with your help, the situation will change. Difficulty: - > E ''Oh? The difficulty changed. I really need to read that beginner''s guide later.'' "But I don''t think I''m strong enough though." Dale suddenly burst in laughter as he kept hitting Crow''s back. "Nonsense boy! You know how to fight right?" Crow nodded at his question, Dale laughed harder. "Then that''s all we need! Now show me your equipment." "I think I don''t have any. I''m still new here." Dale suddenly stopped his laughing. "I thought you knew how to fight?" "Yeah, I do. I''ve been using my fists more times than I can think of." Dale went pale at his statement. "Boy, mere fists won''t do much to monsters unless your strong enough. Since you''re new, I reckon you''re not even a monk right?" "Yes." "Figures. Anyways, I guess an additional helping hand is better than nothing. Come with me, I''ll teach you something that might help you." Dale stood up from his seat and exited the pub, behind him was Crow.
The two were now standing in an open space near a river when Dale suddenly tossed a wooden sword to Crow. "You know how to hold a sword?" "No." Dale sighed as he expected the answer more or less. "Come on, Do as I say intently and correctly. Hold the sword upright with your two hands. Feet apart. Back straight." Crow did what he said but the end result of his stance was next to rubbish and caused Dale to sigh even deeper. "Look, I don''t want to be mean but... You suck at this. Let''s do this in an alternate way, I want you to copy my every move. The way I breath, the way I hold my sword, the way I swing, the way my feet stomps in the ground for every swing I do. Everything." Crow didn''t question the man as he already noticed the crestfallen look that Dale had. He stared as serious as he could, looking at every movement, every swing, every little thing he did as he swung his sword. ''Oh, I see... I think I''m starting to get it.'' *TING* ¡¾New Skill gained: Observation¡¿ "Now, you try it. Do what I did. I''m not expecting much but whatever." Crow didn''t pay attention to Dale''s lack of trust, Crow did make a crappy stance the first time. ''Though maybe this time I can do it correctly, remember how he did this. How he held a sword. The upper body, from torso to the arms up to the fingers. The lower body, from the legs to the sole of his shoe.'' Crow re-imagined the stance Dale took and slowly, he copied that stance from his mind. Now he was in the same stance as Dale was before, he tried to remember how Dale moved when he swings his sword. He copied that too. He failed the first four to five times but slowly, his body was starting to understand the movements. ¡¾New Skill gained: Mimicry¡¿ ¡¾New Skill gained: Two-Handed sword stance¡¿ ¡¾New Skill gained: Sword Mastery¡¿ Crow stopped swinging his wooden sword and looked at his hands, he felt different than before. Before he could think deeper about it, he felt a painful sting in his back as Dale smacked his back while guffawing. You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author. "Hahahaha, Well look at that! I guess you CAN do it! Only needed a different approach eh?" Crow couldn''t hear what he said since he was still a litlt out of it. ''I gained four skills so fast. Is this normal? This game is even deeper than I though.'' "But you know boy. It''s still not enough, tell you what, you come back to me in three days, I''ll be at the same place you saw me, within these three days, train, get stronger and after that, we''ll go get that crystal. See ya." *Ting* *Updated* Elder''s Request Dale thinks you need more time to get ready before heading out, Use these three days and come back to him after training. Difficulty: E "This. Is. AWESOME! I need to go read that stupid beginner''s guide, how do I log out of this gear?" (Voice verification has been notified... Do you wish to log out?) "Oh, there we go... This virtual reality system is getting deeper and deeper every time. Gear, Log out." After saying those last words, the world around him soon vanished into thin air as if it was never there in the first place, Crow opened his eyes and saw the visor of his gear. He removed it and placed it carefully in his desk as he stood up, scratching his head. "Now, where did I put that stupid thing?"
After skimming through the beginner''s guide in an hour, he more or less understands the virtual reality''s systems. He logged back in after eating some dinner and was ready to get stronger. "Let''s see if it works. Status Window." ¡¾Character Name: Crow¡¿ ¡¾Soul''s Color: White¡¿ ¡¾Profession: None¡¿ ¡¾Title: None¡¿ ¡¾Level: 1¡¿ ¡¾Fame: 0¡¿ ¡¾Infamy: 0¡¿ Stats: ¡¾Health: 200¡¿ ¡¾Mana: 100¡¿ ¡¾Strength: 10¡¿ ¡¾Agility: 10¡¿ ¡¾Vitality: 10¡¿ ¡¾Wisdom: 10¡¿ ¡¾Intelligence: 10¡¿ ¡¾Luck: 10¡¿ "Ah, so it does work like this. Let''s try this one then, Skill Window." ¡¾Observation: (Beginner Class) Lv1¡¿ ¡¾Mimicry: (Beginner Class) Lv1¡¿ ¡¾Sword Mastery(Passive): (Beginner Class) Lv1¡¿ ¡¾Two-Handed Sword Stance(Passive): (Beginner Class) Lv1¡¿ "Okay, how about... Mimicry skill information." ¡¾Mimicry: (Beginner Class) Lv1. 22%¡¿ Closely tied to Observation skill. Allows the player to copy the movement, noise or even their very emotions. The Higher the mastery level, the better the mimicry. Allows the player to learn the skill ''Imitation'' once mimicry is at a high mastery. ''Mimicry and Imitation? What''s the difference?'' "Well, never mind that. Time to level up!" The place he was in when he logged out was the same place he was in before. So it means he''s already out of the safe zone of the village.
"Huh... I''d expect there to be a slime every where since this is a beginner location... But all I keep seeing are those stupid ''Lone Wolf'' Monsters. Should I?" He was contemplating on whether he should or should not fight the lone wolf monsters since all he sees when observing them were they were already at the level 5 to 10. Considering he''s still at level 1, the enemies might just be a little stronger than he expected. "Oh well, might as well go and do this then. At least my observation skill is getting better. Observation skill information." ¡¾Observation: (Beginner Class) Lv1. 43% Allows the player to observe things around him. Has the ability to evolve into other type of skill based on requirements. IE: ¡¾Keen Eye¡¿ requirement: Observation skill beginner class Lv4 and bow related profession. There are other ways to obtain the skill even without the above prerequisites. "Wow. So there''s also skill evolution... Huh?" He stopped in his tracks when he noticed a snake slithering around his feet. He used observation on the snake. ¡¾White Snake¡¿ Lv3. A different variation of the Slithering Snake monster. Has a different body make up compared to Slithering Snakes. Has a venomous bite. "All right, finally saw something a bit lower than the others. Time to grind!" he drew a feral grin as he held the wooden sword in front of him and attacked the snake. The snake, having suddenly get attacked was surprised, retaliated quickly and lunged at Crow''s leg with fangs wide open. Due to the observation skill that he acquired, he noticed the movement that the snake was about to do even before it had done it and immediately moved out of harm''s way. The fight lasted for about three minutes due to Crow''s observation of every small detail that the snake would do instead of just attacking that he ended up wasting too much time. "Alright, this is the last strike!" he swung the sword down towards the Snake''s head and as it hit. *Ting* ¡¾You Leveled up!¡¿ "Wow! Just one enemy? Level Information!" ¡¾Level 2. Exp 12%¡¿ "Well, that was a level 3 monster after all... I guess that''s as much as you''d expect... I guess I should put the drops in my inventory. Inventory Window." As the Inventory Window showed up, Crow immediately threw the snake''s corpse in and it was sucked in the display. Dismantling the body was preferable as it would lighten the weight but since it''s just a small snake, it was fine.
