《Legendary Twilight Farmer》 Chapter 00: Prologue: How Did I Ever Get Into This Mess?! Legendary Twilight Farmer Chapter 00: Prologue: How Did I Ever Get Into This Mess?! Picture this scene. A scene where someone with noble and heroic deeds was congratulated upon and treated with respect. Where he would return home full of warmth with an embrace from his loved one and everyone else revered him. No matter the level of fame and wealth, he would always get by and never to be discouraged by the hardship that fell upon his laps. Where he could laugh and join in the neighbours and strangers abound, sharing his tales of valour from the battlefield. If anyone were to come up to me and said that those things existed to my face, I would punch him senseless, beat him like a dog, and end his misery with a strike to his gonads. Life was too cruel for me. Even saying it cruel was an understatement of what had happened to me. From my young age, I had given everything; my family, my life and my soul for the country and its people. I had been in the Special Force since the age of 19, where guys my age went to college, had a girlfriend or two and partied all day long. I slogged in the mud, yelled in my face by the drill sergeant, and my sleeping companion was my SOFR-52 rifle. In between being fired upon, blown away or endured mind-breaking torture. Yet, at 29 years of age, where do I end up? Nowhere. Yes, that was right. Nowhere. I struggled to see what would life hold for me now. ¡°Oi! Don¡¯t forget to pay your fucking rent, cripple!¡± The landlady¡¯s voice suddenly interrupted me. I was looking through my old belongings and decided to throw it away at the garbage bin nearby the house I was renting. Well, it was one of the room that I rented anyway. ¡°I¡¯ll pay you when I have the money!¡± I shouted back at her, turning my wheelchair towards the house. ¡°You said that 4 fucking months ago!¡± The landlady, Mrs Green was always foul-mouthed. Anytime she opened that hole of hers, that four-letter word would always appear. ¡°If it¡¯s not because you¡¯re a fucking cripple, I would have thrown you fucking out of the fucking house a long time ago!¡± She cursed right through her porch. Those who looked around was either chuckling at the exchange between us or were whispering insults behind my back. These women who gathered there were the neighbourhood onion-bitches. They were the type that went around from one house to another just to hear and spread gossip. And I was sure that my name would always be on their lips. ¡°Bryan! Don¡¯t tell that I did not fucking warned you. You better pay this month, or else I¡¯ll throw you and your items out!¡± ¡°Heh. Don¡¯t need you throw it for me. I¡¯ll gladly do it myself, bitch!¡± She slammed the door hard as one of her potted plants fell onto one of her friends on the porch. I could not help but to snicker, seeing how much those bitches gathered around and annoyed me. Oh, and I was annoyed over everything. The honking of the car, dogs chasing each other, the children running around and¡­ Suddenly, the front door was opened yet again. ¡°Oi, fucking cripple. Someone has been looking for you!¡± ¡°Tell him I¡¯m not here!¡± ¡°And what do you take me for? Your fucking mom? Tell him yourself!¡± Ughh¡­ It was those guys again. I better get moving or else would end up in the wrong end of the garbage dump if I was not careful. Loan sharks were not to be messed around, especially when it was about returning due monies owed. And I owed them a lot. I quickly returned to the house, took a quick bath and got myself dressed even quicker. I could not even bother to clean up my room after all the mess I¡¯d done looking for my old belongings to be thrown away. I needed to make a fast getaway before I was caught by those people. 15 minutes later, I ended up at a nearby convenience store. I worked here as a part-time store-boy for the night shift. This was my newest job after I had been fired from my previous job as store-boy for a liquor store. They accused me of stealing the liquor and drinking on the job which I vehemently denied. I drank a lot of booze, I knew that, but never once I stole from them. Whatever booze I drank, I paid for it. But of course, being in a prejudiced community like this, especially towards a no good cripple like me, was not going to win me my case. Or anyone to my defense, either. ¡°So, you work here now?¡± From the door of the convenience store, came the most dreaded person I¡¯d ever wanted to meet. I tried to avoid him like a plague. ¡°She told me that you work here now.¡± That bitch of a landlady. She should just keep her mouth shut. ¡°Hey, Bryan. You know why I¡¯m here, right?¡± The tall and clean-shaven man, who was dressed in a full suit, with a matching hat on top of a very well combed hair, was the loan shark. He was also the local Mafia Big-Brother of this place. ¡°I don¡¯t have the money if that is what you want.¡± ¡°Tch. Tch. It ain¡¯t nice of you to go back on your words you know.¡± ¡°What else can I do if I don¡¯t have the money?¡± I was disgusted and I was not hiding it from him. ¡°You know, for a cripple, you sure have guts.¡± Well, that was the only thing I had left. Guts. But guts alone could¡¯t feed me. My meagre saving was depleted before I knew it and for months, I had to rely on borrowed money from these loan sharks. ¡°You owed us 5 million dollars and you are not going to pay it, I presumed.¡± ¡°What?! I just took from you guys about 100 grand for my medical fees. Nothing more!¡± I was so surprised that it took me a few moments before I brought myself and faced him directly. ¡°So you say. 50% interest rate on the principal amount over 5 years. And of course the fees of finding you and late payment fees all are included too, you know.¡± ¡°You bastard! It¡¯s not even 5 years!¡± ¡°And you had not paid us a cent since you took the money from us.¡± If I was abled, I could KO-ed this guy in an instant. But as someone who relied on his wheelchair most of the time, I could hardly move fast enough to even do anything. Not much more than just waving a punch from this pathetic position anyway. ¡°You know, the Boss is quite annoyed with you. Not only you did not pay us back, but you did not give us respect. Respect, man. The Boss really hates when people don¡¯t give him the respect, you know.¡±This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. ¡°So, what now? What does he want? I have no money and nothing you do to me can make me return your money. I¡¯m dead broke as it is, right now.¡± ¡°That¡¯s the Boss¡¯s to decide. All you need is to come with me, properly. Unless of course, you want the store to end up like the previous one you worked. It¡¯s¡­ chaotic. And personally, I don¡¯t like it when I have to dirty my hands.¡± Threatening to destroy the place where I worked with. Perhaps that was the reason why I was fired. The loan sharks threatened the owner and he had to get rid of me before anything happened to their store. Not that it would stop these fools from destroying anything. ¡°So, if I go with you, you¡¯ll not harm the owners and destroy this shop?¡± ¡°You got my words for it. So, coming with us, Bryan?¡± ¡°Do I look like I have a choice?¡± ***** ¡°So, the fools return all but empty-handed.¡± The Boss of the Mafia group looked at me as he smoked his cigars. All around him were bodyguards, with no less than 20 of them surrounding us. ¡°20 people, all for me? I¡¯m honoured, Al Caputa.¡± ¡°Oh, sharp eyes. And a sharper tongue too.¡± He gave out a grin that would send anyone a certain deathly reminder how cruel and evil this man could be. ¡°I heard you had made yourself a little elusive for my boys, Bryan.¡± ¡°Had to do whatever it needed to survive.¡± ¡°Good. You needed that, you know. For what¡¯s coming next to you.¡± He puffed out a smoke directly to my face. Trying to unnerve me, but this was nothing more than sham threat at best. ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°Hahaha. Ohh Bryan¡­¡± He gave out an eerie laugh that filled this dark and small room. Everyone else followed suit. ¡°My boy, Bryan. You know why we can¡¯t kill you?¡± I stared at him without answering. ¡° ¡®Cause you are this country¡¯s hero. Can¡¯t have the army or government looking into our business if we did one of you boys, right?¡± He then signalled his men to my side. ¡°Well, Bryan. Nice meeting you. I¡¯m sure you will find my boys, a little more pleasant¡­¡± Two of his men grabbed me from the back and pulled me up from my wheelchair. Now, if I were to fight them here, I would not only waste my time and energy, but I would end up much worse than what would be coming next for me. Oh, and I knew really well what was coming for me. ¡°Bryan, I¡¯ll make you a bet. If you survive, consider our loan to you has been restructured.¡± ¡°So, I just survive then?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I like about you, Bryan. You don¡¯t fear death. Yeah, you just need to survive.¡± ¡°And if I did, what about my loan.¡± I smirked. ¡°Oh, your loan still need to be paid. Money ain¡¯t grow from trees, but to applaud your tenacity, we will give you more time to pay.¡± ¡°No interest?¡± Trying to win a favour against all the odds. That got him to laugh at best. ¡°Hahaha. Now, don¡¯t waste my time, Bryan. You know too well that I don¡¯t do business that way. You pay us what you owed to us until now. The only thing is, you have more time to find it, that¡¯s all.¡± ¡°So, nothing change then?¡± ¡°Think of it as you will. Now, please excuse me. I got a dinner date with my wife and daughter, tonight.¡± As soon as Don Caputa left the room, the whole 20 of those bodyguards gathered around me. This was going to be a very long night for me. I bit my lips as I braced for the first punch that came my way. ***** ¡°Oi, cripple. If you want to fucking die, don¡¯t die at my place!¡± That was the first word I heard after I woke up. As I strained to open my eyes, I found myself in the familiar surroundings of my own room. I remembered that I was beaten badly by Don Caputa¡¯s men. I was still conscious, albeit momentarily when I picked up my phone and call Mrs Green. But of course, being Mrs Green, she was unmoved and unsympathetic of my suffering. So, for me to see her the first thing I woke up was quite a surprise. ¡°M-Mrs Green?¡± I touched my forehead and sure enough, there were bandages on it. In fact, my whole body was in bandages. ¡°You are lucky that I used to work as a nurse. Fucking kid getting all beaten up like that!¡± ¡°I-I¡¯m sorry¡­¡± ¡°Sorry? Sorry, my arse. Now you owe me four fucking months of rent and bandages fee!¡± I slumped down my shoulder. People keep asking money from me, left and right. If I was to just die, would it not be better, though? ¡°But honestly, you are one fucking tough cripple. Like a fucking cockroach that you are. If you can endure those injuries, I¡¯m fucking sure you would do well, if you get your head straight.¡± Mrs Green said to me as she left my room and slammed the door. She was a foul-mouthed, un-classy, a brute and annoying bitch to be with, but at least she saved my life when I least expected it. I did not know why I called her that time, but I was kind of glad that I did. I checked upon my injury and found out that I had 6 broken ribs, my left arm was broken, bruises all over the places and needed 16 stitches on my head. Well, not too bad for an injury. My legs were spared though seeing that it might be useless for those men to hit me there. I was expecting worse, but then again, I was like what Mrs Green said to me, a cockroach. Cockroach survived the earth for more than 100 million, you goddammit. I would get over my injuries fast, though. My body had been primed to receive abuse upon abuse given to me. Injuries, like I had now, was just a child¡¯s play. Painful yeah, but not fatal. Part of being in the Special Force, I had been trained to surpass certain human pain threshold. The reason why I fell unconscious was my head was knock over a few times. The concussion was what made me lost myself back then. Well, I would take 3-4 weeks of rest to heal myself properly. But, I would definitely lose my job at the convenience store. Not that I was bothered with the meagre pay, but getting fired too often was not to my liking. I struggled to get to bed when I suddenly realized something. My wheelchair! Goddammit. I might have lost it back then. Now, how I would move around? Feeling frustrated, I threw the nearest item I could get hold on towards the door. I grabbed a DVD case and as I nearly threw it, the animation on the cover suddenly made me held myself for a good while. ¡°Ohh¡­ So, that¡¯s where you are.¡± The DVD case was empty, except for a serial number that I had used for an online game. It was called Last Illusion XX Online, or LIXXO for short. When I became a paraplegic the first time, 4 years ago in an accident, I spend most of my time playing games. I was diagnosed with PTSD and playing games were the only way I could overcome my trauma, somehow. And play I did. However, being a poor sod that I was, I could only get myself one game. And that game was Last Illusion XX Online. It sure brought me back some memories. Feeling a little better now, I decided to start my PC. I was not always the brightest guy in tech, so I asked one of the neighbourhood kid here to build me one from scratch. Nothing fancy but it could run me a few games. Though it could barely run even a web browser now, LIXXO was a game that would run smoothly on the PC. LIXXO at the time of release, 15 years ago was one of its kind MMORPG. Though I had managed to play it just 4 years ago, nonetheless I was sure I had clocked monstrous hours playing. My play style was simple. Train hard, play hard. But in its simplicity, I really enjoyed it. I was a loner. I did not belong to any group, clan or guild. Nor I participate in anything that involved more than 2 people. Siege war? Heh. If you want a real war, I would show you the real war. Siege wars were for pussies and weaklings gathering together trying to show off their skills for orgasmic online fulfilment. Clan or guild war? Not interested. PvP was for losers. Events? Sure, from time to time, but I was always alone. I had my reason to be, anyway. My sole objective was to explore and hunt. Travel everywhere that I could travel and hunt anything that was created. That was my bread and butter. My soul nourishment. And I would do anything it takes. 300 hours hunting for monsters without sleep? Check. I¡¯d done much worse than this. Fighting over-levelled monster that could kill me in one hit? Check. Raise my level in record time? Check. Solo-ing a dungeon or instances that needed at minimum 4 people or more? Easy and check. LIXXO was my life. Unfortunately, until 6 months ago, the company that ran and maintained LIXXO had merged with another. Though LIXXO had some players left, it was far cry from 5 million users it once had. And what was more, the rage now was the Virtual Reality System. VRMMORPG they called it. And the pinnacle of it was the game called Noble Path Online. A game that was now in its final beta-test. Even with a beta-test, the number of registered user exceeded 20 million! Boasting state of the art Artificial Intelligence or AI system where all the NPCs could converse and act like a living and breathing person, a world that was so vast, with thousands of skills and best of all, it had no class. Who you wanted to be was up to you. Doesn¡¯t like to be a fighter? Be a healer, then. Hate striking from the back? Be a melee. Hate using physical? Well, take your stand and shoot your fireballs. But alas, a massive game such as this spoke of one thing; money. The only thing that I didn¡¯t have was money. At the going rate, it would cost me 200 dollars for a monthly subscription. At least 400 dollars for a minimum required VR gear and a PC system that support the game. All in all, the game was for people who had money. *Beep* Beep* Ahh, the nostalgic sound of the loading screen. I entered my character screen and all that equipment I had made me teary eyed a little. It was rarest of the rare; Dragonborn Sword obtained by killing the Red Dragon, the ultimate monster and with a drop rate of less than 0.00001%. Next, was the Full Heaven¡­¡±
¡°Your connection to the server has been lost¡±
Chapter 01: The Legendary Demon King Chapter 01: The Legendary Demon King What the fuck? What had just happened? Just when I nearly got into the good part, something like this was to occur. I yelled calling for Mrs Green since it was her wifi that I used. She came rushing to see what happened to me. ¡°Mrs Green?! What happened to the line?¡± The moment I¡¯d asked about my line, she was pissed off. Trying her best to annoy me further, she answered me just nonchalantly like it was no big deal. ¡°Got cut off, I think. I did not pay anything for the last 3 months.¡± ¡°What the fuck?! Why did you not tell me anything?¡± ¡°Why should I fucking do that? It¡¯s my line, and I don¡¯t use it often. Besides, my phone has its mobile network, so I don¡¯t need an extra one.¡± ¡°My life depended on it, alright!¡± ¡°If that¡¯s how it was, then pay if up a little. Not only your rent¡­¡± I could not bother to listen to her anymore. My mind was somewhere else. I was on the verge of another trauma attack and I might kill this bitch for real. Fearing for the worse, I tried to stand up but I could do nothing more than just lifting my lifeless limb that hung from my waist down. It was useless. Everything was useless. ¡°You want to go out like that? Well, I had one wheelchair. My late husband¡¯s if you don¡¯t mind.¡± Trying to get rid of me now? Whatever. It could be your dog¡¯s for all I care. I wanted to move around. Staying stuck with no internet connection while in this condition would be going to do my head soon. Needed some fresh air before I went into one of those traumatic attacks again. Never had it since that one time, 3 years ago but never say never. One of these days, if I was not careful, some blood would be spilt. After a while, Mrs Green gave me the wheelchair. The size was just about right, though it was old. I had to be careful not to spoil the wheel or else I was going to have more trouble than I was already at. Saying a cold-fish thanks to her, I moved towards the nearest cybercaf¨¦ that I could find. Travelling with a wheelchair, with a whole body being bandaged, a broken left arm, stitches and more bandages on my head did make for a good scene alright. People looked at me as if I had lost it. Babies cried and children ran away. Girls screamed at the sight of me, thinking I was a pervert on a wheelchair. Dogs tried to chase me but instead ran away, tails between its leg once my mouth started foaming. My eyes were red and I was exhausted. Honestly, I did not even eat anything yet since God knows how long. I was starving but I needed to go to the nearest cybercaf¨¦. I borrowed some money from Mrs Green after I had cajoled her for good 15minutes promising her to do the garden. For 5 meagre bucks! But money was still money. ***** I arrived at the nearest cybercaf¨¦ called AppleFruit after 1 hour of travelling. I was exhausted but nonetheless happy. Why did I go to this extend go a game that I no longer play? Well, every time I was in the verge of traumatic attack like just now, gaming was the only way that could help me. It diverted my attention and somehow soothe me. I owed my life to LIXXO in one way or another. Entering the place, I paid for 2 hours use that would normally cost others 4 dollars. Since I was on a wheelchair, I got a special rate. The other dollar, I got myself some drinks to be served to me later. And yet again, I booted up my game. Seeing the familiar interfaces made me smile. Finally, I would go into my account and enjoy farming some items. I was poor in the real world, but in LIXXO, I was in a god-tier level of rich. Heh, if reality was as easy as this ¨C Kill the monsters, get the money. Sell the loots, get more money. Do quests, again more money. Many ways to earn money. But in the real world, earning money was not that straightforward for me. ¡°Hello, sir. This is the drink that you ordered.¡± Suddenly, one of the boys who worked here came to me. I knew him quite close as I often frequent this place to play LIXXO. ¡°Thanks, Al. Good to see that you are still working here.¡± I took the straw into my mouth with my left hand as I controlled the mouse on my right. ¡°Well, good to have you back. By the way, what games are you playing?¡± Al asked. ¡°Oh, this? It¡¯s LIXXO. Been playing at your place all the while. Don¡¯t you remember?¡± I answered him nonchalantly.Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. ¡°I do remember seeing you play, but never knew about your character. But ain¡¯t LIXXO going to close down soon? Why still play it?¡± ¡°Too much free time. Besides, I was getting into those attacks again. Might as well calm myself down before things get any worse.¡± But I was talking to deaf ears. Al was not focusing on what I was talking, but instead to the character that I was playing right now. ¡°Ohh wow¡­ What the fuck did you just do?!¡± I could see that he was squirming with delight. Being curious by his sudden change of attitude, I told him hoping to see more of that reactions. ¡°Oh, this¡­ just a normal attack and such? Why?¡± ¡°Hey, that¡¯s no slime you hit. That¡¯s a fucking Behemoth! Max level, mind you.¡± He was pointing at the screen. ¡°Yeah, so?¡± I answered nonchalantly. I think it was easy enough for me, anyway. No big deal and this Behemoth wasn¡¯t a Boss level monster. ¡°No one fights Behemoth alone. Not even a party of 8 can win this. And you did this while talking to me.¡± Al used to play this game with me when he got some free time. I knew his playing style though we never partied. Just happened to be in the same area, helping each other to kill some mobs. ¡°It¡¯s not unusual for me. At least I know I¡¯m good at something despite looking like this.¡± ¡°You can say that again. If I did not see you play, I never thought of how good you are. Ever think of selling your account away?¡± Suddenly, my hand froze. ¡°What do you mean, selling my account?¡± I turned my head and asked Al. ¡°Well, sell your account. The game¡¯s dying, right? Why not sell it away before it got wiped out?¡± ¡°Y-You can do that? I heard it¡¯s illegal, isn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°Illegal yeah, but there¡¯s a load of people selling and buying accounts. We call it E-trade here.¡± Al just gave out a wide grin. Seemed like he was thinking of something. And I did think I might like where he was going. ¡°Ah¡­ I-I see. How much do I get if I sell my account, Al?¡± ¡°Well, I¡¯m not the expert, but the owner is. I¡¯ll call on him to help you.¡± ***** ¡°So, you are one of the legendary Demon King of LIXXO?¡± That was the owner¡¯s first word he saw my character. ¡°Huh? What Demon King?¡± That was first for me to hear someone called me that. ¡°You don¡¯t know, even if you are one yourself?¡± I shook my head. ¡°Nope, no idea. I just play as how I liked to play, that¡¯s all. Never knew about this weird mumbo-jumbo about Demon King.¡± Al¡¯s brother, Ed, was the owner of AppleFruit Inc., a small-town cybercaf¨¦ that still operated even after 10 years. He was kind enough to help me explained what Al said to me earlier back then. The three of us, sitting in his room full of computer screens and VR gears. This room was like those found in ultra-geek PC nerds¡¯ room. Creepy but at the same time it was amazing. Bunch of games were played at the same time and I could see from the screen how much effort had been laid to each game. ¡°I see¡­ if you don¡¯t know, then perhaps I shall explain to you what you actually missing.¡± I just nodded and let him continue. ¡°Demon King is the title we players give to 5 players who reached the maximum level of 300, maximum stats, had the best equips LIXXO had to offer and completes certain benchmark. If you think it¡¯s easy to achieve, think again. In 15 years¡¯ history of LIXXO, only 8 people reached level 300. To see one was a rarity among the rare. 5 million registered users, only 8 people level 300.¡± ¡°Alright, I get that it¡¯s tough, but you said 8 people but just 5 Demon King.¡± The numbers the add up and I wanted more clarification from him. ¡°To achieve the title Demon King, your fame and your achievements must be the best among the best. I don¡¯t know what you did, but your character and avatar¡¯s name has been recorded in the forum as one of the Legendary Demon King. And what¡¯s more¡­¡± ¡°There¡¯s more?¡± I was surprised a little. ¡°You have been voted as the most powerful Demon King by at least 2,000,000 voters by the last count. That by itself was the most impressive thing you did.¡± That made me lost myself a bit. In the game, I was never a friend of anyone nor involved in many parties nor partake in events. To hear I was the highest voted player around, was kind of surprising. ¡°B-But I did nothing. I just play the game as how I see fit.¡± Ed gave out a chuckle. Did I say something that tickled his funny bone? ¡°That doesn¡¯t mean no one ever notice you, Bryan. You should know that every action you take, there are bound to be someone watching?¡± ¡°Yeah. I think so too.¡± Maybe, yeah. But I didn¡¯t know. There was no active streaming technology that could help people to record in-game. ¡°So, are you selling your account?¡± Ed edged closer from his seat. ¡°Does it pay well?¡± That was what I am concerned about. If I wanted to sell, better make it worthwhile. Even a little money would go a long way for me. ¡°That I don¡¯t know, we need to leave for the community to decide. The game is going to be obsolete soon, so I don¡¯t know how much it would worth.¡± ¡°I see. Well, you are the pro, right? Al said so anyway.¡± ¡°So, you agree to sell?¡± Ed wanted my final confirmation which I replied with a nod. ¡°What¡¯s in it for you?¡± ¡°Hah. Easy. I¡¯ll take 15% of the sales as my commission, alright. Good enough?¡± I got it. He wanted commission money. Since I didn¡¯t have to pay him any money for his service upfront, I think it was worth a shot. ¡°Well¡­ I think it¡¯s good enough. At least I know that if my account can make me money, I¡¯m sure it would be better than getting wiped out and not earning anything. A dollar in hand is better than 1 million in gold coins in the game, right.¡± ¡°I see that you are a reasonable man. Alright, I¡¯ll help you sell your account. I¡¯ll put everything under your name, so you will be paid fully. And I trust you to pay me my commission once it¡¯s done, right?¡± ¡°You have my word on that. As a soldier.¡± Ed''s face showed that he was surprised with what I¡¯d said but he then cracked a smile. ¡°Deal.¡± Finally getting the deal done, we shook our hands. Honestly, I don¡¯t know how much my account would be sold for, but at least I would earn something. Would it be 10 dollars? 50 dollars? I would be lucky if I can get a 100 dollar. Ah well, I would leave to these two to handle the matter. As I left the place, I still had my 5 dollars intact with me. Whatever I used earlier, was free of charge. And because of that, I didn¡¯t have to help Mrs Green. I smiled as I imagined her face hearing that I would not be going to do her chores for her and returned her money instead. Chapter 02: The Price of Standing Amongst the Top Chapter 02: The Price of Standing Amongst the Top ¡°I can¡¯t believe what happened. Do you, Al?¡± ¡°No, Ed. I can¡¯t believe it either. To see the real Demon King of LIXXO right in front of our doorstep.¡± The two shifted the gaze towards each other and outwards to the main door of their shop where Bryan Walker had just walked out earlier. ¡°I better get the sales on. I¡¯ll contact everyone on the list as this is something not to be missed by anyone in the world. I don¡¯t know what will happen, but this would be awesome and game-changing by itself.¡± ¡°So, how much would you set the auction bid?¡± Al was excited to get going. ¡°Start at a hundred thousand dollars, with 24 hours expiry date. And post it all in the forums. I will vouch for its authenticity.¡± ¡°Right away. Anything else?¡± ¡°Yeah, I¡¯ll be busy for the whole night. So, unless it¡¯s urgent, I shall not be disturbed.¡± Edward Gause of AppleFruit Inc. was one of the world most famous E-trader. The reason why his small company still exist was because of his other business venture, in the shades of selling and buying anything related to games. He was the creator of the site called E-World, top 3 sites for getting anything related to games. Operating as a trading site and also a forum, EWorld has no less than 10 million registered users, making it one of the most visited sites daily. Having trouble getting certain items? There was always someone willing to find it for you. Needed help for a quest? Someone would be willing to offer their service at a right price. Needed to find someone? Just put it up and someone will respond. What about items? Or equipment? Getting bullied online and wanted revenge? Everything that you needed in a game, E-World had it. And if you needed someone to player-kill or PK others, there¡¯s a thread for that too. Account selling, though considered illegal, was practically normal. A player, once bored of a game, could opt to sell their account to other players either directly or use a middle person, someone like Edward Gause. However, Bryan¡¯s account was not considered normal by any means. The account was way beyond abnormal. And that would surely bring a lot of attention to it. The company that ran the game, RoundNox, was particularly stringent and would ban anyone who attempted to sell their account. However, LIXXO was on its last leg. RoundNox had merged with a few more companies and formed a mega-company that now ran the Noble Path Online. This was a great opportunity no matter how one looked at it. Edward Gause, as an avid gamer himself, knew the significance of this sale. As a businessman, this was an opportunity that came once in a lifetime. Not something that he would miss for the world. The moment Bryan¡¯s account was posted online, immediately the community started to make noise. ¡°Wow¡­ look at that. Is that even legit?¡± ¡°Shiz my eyes. What is that character? This must be fake!¡± ¡°This is no fake. The forum mods and staffs had confirmed it¡¯s original!¡±The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. Many comments popped-up one after another. At 100,000 dollars, the number was too large to be even fake. However, most people could only see and comment but no one had bided yet. It had not reached the tipping point as for how Ed wanted. 2 hours later, the comment sections have been flooded. More than 30,000 comments had been posted, each with their own opinions of the auction. 10 bids had been placed and the bid amount reached 250,000 dollars. The bid was placed by the rich players who once played this game. Even though they knew that the game would cease to exist and the character wiped out, it did not deter them to pour out such obscene of money. Perhaps, to these rich people, 250,000 dollars were considered small. Netizens had started to stir. 6 hours in, the news leaked outside of EWorld. Mainstream social media had taken notice of it and famous bloggers, social media elites with hundred thousands of followers had linked the news to their stories, site or page. Even some online news media was covering it into their latest news. 400,000 dollars for an account?! That must surely set the highest and the most expensive account ever sold. This was newsworthy indeed. And finally, 16 hours in, it was in the mainstream news. Bryan did not have any access to the internet nor watched any news, so he did not know what happened. From bidding wars between players, it was now on the territory of companies. That single post was viewed more than 30 million times in the first 8 hours. In the next 8, the numbers jumped to 200 million views boosted by the virality of the news. And as Edward guessed it, the time has come to the tipping point. The bid now became at 2 million dollars. The playground of the rich and powerful people and companies where money was not an issue. For them, it was to own this Legendary Demon King account at all cost. To stand at the pinnacle of an online game, no matter how short it was, was secondary. What was most important was the eyeballs. The whole netizens world; gamer or not, had been shocked upon. To those who play games, it told them if they play it right, they might earn some money. To those who don¡¯t play or thought that playing games were beneath them and just a time waster, 2 million dollars for an account might turn their heads. 500 million views in a single night and the bid had to be extended to 48 hours. This was a PR success to anyone who could be associated with it. At 36 hours, the numbers of view had reached 1 billion times and the bid amount was at 4 million. This was where Ed would finally make his move. With one phone call, he reached one of the staff of a company. ¡°Excuse me, do you have your Director Joshua with you. I¡¯m Edward, from EWorld.¡± ¡°He¡¯s in his room. Shall I transfer your call to him?¡± A secretary of a public listed company answered his call promptly. After waiting for a while, Ed managed to get hold of him. The first thing he asked was, ¡°Do you want to buy the Legendary Demon King¡¯s account, Josh?¡± Upon hearing the words, the Director was astounded. He was an avid player in LIXXO but he was too busy with his work. He stopped altogether from playing 10 years ago, but his love for the game never died. Now in his late 40s, he finally had his chance to own the greatest player¡¯s account in that game. Ed would never call and pranked him like this. Director Josh was getting excited. The little child in him was trembling nonstop urging him to get it now. ¡°H-How much is it?¡± ¡°Have a look at my site. I¡¯m sure you will find it favourable to you, Josh.¡± Immediately, he hung up and called one of his secretaries from a private line. ¡°Check the price for the Legendary Demon King¡¯s account at EWorld. I want it no matter what.¡± ¡°As you wish, sir.¡± Came the swift reply. Edward had played his hand very well. Waiting for the right time to strike, he made sure that the bid reached a certain amount before he finally made his call to Director Joshua. During those time, he was busy reaching throughout his whole contact to make the news viral. LIXXO had a very strong fan base throughout the world. Not only Bryan¡¯s account made EWorld more famous, but anyone would have bought it would actually have made themselves part of the viral news. The one that bought the most powerful character in LIXXO, the most expensive where everyone, gamer or not had watched the news, would have their name be elevated into the stratosphere. In 48 hours, at the bid ended, the post had been viewed 2 billion times with more than 3 million comments. EWorld crashed but the winning bid was already made before that. After the payment has been completed and transferred into Bryan¡¯s account, the Legendary Demon King¡¯s would have a new owner. Whoever was it, had reached the pinnacle of the viral news and now had the whole world¡¯s eye on him. Chapter 03: First Dive Chapter 03: First Dive ¡°Oi cripple, wake up!¡± ¡°Oi, bitch. Stop calling me cripple for God¡¯s sake. I¡¯m tired of it.¡± Mrs Green stood in front of the doorway, after having barged the door opened. She then cracked a wicked smile as she put her hands on her hips. ¡°Suddenly got a soft heart? Or a thin face?¡± ¡°It¡¯s socially unacceptable if you call me that.¡± I answered at her while still lying on the bed. I was supposed to get up earlier, but I¡¯m too lazy to move around with that decrepit old wheelchair. I swore I got a splinter somewhere on my arse riding that thing. ¡°Oh. And it¡¯s socially acceptable for you to mope around for 8 years and do nothing?¡± Mrs Green was pissed off, as usual. She hated to wake me up for I¡¯m not known to be too cooperative in the early morning. I slipped the blanket over my head. ¡°I did something!¡± ¡°Like what? Playing games all day and stuck yourself in the room. Your rooms reeked like a morgue! And you looked like a zombie.¡± ¡°So what? I¡¯m sick.¡± ¡°Yeah. So much for being the tough Special Force member, Bryan Walker. Now a cripple, asking from an old lady 5 bucks to play games.¡± And now, she was starting to piss me off. I rose up, get on my wheelchair and rode towards her. Though still groggy, I¡¯m not about to be low-blowed. ¡°Fuck you, bitch. You don¡¯t have to go so low, hitting my soft point like that. By the way, it¡¯s part of my treatment. For PTSD, you know.¡± ¡°Treatment, or running away?¡± ¡°Both! I give everything to this miserable country and I get nothing. Nothing. Why should I go and get myself killed for people as foul-mouthed as you? Better the enemies come here and kill you off for all I care.¡± Mrs Green was speechless. At that time, I knew that I had spoken far too much for my own good. I wanted to give her a piece of my mind, but I should know better than crossing that boundary. ¡°I-I¡¯m sorry, Mrs Green. I-I don¡¯t mean it like that.¡± ¡°But ain¡¯t that right, Bryan? You are our hero, and yet we treated you as such.¡± ¡°I was a hero. That was in the past. I¡¯m now a crippled who suffers from PTSD and lived with a foul-mouthed lady who would spill more poison than a cobra.¡± Mrs Green and I knew each other for a long time before I was crippled. I knew her through her husband, who was my drill sergeant back when I was enlisted in the force. She was the first person to accept me for who I was when I returned from the battlefield. And what was more that I¡¯m in my wheelchair now. Broke, disabled and now staying here under her welfare. I thought she had been calling me names just to spur me on to action. It was not that I did not do anything, but¡­ Yeah. Just say it that I did not do anything redeemable. I was running away, playing games as an excuse for my PTSD. What I wanted was to get my vengeance first, and then return to the battlefield and fight alongside my comrades. I yearned for action and the smell of sweat and tears. Playing LIXXO was one way, but not the only way. ¡°You know what Mrs Green. If I ever earn more than 1000 dollars from my game, I¡¯ll swear to you, on my own names and of my dead comrades, I¡¯ll improve my life.¡± ¡°By going to rehab first?¡± ¡°Yeah, rehab first until I get to walk again.¡± I made an impromptu promise to cheer her up. Though I¡¯m pretty sure, going by my lousy luck these few years, I would never earn more than a 100 bucks to my name. But hey, a 100 dollar was still a lot of money. ¡°And then find a job?¡± ¡°Yeah, and find a job so I don¡¯t spend any more times than needed here. You are bad for me, Mrs Green. Hahaha¡± I let out a loud laugh as Mrs Green looked at me, cracking a rare happy face. ¡°But before you do anything, get yourself clean and please, shave that awful miser beard away from you. It¡¯s disgusting.¡± ¡°And then, we will eat breakfast?¡± I playfully asked her. ¡°Yes, then we will eat breakfast. But nothing too fancy. I¡¯m an old woman relying on her pension money too, you know.¡± ¡°By the way, can you drive me to downtown? To the cybercaf¨¦ that I always go?¡± ¡°After you clean yourself, Mr Bryan and then I¡¯ll see what can I do.¡± For the first time, in a long while, Mrs Green was happy. I too was happy because I could make a little money from gaming. If what Ed and Al told me was true, making money from the game could considered a way of living and working. Since I had struck a deal with Ed regarding the sales of my account, he had told me that there were many ways on how I could use the games that I played to help me change my life for better. A good news at least, but I didn¡¯t know how far it would go. But as I had always been trained, be ready at all times; the good times, the bad times and the worst of time. I had done the latter two, so it was time for good times, I thought. ¡°My, my. You look handsome, Bryan.¡± I had shaved, cleaned myself up, got the messy room back in order and took out my exercise equipment out. It had been a good 6 months since I touch those metal bars and plates. Though I still maintained my strength and physique, nonetheless, I could give myself a workout or two after I¡¯m back from meeting Ed and Al. ¡°I¡¯m always handsome, Mrs Green. Always am.¡± ¡°Good. Keep it up and you might get your life back again. So, shall we go now.¡± ***** Mrs Green drove me to AppleFruit as she was on the way to buy some groceries. Leaving me there, I was making my way towards the cybercaf¨¦ when I was suddenly stopped by a young blonde girl. Wearing high heels with a matching office suit that accentuates her beautiful body, I could not help but to take notice of her. I¡¯m sure she was not local, seeing how much she behaved and acted anyway. The girls here would run away when they saw me. But not her. She was smiling when she came to me. ¡°Ah, so you must be that Mr Bryan Walker?¡± She extended her hand for a handshake which I duly obliged. ¡°I am but who might you be, Miss?¡± ¡°I¡¯m Catherine, President¡¯s secretary of ABC Network Company.¡± She introduced herself with such pride. I¡¯m sure she was happy to work there. I could not help but to acknowledge her enthusiasm, which was something that I lacked when I came back here. ¡°So, Miss Catherine, what can I do for you?¡± ¡°Cat, please. And it¡¯s not what you can do for me, but it¡¯s what I can do for you.¡± I was curious and prodded further. ¡°Hmm? Do something for me? What do you mean by that?¡± ¡°Haven¡¯t you read the news yet, Mr Bryan?¡± ¡°Just call me Bryan and no, I had not read any news or heard anything similar. Is there something I must know?¡± ¡°Ohh¡­ is that so? Then shall I accompany you to Edward¡¯s place and explain to you?¡± Cat rubbed her chin as she looked at me. Her gentle but sharp eyes though assured that it was not something bad, like I¡¯m owing her money. By this time, I had more questions than answers but I¡¯m going to be cool about it. I¡¯ll see what she wanted to say to me and all those stuff. Besides, I needed to talk to Ed too regarding my account sales. Hopefully, I do get a 100 dollars from that. I could pay my rent first so Mrs Green could make for me breakfast like usual. When the three of us took our seat, Ed asked me the same question as Cat did earlier. ¡°Have you read the news?¡± I just shook my head. ¡°I don¡¯t have the internet connection at home and no, I don¡¯t watch that crap called news.¡± ¡°I see¡­ so you want to check it out now?¡± Ed asked me which I readily nodded. That was my sole reason to be here in the first place anyway. I took out my phone, an outdated model of 5 years old but it was still functioning. I see no reason to change it to the latest model, and not just because I was broke. Entering my saving account from the phone, I could not help but to see from the corner of my eye Cat¡¯s growing interest in me. If I did not know any better, I thought she was flirting with me. Not that I wouldn¡¯t mind a beautiful woman like her to flirt with me, but I got more important things to do. Checking how much I have was definitely more important than entertaining a woman who was flirting with me. That was how strong the power of being broke made me into now. As soon as I laid my eyes on my balance statement, my jaw dropped. I was a very well trained soldier and nothing could have surprised me ever, but here I was, looking like an absolute tool. I looked at the account, rubbed my eyes a few times, thinking that it was playing tricks on me, but the numbers were still the same. 10 million fucking dollars?!!! I look at both Ed and Cat and they just nodded at me. ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s 10 million dollars as per your account sales, Bryan.¡± ¡°B-But¡­ this amount¡­¡± I stammered a little. I¡¯d never imagined that I could stammer like this. ¡°Bryan, I came from the company that bought your account. I came here today to vouch for the legality of the transaction and then to complete it. Of course, I too wanted to see for myself the owner of the Legendary Demon King¡¯s character. And I¡¯m impressed to say the very least.¡± No. I¡¯m the one who was supposed to be impressed. This was not 100 dollars that I first thought. There were additional¡­ 1¡­2¡­3¡­5 zeros behind it. 5 fucking zeros too much!The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°Well, there you have it, Cat. The owner of the account all in his entirety.¡± Ed was laughing as he took out a bottle of champagne out of nowhere. My mind was too haywire to think anything straight. I-I still couldn¡¯t get over it. 10 million dollars? No way in hell, right? But I knew I¡¯m not dead yet, seeing how I am sitting in this old and decrepit wheelchair that once belonged to a certain Mr Green and the rusty metal that was poking my arse. I tried to keep myself calm and collected by taking a deep breath. After a while, I returned to my usual and composed self. Yeah, the one part of myself that was missing conveniently for the last 8 years, suddenly decided to appear. Thank you very much for being missing when I needed you most. Money really did wonders, after all. ¡°Well, you can check my account if you want. I¡¯ll give you the passwords and everything you need.¡± ¡°As you wish, Bryan.¡± I proceeded to give Cat all the related information regarding my account in LIXXO. I never knew that playing that game would change so much of my life. Helping me with PTSD was one thing, but this was way over my head. ¡°All done, Cat?¡± ¡°Yeah, all done. You know, I played this game for quite a number of years but I never see anything like yours before.¡± ¡°You mean my sword and equips?¡± I nonchalantly asked her. Cat nodded. The weight of my account sales was still over the top of my head, but I was in my element, gaming in LIXXO. ¡°Ohh¡­ the sword dropped after I killed a Red Dragon. Let me think, more than a hundred I think for it to drop one.¡± The strongest and hardest monster to kill was Red Dragon. I took 3 hours to kill one and I must not die. And I did it all alone too. I thought it was impressive but I never knew that it was this impressive. Well, I could earn myself a few bragging rights now. ¡°And the equips?¡± ¡°Ohh¡­ The body plate was dropped by the Sovereign King of Atlantis, the helm, shoe and gauntlet from the other dragons and the wing¡­ yeah¡­ the wing was from Siren Queen of Andalusia.¡± ¡°And all of those were the peak monsters of the game, right? Many challenged them, though no one would ever survive even with a party of 40, what more soloing. The drop rate was below one in hundred thousand.¡± Cat continued to ask me enthusiastically. She must really love this game too judging from the way she was drooling over my items. ¡°Impossible right. And that¡¯s why I love LIXXO. Impossible made possible if you put your heart into it.¡± ¡°Couldn¡¯t say it better myself.¡± Ed was pouring drinks for us. And this was the first time I ever drank a champagne after all these years. ¡°Well boys, I would love to talk to you more, especially you Bryan, but I need to get back. The President really wanted to get his hand on the account and he could not wait any longer. He had been calling me nonstop since this morning.¡± Cat took her leave immediately when her phone rang as she predicted. Well, she sure was busy. And I¡¯m sure was an extremely happy man. As we looked at her leaving the shop, I turned and asked Ed, ¡°What¡¯s your account number. 15% commission right?¡± He just passed to me a paper with his account number and I completed the transaction in less than 2 minutes. 1.5 million commission payment and I¡¯m left with 8.5 million dollars. For me, that was helluva lots of money. ¡°You know, Bryan. I¡¯m happy to be involved in this record-breaking deal, but I¡¯m sure you won¡¯t stop there, right?¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± The champagne was good and that made me a little talkative. Besides, I¡¯m now a happy rich man. ¡°Ever heard of Noble Path Online?¡± ¡°Yeah. A little. Not that I could get to play it anyway.¡± ¡°Well, with what you had earned, aren¡¯t you going to play it?¡± ¡°Nope. I promised Mrs Green that I¡¯ll go into rehab and get my life back on track. I had been a sorry excuse for myself for nearly a decade.¡± The promise I made to her earlier in the morning must now be fulfilled, whatever the cost. ¡°I see. That¡¯s a pity. The game is in its final beta test and would be launch somewhere in about 6 months from now. So, you have time to think about it whether you want to play it or not.¡± Ed took out a CD case with NPO¡¯s animation on it coupled with flyers of sort and handed it to me. ¡°Why do you ask me of this?¡± ¡°I believe you have what it takes to earn good money from playing this game, Bryan. I just know you would. And I want to be the person in the middle of it when it happens.¡± I took the CD case, observed it for a little while, admiring the beautiful animated drawings. I then turned my attention to the flyers and took one out with the headline ¡®NOBLE PATH ONLINE: A Virtual World Made Real.¡¯ ¡°Aren¡¯t you playing too then?¡± I asked while reading the flyer. ¡°Oh yeah, I will. But trust me when I say when I play, I don¡¯t play as good as you do.¡± ¡°Ohh¡­ sounds fishy. But if I were to play and get you involve, what would my role be?¡± ¡°Let us not talk about that before it happens alright. When you are ready, come to see me. And then we will talk.¡± I returned all the items to Ed but he declined. A gift he said to which I gladly accepted it. ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll keep in my mind about it. Well, Ed. I really appreciate all your help. I better get going to or else Mrs Green might drove away without me.¡± With that, came an end of my poverty life. I was broke and in a night or two, I became a multi-millionaire. And I needed to pay my dues. The year was 2035 and after a brief period of my disaster of a life, I¡¯m making a path for a new one. My own ¡®Noble Path¡¯. Starting now. ***** 6 months later¡­ I had paid all my loan-sharks money. Don Caputa was surprised that I came and returned all his money in cash. So surprised that he asked what did I do to which I replied by giving his bodyguard a punch to his face, breaking a few front teeth. The same bodyguard who kicked and punched me the most, that night. And I said nothing else. But Don Caputa was not a man to be turned down easily. He would not take no for an answer, but this was the only time he turned back on himself as to respect me paying him the full amount. And because of that, he did not pursue his interest further but only to extend his hand in friendship if I ever needed one. Now, I¡¯m left with 3.5 million dollars. Taking care of all of Mrs Green¡¯s mortgage and enrolling myself in the rehabilitation facilities, I was left with 3.3 million. The amount of money was good enough for me to live on for the rest of my life without needing to work any longer. But something that Ed said that day had struck a deep chord within me during this whole time. ¡°Earning good money.¡± It stuck in my mind like a stubborn chewing gum on one¡¯s backside as I was doing my rehab. After 6 months of intensive program, I could now walk by using crutches, a feat which was quite impossible for me in the first place. There were studies and research that was in advance stages that could help me regain my physical abilities back, but because I had stayed far too long without treatment, I had slim chance to recover. Hell, a slim chance was better than no chance. Give me 0.00001% anytime, any day and I would make you eat your words. The treatment, once passed the final testing phase, would be extremely expensive, costing above a million. Maybe even more. So, before that happened, I wanted to earn good money. And of course, there was one more personal reason why I wanted to earn more. The past trauma would not let me sleep peacefully at night until I finally face it. The demon that haunted me must perish once and for all. Noble Path Online or NPO for short. I needed more information about it. Searching through the official site, hundreds of players¡¯ forums, fansites, guides, social media, video sites and many more that I could think of, I observed NPO as how I would break down war strategy. One by one piece of information; official news, rumours, hearsay, opinions or even false positive and negative information, I dissected it as I scrutinized everything that came my way. It took me another 6 months before I finally equipped myself for NPO. By this time, NPO has 50 million registered users from all over the worlds. 80% market share of MMORPGs and the most intimidating of all was the 5 companies that merged and formed the mega-company that run NPO, Cybertronic Entertainment Corporation. RoundNox, Avalanche, PotatoHard, CyberCraft, and Pony Limited all combined into one giant entity. The biggest players in the gaming industry merged, created and then ran this new VRMMORPG. The scale of this game was beyond massive. LIXXO was not even 1/100th of the size of the NPO. And that did not even include another huge portion of the game that was not opened to the players yet. And what was amazing was the total viewership of the events that NPO would often held. Dubbed as the world most popular e-sport and second in world most popular sport behind World Cup football, it attracted no less than a billion views in any one of the events. The last event was the Siege of Thoran, which was viewed live and streamed by no less than 300 million people. When the event video was uploaded to Mytube, a video file-sharing website, it garnered 2 billion views in the space of four days. And the AI? Well, honestly I didn¡¯t know much about tech stuff that went into it, but from the reports and official site, the NPC behaves just like a living being. Some players even said that these NPCs had emotions too. Weird but nonetheless impressive. Well, it was not the time for me to actually be in awe of the size and the complexities of this ¡®gargantuanic¡¯ of a behemoth game. It was now time for me to make my mark in NPO. As I remodelled Mrs Green¡¯s house a little, which she happily obliged seeing that I paid off her mortgage, the room I slept was converted into virtual reality realm. With Ed and Al¡¯s help from AppleFruit Inc., they made this room to be the best that they could completed with all the technologies that money could buy. All it needed was a hundred thousand dollars and a month of time. If I wanted to play, I better play with a bang. But I must not forget my grassroots of how I reached here in the first place. The Virtual Reality or VR gear that Ed brought for me was state of the art. A little fancy to my liking but what I love most was the immersion of the visual and sound that it gave me when I tested it. It was compact and light too. And best of all, it had the technology called NerveAdapter. Because I was paralyzed from the waist down, being a fully immersive VRMMORPG would pose a problem for me. If I could not walk in real life, I would be damn sure that I could not walk in the virtual world too. But the NerveAdapter bypassed all that by receiving the signal from my brain directly instead of having me to move like a lumbering fool or using another tool to actually insert command. It was just like how I would do in real world. I just needed to wear the gear and voila, I¡¯m Bryan Walker reincarnated in the virtual world. The reaction speed and time was perfect. There was no delay at all. Response time was impeccable. There was no lag between receiving and transferring data. A bane to all the online players, VR or not. In the whole world, there were only 100 units of this gear that came with NerveAdapter technology and I happened to own one. Surprising? No. It was given as a gift from President of ABC Network Company as they were the one who developed this VR Gear. This gear was still in early development phase, and I¡¯m a guinea pig. Well, whatever. This gear was a lifesaver and there were all to it. I just loved my gears as how I love my combat gears. They were the same for me. And now, fully equipped and well prepared, I made my first dive into the world of Noble Path Online.
Scan of your iris and fingerprint earlier indicate you are a new user. Register?
Yes No.
A soothing sound of a woman¡¯s voice. The moment I wore my gear, I was transferred to an empty room with a console in front of me. I just smiled and said yes. I didn¡¯t have to even say it, just to think of it in my mind. That was the power of my new VR Gear with NerveAdapter technology. But I said it nonetheless. I was this pumped up. This would be my new battlefield. Understanding what I¡¯d just said, a screen came out of the console that was in front of me.
Log into the Noble Path Online?
Yes No.
As soon as the Log in command popped up as a hologram, I was given a choice. Well, easy enough. Yes!
You have not created any character. (System Reminder: You can only create one character throughout your whole account.)
Create Character Quit (Return to Main Screen)
Simple enough. One person, one account for lifetime. The iris and fingerprint scan were done to bound us to our account. If you do a mistake in the character¡¯s initial setup, well¡­ you have to live by it. But the mistake only concerned racial and gender issues. Nothing to do with classes and skills. Not a big deal unless one got bored easily. Suddenly, the console gave me a screen of options to choose from. Heh. Standard stuff. Nothing too complicated. I keyed in what I wanted up to the level of the details of how I wanted to look like in the world. This would take quite some time to do though. I could either use the VR to scan my whole body and use it as default look or create a new one from scratch. Well, since it came to this, I just did what I would do best. Once completed, I touch the ¡®Finish Setup¡¯ hologram screen.
Are you sure?
Yes No.
Yeah, yeah. I¡¯m sure. The command lighted up and suddenly the whole place turned white. As I was engulfed in the light, my whole body was suddenly transformed to my character¡¯s avatar. Neat. Could do this in the real world too. As my character began to take form, another command screen popped up.
Select your starting city?
A list of starting city came up. In NPO, there were no less than 100 of them. To optimize my chances as best as I could, I picked the one that I had chosen before logging in.
Congratulations! Your details had been¡­
¡°Skip!¡±
Thank you for choosing Noble Path Online¡­
¡°Skip!¡± No need to waste my time on formalities. The world was now awaiting me. As the flash of lights surrounded me yet again, I was transferred to the City of Asgardia, Kingdom of Asgard. And here, began my new journey. ***** Chapter 04: I Need Nothing But My Fist Alone. Chapter 04: I Need Nothing But My Fist Alone. As the flash of light disappeared, I had found myself in the city¡¯s Beginner Square. Looking around, I could see throngs of people traversing the area, busy with their own things. Realizing that I was finally in the game, I had something important to do now. I looked at my feet and woohoo¡­ I was standing!!! It had been ages that I saw my own two feet moving freely. A wave extreme excitedness came over me that I let out a loud shout that startled a few people around. But I did not care. I gave myself a few squat, followed by a roll jump, and then a few sidesteps, a few more tumbles and finally, a double backflip. ¡°Wooohooo!!!¡± I raised both of my arms to the sky. ¡°Liberation!!! I feel free!!¡± I gave out a loud laugh that accompanied a dance routine which I called the Karlton¡¯s dance copied from a TV series that my late father used to watch as a kid. And he would always do this dance to me when he was happy. ¡°Wow¡­ Look at that guy go, man. He must be a noob.¡± ¡°Yeah, he looks like a noob alright. What¡¯s with that haircut anyway?¡± ¡°Poor guy. Is this his first VR game?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll be embarrassed if I were him, acting all like that.¡± ¡°You sure? That dance looks sexy though. I never knew one could move as smooth as that.¡± The remarks that the passersby gave to me was nothing more than cricket¡¯s sound. I¡¯m not going to be provoked by those little and pesky thoughts of theirs. Nothing would ever stop me from¡­ Prriiitttt!!!! Suddenly, I heard a loud whistle that pierced through the area. I saw a man, dressed in a full suit of armour running up my way. He must be a Non-Player Character (NPC) guard of some sort. ¡°Hey, you! No public disturbance!¡± ¡°But I¡¯m just dancing!¡± ¡°No dancing! Now stop before I arrest you!¡± Everyone who was there, witnessing the scene, laughed their hearts out. ¡°Ain¡¯t he a funny newbie?¡± ¡°First day in and nearly got himself arrested. Hahaha. This could not be funnier.¡± ¡°I should record this and upload for my friends to see. Hihihi.¡± The passersby¡¯ comments suddenly made me embarrassed. Sigh¡­ just when I want to enjoy walking, standing and dancing for the first time in 9 years. ¡°Alright, alright. I¡¯ll stop. I got better things to do anyway.¡± I picked up my pace and walked towards my next destination. But before that, I better check out my status screen. I knew it was nothing to see for now, but familiarizing with the content first-hand would come in handy. The moment I thought of the status screen, it immediately appeared right in front of me. Wow, I could dig this technology. Think and it shall appear. The only thing that was shown at all times on my heads-up display or HUD was my HP and Mana bar on the top right, Weapon equipped on the top left, Stamina and EXP bar on my bottom centre. I could change as how I pleased or disabled everything but for now, I left it as that.
STATUS PAGE
Character Name Ghost Alignment Unknown
Level 1 Fame (Recognition Points) 0
Class
Title
Clan
STATUS INFORMATION SCREEN
HP 150 STR * 10
MP 100 DEX * 10
ATTACK POWER 50 INT * 10
MAGIC POWER 50 CHA * 10
DEFENSE RATING 25 WIS * 10
STAMINA 100 LUCK * 10
COMMAND POINTS 0 AGI * 10
MAGIC AND ELEMENTAL RATINGS (%)
FIRE WATER WIND EARTH HOLY DARK
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
There were a bunch of other details, but I would skip it for now. I need to head to that place to get myself started. Time to get serious. ***** Practice Hall. The place where everyone would come and train themselves. Supposedly.Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. Open to everyone and never closes. Supposedly too. Unfortunately, no one was here at all and the door was closed when I arrived. I had to knock a few times but after getting no answer, I barged the door open. And the only person that was inside when I first entered the Practice Hall was a¡­ Rabbit? As he hopped from the middle of the hall towards the main entrance looking annoyed and cussing me no doubt, I could not help but to laugh. So, this rabbit would be the instructor here? ¡°Hahaha!!¡± ¡°Why are you laughing in front of the door? Are you out of your minds?¡± Back in LIXXO, I have a soft spot for cute looking things, though not in battlefields. And likewise here, hence the reason why I couldn¡¯t resist laughing at him. ¡°Hehehe¡­ Hehehe¡­ are you the Instructor here?¡± ¡°Yes, I am. My name is Popo.¡± ¡°Muahahahaha!!¡± I could not help it further. I let a laugh so loud that it attracted other people who were walking outside the fence of the Training Hall. And I could see that this rabbit too was getting rather annoyed. ¡°Are you looking down on me, because I¡¯m a Bunnian?¡± He asked me in a way that suggested he was annoyed but I could not see it that way. He was cute. Way too cute with that long ears, button nose and moving whiskers of his. ¡°No. No. I¡¯m just¡­ Hahaha¡­ surprised. I¡¯m still new here, so I had lots to learn.¡± I held my laugh and composed myself a few moments later. ¡°You humans are always looking down on others. I might be small, but I packed a mean punch. And a bite too!¡± I just nodded at him nonchalantly. Alright. I get it already. ¡°You must be a newbie, judging from your whole look.¡± ¡°Yeah. I¡¯m here to familiarize myself with the world.¡± I replied while scouring the whole hall with my eyes. Nothing out of the ordinary which suited this place¡¯s name to a point. ¡°I see. You want me to explain how the system works?¡± I nodded. I understood the system, but it was from the theoretical point of view. I¡¯m here to test it out before I put myself on the front line. Popo took his time and explained to me how the system in NPO works. Just the basic stuff as for the rest, I needed to figure it out for myself. Explore and I shall learn, as he said. In NPO, there were no classes. You could be anything, wield anything and do anything as your heart desired. No character was the same as the other. But before we could advance to that, all new players were given 2 weeks of real time to actually understood the system of the game. 2 weeks of real-time translated to 2 months of the game world. That was an awfully long period of a learning curve and whatnot, but I came prepared. During that time, new players were not allowed to go anywhere else outside the city¡¯s gate. So, for nearly 2 months of the game world, I would be stuck here, practising. ¡°What you do in real world, translates here, po. If you are a slouch in the real world, don¡¯t expect to move like a speed demon here, po.¡± Realism taken into the virtual world now. In the year 2036, the epidemic of people who became shut-ins and social outcasts were alarming. 30% of those who were below the age of 30 in developed countries were jobless, with only basic education, still living with their parents and worse of all, dehumanized. They knew nothing of the real world and yet behaved irresponsibly and with disregard to others when they were online. And this was translated to the real world too with all the negativities brought forward. Being online and playing games was how they spent the majority of their times in a day. They, like me who used to, clock unreasonable hours online, about 20+ hours a day. Some of them forego sleep at the point of extreme exhaustion by playing games online without rest. Thus, many governments around the world had pledged to work with the gaming companies to help to solve the issue. And Cybertronics Entertainment Corporation was formed with the government¡¯s help. NPO was the nearest one could come out with; a place that these people could ''live'' without the pressure, prejudice and oppression from the real world. If they could not hack in here because they lacked the world skills, either they quit or they bucked up themselves to answer the challenge. 50 million users and arising spoke the success of this method. They were given a second chance in ¡®life¡¯, and perhaps equipped with better knowledge of themselves from the ¡®previous world¡¯, they could pave and find their way here. Hence the name of this game, Noble Path Online. And it was the same for me too. Being blessed with working legs, albeit in virtual reality games, gave me enough motivation to actually do whatever it takes to reach the top. And it all started here. At the Beginner¡¯s Practice Hall where Popo was showing me around. ¡°We have all weapons that a beginner like you could wield here.¡± ¡°So you mean there¡¯s more outside there?¡± ¡°Yes, if only you can find them and use them. Finding them doesn¡¯t mean you will know automatically how to use them, po.¡± ¡°I see. Sounds fair enough.¡± In front of me was 8 Beginner¡¯s weapons, all were made from wood; a sword, a dagger, a two-handed staff, a wand, a set of bow and a quiver of arrows, a greatsword, and axe and last but not least, a shield. A shield as a weapon? Well, if you know how to use it, then it would become a great weapon. But for me, none of those was what I wanted to use. For now, anyway. ¡°Po¡­ one more thing before I forgot. You know how the stats systems work, here?¡± ¡°Well, you can tell me about it. I¡¯m all ears.¡± ¡°I like you, po. You are eager to learn and better yourself. Alright, let me tell you how it works here, po.¡± There were 5 ways to increase my stats. First and the usual one, levelling up. A player would be given 5 points when levelled up to be allocated to any attributes of their choice. At a higher level, more points would be given to a player. However, as the stats increased, so too did the point needed to be allocated for it to increase it further. Simply said, higher stats needed more points allocation. A (*) next to the number of my stats meant my current stat level. Second, quest rewards. Certain quests might reward permanent stats increase. These quests were extremely rare to find. If anyone found it, they would keep it for themselves and told no one about it. Why would they tell the others? Anyway, these quests, though rewarding but it also came with a setback of its own. Failing that quest would mean the stats would be reduced. Unfortunately, picking a quest just for the sake of it and failing it thereafter would be penalized, temporarily or permanently. Third, by training using the weapon of choice. Use a greatsword and I could increase my strength more than any other weapon. Or use a sword and I could increase both my strength and my agility. Use a bow instead and I could perhaps increase my agility, dexterity and a little strength. All weapons had their pros and cons. The challenge was to find a balance between player¡¯s style and stuck with it. The fourth was status buffs, permanent or temporary. Given by an NPC or players alike, a buff could temporarily raise one attributes. Permanent buffs were extremely rare and given by only the Gods themselves. Last but not least, equipment. We were what we wore, after all. Among all these five stats raising ways, all except for one could be obtained by every player equally. The one that most player would avoid - raising stats by training. Not only the increments were very small, but it was also time-consuming. Time spent versus rewards was not benefitting to these players. One could have spent a month in the real world and be rewarded with +5 stats total. So, most players skipped training and would prefer to level up or equipped themselves with better equips. Such was their understanding of the game world. Well, I beg to differ though. +5 stats could make a very big difference, for me. Especially since I¡¯m a new player. Opening up my status screen, I could see that my stats were all set at 10 points each for a total of 70 points. 5 points given permanently to my stats meant that I had boosted myself by 7% at least. Not bad. If I could raise my stats before I rose a level, it meant, when I reached that said level, comparing to other players with equal levels and equal equipment, I¡¯m at higher stats. It would make a world of difference when starting up. ¡°Po, which weapons you want to train yourself in? A sword? Or a bow? Greatsword perhaps? You look like you could swing one, po.¡± ¡°Nope. I don¡¯t need weapons for now. I¡¯m all the weapon I need, after all.¡± ¡°Po?¡± He looked at me as if I said something that amused him to no end. ¡°No worries, Instructor Popo. I¡¯m going unarmed, for now. Is that alright?¡± ¡°If you say so, po. The training dummies are along the walls, or if you prefer to do it outdoors, we have some of it too.¡± I see. Players come here to test their skills and their new moves. Showing off in public would be a good way to tell others, how strong and cool their characters were. I would prefer indoor though. A little more privacy since there was basically no one else here. I could have all the training dummies for myself too. I began my training by picking up the training dummy located at the furthest end of the Practice Hall. ¡°It had been a while, so let¡¯s see how I would move.¡± I took a deep breath and struck with my hands and feet precisely where I wanted it. ¡°Yargh! Yargh Yargh!¡± The training doll did not move even an inch. The strike was clean and precise. And I gave it with the full force of power. It seemed like no matter how much the strength I exhausted in real life, the stats would overwrite it. With a strength of 10 and attack power of 50, there was nothing much I could do. Well, let me struck it a few more times then, familiarizing myself. I continued to strike with all I had with various combos and movement, concentrating on the weak points of the training dummy if it had any in the first place. A monster might have had different weak points compared to a player-like training dummy but that was not what I was interested in. I was more interested in my whole movement. My movement was flawless and there was no lag. Even my legs were moving well like I was never paralyzed in the first place. ¡°You seems to move well for a complete beginner, po.¡± The instructor came up from behind as I finished up my next combos. I wiped my sweat away. Everything in this world was made real to the point how I breathe, sweat, move and even feel. The training dummy felt like it was supposed to be felt, wood-ish hard. ¡°I had some training, Instructor Popo.¡± I continued to practice with the instructor looking from my back. ¡°I see. Good to know that you have some skills. Perhaps I have nothing to teach you. Rather I would just observe you.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t say that. I might need your help in certain things, but for now, I need to get used to the game fast.¡± And for the next 6 hours in real time, I continued to practice. 1 day in the game time equalled to 6 hours in real time. And when the night time arrived, the scene here was done spectacularly. It felt like it was a real night time as Instructor Popo closed the Practice Hall and I had to continue outdoors instead. The moonlight, the chill of the cold wind breezing passed by, the sound of night critters and the lightings around the city all sounded or looked so real. Impressive. More than I could ever imagine. Added to sense of realism taking place as player in this game, I could say that this was a brand new world. A world within a world. However, there were extremely strict limits in place to keep the players safe at all times. It was good to know that when the character dies, we wouldn¡¯t die together with it. On the seventh hour of my training; in real time, and a bucket load of sweat, suddenly my status screen was lighted up with a system sound. *Ting!*
Your Strength went up +1 point! (+ 1 STR)
Your Agility went up + 1 point! ( +1 AGI)
Oh wow! 2 stats point increase at one time. Cool. Just 7 hours of real time training on the training dummy. There were no other people here except for myself. It was like the Practice Hall was deserted. No one had once made their way here the whole time I was training. Instructor Popo only came during the day. And it was his silhouette that I first saw when he entered through the main gate of the Practice Hall. When he saw me still training, he gave a shout. ¡°You really work so hard, po. I¡¯m impressed.¡± I took a much-needed break as I took off my shirt. Yeah, in this game, you could go bare naked if you wanted to. But being butt-naked doesn¡¯t serve any purpose than self-glorification. ¡°I¡¯m giving my best, that¡¯s all.¡± ¡°Good to hear that coming from a young man like you.¡± Heh. I¡¯m not young anymore. I was 30 years old and growing older each day. That and I had set my avatar to use my current look right now. ¡°By the way, don¡¯t people ever come here?¡± I asked the instructor as he opened the main door and beckoned me to enter. ¡°Nowadays, no. It has been a while since the last person came here. And I¡¯m quite lonely, po.¡± ¡°Why not? Ain¡¯t this place for people to practice their skills and such?¡± I was quite surprised with his words. And he told me the reason soon enough. NPO players would rather do something else than train for the whole 2 game time months. They would gather quests, earn money, earn some fame, established connections with other NPCs, make new online friends, chit-chat and some would just loiter around until the gestation period for new players finished. After that, they would explore the world and kill monsters. Rinse and repeat. All in all, no one in this city wanted to train, except for me. All those other things that the other players do, I would have time for that later. Perma-stat increase was my main objective for now and I would use my 2 months¡¯ of game time to achieve the best stat I could gain. And I was definitely sure that somewhere out there, in this world, there would be tonnes of people thinking like I did, though not here it seemed. And when I met them, I would be damn sure I was ready. ¡°What about those who learned new skills?¡± ¡°Ohh, they would rather try it out on weak monsters than coming here. You know how much they hated that the training dummies are immortals.¡± Yeah. The training dummies were all immortals. An infinite number of HPs and all the damage I did was set at 1 DMG. Tried as hard as I could, hit as much and as fast I could, it¡¯s all 1 DMG. I could bite, slap, kick, pierce, stab, slash, hit the critical parts or anything else I could think of and all the damage returned was 1. Nothing would beat trying a new skill on a weak monster and to see it died with your newest and latest skill. It felt like a pro, and I was sure that was what most people wanted. ¡°There are some though, who do train like you. But those are very rare. So, I¡¯m happy to see you here, po.¡± ¡°Well, good to have you with me, too.¡± I continued to practice hard. ¡°By the way, you must eat and refill your stamina before you can continue. Not just in real life, but here, if you are hungry and out of stamina, you will suffer greatly.¡± And about time too. It was lunch time now and I logged out immediately. Mrs Green had prepared lunch for me it seemed and I was too happy to say anything else other than words of thanks to her. And after lunch, back I went playing the game. And I did nothing other than practice my skills in the game. During my whole day in real time, I would spend 6 hours to sleep, eat and clean myself and the rest of the time playing NPO. I was an addict to the game. This was how I would spend my time. I had no worries about earning money nor to cook myself food. Mrs Green, despite being displeased with my shut-in lifestyle, understood my reasoning. So, she left me most of the time alone, except to remind me of my rehabilitation schedule. My rehab was once a week for 4 hours and the next that was on schedule would be next Friday. Chapter 05: The First Quest Chapter 05: The First Quest ¡°So, how are you feeling, Bryan?¡± The physiotherapist asked me as I continued to do my routine exercise; walking with crutches and letting the feet touched the floor. ¡°Hmm¡­ nothing?¡± I answered nonchalantly. My leg was paralyzed and it was as good as useless. Being a paraplegia hit me hard when it first happened to me, but after 8-9 years, I grew accustomed to moving around in a wheelchair. ¡°But you did what I told you to do, right? At home?¡± ¡°Yeah. I did everything you told me and more. It¡¯s just not working for me, Doc.¡± I turned and twisted my waist around but my legs just flailed like a couple of dead tentacles. The flapping sound of my legs saddened me a little. ¡°I see. Then perhaps your problem is just more than a broken spine.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ what do you mean by that? I got some other weird shit disease?¡± Anyone who saw me must be thinking that I was a world-class gymnast doing the ring or the pommel routines. Well, fuck them for being far off the mark. Though my upper moved like one, my legs were just like a limped penis. ¡°Weakness of the mind can paralyze us even though we are able.¡± And perhaps the physio was right. All these while, I did nothing to rehab myself. Once I became paralyzed, I did nothing but being depressed and lashed out at others. My PTSD was a constant occurrence and I had no doubt that I had made everyone around me ran away any time I got a fit or two; including my wife and my two boys. But, that was something that I was not willing to bring it up for now. I just kept quiet and continued my exercise with the physio¡¯s help, sweeping all the past life of me away to the far corner of my mind. ¡°By the way, Bryan. I have something that might interest you if you are up to it. Want to know?¡± He piqued my curiosity. ¡°Yeah. Just shoot it. I¡¯m all ears.¡± ¡°In two months from now, we will have a new resident doctor here, specializing in cases like yours. Shall I register your name to be treated by her?¡± ¡°A new doctor? What about you? Where are you going?¡± He helped me to the wheelchair as he pulled a seat next to me. ¡°Me? I¡¯m still here but she would be the boss now. The HQ had decided to bring an expert here though I don¡¯t know why she chose to come to this forsaken and desolate of a place.¡± ¡°Heh, you can say that again. I wonder to myself why did I ever come here in the first place.¡± Both of us broke into a laugh. ¡°So, are you interested?¡± He asked. I gave out a smirk. ¡°Is she beautiful?¡± The physio nodded as he understood the reason for my question. ¡°If she is, then sign me up. Could do me some eye-candy while she¡¯s treating me. Hahaha!¡± ¡°You and your goddamn eye-candy. Am I not eye-candy enough?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t swing that way and you know it, Doc.¡± Both of us broke into yet another fit of laughter, disturbing the other patients that were here. Feeling a little embarrassed, he immediately went to the counter and took out a piece of paper from the drawer and then handed it to me. ¡°Fill this in and return it to the nurse before your session end. I need to attend to some other patients, and it happened to be a she, too. And eye-candy for me as well.¡± Whatever, man. I looked at the form and with a pen in hand, I filled in whatever details they needed from me. Once I was done with that, Mrs Green came over after my session was done and drove us home. But not before buying some vegetables and meat for the house stocks. And since I was paying now, she gladly accepted it without question. ***** The first one week of game time or GT had ended with me practising on the training dummy bare-handed. I surrounded myself with no less than 6 dummies at one time and I struck each one of them with extreme accuracy and precision. If this was the real world and those were human instead of dummies, they would be dead. I was trained in the combination krav maga, muay thai and jujitsu. The Special Force combat style. Nothing fancy but it could get the work done. And by that time, my stats had increased by quite a number. I opened my status screen as the next stat increase came into view. *Ting!¡±
Your Dexterity went up +1 point! (+ 1 DEX)
STATUS INFORMATION SCREEN
HP 150 STR 15
MP 100 DEX 14
ATTACK POWER 50 INT 10
MAGIC POWER 50 CHA 10
DEFENCE RATING 25 WIS 10
STAMINA 100 LUCK 10
COMMAND POINTS 0 AGI 13
A total increase of 12 points over three stats; Strength, Dexterity and Agility. Fighting bare-handed gave me the increments into those stats, it seemed. But 12 points was a major boost for me. A 17% perma-stat increased over my initial starting base stat. Great result. But it took a long time and lots of hard work. No wonder no one really wanted to train hard like this. Levelling up would be much easier. Or buying equipment. Nonetheless, my time in Practice Hall training like a madman had resulted in some unwanted attention. ¡°Look at the crazy dude goes. The rumours were true.¡± ¡°Can someone really train like that? I mean, ain¡¯t it easier to just level up?¡± ¡°He must be a freak. Or a showoff.¡± ¡°Or both. Look at him going against a training dummy, all shirtless. Fuck him!¡± ¡°He has a great body, no doubt?¡± ¡°You believe that? He might be an obese man pretending to be a good looking hunk, you know.¡± Would these people shut up for once? I didn¡¯t mind they talked while looking at me from afar. But they just gathered at my back and talked loudly. I could hear everything they said and my ears tingled uneasily. And stop showing middle fingers at my back. I could see the shadows, you know.If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. ¡°If you are not training here, then go away, po! Don¡¯t disturb those who are hard at work, po!¡± ¡°Oops, here comes the cute and angry bunny. Let¡¯s run, people. Hahaha!¡± ¡°Run before he cutely bites your head off. Haha!¡± Finally, those people scattered away. I was pretty sure that all of them were players like me and might hear some funny rumours flying around here and there. But I did not give a damn. I needed to raise my stats to the highest amount before I was set up for real. And Popo was always willing to back me up by chasing those players away if they were not here for training. ¡°So, how¡¯s the progress?¡± Popo asked. ¡°It¡¯s good. Better than what I expected, initially. But the rate is a little slower now. I need to change my training methods if I want to see any more increase.¡± ¡°I see, Good for you. But, before you do that, you could help me with something?¡± Ohh? This was the first time Popo asked me to do something for him. During the whole week, we had established some good relationship. I noticed that my Affinity Link screen that had his name came up. Though it was at 1 out of 10 star that was available, it was good enough for him to be friendly with me. And did I smell a quest coming soon? ¡°You see; I¡¯m supposed to buy my wife some groceries for the house. But I¡¯m too busy here. Too much stuff to do and not enough time!¡± He started to talk. ¡°But you did nothing all day. No one is here, except me. How could you be busy?¡± My question was answered with a snort and dancing whiskers that spoke of his annoyance. ¡°Shut up! Can¡¯t a man be busy when the wife needs him? So, are you helping me or not?¡± ¡°Yeah sure. What is it that you want me to buy? Carrot?¡± I teased him a little. But I got more than what I deserved. ¡°Fuck you and your carrots! I¡¯m a Bunnian, not a rabbit!¡± Whoa, a swearing Bunny. And NPC at that too. ¡°Looks the same to me.¡± I shrugged at him nonchalantly as I wore back my shirt. ¡°Buy me some rabbit meat, a few loaves of bread, a couple pouch of green beans and¡­ a bunch of carrots.¡± Told you he ate carrots. And what was the deal with a Bunny eating rabbit meats? Was he a cannibal or some kind? But I didn¡¯t want to stay and asked him. I just agreed to his request when suddenly, the window popped up. So, this was really a quest after all.
