[IC] Elder Tale. (Sanquin / EveIris)

[EveIris]

Kali followed after the three though she mostly stood around as the others prepped for everything. She was mostly proud of Alakai considering how he had figured out how to create flavors with food, though she was a little envious herself. She hadn't really figured out anything cool regarding her class. She didn't concern herself too much about it though it was obvious the others were annoyed. "Alakai! You can't just tell them it. We barely know them." She said with a frown when he suggested sharing the knowledge. She wasn't sure that they could be trusted to keep it a secret. Still the conversation had switched to the guilds before she could bring up her concerns. She was pretty sure that they weren't going to join any guilds, Alakai showed no interest in that.

Kali sighed as she watched June's advances. It was clear to anyone that she showed some interest in Alakai though the other two were behaving as they usually were which probably meant they were used to seeing this form of behavior from their friend. It didn't seem like Alakai was going to reconsider showing them so she watched with a frown. To which Joan clearly picked up on. "Oh, you jealous that he's going to share his secret with us?" Joan taunted her though she shot him a glare. "I don't trust you. I mean this is coming from a guy who claimed didn't need help when he clearly did." She pointed out though Josie frowned with the topic. "We wouldn't tell anyone." She assured Kali though Joan snorted.

"Even if we do, it's not our fault with you entrusting us," he pointed out only for Josie to hit him hard on the head. "You idiot! Can you stop being so hostile, I swear." She shouted before shooting a quick glance over to Kali who in fact appeared rather concerned. "He wouldn't. He's just trying to get a rise out of you." She quickly assured Kali. Joan on the other hand snorted.

"Not like she'll be able to do anything. What is she going to do? Heal herself?" he said with clear amusement though Kali stood up. "You want to fight?" She asked clearly up for the challenge though Josie quickly held Joan from standing up. "No, no he certainly does not. You do not want to fight," she hissed at him. "Kali, sit down. Alakai is right, we shouldn't be thinking about anything else but just enjoying some good food and weather. Just ignore this one and trust me when I say that we won't tell anyone." Josie added on trying to diffuse the situation.

[sanquin]

Alakai had decided to stay out of the argument at first, but once Joan started to threaten with a fight, he had to put in his own two cents. "I don't think you want to fight Kali, Joan. As fighting her means fighting me. And I'm pretty sure the two of us can take you, or even the three of you if need be. One, because we're higher level. And two, because you don't have a healer. So please, sit down, stop the hostilities, and let's enjoy lunch okay?" Alakai was quite serious. If Joan planned to start a fight, he wouldn't like it, but he would kill all three of them if need be. Luckily Joan finally backed down, seeing how everyone was against him at this point.

"Besides, Kali, I want to eat food with flavour. Since we're eating together, it's hard to make something and not show them..." He then looked at Josie with a very serious expression. "I'll hold you to your word. I'd rather be on good than bad terms." Alakai wasn't going to make direct threats, as threats generally only made people more hostile. But if they did spill the secret to others they would very quickly realise how bad it would be for them to have him against them. He didn't know how he would get them back if that happened, but it wouldn't be pleasant to say the least.

"Anyway, I won't explain anything I do. Just allow you to watch. So you'll have to figure out the rest on your own." He then finally spoke as he started on cooking some of the fish they had gotten on their farming runs. The three looked on intently, though all of them seemed confused as to what was going on. Others couldn't see your inventory, profession and stat and skill screens unless you allowed them to, so they couldn't see that Alakai wasn't using his crafting skill to do the cooking. It was actually a bit amusing to watch.

[EveIris]

Joan had backed down the moment that Alakai had joined in. He was sure that he would lose if it came to him facing two people, especially when they were both a higher level than him. Kali stared down at him before she sighed heavily and sat herself down. She sighed at Alakai. "Fine then." It was his secret any how. She wasn't exactly in any position to tell him what he should or shouldn't do. Sighing heavily she picked up a stick and began prodding the sand in a sulking manner. Josie however nodded to Alakai knowing that it was only fair for them to keep it a secret. The last thing they wanted to do was make an enemy of them.

