Ren went to a shabby old house by the edge of the village located on a tiny hill. An old Lady there named Emily would trade [Cooking Recipes] for actual food of that recipe.
Since Ren didn't have the necessary tools for cooking –– yet, it was better to trade his recipe for an actual food since he needed it later.
"My, what do you have there?" Emily's opaque eyes shone with delight. Despite her liquid eyes and old bones, she could see and smell a recipe from miles away.
"Hello, my name's Ren," Ren greeted and added, "I have a recipe here that I would like to trade for food."
"Say no more. Give me that piece of scroll, and I'll whip you something good."
Ren gave Emily the recipe, and the old woman immediately went inside her hut. There was a sound of clattering metals and fire in the old lady's home, and Ren's neck couldn't help but stretch to see beyond the window glass of her house.
Though it was useless since Ren couldn't see anything beyond the exterior of the old woman's home.
In COVENANT, they couldn't just enter the NPCs' houses. They needed to at least be at the level of [Friends] before they could ask for permission to enter their home.
After a few minutes, Emily went out with a smoking hot onigiri in her hand.
"I haven't made this one in the longest time. Thanks, youngster. If you have any more recipes in the future, this old woman will be happy if you trade them for her food."
[RECEIVED:
❶ Onigiri x 10
-- restore 10% HP]
"Thank you. And I'd be sure to give you more recipes in the future."
[Your RELATIONSHIP LEVEL with Emely increased to FRIENDS!]
Ren knew that he only achieved [Friends] status with Emely and the Village Chief because he was the first player to accept their request.
In truth, it was a little challenging to increase your [Relationship Level] with NPCs.
Since Ren didn't have any more business with Emily and there was nothing inside her house for him to see and get, he made his way to another quest.
Ren headed towards a sprite woman next, the one with butterfly wings on her back. She was humming a lovely tune as she watered her garden in front of her house.
"Hi."
The thirty-year-old woman raised her head and looked at Ren before her smile widened, illuminating her face.
"Oh my, visitor? My name is An. How may I help you?"
Ren nodded over the lush flowers in front of An's house. "My name's Ren, and I can't help but notice that you have a wonderful garden."
This was actually a [Hidden Quest], and once the keyword [Garden] came out of the player's mouth, the quest would be triggered.
It was a good thing that the system allowed secrecy in the conversation between NPCs and players regarding quests. To outsiders, Ren appeared to be talking to An but couldn't exactly hear their conversation - unless it was a normal conversation.
What was more, [Quest Announcement] privately appeared on the players' home screen so only they could see their upcoming quests –– another privacy perk of the game.
Other players didn't find it suspicious since they had already talked to that same woman and hadn't received any kind of quest at all. In their eyes, Ren was simply wasting his time.
The others didn't mind Ren anymore and resumed talking to the other NPC. They were competing with each other, racing to get the first blood of a quest.
An glanced at her Garden and then smiled. This time her smile wasn't forced, unlike the first time, and it reached her eyes. "Yes, I'm quite proud of it."
Then she sighed and placed her palm on her chubby cheek.
"If only I had a moonlight flower, my garden would shine even more."
[Hidden Quest: Find the Moonlight Flower
Description:
An of Euclid village wanted a moonlight flower for her Garden. Bring her a moonlight flower x10
Rewards:
❶ ?]
As expected of a hidden quest, even the flower's location and rewards were hidden. Ren thought.
But of course, he already knew where the [Moonlight Flower] was located and the 'item' he would get in the end.
If not for Ren's past knowledge of the game, he wouldn't know what to do and would pass this [Hidden Quest] until he found a [Moonlight Flower] by chance.
Fortunately, Ren already knew all information regarding this quest.
Ren left An alone after saying goodbye and went in the direction of the small stall that sells weapons and armor.
A beautiful sprite lady with short green hair and horns greeted Ren. She beamed her brightest and said, "Welcome to Sunny's Smithy. Have something in your mind?"
Ren only nodded and proceeded to look at the selection of items in the shop. He didn't have to look much since the items were common and basic.
Ren bought a [Long Staff] providing +2 to his INT and an accessory [Protection Ring] that added +1 to his DEF and a [Monocle x10]. He also used all his remaining 1150 gil to buy [Health Potions x46].
He needed those for his first Boss fight later.
Ren could only sigh from the poor selection of items at this stage, but it would have to do for now.
Ren left the shop and headed towards the village gate and activated the teleportation crystal so he could teleport instantly in Euclid Village later.
However, before he could step foot outside, sudden messages exploded in the sky.
[CONGRATULATIONS to player John for being the first to complete the quest, LUCKY CHARM]
[CONGRATULATIONS to player Kyle for being the first to complete the quest, A SEAMSTRESS DRESS]
[CONGRATULATIONS to player Silvia for being the first to complete the quest, HERBS GATHERING]
Ren blinked.
The Quest [Lucky Charm], [A Seamstress Dress], and [Herbs Gathering] were basic quests that provide basic rewards. Being first blood meant that players who finish [Lucky Charm] would get an additional [Rabbit Foot] that added +4 to LCK on top of the basic rewards of EXP and gold.
The first blood reward for [A Seamstress Dress] was an armor depending on your class that added +4 to DEF, while the last, [Herbs Gathering], had an additional first blood reward of [Health Potion x10].
Ren didn't need those. Although those equipment provided additional ATP Boost and a heads up from the others, Ren was already way ahead.
What he needed to do was to get to the grinding spot as soon as possible. He was on edge, and that was all he could think about. After all, he didn't see it firsthand that there was a grinding spot in Euclid Village. He purely relied on the information he gathered in the past.
And it was not like that grinding spot had a respawn. Once triggered, it couldn't be triggered again.
Meaning it only appeared one time.
He was a little unsure, and he became anxious. He needed to see it firsthand to know that it was true.
Along the way, a name caught Ren's attention on the [World Announcement] before.
So Silvia was among the people who knew the official start of COVENANT. Ren thought.
He was sure that the Silvia broadcasted in the sky was the same Silvia he had in mind, the leader of the guild [Golden Phoenix].
After all, at this point, only beta testers, sons, and daughters of the rich had access to the inside information of the game.
Recalling Silvia's information, Ren knew that the woman only entered the game on a whim. She said so in an interview once. She wasn't a hard-core gamer, nor was she a fan of VRMMORPG games.
She was an achiever.
She had excellent grades, good at sports and academics. She could almost do anything in the real world, be it arts, music, or sports. And this got her bored, and she entered the game.
Unfortunately or fortunately, Silvia was pulled down from her high throne when she realized that she was just a mediocre player in COVENANT. But instead of being disheartened, she was ecstatic to finally found something that was a challenge to her.
She formed [Golden Phoenix] so that she could prove to herself that even in the game, she was still the best.
Her goal was always the top, whether in real life or in-game.
Ren's lips twitched into a smirk.
He only saw her as another customer in the future. A wealthy customer that would pay him thousands of dollars for information.