You have successfully removed [Tuna scale] – 99.5%
My sweaty clothes clung to me like shit to a cow’s arse… unpleasantly.
“One more effing scale… you can do this… just breath.”
Wind it up, like the last 47 times I did… step, step and pivot… My sword whirled round as I crouch spun on the fish’s tail, and for the 48th time in a row, the blade caught the underside of the scale and sheared it right off.
You have attempted to use [Butcher] on [Tuna remains], you are unskilled
Right, still need to turn that off. Urgh later.
You have successfully removed [Tuna scale] – 100%
[Tuna remains]
Hardiness: 10, Durability: 290
“Hardiness 10?! I still won’t be able to do any damage, but perhaps if I break it down and focus on the weak points again, like the scales?”
Nothing was coming up when I examined the head or tail or anything else.
“Ahh, fark it.”
Tired was creeping in around my eyes, and I knew I should just go to bed, but I had come so far, just a little more couldn’t hurt.
With my weary arms I hefted my sword once more, lined up the fish’s neck and huffed as I brought the blade down.
The sword thudded against the fish and an ache of pain flashed across my wrists as I hit my target. A loud chink filled the room. But there was nothing, I'd been so focused on getting those scales I hadn't even noticed the fish's head was as hard as farking steel!!!
I looked down at the sword in dismay. My sword was broken, I didn't even know swords could snap in half, maybe ordinary swords could, but being that this was just dad's ornamental sword meant for display only, probably made sense. Gods... I wonder if dad made it out of Earth? Is he okay? Is everyone okay? Please god let them be okay.
Great… another thing to add to the growing list of things to do. I’ll need to visit the black smith tomorrow, search for some new skills like some sort of leader skill, oh and of course find the [Butcher] skill.
In the morning a burly demi-green frog sat down at the other end of the bench in the serving room, he stood out like a green thumb.
Kae Woo? A sign perhaps that the NPC pathways were changing? It couldn’t be… There was no time like the present to find out. The seat opposite Kae Woo was free, he had his exotic swords by his side, sported a circular straw hat, and a loosely worn black cape wrapped around his neck that also covered his left side.
“Good morning?”
His large rectangular pupils flicked up at me, “Hmph! There is no good, or bad, only illusion.” He carefully took a sit of whatever it was he was drinking. Is this a quest dialogue? How did I miss this? Maybe I really am a Zombie head.
“Umm… but surely murder is bad, and feeding the poor is good?” I meekly tried.
His brows intensified. “The greatest evil is to look on and do nothing,” he said, his eyes narrowed at me pulverising my ego with his sagely stare and I immediately thought of the cat-woman mother whom had been outside the past couple of days.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.
Urgh! This guy’s AI is super annoying.
There was no point continuing a conversation with an NPC that seemed to have a few screws loose and I left the inn.
She was there again today, and even though she was just NPC, something was tugging at my heart strings.
“Excuse me Sir?!” the peasant cat-woman said, approaching me again as I exited the Frog’s Pond. “My children, they’ve been taken…”
Well… maybe with the mercenaries…
“What happened…?”
Her eyes shot open and the hope beamed from her face.
“They didn’t do anything! They’re innocent little children, yet they’ve taken them and locked them up!” she said, stretching her arms out as if to hold me, yet she didn’t touch me.
Quest: “Weight of the Truth’
Locked them up in what, like a jail? Guess I could check that out at some point…
“Yeah, umm, I’ll look into it at some point…” The weight on my chest lessened just a little.
“Thank you nya, thank you so much. Please if you find anything out I’ll be over in [Bright End]”
The jail wasn’t an immediate priority, so I head to—
The Fishermen’s Friend tugged on his fishing rod. “Can’t keep you away?” he said looking up at me, “well boy… if you’re up for it, I could use your help,” his face was stern like.
“Umm yeah?”
“I need 10,000 Queen Celes Whiting, for the upcoming royal festival. Do you think you can help me out?” he looked right at me, all puppy-dog like.
