Chapter 7: Considerations to be made
*****Late evening 22:00*****
After getting squared away. I went to my new room in the Hermes familia mansion. It doesn't look like much from the outside, its right on the street and a part of the row of houses no driveway or fences. But upon further questioning, it was made clear that this section of Orario was pretty well off. The training grounds were enormous, reminded me of the rec centres and gymnasiums in my past life.
As I went over everything that happened today I realized I was actually pretty lucky. I got into the familia of my choosing and I didn't have to go around wasting my time applying to other familias.
The best part however was a reward from the Chat-Group.
{Admin: Due to you taking the initiative towards your growth I have rewarded you with:
Skill Ticket: Pick a skill from the SKILLS tab in the SHOP
Weapons Box: A box of weapons that I deem will benefit you.
Free Music: 1 week limit, 'buy whatever you want quickly'
V200,000
Take care, and continue to improve}
With the Skill Ticket I could get any skill available. The weapons box was a bit of a mystery, won't know until I open it. And the Free Music. That just made my day, it's the simple things in life that make it worth living. If only I had my cigars and liquors.
I will look into the rewards in the morning. I also wish to catch up with the other members of the Chat-Group.
*****06:00****
I woke up at dawn. It's pretty much a habit at this point. I walked to the showers, took care of my morning ablutions, and went back to my room to get ready for the day.
There is a kitchen and dining room in the house so I went down and took a look around. There was nobody there at the moment so I familiarized myself with what goes where and how do I get my morning coffee. The pantry was full of ingredients. And there was a cold room as well for meats and vegetables. I checked the cabinets, lo and behold the nectar of the gods! Coffee! On the counter was a French-press with a fine strainer. A stove to with pans and such. I made myself a cup, and drank in peace.
I went over the map of Orario I had and also the guide to the dungeon. I marked all the guild office locations and the locations of familias where I can go to learn crafting and other skills. 'I wonder if they have libraries.' They are a good and underused resource. More importantly they are free!
As I finished my second cup of coffee, the hustle and bustle of the others got louder as they started their day. The usual fights for the washroom, people yelling at each other, and people coming to eat breakfast.
A group of people came into the kitchen and started making breakfast.
"Where is the coffee maker?! Someone stole our coffee maker!" A young boy exclaimed.
"Did you put it back where it was supposed to be? You always misplace things Al." A lady rebuked Al.
"Yes, yes I did, I remember washing it and putting it right here." Al responded while gesturing to the spot where I took the coffee maker from.
"Are you sure? Then why are there pans in the sink?" She asked him.
Before any more of this nonsense could continue I spoke up, "good morning folks, I must apologize for taking you coffee maker. I woke up quite early and made myself a few cups. Hope that is alright with you." I said as I walked over to the kitchen counter with the coffee maker and put it on the counter.
Introductions and greetings complete. Jennifer, the oldest and the head of the house staff, explained the rules and schedule to me. Basically there is breakfast and dinner. You can request a packed lunch to take with you into the dungeon. For lunch, you can come into to kitchen to request something, or make your own arrangements. Al the boy explained that packed lunches are sandwiches or wraps made with breakfast and diner leftovers, which is pretty economical and they taste just as good if not better. Jennifer then went on the explain the protocols to using the kitchen. you use something, you must clean it after you're done eating. There is room service for injured and sick members, so unless you're about to drop dead, you walk your lazy ass down to the dining hall.
The kitchen staff was kind yet resolute, they did not take shit from anyone, that included Hermes. The staff was made up of: Jennifer-Head Housekeeper, Al-cook, Annie-cook/cleaner, Robert-cook, Melissa-cook. There were more but they start work later. All-in-all a good bunch. I poured the remaining coffee into my cup and went back to my seat at the table. Breakfast will be starting soon so I didn't want to get in the way. I wrapped up the map and simply studied the journal.
