As Alex, Tereza, and Menchi return from the Upgrading Hall and stroll toward the market—just to casually check if anything valuable pops up—Tereza keeps glancing at Alex.
"So what is this plan, huh? You're screwed now. You're missing four whole points of STR—you can't even equip your sword!"
Alex chuckles. "Heh, do you really think I'd take that kind of risk if I didn't have a perfect, foolproof plan?"
"I guess not… let's hear your genius plan then," she replies.
[Alex:
Save me, Glimmerwhisk. I need a ring with at least 4 STR. Please help me! Refer me to someone.]
Alex flashes them the message he just sent, wearing a smug smile.
"See? It's perfect," he says.
"..."
"..."
Princess Jewel has to agree with her Soulmate. Glimmerwhisk should be able to find a way to obtain such a ring. However… Jewel is slightly disappointed by the shameless way her Soulmate operates.
[Glimmerwhisk:
Try the player-owned residences near the marketplace. Silver-Shine Alley 34. That player lives inside the Realm. He never leaves and uses his business to buy as much time as possible. Why do you constantly pressure yourself like that? You should have looked for the ring first and then ranked up the sword.]
"She's not wrong… but I'm the kind of guy who needs that pressure," Alex comments. "If I can't get something like that right after finishing a mission, I'm hopeless anyway! This Realm should provide endless opportunities. Getting 4 STR at this point with my resources should be easy."
They arrive at the house shortly after—it's located on a quiet street not far from the Trading Hub. Just a small row home, nearly identical to the others around it.
Alex knocks on the door. Nothing happens. He knocks again. And again.
Finally, the door creaks open. A short, greasy-looking man peers through the narrow gap.
Alex stares at him in surprise. The man is even shorter than Menchi and Tereza. He's wearing a stained shirt and filthy pants. His head is nearly bald, with just a fringe of greasy, golden hair around the edges.
"Hi there, beautiful guy," Alex jokes with a smirk.
The player immediately tries to close the door, but Alex jams his knee into the gap.
"Sorry, man… I was just kidding. Glimmerwhisk sent me," Alex says quickly.
"G…G…Glimmerwhisk?" The man's face lights up, instantly transforming from grumpy to ecstatic.
"Come in, please," he says, swinging the door wide open.
They follow him inside, only to be greeted by a complete disaster of a house. The place is an absolute mess. Garbage and filth are stacked in actual mounds across the floor.
This is a damn house in the Realm, the fucking REALM, not some shitty trailer you can afford to ruin. The Realm is the most mysterious, sacred place I can imagine. How can he be this messy? Even at my worst, my place never looked like this. This guy is hopeless.
Princess Jewel is disgusted with this Peasant. She also knows this guy's sudden attitude change is due to something even more disgusting.
How…?
It pains her to say this… but Princess Jewel has something in common with this filthy, disgraceful Peasant.
Finally, they reach a workshop—and in stark contrast to the rest of the place, it's immaculate. Spotless benches, pristine tools. Alex immediately notices small forges, tiny anvils, countless pliers, hammers, files, saws, grinding wheels, and more.
"Nice workshop. I guess Glimmerwhisk recommended you for a reason. Are you a goldsmith? Looks like you focus on jewelry, right?"
"Indeed. Mistress Glimmerwhisk referred me? Oh my god—my prayers have been answered!" The man says, in an elated voice.
"So you still believe in god? A lot of players lost their faith after reaching this Realm," Tereza remarks, intrigued. "Still, I guess this could be part of some divine plan. A purgatory, maybe. There are plenty of theories floating around."
"Just a figure of speech. I only worship Mistress Glimmerwhisk!" the man says.
"Damn pig!" Tereza curses, "and here I hoped for a deep conversation!"
"Are you a fan of hers? I guess she is pretty cute," Alex notes casually.
"I… want her to own me! Her beautiful black hair, her emerald eyes, that sexy body, that bubbly face—her range of expressions, especially when she's angry or scheming…"
Alex sighs in relief.
There are always people so pathetic, they make you feel better about yourself. And while I can't disagree with the guy… he's clearly hopeless. I'm not here for his weird obsessions—I want the damn ring, I better get to the point.
"You're hopeless! Might as well go buy a goblin in one of the lower worlds. There are low-level supports of white quality, right? If you are a good craftsman, you should be able to afford one," Menchi teases.
The man stares at Menchi, trembling slightly, then takes a deliberate step back.
"Stop tempting me… I won't betray Mis—"
"Alright, enough!" Alex cuts him off. "Look, Glimmerwhisk sent us to buy a ring. You're a craftsman, right? I always wondered why some players specialize in crafting anyway."
The man finally collects himself and speaks.
"I'm Ivar. And it wasn't by choice! My starting stats were trash—they still are. The only thing I had going for me was an innate skill related to crafting jewelry. Even here, in the Realm where you can become anything, I didn't have much of a choice."
"Damn. That's rough. But you still have to go on missions, right?" Alex asks.
"There are missions that don't require much combat strength. Some are puzzle-based or involve exploration, logical thinking, even crime-solving or detective work. And if I'm lucky—or work hard for a year—I might be able to buy a mission item that lets me enter a crafting-focused mission. Some combat-heavy worlds still offer opportunities for crafters, too. The Realm punishes players like me a little, but it doesn't outright kill us. Everyone gets a chance to shine at what they can do best. There are always options… just very limited ones. The real issue is the vicious cycle if you can't get a good mission rank. If I don't get good enough rewards, I can't invest in combat skills without sabotaging my crafting progression. I don't even know what I'm doing anymore. Let's just… drop it. This is making me depressed already. So—you need a ring?"
