Episode 15 - Enhancing Procedures
Second day in the Month of Holly (December 2) in the Year of the Hawk
Floor 1
Natora, Bladescape, Knightstar, and Doombunny were on the hunt for “The Rat,” Argo, who wrote most, if not all, of the guidebook and who was the first “information broker”. Konpeito and Diemond were crafting, while Malus and Thunderborne had taken Kiefer, Reisenki, and Soryuto out to hunt goblins for XP and technique training.
An information broker, or info broker, sold information. That was their job; to acquire and then sell that information to anyone who wanted or needed it. Locations of items, quest help, monster stats, if it could be formatted as information, it could be sold. They were like a game guide, but on the inside, and information would be key to surviving.
Natora spotted a group of five guys talking by the main fountain in Tolbana. They were all young, likely younger than the high school senior. She walked up to them. "Excuse me," she said, putting forth some feminine charm. "Can I bother you gentlemen for some information?" The added emphasis to “men” was an obvious ego booster as their demeanors immediately changed.
"Uh, sure," one said. "What do you ladies need to know?"
"Me and my friends are trying to find Argo, the creator of the guidebook,” Natora explained. “We have a few questions about the enhancement system we want to ask her."
"I am sure she could help, but I don't know how to find her,” he stated. “But I can send you to the guy who enhanced our equipment yesterday. He should be able answer your questions, as well as knowing where to get materials from. And he can enhance them too.”
“That would be very helpful,” Natora said. “I would really appreciate it.”
“His name is Koricata, and he runs with three others. He is an older guy, brown hair, slicked back. You can find him in the Town of Beginnings, south around the reflection pool. A lot of vendors are setting up there because it is a central location. He was in the northwest corner yesterday.”
“Thank you,” Natora said, flashing them a smile.
Natora rejoined the others. “Looks like the Town of Beginnings is our next stop.”
“I am not looking forward to that,” Knightstar said.
“I’m not thrilled either,” Natora agreed. “But it is a central and safe location for the crafters. Many may not have left the city yet, so they won’t really have any options. Either here in Tolbana, or the already established player market location in the Town of Beginnings. The Town of Beginnings currently makes more sense than Tolbana.”
“At least we have the teleport plaza,” Bladescape said.
“That is a positive,” Natora replied. “Let’s move before we lose our nerve.”
They teleported to the Town of Beginnings. The central plaza was basically empty. Players didn’t want to be where they had been told the rules had changed. Even if they were stuck in the city, they could at least avoid it. Any who did enter quickly skirted along the sides until they could slip out.
The Black Iron Palace was directly off the town center to the north. It had a wide entry between the plaza and the palace’s courtyard. Just as wide of a road was the south exit, which led to a reflection pool with a small island and house on it. It was a serene escape from Aincrad, or it was supposed to be.
Players could buy a vendor’s carpet, the first item that allowed merchants and craftsmen to get started. It was about the size of two tatami mats and the only one who could move an object on it was the owner. It could be rolled up, magically storing anything on it without adding weight, but it couldn’t be put in a player’s inventory and it only worked inside the safe area of towns and villages.
Bladescape looked at all the vendors spread out around the outside of the square the reflection pool was in. All different types of players were working to become merchants of some kind. Some were reselling items, others were selling materials, others were crafters trying to sell what they made so they could make more and continue to level up.
“Specialty items!” A woman in bright red robes called. “Only the rarest and best can be found here!”
“There,” Natora said, pointing to the northwest corner. “Same location.”
Bladescape followed Natora to the person. Four mats were laid out. Two had a small furnace and baby anvil, one had a different furnace, and one had a small circular sharpening stone. They had a few basic weapons laid out that had been produced by them which were ready to be sold.
It was three older men, in their later 30s, maybe 40s. The dapper one with slicked back hair was in a mustard tan shirt and his starter gear; the skinny one with a buzz cut was in his starter gear and a grey shirt; and the short one with curly hair was in his starter gear and a navy blue shirt. He wasn’t actually short, his friends were above average height. The fourth was not present.
“Hello,” the one with slicked back hair said from where he was sitting on his mat. Just by his accent it was clear he was upper class. “You don’t look like you are in need of any weapons today.”
“Are you Koricata?” Natora asked.
“Yes, I am. What can I help you with today?”
“We are looking at getting enhancements done on our weapons,” Natora stated. “Outside of the system existing, we don’t know anything about it. The guidebook gives only a limited amount of information on it.”
“Well, have a seat and I will tell you everything you need to know,” Koricata said. They sat down in front of him. “Oh, and I should introduce you to my other associates. The one in grey is Nataszo, the one in blue is Nemus, and then we have our friend, Lisbeth. She is around somewhere. I think she went to get something for Nemus.”
“I’m Natora, and that is Bladescape, Knightstar, and Doombunny. We are going to be forming a guild, with some other friends, as soon as that ability is unlocked.”
“It's a pleasure to meet you all,” Koricata said, bowing a bit in his seated position. “I guess that explains why you three are all wearing the same capes, and your friend with a unique cloak has a blue shirt.”