Kali didn't bother watching however she did notice Joan straining as he watched Alakai work. He was immensely focused on his actions but it was obvious that he was struggling to see what he was doing. "Alakai, I have some ingredients," she said to him before she opened her inventory and took out a couple of large crab legs. "They might have some meat in them." She said to him wondering if he'd be able to cook them. Josie blinked with surprise wondering when she had the chance to loot them. Kali only smirked. "I pick up everything and anything," she mentioned with obvious confidence. "Wait could you redo that, I didn't catch it," Joan said to Alakai hoping that he would do it again for him.

Kali was rather proud of Alakai to have figured out something so smart though she was a little worried that the woman beside him was trying to seduce him. She didn't really say anything figuring that it wasn't the place to do so anyhow.

[sanquin]

Alakai shook his head at Kali's offer of crab legs. "I think we should save them for later. I don't have butter with me and they're best prepared in a pot." They didn't have a pot, just a campfire. And he liked crab back in the normal world so he wanted to prepare them properly. The fish were just a matter of some seasoning, stripping some sticks of their bark, putting the fish on, and sticking them in the sand near the fire.

While they waited, June decided to ask some more questions again. "So the two of you travel together huh? Just the two of you~ I'm a little jealous of you Kali." She started, wanting to tease not just Alakai but Kali as well this time. "It's...it's not like that..." Alakai mumbled softly, a slight tingle appearing on his cheeks again. He certainly wished it could be 'like that', but in his mind he would never have a chance with a girl like Kali. Or with pretty much any girl for that matter. And even if he did, he wouldn't have the slightest clue on how to ask her. In this world he did feel more confident, probably because here everyone was pretty good looking, and stats were important to your standing. Something he was good at. "But yea...we travel a lot. We even camped outside twice now because there was no town or anything nearby." "Ohh, sounds scary. Aren't you afraid monsters will attack?" Alakai shook his head. "Nope. I figured out I could get enough rest to last a second day by just meditating. You know, the roleplay skill monks get. And while meditating I'm still alert to our surroundings. Though more than one night would tire me out too much I think." "Wow, that's useful~" June replied excitedly. "I wish we had a monk with us now." Obviously hinting that she wouldn't mind Alakai joining them. "I'm sure there are monks out there that don't belong to a guild yet. You should ask around." He spoke, being oblivious to June's hints.

[EveIris]

Kali pouted but nodded. He had a point, it would taste a lot better with butter. That and the fact they could have more since they would be by themselves. She kept to herself and listened though she hadn't really liked the tone June was taking on. It was strange but she felt rather insecure with her being around Alakai. She couldn't help but snort with seeing how blind Alakai was with her. She was dropping plenty of hints especially with being together as a group. Then again it may be working in her favor that Alakai was so blur.

"I'm sure there are plenty of monks," she assured June. "And Alakai doesn't have to worry about anything with me around." She reminded her casually. "It's always great to have a healer after all." She added on though Joan snorted. "What? You bragging now?" he mentioned though Josie smiled. "It's rare to find a healer, are you going down fully with that path? Or are you going for some damage?" She asked though Kali frowned. So far she had been going down the pure healing path. She could do her secondary as a damage but that was only when she was at a high enough level. "I don't think I'll be going damage anytime soon... as long as Alakai doesn't want to ditch me?" she said half jokingly though she did glance over to him. She didn't like the idea of pursuing a healing class if she was going to end up alone, grinding would be hard and she would have to seek out other players which of course meant joining a guild.

"That makes you a weak target. You ought to go semi damage," Joan mentioned. "No, because that'll take points away from healing. If we enter dungeons that require twenty or so people, me having damage would be useless and my heals would be a lot weaker. Maybe I'll go damage for my secondary but so far I'm content with healing Alakai." She shot back.