After two hours of none stop snake hunting and hiding from the wolves, Crow felt his body was too heavy. (Your body is Famished, Stats are down by 25% until removed. When prolonged, may lead to sickness and death.) Crow nodded at the sudden game pop-up. "Inventory." as soon as the inventory window was out, he clicked the item called ''Wheat Bread'' and closed the inventory. "So hunger here and in the real world huh? I wonder if I can taste food here too... *gulp* I''ll try it." As soon as he bit the bread, a crunching sound was heard. "What the heck is thing thing! It''s freakin hard and taste disgusting! Do I have anything else to eat? Inventory." All items in his inventory was just White Snake and Slithering Snake carcasses. "Snake huh... I heard they taste like chicken, sadly I don''t have the tools to cook here... Damn this rock bread." Even though he continued whining and cursing the piece of food, at the very least, it was able to satiate his hunger and remove the sign of famish. "Okay. Time to hunt some more." Chapter 2: To new adventures "All right, that should be enough." wiping the sweat off his face, he decided to stop hunting as he walked back to town. "Status window." ¡¾Character Name: Crow¡¿ ¡¾Soul''s Color: White¡¿ ¡¾Profession: None¡¿ ¡¾Title: None¡¿ ¡¾Level: 16¡¿ ¡¾Fame: 0¡¿ ¡¾Infamy: 0¡¿ Stats: ¡¾Health: 355¡¿ ¡¾Mana: 153¡¿ ¡¾Strength: 10¡¿ ¡¾Agility: 10¡¿ ¡¾Vitality: 10¡¿ ¡¾Wisdom: 10¡¿ ¡¾Intelligence: 10¡¿ ¡¾Luck: 10¡¿ ¡¾Unused Stats: 30¡¿ "Oh? Health and mana rose up quite a bit and there are extra points too... But the other stats didn''t, I guess it can only rise when I put points in it... Hmmm... I''ll worry about this later, for now, Inventory." With the window information in front of him, he continued to walk as he eyed the items inside it. "Hmm, normally in games, the monsters would drop items and such, why is this game not doing that and only leaving the body behind? Either way, I have twelve lone wolf corpses, thirty white snakes and twenty slithering snakes, this should be a good amount of money." Thinking of his ''could be'' earnings brought a smile to his tired face as he sprinted in vigor towards the town as he closed the inventory window.
"Excuse me, can I sell my stuff here?" Crow went up to the nearest place he could recognize as a shop and chose it to do his business. "Of course boy, wait one moment." A tall, well tanned man answered, he was apparently stacking boxes up to each other. "There we go, now then, what can I help you with?" "Well, I have some extra stuff I plan to sell. Here they are." Crow took all corpses from the inventory window and dumped the whole thing in front of him, of course, surprising the shopkeeper. "Wh-Why are they still whole?" "Are they not supposed to be?" The shopkeeper, though astonished at the sight, answered Crow whilst scratching his head. "Well, you see, normally people would bring them in pieces, fangs, hides, meat, etc. I''ll buy them but weren''t these heavy for you?" Jumping up and down, Crow stopped and nodded. "Yeah, I guess it was." The shopkeeper burst out laughing, though whether it''s to laugh at Crow, or how he didn''t notice the weight, Crow will never know. "Oh man. It''s been a long time since I''ve seen someone like you. You''re new at this aren''t you?" With an embarrassed face, he nodded at the shopkeeper''s words, it was true so he couldn''t refute it. "Come here, I''ll teach you how to dismantle monsters. It''s a skill you''ll need if you plan to survive out there." As Crow went closer, the shopkeeper held out a knife under one of the Slithering Snake corpse and thoroughly showed it to Crow. After the dismantling was over, what he saw in front of him was a dismantled snake. Fangs, Skin and meat. "So, you think you know how to do it?" Crow''s eyes were twinkling with anticipation. ''This might be helpful.'' Crow thought as he nodded and said "I''ll try." He once again copied someone else''s movements based on what he saw, though since he wasn''t paying much attention towards the dismantling process, he made a few mistakes here and there. But he got the hang of it after a while. "There you go! You''ve got it. Well, this should be helpful to you so you shouldn''t forget it. Anyways, there are a lot of these monster corpses around... How many is it again?" "Twelve Lone Wolves, twenty Slithering Snakes and thirty White Snakes all in all." "Hmm, normally I''d be willing to buy them all for fifty silver coins but, I''m going to have to pay for around thirty five." "Why lower the price? I''m okay with it, but why?" Crow was a little surprised at the shopkeeper''s action so he decided to learn why. "Well, the labor would be hard on me you know. Unless you''re saying you''ll dismantle every corpse here? I''d give you all the fifty silver." Crow suddenly grasped the shopkeeper''s hand in a firm handshake as he showed him a smile. "Thirty Five silver coins it is then!" The shopkeeper couldn''t help but give a wry smile and chuckled as he shook Crow''s hand. "You''re a really weird traveler."
"Let''s see now... I have fifty silver coins right now including the starting money. There''s still two days left before the appointed time to meet Dale. What time is it?" In the game, Crow felt as if the time went way faster than it should. He was only hunting for about six hours in real time which would make it one in the morning but while he was hunting, he noticed how morning was already evening by the time his hunt was over. "Hmm, that means it runs faster here than on real time... But by how much? Let''s see if this works. Time clock." Nothing happened. "Figured as much." Sighing at his failed attempt, Crow walked back in to the store where he met first met the shopkeeper. "Hey shopkeeper, mind if I ask you something?" The shopkeeper, just like the first time they met, was busy doing something, although instead of stacking boxes, this time, he was dismantling the monsters. "A little busy here, just ask your question." "What time is it?" "Hmm? Its..."
Crow logged out after finding out the answer to his question. Apparently, one hour in real time is equals to three hours in the game. ''At least I learned something new again.'' With that thought in mind, he closed his eyes and went to sleep.
**** Unchained Destinies Forums **** [Raymond: Has anyone heard about the skill evolution? I did mine and I got a message saying something about ''skill morphed'' or something. Then instead of the skill I was supposed to get, my skill became something better than it was supposed to!] [Rio: That''s old news Raymond, Evolution morphs aren''t really something to be proud of, A friend of mine got a morph as well but it became worse than before! It''s a good thing skill morphing happens 40% chance rate when evolving.] [Contender-San: Rather than that topic, has anyone still found out anything new about the system? Especially about the color system? It''s annoying to tell others that my assigned color is pink. I''m a guy!] [A.na.ly.ze: Pink isn''t that bad Contender-San... Or should it be ''Chan'' now?] [Contender-San: Why don''t you tell me where you live... I want to have a friendly chat with you.] [Fugu: Okay, alright, before this becomes some stupid flame war, I''ll tell you about what I learned. The normal knowledge that we know is that the colors help in specific jobs. About how Warriors with the alignment of red gains a boost in Strength for every level, or if they have green they gain boost in Health instead.] [A.na.ly.ze: That''s old news fugu. Exception of the noobs, we all know of that already.] [Fugu: I see... Then have you perhaps know that... Secret jobs can be obtained depending on the color alignment?] As soon as the username fugu typed that statement, the forum basically received a sudden surge of comments. So much so that the forum itself got overloaded and was out for a few minutes. [Fugu: ... Didn''t expect the server to crash. I guess there are more lurkers than I thought.] [Contender-San: Hey. Continue what you were talking about earlier.] [Fugu: Hmm... Should I really? Well, it doesn''t matter. You see, I heard a rumor from a friend, she told me that her classmate got a supposed ''Secret Job'' and before accepting it, it stated on the description itself that it was only available to ''Blue Colors''. Still, this is just something I''ve heard from someone so the legitimacy is a bit low but hey, at least this means there are as many secret jobs as the colors right?] The forum itself was flooded with comments after comments... But most of it were speculations, rumors and theories.
