6 Business in the Bog

With that decided, Sorin went to his settings and turned on the recording function.

When you record you have the option to use the third person camera that is always present behind you which would give the viewer a broader line of sight, or first person mode that films through your vision which gives finer details to the audience.

Since the tutorial will be about the finer aspects of combat, Sorin chose to view in third person for the introduction and then switch to first person when combat begins.

Sorin also modified his voice when he made his character to sound immature so people could not associate him with his old stream.

"Hello everyone, my name is Virum and this is my new channel Astria4Ever where we look at Astria in all single player aspects because I have no friends. *fake tears* Here is where you can find tutorial videos on features of the game previously unknown to you, combat guides and strategies in slow motion captured by yours truly, lore videos about Astria, streams, as well as certain quests that are worth your time. Tune in if that seems interesting or if you have friends then please click off this channel now."

Sorin then started explaining some of the more generic tips to do like how to phrase your chant right, how you can dodge attacks freely unlike other games that have a set animation, and the rabbits and giant rats attack patterns.

When large corporations realized the profitability of investment and advertisement in the game, everyone withheld their secrets unless they could not gain any profit from doing so. In Astria, there is the bond system, where corporations could spend money to purchase bonds that could be traded. These bonds could also be redeemed for whatever the market value it is when redeemed. Players who had fortuitous encounters traded information, items and equipment.

So overall, before the bigwigs crackdown on player information, Sorin wants to put out some videos noobs can watch to better get a feel for Astria.

"Thank you all for watching. Please support my channel by hitting that subscribe button as well, as the chime notification icon and I will see you, next time.''

"Haaaa...I miss doing this." Sorin silently exclaimed. It made him wonder when his life got sidetracked.

A fat boy's nasal laugh, the bodyguards earthy smelling boots, the red haze, the inferiority, the shame he felt, the tears he tasted.

'Oh yea...I guess he is still kicking now' thought Sorin in a dangerously expressionless face. A naked killing intent so thick that the DreamSet started flickering in warning.

'Whoops' he realize with an embarrassed grin. He still had the cheap DreamSet, he can't just go crushing it with killing intent just because of that, because that would be a win for that fat slug.

'Now that I think about it, if that didn't happen I would be a different person.' thought Sorin with a disturbs smile on his face. 'Still though, because of that, I became one of the most powerful men in the world, and undoubtedly Astria. I had power, money, women, just not happiness. If that didn't happen, I might have been happy.'

'Forget it, by the time that fat fuck logs into the game, I would be half of Astria away.'

With the footage from the tutorial filmed and waiting on editing, it's time to grind.

And so Sorin grinded on rabbits and rats until he hit level 3.

After Sorin hit level 3 he advanced further into the woodland. There awaited a field of lvl 3 goblin juveniles. Just to try out the [Omni-lingual] skill he shouted at a goblin juvenile, "Hey you, green boi. Yes you, hey why are you looking at me like that." Sorin was saddened when the goblin ran away, but was pleasantly surprised when he heard him shout to his goblin buddies, "Weird human, can speak, weird human!"

'Well it seems like I can use [Omni-lingual] to approach many different races that would otherwise be hostile to me.' As he watched the little goblin bring around 15 goblins with three adult goblins at level 5.

Smelling a quest but deciding to put it off until later, Sorin used [Transfer] to escape from the goblin encampment and headed deeper into the forest.

Sorin found a safer area between zones and logged out to get some sleep.

After editing and uploading his video to his new channel in the morning as well as cooking himself breakfast and finishing a workout. Sorin logged back into Astria.

The forest became darker and more humid as Sorin trekked through the woods. The air had a slight rot to it, bringing signs that Sorin was entering one of the sub-regions of the island, the Bog. Players would find monsters that were both easy to kill because of their relatively low health, armor, or attack, yet frustratingly difficult because of the status effects that the creatures would inflict onto players as well as there tendency to attack in groups.

