2 Archer (2)

Chapter 2: Archer (2)

"Where can I try shooting a few arrows? Also, do we have an unlimited stock of them?" Jake asked after getting familiar with the long bow.

Richard shook his head, "I have five stacks, each of thirty arrows. You'd have to learn how to make arrows yourself."

"I hope you can teach me that… it sounds like it's best to get a subclass related to armorer, too. Could you help me with that?"

"I'm here to help! Of course I can," Richard cheerfully replied before going past Jake to the storage hidden at the other end of the wooden cabin. 

He returned with five stacks of arrows resting in the quivers. 

Each quiver was the same size that seemed to match Jake's back. He towered at the height of one meter and eighty centimeters, so a quiver this long with thirty arrows must weigh some kilograms. It was made from leather and seemed to have been blessed with magic as thirty arrows stuffed in such a narrow object appeared neatly organized without any hint of inward damage.

Jake chuckled, "I thought everything's made from wood in this cabin?"

"There are exceptions to anything, Archer," Richard awkwardly smiled before telling him about the inventory feature, "You can store those in your inventory, I believe. They weigh a lot, so only keep one quiver slung on your back and get familiar with it."

Once Jake touched the quiver, the system message appeared on his retina.

[Would you like to store "The Quiver Of Wooden Arrows" in your inventory?]

After wishing for it to happen, the inventory feature snatched the quiver into his spatial storage. Jake repeated that process thrice before hauling the last quiver onto his back. 

It weighed more than he thought, and it surely restricted his movement.

He also couldn't as easily take an arrow out as he thought.

"I can see why mages would be more popular," Jake said while looking over his shoulder at the arrows' ends peeking from his quiver, "It sounds like such a hassle to wear the quiver, take out an arrow, nock it on the bow, and even make arrows myself."

Richard agreed, "Yes, it takes mages only to imagine their skill and shoot it at others. Archers and mages must practice their accuracy, but the latter doesn't have to worry about putting on arrows, making them, or even worrying about their supplies. They only use mana and staves."

For players who had come here, what Jake and Richard had pointed out was more like a shortcoming or a fatal flaw.

Coming here to have lots of fun and novel adventures, most players couldn't be too bothered about the discipline of an archer and issues, let alone production.

Jake grinned, "Shortcomings aside, I can shoot arrows without any mana. Arrows are also items that can be enchanted for various purposes. I'm not sure about enchantments, though… I imagine some enchantments would take my mana while some wouldn't…"

He turned to Richard.

The newbie helper gleefully replied, "You're correct on this one."

Jake nodded, "If I find an enchanter teammate, I'd be able to bring forth various effects during the battles or leveling up. Arrows can also be made from different types of wood. In this magical world, do you think there's a type of wood that can heighten the effects of fire enchantment or an archer skill?"

Richard nodded, "Yes. I can confirm there's a type of wood in which fire dwells."

Jake's interest in an archer class was now confirmed by him getting into the advantages of arrows. He didn't just discard the class, succumbing to the mage class that seemed to be much better for people from Earth. He thought, asked questions, investigated, and sculpted his impression of archery.

In the world where magic existed, the boundaries between imagination and reality were so thin that anything could be produced.

If Jake tried enough, he could turn his assumptions into reality!

"I can't wait to see your compatibility with the bow and arrow," Richard said.

Jake chuckled, "Let's get into it, then. I'm interested myself."

Once he decided on that, a sudden message window appeared before him.

[Your familiarity level with Richard has leveled up.]

[You are no longer acquaintances, but friends.]

'It's so odd to have such messages appear. I wonder if he sees the same? I'll refrain from asking him that 'cause it just feels weird,' Jake thought. 

For the same reason, he wouldn't ask Richard about familiarity levels with NPCs and just question his big sister about it after logging out. One of the advice he had received from her was to be casual around NPCs and not expect them to give quests as something given.

Because of artificial intelligence, those NPCs were so real it was sometimes scary how they thought and conducted. No NPC could also be replaced. It meant that if a guild decided to subjugate a town or any other territory and killed their residents, those NPCs wouldn't magically return to life.

Realism was on a much higher level than in other games, though some fantasy elements were obviously in place.

For instance, Richard was on every tutorial island as though cloned.

Before long, Jake and Richard found themselves behind the cabin. The latter had prepared a training zone for an archer class and put ten straw effigies. It resembled a human so as to Jake could practice shooting various points.

"It's best you show me first what you are capable of without me instructing you," Richard said.

Jake nodded and raised his longbow. He extended his hand for an arrow, groping the air cause of his inexperience, then finally but amateurishly nocked it on the bow.

He pulled on the bowstring and let the arrow after a few seconds!