You had accepted the Quest: Get me my stuff, po!(1)
Get me my stuff, po!(1) I¡¯m too busy to buy groceries for my wifey. Buy it for me instead, will you? This is the list of the items you need to get, po. 3 pieces of smoked rabbit meats 3 loaves of bread 2 pouch of green beans 5 sticks of rainbow carrots. Quest Rank: F Completion Requirements: Buy all the items as needed and return to Instructor Popo before the day¡¯s end. Unrepeatable quest. Automatically failed if return after Pop went back home. Quest Reward: To be decided by Instructor Popo. The faster you finish the quest, the better your reward is, po. Now get going!
Heh. Standard delivery quest. Nothing too fancy. And to help me purchased the items, Popo gave me 6 silvers. That was good cause I didn¡¯t have effin¡¯ money. In fact, when I checked my equipment and item screen for the first time, I came equipped only with the standard white shirt and black pants. And no, I had no other equipment, money, items or anything else for that matter. I was as bare naked as they came. Perhaps this was also the reason why players opted to stay out of training and did other things instead. Besides, my stamina was never depleted even once while I was training and I didn¡¯t need to eat to replenish it. Perhaps it got to do with the learning period time of 2 months in the game. ¡°Po, make sure you return it to me before I go back. Don¡¯t want my wifey to scold me when I returned empty-handed. So, I¡¯m counting on you, po.¡± Alright. The quest was easy. A mini-map bar opened just below the weapon equipped on my HUD. And on it, was the mark of the location of the places I needed to go to get the items. Again, it was a simple quest and I want to complete it as soon as possible to get the best rewards. Though not stated what it was, the faster I was done with this, the better. The first destination was the one furthest away, the butcher. Why not the nearest one and work through it first? Simple. If I did the furthest one first, I could complete the rest on my way back. Would save a little bit of my time by doing that. ***** ¡°So, Popo sent you here?¡± I just nodded at the NPC who was selling the meat at the stall. An open stall type where there were only him and his worker. Though his worker seemed odd for an NPC; kept cursing and then looking at me with pitiful eyes. I thought to myself, ¡°Hey man, don¡¯t look at me like that. You got yourself into this mess in the first place.¡± ¡°That¡¯s rare for Popo to ask anyone to do his groceries for him. Have you two getting along?¡± ¡°Nope. Not like that. Think he said he was busy or something.¡± I answered without much interest on my part. ¡°Popo¡¯s busy? That¡¯s a first I hear. Don¡¯t believe it myself having that Bunnian saying he¡¯s busy and whatnot.¡± ¡°You tell me. I barely know him. But a quest is a quest, though. Might as well complete this quest and look around town first.¡± The butcher handed me the items needed as he just laughed at my words. A laughing NPC who could understand my sarcasm. Could not be more impressed with the sense of realism in this game. I was still in what the other players called, a newbie world. Though an experienced gamer myself, I was still a newbie or a noob to most who played this game. Everything would surprise me. I paid the butcher the 3 silver coins he needed for the item and made my way towards the next destination; the baker. But before I could take any more steps from the stall, I noticed something odd amongst the crowd. Someone was watching my back and observing my every move. A pickpocket? Hmm, better be careful now or else I would be in trouble losing the money. I kept my senses alert as I made my way. 3 loaves of bread, freshly baked. I could smell the aroma in the air and that made me hungry. Yet another aspect of the game that I needed to get used to. The sense of details was very real indeed. And the baker would say the same thing as the butcher as she commented on how much Popo would never trust someone to do his groceries for him. Well, it did not matter. I was on the last leg anyway. It was pretty much straightforward and I might finish this quest without even taking an hour of the game time. The City of Asgardia was not that big. It was still a newly founded city after all, right after the latest Siege of Thoran campaign. One of the parties that led the siege found this city and now had been installed at its governor. A pretty neat system to reward players like that though I had no interest in governing a village, much more a city like this. My room was all I could ever hope to govern unless I risked the ire of Mrs Green. But I did wonder why the quest gave me such an ample time to complete such an easy task. Additional to that, I could sense that the eyes that were watching my back earlier were still there. I could not shake off whoever that was. Sighing, I walked towards my final destination. I was left with a silver and 80 coppers after paying for the bread. The last merchant was just around the corner, in the Adventurer Market Street. The scene here was hectic to say the very least when I first arrived. Not just with the NPCs that filled the roads, but also the Player Characters (PCs) that opened their shop there. ¡°Come on in and have a look at my item!!¡± ¡°Cheap weapons for newbies!¡± ¡°Hey, noob! Don¡¯t die. Buy my potions!¡± ¡°Cheapest price in town. Come on in and check it.¡± Most of the stalls were manned by NPCs. I think the PCs just opened the stall here, hired an NPC to sell the items for them while they did something else. Either that or they were Away From Gaming. AFG-ing for short. ¡°Hey you, good-looking newbie!¡± Suddenly, someone called me from a nearby stall. Trying to get more confirmation, I looked at the merchant and pointed to myself. He just nodded at me as he beckoned to come closer. ¡°New here?¡± Not going to waste my time by looking at things I could not buy, I just shook my head in response. But the merchant was adamant. ¡°Aww¡­ just come closer. You don¡¯t have to buy anything, though.¡± Really now? Or was it a sales tactic to entice a new customer? I was still hesitant. ¡°Aww come on, man. Just looking at it wouldn¡¯t hurt your pocket. I¡¯ll tell you something interesting if you come here, just for a newbie like you.¡± New information, ehh? Alright. I would let you have your way. I still had lots of time on my hand. Better make it worth my every minute, though. I was looking through his wares that were displayed and it looked like standard equips; a sword, a shield and some clothing. Upon closer inspection though, it seemed to have some superior quality. My perplexed look caught the merchant in a pleasant surprise. ¡°Never seen premium items before?¡± I shook my head and asked. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± The merchant gave a small laugh before answering. ¡°A high-quality items, made by yours truly.¡± He answered while thumping his chest. Must have been proud of his products. ¡°I see¡­ never know about that.¡± How could I know since I spent most of my time training? ¡°Really? You really look like you just made your account. How long had you been playing, man?¡± He innocently asked. ¡°About a week.¡± ¡°A week?!! And you still looked like that?¡± He glanced at me with such wide eyes that I could not help but to grin sheepishly. And the merchant did tell me about the difference between a normal quality and high-quality items, a premium as he said. It had better stats, longer durability and sometimes perform better than a higher level normal items. However, it must be crafted through certain crafting classes or artisans. What it took to create a high-quality one was not shared. A trade secret, he said. ¡°But I knew much better than anything to question their playing style. Anyway, here are the words on the street. There¡¯s something big going on in the next few real-time weeks, you know.¡± The first line alone had made me disappointed. I was thinking that there would be new areas for farming items, EXP, equips and such, but this? ¡°Not interested. The city might be bombed for all I care. Once I¡¯m done with my training, I¡¯m off to do something else worthwhile.¡± I sneered a little. He was surprised by my words but kept his smiling face on. A business face nonetheless. ¡°Aww, come on, man. Don¡¯t be such a piss-take. This information that I just gave you is privy to only certain people, alright.¡± ¡°Privy? And why did you have to tell me then? Where did you get the information anyway?¡± I asked. ¡°Well, I pieced it together from the guards that were walking around, saying something along the line with what I told you just now. I did not know the details, but that¡¯s that.¡± I was hoping for more solid information than just the words on the streets. The quality of information depended on the source and the lowest, most unpredictable and often misleading was the words on the streets type. In war, wrong information could lead to casualty. In the game, it was just a massive waste of time. ¡°Not good enough. I just wasted my time on some tin-pot information, if there was one.¡± ¡°Hahaha. My bad. Thought you might be interested in a hearsay like us.¡± He said while smiling sheepishly at me. ¡°Well, thanks anyway. I better get going before I¡¯m late in submitting my quest.¡± I bid the guy farewell and I made my way toward the final destination of my quest. It was a stall located at the end of this street. Quite inconvenient as there were many players and NPCs walking around. Not just selling and buying items; some were even looking for pick-up-group (PUG) parties. ¡°Need level 25 tanker for the forest quest!¡± ¡°Healer needed for 4 people party at the Lossia dungeon!¡± ¡°Come and join us in exploring new areas. Newbies are welcome!¡± No one paid any attention to me as I walked past by each one of them. It was given anyway¨C a poor and low levelled newbie who would surely drag the team down. One request though had made me chuckle a little. It spoke volume of the guy who was looking for the party. ¡°Ladies only. Join if your characters had bigger boobs than 36DD.¡± Planning to create his own version of a harem in the virtual world. Not bad, but I was not interested in making one for myself. What I was interested in now was the pair of eyes that were following me since the beginning of the quest. I was sure that whoever it was must be waiting for me to relax my guard and then only to strike at that moment. Tired being followed around like this, I might as well amuse myself to this would-be-thief. And the next destination seemed to be the right spot to do it. Chapter 06: The Ally System Chapter 06: The Ally System I arrived at the fresh produce stall that sold everything¡­ well, fresh; vegetables, various kind of milks, meats and such. And I was here for the rainbow carrots. I took my pouch and dangled it around openly when I was looking at the items, trying to lure whoever that might be following me. But I could sense that the eyes were a little hesitant. Well, time to push this game a little further. I placed the money pouch on the wooden crate and I walked a couple of steps away to look at a bunch of fresh tomatoes and made myself busy with the merchant. ¡°Popo asked for 5 sticks of rainbow carrots. Do you have them?¡± ¡°Popo? What that Bunnian asking a human to do his work for him?¡± The merchant stared blankly at me. My mind though was somewhere else as I kept all my senses sharp. ¡°No idea. I just do whatever I¡¯m told. Besides, I get to have a little respite by walking around town¡­¡± The corner of my eyes peered towards the money pouch that I purposely left on that wooden crate. And true enough, I saw a hand placed itself on it; a thin and frail arm that protruded from the moving crowd. Heh. Caught you red-handed, little thief. Once the thief grabbed my pouch and slipped it inside that ragged robe of his, I had confirmed my suspicions. Before that happened, I was doubtful of the intention. That fellow might give the excuse that he just returned me the money pouch found lying around. Well, pocketing that money pouch inside his clothes just made him a little thieving brat. I excused myself from the shopkeeper and followed the thief from behind. He did not go far. Normally, a thief would run away and hide amongst the crowd after stealing something. But not this particular thief. Must be a new thief stealing from a new player. And when I was within an arm¡¯s reach, I immediately grabbed the thief and pulled him close. I covered the mouth with one hand while the other grabbed the waist, making sure that he did not try to escape. I then gave him an arm twist making a sort of lock from behind. However, I was quite surprised by this thief¡¯s build. Something was odd and I was about to find out. I took an exit towards the back alley with him. The crowd did not pay much attention to me as there were too many people who were busy doing their own things. And I did it stealthily too that did not arouse suspicions from others. As soon as we were safe from peering eyes, I pinned the thief to the wall. He was wearing a ragged robe and it smelled terribly bad. Looked like this brat had poor hygiene too. But nonetheless, a thief was still a thief. Time for me to end this little game, already. Though he tried his best to wiggle free from me, I knew better to keep an enemy in its place. ¡°Squirm all you like, but you are not going away from me.¡± The thief shrieked a little and tried harder to escape. ¡°Move more if you dare but don¡¯t blame me if I snapped your neck. No one escapes from my Eagle hold technique.¡± A technique I perfected to pin the enemy down while I was on duty in the war. Never thought I could do it flawlessly in here too. The thief, finally understanding his predicament, relented. His limb felled lifelessly. Now that I had his cooperation, might as well know who was this idiot in the first place. ¡°So, you are the one that had been following around since the beginning.¡± One of my hand pulled the hood of the robe to exposed the thief. However, I was surprised. I expected a little boy thief, but instead a long flowing lock of blonde hair fell out of the hood. The thief turned away as his identity was finally exposed. ***** ¡°So, a female thief. A good looking one at that too.¡± I grabbed hold of her face and examined it closely. She did not try to escape from me. It was futile since I had pinned her like this and exposed her identity. However, the findings did make me a little speechless. She did not look like a typical thief at all. Flawless with smooth and luscious skin, soft hair and full lips that knew not what poverty and malnourished meant. I searched her whole body under the hood. Her eyes widened in surprise as she squirmed yet again thinking that I was molesting her. ¡°Ahh¡­ here it is, my money pouch. You kept it well, between your breast too, huh?¡± She looked away in disgust. Being caught with the stolen item and now molested by the victim. What else could be worse than this? And then she cried; her tears streaming down her cheeks as she still had her back against the wall. But I did not care. Served her right for being a thief and stealing my quest money. Anyhow, I was done here. I let her go and she just fell to the ground weakly. I could hand her to a guard on duty and had her arrested but that would be more trouble for me. I had a quest to complete in a rush too by the way. She then covered her face with her hand. Her quiet sob in this back alley did make for a pitiful scene to anyone else except for me. I had done and seen worse during my youth. Better this than giving her over to the guards and let her rot in jail. ¡°You can go now. I got my items back.¡± I turned around and walked away. However, before I could take even a step, she grabbed me by the end of my pants. ¡°P-Pl¡­please help me. I... I¡¯m hungry.¡± A hungry thief. Well, it sucked to be you but I got no money. I was a poor sod who just started recently. Besides, I spent too much of my time training and not earning anything. I just shook my head at her and tried to kick her away. ¡°Sorry girl. Don¡¯t think bad of me, but I don¡¯t have any money.¡± Suddenly, I heard a grumbling voice. It was loud enough that I was even surprised by it. I could not get hungry while I was still in my first 2 months, so this sound must be from the girl instead. And I was right. She was holding her tummy and as our eyes met, she covered herself immediately. Her sense of modesty had finally prevailed. And this time I gave in. I did feel pity for a hungry fellow like this, NPC or not. For me, there was camaraderie to be found between starving people. I knelt in front of her and asked, ¡°Are you hungry?¡± She did not respond, only to look away from me. ¡°Well, if you are not going to cooperate with me, might as well you stay hungry like that. I¡¯m going!¡± As I tried to stand up, she suddenly grabbed my hand. And I looked down sternly. She gave a weak nod then looked away yet again. Must be a shy thief too. A modest and now a shy thief. It was somehow funny though I never seen one before. ¡°I don¡¯t know what can I do for you since it¡¯s not my money and I have a quest to complete. But you can either follow me around for a while and see for yourself or you can leave me. Either way, I don¡¯t care.¡± ¡°I-I¡¯ll follow you.¡± She pleaded to me with teary eyes. Perhaps she saw better reasons to follow me rather than wallowed herself in a dark alley. Who knew what might come here later. ¡°Good. And don¡¯t think about stealing anything. If you do, I¡¯ll hand you over the guards immediately.¡± ¡°P-please. Not that. I beg you¡­ please.¡± She shrieked a little at the mentioning of the guards and her face went pale. Did she have some phobia with the guards here? Perhaps she would do anything not to be arrested. ¡°Alright. If you say so. Now, I have a quest to complete. Tag along if you want.¡± And she did tag along with me. As soon as I bought all the items, the pop-up message appeared and instructed me to return to Popo with all the ingredients. ***** ¡°So, your name is Elly?¡± The girl nodded as she followed me at the side. ¡°I¡¯m Ghost. And as you know, I¡¯m a level 1 newbie here.¡±This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. She was shocked to hear that. ¡°B-But¡­ you don¡¯t act and move like one.¡± ¡°Really? Hahaha. Then how do I look or move like then?¡± I playfully asked her. Our interaction was less tense now. It might be odd but I think there was more to her than just a thieving brat. ¡°I don¡¯t know. But your eyes are scarily sharp and your movements are fast. No one has ever caught me before.¡± She explained. I chuckled a little hearing that. ¡°Like a ghost, right? That¡¯s what my name says, after all.¡± Grumbling sound of hunger could be heard from Elly again. This girl was quite pitiful. Perhaps she was not used to being hungry like this. If one was used to starvation, the stomach could actually accustom itself to the situation. And judging by the realism of this game, I was sure that it would be the case too. ¡°Po, we have a guest?¡± I returned to the Practice Hall with Elly. As I handed the ingredients to Popo, he was delighted at the speed of my completion. He took the items away and inspected it one by one. ¡°Everything¡¯s here? You surely are a fast worker, po.¡± Popo¡¯s whiskers moved a little and his ruby eyes looked at me doubtfully. ¡°Trust me a little, will you?¡± I was annoyed that he had to check the whole bags of ingredients. But he just laughed it out and waved me away. ¡°But it¡¯s just a simple quest for a man like you, right po?¡± And then, the customary quest completion message popped up. Since I had done it in a jiffy, the quest should give me a good reward.
Congratulations! You had completed the Quest: Get me my stuff, po!(1) Rewards: 2 silver coins.
What the fuck with this reward? No Experience Points or EXPs gain? No items and equips? Just a pitiful 2 silver? Fuck me sideways. And I completed it in a hurry too, you know. I left out a deep sigh. Popo looked at me bemusedly at my reaction. ¡°Po¡­ who¡¯s our new guest?¡± Ohh¡­ Popo had been asking about her since the beginning. Trying to divert the disappointment from my pitiful rewards, I looked at Elly. ¡°Well, an extra from the quest. She¡¯s the thief that I caught trying to steal your items.¡± ¡°Po?!¡± Popo looked angrily at Elly but I reassured him that what happened was because she was hungry. And I did catch her and returned with everything he needed. Took a little convincing but finally, Popo calmed down a little. ¡°Hungry doesn¡¯t mean you must be a thief, po!¡± ¡°And he¡¯s right. You could go out and gather foodstuff by yourself.¡± I chipped in. Elly just hung her head low. Must be feeling bad being reprimanded by 2 strangers with a hungry stomach. ¡°Well, perhaps we could feed her for now, Popo.¡± And that was my intention. I felt pity for her and the reason why I brought her back here was twofold. One was for Popo to feed her. ¡°Feed a thief? No way, po!¡± the Bunnian protested immediately. I then whispered to Popo about my reasoning. As soon as he heard it, he smirked. It was sure easy to convince him this time seeing that he could use Elly here in Practice Hall. She looked at us with suspicion but she held her tongue quite comfortable not to say anything that might turn Popo away. And Popo was laughing hysterically at the end of it. I was sure he had imagined something silly and perverted; dressing Elly in a bunny-girl suit and let her become this place eye-candy. And that was my second reason. Two sweating men weren¡¯t going to work. A scantily dressed blonde girl in a bunny suit would surely be some eye-popping candy. It would surely attract new and old players, alike. Of course, she did not have to know about it or like it either. ¡°Alright! I¡¯ll feed you, po. But you must follow my every command, understand po?¡± Elly nodded enthusiastically amidst Popo¡¯s excited order, not knowing what both of us had in mind for her. For once, she now could smile a little. That looked like it was over. Time for me to resume my training. However, before I could do anything, a message popped up on my screen.
Train Elly (1) Elly, the thief girl, is weak and defenceless. You are required to train her before she could do the job in Practice Hall. Quest Rank: F Completion Requirements: Train Elly until Popo is satisfied with her progress. Quest Reward: None This quest cannot be rejected or cancelled.
Another quest? And it could not be rejected nor cancelled. Aww, man. As I was cursing my luck, suddenly, another message popped-up again.
Elly, the Thief Congratulations! Elly now has become your ally. You can now proceed to check her status on the ally¡¯s status screen. Remember, that your ally grows with you. Take care of all your allies well and you will succeed where everyone else will fail. Good luck!
The Ally System. One of the main attraction of NPO. An ¡®Ally¡¯ was one of a kind NPC that served the players in many ways. Once the ally had been assigned to a player, the said ally would cease to be available to others. So, ally was a unique NPC, bound to only one character in the whole NPO. An ally was indeed precious, worth more than the rarest of the rare items. However, there was a catch. Not only we have to train the ally from the beginning since every one of them started at Level 1, but any dead ally would severely deduct our Charisma, Command points and Fame. No one would be willing to serve under a selfish arsehole who think about himself and jeopardize others, right? Furthermore, during my initial research before playing the game, I had been made known that were 2 ways how an NPCs could get killed and 3 ways for an ally. First was by special events; especially a war or a town siege. NPCs immortality had been lifted off and we could freely kill any NPCs, whether in fields or towns. Bear in mind that killing innocent NPCs especially women and children would severely deduct fame points. The second was through the quest storyline where certain NPCs needed to be killed. Once killed, the quest would have ceased to exist. An NPC killing quest was unique and one of a kind. For example, killing the NPC King during a war. And third which was special only to the player-ally relationship. As a player, we could kill our own ally once we disabled the friendly-fire; a system that protects us from mistakenly killing our allies. However, there were extreme penalties given to such act. Even with the friendly-fire system on, we could still hurt our ally during normal combats and fights and he or she would be definitely pissed off thus lowering their affinities to us. Well, I was lucky to gain Elly as my ally. What made it good for me was that she was at Level 1, like me. So training her was easy. I opened up Elly¡¯s status screen.
STATUS PAGE
Character Name Elly? Alignment Unknown
Level 1 Fame (Recognition Points) 0
Class Thief?
Affinity 11/100 (Distrust)
STATUS INFORMATION SCREEN
HP 100 STR 5
MP 150 DEX 11
ATTACK POWER 30 INT 10
MAGIC POWER 20 CHA 10
DEFENCE RATING 15 WIS 11
STAMINA 90 LUCK 12
COMMAND POINTS 0 AGI 11
MAGIC AND ELEMENTAL RATINGS (%)
FIRE WATER WIND EARTH HOLY DARK
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
BIODATA: Elly, the thief was caught by you. Nothing much is known about her, only that you pitied her and gave her food.
It was the same screen as my character¡¯s but what with the question mark at Elly¡¯s name? It bothered me for a while, though it must be about those affinities thingy. It meant that the closer we get, the more she would open up about herself. The only difference was I could not allocate the stat points myself when she levelled up. What I knew from the help menu was, she would ask me from time to time about her growth and according to my answer, she would allocate the points. It was random, so I had no idea how though. The rest was unexplained. Looked like I had to find it out by myself further. And the Affinity was at the lowest. There were 10 levels of Affinity for an ally, with Hatred being the lowest, followed by Distrust, Acquaintance, Neutral, Friend, Best Friend and with Revered being the highest that one can achieve normally. The other four? Well, each ally would have different affinity once it passed the Revered Affinity. I don¡¯t know what would Elly be like, but well, let¡¯s see how she would grow first. Chapter 07: The Time Has Come To See The World! Chapter 07: The Time Has Come To See The World! Since I finished the quest early, Popo could now go back to his house first and handed over the ingredients to his missus. And he would return later with some food for Elly too. In the meantime, I was supposed to train her. ¡°So, Elly. What do you want to become?¡± I asked before I decided to start her training. But her answer disappointed me somehow. ¡°You decide, Ghost. I don¡¯t mind either way.¡± Too wishy-washy for my taste. But then, which women weren¡¯t like that? Since I knew pretty much what I wanted to be, I picked up a sword, a couple of daggers and a shield, all made from wood and gave it to her. ¡°Equip the dagger on each hand first.¡± She nodded and immediately the weapon flashed on her hand. ¡°Good!¡± I equipped myself with a couple of daggers too. Each of us would stand in front of training dummy and I instructed Elly of what she needed to do. For her wishy-washy attitude, she seemed to catch on really quick. ¡°So, I¡¯ll teach you two basic ways of holding a dagger; a reserve hold and a forward hold. Hold it like how I do and then I need you to swing it this way, alright. A dagger has the shortest range after all.¡± And it was not just that. Not only it had a short range, a dagger had one of the lowest attack physical ratings of any weapon. The only weapon lower than a dagger in term of physical attack rating was a magic wand, but it was a non-issue since a wand would increase the user¡¯s magic attack rating instead. However, what made dagger as a weapon deadly was because of its versatility, attack speed and the precise strike. And a dagger on each hand would increase the effectiveness even more. Though it had its pros and cons, for now, a dagger was the simplest weapon to teach. She listened carefully to my instruction. Even when I told her that she needed to practice the same movement non-stop for the next 2 hours, she did not even complain to me once. I could do with this attitude for an ally. She was focused, diligent and surprisingly a fast learner who happened to be obedient too. I could not have asked for a better ally. She might be weak, but then again, she had me to do the rest. I continued on practising non-stop for the next few hours. By that time, Popo had returned with the lunch, and as the two of the NPCs had their lunch, I continued to train. ¡°Look at your trainer, po. He sure works hard.¡± ¡°I could see that. And he seems to be kind too.¡± ¡°What do you mean by that, po?¡± ¡°He could leave me alone in the back alley when he caught me or had the guards threw me in jail. Or even worse, stripped me naked and abuse me instead. Men are vile creatures, Instructor Popo.¡± ¡°Not all men, po. Maybe the one you had met previously, but I¡¯m sure Ghost is not like that.¡± ¡°I-I think so too. If I was not too hungry and weak, I might not readily have accepted his help, but then again, everything happened for a reason.¡± The two of them chit-chatted while watching me training as if I was sort of exhibit. Surely they were talking about me and I could catch a little of their conversation but I could not care about that. My stats had risen up after all the effort I had put in.
Your Strength went up +1 point! (+ 1 STR)
Your Agility went up + 1 point! (+1 AGI)
Your Dexterity went up +1 point! (+1 DEX)
Oh wow. Three stats increased at the same time. I was questioning whether my training has reached the peaked when suddenly, I received a stat increase message. Seemed like training with weapons increased my stats a little faster than being bare-handed. But training bare-handed was important too as I could feel the extent of my training and surrounding. Besides, I just used only a week of game time to actually practice bare-handed. I still have 7 weeks to go. ***** 3 weeks of gameplay passed by. During that time, I had increased by Strength by a further 15 points, Agility by 20 points, Dexterity by 15 points, Charisma by 3 points and Luck by 3 points. The Charisma increased was because of Elly as she too raised her stats by quite a bit and increased her Affinity towards me. And I had gained myself 4 new skills too. 1 Active Skill and 3 Passives Skills. Since both active and passive skills were capped at 100 in total, I had no problem accepting these skills as it were.
PASSIVE SKILL: BLADE MASTERY Level 1 Descriptions: +10 STR, +10 DEX, + 10 AGI when using bladed weapons. Increase damage done by 15% when using any bladed weapon.
PASSIVE SKILL: CLOSE COMBAT MASTERY Level 1 Description: Equipping all melee weapon or going barehanded grant the user 15% increase in damage, 10% increase in HP, 5% increase Stamina. Permanently increase STR, DEX and AGI by +2
PASSIVE SKILL: UNYIELDING Level 1. Descriptions: Stamina consumption decreased slowly when in combat. The current speed of stamina consumption rate 90%
ACTIVE SKILL: MAD RUSH Level 1 Descriptions: For a brief time, increase all your damage output by 30% for 1 minute. After that, -50% defence rating for 30 seconds. Cooldown: 3 minutes.
I was jubilant with my progress. It was worth something to celebrate about. In fact, I did just that by telling Popo and Elly. They too were happy to see my progress. As Popo would always say, nothing beats having to see one student growing so much under his watch. Yeah, under his watch alright for he was just watching me ¨C and most of the time, doing nothing. Whatever, you lazy rabbit. Elly had now moved to her third weapon training, which was using the combination of sword and shield. I had taught her to use her shield not just a mean to defend but also as a blunt weapon. Done right, it could be very well damn effective, especially using a small rounded shield. Bashing an enemy to its head with a shield once we side-stepped it would definitely leave a major sore. A big shield would be too clunky for that, but a small rounded shield was perfect. However, she was still wearing the same outfit as I first saw her. Heck, even me too. 4 weeks of gameplay and I had yet to even had a proper clothing. Just a pair of beginner¡¯s outfit. ¡°Elly, come here for a while.¡± I stopped her in the middle of her training. As she wiped her sweat away, she came to me with a smile on her face despite having trained non-stop for 4 hours. Her complexion changed for the better now. She did not look hungry anymore. Popo had been feeding her and in return, she would take care of the Practice Hall when he decided to play truant; which happened more often than not. The idea of her being a bunny girl went up in smoke the moment she saw the costume. Hell wrath no fury like a woman scorned. In the end, she ended up wearing the same old clothes much to Popo¡¯s initial dismay. ¡®What is it, Ghost?¡± ¡°Well, I¡¯ve been thinking. I have 4 more weeks to go before I could go outside the city-gates and explore the world and it quite saddened me to see us like this.¡± I pointed to our clothes. ¡°But aren¡¯t we poor? You don¡¯t have money. And it¡¯s the same as me.¡± Her words stung me right off the bat. Yeah, I knew our conditions better than anyone here. ¡°Shush. Don¡¯t state the obvious, Elly. It hurts, you know. Besides, can¡¯t we do anything else to earn money?¡± ¡°Well, other than killing monsters, looting items and then selling them, completing quests and missions¡­ I don¡¯t know much else.¡± Elly was basically repeating what I already knew. ¡°What are you two talking about, po?¡± Suddenly, Popo came out from nowhere and interrupted us. I thought he went out as usual especially during this time of the day. ¡°Ghost just said that we looked poor and behave like one, too¡± ¡°Oi, I did not say that!¡± Elly just laughed at me as I tried to shut her mouth. But she was nimble enough to avoid me. ¡°I agree, po! You two reeks of salted vegetables that it stinks my whole place.¡± Popo scrunched his nose and his whiskers moved wildly. ¡°Oh, shut up you lazy rabbit!¡± I retorted back at him almost immediately. This was our usual ¡®friendly¡¯ banter. ¡°I¡¯m not lazy and I¡¯m not a rabbit, po! I¡¯m a Bunnian. Rabbit is that stupid creature which happened to look like us and get killed by noobs like you!¡± Whatever, you lazy rabbit. You looked like one and behaved like one too for me to think otherwise. No one day that would pass without him or me having to insult each other. In fact, I gave him the middle name ¡®Lazy Rabbit¡¯ and he called me ¡®Salted Vege¡¯. To others, we might behave like we were looking for a fight, but Popo and I knew better. And the end of the day, we would often laugh it off while calling each other names.Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. ¡°I¡¯m distributing flyers, you know!¡± The lazy rabbit did some work? My ears must be bleeding hearing that. ¡°Hmm, what flyers?¡± Elly came forward, pushing me aside. ¡°Nothing a low-level newbie like you need to know. But, I have something else for you if you want to make a little money.¡± ¡°Tell us, Instructor Popo.¡± Elly immediately went over and caressed Popo¡¯s long ears like usual. They had been like this since the beginning. I was not wrong to think that their relationship was closer than I was to any of them. ¡°Well, my farmer friend seems to be having a little trouble with growing his crops. Too many rodents, he said.¡± ¡°Ahh¡­ but I can¡¯t get out of the city, just yet.¡± I commented, thus interrupting him. Looking at me annoyed, he let out a sigh. ¡°Then you have to wait until then to meet him, po! If you want, I can tell you about it once you had completed your training. Anyhow, Elly could still do the work for me and earn you two a little money.¡± ¡°Hmmphh¡­ I won¡¯t give him any.¡± Elly playfully pouted at me. I knew she was not serious when she said that but I was not going to borrow money from women. Mrs Green was an exception and that was the first and last time I asked her anyway. But a quest involving rodent? Somehow, it sounded lame to me though. Not sure whether I wanted to take it or not once I could travel out of the city. Besides, I still needed to complete my training before I really set out into this world. I could do what other players do when they first started later on. Since I was midway through my training, might as well go all out. I have 3 more weapons left to train myself in; the bow, staff and wand. Elly was instructed by Popo to follow him and earn us some money. She was obliged to his request seeing how much of a poor state we were in. As both of them left, the Practice Hall was quiet once again. Most players didn¡¯t really come here, after all. I had been here for a month and saw nothing more than a few groups of passersby who just checked out on the place. No one here wanted to get close to a madman training like hell and a woman dressed in dirty rag who trained alongside him. And perhaps that might worry Popo too. Ahh well, I could not be bothered about it. It was his place after all, not mine. He handled his own affairs and leave mine alone. But then again, it was quite sad to see this marvellous place being empty like this. ***** 4 weeks had passed. Finally, the day had arrived; the day that I could move out from the city and actually play this game for real. 18 hours a day for 2 weeks of real time just training in this amazing but desolate Practice Hall was taking a toll on my sanity. Though it could not have rivalled the intensity of my previous experiences nonetheless, facing the lifeless training dummies were getting on my nerve a little. And that included Popo who was always missing, leaving me and Elly alone here. I didn¡¯t mind it if it was not for other players who came here by mistake and treat me as if I was the NPC of this place. ¡°Po, are you really leaving? I would be lonely, you know.¡± I was surprised by what he said. A few days back, he could not be any gladder to see the back of me. What with the change of attitude? Was he what I call¡­ a tsun-something? ¡°I have to do what I must do, Popo. Besides, I still have to be around the city since I¡¯m just level 1.¡± ¡®Well, you are right, po. But I¡¯ll still miss you.¡± He slumped his shoulder and gave me that wide, cute, and irresistible stare. I hated when he did that. I have a certain weak spot for plushy and furry things. ¡°Aww man. Don¡¯t give me that eyes, Popo. Please not.¡± ¡°If you say so, po. But the world outside is dangerous. This place is safer.¡± ¡°Because the world is dangerous that I¡¯m planning to conquer it. Besides, I have Elly here with me.¡± I looked at Elly who was keeping quiet all the time, munching her lunch which was provided by Popo as usual. ¡°I like Instructor Popo¡¯s food. If I can, I want to stay here too. But, Ghost still is weak and need my help too.¡± Heh. Talk the one who begged me for food. Did you forget how you ended up here in the first place? Elly just looked at me and she gave out her grin. Well, for an NPC, she was beautiful. Her long blonde hair and her beautiful sculptured figure would turn any eyes on her. I could not help but to sneak a peek here and there when she was assuming nice but questionable fighting pose. And of course, I had no choice but to touch and corrected her mistakes. But she could do first without talking while eating her foods. ¡°Well, if you insist, po. But before you go, I want to give you something. As my thanks.¡± Huh? A gift as thanks? What for? I should be the one thanking Popo, not the other way around. He sure was nonchalant in his duties but he was still here for me all these while accompanying me in my dreaded 2 months of game-time training. Suddenly, the system message just popped-up from my screen.
Practice Hall Special Quest Completed! Congratulations on completing the dreaded and boring Practice Hall quest. Instructor Popo is delighted that you had spent the whole 2 months here learning and perfecting the art of fighting, forgoing the pleasures of the world. He was so impressed by your hard work and diligence and decided to give you your just reward. A man of your dedication must not go empty-handed, Popo said. Rewards: + 1 Popo¡¯s Iron Sword + Popo¡¯s Special Armour Set (comes with full set of premium clothing with Popo¡¯s trademark on it.) + 200 EXPs + 50 silver + 3 Fame. + 4 ranks of Affinity with Popo. Gained Title: Popo¡¯s Student (+ 1 STR, + 1 DEX, + 150 HP)
Wow, what a pleasant surprise. Once I completed accepting the reward, my level increase to Level 2 immediately. I was rewarded with additional 5 stat points to be allocated as how I see fit. I opened up my status screen to my progress so far.
STATUS PAGE
Character Name Ghost Alignment Unknown
Level 2 Fame (Recognition Points) 3
Class NA
Title Popo¡¯s Student
Clan NA
STATUS INFORMATION SCREEN
HP 250 (+150) STR 65 (+1)
MP 120 DEX 65 (+1)
ATTACK POWER 50 AGI 72
MAGIC POWER 50 INT 10
DEFENCE RATING 25 WIS 10
STAMINA 100 LUCK 16
COMMAND POINTS 0 CHA 13
MAGIC AND ELEMENTAL RATINGS (%)
FIRE WATER WIND EARTH HOLY DARK
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Satisfied with my progress, I did not need to spend the 5 stats points from leveling up bonus. I also decided to disable the display of my title for public view. Popo¡¯s Student for a title sound kind of lame though I used it for the stat boost. Looking at my stats alone, I did not blame others who think I might be in mid-level 30s or something. If I were to tell them that I was just at level 2, they would not only have laughed at me but ignored me altogether. Since bots and spammers were nonexistent in NPO, no one would have bothered reporting me. But all these did not come easy for me. I had paid my dues and now reaping the rewards. I then checked my new items.
Popo¡¯s Iron Sword. Requirements: Level 1. Durability 100/100 Descriptions: Just a gift to remind you of me, po. + 10 STR, + 5 DEX, + 5 AGI when equipped. + 15% Damage when equipped. + 30% Bonus Damage versus wild animals. Equipment Status: Bound
Popo¡¯s Special Armour Set Requirements: Level 1. Durability 255/255 Descriptions: It¡¯s comfortable and keeps you warm at night, po. + 20 STR, + 15 DEX, + 15 AGI when equipped. + 50 Defense Rating When you equipped this armour set, you cannot wear any other armour until you unequipped it first. Equipment Status: Bound
For a starter equipment, this was fucking awesome. I could not believe my own eyes. I was sure those higher levels would not bat an eyelid over this, but for me, this was a godsend. Since it was bound to me, only I could have equipped all these items. I thanked Popo nonstop. He just beamed with happiness when I mentioned how thankful I am and I¡¯ll not forget him. What was left now was to look for Elly¡¯s equipment before we set on our journey. But before I could think any further, Popo suddenly asked me. ¡°Po, do you still remember about the quest I had told you about?¡± Oh, that quest. The one with the farmer having trouble with rodent¡¯s infestation? I just nodded at Popo as he explained to me. ¡°I need you to help my friend if you are alright with it.¡± Well, since Popo had done so much for me, it was my turn to reply in kind. I answered yes to which he again was all happy and jolly.
You had accepted the Quest: Get me my stuff, po!(2)
Get me my stuff, po!(2) I¡¯m sad¡­ When I went to the market to buy some rainbow carrots, it was out of stock. The merchant said that the farmer that had been growing the vegetables had some trouble and had since stopped supplying us with the delicious carrots. And the farmer happened to be a friend of mine too. Please help me, po¡­ Quest Rank: F Completion Requirements: Talk to the farmer, Bill. His farm is just outside the city. Quest Reward: None.
¡°Thank you, po. I really mean it.¡± ¡°It¡¯s alright, Popo. I want to do this to thank you too. But I¡¯ll get on to it once I get something for Elly.¡± ¡°It¡¯s alright. But don¡¯t take too long or else I¡¯m going to miss eating my rainbow carrots.¡± ¡°Haha. Silly rabbit. You won¡¯t. I would be back in the jiffy before you know it.¡± I laughed at him much to his annoyance. I won¡¯t get tired of seeing him trying to get angry with that rabbit look of his. ¡°Again, I¡¯m a Bunnian. Not a rabbit.¡± Yeah, yeah. We bid our goodbye to Popo for now. To help us in our journey, Popo gave us a further 20 smoked meats and a dozen of bread loaves. It was all he could do for us, he said. Well, he did more than he could and I really appreciated it. Before both Elly and I could make into the city gate for the first time, I decided to take a little detour. I needed to equip her first. So we headed for the Adventurer Market Street for that very purpose. Chapter 08: The Poor Noob. Chapter 08: The Poor Noob. ¡°What?! That¡¯s all I could get?!¡± I was surprised by the obscene amount of the item that listed for sale. I went back to the guy the other day who gave me a weird and untrustworthy information. Though I doubted his words, his wares were different. Among his wares were some high quality equips that I could make use for my journey. However, the price was extremely exorbitant. In fact, most of the items that were for sale by the other merchants, PCs and NPCs here were ridiculously pricey. ¡°Look man, I really want to help you. Being a newbie and all is a tough thing. But it¡¯s a fair price. This is a new city, with new players and the nearest one is the Royal Capital, few maps away, which is littered with high level monsters in between.¡± I looked dejected. Even Elly too was surprised by the price and she tried to reasoned me not to buy anything. But I had decided to equip her one way or another. ¡°Is there anything at all you could do?¡± The merchant, that goes by the name Shawn, a player character would always make his trade here. As he thought hard what he could do to help me, I looked around and saw more people buying items. Even those that looked like newbies could purchase something fancy. ¡°Well, don¡¯t be too hard on yourself. I don¡¯t know what you did the whole time here or you just logged in to AFG, but those people had been playing here far longer than you. They had been killing monsters around the city, collected the loots and sold it to us here.¡± One girl walked into a shop wearing all tattered robes and when she came out, she looked dazzling; a fighter type player with a new sword and an armour set. And there was this guy who keep on trying new weapon and equips next to me. Once he picked a fancy looking bow, a dagger and a new outfit, he took out a big pile of money pouch and handed it to the merchant. ¡°Well, if you really want something within your budget, I could make do with these old stuffs I bought from other players.¡± Oh! Now that was a good news for a change. He took out a decrepit and old looking wand with a similar robe, all dirty and dusty. Wearable but it looked ugly. ¡°I could spare you this wand and this basic mage robe for 60 silver coins. That¡¯s the best price I could give you.¡± That was not what I wanted to equip Elly with. She was supposed to be a damage dealing type, of what people would call Damage per Second player (DPSer). And I was supposed to tank. And now, the plan seemed to jump right out of window. ¡°Look, I need to equip my ally here some proper equips. I can¡¯t do that with that wand or mage robe.¡± ¡°Oh? You have an ally? Well, that¡¯s great for you. I don¡¯t know where you get her, but it¡¯s great to have an ally working with you.¡± Shawn scrutinized Elly up and down. She was still in the ragged robes and it did not give a proper first impression. ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s great and such, but I need to give her a proper weapon before she could be of real use. The only proper items I have had been bounded to me.¡± ¡°Well, in that case, why not you gave your items, instead,¡± he suggested. ¡°You could do that?¡± I was surprised. There were not much information regarding allies that I could gathered anywhere else even before I started playing the game. To find out that Shawn knew about it was a pleasant surprise for me indeed. ¡°Between allies, yes. Let her equip your items if you wanted it.¡± That idea might work. I gave Elly my items for her to equip. Though she was reluctant at first, she finally relented after I pressured to take her off from my party list if she was not going to listen. I did not need to carry a NPC and let her leech my EXP just like that. She needed to earn her dough, too. And Elly successfully equipped my items. I supposed that any items that were bounded to me could be used by any of my allies. I thanked him for the tips he had just given me. Elly now looked much fitter to explore the world now. As for me, well¡­ ¡°Is that all you want?¡± ¡°You can give me more if you want. But as far as the money concern, I¡¯m broke.¡± I had spent 60 silver coins to equip myself with old and decrepit wand and a dirty looking mage robe. I opened the window screen and was extremely disappointed with the result.
Old Wooden WandLove what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. Requirements: Level 1 Durability 3/10 Descriptions: This is the most basic of all the magic wands. You should get rid of it once you find a better one. Don¡¯t be such a cheapskate! + 3 INT when equipped. + 3% Magic Damage when equipped. Equipment Status: Bound (Ghost)
Tattered Mage Robe Requirements: Level 1. Durability 2/10 Descriptions: A well-worn mage robe that had seen better days. Doesn¡¯t give much of anything. Better be naked than being seen wearing one. + 2 INT when equipped. Equipment Status: Bound (Ghost)
Ughh¡­ but beggars can¡¯t be choosers. And I looked like a proper beggar too nowadays. Once I wore it, everyone looked at me and laughed hard. Everyone else was shopping to make themselves looked better and perform well in their adventure. And here I was, exchanging Popo¡¯s equipment into something as ugly as this. Elly tried her best to console me, but then again¡­ I let out a deep sigh. ¡°Hey man. Don¡¯t worry about it. If you work hard, I¡¯m sure that you would equip yourself with some proper equipment sooner. I¡¯ll wait you until then.¡± I just gave a weak nod to the merchant. I didn¡¯t mind being a magic user, but I could help to think that I just wasted 2 weeks of real time training for the wrong stats. I had not increase a single point of my INT point and not only that, I have no magic skills with me. And the words around streets told me that to learn magic skills, I must have at least a few gold coins with me. I let out a deep groan of disappointment. An honest and a newbie mistake. I should think about it better, next time. I got caught up in the excitement of walking, working out again and raising stats that I basically forgotten about the other aspect of the game. Should have asked more money from that lazy rabbit. ¡°Ghost, do you want the equipment back? I don¡¯t mind wearing the thing that you are wearing now, you know.¡± Elly was still feeling guilty of having my items but it was not because of that I was disappointed about. Well, the past was past and there was nothing else I could do, for now. Time to head out and earned ourselves some EXPs, money and practice some skills. ¡°It¡¯s OK, Elly. I think you¡¯d better use the equips I gave you. I still could do something with whatever I have.¡± And if I have to, I would go barehanded. A low durability equips meant that it could break anytime and I didn¡¯t have the money to repair it once broken. Both of us walked towards the main gate. As we approached the border between the city and the outside world, suddenly a system message popped-up.
About Exploring the World (1) Congratulations on finally settling into the world of Noble Path Online. We trust that you had made good use of your adjustment period while waiting for this very moment where you can now explore the vast world of Astral-Gaia Realm. Since you are going to take your first step into the world, we would like to tell you a few important things that would help in your journey. 1. All your character¡¯s senses including hunger and pain had now been set to ON. This is a system change. To quell your fear about the safety of inflicting pain in gaming and the extent of it uses and practicality, this system is under UWN and WGCHS¡¯s extreme strict guidelines of VR gaming. You are guaranteed to be safe at all times in NPO. 2. Though there are no quest markers, we trust you to be able to talk to strangers and players around to learn a few things that would make your gaming experience an enjoyable one. 3. Death and Respawn. Unless otherwise stated, characters respawn would be at the nearest safe zone of your character¡¯s death point. However, you have to wait for 24 hours in real time for your character to respawn fully. 4. PK-Zone. PK-Zone shall be marked on your map and a prior warning would be given before you enter. A system icon would be on top of your screen to serve as reminder as long as you are in the PK-Zone. 5. HELP Menu. Please read through your HELP Menu if you needed more information regarding the systems, rules and regulations of the game. Till then, enjoy your time in NPO!
¡°Ghost, if you may, I¡¯ll tell you a little about the ally system.¡± Elly suddenly talked to me as I finished reading the system message. ¡°You can summon me to your side anytime you want. But I must be on the same map as you for you to do so. If you need to dismiss me, you could do that too at any time and I would be waiting for you at the nearest safe-zone.¡± After a slight pause, she continued. ¡°And if you log-out, like usual I¡¯ll be free to do whatever I want; sleep, farm, go back to town, train or just wait for you.¡± ¡°Alright. Got it. But for now, stick with me, alright.¡± I just patted her shoulder in response. Elly nodded enthusiastically. I wanted to check Elly¡¯s stats before we started. She was at Level 1, with 40 STR, 35 DEX, 38 AGI, 13 INT, 10 CHA and 12 LCK after adding the effects of the equips I had given her earlier. Having no resistance to magic and such, she was as bare as they come. She managed to learn a few skills too during her training. Compared to me, she had learned all Active Skills with damage dealing capabilities instead. And that was the reason why I wanted her to be the DPSer and not me. Chaotic Strike, Double Strike and Shield Bash. I had seen her using those skills on training dummies and now was the time to try it on proper monsters. Many PCs and NPCs were traversing in and out the main gate. As we stood side by side of each other, after 2 months of hellish training and the utmost boring routine one could ever do anywhere else, I gave out a shout that startled not only Elly, but everyone else too. But I did not care. I continued to tumble around, squatting and jumping like a hallucinated deer getting electrocuted and then ended up with my Karlton¡¯s Dance routine. Needed to vent off my steam from earlier disappointment. ¡°Prrriitt!!!!¡± Oh, there was that damn whistle again. I gave out a loud laugh before I took Elly¡¯s hand and dashed outside the main gate. ¡°Let¡¯s go, Elly.¡± I led both of us out of City of Asgardia. And it did not take long for our enemy to appear either. Barely 100 steps outside the main gate, we encountered our first monster of the game. Chapter 09: The Brawling Mage. Chapter 09: The Brawling Mage. ¡°Puni~~!¡± The monster that appeared in front of us was a Punio, a blueish slime ball of a creature with the size larger than the average football. It was a Level 1 monster and basically just acted as an EXP fodder for newbies like me. And it seemed there were lots of newbies too along the main road outside the City of Asgardia. ¡°Double Strike!!¡± Elly let out a cry all of a sudden and attacked the Punio that was in front of us. Without hesitation, she unleashed her skills on that poor little creature. Though she was just a Level 1, she proved far too strong for it. As soon as she landed the hit, the Punio¡¯s slimy body contorted and exploded. The gooey blue flesh stuck all over Elly and made a mess of her new costume. But that did not stop her. She was attacking yet another one straight away. ¡°Oi, Elly. Leave some for me too.¡± And she did not even listen. She was attacking non-stop the other few Punios that was coming at her with a speed. Hopping around her, she disposed of the group with such ease. As soon as she killed all of them, she levelled up to Level 2. Half of the EXPs she gained was shared with me, though I had yet to level up myself. ¡°Ghost! I¡¯ve levelled. Hurray!¡± ¡°Great job Elly!¡± She just giggled at me as she looked happy with herself. Not even 5 minutes into our adventure, Elly had levelled up twice. That was quick. And I couldn¡¯t be left behind too. I was too engrossed looking at some other players killing these Punios en-masse. Slashing, piercing, stabbing, smashing and magic bullets of fire or ice were the main methods how these players killed all the poor creatures. It was like a mass Punio-cide. Once these blue slime balls appeared, they were wiped out quickly. There were hundreds of these monsters scattered around the wide road and it went extinct a few moments later. Too many players and not enough monster. Once the Punios respawned, it was all rinse and repeat. If I didn¡¯t hurry up, I might lag behind Elly. Suddenly, one of these monsters respawned next to where I stood. Immediately, it hopped to engage me in combat. Feeling a little excited, I welcomed it advances with an open arm. And a swinging leg too. I kicked the monster and it flew high up in the air and exploded. And with that, I earned myself 2 EXP. Yeah! My first kill of the game. However, there was no items drop. Pitiful but nonetheless I was super excited. It had been a while since I had become a newbie and engrossed myself in destroying hapless slime ball that hopped around. It might be cute and cuddly, but it was my prey nonetheless. And I was not about to let go of easy preys like this. I ran towards a group of Punios, bypassing Elly who was surrounding herself with another group of 5 of them. I dashed and kicked the frontmost one with the same style earlier, leg swiped a couple more that was coming from the front and punched another two that was coming to my side. All in all, I killed 5 Punios without breaking a sweat. I just extended 10 Stamina for all my effort and had not used any skill yet. And I levelled up immediately after that. However, I would not be spending any single stat points, reserving all the points until Level 10 and wham! Spam the stats increase that would accommodate my playing. What stats I have now was more than enough for me. No need for me to raise my stats just for the sake of raising it. ¡°Whoa¡­ look at that noob. Ain¡¯t he a magic user?!¡± ¡°Yeah! Looks like a poor one too. Why is he wrestling all those monster instead of using magic?¡± ¡°Hahaha. Perhaps he¡¯s a noob, that¡¯s why.¡± A few sneers and jeers came my way from other players. Perhaps what they saw was a mage acting like a brawler, using bare-handed tactics instead of magic. Unfortunately, they were right about one thing though, I had no magic skills to be casted. But whatever. I had fun fighting bare-handed. It was more fun going into the thick of action rather than firing at a safe distance hoping for an instant kill hit, or one kit KO. As I was finishing my next batch of Punio-bashing works, suddenly, I heard Elly screamed. ¡°Yaaarghh!!¡± I turned my back and saw that she was surrounded by no less than 20 Punios. As they were ganging her up and attacking from all direction, I could not help but to laugh. She was too eager and now had aggro-ed all the slime balls in the area towards her. Spamming her skills injudiciously had left her with low Stamina and even lower MP for her to cast any more skills. And now, all she could do was to waving her sword around in panic.Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. ¡°Ghost! Help me!¡± She shouted for my help. I was still laughing at her when another Punio came from my back and I destroyed it into pieces with a roundhouse kick. ¡°Serve you right for fighting like an idiot!¡± I laughed at her misery. Her HP was slowly depleting and she was left with 25% HP now. And the monsters kept coming at her non-stop. And what made the scene even funnier was to see her crying while hacking away like a crazed blonde girl swatting at flies. Looked like she just chewed more than she could eat and now she was in danger for that. Imagined, being ganged up by lowly enemies and died a miserable death like that. It could be made into a few good jokes later, but I couldn¡¯t let this hapless and na?ve girl to die on my watch. Though she was just an NPC, nonetheless a companion was a companion after all. And I would rather have her fighting alongside me for now. ¡°Duck, Elly!¡± I dashed forward and jumped kick a few that were biting her. Standing in the middle of the angry mob of Punios, I made quick work out of them. 20 were fell in an instant. Since Elly left the attacking to me, her aggro had died down. Although I was the one aggro-ing now for her sake, it was not high enough for the whole bunch of them to come my way. In fact, I went to look for more and unfortunately drowned in my adrenaline rage, killsteal-ed a few more Punios that the other players were attacking. Not only that it took them by surprise, I stole their EXP and for that, instead of receiving a warm and heroic welcome, I received curses. Bitter curses of people losing their mark to some weird and random strangers. ¡°Fuck you, noob! Don¡¯t KS my monster!¡± ¡°Stop killstealing us!¡± ¡°Yeah, fuck off from our place!¡± ¡°You want me to kill you instead, punk?¡± A bunch of them were angry at me alright. But hey, there were more Punios than one could have time for. The respawn rate was fast and the earlier players had probably levelled up and moved onto another place. No need to swear like an emo-punk. Or bitch, since the girls were prone to swearing as much as the boys did. I felt like I wanted to be a jerk and taunted them some more by KS-ing their monsters, but I would have to save it for another day. For another worthwhile monster to killsteal. ***** I let Elly rest for a while as I took out a few more Punios that came our way. Fighting as a pair, both of us had no problem taking turns to aggro and kill groups of them with ease. And then, we continued on until both of us exhausted all our Stamina. ¡°Whoa. Look at that two couples. Must be crazy doing something like that.¡± ¡°If they want to kite, better use an archer. Not a melee attacker and a mage who can¡¯t use magic.¡± ¡°It was lucky that they did not die. How stupid could they be surrounding themselves with a monster mob like that.¡± It was not lucky, you arseholes newbies. It was my hard-trained techniques, unlike you people who just keep attacking and hacking without any proper techniques. Using a skill and calling it skilful was nonsense of the highest order. I had yet to use a single skill and killed much more than most of them did. In fact, going bare-handed, I managed to create an area of effect or AOE attack. Grouping the monsters in a group of no less than 5, I took all of it in an instant with smooth flowing martial arts. Simple enough if you knew how. Judging by their initial reactions, I could safely have assumed that these players didn¡¯t know feck all. And perhaps, they too were override with jealousy since I had been on a killing spree for a while. They were attacking a single Punio at a time, or at most a couple of them. A party of two would either take a single monster, ganging up on it or if they were braver, fought group of three instead. ¡°Fucking showoff!¡± ¡°Lousy mage who can¡¯t use magic!¡± ¡°If this was a PK-Zone, I¡¯ll PK you for real!¡± Man, the newbies were just bitter players. More sneers, jeers coupled with a few more threats thrown at us and enough was enough. Both Elly and I had levelled up to 5 by now. By this time, it was better for us to find other monsters, rather than just this low levelled creature. Better move elsewhere to farm different monsters for EXPs. And preferably one that would drop an item or two. The Punio was too much of a fodder monster for my liking. Easy to kill, but the EXP increase was too low after a while. And there were no item drops. No loots meant that there is no way to earn money. We moved on towards a nearby forest in search of new monsters. And we had our luck this time as there were lesser players here. Perhaps it was dark and monsters at night were stronger. Players tend to avoid coming out and farm at night because of this. The monster was at least 50% stronger and rare new and stronger species might spawn unknowingly at random. Rare monsters were at least 10 times stronger than their counterpart species, even during the day. At night, its strength would just increase by 20 times. Not an ideal place and time to farm when one was still a newbie. However, when there were risks involved, surely there would be a just reward for it too. Higher risks meant better rewards. Increased in EXP gained was a given. And this was what I would always relish myself for; risks versus rewards. Personally, I found it exhilarating and full of life when overcoming odds such as this. This was what real gaming was all about and VR just made it better. Give me anything, any day. The stronger and more challenging, the better. The moment we stepped into the forest, we were welcomed with a new monster. A bigger version of Punio called the Blue Punio. Well, it looked the same except for the size, which was three times bigger and twice faster. And a little deadlier too since it was a Level 8 monster or higher. And there were Popo¡¯s cousins too, the rabbits. Their long ears, some were droopy and some were straight, coupled with a pink button nose and cute whiskers made me chuckle for a little while. They looked like a carbon copy of Popo. Rabbits were between level 3-5, moved faster than the Blue Punios, making it harder for players to hit them accurately. But whether they were cute, fast or just plain bigger, I looked at them, all gleefully as how a hunter looked at a hapless new prey. Licking my lips, I gave out a big wide grin. Sorry rabbits, but it was time to dig in. ¡°Yargh!!¡± I gave out a battle cry as both Elly and I made into our first night of killing monsters. Chapter 10: Tempting FATE Chapter 10: Tempting FATE In a few hours, I had levelled up to 8 while Elly was at Level 9. The EXP gained from killing the rabbits at night was alright but too time-consuming. I had no problem killing the creatures, but without a proper weapon, fighting barehanded had limited me to concentrate on killing one rabbit at a time. Not only the rabbits were small in size and non-aggressive, but they were fast and agile too. Not too tough for me initially but they were not pack animals. Rabbits didn¡¯t come in a group and even if they did, they would just scatter around the moment I approached them. For Elly, rabbits were her worse nightmare. Not only did she missed a lot as she could not read the enemy¡¯s movement; having to spend her Stamina and Mana needlessly, but because the rabbit was at higher level, every attack it did on Elly, her HP bar diminished faster than it could regenerate. Fighting at night time made it even worse. If it was not for my timely intervention, Elly might die from those rabbits¡¯ attack. Cute and cuddly as they were, but a formidable foe for her. If it were not for the occasional Blue Punios, perhaps both of us might not level up as fast. Blue Punios were just like any ordinary Punios, with higher HP, defence rating, more powerful attack and higher level to boot. However, unlike its cousin, Blue Punios were solidarity animals and did not appear more than a couple at once. And the items loot we gathered was just alright. A few dozens of rabbit pelt, and dozen or more of rabbit meat and some jelly-like substance dropped from Blue Punio called jellopy. ***** It was on the verge of twilight when we finally stopped fighting and the night monsters started to disappear and replaced by day monsters. Rabbits were still there but instead of Blue Punio, a new monster was spawned called Tomato Head. At level 15, it was the highest level monster in the forest. Luckily for us, it was non-aggressive and both of us did not need to engage it for now. We just let it roamed around freely as we took our break and regenerate our mana and stamina. So far, I had not injured myself in any way as I dodged all of the attacks. For Elly, however, her HP did replenish but very slowly. Resting by itself would not recover HP as much as I would like. ¡°Elly, do you understand how to fight now?¡± I asked her as she was resting under the tree with me. She looked dejected after being nearly embarrassed by the rabbits. ¡°If you cannot read your enemy¡¯s movement, you will just exhaust yourself. Like what you did.¡± She still did not respond to me. However, for her sake, I hoped she listened to what I had to say. ¡°Open your eyes and use all your senses and find a pattern within your enemy¡¯s movement. Strike normally first and when you had them where you wanted, then only you cast your skill. Not before that, understand?!¡± She just gave me a slight nod. ¡°Do not expand your Stamina and Mana needlessly. If you are out of stamina, your movement would be sluggish and your attacks would not be powerful. And without mana, you could not use any of your skills.¡± Elly just whimpered. She knew how to fight, but training and fighting real monsters was a different ball game. The earlier Punio was nothing. Just created to let the players have the initial feel of how it was actually like to hit and kill a monster before they move on to tougher enemies. The challenge would then start beyond these areas. If she was not careful, she would be dead before she knew it. And when that happened, it would trouble me to no end. Some of her skills used both Stamina and Mana, and it would have exhausted her even more. ¡°So, I will not allow you to use your skills from now onwards. Until I tell you to do so, you are to fight with your normal attacks and study your enemies¡¯ movements. Get that?!¡± Elly nodded. But I wanted her cooperation, not just a slight head movement. ¡°You get that? I could always dismiss you and never to invite you again!¡± I just lied but I wanted a better response than the earlier. Feeling surprised with my sudden raise of voice, Elly cried a little. What a crybaby, I thought to myself. It seemed that I needed to show her how to do it after all. Looking around, there was only rabbits and a lone Tomato Head. That left me with no choice then. I took Popo¡¯s Iron Sword from Elly and equipped it myself. ¡°Look, I¡¯ll show you how.¡± I walked towards my non-aggressive target and hit it straight away with a blow to the head. The Tomato Head¡¯s HP bar fell down by 5%. Hmphh¡­ Guessed the level difference did play a part too. But nonetheless, this monster could prove a good foe for me to show to Elly how to fight properly. The Tomato Head fell forward from the impact of my sword and once it stood up, immediately it engaged me in combat. A little taller than 2 feet, the monster swing it arms wildly and lunged at me. ¡°Can you see the monster¡¯s pattern, Elly? It¡¯s attacking me head on.¡± She was looking intently at the way I was fighting. A level 8 player versus a monster than doubled his own level. Surely, it would prove fatal once I got hit by any of the attacks from the Tomato Head. But it was a risk that I needed to take to send the point across to Elly.This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. ¡°Learn to avoid as best as you can. Only shield yourself when it¡¯s absolutely necessary!¡± I was avoiding all the attacks as I pointed out the monster¡¯s pattern to her. ¡°Look, like the rabbits, it could only attack you in a straight line. Sidestepped it once it reaches mid-air. And once the monster finishes its attack, this is the best time to counter hit it back!¡± I immediately strike the back of the Tomato Head after I avoided another one of its attacks. *Critical Hit! Counter!* The system message flashed across me as I gave the hit. ¡°Remember the window frame for delivering your hit. Most monsters would be vulnerable once the finished their attacks, especially if we can catch them mid-air!¡± The HP dropped down by 10% further. A counter would always give more damage than a normal attack strike. And being a critical hit, the damaged multiplied. The Tomato Head was still reeling from my attacks when I gave it a couple more slashes. ¡°Critical Hit!¡± ¡°Critical Hit!¡± The monster¡¯s HP drop to 50%. And because of that, it was now in daze mode. It just stood wobbly but could not move nor take any actions. Those quick strikes that landed cleanly had managed to disrupt its attack and now, it was just another practice target for me. ¡°Once you have the monster where you wanted, now is the time to use your skill!¡± As soon as I said that to Elly, I used the Mad Rush Skill that increased my damage output by a further 30% for a minute but would lower my defence rating by 50% for 30 seconds. Anyway, this was a good skill to use on a daze monster like this. I could kill this monster even before my skill ended. I continued to slash relentlessly on the dazed Tomato Head. The HP dropped to 40%, then 20% once a critical hit landed and finally, with three more attacks, the Tomato Head died. *Gain 100 EXP* As it dropped to the ground, I unsheathed my sword and walked towards Elly. The monster was dead and I had proven my point. ¡°I might be a low-level character, Elly but I know how to fight. Level doesn¡¯t mean a thing if you could read, move and strike your foe as how I did. All you need is time to study your enemies and then act accordingly.¡± I looked at her as she sat down under the tree. She was in her usual quiet self but I could see a better expression on her face now. She was in awe. I extended my hand towards her and she grabbed it readily and I pulled her up. ¡°Ready for the next foe?¡± ¡°Yes!¡± She answered me enthusiastically. I returned her the sword and after that, we continued fighting only rabbits just for her sake. She might be an NPC but for me, she was as real as PCs and would be good in the long term if she could fight properly. I continued to instruct her how to fight as the day moved on to night time. If she failed to heed any of my instructions, I would punish her by wearing that Bunny costume Popo had made specifically for her. And this time around, Elly improved a lot, perhaps spurred by the fear of wearing that weird and skimpy outfit. She no longer abused her skills needlessly and instead struck the monsters with normal hits. Even the killing blow was done with a normal attack instead. It was great for me to see that she was learning well. A little patience could go a long way. At this time, her level had increased to 12 and I was at 10. She sure levelled up faster than I did. During the day, there was quite a number of players fighting inside the forest but when the night time came, only a few were left. And that included the pair of us too. Under the full moon, we continued to slaughter those pitiful rabbits and any Blue Punios that might appear from time to time. And because of the way we fought, our Stamina and Mana was maintained at an optimum level. We did not need much rest at all. We were clearing the forest path at night when suddenly, we heard a scream coming from the deeper parts of the woods. ***** ¡°ARGHH!¡± The scream was short but was high-pitched and loud enough for us to hear it. It belonged to a girl and I was sure she was in danger of some sort. Was she on the way out of the forest when she was attacked? It was none of my business to head deeper inside the forest needlessly, but somehow, I felt uneasy. There was no sound of night critters and for me, that was a bad omen. If I did not check it out now, perhaps something untowardly might happen to Elly and me later. At least, we would know what was happening and we could be better prepared for it. With my urging, both of us ran to the direction of the scream. We heard it just once, and that was enough for me to find out the place and the distance we needed. As we ran deeper into the woods, suddenly a message popped up on my screen.
