"Well, that was a nice break n' all. I'll get out of yer hair for now. Don't go pokin' your nose in where it don't belong. It isn't uncommon for a greenhorn such as yerself to die here on the farms.", Frank said to Lloyd after the atmosphere surrounding them returned to normal. "And while the Boss might be a cheapskate, he knows how to buy in bulk. Plenty of farmin' equipment in our shed for ya to choose from. And who knows. Maybe ya will luck out, hahaha!"
"Greatly appreciated. You take care now. With any luck, we'll have a party once the weekend comes!", Lloyd happily replied. Frank didn't say more after he laughed, and turned around and waved the backside of his hand back at Lloyd before departing into the horizon. Seriously, this farm was gigantic. It was as big as seven hundred football fields. Lloyd saw a tiny dot north of him that was right before the horizon, and that was likely the town of Rooting Plains. It made sense for a few hundred farmers to be working here!
Lloyd was left to his own devices. He had come to learn many things with this conversation he held with Frank, who apparently treated it as a small break. For one, the town he was now residing in was Rooting Plains. It has a Hall where Tasks get assigned to farmers, allowing one to potentially Rank up. And from there, he learned one big difference from Farming is Life to the world he was brought to, Solaris. There existed multiple Occupations. It wasn't just Farmer like Lloyd initially assumed. There were Cultivators, and even Adventurers! There were likely many other Occupations that Lloyd didn't know of either.
Lloyd wanted to know more differences, so perhaps once the weekend comes, he'll dive into that more. Would he stay a Farmer forever? Gaia did grant him the Harvester Log. He wasn't sure if it was specifically tied down to his current Occupation, Farmer. It was very possible he could switch later on. If this was like any classic role-playing game, more Occupations meant different skills and stats he could receive.
As Lloyd saw Frank retreat back into his own block which had a few acres compared to him, Lloyd decided to look at Frank's tag. It was a weird feeling, but no matter which person he looked at, he could see tags floating above their heads. They moved naturally, like it was always a part of their being. Lloyd wasn't used to this sight, considering he came from Planet Earth and all. It was something he was going to have to get used to.
[Frank - Farmer: Rank 2 Lv10]
"Now I know why he considers me his junior. Apparently everyone has a system here in Solaris, but I don't know if it's the Harvester Log. Maybe these people have generic ones that offer simple skills like Item Box. Once I reach the Hall, hopefully it won't see mine in some strange light. I didn't see an Item Box skill, it is just Inventory...", Lloyd murmured to himself. He wasn't sure if that would cause any conflicts.
For the time being, Lloyd proceeded toward the large shed, and opened it. He was greeted with various pieces of equipment scattered around. It wasn't the nicest sight. Everything was scattered. Thankfully, he had the Appraisal skill. Those tags he has been seeing might be adjusted to that skill. It's possible others couldn't see such a detailed tag, so he wondered whether or not that was true while Lloyd started appraising everything in this shed.
[Crude Hoe-Lv1][Crude Hoe-Lv1][Crude Hoe-Lv2][Crude Rake-Lv1]
[Crude Watering Can-Lv1][Crude Sickle-Lv1][Common Hoe-Lv1]...
Pretty much what it would require a Farmer to use was present here. Lloyd recalled that he was 25% of the way there with Quest 2, so he knew he needed at least three Crude Hoe-Lv1. He continued looking around, and saw a Common Hoe-Lv1, which interested him. Items here in Solaris had their own grade.
And each grade had its unique color. It was just like any online game. If it was the same as Farming Is Life, then Lloyd knew all of the item tiers and their colors. Crude (White), Common (Green), Fine (Blue), Exquisite (Purple), Peak (Gold), Mythic (Crimson), Legendary (Black), Godly (Rainbow). In end-game related content in Farming Is Life, its players only hunted Godly-type gear.
Seeing these tags before him, Lloyd chuckled. It was somehow familiar, even though he was brought to such a strange land. At the very least, he knew what he was looking at. There was one thing to mention, Enchantment. In Farming Is Life, gear was static. This was a new feature he hadn't really explored yet, but recently came to learn it exists earlier in the day. Because of that, Crude Hoe-Lv2 also interested him.
But Lloyd continued looking around the shed. All he saw was white, white, and more white. It wasn't just tens of tools in this large shed. It was hundreds. His plot belonged to one of thirty blocks, so other people, apart from himself and Frank, used this shed. It was very easy for something to go unnoticed here. Many pieces were run-down. But there were a few green pieces of equipment that Lloyd was attracted to. But he didn't end there.
