Enthusiastic citizen Yu Yu
Yun Lun's recommendation proved invaluable. After diving into the library's tomes, many of Yu Yu's questions found answers. For instance, she finally decided on her first passive.
[Nightingale Meditation]
This passive would accelerate her Spirit recovery, with even greater benefits when actively used. As for her skill point, Yu Yu held off. None of her current skills warranted spending it yet. Skills also had proficiency levels, and hers were led by Acid Ray at 65, followed by Self-Ignition at 39, and Gust at 14.
Acid Ray still needed 35 more casts to level up.
Her current stats were as follows:
[Yu]
Status: Townsperson
Class: Apprentice Spellcaster
Level: 2 (377/500)
Money: 0 Gold, 5 Silver, 0 Copper
Attributes: Spirit 10, Will 7, Strength 5, Dexterity 3, Constitution 5, Charisma 4
Passives: Language & Writing (Allen Peninsula), Nightingale Meditation
Skills: Candlelight, Self-Ignition, Gust, Acid Ray, Magic Ember
Quest: Plant Black-Tailed Redheart Grass (Repeatable)
Equipment: None
Inventory: Empty
Yesterday's bug nest raid yielded four items, all sold for a total of 9 silver and 100 bucks. Adding the 2 silver from her quest and subtracting the 6 silver she owed, she was left with 5 silver.
Yu Yu visited the general store, purchasing a small jar of fire oil for 1 silver 50 copper, a bundle of oilcloth for 10 copper, and a hemostatic salve for 50 copper. Her funds dwindled to 2 silver 90 copper. A small waist pouch caught her eye, but at 10 silver, it was a dream she quickly shelved.
Gotta make more money.
The planting quest wasn't time-intensive, likely rewarding 2 silver and a spell. Without extra income, she'd need five quests to afford that pouch.
Money, money, money.
With just over 2 silver left, Yu Yu headed to the Academy and learned a new spell. Among the remaining cantrips, there was another attack spell, but she didn't need it. Her Spirit was limited, and even after boosting it to 11, her Spirit pool was only 30.
More attack spells wouldn't help if she couldn't cast them. Instead, she picked Detect Magic. Who knows? Maybe she'd stumble across a treasure chest.
Preparations complete, Yu Yu left the city. The bug-killing quests were gone, but slaying bugs still offered experience and pocket change. Why pass that up?
At the gate, she spotted a guard posting a notice and paused to read.
[Outsiders, show restraint. Removing the blacksmith's pants without permission is forbidden. Violators will face severe punishment. —Town Hall]
Yu Yu smirked. So the guard's shift change tomorrow was real. She'd share that on the forum later. Finding a bug nest took some time, but it was familiar work. Yu Yu dispatched the bugs with practiced ease, slaughtering them cleanly.
This time, she decided to test Magic Ember. The incantation was simple. A pale blue flame flickered in her palm, and she examined it with childlike curiosity, turning her hand this way and that. It gave off no heat. She poked it with her fingertip, feeling only a faint warmth.
Can this thing even burn?
She placed it on a pile of bug corpses, layered with oilcloth and doused with fire oil. The ember left her hand, touched the oilcloth, and erupted into a roaring blaze.
Yu Yu exhaled in relief.
It works.
The nest glowed with pale blue flames, casting a hauntingly beautiful light. Unlike yesterday's thrill, today she felt calm. Perched on a rock, she reviewed her gains. She'd leveled up. Now Level 3 (117/1000), with +1 base attribute point and +1 skill point, but no new passive this time.
As usual, she added the point to Spirit, bringing it to 11 and her Spirit pool to 33. She held onto the skill point and checked her upgraded Acid Ray.
[Acid Ray]
Rank: 0 (Cantrip)
School: Evocation
Casting Distance: Long
Casting Range: 20 meters
Duration: Instant
Cost: 3
Casting Time: 2 seconds
Proficiency: Skilled (111/500)
Other attributes were unchanged, but the cost dropped from 5 to 3, and casting time from 3 to 2 seconds—significant improvements. In combat, these changes would be a game-changer. She'd need to use her skills more to keep leveling them.
The giant bug was dead, pushing her experience to Level 3 (147/1000). She hopped off the rock to check for loot. Soon, she unearthed two tooth knives and a short sword from the ashes. The tooth knives were standard, but the short sword's stats were intriguing.