WARNING! You are entering a FATE that is too high for your level. It is recommended that you do not attempt this event.
A Field Active Time Event here? Should I turned back and run away? Or to proceed? What should I do? If I was alone, I could always attempt this FATE but with Elly, I was sure it would do more harm than good. Suddenly, my vision was interrupted by three people running away from something at a distance. And they looked extremely in need of help. One of them was carrying someone on his back, and the other one, was shooting arrows at something that was chasing them at a distance. ¡°Ghost? Do we go in and help them?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ we could. But it might put you in danger. Do you still want to go?¡± Elly nodded. She had made her mind up to help those people. I was not sure whether it was NPCs or PCs, but nonetheless, we needed to help them. And we needed to make our haste since they were losing their ground fast. When it had come to this, let¡¯s just continue without regret. ¡°Come, Elly. Let¡¯s go!¡±
FATE: A Dire Need for Help! Recommended Level: 25 ¨C 35. Level Sync if above Level 40. A minimum Raid Party of12 players are extremely encouraged. The night time in the forest has often posed a dangerous place for people to travel. Unwary travellers and adventurers are often caught off guard when the night time comes. Deeper in the forest, a pack of wild wolves has made its home recently and to make the matter worse, the packs will often come out at night to hunt. But only in full moon that the pack¡¯s Alpha, a Dire Wolf will join in. And this situation has made the forest a more dangerous place than ever. Objective: Kill the Dire Wolf and the whole pack. Please bring peace to the forest, once again. Time Limit: 1:05:13 left. Failed if you are killed or the time is over.
This was not an easy FATE at all. Not just the levels needed to complete, but it came with a time limit and a raid party requirement. Once we entered the FATE, I have no doubt that the pack of wolves would detect us immediately. Though we could always run away to safety, the wolves would always be faster than us. Well, we would find out soon after all. Chapter 11: Being Unreasonable Chapter 11: Being Unreasonable ¡°You three alright?!¡± That was the first thing that I asked them. They had been running away from a single wolf that was relentlessly on their tails. Having their route severely limited due to the forest¡¯s layout and the speed of their chase coupled with their limited vision due to the night time, the one who had been carrying his friend on the back tripped over a hidden overgrown root of a tree. Both of them fell down and unfortunately took the archer¡¯s attention away. And in that split second, the wolf had gained tremendous ground on them. It was on the verge of pouncing the archer when I came out from the bush, dashed and kicked the wolf to the side. Its HP decreased by 3% and I managed to divert its attention. Taking its aggro away, I stood in front of the rest of them, giving them the necessary cover. A little window of respite appeared as the wolf reeled from my surprise attack. Taking this opportunity, I immediately barked my next order. ¡°Elly, stay behind my back and protect them!¡± ¡°B-But¡­ what about you?¡± I shushed her immediately. I had no time to entertain her for now as I was thinking about my next steps. ¡°If we don¡¯t hurry up and run, the rest of the pack will catch up with us. We need to kill this one first before all of us could run.¡± ¡°But¡­ it¡¯s level 28¡­ and y-you¡­¡± ¡°That¡¯s a problem for me to settle. Now, Elly!¡± Judging from the way they acted earlier, they must be player characters and presumably low levelled too. And that was not just the only problem. As the wolf looked at me with red menacing eyes and deep growls, I touched my back and took out my weapon; a decrepit and old looking wand. Having no magic to cast, all I could dowas to pretend. And perhaps the wolf would be a little hesitant to pounce on me, thus giving more time and respite to Elly and the other three. ¡°W-Who¡­are you?¡± The archer suddenly spoke from my back. ¡°Doesn¡¯t matter. But are you three alright?¡± I asked her for their conditions. It was not my style to save unknown players out on a whim. However, since I had come this far, at the very least I could do well to make sure each and every one of them escape with their lives. ¡°I-I¡¯m fine. B-But my partner is not. She is losing HP gradually from the Bleeding effect.¡± The archer replied while trying to compose herself. She might have some breathing difficulty from all that running earlier. ¡°Can you heal her? I don¡¯t bring any healing items with me.¡± ¡°I-I can¡­ but I need some time.¡± The one that was carrying the injured partner took out a vial from his robe and forced his partner to drink from it. Looked like it would take some time for the effects to work. ¡°I¡¯ll buy you some time. After that, Elly will help you escape.¡± I gave them a simple instruction. For now, cowardice was the best course of action. We could live to fight for another day. ¡°I¡¯ll help you!¡± The archer volunteered to help me. But I was not going to let her do that. I didn¡¯t know how she would fight, but judging from her action earlier, I would not be wrong to think that she lacked the tack and the skills needed to be an archer. She would slow me down or worse still, hindered my plan. ¡°I don¡¯t mind you helping me, but shouldn¡¯t you people just retreat first?¡± GROWL!! The wolf was tired of waiting. It was hesitant to attack me at first but now, having gauged me and the rest, I was sure it fancied its chances. Besides, the pack was coming and time was running out. I could even hear their howls and it was getting awfully close. The wolf leapt at me with its fang bared. A bite attack. I dodged away to the side and used my wand to hit it directly on the head. Its movement was way faster and more agile than I could imagine. And I found it out the hard way too. It clawed me twice just when I landed my attack on it. I dodged one but the other attack grazed my shoulder. *Lost 125 HP* Mamamia! About 30% of my HP gone just like that. I must not take any more hit or else I would die. Not waiting for it to attack, I jumped and grappled the wolf from the back of its neck. This way, it could not attack me freely. The wolf tried to turn and toss me away, but I held firm. As I strangled its neck, I continued to pound relentlessly at the wolf¡¯s head with my wand. It was a pathetic and ugly fight. If anyone were to see it, I was sure they would think I was some sort of a nutcase mage who had too much free time on his hands. The wolf was just a little bigger than I was and when I wrestled it; holding its head down, I had to avoid the occasional claw attacks. The wolf was more interested in freeing itself rather than hitting me. And that gave me more time to attack and the others to properly heal themselves. With 75% HP left and the rest of the pack closing on us, I could not defeat this wolf like this. ¡°Elly¡­ and you three! Are you done?!¡± ¡°Just in time,¡± Elly responded. I was quite relieved as my Stamina was getting depleted constantly as I held the wolf for as long as I could. ¡°Good! By my count, I want all of you to run!¡± ¡°But we can¡¯t leave you behind! We need to fight the wolf.¡± The archer was quite stubborn and foolhardy. ¡°And what? Waste your time and let the rest of the pack arrived here?¡± ¡°Ughh¡­¡± She bit her lips. ¡°If you have nothing else to say, do as I tell you or I¡¯ll let the wolf go and escape by myself!¡± ¡°Alright¡­ b-but you better escape too.¡± The archer then turned herself around and move on to help their injured party member. ¡°Not planning to die here, anyway. Now Elly, lead them out of the FATE Zone.¡± As soon as I said that, I heard a couple of howls not too far from us. Shit. The rest of the pack was coming. We had no more time to spare. I would likely have 15 seconds window to act at most now. ¡°GO!!¡± The four of them ran away once I gave the order. Elly turned her face to me when she ran, perhaps still worried about me. Heh, I was a soldier, girl. A wolf like this was nothing. Though a pack might kill me now, I was not about to let those wolves reached me. Cowardice had its moment and it was now. Run and we could live to fight another time. And I hated the idea of dying to respawn safely anyway. I let the wolf off from my grasp. But I could not run yet. It would pounce on me right away if I did. I took off my robe and wrapped it around my hand. Having just freed itself, it was again hesitant. And perhaps, waiting for the rest of the pack to arrive. Now, if that was the case, I had a plan. I took a few steps backwards while still facing it. The wolf was growling and looking at me intently but did not attack. After a few more steps, I turned my back immediately and ran as fast as I could. Seeing that I turned my back, it immediately gave chase. This was the cue I needed. Once it chased me, I turned around facing it and immediately spread my robe. Seeing that I suddenly stopped, it took its chances and pounced on me. Leaping high in the air with its bite attack, I covered its head with my robe once it landed on me. *Lost 200 HP* I received some damage from the pounce attack though I avoided the claws. Again, I wrestled the wolf but this time with my robe covering the head, its movement was severely limited. I then managed to secure the robe around its neck by tying it tightly. That would give me some time to run away now. And ran away I did once I¡¯d done my deed. With less than 50% HP left, I was sure would not last long if I stood my ground and fight. The pack was getting closer and the moment those wolves arrived, I better be long gone. Picking up my pace, I expended all my Stamina sprinting away to safety. ***** Once I was out the FATE Zone, only did I take a much needed rest. Huffing and puffing my way, I took a seat under a big tree a little further from the safe zone. A FATE Zone was the maximum boundary where any FATE monsters would not attack us beyond it. Another way of saying was that once we were outside of the boundary, we had nothing to do with the FATE anymore. So whatever rewards we might have earned during the FATE or even if the FATE was completed, it would be forfeited once we were out of the area. The exceptions were given to the EXPs and loot items dropped from the monsters we killed.This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings. ¡°Ghost¡­ is that you?¡± Suddenly, I heard Elly¡¯s voice. Looking at the direction where the voice came from, I saw her and the other three who escaped together with her coming towards my way. ¡°Ohh¡­ all of you are safe now?¡± I asked her while seated. Not going to waste my time standing and greeting the rest. I was dead tired. ¡°T-Thank you for helping us back then.¡± A warrior-looking guy then came forward with the other two beside him. One was the girl archer earlier and one more was unidentifiable under a hood. ¡°No worries. Thanks accepted.¡± I answered him nonchalantly. Not going to be bothered with thanks from strangers. They would forget it as soon as they levelled up or move on to another area. I was used to this kind of meetings back in LIXXO anyway. ¡°We haven¡¯t caught your name yet. I¡¯m Alviss.¡± ¡°Ghost.¡± He extended his hand to shake mine, but I just swatted it away. He looked offended and disgusted with my cold reception, but trying to compose himself in front of the other two, he tried to conjure up a false smile. ¡°This is Miranda and Sophia.¡± He then introduced the two to me. And the third one was a girl too judging by her name. As she came from behind the shadow, she revealed her face from under the hood and gave me a few deep bows. Based on their interactions alone, I was sure that this warrior guy might be the party leader, assuming how much ofa good impression he wanted to make and the exchanges between him and the rest of the party. And perhaps he was new at it too based on the earlier scene where Elly and I found them. Inexperienced, na?ve and worst of all, foolhardy. ¡°What¡¯s your level?¡± The archer, with a clich¨¦ race of being an elf, asked of me the most boring and clich¨¦ of questions. I could not help but to shake my head and sighed. ¡°Does it matter?¡± I looked at her at the corner of my eyes and asked. I thought it was better to leave now or else they were going to barrage me all sort of nonsensical questions. Asking my level when I just saved all their arses was one. I stood up, patted my back and beckoned Elly to leave with me. However, before I could do that, the warrior held my arm. ¡°Look, she asked what¡¯s your level!¡± He stared at me. Someone who couldn¡¯t take no for an answer? And holding my arm like I was someone hostile or a fleeing villain after I had helped them was unneeded and unnecessary. And that pissed me off to no end. I hissed at him. ¡°Let me go.¡± But he was not having it. His grip on my arm tightened. My intention to leave the group as soon as possible seemed to fade away now. I shook my head a couple of times as I turned to face Alviss. With one swift movement, took his arm away and then brought it behind his back. I then went to his blindside, kicked the back of his knee and pulled his hair as he fell down kneeling. The other two girls were surprised to see my reaction. Elly was caught off-guard and she was now in dilemma. Was what I did right? Or wrong? Her face was strained a little. Trying to ease her, I said to Alviss, ¡°Is this how you thank your saviour? By being hostile?¡± I grabbed his chin and stared at him directly. ¡°If you want to be thankful, instead of asking about my level, why not do something useful, like giving me some money. Or even replacing the equips that I had to sacrifice trying to save all your arses.¡± ¡°W-We never asked you to help us!¡± The warrior retorted. ¡°Well, the FATE is still active. You lot could go there and kill yourself if you want to. Or stay here and be thankful instead. Either way, it¡¯s fine by me.¡± I spat to the ground and stared at the other two girls. The archer was trying to draw her bow. Raising a weapon against me was very ill-advised. I kicked the warrior to the side and moved towards the archer, Miranda as she tried to shoot me. I grabbed her by her throat and slammed her into the tree as her arrow whistled past my cheeks. My speed and force were too much for her. She dropped her weapons from her hand as I slammed her again. Though this map was not a PK area, it did not mean one could not engage in a fight. It would just mean that no one would die, but having suffered a humiliating defeat, those who lose would always flee away. ¡°You fucking people are too slow. No wonder the wolves got your pathetic trio of a clown party in trouble. Just a single wolf and all hell break loose.¡± ¡°Guh!!¡± The warrior tried to stand up to me but Elly placed her sword against his throat. He might not die, but I was sure his pride and ego would be smashed to pieces before that. Elly had made up her mind and she supported my reasoning. A saviour should be thanked properly, after all. ¡°Ghost-sir, please. We did not mean to be rude. W-We just want to invite you to our party¡­¡± Sophia was on her tears as she tried to calm me down. ¡°Invite me to your pathetic party? No thanks. All I need is Elly, not you weak lots!¡± I could hazard a guess that this party of three¡¯s level might be around in their early 20s. And from the way they acted, it might even be a new-formed party. A pick-up group, PUG, they called it for hunting monsters and gathering loots. ¡°We are not weak!¡± The archer spoke as she tried to wiggle away from my hold. ¡°Really, then why are you pinned to the tree while your leader is being threatened at a sword end?¡± The three of them went silent. Sophia was looking dejectedly, perhaps never thought that their saviour had now turned into some sort of a villain that picked up on weak people. ¡°Tell me, Sophia, what level are you?¡± I asked her. ¡°L-level¡­ 2-25¡­¡± She stammered. ¡°The rest?¡± I continued on pressing her. ¡°Alviss is level 29¡­ and¡­ and¡­ Miranda is¡­ 27.¡± ¡°I see. No wonder you lot are foolhardy. Thinking that levels are everything. It¡¯s like a dick competition, measuring up your size to accommodate lousy techniques and performance.¡± When I said that, both Miranda and Sophia suddenly turned red and Alviss was disgusted. Perhaps the two girls were real girls too in real life. And that warrior guy? He might have self-confident issues back in the real world. I sighed out loud. I released my hold on Miranda¡¯s throat and she slumped down. Though I was pissed off, I could not help but to feel pity for them. Sophia¡¯s tears did soften me up a little. ¡°I¡¯m Level 10, and Elly is 12,¡± I told them my level and all of them looked at me with amazement as if I had said the silliest thing ever. ¡°B-But¡­¡± Sophia was still stammering her words, though I had no time to entertain these trios for now. ¡°Doesn¡¯t matter what you lot think. I¡¯m out of here.¡± I turned around and left the group. However, Sophia called out to me, much to my annoyance. These people really wouldn¡¯t take no for an answer easily. ¡°P-Please¡­ join us¡­ Ghost.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± I was surprised. So the rest of us here. And I thought I had said something silly, but Sophia had one-upped me it seemed. I pointed to myself as if to ascertain that I did not hear wrongly. I had said ¡®No¡¯ once, and yet, here she was trying her luck again. ¡°Please?¡± She looked at me with puppy eyes. Under the midnight full moon, her eyes sparkled even more. But she couldn¡¯t fool me with those looks. I was immune to it. ¡°Look, lady. I¡¯m not interested in parties or weird shits like that alright. I¡¯m happy with Elly and she¡¯s all I need.¡± ¡°B-But¡­ p-please¡­ help us?¡± Sophia continued to beg me. ¡°Look, I¡¯m level 10. For you lots, I¡¯m unworthy to be in the same party. Even that two folks over there are looking at me like a villain already.¡± To be sure, Alviss and Miranda nodded at my words. Looks like they agreed with me for once. Sophia had said some absurd thing for sure. And her words carried less weight than the other two. In this party, I could see Alviss was the de-facto leader and Miranda was second in command. Sophia was perhaps someone they needed which they found along the way. But she was determined nonetheless. ¡°I n-need you¡­¡± ¡°Huh? What are you smoking, lady? Are you in a high or something? Need me for what?¡± ¡°Ghost, maybe I could explain it for her.¡± Elly suddenly came to me and tapped my shoulder. ¡°The three of them needed to kill the Dire Wolf for their job quest.¡± ¡°So, doesn¡¯t mean I have to endanger my life to help them. Hunt the Dire Wolf once they are at higher levels. Perhaps Level 60, since most folks care more about levels anyway.¡± ¡°But Ghost, surely you won¡¯t let them die just like that?¡± Elly tried her best to reason out with me. ¡°Why not? If they want to die, so be it.¡± Sophia slumped her shoulder. She surrendered herself to my stubbornness. I had my reasons, but I was not going to put up with random parties asking me to help them every time they see me. In good times, everyone would praise each other to no end, but in bad times, I would be damn sure the lowest levelled one would be frowned upon as the baggage in the party. One of the reason why I achieved peak level in LIXXO was that I hated people who looked down on others just because they were low levelled. Low levelled and weak were not the one and the same thing. Once I had reached the peak, I would have no problem going solo or helping those in need, provided I had something in common with them. But most of the time, my play style was too extreme to be welcomed by anyone, anyway. ¡°Look at it this way. We have about 35 more minutes for the FATE to end and a pack of wolves to be disposed of, excluding that Dire Wolf. And I¡¯m pretty sure the Dire Wolf would be a Boss Level monster. They might be at the same level, but don¡¯t let the monster¡¯s level fools you, Elly. Or their naivety and foolhardiness.¡± ¡°W-What do you mean by that?¡± Miranda suddenly asked me. ¡°Look, the game mechanic is simple. Monsters at night are at least 50% stronger than during the day, right?¡± Everyone nodded. ¡°So, if the normal mob level is 30 at average, at night, they are level 45 equivalent at least.¡± I purposely highlighted the word ¡®at least¡¯. I want to drive home a few points for these poor fools before they get themselves killed. ¡°Since you are less than half its level, most probably all of you would be dead before you could even kill one. I took one attack and I lost 30% of my HP.¡± I paused for a while. This was simple enough for a normal player to understand. But I guess these three were newbies. The look on their face was all I need to know what sort of players they were. I could get them off my back too by educating them a little. ¡°A wolf hunts in a pack. The one you fight was most likely a scout. And once they found their prey, they would gather their pack and attack relentlessly. So, the three of you will never stand a chance in the beginning. Besides¡­.¡± ¡°Besides?¡± Miranda asked. I looked at her and the rest of the trios. ¡°The wolves have at least 3 attacks; two claws and a bite. And hunting in packs, surrounded by those wolfs, you tell me if your pathetic party can take them.¡± I pointed my finger at Sophia. ¡°Even at level 60, you would be sync to level 40. The wolf will still overcome not just your level, but the number of attacks and amount of support they have. For once, the game AI is smarter than real players.¡± I could hear her soft whimper. The other two looked away once I turned my gaze to them. Man, those three were pitiful. I was now acting against my better judgment, but then again I might have the use of them later on. Or exchange something with them; information or items. ¡°Well¡­ if you understand those, perhaps I could do one thing for you.¡± Elly¡¯s face was beaming when I said that. She was waiting for me to show some kindness to these strangers but I was not na?ve and foolish enough to bend over backwards just for some good-looking PCs. The blonde and curvaceous Miranda and the petite brunette Sophia was good looking. Even Alviss for all his naivety and childishness did put some effort into making his avatar looked like some sort of a Korean celebrity. What was his name again? Min-ho something? ¡°Meet me here, 1 week in real time from now, before the FATE starts. And then, I might help you with your quest.¡± Sophia looked at me, delighted with what I had said that she hugged me immediately. I tried to push her away. ¡°I said, I might help. Not confirm that I will help.¡± But that did not deter her from clinging happily to my waist. ¡°Better than nothing, Ghost.¡± Sophia looked at me gleefully. ¡°What about the other two? Will they want my help?¡± ¡°They wanted your help, as much as I did. But I guess it did not turn it out the way we expected earlier.¡± Alviss and Miranda reluctantly nod. They had been the quiet bunch since I put them in their places earlier. The quietest one was the talkative one now. ¡°Ghost? Can I have your member address to add you as a friend?¡± Sophia continued to ask me. The rest came over, looking as if they too wanted the same thing. Man¡­. What could I do to stop them from bugging me? Chapter 12: Getting Some Dirt On My Hands Chapter 12: Getting Some Dirt On My Hands ¡°Ghost! Where¡¯s your robe?¡± Suddenly, Elly came and touched all over my body. ¡°Took you long enough to notice huh, girl?¡± I gave out a dry smile. Thinking about what happened back then when I had to sacrifice my robe was quite heart wrenching. Truth to be told, I was out of money and with the little loots I had with me now, I would most likely be ¡®naked¡¯ for a while. ¡°You can have a look at my weapon too, Elly.¡± I showed her my old wand, now broken in half. It was beyond repair for all I knew. Items durability must never reach 0 points. Once they reached it, either one of two things could happen. Broken in pieces was the most usual scenario or rendered unusable until repaired. Looking at my wand, I was not sure repairing it would be any good either. ¡°I-I¡¯m sorry, Ghost.¡± Sophia apologized. ¡°If it¡¯s not for me being so helpless and weak, I-I¡­¡± ¡°Shush it girl. I don¡¯t need your sympathy. Whatever happens, happen.¡± I shrugged her off. ¡°B-B-But¡­¡± She was still fidgeting nervously. Her two party members were standing quite far away from us, perhaps fearing I might go nuts again. ¡°No buts. Now, please excuse Elly and I. Both of us need to gain our levels before next week.¡± I looked towards Miranda and called her. She was surprised, letting out a yelp when I did so. ¡°Apologies if I had hurt you in any way. But a heads-up first for you folks. I don¡¯t really like people pointing their weapons at me.¡± She looked down immediately and gave a slight nod. ¡°And you too, Alviss. Next time, if you grab me like that, I¡¯ll definitely kill you.¡± He went pale immediately when I said that. My experience in the war had taught me to treat everything with extreme caution and prejudice. In the open field, every player was considered ¡®the enemy¡¯. ¡°Why don¡¯t you level up with us, Ghost? Wouldn¡¯t it be better if we work together?¡± Was she thick or what? Did she even listen to what I said just now and threatening her party members? Looking at her, maybe she was that type and perhaps I could not fault her for that. Sophia continued to pester me to join them. I had told her and the rest that I might help them next week. Not today, and definitely not now. I just ignored her as I beckoned Elly to follow me. Sophia whimpered a little upon seeing my cold reaction. ¡°Next week, here. Late and I¡¯m gone. Understand?¡± I left the three to themselves as I made my way to the deeper part of the forest. The FATE was over when the howls of the wolves penetrated through the forest trailing off slowly and the faint FATE boundary vanished. My plans were in motion for me to tackle the FATE and I needed some shields and a couple of diversions. ¡°Ghost? Why were you so hostile to them?¡± Elly asked once we were quite far away. Turning my head towards my flank and rear, I¡¯d made sure that we were not followed. Fortunately, that girl Sophia and her party did not chase after us as I feared. ¡°You call that hostile?¡± I asked with a little grin on my face. She nodded and then added. ¡°Never see you acted like that before.¡± ¡°Did you forget how the first time we met, Elly?¡± The sudden reminder of our first meeting made Elly squirmed a little. ¡°It¡¯s the same, back then and now. Besides¡­¡± I grabbed her shoulder and messed up her hair a little. ¡°I trust you more than anyone here.¡± Though her actions might be na?ve at times, her intentions were not. She was my ally and so far, she had earned my trust more than anyone else in this game. Trust ¨C for me, was a hard earned privilege. Never a commodity. ¡°You are all I need. NPCs or not would never betray me when things go wrong, am I right?¡± Elly blushed and nodded enthusiastically. She looked at me as if I was the best thing that ever happened to her. I could even hear her purred a little. Suddenly, a system message popped -up.
AFFINITY INCREASE! Elly, the Thief Congratulations! You have raised your ally¡¯s affection towards you by 1 point. Her bonds for you deepens.
Ohh? I never expected that. Our bonds had been made stronger since the first time we met. Training her in the Practice Hall and raising her stats did give me a few affinities points with her. But this one was new; not because of combat nor valour, but with just my words alone? The Ally System was one of the few things I did not know much about. Not only it was rare for a player to have NPCs as their allies and no players would have the same ally ever, but each ally was different in how we would raise the affinities. Perhaps Elly was just like any other girls who wanted sweet words and compliments from time to time; besides training her hard, putting her on the frontline and all. We continued to work on our level more throughout the night. We had killed a few more monsters and gathered a few loots, but sadly, our levels did not increase any further. The EXPs earned were too few to raise our levels, given we had earned extra from the night time buff from the game. The highest level monster was the Tomato Head, which at level 15 minimum but its EXP was even lesser than the night time monster. The risk versus rewards had finally tipped to the point of being obsolete. It was time for us to move into another area to farm. But first, we got a quest to do. ***** We arrived at a farm just south of the City of Asgardia, beyond the forest trail. It was just after the morning twilight that we first sighted a silhouette of a man tilling the soil away. He was wiping his sweat when he first saw us. ¡°Hello, travellers. What brings you to our small farm?¡± The middle-aged farmer walked toward us, tucking his hoe over his shoulder.Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. ¡°Popo send me here. Heard from him you had some troubles.¡± The farmer was shocked to hear my reasoning. He nearly dropped his hoe as he called someone else from within the house at the edge of the farm. ¡°Martha!!! Popo has sent someone here!!!¡± Suddenly, the door barged open and out came a middle age lady, plump with unkempt hair and a messy apron. She came running towards us at full speed while trying not to trip herself. I could not hold myself but to smirk, seeing that lady acting like that. She did remind me to a certain landlady that kept chasing me once when I rode off with my wheelchair trying to avoid paying rent. ¡°At long last, our pleas had been heard.¡± ¡°Take your time, lady. We had just arrived here.¡± I tried to ease her down as she was trying her best to talk while under that breathing difficulty. Running was not her forte after all. And the farmer was too excited to say anything else other than the initial greeting. ¡°I never thought that our quest would ever be accepted.¡± Martha resumed her words after getting back to her breath. ¡°Bill and I had been pleading the city guards to help, but no one would ever come.¡± ¡°And that¡¯s because we could not pay the rewards, Martha.¡± Huh? What did that farmer mean by not paying rewards? I was not planning to do a quest that wouldn¡¯t pay me rewards. I was broke, nearly naked and I wanted more than word of thanks. But, I could listen to their request first before I could decide on anything. ¡°Luckily Popo helped us. He sends you here right?¡± I just nodded but then added, ¡°We haven¡¯t accepted your quest yet. Fill us in first and we will see whether this is something I want to take or not. Fair enough?¡± ¡°Better that than having no one hearing our pleas,¡± Martha replied with a wide smile. Looks like she was happy to see us coming after all. Or anyone for that matter. ¡°So, what¡¯s the deal with your farm?¡± The two couple began to explain their problem to me. Their quest was simple enough to do. Once done, a quest message popped-up.
Save our Farm! (1) Please help us, travellers. Weird monsters had been coming into our farm every week and wreaked havoc on our crops. We tried our best to get rid of them, but they were too strong for us. Quest Rank: F Completion Requirements: Kill all the rodents that are destroying the crops. Numbers are unknown. Quest Reward: Unspecified.
Again with the weird reward. Could they ever be more direct with rewards and shits? If it was not for Popo, I would never involve myself in this lame quest. Easy but lame. And Elly was adamant that I must accept this quest and help the poor folks. Getting persuaded by NPCs felt kind of weird. ¡°They will be coming tonight too, judging by their recent activities. What will you do?¡± Bill wanted my reassurance that I was to get on to my job as soon as possible, preferably now. However, my answer was simple. ¡°Nothing. We will just wait and let them do whatever they wanted.¡± My answer brought the wind out of the middle-aged couple. They could not believe what I had just said. And I was not about to explain my strategy to a couple of old farmers. Elly too was quite bewildered by my answer though she now knew better than to speak out of her turn. ¡°We will go inside the house and wait for them.¡± And that was the only thing I spoke next. The three reluctantly agreed to my request. Without a choice, they were as docile as lambs. ***** Observing through the window, I could see a few groups of shadows rampaging throughout the farm. All the hard work that the farmer had been doing so far were destroyed in a single night. However, it was not the usual wanton destruction of a wild animal going berserk. These small monsters were actually eating the crops like they had been famished. Much of the young crops were either pulled from the soil or plucked from the vines and were consumed immediately by these ravenous little shadows. Amidst the sound of destroyed plants outside, I could hear the couple sobbing quietly at the corner of the house. They too were looking through their windows, feeling hapless as all their hard work yet again went down the drain. The monsters came and were gone in an instant. But the destruction they had left was anything but heart-aching to watch, at the very least. If these little shadows continued to destroy the farm, this place would have ceased to exist and the farmer would go broke. And Popo would then blame me for not being of any use. I was in a bind. However, since I was already here, might as well finish up this lame quest. Time to get my plan in motion now. Their next attack would be around next week, so I have ample time to actually plan ahead. ¡°You three, come here.¡± I signalled to both the farmer and Elly. ¡°I have some work for all of you.¡± ***** ¡°Ghost, is this enough for you?¡± Bill came over as he completed making the drain around the farm. ¡°Not enough. I want it deeper.¡± I gave him my answer as I continued to make a fence around the farm. The farmer couple wasn¡¯t too delighted to hear about my plan at first. But I was adamant that their either do it my way or the highway. Threatening to leave them to their fates, they finally relented. Part of the problem was how the monsters were able to move freely in and out of the farm. Not only the place had no fence around it, but the safety of the farm by itself was nonexistent. Except for a couple of dilapidated scarecrows. And that was our first job. To create a defence mechanism for the farm. ¡°Ghost, are the items you wanted enough?¡± Elly came back with Martha. Both of them had been tasked to procure me a couple of items; sulfur and fertilizer. Though these farmers used them for their plants, I had another idea for it. The amount was enough to last for a whole year. However, they agreed immediately seeing that this was the only way they could protect their farm. ¡°Good amount for now.¡± I gave my nod of approval as I checked upon the two items. ¡°Hopefully. We had spent all our money for this month on those items. We had not more to spare.¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t matter. You will go broke either way.¡± I was blunt to the point. ¡°Now, mix the two items as per ratio I had instructed earlier. Understand?¡± I instructed the two ladies to create a mixture for me. ¡°B-But will this work?¡± Elly arched her eyebrow, as she was still quite unsure of my plan¡¯s success. Or perhaps the smell had gotten into her. ¡°It should if you could keep your mouth shut and concentrate on the matter at hands. Leave the rest to me.¡± I continued to my work, installing a 6 feet log adjacent to each other. This would be the hardest work so far and once Bill completed the making of the drain as how I wanted it, he came and helped me. ***** One week had passed by and tonight was supposed to be another attack. All the preparations were completed. Unfortunately, the work took too much time and effort that I did not have any time to level up at all. Elly and I had positioned ourselves near a couple of shacks that were opposite of each other inside the farm. The other two was left inside the house. I was not about to let these two fight the monster in case it proved too strong for them. They would hinder me more than anything. As far as concerned, they had done their dues. We did not have to wait long for the first horde of the little monsters to come inside the farm. Having a free pass the last time around gave them the sense of false security. Unfortunately for them though, we were well prepared this time. They entered through the only opening I had created from the fence. It was the only way to enter and exit. Both of us waited for a while and hid until the whole horde of them came down. When it was clear enough for me to see, I could now identify our new enemies. Mandragoras. Small little wood folks. Mischievous but never evil and often would avoid contact with the humans. I wondered why they came to this farm anyway? But such a thought must be left later as the last one of them finally entered the farm. The first time they came, I was quietly counting their amount. And now, since all of the enemies¡¯ cast was here, it was time to get this done and dusted. ¡°Now!!¡± I shouted to Elly as I lighted a torch and threw it away into the drain. Elly did the same. The drain was filled with the mixture of fertilizer and sulfur and it caught fire immediately. And extremely well too since in no time at all, the whole surrounding of the farm was set ablaze. Now, I had secured every last one of my enemies without a mean to escape. It was now time to get to work. Taking a borrowed sickle from Bill, I gleefully ran towards the first Mandragora. AUTHORS NOTE #1: Some related things to the game. AUTHOR''S NOTE #1: Some related things to the game. I get lots of comments about how some readers might have questions regarding the gaming aspect of NPO. And I take this opportunity to explain a few that I had covered so far in the story without giving the spoilers away. ***** 1. The aspect of time. Noble Path Online (NPO) uses the following calculation RT = Real Time, the real world time GT = Game Time that NPO uses 1 RT day = 4 GT day 7 RT days = 28 GT days 10 RT days = 40 GT days 14 RT days = 56 GT days 21 RT days = 84 GT days So, I will use this term throughout the story. One of the main gripe and confusion I had when reading LMS was the timing and chronological aspect of things which I hope to address. When players talk to players, if the RT or GT not mentioned, it will always be in RT. When NPC talk to players (vice versa) or NPCs, it will always be in GT. All quest timer will use RT unless otherwise stated. ***** 2. The stats of the game. I received a lot of excellent feedbacks about how stats play into the story. I really appreciate the keen eyes, observations and guile that I honestly lack in this. I will attempt my best in answering the questions about the stats. *For your information, I''m using RPG Maker MV to create the stats scalability within the world of NPO.* a) Stats through levelling up. (You can find this information in Chapter 04) A player would be given 5 points when levelled up to be allocated to any attributes of their choice. However, this is only up until certain level. At higher levels, more points will be given. As the story progress, I will explain it further. b) Star (*) mark next to the stat. A star mark beside the stats stat level. So, if there was 1 star, the said players had basic level 1 stat. For every 100 points invested in the stats (permanent stats only), a player will received an additional star. This will be high level players term much, much later in the game but I see no wrong in telling right now. c) Stat numbers. Stats numbers are fun to read, see and think about. However, allocating it will be a nightmare for authors. I could spend lots of times trying to get a perfect stat, but honestly, there are no perfect stats. I used to think it was so until I counter it with certain skills. Every players, including Ghost are not perfect. What I strive to achieve is balance suitable to the type of game play a player might use. d) Stats usage. Stats usage are extremely limited in the world of NPO. This was done for one purpose only - the players could actually spend playing the games rather than thinking about that extra 1 point of stats. And this will also actually highlight the importance of jobs and skills.Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation. At the initial low level (below 100), stats might be useful as a bragging rights or limited attack/defence modifiers, but once the players had reach the level above 100, stats are just mostly numbers to be used for equips, quests, jobs, skills and NPCs related requirement. For example, to wield a certain weapon or wear a certain armour that needed 150 STR points and 200 END points. Or to weasel a way past the guard, a high CHA and fame might do the trick. Or to read magical tome of ancient lore, a high WIS would give better chances of actually succeeding. The game does not put too much priority over stats when it comes to battles. Jobs and especially skills are much, much, much more important. e) HP and Mana The lifeblood of every players. They could not be raised with stats. HP and Mana increased are given by levelling up, buffs and skills, racial traits, jobs specialization and various items. A player can have a magnificient stats, but with a low HP/Mana, they would be wise not be in the path of an angry mob of wild boars stampede. ***** 3. Classes, jobs and skills. There are no classes in NPO. Strictly speaking, no one is ever tied to a certain class. If you choose to be a Fighter, you will not stuck to it for the rest of your life. You are not define by your class, but how you play. I am using this style inspired by the few online games I''ve been playing especially FF14. Instead of class, think of every player in this way. You are born naked in a new world. So, what do you do? With a clean slate, you can be anyone or anything. You can learn anything at all, provided you actually look for it. Most will opt to associate themselves with certain jobs and learns it skills and thus specializing. Others might dabble here and there and just learn the basics. So, the jobs come in. There are literally hundreds (if not thousands) of jobs available in NPO. The player just need to look for it and actually chooses to ''work'' in the job. And that is how players would most likely will learn their skills. There are artisans, merchants, fighters, healers etc. that you can think of in the world. Skills are the game-defining aspect of NPO. No two classes have the same skill sets. For example, let take a Knight. Some knight might prefer to be battle oriented, thus his skill sets shifted more to buff his damage, defense and increase his chances of winning. Another knight might prefer defensive style. Instead if attacking, he might tank instead, preferring defensive, support and enmity/taunt. Or another knight might prefer to actually support, focusing her skills in defensive and healing buffs while driving her foes away. So, all in all, no two players are the same. with 100 skills a player might have, the combinations are nearly infinite. No jobs are better than the other. Of course, there are some exclusive jobs, but this is not a cheat code given to ''special'' players to break the game. The same too in real life. One could be an excellent scientist, spending nearly the whole lifetime to learn the secrets of the universe, but she could not be a four weapon combat master at the same time, right? Might be, but those are exceptions other than the rules.Or a jack of all trades, learning all skills but never really good in any of those. The only thing that differs are how far each player will go into the jobs? Will she specializes or dabble? Specializing will most likely open up new possibilities of a higher and advance jobs but a player can spend too much time moving up the ladder. Or by dabbling, one will learn many skills but most likely are basic levels. The choice is the player''s to make. ***** 4. Making NPO real. "What a player do in the real world matters, po." By the wise word of the lazy rabbit, each players mental and strength conditions matter in NPO. Who you are in real life matters in NPO to a certain extent. If the players are tired of their real life and wanted a fresh restart, they could always do it in NPO. If the players love their live and wanted to share their views of the world to other people, well... you know the gist. However, NPO had a higher sense of realism that just what to be considered a ''normal'' gameplay. The game system will assist (in one way or another) but each of the players will determine their own outcome. The game will always be updated to support this notion. There will be more things made known in NPO,but hopefully, I had answered some of your questions so far. ***** I think that its so far. If you have any other questions or comments or even suggestions, I really appreciate it. PS: I really appreciate those who highlighted my grammar mistakes or spotting writing structures and flows that could be made better. Your keen eyes, reading comprehension and time reading those and helping to correct me are always welcome. PPS: I''m not a professional writer nor I am earning money for this (maybe in future with continuous support *crossed my fingers*). This is something I want to do because I just want to share it to others. I hope you do continue to support me in one way or another. I humbly and sincerely thank you, all of you. Chapter 13: Red Alraune Queen Chapter 13: Red Alraune Queen The little rodents were Mandragoras, a level 8-10 monster. For my level and Elly¡¯s, this was a piece of cake. I had no trouble of killing them as their attack were easy to read. They were fast but gangly despite their short stature. The thin and frail wooden arms were throwing weird attacks that came at random. Both uncoordinated and without precision, these were easy to spot and avoid. The night buffs made no differences other than just giving us extra EXPs. Our proficiencies had already surpassed this area¡¯s limit. ¡°Elly, don¡¯t mob the whole lot to yourself! Use the skill only as necessary.¡± ¡°Alright, Ghost!¡± She answered to me enthusiastically. I had to rein in her excitement a little because of her previous experience with another small and seemingly harmless foe. However, this time around, she followed what I said to a tee. I could never have wished for a better ally than her. Seeing her attacking, avoiding and defending like I had taught her brought tears to my eyes as I struck another hapless Mandragora down. These little folks had nowhere else to run, being surrounded by the wall of flames around the farm and I was guarding the only exit. Elly was running around and disposed of all the Mandragoras around while I was tasked to handle those that wanted to escape. Well, she insisted that much in the beginning and I just obliged.The situation was overkilled a little, but I loved it nonetheless. I gave out a smirk as I killed yet another of those little creature. Finally, all but one was left. As I cornered the shivering and hapless fellow into the flame wall, suddenly it spoke to me. ¡°H-Human¡­ p-please¡­ s-spare me¡­¡± ¡°Oh? You can talk?¡± I was quite surprised. Until today, I had not yet met any monster that could talk. ¡°Ghost, please don¡¯t spare them. They had been nothing but troubles for us!¡± Bill and Martha came out after we were nearly done. Seeing that they had the upper hand now, I was sure they wanted their revenge in one way or another. However, I have another thing in my mind. A talking Mandragora would sure fetch me a lot of money if I sell it in the market. ¡°A-All¡­ of¡­ us can speak¡­ a little of Human¡¯s language.¡± ¡°Good, now I¡¯ll give you two choices. One, I will kill you here right now and finishes off the quest or two, I will sell you in the market as a talking ginseng. Choose your fate.¡± He was shaking in fear. He knew that I was not joking with either of my choices. To my surprise, yet again, he pleaded for mercy. ¡°W-We d-don¡¯t mean to attack your farm, humans. W-We are just hungry.¡± ¡°So?¡± Not impressed. I shook my head at the little Mandragora and it squirmed. ¡°Our Q-Queen had banished all of us from our land. A-and our home has been ravaged by plague. W-We had no choice.¡± ¡°So?¡± My feet stepped on him as I raised my sickle up, on the verge of giving him my final blow. ¡°P-Please help us¡­ human.¡± Suddenly, a message screen popped up. I held my stance for a few seconds while I checked the new message.
The Red Alraune Our beloved Queen, Red Alraune had lost her mind. We don¡¯t know what made her that way, but now our lives are in ruins. We lost our homes and many of our saplings died. Without food, water and home, we had nowhere else to go. (Be wary, human. The Mandragoras are mischievous creatures and would have no problem mislead you with their lies just to save themselves. Tread carefully.) Quest Rank: Special Completion Requirements: Find the Red Alraune and kill her. *Warning: If you accept this quest, the Quest: Save Our Farm (1) would be forfeited. You will not gain the rewards from your quest giver. Quest Reward: Unspecified.
A special quest with unspecified reward? Now, what should I do? There was only one enemy left and killing it would end this quest and gained whatever rewards that I might get. I closed the window and looked at the three other people around me. I explained to them what happened. Bill and Martha were adamant that I finished this Mandragora off once and for all. I must account the warning that the quest had given me earlier too. ¡°So, if I kill this little guy here, this quest is completed and all of us would then go our own ways after that, right?¡± The couple nodded. ¡°That¡¯s the best. We would be free from these rodents.¡± But I was seeing it a little differently. ¡°But, what if you are not? That these folks would return and destroy your farm yet again. Will you wait that long for help to come to you? You heard this little guy¡¯s story, right?¡± ¡°But what if he lies?¡± Bill tried to forewarn me, but I knew better than to listen to one side of a story. I was quite curious myself too seeing that these Mandragoras came out and put themselves in danger by being near to humans. These wood folks were known to be elusive and unsociable to other species or races. For them to go these extremes and hunt for their foods at a human farm, something was not right. ¡°And he will die, right at that moment. But what if he speaks the truth?¡± I reasoned out to the couples. ¡°B-But what should we do?¡± Martha slumped her shoulder. ¡°If you let me decide, I¡¯ll end this once and for all.¡± ¡°Ghost? Are you saying¡­¡± Elly spoke next as she too wanted to know what I was about to do. ¡°Yes, Elly. I think I would accept this Mandragora¡¯s quest. I¡¯m going to sever the root of the problems, once and for all.¡± I removed my feet and then lifted him up. ¡°Because of you, I had lost one quest. Though the rewards are unspecified, I¡¯m pissed if you lie to me.¡± ¡°I-I¡¯m not lying, human. Please¡­¡± ¡°Shut up and show me the way. If I think you are trying to mislead me, I will end your life right that instant. Get that?¡± The Mandragora weakly nodded. ***** In front of us laid the Red Alraune, Queen of the Mandragora. She was much taller than the rest of her normal minions and the crimson bulb on her head and long vines of thorns acting as her arms made her quite formidable. If it was not because of the mixture that I brought with me from the farm, the battle would be a little tougher than I would like. ¡°Elly, watch out for her thorn whip!!¡± My warning was just on time as the Red Alraune lashed out a couple of thorny whips towards my ally. Though she managed to avoid it, nonetheless she dropped her sword. ¡°What a clumsy girl.¡± I ran towards her but not before I was stopped by a couple of her minions. I had cleared a dozen of them, with dozens more waiting outside, cut-off by a flame wall. I had barricaded the only way in toward this small area where the Queen made her home with a wall of fire. And because of that too, I had no other way of escape. With the sickle in my hand, I made a quick work of the two before rushing towards Elly¡¯s aide. She was surrounded by a few more Mandragoras and was taking the Red Alraune¡¯s aggro. Tumbling forward, I grabbed the sword that was lying on the ground and killed the one with the lowest HP that was attacking her. Followed by another two more. ¡°Are you alright, Elly?¡± She tried to stand up, but I told her to stay low. Her HP was less than half. Her Stamina and MP was depleted. Fortunately, I could now clear this mob with my current condition and I wanted her to stay out of the incoming battle. ¡°B-But¡­ Ghost.¡± She was adamant to help me, but I told her off. ¡°No, you shall stay behind me and rest for a while. Recover your stamina and MP before you take on the rest. Leave the Queen to me.¡± I continued to slash the remaining Mandragoras that kept coming. These little creatures, if left alive, would make for more trouble than they were actually worth. I went and disposed of the few remaining Mandragoras while avoiding the attack from the Red Alraune. A couple of minutes later, all that was left was the Queen versus the two of us. Effectively, it was a solo battle, since Elly too was out of commission. Now, let me check out her attack patterns before I went all in. I rushed forwards, taking a little swipe at the Queen. And not to my surprise, it used the thorny vines to whip at me from a distance. I dodged easily a couple of those attacks but as soon as I came within a sword reach, the Queen let out an attack from the red bulb that was on her head. Some kind of gaseous cloud was formed as I barely avoided the area of effect and failed to land a clean hit on it. The Queen had both a medium and close range attack. In this small area, it would prove fatal if the battle was prolonged. The gaseous cloud continued to expand itself and I was sure before long, it would cover the whole place. And it looked ominous too. The shit just got real.Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators! A level 20 monster, the Queen was not a pushover. Fighting at night made it even worse. I needed to find its weaknesses fast or else it would be game over. Looking around, I saw nothing that I could use to my advantage. Just roots of giant trees that pierced through the top of the tunnel and a few mounds of flowers and grasses surrounded by bioluminescent moss which covered the underground walls. Oddly enough, the Queen was never far from the initial area we found her at, near what looked like her wooden throne. Now, what should I do? With her HP keep regenerating, this would be a long battle. I was not sure how much damage I would do and if it was too low, it would be negligible. Or at the very best, a laughable attempt at hurting it. I needed something that could damage her constantly without having me to actively hit her. This called for Damage over Time or DoT techniques. I did not have the skills yet, but I was sure to have an item that might just do the trick. Checking my pocket, I still have a few more pile of the flammable mixture that I took from the farmer earlier. Smearing a little over the sword, I hoped it would work as I planned. The Queen was hesitant to engage me as I did not accumulate enough hate for it to seek me out. Rather, it stood quite far away, observing our battles with its minion earlier and would only attack from time to time. And judging by Elly¡¯s injuries, I was sure those thorny vines would be poisonous too. ¡°Hmm¡­ if I cannot get close to her, then I needed something else to attack continuously on my behalf.¡± I ran around the perimeter of my quarry, just outside the gaseous cloud. It stopped expanding, though I was sure that if I get any closer, it would be otherwise. I ran a few circles around the Queen as both of us were at an impasse with our attacks. Suddenly, another couple of thorny whips lashed at me. Perhaps tired of me running around in circles without being an attacking threat, it could not wait any longer. I dodged the attack easily enough and tried to return one of my own on her. I slashed the vines away, but it instantly grew back. Heh. Talk about regenerating. This was cheating. But I knew better than to complain as I now had it where I wanted. Not moving was its downfall. As I flicked my sword on the ground, it immediately caught flame. And it spread fast enough to encircle the enemy without it realizing what happened. I was not a fool to run around within her attack reach without a reason. I was marking the area with the mixture and satisfied with the amount, all I needed to do was to assure that the Queen did not move outside of it. The attack earlier just now confirmed its location and gleefully, I would now take my chances. As I play the role of an arsonist, I now had my DoT in place and ultimately the upper hand. Red Alraune, be prepared to meet your doom! ***** ¡°Ghost! Are you alright?!¡± Elly was quick enough to block me with her body from hitting the underground wall. I was blown away by the Queen¡¯s last and suicidal attack and it took 95% of my HP at one go. ¡°Barely¡­¡± I was bleeding profusely. With 5% of HP left and being poisoned was no joke. Having thought I had finally the upper hand, I rushed and attacked it relentlessly as the fire that surrounded the monster kept it occupied. I found out that the Mandragoras were weak against fire including the Queen. In fact, the fire worked a little too well. But I did not expect it to have this much effect. Not only the poisonous cloud that was formed earlier exploded and took the Queen¡¯s damage by a large number, the specks of small fireballs dispersed throughout the whole room and caught the enemy with full force. I received a little damage in return but that was not enough for me to even hesitate. Frantically waving its thorny vines to extinguish the fire, it gave me all the time in the world to attack her. I was confident that I could get it down now. But alas, the Queen had one final trick up its sleeve. Or rather, the crimson bulb on its head. It suddenly bloomed and with its petal spread open, a couple of vines grabbed me at point-blank range as I was delivering the final few blows on the Red Alraune. I was pulled forward and I did not want to wait and find out why. Just looking at the petal gave me goosebumps as the gnawing teeth appeared coupled with a glowing red bulb from the inside of the petals. I twisted my body and turned away from the range as fast as I could. And it was not a moment too soon when the Queen exploded. A suicidal attack. I was lucky not to get caught directly by the explosion or else I would be dead. Turning myself away in time was the key and because of that, I managed to survive. My 5% HP had now become 2.5% as I was poisoned in return. ¡°You are too reckless!!¡± Elly scolded me for my behaviour. The student now reprimanded the master. I could not but to let out a bittersweet smile as I groaned a little. The pain system in NPO was quite effective and it felt real. ¡°Sorry if I worry you, Elly.¡± She was not listening to my apologies. Instead, she checked upon my body to see the extent of my injuries. Well, going into a Boss battle like this without proper equip was unbecoming of my style. I was overconfident about defeating the Queen with what I currently had. This was not LIXXO when I maxed my character. I was a newbie in NPO and I better take more precaution from now on. Besides, looking at Elly¡¯s pained expression hurt me a little. Though she was an NPC nonetheless, I should stop making others worry about me like this. We sat down taking our respite. Once we defeated the Queen, all the other Mandragoras returned to their normal self; running away, avoiding or hid as soon as they saw us. It gave us a breather as we tried to let the time passed to heal ourselves. We brought no healing items with us, being a poor sod and all. My HP kept dropping due to the poison effect and I was now at 0.5% HP. Looking at the numbers, my HP was in a single digit now. Feck. Was I going to die like this? However, to my pleasant surprise, my HP stopped dropping further. I could not be relieved just yet in case the Mandragoras decided to play hostile all of a sudden. Elly was at her maximum alertness as her eyes scanned the whole room while in the ready position. All the flame had died and the underground tunnel was once more dimly lighted with burning embers amidst the hollow green light illuminated by some sort of grass. *Ting* *Ting* *Ting* Ohh¡­ I did not realize I had a system message. Usually, I would open it up as soon as it appeared, but because I was a little winded and busy, I totally forgot about it. So, what kind of Boss¡¯ loots could I get? Done with my first Boss fight, I was excited about the outcome.
The Red Alraune Special Quest Completed! Congratulations on defeating the crazed Queen of the Mandragoras; the Red Alraune. You had brought peace and calmness once more for the little folk and their homes. For them, you are their hero. Rewards: Affinity with the Kingdom of Asgard¡¯s Mandragoras. They are now your friends and would be willing to help you. Please check your menu for more details. + 5000 EXPs + 10 Fame Special Affinity Link: The Mandragoras. Please talk to Bill and Martha to receive your other rewards.
¡°Huh?!¡± I could not help but to express my annoyance. Was that all? What happened to the loots and such? Feck me sideways. This was absurd. Though both of us levelled up immediately, the reward could be better. I mean, where was the sword, the equips or even the drop items that one usually gets when beating a Boss monster. Should I kill it 10 times over? Judging by the quest, I guess I just missed my chances. Pathetic. I spat on the ground in disgust. Elly was dumbfounded by my reaction but I couldn¡¯t care less for now. I was pissed. Bloody hell. And what was the other fecking rewards from the poor farmer might I get? A couple of cow manure bags? I sighed deeply and regretted a little. ¡°Are you alright, Ghost?¡± I turned and looked at Elly. She was quite worried about me. Perhaps I should cool down a little and explore this place for anything useful I could find. Maybe a sack of gold or something. Boss monsters usually kept their treasure hordes somewhere. ¡°Let us find something more useful than a couple bags of shits we might get?¡± I stood up and searched the area. With my low HP, I was being very careful not to spring any traps or get attacked by weird monsters lurking in the shadows. ¡°Hmm¡­ I don¡¯t understand.¡± Elly followed suit and helped me search around. ***** The two middle-aged couple were beaming with happiness when we came back and told them of our success in defeating the Red Alraune. We were here for the sole reason of getting our other ¡®rewards¡¯ from the quest. However, I did not hold my hopes high as the game had been trolling me for a while now. ¡°Do you know what is this?¡± I asked Bill as I revealed him the only item that I found at the Red Alraune¡¯s place. An unidentifiable sapling. ¡°Hmm¡­ a sapling.¡± Bill answered nonchalantly. I should just kick his nuts. I knew what the feck was this without having him to tell me. ¡°But it¡¯s not just any sapling.¡± He then added much to my surprise. It looked like a usual tree sapling one would always find growing on the ground. I had Elly took it with us as it was the only thing we could found after searching for hours inside that desolate place. A sapling found from the remains of the Red Alraune. ¡°What do you mean?¡± I wanted to know more. ¡°Legend has it that if you defeated any of the Mandragora¡¯s Throne and in your case the Queen, you could find yourself a sapling that contains all the wisdom and strengths of the defeated foe,¡± Bill explained to me, but instead I had more questions than answers now. ¡°You mean this little sprout?¡± Elly too was curious. She could not believe this sapling was any more unusual. Like how I felt earlier. ¡°It might be a sprout to you for now since you had not actually awakened it.¡± ¡°Tell us more, then.¡± ¡°I wish I could, but I¡¯m not the right person who could tell you much. I¡¯m just a farmer and my specialty is growing vegetables. For something like this, find a botanist within the city¡¯s wall and she will tell you everything you need to know.¡± Bill ended his explanations. Long but useless. I gained nothing more from him. Ah well, this sapling was as pathetic as it was right now. Perhaps I could see some use in it if I could find the botanist. I could not even throw it away even if I wanted to since the system never allowed it. ¡°Since we are talking about legends, are you interested in one more?¡± Would this be one of Bill¡¯s another long but useless information? Feeling irritated, I just nod my head. Nothing could do my head for now. He could yap all the way he wanted and I¡¯d just doze off somewhere. ¡°Since I had come this far, just tell me anything you know.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t be telling you. Here are all the notes from my grandfather had about the legend and more. Never knew how to read those since I was a kid.¡± Bill passed me a couple of books that he took out from a shelf. I knew that this middle-aged man, for all his niceties and whatnot, was a dumb and illiterate one. His wife was no better at all. ¡°Bill¡¯s grandfather used to be a botanist and a part-time archaeologist when he first arrived here. This was all his notes. Those scribbles looked like worms in heart.¡± And that all she said.
Received the books Legend of High Asgardia and Memoir of an Old God.
I opened up the book and read the content.
Legend of High Asgardia, Part 1. Thousands of years ago, there was an ancient civilization that once flourished within the peak of Mount Velanheim. To reach the place, the wisdom of old and the strength of new must be gathered before the gate could be found. However, the exact location and the method to open the gate was left undiscovered until now. It was up to you to, if you want, to find the Legend and relive the glory of yesteryears.
I read everything and gained nothing. Typical. Next was the memoir.
Memoir of an Old God, Part 1. ¡°Hahaha!!¡± The Allfodr laughed heartily. He was in the state of euphoria as his son, Thor came back home and brought him a gift that befitted his status. ¡°Father, this is a gift I had found in Midgard!¡± He said as he thumped Mjolnir towards the sky. The gift lay beside him, all wrapped in rags. However, the value was never to be questioned as Odin himself was excited. ¡°Good, my son. I am proud of you.¡± The Wise God King unwrapped his gift and out came¡­
And that was all I could read. Man, this was not good either. I just wasted my time reading some children fairy-tales or old wives¡¯ stories. But somehow, I knew better than to just dismissed it straight away. Perhaps in future, I might have some use for it. Sell it to a library perhaps? For now, I needed to get back to the city. I was broke, naked, and really, really in need of new skills. I bid farewell to the couple who surprisingly gave me a bag containing silver coins. Counting them up, it was 150 silvers. I thought those folks were poor to begin with. However, I was thankful enough that I could now purchase better equips or perhaps buy myself some much needed healing items. I had some loots that I could sell off too. And once I finished my shopping, I needed to learn new skills. I had a few in my minds that I wanted to learn first. With that purpose, Elly and I set off back to the City of Asgardia. Chapter 14: To Learn is to Grow. Chapter 14: To Learn is to Grow. As usual, Popo was alone in the Practice Hall. He was cleaning the courtyard when we first arrived. When he saw us, he was delighted and came walking ¨C or hopping ¨C as fast as he could. After exchanging our pleasantries, we told him about the farm quest that he gave us. He had been waiting for the news and when we broke the tidings to him, he was so happy that flying to the moon could not happen soon enough. His praise to us was indeed heartwarming to say the very least. That and also he could enjoy his rainbow carrots once more. ¡°Po, I don¡¯t really know how to thank both of you.¡± ¡°No worries. Just a little help for a friend.¡± I pushed him away yet another of his furry hugs. Having them twice in the space of a few minutes was quite awkward. ¡°Oh, I know. Why not I invite both of you to have dinner at my place. My wifey would sure love to receive you both.¡± Elly looked at me excitedly and I immediately knew what she wanted me to say. I just gave a chuckle as I agreed to Popo¡¯s dinner invitation. ¡°Come to my house at 7.30pm sharp, po. Don¡¯t be late or the food will be no more when you come.¡± Popo reminded me. ¡°Sure. I¡¯ll settle some things first, especially selling the loots.¡± ¡°Ahh¡­ the loots. If you have any loots to sell, sell it to Blake, a general vendor who happens to be a friend of mine. Mention my name and he would give you a better price for your items.¡± ¡°Cool. I would like that.¡± I immediately set off, leaving Elly with Popo. He wanted her help to shop around for the groceries. Knowing him, she would end up as the baggage carrier though she was more than willing to do anything for a good dinner for once. Well, whatever. I would leave those two to their stuff. I needed to complete mine before the coming full moon. ***** ¡°So, how much would I get if I sell all of these items?¡± With me were a few dozens of rabbit pelts, meats and jellopies and quite numbers of other junks that I had gathered with Elly¡¯s help. ¡°You said Popo told you about me.¡± I nodded to Blake, the general vendor whose store was quite well hidden in the back street of the Adventurer Market. It was tough looking for him though I was lucky enough as players around showed me where I needed to go. Perhaps they took a pity on me for I really looked like a proper newbie selling his first loot. There were a few other players checking on the wares in this shop when I first arrived. ¡°Well, in that case, how about this deal? I¡¯ll give you the best price you¡¯d get by selling them to me. But I¡¯ll need you to do something for me later.¡± Blake crossed his hands in anticipation for my response which I duly obliged. ¡°What do you want?¡± I asked. And I could see a glint of shine within his eyes when he told me what he wanted. ¡°Easy. I need you to get me some crafting materials. I¡¯ll list it down for you the names and the amounts needed. Once you have those, return them to me and I¡¯ll reward you accordingly.¡± Another gathering items quest? Seemed easy enough and I needed to do more quests too. No matter how I looked at it, it was a win-win situation. Making myself chummy with a vendor NPC would bring me good stead. ¡°Alright, you got a deal.¡± Blake was happy that I received his request. Being on his good side immediately netted me 4 gold and 85 silver coins after selling all the items. He then gave me a piece of paper that contained all the necessary items I needed to gather for him for the quest. As usual, the quest message popped up and I immediately checked it. However, this time I was quite taken aback.
Blake¡¯s Special Request. I had recently found an old manuscript of crafting and I wanted to try it out. However, I lacked the items to do so. And that¡¯s where you come in. These are the names of the items I need and the amounts. Honestly, I¡¯m not so sure where to get them in the first place. If I knew, I wouldn¡¯t trouble you, right? x 99 ???????? x 99 ???????? x 99 ???????? x 99 ???????? x 99 ???????? x 99 ???????? x 99 ???????? x 99 ???????? x 99 ???????? x 99 ???????? x 99 ???????? x 99 ???????? x 99 ???????? Quest Rank: Unknown Completion Requirements: Return to Blake with all the items. Quest Reward: ????????
Wow. That was some abuse of question marks. 13 unknown items and I needed 99 each. I thought he would write what he wanted. However, I got the feeling that I needed to register it in my database first before the name would appear. Seemed so anyway. And the reward too was unknown. Man, just my luck. I wished I had better quest than getting all these weird quests with even weirder rewards. If I was not wrong, it all started with Popo¡¯s earlier request of me. One of the things I had learned so far was the quest rewards were not the usual like how any other game would reward its players. Or maybe it was just my damn luck after all. ¡°Take your time, alright. I¡¯m not sure whether it works or not, but if you ever have the items with you, you know where to find me.¡± ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll give my best.¡± I bid farewell to him as I went on to my next part of my checklist of things to do; learning some skills. And to do that, I needed to find those who could actually teach me those skills. My earlier experience playing this game and what I saw from other players told me that there were some skill masters scattered around in the city. All I needed to do was to look for them first. If newbie players could learn a few skills early in the games, this was a good indication that those skills were easier to find and learn. ***** When I started to play NPO, I basically had a few ideas I wanted to explore to make my character fit into the following criteria; to be able to survive and thrive in the harshest conditions. It might sound simple to some, as I did not mention about being the strongest, fastest, most accurate and such. Most players tend to focus their na?ve romanticism on those notions. Two schools of thoughts prevailed; they either must win at all cost or must never ever lose. They strived to fit into certain criteria that they ¡®the hero¡¯, must be the best-est of the best. In the real world and in-game, if they thought they were strong, wait until they met another player who would one-up them or two. In my squad, I was not the brightest kid on the block or the smart alleck. If that was so, I would be in college rather than a soldier. But that was how I became the so-called one of the Five Legendary Demon King back in LIXXO. I was not the strongest, nor the fastest, nor the most dexterous even. But I was the hardest to kill. Like a cockroach, I would survive anything thrown to me. And at the end of the day, I would thrive and conquer my enemies. In times of war, the victor was not found amongst the dead. In fact, I wanted to name my character as CockRoach but seeing that it was bugging me a little being called that way, I renamed myself as Ghost. I had my reasons too for choosing this name. The first key to my success was to survive. And the best and most economical way was through healing and support skills. The way I¡¯d seen it, I was pretty sure those two type of skills weren¡¯t high on everyone¡¯s list, even in NPO. Like they said, those type of skills were reserved for a pacifist, newbies or even dumb players who couldn¡¯t fight to save their lives. And supporter-type players were often treated as the pariahs of the party. How wrong could these people ever be? In LIXXO, I was a healer first then cross-classed into a fighter once I ascended a certain level. I thought I wanted to reverse it this time; being a damage dealer and a tank first and then changed to it healer and support type. But the whole plan was thrown out of the windows with Elly¡¯s arrival and my poor financial conditions. In NPO, there was no class and we could learn any skills. We could then cross skills and select which skills we wanted to use that suit our playing styles. The current limit of the skills one player could have was a hundred. Beyond that number, a player could opt to delete any skill of his choice to accommodate the one that he wanted by using certain means. ¡°So, you wanted to be a member of the Valhalla¡¯s Church?¡± The priest asked me when I enquired about learning healing skills. I shook my head. ¡°Nope. I just wanted to learn healing and support skills, not being a member of your religion.¡± The priest looked a little amazed at my admission but he kept his calm. ¡°In that case, we are sorry to tell you that we could not teach you no more than the Basic Skills.¡± In NPO, skills could be divided into 5 levels; Basic, Intermediate, Advance, Saint and Forbidden. There were rumours that some skills existed that did not belong amongst these 5 levels. However, no one had come up with the list or seen anyone using it.Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. ¡°Basic is enough.¡± The priest looked at me quite intently as he rubbed his chin. ¡°It¡¯s a pity that you do not want to be one of us. You seem to have the quality to be a good healer.¡± Yeah right. Say whatever you wanted to say, but I knew better than to fall into these clich¨¦ traps. Lick my arse a little and I might be inclined to believe my own hype. ¡°Not now, priest. I have something I must do first before I decide on anything else. I¡¯m still a newbie.¡± I gave a polite excuse so that he would not pester me anymore. And to my surprise, he agreed easily. ¡°Yes. Yes. You need to gather your more wisdom with you before carry our name. Very well. I shall let you learn our Basic Healing and Support Skills. Which skill books would you prefer to purchase?¡± So, I would need to learn my skills from a skill book. Other than being taught directly, bestowed upon or by training oneself, learning from the book was considered to be the easiest. Though the skills level would be severely limited, never exceeding the current knowledge of the author. Basic skill books were easy to be found and could be bought from various NPCs. The others were harder to obtain though. And magic skills of any kind could only be learned through books, bestowed or taught, never by training. Once learned, the efficiencies and the levels of the skills could be increased in many ways, most notably by frequent use. Every skill has their own proficiencies level, differed from each other. ¡°How much per book?¡± ¡°The Basic book would cost you 1 gold coin each and we have 5 volumes of those.¡± Whoa. Pricey. I just had under 5 gold coins and since I won¡¯t be spending all on buying skill books, I would just choose the one that I would often use. ¡°Give me the one that could heal my life.¡± I wanted to heal my HP during or after the battle. To heal by resting was too slow for my taste. And this skill would come in handy too during an emergency. ¡°In that case, Volume 1 would be suitable for you. Is there anything else?¡± I shook my head. ¡°That would be enough for now.¡± For now, I would let Elly do her job first unless the situation required it. I was more interested in the party dynamics and balance. But coming from a solo player like me, that was quite a shock if anyone were to hear it. But I knew better when I served my time in the Special Force. After paying for my purchase, I took my leave and proceeded to the next stop. I went to a local magic store and bought another skill book at the price of 2 gold coins. Even pricier than the first skill book. Hopefully, all these skills would come in handy. Once I reached an isolated area, I took both the books out and learned it skills.
You have learned all the skills from the ¡®Basic Healing and Support Skill Book Volume 1¡¯. Obtained Heal, Respite and Stone Skin.
You have learned all the skills from the ¡®Basic Asgardian Magic That Everyone Should Learn Volume 3¡¯. Obtained Poison, Rot, Forget-Me-Not and Eewww!.
As usual, I would always check on the effects of the skills I had learned.
ACTIVE SKILL: HEAL Level 1 Descriptions: Heal a minimum 250HP or 5-10% of HP to any target. Cast Time: 5 seconds. Area of Effect: Single Mana Consumption: 7MP Cooldown: 30 seconds.
ACTIVE SKILL: RESPITE Level 1 Description: Restore your Stamina by 50. Cast Time: 3 seconds. Area of Effect: Self/Ally/Party Members Only Mana Consumption: 15 MP Cooldown: 2 Minutes
ACTIVE SKILL: STONE SKIN Level 1. Descriptions: Decrease physical attack damage sustained by casting over a magical protective barrier. Girls, no worries. Your skin won¡¯t turn into stone. Effect last for 30 minutes. Area of Effect: Single Cast Time: 5 Seconds. Mana Consumption: 20 MP Cooldown: 2 Minutes
ACTIVE SKILL: POISON Level 1 Descriptions: Gradually lower target¡¯s HP by means of poison. Works only on living things. Increase taunt level. Effect last for 120 seconds. Area of Effect: Single. Cast Time: 5 seconds. Mana Consumption: 10 MP Cooldown: 1 minute.