“Our friend, Diemond, made them for us,” Bladescape said. “But we don’t exactly have smiths yet, and even the one who wants to do smithing...combat is where we are focused on. It's our survival. We have been clearing the first floor’s boss labyrinth, so I am glad to see that others are thriving in ways other than combat.”
“Oh, we have done some fighting,” Koricata said. “If you need materials, you need to be able to protect yourself while getting them. But it is good to hear that players are making a good attempt at clearing this game. Fighting is one thing, clearing the game is another.
“But you are here about enhancements, which you will need to clear and fight bosses. I’ll be covering weapons, but armor is the same system, with some minor differences. Knightstar, is that an Anneal Blade you are carrying?”
“Yes,” Knightstart said, drawing it and presenting him with the sword.
“This is a great example,” he said, holding up for them all to easily see it. “Because a lot of players have this sword. It is probably the best sword in its class right now. Enhancements are best thought of as slots, so the Anneal Blade has eight slots. The types of enhancements that can be applied are Accuracy, Durability, Heaviness, Quickness, and either Sharpness or Toughness. Sharpness for edged weapons, toughness for blunt weapons. You can add any combination up to the number of enhancements, so eight for the Anneal Blade. Once a weapon’s enhancement limit is reached, it becomes an ‘end product.’ Trying to add another enhancement will automatically break the weapon.
“That becomes important, because while the Anneal blade has eight enhancement slots, that doesn’t mean all eight will take. Enhancements can fail. After four successful enhancements, the failure chance increases by a good margin. When you have a weapon with twenty or thirty enhancement slots, that can be a big factor in the calculations because of what a failed enhancement can do. There are three things that can happen if an enhancement fails. The first is that nothing changes for the weapon, but the materials are used up and the slot is taken up. The second result can be the item losing a level of enhancement. The third is that the enhancement level stays the same, but the exact properties of the weapon change.”
“It is a calculated risk,” Bladescape said.
“Yes,” Koricata nodded. “But it can make a good weapon great, and really stretch out the longevity of the weapon. If you were to take this Anneal Blade, and get eight quickness enhancements, you would have a sword that is almost like a rapier, but with the durability and stoutness for slashing that a rapier lacks. Quickness improves the speed of the sword, both Sword Skill attacks and your own swings. Accuracy improves the critical chance rate, and it helps you hit it more often. Durability increases the weapon’s ability to withstand damage. I’m sure you guys are repairing your equipment every day, or every other day. Durability increases the length of time before your weapon breaks. Heaviness increases the chance that the weapon will break an opponent’s armor. Sharpness or Toughness increased the weapon’s damage.
“While yes, it can be a gamble, there is a way to help increase the success rate. A weapon requires a base material, depending on what it is, to enhance it, and it also needs additional materials. The additional materials depend on the enhancement you want, but they also can help increase your success chance. The more material to work with the safer it is. There is no guaranteed method for enhancements, and the more you do, the more of a risk it is, especially if you get a penalty for a failed one. I am not saying to be stupid, but it is often worth the risk to improve your pride and joy, especially if it is saving your life in the field.”
“That is a very valid point,” Bladescape said. “Is there anything else about enhancements that we should know?”
“Not really,” Koricata said. “But I can tell you ladies would actually care to know the smith’s side of the system. Once the materials are melted down, and the weapon is heated up, the smith has to perform ten strikes on it, within three minutes. The clock starts when the first blow is landed. After three minutes, it will automatically fail. Three minutes is plenty of time for a competent smith to perform ten strikes.
“The last thing is naming. You will notice a difference in the name to reflect the enhancements. This Anneal Blade, as an example, with two Sharpness and one Durability would be seen by the system and in the item menu as ‘Anneal Blade Plus-Three, Two-S, One-D.’ You won’t see any failed attempts, so you will need to keep track of that yourself to prevent you from going over your limit and breaking your weapon.”
“Do you have any recommendations for enhancement strategies?” Knightstar asked.
“My personal thoughts are my thoughts and not something I have gotten to test,” Koricata stated. “So don’t take it as something you have to follow or blame me if it doesn’t work. I don’t know how you play, and how you play will determine the way you enhance a weapon. Durability is something I will almost always recommend raising. The last thing you need is for your weapon to break in the middle of a fight, especially for weapons like spears and rapiers, which have lower base durability statistics. If you are good at scoring critical hits, Accuracy could stack up to be a powerful advantage, but the same is true if you struggle with accuracy, it will help you land more hits.”
Knightstar began to get specifics for what she would need to enhance her Anneal Blade. Then they checked the other weapons. Knightstar wrote a detailed list.
“Thanks for the lesson, Koricata,” Bladescape said. “We will track this stuff down, and then be back. You earned our business after kindly helping us.”
“It is appreciated and I am glad that I was able to help,” he replied. “We won’t close up until about Nine tonight. We stay open later, like a lot of the crafters and merchants, for those who are fighting all day. Most can’t afford the day off.”
