“Pancakes hot and fresh, come and get ‘em!”

I rolled over in my bed, groaning quietly.

“Coming…”

With a final longing stare towards my pillow, I pushed myself up off the bed, strands of hair falling into my vision as I did so. I tucked the rogue hair behind my ears, before glancing at the clock on my desk.

~So early…~

*****************************

I shoved yet another piece of pancake into my mouth, staring up at the ceiling in undisguised fatigue as I slowly chewed. The others were much the same, with the exception of our mother - she was quite the morning person, happily cleaning up the kitchen as the rest of us built up our energy for the day at a snail’s pace. The coffee sitting in front of me could only do so much, so despite my steady caffeine consumption I was still not fully awake.

*Ding!*

The default message tone sounded on my phone - I was too lazy to change it, even though I had had my phone for almost two years now.

Meet me at the mall at noon, you should get some new stuff before school

Can’t, Legend released last night and I have a major quest to do. Maybe some other day.

...You’ll say that the next time I ask you too, won’t you

Probably.

T_T

... If I come help you with your quest or whatever, will you come to the mall?

You can’t help me, you’ll start at level 1 if you buy Legend now. I’m already level 4, and likely to get level 5 or higher today.

*Grumble*

~Damn she’s persistent…~

I shook my head, laughing to myself, before taking one last bite of pancake. After taking care of my dishes, I headed back upstairs in short order, eager to get back to work in-game.

“Dungeon, here I come…”

*****************************

As the world of Legend appeared around me, I found myself standing in front of the Craftsmans’ Guild, on a much more busy street than I had been the night before.

~I suppose it makes sense… People must have stayed up all night to get some money. Not everyone’s as lucky with random encounters as I was.~

I strolled up to the entrance, glancing at the dwarven doorman.

“Forge Master Kane should be expecting me.”

The dwarf nodded enthusiastically, turning around and heading straight into the building.

“Yes, yes, he was very insistent that I keep an eye out for you. I don’t know what you did to get on his good side, but I must say I’m very impressed.”

I just smiled, and followed him all the way to Forge Master Kane’s work area. The door was already open, so the dwarf glanced at me, gestured to the door, and turned back towards the building’s entrance.

~Well, let’s see what a Forge Master was able to come up with…~

The door creaked as I pushed it fully open, and I stepped inside. Kane was leaning over a table, carefully inspecting a piece of armor. I couldn’t tell what it was from a distance, but he was grinning, clearly happy with his work.

“Forge Master Kane!”

I called out to him, and he turned towards me, his grin only widening at the sight of me.

“Ah, Miss Romula! You’ve come at the perfect time.”

Kane scratched the back of his head, his grin turning somewhat sheepish.

“I… MAY have gone a LITTLE overboard with this gear. As long as you get good enough to make upgrades to it on occasion, it should remain pretty solid. But don’t hesitate to make your own from scratch once you become a Forge Master yourself - no one can match your needs like you can.”

A full armor set was laid out across the table, appearing to be made of a mix of basic leather and iron. The craftsmanship on each piece, however, was exquisite - each and every element was truly beautiful. I hurriedly pulled up the stats on each item, eager to see the results of a Master’s hard work.

[Centurion Armor Set - Level 4]

Quality: A

Armor Pieces: Breastplate, Gauntlets, Helmet, Leggings, Boots

User Restriction: Romula

Damage Resistance: 10 (Zones: Head, Torso, Arms, Legs, Feet)

Durability: 450/450

Stone Quality: B-

Traits: Custom-Fitted, Thick Hide, Shielded

Description: The Centurion Armor was crafted personally by Forge Master Kane for the player Romula. Crafted using a Shield Stone and the pelt of the Prey King, this is a high-quality result as expected of the Craftsmans’ Guild.

[Eagle Bow - Level 4]

Quality: A

User Restriction: Romula

Damage Amplifier: 1.2

[System Note: A Ranged Weapon’s Damage Amplifier applies multiplicatively to the damage of its arrows.]

Durability: 375/375

Traits: Heartwood Flexibility, Silken Strength

Description: The Eagle Bow was crafted personally by Forge Master Kane for the player Romula. Crafted using Heartwood Branches and Eastern Spider Silk, this is a high-quality result as expected of the Craftsmans’ Guild.

These masterpieces, alongside a standard set of knives with heartwood grips, were finer than what even the local guards had been wearing. I had no doubt that even soloing the dungeon quest Kane had given me would be possible using this equipment.

~How did the system know my name had a Roman theme to it, though? I’m impressed.~

“Thank you Forge Master Kane, these are beautiful. I’ll put them to use immediately.

He nodded with satisfaction, pulling a small map from his back pocket and handing it to me.

“You’ll find the Remnant Forge on that map. Follow the main road to the far edge of the Eastern Forest, and then start following the map. I wish you luck, kid.”

Exchanging final pleasantries, we parted ways, and I headed to a nearby tavern to change into my new armor. With that done, I set out once again, on a quest all my own.