ACTIVE SKILL: ROT Level 1 Descriptions: Cast debilitating effects on your target. Works on all things. Increase taunt level. Area of Effect: Single Cast Time: 4 seconds. Mana Consumption: 25 MP Cooldown: 1 minute.
ACTIVE SKILL: FORGET-ME-NOT Level 1 Descriptions: Increase charm level temporarily. First impression counts. +5 Charisma for the next 1 hour. Area of Effect: Self/Ally Cast Time: Immediate Cooldown: 10 minutes.
ACTIVE SKILL: EEWWW Level 1 Descriptions: Make everyone avoid you like a bad breath. -10 Charisma for the next 30 minutes. Area of Effect: Single Cast Time: Immediate Mana Consumption: 5 MP Cooldown: 2 minutes.
Now came the challenging part; skill rotations. I had no doubt that most players would have the same skills as I did. However, the skill rotation might defer depending on their play styles. Some might have it, and some would not. For me, it was a must. Injudicious use of skills would not only hinder one¡¯s ability to fight for a long time but also be the detriment of others, especially in a party. I could test this on the training dummies and some monsters later on. Since I was done with learning new skills for the time being, now was the time to check on a botanist in the city. Unfortunately for me, currently this city had no residence botanist. It was weird to know that it was the case but from what I heard on the streets, all the botanists were summoned to the Royal Capital. No one knew the reason why since this situation was not exclusive to this city. Other cities within this Kingdom too had all their botanists summoned. Weird timing indeed. In that case, I better not waste any more time and go to Popo¡¯s house instead. I could always arrive early for dinner and help if needed. ***** ¡°How¡¯s the food, Ghost?¡± Elly asked midway through our dinner. ¡°I think it¡¯s¡­ uhmm¡­ alright, I guess.¡± The taste bud in NPO was done in such a way that the food would taste the same in the real world. Burnt omelette tasted like a properly burnt omelette. Again, I did not know how those people who created this game did this and many others, but I was damn well impressed. So impressed that I did not talk the whole while and continued to munch on. Though I still needed to eat real food in the real world, and I would take a constant break but man, it never ceased to amaze me how much the NPO¡¯s world looked and felt so real. My mind wandered off when Elly asked me again her earlier question. Looking at her sitting in front of me with her puppy eyes, I then turned my gaze to the other two host whom they themselves too were looking at me with anticipation. It made me a little restless. Honestly, I did not think it was good at all. But I was trying to be a good guest thus the white lie. However, I received a surprise confession from Mimi, Popo¡¯s wife as he grinned next to her. ¡°Elly made that, you know.¡± She gave a chuckle and then continued, ¡°But I don¡¯t think she had any aptitude for cooking at all.¡± ¡°Uhhmmm¡­¡± Elly let out a soft whimper and looked at me pitifully as the two couple delighted themselves further with her mishaps in the kitchen earlier. Retelling me the stories, I could not help but to actually be amazed that the house was still in one piece and the dinner was served perfectly, except for the one dish that Elly prepared. ¡°Oohh¡­ I see¡­¡± I just chuckled a little looking at the singed mark on her blonde hair and those bandaged fingers. She did try to impress me with her cooking skills, but alas, for someone as beautiful as her, this was something that she was not blessed with. ¡°B-But¡­ I want to eat good food too¡­¡± She pouted a little. Only when it came to food that she acted like a little child. ¡°You can just buy those. No need for you to cook.¡± I said to her as I continued to munch on the burnt omelette. Honestly, it was not that bad if you could forget the burnt and over seasoned taste. It tasted like a charcoal dipped salt water. But honestly, I had eaten worse food than this. ¡°But it¡¯s not the same. I-I¡­¡± She was surely a spoilt child. But she did have a point though. To be healthy, eating proper food was a given. Cooking one would be economical in the long run too. The money I could save could be used for more important things later on. ¡°Alright, alright. How about if I cook for you instead. How does it sound?¡± ¡°Really?¡± I just nodded my head. Elly was delighted and told me, ¡°Mimi could teach you how to cook. She¡¯s so good at it.¡± Upon hearing those words, Popo beamed with pride. ¡°You could say that many times, Elly. That¡¯s why I married her.¡± Heh. Taking all the credits, wasn¡¯t you little rabbit? ¡°And you are supposed to buy those items she wanted instead of¡­¡± Popo¡¯s face turned pale when I wanted to tell his wife how Elly was his errand girl all these while. He immediately jumped on the table and covered my mouth before I could finish my words. His actions took everyone by surprise, especially Mimi. She looked at us, gasping at the idiocy and discourtesy of her husband treating the guest. ¡°Shh¡­ don¡¯t tell my wife about that, please?¡± Popo whispered in my ears. I gave out a mischievous smile. ¡°I see. I got your dirt on you now, you rabbit.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not a rabbit. I¡¯m a Bunnian.¡± Whatever, rabbit. You looked like one, moved like one and that rainbow carrot on your plate just confirmed to me that you were a bloody rabbit. ¡°Anyway, you can make breakfast for us tomorrow. Help my wife in the kitchen, right Ghost?¡± I did not answer. He tried to change the subject. Clever bastard. ¡°Right, G-H-O-S-T?¡± He purposely mentioned my name slowly, reiterating his desire for me to keep quiet. ¡°Alright, alright. Fine. I¡¯ll make breakfast.¡± I used to make breakfast for my squad back in the Special Force but I was not sure how well I could translate that skill here. After I agreed to keep his secret intact that he finally climbed down from the table and took his seat once again. ***** After dinner, the four of us sat by the fireplace and chit-chatted throughout the whole time. Especially those three. I just kept quiet and listened to them. My mind was filled with how I wanted to rotate my skills. ¡°I heard from Elly that you made her tank and gave her my equipment, Ghost?¡± Popo asked me as he saw me sitting absently. I just nodded at him. ¡°And what do you do, po?¡± he continued despite my attempt not to engage the conversation for now. ¡°Enjoy seeing her arse getting whooped by rabbits,¡± I let out a laugh that made Elly the more embarrassed. Popo looked stumped. ¡°Well, Popo. For our sake, a well-balanced party is a must. First, we must survive. Then thrive. For that, I did get hold of some skills that might do the trick.¡± ¡°So, you learned new skills, Ghost?¡± Elly finally inquired about my afternoon¡¯s activities. I just nodded at her. ¡°Oh, new skills? What''re the skills about?¡± It was Mimi¡¯s turn to ask me. Seeing that it was no harm telling these people about my next plan, I gave them my answers. Unfortunately, it was met with Popo¡¯s hysterical laugh. ¡°Y-You call t-that pitiful thing skills, po?¡± He rolled on the floors a few times while laughing. Did I say something funny? Somehow, this bloody rabbit was getting on my nerve. ¡°You sure are clueless and lack brains, po!¡± If I was not in his house or fully stuffed from the earlier dinner, I would definitely roast this rabbit instead. ¡°If you need real and proper skills, I¡¯ll bring you to meet someone, alright. Casting Poison and buffing yourself are for sissies, po!¡± I wanted to whack his brain out of his skull, but to my pleasant surprise, Mimi did that for me instead. She glared at him and Popo stopped cold. ¡°One more time you say things like that, you will sleep outside, you useless rabbit!¡± And this was my turn to laugh at him. Serve him right for laughing at me. Just because I chose something different or do something that most people never do didn¡¯t mean I was any less brainy or clueless as they were. At low levels, it was easier for me to try new things out that I never tried before. ¡°Sorry about that, Ghost. That husband of mine is one trick rabbit. He knew nothing that people like us are going through. Or anything about party balance.¡± Mimi might have noticed the steam that came out from my ears and tried to calm me down. ¡°It¡¯s alright, Mimi. I¡¯m used to it. People calling me brainless and clueless about things that they themselves do not understand. And they came in a bunch too nowadays. As if they knew any better coming from that high and mighty chairs of theirs.¡± Mimi glared once again at her husband. With her ice-cold gaze, she sure was the one wearing the pants in this house. And this time, Popo came to me and pat my back, perhaps trying to apologize to me. Well, it was all well anyway. To be honest, I used to be bothered about it when playing LIXXO but after a while, I knew better than to follow the herd. ¡°Talking about parties and whatnot, the Royal Capital has been busy lately. I had never seen so much activities since the last siege. A few parties and guilds had been summoned up.¡± ¡°You mean when Our King, Aldemar Thoran lay the siege towards this land?¡± Elly asked Popo as she sat below on the wooden floor while Mimi tended her long flowing blonde hair from a high chair. ¡°Yeah. I too had been summoned, together with my wife to the Royal Capital.¡± Oh, those two rabbit couples were being summoned by the King? That was odd. Something like that did happened back in the city when I was looking for botanists. I asked around and the answers were the same; they had been summoned by the King. And it was not just limited botanists too judging from Popo and Mimi¡¯s words. ¡°It was odd to know that there were no botanists when I went looking for one.¡± I decided to chip in. My curiosity was piqued and I wanted to know more. ¡°Botanists? Why are you looking for them?¡± Mimi asked of me suddenly. Looking at Elly, I took out the sapling from my pocket. I continued to explain what Bill and Martha told me about the sapling as I showed it to them. They listened intently and at the end of my explanation, Mimi cracked a wide smile as her husband looked at her. ¡°Well, if you don¡¯t mind, maybe I could help you.¡± Chapter 15: Rose and Thorns Chapter 15: Rose and Thorns ¡°I used to be a botanist before I married this useless rabbit,¡± Mimi said before she began to identify the sapling. No wonder that the house was full of potted plants and the garden was well kept when I first entered here. It would take some knowledge for someone to be able to keep it as pristine as this. From afar, this house looked like a plant nursery. If it was not because of the marker Popo gave earlier, I might miss the place. ¡°I¡¯m not useless. I saved you, remember?¡± Popo retaliated behind my back. So, it was not just me who called this rabbit, a rabbit. ¡°Yeah. I remember alright. I remember that I saw your arse and bushy tail when you ran away with your ears dropped down and all!¡± His wife was not looking impressed. Though she had the sapling in her hands, her eyes were not focusing on the task at all. ¡°B-But I went to get help¡­¡± I was sure that this was not the first time they had their couple bickering. But, I needed my sapling to be identified, now. ¡°Alright folks. Keep your matrimonial arguments away until you identify this sapling. Do you have any idea what is it?¡± I asked. Elly just stood beside me and she too was interested in the topic at hand. ¡°This is a Rose Alraune sapling,¡± Mimi explained as she finished identifying the sapling. ¡°What¡¯s a Rose Alraune?¡± I inquired for more clarification. Mimi looked at me with her whiskers moving slightly under that big rounds eyes of hers. ¡°You don¡¯t know?¡± I shook my head. ¡°Pity.¡± Mimi sighed a little before she began to explain further. ¡°A Rose Alraune is a type of plant that has humanoid form when fully grown. Considered to be the most beautiful but also the hardest to take care, hence the name.¡± ¡°So, how do I go growing one? I tried selling it earlier but since it was unidentifiable, it could not fetch me a proper amount.¡± Well, I could not sell it for a copper anyway. Mimi looked at me as if I had said the darnest of things. ¡°No one will buy it since it¡¯s your pet.¡± Mimi pouted at me, raising her finger and then waving it around. She sure took her things seriously. ¡°Huh? What? A pet?¡± ¡°You need to awaken the sapling so that it would sprout its first leaf. Once she awakes, then you can form a contract with her.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t get it.¡± I had heard about some players who had pets. But the chances to get one was extremely low and it was to be said that each pet was as unique as an ally. No two players would have the same pet even though it was from the same species. The official website only mentioned about players having pets all too briefly. ¡°You will know once you have awakened it first.¡± I was not so sure what Mimi had asked me to do. How would I go about this? ¡°First, you need the Spring Water and a pot of soil. But it would not be any ordinary soil. You have to plant it in the soil where you first found it. Once you had those two, I¡¯ll do the rest for you and then give it a week to grow.¡± ¡°Well, where do I get the Spring Water?¡± The other item could be acquired quite easily. ¡°I have some. I could give it to you. But¡­¡± ¡°But?¡± I pursed my lips. ¡°I want you to take care of it like your own child. A plant is a delicate being; susceptible to your emotions and the manner of its upbringing. What¡¯s more of a Rose Alraune.¡± Taking care of a child? I wished I knew how. I only saw my boys during the live feed whenever I was not in combat at foreign lands. I was never there when they were born nor was I there when they grew up. And when I came back to the country, they were gone. With my wife. I let out a deep sigh. I was really in doubt. Elly came and pat my back when she saw me looking like this; like she always did. ¡°It¡¯s alright. I know you could be a great dad. You took care of me well, Ghost.¡± She really knew how to rub salt into the wound. I looked at her, managing a bittersweet smile. I think I could give it a try. ***** The moment we had been waiting for. The sapling had sprouted it first leaf; a reddish one. And then it formed into a miniature Mandragora with a red top. Standing at 3 inches tall, it wiggled around like a worm in heat.
Rose Alraune Congratulations!This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it You had Rose Alraune as your pet. Form a contract by giving your pet a name and register it within your pet itinerary screen. More details about your pet would be given once you establish a closer relationship with it. You can now proceed to check its status at the ally¡¯s status screen. Remember, that your pet grows with you. Take care of all pets well and you will succeed where everyone else will fail. Good luck!
I think I received the same information screen when I got Elly before. Kind of anti-climactic, but nonetheless, I could not wait to check its status first. But something else caught my mind. The Rose Alraune tried to wiggle out of the pot and once it did, extended its root so that it could be elevated in front of my face. ¡°Ghost, it wanted to form a contract with you. Remember, give her a name.¡± A name? I did not think about it before. I just wanted to see how it was like without really thinking about naming a pet. But somehow, I needed to do so to form a contract. ¡°Why not we call her, Petals?¡± Elly suggested. I immediately shook my head. Even the Rose Alraune seemed to dislike it as it jerked itself around. And how did Elly know that it was a ¡®her¡¯ and not a ¡®he¡¯? ¡°Why not Bobo? No? What about Dudu? Or Didi? Perhaps Tutu sounds good too.¡± What kind of names did Popo give to me, trying to name it as one of his own species? But if the Rose Alraune was my child, I should give something a more humanlike name. Something easy while describing its personalities. As Mimi said, the Rose Alraune was the most beautiful but hardest to take care after all. ¡°Rose.¡± I finally made my mind. ¡°Her name is Rose.¡± And it was received well by her too, judging how much she waved around like a flower being swept by a gentle breeze. Though she looked kind of ugly for something to be called a Rose Alraune. ¡°It¡¯s a good name, Ghost.¡± Mimi congratulated me, followed by Popo and Elly. Well, since I had my first pet, my group just became a little bigger. Understanding Rose¡¯s abilities would do me a world of good. Scrutinizing her status screen, it finally dawned on me. She was what I would call supporter; someone who helped her party member by means of raising stats of her allies by using buffs and decreasing stats of her enemies with debuffing. But being a level 1, she was way too low to be of any use for now. And according to Mimi, as a plant, she had 6 level of growth; sprout, seedling, vegetative, budding, flowering and lastly maturity or ripening. Rose began as a seedling and it was my job now to see her into full growth. I placed Rose on my palm and she climbed onto my shoulder. Place herself comfortably on me, I could see that she tried to speak me. But the only voice that came out of her was ¡°Shh¡­ Shh¡­ shh¡­¡±. I just patted her head and beckoned to Elly. ¡°Let us go out to the field and level up Rose.¡± It was night time and I was sure that the night buff would do her a world of good. ¡°Ghost, remember what I told you about growing a plant.¡± Mimi reminded us for one last time before we set out journey. ¡°Yes, I remember.¡± I gave a thumbs up. Elly chipped in. ¡°If he forgets, I¡¯ll be sure to remind him.¡± Heh, talk the girl who could forget her own training and movements. ***** Eating proper food was essential not only for health and growth, but also to keep our motivation high. This rang true whether in NPO or the real world; which I would often take a break from time to time. Fighting with an empty tummy was not ideal, and starvation could lead us to poor combat abilities, not to mention thinking, willpower and emotional prowess. All in all, good food meant good chances to further develop ourselves. Though I clocked unearthly hours playing the game, proper health, nutrition and exercise must not be forgotten. As Popo once said, what I did in the real world mattered here too. As such, I often kept myself at the tip-top condition at all times. The discipline and the lifestyle which was shaped while I was a Special Force soldier could not be left to rot anymore. For Elly and I, the cooking skill I learnt from Mimi had helped us tremendously. All the rabbit meats we gained had been made into smoked or roasted meats instead. Not only we could combine it with other dishes, but we could fetch a better price for it. I learned just a few recipes from Mimi which were all Beginner¡¯s recipe level; Smoked Meat, Egg Sandwich, Roast Meat and Basic Salad and a simple Potato, Carrot and Meat Stew. Since the meat was readily available by killing some rabbits, the vegetables were provided freely by Bill and Martha back at the farm. They too provided Rose with fertilized soil for her nutrients. However, as a Rose Alraune, she had another special need; to syphon my Health and Mana from time to time. Mimi said that Rose was some sort of parasite and as her father cum owner, I must give her my nutrients too. Couldn¡¯t come more shocking to me seeing her stuck to my arms and syphoning my life force. I felt weird at first, but after a few times, it somehow became a routine. ¡°Papa, did I do good today?¡± Rose could now talk but in simple language. She was still a seedling but now she stood at 1 foot tall. Her level had increased to 15, just like Elly. I was the lowest at level 13. I swore that those two levelled up faster than I had ever imagined. ¡°You did well, Rose.¡± I patted her head as she gently purred while syphoning on my arm. ¡°What about me, Ghost?¡± Elly asked and I duly replied like how she wanted to hear. She let a deep and satisfying sigh and pump her fist. ¡°I¡¯ll do even better from now onwards. I¡¯ll not lose to Rose.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t lose to you too, Sis!¡± Rose replied with immediate intensity. Having these two around me made the whole situation merrier but not without their own set of problems. Rose was competitive and Elly was determined. Their skillsets differed greatly; their personalities not withholding. Elly was efficient in disposing of her enemies with quick attacks and skilful usage of her skill sets. Something that she learned from me that I could be proud of. Meanwhile, Rose was not only a medium range attacker but could also use her skill in an AOE attack. Her Vine Hold, Poison Touch and Thorn Shot was her arsenal of defeating many enemies at range. Though slower that Elly, Rose could compensate it with sheer numbers of enemies she could attack at any one time. As for myself, being some sort of pimp having two girls fought for me was kind of depressing. I did manage to find out some skill rotations that suits certain combat situations but then again, the two girls would have swept away most of the monsters before I could try it more than a couple of times at most. We needed to farm only at night for the night buffs, while the day I went back to train at the Practice Hall for my skill rotations. Elly and Rose would do the same thing too as they followed my instruction to a tee. Having my own trio, I needed everyone cooperation to be utilized as the very best we could. One plus one plus one must never equate to three. In the battlefield, coordination, telepathic understanding of our comrades¡¯ strength and weakness and willingness to follow instruction were the sacred rules that must be upheld at all cost. Victory or defeat could be separated by a fine line called ¡®resources management¡¯. And for the next couple of weeks before the full moon, all I needed to do was to manage all the resources I had. Chapter 16: Level and Stats Are Not Everything. Chapter 16: Level and Stats Are Not Everything. It was the full moon night again. The time had come for me to help the trios I¡¯d met back then. A promise made on a whim and with a sense to test one of this game¡¯s hardest type of event; Field Active Time Event or known as, FATE. By this time, I had levelled up to level 18 while the other two were at level 21. I had equipped Elly with proper equips this time; an additional shield and also some accessories that boosted up her attack and defence rating and also her maximum HP. During the time, she had increased her Shield Bash and Chaotic Strike to Level 2. For Rose, she could not be equipped with anything but her stats were still very impressive. Her Max HP was above 3500 HP and Max Mana was more than 1500 MP. In addition to being the one with the highest HP and MP, she had some ¡®naughty¡¯ skills, especially the one called ¡®Kiss me, maybe?¡¯. A confusion skill that not only disoriented the enemies but also saps their HP and Mana at the same time. For me, whether it was just my fate or otherwise, I ended up being the supporting cast. Equipping myself with a wand, a proper magician robe and accessories that raised my Max MP and Magic Attack Rating, I was the party healer. Elly was designated as my main tanker and attacker and Rose was my main debuffer, mobbing and kiting expert. I now acted like a proper pimp minus the bling; ordering two girls into the battle while I looked from afar and cast Heal and Respite anytime they needed it. We had ventured into a few maps beyond the City of Asgardia and the monsters level here was quite low. The highest was a level 20 medium sized furry creature; a Toopie ¨C a large squirrel that carried a club on its tail. Extremely fast, agile and packed a mean whack. If it was not for Rose¡¯s abilities, Elly would face more troubles than she needed. I joined those two from time to time but for now, my role was to coordinate our attacks. Using the aforementioned strategy and role, we progressed quite well. We could advance into higher level farming fields but it served no purpose for now. Besides, I still had my earlier promise to fulfil. We continued to farm at nighttime when the night buffs came into the effects. During the day, we were free to do some fetching item quests, fulfilling basic requests by the NPCs in the city or killing the low-levelled monsters. And of course, earning ourselves some coins. After spending on the best equips for our levels, I was now left with a little more than 8 gold coins. And I gained a couple more skills at basic levels which Mimi has taught me before she left with her husband to the Royal Capital a few days ago. I needed those skills to grow Rose better, she said. However, before I could check the progress of all my skills, I was interrupted suddenly by a shout calling for my name. ***** ¡°Ghost!!¡± Sophia ran towards me at full speed. Followed behind her was the other two, Miranda and Alviss. She took a moment to compose herself before uttered her words. ¡°I¡¯m happy that you came.¡± ¡°Took you long enough. I was tired of waiting.¡± I teased Sophia. But she mistook my words as a reprimand as she apologized to me profusely. Amidst her apologies, Alviss was the one who spoke next. ¡°You are way too early.¡± ¡°Good! I wanted to discuss our strategies before we enter the FATE.¡± I gave my reason but his response was not what I was looking for. He just laughed at it and said to my face ¡°I remembered what you said back then. That we must be level 40 and above to do this quest.¡± Did I say that? I did not think so. He must have misheard or misunderstood me. ¡°So, all of us came here, now level 40 and above.¡± He thumped his shield on the ground; tripled the size of Elly¡¯s. What seemed likely to be an act of visually measuring the size of his shield against hers, he then gave out a condescending look and snorted. ¡°I see.¡± I might know what he wanted to say next. Something that every player would always say. Arrogance had no boundaries, after all. Another poor attempt at dick measuring contest. I had seen it both in war and in games. ¡°Since we are now well equipped compared to last time, we can handle this.¡± He sneered at me, much to my displeasure and Sophia¡¯s. She came to my defence at once. ¡°Don¡¯t you say that. He helped us once.¡± But Miranda quipped her immediately. ¡°That was in the past. Now we are stronger, we don¡¯t even need his help, right Alviss?¡± She then laughed for a while before continued, ¡°Look at his attire and that girl. Looked like a proper poor low-levelled player.¡± She then turned her face in disgust. Just 3 weeks in game-time and now the two of them acted like a bunch of high-class prissies. ¡°Hush, Miranda. Don¡¯t say the truth that might hurt them. Though they look like poor low-levelled players, they could be of great use¡­ as bait.¡± The two of them laughed out loud. ¡°Perhaps they can¡¯t even be a proper bait. Not with that shabby armour that girl wear.¡± Miranda continued to mock us. ¡°Yeah, but of course, if he still wants to join us, I¡¯ll always welcome him. I¡¯m a Holy Knight after all. Besides, our future Guild Master was nice enough to let us help him¡­¡± His voice was full of sarcasm and contempt even though his words might have seemed to others as a model of benevolence and paragon. He must have burnt the memory of me disgracing him in front of the girls. And Miranda too was delighted by Alviss¡¯ words. Like him, she too held a petty grudge against me. All except for Sophia who tried her best to pacify us. Well, I did not mind playing a pacifist¡­ for 2 seconds. I gave out a mischievous grin. Pausing for a little while, I then extended my hand for a shake and once Alviss grabbed mine thinking that I agreed to him, I pulled him closer to me and said, ¡°Over my dead fucking body!¡± Then I head-butted him out of pure spite. That took him by surprise as I shoved him away and made towards the deeper part of the forest with Elly and Rose who hid in my breast pocket. ¡°See you in the FATE.¡± Sophia chased after me but I stopped her immediately. ¡°Help that Holy Knight and the archer. I had three in my party, so you don¡¯t need to feel pity for me.¡± The FATE was about to start as the sky now turned red into the twilight. I looked at the trio and then smirked. ¡°Tell you what. Why don¡¯t we make a bet?¡± Alviss looked at me, rubbing his forehead and then to the rest of his parties before nodding at me. ¡°What do you want to bet?¡± He asked while snorted in disgust. I should never have saved these people in the first place anyway. Such a petty fellow. ¡°Easy. Whoever kills the most monsters and got the most points out of it in the FATE, win. The mobs worth 10 points each and the Boss 50 points. The losers will do anything the winner tells him. If I win, you will crawl below my legs and then howl like a beaten dog.¡± My challenge was met by surprise from all of them. ¡°Of course, you don¡¯t have to take it if you all are cowards like the other day I helped you. Run with tails between your legs. Hahaha!!¡± I exaggerated my loud laugh to taunt them further. Alviss was shaking with anger and he looked straight at me. ¡°You got it, arsehole.¡± Hook, line and sinker in record time. What an idiot. Didn¡¯t need much effort to tip this guy to do silly things. Anyway, the kill count was easy to keep in check. As I found out from players and NPCs, the pack came in a group of 7 each and the Dire Wolf led 3 packs. And the number of the wolves we need to dispose of would appear on our quest screen. Initially, I was quite surprised the PCs reception of this quest. They told me that the FATE had nothing to do with any job quests. Asking around, I found it to be true. There were job quests that one could take to advance further but none involved this particular FATE. In fact, there was no one else that was here except my party and Alviss¡¯. In other words, this FATE was kind of abandoned, not just because it was quite impossible to be accomplished but also unrewarding at best. The last party that tried and was successful belonged to the city¡¯s currently governing guild. Something did not add up and I wanted to ask them. But before that happened, Alviss and Miranda decided to mock me. Not that I care what they said but then again they needed some hard lessons and I had nothing better to do than playing an arse-hole and delighted myself a little. I was not some guy with halos on my head. The promise they made to me was soon forgotten and they removed their names from my friend-list except for Sophia. Not that we talked any but then again, I found those other two to be nothing but petty. Fortunately, I found Sophia; for all her time spending levelling with these people, pleasant enough though she was much on the apologetic side. ¡°Cool, let¡¯s get started,¡± I replied coldly as the FATE system message appeared not too long after. ***** ¡°You two still remember our plans?¡± Elly nodded while Rose extended her roots upwards, caressing my cheek. We had been practising the routines for quite a while leading to the FATE whether in the Practice Hall or the field. However, the unexpected turn of events had slightly altered my original plans.The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°Good girls. We will now let those three become our meatshield, especially that Holy Knight. We would make his knightly dream come true with his holier-than-thou attitude.¡± I snickered. Knowing them, they would have some plan revolving around the Holy Knight charging towards the front, the archers sniping from afar and the mage to support and heal them whenever necessary. Typical but would also mean the death of them. ¡°Remember Elly. Keep your aggro lower than that pretty-boy as much as possible. And Rose, pull one of them towards the circle I make when I say so, not before, alright?¡± We were going to killsteal them. The bet was who killed more, anyway. ¡°Understood!¡± The two of them answered simultaneously with excitement. Rose gave me this weird salute with her long arms. She looked like a talking ginseng with a couple of leaves on her head more than a rose plant and when she did that salute, I could not help it but to chuckle a little. Somehow it did make me feel proud. Guessed they were not deterred by the level difference and the night buffs. I then proceeded to make a couple of wide circles with 10 feet radius using extremely flammable items made of a combination with sulfur, nitrate, potassium and ammonium. In a layman term, I used fertilizer mixed with gunpowder. Readily available in NPCs store as part of farming and botanical needs. I looked at the sight a little further from us, about 70 feet away while preparing my team. The other party was busy fighting the wolves as I predicted, taking the whole aggro of no less than 10 wolves at once. As soon as they saw the first pack of the wolves, the Holy Knight charged on right away. I could not help but to shake my head and let out a sigh as I stood in the middle of the circle. Rose was next to my leg and Elly stood in the other circle all alone. I had casted Stone Skin on all of us prior entering the circle. ¡°Pick that one, Rose!¡± I pointed to the furthest wolf that was surrounding them. Immediately, Rose launched an underground attack; Thorn Vines and struck the wolf cleanly. Getting a free hit from the back meant it was a critical backstab and we had earned ourselves an aggro. That wolf, together with the one beside it came towards us. As soon as they were within Elly¡¯s skill range, I called out her name. She responded splendidly. ¡°Shield Taunt!¡± Elly screamed, changed her stance and then bashed the front of the shield with her sword. The two wolves suddenly changed their direction towards Elly. As predicted, the Shield Taunt skill worked well. It did not just only increase the enmity and hate on her, but also served as a buff to increase her defence and attack rating although the increment was still on the lower side. Once the wolves entered her circle, I immediately lighted it up with fire and that created a flame wall; sealing off Elly with her two foes. ¡°Rose, now!¡± I instructed the Alraune to stop one of the wolves¡¯ movements with her Vine Hold skill. An AOE attack that trapped enemies¡¯ movement with viny tendrils from the underground. Struggling to get free initially, the wolf now became an easy target for us to finish it off. Elly would tank the other one as Rose would attack the moving wolf from afar. Vine Hold could last quite a while and was pretty durable, so we needed not to worry about the enemy that was trapped in it. At most, we could seal its mouth and twisted the legs in an unnatural way, pointing outwards thus locking the joints. And I only needed to Heal and Respite Elly alternately. And added to that, I casted Poison, Rot, Eewww! on both of the wolves. The flame wall was created to stop the other wolves from entering our attack range thus making it hard for us to concentrate. We knew our limits. Since there were just three of us now, this was one of the alterations of the plan I had to do for now. I¡¯d to improvise as we go further in. And it did not take long to put both of the wild animals down. As Elly dealt the final blow, I looked towards how was the other trio were doing. They just took one down, but their conditions were not so good. The wolves were concentrating their attacks on Sophia who had pulled the aggro because of her healing skills. That pretty-boy was no use at all. Not only he failed to pull the aggro, but he injured himself too much for Sophia to cast her healing skills nonstop. And judging by the amount she had healed, I¡¯d hazard a guess that she was more offensive type rather than healer type. Any healer worth her salt would know damn well not to pull aggro when healing. And the archer¡¯s attack was quite useless as she missed more than she hit. High Dexterity did not mean accurate and precise attacks at all time. It helped to increase the chances to land an attack by adjusting the game mechanism but it did not mean that it would definitely be a 100% hit. There was no such thing as an auto hit in NPO. Without proper skills, techniques and talents, using any weapons would be difficult. Especially using a ranged weapon like a bow. And a fast, agile, dexterous and deadly foes were any archers¡¯ worst nightmare. They were wrong to choose an archer into the FATE in the first place. And the wolves were not going to surround them and then did nothing. Each with five attacks and coming from no less than 4 of them at a time, those three were looking at 20 attacks simultaneously. ¡°Rose, another round and this time, I¡¯ll aggro.¡± And then we began again as I changed my equips. This time, we took 3 wolves towards us. Well, it was a little hard for me but with Elly and Rose¡¯s help, I could manage anyhow. ***** ¡°Ghost, aren¡¯t you going to help them?¡± Elly asked as we put down the 5th wolf. She was still concerned about the other party, but I rejected her request stone-cold. I just walked off from the place and moved on toward the second pack. We had pulled five from the 10 that was attacking them. If they could not handle the balance, perhaps they might really lose the bet. That would teach them a little. I gave out a snicker. Rose quietly hummed inside my breast pocket as I pulled Elly¡¯s hand towards our next destination. ¡°I¡¯ll help them if they needed it when they needed it. For now, let¡¯s clean up the next pack.¡± Averaging at level 30, those wolves were no pushovers. For the next pack, I needed to divide and defeat the foe separately. Taking the whole pack would stretch Elly¡¯s tanking abilities and then mine to heal her. Luckily for us, the next pack consisted of 5 wolves. I would take three wolves and Elly two. Rose would help her first as I could actually scatter my targets with Eewww! skill and then ¡®Kiss me, maybe?¡± from the little Rose Alraune. The wolves cooperated quite well in their attacks. So, separating them was paramount to our victory. ¡°Ready?¡± Elly and Rose nodded. I bellowed out my next order. ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡± For the next 20 minutes of real time, we managed to defeat all the five wolves. A little tougher than the first pack, but we had coordinated our attacks flawlessly. This time, Elly only taunted 2 of them at most while I maintained her healing level. Each of the other three was trapped inside another flame wall I¡¯d made earlier. It worked perfectly as it sealed off the wolves from joining forces with the other two that we were taking on first. I wished I had magic that I could cast instead of manually doing since it would be faster and easier. But I could only do what was given to me at this time. Alviss¡¯ party came too late as Rose dealt the killing blow to the last wolf. I looked up at him and sneered. ¡°It¡¯s 10 versus yours 5. Be prepared to crawl under my leg.¡± The look on all their faces was priceless. Sophia was on the verge of tears as she came to me. ¡°Please Ghost, help us.¡± I smiled and patted her head. ¡°I did help you right? I cleared the mobs for you, so now you are left with the Dire Wolf and his pack, most likely to be around 7-8 of them.¡± I turned my gaze towards Alviss and Miranda. ¡°But judging from the way you fight earlier, I guessed that you three would be killed before you could reach the Boss.¡± They looked away at disgust. Seemed like I was right. They thought the level and stats were be all and end all; having a higher level and higher stats meant everything would be solved by pummeling numbers and rates onto the hapless enemies. But how wrong they were since NPO was not that sort of game. This was not just a hack and slash game where the enemies¡¯ AI was dumb enough to stand there and did nothing or to actually repeat the same skill over and over again. It reminded me a little like LIXXO but with more realism and real combat situations. Honestly, LIXXO was way, way, way easier. But I never felt more alive than being here right now. I relished the challenge. But speaking of levels and whatnots, I had now levelled up to 20 after receiving the EXPs plus some item loots dropped by the wolves; wolf pelts, fangs and claws. Elly¡¯s level was 24 and Rose was 23. ***** I make an exaggerated sigh. I looked at Elly and then winked at her. Immediately she beamed with happiness. I had reasoned out with her during the earlier battle just to put her at ease. I could feel that Elly was judicious but not to the point of being snobbish. Though she would help those who were weaker than her, I had the veto power. However, I found it odd that her job was a thief with a ¡®?¡¯ instead of a knight. She won¡¯t look out of place beside those knightly sort players at all. I then looked at Sophia who had slumped her shoulder. I beckoned to her immediately. ¡°You can join me.¡± My words suddenly jolted her a little as she stammered her words, ¡°B-But¡­ what about¡­¡± ¡°I don¡¯t care about the other two. If they wanted to join, they have to admit that it is their loss and then they have to crawl under my legs and howled like a beaten dog.¡± I still had not forgotten my bet with them and if they were to lose anyway, might as well as they lose now. Prolonging their defeat would be more painful for them. Alviss and Miranda gave out a painful expression. They immediately knew that they had been driven into the corner. They needed this FATE and no one else would want to do it except me. ¡°I¡­ I will not lose!¡± Alviss replied though he lacked the conviction. His pride was bigger than the success of the mission. Well, whatever. I just shrugged my shoulder. ¡°Very well. You people better keep up because the next one would be the Boss¡¯ pack.¡± I gave out a hearty laugh. ¡°But this time, I could give you the first lead.¡± ¡°And you would killsteal us later when the Boss is weak? No thanks!¡± Miranda snorted. I looked at her and grinned. ¡°Whatever, little girl. If you are so afraid, just stay put and watch us instead.¡± I had prepared well for the Boss fight. Whether it was with 6 people or 3 people, we could do it. However, this time Sophia decided she had enough and joined us. Elly played a part as she whispered my intentions to her. Her decision took Alviss and Miranda by a major surprise. But how could they not be? The pretty-boy Holy Knight was reckless and the archer was basically shooting the ground, not the enemy. The hardest worker in the group was the mage cum healer as she not only had to heal the other two and defend herself but unfortunately, she took the aggro for the party too. Besides, I could do with an extra healer on my team and that would free me a little so that I could really tag Elly when needed. Sophia looked angrily at them. Finally, she had snapped as she hissed a little. ¡°So, are you two coming or what?!¡± Looked like they finally relented; without choice nor means to defeat the foe. Losing her was the final nail in the coffin of their pride. I just laughed out loud. ¡°Good, now crawl under my leg, you two. Then only I will work you like a bunch of pussies you are.¡± I could see their tears as those two crawled under my legs and howled like a beaten dog. What a sight indeed. Though they were reluctant at first, their fate was sealed and then delivered right under my leg. Elly and Sophia looked quite troubled from a short distance away as I laugh maniacally. I might have seemed like a bully, but a bet was still a bet. There was no way that I would never collect my winning bet. Once everything was over, I looked at each of them straight into their eyes. ¡°Clean your ears and listen well, you little whelps!¡± Chapter 17: Trial by Fire Chapter 17: Trial by Fire ¡°You will stand here with Elly. You will be the main tank while she will cover you as the secondary tank. And she will tag you once I give the order and not before. Got it, pretty boy?¡± I then looked at Miranda. ¡°You will always be on the blind side of the Boss, together with Rose. And you Sophia, will stay near me since we are the team¡¯s support.¡± My plan for the Boss was simple. The tricky part was to actually kill the pack wolves that surrounded it. Eight of those wolves with the Dire Wolf acting as the Alpha was not going to cut it for us if we attacked it head-on without a proper plan. Two things might happen to us. One, the Alpha could act like how I did ¨C a leader of a sort that would most likely order the pack to attack the weakest of the group; me or perhaps Sophia. The second and what I feared most was that they would scatter around and attack us at our blindside. Any attacks that came from all the direction would be hard to fend even by those who were well trained and experienced. To overcome both of the possibilities, the flame wall trick was a must as we could separate the pack from the Alpha. Once they were in the position, I would light up the flame wall surrounding those wolves, preventing them from reinforcing each other or worse working together and taking out any one of us. Of course, it was always easier said than done. The battle this time needed both our tankers; Alviss and Elly to play their role perfectly. The pretty-boy will tank the Boss and Elly will tank the mobs. Rose, Miranda and up to a certain point, Sophia would help to clear the mob first. I would personally concentrate on healing the main tanker. The key here was all our aggro must never exceed the main tank, especially Elly. ¡°Sophia, always watch your healing, alright? Remember what I tell you earlier?¡± She nodded at my words. The girl looked enthusiastic. The other two were quite apprehensive about my plan but without a choice, the means and time, they finally relented. ¡°Ready?¡± I asked the whole group after I was done creating two circles of 20 radius feet each and one at 30 radius feet. The Dire Wolf tripled the size of the normal pack and I had no doubt would be a very tough opponent. I was not sure how the flame wall would work on it, but my concern was on the pack for now. Since everyone else had understood their roles ¨C I hope ¨C it was now the time of truth. ¡°Let¡¯s do it!¡± Once I was done casting Stone Skin and Sophia with Protect on all of us, Alviss then led the charge. At level 45 with more than 8,000 HP and a high defence rating of 500, he could be a good tanker. However, he lacked the wisdom and the rotational tack of using his skills. Instead of focusing to maintain his hate and enmity at a high level, he was more interested in becoming the DPS himself. This time, he was not allowed to use any offensive skill at all, though he had the second highest attack rating after Miranda. If he could not do that, I would not heal or cast buffs on him. Such was my conditions to each and every one of them. Failure to heed my warning, I would leave them to their deaths. Without a proper healer, they would be dead before they knew it. Miranda had a high critical rate but lousy bow technique and skills. I had no choice but to place her at the blindside of the enemies. That would double her critical damage due to backstab damage effect and would balance out between her miss and hit ratio. Since Rose was with her, she could cast Vine Hold and make the wolf an easier target to hit. Besides, those two girls would complement each other with high attack rating and ranged attacks. They needed to take the mobs down fast and hard. Meanwhile, Sophia would be the secondary healer, focusing her heal on Elly while I focused on Alviss. The reason why I was his dedicated healer was due to Sophia¡¯s inability to manage her healing and support skills. She would just simply cast her skill without knowing when would Alviss needed the heal and when would he not. In another word, she got panic easily and that would have gained her the unnecessary aggro. As the whole wolf pack charged towards our main tank including the Dire Wolf itself, immediately he turned around and ran towards the circle I had made earlier. He casted a few of his skills that raised his hate and enmity solely on the Boss. Once the pack had reached a certain point, it was Elly¡¯s turn to aggro but just the mobs only. The whole pack was then divided into two, with four of those wolves charged towards her. Once all the wolves were inside the circle I¡¯d made earlier, I came out of our hiding place and lighted it, creating a nice and huge flame wall. ¡°Go!!!¡± I shouted at the top of my lung and thus my plan was in motion. Rose, Miranda and Sophia came out from their hiding place and began to attack relentlessly. Alviss had to tank 5 wolves, including the Alpha while Elly was with four. The flame wall had separated the mobs and they could not come to each other¡¯s aide over the flame wall. Elly¡¯s mobs were quickly put down by our attackers and it took just 4 minutes to do so. Being tangled in Rose¡¯s Vine Hold did Miranda a world of good as her attacks kept hitting the enemies with critical backstab hits. It was quicker than I expected. Once done, she went towards Alviss¡¯ side immediately and tanked the remaining mobs. Pulling the aggro away from him, he could now concentrate on the Boss himself. The plan was going smoothly and I was quite happy with it. Weeks of preparation was finally bearing its fruit. However, there was something that had been bothering me for the duration of this fight. Although Alviss was able to tank the Dire Wolf quite comfortably without his HP went below 75% at all times, I could only see ¡®????¡¯ on the HP bar of the Boss. Not only did I not know how much its HP, but the Boss level was at 55. At night time, I was sure as hell it would be way stronger than that. Perhaps equivalent to level 80 or more. The Poison skill that I managed to cast on it returned in no less than 2,000 HP damage per 3 seconds and it did not even do 1% total damage for the first 120 second of the skill. If my hunch was right, then we would be in a long night indeed. ***** ¡°Look out!!¡± I ran towards Sophia and pushed her away immediately from the onrushing skill used by the Dire Wolf. Once it reached 75% of HP, the Boss attack patterns suddenly change. It did not just used its claw and bite attacks but now casted a few special skills in quick succession. The flame wall did not stop it either as it jumped out of the wall easily and then adjusting the hind legs, dashed and pounced on the unlucky Sophia. The Dire Wolf used the skills, Fierce Wind as it bared its fangs and claws at the same time towards the girl. Fearing the worse, I pushed her away to safety but in doing so, I had been grazed by the attack, losing 80% of my HP immediately. Luckily it was not a direct hit or else it would be game over for me. This Boss was no joke. ¡°Miranda, give some cover fire for us. Rose, cast Vine Hold if you can and Alviss, raise your enmity further!!¡± I shouted my orders to them. Immediately they did as they were told before the Dire Wolf decided to end my night earlier. Picking up Sophia on my arms, I dodged to the side from the same attack. Like its namesake, Fierce Wind enabled the Dire Wolf to move and attack as fast as the wind. Fortunately, it was a linear attack. Rose¡¯s Vine Hold did manage to slow it down and that helped tremendously. Now, what should I do? The same flame wall trick won¡¯t work twice and I did not have any more plans for now. I was the weakest link and now with the lowest HP. The Boss now knew that I was the one controlling the party. Killing me was its priority. Attacking Sophia earlier was a way to actually gauge my reaction time and also to disrupt my healing skills. Seemed like Alviss and Elly could not tank the Boss for now. Locking into an imminent staredown, the Dire Wolf and I made our calculated move. The rest just stood still, waiting for my orders. I eventually let Sophia off my arms. ¡°T-Thank¡­ you¡­¡± She immediately ran towards Miranda after saying her thanks. But I could not avert my eyes. The moment I did so, that would be my doom. Whoever moved first, loses. I sweated profusely and my hands trembled. I was getting excited and my adrenaline was now pumped up properly. I gave off a smirk as the Boss growled at me non-stop. Looked like it was finally my turn to tank. I re-equipped myself without letting go of my eye contact. With a round shield and a sword and proper light armour, I now had to do what I was good at; close quarter combat. NPO had no class systems and anyone could use anything or become anything provided they knew how in the first place. This was more like it. I smiled gleefully at the imminent face of danger.Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°Everyone, listen well!¡± I barked my next orders as they listened attentively for their lives depended on it. ¡°I will now tank this bloody arsehole. And all you need to do now is to blow this whoreson of a wolf into the orbit with your best skills. Get that?!¡± Before I could even get their response, the Dire Wolf launched its attack one more time. However, it was a normal attack this time. This clever bastard of an AI was trying to gauge my movement pattern once more and if there was any weakness at all, it would surely attack me with its skill. But I was not about to let it have its way easily. I received its attack heads-on, surprising it since I was just dodging its attack earlier. I sidestepped the claw attack to the right, ducked the incoming tail lash and then I jumped on its back and slamming the shield onto its head. Spurred by my action, the rest began to move. Immediately, both Alviss and Elly came and disrupted its movement, striking from the side. Rose and Miranda continued to attack the blindside and Sophia healed me as much as she could. Being level 43, she could heal me fully at one cast since my HP was just shy of 2000. ¡°Keep your healing to the minimum, Sophia. I got this motherfucker locked into me, so showered this fellow with your offensive magic instead!¡± After 10 minutes of futility attacking me head-on, the Dire Wolf was now behaving wildly. Everyone had slammed their best attack on it and now, at a little more than 50% HP, it randomly attacks anyone of us with its skills and normal attacks. But every time it did so, Alviss was there to receive the blow. After the earlier attack, it did no longer just focused its attack on me or Sophia. I was like the elusive cockroach that escaped the jaws of death every time it attacked and I would always be there to whisk Sophia away from any imminent danger. Our attack and defence pattern had now changed a little. Still attacking its rear, Miranda and Rose now stood opposite each other and would always keep their distance while attacking. Sophia became our dedicated healer and the three of us; Elly, Alviss and I became the melee fighter. The pretty-boy Holy Knight would receive the blow head on, while the two of us would slash and hack it from the blindside, maximizing our damage output. I then ordered Rose to cast a continuous round of Vine Hold around at the leg of the Boss, or more specifically at the knee while we took its attention away. Once I was satisfied that it could not be torn apart easily, I ordered her to constrict the vines immediately. It caught the Dire Wold by surprise and it tried to wriggle free. However, unlike the time when we first did it, the vines now proved too strong for the Dire Wolf and it fell down to the side, exposing its belly. Immediately, we attacked it and the hind part relentlessly, pushing the Boss¡¯ HP lower. Rose continued to cast Vine Hold per my instructions to lock the jaw, claws and the tail away. Or any other moving joints. We were not giving it any quarter at all. Even at level 80, the vines locking it at the joint would give us much needed time to land our attack without worry. With my Mad Rush skill and all the debuffs, I was like a madman hacking a log. *****
FATE: A Dire Need in Help! Completed! You have successfully defeated the Dire Wolf and its pack thus returning the peace and serenity back into the forest. Rewards: + 20,000 EXPs + 15 Fame for first time completion. The Dire Wolf¡¯s lair is now had been left empty. You can plunder the lair if you want to. The location of the lair had been marked on your map.
Finally, the moment that all of us had been waiting for. The system message appeared with 10 minutes left on the countdown timer. The six of us fell to the ground, gasping for air. It was a long and arduous Boss battle. The Dire Wolf was no pushover. But because of that fight, I now understood something about the night buffs properties. The level, HP and Mana would be increased many folds during the night time but the attack and defence rating would still be maintained. I managed to deduce that this was the case from battling the Boss for a prolonged period of time. The level 55 Dire Wolf might have level 80-90 HP and MP boost but the rest was maintained at its initial level. If this was a proper level 80-90 Boss fight, we would be long dead. ¡°Papa¡­ did I do good?¡± Rose climbed on top of me and as usual caressed my cheeks. I just patted her for a job well done. I then stood up and walked to Elly and gave her a pat on the back. ¡°Well done Elly. Now, let us go back to the city.¡± The other three who heard what I said were shocked. Miranda was the first to speak up. ¡°Y-You don¡¯t want the loots from the Boss?¡± I just shook my head. ¡°That¡¯s all yours. I¡¯m not interested in those loots. Besides¡­¡± I looked at the three of them before walking away. ¡°I knew that this FATE had nothing to do with your job quest. I¡¯ll not ask what makes you deceived me but honestly, I don¡¯t care for craps.¡± From those who had told me prior coming to this FATE, the rewards from the Dire Wolf was abysmal. The lair had nothing but littered with bones and some coins. ¡°I-I¡¯m sorry, Ghost.¡± Sophia came and apologized to me profusely. I looked at her with a stern expression. ¡°However, I did expect you of all people to be a little honest. I still would help you even if this was a suicide mission.¡± Alviss and Miranda was too shocked to say anything else. They just looked down onto the ground and kept their silence. Sophia was crying as she understood the deeper meaning of my words. I hated this sort of scene. A win should be celebrated with jubilancy and cheers, not some depressing shits like this. Not wanting to stay here any longer, I made my way towards the city with Elly and Rose in tow. I could do with some good drink down my dry throat. ***** Sophia did send me a private message later. According to her, they were looking for crafting items from the Boss drops as a requirement to enter a guild. A trial or initiation of some sort she said. Not that I cared but I could not just ignore her. She was the most likeable one from the trios. I just answered her with a single word; ¡°OK¡±. ¡°Thanks, Ghost for helping them.¡± Elly spoke as we entered the city¡¯s main gate. I pulled her waist closer to me and whispered into her ear, ¡°I¡¯m doing it for you and no one else.¡± And then the most unexpected thing I could ever see on NPC happened; she blushed like a little girl. I flirted her a little just to see a reaction but I never knew that her AI could respond in such a way. However, it was short-lived. While I was having some fun teasing Elly, I was suddenly disrupted by a shout coming from a crowd of people on the main streets. ¡°Are you Popo¡¯s student?!¡± Suddenly, I saw guard ran towards me. He was in such a rush that he nearly tripped himself a few times from barging into the people. Once he stood in front of me and caught himself the much needed breath, he repeated his question. ¡°Hmm¡­ I do not consider myself to be his student and him my Master.¡± The guard looked at me as if he did not believe any of my words at all. ¡°Aren¡¯t you with the title Popo¡¯s Student?¡± I looked at him dumbfounded. Guessed he got me there. ¡°Alright, so what now?¡± I asked him nonchalantly. Suddenly, he grabbed my shoulder and looked me straight into the eyes, ¡°Y-Your Master, Popo and his wife had been attacked!¡± ¡°What?!¡± This turn of event was unexpected. I thought they were travelling with a bunch of knights and escorts from the Royal Capital. ¡°They and the others were on their way to the Royal Capital when they were ambushed by a group of kobolds. A-All of them, including Popo and Mimi, had been taken into their lair!¡± Elly could not believe her ears. Looking at me, I was sure she wanted to save them. Well, she did not have to look at me like that. I would save them regardless. I still owe those couples some thanks for helping the three of us, especially Rose. ¡°B-But you cannot do it alone. You need to form a party before you could go there.¡± ¡°I have my party here.¡± I pointed to Elly and Rose. But the guard was having none of it. ¡°No. You don¡¯t understand. You need more than just 3 of you. You are talking about the kobold¡¯s lair and their numbers are in the thousands. The three of you could not even make it into the entrance.¡± ¡°T-Then I¡¯ll help.¡± Suddenly a girl came to my side. As she looked up at me, I saw her face from under the hood. She was Sophia. I turned my back and then saw the other two; Alviss and Miranda who ran toward us. Seemed like all of them were done with their stuff. ¡°Ghost, I wanted to apologize to you. I mean¡­ we all are.¡± The pretty-boy explained to me. Miranda just nodded. ¡°Apologies accepted.¡± I answered them without a fuss. My mind was still thinking about the situation at hand. It came out of nowhere and now, I needed to look for PCs to join me in this quest. I had not made any friends, unfortunately. ¡°I-I wanted to apologize to you properly. Allow us to join you, please.¡± I looked at Alviss when he blurted out those words. Convenient but I was quite sceptical about his real intention and all. However, Popo and his wife were in danger. I could not let my emotions and previous experiences got the better of me. Despite what they looked like, those three could be very valuable assets. Only if they were more coordinated and complement each other better. ¡°Please¡­ Ghost?¡± Sophia looked at me, hoping that I would agree. I let out a sigh. ¡°Alright, you three could join us, but this time, I¡¯ll lead. Is that arrangement acceptable?¡± All of them nodded rather enthusiastically. Looked like the unlikely party was formed. I invited them to the party and for the first time, I saw how a real party worked in NPO. Having PCs as party members differed a little than having NPCs. Their names were highlighted differently from Elly and Rose¡¯s.
Save Popo and Mimi (1)! Your Master and his wife had been attacked during their travel to the Royal Capital by a large band of kobolds. As his dearest student, you must now rescue them at all cost. Quest Rank: Event Special Time left: 23:59:35 Completion Requirements: You have 24 hours of real time to complete this quest. The quest will fail if you exceed the time limit or get yourself killed at any point while this quest is still active. You must form a party of no less than 3 PCs to help you with the quest. Find them fast and best of luck. Elly and Rose must survive. Quest Reward: None.