“Great,” Natora said. “Our group might need the slightly later hours. It all depends on how fast we can get what we will need.”
They reconvened at the northwest corner of the pool, not that far from him. That way they could plan their strategy, without being in Koricata’s way. They had taken up a lot of his time and space already.
“Split up or stay together?” Bladescape asked.
“We probably should stick together, but I am interested to see what could be learned,” Natora said. “Why don’t Knightstar and I stick together and focus on the list, while you two can either stick together, or split up, and see what we can learn. I’m sure Doom’s Hide could make eavesdropping very easy, even without an eavesdropping Skill. And if she gets caught, she is sweet enough to be able to pass it off.”
“If we can’t find each other, we all know where we are staying,” Doombunny added.
“True,” Bladescape said. “Alright. I’ll hunt for info and see how the game is unfolding on the non-combat side. Doom, you do your thing, whatever that ends up being. Natora and Knightstar, you guys do what you can as well for info, but focus on the materials. Let’s try and meet back here at noon though, to hopefully get weapons enhanced.”
“Right,” Doombunny said, before disappearing before their eyes.
“She is getting scary good at that,” Natora stated.
“Yeah,” Bladescape replied. “She is.”
Bladescape knew where she wanted to go first. She walked up to the crimson robed merchant who had called out “specialty items” when they arrived. She didn’t have a customer and Bladescape sat down in front of her.
“So, you did come back,” the young woman said.
Bladescape chuckled nervously. “So, you were targeting me with that call.”
“Ninety percent of the people here are not interesting,” She stated. “And most of that ten percent do not have cash. You are clearly one of the one percent who was worth me calling out to and now here you are, sitting in front of me.”
“So I am,” Bladescape said. “What is it exactly that you do?”
“I’m in the business of procuring the rarest items in the game and ensuring they go where they need to. I also work to secure information about them and their location. Argo’s guide uncovered most of the secrets of the first floor from the Beta, so I am out of luck at the moment. As the rest are unlocked, my job will get more and more interesting...and more valuable.”
“So, what exactly do you have that might benefit me?” Bladescape asked.
“You have pretty hair,” she stated. “I assume that is why you do not wear a helmet?”
“Thanks, but no, I’m not afraid to cover it up. I just don’t want to put anything on my head. It's one thing in a regular game to wear a helmet for defense, but now I would actually be wearing it, stuck with it blocking my vision, not controlling a character on a screen. I don’t want that. It would be more annoying than beneficial. Plus, I can offset the lack of a helmet with other equipment.”
“A valid reason,” She said as she moved a wooden box in front of her. “As such, this might be very helpful.” She pulled out a silver circlet with a blue gemstone that matched Sunset’s eyes in the center. The silver was expertly woven into a beautiful pattern that was both delicate and strong. “A man acquired this on his journey and being a man, he had no use for it. I acquired it in a fair trade for something he could make use of. It is not just some pretty piece of jewelry. The Silver Sagacity Circlet increases a user’s base visual perception range by two-percent, and if the wearer has Search, it boosts that by five-percent. And if that is not enough, it does increase defense by a surprising amount considering it cannot actually block anything. You can look pretty and get critical boosts to your stats.”
“And how much would that cost me?” Bladescape asked. She wanted it, mostly for its aesthetic value. The rest was pure bonus.
“I can let it go for Twenty-Thousand Col,” The merchant stated. “That is the lowest it is worth.”
“That is a hefty price, just for that,” Bladescape stated.
“I know you not only have that, but plenty more,” she replied. “It is a fair asking price, even this early in the game. Anneal Blades are selling between ten and fifteen and some players are farming them. This is not just a rare piece; it is the only one in the game.”
“And I have a sword that needs enhancements, equipment that needs to be constantly repaired, and a stomach that prefers to be full,” Bladescape replied. “I also like having a roof over my head. If I had that much, I wouldn’t spend it on some vanity piece.”
“This is more than a vanity piece and you know it,” She shot back. “I give you no guarantees, but you know where I will be. The name is Mo.”
“Bladescape,” she said as she stood up. She had no idea why she gave her name. “Have a good day.”
As Bladescape turned to walk away Mo spoke up. “Your friend is very good with Hide.”
Bladescape sighed, turned around, and sat back down. “Is there any more to that statement, or just that?”
“I did say I deal in the rarest items,” Mo stated with a coy smile. “As well as the trading of information about them. Players with your skills could come in handy for someone like me when it comes to procurement. Those services would be handsomely rewarded.”
“Is there something you are after?” Bladescape asked.
“Not right now,” Mo stated. “I wish, but things are picked clean. At least I seem to have someone who is interested in helping me while they do their normal activities.”
“Were you a beta tester?” Bladescape asked.
