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nAfter replenishing his bullets, Krow took to the wilds rather than continue accepting quests in Gremut, only taking harvest quests to increase his material inventory.

nIt took two days of rabidly seeking out monster nests to gain the necessary HP to break through the beginner threshold.

nHe had to dodge players looking to form a party more than once.

nThe offers tapered off once they realized what he was doing.

n'You're not taking quests? Are you an idiot?' was the common thread.

n'That mothmarmot kill was probably dumb luck.'

n'What was the reward anyway? RP? Useless.'

n'You're being a scrub. I have friends already in a guild. Come with us and you won't be fumbling around like you are now.'

nKrow ignored them and continued heading outside Gremut alone.

nHe'd encountered more mothmarmots but just small packs, nothing like the Hidden quest. There were also the jumping foxpikas, the jasmine spiders, the batwing yaks. And the windrats. Windrat nests were everywhere.

nEverywhere.

nKrow was sure more than half the monsters he'd butchered these two days were windrats.

nYou have gained one (1) level to achieve Lvl 5!

nYou will no longer be offered Beginner Quests.

nCongratulations! The general game Map has been unlocked with your ascension to Lvl 5!

nCongratulations! The Quest rewards sorting function has been unlocked with your ascension to Lvl 5!

nCongratulations! The Equipment Set function has been unlocked with your ascension to Lvl 5!

nKrow smiled at the last. It was the Equipment Sets that gave half a chance for solo players to keep up with general gameplay.

nUnfortunately, the full potential of the Sets was only possible when players gathered a sufficient amount of armor and accessories plus the knowledge to synergize them, which only normally happened in the higher levels.

nThe notifications burst into fireworks.

nA spinning wheel appeared within all the sparks and confetti. It stopped.

nYou have won one (1) Golden Giftbox from the Artifact category!

nEh, he wasn't even the one who spun it?

nHe opened the box.

nYou have acquired one (1) pair of Mainomai Stardew Earrings!

nKrow studied the jewelry accessory.

nMainomai Stardew Earrings

nQuality: C Rare

nA pair of twilight ruby earrings created by the eccentric master jewelsmith Gedidhos Daryaran, in a forge fed by volcanoes and the howling seawinds, quenched in a pool watched over by mourning stars. Gives Mental Clarity 1 for every 10 MND, lessening the effects of external mental influence. Gives Madness 10, rendering wearer more susceptible to external mental influences.

nEh?

nThe Mental Clarity buff was useful in caves, ruins, graveyards, etc against the emotion-based debuffs of ghosts and undead. Also, anywhere the undead roamed, there were likely more than a few trying to possess and mind-control the living.

nMental Clarity was a good buff, and the name of the accessory was promising, not to mention it was rated a C Rare, but…

nMadness 10??

nWho'd want to wear it?!

nThe Madness debuff could be alleviated by Mental Clarity, but what gaming god would have 110 MND at the start of the game?

nWeeping skies, game makers, this reward is broken?

nDoes nobody vet the starting rewards??

nThe earrings had small purple-red stones set in fine gold, the design unobtrusive. He tossed them into the inventory with a black face.

nAt least give out useful rewards, Norge!

nNo, this was no time to be ranting. He still had three quests unfinished on the quest docket. The last two of his harvest quests, and a hunting quest.

nIt was fine if he didn't do them, but there were RP milestone rewards for successive quest success.

nNot to mention, that hunting quest he got at the tavern…

nHe checked his bullets again. Unnecessary, as Lachot's caravan had come by yesterday already. They'd been willing to part with a hundred-item crate each of regular and stun-round packs. With each pack containing 30 bullets, he had three thousand of each bullet.

nHe'd also acquired several crates of Minor Paralyzing Mist Vials, Minor Monster Bait, and Monstrepel Sachets.

nIn his inventory lay twenty sets of Common butcher knives, ten Common spike bayonets – a Soldier subclass weapon, ten Common shovels – a Scout and Tracker 'weapon', tens sets of grappling hooks, a collection of torches and lamps, and a ton of rope.

nWith the Paralyzing Mist, Monster Bait, and rope, he could make several different kinds of traps.

nThat was how he had the courage to take quests at night while he was still under the recommended Lvl 10.

nBut it had been night for a few hours now, which meant moonset was near.

nCertain monsters changed under the light of Enilhadrad. They were hardier and more vicious. But Krow was confident enough in his knowledge that he didn't mind doing minor quests after nightfall.

nNightfall was one thing.

nMoonset was a different matter.

nMoonset happened around midnight – Enilhadrad, which rose slowly at late morning, started to set and a different breed of beings woke up – after moonset, assassins, ghouls, all manner of illegal shenanigans are done.

nDwarves and magmigants start their day-cycle.

nMore relevantly, the shadow beasts come out – nightblade vultures, fire-eyed furies, crystal anglers – all monster types that attack unceasingly.

nThese were party-level monsters.

nThe first half of the night was still lively, the streets were still lit by moonlight, nightmarkets were open and taverns were full of raucous noise.

nBut the second half of the night was eerie, silent and echoing.

nWalking through the market plaza, where the tents of travelers were erected for the night's rest, Krow could hear himself breathe suddenly. Just a few hours earlier, this place rang with music and laughing children.

n

"Hey!

" A vargvir guard jogged toward him, lamp held high.

"Which group are you from?

"

n

"I'm headed to the mountain,

" Krow shaded his eyes from the glow of the swinging lamp.

"Moon-bramble can only be harvested at night.

"

nThe guard scoffed, her eyes narrowed. She nodded to the setting moon, its crown still visible over the horizon.

