Sora walked through the gate of Var, heading towards the Shopping District. As he passed by guards, some would greet him in a respectful manner. It was due to being officially knighted by the king, making subjects of the kingdom view him a little higher than normal. Sora arrived at a the shopping district and spotted a large building that had many players walking in and out of. The bottom floor of the building was a vault that would allow players to store items and money, while the second floor was an auction house where players could list anything tradable in the game for real world or in game money. Sora headed directly for the next floor, walking up a grand staircase with many other players. The auction room was very large, yet there were so many players that it seemed a little crowded. Sora walked up to a lady with pointed ears to make his transaction. It was rare to see an elf outside of the forested areas in which they live in. This particular lady was more than likely a half elf who had been raised by a human.

“Hello sir, how may I help you today?”

“I would like to set up a few auctions.”

“Please select the items and set the quantity, prices, and auction length.”

The counter had a small glass plate that would light up with information on the item you selected. Sora selected his extra Necklace of Persistent Life, along with the light gloves and robe he had obtained, before filling out the starting price of each item and setting the auction duration to one week.

“There is a 50 copper transaction fee per item registered, along with a 5% tax on each item sold. If you accept these terms, please place your hand on the glass plate to register your items.”

Sora placed his hand on the glass plate and the plate quickly flashed green before going back to it’s normal appearance. His transaction was complete and he left the auction house, going to a small shop with a huge garden which was very close by. Sora looked annoyed as he walked in, this was the alchemy shop which he did not have fond memories of. Alchemy required plants to create potions and to find the plants you either had to have extremely sharp eyes or buy a Book of Plant Identification. If you use the beginner book then every beginner plant will glow slightly and be identified when you harvest them. If you don’t have the book then the plants will not only look like any ordinary plant, it will also not be identified if you harvest a plant. You could cut down a normal looking weed and wouldn’t know if it was a legendary ingredient or a simple weed. Sora grabbed the book along with a sickle before walking up to the counter and slamming down 1 gold and 5 silver before storming out of the shop. The shop owner just looked at him with a cocky smirk as he collected the money. The beginner book was already 1 gold so imagine what it would be as he levels his harvesting skill up.

[x1 Beginner Book of Plant Identification obtained]

[x1 Sickle obtained]

Although Sora had a deep hatred for how difficult and costly harvesting plants was, he also knew how wasteful it was to explore without having the ability to see useful plants. Although he had a lot of bad experiences with alchemy, he couldn’t deny its usefulness. Sora finally set out to the Transportation District and rode a giant crow to Crater Lake, the place where the fishing instructor was at.

When Sora landed, he could see quite a few players fishing and a peaceful atmosphere enveloped the area. So many players were quietly fishing from the lake, sometimes striking up a small conversation with the players next to them, sometimes telling stories to pass time. Sora walked passed the players and found a small cabin near the edge of the lake. The cabin looked to only be one bedroom and had a dock which extended out into the lake. A fisherman could be seen fishing off the dock, pulling in fish at a consistent rate as if he has found a rhythm to how the fish bite. Sora waited until the man had just reeled in a fish before disturbing him.

“Good afternoon sir, I have come here to seek guidance in fishing.”

The fisherman looked at Sora very sternly as if measuring him before nodding slightly and giving a low grunt of approval. The man pulled out a metal fishing pole with what seemed to be a few pieces of fishing line intertwined together, he then handed it to Sora.

[x1 Novice Fishing Pole obtained]

Rarity - Unique Common

Durability - 65/65

Requires - Maxed Beginner Fishing

“A fishing pole made from a flexible metal that will not break easily. The fishing line is made from three separate lines that have been twisted together. The fishing pole will track the type and quantity of fish you catch.”

{Item Quest}

0/500 Crater Fish Caught

Sora took the fishing pole before turning around and heading off the dock, following the edge of the lake to find a better fishing spot. As he left, the fisherman went back into the same rhythm of catching fish over and over.

Sora had always fished in the same spot when he was here, there was an area that had a cave system that goes under the water and seemed to have a slightly higher chance of success when fishing over the entrance to that cave. As Sora was heading over he noticed a small green plant that was shining with a white light. The plant didn’t really stick out, the only thing that seemed different was a small red flower that grew between the green leaves. Sora pulled out his sickle and carefully cut the root of the plant.