Mo gave a single nod and then her lips pursed in a sly grin. “I am the beta tester who forced Argus to make the first patch to the game. These vendor carpets were a lot more fun at the start. Since only the owner can move items,” she chuckled, “well let’s just say I had some fun with some pranks. I bribed an unsuspecting player to call for a GM. Before the GM could leave, I had the three exits completely blocked with furniture on the mats. He could not move them because he did not own the mats. We had a few more days of fun with pranks and other things before they patched it and limited where the mats could be used. No more blocking roads.”
She chuckled to herself as she enjoyed reminiscing about her previous achievement.
“Anyway, I am not very useful for our current situation. I know stuff, more importantly I know how to learn stuff, but I am no good on the front line, and my crafting is...well I’m not inclined in that manner even in a game. So, I figure, I can take that ability to learn the secrets and get the good stuff before others do. Not so much for profit, although I do need to be able to eat and live, but so that it ends up in the hands of players who will actually be able to use it for our good. Players like you and your friends.”
A screen popped up in front of Bladescape. It was a friend request from Mo. Bladescape decided it was a good contact to have and hit accept.
“Thanks,” Bladescape said. “That is a good goal.”
“At least someone thinks so,” Mo replied.
Bladescape left Mo’s carpet and wandered around the makeshift bazaar. There was a wide variety of crafters. A month in, and some players would obviously become top in their field. Others were barely able to do anything and probably wouldn’t get above average. She didn’t learn anything of value.
Bladescape met back with the others at noon. Doombunny was the first one there.
“Blade, do you have those ancient knives in your inventory?” Doombunny immediately asked.
“I do,” Bladescape nodded. “Why?”
“Can I have one? I found someone who needs the extra boost.”
“Any knife in particular?” Bladescape asked as she swiped up her menu.
“Nope,” Doombunny shrugged. “Just one of them.”
“Anyone special?” Knightstar asked.
“Maybe,” Doombunny shrugged as she took the knife from Bladescape. “It's too early to tell, but they could use the equipment boost. It's all we can really do at the moment. At least it is a little kindness and generosity.”
Doombunny skipped away, not activating hide.
“She is actually skipping,” Natora said. “I...is that normal? I don’t think I have ever seen her do that. At least not in the game.”
“The only two in our group who would skip are Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie,” Bladescape said. “We all have seen Konpeito do it and more, however, I haven’t seen Doom do it in game, or be so...relaxed? I think it is relaxed. I can’t tell, especially with her cloak and carrying a weapon. Seeing Fluttershy under it all is hard. Still, I think skipping is good.”
“You looked like you were having a good conversation with that woman in red,” Natora said, shifting the conversation. “Anything special?”
“She might have work for us on the higher floors to procure rare items. It’s too late here, since Argo already released everything in the guide book. Payment of course, and it would be XP for us and mapping, so it might be a useful partnership.”
“It very well could be,” Natora said. “But something else is bugging you.”
Bladescape shrugged. “She had this rare circlet. It's pretty and it has some minor boosting stats. It was expensive though.”
“How much?” Knightstar asked.
“Twenty-K,” Bladescape replied. “A pretty ridiculous price.”
“I’ve had four offers this morning for my Anneal Blade,” Knightstar said. “Ten-Thousand, Twelve and a Half, Thirteen, and Thirteen-Two-Hundred. I’ve actually considered selling it and switching to one of the ancient swords, since they were only a little lower ranked than the Anneal Blade, but I like it and how it feels. The others didn’t give me the same feeling when I gripped them. Also, as common as it is, it is still rare enough to have status to it. The ancient swords lack that status. I’ll keep the status that comes with the Anneal Blade. That status and feeling is worth more than what anyone could afford to pay for it back in Tolbana.”
“How did procuring the items go?” Bladescape asked.
“We got a lot,” Natora said. “Knightstar and I are basically out of money, but I think that we got enough to cover all of us. The cash will get solved when you guys trade us col for the items. We should start getting them enhanced. You want to start?”
“Sure,” Bladescape said with a nod.
They walked back over to Koricata and sat down. Bladescape took the Ancient Red Sun Sword off her back.
“Welcome back,” Koricata greeted them with a smile. “I guess you are first?”
“Yep,” Bladescape nodded. She looked at Knightstar. “How many enhancements?”
“Four,” Knightstar said.
“Four enhancements,” Bladescape said to Koricata.
“I love your enthusiasm,” he said as he took her sword. “But let’s go one at a time. First one?”
“Durability,” Bladescape said.
“Uh, not that I am questioning your judgment, but are you sure?” He asked.
“What do you see?” Bladescape asked.
“I don’t have an appraisal skill, but I can see that this sword has twice the durability of the Anneal Blade. I haven’t seen a weapon with this much durability...in any class. Normally, boosting durability is a smart move, however, I would recommend Sharpness, or Quickness, or Accuracy, because this is a big sword, and heavy. You need to be able to swing it fast and accurately.”
Bladescape looked at Knightstar, who was flipping through her notebook. “Huh, it does have a lot of durability compared to anything else we have owned, examined, or recovered. Even the other ancient weapons. I never noticed that.”
“Alright,” Bladescape nodded. “Do Quickness.”