[sanquin]

Alakai rolled his eyes at the conversation. He had expected the mentality of being able to do damage to be prevalent, but to outright tell Kali she should be focusing on damage a little more... "You're wrong, she shouldn't put anything into damage if anything. Healers are rare because people want to be able to defend themselves. But that's short-sighted. In this world, in the long run, healers will become more desirable. Even more so because of how rare they are. People will start to want to do dungeons and more dangerous outdoor areas, which need proper healers. All the healers that went into damage more will only be picked as extras at that point, while full healers will be highly sought after." He gave Kali a slight smile as he looked at her. "Besides, I don't plan to leave her alone no matter what happens. We make a good team, and since I'm sticking with her she won't need to do damage."

"You two are quite close, huh..." June mused, feeling slightly put down by that idea. "But we need both a healer and a tank for the dungeon anyway. Joan here went for damage, so yea... Wait, are you a tank, Alakai?" The man nodded. "I would have gone for a hybrid build, but since I have a reliable healer backing me up I decided to go full tank instead. I already have my build thought out as well." There was another reason he went full tank. As, just like in mmorpgs, tanks would most likely be more rare as well. Though not as rare as healers. And most likely just like in mmorpgs, a healer and tank duo would get picked for tougher areas and dungeons a lot more quickly.

"By the way, about the dungeon...did you guys have a plan for it?" The three all went silent for a moment before Josie finally spoke up. "Well...we aren't sure about what to expect. Just that it's an underwater dungeon. We figured we'd just take it really slowly..." Alakai smirked at that. "Then, a more important question. Can you guys follow orders?" He looked at Joan specifically. "Why do you ask? Are you saying you should be the leader?" Alakai nodded. "I've done extensive research into all areas up to level 50. Besides, I have a lot of experience as raid leader in other games. I was...always 'that nerdy guy with the plan' when it came to dungeons. Alakai felt a bit ashamed of it. In the normal world he was often called a no-lifer and a nerd. Which was sadly mostly true. But he knew full well that in this fantasy world being a hardcore gamer gave him an edge.

(Since they're your characters I'll leave it up to you how they respond to his question. :) )

[EveIris]

Kali was pleased to hear that Alakai was on her side when it came to the whole lack of damage issue. She figured that they made a good team for now considering how he could deal the damage and tank it with her heals. Naturally fighting would take longer if he was going the pure tank role but she knew it was for the bigger picture. Kali only snorted when she heard the topic drift to the dungeon. Alakai's question was amusing to say in the least. "Joan? Follow orders? Not a chance. He's way too stubborn," she brought up honestly before she turned her attention to him.

"You complained about getting saved from the crabs, your pride gets in the way. In a real fight we would have time to tend to your precious pride because that could cost all of us getting killed," she reminded him seriously. Joan was about to reply though Josie spoke up quickly. "Joan may have a issue in that sense but he wouldn't get others hurt. He doesn't like putting us in danger, he tried to take aggro with the crabs in case we needed to run away," she brought up honestly though Joan frowned. "I can follow orders... as long as they aren't stupid," he grumbled though he directed his gaze elsewhere clearly embarrassed with what Josie had said.

"And you weren't the only one that was considered nerdy, Alakai. It's probably safe to say that us three are." He admitted to him. He didn't have as much knowledge on this game but he played plenty of other games. Josie smiled as she placed her arm around Joan. "He played loads of games, even was a GM in a few. His pride is just a result of his past positions in other games. Really, he's a great guy." She vouched. Kali stared before she sighed seeing that if he could listen then there wasn't an issue. "And you, no flirting," she added to June knowing that it clearly distracted Alakai. She wasn't sure what June was up to but she'd be lying if she said it didn't make her uncomfortable.

[sanquin]

Alakai doubted that the three were seen as the same kind of nerdy as he had been. There was a reason he knew a lot more than most about the game. And it wasn't because he liked taking walks during his free time. "Well, I guess we'll be doing a trial run to see how things go, and to still any doubts people might have. Trust in each other is the most important part of forming a party." The fish seemed to be just about done, so he took one away from the fire and took a bite. Satisfied, he nodded towards the other fish. "Dig in, they seem to be done." He spoke, taking another bite of the one he had taken. "Anyway, we can save all that for later. Today was supposed to be our day off. So I plan to take it easy until tomorrow."

