Although the Beginners’ Town was called a town, it would have been more apt to call it a city. The streets were made of clear-cut and clean grey cobblestones. NPC carriages came and went slowly between rows of planted trees while pedestrians tranquilly walked in the alleys between the trees and the buildings. Most of those were two to three stories tall houses and almost all of them were made of red brick and mortar, while pillars of wood ran through their walls. A few buildings were different: they were taller and made of white stone and wooden painted panels hung outside their doors. Those were the most important buildings in the eyes of Players: depending on the buildings’ symbols, they contained Merchants, Blacksmiths, Alchemists, or Adventurers and Mercenaries.
Adventurers and Mercenaries were two competing Professions, each under the umbrella of their respective Guild. They took on Quests and Missions from NPCs, and those part of their Guilds could participate in those. Players would register with either of them, depending on their whims. Most did not even know or care if there was a difference between the two. Jake had more experience thanks to the Beta and already knew which he preferred: while during the Beta he had registered with the Adventurers’ Guild, this time he would register with the Mercenaries. Switching Guilds was not forbidden or even detrimental, it took time and resources. And Jake would rather do the Mercenaries Quests, as they were the more military-like organization. They had many more Combat-type Quests, mostly related to Bandits and Monsters, and often cooperated with the NPC Guards. Meanwhile, the Adventurers Quests were more about gathering resources, like mining, harvesting herbs, and hunting rare Monsters for their corpses.
As Jake had not registered yet, he took a detour to pass in front of the Mercenaries’ Guild. His hope of quickly registering were dashed: the line went from one end of the street to the other and even extended around the block. He sighed. Whatever. He would register in the City later on. Glancing at the clock, he accelerated. It was already 17: 58: 23. He could not stay much longer if he wanted to have dinner with Charlotte. Almost running, he took a right and then a left and kept walking until he arrived in front of a huge plaza. The Town’s Square.
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Currently, it was filled with NPCS at counters, shouting out the names of items and their prices, NPCs shopping at those very counters and small scuffles between Players trying to haggle and buy out items. The overall chaotic atmosphere made Jake smile. Deftly navigating his way through the crowd, Odin stopped at a few stalls, observing the equipment sold and its price tags with a critical eye. This early in the Beta, he’d be lucky to find anything at the Iron grade of quality. He finally stopped in front of a thin and emaciated NPC wearing a red shirt under his black fur coat. Looking up, Odin frowned. A wooden sign read “Marvin’s Wares”. Jack had encountered this specific NPC during the Beta. He sold good equipment, for this stage of the game. But it was pricy, for an unnecessary reason. Haggling with Marvin would lower the price of buying his equipment, and also grant a Title: “Haggler”.
The title did not need to be equipped to apply its effect, which was making NPC merchants easier to haggle with. It was an essential title, except the process of obtaining it was… stupid. And painful. First, you had to find a NPC merchant with a Level equal or higher than 5. In the Beginner’s Town, 3 such NPCs existed. One of them was Marvin. Then, you “only” had to haggle with them. For a long time. A very long time. A painfully long time. Taking a deep breath, Odin took a step forward, approaching the NPC. Marvin’s head turned with a peculiar glint in his eyes. A new victim had presented itself.
10 minutes later, Odin walked out of the marker, his wallet emptied and his mind numb. Jack had bought three different equipment from Marvin. They were all bought Common Defensive Equipment and only provided flat VIT to Odin. But the flat VIT was exactly what a glass cannon needed.
[Boiled Leather Armor] (Common Armor)
Level 0
+ 10 VIT
+ 5 Physical Resistance
+ 5 Magical Resistance
Durability 20/20
[Boiled Leather Boots] (Common Boots)
Level 0
+ 10 VIT
+ 5 Physical Resistance
+ 5 Magical Resistance
Durability 20/20
[Boiled Leather Pants] (Common Pants)
Level 0
+ 10 VIT
+ 5 Physical Resistance
+ 5 Magical Resistance
Durability 20/20
Common Equipment had higher stats than the Garbage quality as well as more Durability and Resistances. Now, Odin had graduated from the state of a glass cannon to a relatively well balanced character. Jack had equipped them as soon as he got them, as he felt naked with only 40 HP. Now, with 340 HP, he felt a lot better. Taking one last look at the alley he hid his character in, he disconnected from Arcadia.