HC:Pacifist | Ch. 14 - Oscar
Added 2023-04-24 15:56:20 +0000 UTCAs the afternoon went on, Roth became progressively fluent in Ratan. At first, he could only make out some loose words, but he then started to figure out whole simple sentences and began being able to say some simple things. Of course, he wasn't actually learning how to speak to animals. This was just a game. The game's AI must have mimicked the language-learning process and transferred it into the game. Roth was having fun. He found out that mice were humble, simple creatures. They were adventurous and often had funny tales or jokes to share. Additionally, every single mob in the game had a name and a distinct personality. The amount of computing power and programming involved in such a feat completely blew Roth's mind. How had they pulled off such complexity? The only explanation was that the AI was doing a lot of the heavy lifting or that, as Roth approached each mob, their personalities and backstories were made up on the spot. Whatever the case may be, it was very impressive.
After one afternoon of interacting with mice and trying to converse with them, Roth finally received the notification he had been waiting for.
You are now fluent in Ratan. You can freely talk to and understand mice and rats.
+100 reputation with the Ratans.
You have gained a new title, [Bilingual].
Title: Bilingual (Common)
Title description: You've put in the effort and now speak a second language. Many doors are open to you, and your mind is expanded.
Title effects:
- Grants +1 wisdom;
- Grants +1 intelligence;
- It's slightly easier to learn new languages.
Conditions to unlock [Bilingual]:
- Learn a language inside the game {complete};
Great! The afternoon had paid off. He’d gained a new title! He was on a roll. He also finished learning his first AstroTerran language. Now that he had unlocked a hundred percent of the Ratan language, he attempted to chat with one random mouse to see if there was any difference in how they reacted to him. He chose a brown mouse, similar to the first one he had managed to save. He was busily munching on the stalk of a blade of grass.
“Hello, little mouse," greeted Roth in the friendliest Ratan he could muster.
“Oh. Hello, human! You speak our language so perfectly! Perfect accent.”
“Oh, thank you!”
“That’s amazing. It is my first time seeing a human who can understand and speak to us. There is someone I know who would love to meet you.”
“Really? Who’s that?”
"His name is Rattatoile. He is our ruler. Would you like to come to see him?"
You've been offered a new quest, [Audience with the Rat King].
Quest: Audience with the Rat King (Rare)
It’s been many moons since a human could communicate with Ratans. The Rat King has tried to defend its people for a long time but with limited success. Perhaps you can bridge the gap between Ratans and humans.
Mission objective: Meet the Rat King.
Rewards: Unknown
Would you like to accept? [Y/N]
“I would love to meet him. Could you take me there?”
“Sure, human. I can do that for a friend of ours. And a martyr, no less. You must have been through much in life.”
“Thank you, little one. Oh, by the way. I am looking for Bartholomew’s dog in the forest. Do you know where it is?”
“There is only one dog in the forest. Its name is Oscar. Everyone knows him. He is really old."
"Do mice get along with dogs?" asked Roth, out of curiosity.
"We like dogs. They keep cats away. I can take you there, too. It is on the way to the King.” What a friendly little guy, thought Roth. It seemed that having good relationships inside the game went a long way.
“My name is Roth. What’s your name?”
“My name is Brownie.”
System Notification:
Your friendliness and good nature have caused the Ratans to like you more.
+5 reputation with all Ratans
“Lead the way, Brownie.”
Roth followed after Brownie as it broke the treeline and entered the woods. The canopy of the tall pine trees comfortably filtered the light. This part of the woods was mostly made of pine trees, which gave off a pleasant, soothing smell. Brownie didn’t use any of the paths used by humans. It preferred to travel through the woodland floor through rat-infested areas. Since Roth had a good relationship with all Ratans, none of them attacked him. On the contrary, he was very well received by them. Roth kept greeting everyone he met as he crossed the woods.
“Hi there! Sorry to barge in! I’m Roth. Nice to meet you!”
Your friendliness and good nature have made a good impression on the Brown Rats.
+5 reputation with Ratans
“We’re sorry to intrude. We’re just on our way to visit Bartholomew’s dog.”
Your fluency in Ratan has made quite an impression on the Tree Rats.
+5 reputation with Ratans
Roth met all sorts of rodents. Black, red, blue, brown, and white. Some lived in the trees, others on the forest floor. Some walked on fours, and others on two legs. They all regarded him curiously as he passed. He hatefully realized that this game was so realistic that his cheeks started hurting from smiling too much. To worsen it, the pain settings were turned to full blast at 100%. He had to pause momentarily massage his face before he could move on. Not that the massage would actually help. He hoped the psychosomatic effect of making his mind think he was massaging his cheeks would provide some relief. It didn't. Just in case, he used a Healing Ray on himself. No. That didn't work, either. After about an hour of walking, they reached a clearing in the woods.
"It's here. Follow me."
