Day 6: Magdala
Logged in for the 6th day.
Day in and day out, there’s still no change with Ciel-chan.
I wonder if my approach to answering her is wrong after all. Maybe I should finally look up a guide.
Just when I was thinking that, I casually checked Ciel-chan’s mission, and what do you know, the progress had increased by 1!
I couldn’t tell at all by looking at her, but it seems the event was actually progressing with that. Thank goodness.
Mikoto-kun, the second regular at my shop, gave me an item called a [Ladybug] today, so our relationship is good too.
Ladybugs are a slightly larger version of a ladybug Mirage Bug, and the item comes as a specimen in a small vial. Apparently, using it in crafting can bestow the Light attribute.
Well then, just like yesterday, I guess I’ll head to the Hill of Silence today.
I left my home base and headed for the central urban district. For places I’ve visited once, I can skip travel, so for example, I can go directly from my house’s door to the central plaza.
Then, while walking from the plaza to the Elevate Tower, I spotted a familiar figure: the Dog-Eared Boy, Mikoto-kun.
He was just at my shop a moment ago, and he’s already here? Well, I guess I’m not one to talk.
Actually, what’s more concerning to me right now is that he’s with a player. There’s no NPC mark, so there’s no mistake. A girl with black hair and cat ears, dressed like a maid, was walking along with him in tow.
Are they in the middle of some event?
Still, it was the first time I’d seen an NPC I knew, other than a mob, interacting with another player, so I was a little surprised.
Moreover, I thought this kind of thing might be commonplace, but many of the other players around also seemed to be paying attention to them.
Two male players nearby were watching Mikoto-kun and his companion and talking about something, so I secretly deactivated Semi-Active Mode. This way, I could hear their conversation.
“Her again? She goes way too hard on these date events every time.”
“Don’t feel like I can win against that. Well, I don’t really care about Mikoto, though.”
“But I’ve never seen her with Riru. Guess she’s not aiming for him?”
“The Riru faction is a real den of demons. There are rumors that rankers are taking turns, but I wonder if it’s true.”
Hmm, that was quite a high-spec conversation, full of things I didn’t understand.
But it seems there’s an event where you can go on a date with a character?
And only a select few can participate, making it seem like a pretty big deal. That maid person might be what you’d call a top player.
If you could walk around with your favorite character, it’d probably make you incredibly happy. At the same time, seeing your favorite character walking with someone you don’t know would likely make some people incredibly frustrated.
Maybe you wouldn’t feel it so much once you get used to it, but I see, if your competitive spirit is fanned like this, you could easily get sucked into quite a swamp.
Ignoring that little unusual incident, I switched back to Semi-Active Mode and headed for the Elevate Tower.
For this gathering session, I decided to focus on things other than plants. Stones, bugs, things that catch your eye as if to say, “I’m special,” there are quite a few of those besides flowers and grass.
And here’s the lineup of items I gathered.
[Cloudy Phantom Stone]
A Phantom Stone mixed with toxins. Burning it produces a poisonous fog. Main raw material for [Phantom Stone].
Primary Use: Invention
[Forest Wolf Fang]
Using it as a material increases strength.
Primary Use: Smithing
[Wise Nuts]
The nutmeat inside is edible. Contains ingredients that enhance concentration. Widely usable as a crafting material.
Primary Use: Cooking
In addition, there’s the [Ladybug] I also received from Mikoto-kun today. Ladybugs might be relatively rare, as I could only find one.
Also, there was a black moth with an eerie pattern, but it flew away immediately, and I couldn’t catch it. It might be easier to gather bugs if you have a special tool like a Bug-Catching Net.
My item box still had half its space free, so I picked the plants I gathered yesterday too.
Incidentally, there are, of course, other people gathering besides me, but it seems the items each person can find are different.
It’s good that we don’t have to compete for them, so I can gather items without worry. Though, seeing other players grabbing at empty air from my perspective is a little amusing.
Alright, maybe I’ll head back. Just as I was about to stand up, a shadow fell over me.
When I turned around, a woman in black wearing a mask was looking down at me. Super scary.
“Hello there, young lady.”
She said in a raspy voice. She seems to be an NPC.
“I’m Magdala. A traveling apothecary, I am, journeying all over the continent. To earn my daily bread, I sell medicines and interesting things I’ve collected on my travels. Care to take a look?”
