World of Fantasy

Sapphire

QUILL

Quill and Jane were in a good mood as they strode up to the log cabin outside the city walls. They'd already handed in the herbs for one quest. Now they were about to do the same with the wolf pelts that had been collected.

The log cabin was a small, two-room affair a stone's throw from the walls. Old, leafy oak trees shaded the area, and both a tanning rack and a meat smoker stood out front. One man lived there, or so they'd been told by his daughter in the city. She'd said he was a man too old and beaten down by life to be a hunter anymore, but he'd refused on multiple occasions to move into the city and be cared for by his daughter's family. That is why adventurers had been contracted to bring him fresh pelts, which the determinedly independent old man could still stitch into boots or a coat or a blanket or whatever else he needed before winter.

The old man in question stood outside his door, bent over and leaning on a cane in the shade of a fat apple tree, heavy with fruit, that grew next to the home. He was gnarled and thin but had a smile on his wrinkled face.

The sexy NPC woman standing outside of his door might have had something to do with that. Quill admired her as they approached.

The old man noted their arrival. He waved. "Ah! Delivery? And what has my carin' but meddlin' daughter thought of this time?" He chuckled.

Jane held out the wolf pelts. "We were asked to bring you these."

"Ah! Thank you kindly. She surely thinks of the coming cold season, even though it's months away yet. Please, leave them by the door." He waved in that direction.

Jane placed them on the ground.

Quest Complete

Both Quill and Jane suddenly bloomed with radiant, golden light that faded after a long moment.

Jane

Level 2

Quill

Level 2

Quill saw the words appear in front of him and felt a rush of excitement. He turned to his partner and saw the same on her face. "Level up!"

"Nice!" She high-fived him.

They'd done this already, of course, levelling for the first time in the city with their fetch quests. But after dying and losing all they'd gained, it felt friggin' great to get that XP back. Quill couldn't help but grin after feeling so annoyed by the punishment he'd suffered earlier.

Plus, it was exciting to grow and having it in tangible, numerical form felt like real proof that they'd achieved something. You didn't get that in real life. Numerical levels were a lot easier to understand than vague notions of skills growing in real life, where you have a difficult time comparing yourself to your past and future versions and to others or to what's possible as a human being. But a number getting bigger was easy to see and put in context. That was probably one reason why video games and litrpg novels were so popular. People were drawn to the visible, obvious progression.

Quill breathed easier. With his stats, he knew that levelling was going to be a huge challenge. But at least he'd taken one small step, even if it was the first one. Wasn't the first step the most important?

The old man grinned and gestured to the person with him. "Have you met this lovely young woman yet? No? Allow me to introduce Sapphire⁠1 to you!"

Sapphire seemed to be vibrating with energy and good cheer. She was dressed in tight, thigh-high, blue leather boots. Deep blue belts and pouches had been strapped to her waist and thighs, including a metallic sheath with a hunting knife, the hilt shiny sapphire in colour. She wore a form-fitting blue leather jacket with an open front. The white shirt under the jacket showed some cleavage. She had a plain longbow in one hand. A quiver hung from the small of her back, and, oddly, a large teddy bear was strapped to her side. Long, black hair reaching to her waist had been loosely braided with fresh blue-and-white morning glory flowers resting in each crossover. Another bloom sat above her right ear. The piercings in her ears and belly button glittered, a single, large sapphire gem in each.