EFate: An MMO Story Chapter 26: Lose It All

Making his way back towards the smithy, Eric checked his quest log.

[Quest Log]

Hunt monsters in the vicinity of Tonbura Village.

-Reward: Increased favour with village residents. Pay based on monsters killed. Possibility to earn skills if degree of completion is high enough. (Part One - 21% Complete)

Purchase a better weapon from Tom, the village blacksmith.

-Reward: Better weapon. Increased favourability with Tom. ???

Visit the Mage Academy in Filoketh.

-Reward: Possible admission to the Mage Academy.

Investigate the recent monster resurgence.

-Reward: ???

Help the militia clear out monsters moving south. Save militia members in trouble when possible.

-Reward: Increased favour with the militia. Possible promotion.

Looking at his quests, Eric realized that there had been two major changes to his quest log. While he hadn't completed any of his original quests yet, there was now a bar showing that he was 21% of the way done with his monster hunting quest. More importantly there was a new quest to aid the militia specifically in keeping the area safe. And this quest mentioned promotion, which most likely meant it was connected to the main quest in some way. 'Looks like talking to Alistair was worth it after all,' Eric thought with a grin as he closed the quest log.

The smithy was nearly identical to how it had looked several hours earlier. Only now there were many empty spots on the walls where weapons had once hung, and the barrel of spears was conspicuously empty. With only a few remaining bronze tipped spears leaning against the nearby wall.

"Back so soon?" Tom's voice rang out as he emerged from behind the forge. Wiping the sweat off his brow he looked at Eric's figure, which was noticeably more disheveled than it had been when he'd left the smithy a few hours prior. Embarra.s.sed, Eric attempted to do a quick patdown to remove the dust from his doublet. Unfortunately, there was nothing he could do about the bloodstains or the hole on the shoulder.

"Haha yeah. I just got back from turning in the results of my first hunt to Alistair. I've got some silver now so I was hoping to pick up a slightly better weapon." He explained. Tom nodded understandingly.

"Well I can't really say the basic weapons we've been creating for militia members are pinnacles of modern weaponmaking. But do ye really have enough? A basic iron spear is at least five silver. And an iron sword is even more expensive. Even if yer skilled, that's hundreds of rabbit pelts ye'll need and ye've only been gone a few hours."

"No need to worry about that, I had a streak of good luck while hunting," Eric responded with a grin.

"Alright... " Tom replied doubtfully. "What type of weapon will ye be having then? Seeing as how ye took a bow when ye came will ye be wanting a better weapon for melee combat now?"

"Actually," Eric began awkwardly. "I was hoping to ask you about the fletcher's prices. This bow is alright for shooting if the target is literally right in front of me. But it becomes wildly inaccurate at distances more than a couple of meters."

Tom looked at Eric strangely, "So ye only came to find out Craig's prices?"

"Well that and I don't actually know where to find him. I am looking to purchase a better melee weapon as well. I just wanted to make sure I have enough for a better bow first." Eric explained hurriedly, raising his hands to show that he meant no offence. This appeared to have been the correct thing to say as Tom calmed down.

"Most of Craig's works are pretty good. Thanks to the high standard of the wood from Stillwood Forest, his bows are considered some of the best in the area. But that also means they command a slightly heftier price tag than the average. If ye want a decent bow then he'll probably charge ye aboot six sricks."

"What about arrows? I'll be needing those as well. Most of my stone arrows have either been lost or destroyed already." Eric explained.

"Arrows are a fair bit cheaper. Ye can buy twenty stone tipped arrows for roughly sixty copper cirts or bronze for a silver. Iron will cost ye a fair bit more, especially considering the shortage. I'd imagine Craig's gotta sell those for more than two and a half sricks given what I charged him for the arrowheads."

"Alright, I'm off. I'll be back soon if I still have some coin remaining, otherwise I'll be back in a few hours." Eric said with a smile, waving goodbye to Tom. Turning, he left the smithy, pausing a few steps from the entrance.

"Problem?" Tom asked questioningly.