Her appearance was incredibly suspicious, but I chose “Let me see” for now. Then, from behind her mask, she let out a slightly surprised voice.
“Oh my, if I recall, you’re Tephana’s little one, aren’t you? What’s this? Struck out on your own in Restin?”
It seems Magdala-san knows me.
Tephana… that’s my supposed master, right? I wonder if she was close with my master.
“That’s quite admirable. Alright then, along with the first-time customer service, I’ll throw in a special service to celebrate your independence! All items are half price. Take ’em, you thief!”
Her appearance made me doubt whether it was true, but the power word “half price” is strong. I eagerly started browsing her list of goods.
Princess Nobel, Full Moon Rabbit Fur, Death Mist Crystal, Tsunami Whale Oil… Hmm, they’re all things I’ve never heard of, so they must be either truly rare items or things that players two or three levels higher than me can obtain.
Or perhaps, she’s just as suspicious a swindler as she looks.
As a Tailor, the only thing that piques my interest is the fur… but its price is more than three times that of fox fur available in town.
If the half-price story is true, does that mean it’s originally six times the price? Even if I add up all the money from the materials I painstakingly gathered and sold yesterday, a quarter of my savings will be gone.
But thinking about it that way, I started to feel like I should buy it now while it’s half price. Now it would only cost 1/8th of my savings.
Alright, I’ll buy it.
Another item that caught my eye is the [Royal Library Admission Permit].
Its price is so high that it would take up all the money I have left after buying the fur. But, considering the rights it grants, it feels cheap.
But, are these kinds of permits something you can even buy or sell in the first place? This is getting more and more suspicious.
As I stared at the dialogue box, deep in thought, Magdala-shi called out to me.
“If there’s anything you’re curious about, feel free to ask.”
“Well then… this [Royal Library Admission Permit], is it real?”
“Does it look like a fake to you?”
…Conversation over. I got a strong feeling she dodged the question, making her even more suspicious.
If this were reality, I definitely wouldn’t buy it… but since it’s not reality, you kind of want to do something a little reckless, don’t you?
And so, I ended up buying the Admission Permit.
[Kima-Kura Utopia. Talk Room (Official) – Room for Discussing World Events]
[Hitei Shinai Nao]
[Breaking News] Love Hunter Mayu scores Mikoto
[Yuuhei]
So fast
[Nalteek]
So fast
[Panfesta]
I saw them walking too.
[Poifuryu]
Gaah, shock!
And here I was, focusing solely on Mikoto-kyun this time, and I used up all the Earth Crystals I’d saved up.
[Retima]
Don’t worry.
You’ll surely be able to date him tomorrow or later.
[YTYT]
That pay-to-win date fiend is insane.
[Alaska]
So, a date event is a privilege granted to the player who has raised that character’s affection the most, is that understanding correct?
[Panfesta]
Correct.
But for limited-time world event dates like this one, they happen daily during the event period, so once the day changes, players in second place and below will get their turn.
[Retima]
Players who have raised affection, and moreover, have cleared the character event and met the conditions, that is.
[Alaska]
Thanks.
I now fully understand that this event has nothing to do with me.
[Chon]
You might have a chance with an unpopular character.
Still, date events are basically just like titles that let you bask in a sense of superiority, so they’re essentially end-game content.
New players probably don’t have time for that.
[Ma Yu]
Watching the circus next to Mikoto-kun is lovely~
Sooo lovely~
[YTYT]
This is the perfect kind of content for a nasty girl like her, who goes out of her way to brag to players who are frustrated in the middle of an event.
This’ll be on the test.
[Poifuryu]
Waaah・゜゜・(/□＼*)・゜゜・
Since you’re bragging anyway, tell me, Mayu-san.
Is just one of Mikoto-kyun’s limited missions enough?
There aren’t any other clearing conditions, right?
[Ma Yu]
Just one~
[Poifuryu]
Thanks!
If it doesn’t work out tomorrow, I’m gonna pay.
[Minmin]
Feels like a fistfight with bundles of cash is about to start, sends shivers down my spine.
[YTYT]
It’s an auction, huh…
[Letima]
When it gets to this point, it even starts to smell like a gamble. You just don’t know how much your rivals are bidding, after all.