"Alright! I bought some light armor, an iron sword and still have a few silver and copper coins left. Equipment Status." ¡¾Head: None¡¿ ¡¾Upper Body: Light Armor (+6 Defense)¡¿ ¡¾Lower Body: Starting Gear (No Options)¡¿ ¡¾Left Hand: Iron Sword (+5 Damage)¡¿ ¡¾Right Hand: None¡¿ ¡¾Feet: Starting gear (No Options)¡¿ ¡¾Accessories: None¡¿ ¡¾Accessories: None¡¿ ¡¾Accessories: None¡¿ "Hmm, says on the beginner''s guide that accessories are helpful, should get myself one of those soon." ''Since it has been around a day that has past in real time including the time he slept through, it should more or less, three days since then. It''s a good thing I hunted for a while more for some extra levels.'' With this thought in mind, he went towards the village''s pub.
"Hey Dale! I''m ready!" Bursting through the door, with a wide grin on his face, Crow called out to the man." "Oh? You look different now, got some good old training?" though Dale said this, he was in fact the one that looks more different than before. In his hands now was a complete set of armor and a big and wide two handed sword. "We should get going then." With Dale''s word, the two ventured forth towards the location where Dale got attacked by a monster. ''Looking at him now... The monster may be more powerful than I think it is... Is my current self enough for this?'' "Status Information." ¡¾Character Name: Crow¡¿ ¡¾Soul''s Color: White¡¿ ¡¾Profession: None¡¿ ¡¾Title: None¡¿ ¡¾Level: 22¡¿ ¡¾Fame: 0¡¿ ¡¾Infamy: 0¡¿ Stats: ¡¾Health: 375¡¿ (Gains 10HP/Level.) (Can be affected by other stats.) ¡¾Mana: 153¡¿ (Gains 50MP/15Levels. *Varies depending on Job Affiliation) (Can be affected by Wisdom.) ¡¾Strength: 10¡¿ (Affects Weight Limit and Defense.) (Damage: 35-38(+5).) (Determines damage dealt.) (2Str= 1 Damage. 10Str = 1 Defense.) ¡¾Agility: 10¡¿ (Determines movement and attack speed.) (*May still vary depending on perception and abilities.) ¡¾Vitality: 10¡¿ (Affects Health.) (Defense: 24(+6). *Varies depending on Job Affiliation.) (Determines Defense.) (5Vit = 1 Defense. 10Vit = 5HP) ¡¾Wisdom: 10¡¿ (Affects Magic Affinity, MP and MP Recovery.) (1Wis=0.1 Mana Recovery/5sec. 3Wis=1MP.) ¡¾Intelligence: 10¡¿ (Affects Magic Affinity and Magic Damage.) ¡¾Luck: 10¡¿ (Affects in-game stances.) (Gains chance for lucky items and crit. *Does not happen most of the time.) ¡¾Unused Stats: 42¡¿ (Gains 2pts/level.) "Oh wow. This is much deeper than I thought it was. Where should I put my points in? Hmm, alright, let''s do this." He spent the time walking towards their target location spending all his points dividedly on his stats. 10 Points each on Strength, Agility and Vitality and 6 points each on Wisdom and Intelligence. Were he a better player of MMOs, He''d know what to do with the points, but since he often just plays the RPG that relies on items, he couldn''t help but know of what he has just done... And of what he''ll continue to do in the future. The one which most gamers would call a "Hybrid" build character.
"Alright, We''re near. We should rest up before heading out." Along the way, they encountered a few enemies though they were quickly slain by Dale. Since the two were not in a party, Crow didn''t get any exp. Though it did help level up his Observation skill by 2, watching both the monsters'' movements and Dale''s. As it stands now, observation skill now stands at beginner mastery level 6. Though the mastery percent doesn''t get higher on the same targets anymore. "Observation Skill Information." ¡¾Observation: (Beginner Class) Lv6. 23%¡¿ Allows the player to observe things around him. Higher level of the skill allows better understanding of the surroundings. Has the ability to evolve into other type of skill based on requirements. Skill has the ability to evolve to ¡¾Inspect¡¿. Level will be reset to 5 and current percentage will be reset to 0. ( Yes/No ) "Yes." ''Why not? It''s an evolved skill! This is definitely better than before!'' (Skill Morphed. Skill changed to Crow''s Sight.) ''Huh? My sight? What the...?'' "Crow''s Sight skill Information." ¡¾Crow''s Sight: (Beginner Class) Lv5. 0%¡¿ Has all abilities of previous skill and supposed skill. Gives the player the ability to inspect things around him. May notice shiny things from the ground. Higher level of mastery will result in better understanding of the inspected item or person. ''Oh! A crow, as in the flying one... I thought the game meant me for a moment there.''
As they sat down in an opening, Crow dismantled all of the monster corpses that Dale produced. ''He''s much more of a monster than I thought he was.'' ¡¾New Skill Gained: Survival¡¿ As he was dismantling the bodies, he gained the skill while doing it. "Survival Skill Information." ¡¾Survival: (Beginner Class) Lv1. 0%¡¿ Gives the player a boost depending on the surrounding terrain. *Boost gain gets higher based on skill mastery. Allows the player to learn the skill ''Instinct'' once prerequisites have been met. The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.Gives the player a chance to gain extra loot while dismantling. *Chance to gain higher quality based on Skill Mastery. Mastery increases while dismantling and adventuring. (Current terrain: Forestation. Survival skill boosts Health Regeneration by 2%) ''Isn''t this skill a little bit... Unfair? It can level up on it''s own while dismantling and grinding and it gives buffs! This game is broken. If all players has this skill then I''m sure this game is broken.'' Stuck on his thoughts, Crow failed to notice Dale slowly inching forward to him. "Hoho? Why are you dismantling the monster?" "Huh?" "I mean, why do you have to do it like this and not like the other travelers. Most travelers I come across with, has this strange power like yours to make the items vanish like you do, but the difference between you and the others are, if it''s a monster body, they come out already dismantled. The question is... Why are you not doing it?" "Game Options." ¡¾Auto-Decline: Friend Request (No)¡¿ ¡¾Auto-Decline: Party Invitation (No)¡¿ ¡¾Auto-Decline: Guild Invitation (No)¡¿ ¡¾Auto-Block Whisper (No)¡¿ ¡¾Auto Dismantle Monster Drops (No)¡¿ "... Calm down Crow... You gained a new skill because of this... It''s not a problem that you wasted all your time dismantling... You got an OP skill... That''s all that matters." "Uhh... Don''t worry much about it. Dismantling them manually is better you know...?" Dale told him his own set of reassuring words, using a not so reassuring voice, but Crow was already way over that talk as he finished dismantling the monsters and putting it on his inventory. "Enough about this talk, I want to know something, Dale, my name is Crow, by the way." he held out his hand and Dale took it to shake hands with him in a friendly manner. "Nice to formally meet you then Kid... Er, Crow." "What level are you? Do you mind if I know your affiliation as well?" "That''s all you wanted to know? That''s easy! My level is 55. Freelancer class." "Freelancer?" As soon as Crow wondered about the word, Dale took on a bright smile and told Crow all about the freelancers. "Basically, freelancers are those that can learn anything! Whether it be magic from mage classes, swordsmanship from the swordarms classes, even fist art of the monk classes. ANYTHING!" "Isn''t that a little too strong? Is there any side-effect or anything?" At Crow''s questions, Dale couldn''t help but flinch. "Guh, well, the only downside is... It takes Freelancers to learn those skill two, maybe even three times longer than normal. Let''s say a mage learns a magic skill in a day while taking breaks, a freelancer would need at least two to three days without break sometimes. Even then, the magic power of the skill the freelancer uses would be weaker than what the mage''s magic." "Basically... Jack of all trades?" "Master of none." Dale finished the sentence as he nodded. "I see. Though it still is helpful if you think about it right?" Dale once again took a bright smile and nodded with a yes. "Oh, by the way Dale, seeing as you''re at a high level and you''re quite good at swordsmanship, what made you escape so badly that you can''t beat it time and again?" "Hmph, some stupid mutt and it''s pack. Can''t even kill them all since every time I go back, they have already healed up. Their teamwork is annoying as well..." "Oh? Wolf pack then? Let''s do this Dale!" after checking their equipment and getting ready, the both of them went deeper into the forest."