"I uhhhh. Still don't know where Craig's shop is." Eric replied sheepishly.

Thanking Tom once more, Eric set off towards the east wall of the village. Following Tom's directions, he soon found himself standing in front a two-story wooden house. Jutting out above the front entrance was a sign, emblazoned with a pair of crossed arrows. This looks like the place, Eric thought as he opened the door.

Entering the shop, Eric was greeted by a large room filled with barrels. Various bows lined the walls, unstrung bowstaves hanging from hooks on the wall. The barrels themselves were full of yet more bowstaves, while cases of arrows lay open in front of a counter. In the corner of the shop a target hung against the wall. The many arrowholes left in its straw lining an indicator to the level of business this place received. Behind the counter where the arrows lay sat a tall man with close cropped hair and a bored expression. Interestingly, Eric noted that this man did not have the fair complexion and lighter hair colour shared by most of the village residents he'd seen. Instead, having light brown skin, with black hair and dark brown eyes. Eyes that were now staring at Eric with some interest.

"Welcome to my shop, I am Craig and this is Craig's Archery Supplies. Are you an otherworlder?" Craig asked curiously, staring at Eric like he'd just discovered a new toy.

"Yup, I just arrived a few hours ago. Tom directed me here to purchase a better bow. The one I was supplied earlier just isn't that great." Eric said, placing his Rough Maple Shortbow on the counter.

Picking it up Craig looked at the bow and laughed, "Yeah, we weren't given much warning about the swell of new militia recruits we'd be receiving. We were forced to use older or defective products to meet demand." His voice had a slightly different accent than Tom's. While it was still recognizably Tonburan, as Eric had taken to calling it. It was as if it was Tonburan being sung. With a faintly singsong quality to it, which in addition to Craig's baritone voice made for a very charming combination.

Putting down the bow, Craig looked back at Eric, sizing him up, "You said you only arrived a few hours ago? Are you sure you can afford my wares?" he asked doubtfully.

"I feel I can. Tom told me your decent bows were roughly six sricks. I can afford that."

"Tom told you that? That b.a.s.t.a.r.d." Craig muttered, annoyed that Tom had given Eric the actual price instead of allowing him to take advantage of the otherworlder. With a small sigh at this loss of free silver, Craig stood up, walking over to the wall where he observed the bowstaves hanging from their hooks. Grabbing one, he observed its length. Looking back at Eric, he measured his height with his eyes, before looking back at the stave and shaking his head. Returning the bow to the wall, he moved over to another wall and took a new stave off its hooks.

Repeating this process a few times, Craig finally selected a bow he was happy with. Taking a bowstring from a shelf nearby, he strung the bow in a quick practiced movement, tw.a.n.ging the string experimentally. With a satisfied nod he brought the bow over to Eric.

"Try that out for a spin," he directed. Handing him an arrow and pointing towards the target in the corner of the shop. Walking over to the opposite wall, Eric nocked the arrow to the bow, taking aim at the target.

Thwock! The arrow landed a few inches outside the center of the target. Nocking another arrow Eric took a few more shots before looking back at Craig who shook his head.

"Not enough flexibility, too much power," he muttered, taking the bow from Eric and placing it back on the wall.

Pacing around the shop Craig grabbed another bow and handed it to Eric who fired a few arrows at the target. Looking back at Craig Eric was about to say he'd take it when he saw Craig staring at him thoughtfully.

"I wonder…" Craig murmured. Taking the bow from Eric before disappearing into the backroom. When he reemerged he was carrying a long bow made of a different coloured wood than the other bows he'd handed Eric before.

"Try this one. It's made with Yew wood from further north than most of the lumberjacks are willing to go these days. It's got more flexibility than the oak bows do." He explained, handing the bow over to Eric.

Thrumming the string between his fingers, Eric nocked a new arrow to the bow and sighted at the target.

Thwock! The arrow buried itself into middle the target. Craig grinned and handed him another arrow. Firing a few more arrows into the bullseye, Eric gave a satisfied grin as he looked at the bow.

