Alex the Runaway Kid Quest Guide: Chief Stan, the Gold Watch and the Earring Reward

Alex the Runaway Kid is a three-step chain from Alex on a Kerning City rooftop, open at level 18. Alex ran away from his father, Chief Stan of Henesys, and wants to come home. Total: 3,159 EXP, 1,579 mesos, Meat ×5, Blue Potion ×15, and one 5-slot earring (Weighted Earrings or Yellow Square, 50% each).

Step-by-step

Walkthrough notes

• Step 1: Alex asks you to talk his father round and bring back the Old Gold Watch his late mother left him, as proof he's forgiven.
• Step 2: Chief Stan won't talk until you bring 15 Green Mushroom Caps and 15 Blue Mushroom Caps (and 25 kills of each).
• Step 3: Chief Stan relents and gives you the Old Gold Watch. Take it back to Alex in Kerning City; the step completes with him.
• Keep Weighted Earrings if you get them: Dr. Betty's Research on Plants asks for a pair in its last step.
• Finishing Mother's Gold Watch is also one of the requirements for What the City Taught Me at level 27.

Where to find the monsters

Densest maps first (spawn counts from the game data):

• Green Mushroom (Lv. 14, 233 HP): Tree Dungeon, Forest Up North IV (31, only Slimes besides), The Forest of Wisdom (30, plus Slimes), West Rocky Mountain III (32, mixed with stumps up to Lv. 23). Closer to Henesys: Henesys Hunting Ground III (13).
• Blue Mushroom (Lv. 19, 342 HP): The Blue Mushroom Forest (16, the rest is snails and slimes), The Road to the Dungeon (11), The Breathing Rock (12, but shared with Lv. 37 Lupins and Lv. 56 Stone Golems, too dangerous at 18).
• Both in one map: L Forest III (10 Green + 4 Blue, low-level filler otherwise) or Henesys Dungeon Entrance (9 Green + 5 Blue, but it also has Lupins and Stone Golems far above your level).

Cap drop rates aren't in the game data, so the kill count you'll need for 15 caps is unknown. You need 25 kills of each anyway.

Total rewards

Weighted Earrings: Lv. 20, 22 M.DEF, +1 avoid, 5 slots. Yellow Square: Lv. 20, 22 M.DEF, +1% crit damage, 5 slots. Neither is class- or gender-locked.

Is it worth it?

Yes. At level 18 you get a 5-slot earring you can wear at 20, which is early for an earring. The two possible rolls are almost the same: Weighted Earrings add +1 avoid and are the pair Dr. Betty's chain asks for, Yellow Square adds +1% crit damage instead. 3,159 EXP is about 23% of a level at 18 (13,716 to level), plus 1,579 mesos across three steps, plus 5 Meat and 15 Blue Potions. Mushroom caps are easy drops around Henesys.