They gave him the base materials and the additional materials and Koricata heated them up. They melted quickly and began to glow green. The sword was inserted until it was glowing. Koricata took it out and set it on his anvil. He took a deep breath in and raised his hammer. He brought it down flat onto the glowing blade, starting the three-minute timer. He was intentional, making sure every hammer strike landed strong. He didn’t rush it. After the tenth hit, the sword went back to its usual color. Koricata let out a huge sigh of relief.
“It took,” he said.
“This is more stressful for you than we realized it would be,” Knightstar stated.
“I can do everything right and still have a bad outcome, so it is stressful,” Koricata explained. “A careless smith wouldn’t find it stressful and neither would an overconfident one. Of course, you can’t have a smith be too timid to enhance the weapon either, or they might time out. I hate it when a paying customer doesn’t get the outcome they paid for, even when it isn’t guaranteed. It makes me feel bad. I have to believe that the soul of a smith is felt by the system and helps them produce the best they can, if that is what they desire. Officially, it doesn’t matter, but I just have this sense about it.”
“We are in another reality with different rules,” Bladescape said. “That sense isn’t necessarily wrong or illogical. There is a whole feeling and intuition to this game that we have barely begun to understand.”
Nataszo, who was the next mat over, spoke up. “If you are looking to get other weapons enhanced, I can help. It also will help relieve Cata’s stress.”
“Yeah,” Koricata nodded. “They are my associates. Well, really we are a team, I’m not above them in any way. Since we each can only do a few skills, the four of us can team up to be more than a single player can at this early stage. We also are better off with pooled resources at this time.”
“We did some pooling in the beginning,” Bladescape said. “We totally understand.”
Nataszo began to help Knightstar. She enhanced her Anneal Blade three times. +1 Durability, +1 Sharpness, and +1 Quickness. All three took, leaving her with Anneal Blade +3 (1D1S1Q).
Bladescape chose to add Sharpness next, then Accuracy, and finally a second Sharpness. All three took as well. The Ancient Red Sun Sword was now +4 (1Q2S1A).
Natora added +2 Durability to Deliverance, as well as +1 Sharpness and +1 Quickness. All four of hers took as well. Deliverance Doru +4 (2D1S1Q).
Knightstar had done her calculations for Konpeito and Diemond. Konpeito’s axe became the Ancient Dark Steel Dane Axe +3 (1D2S). The fourth enhancement, Heaviness, failed, and although it changed the stats, it wasn’t an outright negative change. Diemond’s Engraved Mace became +3 (1D1T1H). It also failed the fourth enhancement, Accuracy, but it didn’t change the weapons in any way.
Doombunny joined them as they finished paying the smiths for the work done. She put both Koricata and Nataszo to work. She had taken the Ancient Kissaki-moroha Tanto for unclear reasons and now she was making use of it. She had acquired her own materials. The tanto was enhanced +4 Quickness, while her Seax was +1 Durability, +2 Sharpness, and +1 Accuracy. Since daggers were smaller, especially compared to a two-handed sword, they required less materials for each enhancement. Doombunny spent the same amount of money on the materials for eight enhancements as the others did for four. What was more important, was that Doombunny had just doubled her effectiveness, by focusing the tanto on all quickness, she had created a knife entirely suited for slicing engagements, while also having a main weapon that was more versatile. It was an expensive tactic more easily done with the less costly knives.
Doombunny had also purchased a new set of throwing knives, which were player made and better than what she had bought from the NPC store. They came with a custom holster for them. It was on her right leg, right where her hand naturally reached, making accessing them quick and switching in battle would be a snap.
They started to head back to the teleport plaza. Doombunny ended up skipping ahead of them a bit. She was in a very good mood, for an unknown reason, like the warm sun was shining and nothing could stop it.
“Your innocent skipping friend who wouldn’t hurt a fly is starting to get scary,” Natora said to Bladescape and Knightstar. “It’s one thing to get angry and protective when your friends are in danger, but she is setting herself up for those moments to be able to strike with lethal force, not defensively.”
“I know,” Bladescape shrugged. “It's both good and concerning. We can sort it out after we clear the game.”
“I hate to agree with you on that, but that is the best strategy,” Knightstar said. “There is nothing to fix if we die.”
“Offer is still available!” Mo yelled to Bladescape.
Bladescape kept walking, ignoring it.
“I can tell you want it,” Natora said. “What was it again?”
“It’s just a circlet,” Bladescape replied. “Technically it fits in the category of head armor. Some boosting properties.”
“Yeah,” Natora prodded. “And your sword is Plus-Four now. Do you have enough.”
“It’s not worth it,” Bladescape said.
“By saying that, you admit that you have more than enough,” Knightstar said. “So why is it not worth it?”
Bladescape fumbled her words. “Yes, it's pretty. It is gorgeous. I want it because it’s pretty. Yes, it does boost stats so it isn’t a waste of space, but that is secondary and not justification. It is too expensive, especially for a purely vain purchase.”
