HC: Handyman | Ch. 28 - Streaming (Patreon)

“When running a party quest, everyone chips in,” Amari preached as they made the short trip from the Historical Society toward the city gate. Amari seemed to be on a quest of his own. When he’d noticed that Jack knew almost nothing about the game or playing as a team, he seemed to have taken it upon himself to beat him into shape. After their early bout, Jack dared not to say anything for fear of angering his partner. 

“Each time you go on a hunt or quest, you’re expected to let the others know your class, professions, levels, attributes, and skills.”

“Wait. Isn’t that sensitive information?” Jack asked, confused.

“You’re not supposed to spout your every little secret, greeny. But being at a party and saying nothing about yourself is bad manners. For example, I already told you my majors and minors. I assumed you knew why, but now I see you’re really oblivious, uh?”

Jack scratched his head, embarrassed. “A little, yeah.”

“My minor is [Paleontology]. That means I have several bonuses when fighting dinosaurs. That’s part of the value I bring to the party. My major is [Archaeology], which is good for exploring ruins and helping you find more ceramics in this quest.”

Jack nodded. Amari did say that earlier, but he hadn’t connected the dots.

“As soon as you told me you were a bushcrafter, I assumed you would be in charge of healing, stamina management, and food during the expedition. That’s just the way it works.”

“Right. Sorry. I’ve played games before, you know. I’m not a total noob. Why are you treating me like a child?” Jack protested. Amari was spelling everything out. It almost felt as if he was talking to an audience.

Amari grinned. “Many people blame other party members for failure in quests. I’m just trying to help you understand that everything starts with being a good party member. Besides, I think this quest is a good match for me, and there’s no way we’ll make it unless you know the basics of teamwork. Now, go farm at least one gold, and we’ll meet back once you’ve done that. We need to prepare for this quest, or we won’t be able to deal with the compies.”

Jack felt his face redden. “About that. I was a little dishonest earlier. I do have the money.”

Amari grinned. “I thought so. You couldn’t get all that equipment in the pyramids and get less than two gold while getting it. Come on, here’s a marketplace, which is on the way. Let’s go in.”

There were marketplaces at practically every corner of the city. Being such an important infrastructure, Jack was happy it was easily accessible. “So what should I get?”

“What level is your bushcraft?” Amari asked, even as his hands moved around to operate the market menu.

“Level four.”

“OK, so you have [First Aid] and [Survival Cooking]. It's a shame we don't have [Camping] yet, but we’ll make it up with fires.” 

Jack’s eyes widened, seeing how well-versed Amari was with bushcraft skills. Veterans were something else.

“Just make sure you have cloths to craft bandages, a pot for cooking, and tinderboxes. The rest we’ll just collect on the go,” Amari recommended.

“Why don’t I just buy pre-made food and take it?”

Amari laughed. “You really are wet behind your ears, greeny. You know food has durability, too, right?”

“Yeah. So?”

“If you keep food in your inventory, it will quickly lose its durability. Food in the game spoils!”

“W-what?”

“Why do you think people seek out cooks and bushcrafts for expeditions? They can only carry so much food with them. If the quest takes too long, they’ll starve.”

Jack tried to immediately think of a solution that wouldn’t require any hard work. “But isn’t there food that lasts longer?”

“Sure, but it’s more expensive and not as nutritious.”

“What are you going to buy?” Jack asked. Seeing Amari’s suspicious frown, Jack waved his hands hurriedly. “I'm not doubting your good intentions, man; I just want to learn.”

Hearing Jack’s apology, Amari seemed to relax. “Compies are tricky. I’m buying some stuff to keep them away if push comes to shove. I’m trying to find the best match for our situation. I’ll show you in a minute.”

Jack sighed as he focused on his duty as a bushcrafter for the quest. He purchased some cloths. He decided to buy neither the cheapest, so that he wouldn’t anger Amari, but not the unnecessarily expensive ones either. 

Linen Cloth (Common)

Description: A loose piece of linen fabric that can be used for a variety of purposes.

Durability: 10

He bought twenty of these for a silver a piece, fighting the urge not to tear. He then proceeded to buy a pot.

Tin Pot (Common)

Description: A pot made of tin hammered by a smith. It can be used for cooking, even though it isn’t very durable.

Durability: 26

He bought two of these for three silvers each, and then he bought five tinderboxes for three silvers each.

Survivalist’s Tinderbox (Common)

Description: A tin box with some wood shavings, a piece of firesteel and a good-sized flint.

Durability: 23.

“I’m done,” Jack called.

“Good. Me too. Can I see what you purchased?” Amari asked.

Jack nervously showed him each item, afraid that Amari would scold him. To his surprise, he nodded approvingly.

“How many of each did you buy?”

Jack told him.

“I would buy one more pot, two more tinderboxes, and ten more cloths. We can’t forget that these quests are round trips. We have to make it back. Also, it’s always recommended to bring at least a stack of fuel.”

“And can I see what you bought? I’m really curious.”

“Sure. Here you go.”

The description of two items appeared in front of Jack.

Raptor Dung Bomb (Uncommon)

Description: Inside the casing are the excrements of a raptor, a medium-sized carnivore. It can scare smaller, weaker animals away.

Effects: 

Scares animals under level 20 in a 20-meter radius;

It lasts five minutes.

Durian Squirt Gun (Common)

Description: A squirt gun that sprays durian extract. It will drive most weaker animals away.