"In that case-" Josie spoke with a smile. "How about you two come to our guild hall tonight? We may be a small guild, and only have a small guild hall. But our beds are better than the inn, and we have a few spare ones anyway." Alakai looked questioningly at Kali. He wasn't sure if he liked that idea. As it meant having to deal with quite a few people. Even worse...he'd be a guest at someone else's place. He could already think of several ways that could become really awkward for him. But at the same time he could see the advantages. Guild halls usually had crafting stations, so they would most likely have a proper kitchen. Plus, even though the beds in the inn weren't bad, having something truly soft to lay on would be wonderful. And they might even have a bath or something like that. Bathing hadn't really been a thing since they had come to this world, apart from finding a stream or river and getting the worst of it out of their clothes and off of their bodies.

[EveIris]

Kali went ahead to enjoy the fish as she bite into the crunchy skin and took a bit of the meat off with it. The flavors were there and surprisingly it tasted alot of better than a normal fish would. She wasn't a huge fan of fish but it was good enough for her to want to eat more. She listened quietly as the others conversed though grew unsure about the guild hall. It hadn't helped that Alakai glanced over to her clearly looking for some sort of advice or reaction.

"You don't have to decide now, you can think about it. We're just mentioning because we have the space available," Joan added on. "I like the concept of having a nicer bed," she admitted softly though was clearly hesistant about the idea. "Could we maybe take a look later?" She suggested to them though he glanced over to June who nodded to the idea. "That's fine, again no rush really." She reminded as Kali went ahead to finish off her meal. Once she was done she sighed with content, "Thanks Alakai, it was great as always." She needed a minute to digest though it was mostly just to be lazy. It was nice not to be grinding for a change.

[sanquin]

Everyone finished their food, but it seemed that after that it was time to part ways again for the time being. As Josie, now clearly the 'leader' of this little group, spoke up. "Once again I'd like to thank you, both for helping us and for the food. But it's time for us to continue levelling." The other two nodded in agreement. "We're not quite ready for the dungeon yet after all. Our plan was to go tomorrow. And if you two do decide to join us, we have to be high enough level right?" Alakai smiled, giving them a small nod back. "It would be great if we could indeed go tomorrow. The faster we can do the dungeon, the less my levelling plans are messed up." "Ah, though we're going to another area for now...I'd rather not have a repeat of today." Josie added, which Alakai silently agreed with. "Hey, I told you already! I could have taken those monsters!" Joan complained, though an angry glare from both Josie and June quickly shut him up again. "If you want a tip, there's an area with ants just on the other side of the dunes over there." Alakai commented, pointing towards where he meant. "It's boring to grind them, and they swarm like the crabs. But if you pull a few away from the main area each time it's great exp."

Josie smiled, nodding in agreement. "Sounds like it's at least worth checking out. Thanks for the tip. Hopefully we'll see you this evening~" And with that the trio left. It was only when they were completely out of sight that Alakai realised something. "Huh...that's the first time I only felt a little awkward in a group of people..." He mused, being quite surprised about it himself. "Well, apart from June constantly teasing me...that was pretty uncomfortable..." The man wouldn't notice someone flirting with him even if his life depended on it. After all, his self-image was still that of an unattractive, undesirable shut-in gamer. And who would ever be interested in a person like that right? "Well, either way...I think we can decide on whether we'll visit their guild hall once we go back to the city. No need to ponder about it too much."

[EveIris]

Kali mostly remained silent as the others spoke. As usual Joan was trying to start something up, thankfully the other two had shut him down quickly. Finishing off her food she quietly listened to Alakai advise them about an area with ants. He was being nice again which wasn't anything surprising to her. They bid them farewell and eventually were gone. "Really? June's got a thing for you," she bluntly stated to him figuring that he would have been too dull to have even noticed it himself.