I was surprised to see Elly and Rose¡¯s name appeared on the quest. Now, the HVT or High-Value-Transport had increased twofold. In any case, we must protect them at all cost too. ¡°I¡¯ll mark the place where they were last seen. Godspeed and take care. Please save them, people.¡± After selling all our loots and procuring all the necessary items, we made our way. The location was northeast, a few maps away from the City of Asgardia. These were the areas where players at the level 60 and above would farm. All of us however never travelled that far yet and the monsters that awaited us were in the late level of 50-60s. To make the matter worse, one of the area; albeit a small one was marked as a Player-Killer or PK zone. Unfortunately, time was not our side. We would need to train, levelled up and learn how to cooperate with each other during our journey. And most important of all, learn to trust one another. In one way or another, this was a trial by fire. Chapter 18: The Sign of Things to Come Chapter 18: The Sign of Things to Come ¡°The reason why you suck at this weapon is because you lack proper skills and techniques.¡± Miranda looked dejected. She lowered her head as I continued to hammer her with her weaknesses that had brought the rest of the party down. But I could not feel any pity for her. She chose to use bows as her weapon despite the availability of other weapons that might suit her better. ¡°Look, I¡¯ll show you.¡± I took my own set of bows and arrows. Prior to the journey, I had armed myself with all type of weapons that one could wield. The last thing I needed was to be caught weaponless. If everything else failed, I still had my fist. ¡°The reason why you miss more than you hit was because you have a lousy sense of timing and spatial perception.¡± The rest of the party looked on as I drew my strings and aimed at Mature Toopie, a late level 30s monster that was resting on top of a rock about 300 feet away; the furthest range my bow could reach. ¡°Elly and Alviss. Please tank for me as I shoot that squirrel, alright?¡± I then looked at Miranda. I wanted her to observe what I was doing. ¡°For a stationary monster, it is easier.¡± I let loose of the arrow and it struck the monster cleanly on the head. *Critical Headshot!* And also instant kill, or 1HKO as we called it. The Mature Toopie lifeless body felled down from the rock as I cursed my attack. ¡°Ceh!¡± I bit my lips and shook my head a couple of times. ¡°Sorry about that. Should not have missed it from this distance.¡± My confession took Miranda by surprised. So too did the rest of them. ¡°Y-You call that a miss? A headshot was a miss?¡± Alviss was so surprised that his jaw just dropped. Sophia''s eyes went unblinking. ¡°Yeah. I was aiming at the body, but somehow my hand slipped a little. Never mind, let¡¯s try on the next one.¡± And soon, another Mature Toopie was sighted not too far away and this time, I shoot it exactly where I wanted it. The creature was angered and came rushing toward us. ¡°Now, watch this, Miranda.¡± I double strafed the poor squirrel yet again. And it fell lifelessly before it could even reach the halfway line. This was a technique that I used for machine-guns back in the war but I found it suitable to be used in NPO too. Those two months training back in the Practice Hall was well spent in a way. ¡°To hit an immovable object is quite easy, even at a distance. What makes using a bow or any other range weapon troublesome to use is when the enemy moves.¡± I pointed out to the second dead Mature Toopie. ¡°The first time I shot it, it was stationary, right?¡± Miranda and the rest nodded. ¡°Once attacked, it came at us at a speed, and that¡¯s where the real battle lies.¡± I kept my bow and instructed Miranda to equipped hers. Once she did that, I went around her back and corrected her posture; my hands guided hers as my legs parted her legs a little. I pushed her hips closer to mine and that made her yelped a little. But I continued on and then placed my hands on her chest and told her, ¡°Keep your chest straight at all times. Now, draw your strings! Keep your focus on the target, not your arrow.¡± She nodded shyly. I knew I did touch her a little but it was for her own sake. ¡°Good, now that you had your proper stance as an archer. Remember this at all times!¡± I returned my hands to hers as I told her to pull the bow¡¯s string harder. ¡°A little more, Miranda.¡± Once she did that, I congratulated her. ¡°Good, now stay at that stance for half an hour. Never let the arrow loose unless you want to attract monsters here.¡± I now moved towards Alviss. ¡°Your turn, pretty-boy. And next would be you, Sophia.¡± We were camping for the night when the three of them came to me for lessons. I did not know who gave them the idea that I was a good fighter. I was reluctant to teach but after they persuaded to the point of crying, I finally caved-in. If I want to succeed in this mission, they could at least work with me. I still did not trust them yet, but my mission came first. Whatever I was teaching now was the basics of basic anyway. For Alviss, I had Elly instructed him instead while I observed. For now, she was his best foe. I had taught her all the basics of fighting with sword and shield. But first, I instructed Alviss to strip all his armour and left him only with a small rounded shield and a short sword. He was bewildered initially but he knew better than to go against me. ¡°Don¡¯t give him any quarter, Elly. Both of your dinners depends on how many strikes you can inflict on each other¡¯s body.¡± ¡°B-But¡­¡± Alviss tried to speak but I interrupted him, ¡°Don¡¯t rely too much on your equips, pretty-boy. You need to learn when to block and when to strike.¡± A large shield, though could block many attacks was pointless against one on one battle. The reason was simple. Not only it was cumbersome to wield, but it slowed the wielder¡¯s movement down and it made for a clunky fight. It was only used to fight big monsters or to receive attacks from multiple directions. A small shield however made for a better movement. Despite what other majorities of players believe and did, they were absolutely wrong. Alviss was beaten badly by Elly earlier during our first mockup battle and after the rest, I trained Miranda for a while. Now, it was back to those two tankers and they were equipped as how I saw fit. ¡°Alviss, don¡¯t let your foe swipe your legs freely. Don¡¯t think your shield just as a mean of protection. Remember that!¡± Elly continued where I let off and explained to Alviss about the difference of stances he needed to make to tank better and the timing of his skill. ¡°Don¡¯t just rely on your shield all the time!¡± She quipped him again and again. With the two now occupied, I looked at Sophia. I beckoned towards her and she immediately took her place in front of me. ¡°Strip!¡± She could not believe her ears when she heard that. She was fidgeting around so much that it annoyed me. ¡°Sophia, I said strip! If you don¡¯t do what I¡¯m telling you, I¡¯ll not train you!¡± She whimpered softly. Well, if she did not want to do this, it was up to her. I turned my back around and moved to Miranda. ¡°You OK, girl?¡± I could see her hands were trembling and her knees were hitting each other. Holding this new but correct position might be a little too taxing for her now but she had to endure it nonetheless. Miranda bit her lips and nodded at me. ¡°Good! Once you are done, take some rest and I¡¯ll train you on timing and spatial aware¡­¡± But before I could complete my words, I was tugged from behind. I turned my head and I could see that Sophia had taken off her robes. And by the Gods, my jaw nearly dropped. Under those robes was a figure that I could never expect from a petite and demure girl like her. I had to close my eyes a few times and gave a couple of slaps to myself. NPO sure had some crazy-arse characters but it was in a good way. ¡°Ghost¡­ is¡­is¡­ this alright?¡± Sophia was now in a tight shirt and a mini-skirt. She looked at me shyly while trying to cover her voluptuous breast. Even Alviss had stopped momentarily in his track as he was swiped down by the relentless Elly. Miranda too was shocked that she let loose of the arrows I told her to keep it in position. And because of that, she received yet another 30 minutes. ¡°Good enough.¡± I composed myself and looked at her intently. The campfire light made me looked more like a chieftain of a tribe observing his bride closely before devouring her for the night. But I had my reasons why I wanted Sophia to strip. I had noticed that during our fights earlier in the day and during the FATE, she was on the slower side of things. Her movements were awkward, her hands flailed around and her shoulder slumped all the time. In one way or another, she looked like she wanted to fall down at any moment. That and also her skills rotations.If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. I went over and whispered into her ears, ¡°Is this how you looked in real life?¡± Sophia was surprised and her cheeks blushed but she nodded shyly. Seemed I was right. She moved like something big was in the front of her body and she was very self-conscious about it. She was always in two minds about things. Only that one time did she snapped and was decisive about things; when she decided to join me instead of the other two back in the FATE. ¡°No worries, your secret is safe with me. I¡¯ll not tell anyone.¡± She looked at me and shyly asked, ¡°W-What about¡­¡± I cut her short, ¡°If the other two asked, I¡¯ll just tell them that I¡¯m a pervert who can¡¯t differentiate between a real-life person and a game avatar.¡± She buried her face in the palm of her hands immediately. Heh. What a kid. I needed to go easy on her though just a little. ¡°Well, let us begin Sophia.¡± And the night continued on. They would log off from time to time but I decided to press on. For the sake of Popo and Mimi, I would forgo my rest this time. Since our levels differed greatly, during the time that the other three logged off, I would farm levels and items with Elly and Rose on the same map. The others players who were here decided to ignore us altogether or taunted us. But we paid no heed to them for now. Besides the difference in the levels and adjacent PK-Zone, our quest timer was the constant reminder how much we needed to focus on our quest rather than being irked and emotional about other taunts and goading. I was now level 29, while Elly and Rose were at 35. The other three were all at level 49. Farming in an over-levelled map did not yield me much EXPs as I¡¯d imagined and the monsters were harder to kill. Though I managed to gather some better items, at this point in time, levelling up could perhaps help me a little more to progress in this quest. We purposely avoided the PK-Zone and this time took a little detour into the hills and forest where there were not many other players around. ***** 12 hours real-time later, I had arrived at the place where the two Bunnians were last seen. In front of us were a battalion of knights, most likely reinforcement from the Royal Capital. They had made some sort of a camp and I could not see any further than that. However, looking at the map, this looked like a clearing of sort surrounded by hills and forests and beyond were numerous old deserted mines in a valley of hills. I could assume that those were kobolds'' lair and where Popo and Mimi could be taken into. ¡°Who are you?! This place is forbidden to civilians!¡± One of the knights came to us. Immediately, I replied, ¡°I am Popo¡¯s student. I had been sent here by one of the guards from City of Asgardia.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but without the Captain¡¯s permission, I could not let you enter.¡± The knight was right but his attitude was found unwanting. Not only he dismissed me coldly, but he kept waving his spears around as if I was the enemy. But I was not to be deterred. ¡°Tell your Captain, either he let me in or I would enter by myself!¡± I demanded from the knight. ¡°What is this all the commotions about?!¡± Suddenly, a large and pompous looking guy came over to our direction. The knight stood at attention and saluted him. ¡°Captain! These people are civilians trying to trespass the area!¡± What a fucking liar. Feeling pissed off, I decided to correct that obnoxious knight. ¡°If you want to lie, you better compose your lies more intelligently, little knight. Do we look like mere civilians to you?¡± I snorted as the rest of the party gathered around me. ¡°He is right. I¡¯m a Holy Knight Alviss and I demand that all of us should be given entry.¡± The Captain looked at us and sneered. ¡°You, a Holy Knight? Don¡¯t make me laugh. You looked more like a Holy Cow than a Knight.¡± He then laughed heartily and Alviss was enraged. I held him back as I quipped the so-called Captain immediately. ¡°All of you are not allowed to enter. We don¡¯t need any more help. We are not weak to allow people like you to come, intrude in our mission and then steal our glory!¡± The Captain spoke with such absurdity that I wanted to spat on his face. ¡°What¡¯s more, with a bunch of lowly peasant-looking people around you. You called yourself adventurers? Fighters? Knights? All of you are nothing more than maggots on a pile of horse-shit!¡± I had it enough. I stared at him and spat to the ground. ¡°For a Captain, your mouth sure stinks. Are sure you are here to rescue the people or wasting time?¡± I took a step forward and immediately the knight earlier pointed his spear at me. Staring at him, I growled. ¡°I would not do that if I were you.¡± Suddenly, numerous vine roots shot from underground and strangled him at the neck. ¡°What have we here, Captain Brutus?¡± Suddenly, another group of people came towards our way led by a scantily dressed woman. Judging from their attire, they must be at least level in the mid-70s. The woman scrutinized my party before she left out a soft chuckle. ¡°Captain Brutus. Do let his party in. We could use more guys to become our fodder.¡± The Captain, upon seeing what happened to one of his guys and a few words from that weird woman, decided to lay down. Not because he was scared, but to fight between would be allies was forbidden. If news were to spread that the Captain of the rescue team had a scuffle with those who tried to help, I was sure that his stock would plummet and that would jeopardize his career advancement. To people like him, his image mattered more than anything else. The choice of his words earlier was a dead giveaway. ¡°If you value your position and ultimately the success of this mission, I suggest that you give us entry to the place and tell us what had transpired here until our arrival.¡± The Captain snorted at me in disgust. I was openly challenging his authority in the presence of his subordinates. The fastest way to get into any leaders¡¯ bad book was to undermine his authority in public. But I did not care; I have a quest to complete and friends of mine needed to be saved. ¡°Captain Brutus, come. Let¡¯s not keep them waiting. They could do whatever they wanted, but no one could pass the entrance anyway.¡± The Captain, called Brutus with a Sir in front as he demanded it, took heed of the woman¡¯s word. ¡°My men will brief you and that¡¯s all you will receive from us!¡± I looked at him as he was trying to mock me further. ¡°Better that than your useless battalion who can¡¯t take down a bunch of kobolds!¡± I sneered at him, ¡°For people who had been summoned by the Royal Capital, I¡¯m sure as hell that they had some lousy bodyguards and rescuers. Calling you people as reinforcement was a joke.¡± His face was red with embarrassment. His hands trembled and if both of us were alone, I was sure that he would gladly have my head in that instant. However, in the presence of his men and others, he held his sword. He then left with the other players, leaving us to our matters alone. ***** ¡°Ghost? Why are they so hostile to us?¡± Sophia came and asked me as we were led into a tent. She had been awfully close to me during these few days much to Rose and Elly¡¯s initial bout of jealousy. And she would be always the first one to ask me questions if she did not understand something. ¡°Look around you. Injured soldiers, lack of food and low of morale.¡± I answered as I observed the surrounding. ¡°Furthermore, I think they had been on the losing side and without a sight of victory, people would often behave in the weirdest of ways.¡± What the Captain said about briefing was no more than dumping useless information into my face. I looked at the reports and was exasperated by it. These were no reports; these were just¡­ blank papers and some childish scribbles. Looking around, I could see that the rest of the battalions avoided our gaze and snickered behind our backs. So, this was how they wanted to show their cooperation. These were false information meant to further delay us and to make us fail our quest. With 12 hours of real-time to go, I was not sure how long we needed to take to find them. There were too many unknown challenges waiting for us at the other end. ¡°So, what do we do now?¡± Miranda asked. I looked at her and the rest of the party, ¡°Well, perhaps we could do something where these useless knights had failed.¡± ¡°Which is¡­?¡± Alviss asked next. I just smiled at him and led the rest of us further down towards the mines. Located outside the camps, there was a valley of hills that was full of mines. They were made like a bunch of holes plastered onto the walls of the hills, like bird nests. Scouring the whole place, I could now understand the reasons why these folks lost in the first place. Littered with arrows, pebbles and rocks the size of a fist, without anyone saying anything else had made me realized what had happened here. Between the battle scenes and the mines was about a good 300 feet or more. Being exposed to enemies¡¯ fire was the biggest problem they have had. Not only they did not understand the enemies¡¯ strengths and weaknesses or perhaps even looking down on them, the terrain was not helping either. Being surrounded by hills and forests; offering very little route to escape, the enemies used the mines not just as hideouts, but also as a means to coordinate their attacks. They were in unknown territories and their defeats upon defeats showed how much they lacked in preparation and experience. Their Captain was to be blamed. Counting of the numbers within the encampment, there were about 200 soldiers and knights with at least 100 PCs. I was sure that they had the same quest as we did one way or another. The problem was, none of them had made it through the entrance. And Elly asked the question that had been playing in my mind since I saw the scene. ¡°So, what do we do now, Ghost?¡± Good question. I had no idea either. I just stared blankly into the mines from a safe distance, worried that we might be attacked by projectile weapons. These were not good signs for us, but we must not give up just yet. I looked at the rest of the party and cracked a dry smile. ¡°Let¡¯s sit down somewhere safe and think a little, shall we?¡± Chapter 19: Fire in the Hole Chapter 19: Fire in the Hole ¡°So, you expect me and my men to follow this plan of yours?¡± The Captain, Sir Brutus looked at the Holy Knight, Alviss with a discerning look while rubbing his chin. Alviss just nodded silently. ¡°What do I get in return?¡± Sir Brutus was a shrewd man. He was more interested in his personal rewards rather than the task at hand. This mission was another one of the stepping stone for him to further progress his own cause. ¡°Well, first you will get all the credits for defeating the kobolds and saving the people. I¡¯m sure you would find that to your liking, Captain.¡± ¡°And?¡± Alviss understood that the Captain needed more to motivate him further. One glance at him spoke of his desire to rise through the ranks as soon as possible. A common trait shared by most if not all power-crazed leaders. And as told by his party leader, Alvis continued to stroke his ego while championing his cause. ¡°If you so desire, you can claim that this was your idea and you and your men were solely responsible for the safety of this Kingdom. I¡¯m sure it would bring further acknowledgement of your skills, wisdom and valours.¡± Alviss reassured the Captain that he was to gain everything. ¡°I am very sure too that you, Sir Brutus would be able to get more than just promotions and rise in your ranks after successfully rescuing all these people. Fame and recognition to your deeds would be sung all over!¡± Alviss was trying his best to get the Captain¡¯s good side to the point of overreacting. But instead of angering the Captain, it bemused him instead. ¡°Your words are coated with honey indeed. Normally, I should have cut off your tongue. But¡­¡± He looked at Alviss as his eyes glinted with anticipations. ¡°I¡¯m going against my better judgment. Your proposition seems interesting for one of your ire.¡± After a pause, he waved his hand towards his attendant. As the two whispered among themselves, Alviss waited with anticipation. Finally, he got what he was looking for. The Captain returned to him and with a big smile, he said, ¡°Very well, you shall have my men¡¯s cooperation¡­ but as per my conditions.¡± Alviss beamed with happiness and thanked Sir Brutus as he left the tent. However, what he did not know that time was that the Captain had another plan up his sleeves. One that would spell trouble for his party members. ***** Alviss returned with a smile on his face. I was sure that the negotiation went well. Since he had the highest Charisma among all of us, he was tasked to negotiate with the Captain instead of me. Having boosted his Charisma further with my Forget-Me-Not skill and also a couple of his own, his Charisma value shot over a 100. The logic was perhaps with a higher Charisma, the Captain might listen to him. Well, much better than the rest of us anyway. He was suited to the task. However, I expected more reluctance or perhaps resistance from the Captain to help us. When Alviss told me that the Captain had readily made his men available to us; specifically to the plan, I had a tinge of uneasiness. Another leader would not lend his troops to another, especially those perceived as lower ranked or unknown people. In war, the highest rank assumed the leadership roles. Though this was not a war, the leadership hierarchy would not change suddenly. But, I did not have any choice. The Captain had also given us a condition for his ¡®favour¡¯ too. ¡°What about the other players?¡± I asked Alviss. He just shrugged his shoulder indicating that he had no idea. Now, what would I need to do? Those players were wildcards and none of them would bat an eyelid to us. Vis-a-vis, our parties were the lowest level, poorly equipped and had not enough fame or recognition points to our names to earn the necessary command and respects from the soldier. We were totally ignored. But the idea and the plans we gave to Captain Brutus was too good even for him to turn down. Now, with 10 hours left on the clock, we must make haste. Alviss, Miranda and Sophia were given some time off to rest. Only at the last 5 hours that they would need to be here; to discuss and prepare for our next steps. For the time being, all I could do was to look at the others here working the plan out. We were told not to butt-in into their matters. Though they followed the plan, none of us was allowed to do anything other than watching those men and women carrying out their duties. Woods were chopped and then carried to certain locations on the valley marked on the map. There, the woods would be arranged to create a large 20 x 20 feet pyre. With 50 pyres needed to be done, it took the whole camp one and half game-time day, PCs and NPCs helping each other. ***** ¡°So, what do we do now, Ghost?¡± Miranda asked as she prepared herself. I gave her a dagger to be equipped since I had a couple. As a ranged attacker, she would be left defenceless if her enemies came to what I called the danger-zone; a zone where the enemy would come within 3-4 feet away from her. A dagger could help her immensely if any enemies had sneaked upon her danger-zone perimeter. Within the insides of the mine, I was sure that she would be facing those situations. ¡°Do you remember our formation?¡± I asked. The rest of the party nodded. Alviss was to lead us followed by myself, Miranda, Sophia and lastly on our rear, Elly in a single row formation. Rose would just walk beside me since she was just, give or take 2 feet tall. The formation prioritized defence and speed. ¡°Grabbed a couple of torch for each one of you.¡± I barked my next order. However, Miranda responded, ¡°But I can see in the dark with my Night Vision skill. I don¡¯t need torches.¡± As an elf, she had been given some starting abilities as per her race. However, the torches were not for lighting our way. ¡°I had some other uses for the torches, or else I would not ask you to carry two each. Now, are you and the rest ready?¡± After checking all their equipment, I had made sure that each and every one of them was equipped with a couple of more things; foods and healing items. We might not know Popo and Mimi¡¯s condition but if things turned out for the worse, we would be ready. The whole troops, led by Captain Brutus; or Sir Brutus as he wanted all of us to address him, had assembled within the vicinity of the mines. 200 strong of them were all ready to strike at any given moment. Rallying up his troops, I could hear him gave a rousing speech to allay his men and women. The other players were within their own places and had their own objectives and agendas. He had the gift for the gab as his troops were pumped up and high in spirit, contrary to the first time we met them. However, I had no interest in what he was saying. Focusing on my task at hand, we had 2 hours of real-time left. It was now or never. ***** ¡°Light up the pyres and smoke these dogs out!!¡± Sir Brutus finally gave his command. The plan I gave Alviss earlier was simple. The arrows I had found lying on the ground at this place earlier was a giveaway. It was the indicator that I needed to know what had happened. Those soldiers had been attacked from a distance in an unknown territory. They could not march even an inch from here towards the entrance of the mine. I too recalled such few battles I have had during my time in the Special Force. If it¡¯s not for Sophia being hungry all of sudden and Miranda complaining about eating raw meat, I might have forgotten about the whole experience. Wars in foreign lands were not something one could recollect just for the sake of it. Too much trauma, too much death and too much¡­ of everything.The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. However, with this plan, things were about to change. If the enemies were not coming out to get us and prefer to strike at a distance, then we would need to force them out. And what better way than to give them a smoke attack. Not only it would help us to enter the mines under the cover of the smoke, but the smog would enter the mine and then suffocate the kobolds. In war, the purpose of the smoke bomb was not just to give us protective cover from enemies¡¯ fire, but also to suffocate them or hurt them in many other ways too. I had no doubt that this game would reflect the real life in one way or another. Now, the question left was, which mines should we need to enter? There were literally dozens of mines scattered on the face of the valleys but with the clock ticking, we must choose ours correctly. ¡°What if the mines are connected to each other, like an ant¡¯s nest?¡± Sophia asked me. I gave her a nod of approval. She might not be wrong after all. However, we must choose our point of entry correctly or else we would be led further into the mines without going anywhere close. ¡°Let¡¯s enter the one where most of the kobolds will run out from.¡± The idea might sound crazy but the logic was simple as I told the group. ¡°If it¡¯s something important, then more people would be guarding it.¡± Waiting for an hour, the dark and thick smoke began to fill the valley and entered the mines. Screams of agony could be heard even from here. It was not before long that the kobolds came out running out of the mines. The plan worked almost too well. The soldiers were waiting gleefully and as the first strike fell, Sir Brutus gave his command to attack. ¡°Charge!!!¡± He shouted at the top of his lungs and the whole battalion dashed forwards under the cover of the smokes. Our party were left behind as per agreed. I would not have it any other way too. Looking at the battle at hand, I scrutinized each mine as best as I could under the thick smoke. ¡°There!¡± I finally found the one that we could enter. I took an arrow, lighted up a fire at the tip and shoot it towards my target. ¡°Fire in the hole!¡± Marking the point I wanted everyone to enter, we had now made our way with speed. ***** The thick smog was a double edge sword. Not only did the enemy could not breathe nor see properly, so would we. Our Stamina depleted constantly. However, Rose had a skill that would serve us well, Photosynthesis; an ability that used the smoke as a form of nutrients. Like how the real world plants would use carbon dioxide to make their own food but Rose was just few hundred times faster. If it was not for Rose¡¯s special ability, I would not have had readily agreed to that Captain¡¯s condition that we entered last thinking that the thick smoke would also get to us. As she filtered the smoke around us, I used Respite to keep our Stamina as high as possible without running out of my own mana. Using those simple tactics, we would move unhindered inside the kobold¡¯s lair. The tunnel within the mines was small, damp and poorly lighted as we progressed further. ¡°YeargHHHhhh¡­ Hu...MaNN!!¡± A couple of Kobold Sentries came rushing to us with spears. A surprising choice of weapon indeed. In this small space, a stabbing weapon was extremely deadly. Especially since our formation was just a single line formation. However, the kobolds were too dumb to actually use the spears as intended. We disposed of them with utmost efficiency. At level 50, Alviss could tank them without losing much of his HP. He would block both of the attacks, Rose would entangle them and then I would debuff them with status effects and Miranda would snipe them to death. Elly and Sophia were spared from doing anything for now. If my MP were low or Alviss needed to replenish his HP, they would tag us. ¡°KiLL¡­ kILl, KILL all HooMans¡­¡± A few more Kobolds attacked once we reach an open area within the tunnels; big enough to accommodate our new guests. This time it was a long range type; Kobold Snipers. As hails of their bolts came at us, Alviss again blocked it all. Still within our range, we disposed of them in ruthless fashion. Next was the reinforcement in a group of 5 and this time, it was from our rear. Elly tanked them easily though her HP did drop more than Alviss. However, her skills usage was better and thus it compensated her lack of HP and Defense Rating. For this round, Sophia let out a few of her magic fireballs and iceballs, one after another as myself, Miranda and Rose continued to support them. Alviss was on the looked out if we were to be flanked. Luckily, it was not the case. ¡°Ghost, how long do we need to fight them?¡± Miranda asked as she landed the final hit to a Kobold Sentry. ¡°Yah, we had been travelling down the tunnels for quite some time without an end to this,¡± Alviss added. And both of them were right. I was anxious that I might be wrong and had wasted our time. 00:58:35:17 Less than an hour. Everyone was nervous and more so was I. If we were to retrace our steps, we would waste even more times. Leaving us with no choice, the only thing we could do was to proceed further in and hoped for the best. And the best, or the worst did come in the form of Captain Brutus and his men. ***** ¡°We have secured all the hostages!!¡± He shouted with such smugness when he saw us. ¡°This was an easy victory, and glory to the Kingdom of Asgard!¡± His men cheered with him. We came to another clearing this time; quite a large size that could fit hundreds of people in the tunnel. Perhaps, this was the kobold¡¯s nest. The mine entrances were a series of tunnels, long unused and forgotten and had converged into this area; filled with wooden cages, broken weapon stands, stenches of rotten meats and dead kobolds. But I never saw Popo and Mimi. I went up and asked the Captain himself. ¡°You said you had rescued all, so where are the two Bunnians?¡± He snorted at me, ¡°What Bunnians? There¡¯s no Bunnian here!¡± He pushed me to the side. Feeling irritated, I grabbed him by the arms. ¡°Where are Popo and Mimi?!!¡± I shouted and it shook everyone inside. His men were prepared to attack me but the party formed a barricade between us. The other players just ignored us and continued on their own quests. He turned around and grabbed my collars. ¡°I will have you kill for touching me, the Great Brutus Caesar the Fifth! Son of the General Juliasus Caesar!¡± He tried to head-butt me but I side-stepped him and gave him a liver punch. The damage was laughable but my actions were not. I had openly challenged the leader, humiliated him and now declared enmity against his group of people. If it was not for that scantily dressed woman who came in the nick of time, I had no doubt that we would be shot by hundreds of arrows. Being dead was the least of our concern. ¡°Sir Brutus, have you forgotten about the Bunnian archaeologist, Mimi?¡± What? Mimi was no archaeologist, but a botanist. She told me herself that she was a botanist. ¡°I never remember such name!¡± Brutus spat to the ground in disgust. However, that woman was undeterred. ¡°Surely, such a great man as you will never forget that this was her expedition and the people we saved were her underlings.¡± This was the first time I¡¯d heard about this. How could this woman know about these things? ¡°If you were not chosen by my father himself, I will not let you mock me, Sonia!¡± Brutus looked at me and sneered. ¡°I don¡¯t know where your precious Bunnians are. As far as I am concerned, I had completed my mission and rescued those that needed to be rescued.¡± ¡°B-But¡­¡± Sophia came forward and composing herself, asked ¡°Aren¡¯t you the reinforcement? Why can¡¯t you save every one of them?¡± The Captain looked at her, disgusted by the question. ¡°Do I look like I¡¯m doing a charity for you poor low-levelled weak lots? You are nothing. Those people are nothing!¡± SLAP! Elly came and slapped him out of nowhere. That escalated well. Now, even more hostility from his men. Not that I did not like it as I chuckled out loud, but if we were to die, this was a good occasion to go out. But before that happened, at least we would go out fighting. ¡°Girls¡­ spare your energy for something else. If you want to look for the rest, the tunnels lead deeper into the hills. The Captain was right, he did his mission and so did the rest of us.¡± Sonia was trying to act as mediator out of her own safety. Getting caught in a friendly-fire was not going to be too well for her. ¡°I-If¡­ If G-Ghost did not come with this plan, none of y-you will ever complete anything!¡± Sophia rebutted much to Sonia¡¯s surprise. She looked at the Captain and then at me as if she was asking if that was the truth. ¡°You came up with this plan?¡± I just gave her a nod as a reply. ¡°I¡¯m¡­ surprised.¡± In the end, she just let out a smile and walked away. ¡°If this oaf has anything to do with it, it¡¯s because of Ghost¡¯s plan. And ours.¡± Elly added the fuel into the fire. Brutus was trembling in anger. The credits he was looking for was suddenly diminished, little by little. His men were murmuring among themselves. The seed of doubts had been planted by those two girls. Sonia, who was respected within the ranks, too found no further need to be hostile nor doubt us. ¡°Very well. Among the hostages we had saved, my boys heard that there were a couple of Bunnians taken deeper into the tunnels like I had said earlier. You might find them there, but be wary, that is an unexplored region. And perhaps might host monsters beyond your level or even mine.¡± Well, if that was the case, then we would go deeper. Brutus and his men had left us after Sonia told them off. Reluctantly, they abide at her words when she nearly came to the boiling point as she threatened to toast them with her skills. She was personally chosen by the General and perhaps she was unofficially the highest rank PCs here. However, at the back of my mind, I felt uneasy. It seemed that Brutus had let this matter off too easily. However, now was not the time to think about that. As we watched them leave, I too had made my ultimatum known. ¡°If anyone of you wanted to bail, now is the time. I¡¯m going in.¡± However, to my pleasant surprise, none of them decided that way. In fact, I got an earful from all the girls, including Rose. She had been hiding well from all the dangers and now climbed up on my shoulders and pulled my ears. ¡°Papa is stupid for saying mean things!¡± And everyone agreed with her. ¡°Alright, if that was the case, let us¡­¡± BOOM!!! Suddenly, a loud explosion was heard within the tunnels. Chapter 20: The Only Way Out Is To Go In Chapter 20: The Only Way Out Is To Go In. Accompanying the series of loud explosions was a chorus of cheers and laughter. ¡°GWAHahahaHaha!! Serve all of you right! Now rot inside there for eternity!¡± We were trapped. Brutus¡¯ men had made sure that they had done so properly by closing all our escape routes. The force of the explosion was so strong that it blew all the flames on the torches along the tunnels away. Within the darkness, all of us were left disoriented. Including me, albeit momentarily. I gritted my teeth as I cursed him under my breath. ¡°I¡¯ll fucking swear that I will get you after I¡¯m done with this quest, Brutus!¡± However, I needed to focus on this sudden turn of event. Looking at the others, I began to think of my next move. Unsurprisingly, the crybaby Sophia was the first to break down. At one corner, Miranda tried to compose herself with a few deep breaths despite shaking at her knees while Alviss went berserk trying to lift out the rubbles that blocked our path. Elly was stricken with fear while Rose was being herself, oblivious to the dangers. Taking stock, we were quite lucky that all of us did not die from the collapsing tunnel. ¡°That bloody whoreson trapped us in!!¡± Alviss shouted and it echoed throughout the tunnel. He was right. Taking out a torch and lighted it up, I needed to remain calm and act fast. These might be young players and it would not surprise me if they were never trapped like this before. ¡°Guys!! I need all of you to take out your torches!¡± I barked my orders as coldly as possible. ¡°But what good does it do for us?¡± Miranda was sceptical but I dismissed her fears immediately. ¡°Either we continue deeper into the tunnels or we can stay here answering questions and bickering about it all day long.¡± ¡°Can I blow these rubbles with magic, Ghost?¡± Sophia suddenly suggested but I quickly rejected that notion. ¡°We would trigger more tremors and then we would be lucky if the roof of this tunnel did not fall on us. Under normal circumstances, that would be the best way; to die and respawn at a safe zone. But¡­¡± I paused for a while and looked towards the darkness that laid ahead of us. ¡°We would fail our quest. This was not something I could do for now.¡± With 30 minutes of real-time life, our quest was in danger of failure. It was my fault that led them here. But before any of my party members started to wallow in self-pity, there was still a chance for us. There would always be a way out. ¡°Let¡¯s go in and find our way out, deeper in the dungeon.¡± After all of them had collected themselves, we started our journey. With the help of the light from our torches, we made our way deeper into the tunnel searching for Popo and his wife. I was expecting that the torches would do more than just lighting our way, but alas it was too much to ask for a game system. Fortunately for us, the tunnel was linear and there were no kobolds or any other monster waiting to attack or ambushed us. However, with the quest timer ticking away rapidly, we hasten our steps. ¡°Look, Ghost. There are some blood markings on the tunnel wall.¡± Miranda was the first to notify me. Blessed with night-vision, she could see very well in the dark. I placed the torch nearer to the point when she showed me and true enough, there were blood marks; fresh and¡­ ¡°Argggghhh!!¡± Suddenly I heard a shout. Coming from Sophia, she had tumbled herself onto something. As the torches fell beside her, the object could now be clearly seen; dead kobolds. At least 6 of them. ¡°These kobolds were killed by something big and blunt.¡± I inspected the corpse as I pulled Sophia out from the place. ¡°And it was not due to Brutus¡¯ men or he himself either.¡± The kobold¡¯s body was mangled beyond gruesome; head smashed against the wall or the grounds, bodies were squashed and the innards scattered around. The three girls could not stomach this any longer and I had relieved them to stand elsewhere. ¡°What about the players or the Bunnians, Ghost?¡± Alviss who was beside me asked as he tried his best not to vomit. I just shook my head. ¡°No, it was not the players nor the Bunnian¡¯s couple.¡± Kobolds was at level 50-70s. And Brutus was about level 150. The highest level players would most likely be Sonia, assuming her at level mid-90s. And if the Bunnian couple could deliver such devastating damage, we would never even need to come here. But the damage was way beyond what anyone here could muster. These were more than just 1HKO; these were possibly 10 times that damage or more. In NPO, the death of creatures was done realistically. Blood and gore were considered the norm. How we killed our enemies would be reflected realistically too. Normal players who were afraid of such things normally avoid venturing into places like these or they would prefer killing other types of enemies. Miranda who was our designated ¡®loot collector¡¯ was excused from her duty for now since she could not stomach pillaging through all the blood and gore that laid around. Though it would disappear after a while leaving some loots, better loots were gathered within a window frame between the time of death and its disappearance by means of special skills that belonged to some jobs. Unfortunately, the rest of us had none of those skills. As we watched the corpse disappeared after some time, I gathered up the normal loots and stashed it. However, in the back of my mind, something dreaded was waiting to happen. Would Popo and Mimi be safe, now? Or were we too little, too late? ***** We reached a dead end. A massive wall of stones was laid before us. When we first saw it, all of us look dejected beyond beliefs. We had been attacked by countless of kobolds chasing after us after the initial routes we took and to find out it was a dead end was way too cruel. The other¡¯s willpower was just rudely sapped away. As more footsteps coming towards us signalling the worse, perhaps this was the end of our quest. Thinking that I too slumped onto the wall as I frantically hit it with all my might. ¡°Why¡­ why had it come to this?!¡± My voice echoed throughout the whole tunnel. The crying Sophia was being consoled by the fearful Miranda as Elly came and patted my back. Not only we could not escape, but now we had failed our quest. I cursed my luck over and over again. More than anything else, I hated failing my quest and putting others in jeopardy. Looking at the other party members, I thought to myself, what a failure I was. ¡°Ghost, I think you need to check your quest message.¡± Alviss¡¯ words suddenly shocked my senses. I immediately opened up my screen. It was blinking at the corner of my screen earlier but I never paid attention to it until now.
Save Popo and Mimi (2)! Your Master and his wife had been attacked during their travel to the Royal Capital by a large band of kobolds. As his dearest student, you must now rescue them at all cost. You have now met a dead end with the two Bunnians still not in sight. What will you do? Will you turn back and forfeited this quest or will you continue? Quest Rank: Event Special Time left: ---- Completion Requirements: You have 24 hours of real time to complete this quest. The quest will fail if you exceed the time limit or get yourself killed at any point while this quest is still active. You must form a party of no less than 3 PCs to help you with the quest. Find them fast and best of luck. Elly and Rose must survive. Update: With no end in sight, you have now been given an option. Choose wisely. Quest Reward: None.
A quest update? And it came with a choice.
Do you want to abandon this quest? Decide carefully and thoroughly with your party members. Only the party leader can decide.If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.
Yes No.
You will respawn at the nearest safe-zone. The penalty of 24 hours will apply for your character to respawn fully. However, since this is a not death respawn, you will not lose your EXPs, money or items this time. You will still receive rewards based on the completion of this quest. However, if you decided to choose this option, both Popo and Mimi would be considered dead. You will continue with the quest. However, the timer will now be reset. If you choose this option, you will lose the option of the special respawn given to you. But, are Popo and Mimi still safe for you to continue?
¡°Well, you decide Ghost. You are our party leader.¡± I never expected Alviss to say that among all people. I looked at the rest of our groups and they nodded. For these short amount of time, they had trusted me with such a big decision. I guessed I was wrong about having a party, after all. I was moved a little somehow but just waved it away as I got a decision on my hand to make. The screams of our enemies too at the distance was not helping either. ***** A couple of years before my untimely ¡®retirement¡¯, my squad was assigned to infiltrate a terrorist hideout and to dispose of all known threat in a Middle Eastern country. Located deep in the mountains, it was hell to put it mildly. We were ambushed and chased down a tunnel and with no hope to survive, every member of my squad turned to me to decide; to die fighting or to die running. Pinning ourselves to the dead end of the tunnel, we decided that we would never shame our country and our badge. We fought until the very last one of us. And as saying went, dead men would tell no tales. Being the lone survivor, no days would go by without me being haunted by those traumatic scenes. ¡°Papa?¡± Rose came up and caressed my cheeks. She had been calling for my name and seeing that I gave her no response, she tugged my cheeks a couple of time. Having disposed of a few kobolds, my mind wandered a little. ¡°What is it, Rose?¡± Wiping myself from the kobold¡¯s blood that had splattered across my face, I gave out a dry smile to the Rose Alraune. I kicked the dead kobold away and then turned to her as I caressed her leaves a couple of time. ¡°We have found something over there, Papa.¡± Pointing her viny arm towards a spot at a corner, I could see Elly and Miranda was there too. ¡°Ohh?¡± I was surprised by the sudden finding. It took a while but perhaps luck was now on our side. I beckoned Alviss to follow me after he finished off a couple more of the incoming kobolds. ¡°It¡¯s a stone tablet of some sort lodged deep into the wall. And there some sort of writing on it too.¡± Miranda explained to me as we came near. ¡°To enter the Heaven¡¯s high, blood sacrifice must be given. But be careful of what you seek because the God¡¯s Wraths are awaiting.¡± Elly suddenly read the script out loud. ¡°Y-You can read those?¡± Miranda was surprised. So did the rest of us. Since the decision that I¡¯d made earlier, I had broken the party into 2; Alviss and I became the vanguard while the rest searched the whole place for a way to escape and perhaps a way to save Popo and Mimi. Despite what happened earlier, giving up was never considered. And now, it seemed like Elly had found something. Looking at us, she gave out a smile and nodded. She then touched the tablet and suddenly, her HP dropped by 25%. I could see her HP dropped immediately from my party screen. ¡°Did the stone just suck her life? But why?¡± ¡°Is it some sort of blood sacrifice?¡± Miranda answered it for me. Alviss nodded, ¡°Yeah, I think all of us should sacrifice our HP to that stone thingy. From my experience playing games, something might happen.¡± I agreed with those two. But what was that something? Anyway, it was better than being stuck here and facing the countless kobolds coming after us. But what would have happened next? What would await us at the other side? The thrill got me smiling but this time around, I needed to be more considerate of my party members. They were young, na?ve and most probably had not seen the worse of life yet. Unfortunately, NPO was as real as life could come. Preparing for the worse, each of us gave our 25% HP. Suddenly, the tablet shone. Without warning, a blue light surrounded us and we were transported immediately to an unknown place. *****
Hall of the Forgotten Old Gods Congratulations. You are the first player to discover the Hall of the Forgotten Old Gods. Once a magnificent place fit for the Gods themselves, these hallowed walls now lay in ruins. The Old Gods had left the realm and now, what lurked within was just the memories of old. Fame +100 EXPs +50,000 Achievement: This Is My First Find has been unlocked. Archaeologist over the world will welcome you amongst them, thus earning yourself proper associations. You may also request them to impart their knowledge if you so desired. The world is vast and needs more explorers like you. The book ¡®Legend of High Asgardia: Part (2) The Forgotten Old Gods¡¯ has been updated!
¡°Whoa, what is this place? A dungeon? Or a tomb?¡± All of us were brought to an unknown place that was looked like a necropolis of some sort. Only our torches were illuminating this place. However, the dim lighting did not stop all the girls being excited as they were pleasantly surprised at the findings; rubbing their eyes non-stop and chuckling happily. Alviss too, for all his portrayed coolness, was trying to control his excitement. We were the first party to find this place after all. Despite whatever emotions we had earlier, it was swept away just like that. I guess the high of finding something that no one else had found before was quite strong within them. ¡°It looks dead and boring to me. What Old Gods? I see nothing but large pillars and weird inscriptions all over.¡± I decided to be an arse and blew off some of their excitement. I could not help but to chuckle when they hissed at me for being such a party-pooper. ¡°Po, is someone there?¡± Suddenly, I froze in my track. The voice was familiar beside that silly -po- thingy. I turned around and lo and behold, it was Popo. And behind him was his wife. ¡°Thank god that both of you are safe!!¡± Elly was the first to ran at them and hugged the couple. She was on her tears as they were reunited once more. I could not help but to be happy to see their faces yet again.
Quest: Save Popo and Mimi (3) You have found Popo and Mimi. Though they were weak from their ordeals, nonetheless their sight of you had renewed their hope in the survival. For you to had risked your life for them, eternal gratitude alone would not do you justice. Quest Rank: Event Special Time left: ---- Completion Requirements: You must bring your party to exit from this place safely. Elly, Rose, Popo and Mimi must survive. If you fail, all your effort will be for nought.
¡°How did you guys ended up here?¡± Mimi asked me, relief that she could see a familiar face. I told them about my quests and introduced them to my party members. After that, it was Mimi¡¯s turn to tell their tales. It seemed that they stumbled across this place as much as we did after having run away from the kobolds. The signs of the bloody scene where the kobolds died earlier were because they triggered a trap. Crushed by an invisible force. Luckily for us, those traps worked only once. ¡°I see. That¡¯s a relief.¡± Sophia cupped her breast as she listened to their stories. The gory sight might have churned her stomach inside out, but now she had realized that we were saved because of what happened earlier. ¡°But not for long. We have a major problem with us. Look!¡± Popo pointed to us at something. I could not see very well even with the torches we had. However, the look on Miranda¡¯s face was all the cue I needed as Popo explained to me. ¡°Our escape route had been blocked by that monstrosity. We had been hiding here the whole time, not knowing where to go when we saw a door past that monster.¡± Mimi chimed in next, ¡°We tried once earlier on but the monster would attack us straight away. Fighting it as much as we like, but we could never even scratch or do anything on it.¡± ¡°How about using the same way you entered,¡± I asked Mimi but the response was not I expected. ¡°Unfortunately, that was a one-way entry.¡± ¡°Damn!¡± I was clutching at straws with the hope of finding an easy way out. And Miranda¡¯s pale face suggested that she had seen something that might spell even more trouble up ahead. I went and patted her back and she immediately hugged me. I could feel that she was really scared. After letting her composed herself a little, Popo described what was waiting for us. 100 feet tall golem in the shape of a knight wielding an axe. All they could tell me next was the name and its level. Once we heard it, my heart just skipped a beat or two. The rest just fell down lifelessly on the ground, dejected and dismayed. God¡¯s Wrath, a level 500 enemy was waiting for us next. Well, if that did not help, there was another 6 of it somewhere inside this dreaded Hall of Forgotten Gods. Feck me sideways, really. The moment we stepped out from our hiding place, those golems would start to move. Something that Popo could attest to. ¡°These monsters move fast despite their size, po. I could not even do anything when it started to crush me with its feet.¡± ¡°And you are lucky to escape with your life, you stupid rabbit!¡± Mimi scolded her husband. Looked like he chewed more than he could eat. His ears dropped a little. He did try his best; I give him that. ¡°Damn, so we have to go pass that monster?¡± Alviss brought us back to our earlier conversation. Sophia fidgeted nonstop at the task. ¡°Looks like it, one way or another. But how?¡± She looked at me as if urging me to decide. And then everyone followed suit. I found it nostalgic when everyone looked at me like that, waiting for my next orders yet again. Flashbacks of my experiences in wars had thought me of one thing; as a leader, we must walk our talk. Taking a big and deep breath, I took a few steps forwards looking at the darkness below. Furrowing my brows, I looked at the rest of the party. ¡°I¡¯ll go down.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be crazy, Ghost!! You will get killed!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t try to be a hero, po!¡± ¡°Yeah, listen to your master, please.¡± Elly, Popo and Sophia all voiced their immediate disapproval of me immediately. The other two just shook their heads, amplifying the others strong rejection of my notion. To them, I might be crazy, but I knew better who stood the highest chance to escape. And I was determined. If playing martyr was the only way, so be it. ¡°If it only me, then I could buy you some time to escape. If I¡¯m dead, complete the mission for me, Alviss.¡± ¡°B-But¡­¡± Alviss was shocked to receive sudden words from me. He stared into my eyes as if I had finally gone nuts, tired and needed to hit the sack. Honestly, if he thought it that way, he was right. ¡°No buts. Either we do this as a team or we would never go out.¡± I demanded full cooperation from them. This was not the time all of us to be wusses. We were desperate. I was desperate. ¡°You are a reckless man. Stupid fool!!¡± Popo snapped and tried to knock senses into me, but Mimi held him tight. I looked at him sternly. ¡°Heh, maybe I am. But I¡¯m not a coward and I rather need to atone for my mistakes up till now.¡± As the party leader, when shits hit the fan, it would all fall on me. Chapter 21: Ancient Tomb of the High King. Chapter 21: Ancient Tomb of the High King. ¡°Papa!! There¡¯s a pillar over there!¡± ¡°Good spot Rose! Now, shoot your vine hold across towards that pillar. We will swing to it!¡± Both of us barely made it before the humongous axe cleaved the pillar that we were on, cleanly in half. She might be small and weirdly looking, but I could not underestimate her strength. It looked funny though; as a fully grown man holding to a Mandragora look-alike on its back. But not for long. Flying mid-air, being pulled by Rose¡¯s Vine Hold skill had left the two of us vulnerable. Popo was right; this monster was indeed fast. At 100 feet tall, the monster; God¡¯s Wrath immediately twisted his body, changed the holding arm and swiped the axe across us while we were still in mid-air. Afraid that it might hit us, I instinctively let go of Rose. That made her immediately pulled towards the pillar faster than having me holding on her. I took this opportunity to actually fell back albeit awkwardly but having missed the blade by the breath of my neck. ¡°Damn, fighting in the dark is no good. I could not get its attention away fast enough. What else could I do?¡± Having separated from Rose, she was waiting for my next order. For now, she was safe as the titan corrected his stance and let out a low but deep grunt, focusing on me instead. Its reach was huge indeed, at 120 feet once it swung it axe fully. I could never run away fast enough or dodge its attack continuously. The broken pillars were the result of my earlier efforts and the rubbles that flew around served as a reminder; I must never get hit by any of those. We had been jumping and flying from one pillar to another pillar as how I had been instructing Rose. Attacking it in any way was useless. *Invulnerable* *Invulnerable* *Invulnerable* Three times of futility were more than enough. Because of that, my plan had changed and my role currently was simple but not easy; avoid being hit and led this big fellow away as far as possible from the rest. But for now, we were at an impasse. I did not dare to make a move. Breathing as slowly as I could, I tried to gauge his patterns of movements. In the dark, all I could rely on was my sense of hearing and foreboding learned through my real combat experience. If I were to see its axe, it would be either too late for me or too close for my comfort. ¡°Rose, extend your vines throughout the whole area. Smear on it the items I gave you earlier.¡± Once I uttered my words, God¡¯s Wrath moved yet again, attacking me head on. I felt the chilly wind within the darkness as the hair of the back of my neck stood up straight. A sickening wind sound came from above. I could feel a sense of dread and instinctively, I rolled to my left as the giant axe hit the ground with a cracking thunderous boom. But before I could even stand up, yet another one of those chilly piercing wind came. This time, it tried to stomp me with its giant stone feet. Though I avoided being crushed, the effect took my balance out as I was thrown to the other side of the wall. *Lost 1000 HP* *Lost 500 HP* With just a wind graze and the force of hitting the wall, I was now left with approximately less than half of my HP. This could never be good. Without the buffs from Mimi earlier, it could be worse than this. One or two more hits and I would be dead. Confirming my earlier suspicion, even if I as much as lifted my finger, the monster would attack me relentlessly. And its detection range was so huge that if the others were to come out and run to the door, with just a single swing at this current location, he could have cleaved the whole lot of them in half easily. Wiping the blood from my forehead and lips away, I stood up yet again for one more round of fighting in this darkness. Looking towards the darkness behind the God¡¯s Wrath where my party members were hiding; just a little away from where I now stood, I began to calculate own my next move. Earlier before of this deadly game of the lion toying the rat, we were on the top floor of this hall; a small platform that eventually led down towards the grand hallway by a staircase. From those who could see the surrounding clearly, there were many huge pillars that supported this weird place and situated at the end of these rows of pillars was our escape route, guarded by this titan. Whether it was true that it was our escape route or not, we would never know either. But we have to try. According to Mimi, there were supposed to be a bunch of more of these titans here, but luckily I had not met any yet. Unfortunately, it did not move far enough for the rest of the party to run safely. The grand hallway was large, more than 2000 feet in length with a more than a thousand feet in width. For the best chance, I needed to bring this titan to the other side of the hall within the darkness. If the plan were to go smoothly, I must succeed in doing so while not getting myself attack by this guy or detected any one of the others hiding in the darkness. Easier said than done. The odds were stacked against me. But of course, I would not have it any other way. *Oi, pretty boy!!! You better get your gold coins ready. You are going to the bloody lose the bet!!!¡± I shouted out loud but I just received the silent treatment. He betted that I would lose to this God¡¯s Wrath and get myself killed or having my plan failed. I wished he could just shut up earlier. Betting against me was a very bad idea. The God¡¯s Wrath yet again attacked me, spurred by my sudden shout as I avoided his attack. Yet again, the attacks were not slow nor laborious. It was swift, fast and decisive. Not bad for a supposed to be a 100 feet golem. And the pattern yet again repeated. Any movements or sounds I¡¯d made, it would attack me with various attacks and then stopped altogether. It was being reactive to me. But being in the pitched black darkness was not helping me either. Suddenly, while I was still planning my next move, I could feel a poke on my ankle. Rose had finished doing what I had ordered her to do just in time. Though I had planned something on to go with her earlier, I was not so sure about the success rate. But better this than nothing. It was now time for Plan Bravo. ***** The vine tendrils were smeared with my special burning mixture which I had some left from the previous FATE. The fire caught it well and now, as the trails of fire aligned from each of the pillars we once stood, I could see my foe clearly; a knightly shaped titanic golem carrying an axe that sent shivers down my spine. Having seen my foe, it was out dumb luck and sheer insanity that I managed to survive this long. The moment I burnt the vine tendrils with my extra torch, the titan attacked me again. This time, the lighting was enough as I could see its axe moving at me from the side now. Trying to cleave me yet again, I ducked myself on time. ¡°Rose, execute Plan Bravo now!¡± Immediately, I turned and ran away. The God¡¯s Wrath, having seen me doing that gave chase. Swinging its axe, I could not outrun the distance it had. All I could rely on was to be a proper cockroach now; avoiding all kinds of its attack while still running like a crazed bastard. Every crevice, every stone, every hole and every opening that I could find to delay my doom was my salvation. The only thing that I could not match a cockroach was the smell it emitted. If I farted, that would just seal the deal though. Honestly, I haven¡¯t had so much fun since the last time I beat my first Red Dragon in LIXXO four years ago. My adrenaline was pumping and my senses were tingling with excitement. I let out an eerie laugh as my foe tried to stomp me once I passed through between two huge stones. I even had the time to teased Alviss even further. ¡°Oi, pretty boy! Think you could tank better than me?! You better not crapped in your pants. Hahahaha!!!¡± While I was being chased, Rose slowly crept towards the opposite side of the grand hallway towards the door where Mimi had marked for us earlier. It was fortunate that the titan did not notice Rose¡¯s movement at all. Once she was there, Plan Charlie would come next. She would need to tell Popo her location via her vine tendrils and once he got that signal, he would need to let me know. Halfway through the grand hallway, I stopped. The light was a little dimmer now since we only managed to brighten up the other end of the place. However, this was enough. Having seen that I suddenly stopped my movement, the God¡¯s Wrath let out a loud growl and stomped at me. Since I could still see a little better now, I had more than ample time to avoid to its blindside; towards the stomping leg. I just kept running and avoiding its furious stomps. I felt a little pathetic to run and avoid like this without giving a single hit. But for now, pride was not important. What important was Popo¡¯s next command. *****Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. ¡°Ghost! We are ready!¡± Popo shouted at me from the platform. Luckily, the platform was about 500 feet away from the door. Since the beginning, I had moved the monster that guarded the door little by little towards the opposite end. Since we were now at what supposed to be the 1000 feet mark of the grand hallway, another 500 feet further and it would be good enough for them to run in safety. ¡°Oi, stone face. Stop stomping on me already. Try hitting me for once!¡± I knew the taunt did not work, but I need to let off some of my steams and make noises. I could not let this monster knew that there were other people here. I took out my shield and taunted him further, ¡°Come try hitting this little piece of crappy shield, arsehole!¡± Once I said that, again I turned my back and run. And as I predicted, it did give me a chase yet again. ¡°Plan Charlie, commence!!!¡± I shouted at the top of my lung after having avoided a direct hit to my side. Using a stone as a platform to jump, I took a few tumbles forward as it was destroyed with a single blow. ***** ¡°Hurry, Mimi! You need to decipher the script before Ghost gets here!¡± Popo was a nervous wreck. The whole party, minus Ghost; who decided that he wanted to play the bait, had now crept slowly towards the door that they first saw. Ghost was distracting them but if they were not careful and make more sounds than needed, surely it would spell trouble for them. 500 feet from where they stood towards the door were not much, but when those five tried to crouch and move, it was like a pregnant turtle moving trying to get a poop. Hazardously slow. Forming a line, it took them about 15 minutes to reach the door before Ghost came shouting the dreaded news. ¡°WE ARE COMING!!¡± ***** ¡°Ohh fuck! Why are they still at the door? Do they have a death wish or something?!¡± Cursing under my breath, I could not believe my eyes when I saw the whole lot of them standing like a bunch of thieves trying to break a door. The other half of the grand hallway was lighted up properly so I could see each and every one of them. ¡°Ghost! Buy us some more time! Mimi is having a hard time trying to decipher the Ancient text!¡± Alviss shouted at me. ¡°Huh, what?!! What do you mean by decipher???!! Hurry up and run away!!¡± I shouted at the top of my longs as Alviss replied in a swift manner. ¡°B-But we need more time!!¡± ¡°What fucking more time?! We don¡¯t have time! I said 5 minutes, not fucking 15 minutes!!¡± This was going to be one nasty end for all of us if Mimi did not finish whatever thing she was supposed to do on time. ¡°Hurry up, Mimi. Hurry!¡± Miranda was urging the Bunnian on. Wiping her furry forehead, she looked like an anxious wreck. ¡°I know! But this is hard!¡± But before long, she mumbled something that I hardly could make out from this distance. ¡°To the Ancient King of yore, I beseech thee¡­¡± ¡°Oi, are you done?!¡± With less than 500 feet away, this was now or never. A few more seconds and the God Wrath would surely have reached them. ¡°Let us enter, the undeserving one. Bestow us your kindness to us, your unworthy children.¡± ¡°NOW!!!¡± Not too soon after I shouted, the monster¡¯s incoming axe reached the dangerous point; just within a hundred feet from them. It was then when suddenly, Elly screamed the final verse. ¡°Let us bathe in your eternal wisdom and strength, O¡¯ Great High King!¡± The stone tablet on the door shone and opened the door. Once it was opened, the five of them entered immediately. ¡°BOOM!!!¡± ***** Loud crashes were heard within the grand hallway. The God¡¯s Wrath had slammed himself against the large wall and it shook the whole Forgotten Hall of the Ancient. The vibration was so strong that clouds of smoke and dust formed while rubbles and stones falling all over the monster, pinning it on to the ground for a good while. ¡°W-we made it¡­¡± Alviss was the first to say those words. Feeling relieved, he stood up and checked upon all the members. Miranda laid beside him, looking exhausted while Sophia was lying on top of Elly. Popo and Mimi were with Rose, who was the first to enter and the three of them looking relieved and thankful. Realizing that all of them were saved, now was the first time they could take a proper deep breath. Looking at each other, their faces spoke of how much a close escape it was. ¡°W-Where¡¯s Ghost?¡± Suddenly, all of them were jolted by Sophia¡¯s initial question. Looking around, Ghost was not there with them. Even on their party member list screen, they could not see his name nor his status. As if he had just vanished. Just an empty bar that denoted he was once there. ¡°D-Did he¡­¡± Before Elly could finish her words, she broke down in tears. Sophia too was crying. Alviss, trying to act as coolly as he could, began looking around the new place; a dimly lit room with a stone coffin laid at the end of the room. An unknown tomb. The cloud of dust came from beyond the door and making it harder to see properly. However, once it subsided, there was still no sign of their party leader. ¡°I guessed he did not make it, after all.¡± Mimi looked dejected. The rest soon follow suit. ¡°Papa¡­¡± Rose whimpered while hugging Elly tightly. ¡°I-I¡¯m sorry, Ghost. As your Master, I could not even do a thing, po.¡± ¡°You are damn right about that, you useless and lazy rabbit!¡± Suddenly, a voice came that jolted every one of them within the room. ***** ¡°GHOST!!¡± That was the first thing I¡¯d heard before Sophia and Elly came to me like a lioness in heat. I was too exhausted to even do anything. I wished I could have swatted them away like flies instead of being clung like a striptease on a beanpole. Rose made it worse by crawling up to me and having her tendrils all over my lower half. "Girls..." I could only sigh at the end. I was not too fond of being acted upon like this. ¡°We thought you were dead!¡± Alviss came towards me looking a little shell-shocked. ¡°We could not see your name nor status in our screen!¡± I just shrugged at him. ¡°It meant that I was on a different map than you guys. Did you folks forget about that?¡± ¡°Ughhh¡­¡± Looking at him bowed his head down, I highly doubt it that he even considered it. I tried to push the two girls away but they would not have it. I wondered what was wrong with them anyway. I was just gone for a few seconds. ¡°The reason why we did not pull the God¡¯s Wrath aggro here because we¡¯re in a different zone.¡± A simple reasoning, but I was sure that it had escaped their mind for a while. And Mimi was right when she first told us about this door. However, this was no escape pathway. This was another dead end. ¡°I¡¯m sure we could find our way out of here.¡± Mimi seemed confident. I hoped she was right about it this time. I could use a rest too. ¡°This tomb was created using old technologies and concepts that no longer in practice within this Kingdom.¡± Mimi started to explain to the rest of the team. ¡°The only thing we need to find now is a secret pathway that leads to the outside world that the tomb makers made once they completed their task.¡± Whatever, Mimi. We might be safe for now, but we were still trapped. ¡°I¡¯ll let you and the rest find out about that secret pathway or whatever. I¡¯m resting.¡± I slumped my body against the wall. Sophia and Elly had not let go of me yet. And I could not be bothered to tell them off. ¡°Let me heal you, Ghost!¡± I just nodded at Sophia. She immediately cast a healing skill that healed my HP fully. ¡°You were in a terrible condition, Ghost. What did you do?¡± Elly asked. She looked at me without blinking her eyes. ¡°Nothing. Just surviving. Thanks to Rose too for her help.¡± Rose purred happily when I mentioned her name. She did help me tremendously. Patting her leaves, she cuddled up next to me. While I was resting, the rest took their time looking for that secret pathway that Mimi mentioned. Every nook and corner, they gave their best to locate what might constitute a secret pathway. Whatever that may be. However, their attempt ended in futility. ¡°Blast it!! We had spent longs hours looking for anything that resembled a secret pathway, but¡­ but¡­¡± Alviss finally lost his cool and curses much to my pleasant surprise. So the pretty boy could no longer hold himself, huh? ¡°This is a tomb, right? Shouldn¡¯t there be any treasures alongside that stone coffin?¡± I nonchalantly reminded him. But Alviss was not amused. ¡°You are still talking about treasures at this moment?¡± ¡±Yeah, that¡¯s a good reason why a tomb was created. Whose tomb is this, Mimi?¡± I asked as Mimi walked to the other side of the room, inspecting the tapestries. ¡°King Alderon Thoran the First. Founder of the Kingdom of Asgardia.¡± ¡°So, is he a hoarder?¡± Yet again with the question, but this time Mimi had realized something. ¡°Now that you mentioned it, I don¡¯t see any treasures anywhere. Just plain empty, mouldy and dimly lighted room and that¡­¡± Suddenly, a soft sound was heard that froze all of us in fear. Instead of a secret pathway, Alviss triggered a trap by unknowingly stepped on a tile near the stone coffin. The wall suddenly shook and from it, came a few golems that looked like the previous monster I faced. Every one of us gulped hard. We were really in deep shits. Each of the Stone Guardians was at level 150 and they were no pushovers. None of us was even above level 55 and facing enemies that tripled our level was a certain death. Not to mention in this small room where the movements would be severely hindered. However, to our pleasant surprise, our two new guests were more than capable. We were told not to get our hands dirty. Feeling doubtful, we nonetheless just watched while maintaining our stances. Lo and behold, the Stone Guardians were smashed into bits before our eyes. After they had disposed of the last of the Stone Guardians, only then did I knew that Popo was level 250 and Mimi was at level 235. That realization made my jaw dropped. The lazy rabbit was not who he seemed to be. ¡°If it not because of the kobolds took our friends as hostages first and threatened us with their lives, we wouldn¡¯t need to have people looking for us, po!¡± Popo, as he introduced himself, was the Royal Sword Meister while Mimi was the Royal Scholar. ¡°You never told me anything, Popo.¡± ¡°Such life had been forgotten a long time ago, Ghost. After 75 years in the service of the throne, the last one being the late King, His Majesty King Aldemarac Thoran, we decided to retire into obscurity.¡± Mimi answered it for him. ¡°What? 75 years? How old exactly are you two?¡± ¡°Po! Never ask a Bunnian their age. But I¡¯ll have you know, I¡¯m 125 years old and my wife¡­¡± Before he could complete his words, Mimi smacked him on the head. ¡°Never reveal a lady¡¯s age, you lazy rabbit!¡± Mimi looked at him disapprovingly. Guessed Mimi now took a liking to what I called her husband. ¡°Well, that aside, what do we do now?¡± Sophia, who sat next to me all the time looking after me asked next. ¡°Uhmmm guys? I think I had found something¡­ on the stone coffin.¡± Suddenly, we heard a call from Miranda. All our eyes focused immediately on the stone coffin at the end of the room. I immediately stood up and paced myself towards the object and stared at it intently. Seemed too good to be left alone intact. With a big wide grin, I ordered Miranda and Alviss each to take a side next to me. ¡°Blasphemous! You cannot do that, Ghost!¡± Mimi shouted at me but I waved her away. I was not interested in some dead people¡¯ legacy. ¡°To defile a High King Tomb, what more of our Founder is sacrilege! I can¡¯t have that!¡± Mimi was still insistent that I lay my hand down but I was having none of it. ¡°Too bad you don¡¯t get to decide it, Mimi. I¡¯m the party leader.¡± ¡°B-But¡­¡± Mimi whimpered a little but I was right. Looking around, she wanted the others to convince me not to do anything sacrilegious. But before that could happen, I reasoned out with her. ¡°Look at it this way. If you don¡¯t escape, you might be resting in peace together with your Ancient High King. Do you want that?¡± I paused as I tapped the stone coffin lid. ¡°Whatever inside this coffin might be our way out. So, would you prefer to escape first and then come back here sometime later and make a record of it with other archaeologists?¡± It did not take much to convince her. ¡°I-I guess you are right. B-But¡­ I¡¯ll not allow even a damage to it.¡± ¡°Alright, we will not destroy anything, but we will take whatever treasures we find, alright?¡± With bated breath, Alviss, Miranda and I pushed to stone coffin lid aside and peered into it. Chapter 22: Do You Have My Back? Chapter 22: Do You Have My Back? ¡°So, tell me something. Why had no one ever explore this region?¡± I asked the rest of the party as we travelled through a series of another tunnel. But this time, it was mouldy, damp and the ground was covered with bioluminescent moss that gave out an eerie-green light. ¡°I had played the games for more than two months. Was thinking about it too.¡± Alviss chipped in. Miranda then added on, ¡°Like Alviss, I had been here for 2 months and yet to see anyone explore this region. Aren¡¯t we supposedly have more than what¡­ 50 million unique players?¡± ¡°I-I¡¯m here more than 3-3 months¡­¡± Sophia spoke shyly. She was the most senior players here then. But the way she played I was sure that she started much later than me. She avoided my gaze when I looked at her. I just gave her a wink, to reassure her that I was not prejudiced against slow players. ¡°I had been here for more or less a month. Can¡¯t point my fingers why there aren¡¯t many players exploring these areas.¡± Pressing ahead through the tunnel, we continued to chit-chat a little to fill our time. Alviss explained further, ¡°Perhaps it might have to do with how recent City of Asgardia is. Remember the Siege of Thoran?¡± Though everyone nodded their head, I had not joined the game at that time. ¡°When we came to the city with one of the siege party, the city and surrounding areas had not been fully explored just yet.¡± Alviss continued where he left off. I was surprised to hear that. ¡°You three are not from City of Asgardia?¡± The three of them shook their head. Miranda then added on, ¡°All of us were from Brensberg, northeast from the City of Asgardia. Well, perhaps to answer Ghost¡¯s question, maybe the areas around aren¡¯t worth exploring to high-level players.¡± ¡°Or maybe, the areas won¡¯t be opened until certain events happened.¡± Alviss looked to be pondering about something. Looking at him with curiosity, Sophia was next to ask him. ¡°Like how the last event opened up the City of Asgardia and its surrounding places?¡± ¡°Perhaps¡­ We might be looking at the possibilities of upcoming new events if this were to be true.¡± ¡°What are you all talking about behind us, po?¡± Popo¡¯s voice suddenly interrupted our idle conversation as he came to us. He and Mimi went ahead of us, helping us to scout for potential enemies or even traps. Or perhaps a way out. It was kind of pathetic that the role had been reversed, but after the lessons back in the old tomb, precautions were necessary. ¡°Nothing¡­ just about this area and stuff. By the way, had Mimi deciphered that stone tablet we found inside that stone coffin?¡± When we opened the stone coffin, all of us were hoping for either one of the two things; treasures or traps. But we found neither. All that was inside the stone coffin were a stone tablet and some bones that perhaps belonged to the King whoever-his-name was. ¡°Mimi just finished. That¡¯s why I¡¯m here. She¡¯s in front waiting for you guys.¡± ***** ¡°Ever heard of the Legend of the Old Gods?¡± Mimi began by asking this question. I had read it before but I pretended not to know. So too did the rest of the group who shook their head. ¡°Well, then let me tell you the summary. It is said that the Old Gods had left this realm of ours after feeling disappointed with us; their creations. Where and the exact reason they left was unknown but before they left, they had created 7 keys to open a gateway to their magnificent city, the High Asgard.¡± ¡°Wow¡­ that¡¯s so interesting!¡± Sophia exclaimed excitedly. I could see the rest of them looked with sparkling eyes. The notion of exploring something new like this was too good to be missed even with so little information given. However, Mimi¡¯s next words disappointed them. ¡°Unfortunately, I am not well versed in the Old Gods research. Unlike my Master, but he died many years ago and all his research was lost.¡± All of them heaved a sigh of disappointment as I looked at them amusedly. However, my short amusement looking at my dejected party members was interrupted yet again but this time, from the system message.
Legend of High Asgardia has been updated! Memoir of the Old Gods has been updated!
I was tempted to open the book and read immediately. But I held my excitement a little. I must thoroughly read it first in private, far from peering eyes and then only I would consult with Mimi. But before I could do any of that, Popo had sent us another warning. ¡°Boys, be ready! We have incoming guests!¡± ***** A group of 8 Skeleton Warriors came at us. This time however, all of us would be participating. Even though our foes were at level 70s but with Popo and Mimi¡¯s help, we could take them head-on. Popo was the first to charge with his giant hammer. Though he was a swordsman, I might understand his reasoning to choose a blunt weapon instead of a sword. The Skeleton Knight awkwardly tried to slash him, but Popo did not even dodge. He just blocked the attack with his weapon and then, with the swiftest movement I could ever see yet so far in this game, smashed the undead to the wall. One attack was all he needed as his foe lay broken in many pieces. Mimi casted some buffs on us in quick succession that I did not have the time to identify which was which that used on us. However, she increased our attack speed, physical and magical defence, movement speed, HP and to top it off, gave us regeneration status. Feeling excited and spurred on by the two Bunnians, the rest of them just charged blindly, including Elly. I just shook my head at those headless chickens. Rose was standing beside me, pulling my robes and urging me to enter the fray. Ahh well, might as well I enjoyed this. Being reckless once in a while would do none of us any harm now. Besides, it was about time we got some advantage in this game. Re-equipping myself with the only blunt weapon I have; a two-handed staff, I joined the rest of them destroying the second batch of Skeleton Warriors that came for us. One was unlucky enough to spawn next to me. I immediately slammed the end of my weapon onto its head but the damage was not enough to destroy it on one hit. Who was I kidding? Style-wise, it was magnificent. Damage wise, it was laughable. And adding to my insult was the fact that I was the lowest level character here at 35. My pumped up stats somehow did not do me any favour either. Popo who witnessed my feeble attempts gave out a loud laugh that echoed throughout the tunnel. Feeling irritated, I dealt another blow with my fist on the Skeleton Warrior¡¯s head. *Critical hit! 20 HP* The fuck? I could only deal 20 damage? What was going on here, anyway? The rest who saw what happened to me was chuckling. Even Elly could not help but to laugh at my predicament. Rose at her usual self, oblivious to everything though I swore she just stole a glance at me and laughing at the back of her mind. ¡°Yargh!!! Fuck you, Bones!!¡± I continued to hit the hapless Skeleton Warriors nonstop. It was moving awkwardly trying to strike me but I knew better than to get hit by slow and dimwitted enemies like these bones. Avoiding and counterstriking just that one single enemy was doing me in a little as I continued to curse him under my breath. ¡°Are you done, Ghost? We are waiting for you?!¡± Alviss who could not help it gave out a loud laugh followed by the rest of them. I had never been laughed at like this before. That was why I hated partying others. In the end, I just skewered a couple of the Skeleton Warriors, pushed them to the tunnel wall and pinned them there. As I spat to the ground, I took my shield as I bashed the bloody bones into smithereens. ***** ¡°Man, is that the last of them?¡± Alviss was beginning to break some sweat. The relentless spawning rate of the Skeleton Warriors was beginning to take the toll on us. Mimi had been tasked to find us any exit that we could take. Fearing the worse, we had to find a way out. With her were Miranda and Sophia. The rest of us continued to fight off the undead that kept coming our way. ¡°Seems like so. Or else I¡¯m going to bail out of this place sooner than later. The EXP is good but we need to get ourselves back to the nearest town first.¡± Alviss laughed awkwardly as he struck another one of the Skeleton Warrior down. We had levelled up by quite a few but it was no use if we could not get out. To respawn by dying was not even considered as we would fail our quest. Suddenly, we heard a shout not too far from us. It was from Mimi, ¡°Ghost, we had found a secret door.¡± ¡°Another? Make sure this time it leads out and not somewhere weird, again¡± I shouted my concern but quelling my fear was Sophia. ¡°Mimi said this door might lead us outside.¡± ¡°Might huh? Whatever, lead the way then¡± I just shrugged my shoulder as I urged the rest of us to escape. Popo was taking care of our rear as we turned our back and ran towards the girls. We hurriedly exited through the door that Mimi found, again expecting that it would not be the exit I that had hoped. And I was right. However, the sight that greeted us finally had brought a wide smile to all our faces. I turned around and looked at the others and their eyes were shining brightly. Even Sophia was gleefully rubbing her hands together. ¡°Treasures!!!¡± Miranda was the first to run towards the pile of treasures that laid in the middle of this weird place; a cavern that looked like a forest clearing with a pool of water and a statue of a knightly person wearing a cape and a crown standing in the middle of it like how important people would always have their statue depicted as. Spurred by her, Alviss, Sophia and Elly immediately followed suit. I knew they were excited but I was wary of traps. But seeing Mimi was quite relaxed about it, I just kept quiet. ¡°There¡¯s a bow for me!!¡± ¡°Look! Swords and more swords!!¡± Miranda and Alviss were screaming with delight when they laid their eyes on the pile of weapons, armours and other trinkets. Elly was helping herself with some of the items, picking up those that could be useful to all of us. But they did not pocket it for themselves. They knew better than to go against the party rules I had set earlier; any treasures we found would be given to the most suitable members. The money would be divided equally. Unlike certain party leaders who would do whatever it takes to manipulate their own friends and allies so that they themselves could gain the best amongst the pile, I had no need for those sort of mentalities. Doing that would win me far more hatred and contempt than love and respect. Though this party might be formed temporary, their impressions on me might not. Besides, I knew too well than to lose a few trusts over some trinkets. At this stage, the items might not be worth the hassle. ¡°Alright, here¡¯s the deal. Take anything that is of use, pile it up here and leave the rest. The money will be divided as we agreed.¡± All of them nodded enthusiastically. I would observe that no one would pocket any treasures for themselves secretly. In case of the temptations, I must control their urges using any means necessary. Besides, Popo and Mimi were on my side about this matter too.Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators! After having the go at the whole stash of treasures, we now had 4 weapons, 3 set of armours and a couple of accessories that were unidentifiable in front of us now. Mimi had agreed to help us to identify the items. As the Royal Scholar, her knowledge about antiquities was second to none; not that I had met any until now. She took the time to identify the item one by one for us. Alviss got himself two items; the level 75 Sword of Light; capable of dealing double damage to undead and level 90 Paragon Armour that boosted his HP by further 2000 points. Though he could not equip it now, that did not stop the pretty boy from nearly hugging me to death from being excited. Miranda received Antares Bow, a level 68 weapon and level 50 Serpent Necklace with the highest HP boost properties at +3000 HP. Sophia received a level 75 Wand of Purity and a level 80 Robe of Magi thus raising her total Mana point by 2500. The robe too gave her mana regeneration rate at 5%. Elly took Defender, a level 75 Sword that boosted her Attack and Defense Rating and a level 80 Shield of Benevolence that reduced damage by 5%. All in all, they received excellent items though most of it could not be equipped just yet. But the anticipation of equipping such items gave them the motivation to actually finish what we started. ¡°Ghost, are you sure you are just taking the ring?¡± I nodded when Miranda asked me. ¡°It¡¯s enough for me. Besides, the properties of the ring were intriguing.¡± I checked the information screen of my new loot.
Loki¡¯s Mischief Requirements: Level 1. Durability: Indestructible. Descriptions: Loki, the God of Mischief left many things for the mortal to find. This was one of them. A forlorn-looking ring that contains the Old Gods power that reversed all known spells and items abilities and properties. The joke is on you, now. Reverse all active skills, spells and items effects. + 2 to WIS, INT and CHA when equipped. - 15 to STR, DEX and AGI when equipped. + 1000 Mana + 300 to both Magical and Physical Defense Rating Equipment Status: Unbound. Untradeable. Unsellable. Cannot be thrown or discard, synthesize, crafted or processed into other materials.
And to my immediate luck, I had found some Mithril plates among the treasures horde. This was one of the unknown ???????? items from the quest for Blake¡¯s Special Request. However, I still needed more of this shards but having the name revealed was quite a relief for me. The rest of the items, we decided to take the maximum capacities our bag could carry. The rest was left here as most of it were ordinary items. And of course, all of us took approximately 200 gold coins each. ¡°Are you guys done, po?¡± Popo was shouting for us. I think he and Mimi had found something, yet again. As she laid down the stone tablet onto the pedestal where the knightly statue was located, suddenly it shone and illuminate the whole area. ¡°Have you found what you seek, mortal? Be wary, the greed of men knows no boundary.¡± The words echoed within the small area. Once it ended, a part of the cave¡¯s wall suddenly slit open. And from here, we could hear the sound of running waters; a river or a waterfall most likely. ¡°This place cannot be entered from the outside, thus take whatever you wanted and we will never be able to come back here,¡± Mimi said to us before she took the first leave. ¡°Once the door closes, of course.¡± I never knew that she still could crack a joke at this time. But nonetheless, this was our way out. ***** Finally, we could escape from this dreaded place. All of us breathed out a sigh of relief as we made our exit. We travelled through a short and linear but an uneventful cavern. We could hear the rustling of the current from the front of us. An underground river was found not too far away. Following it, we had our first ray of sunlight shining on our face as we passed through a waterfall next. All of us heaved a yet another heavy sigh but this time at the end of it, we could finally shout with joy.
Save Popo and Mimi Special Quest Completed! Congratulations saving the two Bunnians. You had their eternal gratitude from them. Rewards: +5 Affinity with Popo. + 8 Affinity with Mimi. + 180000 EXPs + 350 Fame
You have formed a new Affinity Link with Mimi.
You have now maxed your Affinity with Popo! Congratulations. Special Quests now available! You are now able to take Special Quest from Popo. Please talk to him once you return safely to the city.
