Atlas only gulped and nodded his head at the memory. The druid continued to scan the letter until his eyebrows rose at something.
“Did you truly obtain the Dire Bear Transformation?”
“Yep. I earned the soul from Goreclaw. He was the last boss of the recent Wild Hunt event, and our team won.”
“Truly marvelous. A rare transformation and completely caught up on your skills. It’s nice to have a well-rounded student for once. Most that I’ve seen lately are missing a skill or completely inept at anything not physical combat. You even had the common sense to go with the staff,” he said with an approving nod toward the weapon.
“I’ll admit I picked up the staff on a whim, but Master Longstride suggested I stick with it since it fit so well with the class.”
“Good to see some of our younger masters remember their lessons. Looks like you’re fresh at level 10 and haven’t made it very far since. I only have one spell you can pick up now. Even then, it’s not really new. I have Rank 2 of Nature’s Fury for you.”
“I’ll take whatever you can teach.”
The druid smiled, and a menu popped up in his view. The spell and more Focus Crystals were the only items on the list. The spell cost 60 copper, so he purchased it.
Druid Spell - Nature’s Wrath (Rank 2)
Requirements
• Druid Class
• Level 10
Description: Summons two balls of raw nature energy to launch at your target.
Damage: 7-9 HP
Mana Cost: 20 MP
So, extra damage per hit and now it hit twice instead of once? That’s a pretty fantastic bonus for 5 extra mana. If I had the magical bonus of that staff from earlier, I could do a ton of damage. The two added base damage from my Intelligence makes this useful.
“Do all the spells have extra ranks like this?”
“Most do. A few of them, like Resurgence, don’t. You can find special items that increase the benefits, such as resurrect people with more HP and stuff like that, but that is a spell that doesn’t have additional ranks. Most of your offensive spells do, and you’ll get them as you level.”
“That’s good news. I was beginning to think magic spells would be useless other than healing. Now I can see how well they may scale, especially with a suitable weapon that has a decent boost to magical attack.”
“I’m afraid that’s all I can do for you right now. Oh, before I forget, let me see your entry paperwork so I can sign it. Don’t want you getting grief at the gate while trying to quest.”
“Oh, forgot all about that already,” Atlas said with a grimace before handing the paper over to Master Greenfoot. He scribbled on the slip before handing it back.
“Now run off to the magistrate’s office. If you came in the gate directly from Lairthyn, head back to that same main road and continue toward the center of the city. In the innermost quarter, The Sanctum, lies the magistrate office. It’s on the main road as you enter.”
“Thanks, Master,” Atlas said with a bow. He turned and walked back out of the building without another word.
On his return trip to the main road, an odd thought distracted him. He only just noticed he’d been uncommonly polite to the masters since entering the game. Bowing and always addressing them as master didn’t seem normal now that he thought about it. He couldn’t figure out if it was something to do with his southern upbringing or if there was something inherent in the game causing it as an instinct.
His mind didn’t wander far down that rabbit hole before he met back up with the main road he’d traveled earlier. Turning toward the city center, he continued his trip. He dodged out of the way of the occasional mounted guardsman and merchant cart, but eventually found the magistrate’s office.
The magistrate wasn’t in office but his assistant was and quickly took care of the matter. A quick signature on the slip and he handed a small token of an unknown metal to Atlas. Stamped on it was the name Ixala, and the back showed the scales he’d seen on the sign for the registrar’s office.
The assistant ushered him back out of the building and told him to stay out of trouble before promptly closing the door behind him. With the necessary work out of the way, he focused on next steps. It was time to find some quests, and he needed to check in with the profession trainers for Leatherworking and Woodworking.
He backtracked his steps and searched out for quests. A bulletin board in one of the fancier districts gave him a quest, while he also found three others from random people.
Quest -The Finest of Fur
Requirements
• Level 9
Quest Rarity: Common
Quest Reward: 180 experience, 1 silver and 10 copper coins.
Description: Collect 6 hides of Elegant Fur from nearby animals.
Quest - A Hunting We Will Go
Requirements
• Level 10
Quest Rarity: Common
Quest Reward: 200 experience, 1 silver coin.
Description: Kill 8 Jackalopes in the nearby forest.
Quest - Wide Open Spaces
Requirements
• Level 10
Quest Rarity: Common
Quest Reward: 200 experience, 1 silver and 20 copper coins.
Description: Hunt and kill 8 WildRunners in the nearby grasslands.
Quest - Sunshine Blossoms
Requirements
• Level 10
Quest Rarity: Common
Quest Reward: 210 experience, 1 silver and 30 copper coins.
Description: Collect 12 Sunshine Blossoms from the nearby grasslands.
With a load of quests lined up, he walked into the Leatherworking shop. He’d reached level 13 while back in Lairthyn because of his deal with Trailia. He should have some patterns to learn immediately. A middle-aged woman sat behind a small table. Sheets of leather covered the top as she meticulously cut pieces from them.
“Hello,” Atlas said with a wave, “I’m Atlas. Are you Master Grant?”
The woman peered up from her work. She clutched a needle tightly in her lips as she