Natora stopped, which forced Knightstar and Bladescape to halt.
“Okay, how much was it?” Natora asked.
“Twenty-Thousand,” Bladescape said.
“For a rare circlet that would make you look pretty and coincidentally help you be a better fighter?”
“Yes, but looks aren’t everything,” Bladescape returned. “Function and survival are key.”
“It has a function,” Natora stated. “We also are statistically sound when it comes to finances. I don’t know where your personal finances are exactly at, but you and I are not spending stuff on non-combat skills yet. You have to be close to me. In our group, we can easily keep pulling in the Col above what we need for survival. So, either you keep hoarding it with no purpose, or you buy something you will use.”
“And what about you?” Bladescape asked. “Like you said, you are not spending either. What is your excuse?”
“No excuse,” Natora said, grinning. “I’m saving for my next Skill. As soon as I unlock Light Metal Armor, I am going to go out and buy the gnarliest set of armor I can afford. I was already looking at the smiths to see who might be able to make me that set. I’m sick of not having cool armor. I hate not having real armor, but I made the right choice for skills. I regret nothing. I’ll enjoy it all the more when I finally add it and can get me something good and cool.”
They stood there for a moment, no one saying anything. Bladescape still didn’t feel like it was a justifiable cost. The silence got uncomfortable.
Natora sighed. “Just think about what I said, promise?”
“Alright,” Bladescape nodded. “I promise. Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.”
“Fly and cupcake what?” Natora asked, as Knightstar began to laugh. Natora and Bladescape were quickly laughing as well.
“Pinkie Pie made it up,” Bladescape explained. “I didn’t do the motions. It’s a Pinkie Promise and you don’t break those. It makes about as much sense as she usually does, but eventually you will get forced into the ultimate form of a promise and have to say it.”
Natora chuckled. “As long as she doesn’t make me do the gestures, I think I will survive.”
They continued walking. Doombunny was patiently waiting for them. She didn’t seem to notice their absence. They teleported back to Tolbana. They gave Diemond and Konpeito their weapons back. Both were satisfied with the enhancements, and neither minded the failures.
Doombunny stayed back in Tolbana. Natora took over for Malus and Thunderborne, so Kiefer, Reisenki, and Soryuto could continue to grind. Knightstar and Bladescape brought the two of them to see Koricata and Nataszo to get their weapons enhanced.
Mo had been talking to someone when they passed her carpet. What Natora said had been picking at Bladescape and seeing someone else potentially buying the circlet, not that it had been visible, began to really pester her thoughts.
“I need to borrow you for a second,” Bladescape said to Knightstar. “We will be right back.”
Malus and Thunderborne didn’t care as they got their weapons enhanced. Mo wasn’t busy anymore. Bladescape sat Knightstar down in front of her. She sat down behind her, to look over her shoulder.
“You are back,” Mo factually stated.
“Yes,” Bladescape nodded. “I am still interested, if you have it.”
“I do,” Mo nodded. “But what about her?”
“My friend here is the group’s appraiser,” Bladescape stated.
“I see,” Mo said with a coy smile and a nod. She opened the wooden box and produced the circlet. “Have a look for yourself.”
Knightstar took the circlet. She visually inspected it from all angles before she even opened its menu. She took her time analyzing it. The minutes dragged on and Knightstar went back to visually inspecting it, even taking rough measurements, and then opened the menu again. She handed it back and pulled out her book from the chest pouch Diemond had made her, and began to search for something.
Mo decided to break the silence. “How much was the highest bid on your Anneal Blade?”
Knightstar glanced up from her book. “Thirteen-Thousand Two-Hundred. That was before it was enhanced. I haven’t had an offer since.” She went back to flipping through her book, and it began to agitate Mo, despite her best efforts to hide it.
Knightstar closed her book with a snap and slipped it into the pouch. She looked over her shoulder at Bladescape. “I concur with Natora’s earlier deductions.” She got up and went back to Malus and Thunderborne.
Bladescape took a deep breath in and scooted forward. “Twenty-Thousand?”
“That was my offer,” Mo stated. “You certainly have a good group of friends. They all have their uses.”
“They do,” Bladescape said with a nod. She knew what she was going to do, but she didn’t want to seem desperate. She wanted to retain some air of control. “Twenty-Thousand is an acceptable price.”
“A wise decision,” Mo stated with a coy grin.
Bladescape gave her the col and took the Silver Sagacity Circlet. It felt good to have it. She hadn’t wanted something so badly in a long time. She hadn’t desired anything in the game except survival. They had only been in Aincrad a few weeks, but it was weird wanting the circlet. What was weirder was the feeling it sparked. She wanted to feel beautiful. She wasn’t used to that feeling. She knew she was beautiful. Rarity made enough comments to ensure that all of her friends felt more than comfortable in their appearances. Perhaps it was all the armor and the fighting, which had shifted how she perceived herself. Either way, she had the circlet now.
