After finishing the appraisal of the dagger, Xavier had begun to walk outside. Lowering his head, he took a glance at his skill bar. There were only two skills there: Stealth, and Vital Strike.
A perfect Thief should have numerous skills piled up at their disposal. A Thief could make do without equipment; however, they absolutely could not do without skills.
Of the several areas where Thief skill books could be farmed in the beginning stages of the game, Xavier knew all of them like the back of his hand. However, he would be unlikely to take the great effort and pain of farming them out. If a skill book could be farmed out, then it could also easily be bought in the marketplace.
Hmm… were there any other places where I could find rare beginner skill books?
Xavier smacked his forehead. How did I manage to forget that?
With regards to classes such as a Thieves, if they wanted to possess sustainable fighting strength they would often select either Alchemy Crafting or the Bandage skill. Alchemy Crafting allowed a player to manufacture every kind of health potion, drug, etc… In the middle of a battle, a health potion—that could instantly restore lost health—was tantamount to a second life for a player. Afterwards when a battle was over, drinking a recovery potion allowed a player to quickly restore their health and throw themselves back into combat again. Thus, accelerating their training speed as well. As for the Bandaging skill, in comparison to a health potion, it was a bit lacking—the common Bandage skill could not be used during a skirmish.
Xavier knew of a location where a rare skill, Combat Medic, could be learned. Unlike Bandage, it could be used while in combat.
At higher levels, if a person wished to purchase middle- or higher-tiered health or recovery potions from the marketplace, their expenditure would be quite large. After all, their prices were quite costly—for most players, health and recovery potions were items they could only acquire by digging through the gaps between their teeth. Unless one were rich, the average player wouldn't be seen commonly using health, or recovery, potions.
However, Xavier was different—his head was filled with many ways to earn money quickly and easily. He didn't need to worry about money. Later on, health and recovery potions were all things he could easily buy from the marketplace. Thus, it wasn't necessary for him to waste his time learning Alchemy Crafting. However, if he learned this Combat Medic skill, it would greatly enhance his survivability. Thinking to this, Xavier suddenly had an idea.
I'll put that off for later. I should learn the Combat Medic skill first.
Xavier spent two coppers and bought two Basic Underwater Breathing Pills from the NPC general store. Right after, he rushed towards Lake Rando which wasn't too far of a distance from Tellak town.
After passing through several Level 2–3 areas, he had met many players that had formed parties to hunt monsters. They often occupied a single region in their own area. Warriors, Paladins, etc… all these close-combat classes worked to draw monsters. Right afterwards, the Mage would unleash an unceasing barrage of spells towards these monsters. Some parties would even bring their own Priest. Most Priests didn't currently have the Heal skill—their ability to deal damage wasn't as good as Mages either. For the most part, they were dirty experience leeches. Despite this, every team still looked for a Priest as if they were a hot commodity. This was because if a team wanted to have any growth or development in the future, they absolutely needed to have a good relationship with their Priest. Lacking a Priest was the same as lacking an endless supply of health potions.
As for Thieves, in the early stages of the game, many Thieves would be easily dumped by their team. However, Thieves were quite famous for their solo training speed. As long as they purchased all of the necessary skills they required, a Thief's training speed would not be inferior to a Mage's in any aspect. So, it wouldn't be much of a loss if they couldn't join a team.
Level training in the various monster spawn areas was awfully monotonous and boring. However, these players could still chat with each other. Thus, the time would pass quite quickly when they chatted on idly.
Xavier carefully passed through these areas where players were training because a lot of struggles would occur between players for certain training spots. If a player killed other players, they would receive a penalty with their names marked red. They would be barred from entering city walls as well. Having their names marked red meant other players could kill them without fear of recourse. Their loss of levels upon death would be even harsher, and every single piece of equipment would drop as well. Though, if that player killed monsters for a certain period of time, the red marking on their name would eventually disappear. Despite this, many players would still frequently take this risk for the sake of stealing another player's equipment. Not hesitating in the slightest, they would kill others for their equipment, regardless of having their name marked red. In order to do this safely, they would often target strangers in the wilderness far away from any city, Thus, one must be very cautious when travelling alone.
Lake Rando… this area was inhabited by Fishmen monsters. According to rumours, these Fishmen were the descendants of the ancient Wicked Naga. After countless generations, they finally developed into their current form. They possessed the body of a fish, and four limbs just like a human. The weapons they employed for attacks were their sharp teeth and the tridents they held in their hands.
Fishmen were Level 3 monsters that heavily populated the area with their massive numbers. Furthermore, there was even a Fishmen village within the vicinity. It was necessary for Xavier to pass through the borders of the village to enter Lake Rando. Afterwards, he would need to swim through the lake to arrive at his destination.
Situated by the lakeside of Lake Rando was the Fishmen village with its several hundred wooden huts scattered sporadically by the sandy edges of the lakeshore. This Fishmen village contained at least three hundred or so Fishmen, several tens of Fishmen Leaders, and two Elite Fishmen. If one wanted to clear this area, they'd need at least a thousand players or more.
Just as Xavier was preparing to activate Stealth to bypass the Fishmen village, a system announcement rang out.
Local Announcement: The Guild, Idea, is planning to clear this location in three minutes. All players within the vicinity of the Fishmen Village, please depart immediately.
Idea? Xavier raised his eyebrow. he joined Idea's guild after some altercation occurred making him forced to join them for safety… Idea's people ran rampant and acted arrogantly. They'd clear the path and kill everyone in it whenever they wanted to, while Xavier job was to loot any hidden treasures.
"There was even this one specific player who went against Idea guild for a 'righteous' act. they ended up being spawn camped by idea guild to train newcomers." Xavier sighed in remembrance and good times.
He was afraid of losing his S-level talent Businessmen due to restarting account. Just so he can donate to the poor.