Durability: 10.

Effects:

Cancels aggro of animals under level 15 you have sprayed with;

One squirt per durability point.

“Wow! I didn’t know this kind of item existed. This is awesome!”

Amari grinned. “This should keep the little pests at bay.”

“How many did you get?”

“Four bombs and four squirt guns. Finish getting the supplies, and we’ll be on our way. I’ll wait outside. I need to do something quickly.”

Jack followed Amari with his eyes as he left the marketplace. As soon as he left, he opened the marketplace and included the names of the items Amari had purchased. Even though Amari seemed alright, he wanted to ensure he wasn’t scamming him. Besides, he’d only purchased four items of each. That was very low compared with how much he’d asked Jack to bring along.

As he found the first item, he bit his lip and got a sinking feeling in his stomach. Each raptor dung bomb cost 80 silver. The squirt gun was a little cheaper at 15 silver a bottle, but still… Amari had forked out four gold to make this quest work, four times as much as Jack.

Jack stood stunned for a long moment. He had suspected that Amari was using him, but it turned out that he really was trying to help. Amari immediately gauged how much money someone like Jack would have and asked him to buy as much as was reasonable while contributing the money necessary to make the expedition work.

Taking a deep breath, Jack bought two stacks of fuel, two more pots, five more tinderboxes, and twenty more cloths. He left the marketplace and found Amari off to the corner. When he spotted him, Amari signaled he needed one more minute. Finally, he came to meet him.

“Got it?” Amari asked excitedly.

“Yeah. By the way, Amari.”

“Yes?”

“Thanks for doing this quest with me. I know I’m just a noob. I appreciate it.”

Amari’s eyes widened, and he smiled. “No problem, man. I also make a living off the game and know how hard it can be to get started. I’m just trying to pay it forward.”

“Oh yeah? How do you earn a living in the game?”

“I’m a streamer.”

Jack immediately thought of his own unsuccessful channel. “Really? What kind of content do you make?”

“Tutorials. Interesting things that happen to me in the game.”

“Is that good money?” Jack asked hopefully. Since he was looking for moneymaking opportunities, it was foolish not to use this opportunity to learn more about it.

“You have to build a following and a backlog. You can’t stream much of what you do live, or you’ll get into trouble. Right now, I’m still streaming content related to my old account. If I had streamed stuff as it happened, that Slayer kid from IronIre would have found me much more easily as we were fighting it out.”

“That sucks, man. It’s your livelihood. That moron destroyed your account!”

“It’s all good. I’ve never had so many views on my videos. Being hunted down like this also happens to other players, and many can relate. Restarting my account will also make for a great series. I’m going to call it ‘Rising From the Ashes.’ Once I get it online, I’ll let you know. Any comments and views are welcome,” Amari said with a professional smile.

A lot of things were clicking and making sense. The little moment he had needed earlier was to record himself talking about their upcoming quest. The way he seemed to be teaching an audience as he talked. Even how he put himself out there to help Jack would look great in a video. 

He followed after Amari as he imagined what captions he would put in a video featuring their quest. “Turning a noob into gaming material,” “From greeny to pro,” or “Charity and teaching noobs how to quest.”

Jack also realized that his interactions with people in the game could be recorded! All of Amari’s followers would probably see their spout. That gave him pause. He should be careful with what he said and did around Amari.

“What about you? What’s your story?” Amari asked.

Now that Jack knew he was on camera, he was unsure whether to talk about it.

Sensing his hesitation, Amari smiled. “Don’t worry. I won’t include this in a video if you don’t want to.”

The gears turned in Jack’s head. Hadn’t he made plenty of videos of himself doing idiotic things online? He had quit his jobs in the most flamboyant ways, tried to make guitar covers, pulled pranks on his mom, and did whatever else he could to get likes and views. Maybe this was his opportunity. 

“I’ll tell you my story. But when you post a video of our quest, can you tag my channel? I’m thinking of starting one.”

“Of course, man! I’ve always believed that the high tide raises all boats. Send me the link later.”

Jack took a deep breath. “OK, then. Two days ago, I quit my job as a cashier. It’s not the first time I quit. Once I got home, my father accused me of being lazy and irresponsible and gave me an ultimatum: I either start paying him rent, or I have to find somewhere else to live. Since I was tired of working menial jobs and being bossed around, I decided to try my luck at the game.”

Jack left out the part about Lydia. He also omitted a few parts that made him look bad. For example, he resisted the urge to talk smack about his previous companies and supervisors and took some responsibility for his situation. Lydia and his father had helped him see that he had to change. Besides, his future audience should relate more to that.

Amari nodded. “Two days, uh? How much money do you need to make?”

“I need to make 400 credits in the next four weeks. Wait,” Jack said after factoring in the helmet rental's price. “600, I mean. I’m renting a helmet.”

“OK. OK. That’s interesting. I hope you make it.”

“Do you think I can?”

“It’s possible!” Amari said, scratching his chin. “But you’ll need to work hard.”

Jack was pleased with Amari’s response. Jack had purposefully left the part about his rare quest out, too. If Amari thought it was feasible, even though he didn’t know about his rare quest, that meant that he was probably going to be OK. Probably.

“Here we are. The city gate! Let’s go get some breakfast at the food stalls and tackle this quest.”

Ch. 27 - Compy

INDEX

Ch. 29 - Nuggets