She pouted at the mentioning of seeing the guild hall. There wasn't any harm in doing so however she wasn't exactly comfortable with the idea of being under the same roof as Joan. "I suppose we can," she mumbled. "I want to play in the water a little longer," she admitted seeing how their time had been interrupted earlier. "Food was good, I'm going to see if I can collect anything under the water," she said with obvious excitement. Changing back into her bikini she ran back into the water to enjoy herself.

The rest of the day had gone by without much trouble. Kali enjoyed the hours in the water having even found certain items under the water to collect. She had grown tired though and a lot more accepting of seeing the guild hall. She figured they might as well see it and get it done. "Do you really want to stay there if you like it there?" she asked him wondering what his views on it were. "Not worried that June will slip into bed with you?" she asked him jokingly as she nudged his arm. They weren't too far away from the place, perhaps another five minutes or so.

[sanquin]

Alakai's face turned bright red when Kali explained to him what June had been doing. "W-what?! No way! Surely she's just the clingy type that likes to tease people!" Even when someone else told him, he still couldn't believe any girl or woman would have a thing for him. Especially someone he'd only just met. "Geez, I don't want you to start teasing me as well..." He added with a sigh, figuring that was what was going on.

Kali quickly changed subjects to going back for a swim again though. And he didn't blame her. That's what they were there for after all. "I'll join you in a little bit. I'm going to properly put out the fire first." There wasn't anything that could burn nearby, but it was still the right thing to do in his opinion. So he threw sand over the fire to put it out, then took the half-burnt wood pieces that were left and threw them into the dunes. Once he was done Alakai also changed into his swim wear again and headed for the water. Though unlike Kali he stayed in the shallows, so he could sit with the water reaching up to his chest.

The rest of the day went pretty much as planned. And even though this was supposed to be a day to relax, both were getting tired once the sun started going down. Kali came to him asking about the possibility of joining a guild. He shrugged, not being sure himself. "I don't know. I think it's at least worth it to stay there for a night, see what guild halls are like in this game-- In this world I mean." Then of course she had to tease him a little more. "H-heh...I doubt she's really that interested in me..." He answered, his cheeks quickly turning red again. "P-plus! If I share a room with you again...erm...well she won't dare do anything right?" The man's question had a slight hint of hope in it. As he did hope she'd sleep in the same room again. Over the week that they had been together, seeing her form in the darkness in the bed beside him had become a bit calming. Plus she was very pretty, and what guy wouldn't want a pretty girl sleeping in his room? Even if it was in a separate bed.

"A-anyway...let's go find Chronos at the stables. If we go now, I'm sure the innkeeper can still provide us with a good meal before we head to the guild hall." It wasn't -that- late yet after all. Probably around 6 pm, though it was hard to tell without a clock.

[EveIris]

Kali was amused with the fact that he seemed so oblivious to June. He also didn't seem the harm in checking out the guild so she figured a night would give them a rough idea of how they were. "Well, if you're that worried that she's going to sneak in and attack you, I'll do you the honors and stay in the same room." She spoke of it casually though had planned on it anyways, she figured he would think she was doing him a favor while she was getting what she wanted. She laughed as she shook her head slightly before she continued along his side.

"Yeah, I wonder if Chronos misses ya?" she joked though it wasn't long until they reached the stables. "I'm kind of tired so I think you can steer him," she said as the NPC brought out Chronos. She went ahead and waited for him to climb on him first before she got up behind him, practically rested her forehead against his back. It had been a while, but for the first time in this game she felt tired. She was sure that it was similar to a mental exhaustion rather than a physically one since she hadn't actually felt tired in the game before.

The ride back to the Inn hadn't taken too long, however she felt a lot more drained after the travel. Food hadn't sounded too appealing since she was feeling rather homesick. She was actually craving a dish her mother often cooked for her and to an extent it had sadden her that she hadn't had it in so long. Still, pondering on it did little to help so she pushed those thoughts aside. She went ahead to enter the inn first. The sounds of chattering and shuffling of chairs could be heard as she made her way to the spot they usually occupied. Taking her seat she sighed heavily before she rested her face against the table. She figured she would just have whatever Alakai was having since she was much too tired to decide.

