Flynn had just stepped out of the blacksmith's forge when he collided headfirst with someone rushing the other way.
"Night-Stalker!" Amy caught his arm before he could stagger back, her eyes bright with excitement. "I was just about to look for you. That method you mentioned actually worked. I turned in a whole batch of half-finished potion powders and learned a new recipe. Look!"
She pulled up the recipe window so fast it nearly bumped his nose.
—
Basic Potion of Fury (Bronze Quality)
Upon use, temporarily increases attack power by 10%–20% for fifteen seconds.
Cooldown: 3 minutes.
Effective only on players below level 20.
—
Flynn scanned the description, nodding slowly. "That's… pretty solid. What are you planning to sell them for?"
"The ingredients are easy to get in the main towns, so they're not expensive overall, but they're annoyingly scarce here in the Starter Zone," Amy said, rolling her shoulders. "And crafting them is a hassle. I'm thinking twenty silver per bottle."
He raised an eyebrow. "Twenty silver? Isn't that a bit much?"
"A bit much?" she shot back. "Absolutely not. Sure, there's a three-minute cooldown, but for boss fights this thing is priceless. Sometimes that little burst is the difference between a wipe and a clear. Twenty silver is cheap."
Flynn laughed and held up his hands. "Alright, alright. You convinced me. I'll take two. How about a friend discount?"
Amy waved him off. "Forget the discount. I'll give you a few for free. Consider it a finder's fee for the tip."
She wasn't wrong. If Flynn hadn't casually mentioned how he'd obtained his Engineering schematics, Amy would never have discovered this recipe at all. The Alchemist trainer did buy half-finished powders from players, but the price was laughably low, barely half of market value. Anyone who knew the game avoided that trade entirely. Only someone inexperienced enough to sell crafted materials straight to a class trainer would stumble onto something like this.
Because of that, almost no one would uncover the recipe this early. And anyone who did would likely keep it to themselves, quietly making a fortune before word spread.
After promising him five Potions of Fury, Amy hurried off again. Between her Alchemy and Leatherworking, she was juggling two professions and now had her sights set on the Leatherworking trainer, clearly hoping lightning would strike twice.
Flynn turned in the opposite direction and headed for the tailor shop.
Inside, Aunt Lily sat behind the counter, her needle flashing as she worked. A handful of players occupied the rest of the room, each hunched over their own projects, their hands glowed with a dull white light as they crafted. These were all low-level tailors, and it showed. They could make Common-grade items only.
Tailors specialized in cloth armor, but their real value lay in enchanted threads, stat-boosting enhancements woven directly into gear. For cloth users, these threads were indispensable, since cloth armor rarely came with gem sockets. Plate armor favored gems, cloth relied on threads, and leather and mail sat awkwardly in between, able to use either but never both.
Flynn leaned against the counter and tapped the wood lightly. "Good evening, Aunt Lily," he said with an easy smile.
She looked up, as eyes softened. "Good evening, young man. What brings you here?" Her lips curved teasingly. "That old coot Parker told me you picked up Blacksmithing and Engineering. What business does a Rogue have in my tailor shop? You're not planning to fight monsters in a robe, are you?"
Flynn laughed. "You caught me. I was thinking pink silk, actually. But no, Uncle Parker sent me. He asked me to give you something. Is there somewhere we can talk privately?"
As he spoke, he noticed the other players glancing their way, curiosity plain on their faces. The last thing he wanted was to announce Parker's feelings in front of an audience, especially if it went badly.
Aunt Lily studied him for a moment, then set her work aside. "Alright," she said, standing and gesturing toward the back room. "Come along. Let's see what that old fool has sent this time. A kitchen knife? Or maybe a farming hoe?"
She chuckled as she led the way, and Flynn grinned to himself. He was almost looking forward to her reaction.
Once they were alone, he pulled out the letter and handed it to her. "This is from Uncle Parker."
She blinked. "A letter?" she murmured, clearly surprised. "Our shops are barely fifty feet apart. What on earth is he thinking?"
She unfolded the paper. After reading just a couple of lines, color rushed to her cheeks. Her fingers tightened around the letter, crinkling the fragile paper as she struggled to compose herself.
"I… I see," she said at last in an unsteady voice. "Thank you for bringing this to me. You can go now. I have things to do. Just tell Parker that I received it. I'm… reading it."
"That's all?" Flynn asked carefully, but she was already turning away.
"Go on," she said, waving him off without looking back.
Outside, Flynn checked his quest log. The objective was still incomplete. That likely meant he needed to report back to Parker, so he broke into a jog and headed straight for the forge.
Hidden quests, Amy had told him more than once, were rarely simple errands. They could lead to rare rewards, valuable information, or entire quest chains. The pickaxe he'd received earlier probably didn't count as the real payoff, especially since the quest hadn't officially started back then.
When Flynn reached the forge, Parker descended on him immediately.
"Well?" the blacksmith demanded, pacing like a caged beast. "What did Lily say? How did she react?"
Flynn hesitated. Aunt Lily had kicked him out almost immediately. He genuinely didn't know how to answer.
With a resigned sigh, he turned around and ran back to the tailor shop.
This time, Aunt Lily met him at the door. Her earlier flustered warmth was gone, replaced by a heavy, distant look.
"I've read Parker's letter," she said quietly. "But I can't accept his feelings."
Flynn frowned. "Why not?"
She drew a slow breath. "Because I already have a husband. He's been missing for over ten years, but I'm still waiting for him. I won't accept anyone else unless I know for certain that he's dead."
Everything clicked into place. Everyone assumed her husband was long gone, Parker included, but Aunt Lily had never let go of that hope.
A system notification chimed.
Ding!
[Quest 'Parker's Love Letter' completed. You have accepted the follow-up quest 'Report to Parker'. You have received 1288 EXP and 15 Silver.]
Without another word, Flynn sprinted back to the forge.
Parker was muttering to himself with hands blackened with soot while his eyes grew wild. The moment he saw Flynn, he seized his arm with crushing strength.
"She read it, didn't she?"
"She did," Flynn said, wincing as pain shot through his shoulder even with reduced sensitivity.
"And?" Parker's face flushed, hope and fear warring in his expression.
Flynn sighed. "She says she already has a husband. Even though he's been missing for ten years, she's still waiting. She won't accept anyone else unless there's proof he's dead."
Parker froze, then shouted, "That's impossible. John died years ago. Why can't she let him go? I'll tell her. I'll make her understand."
"Based on what?" Flynn snapped, grabbing his arm before he could charge off. "What proof do you have?"
Parker deflated as his shoulders slumped. "I… don't have any."
Flynn rubbed his temples. "Then tell me this. How did John disappear in the first place?"
Parker's eyes widened as memory surfaced. "That's right. John went missing."
He grabbed Flynn again, this time with desperate urgency. "Young man, will you help me? Help me find out what really happened to him?"
A prompt appeared in front of Flynn's eyes.
Ding!
[Do you wish to continue helping Parker the Blacksmith? If you agree, the quest will continue. If you decline, the quest will end here and you will receive a partial reward.]
Flynn didn't hesitate. "I'll help," he said, meeting Parker's gaze. "But you need to tell me everything. I can't do anything if I don't know the story."
Parker clasped his hand with trembling gratitude. "Thank you. Truly. Come inside and sit down. It's a long story."
As he spoke, the 'Report to Parker' quest quietly marked itself complete, granting Flynn another chunk of experience and silver. There was no equipment reward this time, but Flynn had the distinct feeling that this was the beginning of something truly remarkable.