Sword Art Online : Integral Factor rewrite

Forest Remedies

[Somewhere in Tolbana]

The Floor 1 boss fight was quickly approaching but you still felt underprepared, so you took to wandering around the Town of Beginnings looking for a quest or something which could make you stronger

Village lady: "Good evening to you, traveler. You must be tired. I wish I could offer you something. But we don't have much. A glass of water is about the best I can do."

You hoped there would be more options for food and beverages on the later floors as bread and water was incredibly dull. Kirito then appeared from nowhere.

Kirito: "Oh, hey, Joshua. I thought I'd drop in randomly somewhere so I could put all my items in order, but it looks like I ended up in a pretty well-known place."
Joshua: "Hello Kirito, wasn't expecting to see you before the boss fight."
Kirito: "If you're here, then... You must be picking up the Elixir of the Forest quest, huh?"

Maybe this quest was the thing you were looking for

Joshua: "What Elixir of the Forest quest?"
Kirito: "You've never heard of it? Well, the quest is a bit of a pain. Basically you just give that NPC an item called Little Nepenthes Ovule and you're done, but... the only way to get Little Nepenthes Ovule is a drop form a Little Nepenthes, but it's not a monster you'll just happen upon."

That was true, any Little Nepenthes you found were usually tucked away far into the field and were in small groups which then a pain to grind

Kirito: "So what you have to do is just keep fighting Nepents until a Little Nepenthes shows up. Not something you want to do solo. Still, the quest gives a pretty good weapon as a reward, so it wouldn't hurt to do it. I could even help you out if you want."

A new weapon? Perfect, just the thing you were looking for

Joshua: "Would you mind? That'd be really helpful"
Kirito: "Of course not. Right then, first things first you need to get the quest. Just ask the NPC if they need anything, that should trigger the quest."

You then turned to the NPC you were interacting with before Kirito appeared.

Joshua: "So... do you need anything?"
Village Lady: "Well, my traveler friend, actually my daughter..."

She then went on an elaborate spiel about the lord behind this quest

Kirito: "There you go. There are Nepents out in Horunka Woods. You ought to get one if you take out twenty or so. Let's head out already, Joshua."

You then set off towards Horunka Woods, a familiar location after running all of Diavels errands. You then engaged in battle with the Little Nepenthes, slashing away its tendrils it tried to grab you with before unleashing a sword skill to take them down. You then looked over at Kirito and watched in awe as he effortlessly took down multiple Little Nepenthes. He really was something else...

You continued to take down Little Nepenthes and it wasn't long before

[Item acquired: Little Nepthens Ovule]

Joshua: "Nice, finally got it"
Kirito: "Nice! It took me much longer to finish this quest. Ah right, sorry. You need to get that Little Nepenthes Ovule to the NPC"

You then left Horunka Woods and returned to the place where the NPC was. You went up to the NPC and handed over the Little Nepenthes Ovule

Village Lady: "Thank you..."

[Equipment acquired: Marked Anneal Blade]

Looking at the stats, it was definitely an improvement from your previous sword. You could now also give the equipment enhancement materials you were going to use to Koharu.

Kirito: "Truth is... there's actually a character that's supposed to be that NPC's daughter in a back room here. She wasn't there in the beta, though. I've got a sister myself, so I kind of understand... oh, uh..."

Kirito face was downcast, clearly upset thinking about something back in the real world

Kirito: "... No, never mind. Forget it. That was fun, Joshua. You got yourself a new weapon, I got Exp, can't complain, right?"
Joshua: "Thanks a ton, Kirito. You were a great help."
Kirito: "All right, I'm gonna head off. I guess I'll see you at the boss fight tomorrow"
Joshua: "Yeah, see you tomorrow"

You waved each other goodbye and he left.

Joshua: "Well, I guess I better go meet up with Koharu"

You were prepared as possible for the boss fight with your Cloak of Loyalty and Marked Anneal Blade. But, all you could do is wait to see if it was enough.