"I like it," he told Craig who appeared to be pretty impressed by Eric's archery skills.

"Well of course, that's one of my best normal bows. It also suits your height and figure nearly perfectly. You're going to need to put on more muscle if you want to use it to its full potential. If you want a better bow than that you're going to need to pay quite a bit more. Bows made with runewood or bows with runic enchantments are sold in units of gold." Craig told him.

"Sounds like it might be quite a while before I can afford those," Eric laughed. "So is it six silver for the bow?"

"Tell you what. Seeing as how you're my first otherworld customer and seem to be a natural with it, I'll knock off twenty cirts," Craig told him.

"Deal," Eric replied.

"Anything else you need? Or is it just the bow you're here for?"

"How much would another quiver of arrows cost? I'm down to six stone arrows."

"Down to six already? You've been busy," Craig observed, "Well stone arrows are only three copper cirts each. Bronze are five cirts. Iron are twelve cirts. There's a discount if you buy twenty arrows at once though. Knocks a few cirts off the price."

"What type would you recommend if I wanted to hunt wolves and maybe even goblins?"

"Goblins? Didn't you just arrive today?" Craig inquired. Eric nodded in response.

"Well, for goblins you'll probably want iron arrows. For most goblins, stone arrows will work just fine. But they'll break easily. And for goblins with armour, bronze won't always be enough to kill them. Iron is the safest bet," Craig explained.

Looking down at his storage pouch Eric brought up his inventory screen. 8s 6c it read at the bottom. Doing some quick calculations he realized that he would probably need to give up on his dream of getting a new melee weapon right away.

"How much is the discount for a full quiver of iron arrows?"

"Ten cirts."

"Can you make it fourteen and I'll return the old bow? I've only got 8 sricks and 6 cirts," Eric explained. Craig stroked his beard, "I suppose I can. But you've got to promise to come here for all your arrows. I don't want to hear that you've been going to Hamour village for Diarmid's cheaper arrows. Those things are low quality anyways."

Eric laughed, "You've got yourself a deal," he said, feeling slightly pained as he handed over all his coins to Craig. Counting them, Craig grabbed a handful of iron arrows from behind the counter. Checking them quickly to ensure they were straight, he pa.s.sed them over to Eric who slid them into the quiver at his waist.

[You have received Fine Yew Longbow]

[You have received 20 Fine Goose-feathered Iron Arrows]

Thanking Craig, who just grinned and held up Eric's coins in response, Eric left the archery shop. Both the bow and the arrows were rated as fine, in contrast to the rough weapons he'd been using up until now. He'd have to ask Jun if the bows and arrows in the shop at Hamour village were also rated fine despite being lower priced, or if Craig had scammed him.

Shaking his head, he dismissed the matter for now; it wasn't like there were any other archery shops in the village. Whether Craig had scammed him or not didn't really matter when he didn't have any other options, Eric reflected wryly.

Making his way towards the northern gate, he brought up his status window.

[Status]

Erick Kystfyr - Level 1

100/100 HP

10/10 MP

t.i.tle: None

Weapon: Fine Yew Long Bow (20 Fine Goose-feathered Iron Arrows)

Rough Bronze Dagger

Armour: Reinforced Wool Doublet

Skills: Basic Magic (Arcane, Fire)

Basic Martial Arts (Beginner 5)

Militia Spearmans.h.i.+p

Militia Swordsmans.h.i.+p (Beginner 4)

Basic Archery (Beginner 9)

Basic Herbalism

Basic Speechcraft

Active Skills:

Evasive Shot (Beginner 1)

Sword Technique - Guard (Beginner 3)

Seeing that his skill list had grown substantially, Eric clenched his fist. Despite the growth in his skills list, most of them were still low level and he himself was still level 1. He needed to hurry up and start gaining levels if he wanted to maintain his small lead over other players. Resolving himself to venture deep inside the woods, Eric slipped out through the northern gate, headed once more for Stillwood Forest.