"Sure, Ivar, do you have a ring—or can you craft one—that adds as much STR as possible? I'd need at least 4," Alex inquires.
"Four is a lot. That won't be cheap! Don't think you can just buy gear that gives +4 stats easily… but you're in luck. I recently acquired a rare skill from Dragon Quest 11. It's Gold-ranked. I spent my life savings—all my earnings from years of crafting—just to get it. I might have what you need. There's a downside, though. Take a look at this: [Strength Ring]."
[Strength Ring (+1)]
World: Dragon Quest
Quality: Light Blue
Type: Ring
Required Stats: STR - 10
Effect: Increases STR by 1 (Flat boost, not increased by skills)
Effect: Increases STR by 1 (Flat boost, not increased by skills)
Note: Rings Around the World, this fine work was made out of 2 pieces of Gold ore, a Red Eye, and a Finessence.
Note: Forged by Ivar.
"I see. So you need STR just to boost your STR. But this is fine, I don't have an issue with these requirements. I like it. That said—I did say I need +4 STR. Can you get this beauty to +3? I figure at these numbers, the base and +1 versions don't really matter," Alex says, inspecting the ring.
"Oh? So you know about crafting in Dragon Quest 11?" Ivar says, eyeing Alex with surprise. "Yeah—when it's about stats and not durability or damage, minor upgrades don't matter much, in fact, they are useless and don't change the item."
"Yeah… never finished the post-game though," Alex admits, looking a little sheepish.
"That's the best part, you idiot. How can you—" Ivar starts to scold him, but gets interrupted.
"That doesn't matter. Shut up. So—can you improve this ring or not?" Tereza snaps, clearly annoyed.
"My skill gives me a few Perfectionist's Pearls after every item I craft. They let me upgrade items—but they're expensive. Not like in the game," Ivar explains.
"I only need the +3 version. Forget everything else. How much?" Alex asks.
"20,000 FC for the ring. 25,000 for the pearls. But listen—there's no guarantee I can get it to +3 on the first attempt. You might have to factor in another 25,000 or even 50,000 more."
"Are you scamming me? Or is crafting actually harder than in the game?" Alex asks, narrowing his eyes.
"It's terrifyingly hard, trust me. If it were easy, I'd be rich enough to propose to Mistress Gl—"
Yeah, give that up, idiot.
"You realize she sent us, right? I'm accepting your terms—but if you fail, I'll tell her. Trust me," Alex warns.
"…What's your relationship to her anyway?" Ivar asks, clearly annoyed.
Alex just points to his [Glimmerwhisk's Broken Runic Choker (locked)]. "I don't have a choice in the matter. I have my orders."
"You… are so lucky! Fine, I won't disappoint her!" Ivar says with fierce determination, immediately diving into the crafting process.
Idiot. I haven't paid him yet—so if he fails, don't expect pity from me. Also, now that I think about it… I can act like I am under orders and just an errand boy or an outright servant. This Choker is surprisingly useful! In the long run, I might be able to surprise a few people.
It takes Ivar a solid ten minutes to prepare the crafting process. He heats the ring carefully in the forge—not enough to warp its shape, just enough to make it glow bright red.
Then, he pulls out a collection of shimmering white pearls—each glowing faintly with a rainbow-like gleam—and places them carefully around the ring, until they melt together with it.
He works in total silence, his movements robotic, mechanical—eerily precise. Over and over again, the exact same strokes, as if he's not even human. He constantly hits the glowing ring until the heat slowly dissipates.
Finally, Ivar slumps back, exhausted, almost collapsing from the effort.
Alex steps forward and inspects the now-cooled ring.
[Strength Ring (+3)]
World: Dragon Quest
Quality: Deep Blue
Type: Ring
Required Stats: STR - 15
Effect: Increases STR by 2 (Flat boost, not increased by skills)
Effect: Increases STR by 2 (Flat boost, not increased by skills)
Note: Rings Around the World, this fine work was made out of 2 pieces of Gold ore, a Red Eye, and a Finessence.
Note: Forged by Ivar.
Note: This ring has been reforged once using Perfectionist's Pearls.
"Good job. Exactly what I hoped for!" Alex says, instantly opening a trade window and transferring 45,000 FC—exactly as promised. The trade is quickly completed and Alex smiles, obviously satisfied.
"Will… will you tell… Glimmerwhisk about this?" Ivar huffs, clearly exhausted.
"Sure, I'll message her later. Thanks! Let's stay in touch—I might need your services again. Can you craft Gold-quality items, by the way?"
"Gold?! Are you insane?! I'm only level 14—I wish! Light Purple is the best I can manage right now. The materials alone cost around 100,000 FC. Reforging might bump it to Deep Purple with some luck—but that's even more expensive. It could take ten attempts. It's nearly impossible."
Useless, then. Why would I pay 100k—maybe even a million FC for all the reforge attempts—for a Deep Purple item? That's too expensive… but maybe he'll improve down the line.
"Alright, still—thank you!" Alex says, exchanging contact info with Ivar. Tereza does the same, making sure they can reach him again if needed.
------------------------------------------------
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