[Silver Moon Short Sword]
Quality: Common
Attack: 7–9
Durability: 49/50
Weight: 2.5
Requirement: Strength 3
The sword was grimy, caked in ash. Yu Yu wiped it with her sleeve, revealing its beauty. Its silver blade gleamed sharply, and the hilt bore an elegant crescent moon relief in bright silver. Stunning. She swung it experimentally. The sword was only slightly longer than her forearm.
Not selling this.
She'd keep it for self-defense. Spellcaster or not, she needed a weapon. Using unburnt bug silk, she fashioned a makeshift strap, hung the sword at her waist, and headed back with the tooth knives, feeling quite pleased. Time to harvest her crops and turn in the quest.
At the city gate, she heard a commotion. A bearded man—likely the blacksmith—was shouting.
"What do you mean 'without permission'? Like I'd ever allow it?!"
A crowd of players laughed and jeered, and even the guards watched with rapt attention.
"Hold it!"
Yu Yu turned, startled to see a guard addressing her.
"Where'd you get that sword?" he asked, eyeing the blade at her waist.
The commotion drew more eyes. Even the blacksmith paused his tirade.
"Found it in a bug nest," Yu Yu said. "What's the issue?"
"A bug nest?" The guard's expression darkened. "Take us there."
Yu Yu sensed a quest. "Sure, follow me."
The players surged forward, eager to tag along. Yu Yu urged, "Hurry up!"
Only two guards were at the gate, and just one accompanied her. At her words, the guard quickened his pace without a word. Yu Yu couldn't keep up…
She suspected his Agility was at least 7 or 8.
He glanced back, hoisted her under his arm, and outran the nosy players. "That's standard-issue Silver Moon City gear," he explained curtly. "A patrol team went missing recently, so…"
Yu Yu nodded. "Got it."
Hidden quest. She knew the drill. The guard's expression softened, as if relieved not all outsiders were lunatics. At the nest, he ignored the bug corpses and began searching. Yu Yu trailed behind, feeling like an NPC in a cutscene. The guard rummaged aimlessly, so she did too.
After digging through ashes for a while, he sighed. "You burned away all the tracks."
Yu Yu winced. "…My bad."
Did I just break the quest?
"What are you looking for?" she asked. "Need help?"
He scoffed. "What could you do?"
Yu Yu: "…"
Underestimate a player, and you'll pay for it.
"Are you a warrior?" he asked.
She gave him a look, unimpressed by his lack of perception. "Spellcaster."
He blinked, his tone warming. "Can you cast Detect Spell?"
"Only Detect Magic."
[Detect Magic]
Rank: None
School: Universal
Casting Distance: Very Close
Casting Range: 10-meter radius
Cost: 3
Casting Time: None
Proficiency: Novice (0/100)
His eyes lit up. "Find something, and I'll request a bounty for you."
That's what I'm talking about. No way this quest would fizzle out.
Impossible. Absolutely impossible.
She led the guard on a carpet-sweep search, pausing to cast Detect Magic periodically. The guard's level seemed high. When they encountered bugs—even a nest—he dispatched guard bugs with two swings, and worker bugs were no match. Yu Yu noted the nest's location, planning to return for loot later.
She stayed patient, even sitting to recover Spirit with Nightingale Meditation when she ran dry. To her, the quest was routine, but the guard grew visibly touched. "Why'd you burn the nest?" he asked.
"Didn't want to," Yu Yu said, "but how else was I supposed to kill them?"
"The silk's the real treasure," he said. "The Academy buys it for experiments—10 silver per unit. A nest yields five or six units. Way faster than scavenging."
He gestured at her sword. "Even that sword's worth less than 15 silver at the blacksmith's. You're wasting effort."
Yu Yu: "…"
After a moment, she said earnestly, "Thank you so much."
The guard, pleased to be helpful, grinned. "You're welcome."
Just then, her spell triggered. Fresh from meditation, she cast Detect Magic again.
Yu Yu hushed him, whispering, "I think I found something."
The guard's face grew serious, all business. "Where?"
She ducked behind a rock, letting him investigate. With only 8 HP, she wasn't taking risks. Hearing no commotion, she peeked out. The guard was crouching, seemingly safe. She cast Detect Magic again, fire oil jar in hand, and crept forward.
