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"..."
'I still can't get used to this…' Dale thought as he walked on the streets
He felt like an animal in a zoo due to all of the stares coming from the people around him, some interested, some curious, some were checking him, others were following him...
'Hum… Soon enough I'll have to start dealing with them, especially those with high Reputation scores…'
'But not now.'
Due to his current standing as an Elder, he could now see the Reputation values of other players, this allowed him to more effectively control his actions towards them.
He wouldn't talk with those with negative values, while he would nod to those of higher values… Although there weren't any like that right now.
Besides, he also felt that people would soon start coming for him due to quests, either quests given by others or to get one from him.
Aside from that, he can't reward people with Gold all the time, no one would work solely for that…
So if he wants the players to work for him, he'll have to pay them with experience, or something else of equal value such as gear and... Other exotic things.
But can he? As a player himself, every bit of experience was of great value… And gear and such exotic things weren't that easy to acquire.
'This is making me go nuts, I'm completely filled with problems I either can't resolve, or it would take me a massive amount of work to solve.'
'For now, I'll do that. I'll reach Level 30 first.' Dale thought as he stared at the Church on top of the hill
The main reason why Dale wanted to raise his Level was due to his current situation.
He was in a training phase where he would remain in the village and train with the others. There was no time to adventure out there, not that he could in the first place.
He was also very close to Level 30, being Level 27 and just a little bit shy from 28, together with his double rewards from hunting, he could do so within a few hours inside a Dungeon.
According to the official website and rankings, the average of the players was still below Level 5, just like how Dale had predicted, but this was mainly due to the constant flow of new players.
After a week, this flow would stabilize and the values would start to go up.
Worse, there may be someone like him, with a higher level than in the Rankings, hiding it from the world...
Still, there is no point in worrying for something that may not even exist, what matters for him is the top 10%, the competitive people.
Dale expected them to reach Level 10 within the first week, and that was proving to be true, in fact, they may be growing even faster than he expected.
Within the first month, he expected them to reach somewhere around Level 20-30, but this may end up happening a week or two faster.
And beyond these people were the players backed by large organizations and the crazy people, the ones that could Level up fast like a speeding train.
At this time 2 days ago, the highest confirmed Player was Level 14, now, he was Level 20... Such a leveling speed was truly frightening, although that may come ironic, considering what he had done so far.
But his situation is different, his stats do not conform with his Level at all, this allows him to defeat monsters of higher Levels than him with considerable ease, essentially power-boosting himself.
The quests of this region were higher than his current Level, and the rewards he has received so far are also equally as powerful.
If Dale were to rest for even a single moment, he may be surpassed if said players were to complete a fat quest and Level up a few times at once, and how terrible would losing the bonus for being the first to hit Level 30 be?
And if he is lucky, perhaps the Bonus for being the first will be beneficial for his current circumstances.
The bonus for Level 10 was focused on Reputation, while the bonus for Level 20 was focused on hunting, so what would be the focus for the Level 30 threshold?
Whatever it was, Dale was determined to be the first to find out.
…
/A few minutes later.../
As he made his way to the Church, he stopped, seeing someone familiar.
It was an old woman with an empty basket in her hands, it was Tina, the oldest person in Resko, although she would never admit to that.
Seeing her here made a few memories go through his head, it seemed she had never missed her daily venture into the forest, always scavaging for fruits and plants...
She also noticed him, waving toward him.
"Good morning. Overslept?" She asked with a small smile
"A little bit, yesterday was quite tiring." Dale replied with an awkward smile
"Indeed it was, although this time, I won't tell you to rest, I'm tired of repeating myself, so I'll just trust that you know what you're doing, just don't come crying to me if your shoulders start to stiffen up after a few years." She replied with a small chuckle
She then put her basket on the ground and asked:
"Dear, can you bring this back to my home? There is something I would like to do."
Without thinking too much of it, he accepted, however, he asked:
"Are you going back to the forest?"
'That is unlike her, she normally goes there to get a few fruits every day but that's it…'
"Oh dear, didn't they say to not inquire into the matters of a lady?" She said with another chuckle
Dale rolled his eyes, looks like she wasn't going to share her plans, but that was fine for him.
"Just be careful."
She smiled.
"Do I look that old to you? I'll be fine, I've done this for longer than you've been around." She said as she turned around
"No matter how old you are, I'll say it every time, be careful." Dale replied as he grabbed the basket on the ground
"Hahaha… I'm the last person you should say that to…"
Dale remained there, watching her go further and further away… He felt like he should go after her, but...
"Leave her be." Someone said next to him
"Hum?"