*Wooooooooooo* "Hey... Dale..." "Yeah, Crow?" The two were conversing behind a rock so not to garner the attention of the pack. "Isn''t that a little too big for an alpha leader?" "Maybe. But the big one isn''t really the problem here... It''s the pack itself that we should be worrying about!" "Yeah, whatever." Crow decided not to take Dale seriously on matters concerning life and death. He instead used his newly acquired Crow''s Sight skill to inspect the leader of the pact that is standing on a large rock. ¡¾Alpha Wolf of Zen forest¡¿ ¡¾Forest Wolf Pack Alpha, ''Zephyr''¡¿ (Mastery level too low to determine other characteristics.) "Dale... I''ve got bad news." "Yeah?" "Apparently, that''s a named monster. As in... A boss level monster. Level maybe the same or even higher than yours." "Tch, I already knew that." "Maybe we should back away for now? You know... Get more allies." "Stop being a wimp. You trained for this moment didn''t you? They''re coming. Get ready."
The battle has started with Crow and Dale fighting the underlings, the Alpha, only watching on. Like the two didn''t even seem good enough as a snack. "Damn it! Take this!" The two of them were fighting on equal grounds with the pack members, but slowly in time, they''re getting pushed back into a corner. The number differences were too hard of a disadvantage for the two. For every attack they do, they receive twice, sometimes even thrice the damage. Crow was thankful he bought armor before going in the quest. "Damn it! This is endless! There''s too many of them!" Though it was an equal fight even among the number disadvantage, they were already backed into a corner. The wolves menacingly stepped closer and closer and before they lunged, they heard a deep and powerful howl. *Arooooooooooo* As soon as the howl finished, the wolves divided into to groups on the left and right side, leaving a pathway towards the Alpha. No sooner than they made eye contact was the moment Zephyr dove straight towards the two. "Damn! Look out!" Dale pushed Crow aside forcefully and took the brunt of the charge getting knocked into the hard rock and utterly crushing it from the force. As soon as the alpha stepped away, Dale flopped down to the ground with a thud sound. "Dale? Dale?! Damnit! You''ll pay for that!" Anger and despair was all the emotions Crow can feel. It clouded his eyes, causing him to forget the fact that Zephyr was too much stronger compared to him. He recklessly charged towards it, with the sword in front of him. Before it could even reach Zephyr, it took the time to clamp its teeth into the flimsy sword... And crunched it. ¡¾Iron Sword''s durability fell to 0. Item (Broken Sword) put into inventory.¡¿ (Due to unexpected disarmament, you have been put into dazed debuff. Along with the enemy''s skill, dazed debuff will last longer.) With the message coming into his view, he regained his composure and saw the wolf in front of his face. He felt the heat from the wolf''s breath. His mind once again jumbled up. He can''t make heads between tails. ''This world. ''Unchained Destinies'' is real... Way too real. This isn''t a fantasy game. This is a new life... The pain I feel when I get hurt, the hunger, the thirst even the blood splatter from monsters I''ve killed... They''re all too real... This is a second life... And I''m close to dying.'' Zephyr opened it''s mouth, above and below its jaws were Crow''s head. Ready to be crunched. ''Hell no! I don''t want to die damn it!'' His heartbeat quickening every second, his eyes surveying the surroundings, his body with new and regained energy, pulled his head away with every power it has and was able to dodge in the last moment. Crow was intently watching Zephyr''s every move, every twitch it makes, every look it gives, everything. "Damn you. I''m not going down here. Im not gonna die here!" Crow stood on all fours as he intends to copy the wolf''s form, motion and movement. Were he thinking straight, he would never do this decision. But it whether it was a good decision or not, he still received a system message. ¡¾Prerequisites have been met. You have gained "Instinct" skill.¡¿ Whether he was planning on this moment or not, he dodged to the side even before Zephyr charged straight to him, he used his Crow''s sight skill and instinct skill together on reflex. Although with this, Crow is able to dodge any of the assault the wolf is giving him. Though good things weren''t meant to last, his mana was slowly dwindling, either using instinct or the Sight skill is draining him, he''ll know later... If he can survive this fight. *Grrrrrrrr* The wolf growled at him, but he didn''t take his eyes of his enemy. Still on all fours, Crow jumped as high as he could. Even though the distance between the two of them was meters apart, the wolf instantly shortened it in a matter of seconds. Though thanks to the jump, Crow was able to dodge the last second and grip the beast''s back with both hands and bit into its back. He was holding on for dear life. The rodeo didn''t last long enough though before he got forcefully removed as he went flying into the air and fell straight into the forest floor. Crow tried to stand up, on two legs or on all four. Limbs.. It doesn''t matter, he must stand up... Or else he''s dead. Contrary to his belief though, Zephyr didn''t end his life. It looked intently at him, examining him. And Crow looked back with a powerful glare, though his body can''t match his glare. The wolf walked away while the others stayed. ''Damnit. It''s like its saying I''m not even worth it''s time... Damnit!'' while Crow was cursing in his mind he didn''t notice the Alpha walking back with something in its mouth. It left whatever it was in front of Crow and soon went away. The pack going along with it. ''Is it over? Is it finally over?'' feeling as all the tension vanish, he laid down on the ground like puppet with its strings cut. "What did that thing even left me?" He used his Crow''s Sight on the ''thing''. ¡¾Crow''s Pet¡¿ ¡¾No name¡¿ ¡¾Level: 1¡¿ ¡¾Health: 100¡¿ ¡¾Mana: 50¡¿ ¡¾Loyalty: 10¡¿ ¡¾Strength: 6¡¿ ¡¾Agility: 8¡¿ ¡¾Vitality:5¡¿ ¡¾Intelligence: 3¡¿ ¡¾Luck: 4¡¿ "Huh? My pet? What the heck? Wait. I don''t have time for this! Dale!!"
