“Well, I need to build a good survival kit. Right now, I just have a basic kit from the Association,” Damion told Demetri Leland.
“First things to add are rope and a tent. You should never go on a mission without a good length of rope. You have no idea how handy rope is, you might not need it for most missions, but you’ll be thankful you have it when you do need it.”
“What about rations?”
“Oh, you need those too, but I don’t sell foodstuffs. For rations go over to Thelma’s on Elm Street, Saung Adventurer Supply. She’ll get you sorted. Lots of adventurers just live off the land, but if you need some rations, she is the one to see.”
“So how much for a good rope and a tent that will let me rest without worrying about being attacked in the night?”
“Rope is easy, 3 silvers for a 25-meter length. 5 silvers for a 50-meter length. Tents on the other hand, have a lot more variety in them. A great deal depends on size and the enchantments. Ideally, you would want repelling and camouflage enchantments, but durability is important too, as well as enchantments to keep the tent at a comfortable temperature.
“You’d be surprised how many adventurers don’t think about those things and freeze their bums off at night because they bought a cheap tent with just repelling and camouflage.”
“Sounds like quite the issue,” Damion admitted. “I’m guessing such tents are not cheap?”
“For a one-person tent, you will probably need to spend 1 to 5 gold. That will get you a tent that will make sure you last through the night. Though, if you want to live it up on your missions, you can get tents that are more like hotel rooms. Though they cost much, much more.”
“I understand,” Damion told Leland. “Thank you again for the armor. I’ll be back for upgrades and supplies when I can.”
“Very good, see you later lad,” Leland said as Damion left the store.
With one of his issues solved, Damion decided to check on what missions were available. If he wanted to continue to build up his kit with quality gear, he needed to make money. And to make money, he needed to complete missions.
In the Adventurer Association, Damion found a few missions that he could do. Unsurprisingly, they were all in the Benault Forest. Most of the area around Saung was a Green Zone and either bordered another city’s Green Zone, or Argentum’s White Zone. Only the eastern edge of Saung’s Green Zone bordered Benault Forest and Bufort’s Yellow Zone.
The next trade caravan escort mission was still several days off, and Damion did not want to wait that long to do his next mission. He was able to find a mission that left from Saung the next day, but it was not something he was sure about.
Mission: 1607-12-468 – Type: Escort – Start Time: 1607-12-24 09:00 – Destination: Benault Forest and return to Saung – Reward: 5 Silver
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It was an escort mission, and since it came up on the Association terminal, Damion knew he qualified for it, so it should be an F Rank mission. However, the description made Damion think twice about it.
Escort Research Assistant Arica Miller to collect specimens in Benault Forest and escort her safely back to Saung. Departure set for 09:00 1607-12-24. Estimated time of completion: 4 days.
If the mission was supposed to take four days, that would mean he would need rations and a tent so he could stay out there for that long. The pay was good, more than a silver a day, so Damion thought it was decent, but he just was not sure if he could do it.
Leaving the Adventurer Association and the decision on a mission until later, Damion sought out Saung Adventurer Supply as recommended by Mr. Leland. The shop was quite impressive, it did not display a lot of armor or weapons like Mr. Leland’s shop had, but it did have a large assortment of goods.
The store was broken up into various departments, clothing, weapons, armor, food and even a section for wilderness supplies. Damion only had two silvers, and a few coppers left, so he first gravitated to the food section in search of cheap rations.
All he need was a few days’ worth, even if it was the cheap rations, he hoped his remaining funds would be enough. The food section was laid out with fresh goods in the front and preserved items in the back. As Damion went further and further back, he found that the further he went, the cheaper prices became.
When he arrived at the back wall Damion found what he was looking for. A week’s supply of rations. Looking at the box Damion saw that it contained 21 meals. Broken down into breakfast, lunch and dinner. All premade, no cooking or preparation required, just open and eat. The single box cost 50 copper. There were a few other boxes of premade rations around, but they were all more expensive. Damion knew buying the cheapest was probably not the best idea, but he needed to save as much money as he could and it was only for a few days.
Box of rations in hand, Damion headed over to the section of the store with outdoor gear and quickly picked up a cheap tent. The tent was just an ordinary tent, not even having enchantments on it for durability, but it was all he could afford given his current finances. He was about to make his way to the counter to pay when a thought occurred to him. Between the basic kit from the Adventurer Association, the rations and the tent, he needed a bigger bag.
The bag he had been using was his old school bag and while large enough for his books, or a few supplies, was not large enough for everything he had now. The thought of having a spatial artifact where he could store everything popped into his mind, but he quickly dispelled it. Even if he had one, as soon as some mid or high Ranker saw him with it, they would steal it. Such items were too rare and too expensive for a low Ranker like him.
Making his way back to the outdoors section, Damion grabbed a large backpack that had quick release straps. He needed something that could fit everything he had in it, but he also needed to avoid having to spend extra time taking it off it if he needed to fight.
Again, Damion made his way to the checkout counter and was met with the smiling face of an elderly woman that looked to be around 60 or 70 years old. As Damion was placing his purchases on the counter and taking out his coin to pay the woman started up a conversation.
“I’m glad to see Helga’s newest student is being frugal.”
“You know Ms. Teft?” Damion asked startled by the woman.
“Oh of course, I’m Thelma Gerrard. Demetri messaged me early that you might be coming by and to try and help you out since you are Helga’s student. Though, I must say, it is hard to give you a discount when you buy the cheapest things I sell.”
“There is a mission tomorrow I want to take, so I don’t have time to save up for better gear.”
“Oh, it is quite alright. You know when Demetri, Frederick, Helga and I were first starting out, we hardly had money for even the most basic gear. And we were mage students at Silver Spire.”
“You… you mean you went to school with Ms. Teft?” Damion asked startled at the revelation.
“It was a long time ago, we aren’t as young as we appear young man,” Gerrard said with a smile.