Brownie disappeared into a hole in the ground. It wasn't particularly wide, but Roth decided to follow it. As he crawled through a tunnel, it eventually widened into a space not much smaller than a normal house. Inside the underground space, a fireplace was crackling away, giving the room a soft, warm glow. Roth wondered where the smoke was going since he hadn't seen any signs of a fire on his way here. For a moment, he fantasized about a hollow tree that was a chimney in disguise, exhausting the smoke beyond the canopy and away from prying eyes. Refocusing on the room, he noticed a dog sleeping in front of the fireplace. After a moment, its ears perked up, and then he lifted its head.
The dog had small drooped ears and white and brown fur. It had so many wrinkles and folds in the skin that Roth couldn't, for the life of him, figure out where the dog's eyes were. It looked like an English Bulldog. He could see that the dog was old. But after a moment, Roth wondered if he and Brownie were being misled by all the folds and wrinkles in the animal's skin.
“Oh? Visitors? How unusual?” Hearing the bulldog's voice, Roth could hear the weight of many years in it. It was indeed an elderly bulldog.
“Hello! My name is Roth.”
“A Martyr! A friend of my merchant association and a friend of Ratan's too. I see. Is that why you have one of them guiding you in the woods? Interesting. Interesting. My name is Oscar.”
“How come I can speak to you without learning your language?” asked incredulously.
The dog looked at him, confused. "Because I am talking in yours, good sir."
Mickey, next to him, let out some squeaks that Roth, now fluent in Ratan, could tell were laughter.
“I have brought a package from some friends of yours.”
He pulled the package from his inventory and handed it to Oscar.
“Oh, thank you! I was waiting for this.”
[One Last Errand] completed
Quest completion rate: S-
Rewards: 1 silver, 1500 XP
Bonus rewards: 1 silver, 1250 XP, and +10 reputation with Greenleaf Inc.
[Level up!]
You've unlocked a new title: [Overachiever].
Roth paused for a moment. Another title? This wasn't normal, from what he had read in the forums. This was his fifth! He hastily went to check what the title properties were.
Title: Overachiever (uncommon)
Title description: When you were given tasks, you worked at them diligently. Your efforts have earned you a reputation for being a hardworking man.
Title effects:
- +10% to all quest XP rewards;
- Increased tolerance for quests with a deadline.
Conditions to unlock [Overachiever]:
- Complete ten or more quests with an S or S- completion rate {complete};
- or complete five or more quests with an S+ completion rate;
- or complete one quest with an S++ completion rate.
So that's why he unlocked this title. He had thought that getting an S in the completion rate of a quest wasn't difficult, especially as a beginner. But apparently, it wasn't so simple. He peeked in the forums and found posts that confirmed his suspicions.
Bask in my glory.
#achievements #iamthebest #inyourface #glorious
Poster: BaliliBalala
Post: Yo, guys! I just wanted to share that, after much effort, I have finally gotten an A rating in a quest. I have always gotten C after C, so I'm not gonna lie: This feels pretty good. The rewards for the quest are much better than if you get just a C or a B.
Comments
SwordMaestro: Congrats. I've been trying, but it's not easy. I'm stumped at B.
StrongForce441: Those developers are so cruel. They keep hanging the carrot right in front of our noses but out of our reach. It's much better to farm XP in mobs.
GamerFamer999: I read somewhere that you must do quests beyond your level to get an S. If you just do quests normally, you will never get an S.
StrongForce441: Quests are hard as it is, man. Just go hunt mobs.
Getting an S rating was something rare then. Thinking about the reason for his success, perhaps it had to do with him starting this series of quests at level 0. Or maybe it was due to his endurance stat being in the 200s. Most players would take much longer to run as many kilometers as he did in such a short time. Anyway, he had been rewarded for his diligence. He thought he would get a bad grade on this last one. He had spent two days blacked out by an animal rescue frenzy. It turned out that Bartholomew's house was not easy to find. He would have never thought of starting the quest by looking inside the holes and dens of the woods. Even if he had started looking for Oscar as soon as he had gotten the quest, without Brownie's assistance, it would have taken him days before he could find it. His mouse friend had saved him a lot of time and had allowed him to complete this quest with fashionable timing.
The new title seemed to be very useful. Since Roth wasn't planning on hunting or running dungeons in this game, quests seemed to be the only path to gain XP and level up his character. These titles' effects would prove very useful in the long run since he would gain twice the rewards with half the effort, so to speak.
“You have done a good service to our merchant association. You seem to be honest and true to their word. You also seem to be industrious in the tasks you take on. I thought I would recommend you to Bartholomew as a potential merchant's apprentice." Oscar paused, thinking to himself. "However,” he said, gesturing toward Brownie, “you seem to be someone who can get along with other races. That's a surprise. Tell me, have you ever thought about being a broker?”
You have been offered the broker's profession.
Would you like to accept? [Y/N]
