I decided to go cut some trees. I stood in line for about five minutes for my copper axe and headed to the forest. I still had plenty of time, and depending on the difficulty of woodcutting in this game, I could finish one of my quests before meeting with Danzaburou and the other crafters.
With the axe slung over my shoulder and the chirping of birds filling the air, I found a clearing dotted with tall, sturdy oaks. Their thick trunks and branches promised plenty of wood for the task.
I gripped the axe tightly, lining up my first swing. The blade bit into the bark with a satisfying thunk, sending small chips flying. After a few minutes, the first tree fell, slowly at first, then with increased velocity, its branches rustling against its neighbors.
I got to work, breaking the larger trunk into manageable bundles. Five down, fourty-five to go.
By the time I felled my last tree, about an hour had passed. My inventory was packed with 50 bundles of Oakwood and I was ready to go back to the village. I also unlocked the Woodcutting skill, and had 2 points in it now.
At that very moment, I got a private message from Danzaburou.
Danzaburou: I hope you're doing well, Orion! We have completed your request.
Orion: Oh, I can't wait to see them!
Danzaburou: I'm certain you will be pleased with the result. Let's not spoil anything, though. Come to the tanner's tent and see for yourself!
I couldn't contain my excitement. I sprinted back to the village with little regard to my surroundings. I didn't bother collecting the reward for the woodcutting quest either; I had plenty of time to do so afterwards.
A couple minutes later I arrived to the tent. Danzaburou and Kev were standing there with a pleased look on their faces, clearly eager to share the news.
"Hey, Orion!" Danzaburou waved. "You got here fast!"
"I can't wait to see what you guys have made." I smiled. I knew that at least the leg armor should be Rare, and I felt like even the bow had a chance to become at least Uncommon, but what they showed me exceeded all of my expectations.
"Well, the materials were excellent, so it's not all us," Kev laughed. "But it's safe to say these are our best works to date."
"Also, the leg armor," Danzaburou exhaled. "They are truly one of a kind."
"How do you know?" I asked, although looking at the armor I had no doubt in my mind it was true.
"Well, as you might know, the system rewards you for being the first to do something," he started explaining. "And, well... yeah. It looks like I was the one to craft the first Epic armor in the county."
This leg armor is insane!
The pure defense stat was way higher than my breastplate, and it also had bonus movement speed as well, not to mention the 2% chance to reset a skill cooldown!
On top of all of this, it even had an armor skill! A skill that cost no mana and other than the long cooldown it had no drawbacks at all! Catapult legs was a funny name, but if we ignored that, it was a huge addition to my arsenal. With Leap Attack, I had two movement abilities now. This pretty much meant that I was uncatchable. This way I could most likely deal with even stronger enemies.
My theory was further solidified by looking at the rest of the items. The bow was Rare and the arrow and hood were of Uncommon ranking. My bracers, boots and cloak came out as commons, but they were still level 10 and therefore gave much more defense compared to my previous items.
My current arrow type has also changed to the Ironwolf arrow (atk+4).
With all of these upgrades my combat power rose to a completely another level. Totaling 156 attack power and 109 defense, I must have been nearing Guardian level protections whie keeping my damage high; I was sure there were no other archers in the village with gear like mine.
"This is several golds more value than what I've paid for," I told Danzaburou honestly. I was certain the leg armor could have been sold for at least 10 gold coins, and I could get 2-3 more for the rest of the items.
"Indeed. But we do what we promise to do. We're glad you like them!" The craftsman answered. "If you need anything else in the future, contact us anytime!"
"Will definitely do. Are you by chance interested in my previous equipment? Not sure if it's of any use to you, but I don't really want to bother with selling them, so how about I give them to you for less than the market price?"
"Sounds good!" Kev said with a smile on his face. "Reselling stuff is usually how we make the money for materials."
After a bit of scouting on the marketplace, we agreed on 50 silver coins for my cowl, bow, bracers, boots and cape. They could have been sold for a bit more, but this way I didn't have to go through the burden of finding buyers for each of them individually. Besides, I was more than grateful for the work they had done.
We chatted a bit more before all of us went our separate ways.
I turned in the woodcutter quest at the association, banked the 1,000 exp, 20 silver and the 1 adventurer's XP and decided to get ready for my journey to Riverhear. I got a new county map from one of the officials responsible for the quest: it laid out all the villages of Tidemark county, so I finally had some pointers where to go if I wanted to leave Carpa behind.