You have been offered the quest ‘The Queen’s Fish’.
[Accept / Reject]
NPCs are definitely on a script… Yah nooo.
“Well, if you change your mind, you know where to find me…”
“Actually, I was wondering if I could ask you a question?”
He nodded and smiled.
“Sure, what is it? Ask me anything.”
Contrast to what I was expecting, no list of dialogue options appeared...
"I need to get my hands on some new skills?"
“Can’t keep you away?” he repeated, “well boy… if you’re up for it, I could use your…
“Err, yeah, no, sorry to bother you,” I said cutting him off.
On the way back to the market I spotted a random black cat pounce straight through a solid brick wall. Err what? The wall was between two shop fronts. When I placed my hand on the it, it just went straight through. Curiouser and curiouser. Interestingly, the secret area wasn’t on my Dagon map. I stepped through and was greeted with a dark alley, at the end of it stood a giant stone samurai statue. It was dark, ominous and daunting. Yeah, nah thanks. This seemed like a very good way to get myself killed. I turned to leave—
Thwack!
“Ahh crap!” I held my knee and head in agony, trying to hold off the pain, but thankfully my health bar did its trick again and healed the damage and relieved the ache.
I put my hand to the wall, but no matter where I felt, it was completely solid.
“Brutus?! Matilda?”
I was stuck in the alley way, alone, with no side doors or other exits, the only obvious thing was to inspect the statue, which seemed like an obvious trap and a really stupid idea. This is definitely the class job quest, which isn’t good. If the quest activates some sort of combat test, then I’m as good as dead. I walked over to the statue and hoped that that wasn’t the case.
It stood a good 20 feet tall, as tall as a two-storey house. It was leaning on one sword and had another sword resting on its shoulder. The statue had a carved helmet, a scary demon mask, chest armour paired with shoulder guards, sleeves, a skirt, thigh protection, and shin guards. There was an inscription at its base.
Hmm, reward? How about just let me out of here!
I touched the stone carved inscription. Everything went black, and I felt the similar gut-wrenching effects as the teleport scroll. Wait, what am I doing? Am I an idiot or something! My dumb curious gamer mind had overridden my natural sense of danger. Light returned to my eyes and I tumbled down on to a rough obsidian surface. The area was enclosed with sharp black crags and spikes, within them were cavities or caves.
Ok… maybe this isn’t so bad. I mean what’s the worst that can happen?
The cavities and caves had come alive with wispy shadows.
Um, that doesn’t look good.
The shadowy fiends started streaming down the crags, thousands of them.
“Err, no thanks!” How do I get out here?! “Cancel!”, “I give up!”, “Abort quest!” I spewed out the verbal commands, but nothing was happening.
One of the creatures, a front runner, was only 100 metres away but closing in fast. It looked like a Samurai shadow, it raised its dark wispy spear, plumes of dark smoke erupting from it.
“Come on! Cancel quest!” I yelled. 50 metres. “Exit!” 25 metres. “Abandon quest!” 10 metres.
Would you like to abandon the quest?
The creature bared down upon me, its white insidious eyes fixed. “YES!” I said as I reeled back from it. The creature’s dark aura enveloped me and all I could see was a sharp pointy tip closing in.
I stumbled to the cobble stoned path, gasping for air, my whole body shaking like a jackhammer.
“Haha! I made it!” I pumped my fists into the sky, before my legs wobbled and gave out from under me, landing me squarely on my arse.
I almost died… I’m such an idiot… why did I even do that?
Tears rolled down my cheeks and landed in my lap.
This isn’t a game anymore, and I have to survive, no matter what.
A hand to the wall told me the alley wall was now solid and impassable.
Must be a timed event, perhaps, or, you only get one shot, nah that couldn’t be it surely. That whole thing was incredibly stupid of me, I had no information about this quest so I should never have followed that dumb cat… Wait, where did that cat end up anyways?