For the first time, I gained a good reward compared to the usual ¡®No Reward¡¯ from nearly every part of these chain quests. ¡°Ghost, before we reach the city, I want to talk to you,¡± Popo whispered. I just nodded at him. Honestly, I had something to talk to him and Mimi too. All of us made our way back towards the nearest town, Brensberg. Leading the way was Alviss who looked mightily happy, whistling and congratulating himself and the other girls about the job well done. ***** We finally arrived at the town of Brensberg. It felt a bit like the City of Asgardia but smaller in scale and less lively. However, the very first person I saw when I came here made my blood boil. ¡°GWahaHahaHa! I wish I could see their reaction when I blow the whole mines up!¡± Brutus could be seen talking to his men nearby the main gate. Suddenly, the one thing I feared most had taken over me. Remembering the incident back then made me snapped. And I made no attempt to disguise it. Pacing myself forward from the rest of the party, I¡¯d made my way towards that bloody whoreson. He was facing the other way as I came closer to him from the back. All of his men too did not take notice of my sudden appearance. Without warning, I swatted him with the blunt width of my sword. My action took everyone by surprise, including my party members. As they rushed to my side, I was creating an even bigger scene. As he fell forward from the force, I kicked his arse and slammed his head on the ground with my leading leg. In safe-zones such as cities, PCs and NPCs could not be killed. The only thing that would be depleted would be our Stamina. However, this did not mean we could not fight. And it was a fight I was looking for. I was hell-bent to tear this whoreson a new hole. I continued to do so as his men looked dumbfounded. No one expected that and it gave me a good window to pummel this so-called Captain of the Knight¡¯s face further onto the cobblestone ground. Caught by surprise, Brutus could do nothing but to gasp for air. And I knew better than to let him armed himself immediately by pinning his body and arms and locking the joints. I then lifted his face up and taunted him, ¡°Remember me, arsehole?¡± By this time, everyone was crowding us. Standing between the onlooking crowd of passersby was Brutus¡¯ men and my party members. Whispers and murmurs could be heard but I did not even listen to any one of them. I was infuriated and I was taking things into my own hands. Jerking his head, I elbowed his face continuously. Blood splurged all over my face but the sadistic part of me wanted it more. More of this whoreson¡¯s blood and misery pummeled non-stop using my elbow. ¡°G-Ghost?! What are you trying to do?!¡± Alviss was the one came first to me. Trying to grab my hand away from pummeling Brutus¡¯s face further onto the ground, he suddenly stopped. Perhaps he remembered that incident back when he did the same thing. I looked at him and hissed. ¡°Stay out of this! All of you! Especially you, Elly!!¡± Brutus¡¯ men unsheathed their weapons and ordered me to stand down. However, I did not heed any of their words. They could not kill me and they knew that nothing could stop me from humiliating their Captain in front of them. These were all a sham threats, trying to put fear into me. But the only fear they would ever know now was the fear of humiliation I was dishing out to their so-called esteemed Captain. ¡°You blew up the mines and left us to rot there. You failed to save your hostages and what worse, you shamelessly stole all the credits that others did for you!!¡± I slammed him onto the ground one more time. *You have depleted all your foes Stamina!* Lifting his face yet again, I cursed him. ¡°Wretched whoreson! You are lucky that none of us died. I¡¯ll never forgive you if that ever happens!¡± I slammed him for one final time and then stood up and left. The town guards were coming at us and I did not want to be caught. But before I left, I spat at him. Leaving the scene as quickly as possible, I made my way towards the off-road. Everyone parted for fearing that I would unleash my anger on them. The party quickly ran after me, leaving Brutus and his men humiliated and dumbfounded. All it took was a minute at most but I was sure, that was the most humiliating one minute that whoreson ever endure. If this was the field, I would not hesitate to engage and kill him at all. ¡°Ghost! What had you done?!¡± Alviss and the rest came after me. I could not even bother to turn and face them. Or to justify my actions. ¡°Ghost!!¡± Elly shouted at me. Her voice pierced through the streets and everyone looked at us. ¡°What had you done?!¡± These people were too naive for their own good. Withholding my anger, I finally turned around and look at them. ¡°Ghost! You better had a good explanation why you hit a Captain of the Royal Knight like that! It was uncalled for!¡± Alviss looked at me. I was waiting for the others to spout their nonsense before I blasted each and every one of them. ¡°Ghost! I know you are better than this, but you can¡¯t go and make a scene in our hometown! We have our reputation too, you know!¡± Miranda quipped me next. Even Sophia was trying to say something. ¡°Y-you were scary¡­ Ghost. W-What happened?¡± I looked at them and snorted. Turning my gaze to Elly, she too had something to say to me. I jerked my head at her and urged her to speak her mind. ¡°Y-You are my ally¡­ and I respect you for that. B-But¡­ that¡¯s not a way how you treat people. Fighting doesn¡¯t solve anything. What¡¯s more, making a public scene like that.¡± I crossed my arms and looked at them. ¡°Anything else?¡± ¡°I¡¯m a Holy Knight, Ghost! I can¡¯t have you go around town and do like that to others!¡± ¡°Yeah! Alviss is right. Besides, our guild¡¯s branch office is here. We can¡¯t have you smear our name just because you were pissed off or something! Grow up!¡± Miranda was adamant that I was at wrong. And Alviss proved her point further. ¡°That¡¯s no ordinary NPC you fought! That¡¯s Captain Brutus and you know damn well who he is!¡± Looked like all of them had said their minds. Popo, Mimi and Rose were surprisingly quiet. But from the way they looked at me, I had the feeling that they were on my side. ¡°So, fighting doesn¡¯t solve anything?¡± I asked them. All of them nodded. ¡°Good. So, what solves everything? What solved the problem that the bloody whoreson blew up the mines and let us die inside the mines hours before?¡± I provoked them with my questions. This time, none of them spoke. Did they just forget about everything that happened back in the mines? ¡°You were there with me when they blew up the bloody place!¡± I pointed to each one of them. ¡°All¡­ of¡­ you!!!¡± ¡°B-But we did get out safely, right?¡± Sophia tried to reason out with me. I looked at Sophia and spat onto the grounds. ¡°What if we did not? Tell me Sophia, what would you have done if we did not escape from there?¡± ¡°I¡­ I¡­¡± She stammered to give me her answer but I was relentless. ¡°And what if we failed our quest? Popo and Mimi would die because of that. We were extremely lucky to get out of there at all!¡± My shout took everyone around us by surprise. The passersby avoided us altogether as we stood in the middle of the road. ¡°Tell me, if it was not for me and Rose, can anyone of you go past the titanic God¡¯s Wrath by yourself? Even Popo and Mimi who both were above level 200 were having problems.¡± I paused for a while. ¡°If Brutus and his men did not want to help us, it was still fine by me. But to trap us with no salvation was a different story.¡± ¡°B-But¡­¡± ¡°No buts!!¡± I shouted. ¡°You Alviss¡­ since you are a Holy Knight as you proclaimed yourself and keep on harping about justice and be good at all times, tell me what honour means to you? What about justice and do good?¡± I glared at him. And then towards Elly. ¡°And you too Elly! Tell me.¡± ¡°Is it watching your friends die while the perpetrator gets away with it because it¡¯s a wrong thing to do to seek revenge? Your reputation worth much more than defending your own friends and allies from mistreatment?¡± I paused before I continued on. ¡°Or is it all good and dandy once we have our lives back, no matter who did us wrong? Like Sophia said, it¡¯s alright even if people piss and shit on you as long as you have your life with you?¡± The silence was awkward for all of them. I snorted in disgust at them. ¡°Holy Knight my arse. My ally my arse! And you Miranda, are a fecking fence-sitter that needed to be shot down immediately. And Sophia, continue being a sunflower amidst piles of shits that surrounds you!¡± All of them were trembling. I decided to cut it short. I had no more time for them. ¡°All of you are nothing but a bunch of unfounded pacifists who are afraid to stand up for others for fear of being hurt! Fucking cowards, that what you all are!¡± If this was in the war, I¡¯d stripped them off their badges and sent them home instead. ¡°Tell you what. I am different from the rest of you pussies. I valued my life and my comrades¡¯ life above all. And I will not tolerate anything done to them, even the Gods Himself!¡± I quitted the party immediately. I hated partying because of this; everyone was for themselves. As long as they were getting the end of their share, they would be happy to go along. But once shit hit the fan, they would bail out right away. I looked at Elly and she disgusted me the most. I thought she would have my back as my ally but looking back at it, I didn¡¯t think I wanted to do anything with someone who needed me only for her own good. ¡°Elly, you really disappoint me. From now onwards, you¡¯re fucking dismiss!! You are not getting back to my party!¡± With that, I immediately logged off. ***** How fickle could things be? And how fast things could turn out from good to bad and then to worse. As Ghost logged off, leaving the rest of his party behind, all of them had a look that had their joys and happiness rudely sapped away. Moments ago, they were merrily walking towards the town of Brensberg. ¡°I never see him so angry before.¡± Elly was holding her tears. Ghost¡¯s last words had stung her so much that she cried. Sophia and Miranda were trying to console her but to no avail. And to add salt to the wound, Popo too was not impressed by the party¡¯s action. ¡°It¡¯s because you question him, po!¡± The rest looked at him perplexed. ¡°Who¡¯s your party leader? It¡¯s him, right?¡± He then continued to voice his displeasure. ¡°B-But what he did is wrong!¡± Alviss try to defend themselves. ¡°So what? Wrong or right is not the point here!¡± Popo was not amused at all. His cute look just disappeared. ¡°Lest you forget, it was Ghost who tanked the monster for us. It was Ghost who took the risk for us, as party leader. Even when I failed and my knees were shaking, did you see that in him? He had not even an ounce fear in him when he and Rose faced the dreaded monster alone!¡± Popo was getting agitated. Mimi tried to calm him down, but the warrior¡¯s soul inside Popo was stirred. He and Ghost were alike, in one way. At maximum affinity, Ghost was among his truest friend. ¡°And then when this happened, all of you question him. So, it is not wrong for him to think that he did not have your backing. You only support him when he meets your agendas. To think he even gives you all the good items back then and only claimed a cursed ring for himself. He is too good for all of you, po!¡± Mimi was next. Trying to calm her husband beside her, she quipped the party. ¡°Popo is right. Ghost is your party leader. Love it or hate it, he is still your leader. It¡¯s alright if you just stood and watch, but to question him so openly like this¡­¡± ¡°Papa is right. I¡¯ll do the same thing if someone bullies Papa like that. Elly is blind and stupid!! Papa is doing this for you and everyone else. Serve you right! Now I can party with Papa alone.¡± Rose jerked her leaves around and stood next to Mimi. The rest of them looked at each other. Perhaps what Ghost did was wrong, but as his friends and party members, they must always stand by him. He had their backs all the time without fail and now, when he exacted his anger on someone who meant them harm, they had questioned his motives and leadership. To someone like Ghost, that was a boundary that all of them should have never trespassed. Chapter 23: The Rules of Being Together. Chapter 23: The Rules of Being Together. ¡°You seemed pissed, Bryan. What¡¯s up?¡± I was with Al at his place. After I had logged off, I decided to pay him a visit. He had been wanting to see me for quite some time just to catch up with things, especially about Noble Path Online. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you what¡¯s up. I hate partying with pussies!¡± That was the first words I said once I made myself comfortable in his office at AppleFruit Inc. ¡°Really? I never know you would party with anyone, much more with pussies.¡± He handed me a can of soft drink which I gladly accepted it. With one big gulp, I finished the whole thing. Surprised, he handed me another. ¡°Same here. If I knew any better, that was the first and last time I would party with anyone. What a joke!¡± This time, I drank much slower. Having finished the first one had somehow quelled my thirst a little. ¡°Well, aren¡¯t you overreacting a little?¡± Al took a sit opposite of me and he too took a sip from his can drink. Looking at him without letting go of my own drink, I just shook my head. ¡°Easy for you to say. You were not there! Be in my shoes for once. Or twice.¡± ¡°My bad, Bryan. But why don¡¯t you cool down for a while before you play again? Might clear that steam of yours coming from your ears.¡± He could not help but to chuckle at the end of it. ¡°Don¡¯t you mock me, Al. I¡¯m still pissed. But you are right. I could do with a few days rest. I needed to get some things done too anyway,¡± Looking through the windows of his office, I gave out a long sigh. ¡°Oh, that new doctor finally arrives?¡± Shaking my head, I dismissed it immediately. ¡°Not yet. Said that she had been delayed once again. Damn bureaucrats!¡± ¡°So, what¡¯s your plan?¡± Al leaned forward and offered me another round of drink. But this time, I declined it. ¡°Going to visit some old friends,¡± I answered him nonchalantly and we continued to discuss the game without Ed¡¯s presence. Normally, that guy would be the first one to actually engage with me regarding NPO, but not today. After a while, I bid him farewell. Al was always receptive to me no matter what time of the day it was. However, Ed was still nowhere to be seen. According to his younger brother, Ed had been busy lately with a few business matters. So, it was up to him to entertain me. Hell, if I did not know it any better, he was sucking up to me but I could use some arse-licking. ***** --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- MICHAEL E. GREEN First Sergeant of United World Nation Force 1st April 1972 - 22 November 2030 Here lies a loyal husband and a fearless warrior. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ¡°He sure loves those lilies of his, doesn¡¯t he Mrs Green?¡± I placed the flowers on the gravestone as his wife gave him a quiet prayer. I too gave him a short prayer and thanked him for what he had done to me, even after his death. ¡°That old fart sure was soft at heart. I could never know that he died in the war like that. I never received his body, just an empty coffin draped with the flag.¡± She sighed at the end of her words after finishing her short prayer. Looking at the gravestone with my drill sergeant¡¯s name and his wife next to me, I could not help but to feel a little guilty. Perhaps the conscience was getting to me. However, there will be a proper time for me to tell Mrs Green what happened that day. But for now, I had to hold this secret a little longer. It was not the time yet. My enemies were far too strong and their networks were too wide for me to start making noise. ¡°Well, shall we get going Bryan?¡± I just nodded at her. It had been two days since I logged out from NPO after that incident. I was busy paying visits to my dead comrades and Mr Green was the last I visited. Located out of town, his grave was the furthest. And I hated the fact that Mrs Green would always break down in front of the gravestone every time she visited this place. But fortunately, she was quite in a jolly mood today. ¡°Do you still keep the dog tags, Byran?¡± She asked as we entered the car. I just nodded at her, adjusting myself to the passenger seat and then keeping the wheelchair behind, like how I usually did it. Only this time, Mrs Green was kind enough to help me. ¡°Yeah, him and all the others, Mrs Green,¡± I answered her briefly as she just smiled at me. The old lady¡¯s complexion had changed for better recently and I had no doubt that she had no longer relied on her meagre pension and had a mortgage to think about. I took care of it all together after I had my unexpected windfall. That and also all her healthcare and insurance needs too. The least I could do to her for all that happened before. ¡°So, are you going to spend the rest of your time inside that weird helmet of yours again?¡± Mrs Green asked as she drove us home. Her mood must be very good seeing that she too now wanted to know about my ¡®work¡¯. ¡°It¡¯s a VR Gear and no. I¡¯m going to take a few days off for now. Needed to clear my head a little.¡± ¡°Seeing you inside the room being lifeless like that was no different than being dead. Sometimes it scared me to come into your room and call you to eat.¡± ¡°Hahaha, and I thought you were not afraid of anything, much more a person like me. But just to quell your fear, I¡¯m alive and better than ever. Even though it was just a game, I felt like I am reliving another version of me.¡± I gave her a thumbs up and she just laughed at it. ¡°I like this version of you. Though you are still jobless, but better than what you were a few years ago.¡± Hey, playing NPO was a job for me. My motivations might not be clear to her, but to me, it was like a daylight. Besides, I loved this new job of mine. ¡°A war can make or break a man, Mrs Green. I had seen the worse of humanity. Though I had yet to see the best, I was hoping I could find it outside of war instead. Maybe I could find it in the other world¡­¡± I purposely slurred off at the end, indicating my somewhat mild expectation and hope. ¡°Do you still have those attacks?¡± Mrs Green looked at me worriedly for a second before she got her eyes back on the road. Her action caught me by surprise. I wondered what made her so talkative and in good mood today? But I did not plan to find out. I just answered her questions, whatever it may be. ¡°Sometimes. But it is more manageable now since I could divert my attention away by playing the game.¡± ¡°Alright. As you say, Bryan. But don¡¯t forget to take your medication.¡± I just nodded at her. ¡°And maybe see a psychiatrist too. You know, someone who could help you properly. Especially in managing that anger of yours.¡± I looked at her and could not help it but to laugh. ¡°Ohh, Mrs Green. It takes more than just a shrink to help me. But, I¡¯ll do that. Maybe.¡± I gave out a non-committal answer. I¡¯d never had a shrink before and thinking about one just gave me the creeps. I could not stand talking to someone about what happened and expected them to know or feel what I had been through. But since Mrs Green had kept suggesting me every other day that I should go and see one, maybe I would. Whenever I was free, which always never happen though. As we reached our home, I immediately took to my bed, reliving my past memories in the war. All those that happened were my ghost ¨C what I¡¯d feared the most. Hopefully, it would never reach here; to where I was now. Shrink or no shrink, my past still haunted my waking moment. And when I slept at night, it just became a part my dream. And hopefully too, it just stopped at there. ***** When I was online, I was swamped with private messages. I wanted to delete it all but I stopped when I saw Popo¡¯s message to me.
I¡¯d waited for you, po. But you did not come. I¡¯m not sure when you will be coming back, but please find me at the Royal Capital as soon as possible, po. Mimi and I had something to discuss with you.
That was the only message I read and kept. And as usual, I immediately summoned Rose to my side. But this time around, I purposely did not summon Elly. ¡°Papa¡­ where are we going next?¡± Rose asked me as soon as she arrived. ¡°No idea, but Popo has invited me to the Royal Capital. The details are vague at best though.¡± I was pondering to myself when I suddenly heard a familiar but annoying voice. ¡°Ghost!!¡± I did not want to turn around. I had nothing to say to her and my decision still stand. I paced myself quickly, trying to outrun the owner of the voice. ¡°Ghost¡­ I¡¯m sorry!!¡± No, you were not sorry. I was not about to be persuaded anymore. I had made up my mind. If no one could have my back, I should do the same too. Though I had calmed down, in my mind I needed to be a little wary of who would stand beside me. ¡°Come, Rose. We do not need to be here.¡± Rose immediately climbed onto my shoulder, turned around and waved at the person who was running after me. The incident, although it could be handled better had told me one thing; if everything went well, I was the man. If it was not, I would be left on my own and hung to dry. I could not count on them to look after my back. Even her. ¡°Please¡­ wait for me, Ghost!¡± Elly was running after me though never once I turned to face her. Perhaps dejected by my cold respond, she finally stopped chasing me. Good, I had no need for you. I had done all I could to train you, but now you were on your own girl. I had no idea how to dismiss her from my ally list seeing that there were no functions that could prompt me to do so. ¡°Ghost! If you are not stopping, I will scream!¡± Elly threatened me. I could not help but to smirk. I raised my hand and gave a thumbs up with my back facing her. Do whatever you want. Those who looked at us were giving me weird stares as if I was ditching a girl or having a lover¡¯s quarrel. ¡°Papa¡­ are you sure you want to leave Elly like that?¡± Rose suddenly asked me.You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. ¡°Why should I need people like her? I do not need people who question me.¡± Trying to understand my reasoning, Rose scratched the only leaves on her top. She still looked very much like a walking ginseng even though she had progressed quite a bit on her level. After a while, she gave a nod. I was not so sure how much she understood my words, but at least I know she supported me. ¡°Let¡¯s leave this place and farm some EXPs and items. Looked like it would be night soon too.¡± I left through the main gate having passed the scene of the incident a few days ago. I gave a wicked smile as I remembered how I gave that arsehole a sneak attack and pummeled him like a ragdoll. He never did know what hit him, didn¡¯t he? On the field, we had encountered some low levels monsters like what we encountered back in the City of Asgardia. This was a waste of time to farm those monsters now, so we moved onto a few maps beyond the town to hunt better monsters. This time, we met proper foes; Wild Boar at level 30s to Steeling, a level 40-ish type of bat. This was our first flying enemy that I had seen so far in NPO. At night, my approach was to be careful and not mob too many at once. Minding my surrounding, the two of us worked in tandem. This time, I was to tank and let Rose handle the DPS job. Wild Boars were fast despite its large size and each one of them came with a high HP. And its gore attack was dangerous to boot. However, what made the battle easy was that Wild Boars did not come as a pack. At most, there were two of them at any time. And their attack was pretty linear. Easy to dodge and easier to counter-hit. Steeling was another problem altogether though. Those monsters came in a group of 12 at least. But that was not the worst of it. Their attack, Parasite Bite could syphon our HP and healed them instead. Since they were flying, melee attack proved to be useless most of the times. Once a group of Steeling started to surround you, you either run away or hope to meet another group of players who could help you. I saw a group of adventurers having a hard time fighting those Steelings as I watched from afar. This time, I had no one to tell me to help them or anyone else for that matter. Once was more than enough. If Elly were here, she would pester me non-stop to help those people. Bah, I got better things to do. ¡°Papa, there¡¯s a Wild Boar over there!¡± Rose pointed to me. A level 38 Wild Boar. Licking my lips in delight, we charged towards the wild animal. Rose would attack it at range without drawing any aggro to herself as I continued to avoid its attack at melee. Once it was down to 50% HP, I would then use Mad Rush to finish it off. If its HP falls below 50%, the chances the Wild Boar to go berserk was high. Thus, the best was to kill it first before it became berserk. Giving it no quarter at all, it was felled before long. ¡°Hmm¡­ when will I be able to use this weird ring?¡± Fiddling the ring within my palm, I just looked for more Wild Boars to fight. But alas, there was none for now. Loki¡¯s Mischief was the only item that I took back at the Ancient Tomb of the High King. It would reverse all active skills, spells or items effect but so far, I never had the chance to use it. The potions were expensive and the spells would take time to cast. As such, I did not need to wear it. Keeping it back into my pocket, suddenly I heard a scream for help. ***** A familiar voice; Elly. Her piercing scream could be heard even from where I stood now. I wanted to walk away when Rose tugged to my sleeve. ¡°Papa, are you not helping her?¡± I shook my head. She looked at me dejected with my answer. ¡°Papa, if it was me¡­ would you ever come to my help.¡± ¡°Sure. For you, I¡¯ll come faster than a flash.¡± ¡°I¡¯m happy to hear that Papa. But¡­¡± Rose looked towards the direction where the voice came from. ¡°But Papa. Don¡¯t you think Elly might think so too? That you would come to her aide when she needed you?¡± Bloody hell. The NPCs in this game sure knew how to blackmail others. Now I was struck with a dilemma. Looking at Rose, I was sure she wanted to help her. Being a competitive rival did not deter her from trying to come to her aide. But for me¡­ ¡°So, what you want me to do? Rescue her? After what she did to me?¡± ¡°Papa¡­ you can always rescue her and then leave her straightaway. At least better than having to know that you did not come to her aide when you know she needed you.¡± I was dumbstruck. Whoever designed the NPCs AI was bloody smart. Should win a Nobella Prize for trying to soften my cold self. ¡°Alright. Fine. We will do as you say. But we will leave after that, alright? Not even a word.¡± Rose nodded enthusiastically. She really knew how to get through me this time. Re-equipping myself as a healer, I immediately went to Elly¡¯s aide. Once I reached the place, I did not assume wrongly. She was helping the party I saw earlier fighting against the Steeling group. She never fought a flying monster before. Waving her shield and sword like that wasn¡¯t going to cut it. The Steeling was mobbing around her. Though she held firm, her HP was dropping fast. The party member that she was helping was too pathetic to do anything other than becoming an HP fodder for the enemies. All of them were melee fighters. No healers and no range attackers either. Counting the numbers of my foes, I calculated my next move. Perhaps now was the time to use my ring. Wearing it on my ring finger, I immediately casted Heal onto one of the Steeling. *Heal!* Immediately, the Steeling HP dropped by 10%. Whoa¡­ it did work. And the good thing was the name of the skill did not change. Just its abilities and properties. Now, let¡¯s try Poisoning those pathetic adventurers. ¡°Poison! Rot!¡± Instead of damage over time from the skill, I had healed them over time instead. Nifty. My ¡®attack¡¯ came as surprise to all of them. If someone were to look at what I did, they might think that I was a sadist; poisoning the players in need of help and healing the enemies. And since I was wearing a robe, none of them could see my face clearly either. I instructed Rose to help to kill off the lowest HP Steeling while I healed the rest; starting from Elly. And once her HP rose up to 80%, I then concentrated on debuffing the whole Steeling group. Stone Skin and Heal would bring their defence and lower down the HP without taking any aggro to myself. One down, 7 more to go. ***** During the battle, not once did I come any closer to them. All I did was to attack and support from range. Once we felled all the monster, I immediately took my leave. ¡°G-Ghost?¡± Elly came after me. Unlike the day when it was bright, my vision during the dark was limited. My movement speed aside from battle was quite slow for my liking. I had to be careful since I might enter an enemy¡¯s ambush or got tangled into something unknown. ¡°P-Please¡­ wait for me¡­¡± She continued to rush at me. And like me, she too had the problem in moving freely at night. ¡°ArGGhHH!!¡± This time, her sudden scream made me stopped in my tracks. I turned and faced her immediately. Unfortunately, she fell down and was now surrounded by a couple of Wild Boars. She had not fully healed herself and now, having dropped both her shield and sword, she was like a lying corn-feed waiting to be picked upon. I shook my head in disbelief. That blonde girl really knew how to get herself in trouble. ¡°She should be more careful than this. What a weird girl. I had taught her everything, especially fighting and travelling at night. And now this¡­¡± ¡°Papa¡­ should we help her?¡± Rose tugged on my sleeves. ¡°If I don¡¯t, you will definitely make me having those guilty consciences again, Rose. I swear your mouth are getting sharper by the minute.¡± Re-equipping before entering the battle, I charged together with Rose. Those Wild Boars were too busy attacking Elly that they did not see us coming from their rear. Before I entered the fight, I immediately used the Mad Rush skill. *Critical Backstab Hit!* *Critical Backstab Hit!* With two slashes, the level 35 Wild Boar¡¯s HP dropped by 60%. And I did not stop there. I continued to give it few more attacks before it finally faced me. With 40% HP left, the Wild Boar was going berserk. But Rose supported me with Vine Hold thus stopping its movement. ¡°Good job, Rose.¡± After giving her a thumbs up, I slashed my enemy relentlessly. ¡°Be prepared to be a bloody slab of meat, you ugly pig!¡± Once we felled the first Wild Boar, the second one was much easier. Trying to run away, Rose managed to stop its movement once again. And this time, all I did was to go the hind side and backstab it till death. A simple kill, indeed. Once done, I went up to check on Elly. ¡°You alright, girl?¡± Upon looking at me, she left out a loud cry and immediately stood up and hugged me tightly. ¡°Hey, what¡¯s this? Let me go!¡± Elly shook her head on my chest. I tried to push her away. NPC or not, I was not too fond of getting a hug like this. Furry and cuddly things were alright but not crying women. My chest was not their handkerchief. Ughh¡­ I really hated this. ¡°I-I¡¯m so sorry, Ghost¡­ P-Please d-don¡¯t leave me!¡± Elly spoke amidst her tears. Her snots and mucus were sticking to my armour. I wiped it away immediately with a disgusted look on my face. ¡°As my ally, you were a big disappointment. How could I ever trust you for having my back?!¡± I was playing hard to catch. I knew that she had been stalking me the whole time trying to get close to me. But this time, she needed to earn my trust if she wanted to be my ally again. From the bottom. ¡°I-I¡¯ll do anything¡­ please. Please Ghost?¡± Elly pleaded with me. I did not have much time to delve into this sort of drama. I ended it up with just a simple offer on the table for her. ¡°Fine. You can join back my party, but this time I¡¯ll disable the friendly-fire. If I ever think that you are going turn your back on me, I¡¯ll kill you that very moment. Understand?!¡± Elly was jolted by my conditions. But it did not take her long to consider it. ¡°Alright, anything for you, Ghost!¡± I looked directly at her and with deliberate movement, I made the gesture for her to follow me. ¡°Papa, did you really disable the friendly-fire?¡± Rose whispered into my ears as Elly followed us from behind. I just smiled at her and patted her leaves. ¡°What do you think?¡± ***** After selling our loots for the day, the three of us made our way towards the Royal Capital. Elly did not know our destination until much later, during one of our night camps. The reaction when she heard about it was quite unexpected. ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Having second thoughts?¡± I looked at her intently. Travelling here was not easy. Littered with a number of level 50s to 70s monsters, we had our fair share of fighting the whole time. Though it was just half a dozen maps away from the town of Brensberg, nonetheless, each map was as big as a couple or more of lower levelled maps combined. What made it easier though was the numbers of players here. Many were farming monsters around, numbering no less than a few hundred per map. Perhaps at the peak, it could reach a thousand or more. It was only during the night time when there were fewer players travelling that made our journey a little harder. Thus, we were selective of our prey and when we needed to fight. After one such battle, we decided to call it a day and rest. ¡°I-I¡­ I¡¯m afraid to go back there, Ghost.¡± Elly looked down on the grounds while fiddling her thumbs. ¡°Hmm¡­ why?¡± I looked at her sternly. She looked really uncomfortable indeed. ¡°I¡­I¡­¡± Elly continued with her uneasiness which was quite apparent to see. But I was not here to play her nanny or guardian. ¡°I¡¯ll be going regardless whether you are coming with me or not. I want to see Popo and Mimi! If my friends need me, I¡¯ll go. Even to the end of the earth itself.¡± I had made up my mind. If she wanted, she could tag along. Or else, I would have no problem travelling alone with Rose. ¡°I-I¡¯ll follow you anywhere, Ghost! Please, don¡¯t leave me anymore!¡± She was a little hesitant at first but I knew she meant every one of her words. Though she did piss me off the other day with her antics, she did win me over by how hard she worked. Honestly, I always like a hard worker. She would do anything I would tell her to do; including stripping her armour off. ¡°I¡¯ll always have your back, Elly. Remember that!¡± I kept reminding her of the ethics within my party. Everyone must watch for another¡¯s back. Our lives depended on it. Right or wrong was not in question. The party leader must be respected at all times. If disagreement ever happens, feel free to leave. But when the time comes, each of us must be able to rely on each other. What the previous party did to me was breaking the taboo and I could never tolerate that. I might overreact as Al said to me, but who¡¯d never? Elly looked up at me. I threw her a slab of roasted meat. ¡°You are my ally. My party member. I¡¯ll not have anything or anyone hurt you. If something bothering you, I¡¯ll get rid of those with my own hands!¡± Suddenly, she let out a quiet cry while munching her dinner. I could not know what happened but for now, I was on the lookout for the rest of my members. ¡°After we eat and rest, let''s continue with your training, Elly.¡± Stripping her to just her underwear, I had her fight with just a shield. Without armour or weapon, all she could do was to either avoid or shield herself. But the monsters here, especially Rabid Blood Hare was extremely fast and agile. They would just attack her flanks and rear if she ever raised her shield. ¡°Oi, girl. Your butt is exposed. Avoid or cover it up before the rabbits mauled your arse.¡± I gave out a loud laugh that made Elly blushed. She immediately covered herself but not without having a couple of her enemies striking her for free. I could help but to shake my head a little and giving out a long sigh. I had been thinking to increase the difficulty in her training. And now, I wanted to train her in the usage of the shield as a weapon but had not encountered any monsters that were fast and agile enough. But the Rabid Blood Hare was perfect. At level 50s, it would pose serious issues if one was not careful enough. Add that to its attack; the Blood Suck skill was an automatic 100% hit. As the name implied, the skill would leech our HP to heal itself. So getting hit and then having the skill casted on us was a bad situation to be in. ¡°Oi Elly. What are you doing? You are naked as anyone could be. Stop relying on your equip all the time!¡± Elly let out a whimper and looked at me for mercy. But I just shook my head in all seriousness. ¡°Learn to avoid your enemy¡¯s attack. Your weapon is your shield. Do as I tell you. Don¡¯t let your basic instinct tell you otherwise.¡± To others, I might not make any sense at all. Well, feck them. I¡¯d train her as how I see fit. As the night wore on, Elly showed remarkable improvement. She was a fast learner indeed. And the training became a little tougher too. But without risk, there would be no reward. After several days of travelling, the three of us had passed well over level 45. Though our skills were pretty much at the basic level, nonetheless the proficiencies improved greatly. Elly had gained a few new skills that pretty much enhanced all her stats and abilities as our main tank. I could not be happier. But Rose was not too happy with Elly¡¯s progress and she too wanted me to train her. Papa was playing favourites, as she said. But unfortunately, despite all my attention, she did not gain any extra skills much to her annoyance and Elly¡¯s delight. The two girls were really competitive and that made the whole journey a little merrier with their constant bickering of who was better. And I was stuck in between two girls fight, unfortunately. This continued on for few more days until we finally arrived at the Royal Capital. Chapter 24: The Royal Sword Meister Chapter 24: The Royal Sword Meister During our travel to the Royal Capital, we had seen thousands of other players entering the same map areas as we did. It was a new experience for me. Feeling curious, I went to ask a couple of players who were walking just directly in front of us. ¡°Hi, seems there are awful lots of people here. Is there anything going on?¡± I was straight to the point. The two looked at me and Elly with a weird expression. ¡°New here?¡± One of them, an elf warrior asked. I nodded. ¡°I see. This is usual sight within this place. Though there were more people now, it is always a busy place.¡± The elf continued talking as he greeted the other players around. ¡°I see.¡± A few of them waved back at me and I replied likewise. City of Asgardia and Brensberg were nothing like this at all. While observing the people around us, the other half began to talk. A female dwarf sporting a thick beard. If I never heard her talking, I would assume it was a male instead. ¡°Though we heard that there might be an update coming soon. Know what that means?¡± ¡°New event?¡± I rubbed my chin, looking at the two of them. The elf, looking at me with a wide grin answered my half-hearted question. ¡°Yeah. A new event is coming up but I don¡¯t know the details. Best ask the NPCs if you can find any that is willing to tell you.¡± We exchanged a few more information before I bid the two farewell as we entered the huge main gate. Once I stepped inside the gate, I suddenly received a system message.
Capital City of the Kingdom of Asgard Welcome to the Royal Capital, Aessirun. Besides being the capital and the biggest city within the Kingdom of Asgard, the Royal Capital also is the home to hundreds of thousands of players just like you. Take this opportunity to make new friends, explore the city or take on quests. Whatever you do, this place has it all.
To be honest, it was a nothing message really. What I was more interested in was to meet the Bunnian couple. They had promised to meet me at their temporary residence and I would not delay it any longer. With the map they gave me, I proceeded with Elly followed closely beside. Rose sat atop of my head acting like some sort of scout. But the usual chirpy and cheery Elly was not herself at all. She never once raised her head nor said any word even before we arrived into the Royal Capital. By the looks of it, she was definitely hiding something or perhaps scared of something or someone. If this was the case, it would be of no use as she would slow us down. ¡°Elly, wear my robe.¡± I gave her my equipment as I reequipped myself with my usual fighting attire. She gladly took my robe and wore it immediately. I did not want to ask her anything for now. She might have a secret and I was not the type to ask around about it. ¡°Sorry, Ghost.¡± Covering herself under the hood, she muttered as silently as she could. ¡°It¡¯s alright. Just keep your head low and stick with me at all times.¡± I patted her head and we continue to prod on along as fast as we could towards our next destination. The number of players here was massive indeed and it made the journey a little more hectic than I would like. ***** ¡°Po! I never thought I would see you after that day!¡± Popo greeted us in front of his door, looking all cheery and happy. Perhaps he was expecting us. ¡°Well, took us some time to get in here. The usual stuff.¡± And his temporary house just looked the same as the one back in the City of Asgardia; full of potted plants and flowers. ¡°I see. Well, good to see that you three are back as a team. Come on in, po.¡± Elly and Rose immediately dashed inside, bypassing the surprised Popo. But he could not help to let out a chuckle seeing the two girls acting like that. And I could hear the sound of their happy reunion even from the outside where I stood with Popo. Beckoning me in, I took the chance to scour around. It was indeed a carbon-copy of their house back at the City of Asgardia. Far from the last time we saw them, the Bunnian couple now looked extremely relaxed and happy. However, I was not here just to play catch up with them. I had something important that needed Mimi¡¯s help. Handing her the item, her look was all I needed to know how surprised she was. ¡°W-Where did you get this?¡± She asked me while rubbing her eyes a few times. I reminded her about the previous mission back at the farm. The rest just looked quite intensely as I recalled my adventures at the farm, especially Rose. ¡°I see. The world is just a small place indeed.¡± Mimi could say it 100 times over and I would agree with her every single time. Bill, the farmer¡¯s great-granduncle was Mimi¡¯s Master. And on her hands was his ¨C albeit now updated ¨C journal and memoir. Tears were flowing down her cheeks as she grasped both the book close to her furry chest. I never knew that these two books could mean so much to her. To me, it was just a weird old book given as a useless reward to an easily likewise useless quest. And it took her quite a while to compose herself before continuing her words. ¡°Well, to be honest, my Master had been studying about the Old Gods for his whole life. Legend says that once They left the world, their magnificent city, High Asgard was sealed off from us.¡± Mimi immediately devoured the book at once. Flipping each page with such intensity and passion, I could feel that every of her fibre was shaking with excitement. Popo could not help but to poke fun at his wife but he was immediately dismissed by her with a cold stare and a silent hiss. By then, I knew right away who wore the pants in this house. ¡°Well, it¡¯s what clearly stated there. But I don¡¯t understand was the keys. What keys?¡± I asked Mimi, trying to keep our conversation back into the topic. ¡°The keys could be found at 7 Old Gods statues all over the Kingdom. As to what the manner of it, I am not sure. Perhaps you will find it there.¡± And voila, I got a quest message immediately once Mimi said that.
The Rainbow Bridge The Legend of High Asgardia that was found within the pages of Royal Scholar, Grand Master Yamir Adrain journal had led his student, Mimi to a definite conclusion. There were 7 keys that would open a special gate towards the lost civilization found within the Hall of the Forgotten Old Gods. Find it and the Legend will once more live. But beware, what awaits you will be the God¡¯s Wrath themselves shall you prove yourself unworthy. Quest Rank: Special Event Time left: 06:23:59:35 Completion Requirements: Elly and Rose must be in the party at all times. Find all the keys and enter the gate within the time limit. *Warning: If you reject this quest, it will disappear forever. The Legend would be left unsolved. -5 and -3 Affinity link to Mimi and Popo¡¯s Affinity Link respectively. The quest will fail if you exceed the time limit. Quest Reward: Unspecified.
This was the first time I got a quest like this. I was not given a choice to think about it either. The word God¡¯s Wrath was not winning my favour too. This would be a suicide quest. And there was no longer risk versus rewards factor since there was no reward at all despite the difficulties, risks and limitations. Giving Mimi the two books were all I could do. With a heavy sigh, I decided that I wanted to reject this quest. I was about to risk my Affinity Link with the Bunnian couples. However, before I could do that, both Elly and Rose came up to me. ¡°Papa, please accept the quest. Please¡­¡± Rose spoke as she caressed my cheeks as usual. Elly seemed to nod beside her. Looking to and fro between the two of them and the Bunnian couple, I shook my head. ¡°But¡­¡± Elly seemed dejected. ¡°Papa, didn¡¯t you say that you will always have our back?¡± I nodded at Rose. ¡°Well, if that¡¯s the case, is Popo and Mimi not your friend?¡± I was utterly stumped. ¡°I-I guessed so. Sigh¡­ but with our conditions, what could all of us do? If that colossus is indeed our foe, and perhaps there might be more of them, what good could it do us? Can we even succeed given what¡¯s on our hand?¡± The time limit was the decisive factor. There was no way I could get to the level that could easily let me go toe to toe with a level 500 monster. But somehow, the two girls¡¯ words got into me. I was reminded of my own ethics and could not help but to crack up a bitter smile at it. ¡°However¡­¡± I looked at Mimi. ¡°Do you know the location of the Old Gods¡¯ statues?¡± She nodded excitedly. I could do by finding the keys first. The rest would be left for later. I was thinking too much about what might happen. I accepted the quest though with little hesitancy whether or not we could pull this one off. Once I accepted it, Mimi handed me a Key Item called Stone Jewel that could open us the way into the place through the waterfall entrance. And she even returned me both of the books. According to her, it would be wise that I kept the book for now. And to my immediate surprise, Popo came out with something that was quite unexpected as if he was reading my mind. ¡°If you fear about your foe, perhaps I could introduce you to someone who could help even out the odds a little. Besides, I must insist that you two meet each other up.¡± ***** ¡°So, who have we here?¡± I was extremely surprised to meet the person Popo called his Master. Thinking that it might be an old bearded man with pompous clothing that would resemble a nobility rather than a warrior and a ton load of swords and weapons, the person in front of me was nothing like that at all. In fact, she was sitting cross-legged in mid-air while meditating in the middle of the dimly lighted room. I could even smell some weird fragrances, like those of Indian incense used for aromatherapy. Once Popo greeted her, she opened up her eyes slowly. And with that, came the eeriest smile of a vixen that I could ever see. My blood seemed to freeze over a few times. ¡°My, my. Isn¡¯t he a good-looking man?¡± Immediately, she relaxed her stance and put her feet on the ground in the most elegant and soft manner; totally in contrast to the way she was looking at us. It was like watching a dancer beginning her routine and I was beginning to get intoxicated and enthralled. Shaking my head a couple of times, I tried to return to my senses. Man, that felt so real.Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more. ¡°Excellent job Popo! You decided to bring someone that fit my taste after all. Finally, you have make yourself a little more useful now!¡± She let out a laugh that filled the entire room as she walked towards us. Man, what sort of trouble did I get into with this little furry rabbit now? Looking around, I was brought here alone with Popo inside a huge building that looked nothing like a place for a warrior. Called the Infinite Soul, I expected it to be a little... perhaps, warrior-ish mystical. Instead, it felt like a very mythical sort of Oriental and Indian fused together. To be exact, I could say it looked like an extremely high-class of aromatherapy centre with its dimmed lighting, peculiar scent and wooden finishing all over the place with some statues scattered around and a fountain just at the end of the room. I mean, really? A fountain? Why did a warrior need a fountain at all? ¡°Master, I present to you my very own student, Ghost!¡± The awkwardness of the situation was somehow made even worse by Popo as he introduced me to his Master. ¡°Oi, rabbit! I¡¯m not your student!¡± I immediately rebutted it but he waved me away nonchalantly. ¡°I see. You are my useless student¡¯s student?¡± She came at me and looked at me intensely. I was never afraid of any woman before, but somehow my wall was being broken. I did not know what she did, but her force was so strong that I was wilting. ¡°But you don¡¯t look like a normal fighter to me. You¡­ seems different.¡± She was awfully close to me and I could feel her breath tingling my face. ¡°I could sense that you are a magic user. Hmmm¡­ a supporter type. Am I right?¡± I just nodded at her. I thought she might be appalled by my appearance and choice of skills, but she looked at me with a delight on her face. I could not tell what she was thinking at all. She smelled me a couple of times more before decided that it was enough. She then took her place on a platform as her attendant came and brought her a cup of water. I breathed a huge sigh of relief having endured all the weird moments up till now. No doubt, I had sweat a bucket load. I was never good with women since the beginning. What more of a powerful and enthralling existence like the one who was in front of me. Royal Sword Meister, Grand Meister Carla Illiyasvielen was the strongest Sword Meister in the whole Kingdom. A Sword Meister was an advanced job, privy only to certain people. No one could ever come close to her in term of talents, skills, prowess and abilities in fighting techniques. And according to Popo before we came here, she was both ruthless and domineering thus telling me to be extremely careful with her. But, it was not that that made me overwhelmed. Forget that she only wore skimpy armour, to the point of being naked barely covering her voluptuous breast and genitalia and the extremely perfect proportion of her body with her flowing white-silver hair that matched her slightly tanned skin. She was just like a Latin movie star who was at her prime; intoxicatingly beautiful, vivacious and might I add a vixen too judging by the way she licked her lips while looking at me. What made me felt super uncomfortable and having a hard time was her aura and charm. She possessed what I could call powerful soul force that could render anyone paralyzed. I did not know how the game element could be made so real, but hell, if I never experienced it just now, I would laugh my arse off at anyone who said the same thing. And the circles below her feet were illuminating vibrantly. Popo was not kidding when he said I¡¯d better be careful. ¡°Oh¡­ are you curious?¡± She caught me looking at her intently at her feet. I just nodded silently. ¡°This is the Mark of Transcendence.¡± As she said that, all the four circles beneath her feet glowed even more brighter and engulfed her in some sort of multi-coloured light. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± I asked. ¡°Ohho? Popo did not tell you?¡± I shook my head. She looked at Popo dismissively and he immediately hid behind my back. I could not help but to feel that the rabbit was indeed pitiful. ¡°A Mark of Transcendence is what you will gain if you received the Gods favour. For every 100 levels, you will gain one mark. Of course, provided if you have had what it takes. As you can see, I had four marks. Each with a different colour.¡± ¡°Y-You a level 400?¡± I was quite surprised. That was the highest level NPC or any PCs I had ever seen in the game. To meet and get into direct contact with them so early in the game was a pleasant surprise. ¡°437 to be exact.¡± She corrected me and gave out a chuckle before continuing her words. ¡°However, what makes the Mark of Transcendence special is that not everyone will ever get it. The price to pay is extremely high. Besides, some people I know could not bear its responsibilities. Right, Popo?¡± She looked at Popo and he hid his face behind my back. ¡°I-I know. B-But I-I could not pass the test.¡± Popo stammered whilst taking refuge, using me as a shield to protect himself from the piercing eyes of his Master. He was really a pitiful rabbit. ¡°Humphh!¡± She snorted and then turned away from both of us. ¡°Come, boys.¡± She beckoned us to follow her. Feeling curious, I took the first step, leaving Popo behind. But that rabbit immediately recovered his senses fast enough to chase after us. We followed Carla towards a courtyard surrounded by trees where there was a number of people who were practising. Fortunately or unfortunately ¨C depending on how one would look at it ¨C none of them were PCs. When she arrived, they took their bows and stationed themselves at around the courtyard immediately. ¡°Popo had told me a lot about you. However, since it came from him, I need to gauge you myself.¡± Fair enough. A stranger in a warrior¡¯s house. And that could only mean one thing. ¡°Take any weapon from those shelves and let me test you.¡± Finally, I could do something fun. I was about to spar with a very high level and supposedly powerful NPC. The Master of this abode. The one Popo called his Master and the strongest character in the game. Honestly, I¡¯d never sparred with Popo before as he would always decline my invitation. But I could not pass over this chance. I did not know what to expect as I equipped myself with a single sword and a shield. She equipped herself in the same manner as I did. And there was only one rule here; we were to fight without using any skill. ¡°Come at me anything you are ready, young man.¡± Heh. Calling me young man. I was way older than you, young girl. But I gladly accepted her invitation starting by dashing towards her immediately. With a couple of quick strike to her front, she easily dodged it to the left and then to the right. Once I had attacked her, she tried to slam her shield across my body. A good counterattack, but I immediately backflipped and using her shield as a platform, I gave it a kicked as I tumbled backwards. ¡°Not bad. You have some good movements.¡± I just smiled at her and it was now my time to urge her to come at me. Every time she attacked, I would dodge it all and sneak in a few of my own. The shield was not for me to block her attack but rather to strike her blindside. But her movement was out of this world. I could not land even a clean hit on her, just grazing her hairs a little. But it was likewise for her too. And thus, we continued our sword-fighting dance for a good while. I could see those around us were enraptured. But it was not for me anyway as they were cheering for Carla¡¯s name. After a while, we arrived at an impasse. The two of us locked our eyes while waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike. I had never met any fighter like her before. Perhaps I should be a little serious now. Or else, I was going to get my arse whooped if this went on longer. Carla was indeed a strong character. Wiping my sweats away, I broke the impasse and continued to attack her relentlessly. She blocked all the attacks with her shield and I could now see a slight window of an opportunity. I continued to strike at the hand that was holding the shield. My reasoning was a simple one. I wanted to obstruct her view a little, away from my footwork. The hits became even faster and stronger. I had delivered no less than 30 continuous blows when suddenly, I side-stepped her towards her blindside; her left arm that held the shield. She was caught by surprise. I immediately swiped her leg with mine and as she fell down, I gave a couple of quick blow towards her guts with the hilt of my sword. And as I expected, even with the impending and nearly unavoidable attack, her movement was out of this world and she tried to twist her body away. But turning her back on me, even for half a second was not a wise choice. I kicked her back and she flew toward the front, landing awkwardly. And it was game over. For her. ¡°Master!¡± Popo shouted for her. He ran towards her but immediately he was brushed away. Though my attacks connected well, she was not even hurt in the slightest. She was on her knee when I approached her. Extending my hand, I pulled her up as she wiped the dust away from her nearly naked body. ¡°You are an extremely good fighter.¡± She began to talk. ¡°You had embarrassed me in front of my students.¡± I shook my head. ¡°I never met a fighter as good as you. If you had not given me the chance, I may never win against you.¡± In front of a super strong character like her, it was best to be magnanimous. ¡°Keep the compliments to yourself. You are indeed a good fighter. I have gauged you enough and I have no regrets having you win this round. You are the most skilful person I¡¯ve ever come across. But¡­¡± Without any warning, she immediately released her aura. A powerful wind coursed throughout the whole courtyard and it blew all the dirt and dried leaves away. ¡°In a real battle, your enemies will not keep their skills away!¡± Her eyes sparkled with blueish flame. The sky suddenly turned dark and cold wind now engulfed the whole area. The lightning crackled above us as she looked at me in cold yet menacing eyes. Her earlier flaming blue eyes had gone and I got a really bad feeling about this. Everyone around us shuddered in fear. Popo who just stood at her side earlier was now missing. ¡°Saint Level Soul Shattering Technique: Rain of the Maelstrom Light!¡± Once she said those words, I was immediately struck with countless of lightning bolts that came out of nowhere. *Critical Hit!* Lose 25,760 HP! *Critical Hit!* Lose 23,367 HP! *Critical Hit!* Lose 28,969 HP! *Critical Hit!* Lose 24,331 HP! *Critical Hit!* Lose 29,754 HP! *Critical Hit!* Lose 25,787 HP! What the feck?! Looking at the numbers and more that appeared on my screen, I thought it was a glitch or something. But there I was, getting hit and watching my HP disappeared like it was nothing. In fact, I was supposed to be dead 10 times over just by one of the damage numbers alone. And I was hit with a dozen of those. Bloody hell! And the force was so strong that I was blown away, hitting the wall. Fortunately, this was a practice session. My HP was left at 1. It took quite a while for everything to calm down, especially Carla. Once she returned to normal, everyone within the courtyard came out of their hiding place, including Popo who hid inside a barrel. All of them were congratulating their Master and ignoring me altogether. ¡°I never seen that technique before.¡± ¡°That¡¯s our Grand Meister for you. She never ceased to amaze us.¡± ¡°Good thing that she was not serious. Or else this place would be blown to pieces.¡± I sighed while looking at them. Her students came at her and congratulated her for that magnificent ¡®win¡¯. Guess she could never lose her face, after all. Popo came to me and extended his hands. ¡°You are the first person outside our circle that had the privilege to spar with her.¡± Grabbing his hand, I just nodded my head. ¡°Yeah, and getting my arse whooped like that in return.¡± Both of us broke into a small chuckle. She was getting her face back alright. Could not have an outsider like me handed her arse on a plate in front of her own students. Carla sure could be a handful. ***** ¡°Are you sure about that, Elly?¡± Mimi asked the blonde girl who sat in front of her. She just nodded quietly. ¡°I-I never knew that.¡± She slumped to her seat and her face was dark. ¡°We must never let anyone know about your true identity, Elly.¡± ¡°E-Even Papa?¡± Rose interrupted both of them. Mimi nodded at the Rose Alraune; the Queen of the Mandragoras who was still in her seedling stage of growth. ¡°No one must ever know. Or else she could be in grave danger.¡± Patting Rose on her leaves, the Bunnian looked at Elly. ¡°I had my suspicions when you could read the ancient text faster than I could ever do. But I¡¯d never guessed that¡­¡± Mimi paused for a while, looking around her surroundings. ¡°Best we said just once. You two must gather the 7 keys as soon as possible. The war is about to begin.¡± ¡°That and Rose¡¯s next progression, right?¡± Nodding at Elly¡¯s word, Mimi looked at the Rose Alraune as she danced around on the table. It had now reached that time. ¡°Yes, both of you must be ready.¡± ***** ¡°The answer is no.¡± The Grand Meister told us her verdict. Popo slumped his shoulder. I gave him a few pats on the back to reassure him that everything was alright. It was a tall order after all. I could live with that, but Popo was still adamant that he was to get his Master¡¯s cooperation. Once more he asked, ¡°B-But why?¡± ¡°Because he had not passed the test yet. He is not even a swordsman.¡± The answer was always the same. Any way Popo wanted to ask, the answer would always come back to that point. ¡°But can¡¯t you do something. He¡¯s special!¡± ¡°Popo, listen. If everyone comes to me and begged me like you did, what will happen to our order? Ghost is extremely talented and strong. I give him that. But you know the minimum requirement to enter our circle?¡± ¡°Y-Yes. At least level 150, a minimum of 2000 fame and a Meister¡¯s Edict.¡± Popo was finally defeated. I felt a little tinge of pity at him. He tried to enlist his Master for help but he failed. Thinking that I might bail out from the mission, I patted his back. ¡°No worries, Popo. I¡¯ll still help you. But, I want to ask your Master one thing, if I may.¡± ¡°What is it, Ghost?¡± Carla looked at me curiously. She might wonder why did I not persuade nor demanded to be accepted by them. But my question had nothing to do with it. ¡°How many other players had passed this test of yours?¡± Surprised by my choice of question, she did answer it after thinking for a while. ¡°You mean within this Kingdom? About 500 of them. Throughout the known 20 Kingdoms, I think the number is more or less 11,000 players.¡± ¡°I see. Well, if that was the case, it doesn¡¯t matter then.¡± These were the Royal Swordsman; a special type of job that specializes in both magic and physical attack. I could do with some of their skills, but it was privy only to their members. They were considered to be among the apex of jobs when it comes to dealing damage. I was surprised that even that lazy rabbit was among the members. But to me, the Sword Meister was not unique. Nor one of its kind. ¡°Since you have not achieved the minimum requirement, I can¡¯t do anything to help you, even though I¡¯m set to lose a prodigious member.¡± And yeah, I was not qualified either just to rub salt into the wound. ¡°B-But¡­¡± Popo whimpered weakly, yet again trying to put his point across. ¡°Enough Popo. It¡¯s time for us to make our leave now. You remember what you really came here to do, right?¡± Carla looked sternly at me after exchanging some glance with her student. ¡°I-I know.¡± Popo composed himself immediately. Adjusting his collars and then wiping his shoulders. It was like he readied himself for something important. ¡°But Ghost could come along with us. In fact, I insist he is to join us.¡± I looked at them curiously. I knew that these two were up to something. Was the spar earlier on a smokescreen to something else? I reckoned that it could be so. But knowing how lousy was my quest reward to date, I decided to shrug it off immediately. ¡°Where to?¡± I asked. Carla just stood up and jerked her head, beckoning us to follow her. She took a cape from her seat nearby, covered herself immediately and exited through the main door. ¡°You will see,¡± Popo answered as shortly as he could and then followed her immediately. Well, might as well I join them for now. I wanted to see what interesting thing that these two were up to next. Chapter 25: A Matter Of Trust Chapter 25: A Matter Of Trust ¡°Fuck you, bastard!¡± ¡°Up yours, whoreson!¡± Profanities and curses rang throughout the whole courtyard. Though there were about 5,000 people here, it did not stop the two of us from exchanging our thoughts to each other. Of course, it came with the complimentary exchanging of blows. ¡°Sir Brutus! Please calm down!¡± ¡°And you too, newcomer!¡± We were stopped and dragged away by a few people, trying to separate us. But I could not have it just yet. I spat at him and hit his face cleanly. I then raised my middle finger and swore at him. ¡°Your effeminate father sure produces impotent lineage, ehh? If I was your father, I¡¯ll have you killed and then hang myself.¡± The words that I uttered made everyone around us went quiet and pale. ¡°D-Did he just¡­ just insult the Lord General?¡± ¡°Maybe you heard it wrong.¡± ¡°It can¡¯t be. I was sure that¡­¡± ¡°EHEM!!!¡± Suddenly, a loud voice penetrated the whole area. I was in the midst of exchanging another round of curses when I saw who came next. Standing on top of the platforms were no less than 20 people; including Carla and Popo. I looked at them and Carla winked at me. On her face was a big wide smile. Popo was at his usual self, hiding behind her. ¡°So, as we were saying¡­¡± While the Lord General was busy explaining, my eyes were locked into the object of my hate. His son, Brutus Caesar; a Captain of the Royal Knight. His gaze met mine as he spat to the ground in contempt. I tried to wriggle around and somehow managed to free myself. It took the four people who held me by surprise and that gave me a good enough room to land another punch on Brutus¡¯ face. ¡°How do you like that, son of the imbecile?¡± And this time, I attracted the ire of the Lord General. ¡°You two! Behave!!!¡± He shouted from the platform. I looked up as I was surrounded and pinned down by no less than 10 people, all from the Royal Knight group. Looked like they all wanted a piece of me, starting from Brutus. ¡°Juliasus, what are you trying to do to my boy?¡± Carla suddenly spoke. She stepped in front and beckoned those who pinned me down to let go of me. Reluctantly, they did as Carla too had instructed the Royal Sword Meisters to surround us now. ¡°Boys will be boys. Don¡¯t mind them. They are too eager to show off their prowess and win our favour. Don¡¯t you think it is a good thing, Juliasus?¡± ¡°Fighting amongst themselves?! I¡¯ll have the newcomer hang! I could hear his insult from here!¡± ¡°Oh, surely you are above that, Juliasus. You are an esteemed and well-respected man. Someone of your stature should not hold their contempt over a small fry like him.¡± ¡°Hmphh! You have a slippery tongue, witch! Since he came with you, you better be responsible if he ever disturbs me again!¡± Carla looked at my direction immediately. ¡°And Ghost, do refrain yourself a little, alright. Though you have your reasons, we can¡¯t be delayed.¡± I patted myself, looked up and then jerked my head at her. I could hear many name callings and murmurs that went around me but I ignored them all. I had no reason to be here in the first place. Turned out that I was drafted into one of the battalions for the next Siege War Event, the next big event. According to the other players here, it was just like the Siege of Thoran. It got everyone excited, NPCs and PCs alike. But for me, I was properly turned off. Turning my back, I was going out of here. I had enough of war to last me the whole lifetime. Taking no interest, I had kept quiet and bid my time to excuse myself from listening to all the nonsense of a pep talk and glorified speeches of the so-called leaders, mostly from other players who try to rally up their own members or drafting others into their forces. Of course, that happened before I saw Brutus. Our eyes locked into one another immediately and he flew into a rage in the midst of the Lord General¡¯s speech. ¡°Sigh¡­ he sure is a hard-headed and immature fool, po!¡± ***** ¡°You are back quite early¡± Mimi greeted me once I arrived at the house. ¡°Nothing interests me. Though I¡¯m sure Popo would think otherwise.¡± I slumped on the chair beside the fireplace. Elly served me tea while Rose climbed up onto me and sat on my lap. ¡°Papa, I¡¯m hungry.¡± It was time for me to feed Rose again. Lifting the sleeves of my robe up, I let her injected her delicate and transparent needle vines onto my skin. My HP and Mana dropped down as she continued to syphon it for the next few hours. ¡°Ghost, I need to tell you something about Rose.¡± Mimi took a seat next to me. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s that time already,¡± Mimi answered with a big smile on her face. ¡°What time?¡± ¡°Time for your little girl to grow. Did you forget?¡± ¡°You mean¡­¡± Mimi just nodded. I rubbed my chin while looking at Rose happily latching herself to my arm. ¡°So, what do I need next?¡± ¡°Well, for her next stage, she needed a good pile of Blood Wyrm Soil and Goddess Tears.¡± I did not think this would be easy at all. Just the names mentioned to me meant that either it was time-consuming or way above my head or both. And looked like I was right. As Mimi marked the locations where I could most likely gather the items, I could not help but to shake my head a couple of time. Once more, I was swamped with an unrealistic quest. Given that I had limited time trying to find the 7 keys, this quest came at the wrong time.
Levelling Rose (3) Rose had finally on the verge of reaching the next stage in her development. You must prepare the items needed for her growth. Quest Rank: D Completion Requirements: Gather: x99 scoops of fresh Blood Wrym Soil. X99 vials of Goddess Tears. Quest Reward: None. Rose¡¯s growth will depend on the quality and purity of the items you gathered. This quest cannot be rejected or cancelled.
However, there was one thing I could be happy with. The locations where I needed to gather all the items just coincided with the locations of the Old Gods statue. With one catch though; I needed to be wary of the monsters level there, with the minimum level being in the low 70s. Mimi had advised that I should make a party for this, but after what had happened back in Brensberg, I doubt that I could trust any players for that matter. ¡°And one more thing, Ghost. Here.¡± Mimi handed me a book called ¡®The Fundamentals Skills that Every Botanist Should Know.¡¯ I opened it up and there were 5 new unnamed skills that I could learn. Unlike the usual skill books one could purchase in the shops, all the skills came with ¡®????¡¯ and their properties were only to be revealed after I had learned them. And without a choice, I must learn them all in order to develop Rose further. It irked me a little but seeing how the little ginseng-lookalike was happily humming while still syphoning my HP, I could always unlearn those ¡®useless¡¯ skills later on. Maybe, only if I knew how.
ACTIVE SKILL: GROWTH Level 1 Descriptions: Increasing the speed of one¡¯s growth. Increase all EXPs gained by 5% during the duration of the skills. Duration: 1 hour. Cast Time: 5 seconds. Area of Effect: Single Mana Consumption: 15MP Cooldown: 30 seconds.
ACTIVE SKILL: REJUVENATE Level 1. Descriptions: Use the nature that surrounded you to increase the flow of natural essence into your body. Increase your healing capabilities by 10% to HP and 5% to Mana during the duration of the skills.You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. Area of Effect: Single Duration: 15 minutes. Cast Time: 10 Seconds. Mana Consumption: 35 MP Cooldown: 2 Minutes
PASSIVE SKILL: INCREASE NATURE POTENCY Level 1 Descriptions: All natural products or skills would have their potency increased by 10%. Items including various potions, elixirs, panaceas and poisons.
PASSIVE SKILL: PURIFICATION Level 1 Descriptions: You are able to withdraw the ancient techniques to purify various items. The chance of success depending on your current skill level.
PASSIVE SKILL: PLANT IDENTIFICATION Level 1 Description: Identify various plants. Due to your current level, you could only identify basic properties of low-levelled plants.
Surprise, surprise. Despite my earlier cynicism, these were indeed excellent skills to learn. ¡°This is my gift for you for saving us back then. Popo too had something for your but I¡¯ll leave it to him to give you later.¡± ¡°Thanks, Mimi.¡± ¡°When your skills level increases, I¡¯ll have more waiting for you. You have the abilities to become a great botanist.¡± Ugghh¡­ I loved to learn the skills, but becoming a botanist? I did not think it sounded nice. I was doing this for Rose though the skills that Mimi had given me was useful to anyone. I like the sound of a Royal Sword Meister but after I had found out that I was unqualified, I think I needed to explore more jobs in this world. Or better still, create my own line of jobs. Maybe I should call it Burning Blaze Badass. ... Yeah, right. ***** The nearest location marked for both of my quests was at a remote swamp. What used to be a patch of forest, the nearby river had flooded it over the years, making it quite inhabitable. Except for Saha¡¯agins. A type of water-loving lizard that had their level ranged from the low 70s to mid-90s. And to make the matter worse, the first Old God¡¯s statue was located in the middle of their nest spawn. It was an old ruin located on the riverbank, surrounded by huge trees, shrubs and tall grasses. The three of us would have a hard time getting towards the centre of it without getting surrounded by the Saha¡¯agins. ¡°Perhaps we could go elsewhere first, Ghost? Where there might be players instead of a desolate place like this.¡± Elly was right. I must never underestimate these Saha¡¯agins. They were at the advantage here. I might survive but the other two might not. Their safety was my only concern for now. And the best course of action was to retreat and secure the other keys at a better location. One where we could use other players as distractions. Fortunately, the next location was a couple of maps away for us to find out. However, before we could do anything else, we heard a few footsteps approaching us from the back. Startled, we took our weapons out as we withheld our breath, waited patiently and with anticipation of who might come our way. To our immediate advantage, we had been hiding amongst the tall grasses all these while and we could lay our ambush if needed. ¡°Boys, this is the place where I¡¯d told you about the other day!¡± ¡°Whoa¡­ look at those Saha¡¯agins. We are in our luck.¡± ¡°You better not count your chicken before it hatches, Brom. EXPs fodder they might be, but don¡¯t let your excitement get over your head.¡± From our hiding place, I could see three people walking past ahead of us less than a 50 feet away. A human woman and 2 guys, a dwarf and a Capri; a playable race ¨C big sized Beastkin with horns that mildly resembled a minotaur. And it looked like they did not notice us at all. Rose did well to actually cover us with vines, camouflaging us to our surroundings. I gestured to the girls to remain at their station. I wanted to see what these people were up to. But judging by their earlier conversation, most likely that they were here to farm EXPs and items. ¡°Are you sure that no one comes here, Sonia?¡± Hmm¡­ the name sounded familiar. I remembered one particular Sonia but I could not see her looks properly to identify this particular Sonia. ¡°I¡¯m sure. I got some info from the guild that the enemies here are good for our levels. And the respawn rates are pretty high too.¡± ¡°So, what are we waiting for? I¡¯m itching for action. Let¡¯s go, Kast!¡± The dwarf bellowed his warcry as he charged forward alongside the Capri, leaving the human woman behind. ¡°So, what do we do now, Ghost?¡± Elly whispered to me. We needed to be careful. Other than the Saha¡¯agins, the place was also the dreaded PK-Zone. I still remembered what Carla said to me recently; in a real battle, any players worth their salt would always use their best skills to overcome their foes. I had to admit that despite my fighting abilities, Carla was right. In the open field, all the stats, skills and jobs or whatever bonuses and special enhancements would fully come into effects. ¡°We will back off slowly. Make no noise, Elly.¡± I gestured to her to start moving. However, despite her best attempt of being as stealthily as possible, she was not used to this sort of situations. As she stepped on a dead branch, it made a loud cracking sound that alarmed the woman. ¡°W-Who¡¯s there?!¡± Immediately, she withdrew a wand and began casting a skill towards our direction. The other two who overheard her scream came rushing back after disposing of a group of 5 Saha¡¯agins. Fearing the worst, I had no choice but to take out my weapon as Elly and Rose prepared themselves too. ***** ¡°Ohh¡­ it¡¯s you.¡± As she revealed her face under the hood, I finally recognized her. She was the same Sonia from back then. But I could not be relieved just yet. As her two friends arrived by her side, they were preparing to attack us anytime. ¡°Fancy seeing you here,¡± She looked at me and cracked a smile. ¡°Likewise,¡± I answered her as brief as I could. From the corner of my eyes, I was looking for a way to retreat. ¡°Kast and Brom. Please stand down. This man means us no harm.¡± Her words amazed not just the two men but also the rest of us. ¡®B-But¡­ why? This is a PK-Zone!¡± The dwarf was right. Any other players who came here could never be trusted. However, Sonia was not actually perturbed. She gave out a slight chuckle. ¡°He¡¯s alright. I know a player killer when I see one.¡± ¡°B-But¡­¡± It was the Capri¡¯s turn but she dismissed him immediately. ¡°If he and his party wanted to attack us, they would do so earlier. Right?¡± She looked at me intently. If that was the case, there still might be a way out of this. ¡°Yeah, we could kill you three earlier on when you lots let down your guard.¡± I kept my weapon and urged Elly to do the same. ¡°But, the woman is right. I¡¯m not a player killer and I don¡¯t intend to waste my time killing another player.¡± ¡°You are lying. We cannot trust random strangers!¡± ¡°Perhaps. But if you are looking for a fight, I¡¯m very well welcome you to try.¡± I glared towards the dwarf. ¡°Stand down, Brom. Don¡¯t make me repeat myself. He is the guy I told you about.¡± ¡°What?!¡± The other two exclaimed loudly. I did not understand what she was trying to say. They started to whisper to each other and as Sonia looked at me, I could feel the tension came down a little. ¡°So, he is that loose cannon?¡± ¡°Well, according to some, he is an insufferable jerk no less. Now that I have seen him myself, I think they are right.¡± Both Kast and Brom took their turn to speak badly of me. I did not mind a little trash-talking myself but seeing Sonia silencing them off immediately with her stares, I quickly withdrew my verbal assault. ¡°But, honestly¡­¡± She turned around, smiling at me. ¡°You sure have some steel balls treating Brutus like that back then.¡± Sonia then came closer and that made both Elly and Rose became instantly apprehensive by her advances. But I knew better when someone was trying to harm us or not and Sonia was the latter. I told my girls to yield immediately though with some hesitancy from them. Perhaps looking at how I treated Elly and Rose, I could see a glint of a wide smile on Sonia¡¯s face as she said, ¡°I like a man like you!¡± Huh, where did that come from? ¡°The name is Ghost.¡± I pretended that I never heard her saying that and instead extended a handshake. She readily accepted it. ¡°Sonia.¡± The two of us exchanged pleasantries as the others looked on with doubts. Neither one of them were trusting of each other. ¡°Forget the boys, but what brings you here?¡± She asked. Looking at the other two who were at my side, she rubbed her chin. ¡°I¡¯m gathering up some items for my quest. And you, Sonia?¡± ¡°Leveling up and farming some items for the upcoming events.¡± ¡°I see. Then I shall not disturb you folks. The three of us will be on our way and let you farm in peace. Fair suggestions?¡± ¡°No. I¡¯d rather have you join us.¡± All of us were properly surprised by Sonia yet again. ***** ¡°What are you trying to do, Big Sis?!¡± Brom whispered uneasily towards his party leader, Sonia. ¡°Yeah, they could attack our backs!¡± Kast added on, reinforcing his friend¡¯s words. ¡°Yeah. Kast is right. I don¡¯t trust them.¡± ¡°Calm down boys. Our party is top heavy. Ghost and his party could help us.¡± Sonia calmly dismissed their fears with a wave of her hand. ¡°Why do you say so? Aren¡¯t we good enough?¡± But Kast was not convinced. Brom immediately chipped in with his observations of the three who stood a few feet away from them. ¡°Yeah, look at those three. From their equips, I think they had not yet reached level 50. The two of us are level 70 and with you being level 95, we could take them on! Easily like take a candy from a child.¡± Brom chuckled at the thought but Sonia, their party leader had no intention of doing that. ¡°And? Let the Saha¡¯agin finished us once we are done? Think boys or your brains are full of muscles?¡± She turned her back and look at the other party once more. ¡°Judging by Ghost¡¯s look, I¡¯m sure he is a supporter and healer type. Something that our party needs badly. Besides¡­¡± She asked the other two to come nearer to her. ¡°A healer being a party group leader. It¡¯s a rare thing for any healers to lead a group, what¡¯s more than a group that comprises of other jobs. And I don¡¯t think it would be a good idea to fight them. He is not what we think he is. He had no reason to be here and yet¡­¡± ¡°Big Sis, do you trust them?¡± ¡°A man like Ghost? Better than you Brom. Or you too, Kast¡± The two men looked at each other and sighed. No doubt, Sonia had made her decision and there was nothing that two could do to sway her. ¡°So, we are going to use them to heal us?¡± Kast asked for one final time as Brom peered towards the opposite direction. ¡°And prolong our farming time, yes.¡± ¡°I see. But I still don¡¯t trust them.¡± ***** ¡°So, how¡¯s the arrangement?¡± I asked Sonia once she came back from discussing with her mates. Looking at how heated it was earlier, I did think of just bailing out. But Sonia struck me as someone who would not be backed down easily and would often have her way. ¡°I like it. We can do our jobs and you with yours.¡± The plan was simple. Together with the dwarf and the Capri, Elly and Rose would be in the front line. My job was to heal while Sonia was to debuff and support the rest. I knew that I could not trust them wholly and vice versa. Our cooperation might suffer but it was a risk that all of us needed to take. This was the best plan that all of us could come up with. To that effect, we partied up much to Kast and Brom¡¯s annoyance. But they could not convince Sonia to change her mind at all. The negotiations seemed to work well for now. We were in the enemy¡¯s lair and the last thing anyone of us needed was to be weakened by fighting each other. Sonia had seen the use of my party and I had acknowledged theirs. ¡°Shall we begin?¡± Sonia did not want to wait any longer as she walked towards the enemy¡¯s lair. ¡°Remember, we still don¡¯t trust you!¡± Kast followed his leader but without first saying what was on his mind. Brom just scurried along without even looking at us. ¡°We feel the same too!¡± Elly retorted. She was going along with my suggestion but I told her to keep all her skills unused. I wanted her to attack only using normal skills coupled with ¡®Double Strike¡¯. As for Rose, I had her only to cast ¡®Kiss me, maybe?¡¯ to confuse the enemy. All of us held our aces to our sleeves closely. And I was pretty damn sure that they would do the same too. ¡°Let me cast a buff to increase all our EXP gained.¡± I offered to cast Growth on everyone. Though Sonia¡¯s party hesitated at first, she was trusting enough to let me cast it on her. Once they saw she was unharmed, only then they allowed me to cast it on them. ¡°A skill that increased EXP gained is a rare skill indeed.¡± Sonia thanked me. A level 95, she was the highest levelled players in the group. With a job as a Foreseer, she was their party leader and officer of her guild, UnderLord. ¡°My jobs gave me the ability to use time magic and a few others to debuff and buff others,¡± Sonia explained. ¡°Yes, our Big Sis is the best. She had a Special Job, after all!¡± Kast, the Capri said with such pride. Brom followed suit as he explained how awesome Sonia was and of course, it came with the complementary of bigging up their guild too. And I found out that a Special Job was like how the name entailed. Something like a Royal Sword Meister. Only certain selected players could be given this job and there was a small quota. The dwarf was a Marauder and Kast a Fighter. Both jobs specialized in the attack. When Sonia mentioned they were top heavy, I understood her meaning clearly. They needed me to be their healer. Of course, Elly could tank well but I was not about to let her prowess be made known easily; introducing her just as a Warrior. And Rose was my wild card. ¡°5 more levels and she could transcend her level!¡± Kast bellowed out yet another hearty laugh. Brom immediately reprimanded him, ¡°Hey! Don¡¯t tell those strangers about it!¡± The Capri looked apologetically to Sonia but she just chuckled. ¡°No worries, boys. Seeing how close Royal Sword Meisters were with him, especially that monster Carla, I have no doubt he knew about it.¡± I just smiled at her. ¡°Shall we get going now or do we continue our useless gab?¡± ¡°You sure are impatient, Ghost. But that what makes me feel so¡­ excited being with you.¡± Sonia teased me. I knew she meant every one of her words but my mind was on my quest and getting out of here alive. I did not know how long our bargains and stand at things could last, but I better be prepared for it. In the battlefield, all relationships were hang by thread. Flimsy and easily broken. And I had to prepare for anything that might happen. AUTHOR UPDATE! UPDATE: Hi all, You might be wondering when will I be updating the latest chapters to my story. The thing is, I was thinking of calling this story quits a couple of weeks back. Too much poison has been spewed my way and this is not the reason what I am here for. But after mulling it for another week or two, I decided to give it a fresh go. Those who stayed with me; who followed me and still put me on their favourite list, I really thank you. And for you, I''ll start updating my new and latest chapters starting next week;If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. 13/8/2018. I''ll have a new cover, a new plotline coming up and also some extra bonuses along the way. This is what I could do for your patience, understanding and support all the while. Some advices me to start all over, update from the beginning with the same title but start with fresh comments and reviews and ratings (would be a fair advice since some reviews and ratings were very unjust and uncalled for). If that is the best way for me to go, I''ll be updating you guys. And one more thing. This time, I will monitor strictly and authocratically the comment section. For my sake and of other readers. But if you spot any grammar mistakes, feel free to correct me anytime. Chapter 26: Killing Two Birds With One Stone (Part 1) Chapter 26: Killing Two Birds With One Stone --------- Part 1 --------- ¡°What are you doing, Ghost?¡± ¡°Some work,¡± I answered Sonia while concentrating on my task. ¡°Identify!¡± Even though I was using Plant Identification, the skill could actually be used on the type of soils and other stuff related to growing one. Pretty nifty as I did not need to learn other skills needlessly just to accommodate this quest.
