I opened the front door and stopped.
There was a group of agitated looking goblins warriors blocking my way, all seemingly ready for battle.
Something was wrong.
24 - A Good Day
I moved quickly towards the excited goblins. They were waving their weapons threateningly at Malkyr and Hoshisu who were trying to calm them down, unsuccessfully.
The last time I saw the siblings was a few days ago. They were both wearing leather armor that showed signs of hard use in combat.
As they promised when we first talked, they hadn’t been idle. It looked as they improved themselves admirably in a short span of time, they must have been training vigorously seeing that both had reached level 6 already.
I waded through the crowd, shoving aside the burly warriors and demanded with a loud voice “WHAT is going on?”
Vrick was in an aggressive posture, facing Malkyr at arm’s length, unfazed by their large height difference. “They brought an intruder into our valley!”
“What!? No we didn’t! We’re here to complete a quest your leader gave us!” Malkyr protested.
He looked at me, “Would you please get your trigger-happy goblins off my back?”
“What intruder?” I approached, looking around.
Malkyr looked around in bewilderment, even going so far as to look between his legs.
“Here he is,” Hoshisu volunteered, stepping forward. A tiny creature was fearfully clutching at her legs.
“Yeshlimashu, this is the clan leader we told you about.”
The creature was tiny, smaller than a goblin. It had large ears and an extremely wide mouth. It was a gremlin. The small creature was in a panic, frantically trying to keep every goblin in view.
I motioned my goblins to back off. Vrick reluctantly lowered his spear and led his six warriors to the side, not taking his eyes off the newcomer.
“Oh man, I sincerely hope you have enough gold tucked away for this.” Malkyr was rubbing his hands greedily. “You know what day it is?”
I looked at him, puzzled.
“It’s payday, sucker!”
I looked at Hoshisu, “What is he talking about?”
“Well,” she disengaged herself from the small creature who still clung to her legs. “Malkyr and I stumbled upon a small dungeon. It was fairly straightforward, a bunch of low-level monsters guarding a small room. The room was a trap, we got locked in it as soon as we got inside. That’s where we met this little fella here,” She patted the gremlin’s head affectionately.
“He was being chased by some hobgoblins when he found the dungeon and used it to hide, just a few days before we found it. He was trapped there ever since. By the time we solved the puzzle and broke out, we had become friends. We think Yeshlimashu here can help us with some of the quests you gave us, as well as assist you with your settlement development.”
I looked at the frightened little creature. I had never actually met a gremlin in the game before. It was widely known they were the monster equivalent of gnomes. Industrious and innovative creatures that engineered sophisticated items. One usually didn’t encounter the gremlin themselves, they were reputed to be skittish, secretive, and generally hard to find. Their traps and various war machines however, were much more commonly encountered. Walking into a gremlin lair was bound to lead you into rooms full of traps that would quickly leave you skewered, barbecued or otherwise dead. Only high-level rogues could hope to overcome and evade their deadly mechanisms and fiendishly innovative traps. Since most high-level rogues had better things to do than hunt relatively low-level monsters, gremlins were usually left alone and remained mostly an enigma.
Yeshlimashu was small, about a head smaller than an average goblin. His body was covered in short brown fur. His head was squat and wide, with huge pointy ears and a wide mouth full of small pointed teeth, making his occasional nervous grin a disturbing sight.
“Hello, welcome to Goblin’s Gorge,” I greeted him politely.
His ears perked up as I spoke. He stood a bit straighter, seeming to find assurances in my voice and his fearful shaking subsided. His voice was high-pitched “I thank you, respected Dark Totem of Goblin’s Gorge, leader of GreenPiece clan.” The words had a ceremonial flavor to them.
I decided that for the best impression I ought to show him I could be civil too, for that I needed a little bit more information. I analyzed him.
Yeshlimashu, Gremlin Tinker
Level: 7
HP: 29, MP: 42
P: 0, M: 0, S: 7
Skills: Artificer: 5, Trader: 12, Grenadier: 9
Background: As a small gremlin in the big underground city of Zemitpozes, Yeshlimashu never really related to his people’s fascination with making things. He much preferred traveling and trading between the underground gremlin settlements. His wandering forced him to adapt to the harsh violence of the wilderness and he quickly learned to use his talent for creating things for making enemies go ‘boom’
Well, it looked like the twins were on to something. If I approach him carefully, this small creature could prove to be a great boon to my budding settlement.
“Allow me to greet you again,” I said in a formal tone. “You are welcome in my clan, Yeshlimashu the Tinker of Zemitpozes, Apprentice Trader.”
He stared at me with astonishment, “I never thought I would encounter such eloquence from our distant kin.” he looked around, visibly more relaxed and curious, “I think this will be an interesting experience.”
+100 reputation with Yeshlimashu
Current rank: Neutral. Points to next rank: 900
“Let’s finish our business first. Then you little folks can chum around all you want,” Malkyr moved to stand between us. Hoshisu rolled her eyes at her brother’s rudeness but remained otherwise silent.
“Here you go buddy,” He took a large bundle off his back, producing to my astonishment, a small round table and two small stools, perfect for goblin sized creatures.