[sanquin]

"I wonder...do animals like that miss us? Or do they just patiently wait forever until we return like in the game?" Even in the game mounts didn't disappear when you got off of them. Though they did disappear and reappear next to you once you summoned them. "Ah well, we can't just ask Khronos since neither of us is a druid." He then added, shrugging slightly.

The ride back was pretty much uneventful. They encountered an animal or two, and one goblin that had wandered away from it's usual location, but Alakai ran past all of them, not wanting to deal with them at the moment. Once they got back though, the city felt...a little different. Like the atmosphere had changed a little. There seemed to be more people that were moping about. And there were a few groups, probably from larger guilds, that were proudly parading around. Alakai chose to ignore it though. It wasn't like he had any right to just walk up and tell people what to do. He didn't like it, but this wasn't the time or place to deal with such problems. Plus the both of them were tired.

Once they arrived at the inn Alakai ordered a dish with plenty of potatoes and vegetables, and only a bit of meat. However Kali seemed to not be in the mood for eating. She did order the same as him, but looked like she was pre-occupied with something else. Once they both had their food at their private table, he finally decided to ask what was going on. "Kali, you seem a little down? Or thinking about something? Is something wrong?" He asked casually just before taking a bite from his food.

[EveIris]

She blinked at his question though eventually glanced down to Khronos. "I don't really know. They could? I mean it doesn't seem like they have emotions, he does recognize you as his owner but he also listens to the mount keeper?" she said sounding fairly unsure herself. "Keep those questions in mind though so that the next time we actually meet a druid we can ask!" She assured.

She rested her head on her hand with her elbow firmly planted on the table though she did use her free hand to fiddle with the food. "I guess I feel a little homesick. I miss my mom's cooking," she admitted to him. It felt like they were incredibly far from home and everything felt foreign. She enjoyed the feeling of going on an adventure yet she was missing her soft bed and daily routine. She missed some of her personal belongings too. "Everyone probably feels like that, least some of the players here. It just sort of hit me just now," she said before she sighed. "I'll bounce back," she assured as she tried to focus on eating her food.

It took her longer to finish her food though when she did she leaned back feeling stuffed. "You know... I still have those crab legs. How do you feel about using that meat and making a maki roll? That sounds yummy doesn't it. Or with some creamy sauce," she said though she felt herself beginning to drool. "I feel like I could go for something sweet though. Dessert is always the best way to end a good meal." She mumbled. "We should probably visit the guild house and see if it's to our liking," she admitted as she sat up. She had hopes that with being around more people, she would think less about missing home.

[sanquin]

Alakai sighed. He couldn't really relate to that feeling. He wasn't on good terms with his family and hadn't seen them in over a year. Friends weren't really a thing for him either. All he had were his games in the normal world. And now that he was here, nothing much had changed. Only now he was actually living a game rather than seeing it on a screen. Sure, Alakai still wanted to return to the normal world. But a large part of him also wanted to stay here. "Well, I guess there would be plenty of people feeling that way yea. Even if I'm not one of them..." He trailed off a little, feeling a bit awkward for admitting that. Though he didn't entirely know why.

"As for your mom's cooking...well, I won't pretend like I can replace something like that. But maybe if you tell me what kind of dish you'd like to eat, I can come up with a way to make it in this world in time. I might not be able to get it right after one, five, or even ten tries. But maybe I will get it right on the eleventh, or the try after that." Kali then mentioned the crab legs again. And though her idea sounded great, there was one big problem with it. "Maki rolls...I can't make those sadly. Not because I don't know how, but...well, I have yet to see anything like rice in this world. This world is big, so maybe one of the other parts of the country has rice. But with what we have right now it would be impossible sadly. Crab legs with creamy sauce should be doable though!"