You had obtained Blood Wrym Soil, 65% Purity.
Sigh. Yet again I have to purify. Using the tools Mimi had given me, I began to mix the soil with various ingredients inside a vial. The Purification skill would then come into the fore as the vial glowed a little.
You had obtained Blood Wrym Soil, 75% Purity.
A 10% increase. I had to give Rose the best that I could find. I could just be happy with this level of purity, but being a tad perfectionist and completionist too, I wanted to reach 100% purity. I tried 8 more times purifying the soil to 100%. The percentage of purification success was quite low, about 45% rate of success at 50% purity but the increment was alright. The higher the percentage, the lower the chances for it to succeed. I was lucky to succeed three times in a row. Some other times, I would fail and I had to start all over again. Many, many times.Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation. After I had obtained the Frigga¡¯s Warmth; the first key from the Old God¡¯s statue just by touching it, I started to look around for Blood Wrym Soil. The party had cleared the Saha¡¯agins with such ease and speed that it was not even passed an hour yet. We took a rest on the highest platforms of the old ruins before the next respawn. ¡°Something to do with your quest?¡± Sonia was interested in what I had to do. She kind of annoyed me with all her pestering but I had to entertain her somehow. I just nodded at her and said, ¡°For my child here.¡± I patted Rose¡¯s leaves. ¡°Ohh¡­ you must be a good father. Can¡¯t say I see that in most men I¡¯d met.¡± I looked at her from the corner of my eyes and just shook my head silently. Could she stop trying to flirt with me? I was not interested and besides, I had lousy relationships with women before. Sonia sat next to me, her hip touched mine much to Kast and Brom¡¯s displeasure. However, I just went on with my task and continued to identify the many piles of dirt Elly and Rose had gathered for me. Once I found Blood Wrym Soil, I then needed to purify it to 100%. So far, I just had 3 100% Blood Wyrm Soil after spending nearly an hour to do so. It wasn¡¯t long before the next group of Saha¡¯agins respawn for the umpteenth time. During the day, it was the Saha¡¯agins Sentry and Warrior. Both were around level 70s. The night time was way tougher. Saha¡¯agin¡¯s Shaman, Warlock and also the dreaded Saha¡¯agin Chief appeared. All of them were above level 80 with the Saha¡¯agin Chief being the highest, ranging from level 97 onwards. ¡°Come lads. We have another round of farming now.¡± Like me, the rest of them preferred to fight at night. With my EXP buff, we could earn more EXPs during the night. A good situation to be in, provided that one came prepared. ¡°Whirlwind Axe!¡± Brom exploded into his attack skills immediately. All the Saha¡¯agins that were trapped in his attack were slashed, smashed or sliced in various ways. Kast followed soon. ¡°Murderous Intention!¡± A red flaming aura engulfed him as he buffed his damage further as he struck the nearest Saha¡¯agin Shaman with his fist. And to top it off, Sonia released her deadly magic from where I stood. ¡°Cosmic Strike!¡± A hail of light descended from the sky and hit all the Saha¡¯agins that were coming at us. Looking at the spectacle, I wondered what could my party ever do. Well, I did get the feeling that they were just showing off. Just as a reminder to us that we were not supposed to mess with them. I gave out a bittersweet smile as Sonia finished off the whole group that spawn on the platform. The Saha¡¯agin Shaman and Warlock worked well together but their HP and physical defence rating were too low to stand against Brom and Kast¡¯s onslaught. As Sonia slowed their casting time down, the other two had all the time in the world to unleashed their pent-up frustrations. I could bet my fingers that they were not too happy that their Big Sis, Sonia was flirting with me earlier. Only the Saha¡¯agin Chief posed some threats. And that was when my party could finally make the much-needed appearance. ***** Chapter 26: Killing Two Birds With One Stone (Part 2) --------- Part 2 --------- ¡°Elly, take the front!¡± I gave my first order. I positioned Rose at the rear as usual. The Saha¡¯agin Chief was very well equipped. Unlike the other Saha¡¯agin who came with minimal equipment, the Chief was elaborate in its style. Sporting a helmet, a shield, a scimitar and spiky armour and shoulder pad, he looked grossly mean. At level 99, it was not a pushover. I decided to take the Chief head-on. Giving it time to react, I was sure it would either find me, Rose or even Sonia as the easiest to dispose of. Since our physical defence rating was not that high, it surely would have higher chances to hurt us. Elly taunted and took the Chief¡¯s aggro before anyone else could do anything. Being a woman who tanked a high-levelled monster somehow spurred and challenged the other two men into immediate action. They sprung their feet and immediately struck the Chief relentlessly. I continued to cast my healing skills on Elly or the other two as needed; preferably using Rejuvenate first and then Basic Heal. Since my Basic Heal was now at level 3, I could actually heal more HP than their received damage. A great morale booster for another who needed it. Of course, I was taking into the account of not aggroing the map boss to myself with my overzealous healing and thus disrupting the party¡¯s ad-hoc attack coordination.The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation. And Sonia then delivered yet another one of her devastating attack once the Saha¡¯agin Chief dropped below 40%. She might not look like it with her cloak covering her skimpy outfit that made her breast and thigh bulged out anytime she walked, but her skills were anything but. ¡°Luminescence Ray!¡± A small greenish light ball emerged directly in front the Saha¡¯agin Chief. ¡°Oh, shit! Close your eyes!!¡± Kast immediately sounded to all of us. Fortunately, his words came in time as Sonia finished her casting. The light ball exploded in blinding flash that shook the whole platform. I had to cover my eyes immediately and the details were vague with what happened. But once everything subsided, only then I knew what happened. ¡°Big Sis! If you wanted to use one of your Ulti, you could have warned us first!!¡± Brom was not amused. Stomping his feet on the ground a couple of time, he gestured towards Sonia but was brushed off with her laugh. Kast could only shake his head looking at those two. And I was quite relieved to see that Elly and Rose were unharmed too. But of course, I made my displeasure known too to Sonia as I shook my head, disproving her earlier antics. Sonia just chuckled at her words and poke her tongue out a little trying to look cute. ¡°Sorry boys, I just got over excited a little.¡± Ultimate Skills were not simply just any other skills. Bestowed only on certain selected people via a special job, it was one of the peak level skills. The lowest ranked was at Advance level and even that too was more than deadly and powerful compared to other skill its level. I managed to gather whatever information I¡¯d had but seeing one was my first time. ¡°How¡¯s that, Ghost?¡± She looked at me, giggling like a little girl. ¡°Could have warned us earlier, like how Brom said.¡± I crossed my arms and pouted. Sonia burst into a fit of laughter. Perhaps she was having too much fun, but anything that made her happy made us safe. I could play along with her for now. But, I could never expect that she was to continue to stay with my party beyond the initial agreement. ***** Chapter 26: Killing Two Birds With One Stone (Part 3) --------- Part 3 --------- Once she was satisfied with the total haul, she immediately dismissed her party much to Kast and Brom¡¯s utter dismay. She ordered them to return to the city and began selling whatever ¡®junks¡¯ to the merchant and never to disturb her time alone with me. Being a tad direct, her words stung the two men like a jilted lover. And it even managed to take me off guard too. Kast and Brom looked accusingly at me like I was the cause of their short-lived moment partying with their ¡®Big Sis¡¯. But I did not give a damn as I concentrate myself purifying the Blood Wrym Soil for Rose while they were having their heated discussions yet again. But it was over soon after Sonia threatened to PK them on the spot if they did not do as they were ordered. I silently chuckled at their fate but not before they left with curses and insults coming my way. And I was not the type to be talked down without a reply. Standing next to their ¡®Big Sis¡¯, I gestured to them that Sonia now ¡®belonged¡¯ to me; wrapping my arm around her slender shoulder and pulling her waist close to mine. Sonia let out a small but pleasant shriek, letting me do whatever I wanted. But Brom and Kast were totally blown over. They nearly fell into rage mode if it was not for Sonia¡¯s word earlier. Taking her words into the account, they continued to curse and insult me further before they relented and returned to the city with tails between their legs. And I send them off with a loud mocking laugh. ¡°Ghost, I never know you are capable of this¡­¡± Sonia looked at me with moistened eyes. I just looked at her blankly and said, ¡°This? Nah¡­ this is to taunt them. Nothing more.¡± I immediately let her go and went ahead to my next stop. Elly and Rose were busy collecting the dirt for me to purify as usual and was not aware of what happened. ¡°Elly, Rose. Come. Let¡¯s move on!¡± For the next few days, the three girls were my constant companion as we travelled towards our next destination for my quest. Since I did not disclose any information about my quest to Sonia, I was wary of her initial intention. I did not know her real reasoning other than saying she wanted to know me better and it was fun travelling with me. I highly doubt that. And travelling with Sonia was kind of annoying in the least. What was not to be annoyed about as Sonia went yet again into her flirtatious mode as we rested and had our lunch. ¡°Ghost, do you think I¡¯m sexy enough?¡± She cupped her breast and jerked herself forward.The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°It¡¯s not easy to make my character looks like the real me.¡± Liar. That was a red flag whenever someone said that. She must be an ugly potato in real life. But a strong one no doubt. ¡°Ghost! Don¡¯t just look at her! Look at me too!¡± Elly turned my head forcefully and I nearly spat my smoked meat out. She had stripped off her armour, exposing her partially nude breast that she covered with one hand. And even Rose too was dangling around jerking and twerking herself about trying to follow suit. I let out a deep sigh as I shook my head. I just pulled the hood of my robe, covering my eyes as I munched my lunch quietly. ¡°Ghost can¡¯t be swayed with fake breast like that. Mine is bigger and better. And it¡¯s real too. You can feel it if you want.¡± Sonia let out a giggle as she forcefully lifted my hand and placed in on her breast. Since it came this way, I could do with a few squeezes. Surprise, surprise. It felt like a real one too. Those who created this game and the designers were godsend indeed. ¡°Are you admiring mine, Ghost?¡± I shook my head. ¡°Nope.¡± Sonia pouted. Elly did the same too as she placed my other hand on her breast. ¡°How does mine feel? Better than that hoe-witch?¡± As usual, I gave it a couple of squeezes. Even the NPCs were perfectly done. But enough was enough. I stood up immediately and took a couple of steps away. ¡°Come, Rose. Let¡¯s look for more soils.¡± The Alraune jumped with joy since she was finally given some attention. Compared to the other two girls, she realized that she had no assets of her own. Thus, she sulked at a corner before I came to her. ¡°I¡¯ll help!¡± Suddenly, the two girls shouted at the same time. They looked at each other and I swore I could see some sparks flew between them. I did not have the time to entertain them anymore. ¡°You two stay here and be on the lookout for the enemies.¡± The foes around here were the Goblin Slave, a mid-level 30s monster, Green Goblin ¨C as if to highlight that their skin colour was more fluorescent green than the others and Goblin Sentry, both at ranging around level 60s. Came night time, it was the Goblin Captain, a level 80 monster with his group of 7-9 Goblin Fighters, ranging between level 70-80. For these few days Sonia had been with us, we had levelled up tremendously. I was now in my mid-60s while Elly was in her early 70s. However, only Rose was still stuck with level 50. Mimi said this was to be expected since Rose had not advanced to the next stage of her growth. Fearing that she might be left behind, I decided to hasten my search for the two items needed for her. So far, I had gathered up 75 Blood Wyrm Soil of 100% purity. I needed a few more to complete the first item since I had spent most of my rest time identifying and then purifying the soil. As for the Goddess Tears, looked like I needed to find it in a spring water source during the full moon. And there was only one place to do so. The final location of the Old God¡¯s statue called, Idunn¡¯s Love. ¡°Finally, level 100.¡± Sonia looked at me and then ran towards my way. After dealing the final blow to the Goblin Captain ¨C as easily as a knife cutting through hot butter ¨C finally, she had reached her target. ¡°So, are you leaving us now?¡± I asked her. She shook her head and snorted at me. With her both her hands on her waist, she looked at me accusingly. ¡°Who do you think I am? I¡¯m not about leaving a low-levelled supporter to a low-levelled fighter all by himself!¡± I swore she just tried to piss Elly off further. And that blonde ally of mine was having none of it. Though I¡¯d just met Sonia, she was being awfully friendly to me. I did wonder why. Only two days later, when I had collected the final key and Goddess Tears in its purest form that she finally told me her reasons. ***** Chapter 26: Killing Two Birds With One Stone (Part 4) --------- Part 4 --------- ¡°So, you want me to join your guild. And be under you?¡± Sonia nodded enthusiastically when I repeated her words. ¡°Why?¡± I never had any interest to join any guild even in LIXXO and I¡¯d plan to do the same here too. ¡°I just like you.¡± Sonia clung to my arm. I had a bad feeling that if I rejected her, all hell would break loose. She might be what people call the yandere type. A woman with strong powers like her tended to have psychotic tendencies. ¡°But I don¡¯t like you!¡± Elly snorted and pouted at her. However, Sonia just brushed her off. I could not proceed with what I wanted to do if I did not tell Sonia off. ¡°Are you a yandere, Sonia?¡± I asked her with certain bluntness to my words. She stared at me blankly as if I had said something weird. ¡°What¡¯s a yenderi?¡± I could not even correct her. However, the meaning must be made clear. ¡°It means, if I reject you right here and right now, will you kill me?¡± Once I said that, Elly¡¯s face turn pale and she started to draw her weapons out. However, Sonia diffused the situation with a loud laugh. Her funny bone was tickled somehow. ¡°Hahahaha!! Silly boy! I could never do that.¡± I crossed my arms and look at her. ¡°Really now?¡± I could not let down my guard, even for a moment. ¡°Look, I said I like you. I have fun partying with you since you are not like the other men who would only gawk at me and doing nothing else.¡± ¡°Wearing something like that sure gets you all the attention. Serve you right for trying to be a bimbo.¡±The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°HumppHH! What I like to wear has nothing to do with men who are useless when it comes to the real thing. Besides, these are my ¡®weapons¡¯ too you know.¡± ¡°Make me clear, Sonia. I¡¯m losing you.¡± ¡°You are different, Ghost. From the moment I lay my eyes on you back the camp to the way you handle yourself with Brutus. Even though he was an NPC but I did not like that Father-complex brute.¡± Sonia paused for a little while. ¡°Besides, your eyes are extremely focused even though I was trying to flirt with you. It¡¯s like you have something else in your mind other than women, boobs and asses.¡± ¡°So?¡± ¡°I¡¯m interested to know you more, that¡¯s all.¡± Nice warming words but I just shook my head. There were more to this ¡®I want to know you more¡¯ thingy. And I was not going to be taken for a fool. Though it was thanks to her that I could now finish my quest in less than half the time needed, nonetheless I had my grounds and positions to make. ¡°Well¡­ there¡¯s one thing¡­¡± Sonia answered while fidgeting around; something that I never saw her do before. ¡°Spit it out. I¡¯m all ears.¡± ¡°You know¡­ I could do with a new¡­ member in my union for things to come.¡± She then turned around, her back facing me. ¡°What do you mean? ¡°You will know it if you decided to join me.¡± She was a little hesitant. But I was clear about my intention nonetheless. ¡°Well, sorry but I can¡¯t join you.¡± My answer was short and direct. ¡°Awww¡­ I really hoped that you will say yes.¡± She shrugged her shoulder and looked away from me. But, I was unmoved. I continued to shake my head, telling her my intention. ¡°But can I count on you when I need your help?¡± She did never give up, didn¡¯t she? I could not help but to admire her tenacity a little. ¡°Since you had gone out of your way to help us, I would be obliged to return you the favour.¡± ¡°Good! That¡¯s why I like you.¡± Sonia turned to face me and then stuck out her tongue. After a couple of giggles, she waved her goodbye. ¡°Don¡¯t forget, please. I really need your help.¡± I did not stop her from leaving the party. She had helped us until the end of my two quests unbeknownst to her. At least I could have thanked her by helping her next time. As I saw her leave, I thought to myself that she was quite alright minus the flirting. I could not help but to give a wry smile. As I saw her continuing to wave at me at a distance, I turned my attention to the other two girls. ¡°Come, girls. Gather some of the springs around here, especially near the Idunn¡¯s statue. We need to complete the gathering of the Goddess Tears.¡± I beckoned the Elly and Rose to start looking as I continue to identify the content and purified it to 100% purity. Before long, I had gathered all the necessary items; 7 keys from the Old Gods statues and the whole of 99 Blood Wrym Soil and Goddess Tears all at 100% purities. And it was done with a few days of the real-time left. With a huge sigh of relief, I looked at the other two who were excited as I was. ¡°Let¡¯s head back.¡± ***** Chapter 26: Killing Two Birds With One Stone (Part 5) --------- Part 5 --------- ¡°So, how did it go?¡± A hooded man was talking to a skimpily dressed woman who just came into the room. ¡°He is¡­ tougher than I would think.¡± The woman took a seat opposite him as she placed her bag on the floor next to her feet. ¡°Oh, your flirtatious charm did not work this time? I¡¯m surprised, Sonia. You aren¡¯t called the Seductress Witch for nothing.¡± The hooded man gave out a loud laugh. Since no one else was in the room, the man looked extremely lax. But 3 glowing marks under his leg gave away how powerful this PC was.This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. ¡°Humph! Better than you could ever do. You just sit here and do nothing!¡± ¡°Ohh¡­ don¡¯t say that. You might think so, but I have something¡­ more useful than a random low-levelled player.¡± The woman¡¯s eyes were illuminated under the dim light. ¡°You mean¡­¡± The hooded man nodded. ¡°Yes, I had been made aware of the information.¡± ¡°A-And when will we¡­¡± The hooded man cut her words short. ¡°Hush! Patience, Sonia. We will begin once the everything is in place. However, for now you need to go and receive your first Mark. I¡¯ll power level you up after that.¡± The hooded man stood up and left the room. But before he did that, he turned around and looked at the woman for one final time. ¡°If this man is what you say and think he is; I¡¯m willing to watch over him a little. Can¡¯t have your new toy-boy getting his arse handed down on him, right?¡± ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± The woman pouted but she was smiling afterwards. ¡°He¡¯s cool, I¡¯ll give him that. Not many men could make me feel that way when I¡¯m with them.¡± ¡°Hahaha. Don¡¯t include me in your reverse-harem.¡± As the hooded man left the room, the woman took out something from her bag; various crafting materials that she gathered from the last adventure she had. ¡°Hmm¡­ about time I needed to be serious a little. Might get these items crafted next.¡± Chapter 27: The Masks That We Wear (Part 1) Chapter 27: The Masks That We Wear --------- Part 1 --------- ¡°So, what¡¯s next?¡± I handed Mimi the items we had gathered during the past few days. She inspected it and I could tell she was extremely surprised but in a good way. ¡°Y-You gathered all of these?¡± I nodded. ¡°Couldn¡¯t do without the girls help though.¡± I patted Elly and Rose¡¯s head. ¡°All these items¡­ I-I can feel the purities emitting from it. A-And the vibrancies too. For you to collect such qualities and amount within a short time, I¡¯m impressed.¡± Her compliment made the two girls very happy, jumping in joy and me too for once, felt proud of my achievements. But just a little. I could never tell her that I did not sleep much during the times I gathered the items. I did not know why, but when it comes to both Elly and Rose, I tend to go all out. Even those Bunnian couples too. And speaking of the couple, I could not see Popo anywhere. ¡°Where¡¯s Popo?¡± Mimi looked at me and jerked her head towards the door. ¡°Outside, with his friends. Gathering of some sort, he said.¡± She was not paying much attention to anything else other than the items I gave her. ¡°Well, if that is the case, so what do we do now?¡± ¡°We will wait.¡± Mimi beckoned Rose to the garden. There, she had reserved a spot for her. Laying the Blood Wrym Soil on the ground, she ordered Rose to morph into the plant form; a skill that I never knew she had until I saw it today, and sprinkled some the Goddess Tears on the leaves and then watered the soil with a few more. But honestly, that was a little uninspiring. I thought Rose would be transformed like those magical girls with sailor uniforms having magic hexagrams appearing from their feet or from their backs. But a man can only dream. ¡°Am I supposed to do anything?¡± Since I was Rose¡¯s father, shouldn¡¯t I be doing that? Besides, I wanted to see how she would grow eventually. It could be exciting, give or take staring at a plant for 4 hours straight could be called that way. Like watching a long loading bar that would take ages to load during a gatcha draw while being giddy up about the possibilities and the outcomes. However, Mimi had another intention. She shook her head and said, ¡°I¡¯ll do this. I want to see how she grows using the items you gathered. I want to study her more.¡± And she gave me the glare that she would use on Popo when she was pissed and said, ¡°Alone!¡±You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. Cute but dangerous. And I would not want to be at the wrong side of her when she behaved that way. Well, if that was the case, then I¡¯d let Mimi do whatever she wanted. I left Rose with her as I went to the shops with Elly. This blonde girl had been quite unlike herself these recent days; awfully quiet, lack of her cheerful self and was really anxious. And she was still wearing the robe to disguise herself but until today, I had never asked her what she was afraid of. Even at 45/100 Affinity, she still had not told me much about her background. Or anything worth mentioning at all. Though her job has changed from being a Thief to Shield Protector during the item gathering for Rose. Two utterly different jobs that got me a little more curious than what I used to. ¡°So, how¡¯s the class change?¡± I struck the first conversation. ¡°Hmm¡­ I think¡­ it¡¯s alright.¡± Elly spoke in a hushed tone. Her behaviour piqued my interest even further. ¡°From a thief the first time I saw you to a Shield Protector. That is quite a jump.¡± I patted her shoulder and then held it close. ¡°Seems like I had misunderstood you a little, Elly.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± She looked at me, surprised by my sudden friendliness. ¡°Well, truth to be told, I was expecting something different from you. Though I¡¯m proud to have you as my ally, I still am in the dark about you. Your ¡®job¡¯ might be a thief, but you never strike me like one.¡± Elly hid her face further under the hood. But that did not stop me from continuing my words. ¡°I¡¯d seen many thieves, but none ever looked like you, even the most successful and prosperous one. Not only you looked different, but you behaved differently. A thief who is both judicious, na?ve and willing to help others.¡± ¡°I-I¡­¡± She stammered her words amidst her hushed tones. Looked like she was really afraid of something. Or someone. ¡°I don¡¯t really know who you were before I¡¯d met you but that does not mean I do not trust you. Everyone has a past they did not want others to know.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Ghost. I never meant it that way. B-But¡­¡± Holding her shoulder closer, I gave the best impression of a warm smile that I could ever do. Something that Elly found funny and chuckled instantly. ¡°It¡¯s alright. Do you remember what it means to be my ally?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ you will always be there for me?¡± ¡°Hahaha. True. I¡¯ll have your back no matter what, Elly. So, if you feel like it, have a little faith in me, alright.¡± Elly smiled as she gave me a hug out of nowhere in public places. The roads were busy and everyone was looking at us. I could see some leering eyes and murmurs but I did not bother as I let her do whatever she wanted. I could compare Elly to a teenage girl, around 17-19 years of age. She acted and behaved like one especially when things never go her way. However, what impressed me the most was her attitude and her willingness to learn. Rose was like a child and behaved like one. Perhaps equivalent to 4-5 years old. And after this, I wonder how she would grow into? Hopefully, I could still handle those two girls. I never had any chance to properly handle and care for girls my whole life. I never knew what to do with them. My wife was¡­ ¡°GHOST!¡± Suddenly, my thoughts were interrupted by a piercing call of my name. Elly was still hugging me and she too was startled. ¡°Oh my God! It¡¯s you!! It¡¯s truly you!¡± Amongst the crowd, came one of the people who I really wanted to avoid the most. ***** Chapter 27: The Masks That We Wear (Part 2) --------- Part 2 --------- ¡°It¡¯s so hard to find you. I thought you already ignored us!¡± Miranda came to me at full speed. As she stood in front of me, I gave her a cold blank stare. ¡°What do you want?¡± I hissed a little at her. Elly too took the same stance as I did and repeated my words. Guessed she hated to be interrupted too. ¡°I-I¡­¡± I did not let her finish her words. I did not want to do anything with her, and most likely, them too. ¡°Come, Elly. Let¡¯s go somewhere else.¡± I immediately turned my back but Miranda¡¯s held the sleeves of my robe. ¡°P-Please, Ghost. Please listen¡­¡± I turned my face and looked sternly at her. She shrieked a little and let go of me immediately. But she wouldn¡¯t be back down just yet. ¡°W-We need your help.¡± And I guessed right, after all. ¡°Not interested! Find someone else.¡± I snorted in disgust. I am not their lackeys. Who did they think I was? Finding me when it only suited their needs and whatnots. ¡°B-But it must be you!¡± I just shrugged my shoulder and left her. Taking Elly¡¯s hand with me, I took my leave. ¡°T-this is about Sophia.¡± When Miranda mentioned that name, I instinctively froze on my track. ¡°What about her?¡± I asked with a cold voice. ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­ b-but she¡­ is¡­ quitting the game.¡± Miranda told me amidst her tears falling from her cheeks. Did I just see a PC cry? Man, that was new. But I was still adamant about my position. I immediately told Miranda off. ¡°Not my problem. She is your party and guild member, so she¡¯s your problem. Not mine.¡± ¡°Ghost¡­ please help us. Help her¡­¡±If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°Look. I don¡¯t need all the dramas. If she wants to quit, who am I to tell her otherwise. Players come and go.¡± ¡°I-I never thought you were so heartless. Sophia was wrong about you!¡± Miranda¡¯s high-pitched voice attracted some other players around. And with it, came the complimentary murmurs from the passersby. People, no matter where they were would always be nosy about other¡¯s business; voices that called me a jerk, arsehole and many more came my way. To them, this must be one of those lover quarrels. Seeing Elly at my side, I must have jilted my other lover, called ¡®Sophia¡¯. And to make the matter more interesting, some even suggested that Miranda too loved me. Heh, if they were going to role-play that nonsense, I might as well lap it up a few more notches. ¡°So? I had always been looked at wrongly by others. Nothing new.¡± Crossing my arm, I looked at Miranda with a poker face. ¡°So, you would leave a girl all by herself knowing that you could at least try to ease her a little? You are such a jerk!!¡± And her words got the onlookers moving and now they were booing at me. ¡°Oi, arsehole?! Whatcha doin¡¯ to cuties like her?¡± ¡°He is a jerk alright! How could he do such a thing?!¡± ¡°If you have too many women on your side, pass us folks a few. We are buddies, right?¡± Whatever insult, taunt, name-calling and goading came my way, I ignored all of them. They were nobodies. Those ¡®peanut gallery¡¯ people ain¡¯t worth my trouble. But Miranda was different. Focusing my ire, I walked to her. ¡°What did you say, bitch?¡± I stopped short of grabbing her face. I could have just ignored her and went on about my other activities but I could somehow not let this go just yet. Using Sophia¡¯s name ¨C the most likeable of the trios to me ¨C and then calling me a jerk was unneeded. I was supposed to have a choice of not doing anything for them. ¡°S-Sophia has always looked up upon you. Saying that you are the nicest guy around and she always feels safe with you. And now¡­ y-you are leaving her¡­ like this?¡± Was Sophia drunk or something? Me, being the nicest guy around? Whatever grass that Sophia smoked, I might want some of it too. I could not help but not laugh out loud at the stupid notion. I was not a nice person. Never known as one either. And I told Miranda exactly just that. ¡°I don¡¯t like you guys, that¡¯s all. Sure, we partied together but I was mistaken to expect anything from random players.¡± ¡°Ghost. I don¡¯t mind you hated us, but please not Sophia. S-She really¡­ please¡­¡± Suddenly, Elly grabbed my shoulder and nodded at me. And from her looks, she seemed like she too wanted me to help Sophia. How could an NPC behaved like this anyway? Sigh¡­ Everyone was looking at us and now I looked like the proper bad guy here. They thought it was a love triangle of sorts and there was no way for them to think otherwise. Though I did not mind much, if I just leave Miranda here, I got the feeling that she would pester me nonstop until she got what she wanted. And to use the crowd to her advantage too. Besides, among those three, Sophia was still likeable. Shaking my head a couple of time, I let out yet another deep and long sigh. So much of trying to be emotionless prick and having a poker face at that too. ¡°Alright, alright. If this could get you people off my back once and for all, then fine. Show me the way and let¡¯s get it done with.¡± ***** Chapter 27: The Masks That We Wear (Part 3 & 4) --------- Part 3 --------- When I reached the place; a small isolated park outskirt of the Royal Capital, I saw both Sophia and Alviss seated together by a bench under a tree. As soon as they both saw me, Alviss came running towards me while Sophia turned away her face as fast as I could. ¡°G-Ghost! Y-You came!¡± ¡°Piss off, pretty boy! Don¡¯t need you to stand in front of my face.¡± My displeasure was all for him to see. He immediately ceased his advance and immediately went to Miranda¡¯s side. Whispering amongst themselves, I proceeded towards the lone girl seated like a newly broken-hearted girl under a tree; her face to her knee. And to others, it was not wrong to assume so anyway. But I knew better now. Miranda had explained to me what happened to Sophia on our way here. The day I left them, the three went their separate ways for a while. During the time, Sophia had been bullied by other players. Both in the city and the field, she had been taken advantage of because of her own weaknesses; na?ve and kind-hearted. And because of that, she was PK-ed twice in three days. She was teabagged, insulted and had her dignity stripped. And all of her items were stolen and unfortunately, that included the two items she gained from our last quest. For a girl like her, that was way too much for her to handle. ¡°Ughh¡­¡± She whimpered as I came nearer to her. I looked towards the rest. ¡°All of you, leave us alone.¡± The three left quietly, taking their spot at the next area. Privacy was paramount. But, what should I do now? Should I give her one of my pep talks? But Sophia was not one of my army boys. Perhaps motivational talk might do it? Looking at her conditions right now, I shook my head a few more times. Maybe I could inspire her? But to do what, actually? What about heart-warming? The moment I mentioned that wretched word, I felt goosebumps all over me. Hell, I really had no idea what should I say to a girl in this sort of situation. This was way over my head. Killing monsters were way easier. Pissing off people was fun too. And I was doing neither of them. ¡°Sophia, I¡¯m here.¡± I just stood in front of her thinking what I should say next. She did not turn to me, just hiding her head between her knee. Ohh man, this was going nowhere. Guess I better just spout whatever that came to my mind. ¡°Look, I¡¯m not here for you to behave like this. Your two friends said that you have some troubles. Despite that they know really well how I would treat them, they still insisted that I¡¯m supposed to meet and talk to you. But, if you are like this¡­¡± ¡°I-I¡­¡± I could barely catch her words under the soft tone. Sigh¡­ I guessed I have to take the bulls by the horns now. ¡°Why do you play this game?¡± I quickly changed the topic. And it took Sophia a few good seconds before she answered me. ¡°For fun, I guess?¡± ¡°What is fun?¡± I asked her, without a pause. Direct to the point which obviously made Sophia woke up from her own miserable state of moping.Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. ¡°Umm¡­ playing with friends, I guess.¡± She answered meekly as she lifted up her face and looked at me. I was pointing to myself, indicating to her if I was among the ¡®friends¡¯ she mentioned. She shyly nodded at the notion. ¡°And are you having fun, now?¡± She shook her head. I knelt in front of her as she continued to hide her face. ¡°Look, young lady. I¡¯m not really good with words. But listen well.¡± Pausing for a while, looking for any eavesdroppers that might interrupt my words, I began once I was satisfied that there were only just two of us. ¡°I heard from Miranda that you said I was the nicest guy you have ever met.¡± Without waiting for her confirmation, I continued. ¡°I¡¯m actually happy when I heard Miranda told me about it. But Sophia¡­ this is where you are wrong.¡± Sophia¡¯s eyes went big and moist. Looked like I had got into her now. ¡°To tell you the truth, I¡¯m the worst kind of guy there is. Perhaps in the whole world. People had called me a tyrannical, egotistical, maniacal and self-absorbed jerk. Even trigger happy. And you know what? They are bloody right.¡± ¡°B-But¡­¡± I silenced Sophia with a bitter smile. ¡°I¡¯m really not nice at all. Unlike you, though you might be a little na?ve like someone I know. And I¡¯m far from being the perfect friend. But¡­¡± And my smiling face turned into a serious one. I looked at her directly into her eyes and said, ¡°If someone ever hurt my friends, I¡¯ll hunt them to the end of the world. Sophia, you are my friend, I¡¯ll have you know that. So, those guys who PK-ed you, who bullied you, who humiliated and steal from you, will see no hell hath fury like me. But before that happened, I can¡¯t see you like this.¡± I put my finger on her chin and lifted her face up. Surprisingly, she did not put much resistance. ¡°Keep your chin up, young lady.¡± ¡°B-But¡­ I-I lost the items¡­ y-you gave me.¡± Her tears flowed freely. Was she worried about the items I gave to her? Was she afraid that I might scold her? Man, I really did not understand what went through her mind. Despite having to live through many battles and wars, I was still socially awkward, especially around women. But at least I should quell her fears for now. ¡°Items could be farmed, Sophia.¡± ¡°B-But¡­¡± I silenced her with my fingers on her lips. ¡°Do you remember them? Know their names?¡± She nodded. ¡°Well, that settles it. But before we could get to that, stop worrying your friends.¡± I reckoned that this would settle it now. ¡°Are you not angry that I lost the item?¡± Sophia meekly asked, yet again to know my own stand on things. I answered her with a smile and shook my head. ¡°A-and about the other day¡­¡± I silenced her one more time. ¡°No need to talk about that for now. Go and see your friends. The two of them are worried about you, alright. You have been a naughty girl making us worried like this.¡± ¡°I-I¡¯m sorry¡­¡± I stood up and extended my hand towards her. She grabbed it tenderly as I pulled her up. As we walked towards the who waited for us nearby, I could feel that Sophia really needed help. She was a nice girl, but being nice had nothing to do with playing the games. Players often wore a different mask here compared to the real world. So, it was not surprising to see people behaved like an arsehole in the game. In fact, most players were an arsehole in one way or another. I never saw a player like Sophia before. I never partied with many players but I did know one thing for sure. Those three cared for each other despite how they looked like and behaved at times. ¡°Ghost, where are you going?¡± Miranda asked me as soon as those three got together once more. ¡°Somewhere. Why?¡± I looked at her with the same cold stare. And as usual, she was not going to back down just by my look alone. ¡°C-Can¡­ we¡­ invite you to o-our g-guild house?¡± I shook my head. The three of them looked disappointed, especially Sophia. Not wanting to destroy my earlier ¡®work¡¯, I answered straight away, ¡°Next time, perhaps. I have something to do for now.¡± I said my farewell as I left the trio. Hopefully, they could get along better now. I did not need the extra drama in my game. It was quite tiring to actually did what I did to Sophia earlier. Prepping the boys for war was way easier than that. ***** --------- Part 4 --------- ¡°Did you see that girl?¡± ¡°Yeah. I could recognize her even though she hid under that robe.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ I never thought that we would see her here. After all that happened, she still returns here.¡± ¡°We better report this to the King immediately. He had been looking for her all these while.¡± ¡°What about that guy beside her?¡± ¡°Not important. If he interferes, we will stuff him in the jail. Or better still, kill him.¡± ***** Chapter 27: The Masks That We Wear (Part 5 & 6) --------- Part 5 --------- I never thought I would be here of all places; a guild house. Or more specifically, the guild that all the noob trios, Alviss, Miranda and Sophia belonged to. ¡°Welcome to Ambrosia, Ghost!¡± Sophia led me inside a nice double story mansion that looked like a medieval European castle, located in the residential area at Aessirun where it was the only place that allows guilds or players to buy homes. It was impressive indeed since I never been inside one my whole life. Like a deer lost in the city, I was giving that sort of impression which no less bemused the three of them. ¡°Looks like he too can behave like that. Who knows.¡± Alviss could help but to chuckle at my expense. Well, he was right. I was not too familiar with this sort of things. ¡°Ah, forget what Alviss said. You can enjoy this place like your home.¡± Sophia tried to reassure me that I belonged but I knew better than just to accept an invitation from the guild¡¯s normal members. ¡°Our Guild Master is a nice guy. Once we told them about you, he insisted that you must be brought here at once.¡± Sophia was excited as she explained why she brought me here. ¡°Well, if that was the case, where¡¯s the Guild Master?¡± ¡°Are you looking for me?¡± Suddenly, the main door was opened and out came a good looking man who had seen finer things in life. Tall with curly black hair and trimmed goatee, the glasses that he wore made him somehow looked like he was an aristocrat or something. And his attire was nothing short of impressive. ¡°Guild Master Eduardo!¡± The trios were shouting simultaneously when he entered. They were in awe of his presence, something that was lacking when they were with me. Nonetheless, since I was at his place, I could do well to give him some face. I extended my hand for a handshake and he firmly grabbed it. He leaned forward and whispered to me, ¡°Finally, you have reached us, huh Bryan?¡± I was speechless. How did he know my real name?The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ***** --------- Part 6 --------- When the trios left the two of us alone on Guild Master Eduardo¡¯s behest, only then did I know his real identity. I was pleasantly surprised. I never expected that he was within this Kingdom. ¡°So, was this what you say you don¡¯t play as good as me the first time we met?¡± Eduardo or his real name Edward Gause could no longer contain his laugh. ¡°But it¡¯s true, right? But I appreciate you taking care of my children, Bryan. Time has been tough for us recently.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not your guild¡¯s caretaker. You take them, you care for them. If you can¡¯t, why even bother?¡± ¡°Well, we are expanding faster than I expected. With 6000 members and growing, my time is much limited. Besides, I still have to monitor you. You know that bit right?¡± ¡°You mean, stalking and playing God. You should get down on your high horses before you hurt yourself too much. By the way, where¡¯s your brother?¡± ¡°With the Royal Army. The next event is coming and our guild is once again drafted. Them boys and girls are getting excited about this.¡± ¡°Ohh¡­ whatever. I rather drink piss than getting myself involves in a war.¡± Ed could not help it but to laugh and shake his head at my silly notion. But I was being serious about it. ¡°The day after tomorrow is the worldwide maintenance. Once it¡¯s completed, the new event will start. What will you do, Bryan?¡± ¡°Ghost. In here, call me Ghost.¡± ¡°Alright, what will you do Ghost?¡± ¡°Nothing. The event doesn¡¯t interest me. I have better things to do.¡± ¡°Like?¡± He was always interested in whatever I wanted to do. Ever since that time when I entered his office for his help. Couldn¡¯t past a good opportunity to invest, he said. ¡°None of your business. Watch the recording if you want to.¡± I was being cold about this. But this did not stop him and the other players from enjoying this upcoming event. ¡°Well, Ed. It is a pleasure to meet you. Excuse me but I have to get back to my playing. Give my regards to them.¡± ¡°Sure. But keep the video feed from your NerveGear on at all times, alright?¡± ¡°Alright, alright. I had been doing this since the day I started playing. Honestly, I did not know how you could have fun watching other people play. What¡¯s more, a boring player like me.¡± Ed chuckled and then nodded. ¡°And one more thing, please if you have some time, help out that girl, Sophia. She had been PK-ed a couple of times now. I know you like to solo and stuffs, so I¡¯ll keep my fingers crossed.¡± Heh. Said the guy who could mobilize one of his higher level members to help her instead of handing it to me. But, I did want to know who these idiots were anyway. Hurting a girl like Sophia and looting her items. I wanted to ask him when suddenly his face turned grim as he muttered something under his breath. Seeing him like that was a first to me. However, I did not wait to find out. I made my way out of the guild house towards my next destination; Popo and Mimi¡¯s temporary house. Elly and Rose were there and I wanted to check up on them before I start my new adventure; the Rainbow Bridge Quest. ***** Chapter 27: The Masks That We Wear (Part 7 & 8) --------- Part 7 --------- When I received the system message that mentioned about a certain maintenance and update, everyone I saw around me was jubilant. The town square was full of noises and euphoria from all the players. They were waiting expectantly for the next event to commence and the confirmation within the official websites before the maintenance had made everyone flooded the official forum and such. Even Ed and Al were in a jolly good mood when they messaged me privately in the game. Al had purposely created a private channel for the three of us to chat at any time anywhere. Al: ¡°Well, if it was like the previous event, I¡¯m sure the viewership of live streaming would be above 100 million.¡± Ed: ¡°I¡¯m thinking along the line of 300 million or more, Al.¡± ¡°So, there are many people viewing it live?¡± Al: ¡°It¡¯s in mainstream news and there¡¯s dedicated satellite channels for it.¡± ¡°I see.¡± Ed: ¡°But I was quite surprised that you did not participate in this event. I thought you were not serious when you mentioned it earlier.¡± Al: ¡°Even though you were drafted? What a waste.¡± ¡°Seen too much war in my lifetime to be involved in one.¡± Ed: ¡°Well, whatever suit your fancy. But don¡¯t forget, Bryan. I still want us to work together and created our own live streaming. There¡¯s official and there¡¯s player¡¯s streaming.¡± ¡°Alright, alright!¡±
The Siege of Valenheim New Event! After the countless years of painstaking study, research of ruins and archaeology leads, the Royal Scholars of the Kingdom of Asgardia had finally found the path to High Asgard. Jubilant with the news, King Aldemar Thoran had drafted his armies for his next conquest. Calling all players within the Kingdom of Asgardia. Heed your King¡¯s Call. Join his powerful army to take on this new event. Expand the world and take your journey into the famed legendary city, High Asgard! Quest Rank: World FATE Time left: After the worldwide maintenance. The event will last for 7 days. Event Requirements: Each player must first be drafted by the Royal Army. No level or jobs restrictions. Level Sync if above 200. Quest Reward: Upon the successful event, each player will be given among others gold coins, raise in fame and recognition, special equips and even war loots. Rewards are based on each player¡¯s contributions. Guild rewards are given separately which also includes the territorial allocation and the chance to govern the newly acquired city.
Well, that was that then. The rewards might have turned lots of heads but again, I hated being in war. Living it once in real life, I had no need to live it here in the game. I purposely avoided that. However, before the maintenance started which was due in a few more hours, I took this opportunity to raise a few more levels with Elly. Hopefully, by the time the event started, everyone else was busy with the war and we could actually use this time to expand our proficiencies and skills. Lately, I had been thinking about the mechanism of NPO that I had never thought before. Perhaps when I did my research, most information was still at the beginning stage. By this time, I was sure that there were many things that had been made available that was not shared. Information was indeed vital. Once I saw Sonia¡¯s skills and her playing style, it made me thought hard about what I needed to do next.The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. ***** --------- Part 8 --------- I did not know what had happened when I logged off for the maintenance. However, it was all too late when I saw Popo and Mimi looking grim. I tried to summon Elly to my side but oddly, her name was greyed out. Curious, I went to the Bunnian¡¯s house and looked for her there instead. However, to my immediate surprise, all I saw was a partially destroyed house and the couple were nursing themselves off their injuries. ¡°The Royal Army barged into our house and took Elly away, po!¡± Popo was furious beyond words. Sporting a broken arm and definitely a bruised ego, he was extremely pissed off. ¡°I¡¯m a fucking Royal Sword Meister, not some random rabbits!¡± I looked at Mimi and she too was bruised. ¡°To be honest, we never expected them here. We were invited by the King to be a part of his Siege expedition but¡­¡± ¡°Forget about that useless wimp of a King! He took Elly right under our nose!!¡± Popo banged on the table. ¡°Why did they have to take her? Do you two know any reason? She¡¯s just¡­ well, a normal girl. Was it because I pummeled Brutus the other day?¡± I could find no other way to reason it out why these two cute rabbits had been treated this way. ¡°No. Ghost. Brutus¡¯ incident was brushed off. The one that came here was the King¡¯s own private army.¡± Popo explained to me. ¡°But¡­¡± He turned to Mimi and as I looked at the two exchanging the glance, I knew immediately something was off. Thankfully, I did not need to be in rage mode for me to find out why. ¡°Elly is not just any normal girl, Ghost.¡± Mimi began to explain to me. ¡°She is the only descendant of the fame Byrnhildr family.¡± ¡°Byrnhildr family?¡± Mimi nodded at me.
Memoir of an Old God has been updated!
I had read the part 2 but nothing much was added.
Memoir of an Old God, Part 3. ¡°My liege.¡± The blonde woman bowed down her head in front of Odin. ¡°I want to return to Midgard, my world.¡± ¡°No!¡± The God King bellowed his order much to the disappointment of the woman. ¡°B-But¡­¡± ¡°You shall serve me here, amongst the Gods! Why do you need to seek the mortals?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t leave my family at home. Much I love my time with you, Great Odin, but I longed for the warmth of the human. Of my family.¡± ¡°You are the Chosen bearer of my will. I can¡¯t see to you that you leave my side, ever.¡± The woman was dejected. But the Wise Old King was not finished just yet. ¡°However, I could allow you a brief moment to spend with your family. But it will be the last of it, ever!¡± The woman expression changed. She beamed with happiness and bowed her head deeply in reverence of the Great Odin. ¡°Go, Byrnhildr!¡±
¡°Elly is the direct lineage from the ancestors that served the Great Old God, Odin Allfodr himself.¡± I was starting to see some sense, but somehow it did not add up. ¡°What about her family?¡± I asked. ¡°Elly has no family. She was found within the ruins by my Master. As he brought her here, back to the Royal Capital to be presented to the late King, Elly was an infant living inside a crystal. Through continuous great magic even after the passing of my Master, she was finally released and then lived her life within the confine of the Royal Palace. It had been more than 20 years since then. Until that day when she escaped from the Royal Palace.¡± What a great turn of event. Elly the Thief who became a Shield Protector now became the Child of the Crystal? Well, whoever she was, I did not care. All I needed to know was she was taken by force from this Bunnian couple and I was not about to let it go. ¡°So, where¡¯s the Royal Palace?¡± I stood up and walked towards the door. ¡°What are you thinking, Ghost?!¡± Mimi stared at me with a dumbfounded look on her face. ¡°Well, to bring her back, of course!¡± My answer was short and my resolve was direct. ¡°B-But¡­ that¡¯s suicide, po!¡± It was Popo¡¯s turn to sway me, but I was not about to be swayed. Cute or not, these rabbits could not get into me for now. ¡°So what?! I¡¯m used to it!¡± Kicking the door that was half destroyed open, it startled the two couple and the one waiting outside for me. ¡°W-We will help you, po!¡± ¡°No! I¡¯ll do this alone Popo. You and your wife better get a rest. In your current condition, you will do more harm than good to me. Rose and I would be more than enough for these bloody wretched whoresons.¡± I looked at Rose who waited for me by the garden. The 2 feet Rose has now grown into 4 feet tall. Previously, she looked like a talking ginseng but now the transformation from seedling to vegetative was amazing. She now resembled a human child. She looked more like the offspring of the Hulk though. The only saving grace was she was extremely cute and girly with a rose flower blooming from her head that looked like a huge piece of hair-pin rosary. Looking at her new window stats, I gave out a wicked smile. Good. Really good. ¡°Papa, are we going to rescue Sis Elly?¡± ¡°No!¡± I looked at her sternly. ¡°Hmm?¡± I could not help but to smile at her confused look. ¡°We are going to bloody destroy those people who dare to lay harm on my friends and allies. And at the same time, we will rescue Elly.¡± ¡°Oh!¡± She shrieked excitedly at my answer. ¡°Come. Let¡¯s go, Rose!¡± Chapter 28: You Are Not Alone (Part 1) Chapter 28: You Are Not Alone --------- Part 1 --------- Back in LIXXO, I was always a solo player. I hated to party up with random players for many things in-game; quests, missions, item-gatherings or just farming. And the dramas that went with it. In one way, I was not a people friendly person. My childhood and youth was not exactly a rainbow and unicorn experience for me to socialize well with others. However, playing in NPO for nearly two months had made me realized something important. And that was the fact that this game was way too complicated for me to solo effectively. In the beginning, it was easy-peasy. But once I was out of level 30, the game began to change. Teamwork and coordination between party members was a must for anyone to survive and win. Being solo was no more viable and effective when it came to risk versus rewards. Monsters and elements surrounding our gameplay too were becoming smarter and harder to control. Fortunately, I had Elly with me since I started my game. I had to admit, for an NPC, she was very well ¡®created¡¯ indeed. If not for the fact that the system told me she was an NPC ally, I would assume that the way she acted was very much like any other player. Her Artificial Intelligence, AI or her programming ¨C not that I knew any ¨C must have been out of this world. In fact, nearly all the NPCs I knew or had high affinities with had displayed amazing AI and programming; Popo, Mimi and to a certain extent, Rose. And she did not bring me any unnecessary dramas like most players would. She wouldn¡¯t trouble me with her private or emotional issues. She would not seek me just to hog me and had me follow around her like I was on a leash or something. She wouldn¡¯t argue about me dealing the final blow to the enemies or the way I distributed our loots or to question my strategies during our battle. And she was never the smartass that had to remark everything that I did. She never shirked from her duty even once. In fact, she would plunge headlong, becoming my shield. Not that I needed one but having someone who was reliable made my gameplay much smoother and dare I say fun. Others might have thought that I loved people who obediently follow me around like a good pet dog. Well, I dare say they were right on their money. Obedience or being subservient, loyalty and honesty were a must for me and Elly had all of that. Maybe not the honesty part just yet.The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. From dreading to party with anyone especially PCs, I could now withstand the fact that I was in one. She was always at my side, helping me as much as I wanted and never ever complained. And when Rose came along, I was quite satisfied. The three of us were doing quite well so far. However, the night when Elly was forcefully taken away from Popo and Mimi, it made me snapped in such a way that I thought had forgotten about it after all these while. PTSD or not, I was seething with anger and on the verge of another breakdown. Not only that the two cute couple was harassed and treated badly even though they had some statures with them, but from what I¡¯d heard as told by the Bunnian couple, Elly was beaten severely to point of near death. Since this was the time of a new event, all NPCs could now be killed. And I would not let Elly be alone in her ordeal. She was my ally and I would never ever let any harm to come to her. For her to be beaten badly made my blood boiled and I was never going to be a nice person when I was in this state. Even during my normal state, most people would find me unbearable. But now, I was on a mission to be the worst kind of nightmares towards those who hurt my allies. Walking down the main road of the city, the Royal Palace loomed before long. Located at the northernmost part, the palace was the biggest building within the City of Asgardia and the tall golden-domed roof tower that became the landmark for this city made it easier to find. Unfortunately, I did not have the Royal Palace¡¯s inner layout. On my map, it just appeared as one big block of empty space. Beside of not knowing the layout, I had no inkling where they kept Elly hostage. But I had to do something. ¡°Rose, hide somewhere. I¡¯ll summon you once I know my way in.¡± Surprisingly, the Red Alraune did exactly as she was told. She did not kick up any fuss and that was a relief. But the task now lay ahead. What should I do next? Without a choice, I took some time to scour its perimeter. Massive walls made of cobblestone stood as high as 30 feet with only one entry; the palace main gate. And not to my surprise either, there were no less than 30 armed guards who barricaded the only entrance. Tried as hard as I could, I had neither the skills nor the equipment to get myself inside the Royal Palace undetected. Rose¡¯s skill might help, but where would I go from there next? From the perimeter of the wall alone, this Royal Palace was indeed very huge. Not knowing where I would start and end up would be as pointless as standing here currently. Sigh. What a waste of time. And for my failed effort too, I was shooed off by the patrolling guards that made their rounds along the wall. I came twice from nearly being arrested. Looked like the security of this place was more than the first time I came here for the Army draft for the new event. And to think that I could just go in gung-ho like that like some Rambo or superhero hotshot was na?ve indeed. What I needed now was to know where exactly was Elly taken to. Unfortunately, this was one of the very few moments that I had let my emotions got over me. To my embarrassment, I had neither the information nor the means necessary to rescue her when I arrived outside of the Royal Palace. Feeling the toll of my earlier rush of blood to my brain, I was getting restless and took an unneeded liberty to rest at nearby a park just to blow off my steam. A good plan or two was much needed now. The night was still young; cold, windy and the park was bustling with people, players and non-players alike. But my boiling blood never once lost its fiery temperature. After a couple of hours, a half-baked plan was concocted and I proceeded to procure the necessary items. Time was the essence and by the look of things, was scarce too. ***** Chapter 28: You Are Not Alone (Part 2) --------- Part 2 --------- As the warning message appeared on my screen, I was about to trespass the border of every player¡¯s worst nightmare.
WARNING! You are about to trespass the Royal Palace of Aessirun. If you ever get caught by any of the guards, you will immediately be jailed, have your fame deducted or even worse, exiled from the country. Be warned! Because of the new event ¡®Siege of Valenheim¡¯ istaking place currently, all guards are now on their highest alerts. The punishments could be much, much harsher and severe.
As if something like this would ever deter me. Having resolved myself as I walked towards the main gate ¨C barricaded at least 2 dozens of heavily armed guards with the items I procured earlier in both of my hands ¨C suddenly I saw a shadow came from my side. And it was too fast for me to properly react. I was pulled away with such force that I felt I was dragged away by an invisible force. Just when I was about to do my deeds, someone or something stopped and pulled me to the side, hiding amongst the shadows provided by the building around the Royal Palace. My mouth was covered by soft flesh and I heard a couple of familiar voices. ¡°Po! You are indeed crazy!¡± ¡°What are you two doing here?!¡± I could not believe my eyes to see Popo and his wife alongside him.Stolen story; please report. ¡°How would you rescue Elly if you do not know where they are holding her, po?¡± His whiskers moved as if to point out my earlier stupidity. I gave him a bitter smile to acknowledge his point. ¡°Popo is right. You are not familiar with this place. Fortunately, the two of us could help you with that.¡± Mimi reiterated her husband¡¯s point but that was not what I was worried about. ¡°But, both of you are injured! You two will slow me down!¡± ¡°Slow you down? Don¡¯t be silly. Injuries like these are nothing to us warriors, po. Having our friends taken from us right under our nose is not just shameful but would smear our good name.¡± Seemed like this rabbit would not budge from his decision. Looking at his wife, I asked, ¡°And what about Mimi?¡± ¡°I have to get revenge for all the plants they destroyed.¡± And she was dead serious about it even though it sounded silly to most people, including me. But nonetheless, I had to admire their resolve and tenacity. ¡°Alright, since I can¡¯t say or do anything else that would sway you two, I¡¯ll gladly take your assistance. But remember, if things go south, run away and leave me be.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t talk as if you are a hero, po. You are just a lowbie. A nothing student of mine!¡± I could not help but to chuckle at Popo¡¯s words. ¡°Perhaps, Popo. But by the end of tonight, neither one of us would be heroes. We would be wanted criminals. Especially you two since both of you had staked your fame and all the deeds you had done for this Kingdom.¡± ¡°A small price to pay for our pride and our friend¡¯s life.¡± Mimi was right. I was thinking too much about being a Rambo-like persona; waltzing away into someone¡¯s fortress without any consequences. This might be a game for me, but for these two NPCs, it was a different matter. Even for Elly too. I never thought I could think like that to non-living things. Or more specifically, a lump of data. ¡°Are you scared, po?¡± Popo was bemused by my sudden pained expression. ¡°A little. But for Elly¡¯s sake, I¡¯d do this 10 times over. By the way, do you know where is she taken to?¡± The earlier question still played in my mind and if anyone were to know anything, perhaps these two could provide the answer. ¡°I have an idea where to begin. Royal Palace is huge and it would take a long time to find if you do not know where to look first. The night is short, so might as well look into that place.¡± Popo said while emphasizing the word ¡®that¡¯. ¡°And ¡®that¡¯ would be?¡± Finally, a useful information to begin our search. And Popo answered in a hushed tone, ¡°The Royal Guest-Chamber, Northern Quadrant.¡± ¡°A what?¡± I never heard of the place before. But Popo and Mimi looked assured with the location they had given me. ¡°Like I told you, po. Elly would be taken and prepared first before presented to the King. And from there, her fate shall finally be sealed. Most likely, by dawn.¡± ¡°Explain to me while we are moving.¡± ***** Chapter 28: You Are Not Alone (Part 3) --------- Part 3 --------- Popo knew which direction we needed to go. Equipping myself with a couple of daggers, I moved into the shadows and disposed of couple of low levelled NPC guards that came our way as stealthily as possible. However, I had not the skills that I could use to mask my presence from being detected by guard dogs and the higher levelled NPCs. We just entered a hidden passageway; which Popo called the rat¡¯s way and found ourselves in the Northern Quadrant courtyard when two dogs with its owners came towards our way. ¡°Rose, whatever you do, cover their mouth!¡± I gave my order to Rose as I immediately sprung from the door and killed the first dog. Popo too did likewise as he swiped down another dog with his shortsword. Since the dogs arrived first, the other two guards were lagging behind and that gave Rose enough time to cast her skills and entrapped the two of them. She gagged their mouths and locked their joints before I drove my dagger directly into their hearts. ¡°Hurry, we have no time to cover their tracks.¡± I urged the rest as we continued our run using the cover of the night to mask our presence. The guards here were mostly in the range of level 50-100. Since I was level 75 right now, I could take on any one of them easily. With Mimi¡¯s Buff and Popo¡¯s quickness and quietness of feet, the infiltration of the place was faster than I expected. Before long, we arrived at a housing complex area. Popo was the first to tell me of our destination. ¡°This is the Northern Quadrant, po. And most likely, Elly would be held right over there. The largest building in this part, the Royal Guest-Chamber.¡± ¡°Most likely huh. Are you sure, Popo?¡± I did not want this to end up as a wild goose chase hence my scepticism. ¡°No, but do you know any other place that might have held Elly up?¡± ¡°Well, if we do not know, perhaps we could make use of those who know.¡± I made a half-hearted suggestion. Popo was right. I did not know any other places that might hold Elly. Her fate and my success now lay in these two Bunnian¡¯s guesswork. But it did not take long for them to be proven right as we travelled further down the Northern Quadrant plaza as quietly as possible. ¡°Be careful, from here onwards, this is where it gets tricky.¡± Popo was pointing at the place of our interest. Even without having him reminding me, I could see that this particular building was the hub of all the activities. And unfortunately, that came with no less than 200 guards surrounding this place by my hastily done count. That excluded some guards with dogs roaming around, but far away to detect us immediately. Most likely, the two pairs we first saw when entering the Royal Palace were sent to scout around the whole place. I was worried that the guards that we disposed of earlier might raise an alarm if they did not return but Popo dismissed it easily. ¡°This place is too huge to scout just by the two of them. Even 10 of them would take no less than a few hours to return and report to their officers.¡± A relief but nonetheless, we needed to make our moves before anyone suspected that we were here. All of the guards in front of us were posted strategically at every entrance that we could think of entering. Not only that, but their way over the top amounts of guards covering this building ¨C a three-story mansion, housing perhaps 30 rooms judging by the amounts of windows it had ¨C made their movements dynamic and extremely alert. I could safely assume they were bordering on being paranoid. And for good reasons too. ¡°Normally, this place would always be deserted, save for some guests of the King,¡± Popo explained. ¡°So, this is unusual?¡± The three of us hunched behind a small labyrinth of hedge fence that stood 15 feet tall. Enough to hide us from being visually detected. Rose took to her surrounding like a duck to water. She assimilated herself amongst the vines and was gone in an instant using a skill called ¡®Plant Camouflage¡¯. Her new set of skills was sure pretty nifty indeed. ¡°You can say so. When the King comes to this place, not only he would bring his personal bodyguards which easily topped level 300 and more, but the security would be made tighter.¡± Popo continued to explain our situation. ¡°So, you are saying that the King will come here.¡± Like it or not, if the King of this Kingdom really came to this particular place, saving Elly would be way tougher than I had first imagined. But, there was no way in hell I would back out over a ¡®little¡¯ odd like this. ¡°I know Aldemar Thoran. My wifey and I had served his Father and him for quite some time. Unlike his peaceful Father, the current King¡­¡± Popo immediately went silent. I was quite surprised by the sudden change of his tone and demeanour.Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. However, Mimi completed what he wanted to say. ¡°The current King is not just only a warmonger, but a superstitious man. Extremely superstitious.¡± ¡°What that got to do with Elly? Why did he even want to kidnap her? Just by being a Byrnhildr?¡± I wanted more information from Mimi which she duly indulged me with. ¡°By killing the descendant of Byrnhildr, especially a pure young maiden like Elly, it could grant him tremendous power. God-like powers.¡± ¡°What nonsense!¡± I had seen many tyrants back when I was still active in the Special Force. One thing they had in common was their lust of power to the point of projecting themselves as the God¡¯s chosen and special one or even the reincarnation of the God¡¯s Himself. ¡°And that is the reason why Elly had been raised here. Like a lamb, she would be slaughtered for the feast. Her running away had only prolonged the evitable.¡± I could see that it pained Mimi to say these words. I guessed she realized it far too late about Elly¡¯s real identity and by the time she wanted to help her, the King took the first initiative. ¡°Might be nonsense to you, Ghost. But the King would do anything, even sacrificing Elly to some hearsay.¡± Mimi then concluded to tell me what she knew that would have happened to Elly if we fail to save her. ¡°And perhaps, with this new found power, he could further his agenda to conquer more lands, or even waging a war on nearby Kingdoms.¡±
You have now learned the Key Word ¡°Aessir¡±.
