NOVEL NEXT Chapter 15: Rapport
In Divine World, the rapport relationship was a notable feature, enabling players to establish various levels of rapport with NPCs.
NPC relationships typically began at Neutral, progressing through stages such as Amicable, Friendly, Trusted, and Affectionate as players interacted more positively.
Conversely, there were also negative rapport stages, including Tensed, Strained, Hostile, and Enemy, reflecting deteriorating relationships.
However, one must keep in mind that only certain NPCs in the Divine World would have a rapport relationship. After all, these certain NPCs have a high impact on the Divine World.
And it was precisely because of this fact that Xu Feng was taking his time carefully in interacting with Herbalist Elias, an NPC who would have a large impact in the latter stages of the game.
Glancing at the rapport feature being activated, Xu Feng inspected the status listed with Herbalist Elias calmly.
Rapport Status with NPC: Herbalist Elias
Current Rapport Level: Amicable
Recent Interactions:
-Completed a generous trade with Herbalist Elias.
-Engaged in a friendly conversation about herbalism and potion-making.
Notes:
-Herbalist Elias seems to appreciate your assistance and values your knowledge of herbalism.
-Continued positive interactions may lead to further improvement in rapport level.
'As expected, trading rare herbs like this at the start has directly increased the rapport level from Neutral to Amicable.' Xu Feng was pleased with the result.
Increasing a rapport level was not an easy feat to achieve as it could take at least a month or more to gain the NPCs' trust.
"Although it's quite unfortunate that our discussion would have to come short, I hope Adventurer Lin Feng can accept this money. Otherwise, I'll feel guilty of taking so many of these rare herbs." Elias said, putting a pouch that seemed to be filled with money on the table.
At the same time, his hands were extremely swift, directly snatching all the herbs that were on the table. The herbs were all stored within the ring that was on Elias' hand.
Such action would normally cause confusion to those who had never witnessed this scene before, but Xu Feng already knew what kind of ring Elias was wearing.
In simple terms, it was a magic ring that had a large dimension space to store a large quantity of items. It could be said to be a similar concept to a player having their inventory and storage capacity.
And given that NPCs don't have a personal inventory of their own, most would love to own a magic ring for themselves.
Unfortunately, a magic ring cost too much to make and the technique for creating one seemed to have been lost already.
Hence, the scarcity of a magic ring and the reason why there are still jobs available for people to deliver goods from far away.
"It seems like Adventurer Lin Feng is indeed extraordinary." Elias complimented, having noticed there were little to zero reactions from him when he stored the herbs in his ring.
"You flatter me too much, Herbalist Elias." Xu Feng shook his head and politely refused the compliment. "Only a person of your stature could use such a magic ring."
Nodding his head, Elias subsequently bid him farewell. "I have some business to do. You are free to use this room as you please. Receptionist Sandy would assist you if you need help with something."
As soon as Elias exited the room, Xu Feng took the pouch that was on the table and glanced at the money he was given.
'300 silver coins… Elias sure is a generous man.' Xu Feng was satisfied, having felt like he had earned a lottery. By explicitly not mentioning a price, he was letting Elias decide on the value of the herb.
From his calculation, he would be pleased to earn somewhere between 100 to 150 silver coins.
After all, the herbs weren't that valuable once players increased their levels, given that the region where these herbs are grown could be explored sooner or later.
Thus, earning between 100 to 150 silver coins was a blessing already in Xu Feng's mind.
At the current stage of the game, players were only given 10 copper coins to start with.
Copper coins are the lowest value of the currency, followed by silver coins, and then gold coins. 100 copper coins are worth 1 silver coin, and 100 silver coins are worth 1 gold coin.
To summarize, this trade alone had earned Xu Feng a grand total of 3 gold coins, but that wasn't even the most valuable one. Instead, it was the old book that Elias had generously gifted him.
Flipping through the pages of the book, Xu Feng's expression remained unchanged, but his mind seemed to be practically dancing in joy.
'I merely wanted one recipe to synthesize a greater potion, but Elias gave me so many recipes in one go.' He exclaimed inwardly.
Normally, a recipe would cost around 1 silver coin or more, depending on the rarity and quality of the potion. In other words, some of the recipes could cost a whopping 100 gold coins for players.
What was worse was that these players would have no choice but to accept their fate of being extorted.
Without the recipes, even if you have valuable herbs, you are not able to synthesize any potions. To put the cherry on the topping, recipes are untradable, essentially meaning only one player could learn the recipe since it could not be shared among others.
Putting the coins in his inventory, Xu Feng instantly became the wealthiest player currently in Divine World.
Who else but him could possibly possess 3 gold coins at the moment?
As Xu Feng was starting to get lost in his own world, Receptionist Sandy became concerned and asked from the side, "Um, are you okay, Adventurer Lin Feng?"
"Ah, yes, what's the matter?" He snapped out of his daze and turned to her, raising his brows.
"I'm just wondering if you are still going to use this room," Sandy said with a somewhat awkward tone, her eyes glancing at the clock.
"Right, you still have to work in the lobby." Xu Feng was able to understand her predicament.
"You can just leave me be and take this as thanks for your assistance." He added, giving her 5 copper coins.