The two had dessert after that. And not just any dessert. Ice cream. Making ice cream had been impossible before, as refrigerators didn't exist here. But a player that had picked the mage class had decided to earn some money while working at the inn. And with ice magic, it was now possible to make ice cream as well.

After dessert it was time to head to the guild headquarters. It was only a short ride to get there as the building stood right at the center of the city. It was the tallest and widest building to be found. Which was no surprise, as it was supposed to hold the guild halls of all the guilds in the area. "Now to see how this works..." Alakai mused as they stepped inside. In the game all you did was just walking up to a teleporter on the ground floor which would take you to your guildhall. But here, there was a desk with a receptionist sitting behind it. "Uhm, hello... We're...looking for the Log Horizon guild." He spoke, figuring he might as well ask. He had remembered the guild name from the status windows he had peeked at at the beach. As unlike him and Kali they didn't hide their information.

They were then directed to the second floor by the npc sitting behind the desk, and being told to find door number 203. So up the two went to the second floor, and finding door 203. "I guess we just knock..." Alakai mumbled, getting more unsure of himself by the minute. As it felt like they were going to a job interview or something. After knocking it took a little bit before the door opened. But the first person they saw was a familiar face. It was June. "I thought it would be you two! Come in! We were about to gather for a few drinks!" She spoke, stepping aside so the two could enter.

The inside was...quite a bit different from the houses they had seen in the city so far. Especially compared to the inn. The inside looked like that of a large and luxurious manor. Not something that would actually fit into the building it was in. So apparently the doors in the guild headquarters connected to different spaces or something. Alakai didn't want to think about it too much though, as he felt like that would just give him a headache at this point. "This place is huge..." He muttered, looking around. "And you're telling me this is the guild hall of a small guild?" He now wondered what the guild halls of guilds with lots of money would look like compared to this.

(( pre13.deviantart.net/46f7/th/pre/f/200.. ))

[EveIris]

Kali had felt a lot better after hearing that he would try to make some of the things she had missed from her normal life back home. It had lifted her mood, that and the sweet ice cream. When they finally left the inn she felt a lot better. The cold air felt refreshing against her skin. When they had reached the building she stared with surprise. She hadn't expected for it to be so large, then again she recalled how guilds were fairly popular in some games. She for one hadn't really taken much of an interest in that area, she had joined a few only for the sake of being able to do those large raids. However loyalty to a guild or going out of her way to meet guild members outside of the game.

She let Alakai do most of the talking as she quietly admired the building. When they finally made it outside of the room she was surprised to see June. When they were let in she was even more surprised at the spaciousness of the place. It looked like it could have about 20 people or so which was considered small for a guild. It looked a lot bigger than it would in game though she had to remind herself that everything in this game looked a lot bigger in perspective once she was inside the game herself.

Joan glanced over only to snort. "I see you guys really came huh?" he said, the displeasure thick in his voice though Josie only smacked the back of his head. "Be nice. We have plenty of drinks! Joan managed to get us top notch mead! It'll be fun!" She said cheerfully though Joan groaned. "It isn't mead. It's tasteless, but it has the same properties as alcohol does," he explained though Kali grinned. "Count me in." She said with clear excitement as she made her way over to them.

[sanquin]

(Jules? I think you mean Josie. xD Or is Jules a new character? Another J? xD)

Alakai immediately started to shy away a little. As in the lounge there sat another few people, all now turning their heads towards the door. This was just a few too many people paying attention to him for his liking. "Ah...I guess I'll join too..." He spoke slightly timidly, wondering once again if going here was a good idea.

One of those other people stood, turned around, and headed into their direction. He looked like a middle-aged man in a druid's clothing. "So you're the two Josie and June told me about huh?" He spoke casually. "I figured I should introduce myself first. I'm Sungrol, the guild leader. A level 22 summoner at the moment." Alakai frowned a little, finding it quite weird that he would introduce himself with his class and level like that. "Uhm...hi..." He answered. "I'm Alakai. I'm a monk though I'd rather not advertise my level." "That's fine I guess. People have started to distrust each other lately and we've only just met after all." Sungrol replied.