*****08:00*****
After breakfast and meeting some of the familia members I wasn't able to yesterday, I went back to my room and got my spear and shield. It was advised by Asfi that I upgrade my equipment as soon as possible. I agreed with her of course. The shield had seen better days and is barely hanging on. It is now more of a dead weight on my arm than an actual shield. I will see what to do about it after my trip to the dungeon.
The plan for the dungeon today is to stay on the first floor. Map it out, try different tactics to see what works and what doesn't. I also want to see if it is possible to pick up and store drops and cores by just walking near them. If not then I need a way to do so. I also need to consult the other members of the chat group, catch up with them, and see if I can glean any insight as to what I should focus on in terms of my growth.
*****09:15*****
It took an hour of standing in line to enter the dungeon. The guards employed by the guild were pretty jaded from not seeing newbies come back out. They gave me a look of pity seeing the state of my shield and spear. My basic armour was brand new, so that gave away the fact that I was greener than spring grass when it came to the dungeon.
I descended, down to the first floor. There were several people in front of me. I chose to keep my distance and made my way to the first floor. The MAP was invaluable here. The dungeon as one would expect was dark and poorly lit. It wasn't that I couldn't see, it took a while to adjust, but damn, the videogames my kids and grandkids played were not an useful refence point. the floor was light blue and had a wide road leading into it. Some more experienced adventurers just ignored it and kept taking the stairs to lower levels. I wasn't the only on this floor though. There was a party of 3 adventures at the far end of the corridor. 'Wherever they go I go in the opposite direction.' With that I started my first dungeon dive.
*****13:00*****
It's been roughly five hours, I decided to head back to the starting corridor and take a break. In the time I was exploring and later playing in the dungeon, I learned many things.
1. I have no idea of what's going on. I mean, I kill monsters and they disappear leaving behind a core and sometimes drops as well. How does that work, and how am I supposed to get stronger stabbing goblins and kobolds.
2. Stabbing where the core is, kills shit faster. With spear or machete.
3. Sound attracts monsters, I shot one with my pistol and boy was it effective, it killed the goblin and his buddy behind him. It also attracted three kobolds and 9 other goblins. I emptied two clips into them, picked up the drops and left the area.
4. Any clip I store back into it's pouch or inventory, auto-reloads! I have infinite ammo! I don't know how that works but I need to do further "research." Is it only on the weapons from the Admin and shop, or does it work on the weapons I will make as well?
5. Using a spear and shield is surprisingly efficient. For the last two hours I've been hunting goblins and kobolds. I now know exactly where to aim my spear. Block charge with shield, stab with spear. Or simply stab with spear. deflecting with the shield is more effective than outright bearing the brunt of the charge.
6. I'm not as tired as I thought I would be. I mean I've been in here for five hours and I'm not completely wiped out. Actual combat is a lot different from training. So I think I will stay on the first floor for today. I'll head lower tomorrow or the day after.
7. I know where the Jack Birds spawn. "Spawn" is the term used in the guide, so we'll stick to this worlds terms. I've killed four so far. They spawn on the rightmost side of the floor. Just shoot them, pick up the million vali egg and leave the area. Come back in an hour, and voila! There's another one spawned ready to be killed. You can't wait there, you have to be out of sight, that's a bummer.
8. Grenades are suspiciously cheap. I mean, just 5 cores for 2 Mk2 Grenades. The SHOP also has a grenade pouch, under the WEAPONS tab. Maybe I can get infinite grenades. Also grenade launchers, need at-least one.
9. The likelihood of a drop increases the faster I kill the monsters.
10. I need to focus on my basic physical abilities. Being able to punch enemies in a pinch would be the difference between life and death.
In about half an hour I got up and dusted myself off from the crumbs of my sandwich that I got from Jennifer, and headed back into the floor. 'I'll kill another Jack Bird and call it a day.'
