9 You Have Reached A Threshold (02)

The first thing Alban laid his eyes on was a bright white light shining throughout the sky. It wasn't a harmful light, like the sun. Staring at it didn't hurt his eyes at all, and it felt almost a bit pacifying. Realizing that he was still sitting in the position from last night, he figured he must've overexerted himself and dozed off.

"User has survived a day. Clock Function has been unlocked. Note that the sun makes most monsters unlikely to attack, so hunting is optimal at this time. Please check your recurring quests."

Oh, those things again. Reassured in his newfound safety, he looked once again at the sky. The sky was not the usual shade of blue, taking a more on a more azure hue. Speckled with little dots of light, the far off spots reminded him of stars. And the white light that pierced the deep blue veil was none other than the Nightmare's sun. It looked almost sacred, and peaceful...Alban had no idea why such a sight would be in a world called Nightmare. Shortly finishing his gazing, Alban set to finishing his dailies and training a bit, and then hunting for monsters. He intended to take advantage of the fact that all the monsters were indeed weaker than him in this area.

A routine. 100 push ups, 100 sit ups, 5 kilometers later, Alban was sitting down getting ready to meditate. He was planning on six sessions, as he spent an hour on his Prepare quest. Popping an Eimharr Cloud Bead into his mouth, he looked at the rewards he gained to see if he got anything special.

'No dice, huh? Guess I only got something special cause it was the first time. I'll take the stats though, thank you.' Alban felt stronger still. He knew he could go much further and was almost excited at the prospect of it. Maybe he matured a bit from yesterday, or maybe he was just letting his childish nature rule him as a coping mechanism. He really couldn't tell what it was, but he knew he didn't want to die, at least. Settling his mind, he soon entered his meditative state.

<+3 Mana, +2 Int. Six cycles completed.>

Opening his eyes, he greeted the panel and appreciated its contents. He felt like a Meditation should count as rest, as he felt pretty refreshed after doing it. The quest didn't seem to agree, but that was alright, he had plenty of time left in the day. At least according to the clock, which currently showed 3:34.

'Hey system. Are the days 24 hours?'

"Acceptable query. The days are 48 hours, but as the system has been compiled using the user's perspective, 24 hours is counted as a day in the system."

'How long does this sunlight last?'

"Prohibited from answering. Please find out yourself."

Alban just decided to chuck another complaint to the list and got on with it. Looking at his levels, he wanted to get to level 10 pretty soon. Not really for any reason other than the fact that he liked the number 10. Valuing the simple things in life, Alban started wandering around, looking for creatures to give him some glorious exp.

20 minutes later, he got what he wanted. There was a serpent the size of a cat slithering around in misty air, clearly breathing in the fog. Sizing up the serpent, he looked at its vibrant markings along its body, the patterns along it looking like skulls. He considered it venomous because of that, yet didn't deem that as the most dangerous feature. No, what he was most wary of was that strange flower on its head...it wiggled and unfurled its petals, revealing two lithe vines that seemed to move according to the snake's will. Luckily, it was distracted with collecting pieces of Eimharr Cloud, but Alban was unsure of how long that would last.

<Estimated Attack 6~10

Seems like it has a midrange option.>

{Inspect is now level 2}

After receiving the information on the monster, he was grateful for the level up in Inspect. It looked a lot more accurate, and he at least knew the race of the creature that kay before it. Thinking that this information would be vital later, when he finally leaves the Beach of Infancy, he surveyed the floratine that laid before him.

The sands were crunchy, but he didn't think they'd give him away...he didn't think the snake would be able to hear very well. But the floratine soon reared its head, peering at Alban inquisitively, before lashing out with its vines. Alban backed off quickly, but he was way too close to avoid the attack. The vine quickly headed for his abdomen, smacking him back a few feet from the young serpent.

Alban felt like puking. This was his first time being hurt by anything other than his own stupid antics, and he felt the pain quite vividly. Luckily, it didn't seem as if anything was crushed...his stomach sloshed around a bit and knocked against some other organs. Alban quickly stood up and looked at the floratine, trying to figure out a means of attack.

Naturally, he didn't get much time before he had to attack or face the consequences of staying on the defense. His opponent was quite wary of him, much unlike that tajaran from earlier. Dodging a flailing vine, he felt like it was manageable to dodge, as long as he knew it was coming. The attacks were clearly telegraphed by the snake's clumsy yet dangerous movements, the finesse unnecessary for someone with as fragile as himself. He dodged for a bit, peering intensely at the vines, and that's when he noticed something.

'The vines take a long time after they've been flailed to return to the flower...maybe I can grab them.' With a plan in motion, Alban was no longer at the mercy of the floratine. He was now a hunter playing with his prey.

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