Kitu Nilan logged in to find the chat empty. In the list of online members, he saw seven of the people that were common names to see during raids. None could be whispered to, so likely they were in the Misty Haven dungeon.
[Guild] Kitu Nilan: I’m doing the event quest. Anyone else wanna join?
[Guild] Jules Jewels: I’m free!
[Guild] Kitu Nilan: Not raiding the dungeon?
[Guild] Jules Jewels: I just want the event items.
[Guild] Jules Jewels: I’ll apply to run the Beginner run with you when Chu Ghilon is lvl 40.
[Guild] Kitu Nilan: Cool!
[Guild] Kitu Nilan: Do you think T will carry us through it?
[Guild] Jules Jewels: I think we’ll be running with Jhi Xedolin. That fae is out lowest level healer.
[Guild] Kitu Nilan: ok
[Guild] Kitu Nilan: Where are you now?
[Guild] Jules Jewels: Merteis.
[Guild] Jules Jewels: get over here.
[Guild] Jules Jewels: Use Home and then the teleport platform if your home isn’t Merteis.
[Guild] Kitu Nilan: ??????????????
[Guild] Kitu Nilan: Where’s home????????
Jules then spent around five minutes helping Kitu find where the Home Teleport was in the skill menu because Kitu “must have mapped it over with another skill” but Kitu didn’t even know they could apparently map keys???
Eventually, they got there, though.
The two foxes were to meet in the fox town, by the teleportation platform at the plaza. It was flanked by two foxes. Unlike the other two starter towns, where wolves had two grey-ish statues in Toduunto and lynxes had gold statues with embedded dark jewels in S’Daroa, the statues of Merteis were colourful and, most importantly, didn’t face each other.
The one at the east end faced north and was a white fox with paws together and gaze lowered. The cleric’s robe was long and morphed into the pedestal it stood upon, and was dark with star patterns, the aurora and, at the centre on the back, the moon. The clothes under the robe were light yellow and beige with a decorated, colourful belt. This was the “Faithful of the Moon” statue, also know and the Praying Cleric.
The one positioned west was facing the south, and was a red fox, standing proudly with a walking staff in paw. It wore darker clothes in brown and green, with the symbol of the setting (or rising) sun on the shoulders. It had a dagger and an old-time pistol in its belt. This was the statue known as the “Adventurer of the Sun”, also known as the Proud Rogue.
Next to the pedestal of the Rogue stood what looked like a smaller elf with bright red fox ears and tail with a matching hair colour. The tail moved back and forth at a leisurely tempo.
It seemed that Jules was levelling his Scout job and had made his Trickster passive into the active skill of Illusion.
Kitu got a party invite from Jules Jewels.
[Guild] Jules Jewels: Let’s go!
The Midwinterfest Gift-Giving Quest was the one Kitu was most interested in. He had participated in the Moon Hunt as well as the Feast Quest, so he knew approximately what to expect from those.
The quest-giver was an NPC human named Nicolaos.
The human told them about how in the realm of the human Wanderers, beyond the shores of the continent of the Mother Tree, they had traditions were they gave gifts.
However, in Velkrinni they didn’t have this custom, and the human was very sad about it.
[Party] Jules Jewels: Wow, this couldn’t be a more obvious reference to X-mas, could it?
[Party] Kitu Nilan: You sure?
[Party] Jules Jewels: yeah
Kitu read the dialogue that asked him to bring a bowl of oats to the harekin by the tailor. He accepted it, and the two foxes went to the tailor to give the harekin NPC a bowl of oats.
…Oats?
They left their bowls of oats to the harekin, who sent them over to a bearfolk farmer in the village between Merteis and the bearfolk town of Luntalgi, Gromonggra.
The bearfolk asked them to get it some rat pelts, so Kitu and Jules went out to slay a few rats, to deliver to the brown bear.
They got the giant goat milk and ran back to Merteis and delivered it to the hare. The hare sent them back to Nicolaos, who sent them to them to the Mage in S’Daroa to deliver some silver. The Mage asked them to bring the silver and some gold to the local Jeweller.
The Jeweller sent them to a cave near the Merteis port, which was infested by the extremely aggressive crabs from the Fireglade while some humans had been mining for star crystals, so humans had to flee. Now they had to mine the star crystals while avoiding getting pinched by the crabs.
[Party] Jules Jewels: Can you still not see the X-mas references? Gold and silver glitter, a glowing star?
[Party] Kitu Nilan: Aside from the name Nicolaos, I don’t see it.
[Party] Kitu Nilan: I’m fighting f-ing crabs man.
They obtained the crystal and returned to the Jeweller who sent them back to Nicolaos. He sent them to the hare, who had made porridge from the oats and milk. The hare sent them to deliver it out in the forest. They returned to the hare, who sent them back to S’Daroa to get silver and gold flowers with a jewel embedded in the centre.
[Party] Kitu Nilan: Still Christmas to you?
[Party] Jules Jewels: I guess.
They returned to the hare, who sent them to Nicolaos, who asked them if they had delivered the porridge to the gnomes in the forest. He heard the flowers and been made and asked them to give five of them away to other Wanderers they appreciate before they returned to him.
[Party] Kitu Nilan: I don’t want to give you five flowers.
[Party] Jules Jewels: Same.
[Guild] Feni Kunas: We’re home from Haven!
[Guild] Titu Lilin: hi!
[Guild] Titu Lilin: how are you all?
[Guild] Kitu Nilan: I HAVE FLOWERS FOR YOU TOTU. COME TO MERTEIS
[Guild] Memmi Bvinanka: good
[Guild] Jules Jewels: You were FAST. It oopened like 90 minutes ago. You already got though Legendary?
[Guild] Feni Kunas: We’re good. Met T’s old brothers-in-arms. They were pretty shit animals.
[Guild] Gituda Tuuk: No caps, ffs. I’m away for a short while and suddenly you rogues are rogue in chat.
[Guild] Titu Lilin: flowers for me??
[Guild] Titu Lilin: ok, ig?
[Guild] Titu Lilin: going to foxopolis
[Guild] Kitu Nilan: Where’s Teenam? I have flowers for T too.
[Guild] Feni Kunas: T has Nightmare run as soon as Doamannu has cleared Legendary too.
[Guild] Kitu Nilan: Come to Merteis @Feni Kunas. I’ll give you a flower. And you can give some to T for me.
[Guild] Jules Jewels: You’re giving your flowers to foxes only?
[Guild] Kitu Nilan: Yeah. Not you though. You’re in your half-elf form.
[Guild] Jules Jewels: FINE. I’ll turn off the illusion and look like a full fox.
Kitu somehow managed to give five flowers to five foxes and returned to Nicolaos, who gave him money and a gnome hat as well as a hundred bowls of porridge that could be exchanged for more items.
And that was the quest done.