"…It's a person," the guard said.
Yu Yu glanced at the body. "Obviously."
"Killed by a person," he clarified.
Yu Yu kept her face neutral, checking her quest log.
[Locate Missing Patrol Members (1/5)]
(You found a patrol swordsman, pierced through the chest by an ice spear—a gruesome death. This is a provocation against Crescent Town. We will not let it stand!)
Yu Yu rubbed her chin. "He's alone. Did he collapse here from exhaustion?"
"Where are his teammates?"
"Did the enemy pursue him? Did they catch up?"
"Got any leads?"
The guard blinked, flustered. "I don't know. I need to report this."
He added gravely, "If it was a person, it's too dangerous for me alone."
Yu Yu nodded, agreeing. Just one guard? In an ambush or boss fight, they'd be toast.
This NPC's smart. No plot-driven death for him.
She glanced at his head. Still no name tag.
A premium NPC like this, and the devs couldn't bother naming him? Lazy.
The guard hoisted the body. "I need to report this fast. Stay away from the East Gate for now."
Yu Yu: "…"
She was questing, not loitering. Then she noticed something on the ground.
"What are you doing?" the guard called.
"Found stuff." Yu Yu scooped up the items, eyes gleaming.
A crescent longsword, two scrolls, and two gold coins.
NPC drops? Friendly NPCs drop loot?
She frowned instinctively.
The guard turned. "That's his sword, and the gold…"
He seemed to be choosing his words.
Yu Yu figured she'd have to hand it over. "For his family? Want me to deliver it?"
She wasn't above angling for more quests.
The guard relaxed. "Yes, he has family."
He took the longsword and gold but ignored the scrolls.
Just as Yu Yu thought he couldn't see them, he asked curiously, "Where'd those scrolls come from?"
She glanced down.
[Offensive Stance]
[Basic Weapon Mastery – Longsword]
"Aren't these warrior skill books?" she asked.
The guard examined one, puzzled. "These are spellcaster scrolls, aren't they? What's this about warriors?"
Yu Yu paused. "If you don't want them, they're mine."
He nodded cheerfully. "Thanks for your help. Oh, what's your name?"
"Yu."
They returned to town. The blacksmith was gone, but the players hadn't dispersed. Spotting Yu Yu, they swarmed her. "Hidden quest? Can I join? I can tank, I can DPS, I don't need pay!"
"Done already," Yu Yu said.
The guard hurried into the city, moving like the wind. Yu Yu wanted to follow, hoping to snag a follow-up quest, but she couldn't keep up.
Low Agility's a real problem.
She detoured to the plaza and spotted her old friend at the registration desk. "Yun Lun!"
"Hey, Yu," Yun Lun replied.
"Can I put up a sign here?"
"For what?"
"Selling two skills."
"Spells?" Yun Lun asked. "Outsiders can't sell spells privately."
"Nope, warrior skills."
Yun Lun looked confused. "Warriors have skills?"
She didn't get it but agreed. "Don't disturb the peace."
Yu Yu nodded, then hung her sign: "Selling Warrior Skills: [Offensive Stance], [Basic Weapon Mastery – Longsword]. Price negotiable, highest bidder wins."
Yun Lun read it, stunned. "You can sell that?"
Yu Yu was endlessly impressed by this game's NPCs. "Dunno. If you were a warrior, you could try."
Yun Lun shook her head. "I'm a spellcaster. But if you find a spell I don't know, I'd buy it."
Yu Yu raised an eyebrow. Didn't you just say no private spell sales?
"Deal," she said.
Players swarmed her stall. For some reason, Yu Yu felt this game had a lot of casual players. Over the past few days, she'd seen players driving carts, repairing walls, or just loafing around. Meme-chasers were everywhere, but dedicated players like her, grinding quests daily, seemed rare. Walking the streets, she heard the growing buzz of players.
"Ugh, ugh! Is this bread for humans? It tastes like salty socks—ugh…"
Yu Yu's stomach growled, but thinking of her meager silver, she convinced herself she wasn't hungry.
At the Academy, a guard approached. "Your reward."
[You have received the City Guard's gratitude. Rewards: +20 silver coins, Small Backpack *1, Silver Moon Short Sword *1, Silver Moon Wand *1, Magic Circle Apprentice Robe *1, City Guard Commendation Certificate *1]