That made Alakai think even more. He hadn't noticed anything like distrust in the city. Then again the two of them were almost always on the road. And he had noticed that the atmosphere had changed a little compared to the first two days. Once Kali had introduced herself as well one of the people still sitting in the lounge spoke up. "We'll do introductions while drinking! Otherwise you'd have to keep standing there for another half hour!" The comment was met with a few chuckles. Indeed, there were another 7 people sitting there. So a total of 11 guild members. A small guild by any standards. It it would still take a while for them all to introduce themselves. Plus, having a few drinks to loosen up the mood would help as wel in Alakai's case.

(( Sungrol: orig11.deviantart.net/86c6/f/2013/081/.. ))

[EveIris]

Kali noticed the others though she was surprised that they had managed to get this many. She honestly though that the three of them was all were was in the guild. She noticed Alakai's hesitation however nudged him gently to assure him that it was alright. She listened quietly when Sungrol introduced himself however she only grinned. "That's great news. Alakai's been curious about druids," she said hoping to ease up the tension since Alakai didn't seem to trust anyone which was understandable. She also figured that they could find something to talk about since he was curious about Khronos being able to talk or not.

They were ushered inside though Kali couldn't help but notice how the others were already chatting softly with another. Joan went ahead to pour the both of them a drink. "Why don't you introduce yourselves first then we'll go around," Joan said as he handed the drinks to the both of them. Kali took hers as she sat down with the others. "I'll go first then. Alakai's a little shy," she said playfully as she stretched out her legs. "Well, name's Kali. I'm a healer! Um I haven't been playing too long, my secondary skill is tailoring." She said though it was obvious that she was unsure of what else to say but her name.

[sanquin]

Alakai was glad that Kali took the lead. He was fine in parties and during their levelling. But social gatherings of this kind had always been his nemesis. In fact, he had only ever gone to one in his entire life. The man sat down beside his friend, and once they were offered drinks Kali started on introductions first. Though she kept it to superficial things. In fact, it was only game related things at that. Which was probably a good way to go about it for now.

"Well, as I just said, I'm Alakai, a monk." He started a little shyly once she was finished. "I picked cooking as profession because, well, it was one of my few hobbies outside of gaming that I had before all this. I've been playing since early beta, and know quite a bit about the game you could say." Right as Alakai was finished the youngest looking guild member raised his hand as if he wanted to ask a question. "Say, Um...I'm Helm, a Bard and Joan's younger brother." That immediately explained his younger appearance as he didn't look older than 14. "I was wondering...since your name is Alakai, are you that famous Alakai my brother keeps talking about? The guy from that top raiding guild in WoW said to be the master planner and raid leader for all of their raids?" Alakai suddenly perked up, his eyes looking at the boy in surprise. Sure he used the same name, but one of the reasons he started playing Elder Tale was to start anew. He didn't like all the attention his old guild in WoW had been getting. Even if it was just a bit of renown for being a top guild.

At that point a red-faced Joan came running towards his younger brother, smacking him up the head. "S-shut up bro! I-I don't talk about him that much! And a guy like that would never be here!" Alakai sighed, deciding that lying would get him nowhere anyway. Especially if they were going to join this guild it would come out sooner or later. "Ah...w-well...I guess I am...I'm not that great though, really..." He told the brother, feeling like he was getting too much praise for just being good at planning ahead. Though Joan's reaction was amusing to say the least. He stared shocked at Alakai, as if he had just seen his idol or something. "You...are?!" Joan finally exclaimed, still unsure of what to make of the situation.

It wasn't until June came from behind and smacked Joan on the back before he came to his senses. "Yo Joan! Stop staring and sit down okay? We're here to drink after all!" Joan cleared his throat, taking a deep breath and sitting down. "Well...uh...yea let's drink." Clearly the guy was embarrassed enough already about what had just happened, so Alakai at least decided forget about it and just move on. He didn't want that kind of attention anyway.