"It's moonset.

"

n

"I was delayed.

" He'd come across a burrow of shellback molerats, and couldn't resist harvesting their shells and teeth.

"Don't worry, I won't move far from the village.

"

n

"I'll be accompanying you.

" She made a few hand signs at a shadow that seemed darker than others, before waving at him to go on.

n

"That's fine.

" Krow ignored the guard's obvious mix of concern and suspicions, started walking toward an area marked in the map as 'Old Orchard' where the quest said there were moon-brambles.

nThe quests after this would rarely give so much data unless the player dug for it, but that was a small price to pay for greater rewards and the unlocked map; semi-unlocked, really.

nThe 'general map' that said it was unlocked only gave the locations of the capital cities of each nation, no more. The player still had to travel the map for it to become more detailed.

nThe guard grew more suspicious as Krow took the small paths that moved higher and higher on the mountainside. But he was walking ahead of her and with no weapon in hand, so she still followed.

nHe stopped.

"We're here.

"

nThe Old Orchard was a mass of ancient gnarled rime-apple trees, a clearing that was half-under an overhang. He walked carefully through, spying some trees that still bore the blue and white apples. Even without the sound of footsteps, he knew the guard was following closely.

nThen he saw his objective immediately – they shone pale light under the starry sky, illuminating the underside of the rime-apple trees for as far as the eye could see.

nThe vargvir guard exclaimed in surprise.

"How are there so many?

"

nEh. One quest asked for bramble stalks, the other for bramble roots, so Krow wasn't going to complain. He dropped down, butcher knife in hand, and started looking under the brambles.

n

"What are you doing?

"

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"You can't just start pulling moon-brambles up, or they'll harden their thorns against you. Well, they'll do that anyway, but it's easier to look for the older clusters, which have duller thorns. Not to mention they yield better quality.

"

nKrow used to be a forester; he'd dealt with moon-bramble before.

nMoon-bramble grew everywhere that moonlight touched and the materials were used extensively in both cooking and potions. Those scummy batards in Findrakon even farmed it.

nThe older clusters were more potent – they were distinct from the younger ones because of the dried out stalks that surrounded them.

nYounger clusters had healthy stalk collections, the older ones had stalks that died out over the years.

nThe more dried stalks around the surviving ones, the better the bramble material – not to mention, you can hack away at the dried stalks without worrying that the rest of them will retaliate.

n

"I'll be here a while, so you can go back if you want.

"

nThe vargvir guard snorted, disappeared into the trees, the glow of the lamp fading with her. Krow didn't know if that meant she was going back or if she was just being sneaky.

nHe shrugged.

nHe was going to spend hours hacking at tough stalks with a butcher knife, then digging up roots with a shovel. Who cared about watchers?

nThe harvesting techniques weren't a secret, just really tiring.

nKrow had to be careful not to disturb the younger clusters or he'd be avoiding their thorns in addition to the cluster he was harvesting.

nBy the time he was done, the durability on the knife and shovel was low enough to need maintenance. The durability on his clothes and gloves were high enough that they didn't need to be repaired.

nHe stretched, bending his waist left and right.

n

"Map.

"

nThe world map appeared, instead of the village one.

n

"Locate me.

"

nA map of the Old Orchard spread across the frame.

nIt was a fairly large orchard, at least a kilometer in full length, but rarely wider than a hundred meters. The last quest-location was blinking in an unknown region in the north, further from the village than recommended.

nKrow rolled his shoulders, did a few sets of calisthenics. The muscles that had strained with the harvest eased as he stretched.

nHe strolled to a rime-apple tree, reached out to take one of the few available fruits. The orchard was centuries old; that it still had trees that produced fruit was fantasy logic. He couldn't outright think of a use for rime-apples except eating, and they weren't exactly rare.

nAlso, they were delicious. He crunched a second bite, then a third, until only the core was left. It was sweet and crisp, juicy, refreshingly colder than any just-picked fruit had a right to be, and a single fruit had lowered his Exhaustion debuff to Minor Exhaustion.

nWhoa. That was just as potent as a Low Revitalit.

nWere rime-apples always so powerful or was it the game? He looked around. Was it the age of the trees, the location? He considered, then tossed the apple core into his Inventory.

nHe should get an apothecary to examine them, later. Right now, he had a quest to finish. He walked northward, picking apples.

nA crunch sounded behind him. He paused, the apple in his hand still halfway to his mouth.

n

"You're still here?

"

n

"You're further from the village than safe.

" The guard crunched her own apple again.

n

"No beast would breach the brambles.

" Krow only glanced at her, and continued on his way.

nShe grunted skeptically.

nEh, bad luck. Krow was certain the reason she was still there was so he didn't kite any of the shadow beasts deliberately or accidentally toward the village and the caravans resting outside it

nUsing monsters as distraction or in PK was still in common use as viable parts of battle strategy.

nAnd shadow beasts, more than other daylight monsters, didn't relent once someone was caught in their territory or range.

nHe glanced at the map that he still had out. There was a ravine to the northwest, just past the edge of the orchard. If he crossed that, he'd lose her maybe.

nHe angled his steps subtly west.

nKrow was, in fact, going toward a shadow beast territory.

nHow else could his last quest be marked 'Rare'?

nHe'd never heard of a Rare beginner quest before.

nHe meandered through the glowing moon-brambles and rime-apple trees, picking the occasional apple and pretending he wasn't going anywhere.

nBy the time he came to the edge of the ravine, the horizon had buried the last slivers of moonlight.

n