After spending around an hour just digging around the entire shed, he found it. At the same time, a prompt followed.
[Ding! You feel lucky. Your 6 LUC has triggered an unexpected encounter.]
[Ding! You have found a Fine (Blue) Hoe-Lv3.]
Holding a well-crafted Hoe in his hand, Lloyd smiled. It wasn't the best by any means, but he sure lucked out. Perhaps that one extra point spent in Luck really did play out. Normally one couldn't even increase Luck like this, so Lloyd swore that he would continue increasing it. He was also shocked that his level ups increased Luck too. If he didn't have that Skill, such a thing likely wouldn't even happen. It was like coming across a random treasure chest in the middle of the road.
And this was just the beginning. Finding this unexpected encounter, he didn't hold back. He was assigned to this shed since it was part of his block, so that meant he could take it without remorse. So he did!
"Appraisal.", Lloyd uttered, keeping his voice low. Following that, a hum struck his ears, and a new blue screen appeared before him. Once Lloyd began reviewing the information before him, it left him shocked.
[Fine Hoe-Lv3]
More than your typical run-down hoe. It has been reinforced with a durable piece of metal, allowing for extended farming sessions without running the risk of its structural integrity.
Enchant Tier: Lv3
Rank 3 Effect: Strength: 6 Endurance: 6 Dexterity: 3
Bonus Effect: When Durability is consumed, farming speed is doubled.
Durability: 50/50
(Empty Slot)(Empty Slot)
*This piece of gear can be Refined. Two slots are available.
**Refining is unavailable with present Occupation.
Remark: It isn't recommended but it can be used as a weapon.
"Holy...", Lloyd uttered while sucking in a hot breath of air thanks to the stuffiness of the air inside the shed. Just a Fine piece of equipment gave him this much. Not only did Durability increase tenfold, likely as a result to its current Enchant and Grade levels, it provided much better stats, and he could even use it as a weapon. That wasn't the best part. He learned another new feature. Equipment Refinement! Not only could gear get Enchanted, they could even get Refined!
Now when one sees Enchantment inside a game, that same game may not include Refinement. That wasn't the case for Solaris. That Goddess decided to include both. And what's more, neither system existed in Farming Is Life. Just the item tiers did. That was all Lloyd was familiar with. What he saw now was uncharted waters. But that wasn't the only game Lloyd played in his previous life. Just his main one. It wasn't like that he was completely foreign to these two systems.
Seeing this information before him, Lloyd renewed his intent of wanting to increase Luck. It was a stat available to him right off the bat compared to others, so why shouldn't he make use of it? And to his surprise, Lloyd saw another prompt appear before him.
[Ding! You have received a Fine grade or higher piece of Equipment. It can be registered. Upon registering, it cannot be dropped or stolen. If someone attempts to steal it, it will automatically appear inside your Harvester Log.]
"Sweet. An anti-theft mechanism. Perhaps it's only for equipment that's good? I don't see a reason not to. I'd rather not have someone take it from me, even if it is Frank. If death is common here, then so is stealing. As he said, it's a dog-eat-dog world...", Lloyd murmured again. He fiddled with the Fine Hoe before him before it prompted a new message.
[Ding! You have registered Fine Hoe-Lv3. It can no longer be dropped or stolen.]
"That was easy.", Lloyd said, and smiled.
This Fine Hoe now felt like it was truly his. He could use it for the next incoming weeks, hopefully without issue. (A/N: Sus)
Now the question remains, should he attempt to break the rest of the dirt on his plot to finish Quest 2, or continue scouring this shed to potentially find other green or blue pieces of equipment? If Lloyd left now, others could wander back into this shed and potentially find what he had yet to discover. From what he could understand with Frank earlier, the shed is first-come, first-served. Lloyd could grab anything he wanted to, but if he came back and found an item he was interested in gone, then it was that.
Lloyd then opened his Log, and decided to review it once again. Following that, he equipped the Fine Hoe.
[Ding! You have equipped Fine Hoe-LV3]
Right after, Lloyd felt his strength shoot up nearly twice as much. The beauty of Fine equipment!
Then, Lloyd opened his Harvester Log to see the changes. He was going to do this later, but he didn't know who else would drop by, or if/when these pieces of equipment would get tossed or thrown out. He was presently considering going through more of these items to test his Luck. After all, he had access to this stat while others didn't.
So why not make use of it?