It was a place hated labeled as a dead zone by players and they complained to the developers to lighten the difficulty, but it is questionable if even DreamTech could influence Gaia ingame so their complaints were futile. What DreamTech did do, however, is release a video of a player effortlessly butchering the monsters of the Bog through skill. After that, people analysed the video and made many guides on hunting in the Bog, but the skill cap was quite high, but so were the rewards.

Overall, the Bog was a place that rewarded skill and punished complacency.

As Sorin approached the Bog, the woodland turned into a smelly swamp teeming with rotting trees, poisonous insects, and a thick algae covering the murky depths of the march itself.

Nearby, Sorin caught the sound of two people arguing, a honey blonde-haired women in khaki zookeeper attire, red in the face, and yelling at a man in a white pinstripe suit with an unmoving expression. It looked completely out of place in such a dangerous looking place, but the two seemed oblivious to their surroundings.

"I told you that the Purple-Spotted Giga Lizards are too endangered for you to keep harvesting them for your medicine business. You need to find a different alternative." said the feisty zookeeper shoving her finger at the man, creasing his perfect suit.

"Angela, I tried to cooperate but you leave me little other options. I need the medical properties of the Purple Spotted Giga Lizard's gallbladder. I have obtained the deed to this area from the mayor, so you have little power here." the man said with an unemotional voice.

Turning her head for a moment, the zookeeper saw Sorin standing there and shouted at him. "Hey you, adventurer. Would you care to help a lady out? This unfeeling bitch is bullying me? Can you help me drive him off?" She said in a sweet voice.

Sorin face twitched, 'Who is bullying who again? God this woman has a thick face.'

"Is there anything I can help either of you with?" Sorin said neutrally.

This made the zookeeper frown as she wondered if her charm has fallen over the years. "Yes you can adventurer, as you have heard, this man is going to slay one of the last Purple-Spotted Giga Lizards for a quick buck. What do you have to say about this?" questioned the zookeeper.

"Ridiculous.", stated the man, "I have full rights to this land and I can do what I please. Adventurer, we are both men of business. Hunt that Purple-Spotted Giga Lizard for me and I will make it worth your while."

"No no no NO!" screeched Angela, "Look, I'm not at rich as this pansy motherfucker is, but if you help me find a reliable replacement for him, I am pretty influential in the nature magic circle and can put in a good word for you."

[Choose your Path]

[Help Angela: Find a replacement for Oscar's business with Angela]

[Help Oscar: Hunt the Purple-Spotted Giga Lizard and bring him its gallbladder]

[Do nothing]

"It's not that I want to go against you Mr. Oscar, but would you mind giving us some more time? I promise that the replacement with be both environmentally friendly as well as have greater supply with less cost." Sorin said with confidence.

Oscar looked at him with an intense gaze as if he was sizing him up. Just as he was about to show his concerns (Sorin's low level), Sorin released a small amount of aura. Oscars squinted eyes widened slightly as he nodded his head, "Alright Wanderer, I hope you remember your words as I will be expecting exceptional results." Oscar said as he turned around and walked out of the Bog with steady steps.

"Awesome, take that you greedy snake." Angela struck a heroic pose like she was the guarding of this god forsaken place. "Alright Wanderer, I won't mistreat you when this is over. You made the right choice."

"I need a total of three things that are located in various parts of the Bog. One is a piece of a red and yellow mushroom called Dorin's Fire. Another is a sample of blood from a mutant alligator. And finally, I need a blue lily- shaped flower called Azure Floare. Speak to me when you have collected the ingredients and I will test to see if any can replace the gallbladder."

[Quest Received: It's Just Business (C)]

[Objective: Find the ingredients Angela needs. Dorin's Fire 0/1. Mutant Alligator Blood 0/1. Azure Floare 0/1]

[Reward: 200 exp. 2 sp.]

[Failure Conditions: Leave Misty Island]

[Failure Penalty: Affection: Angela, the Biologist lowered to (Cold)]