I didn't get to use [Execute] very often.
Well, that didn't really matter.
It was rare, and of good quality… that meant a few things.
The durability was excellent compared to the trash I had been using prior, no longer would I have to worry about this weapon shattering mid-combat or the blade warping and bending from a hard hit. The blade's sharpness was almost assured as well, meaning I could stab and cut a few people without any worry of it becoming dull.
Convenience and peace of mind, was what it was.
That's what this weapon offered me.
Comfort in knowing that the weapon was reliable.
Yeah, I was keeping this guy.
It was already versatile, and fit my playstyle… now, all that was needed was some better armor to go with it, and I would be one of the most decked out players in the game, for a short while. Things were looking up, and I hadn't even turned in the fifth quest chain.
Wow, I almost forgot about the quest chains.
But, that would have to wait for another day, as my head was still aching considerably. I needed to rest… to close my eyes for a bit, relax, and sleep. The quests could wait until tomorrow, they were already registered as complete, anyways.
We were the first to conquer this dungeon, and the timestamp proved it.
That was special, yeah.
I was kind of happy.
Chapter 52: Settling Affairs
(Monday, June 28th Game Day / Monday, March 1st Real Day)
Standing in front of the quest giver that was a little off to the side of the town's center, dozens of players were gathered around me, mostly minding their own business as they attempted to turn in and receive new quests. We all had the same objective really, and most of us were waiting our turns as those ahead of us filed out one by one.
Behind the little wooden table and underneath a makeshift sunshade, there were two elves, NPCs of course, that managed the quest chains for the players. There were three people in front of me, but the line moved relatively quickly.
Without much to do, the majority of the players socialized with those that were nearby, mainly anyone fool enough to listen or friendly enough to pretend to care. Chatter filled my ears as guys and girls alike talked up their experiences and bragged about their exploits inside the dungeon, all eager to prove themselves amongst the anonymity of the crowd. It seemed laughable to me, but maybe I was just being cocky.
They were all strangers, looking to make new friends.
I didn't know of any of them, nor did I care to.
None of them knew of me, either… so, maybe, I was being a bit pompous.
As my turn finally arrived, I handed the piece of parchment that was magically inscribed over to the female elf. Somehow, the paper automatically updated as you completed your quests. I suppose it was necessary to have something to put in your hand, to add to the realism, rather than an invisible quest log system that existed solely in one's menus.
"Thank you," said the quest NPC after taking the parchment from me.
In an instant she started to immediately read through the piece of paper with the type of seriousness expected of a practiced professional. It only took her a couple of seconds before she looked up at me, then back down at the paper, clearly confused as to what she was supposed to do.
It was an interesting touch.
"Um, one second please," she uttered out, with a puzzled expression on her face.
The two elves chatted amongst themselves with hushed whispers just out of earshot as they eyed the paper a few times, and eyed me once or twice. The quest NPCs changed depending on the hour of the day, so I figured these two had yet to see the fifth completion stamp. Barik and the others most likely turned it in the night before, with a different set of NPCs working the booth.
"I'm sorry for the wait," she finally said after some discussion with her fellow worker. "Please accept our sincerest gratitude for your completion of the Call to Arms, and we hope that you find the reward more than sufficient. Thank you, adventurer, for your services to the region."
As the last word left her lips, she bowed in conjunction with the other quest giver as multiple system prompts flooded my visual field. Accepting them without bothering to read through them, I was hit with multiple beams of golden light that appeared to descend from the heavens as the warmth of the radiance soothed my soul.
Relief washing over me, I couldn't help but enjoy the feeling.
"What's going on? Did someone just spawn?" someone in the crowd asked.
"Huh? A new event?" said another.
"Is he getting healed?" questioned a young male.
No, it was none of the above.
Looking at the new system messages that popped up:
[Congratulations! As a member of the first party to conquer the Northern Outcast Goblin Dungeon, you have been awarded a bonus of +50 Reputation!]
[Congratulations! Due to your participation in the Call to Arms, you have received bonus Experience and an extra bounty of +1000 Copper Coins!]
[In response to your exploits, you have also been granted the following Title: First Conqueror of the Goblin Outcasts. All following Titles will not contain the "First."]
Oh.
So, that's how it works.
"Hey man what was that for?" asked the guy standing directly behind me, as eager eyes all around stared and listened intently as to what I would say. I had half a mind to ignore them and walk off, not wanting the extra attention, but that wasn't really a nice thing to do. Ultimately, I gave in to their pleading eyes.
"Ah, I just finished the quest chain for Outing the Outcasts part five and Bringing down the Guard part five," I replied somewhat nonchalantly, trying to play it off as coolly as one could.
"Oh my god how did you clear it!" yelled a girl from somewhere.
"Dude, join my party we're on the third floor," another one chipped in.
"No man, join our party we just entered the fourth, you're a DPS right?" asked the same guy that was standing behind me. "We're a good group, we can clear it fast with you, would be easy farm with your experience and damage."
"Uh," I muttered while looking at all of the faces that were staring at me.
Getting a little nervous at all the attention I was receiving, I was trying to look for an opening to make my escape but the group seemed to sense my indecision and closed in around me. Squeezing me, a dozen different people started calling out to me, some yelling, some pushing, all of them trying to get my attention to join their group.
I didn't want anything to do with them.
"Sorry, but I'm done with the dungeon," I said somewhat apologetically. "I'm kind of tired of the grind, good luck with your runs everyone."
With a quick nod, I started to push my way through the crowd as most backed off dejectedly. A few didn't quit though, as they tried to convince me to help them out, with one cute elf attempting the flirtatious route of winning me over, to no avail. She was definitely cute, but if I was going to be swayed by physical appearances inside the game… well, Katherine would be the first to win that contest.
And, she didn't even win the first time around.
I chose Selene to have fun with… personality won out.
Cutting through a pathway that led behind some buildings, I disappeared into the back alleys and made my way to the clothing store. With my quests turned in, the only thing keeping me in this town were a few errands that needed to be taken care of before I could set out. There were some summer dresses that I meant to buy for the girls, and then there were the saddle bags I ordered from a leatherworker for the cattle. Three heifers and a bull meant I didn't have to personally lug around the couple of hundred swords that been accumulated.