Welcome!

With respect to your first question, here's a non-exhaustive list of things you could potentially be doing. Some are more interesting than others.

1. Ranking.
2. Exploring an area you're not familiar with.
3. Trying to get gear that's better than what you're already wearing.
4. Practicing to raise your skill percentages.
5. Hunting people so you can kill them. (This also helps with #3).
6. Trying to get into a cabal, if you're not already in one.
7. Gathering gold, which is helpful for healing at healers.

In terms of role-play, just familiarize yourself with the CF cabal landscape, then act like you're the character you're playing. If you don't have a backstory, first thing would be to create one via the "role" command. Hard to play a "role" if you don't have one.

Then just play it out. For instance, when you asked that guy for tips and he reacted harshly because you're a magic user, behave as if your character would behave upon first discovering there are people hell-bent on destroying magic. Would he be angry? Surprised? Fearful? Incredulous? Etc.