Granted quest completed (repeatable): Find Some Furniture
Malkyr, Hoshisu rewarded: 284 XP, 50 reputation with GreenPiece clan, 20 gold
Quest Giver skill level increased to 8
I looked at the meager furniture. To me, it looked like a great treasure. “Wh..where did you find it?” I whispered in wonderment.
Malkyr smiled. “Like it, eh? Thought you would. Those were the few unbroken pieces we found, scattered around the dungeon we told you about.”
I looked at the furniture appreciatively, it would go a long way toward improving my personal comfort.
“Also, Yeshlimashu has quite a nice collection of items. He has some blueprints for construction and some food recipes. I believe that should fulfill two additional quests. Oh, and naturally, as a merchant, he can act as a proxy to his people’s market, so I believe that’s another quest fulfilled, eh?”
With every sentence he spoke, a new system message flashed.
Granted quest completed (repeatable): Bring Construction Blueprints
Malkyr, Hoshisu rewarded: 142 XP, reputation: 50, gold:10
Granted quest completed (repeatable): Bring Advanced or Better Food Recipes
Malkyr, Hoshisu rewarded: 284 XP, reputation: 100, gold:20
Quest Giver skill level increased to 9
Granted quest completed: Find a Marketplace
Malkyr, Hoshisu rewarded: XP: 50, Reputation:100, gold: 1
“Holy crap, you guys don’t screw around, do you?” I said with admiration. “Good job!”
“There’s more,” Malkyr boasted.
“On our way back from the dungeon we stumbled across a small hobgoblin camp, it looked like most of their fighters were gone, leaving only two guards behind. So we took them out.”
“Yeshlimashu was very helpful,” Hoshisu added.
“Yes,” Malkyr agreed somewhat reluctantly, “Anyway, after the fight we searched their camp, and found a sizeable pack of preserved meat, so here you go.”
You received 30 units of preserved mea
t
You received 10 Hobgoblin ears
Granted quest completed X3 (repeatable): Bring Raw Food
Malkyr, Hoshisu rewarded: 426 XP, 60 reputation with GreenPiece clan, 30 gold
Granted quest completed (repeatable): Bring 10 Hobgoblin Ears
Malkyr, Hoshisu rewarded:568 XP, reputation: 50, gold:40
“Where the hell did you get the ten ears from?” I asked in surprise.
Hoshisu shrugged. “We came across a few more dead hobgoblins, or what was left of them. They were probably part of the camp we found. Whatever killed them didn’t leave much of their bodies behind, but their ears were left on the ground.”
I chuckled, realizing she was talking about the group I killed.
“And we thought, shame to waste such lovely ears, eh sis?” Malkyr grinned broadly. “Anyway, glad you could hold up your word. With all those quests completed, we now have over 200 gold and we’re halfway toward Friendly reputation with the GreenPiece clan, and…” his face brightened up even more, “We gained enough XP to level twice! Awe-freaking-some!”
I bowed, “always happy to help a friend.”
So they were both level 8 already. At this rate, they’ll pass me without breaking a sweat.
The sun was low, almost hidden behind the mountains. Hoshisu noticed it as well, “Let’s take a break Malkyr, We can login tomorrow morning.”
“Oh, alright,” He still seemed full of adrenaline and not happy to call it quits just yet, but complied nonetheless.
I watched the two slowly disappear as they logged off, then turned to my new guest.
“Would you like a tour of our settlement?” It was a good idea to take the time to build up some trust before getting down to business. No need to rush our future dealings.
Many players didn’t bother taking the time and effort to get to know an NPC through polite conversation. Most preferred to simply complete quests to gain reputation. But I noticed early on that NPCs were almost as intelligent and responsive as real human beings. Finding the correct way to communicate with them favorably often worked almost as well as completing their quests. I used that discovery to my advantage many times.
Seeing as I am considered a type of NPC myself, talking to NPCs on equal terms, as if they were real human beings, was becoming second nature to me. And knowing that underneath each NPC was a VI as smart as Vic, only contributed to this habit.
I seriously doubt that.
That’s not the same thing!
The gremlin and I were walking toward the small pond at the center of the settlement, where we would be able to see all the settlement’s buildings at once.
I pointed to our two Fishermen as we got to the pond. “This is Cobie, and his pal, they supply us with fish to eat.”
The gremlin besides me nodded.
“I don’t suppose you have some fishing equipment to offer in trade?” I asked hopefully.
He shook his head, “I apologize but no. However, depending on how we’ll proceed, it could easily be arranged.”
I nodded. “Moving on.”
We came to the Rabbit Warren, “this is how our resident Breeder supplies us with fresh meat each day.”
I noticed a stack of rabbits pelts next to the butchering table. Since when does the Breeder produce pelts? I wondered. I quickly analyzed the worker.
Goblin worker, Female (pregnant). Level 2; P:1, M:0, S:1; Skills: Haul 5, Breeding 11
Another pregnant goblin? God, they do breed like rabbits! I thought in alarm.
Anyway, having reached skill level 11, the Breeder had attained her Apprentice rank, and as a result now produced pelts on top of raw meat. Cool, that meant our Tanner would have a steady supply of raw material to keep him busy.