Something new suddenly came up on my screen. I had never seen a ¡®Key Word¡¯ before. But I left it alone as I could not be distracted for now. Looking ahead, I checked a few of the items that I planned to use earlier. ¡°Well, what shall we do, po?¡± Good question, Popo. I gave out a bitter smile. They looked at me weirdly, like I had lost it once again and tried to do something funny. Or suicidal. Or both. ¡°Rose and I will distract all the guards. You two, once you see the opportunity, run inside and find Elly. If you can find her, save her and then run away.¡± ¡°It¡¯s crazy, po! Why are you always like that? Did you think you might be special¡­¡± I shushed him immediately. ¡°You two know well the layout of that place. And I know too damn well how to distract some paranoid guards.¡± ¡°B-But¡­¡± ¡°No buts, Popo. Elly needs us. The more we delay, the more danger she will be in.¡± ¡°I trust you, Ghost. I¡¯ll let you do whatever you want. But just be safe, alright.¡± Mimi was the calm one. She nodded at me while caressing Popo¡¯s ear. Good that she saw my logic. Or whatever that was called logic anyway. No sane player would attract the horde all by himself. ¡°And give me the signal like I¡¯d mentioned earlier once you have Elly with you, alright.¡± The two of them slowly nodded at me. Still reluctant to let me proceed with my crazy plan, but they knew it was better than going head first against the whole enemy that was now in front of us. And who knows there might be more hidden and perhaps stronger enemies somewhere within this place. Too many uncertainties and too little time to plan a countermeasure. Well, I still had Rose with me. Looking at her, I asked, ¡°Are you ready, young girl?¡± She nodded enthusiastically. One of her new attributes was Fearless. She knew nothing of danger and would not be backed down by adversity. Even when she was still a seedling, she had displayed this attributes without actually having registered it as her passive skills. Perhaps what Mimi told me was true after all. She would take after how I treated her or what she felt about me. All her skills reflected how much she had changed and dare I say, I was very well damn impressed with her growth. She might be a proper Queen after all. Checking my previously bought items, I gave out a grin. It was that time again; to burn things. If I had not known any better, I might think I had been using too much of the same techniques. But it worked, so why change it? Only that I hoped I could use some magic instead of this crude way. The guards were all physical types from what Popo had told me previously. Those who used magic were too frail to be in the frontline and guard duties. So, either they were inside the building or somewhere else within the vicinity. Now, my plan was simple. I would burn this whole place down. That was all to it. And when I mean whole, I really meant the whole building and all the surrounding areas. It would be good if it spread to other buildings in the other area too. I had spent good hundreds of gold coins that I had painstakingly kept to buy all the items necessary and made sure it was enough to perhaps burn the whole Royal Palace. I wished so anyway. ¡°Once I¡¯m done preparing, I¡¯ll give you the signal like usual. Just be on standby until then.¡± Popo still shook his head in disbelief as I made my way as silently as possible to the nearest building, just to the east of the mansion. There were about 6 other buildings surrounding our target building. The rule of infiltrating a heavily armed place to rescue a hostage place was simple. Get in, distract and misdirect the enemies while the main force would enter stealthily and do their job. Once done, disengage the enemy immediately. Simple but dauntingly hard to do. We could not fight them head-on. Not only it would take ages, but Elly¡¯s safety could be compromised. And moving stealthily like a ninja was not in our arsenal today. If we had those, I could actually do this rescue mission solo. If stealth was not applicable, then the opposite might work. All I just needed to do was to make a very, very, very big scene about it. ¡°Are we done, Papa?¡± Rose came to me as I finished laying out a pile of highly flammable and explosive mixture around a small building and the nearby areas. Contrary to the mansion we saw, all the other buildings and areas were left unguarded. And no dogs either that could spell us trouble. The force that we needed to deal with was all in one place. ¡°This is the sixth one. So far, we are done.¡± The guards did not know our numbers and I planned to keep it that way. ¡°We will stand by there, the nearest building to the mansion. And then, you will do what I had told you, Rose.¡± She nodded at my words. As we made way towards our designated location, I hoped the other two Bunnians would be ready too. Once I started to blow this place up, our mission to rescue Elly would begin in earnest. They were to wait until I gave them the signal. ***** Chapter 28: You Are Not Alone (Part 4) --------- Part 4 --------- When the first building and its surrounding area caught fire, it did not get much the attention I needed. I was hoping for panic from these paranoid guards. But I could only see about a dozen of guards went to check it out. Though I could not make out what they were talking about, this was not good enough. ¡°Looks like I needed some more firepower then.¡± I lighted up the building that Rose and I hid and once it caught fire, we immediately ran to the next one. ¡°Look!! There¡¯s someone¡¯s there!!¡± What the guard saw was moving bushes. With Rose new ability called Plant Control and Animate, she could now use any of the plants provided that they were lower level than her. Though the numbers that she could animate was limited to just one, it was more than enough to actually to create the scene that I wanted her to. ¡°And another one is over there, behind the tree!¡± ¡°And over there!!¡± Looked like it worked. With the two adjacent building now caught on fire and the silhouette of the ¡®arsonist¡¯ was spotted, it was no longer just a prank, a natural occurrence, a simple mishap or something to be ignored. The enemy had come as they feared. The guards were starting to mobilize as I predicted. And then something interesting happened. The two buildings caught fire so well that it exploded and took out a few guards that tried to disperse the fire. The loud noise had an immediate effect. It took every one of the guards that stationed here by surprise and now they were in a panic. Their paranoid had finally kicked in. Just when I wanted to move on to the next one, I ordered Rose to go and create more diversion as for how I had planned with her earlier. She would control or animate simple movement on bushes or small trees. With her current skills, that was all she could do. Hoping her to create a Treant or a Mandragora was an idle thought at best. Not impossible but for now, this was more than good enough. And Rose could just hide if needed by easily becoming a plant herself. Nifty skills indeed.This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. ¡°The enemy is over there!¡± ¡°We are surrounded!! Call the Captain!!¡± I disposed a couple of guards that unknowingly reached near my hiding place where I planned to burn the third building. It was farther than the other two, situated in the middle between the next two buildings in order of my plan. I left the two bodies there purposely as I burned the third building. When it caught on fire, I moved on to my next plan; to actually expose myself and fight my enemies head on while Rose would burn the last three houses and distract them further. If these guards did not see any enemies, they might reconsider to separate their forces. Or worse still, to actually strengthened the place they were guarding. ¡°Oi, bloody feckers! I have come for your King¡¯s head!¡± Well, I couldn¡¯t tell them the real reason why I came, right? Besides, mentioning that I wanted to kill the King during the Siege event would definitely make me their number one target. ¡°T-The enemy! I-I saw him!! He is¡­¡± Unfortunately, he could not finish his words as I stabbed him with a dagger from the back, killing him with one hit. ¡°Over there!!¡± As the lifeless body felled, two more guards came my way. Surrounded by the flaming building, I let out a loud laugh that penetrated the whole place. ¡°Is this the best of this pathetic King¡¯s guards can offer?!!¡± I purposely gave out an uber loud laugh. ¡°WAHAHAHA!!! Where are your Champions?! Your leaders?!! All of you are dog¡¯s shit for all I care!¡± I dodged the first blow that came at me and struck the dagger into his side. He fell down and I kicked the hilt of the dagger deeper into his body. His HP dropped to less than 50% when the second guard came. I took out my sword and before he could do anything, I sidestepped him and slashed his back. The critical counter hit reduced his HP to zero immediately. The first guard tried to stand up but I ended him right at that movement in the most cold-blooded fashion I could muster. As his head rolled on the ground, all the guards that ran towards me froze on their tracks. They were shaking uncontrollably and the look of shock on their face was priceless. In word one, they were horrified. ¡°A-A demon!!¡± ¡°M-Murderer!! Kill him, guys!!¡± ¡°Kill that bloody murderer!!¡± Looked like I finally did it. All the guards were NPCs that could now be killed during this event. If they never lay their fingers on Elly, Popo and Mimi, I would never even have thought of touching them like this. What was more to kill them in such a manner. But¡­ I pulled my hood from the robe that I wore over the top of my armour and then took out my sword and shield. I was not planning to play the support character this time. I had come here to be these bloody people¡¯s worst nightmare. As five of the guards, each level between 60-80 came charging at me, I licked my lips. Finally, I would have some fun. Chapter 29: The Rise of a Demon (Part 1) Chapter 29: The Rise of a Demon --------- Part 1 --------- As I left the trails of the guard¡¯s body behind me, what I faced next was two lines of heavily armoured guards equipped with spears and swords. Looked like they were beginning to take me more seriously now. Well, they had too since I had personally trimmed their ranks by no less than 15 of them. ¡°All of you goons can come together at me!¡± I sneered while waving my finger, beckoning them to me. I needed to trash talk a little until Rose finished with her job. Just to buy some time and to attract any attention away from her. ¡°You are just one. We are many! We are not foolish enough to play your game, stranger!¡± And the timing could not be more perfect than this. Rose had finally burned the fourth building. And as the flame rose up the air followed by a couple of explosions, I snickered at the group. ¡°Who said I was alone? We too are many. But to you guys, I¡¯m more than enough!¡± ¡°Hurry! Run to the Captain and inform him¡­¡± I shut the lead guard up immediately with an arrow right into the middle at the back of his head. *Point Blank! Critical Headshot!* Though unregistered in the HELP Menu, the Point Blank or PB attack is one of the deadliest if not the deadliest attack in NPO. Anyone, players or even NPCs like Elly could deal a Point Blank attack provided they met the five criteria that I¡¯d stumbled upon. First, it must be either a projectile or a thrown weapon. Any melee weapon that was thrown could be considered a projectile weapon when determining whether it was a Point Blank or not. However, I had yet to try with active projectile skills to determine the extent of a PB attack. Second, it was the varying range of our to-hit-target which needed much experiences to determine. No enemy had a fixed range for PB to succeed. We just had to hazard a guess and for a human foe, it was in the range of a few swords length. Third and fourth would be the surprise element or being at the enemy¡¯s blindside and also combat alertness of the foe. And last but the most troublesome criteria was the specific part where a PB attack could hit and dealt the most damage. Hitting a human foe on his head would be best in my current situation. I did not know about the attack modifiers or whatever mechanics that went behind it; I was more interested in the end result. His HP diminished to zero instantly and that poor guy died right where he stood. The distance was good enough for a Point Blank attack and all of them did not pay me any attention when I changed my equips. Unfortunately, I could only do this trick just once. ¡°Who¡¯s next? You, you¡­ or all of you?¡± I reequipped myself with sword and shield and taunted them further. ¡°Men¡­ attack!!¡± One of the guards was having none of it anymore and decided to end my night. And it looked like all of them was going to charge directly at me. Silly. They should have listened to that guy I shot earlier. I had come prepared for them. Once they were roughly 20 feet away from me, I flicked the tip of my sword on the flint stone that I laid beside me beforehand and the spark that was created burned the soil beneath me. It caught fire and travelled fast towards a designated spot I had planned earlier. I had timed it well enough that when they reached the hidden mound of explosives ¨C which I had planted several around the area ¨C it would blow them right away and perhaps taking a massive amount of HP together with them. I saved it in case if they wanted to overwhelm me with their numbers.You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. The explosion did work well enough and I only had to just give them the coup de grace. The heavily armoured ones were ended through a stab from the back of their neck while the lighter armoured one was either killed immediately or near death when I slit their throats. ¡°H-He¡­ he is a demon!!¡± Those who survived tried to run. And I had no reason to kill them yet. For now, they would serve me yet another purpose. Once I had cleared my way, Rose had burned the sixth and final building prior to the mansion. As the flame and the smoke engulfed the whole area coupled with a few more deafening sounds of explosions, it was time for my next plan. I had scattered the guards well enough and taken the liberty to thin out their ranks. By this time, their forces were left with roughly 70% of their strength ¨C scattered throughout the whole area, trying to control the fire and captured their ¡®enemies¡¯. It was total chaos and panic. Just what I had hoped for. And Rose¡¯s next duty was to rendezvous with me in the most dangerous of place ¨C the main entrance of the mansion. When the two of us appeared, the guards that I had purposed let off the hook just finished his reports. The moment he saw me, he was terrified. ¡°T-T-The demon is here!!¡± ¡°And so I have come ¨C for your King¡¯s head!¡± I stabbed my sword on the ground and shouted ahead. ¡°Who are you, stranger?!¡± A large man with a thick moustache that could clearly be seen from his helmet took notice of me immediately. ¡°A demon, like he said.¡± ¡°Nonsense. You are no demon! You are nothing but a mere puny man in front of me.¡± That big thick moustache guy was at level 115, presumably the highest level NPCs here. ¡°Really? Come on you big muzzy ¡®tache. Let¡¯s find out shall we?¡± As if to answer my taunt and insult to his look, he immediately ordered a couple of his men, a level 100 guard to rush over. But before they could reach anywhere near me, Rose had stopped their movements and lifted them high from the ground using her improved version of Vine Hold called Thorn Tangle Trap. The vines were sharp, spiky and Rose could infuse poison too which I gladly let her did it. The sight caught the one who spoke to me by surprise. The two men struggled for a while before finally succumbed to their torment. I took this chance to continously provoke him. ¡°That¡¯s from my little helper. Now, I¡¯ll give you, muzzy ¡®tache and your men two choices. One, you let me kill your King or two, you will let me kill you and then I will kill your King.¡± I let out a laugh to mock them. My demands were absurd at best. His face was twisted with anger as I continued to sneer at him while patting Rose¡¯s head. She immediately went on behind me and then disappeared. Her next stop was to inform the Bunnian couple to start making their moves. ¡°I. Will. Kill. You!!¡± He came charging at me with a huge axe. But I had seen a bigger axe than this and even then, I was unflinching. I charged at him immediately and went as close as possible before he could swing it at me. An axe might be powerful, but if I stopped it from being swung, it was as good as being on a lifeless statue. I lunged forward, taking a couple of huge step inside his attack range with my left foot planted between his feet and before he could realize what happened, I then bashed my shield onto his chest. He flung backwards as his axe slashed nothing but air. The guy was two head taller than me and was fully armoured so slashing with a sword wouldn¡¯t do me any good. I needed to stab or use a blunt attack on him instead. ¡°Oi, I have seen bigger axe than yours. Is this the best you could do?¡± I stood up immediately and seized my one and only chance. I knew better than to let him stood before I did. I went over and kicked his head as he tried to defend himself from my attack. But his axe was too slow and lumbering. The blade yet again slashed air as I kicked his head once more to the ground. ¡°M-Men¡­ k-kill¡­ him!¡± Finally, I had been waiting for this moment. Fightingthe enemy one by one was too time-consuming. If I had all of them coming at me, then I could have finished this faster. The ¡®only¡¯ problem was I had neither the AOE attacks nor skills that could render these people out instantly. Numbering about 60 of them, it needed massive AOE indeed. Fortunately, Popo, Mimi and to the certain extent, even Rose could compensate for whatever I lacked in. ¡°Landslide!!¡± ¡°Wind of Blades!!¡± ¡°Thorn Entrapment!¡± And about time too. As I prepared myself for the onslaught, my backup finally arrived. ***** Chapter 29: The Rise of a Demon (Part 2 & 3) --------- Part 2 --------- We did not need to kill any more than necessary. Our job was to rescue Elly first and then find a safe way to run and hide. And that was what we did. We did not kill all of those guards, but just enough to actually paved a path towards the inside of the mansion. Once all of us made our way, I locked the door and had Rose bolted it further with her vines and roots. In fact, I went out of my way to actually have her filled this place like proper underground ruins even though this mansion was pristine, elegant and still very much in use. Rose¡¯s MP and Stamina was no doubt thoroughly depleted by the time she finished with half I asked her to do. ¡°Papa, I¡¯m sorry.¡± She apologized to me but it was enough for now. Popo and Mimi had gone ahead of us in search of Elly. I placed more of my flammable mixtures around the area inside the mansion as strategically as possible. ¡°It¡¯s alright, Rose. You have done well. Now, I¡¯ll put this thing here and if they even manage to come in, I¡¯ll burn them like fries.¡± Rose gave a chuckle and asked for a hug. Though it was still early, at least I could give her one now for her good job so far. ¡°Ghost, we have found Elly!¡± Mimi came rushing to me bearing the good news. But it was not for long. ¡°Popo is having trouble. There¡¯s a bunch of powerful fighters that he is currently engaged with. And I can¡¯t get anywhere near them!¡± ¡°And Elly?¡± ¡°S-She is being held at knife¡¯s point. That¡¯s the reason why Popo could not go all out.¡± So, they were blackmailing Popo? Bloody wretched people. ¡°Are these people the same as the one that attacked you people earlier?¡± Mimi nodded. I uttered a few more curses before I ordered Mimi to lead us. We immediately hurried up to the third floor. Rose had been designated to seal all possible entrance except for one; a small window by the fireplace. Our getaway was of the utmost importance and I had Rose on the duty to guard it with her life. In addition, she had covered the whole floor with her new form of attack, Gas Poison. It reminded me how much the resemblance between her and the Red Alraune I once fought before. ¡°Popo!¡± Mimi¡¯s shout reminded me of my current task in front of me. The destination was the biggest room on the highest floor of this mansion. And we arrived at the nick of time as Popo was pushed back out of the door. I held him by his shoulder and looked inside. The unconscious Elly; who wore somewhat of a weird see-through gown was surrounded by four people, all with various costumes but one similar pattern; a spear piercing the shield on their sleeves and chest. This was most likely the King¡¯s personal secret Army called the Vastiel. And from what Popo told me, these people were not just powerful but also cold-blooded. Surely, they were not pushovers like the one downstairs. And because of that, the Bunnian was apprehensive to go all out with them. ¡°Ghost!¡± Popo greeted our arrival but did not avert his eyes and sword away from our enemies. Elly was held by the most behind of their member at a dagger¡¯s point. ¡°Let her go!¡± I wanted to make sure the stands of things here. We had to hurry up before the real reinforcement came. ¡°And to what extent shall we listen to your barking?¡± The front most of the Vastiel looked at me with contempt waving and thrusting his rapier into the air towards my way.This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report. ¡°You can¡¯t even lay a finger on her by your King¡¯s behest. Am I right? So, your threat doesn¡¯t work on me. I¡¯ll give you one choice. Let her go and I¡¯ll kill you with mercy!¡± All the Vastiel looked at each other and then broke into a snicker. Looked like the promise of painless death was not even a motivation for them. I looked at Mimi and nodded at her. As I casually walked between the two Bunnians and Vastiel, I wore my ring, Loki¡¯s Mischief. Patting Popo as I passed by him, I whispered. ¡°Once Elly is free from their grasp, go all out.¡± I was unarmed. The four of them looked at each other yet again. Seeing a foe entering the battle without a weapon was perhaps new to them. ¡°So, the mage has now becomes the shield?¡± The first one drove his rapier directly towards me, perhaps trying to gauge my reaction speed. It was not surprising that he looked down on me and did not cast any of his skills. Or perhaps at an impasse, all of us could not cast any skill, be it magic or physical. Doing so would break the deadlock and would ensure chaos and free for all fight. The Vastiels were no fools alright. But unfortunately, their very own downfall was to look down on me. ***** --------- Part 3 --------- ¡°Now, Mimi!¡± Mimi casted a light skill, called Sun¡¯s Warmth. Normally used to light our way in the dark tunnels or underground or create artificial lighting for plants, I had her purposely cast this skill at the highest level. It was bright enough that it affected all of the others, Popo included with a temporary blindness. Since I knew the plan beforehand, I had closed my eyes to avoid the effect directly and thus took a direct hit from the rapier attack. In one single thrust, my HP dropped below the halfway line. It was a risk that I needed to take to divert their attention from Mimi. ¡°Argh!! I can¡¯t see!¡± I took this opportunity to dash right through their ranks towards the last member who held Elly hostage. Because of the blinding flash, he covered his eyes and let down his guard. I went behind him and drove a dagger right through his back. Surprisingly, the damage did not kill him outright, but it had winded him so much that his first reaction was to let Elly off and tried to slash anything that was in front of him. Since Elly was unconscious, she was an easy target after all. I had to grab her away and rolled on the floor covering her. I then casted my next few skills towards the enemy, starting with Heal. Wearing Loki¡¯s Mischief, all the effects were reversed. Mimi next move was to cast all the buffs on me. I was not out of danger just yet though I had Elly in my arms. I was still in the enemy¡¯s line and the effect of the blinding light was fading fast. ¡°You won¡¯t escape here alive, scum!!¡± One of the Vastiel who managed to recover first tried to strike me with a skill attack. I tried to move away but with Elly on my arms, it proved to be a little too late. I covered my eyes and bit my lips as I offered my back and myself for the attack that would have ended my life. ¡°Not so fast, Vastiel!¡± Suddenly, I could feel someone came in between us. As the metal clanged behind my back, I turned around and saw Popo. As he blocked the attack, he unleashed one of his own and the force sent the enemy back towards the far end of the room. Truth to be told, I was extremely surprised. The lazy rabbit had saved my life. And Elly¡¯s too. ¡°Go now, Ghost! Leave these King¡¯s dogs to me!¡± Suddenly, Popo¡¯s body was engulfed with bluish fire. Upon seeing what happened, I heard Mimi¡¯s sudden shout of exasperation. ¡°No, Popo!!¡± ¡°Meister¡¯s Edict, unleashed!!¡± Surrounding Popo next was bright inscriptions and then it turned into¡­ spirits? Instinctively, I got a bad feeling that this would not end well for me or Elly if we continued to stay here. ¡°Hurry, run away with my wifey, po!¡± He barked yet another order. The Vastiels were trying to regroup. ¡°But what about you?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll return these dogs some undue favour for how they treat my wifey back then!¡± ¡°Popo!!! No¡­ you cannot unleash that!!¡± Mimi screamed and tried to reach him but was pushed back by Popo¡¯s new skill and ending up burning her hands for all her trouble. I could not wonder what would have happened. But it seemed Popo was not messing around. This was the first time I had seen such skill and I was pretty sure getting caught it in was a bad idea. With Elly on my shoulder, I grabbed Mimi¡¯s hand and pulled her away. I turned my back and shouted, ¡°You better be safe Popo.¡± He just chuckled as the four Vastiels simultaneously attacked him. ¡°I¡¯ll be back to eat my wifey¡¯s food. Make sure she is safe or else, you will be next.¡± He let out a thunderous roar that stunned his enemies. ¡°Time for me to show what Royal Meister, 7th level Champion, Popo is made of.¡± That was the last words of his that I heard before we descended down the stairs. ***** Chapter 29: The Rise of a Demon (Part 4 & 5) --------- Part 4 --------- ¡°Popo¡­¡± Mimi was still crying. We could even hear the sound of battles that came from upstairs. Every time the metal clanged or the wall shook, Mimi¡¯s face was shrouded in fear and despair. ¡°Mimi...¡± I looked at her and patted her ears. ¡°Come, let us go.¡± She shook her head. ¡°Mimi, we do not have much time.¡± The sound of the wall breaking on the ground floor was earth rending. The guards outside were relentlessly trying to break into the mansion. If it was not because of Rose¡¯s vines that acted as a barricade, we would have yet another problem on our hands. ¡°Rose, carry Mimi with you.¡± By the look of things, this Bunnian too was out of commission. Seeing her husband unleashing that weird skill had suddenly sapped her out of her will and whatever strength she had. ¡°Papa¡­ what will you do? The guards will break into the house soon.¡± Looking at the three of the girls, I just heaved a big sigh. ¡°Rose, can you carry these two girls?¡± Rose nodded. ¡°I can try, but I won¡¯t be at full speed, Papa.¡± ¡°It¡¯s alright, young lady. I¡¯ll buy you all the time you will need to run away.¡± ¡°W-What¡­??¡± I silenced Rose straight away. It was part of my initial plan. I never think that I would have exited the place safely after we rescued Elly anyway. ¡°Leave now.¡± However, Rose was unmoved. She still looked at me with a slight tear in her eyes. ¡°I said, LEAVE NOW!!¡± I pushed Rose away and prepared myself for the incoming enemies. ¡°Papa¡­¡± She whimpered but I waved her away. Reluctantly, she then carried Elly by extending her vines, making into a makeshift plant-like cocoon stretcher while pulling the lifeless Mimi¡¯s hand. ¡°Papa¡­¡± ¡°Leave or else all of us shall die today.¡± Rose head tilted down as she left me alone. But not before I gave a pat on her head.If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°Good job, girl. Now, go.¡± As she finally left the place, the wall of the mansion finally crumbled. I had prepared myself for this moment. And in came the guards led by the same muzzy ¡®tache who I¡¯d the pleasure to pummel earlier before we entered this place. But this time, he was no longer looking down on me. He was casting his skills and bellowed his anger at me. ¡°I shall have your head, stranger!!¡± I snickered at him. ¡°Come, arsehole. What are you waiting for?¡± I lighted a flame and as I threw it towards the pile of the mixture that I laid previously, this was it; a suicide mission. Listening to the sound of the battle upstairs, I too had my hands filled now. But if one of us needed to die today, that person would be¡­ Me. ***** --------- Part 5 --------- The next day. A certain news travelled fast like wildfire throughout the whole Kingdom of Asgardia ¨C a terrorist attack with a very sick and evil aim; to destroy the Kingdom from within by killing its very own ruler, the Great King Aldemar Thoran. Disguising itself as its citizen, the hated and God-forsaken enemies successfully penetrated its rank by earning and gaining the trust of its people. But it did not take long for the evil to bear its fangs. Betraying whatever trust they had gained, they unscrupulously launched the attack towards the sacred Royal Palace of the Royal City of Aessirun, the symbol of peace and harmony of its people. Fortunately, the Kingdom through the sacrifice of its honoured warriors and defenders withstood the act of the regicide. The King himself paid honours to his finest people and condemned the attack. And thus, a bounty was put throughout the whole land. Dead or alive, the enemies must now be hunted at all cost. The main culprit and the mastermind of the attack have been finally identified. It was the Player Character called Ghost. As the witnesses lived to tell of his evil deeds, there was one word that went through all their lips - ¡®demon¡¯. With evil flames and destructions accompanying his every step, he and his demonic imps laid claims to countless innocent lives who died valiantly to protect their King and its people. As his name and face plastered throughout whatever free space of the wall and flyers distributed amongst PCs and NPCs alike, it gathered news like no others. It became the talk of the town. Debated, discussed and then rightly or wrongly, condemned by each and every one who heard the news. ¡°T-T-This¡­¡± The hand that received the flyers trembled. As he looked at the two girls beside him, both of them too shared similar expression. Especially the youngest looking one. The other girl tried to console her but it was a little too late as she cried uncontrollably. The passersby did not pay them any attention. They had their own thoughts to entertain. What happened the previous night while all of them were logged off was beyond any sane player could ever do. Ghost was once of their party member. Though differing in opinions, no doubt that each one of them respected and regarded him highly. Especially since the last and only quest they had together back in the mines. And for what he did to one of their party members, he now had their admiration and thanks. ¡°W-We¡­ we have to tell Guild Master Ed about this¡­¡± Chapter 30 Epilogue: From Zero to Back to Hero? Chapter 30 Epilogue: From Zero to Back to Hero? The storm was coming that night. The lightning that flashed across the sky gave a creepy but solemn reminder of what lay ahead. Thunders clapped and then echoed throughout the whole town and with it came the first drop of the rain. Two silhouettes ¨C one tall and the other who was at his waist¡¯s height ¨C could be seen running away covering their heads from the falling rain. As they raced through the street, they finally came to a junction and took a right turn into one of the town¡¯s neighbourhood. Their pace was constant, only to be disrupted by the occasional tangled of feet by the shorter silhouette. ¡°Come, boy!! Hurry up or else we are going to set soak right through our bones!!¡± The front-most figure did not stop even once. The boy behind just picked up himself with a groan. He looked forward towards the disappearing shadow and without hesitation, went after him. Before long, they arrived in front of a porch of a single story bungalow. ¡°Buggers! We make it here in one piece after all!!¡± The tall silhouette patted the young boy¡¯s back and looking towards the rumbling sky ahead, he said with a dry smile, ¡°Looks like we are in time too before the storm lands.¡± With that, he cracked a laugh before another few claps of the thunder disrupted his self-immersion of a job well done. He then proceeded to bang on the front door of the house. And each of the knock became louder in response to the lightning flashes and thunders that echoed throughout the area. And with it, the storm arrived at last. ¡°Blasted weather!¡± He continued to hit on the door as hard as he could. ¡°Coming!!¡± A deep loud voice could be heard yelling from within the house. ¡°Who could be at this unearthly hour?!¡± After a series of heavy footsteps, the door slowly creaked open. What appeared was a middle-aged lady with a scornful look. Perhaps her sleep was disrupted by the sudden loud knock in front of her house. Or perhaps it was the bad weather. Whatever it was, the look on her face immediately changed into a warm smile when she saw who was her ¡®unearthly hour¡¯ guest. ¡°Darling?!!¡± ¡°Hey, wifey! I¡¯m back.¡± And as the man pulled the young boy forward as if to urge him to enter the house, he then added, ¡°And I brought a little guest with us.¡± ***** I remembered vividly the first night I arrived on Mrs Greene doorstep. She was as grumpy as ever. But beneath that fa?ade of hers, she warmly welcomed me in. And that house became my new home.The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. ¡°A man must be of few words. His actions and his fists are all we need to gauge a man¡¯s worth and value. A man who talks more than acts, who prefers to idle around and not act is both a coward and a pansy.¡± This very words stuck in my mind for a very, very long time. Living with them, I was exposed to many of Mr Greene¡¯s ideals. Those words were amongst them. And soon, his ideals became mine too as he trained me in the ways of warriors and fighters of old. However, I was not trained in the art of deception and betrayal. The cowards and the pansies, who talked their ways through the ranks and idle around in the safety of their bunker had decided my fate. And those who I loved dearly too. Even until today, I could still recall Mrs Greene¡¯s expressions when she saw my face at her doorstep nearly eight months after her husband was killed in the war. Technically to her, I should be dead too. She knew nothing that happened to both of us. Only that we were ¡®killed¡¯ in action. What happened though was something else. I was a traitor to the country. A man who had no shame that sold secrets to the enemies and thus was killed mercilessly and had his badge dishonoured. But Mr Greene knew better and he paid with his lives. And I paid with my future. If being a traitor was not enough and changing my name thereafter, the car accident that paralyzed me from the waist down had truly and utterly fecked whatever life I still had left. The world which I had sacrificed my life for had finally deserted me. ***** Regrets? Of course, I had lots. A long list of what ifs. But right now in this world of Noble Path Online, I had no regrets. Here, I had new allies and friends. Those who always had my back. And for them, I would do anything. Anything at all. And yet, all I could do now was to just wait. I could only look at them helplessly as my mind just wandered off from time to time contemplating my own fate back in the real life. Seemed like it repeating itself here. However, at my current predicament, I did not give a jack shit to my fate. What was done, was done. I was more concerned about them. The young, beautiful and slender-bodied blonde girl who lay unconscious right opposite of me. The green child of mine resting just beside her while calling for my name in her sleep. And of course Mimi too who, amidst her tears and shaking hands was nursing her loved one. For now, this was our respite. Without any worry, this place was as safe as it could ever be. Only the sound of the running spring water that flowed from the statue that made for a good and peaceful melody was our constant companion since we first arrived here. So, there were no regrets. Despite making the whole Kingdom of Asgard as our enemy, I would be willing to do it ten times over. A man¡¯s worth was through his actions and fists. And through my actions and fists, I would protect my loved ones in one way or another. Hmm¡­ My self-talk ended up with a sudden and bitter realization. I bit my lip and clenched my fist in response. Feck it! What the fecking fucktard I had been doing all these while then?! If I could do it here, what stopping me from picking the pieces of my own shit in the real world? Mrs Greene was right. I was a sorry excuse for myself. Special Force my arse. I gave a bitter smile and some muffled laugh under more of my own self-cursing. I really was something else all these while, huh? As I punched the ground beside where I was seated in a form of resolution to myself, the blonde girl opposite of me was finally starting to show sign of being conscious. I immediately stood up, went to her and knelt beside her body while caressing her hair. As my hands touched her cheeks, her eyes slowly opened. Chapter 31: What Lies Ahead (Part 1 & 2) Chapter 30: What Lies Ahead --------- Part 1 --------- ¡°G-Ghost?¡± ¡°Hey, babe.¡± ¡°W-What¡­ h-happened?¡± Elly let out a little groan as she tried to sit up. ¡°Nothing much¡­¡± I answered briefly as I eased her to her seat with her back against the wall. She took a while to composed herself as I looked on worriedly at her. I feared that she might suffer from ¡®who-knows-what¡¯ negative status effects that this game kept dishing out to me and my allies. Fortunately, this time around my fear was unfounded. ¡°What about Mimi and Popo? A-And Rose?¡± I would not answer for her. I just moved out of the way and let the scene played itself. And when she saw what happened to the rest, the colour of her face drained. She immediately covered her mouth with both of her hands and her tears started to flow freely. Perhaps she finally understood what had happened after she was taken forcefully last night. ¡°Mimi?! A-and¡­¡± She tried to move and get closer to them, but I held her down firmly. ¡°Let the two of them alone.¡± Wiping her tears away, Elly stared at me with the same teary eyes. I never saw that sort of face on any woman who was close to me before and it made me a felt little awkward. ¡°W-What about you?¡± I pointed to myself and laughed it off. I waved Elly away and not wanting to her get worried about me, I turned myself and faced Mimi. ¡°How¡¯s he holding up?¡± ¡°Better¡­ but we needed more elixirs and potions for him to properly recover.¡± Mimi explained as she wiped her sweat from her paws. All of us except for Rose were inflicted with debilitating status effects. Elly was inflicted with the status <> that rendered her unconscious and her maximum HP and MP were reduced by half. Once the status timer wore off, only then she woke up and her status began to recover to normal. Popo was the worse of us lot. Not only he was inflicted with <> and <> ¨C two status effects that halved his vitals, slowed down his recovering process and kept on decreasing his HP and MP over time ¨C he too suffered grievous bodily injuries while trying to save both of our lives back then. The scar across his face that blinded his left eye was his battle trophy. If it was not for his last-minute burst of skill effects that destroyed the whole building and giving us some time to run away, our fate could be much worse than this. Though Mimi was exhausted and her MP diminished to zero, she kept on trying her best to help her husband. However, without proper places and items to help her, Popo might not make it. But that was our current challenge. We were not in any towns or civilizations that could offer us those items. We were underground hidden from everyone; players and NPCs alike. Truth to be told, with the price currently on my head, I was sure to attract unwanted attention anywhere I went within this Kingdom. Attacking the Royal Palace was considered a major taboo and all of us were now paying its price in one way or another. ¡°15000 fame?!!¡± Elly shrieked when Mimi told her what happened after she was taken away. She then glanced at me with an amazed face that changed to concern straightaway. ¡°Add that that I now currently have a bounty on my head.¡± I gave out a chuckle, chipping on Mimi¡¯s story. ¡°How much was it? 20 thousand gold coins? I thought it was 50,000 once we were done destroying the place. Hahaha!¡±If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°This is not a laughing matter!¡± Elly was not amused. The price we paid to rescue her was high indeed. Something that she had been contemplating for a while. Judging from our current conditions, she was neither too happy to be rescued and end up like this nor kept hostage within the Royal Palace wall. Mimi tried to ease the blonde girl a little from her inner suffering with some calming words. And this was my cue for me to get out of the way. ¡°Well, I think it¡¯s time. I¡¯m going out.¡± I stood up and walked towards a dead end wall. ¡°W-Where to?¡± ¡°You stay here with others, Elly. Within this wall, all of you are safe but just keep your eyes on the rest. Once we get Popo¡¯s back to his feet, only then we will think of what we need to do next.¡± Reassuring her further, I gave her a smile and added, ¡°No worries. I¡¯m not doing anything reckless. Just meeting some of my contacts, that¡¯s all.¡± ***** --------- Part 2 --------- While waiting for my contacts, I scrutinized the Key Item, <> given to me by Mimi. This was the key that enabled us to enter our current hideout ¨C the same place where we ran away from God¡¯s Wrath and found ourselves some treasures. A secret place that lay beyond the walls deep within a waterfall cavern located just half a day¡¯s walk from the town of Brensberg. We ran from the Royal Capital and having nowhere else within this Kingdom that we could safely travel, we decided to take some risk by returning there. I was holding the only means to enter the place; stuck between the wrath of the Kingdom and also the Gods. It was kind of a d¨¦j¨¤ vu; always running and hiding away from something. What a turn of event indeed. ¡°So, this is where you are!¡± Suddenly, two men came towards me just after the sun had set in. These two were my contacts; Al and Ed. They used the same short form of their real life name even in the game. ¡°Have you seen the latest posters?¡± Alfredo, the younger brother of Eduardo handed me a couple of flyers with my face on it. Sporting a totally contrasting look from the ever suave and cool as ice Ed, Al was lanky with spiky blond hair and a scar across his cheek on his boyish face. He looked like a proper delinquent, far contrary to his real-world innocent self. ¡°Hmm¡­ impressive that they could get my details right. Especially the eyebrow.¡± I gave a chuckle and returned the flyers back to Al. ¡°That and also the increase of your bounty. As it stands, it is now at 30 thousand golds, mind you.¡± Ed came and handed me a bag that contained the items I had asked them to get for me. ¡°It¡¯s all in there. Whatever you wanted.¡± I gave a wry smile to both of them. Meeting them at a PK-Zone nearby my hiding place had helped me tremendously. Other than us, no one else was here. Hearing that both of them had ordered all their guild members here for a field meeting, every other player dared not to trespass this area. Striking an Ambrosia¡¯s members meant that those players were waging war on the 6000 plus strong guild. Not a wise idea as I could attest to since I too at the end of a much larger scale. Once they knew what happened, the first thing they did was to laugh off at me. They knew I was a few screw loose when it came to people but to actually get on the most wanted list of the whole kingdom just for an NPC, that was beyond crazy. Most players would let their ally or any NPC died anyway. In that case, what they lost was a few points of their stats or a little fame. But a minus 15000 fame was unheard of in NPO. To them, I just entered the unofficial Hall of Fame all for the wrong reasons. ¡°Well, it could be 100k gold coins by the end of the week and I don¡¯t give a toss.¡± ¡°That and also every NPC and player are hunting for you. Well¡­ except for the few people of course. The other three were asking for you too, you know.¡± Ed reminded me about the trios. I had their messages but I just ignored them. They meant well but I did not want them to get into my business. Especially this kind of a business. ¡°Thanks for the items. Really appreciate it.¡± I wanted to be gone as swiftly as I came here. ¡°Anything else?¡± Ed asked of me. Al asked to leave us as he had to prepare all the other members before their Guild Master, Ed gave his announcements regarding the next event. The two of them must have been busy with the new event and by the way they went at it, they too must play an important role. I shook my head. ¡°I better leave before you guys start your field meeting here. Can¡¯t have any of your members suspect you doing this¡­¡± I paused for a while and gave out a bitter smile, ¡°¡­meeting a criminal.¡± ¡°If anything were to happen, I could always say that I had caught you.¡± Ed chuckled while handing me another bag. ¡°Something to help you. Not much, but it¡¯s better than having to meet us here in the open. Eyes and ears are everywhere if we are not careful.¡± He was right. We must not get caught being seen together. I quickly left and returned to my hiding place. ***** Chapter 31: What Lies Ahead (Part 3 & 4) --------- Part 3 --------- I handed the elixirs and potions inside the bag given earlier by Ed to Mimi. She slowly uncorked a few of the bottles and fed Popo while I took my rest a little further away. Leaving the couple alone, I must make my decision. Ed and Al had reminded me how much all the other players were hunting for me, even within their own guilds. It was nothing they could do to stop. To do so was to arouse suspicions amongst the members and some might challenge their authorities. In fact, the hottest topic within the whole Kingdom was regarding my whereabouts. Even though Ed and Al had helped me, they too did not know my exact location. There was only one way in and one way out; using the <> that was now in my possession. The problem was what do we do next? Watching Mimi nursing Popo while Elly and Rose looked on, this was not my ideal way of playing NPO. I never thought that I could end up like this. But now was not the time for lamentation. Peering into the corner was a stone door that connected this place deeper into the tunnels towards the Tomb of the Ancient King and of course the Hall of the Forgotten Gods. And what awaited us there was another abomination of a challenge. Suddenly, my thoughts were interrupted by a couple of loud coughs. Glancing at the direction, it seemed Popo had just awakened which brought much relief to all the girls, especially Mimi as she hugged him dearly. The two girls shed a couple of tears as I approached them. ¡°You are one tough rabbit, aren¡¯t you?¡± Popo returned my gaze and he just smiled weakly. ¡°It will take¡­ more than some weaklings¡­ to kill me¡­¡± Heh. So talk the rabbit that nearly died in their hands. ¡°Anyway, you will need to rest more before we could decide to journey on further.¡± With that, Popo slumped into a sleep but his breathing was much smoother now. His complexions had returned and dare I say he was on the road for recovery. The potions and elixirs were potent and it did not come cheap. As Ed told me, he had to dig deep into his guild¡¯s inventory to search for a couple and then spend quite a number of golds to purchase a few more. ¡°You girls better rest too. We have a long journey ahead of us from now on.¡± Elly duly acknowledged and took her rest with Rose. The Alraune was too tired to do anything after exhausting herself back then. Mimi was next to rest once she finished changing Popo¡¯s bandage. The scar across his face had sullied somewhat of his cute face but it was the indication that he had suffered much. Since there was no need for any watch, I¡¯d decided to explore a little of what lies ahead. ***** --------- Part 4 --------- Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. About half a day later, all of us gathered yet again. Popo was still weak though he could now walk with Mimi¡¯s aid. ¡°You mean we have to face that same monster yet again?!¡± Elly was surprised by my decision. I gave a quiet nod. ¡°B-B-But we barely escape it the first time.¡± Though she was right, what lies the other way was no good either. ¡°We can¡¯t stay here for long. Either we go in deeper or we go out and risk ourselves to be chased throughout the whole Kingdom for the rest of our lives. If we are not caught or dead first that is.¡± ¡°Ghost is right. This Kingdom and her allies have deserted us.¡± Mimi ear¡¯s drooped as she turned her head towards the other exit that would lead us out of the cavern. With a shook of her head, she had made her decision to follow through with my suggestions. ¡°Blasted whoreson! I swear I should kill that pup when he was still weak! He is no fit to be a king!¡± Popo continued to curse. He had been like this since he first regained consciousness but I understood his predicaments well. Both of his and Mimi¡¯s titles have been revoked and their fame were reduced though not severely as mine. Whatever they had worked hard for during their whole lives, they had just lost it altogether. However, saving Elly was more important and there were no two ways about it. Though she might have a guilty conscience about what happened to us, we rather had her here amongst her friends rather than being sacrificed by the warmonger of a King. ¡°Besides, I had checked my quest. Since we had all the seven stones with us, I¡¯m sure it would be better than last time. Right?¡± I reasoned out to them but I had yet to test the theory. I only managed to reach a few steps away from the destroyed entrance before I alerted the God¡¯s Wrath. Even though I could hazard a guess that it was still a few thousand feet away from me, once I place both of my feet outside within the giant hallways, its eyes lit up. And for the first time ever, cowardice was my only option. It pained me to say that this would not be the one and only time I would do this. I took out all the seven keystones and placed it in the middle of the group. I was expecting it to glow or show some sort of reaction but who was I kidding. Nothing happened to my immediate dismay. ¡°Perhaps we need to bring it to the Hall of the Forgotten Old Gods. It was stated in the journal, right?¡± Suddenly, I receive a quest message update notification. I opened it up and read the all words carefully.
The Rainbow Bridge The Legend of High Asgardia that was found within the pages of Royal Scholar, Grand Master Yamir Adrain journal had led his student, Mimi to a definite conclusion. There were seven keys that would open a special gate towards the lost civilization found within the Hall of the Forgotten Old Gods. Find it and the Legend will live once more. But beware, what awaits you will be the God¡¯s Wrath themselves shall you prove yourself unworthy. Quest Rank: Special Event Time left: 00:13:29:47 Completion Requirements: Elly, Rose, Popo and Mimi must be in the party at all times. You have found all the keys. Odin¡¯s Wisdom Frigga¡¯s Warmth Thor¡¯s Might Loki¡¯s Trick Idunn¡¯s Love Baldur¡¯s Smile Freyja¡¯s Heart Place all the keystones correctly upon the pedestal and the gate Rainbow Bridge, Bifrost will be opened for you. Quest Reward: Unspecified.
¡°So, we need to place it correctly on the pedestal?¡± Mimi rubbed her chin while in deep thought. We looked at her and since she was the expert archaeologist and the ex-Royal Scholar, she was our point of reference. Whatever we needed to do, most importantly we must never engage the God¡¯s Wrath in any way. What gave me hope was that I had found all the seven keys far ahead of time and that might give us a little leeway. ¡°I¡¯ll handle the pedestal and keystones with Elly.¡± Mimi glanced at Rose and then me. ¡°I suppose you could take care of my husband?¡± I chuckled a little. But Popo was not impressed. ¡°I¡¯m not dead, yet! I¡¯m still able to¡­¡± Despite his protest, Mimi cut him short with a whack on his head. ¡°Do what I told you to do, you piece of a furball. Stop worrying me for once!¡± Popo whimpered and went hiding behind my back. ¡°Alright. To ease you up, I¡¯ll take care of him. Rose will accompany you and Elly should anything arise. Is that agreeable?¡± With a single nod from her, we took a little rest while gathering and supplying ourselves with whatever items and weapons that were not taken during our first time here. It did not take us long before we made our ways towards the Halls of the Forgotten Old Gods yet again. ***** Chapter 31: What Lies Ahead (Part 5) --------- Part 5 --------- With a torch in my hands, I tried to illuminate the path in front of me. Leading the party, I cautiously took the first forward step while the rest followed just a few steps behind. As we appeared from the door facing the giant hallways, God¡¯s Wrath was already waiting for us. Though it was dark, the red shining eyes that floated somewhat 100 feet above the ground gave the indication of its ominous presence. And we prepared ourselves for the worst case scenario as it started to move towards our direction. The deep growling, humming sounds and the thunderous earth shattering footsteps could have made anyone¡¯s heart jumped out of their chest. Or at best, anxious and edgy. It was not just because of its level but also the sheer size, power and skills that lay within those movements that were equally unnerving. However, this was time around we had not the need to fight it. Much to our relief, the God¡¯s Wrath did not raise its weapon to attack us. After taking a few steps towards our way, it suddenly stopped and stood there motionlessly. The glowing red eyes that floated high above us was the only indicator that our foe had not ceased completely. The air around us was indeed a heavy one as if we were now being watched and scrutinized upon by some higher powers. It was nerve wreaking when we walked through the grand hallway. Not wanting to make any noise that might trigger something unnecessary, we took our time travelling as cautiously as possible. Besides the pitch black darkness, we too did not know the exact location of the pedestal. And the moment of truth came when we went passed by the monstrous titan. Afraid that it might suddenly move to attack us out of nowhere, we kept our alertness at the highest point and our formation airtight. All our weapons were readied. Suddenly, something unexpected happened. Once we passed the God¡¯s Wrath, the environment around us started to change. The grand hallway was lighted along the walls rendering my torch useless immediately. More areas were magically lit and it did not take long for the whole place now to look as bright as day. And for the first time ever, I could see the complete structure of the Hall of the Forgotten Old Gods. I was in awe. The structures were not just massive but intricately designed. There were pillars along the walls that were full of various inscriptions. There were also markings on the stone floors that were emitting different colours of lights that were connected to one another like a pattern or something. Perhaps from the top down view, these markings might have meant something. And I too could feel a gentle vibration coming from my feet as I stepped on one of those markings. My eyes peered around and there were more structures with similar designs. Oddly enough, all of these architectures were on the larger scale of things. I would not be wrong to say that this place felt just like a throne room for the giants. Literally, we were just like ants that were traversing to the end of a very large room. ¡°T-These¡­ are the inscriptions by the Old Gods themselves!¡± Mimi was clearly excited but she kept her voice down in lieu of the fear of the motionless titan that was behind us. With a clearer view, the God¡¯s Wrath was indeed fearsome; a stone monstrosity that resembled a fully armoured knight that stood around 100 feet tall, with a giant axe on its back. Perfectly sculpted to the tiniest details.Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation. And to make the matter worse, we found out immediately that it was not the only one. Towards the front-end of the grand hallway was a platform. And on top of the platform was a pedestal. Despite the relief that we finally knew where we were supposed to go, what gave me the chill was the sight just beyond the platform. Sandwiched by giant pillars, stood six stone monstrosities all with the same size as the one behind us now ¨C each one was as impressive as the other though with different designs and details. I really hoped that these six were not by any chance a God¡¯s Wrath. One was more than enough. And seven of those might be an overkill. We continued on forward towards our intended destination. It was not until we reached halfway towards the platform that we heard yet again the rumbling and thundering sounds that made our heart skipped a beat or two. Instinctively, I urged the rest to run as fast as they could towards the platform as I turned and looked around. And true enough, God¡¯s Wrath started to take its first step towards us. Though it did not raise its giant axe at us, I was not about to stand and wait for it to do so. I ran as hard as I could. There was no way we could fight it with our current condition. Courage was one thing. Being reckless was another. However, it did not give chase after us. The constant slow walking paced revealed its intention. Instead of attacking, it was following us. I slowed down my running trying to gauge what would happen next. Elly who carried Mimi and Rose on each of her side too stopped running and then turned around. ¡°What¡¯s wrong, Ghost?¡± ¡°Look!¡± I pointed towards God¡¯s Wrath. ¡°Is it¡­ not attacking us?¡± She asked with a hint of relief but still fearful. ¡°Perhaps. But keep your heads up in any case.¡± Elly put down the other two and the three of them waited for me. We continued to walk at a brisk pace towards our goal. Our Stamina would not last if we kept running at full speed. If the worst did come to us, we rather had our Stamina to be in peak condition and value. All of us were edgy and anxious as I constantly looked behind and checked upon God¡¯s Wrath actions. ¡°Po, could you let me go now?¡± Popo suddenly squirmed on my shoulder. Since he was injured and might slow us down, I decided to carry him. And I had totally forgotten all about him up till this point. ¡°Ghost, put me down!¡± He was not amused even in the slightest and tried to escape from my grasp. But the sight of his wife staring at him menacingly from the side managed to overturn his pride. ¡°Sorry, Popo. But I still have to carry you.¡± Not that I mind a soft, furry and plushy thing on my shoulder. Popo whimpered much to my delight. Once we arrived on the platform did only we breathed a sigh of relief. The God¡¯s Wrath finally stopped moving and fell on one knee. Yet this was not our salvation just yet. We hurried to our next task. All of us stood in front of a large pedestal. Like any other structures within this place, the pedestal too was inscribed with weird patterns and inscriptions. Mimi said it was the writing of the Old Gods. Well, truth to be told, I rather not spend any more time here longer than necessary while listening to some old folks¡¯ tale. At a glance, there might be seven God¡¯s Wrath that would come for us should the worst ever happened.
You have now reached the Pedestal of Light. Place all the seven keystones correctly and your path shall be revealed to you. You have only one (1) try. Should you fail, all of God¡¯s Wrath shall be upon you.
Good news that came with a complimentary bad news. The good news was that we could get out this place and into the unknown land of the High Asgardia. The bad news was that we had only one try and if we failed¡­ Giving myself a few hard taps on my cheeks with both of my hands, I looked at the others, especially Elly and Mimi intently and gave out a solemn nod to them. We must not fail. Failure was not an option. I entrusted all our lives on their hands. If I were to die, I¡¯d be respawned in the nearest safe zone and no doubt would be caught and treated like a criminal. For the others however, this would be the last time I would see them alive. Chapter 32: Where鈥檚 the Silver Lining? (Part 1) Chapter 32: Where¡¯s the Silver Lining? --------- Part 1 ---------
Hall of Valhalla Congratulations. You are the first player to discover the Hall of Valhalla. Brave souls called Einhenjar once walked within this sacred walls freely, governed by the Great God King, Odin Alfodr and his chosen mortal Champion, the Founder and First Emperor of the whole continent, King Siegmund. Now, it is nothing more than a remnant of the old. The traditions and obligations to one¡¯s cause, honour and pride too have ceased to exist alongside the use of this place. Fame +250 EXPs +150,000 Achievement: <> has been unlocked. You had gained yourself favour among the many people who called themselves hunter of the lore, history and truth. Your achievement of discovering new places due to your sense of curiosity and the needs to explore the four corner of this world will never be slighted. The book <> has been completed!
The first thing that greeted me was the system message that popped-up once Mimi and Elly correctly placed all the seven keystones on the pedestal on their first and only try. As colourful rays of seven different type of lights surrounded each one of us, we were transported magically into an unknown place. ¡°For a hallowed place, this sure feels creepy. And not to mention desolate and unkempt. The thick dust is sticking to my paws, po!¡± Popo said my mind out for me. However, for Mimi, this was a big find for her. Within the darkness, I could sense that her breath was short and shallow amidst her incoherent mumble. I lighted up a torch and then kept count of the party. Satisfied that everyone was here, I gave a big sigh of relief. But we were not out of danger just yet. My eyes kept darting around the edges of the light like a paranoid person. But better to be safe than sorry. If something like God¡¯s Wrath or Ein-something came and attack us, all of this would be for nothing. We had to press on forwards but where should we go from here? ¡°M-Master¡­ I-I¡­ I did it!!¡± A piercing shriek rudely jolted me out of my thoughts. Afraid that something might have come our way, I took out my weapon. However, it was just a false alarm. Shaking my head, I managed a dry smile towards the culprit ¨C Mimi. She was already on her knees and immediately broke down into a river of tears. Knowing her, it must surely have been about her Master¡¯s lifelong study and unfinished journal. As his student, I was sure that she dreamt about finding this place and fulfil whatever her old Master¡¯s wishes had left to her. Since we had found this place and thus completing the journal, Mimi was showing an emotion that I never knew she had it in her. I left her alone, sobbing and muttering yet more incoherent words while I explored around. Elly and Rose came with me, leaving Mimi alone with her husband.Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. ¡°Wow, this place is sure huge,¡± I mumbled under my breath as the two girls walked quietly alongside. Our journey was at a snail pace ¨C both slow and laborious. I could not see well what was ahead of us despite having the illumination from the torch. But for once, this was a good change of pace. Keeping things unrushed and slower than usual would allow more time for me to think thoroughly. Especially what I wanted to do next. I was pretty much bummed and had no idea how to proceed from here. I was out of options, friends and definitely allies. Whatever ideals and approaches that I once had when I first started to play this game were flushed down the drain. The corner of my eyes peered at the blonde girl who walked beside me. Her long golden silky hair that flowed down to her waist under the dim light of the torch surrounded by the darkness beyond us made for a very contrasting but beautiful sight. ¡°Perhaps¡­ it was worth it after all.¡± With a bittersweet smile, I pressed on further. We took our time exploring the unknown area and kept our vigil and alertness close to us. However, it did not disguise the size of this place in one bit. Albeit not as large as the place where we came from earlier, I could make out how spacious it was. If I could simply describe it, the structure was like the carbon copy of the Hall of the Forgotten Gods; the pillars, walls, floors and the engravings just felt eerily similar. ¡°Ghost¡­ I-I¡­¡± Suddenly, the silence of our exploration was broken and I peered towards Elly. She looked quite uncomfortable. Her pained expression somewhat made me curious. Did this place give her the creeps? Or did she recalled some painful experience by walking around in this sort of place? A traumatic NPC was something that I would never expect, ever. I stopped and jerked my head at her. She was a little hesitant and kept on fidgeting. ¡°Is there something troubling you, Elly?¡± Despite my inquiry, she stood silently while her eyes darted around lacking focus. Perhaps tired of it all, it was Rose who blurted out for me. ¡°Stupid Sis wanted to say sorry, Papa!¡± ¡°Ohhh?¡± Raising my eyebrows, I scrutinized the two of them intently. Elly finally nodded her head. And for breaking the ice, Rose crossed her arms and gave out some sort of a victorious smile. She must be really happy with herself. In regards to Elly, I couldn¡¯t say that I was not surprised. She had been acting weird since we rescued her. I thought it was to do with her acceptance of her fate, like how I used to act when I became a paraplegic. Rejection of one¡¯s own reality, especially the painful and bad ones could break a person. And because of that, I¡¯d let Elly alone to her thoughts. But to hear from Rose that she wanted to say sorry was news to me. ¡°It¡¯s alright.¡± I tried to ease her. But she was having none of it. ¡°B-But¡­¡± ¡°But what?¡± I asked. ¡°I-I-I have lied to you! Everything about me¡­ I-I had lied¡­¡± She stuttered at the end of her words. However, this time around the surprise elements did not work at all. I had my reservations when I first got her as my ally. With a question mark on her class and the way she acted and behave was not incongruent at all with what I was told, I knew immediately that there was something more to her than she would ever let me knew. But as an ally, other than that one time, she had proved to me her immeasurable values. For me, that alone was more than enough. ¡°It¡¯s alright. I knew you had not been truthful to me, but you have your reasons.¡± I turned around and started walking. ¡°You are still my ally and I¡¯ll still have your back no matter what. I trust you with my life. So, when you can trust me enough, perhaps you could¡­¡± Before I could finish my words, I received a hard and big hug from my back. The force was so strong that I took a couple of steps forward to balance myself. ¡°Not fair!! You are not supposed to hug Papa like that! I want one too!!¡± And then came another hug that finally took me down to the floor. As the torch flew forward, the two girls had made their homes on my back. ¡°Oi, you two! Let me go already!¡± But my muffled protest went through deaf ears. ¡°Hahaha. Seems like there¡¯s one of us who have trouble with women too, po!¡± The damn rabbit came, squatted in front of me and then gave a pat on my head. Instead of helping me, he just rubbed salt into my wounds by winding up me further. Of my miseries and how lousy I was with women. ¡°S-Shut up, you half-dead rabbit!¡± ¡°Po! I-I¡¯m not¡­¡± ¡°Yah, yah! Now shooed these two from my bad. My stamina is dropping like flies!¡± However, Popo just smiled at me and with another pat on my head, he stood up and laughed away. ¡°Come girls. I know your feelings for Ghost, but you better let him go. Or else we have to carry him next.¡± Mimi came and she was the one who helped me from being pinned like this. ¡°Yah, who will be carrying Popo when I¡¯m out of it, ehh?¡± ¡°I can walk by myself, po! I don¡¯t need you to carry me like a child!!¡± The damn Bunnian retorted but was instantly whacked on his head by Mimi. One glare from her immediately shut him up for good. ¡°Whatever, you skirt wearing one-eyed rabbit.¡± The rest of us laughed at Popo¡¯s expense. Though we were yet out of our troubles, a little respite like this would do us a world of good for things to come. ***** Chapter 32: Where鈥檚 the Silver Lining? (Part 2) --------- Part 2 --------- ¡°I¡¯ll continue to call you Elly. Is that alright with you?¡± Elly nodded enthusiastically. ¡°I¡¯m fine with anything you call me, Ghost.¡± ¡°I-Is that so? If you feel like that, perhaps you could ease off a little from hugging my arms like that. And you too, Rose.¡± ¡°No, I don¡¯t wanna!¡± Rose protested and hugged me tightly on my legs. These two girls had suddenly become so clingy. With three people ¨C I mean two people and a rabbit holding on to me, I had trouble to walk properly and I was becoming kind of annoyed. Trying to swat Rose away from my leg, Popo continued where I left off. ¡°So, your real name is Elyzabeth Brynhildr, po?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what the name I was given with by Archmagus Adrain.¡± ¡°So, my Master gave you that name?¡± Elly nodded at Mimi¡¯s question. She finally opened up herself and told us about her past. But something else caught my attention. ¡°Archmagus? I thought he was a Grand Master of something. A Royal Scholar like Mimi.¡± In Elly¡¯s stead, it was Mimi who answered it for me. ¡°My master was a man with many abilities. He was a powerful mage, brilliant archaeologist, a great teacher, a true friend but sadly, loyal to a fault. Honestly, he was just like you.¡± ¡°Ohh¡­¡± But I was neither a mage nor an archaeologist and a very lousy teacher to boot. Perhaps at a stretch, the only similarity was the loyalty and being a true friend to these allies of mine. ¡°But you say you ran away from the Royal Palace? Why, po?¡± Good question Popo. Something I had been wanting to ask Elly myself. ¡°When I was awake for the first time, I could not recount anything at all. Not even where I come from nor who am I actually. However, I learnt many things under Archmagus Adrain. And it was him who told me that I was connected to the High Asgard legends but we were unsure in what way.¡± After a moment of brief but pained silence, she continued with her story. ¡°The Archmagus wanted to find High Asgard to expand our knowledge of the realm and to discover many unknown lands with me being at the forefront. For the sake of our generations, he said. One must seek to understand their past to strive forward. Unfortunately, that was where it ended. After his shocking demise, his words were no longer adhere to.¡±This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. Finally letting her hands off my arm, she touched her chest and glanced downwards casting sad and teary eyes. ¡°When those people find out that I was the key to enter High Asgard, they had been doing all kinds of experiments on me. A tool, they said should be used however fit to serve its owner. They were ruthless¡­¡± Her voice was shaking and Mimi came around patting her back to try and ease her a little. ¡°My normal day had become a living hell. It was nightmares, whether in my sleep or wake.¡± ¡°Poor girl¡­¡± I could relate to Elly. And she was right to run away from her tormentors. After escaping from the Royal Palace, she took refuge and hid within the dark alleys and the backstreets far away from prying eyes and those who wanted to find her at all cost. According to her, it was a game of many cats and a single mouse. It was not long thereafter that she found herself at the City of Asgardia and made her living as a small-time thief. She would still be a thief if I did not catch her at that time. Or to let her go and brought her to Popo. For that reason alone, she was ever grateful to me. A fact that she went countless of time to reiterate. And for all my efforts, I had maxed out her affinity towards me which stood at 60. She had now reached the Revered stage but I could do less with her being clingy all of a sudden. Having Rose was more than enough for me to handle. However, I was too na?ve to think otherwise. ¡°That bloody pipsqueak useless whoreson!¡± Suddenly, Popo shout out another curse. It was starting to become a norm after we successfully rescued Elly. Hearing his next words, he might have good reasons for it too. ¡°I regret that I did not kill him while he was still a child or better yet, in the Queen¡¯s womb. By the time I¡¯d realized it, he was full of malice and ruthless to others. Now, he is a warmongering tyrant.¡± He ended his words with a loud snort and his whiskers moved fiercely. Mimi then added, ¡°And that¡¯s the reason why we left our post and past lives to live at the fringe of the Kingdom. The King was not just ruthless to Elly, but to all that oppose him. But when he summoned us, we feared the worst.¡± ¡°H-He¡­ threatened us with our children¡¯ lives if we do not heed his Royal Summon.¡± Popo clenched his fist hard. I could see how emotional he was. Mimi too stayed silent by his side. Looked like all of them had a hard time with the current King. I¡¯d never met him myself but after what happened to me, I had no doubt I was in his bad book list. Unfortunately, I too had just gained an enemy that I could ill afford to have. I gave out a wry smile thinking about it. ¡°Papa¡­ I sense an opening over that side!¡± Suddenly, Rose tugged on my arms. Because we did not know the layout of this place, the best we could do was to let Rose use her skills, <> and spread the vines throughout the whole area; to explore the place on our behalf. It was a feat that took quite a while as we waited for the results. ¡°Good job, Rose!¡± I patted her on her head and she just let out a satisfying smile. ¡°Alright all, let check the place where Rose just mentioned.¡± ***** Chapter 32: Where鈥檚 the Silver Lining? (Part 3) --------- Part 3 ---------
High City of Asgardia Congratulations. You are the first player to discover the High City of Asgardia. Known throughout the world as the city of the Old Gods, located on the peak of Mount Valenheim, this city was once the capital of the whole continent. But as history goes, 5000 years ago, High City of Asgardia had closed its doors to outsiders, namely the Lowlanders. No one had ever stepped their feet ever since until today. Fame +450 EXPs +250,000 Achievement: <>has been unlocked. Your fame within the special group of archaeologists, explorers and hunters and seeker of fame and fortune had risen. There are very few people in this world who discovered more lands than you in such amount of time. <> has been updated. Gained Key Words, < >.
Once we exited the desolate Hall of Valhalla through a stone door, we were greeted with a blinding light. A system message immediately popped up and once I¡¯d done reading it, I turned around and surveyed my new surroundings. All of us were standing on top of a high platform connected to the ground below by a series of cobblestone stairs. The windy and cold breeze that brushed against our skins and hair made for a wonderful feeling, far from the stuffy and dusty place we exited from earlier. From this viewpoint, I could see the whole city below; shrouded by white clouds as its roof sticking up in between with the clear blue sky serving as its backdrop. It was like how one would always portray a sky island. The only dead giveaway that we were not on the sky was the overlooking shadows of the mountainsides that casted over the Hall of Valhalla. Behind the building was a large and tall tower that pierced the sky. However, the system message did not give me anything regarding that tower. If that was the case, then there was only one thing that we could now ¨C to descend the stairs onto the city below. Mimi was very excited as she dashed forward from the whole group. Popo struggled on my shoulder as he tried to rein in his wife¡¯s over-exuberant excitement. I tried to hold him tighter but he was not having it. Locked in our little staring contest, he hissed a little and gave me whack on my head before I finally had to let him go. In fact, the moment I put him on the ground, I gave a kick to his backside and down the stairs he tumbled. Like a rolling sack of furball. I gave out a snicker as Elly stared at me and shook her head in dismay. The two Bunnians finally disappeared below the stairs, leaving the rest of us here. I took a stroll down with a much-needed relief. I had been edgy for quite a while but this sort of peaceful situation was indeed much welcomed. But somehow, some part of my senses were tingling. It was becoming too peaceful. It was too silent, like the calm before a storm. And my senses were proven right yet again. Mimi¡¯s scream from below ended whatever short respite we had. Cursing my luck, the three of us ran downstairs with our weapons unsheathed. Fearing for the worst, we rushed and confronted our would-be enemies. But what greeted us was something that I would never expect. Judging from the system message, I could safely assume that I was the first player to be here. In that case, all of these people with wings around us were the NPCs of the city. Yeah, they had wings; white, small and slender built lump of feathers on their backs. And I could not take my eyes off the surroundings either. Mimi was starry eyes, her jaw was agape and her saliva drooled while Popo tried hard to returned his wife to her calm and dignified self. It was not a scream of fear that came from her that alarmed us. In fact, it was her delighted scream.Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator. Elly too behaved in the same way as I was ¨C like a deer lost in the city. The architectures were indeed spellbinding; majestic white-only buildings made of shiny marble-like stones that reflected the clear sky above. The calmest was Rose who was always within her own world without an inkling care of her surroundings. And the city¡¯s NPCs too were surprised as they sifted us out like we were some sort of exhibit. Coupled with the scream and the way we came down the stairs and onto the roads, we really did ourselves major injustice ¨C like a group of misfit barbarians setting foot in our very first civilization. The differences between our party and the whole lot of them were too astounding. But before anyone of us could calm our senses and make reasons for our new surroundings, suddenly we could hear murmurs on the street. But these were not the kind of murmurs that would make anyone feel welcomed. ¡°W-What are those ugly creatures?! I¡¯ve never seen such ugly wingless creatures before!¡± ¡°W-Where have they come from? These creatures are not our natives!¡± ¡°They come from the Sacred Hall! But¡­¡± Creatures, wingless one, ugly and many others names they called us. And to make the matter worse, suddenly we heard loud footsteps coming our way. A group of armoured soldier came and pointed their weapons at us; swords, spear, bows and arrows. And each one of them appeared in very hostile and menacing manners. ¡°Halt, wingless creatures!!¡± Being surrounded by them in the new area, what more with my party¡¯s current condition, I¡¯d to admit this was grim instead. Beside of having our weapons unsheathed in the middle of the town, we had made for a very poor first impression. Furthermore, I was afraid that my negative fame had brought us unneeded trouble. ¡°Such abominations! We have never seen anything like you before!!¡± One of the soldiers came forward and pointed his sword at Mimi who stood at the front most of our group. ¡°Please calm down. We did not mean to alarm you. We come in peace.¡± Realizing what was going to happen, Mimi took the lead and spoke to the guards. She raised her hands up signifying that she was unarmed and meant what she said. However, these guards displayed none of the ethics toward a surrendering and harmless gesture. ¡°Who gave you permission to speak?!¡± One of the soldiers tried to hit her with the blade of his sword but Popo quickly pushed his wife away and he was hit instead. Seeing that, I immediately grabbed hold of his arm and twisted it as I kicked the back of his knee. In that instant, I was surrounded by soldiers with their weapons near my neck, while Elly had been captured and Rose had been pinned down before they too could do anything. ¡°How dare you hurt one of ours!!¡± Another soldier was threatening me verbally. He was a little apprehensive but judging from his words and of the others, I did not think they were messing around. ¡°Hurt?! You are the first one who treated us like some vermin, po! You hurt my wifey, po!!!¡± Popo stood in front of his wife. Though there were weapons pointed at him too, he was snarling and hissing. And once more, I was seeing that weird stance of his again; releasing the Meister¡¯s Edict. Since I could not bear him to get injured so soon, I decided to parley for all of us. ¡°We are new here. Welcomed or not, we are still the guest of the city.¡± ¡°You wingless creatures are not our guest! For millennia, we had never such a guest from the lowlands!¡± Looked like talking to these goons would yield no result at all. ¡°I will only speak to your leader. Lent us his ears and I will explain it to him!¡± ¡°We will not! You are not allowed here. Your punishment for trespassing our sacred city is death!¡± ¡°Death?!¡± When I heard that word, my hands trembled and I began to laugh. The soldiers who threatened me earlier stared at me bewilderedly. I continued to laugh even louder and this time, everyone around us including the commoners and passersby started to focus their attentions on us. Some of them were in fear, but most of them were in disgust. ¡°I¡¯m not afraid of death. If you insist on trying to harm us, I¡¯ll destroy you and this sacred city of yours like how I did before I came here.¡± I spat to the ground and then I twisted the arm of the soldier that struck Popo earlier even harder. ¡°You could make this a messy death, or you could spare the lives of your men and the people around here.¡± I jerked my head and glanced at our surrounding. We were in some sort of city square and there were literally thousands of people around here. Our scene had taken their attention from whatever they were doing. Listening to my words, all of them went pale. ¡°H-He is a monster!¡± ¡°He dares to threaten us within our own walls?!¡± ¡°Our city soldier can protect us from them. They are just a bunch of weak wingless creatures!¡± ¡°Yeah! Their numbers are just a few compare to our guys!¡± ¡°B-But what if he says is true¡­ then¡­¡± ¡°SILENCE!!¡± Suddenly, a deep loud voice penetrated the whole square. Everyone was shaken to their core, including the soldiers that were surrounding us. The owner of this voice must be a very powerful figure indeed to have such an effect. All the other voices around us evaporated immediately and the soldiers who threatened us lost their composure. And each and every one of them looked directly opposite of where I stood. The people that were blocking my view suddenly parted away and now, the image of the very person came into full view. Wearing a regal white robe with gold lining around its edges plus a matching large rounded hat of some kind, a middle-aged man came forward with a few guards on his tow. With one wave of his hand, those who stood blocking his way parted and bowed their heads in reverence. ¡°What is the manner of this commotion within my city wall?!¡± So, this was their leader, huh? Finally, a chance to play parley and get out of this place in one piece. ***** Chapter 32: Where鈥檚 the Silver Lining? (Part 4) --------- Part 4 --------- ¡°Put all of these maggots in jail!¡± ¡°Yes, Lord Governor!¡± As the soldiers surrounded us, I knew that this was an inescapable situation. Tried as hard as I could but I won¡¯t be able to free myself and the others. The Lord Governor came and in that instant, our fate was made known immediately. There was no parity nor negotiations. Turning his nose at us in contempt, he made his feeling known to his subordinates as we were shackled hastily. Before long, we were taken into a dungeon. Our journey was unpleasant at best; being jeered and insulted was expected. But what was not expected was we were pelted with stones and rotten eggs. I expected a few rotten vegetables too but fortunately, this was something that all of us could do without. ¡°I never knew our first trip to High Asgard could end like this,¡± Mimi spoke as she peered through the bars of our cell. ¡°You mean to start like this? Instead of marvelling its architectures and histories, we now spend our time in jail?¡± I sat at the most back, overseeing everyone else. Mimi continued to peer out our cell while the others just kept quiet.Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. ¡°Sucks to be stuck in here of all places. Archaeology my arse. Give me a break for God¡¯s sake!¡± Mimi whimpered after listening to my words. Her ears drooped. This experience affected her the worst as she lived and breathed archaeology. Or finding new lands and lore within it. Well, finding a one dead and long forgotten city was different than a well alive and prosperous city like this. I was contemplating what sort of game I was in. Being jailed was a first for me even in a game. I did some juvenile detention back in my youth, but nothing beats being in a dingy, damp and decrepit place like this. Game or no game, I was not happy. Feeling frustrated, I logged out of the game immediately. However, it did nothing to alleviate my situation even in the tiniest bit as I would find myself back in the jail the moment I logged in. ¡°This is useless!!¡± Rose was startled by the loud voice I¡¯d made. She slept next to me with Mimi now coddling her. This was not how I supposed to spent my time playing this game. I glanced at Popo. ¡°How long have we been in here?¡± Instead, Mimi quickly answered. ¡°A day and a half.¡± ¡°Hmpphh¡­ blasted wretched people!¡± I paced myself towards the bar and shouted. ¡°Oi, you feckers!! Let us out of here!!¡± And the returning silence was really unnerving. None of us could use any skills within the confine of this small place and all our items had been confiscated. Loki¡¯s Mischief, however, was spared since they deemed it as a cursed item. But without any active skills nor items that I could use, this ring was useless. I grabbed the bars and shouted once more. And yet again, the silence was all I got. I turned back and was utterly pissed off. Weighing about our fate, I did not think that all of us could end up this way. But wait¡­ all of us? Someone was definitely missing. ¡°Mimi, where¡¯s Elly?¡± AUTHORS NOTE #2: New Year 2019 Message #HAPPY NEW YEAR 2019# Hi all, To all my readers, I apologies for not updating my work these past few weeks. I had some health issues and since I am now cleared to do whatever I needed to do, I''m back to my feet and could now start to work on the story.This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. To those who had waited patiently and messaged me, I am thankful for your concern. I will see that this story deserved my fullest commitment to complete it. Thank you yet again for your understanding and kind words. See you again. I''ll be posting the next chapter shortly.