Chapter 17 Changing The Approach

Ding!

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[Tristan's Trial] (Time-limited Quest)

Difficulty: B

Although you haven't met the minimum qualifications Tristan wants to learn the basics of blacksmithing, you've decided to mention that you would be able to achieve it within two weeks. Skeptical of your claims, he gives you this quest to see if you have the ability to back up your words. If you do end up succeeding, perhaps he might teach you more than what you bargained for.

Quest Requirements:

pAn,D a-n0ve1,c-o-m > Reach a STR stat of 7 (2/7)

> Reach a DEX stat of 7 (2/7)

> Reach an AGI stat of 7 (2/7)

> Reach a PER stat of 7 (2/7)

Quest Rewards: Affinity +30 with Tristan, Reputation +50 within Astarto Village, 1,000 XP, early access to the Technology Tree

Quest Penalty: Affinity -20 with Tristan, Reputation -100 within Astarto Village

Remaining Time: 20 days

[Note: Completing the quest in less time increases the chance of obtaining a quest linked to the current quest.]

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'Well then. This definitely wasn't something I was expecting to get,' Valyr thought to himself, pleasantly surprised that he had obtained a quest from what he had just done. 'Then again, with me making such a boastful claim, it's no surprise he wants to see if I have the ability to back up.'

'But a B rank quest, huh. That's also rare. Is it possible that there's more to this blacksmith than I thought?' he muttered inwardly, recalling that the rank of quests commonly given out to players reached C rank at most. With a grading system that went from E to S, Valyr quickly recalled that most quests at B rank had relations to a larger quest line, with the remaining two ranks above it, A and S rank, having something to do that might upset the balance of a world at the very least. Naturally, he also noticed this on the quest he was given.

Although the requirement for the continuation was somewhat gimmicky, needing him to complete the quest before time ran out, it only stimulated him to do better, curious as to what would come after.

'Aside from the decent chunk of XP I'd get from the quest, which is always nice, I'd also get an increase in my reputation, though it would only be effective around the village. Well, it's definitely better than nothing.' Continuing to read through the quest's description, Valyr's eyes could not help but fixate on the rewards, only for it to focus on another portion of the screen not long after.

"Hey, uh… Tristan, was it?" Valyr called out all of a sudden, prompting the man in the smithy to look back at him in response. "I said I'd be able to complete your requirements within two weeks. Why are you giving me another week to complete it?"

"Hmm…" Hearing the question, Tristan rubbed his chin for a bit as he pondered over it. After a while, he raised a finger. "Well, for one, why not? Consider it me being kind towards a guard who wants to pick up the art of blacksmithing."

"But on a serious note, although I want to believe your claim of being able to do it in two weeks, think of it as me just erring on the side of caution. After all, I don't want you to lose interest in blacksmithing just because of this," he continued. "Also, I don't really want to be on the bad side of one of the village guards if I can afford to. I might be capable of fighting, but you guys are the ones specialized in that matter."

"In any case, no rush. Reaching Level 7 is more difficult than one might think, after all." After saying those words, Tristan returned his gaze to the anvil in front of him, picking up the bar of metal on the surface with tongs before placing it into the roaring furnace near him.

Feeling as if it would be useless to talk to the guy for longer, Valyr closed the screen in front of his face, scratching his head before turning around to leave the smithy.

…

'The quest requires me to reach 7 points on four stats, which would only be possible if I reach Level 7, considering I don't know other ways to increase it.' While making his way back to the barracks, Valyr pondered over the requirements of the quest he had gotten. 'Even Tristan mentioned earlier that I would need to reach Level 7 if I want to complete the quest.'

Feeling a slight rumble in his stomach, Valyr slightly hastened his pace as a knowing smile appeared on his face. 'Well, if he knew that I had access to something like the Basic Reinforcement Elixirs, he would have probably believed my claim. Then again, there's not much point revealing secrets to strangers for the sake of bragging.'

'In any case, with Tristan giving me over two weeks to complete the quest, I could go ahead with my previous plan of participating in the night patrols for two weeks straight.' Scratching his head, he pondered over how he was going to go about completing the quest. 'After that, I'll buy the materials from the contribution point shop and have an alchemist concoct the elixirs for me…'

'Which would have been the ideal plan for sure, but then I remembered alchemists that are capable of squeezing out every last drop from the materials could only be found in the cities. On top of that, obtaining the services of those alchemists would take far more money than I currently have.' Realizing this, Valyr could not help but frown.

'Though, if I settle for alchemists in the nearby towns and villages, or find the alchemist in this village, it's certain that they wouldn't be able to concoct a full batch of the elixirs. What should I…' Just as he had arrived at the barracks' entrance, a thought surfaced in his mind, prompting him to stop in his steps as the pain relief pills he had bought earlier flashed in his mind not long after.

'It seems I'll have to grin and bear through the pain for some time. I almost forgot to consider increasing my levels with XP.' With that in mind, a plan was quickly drafted in Valyr's mind as he made his way to the cafeteria, giving him the feeling that he would not only be able to complete the requirements, but do so in less than half the amount of time he was given.

'New plan. I'm going to participate in the night patrols for a week straight to get one batch of the materials needed to concoct the two basic elixirs. While doing that, I'll head outside the village in the morning to get some XP from monsters to increase my level. I guess I'll accumulate enough XP to reach Level 4 or 5? Something along those lines.'

'In any case, I'll have to base that on the number of vials the alchemist is able to concoct from the materials I give them. If they make three vials or more, that would be great, but if they only make two vials… eh. I guess it'll work out.'

'For now, I'm going to let my body get as much rest as possible.'

'…'

'Crap. I forgot to buy clothes along the way.'