Dale turned around and saw Edimund coming out from behind a house.
"You're here too?" Dale asked with a frown
"Of course, just like you, I'm worried for her, although she doesn't quite appreciate my actions."
Dale turned his face towards Tina's back and asked:
"But why is she like this? Given her age, shouldn't she be enjoying sewing in her old house?"
"Wow wow wow… Calm down there buddy, say that a bit louder and you'll be bedridden for a few days." Edmund said as a small bead of sweat dropped down from his forehead
"Just like you, I was confused as to why she decided to change her schedule, the same one she had been repeating for the last 2-3 decades…"
He then looked at Dale and said:
"And it seems you were the cause of it."
"Me?"
"Yes, you. Your recent actions have caused many to change their behaviors..."
"To give their best, something I haven't seen in a few years if not for all of my time acting as the head of this village."
"Be it Testros massive change, the books you brought, and the looming danger around us, the combination of these factors have made them strive forward instead of losing hope…"
"And she is no different, albeit, the most pitiful of us."
"Pitiful?... Why is that?" Dale asked with a little bit of concern
"Sigh… Tina is old, really old, she grew up in a time when Resko was still a town, despite one falling into ruin, it was still a proper town."
"Being over 100 years old isn't easy, and I'm sure she has long abandoned any hope of advancing or growing stronger, I would be surprised if she even remembers why she took up a blade in the first place."
"For her, I imagine it must've been extremely painful to see Testros succeeding in something she hasn't been able to do, something she threw towards the back of her mind."
"She is the strongest in the Village, her repertoire of knowledge is massive, but she is… Old."
"Tina is probably fighting herself. Everything that happened recently must've given her the desire to try again… And that makes me worry."
"She'll definitely live a decade or two more if she remains calm, but if she risks herself in the forest, I can't say for certain if she'll last even a quarter of that…"
"I was always against her going to the forest, but it's not like I could've stopped her."
He looked at Dale and said:
"I never said this though, if you tell this to her I'll push all the blame back to you."
His expression was serious, he would truly kick Dale aside if this were to happen...
"..."
Dale smiled awkwardly, just one more thing for him to worry about.
"What about you?" Dale asked suddenly
Edimund was caught by surprise.
He stopped talking and thought for a moment.
"Hum… I don't quite know, since, in the first place, I have no idea what to strive towards..." He said deeply
"I was never the warrior type, ever since I was small, I always preferred the simplicity of the farm as compared to the battlefield…"
"I took up arms because I had to, not because I wanted to, but for the sake of myself, my family's, and friend's lives, I did it… Yet the longer I held onto it, the more I understood how good I was at it."
"Before long, I was slashing the same monsters my parents used to mention to scare me at night..."
"Before long, I was giving orders, and in no time at all, I took over the position of the Village Head… Yet I never wanted to do it, I simply wanted to..."
He stopped, dropping his head as he said deeply:
"Sigh, I don't quite know what I want to do."
He then quickly said slightly embarrassed:
"I'm not saying I dislike doing it, someone has to do it, better me than someone incapable…"
"But I'm also saying that I'm not as eager as her. Although I can say for certain, that I'll improve, albeit, in my own way, I can't stay put when everyone is giving their all."
"I just... Need to figure out where should I put my efforts."
Dale remained silent, this was a side of him he didn't know.
'He is confused, but I have no words for him... I don't know him enough to guide him onto a path... This is something he'll have to figure out on his own.'
"Anyway, I ended up talking a lot and taking up your time."
"I'll be in the Mercenary Guild together with the others, it's getting quite stuffy there, everyone's reading some books… Or trying to, not everyone knows how to read after all."
He turned around and started walking away, but he stopped to say one more thing:
"Also, Dale, if you have time… Try to talk a bit more with the others… Especially the kids around your age… Some of them are very curious about you, and now that they have time, they would be very eager to get to know you."
"If you have some extra time, perhaps you can even spar with them… But of course, as long as that doesn't bother you."
"Until next time, young man." He said as he waved
"... Until…"
Dale remained there, gazing at Edimund's back as he walked further and further away.
'It's not just me, everyone has their own worries and priorities... They're all doing their best.'
Dale turned his head towards the Church.
'If I have some time, I wouldn't mind visiting them, it was within my list of tasks after all.'
'To uncover more of Resko, I obviously need to talk with its inhabitants… Something that so far was very difficult to do given that they remained close to ⅔ of the day on the crop fields.'
'But for now, I have some things to do.'
With a slight shake of his head, Dale made his way to the Church.
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Notes