"Man oh man! Didn''t think it was that hard! Hahahahahahahaha!" Dale was boisterously laughing with his left arm in his head... His right arm however, was limply hanging to the side. ''Apparently, his right arm can''t be moved anymore. He can still feel his arm, he just can''t move it willingly anymore, some kind of shock to the brain causing the nervous system to... Wait... Aren''t they A.I.? No. I already decided that this world is a second world.'' "Haaaa, in all seriousness though, at least we got the gem. Too bad I can''t show the world the real strength of the ''Freelancer Class''. Wait. I got it! You take up the mantle and spread the word!" *TING* ¡¾Dale has trusted you to show the world the power of Freelancers.¡¿ ¡¾You can now change your job into "Freelancer"¡¿ (Yes/No)? "I would be honored." With no hesitation, he quickly answered to his friend. With all that happened, he''s sure that both of them are friends that can count on one another. (Your job has been changed to Freelancer) (As a Freelancer, you have the ability to learn all other job''s skill but it will take 50% proficiency as you are not of the proper class chosen.) ¡¾New Skill Gained "Job Understanding"¡¿ ¡¾New Skill Gained "Beast Taming"¡¿ ¡¾New Stat Gained "Charisma"¡¿ ''Huh? Already level 3?'' "Job Understanding skill information." ¡¾Job Understanding: (Beginner Class) Lv3. 14%¡¿ Allows the player to learn job specific skill, though it would take longer than normal. The higher the skill level, the faster the proficiency and affinity. Current job affinities: ¡¾Swordsman = 0.1% Mastered¡¿ ¡¾Tamer =0.4% Mastered¡¿ "Ah, by the way, I''ve been noticing that wolf pup following us. Want to kill it?" "NO!" Dale was surprised at his sudden yell but calmed down and gave him a questioning look. "It''s a... Gift I think? A gift from Zephyr the alpha wolf. Right now, I think it sees me as the pack leader or something. I''ll take care of it." "Oh? Starting out on mastering Tamer class then? You have a long way to go then! As a professional Freelancer let me warn you, even among the strongest and most known tamer classes around... No one has been able to go into advanced mastery." crow gulped. Even though he didn''t plan on mastering the Tamer class as a start, he''ll eventually have to. "The reason why is... Because this world has countless and countless of monsters. Not including the undead since those are a different species entirely, as a tamer, you''ll be recognized if you''re able to tame a wyvern or a dragon! So with that. Good luck!" Crow sighed... He was happy yet dejected at the same time thinking of what would happen in the future. ''This is going to be a looooooong while.'' Crow sighed again. Chapter 3: A New ally Hey guys, Aura.Bro here. I have a second story out as well, check it out if you''re interested/have the time/ have nothing to do. With that out of the way, have fun reading my new chapter.
"Sir, phase one is already set in motion. It has only been a week since the tester''s initiation but the information shows that most players have already reached and surpassed the 50 level mark. There''s even a few level 70s included in the tester''s batch." "This is faster than expected. Tim, tell the others to start getting ready for phase two." "Already on it, sir. By the way, if this becomes a success, then not only the game industry but also the medical industry will be willing to share stocks." The man who''s reffered to as the ''sir'' clicked his tongue. "I don''t give a damn about those medical people who already gave up and called my child a lost cause. My wife and I haven''t given up. This is only one of the possible ways, other ways are too dangerous... What are you gawking at Tim?" The man glared at his subordinate who was staring at him with a blank face. "Nothing sir, I just thought that it''s amazing how you did all this for your child. Opening a game industry and making a hit game... It''s heartbreaking yet at the same time... Amazing." "Tch, whatever, Tim. Just get on with the program." Contrary to what the man said, the man called Tim knew how his boss really feels. "Of course, Sir. By the way, sir. What place should be the designated place of arrival for phase two?" "Hmm, how many are the ones that didn''t make it to the level 50 mark?" Looking at the papers at his hands, Tim answered "Single digits. Four sir." "Levels and colors." "Fourty-two, Red. Fourty-eight, blue. The last two are both Thirty-three, white." "Hmm, I would like to ask what jobs they chose but I''d rather not do it. Choose one of the starting point as the either of the lowest two''s starting point. After that, ban all access to character information except for the minimum like name and level for everyone, Including me." "I-I understand sir, but can I ask a question? Why?" "It''s simple Tim. I don''t want anyone knowing anyone else''s information. This isn''t a game, this is a new chance to start over. A new world." Tim nodded at the words of his boss. "I understand sir. Should we give your child an advantage then?" "No. That child hates advantages, if possible, I want you to make the start just like everyone else''s... With the exception of a higher HP regeneration." "Should we give it as a normal thing or as a skill sir." "Skill, so no questions will be raised. After that, disable anything that can make outside interference mess with the system. I don''t want any interference on this new world. What happens to it, is based on all the player''s choice." "Yes, sir. Truly, no one should mess with it any more than now... It''s already a perfect world... A self evolving world."
It has been already a week since Crow has started playing, and it has been two to three days since he acquired his new ''pet''. Most people that acquired pet''s would go and level grind since it would be easier, but not Crow apparently since instead of level grinding, he was teaching it tricks! "Hmmm, paw." and miserably failing as he was ignored. "Why is it being like this? It acts normally when battling though. Pet Status Information." ¡¾Crow''s Pet¡¿ ¡¾No name¡¿ ¡¾Level: 10¡¿ ¡¾Health: 150¡¿ ¡¾Mana: 70¡¿ ¡¾Loyalty: 15¡¿ ¡¾Strength: 10¡¿ ¡¾Agility: 14¡¿ ¡¾Vitality:9¡¿ ¡¾Intelligence: 6¡¿ ¡¾Luck: 7¡¿ "Hmmm, it''s health and mana growth are lower than mine and the loyalty stat never rose after reaching level 5. Loyalty Stat Information." ¡¾Loyalty¡¿ This designates the NPCs willingness to do what the player asks. As long as loyalty exists or not at the negative value, there is a chance that they will fight for the player. The higher the loyalty, the better the results and willingness to follow commands. This stat cannot be raised normally. One of the ways to raise this stat is by doing specific actions that will garner the NPC attraction towards the player. In the case of pets, mounts and summons, unless named by the owner, their loyalty will reach a stagnate and may even lower. Be advised, naming is an important decision and may cause loyalty and affinity to decrease even further for more intelligent beings when not of their liking. "Ohh, so that''s why. Then, what should I name you?" at the mention of the word ''name'', the once disobedient pup was now looking at Crow with expectant eyes. ''Let''s see... The alpha''s name was called Zephyr, I think that word has something to do with wind or something... Maybe it''s saying it''s fast as the wind? Maybe I should name him... It is a him right? Damn it... I''m not sure. Okay then, ambiguous names it is then. Sentry, a guard soldier, that sounds good, but I want something cooler. Maybe Sentry bolt? Or Lightning sentry? Sentrightning? Ah screw it. Sentry it is then.'' He quickly gave up trying to find a cooler name as he know only a few little words that sounds cool and has the same cool meaning. It would''ve been better if he studied a bit more. "From now on, your name is sentry." "Gau?" the cuteness of the pup was overly... Heartwarming. Just the action of it wondering what it''s name was while letting out a cute sound with it''s head slightly turned only served to amplify his cuteness. Crow thinks so as well. ''In fact, why isn''t this a stat?'' though as if to answer his question, sudden pop-ups were seen by him. ¡¾The pet has now been named. Loyalty has substantially increased.¡¿ ¡¾Previous growth impediment has been removed.¡¿ ¡¾Pet has gained new stat "Charm"¡¿ ¡¾Pet has gained new stat "Ferocity"¡¿ ¡¾Pet has gained new skill "Wolf''s Howl"¡¿ ¡¾Pet has the ability to unlock a skill. Prerequisites must first be met.