The dirt road stretched ahead of me, crossing through green hills and dense patches of forest. I started walking as the late morning sun warmed my back, while the birds kept chirping hidden in the tree-crowns above me. Every once in a while a rabbit darted across the trail, not a care for potential predators.
Ambience is done very well, I thought. For a game world, the details never ceased to amaze me.
Halfway to Riverhear, the road sloped down to meet the Crystal Brook, a shallow, lazy river that cut through the hills. A small wooden bridge arched over it, and I paused for a moment, leaning on the railing to watch the water rush below. It was a tranquil experience.
Across the bridge, a faint sound caught my attention. I strained my ears and caught the low growl of something not far off. Instinctively, I reached for my bow, scanning the tree line. A Wolf stepped into view, its yellow eyes glowing faintly in the shadows. It was alone, likely a straggler from a larger pack. I hesitated for a moment before nocking an arrow. One Piercing Shot later, the beast collapsed with a soft whimper. My damage output can't be compared to what it was before.
The road eventually widened, and the trees thinned to reveal Riverhear. The village was smaller than Carpa, nestled in a valley where the hills dipped to meet the river. A watermill creaked steadily at the edge of the village, just like one could see on old medieval paintings. The houses that were made of stone and timber clustered together, with smoke coming out of some of the chimneys.
I could see a few villagers here and there, tending to their gardens or carrying goods between the small marketplace and the docks along the brook. I smelled the scent of fresh bread that I was already familiar with from Carpa.
As I stepped into the main square, an older NPC, a cheerful lady with laugh-lines all over her face, waved me over.
"You’re from Carpa, aren’t you?" she asked, her eyes glinting with curiosity.
"Good guess," I replied, lifting the parcel. "Just here to deliver this to the Adventurer's Association."
"Well, welcome to Riverhear. Not as big as Carpa, but we like to think we’ve got charm," she said with a chuckle, and remembering the wooden bridge, I had to agree with her. "If you’ve got time, you might want to check out the brook trail. It's beautiful this time of the year."
"I wouldn't miss it," I smiled.
The Adventurer's Association branch in Riverhear was a modest building, tucked away near the marketplace. A clerk in a familiar uniform greeted me, accepting the parcel with a polite nod.
"Much appreciated. If you’re planning to stick around, there are two local quests on the board. And congratulations, you have advanced to Iron rank." He added, handing me an iron badge.
Sure enough, after turning in the supply box quest, I have received 2,000 EXP, 2 adventurer's XP and 40 silver coins. My adventurer's XP bar was at 10/20 and my rank had increased from Copper to Iron. This meant that I only needed 10 more XP from Iron to Silver.
I quickly accepted the two, Iron rank quests from Riverhear's Adventurer Board and checked my Journal. I didn't even notice it at first, but one of the quests was limited, meaning only one player could accept it!
Interesting. I have seen a player or two around in Riverhear, so how come no one took the quest? Is no one else Iron rank yet? It's true I've done all available quests so far, but it wasn't like I rushed them or anything. Maybe the board just got refreshed and I was the first to check it since?
Regardless, a quest that was limited to one player should have been more rewarding than ordinary ones, so I couldn't complain. If I wanted to get back to Carpa before dark, to catch a glimpse of the “glowing shadow” roaming the northern ridge, I had to get to work immediately. I decided to tackle the more straightforward quest first and headed to the edge of the village.
After a quick conversation with Farmer Brott, I made my way to the wheat fields on the village’s outskirts. Brott had been gruff and desperate, his weathered face tight with frustration as he described the damage done by the Rock Beetles.
"Ugly little buggers!" he said, spitting into the dirt. "Come out right when the sun gets up. Big as a damn dog, too. You clear ‘em out, I'll be eternally grateful!"
With my bow ready and the fields stretching ahead, I waited for the beetles to appear. A faint rustling broke the silence, coming from the western side of the field. I crouched low, scanning the area until I spotted movement: it was a Rock Beetle, with a shiny carapace that was reflecting the light of the high sun.
The creature was bulky, with a segmented body supported by thin legs, its mandibles clicking ominously as it wandered through the wheat.
Maps of Godsrealm
drive link where you can access all of the maps that you have seen in the story so far!