*****16:00*****
It took longer than expected to find the little shit, then kill it. I got frustrated and just used my M14 to destroy the damn bird. Which was a bad idea because it attracted attention. Both from monsters and other adventurers. I had to hustle to get the egg, before the monsters got too close for comfort. It took some fancy footwork and maneuvering to kill of all the cunts after me but thankfully it happened before any adventurers or more monsters showed up. I had finished collecting all the drops and cores before I met a party of adventurers.
"Hello, did you by any chance hear the loud explosion?" Asked a redhead boy.
"Yes, I did." I replied flatly.
"Do you know what happened?" He asked warily, the other two were a bit on edge as well.
'It is best if I put them at ease and get them off my back.'
"Yes, an experiment of mine went awry. I threw it away and left. It attracted some monsters, but they were easily taken care of." I replied calmly, while getting my M1911A1 out.
Visibly relaxing the boy replied "I see, please excuse us for the intrusion. Please be aware that experimenting in the dungeon, although possible is not common."
"I apologize for the fright and causing unnecessary concern. I'm not familiar with protocols as to testing new weapons in the dungeon, I will inquire as to how to go about doing it from my guild advisor." I replied back.
"No worries, we'll be off then." And with that they left.
I exited the dungeon soon after. I asked Ms. Fannett about weapons testing in the dungeon. She explained that it was possible, but to apply for a permit. I applied and it was processed. A copy of the terms of the agreement, which boiled down to, don't be a dumbass, I went home. 'Home how quickly the destination we call home changes.'
Now I'm sitting in my room going over what I have and reaching out to the other members.
{Me: Hello everyone, how are all of you doing?}
That message went out two hours ago. Probably busy.
Let's start off with the Skill Ticket.
SHOP->SKILLS
'That wasn't there before, maybe I missed it.'
I scrolled through all the available skills...
Runemaster: With sufficient understanding, user can use Runes to: enchant items, create rituals, summon entities to do your bidding, and affect the users surroundings.
Warlord: Command and conquer your foes. The more subordinates user has the more rapid the growth of all members involved.
Leonidas: The king of Sparta stood against the Persians with a spear and shield, train hard and you can possibly surpass him. Boosts skill and effectiveness with a spear and shield.
Medic: Gain the ability to heal your allies and yourself.
Alchemist: As long as the laws of equivalent exchange are followed, and the user isn't a dumbass, anything can be made.
It's now between Alchemist and Runemaster. 'Wait isn't Odin a freaking runemaster?' I selected Runemaster and decided to ask Odin to help me learn and master this ability.
{Thank you for making a selection, all necessary information and knowledge is now in your LIBRARY.}
'Oh, that's efficient. At least I won't have to ask Odin to teach me like a preschooler. I can now ask him questions and ask for help understanding what I'm having trouble with.'
I looked at the LIBRARY, and I wished I hadn't. There was a literal fuck ton of books in there. I need to find a way to absorb this knowledge faster.
SHOP->POTIONS->ENHANCEMENT
Enhancement Potion: Enhances User in all aspects by 10%. Interval of 100 days recommended between doses. Subsequent doses maintain their affect if proper wait time is observed. V10,000,000
Mind Improvement Potion: Increases user's mental faculties by 10%. Memory, learning, comprehension, decision making, planning are all improved. V250,000
Male Enhancement Potion: Makes your little brother bigger. V2,500,000
Muscle Enhancement Potion: Enhances muscle definition by reducing body fat. V50,000
Muscle Growth Potion: Promoted muscle growth, makes the user crave protein to an extreme degree. V10,000
...
'Wow, making your dick bigger cost more than making yourself smarter, show what men actually think with.'
I checked my balance, Balance V7,324,000 Valis: V1,924,000 Cores: 412,000 Drops: 5,017,000
'Holy...shit! I love this dungeon.'
Ok let me see...
{Mind Enhancement Potion has been added to cart.}
Ok let me check if there are any improvements for the LIBRARY and INVENTORY.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
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