Bladescape slipped it on and felt the cool touch of the silver pressing against her forehead. It felt good to have it. She noticed an immediate change in her perception. She could see Mo’s health bar. Before it had just been her green cursor. She shouldn’t have been able to see it, but the perception boots apparently changed that.
“Thank you,” Bladescape said, bowing a bit in her seated position. “But now I need to get back to my friends.”
“You look beautiful,” Mo said with a smile. “Very pretty. It makes you look like a warrior princess, not an adventurer who is ragged from their travels. Also, you will be hearing from me soon enough, I am sure of that.”
“Alright,” Bladescape nodded. “I look forward to seeing what the working relationship will bring.”
Bladescape got back to the others as Thunderborne dramatically groaned and flopped onto her back.
“Enhancement failed?” Bladescape asked.
“Yep,” Knightstar nodded. “She got three of four.”
“And it didn’t change the rapier,” Nataszo added.
Thunderborne sat up with a sigh. “Thanks. I know you did your best. Plus-Three with four to go is a good outcome and a whole lot better than where I was this morning.”
“How did you make out, Malus?” Bladescape asked.
“Fine,” she shrugged. “First one failed. No big deal. The other three took fine.” Malus looked up at Bladescape. “That’s new. Now I get why you grabbed Knightstar. It looks good on yah. I’m sure Diemond will be able to give yah better compliments than I can. All I really can say is that it looks better than my helmet.”
“Thanks,” Bladescape said, chuckling a bit. She looked at Koricata. “Koricata, Nataszo, thanks for everything. We will be back.”
“Hopefully my heart will have calmed down by then,” Koricata chuckled. “It was good working with you. We are glad we earned your repeat business.”
“And our recommendation,” Knightstar added.
“I think we will pack it up early today,” Nataszo said. “Making weapons or repairing gear, that is easy. You guys poured on the enhancements. Today, and for a little while, it won’t be about the money. But we do need a mental break.”
“You deserve it,” Bladescape said. “We will try not to pile it on like that again.”
“That would be appreciated,” Koricata said. “I’m not opposed to hard work.”
“We get it,” Malus chuckled. “Y’all go get some good food and rest.”
They headed back to Tolbana. On the way, Thunderborne spoke up. “So, Blade, you...uh...bought that?”
“RAINBOW DASH!” Malus exclaimed, swatting her arm.
“What! I just...I wasn’t expecting her to buy head jewelry. I didn’t even know they made jewelry for your head!”
“Then what are crowns or tiaras?” Knightstar asked.
“Duh, a crown and a tiara. That is what they are. Symbols of royalty.”
“When you put your hair in a ponytail, what do you use?” Bladescape asked.
“A scrunchy or band, what else would I use?”
“Do you ever color coordinate that?”
“Well, yeah. It can be fun to color coordinate and Rarity would pester me if I didn’t. But what does that have to do with anything?”
“It’s head jewelry,” Bladescape said. “The ones you use are fabric, but there are diamond scrunchies and very expensive pieces often labeled as accessories. Technically earrings are head jewelry as well. It is all a type of head adornment, just like this circlet. Mine doesn’t just look pretty; it also boosts stats.”
Thunderborne snorted in defeat and teleported to Tolbana. Malus was right behind her.
Bladescape stopped Knightstar. “Hey, what was going on back there? You took an awfully long time examining the circlet. And then your book, I didn’t know you had anything on jewelry in there.”
“I don’t,” Knightstar stated. “I was making her sweat and I was also seeing if my scrutiny would reveal something she was hiding. Especially if she would budge on the price because she had set it too high. In sales, when something gets a lot of scrutiny and it is obviously being done by someone who knows what they are looking at, an inflated item will often be dropped in price before an issue or irregularity is discovered and the sale lost. She didn’t have anything to worry about because she is right, it is a unique piece. There will never be another Silver Sagacity Circlet in SAO. For us being still on the first floor, to have those stats boosters, that was a low price. The problem is, Mo couldn’t afford to sit on it until it could be sold for what it was worth.”
“Why not?” Bladescape asked.
“Because when she sold it to you, she made more than just col. She picked you out as one of the players at the top. Not just because we have money, but because we will be what others emulate. No one is going to go with a circlet when a helmet offers better protection. For a tank, that will always be the case, but for the others, when they see that someone clearing the game is wearing a piece like you are, they will want to emulate it because they will think you have more understanding of its practicality than they do. Some might because it looks pretty, others will trust that the stats swap is somehow more important.
“Is it? No. It's better than nothing, which you were using, but it isn’t better than a helmet and it would take a huge amount of boosting stats to offset the actual defensive properties of the best helmets available at any given time. That is a statistical improbability. It certainly looks very pretty and it suits you. I don’t mean to retract any of those facts. I am really saving the compliments to Rarity. The point is, you know it's not better than a helmet, but you also know it has its place, on your head, for your own reasons.