¡¿ "Oh? So these things were supposed to pop out but didn''t because I didn''t name you early? Hmm... Prerequisites again? Let''s see, Charm and Ferocity stat information. Wolf''s Howl information." ¡¾Charm¡¿ An indispensable skill for those who specializes in capturing the attention of others, such as bards and dancers. On higher stats, would make NPCs give discounts, making it a stat useful for those that specializes in trades such as merchants. Makes enemies less wary. ¡¾Ferocity¡¿ A basic stat for monsters. Pets also gain this skill if tamed in captivity. May cause the enemy to freeze in fear status. The higher the level, the higher the effect. Adds 2 damage per 5 points. Can only be strengthened by animalistic actions. ¡¾Wolf''s Howl¡¿ Raises stats for the user and its allies gain half the bonuses. Has chance to cause fear to bigger and stronger targets. "Wow. Aren''t you a strong little puppy. Yes you are, yes you are." The pup''s sudden growth just by naming it was something he didn''t expect. His happiness at the moment was at an all time high while he kept cuddling the wolf pup. The wolf pup, having been given a name, now follows its master''s bidding. No matter how embarrassing it was. Crow soon put it down though. "Alright, let''s try this again. Paw." It did what was told. "Now, the other one." Starting with the previous one, the pup followed all commands that was said. "Good. Sit, lie down, roll over." "Speak." "Gau!" "Good puppy, here''s a reward." Crow took a bone from a recently hunted monster called ''Wild Boar'', and gave it to Sentry. Which it gladly took. Crow was too busy watching Sentry with happy eyes at its new found loyalty that he failed to notice the person trying to talk to him. "Um, excuse me." "Oh, sorry, I was a bit preoccupied, what do you need?" Finally taking notice of the girl that was trying to talk to him, he scratched his head and offered an apology. "No, no. It''s okay, I''m actually thankful that you talked to me. Everyone that I''ve tried talking to clearly ignored me for some reason." "Haha, you too huh?" ''It''s quite unbelievable that they''d just ignore her though. She''s quite beautiful after all. She''s tall enough to be a teen model, her skin is white as snow. Rosy red lips and... Why am I even thinking like a creeper? Bad Crow. This is why I can''t get a girl in real life.'' "You see, there''s a new and famous game company that started a hiring campaign, the catch is that they would only take 10 as employees and that everyone was to start over on a new game for fairness." "Game company? New game?" Crow wasn''t sure if she was being serious but he decided to answer anyways. "well, I don''t know much about the company per se, I don''t often pay attention to things that doesn''t gain my interest... It''s a little problem of mine and when I said new game, I meant everyone start anew back to level 1 at the game. That''s the main reason why the other players are a bit of a jerk to others." "Players? What game?" "Well, explaining the players'' difference with the NPC will be hard, you''ll get used to it in no time so I won''t talk about that. The game is called ''Unchained Destinies''. The game you''re currently in right now." This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. "I''m... Inside a game? But that''s... I mean, look! Everywhere seem to real to be a game right? I can also feel things!" "Yeah, amazing right? Virtual Reality as it''s called. If you still don''t believe me, say the words ''Status Window''." The girl did what was told, though hesitantly. She was soon then surprised by something she saw. It took a few minutes before she talked again. "So... I''m really inside a game right now?" "Yup." "What would happen if I die?" "Don''t know. Never tried dying yet, don''t want to start as well. All I know is you can also feel pain here. Imagine how death feels like... Yeah, I''d rather not die after all." The girl''s face changed in demeanor for a split second before going back to normal. During that time, Crow failed to notice it. "Well, since you''re new at this game... I don''t mind helping you... I''ve been playing this game for almost a week now." "I see." "Well, I can''t really help you if you''re like this... How about an introduction? My name''s Kurogane, my character''s name is Crow. I live in Korea but my parents are japanese nuts hence my name." She didn''t give out any information about herself until Crow sighed. "M-my name''s Lucy Va... No, nevermind, my name''s Lucy. My character is the same name. I... Don''t want to talk about the other side." "Suit yourself." Crow shrugged. "Anyway, if we''re going to get you stronger, we need to friend and party up. So with that in mind, Friend request, Party Request, Lucy." Lucy suddenly jumped up before nodding. "Sure." ¡¾Friend Request has been accepted. You will now be able to see whether that person is online or not.¡¿ ¡¾Party Request has been accepted. You are designated as the Party leader. Party can be adjusted in the Party Options.¡¿ "Ah, by the way, can you dismantle a carcass?" "What?! Ew! Of course not!" "Haha, thought so. Well, say the words ''Game Options'' and put the auto-dismantle to yes." "Oh, okay." She did what was told and tinkered around the game''s systems as Crow did his own tinkering... Mainly on the Party options. ¡¾Party¡¿ Lv.33 Crow ¡¾Party Leader¡¿ Lv.1 Lucy ¡¾Party Member¡¿ ¡¾Party Options¡¿ ¡¾Loot - Round Robin¡¿ ¡¾Experience - Independent¡¿ Crow changed the Loot to free for all and and experience to shared so as to help Lucy. "I''m all ready. You?" Lucy nodded and Crow lead the way towards the outskirts, but he was stopped by the elder. "What''s up old man?" "Ah, you see I''m here to give you your rewards for helping me the other day." "No need, I''m just happy for you." "No, no. I insist, I''m old, I have no need for materialistic things, I just wanted to know if that brat was actually willing to pay me back... If I only knew." "It''s not your fault sir." "Yes, probably. Probably not. Either way, here is what I made. This badge is made from the Aurora Stone he got. This badge is called a Soul badge. It can determine the wearer''s soul color, it also makes for a pretty accessory, though it doesn''t give any stats so not much wears these." The badge in the old man''s hand was shining off a vibrant yellow and as he put the badge on the ground, the yellow color shimmered and was replaced by various colors, just like an aurora. "I made two and still have a big chunk of extra Aurora Stone. Take these, it''s your reward for all your hard work... It might even help you win some points with that lady friend of yours." The last part was whispered to Crow accompanied by a lecherous laughter, Crow couldn''t help but get a little red in the face as he denied the connection. Elder''s Request The elder was touched by your willingness to help, though he regrets what happened to Dale, he is happy that Dale''s hard work will be given to someone like you. Complete! ¡¾You''ve been rewarded with Chunk of Aurora Stone.¡¿ ¡¾You''ve been rewarded with Soul Badge x2.¡¿ Crow decided to give Lucy one of the badges. ''There''s no meaning to this. Just a gift between new friends. Yeah.'' After Lucy wore the badge, it turned to deep color of gold. Though Crow was still stuck on his thoughts. With that in his mind, he lead the way towards the outskirts of town.
"H-How am I supposed to kill this snake?!" "Stab it with the weapon of your choice. There''s an item there in your inventory called ''New weapon''. Think of the best weapon that you think is perfect for you and then press the item. It will give you a beginner class weapon but it''s better than nothing. Sentry, guard her." "Gau!" Sentry tackled the snake that was about to pounce Lucy while she was busy. In Lucy''s thoughts however... ''Weapon, weapon, weapon!! Come on....'' As she clicked the item, the item''s form change and she clicked equip. Something appeared in her arms and it was... a gun. A pistol to be exact. "Wow, I didn''t know guns existed in this world. Well, since you have a weapon now, shoot! Have fun." Crow was on the side, watching both Sentry and Lucy fight while he was dismantling the monster corpses. A White Snake was slithering towards Lucy and jumped to bite her, in a panic, she shot the gun, what came out wasn''t a bullet though. It was a lightning. In one hit, the snake was obliterated and vanished from sight. "Eh?" Was the thoughts of both Crow and Lucy. Both of them eyeing the so called weapon. "Uh, Lucy, mind letting me see that weapon?" "Sure." She handed the gun to him and he used his Sight skill. ¡¾Magic Gun type-0 Alpha¡¿ A gun that shoots out magic instead of bullets. Little is known about who made these wonders, but its power is not a mystery. The magic shot can be adjusted by the owner. Adds Magic Damage +(5-8) Crow handed back the weapon to Lucy and told her to fight some more to level up. He also went and fought as well so things would get faster. In his thoughts however... ''This world will never fail to surprise me.'' as he smiled ferociously as he continued to attack. Sentry, seeing it''s master like this, also adopted a stance with a snarl on it''s face. ¡¾New stat gained "Ferocity".¡¿ ¡¾Tamer passive "Lupine spirit" leveled up. Affinity towards wolves got better.¡¿ Lucy was shooting at monster from left to right, lightning after lightning came out from the muzzle of her gun.
