Alchemical Chaos: The Creator's Domain

It was still early evening, and I had some time before bed to get more information from the old man. So, I asked, "You said you should have become a Master Blacksmith by now. Why didn't you become one? What held you back?"

He rested his chin between his fingers and paused, as if trying to formulate the best way to answer me, since he knew I didn't have much knowledge about that world.

"Well, before I became a Blacksmith, I was a Templar. I ended up wasting my time on something that wasn't exactly what I expected."

'So, is it possible to change classes?', I thought. But what about the progress? "If you want to go back to being a Templar, would you have to start from scratch in terms of level progression?", I asked.

"Not exactly. In theory, I'm still a Templar and didn't lose my progress. But I would have to go to the church of Prontera, renew my vows and dedicate my life to the Goddess Freya, wife of Odin. I would remain at the same Class Level, but I don't intend to continue."

"I see... What about attribute resets? Where can I reset them?"

"Ah, that's simple. In the square here in the city, there is a statue of the Entity of Cycles. Just kneel before it and your attributes will be reset. Now, as for skills, it depends on your class. You go to the association dedicated to your class to reset your skills."

Well, at least I won't have to worry so much about attribute distribution. While I was thinking about this, Balack asked me directly, "By the way, what class do you want to pursue?"

"I plan to become a Merchant first, and then an Alchemist."

Balack looked me up and down, examining my appearance. "Kid, I'll be blunt: You should give up. It's a very difficult class. Only the children of nobles or powerful aristocrats can become Alchemists. Without resources, it's almost impossible."

I was curious about that insinuation. I really didn't see many Alchemists around town, even though it was a place dedicated to the class. "Why is that?"

"In general, adventurers tend to choose combat-oriented classes due to their effectiveness in battle. However, the Merchant only excels in logistics, which is not something that will help you in the early stages."

I already knew that, but for me, the Alchemist Class was the most complete one. I will just have to work hard to achieve my goals.

"I understand, Mr. Balack, but I've already made my decision. To become a Merchant, I need to be level 10, right?"

"That's right. Level 10 for Merchant and level 40 for Alchemist. Luckily for you, the city has guilds for both classes. You won't need to leave here, unlike me, who had to go to Prontera to become a Templar."

The conversation was good, but I needed to get back to the outskirts of the city. Before that, I asked one more question, "This might sound like a weird question, but please take it seriously. If I die, will I come back to life?" I needed to clarify this, because I couldn't take risk without that answer.

"It depends. If you die anywhere else, it's permanent. But if it's in the War of Emperium, you'll be resurrected."

I thanked him and said goodbye for the day. As I walked away, I couldn't help thinking it would be so much easier if it were like in the game. It's a shame you can only revive when you die in the War of Emperium.

...

Three days later, I was returning to town after a day of harvesting plants. I had already completed my quest, reached level 6, and still had time to do something useful. I decided to take the opportunity to say goodbye to Balack, the nice man who had helped me a lot these past few days. He mentioned that when I became a merchant, he wanted to do business with me. He also said that he had a son who wanted to go on adventures and that he would introduce me to him next time.

'I've been a lone wolf so far, but maybe it's time for a change. Doing everything alone is getting complicated.'

When I arrived at the adventurers' guild, I noticed a lot of movement. People were shouting, "Avalanchers!" I handed over my collected items to Rose and asked what was going on.

"Today is a day of celebration. A new guild has been formed, it's called the Avalanchers."

The guild was packed. Members cheered, raising the flag with the guild's crest. I couldn't help but ask, "Is that really such a big deal?"

Rose looked at me strangely, "You have no idea how hard it is to get an Emperium Shard that is needed to create a legitimate guild."

In the game, it wasn't really such a big deal to defeat a boss and have a 5% chance of getting a Emperium Shard, but I guess when you think this is now "real life", things get much more complicated.

I opened my Status Blate and there it was: Adventurer Rank F – Smoke Sentinels. This made me wonder, "Smoke Sentinels? Am I part of that guild?"

She replied, ironically: "No, silly. There is a difference between legitimate guilds and formal guilds."

Rose explained the two main types of guilds.

First, we have the guilds created using a Emperium Shard, a rare item that grants the right to found a legitimate guild, recognized by the Emperium system, created by deities in ancient times. They have well-established hierarchies, their own rules and are usually focused on the War of Emperium, dungeon raids, and any other military operation. The main advantage of a legitimate guild is the just like in the game: Guild Skills, including the iconic "Emergency Call" that summons all chosen members with teleports.

On the other hand, the formal, "in name only" guilds are just normal organizations with varying purposes. Among them are Class Guilds. They are learning centers specific to classes such as Alchemists, Blacksmiths and Knights, where members train and develop their skills. There are also Adventurer Guilds, which are organizations used for issuing or seeking quests, sharing information and obtaining support for their adventures. These guilds are recognized by the cities to organize and control the activity of adventurers efficiently.

I also asked Rose about territorial wars in the kingdom of Rune Midgard. She explained that in the past, there have been several alliance breakdowns and wars between legitimate guilds and kingdoms. However, we are currently living in a period of peace. The last major war was with the Republic of Schwartzvald, which happened over 10 years ago. Rose also mentioned the Morroc revolt, but did not go into much detail, only that it was a civil war caused by rebels fighting for the independence of the Morroc region.