“Until someone can show the others the value of wearing a circlet or similar pieces instead of a helmet, the price is going to be low. She is betting on you being the one to show the others a side to equipment more than defensive stats. I think she bet right. If she did, by floor three she could probably sell a circlet half as powerful and without the gem for a Hundred-Thousand, if not more. But that is the nature of pieces like that, they rely on perceived value. Well, everything relies on perceived value, that is how a cash market system works, but pieces like jewelry always require heavier perception because outside of aesthetics, they don’t do anything. Well, real jewelry. Your circlet certainly does more than look pretty.”
“I noticed the increase in perception,” Bladescape said. “I can see HP bars if I am close enough to a player. Like yours is visible right now, Mo’s was as soon as I put it on. I’m sure more will come about as Search is leveled up and expanding what the percentage modifiers are boosting.”
“Interesting,” Knightstar said, thinking. “The perception statistic was vague.”
“Let’s go,” Bladescape said.
Knightstar nodded and they teleported to Tolbana. When they got back, the others were done hunting. Everyone was eating dinner, half cooked by Konpeito, half bought.
Diemond absolutely loved the circlet. She showered Bladescape with compliments past what Bladescape was expecting. She couldn’t stop staring at it either.
They went to bed early, so they could hit the labyrinth early. Bladescape caught Diemond in the hallway.
“Is everything okay?” Bladescape asked.
“Oh, yes,” Diemond said. It wasn’t even marginally convincing. Bladescape just looked at Diemond until she explained. She sighed, “truthfully, I’m a bit jealous of you, that is all.”
“What do you mean?” Bladescape asked.
“I don’t mind being a Tank. I actually am enjoying it more than I expected. I wasn’t expecting to enjoy it, but I am. And beyond the whole, ‘it's for the good of the team’ satisfaction.’ It’s just, as a Tank, I will have to wear the big suits of armor. I am sure I will find something fabulous, but I won’t get to wear pretty circlets like you can. At least not into battle. That is what I am jealous of. I’m happy you have it. I’m sure you paid a good deal for it too.
“I can’t exactly complain. Everything I get is going into sewing. The enhancements on my mace had to have cost a good amount, but I didn’t pay. I know you three have it worked out, and I know you will say you will make out in the end once I can really begin to make you all outfits and armor. I already made us the capes, pouches, and comfortable sleepwear. I made sleepwear for Kiefer, Reisenki, and Soryuto today too. I know that you see the long-term value. It just...it's not the same in here as it is back home. I think that is what I am missing, home.”
“And all your jewelry and clothes, and pretty shiny stuff,” Bladescape said. “But remember, Rarity, you are Diemond in here, both the E and A spellings.”
“Thanks, darling,” Rarity said, smiling back.
“Have a good night,” Bladescape said.
“You too,” Diemond replied.
Bladescape entered her room. Natora was already in bed, but she was awake. Bladescape swapped her armor for her sleepwear and sat on the edge of the bed.
“I’m really glad you bought it,” Natora said. “It was a good find, a good buy, and you look really pretty in it. Well, not that you didn’t look pretty before. You know what I mean.”
Bladescape chuckled. “Yeah, I do. And thanks. It was worth it just for the looks and the boosts are more than I expected.” Bladescape slipped under the covers. “By the way, how much should I chip in to help cover the cost for Diemond and Konpeito’s enhancements?”
“Nothing,” Natora said. “Knightstar figured out a way to play the NPC market. All the buying and selling I was doing for Konpeito and Diemond, she was recording it. All of it. She noticed some trends, and figured out when prices were going to shift due to my skill. Over the past week I’ve been playing that market, in between the shops. It’s not a big money maker, and it almost is more trouble than it is worth with the running around I have been doing, but it paid for their enhancements. We had planned on giving up on it and probably still will. I’m certain that some of those merchants were playing a similar market as we were.”
“Okay,” Bladescape yawned. “I feel like we did nothing today, while at the same time, I feel like we jammed a week’s worth into a single day.”
“I feel the same way,” Natora replied. “Now, go to sleep.”
BLADESCAPE: Level 13 — Two-Handed Sword — Searching — Weapon Defense — Leather Armor
NATORA: Level 13 — Two-Handed Spear — Purchase Negotiations — Sales Negotiation — Weapon Defense
KNIGHTSTAR: Level 13 — One-Handed Sword — Shield — Light Metal Armor — Equipment Appraisal
MALUS: Level 13 — One-Handed War Hammer — Shield — Light Metal Armor — First Aid
THUNDERBORNE: Level 13 — Rapier — Sprint — Acrobatics — Weapon Defense
KONPEITO: Level 13 — Two-Handed Axe — Cooking — Weapon Defense — Light Metal Armor
DIEMOND: Level 13 — Mace — Shield — Sewing — Light Metal Armor
DOOMBUNNY: Level 13 — One-Handed Dagger — Hide — Fighting Spirit — Blade Throwing
KIEFER: Level 8 — One-Handed Curved Sword — Slash Weapon Forging — Light Metal Armor
SORYUTO: Level 8 — One-Handed Sword — Shield — Light Metal Armor
REISENKI: Level 8 — One-Handed Axe — Shield — Light Metal Armor