Two hours later, they had to stop. Apparently, shooting out attacks from the magic gun costs MP, approximately 5 MP per shot and this is just the weak spells. It should be a higher MP cost for a stronger magic. "Yay! I already reached level 10! What stat should I strengthen?" Lucy wondered and Crow just happened to overheard her. "What are your stats by the way?" Crow tried to check using his Sight skill but it was still not strong enough to check the stats of other players even if they''re at a lower level. "Hmm, Strength, Agility, Dexterity, Vitality, Wisdom, Intelligence and Luck. What do you think I should level?" "Dexterity? Dexterity Stat Information." ¡¾Dexterity¡¿ Gives the user the ability to use their hands skillfully. Allows the player to move easily and gracefully. The ability to think and act fast and rationally at a moment''s notice. Necessary for ranged attacker such as archers. Adds additional range damage base on stat. ¡¾New stat gained "Dexterity"¡¿ ''Huh? I suddenly got a stat for no reason. Do I only have to know it? No... I didn''t gain ferocity stat until a bit later... Why did I get the Dexterity stat?'' "Well, since you''re using a gun, that means you''re ranged, you need a good mana for using the gun and the damage is magical... I advise you strengthen Agility, Intelligence and Wisdom, if you have extra points, give a little to the dexterity as well." Lucy gave a beautiful and innocent smile as she said "Okay." Over two hours of hunting, Crow only leveled once, since the experience is shared and add the fact that Sentry''s kills only gives 10% exp to the owner, he gains little to no experience at all. ''It''s fine, I''ve got a new ally anyway.'' "Ah, It''s getting dark. Sorry, Lucy, I need to get going soon, I''ll see you tomorrow. You going out too?" Lucy hesitated to give an answer but squeezed out something. "N-no, I think I''ll stay for a while longer." "I see, I got it. Sentry, take good care of our friend okay?" "Gau!" The answer of a loyal guard dog wolf. "I''ll see you tomorrow then. Log Out." His visage soon vanished and left the wolf pup and Lucy alone. "Well, what do you want to do? Want to keep hunting?" "Gau?" as if to ask back, it tilted it''s head to the side, it''s ear flopping due to gravity, the cuteness of the once ferocious hunter from before was an unbelievable gap. She gave Sentry a hug and stood up. "I''m tired as well, let''s go back to the village." "Wau!" The visage of the girl and the wolf pup as they walked back towards the village was the only visible look in the vicinity. Chapter 4: Kingdom of the south, City of Drimr Hey everyone, sorry for the long wait, I''ve been playing Civilization V and I just couldn''t stop to do anything else. Anyways, let''s go!
"Hahaha, come here Sentry, come here." A beautiful image. The view of a girl with long, silky flaxen hair, snow white skin, angelic smile, glistening ruby red eyes... In all of the sense, a very beautiful girl, playing with a dog, just viewing these two would give a sense of peace and tranquility.. Crow however, couldn''t help but give the view a wry smile. ''If only she wasn''t wearing a holster on her hip and the dog wasn''t a wolf pup.'' Though he thinks that, he among lot of others couldn''t help but look and glance at her direction. A few even offered her to join their party but was politely declined. Some even tried to touch the pup but it would either bark, attempt to bite or run away from those people so they just had to give up at some point. Crow went nearer and called out to them to gain their attention. Sentry went running towards him in a hurry. "It''s amazing how close you two are already in just a few days. It took me a week before this little one decided to be friendly." He said as he carried the pup and hand fed it with some meat. "I just have a great affinity with animals I guess. With that said... You mind giving him to me?" Crow was confused. "Him? I see, so you are a male huh? I should have given you a cooler name, also, no. He''s special to me! I''ll help you get your own some other time, I''m quite new at this world but what kind of pet do you want?" He put Sentry to the ground and gave it a bone before asking. "Hmm, I don''t know actually." "Well, we''ll just take care of it when the time comes, for now we need to get to a bigger place." "Why?" It was one thing for her to make a curious look like a squirrel but it was another thing when Sentry also mimicked her. It was quite an adorable sight. ''She either has a great affinity with animals... Or she''s like one herself.'' Crow thought as he chuckled in his mind. "Well, it''s been three days since we''ve met and our levels are me with 36, Sentry with 22 and you with 20. With three of us, it would only get harder to level up so I propose we go to some place bigger, what do you say?" Lucy thought about it for a while and finally answered yes. They took at least two to three hours of getting ready before finally heading out after saying their farewell to the people they know. "Ah, finally heading out?" Dale was at it again, sitting in his chair inside the pub. "Yes. I''ll come back later once I''ve gotten better." "Sure, show the other''s the strength of the Freelancer alright? I''m going to wait for more news from you then. There''s a city north from here, you should go there." They didn''t need anymore words than that and Crow left the vicinity.
It''s been around three hours since they''ve said goodbye to that village. "Come to think of it... I never knew what that village was called." Crow suddenly stopped as he voiced his thought, it wasn''t just him though, Lucy as well did not know what the village was called. "Anyways, it''s getting dark. Let''s camp out here for the time being. Monsters tend to be more energetic in the night, I''ll get the campfire started while you two watch out for any enemies around." It would have been a good plan, with the exception that he couldn''t get the fire started. "Uhh, need some help?" "No thanks, I can do this. I''ve watched it on a video." It would''ve been easier should he asked for help but his stubbornness decided to get the best of him. It took another hour before he gave up. "This is impossible!" he threw the stick in his hands to the ground in petty anger, hitting his foot in the process. ¡´You received 1 damage!¡µ "How about I do it?" Crow having given up, just gave her the ok sign, a few seconds later and there was a loud bang in the premise. Crow immediately looked towards the noise and saw a large fire with Lucy smiling... No, grinning at Crow''s astonished face. "I did it." she said. Crow just pouted and retorted back saying "Using magic was cheating." She just giggled as she watched him prepare meat for their dinner.
While journeying towards a new place, they have encountered a few monsters here and there and was able to level up a few times. They finally reached their destination. It was a big city, surrounded with walls all around it, a big gate and inside is probably even bigger since a castle is able to be seen from outside! "Wow." was the only word they can express at the view they have just seen, Sentry was just following along without paying attention. "Halt! Where have you come from and state your reasons for coming here." They were stopped by the guards and they did not look friendly. "Uhh, hello there. We''re Travellers from the village to the south. Is there any reason why you have stopped us?" Thought still wary, their faces held a look of relief at his words. "O-Oh, Travellers huh? Hmm, since you came from the village of wolves that means you two are new to this... But it might just work... Hmmm...." The guard on the left was mumbling to himself while the other one was still blocking the pathway. After a few minutes of mumbling, the guard nodded to himself and told them the reason. "You see, this city is currently at a stalemate with another kingdom, one from the east. They are trying to conquer this peaceful place and some rumor even state that inside the city are spies lurking around, going in and out of the city." "Ahh, I see, I understand why you stopped us then." Crow nodded with his hand on his chin. "We feel as if there will be a battle going to happen soon, if possible... Will you two please help this city to defend itself?" ¡¾Defend the City!¡¿ The guard has told you the reason for their wariness, seeing as how you are new, there is little to no chance of you being spies. He has asked your party to help with the oncoming defense. Difficulty: C+ Reward(s): friendship with the the citizens of Drimr City, 200 gold for employment (will get higher based on your amount of contribution), audience with the king. (Only if you were the top contributor to the defense.) Restrictions: Must not be be allied with the Drake kingdom. Recruitment will end within 30 days in real time. Crow thought about it, unlike his usual self that would just jump straight in, he wasn''t alone now, there was his pet, Sentry and the girl named Lucy. He knows that players would only get a restriction of usage within 24 hrs on death... But he wasn''t so sure about the NPCs, mainly... Sentry. They were weak, still to weak to just jump on the bandwagon and risk Sentry''s life. He politely declined. "I don''t want to be rude or anything but, I dont think we can help much. We are still new at this. We''d like to help but only when we get stronger." ¡¾You have declined the quest!¡¿ "We understand. We will hope you will help us once you get stronger. Enjoy your stay in the City." Though crestfallen at his answer, they still perfectly acted their roles as the guards.