These wars and revolts often arise from disputes over power and territory, involving guilds that arise due to broader political and territorial interests. However, at this time, the kingdom seems to be in a period of relative tranquility, after the intense battles and political changes that marked the recent past.

The adventurer guild building was not a suitable place for conversation right now; there was a lot of euphoria and shouting. I took the opportunity leave to go say goodbye to Balack at the train station.

The metallic sound of gears grinding and the smokestacks belching into the gray sky accompanied me as I walked through Einbroch station. The thick, soot-laden air filled my lungs with every step. People in shabby work clothes hurried past me, some carrying sacks of ore, others with tools strapped to their waists. The steam locomotive, parked in front of me, let out a constant squeaking noise, as if it were complaining about its own existence.

I looked around, looking for Balack. It wasn't long before I spotted him about to enter a train. "Balack!" I called, raising my hand.

"Hey, kid, I thought you wouldn't come." he shouted as he stepped back from the train.

"Eager to go home?" I asked, in a farewell tone.

"Yes, I need to get back to work. Let me at least add your ID Number to mine, so we can communicate from a distance."

The concept of exchanging messages left me full of doubts, but I held out my ID Number. It's a good opportunity to investigate this communication option.

Once Balack confirmed the registration, he climbed onto the train in a cheery mood. The whistle sounded, and within moments, the locomotive began to move, slowly moving away from the station. I waved lightly as it disappeared into the distance, then turned to face the city center.

Curious, I opened the menu on my Status Blate to test the messaging function. When I tried to access it, a notification appeared: "Feature unavailable. Go to the nearest post office to unlock it." I let out a frustrated sigh. Of course, nothing could be that simple. I would have to find a post office in the city to activate this function, and there would certainly be a cost involved.

With that thought, I decided to head towards the city post office. The streets of Einbroch, covered in industrial dust and with the mechanical sounds of machinery, gave me the feeling that everything there worked like a big gear. The metal buildings and the factories releasing smoke reminded me that this city never stopped.

After walking a few blocks, I spotted the post office building. It was a discreet building compared to the rest of the city, but the emblem of a winged letter above the door gave away its purpose. Upon entering, I found the place busier than I expected. There were Merchants, adventurers, and city workers, all taking care of their own business.

I walked up to the counter, where a middle-aged man wearing a simple uniform greeted me with a curious look. "Can I help you, young man?" he asked, interrupting his work.

"Yes, I'm trying to unlock the messaging function on my status plate. A notification appeared saying that I need to come here."

The clerk nodded. "Ah, I see. You'll need to register here and pay a small fee to enable the service."

He continued, "Activating the messaging function costs 500 Zeny, and you'll need to pay a fee of 1000 Zeny for each message you send. If you plan on using it a lot, we have more advantageous plans, such as 50, 100, or even unlimited messages per month. We also have special plans for guild leaders, which allow you to send messages to all members."

I thought for a moment. The fees were a bit high, but it was clear that this feature would be useful. In the game, we didn't have to worry about that. Messages were instantaneous, and we only needed to use them when someone was offline since the chat was just better otherwise.

After finishing the last quest, I had 2520 Zeny. It was a good amount to survive for a few days, so despite how weird it felt to have to pay for functions that were for free in the game, I decided to enable the message function so I could at least read what was sent to me. If I needed to send a message, I would have to pay 1000 Zeny each time, which is pretty expensive for me right now.

When I left the post office, it was already night. I had 2020 Zeny left and there were still two days until I had to settle my bills with the inn. I should be able to get another week's pay with that money, but my knife was already showing some minor damage. However, I didn't know if it would be worth fixing it. I would need to ask a blacksmith about the cost of repairing it. Then I will decide on whether to repair or buy a new one. I've lived with a blacksmith in my room for 3 days and didn't ask him about it...

Starting tomorrow, I planned to enter dungeons to quickly reach level 10 and obtain my Merchant Class. That way, I will start making some decent money.

I arrived at the inn and got my key from Tayla, who was behind the counter. She looked at me with her ever friendly smile. I briefly greeted her and went to my room. I was eager to rest after having completed all the quests from the last few days.

When I opened the door, however, I was greeted by an unexpected scene.

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Protagonist Data:

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Day: 6

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Class Level: 1

Base Level: 6

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Life Status:

HP: 150

MP: 40

Attributes:

STR: 5

AGI: 5

VIT: 5

INT: 5

DEX: 6

LUK: 5

Combat Statistics:

ATK: 24

MATQ: 14.5

HIT: 6

Critical: 1

DEF: 12

MDEF: 5

Flee: 5

ASPD: 106

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Zeny: 2020

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Equipped Equipment:

Knife

ATK: 17

Description: A simple knife.

Cotton Shirt

DEF: 10

Description: Simple cotton shirt. To be used on any occasion.

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Inventory:

Items Quantity

Flower: 4

Sprout: 4

Stem: 6

Lantana: 2

Felpa: 4

Mint: 2

Romantic Flower: 4

Celatom: 2

Melody Plant: 2

Makulrata: 2

Bitter Herb: 2

Green Herb: 5

Sharp Scale: 2

Aloe: 2

Aloe Leaf: 2

Romantic Leaf: 2

Red Herb: 6

Yellow Herb: 3

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