[Harvesting Skill obtained]

[Harvest Skill succeeded]

[x1 Crimson Life Flower obtained]

The Crimson Life Flower was the base ingredient in low level health potions and would be one of the only plants that you could make into a potion at the beginner stage. Sora stored the flower and continued down the lake, occasionally stopping to harvest more Crimson Life Flowers. As Sora finally made it to his spot he noticed an old man who was already there fishing, sitting on a rock at the edge of the lake and carefully watching his fishing line. The man had graying hair and looked like a stern grandpa, seeming very imposing. Sora quietly walked up to make sure he didn’t disturb him before sitting down on his own rock. The two men didn’t talk and just continued to fish without disturbing the other person.

…..

[x1 Crater Fish obtained]

Sora had been fishing for a while now, he checked his progress on his fishing pole for the quest. He had barely hit 150 after that last catch. The old man had still not said anything as he continued to fish, the only reaction he would make is a slight smile when he reeled in a decent sized fish. Sora cast his line out again and this time the line started to take off as Sora got a new message that he hasn’t seen in awhile.

[Fishing Skill has Hooked an Item]

Sora got serious as he stood up from his rock and carefully led his fishing pole in many different directions. The old man looked at Sora with a shocked face as he also stood up to watch Sora expertly handle the fishing rod. Before the old man could realize it, he was already sweating a little and started to cheer on Sora when he saw how much his rod was bending, almost seeming like it would snap.

“C’mon boy, you can’t let that measly little fish win!”

“Ha, as if I would let it!”

As Sora said that he jerked the rod, successfully pulling the fish into the air, revealing a wooden fish that glowed in a green light. Sora used the moment the fish was in the air to reel it in a little more, successfully bringing it just short of the shore. After a little more reeling Sora was able to reel the fish onto the shore as it turned into a small treasure chest.

[x1 Uncommon Chest Lvl 30 obtained]

“Haha! That was excellent fishing my boy! I haven’t seen a fish fight like that since I got here!”

“It did put up quite a fight, if I had a normal fishing rod then it probably would have snapped in half.”

“I’ve already lost a few fishing rods because of something like that happening. Where did you get such a good rod from?”

“What’s your Fishing Skill level at?”

“It’s been stuck at Level 9 for a couple days now, it doesn’t seem to want to go any further for some reason. I thought that if I could reel in whatever was breaking my rod then it would level up…”

“Go to the old man on the pier next to the cabin, talk to him and say you would like to learn more about fishing and he will give you this rod and a quest to level up your fishing.”

“So that’s what it was! Thank you my boy, I’ll be back after I get my rod.”

“Alright, see you then.”

The old man had instantly bonded with Sora after he watched his skill in fishing, along with telling him a little bit of information to get a better rod. The old man had been beyond frustrated as he lost his pole to what he thought was a big fish over and over again.

Sora looked at the chest in front of him, although it was only uncommon he could possibly get some fishing gear from it which would help him catch fish more consistently. Sora opened the box and hoped for the best.

[x1 Gold coin obtained]

It was a big disappointment to Sora, most people would love to drag in a gold piece instead of a lousy fish but Sora wasn’t in need of the money. He picked up the gold piece with disappointment on his face and continued fishing.

…..

After a while the old man returned to fish with Sora, marveling at his new fishing pole and excited about what he would be able to catch with it. Sora and the man occasionally talked and Sora learned that the man was a fishing fanatic in real life but had to stop due to an accident that made it hard for him to walk. He used to go all around the world to catch a variety of different fish and he missed that kind of life. When his granddaughter told him that it was possible to fish in many exotic places and catch many interesting fish he decided to give it a try. At first he was a little reluctant, thinking that a game can’t simulate what the real feel of fishing was like, but then he fell in love with it. The world was unique, the fish would feel like they were putting up a fight, you had to be skilled in order to reel them in. The man has been fishing here since he came to Var and started to lose interest when he couldn’t figure out how to level up his fishing. Now Sora has shown him the path and he was excited as to what he would be able to catch once he leveled up. After many hours of fishing, Sora had completed his quest.