We came to the Tanner’s workplace next. She sat in an open area, surrounded by wooden frames he must have built on his own. Each frame had a pelt stretched across it. The Tanner was treating one of the stretched pelts with a crude bone tool. Spread out on the ground around were tanning tools and equipment, and neat piles of finished leathers.
We came to the partially built Smithy. “This will be our Smithy. Once completed, we’ll be able to construct our own tools and weapons. Oh, and here’s my construction manager. Hey Zuban.”
The gremlin stared in horror as Zuban, wearing a big grin, approached us. “Y-you have a hobgoblin in your clan? But they are murderous beasts! They patrol the forest, killing everything in sight! They are the reason why I ended up in the dungeon your friends found me in! How can you let one walk free?”
I narrowed my eyes. “Zuban was indeed an enemy once, but I spared his life, and he swore his allegiance to me. I trust him completely. He is the only reason we have any buildings around here.”
Yeshlimashu didn’t appear completely convinced, “I can’t tell you what to do, but for any kind of dealings with my people, you would first have to make sure the hobgoblins menacing the forest are dealt with. They will have no dealings with you until then.”
You received a new quest! [Remove the Hobgoblin Menace]
Yeshlimashu the gremlin wants you to remove the hobgoblin presence from the forest.
Quest Type: Advanced
Reward: Obtaining trade relations with Yeshlimashu’s clan, 500 XP
At least we were getting somewhere.
We finished our tour back at the campsite.
“This is Gandork,” I introduced our cook, noticing he wasn’t quite so thin as when he first joined us. “He is the one in charge of our food. Here, have something to eat, you must be starving.” I motioned Gandork to hand him some of the stew.
“Not bad,” the gremlin conceded, after tasting the dish. “Could use a bit more salt though.” Gandork started turning red.
I cut in before Gandork boiled over and blew his lid, heh. “Well, we would like to have more diversity, but I’m afraid our supplies are short. Malkyr mentioned you might have some recipes to trade…” I left the question to hang in the air.
He nodded and opened a small pack at his waist. Rummaging inside, his whole arm went in. It was a bag of holding! They are incredibly expensive magical items, capable of carrying much more than their physical appearance suggested. They even reduced the weight of the contents within. Eventually he pulled out a roll of parchment and handed it to me. It was an Advanced Food recipe for a cooked meat with mushroom sauce. It was just what we were missing to really pick up the foodie pace around here.
I tried to appear nonchalant, “How much for the recipes? I don’t have much gold.”
The gremlin would have none of that. He was a sharp trader and immediately detected my interest. “I’m not interested in gold. Barter is much better. What do you have to offer in exchange?”
In response, I led him to our clan’s pile, and we rummaged through it together.
After a few minutes he straightened up, a look of disinterest on his face. “I have little use for weapons or food, which seems to be the majority of the items here. The beetle poison glands look interesting, but the five you have is not enough. What else do you have?”
I got a distinct feeling I was being conned, but I had to establish a good relationship with him, so I opened up my personal inventory and showed him some of the more unique items I carried.
“Oh, what’s that!” his huge eyes glistened greedily.
“That? It’s just a mushroom I found near a lava stream,” I feigned ignorance, showing him the Magmashroom. Thanks to my Analyze skill, I knew it was a rare component.
“Well,” he said with a carefully casual air, “I guess I can do you a favor and take those six off your hand. Along with the beetle glands, it would be a sufficient trade for the recipe.”
Luckily, it was n
ot my first time doing business with a greedy NPC in the game. I now also had options that were unavailable for normal players. Using Sense Emotions, one of my Dark Mana’s seldom used abilities, I observed the flow of the gremlin’s mana. I got a definite read of evasiveness and greediness of him. Yep, I was being fleeced.
“Well, that sounds great,” I said, putting on a show of sounding grateful.
“After all I found a whole field of those! I could always get more.” I looked at him bemused as his expression become even more greedy. I let him mull over my word for a few seconds, then I landed my killing blow.
“They sure seem popular lately. Another merchant was interested in them not long ago. Promised to get back to strike a deal for those mushrooms. Made me promise to give him exclusivity if his offer price is high enough.” I broke off, looking at the gremlin’s stricken expression. “So, we said six for the recipe, yes? So with the glands, that means the price tag you’re putting for each mushroom is in the ballpark of…” I blew a shot in the dark,” seven silver?” I knew how to bluff too.
I watched him with great satisfaction as he started stammering, realizing his greed might have cost him much more in future revenues than he gained today.
“Wait! no need to be so hasty… After all, we just starting to get to know each other. I tell you what, in favor of our future trade agreement, how about I take one Magmashroom in exchange for the recipe?”
“Well,” I tried to appear indecisive “If you’re sure.”
“Yes, yes, of course.”
“Then you got yourself a deal,” We shook hands, and exchanged our goods.
Food Recipe: Cooked meat with mushroom sauce [Advanced Food]
Description: good, warm, hearty meal full of nutrients. And it tastes wonderful.
Instructions: For 2 portions: 1 raw meat, 1 helping of mushrooms, 1 stack of herbs.
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