Crow told Lucy to go search for the job guild so she could get her power-up while he tours the city. His mind however was clouded with thoughts on whether to help or not. He couldn''t care less about the other players since they were all driven with their own goals in the real life. A lot of the players were testers after all. But the NPCs were different, even though they were called NPC, they had their own lives, feelings, regrets, strengths and weaknesses. They were their very own selves, Crow still doesn''t know what would happen should an NPC die but he can only guess... And he knows he won''t like it. ''I need to find a good grinding area. There''s still a month before the registration ends... I should be able to get stronger by then.'' steeling his resolve, he was ready to sprint towards the job guilds to search for Lucy but his eye saw something shiny from afar. You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. "What''s that?" Unknowingly following a real crow''s instinct, he went towards the object and saw a stall with different than normal wares. All it had was collars, claws and even fangs! "Ah, welcome, welcome. Have you seen something that catches your fancy?" It was a muscled man with a big mustache in his face, he seems to be a blacksmith of some sort based on the hammer on his back. "Ah. Yes, I was just curious why you''re selling these that can''t be worn by other people." The man only stare at him dubiously and started to laugh out loud. "You must be new here huh? Well kid you see, in these parts exists a mercenary tribe of the beastmen. Though these wares are only for monsters of tamers, most beastmen chose to be ¡¾Berserkers¡¿. A being of destruction. Along with their natural strength, they possess beast like abilities like the ability to smell the inflation of mana so as to dodge the magic attack. The ¡¾Berserker¡¿job class is a class that excels in fighting against many, able to hold and handle all types of weapon, including monster equipment like these." Crow was surprised at the possibility that it possessed. Though he hasn''t seen one in real life, based on what the old man said, they could be a very useful asset to the upcoming battle. "That''s not all. Combine the power of the beastmen with the berserker job class and you''d get an almost impossible to beat enemy. Though they sound strong, they also have downsides though. Berserkers tend to use pain as an addition of power, getting hurt, their pain turns to anger and then when the moment they don''t feel the pain anymore is when they either faint... Or die. No being in this world is immortal. Even dragons can be slain after all... Anyways, moving on. What do you want to buy?" It took a while of looking around before he finally settled on the collar that first caught his eye. "Ah. Are you sure about that?" The muscled man showed a hesitating figure that would cause one to think twice, but to Crow, it didn''t matter. As soon as he said yes, the man again laughed loudly. "Hahaha, many have been discouraged to buy that whenever I use this tone, you are the first not to. The price of that is 5 gold. It might seem pricy for just a plain old collar but you''d be surprised if you bought it. So how about it?" Due to the endless hunting their party made, he already had around 32 gold, 28 silver and 89 copper. He wanted to buy new equipment with his money but he decided to buy it anyway. "Hey Crow!" He looked towards the left seeing a girl and a sprinting wolf pup towards him, within two seconds he was tackled by the pup. "Hahaha, thanks for your patronage kid, here''s an extra for your little pet as thanks for chatting with this old man, hoping for your future patronage then." ¡´You received Collar of the beast tribe.¡µ ¡´You received Iron claws of wind.¡µ Crow checked the items description wondering what it was. ¡¾Collar of the beast tribe¡¿ Accessory item. Gives additional stats depending on the wearer. Owners will be recognized by the beast tribe. Possible gem slot: 1 ¡¾Iron Claws (Wind Enchanted)¡¿ Weapon item. Limited to beasts and beastmen tribes. Gives additional 15-22 damage. Due to wind enchantment, gives addition 3 damage and 5 agility. "Wait! Old man! This costs more than 5 gold! I want to pay for it normally!" Though Crow was adamant on his statement, the man only laughed again. "No need, no need. You knowing that it costs more and want to pay it fully is good enough for me... Unless you have around 150 gold?" Crow began to sweat at the price mentioned. "Hahaha. See? I understand your sentiment though, and if you really want to pay me back... Go and capture more beasts and then buy more items from me for those beasts!" That... Was a really good deal. But Crow still had to ask... "Why?" The laughing visage of the man vanished and changed into a more serious one. "It''s because I recognize you as one of the strong... That''s one of Wolf Zepyhr''s pups right?" Before Crow could even asked, he was beaten to the punch as the man continued. "He and my people are quite good friends." He told him. "By the way, can I put any kind of gem in the collar?" "Huh? Yeah. Depending on the rarity, handling, hardness and color of the gem, it could strengthen or weaken the effects of the items." The man just shrugged nonchalantly while explaining. "Is it possible for you to put a gem I have in here?" The man only nodded. "Here it is." When Crow showed the Aurora Stone, the man took it in a hurry and inspected it. After a few tests on the stone and he started laughing once again. ''He sure is a happy fellow huh?'' Crow thought of him like this for his sudden outbursts of laughing. "Kid, you sure are interesting. Wait for a while, I''ll put this in the collar. If there''s any left, I''d be sure to give it back, though I''m pretty sure the rest will just be bits and pieces."
It''s already been half an hour since they waited, Lucy was playing with Sentry while Crow was just watching them have fun. He also kept glancing from left to right since he noticed the onlooking people. "Sorry for the wait. Here''s the collar back, and the pebbles of the aurora stone." ¡´You received Soul Collar of the beast tribe.¡µ ¡´You received Aurora stone pebbles.¡µ Thanking the old man, Crow was wondering what he meant before. "By the way, what do you mean by you recognizing me and your ''people''?" The man only grinned. "What''s your name kid?" "Uhh, I''m Crow, this is Lucy and this is Sentry." "I''m Leoric. Just call me Leo. I''m...." He removed his hat and it showed two ears... Not the human''s round ears... It was a long furry type of ears. "A beastman."
"So, what job class did you choose Lucy?" "You''d be surprised! There was a lot of different job class to choose from! There was the Mage types, swordsman types, gunner types, blacksmiths, thieves, archers... A lot! There was even the possibility of getting a mixture job class!" "Mixture job class?" "Yeah! To get a mixture job class, sometimes you need the right combination of main job class and secondary job class." She said with a voice full of pride. "Wait, wait, wait! There''s a secondary job class?!" "Ahh, yeah, about that. Freelancers aren''t able to get secondary job classes." "Yeah, figures." He was instantly saddened at the confirmation and to remove the sad atmosphere Lucy began talking again. "Well, you see, an example of a mixture class is like mine! I chose gunner as my main and Mage as my secondary. The instructor saw my weapon and told me a secret! Due to that, both jobs mixed into one and I became a SpellSlinger! He even gave me different types of magic guns! Though mixture classes aren''t able to get secondary classes anymore but still... Pretty neat huh?" "Wait... That mixture class... Isn''t that pretty much what one could call a secret class?" "Huh? There are secret classes?" Crow only laughed, to think that right in front of him was a person able to get a secret class. While this was ongoing, Crow put the collar and claw on Sentry, He didn''t like the claws. It''s apparently too big for the pup. The Collar shone a bright green after it was worn. After their chat was over, they asked NPC around the place where it would be a good place to level grind. Crow completely forgot to upgrade his equipment in the hurry and... Well, we could pretty much guess that he was the highest level of the group... But the biggest burden as well, but they still continued to level grind.