[Novice Fishing Pole]

Rarity - Unique Common

Durability - 43/65

Requires - Maxed Beginner Fishing

“A fishing pole made from a flexible metal that will not break easily. The fishing line is made from three separate lines that have been twisted together. The fishing pole will track the type and quantity of fish you catch.”

{Item Quest}

500/500 Crater Fish Caught

Sora wished the man luck as he left the fishing spot, going back to the man at the pier. On his way back he noticed that a lot of new plants had spawned and he harvested them as he went by. The fisherman on the pier was still catching fish at the same rhythm as when he left.

“Sir, I have been catching fish in this lake for some time now and the fish seem a little bit boring for my skill level. Is there anything that could prove to be a challenge?”

“Hmm. Catch the Behemoth Crater Fish if you think you're up for the challenge. He can be found right off the edge of this dock, but you’ll have to figure out how to make him bite.”

Sora nodded as he sat next to the fisherman and cast his line out. After a while the line became taut as a fish had successfully been hooked. This is the part where Sora would normally reel in the fish but this time he let the fish pull his line all over the place. The line was very far out before another stronger force seemed to start pulling on the line. Within seconds the tip of the fishing rod had nearly completely pulled into a 90 degree angle. Sora braced his body to try and keep himself from flying off of the pier as he started to try and reduce the tension on the pole. He could see the durability of the pole slowly climbing down as a giant fish that was bigger than him jumped out of the water with his line going into it’s mouth. After just 20 minutes of fighting the fish, the rod had already reduced to 5 durability and was about to break. If the pole breaks then Sora would have to do the item quest all over again. Sora pulled out a repair hammer and used it on the rod, successfully bringing the durability up to 55.

…..

The old man had finally finished his item quest after another hour and a half of fishing and was on his way back to turn in the quest. Just as the pier had come into view he noticed a large crowd of players surrounding the cabin as they watched a man at the tip of the pier struggle to keep his rod in his hands. At first the old man was confused but as he saw a monstrous fish jump from the water his heart seemed to have skipped a beat. He ran towards the pier to get a better look and saw Sora sweating as he pulled out what looked like a hammer and tapped it on his fishing pole.

Sora was right at the end of his fight, he used his last repair hammer and the behemoth fish could be seen right in front of the pier. The fish looked like a Crater Fish but much larger in size. The fish would probably take up half the pier if it was brought up so Sora started to walked down the pier to bring it to shore. Everyone moved out of his way while cheering him on and Sora was finally able to pull the fish onto shore with one final pull and leaving only 11 durability on his fishing pole.

[x1 Behemoth Crater Fish obtained]

[Level up]

[Fishing Skill has advanced to Novice Fishing Skill]

[‘Novice Fisherman’ title obtained]

Sora ran up to the mouth of the fish as the fish spit out a few items, all glowing blue. The first one was a black fishing rod that had a red line down the center of the pole, the line was extremely thin and looked like a spider thread.

[x1 Obsidian Rod of Fishing]

Rarity - Rare

Durability - 80/80

Requires - Level 1 Novice Fishing Skill

“A rod forged from obsidian with a line made from the spider silk belonging to the Queen Arachnid. The line may look weak but a single thread could easily beat even the most well made fishing line.”

+20% Chance for Fishing Skill to Succeed

Sora had directly went from a common fishing pole to a rare fishing pole, it was pretty lucky because fishing poles could only be obtained from legendary fish. The Behemoth Crater Fish was the first legendary fish that could be caught and was only activated through the quest, meaning each player could only catch one. The next item was a belt that had many different pouches and loops on it.

[x1 Belt of Lesser Holding]

Rarity - Rare

Durability - 60/60

Defense - 3

Requires - Level 30

“A finely crafted leather belt that has many places to store items.”

+3 Item Slots

+10 Inventory Slots

A belt would normally give a small amount of defense and item slots, which were used to store things like potions so you could instantly access them instead of having to go into your inventory. This belt also came with 10 extra inventory spots which was a unique enchantment that only certain items could have. The last item was a staff made for healers so Sora decided to sell it as soon as he got back to Var.

Sora finally sat down to take a break after the long fight while storing the Behemoth Crater Fish. Sora greeted the old man who he fished with as he came towards him. He decided to tell this old man how to catch the fish, the rest was up to him. Sora finished giving some tips to the old man before leaving back towards Var with his first Novice level skill.