Ten hours later, after hours spent practicing, killing monsters, eating, exploring the city and a quick shopping trip to buy Kai the cheapest spear they found for three gold, the trio made their way back towards the farmhouse.
"You came!" A grizzled shout spread across the farmland, "I was starting to fear I might have to move the chickens inside after all."
"Of course. So, where's the chicken coop?" Arson said back, as they made their way towards the old farmer. They were quickly led to the back of the building, where a large wooden hut was built.
"All of 'em are in there, and the door's the only way in. I imagine it'll be simple enough for you to wait here." The farmer said, before he headed back. "Call me if you need anything. Oh, and I'm making tea if you want any."
Saying their thanks, Kai and his friends found a comfortable place to sit, and keep watch. "I have dark vision, so I'll be keeping watch. Droozle, you be ready to attack anything I point out. Kai, be ready for close quarters combat, it's your job to make sure nothing sneaks past the door." Arson said once each of them found a cozy enough spot to wait at.
Five minutes later, the farmer came with a pot of tea, wooden cups, and an oil lamp that doubled as a stove. It was delicious, a flavorful blend of some herbs Kai was unfamiliar with, while keeping them warm beneath the darkening sky.
A couple hours of clucking hens later, Arson quietly spoke while pointing towards the darkness, "There, something moved fifty yards in that direction."
Droozle quickly drew his bow as he formed an ice arrow from his water flask on his belt. "I don't see it," he said.
Kai grabbed his new spear with both hands as Arson grabbed his sword, both prepared for combat.
"It's getting closer," Arson whispered, as quiet rustling slowly became audible.
A loud whomp broke the silence, as Droozle took his shot. Then a second, and third rapidly followed in barely two seconds. "Shit, that made it angry!" Arson shouted.
For the first time, Kai saw the creature. It was a fox, which wasn't much of a surprise, covered in fluffy dark orange fur with streaks of silver, barely visible in the light cast by the small oil lamp, and much larger than it had any right to be.
Nightclad Fox (Hens Bane), Level 17 criminal.
Monsters had reputation? Kai briefly wondered, before the large fox dashed directly towards the henhouse door. Quickly activating shadow stride and lightning reflexes, Kai dashed towards the leaping fox, spear aimed right at the fox's head. It was a direct hit, sending the fox tumbling right into the coop wall, where the injured fox dissolved into the darkness. Losing track of the creature, Kai decided to deactivate shadow stride, it was too mana expensive to keep up when outside of immediate combat.
"Nice hit!" Droozle shouted, "Stand in front of the door, so it can't just sneak in the coop." He ordered Kai, who promptly followed suit.
It was quiet for the briefest moment, "Watch out!" Arson shouted. The fox reformed inches before its claws struck Kai's abdomen. Even with his reflex skill still active, Kai's response was a moment too late, as the sword he used for close combat went flying from his hands as Kai fell on his back.
Arrows of ice smashed into the fox's side near simultaneously, distracting the fox enough for it to jump to the side as it once again dissolved in shadow. Arson quickly gave Kai the heal he desperately needed. "Droozle! We need fire to see it clearly! Even with my night vision, I can barely see it."
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"On it!" Droozle's replied to Arson's command.
"Shouldn't it be Arson who's lighting fires?"
"Don't you worry 'bout that, just focus on attacking the fox." Droozle answered, as he pulled the stopper off a glowing flask he pulled out of his rucksack. Then Droozle swung his arms spraying the liquid light, no, liquid fire, in a wide arc around him. The entire farm was flooded in light as the flames burst high in the air with a deep whomp.
For a moment, Kai was blinded, but so was everyone else, including the fox. The moment when Kai's eyes focused enough to sheet vague shapes, he made out the dark outline of the fox. Droozle was already filling it with ice, Arson was slashing at it with his sword, and Kai decided it was time to join in the fun. With a leap, Kai activated Thunderspear dance, smashing his spear into the fox's side, though at that point it was already dead.
Congratulations, you completed the quest: Lost chickens: creatures discovered: 1/1, creatures killed 1/1, chickens alive: 52/52. Your reputation has increased by +200. Skill: shadow stride, novice 2, has increased to novice 4. Skill: lightning reflexes, novice 3, has increased to novice 4. Skill: melee combat, novice 5, has increased to novice 7. Hit points have increased from 14 to 17. Stamina has increased from 10 to 11. Mana has increased from 16 to 18. Talk to old farmer Jack for further rewards.
That was a lot of notifications, Kai thought, until he was interrupted by a shout from behind him.
"What in the name of Catres is going on?" The Voice of the old farmer echoed through the night. "Help me extinguish the fire before it burns everything down!"
Reputation has decreased by -5.
—
Keeping the farm from burning had taken a good chunk of the night, but with Droozle's water skill, a few buckets, shadow stride, and a lot of panicking, the fire was prevented from spreading, and eventually extinguished. With that done, Arson explained how the fire had been necessary, and not entirely thought out in the heat of the moment, profusely apologizing.
"It's fine, no harm done. But you did scare me half to death. Anyway, I imagine you want to see what I've got planned as a reward for you?" Old farmer Jack said, before leading them in the farmhouse. "Here, five gold for each of you. I'd give you more money if I could, so instead I'm going to give you… this!" The farmer said, presenting a large jar of a golden liquid once he'd given the trio their coins.
"And what is it?"
"It's honey!" Jack enthusiastically said. "My Pa gathered it, told me to never open the jar when I was a young lad. He used to always take it on hunting trips with him."
"Thank you… it's a welcome gift." Kai slowly said, puzzled at the sudden silence of his friends. Quickly glancing at them, Kai saw their shocked faces, and understood perfectly. All that for just five gold, and a jar of honey. Kai looked at the smooth honey once more, and had to admit, it looked delicious. Infact, it looked heavenly, so much so that Kai couldn't draw his gaze from the golden ichor.
Your level isn't high enough to view item details.
That brought a stop to Kai's thoughts of honey. He hadn't known he could see item details the same way he could see player details, let alone the fact that there were items that he wouldn't be able to appraise because of a level gap.
"Thank you, glad we could be of assistance! Have a nice night!" Arson told the farmer, before grabbing the honey, and heading straight out of the building. "We need to bring this to an appraiser. This… might be worth a fortune." Arson barely whispered the moment Droozle and Kai followed him outside. They could only agree.
Making their way back to the city in the middle of the night was dangerous, so the trio made a simple system. Kai would carry the honey, while Arson and Droozle focused on taking out any monsters the moment they became visible. If they were to come across a swarm, or if Droozle or Arson were incapacitated, it would be Kai's job to activate Shadow stride, and run towards the city as quickly as possible.
Five monsters, and seven minutes later, the group made it to the city, where they immediately searched for a safe zone so they could log out. It was a good time for all of them to get some sleep, and they could log in when it was day, so they could go to an appraiser as quickly as possible. Losing the jar of honey couldn't be risked in the slightest.
Once again, Kai opened his eyes in the sterile white room, though he had felt the moment of logging out, when all feeling disappeared from his body. Unable to even sigh, Kai closed his eyes and slept. Oddly enough, he did so better than he had in what felt like an eternity, his dreams for once absent of nightmares.